It's hard to believe that a third of the year has already come & gone. I always heard it said that the more kids you have, the faster time flies. It's true! Well, okay, it doesn't really go faster, but my days are busier & soon we will be adding #4 to the mix. That's right! Only 12 more weeks to go until Baby Schwartz makes his/her debut!! I am very ready to have this pregnancy over & done with. It seems this one has been much more uncomfortable & inconvenient than the last 3. I'm pretty sure it has to do with the fact that I still have another one attached at the hip & disciplining two pre-schoolers constantly.
Aside from the fact that we are going to have another baby, our lives are changing in other ways as well. We have moved from Goshen to Shipshewana, so we are much further from the convenience of close-by shopping. The move has been a good one so far, as the girls have much more freedom to run outside & I don't have to watch them quite so closely. Lexi has learned to ride bike without training wheels & enjoys the long driveway as opposed to our tiny one in town. Petra keeps up with her pretty well on her smaller bike, not quite ready to venture out on her own two-wheeled bike. Nova has learned to scoot herself around on the little plastic tricycle & throws a fit if we go out & she can't find it!
Another change for us is the fact that Lexi is really going through alot of growing stages this year. As Nova is getting teeth, in the last week, Lexi lost both of her bottom front teeth! She is pretty proud of the fact that she has a gappy smile these days & we make sure to tell her how cute she is when she smiles! The first one came out while she was watching tv, the second, at the Sturgis Walmart Supercenter! She said she actually pulled it out herself because she was tired of wiggling it! Of course, I had to explain to her that a store was probably not the most convenient place she could have pulled it, on our way to the bathroom to rinse the blood off! I heard one young teen girl say "Gross" as we passed by & I looked at Lexi just beaming from ear to ear with blood all over her teeth. I would have to agree with the teen, but she was just so proud & didn't care what people thought! So innocent...Petra is impressed, but has mixed emotions about losing teeth. She wants so badly to be like Lexi, but not sure she's ready for that kind of excitement! She will be getting her ears pierced for her 4th birthday this summer, so that's enough for her right now!
Lexi will also be going to her first year of school in August. Now that we are in Shipshe, she gets to go to the newer school called Meadowview. I took her to the Kindergarten screening last month & she did great, as I knew she would. She passed all the "tests" while I sat with the other parents & learned a little about the curriculum & techniques they use. I know it will be a great experience for her. She is very social and is looking forward to making new friends & learning new things. This past year, I tried doing some workbooks with her & she really loved doing it. I have found out, however, that I was smart to not go to college for teaching as I don't enjoy teaching anything! Petra is quite disappointed that she isn't old enough to go with Lexi, but I'm hoping that with her older sister away, Petra will be able to develop some of her own interests & not just copy Lexi. We see alot of athletic ability in her, so hopefully we can get her involved in soccer this summer. She will also get over it once the baby arrives, I'm sure. She is probably the most excited of the two about having another baby to hold. I think she will be quite the entertainer for Nova & baby when Mommy needs the help!
Well, the girls are about to wake from their naps, so I will have to close this. My summer is already half gone it seems as we have been incredibly busy. With the move 3 weeks ago, a family reunion this weekend, and a trip to Ohio next Friday, June will be gone. In July, we have a wedding in Evansville, IN (about 5 hours south), and we are looking forward to that. Chris & I will be travelling without our girls & have two nights alone (sort of). With softball every Friday night, the 4-H fair, & going to the beach when we can, July will be gone quickly. In August, Petra will turn 4, Lexi will start school, & Chris turns 30. I think there's one week in August that doesn't look too full & then it's baby time! Just writing about it feels a bit stressful, but I'm ready to go!
I hope this post finds all of you planning a fun summer for your families! Stay well & God bless you & yours! Hopefully I will find time to update before September, but don't count on it!
