A-Slippin'-and-a-slidin' with the Steiner Kids!

My sister-in-law, Anna, is on a mission trip in Mexico, so we're watching the kids for the weekend to give my brother a break (especially since he goes to church early on Sundays!). Uncle Nolan thought that it might be fun if we got a slip-n-slide instead of just running through the sprinklers... so after trips to three stores, we finally found one! The boys were so excited to use it. We now know why the recommended age is 5 and up. It took quite a few tries before Josiah finally mastered what you're supposed to do, and Micah finally just figured out how to slide on his knees. They still loved it though!

Cami didn't feel like playing in the water. Instead she had fun with Toby's leash, looking at the flowers, and going up and down the step.

Josiah finally figured out how to run and slide!

Micah finally figured out how to at least slide on his knees!

Micah wanted his towel wrapped around his waist

We set up the crib we got for our baby in the guest room, hoping Cami might respond better to it than the pack and play at nap time. She didn't, so we let the boys take their nap in our room instead of listening to her cry. When I came upstairs later, they were cuddled up like this, sound asleep!

We had a fun afternoon, then we had a nice evening at church, came home and all three kids had a blast playing with Toby in the backyard. It's so nice to have them not be scared of him anymore!

He Passed!!!

Nolan finally received his results today from the exam he took in April to become a Professional Engineer! And, as I knew all along, he passed!

Our Exciting News

On Sunday, May 24, Nolan and I found out that we're going to have a baby!!! We're very excited. We immediately got on the computer and used the web cam to chat with my parents (which also meant calling Dan and Anna and their clan on speaker phone so Grandma could hear the reaction). That was followed by calls to Nolan's parents and all the other Nelsons.

Today I had our first ultrasound and was able to see the baby's heart beat. Turns out we're just at six weeks, so it's a blessing to be able to see the heart beat already. Our due date is officially set for February 1. I'm sure it'll go by quickly!

Dad took pictures of Tim's laptop as they chatted with us.

Wylie is always entertaining

Wylie decided to wake Jill up this morning by crashing against the blinds at our front door. She investigated and found that Wylie was very interested in the neighbor cat that was on our front porch.

Wylie sees a friend from Nolan Nelson on Vimeo.

A Very Beachy Post

We've been having a nice spring. Nolan survived his test and I'm sure he passed it (even though we won't know the results until late June/July). I had a great birthday, especially going to the beach with Anna and the kids the next day! And we enjoyed celebrating our anniversary at the Hallmark Resort in Newport last weekend. It was so much fun to be able to take Toby with us. Poor thing, though, he gets carsick, so the trip over wasn't without challenges. We stopped once because he was drooling so much in an effort to calm him down. Then we stopped again when he threw up. And then we stopped for about an hour because there was an accident and they weren't letting traffic through. At least we were able to let Toby out (on his leash of course), and Nolan was able to get wireless signal on his laptop! It was nice for him to be able to check how long detours would take and be reassured that we were doing the right thing in just waiting for them to clear the road. We finally made it to Newport and had a great time!

Cami ate what might have been her first Oreo on our way to the coast!

I could get her to smile, just not look at the camera!
Micah playing in the sand

Josiah climbing

Nolan checking Map quest on our way to the beach

We were too late to get a nice dinner, so we settled for McDonald's instead

Toby standing in the wind outside our hotel. We had him on a 16 ft. retractable leash, so he felt free

The view from our room

Introducing Toby to the beach. He likes to stand against us

Happily Married!

Three Years Ago Today...

We got married! It has been a wonderful three years! In some ways I can't believe it's already been three years, but mostly, it seems like we've always been married. We faced a lot in the first year--buying a house, me starting a new position at work, a hospital stay, my parents moving away, and lots of great memories. After that everything has been pretty calm! It's exciting to think of all our next year of marriage could bring.

I am blessed to have such a sweet and wonderful husband who loves the Lord so much and honors Him through the way that he leads our family. He is a man I respect, and he doesn't let me just get my way! Here's looking back at the past three years...

Honeymoon in Hawaii

Fourth of July, 2007 (oops! out of order!)

Our first Christmas as a married couple & in our house! December 2006

Visiting DC for our 1 year anniversary (and Tim's end of Pleeb Year)

Visiting Mount Vernon, May 2007

Christmas with our kitties, Sophie & Wylie, 2007

Summer vacation in Cambria, here we are at Hearst's Castle, July 2008

Once again in DC, this time for Thanksgiving in 2008

My Smart Husband

Tomorrow (April 24) Nolan will be taking an 8 hour math test! He'll be taking his Professional Engineer's Exam (the PE) to become licensed to do his own engineering work. Currently, everything he does has to be signed off on by his boss. This test is like the Bar Exam for lawyers, and the CPA for accountants. He's been studying for about six months now every evening and whenever he has time at work. His books are loaded in the car (he has about 90 pounds of books to take with him), his backpack is full of snacks, calculators and a ruler, and his GPS is programmed and ready to go. He may not think so, but I'm sure his brain is also set and ready to think! It'll be up to three months before he hears back if he passes or not. I'll be praying for him and I hope you will too!