Remembering 2010...

Merry Christmas! 2010 has been a blessed year in our house! From home renovations, to starting a new job, to welcoming our beautiful Abby into our family, we have so much to be thankful for this holiday season.

We began 2010 with home projects, and since January have painted our kitchen, dining room, living room, foyer, and both kids' bedrooms. We've also installed new carpet in the living room, new flooring in the dining room, and various light fixtures throughout the house. In addition, Brant tested out his woodworking skills by making and installing new baseboard trim and chair rails, and is continuing to work on crown molding. Of course, we've always got Ben to help us out!

Ben turned two in March and is such a delightful little boy, always full on energy and something interesting to say. He spent spring and summer enjoying fishing and canoeing with Brant in our pond. I absolutely loved my time at home with him this summer. We went to the swimming pool often, frequented the library, and made many trips to the park. Ben also loved our vacation to the lake this summer. He couldn't get enough of the water and the sand, as well as the smores over the fire in the evening. The picture below is one of my favorites - truly an exhausted boy after a perfect summer day at the lake, just enjoying a smore. Ben also discovered that he loves to help me bake in the kitchen, and to help eat the sweet treats afterward! Ben has adjusted very well to being a big brother and Abby is now an essential part of his hugs and kisses routine at bedtime!Abby arrived on October 26. She is such a precious baby girl. She enjoys her big brother making funny faces at her, bouncing and dancing to Christmas music, and being cuddled. She has started to offer her bright smiles to us in the last few weeks. Seeing that little light in her eyes with her smiles is so great!

Brant continues to work for Bader Rutter and Associates out of our home. He travels frequently to the home office in Milwaukee and to visit his client in Indianapolis. I started a new position as an Instructional Coach with Ankeny Schools. I'm loving the new challenge and being able to work with teachers in all grade levels, but also appreciate being in my same building with many familiar faces.

My favorite Christmas ornament came with a note from my mother. which also hangs on our tree, that she left in the my Christmas ornament box before she passed away. The ornament says LOVE in white, sparkly letters. This is our fifth Christmas without her, our second without Dad, so I'd like to share a few of her words from this note with you:

I hope that the true meaning of Christmas has brought peace to your heart, not just during the Christmas season, but everyday.

All of the best to you and yours!

Blessings and "Ben-isms"

Although Thanksgiving isn't for a week and half, Brant and I find ourselves so very thankful and blessed for our family. Ben is seeming more and more like a little boy and makes us laugh continually with his comments and conversations. Abby is a snuggly, adorable baby and has reminded us how amazing the miracle of life is. It is incredible to think how much she will change in such a short amount of time.

On a lighter note, here are a few "Ben-isms" that have been made lately:

On the day we came home from the hospital, Ben said at supper, "It is so nice to have a baby!". We replied, "It is so nice to have our big boy back!" Ben continued, "It is so nice to have my mommy and daddy back!"

Ben while peering at Abby in her bouncy seat: "I'm just hanging with my baby!"

Random comment while running errands with Brant: "Solve my riddle! Nobody crosses my bridge!" (We have figured out since then that this came from a Dora movie)

While feeding Abby one night and getting ready for bed, Ben came into her room and exclaimed that there were monsters in the hallway! He then shut the door and said, "Listen to me! This is our castle and we'll be safe here." We then proceeded to play "castle" for the remainder of the feeding session.

Brant was looking at the real estate ads one day and asked Ben if he liked the brick house. Ben responded that he did because, "Then the big bad wolf can't blow it down!"

At bedtime, we get on jammies and then brush teeth. After teeth brushing, we ask Ben what time it is an he jumps up and down and says, "Time for hugs and kisses!!"

Love it.

Welcome Abigail Carleen Ausenhus!!

On October 26, at 7:01 a.m., we welcomed our new baby girl into the world! Abby weighed 8 pounds 12 ounces and measured 20 3/4 inches long. She is so very precious and an absolute doll!

If her arrival is a precursor to anything about her personality, watch out! From my first contraction to delivery time was only 2 hours. We obviously weren't expecting things to progress so fast, waited to make sure the contractions were about 5-6 minutes apart, and arrived at the hospital at about 6:30, thank goodness. I will say that I did walk into the hospital (which in retrospect, was probably not the smartest decision) but required a wheelchair by the time we reached the doors. By the time I actually made it into the delivery bed, I was dilated 9 centimeters and from there, the rest is history! We are so blessed to now have two beautiful, healthy children! Words can't express our love for each of them!

