The Rosenvalls Come to Town

Chris' parents and brother Alex came to visit the first week of August. We tried to show them some of the popular sites in Alaska. Despite a few days of bad weather, we were able to see a lot and had a great time visiting! 

Matanuska Glacier

Just because he usually gets left out of the pictures because he's taking them :) 

Cook Inlet - view from Point Woronzof in Anchorage

We stopped at Portage Glacier on our drive down to Seward - another coastal town on the Kenai Peninsula.

You have to take a ferry to see this glacier.

It rained the ENTIRE time we were in Seward. The boys made the best of our trip there without any toys. Hopefully the vacation rental owners don't mind that their cushions turned into a "jail". 

Strawberry patch outside our vacation house. Our berry loving children were a little obsessed.

Don't mess with this captain! 

We stopped at a Blueberry Festival in Girdwook, AK on the way back from Seward. 

Wild blueberries all over for the pickin'!  We didn't really come prepared to pick  buckets of them but Clark enjoyed a few handfuls.

Random wood carving competition on the drive home.

Independence Mine in Hatcher's Pass

Playing in the old mining cars

Clark and Uncle Alex really bonded on this trip.  They teased and teased each other. And laughed and laughed. I didn't seem to get any pictures of them together though!  Unfortunately Vova (grandma in Portuguese) had to sit between them on every car ride we went on. But she was a good sport and I think she'll still come back to visit again sometime! ;)

Thanks for coming!

Baby #3 and Pregnancy Survival

I am pretty sure most people heard the news via Facebook, email, or word of mouth that we are having baby #3 sometime around the holidays. The due date is December 10th but Isaac was 2 weeks early and I'm hoping for another early bird :)

The doctor wasn't able to get a really good look during the ultrasound, but she said she was about 90% certain it was a girl...whatever that means.  Right now we are planning on it being a girl unless we are told otherwise. 

The boys are really excited about having a baby around. I think the 3 year gap will be a magic age gap for making things more manageable. I'm hoping to get potty training under wraps with Isaac before we add another to the mix. Isaac is finally seeming more like a little boy than a baby and more self-sufficient in many ways. 

I hate belly shots, but here's 21 weeks. 

We kept this pregnancy a secret from our parents for quite a while. I'm not totally sure why, but it was fun and makes the pregnancy go by faster!  It was hard not to slip and make references to how I was feeling, etc. 

Here are some pictures and tips from my first trimester on how to survive being sick while taking care of other kids. 

- Teach the oldest to make toast. And pour a bowl of cereal. 

- Teach the oldest to tip the younger one out of a pack n' play. 

- Teach the oldest to open string cheese. 

- Teach the oldest to get a stool to reach bananas from the counter. 

- Teach the oldest to type in the iPad password. 

- Teach the oldest to waddle to your bedside with a wet wipe so you can wipe his bum after he goes potty. 

- Teach the oldest to change the younger one's diapers. (just kidding....I wish!)

- Have diapers and wipes next to your bed so you can change a diaper without having to leave bed. 

- Stock your bedside drawer with applesauce pouches to feed to kids who want breakfast too early. 

- Have your husband leave breakfast on the table for the kids before he leaves for work. (This one is SUPER nice!)

- PAPER PLATES!! (Looking at dishes totally grossed me out and throwing away the mess was much easier!)

- Seclude younger child to pack n' play for various activities. 

These little tricks allowed me to stay in bed until 10 a.m. some days!  Granted, my kids watched way too many shows and played way too many games on the iPad, but we survived!  Feel free to use my tips/tricks if you need them anytime soon! ;) 

Sister Visitors

WARNING: Picture Overload

At the end of June, Aunt Jocey and Uncle David came to visit. The highlight of their visit for ME was getting to see this cute little stinker again. She is almost as active as Clark was at this age, but she throws in some girly charm by twirling her dress and flirting with Uncle Chris. 

Charlotte was constantly being fed by the boys.

We went for a hike in Hatcher's Pass - Gold Cord Lake Trail.  At the top of the climb is a gorgeous lake. 

We bribed the boys with suckers to reach the top - they made it!

Jocey and David were good sports to sit in the back seat most everywhere we went.  Car seats ruin everything...

Pit stop on the way to Homer - a southern Alaska coastal town. The Halibut capital of the world!

Exploring Homer while the men-folk were out catching our halibut for dinner.

Love language = FOOD!

At the beach in Homer.  This is about as good as it gets in Alaska.  With seashells, tide pools with star fish, and the mountains lining the ocean....we had a good time!

My little girl better be as cute and sweet as this one!

Smores on the beach = mother anxiety with children near an open flame. 

Selfie with baby Charlotte

We dressed her in the boy's old clothes so she wouldn't ruin hers. :)

Overlooking Homer - we'll be back!

Cucumbers on the car ride home (stopped of course)

David stayed for about 10 days and then Aunt Nessie came to take his place. The kids always love when she comes.

Twinners

Momma and naked baby

We decided to do a sister hike up "The Butte".  I was pretty proud of my pregnant self for making it up all those dang stairs. 

Cloudy at the top and raining on the way down, but worth the views!

I knew this hammock would come in handy..

Smores - mmmmm

Seeing some wildlife

We had a sister night to help me feel better about our drama with buying a house.  Face masks that made my face BURN, ice cream, and What Not to Wear on Netflix. Time well spent.

And just a couple of classic Nessie pictures ;)

Thanks for visiting!!