Abby was named after my mother, Carleen, who was the most loving, caring person I have known. I know there are two very proud grandparents smiling down from heaven!

Fall Fun

I love fall! I love the weather, the colors of the trees, football, the food, and all the fun activities that fall tends to bring. We've been trying to soak it up as much as possible over that past few weekends, as we wait in anticipation for Baby Girl to make her appearance, which is now less than two weeks away.

Last weekend, Ben and I went up to ride in the combine with Uncle Nick. Ben was in complete awe the entire time. In fact, he said only about 3 words for the entire hour we rode. However, we didn't even make it out of the field drive to go home before he exclaimed, "That was really fun!" He now talks about the combine daily and is constantly playing with his little plastic version, pretending to dump corn into the wagon.

We also went on a fall walk around ISU's campus several weekends ago. When we parked, we realized we could hear the ISU marching band practicing. Ben was able to watch for several of their songs and even see them march past us when they were finished. We had a great time pulling Ben around campus in his wagon and reminiscing about the good old days of college, while admiring the pretty trees. We finished the morning with a stop at an Ames favorite, Hickory Park, where Ben thoroughly enjoyed his ice cream, as you can see from the picture below as he is trying to drink up every single last drop!

Yesterday, Ben, Grandma, and I went to Center Grove Orchard to pick out a pumpkin. We found that it was much more than just pumpkins and apples! Ben enjoyed looking at animals, jumping in a corn pool, eating lunch, and even going down a super slide with Grandma. We were all worn out by the time we actually picked out a pumpkin!

Ben is eagerly looking forward to Halloween and is insistant that he wants to be a ghost for Halloween. He reminds us often that he will scare us when he says, "Boo!" He has also informed Brant that he should dress like a bear and that he wants me to be a cat. We'll see about that...

Well, I hope that our next post will be announcing the birth of Baby Girl! The pregnancy has flown by and we are very excited about finally meeting our daughter!

A Ride on Thomas the Tank Engine

Today was a big day! We braved the cold, rainy weather and Ben took a ride on Thomas the Tank Engine at the Boone Scenic Valley Railroad! Despite the glum look on his face in front of Thomas (probably because of the downpour), he really seemed to enjoy himself. When I put him down for a nap this afternoon, my heart melted when I whispered, "I had a fun time with you on Thomas today," and he whispered back, "Yeah, me too." Who knew two parents could be just as excited to see Thomas as their two year old? Or, should I more accurately say, just as excited to see the reaction and wonder of their two year old!

New Overalls

This weekend the temperatures were in the 50s and the rain was falling... and we discovered Ben didn't have a single pair of pants that fit him. This called for an emergency trip to Kohl's for some new fall clothes, none of which Ben approved of except for these adorable overalls. He wore these the remainder of the day! Of course, today was back in the muggy 80s, so all those new pants will have to wait a little bit longer!

On that note, my personal request to mother nature would be that the temperature could just stay at 72 degrees with low humidity until baby girl arrives. This way, I could continue to wear my comfy, less restrictive summer maternity clothes and sandals, and yet not have to sweat constantly or just always feel so hot. Five and half weeks until the due date!

What a Month!

Before beginning this post, I was looking back at our photos of vacation at the lake so nostalgically! I was again craving the peacefulness of the lake and the relaxation of summer. August has proven to be a rather interesting month in our household! Here is a recap:

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One of the highlights of this month was a weekend trip to Houston for my cousin's wedding. This was Ben's first ride on an airplane and his first stay in a hotel. He was equally excited about riding the shuttle buses at the airport, which would also be his first bus ride. The trip went very smoothly and it was fun to see a lot of my family while we were there. However, we found ourselves slightly exhausted due to the quick trip and the quick turn around of Brant leaving on another business trip at 5:00 am the morning after our return.

Another highlight in the few last weeks was a quadruple baby shower with college friends. Four of us are all due between October 1st and the 29th. I had so much fun catching up with the girls and enjoying lots of laughs! Thanks for a great time, girls!!

Ben continues to grow and amaze us. Lately, he loves to help me cook. We have been making lots of zuchini recipes with the many zucchinis from our garden. He also discovered that frosting cupcakes is most fun when you just eat the frosting! I really can't make any sort of baked good anymore without him wanting to "help." Ben has also recently shown a fascination with sharks, especially hammerhead sharks, which has led to some interesting conversations. Another new thing is that Ben has begun to be concerned about scary things. We're not sure where this stemmed from, as this is the kid that has never flinched at a thunderstorm and always slept with his door closed, but lately, he has expressed concern over scary voices (such as those on books on CD in the car) and noises at night. It is, no doubt, another phase we are entering, but I'm always so interested in how these things just seem to suddenly appear.

Another highlight lately is that I began my new position as an instructional coach this month. I've been back at work for several weeks, which is always a transition from summer. So far, things have been going really well and I'm enjoying the new challenges!

When I said we have had an interesting month, I didn't mean it all in the most positive way. Amid all the flooding in Iowa, we were one of the thousands of people who ended up with a wet basement. I woke up on one of the many mornings after a night full of rain and looked out the window to see our pond higher than I've ever seen it, our dock completely submerged, our neighbors pontoon gone and retaining wall collapsed, and a paddle boat in our backyard (which was not our paddle boat). The picture I've included above was actually taken the morning before night of the "big rain." Additionally, our cats would not leave me alone that morning, so I decided to go downstairs to see what was wrong. Sure enough, I reached the bottom of our stairs to find water all over the hard surface floors in our utility and storage area. I then discovered that the entire carpeted area of our basement was also wet. URG! To make a very long story short, after much frustration and our house beginning to smell like a sweaty sock, we finally were able to get a company to our house four days later and were immediately told that the carpet needed to be ripped out, along with the bottom two feet of dry wall throughout the entire basement. Since then we've also confirmed that it was a drain outside our basement door that was overwhelmed. Luckily, we didn't have any furniture downstairs and most things we were storing were in rubbermaid tubs, so we didn't lose any personal belongings. We weren't really using our basement as a living area yet, although we were planning to relocate our guest bedroom down there. We are much, much more fortunate than so many other people, so I'm trying to keep our inconvenience in perspective!

To top it off (and yes, we are laughing about this now, but I definitely wasn't before), in the last week we have lost water due to a pressure gauge in our well breaking, had issues with Brant's office phone, and a small, easy to fix breakdown of our air conditioner. All of these are now fixed. Ha, ha, ha...!

Vacation at the Lake

Chomp... Delicious!

July Already?!

I know I should just appreciate every single minute of summer, but seriously, I can't believe it is already July! School has been out for a month, and today I'm officially one month from starting back up again. I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again... I love summer. I'll be honest in saying I love my work and don't have the desire to be a stay-at-home mom, but I do enjoy these weeks off.

Last week Ben and I had a very eventful week. We went to the pool for the first time, not just the splash park like usual. Ben likes the splash park okay, but all the wild splashing and kids acting crazy is always a little much for him. I wasn't expecting much different when we went to the pool, so it was quite to my surprise that my little boy was shoulder deep in water within minutes, wanted to go down the kiddie waterslide with me (which we did, by the way), dunked his head under water, and was in complete dismay when the lifeguards called for a pool break. All in all, the pool was a hit!

We also made a trip to the zoo last week, joined by friends Heather and Laura and Kim and Heisman. Of course, Ben says he liked the monkeys the best and he was also awed by the giraffe's long tongue and the ostriches. He was also excited that we went on a train ride. After Heisman and Laura left, Ben and I poked around a little longer and he was pretty impressed by the huge turtle and flamingos. We topped it off with a little ice cream before heading home. Quite appropriately, the following day, Ben was part of a little program at the library presented by the zoo. I figured they would bring animals for the kids to touch, but when they pulled out the snake, I put on my brave face, as I typically get a big case of the freak-out willies simply at the thought of snakes. By the end, Ben had touched a baby alligator (which he reports is his favorite), a snake, a hedgehog, and a ferret. Although it was a bit long to sit and my "teacher brain" didn't feel the presenter had the best kid-presentation skills, it seemed like a good experience for him. Plus, afterward Ben got to play with the train set at the library while I check out books for him. He could play with that train set all day if I'd let him!

Around the house, Brant is in the midst of building a play structure Ben outside. With lots of travel in his schedule, it is taking a bit longer than I think he hoped, but when complete, it will have a slide and climbing wall, as well as a few other things that aren't quite determined. I'm also proud to say that it is almost being made completely out of wood that used to be part of an old, strange looking playhouse perched on top of a dog cage when we moved in to our house (I know... it is wonder we wouldn't want to keep that!). Good old, Brant - so resourceful! Ben is very excited about it and was lucky enough to "help" the other day, plastic tools and all.

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Over the holiday weekend, we went to Clear Lake to stay at Brant's parents condo. On Saturday, Brant and I took Ben to the beach. He was a little iffy on the water at first, but seemed to like it better once we were there for awhile. However, it seemed his favorite thing to do was use his plastic shovel to scoop wet sand and just dump it out. Go figure. On Saturday evening we went to Mason City to eat with Brant's grandparents, parent, cousins, and aunt and uncle. We had a good time catching up with everyone and Ben had fun throwing bread to the fish and playing with Oma and Opa's (that is what we call Brant's grandparents) toys. The rest of the weekend was pretty much a wash out, so we spent it at home.

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I hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July, and hopefully a dryer one than we did!

IT'S A GIRL!

I had an ultrasound today and Baby GIRL Ausenhus is right on target for her due date and everything looks normal and healthy!

As you can see, I might have had a little bit of fun with the sudden news I was going to have a daughter. I also can't beat a great bargain and Babies R Us had some great sales on their bedding and accessories today! Not only does she already have two adorable outfits (one of which Brant surprised me with this afternoon) but her nursery scheme has already been selected and I'm now contemplating paint colors. Should I have let the news settle for a day? Nah!!

Ahh... Summer!

I'm reminded today of the things I love about summer, particularly since the last of my meeting/training days ended today.

I love early summer mornings. Even though I will probably always struggle to get out of bed before 6:00, I savor the cool, damp, peaceful mornings of summer. There is nothing more refreshing! It would be even more refreshing if I was on a brisk run, but unfortunately, lately my growing belly seems to be responding better to a brisk, long walk.

I also love summer reading. I can honestly say that I haven't watched a single full length episode of anything on TV since school got out. I cannot get enough of reading the books I never, ever get to during the school year, due to lack to time and/or not being able to stay awake long enough! Thanks to recommendations from friends, I've compiled a list that should keep me occupied for quite awhile.

I love all things about being a mom in the summer. It is so fun spoiling Ben with popsicles and trips to DQ, and enjoying the wading pool almost as much as he does. I love taking him places, like the zoo or the library. I'm sure going to the same park that has his favorite digger and slides will get old, but I can't get enough of reveling in how much he can do on his own compared to everything I remember from last summer. And this summer, I'm especially loving his new found independence at being able to play by himself for longer periods of time. Sometimes I can get other things done, and other times, I just like to listen to him talk to himself!

On another note, on Tuesday we have the big appointment where we will find out whether the baby is a boy or a girl. I'm really excited to know this time around! Last night, I had two dreams and in one, I found out I was having a girl, and in the other, it was a boy. 5 days until we actually find out!

One of my summer goals is to get all my flip videos and pictures organized, but I suppose another should be to actually start taking pictures again. This photo of Ben digging in the dirt (a favorite lately) is truly the only picture I've taken for quite some time. It will have to suffice, but hopefully more will follow documenting some of our summer fun!

Swagger Wagon

Check out my new ride.

http://www.youtube.com/sienna#p/c/30DA2DAB5702C7D1/8/hiLNG153aRI

The college girl, Ford Focus just wasn't going to cut it with two kids, so we've taken the plunge into mini-van land. We ordered the van in late February and it finally arrived this week. It is all wheel drive, so hopefully I won't have to worry about getting stuck in our driveway next winter, with Ben chanting, "Go Mommy go!" in the back seat. Practicality and ease have officially become the most stylish words in our house and I'm totally over the stereotypical soccer mom image! With three days of being a mini-van mama under my belt, I have to say, it is a pretty nice ride.

Ben is ALL BOY!

When we say we have a two year old boy, we really have a two year old BOY. Not only has Ben become a huge Daddy's boy lately, but everything he wants to do involves balls, dirt, cars and trucks, or fishing. After helping me plant flowers a few weeks ago, Ben discovered his love for dirt. Since then, he seems perfectly content to use his plastic shovel and mini skid loader to dig and push around dirt for long periods of time. Luckily, we actually have a spare dirt pile outside, so it works out pretty well. For Ben's birthday in March, he received a John Deere lawn mower from my brother. He was a little hesitant about driving at first, but now loves it. I didn't think I'd seen anything so cute as Ben and Brant both driving their John Deere lawn mowers around the yard, until I saw them fishing together. Ben loves to go fishing and lucky for him, a little blue fish is already attached to his Diego fishing pole, so he thinks he catches a fish every time! He has also really gotten in to basketball and baseball lately. It has been neat to see his catching, throwing, and kicking skills develop. The most common thing Ben seems to say lately,whether it's morning, noon, or night is, "Want to go outside?" We are so blessed to have this happy, vibrant, healthy little boy!