Getting some serious Kansas City BBQ on our little “Babymoon” getaway!

Tulips were blooming everywhere! These were for sale at the Riverside Farmer’s Market!

Since I didn’t have a way to keep the tulips, I bought a cinnamon roll instead.

Spices, anyone?

We left an ice storm and broken power lines at home.

The morning before the storm blew in, the kids and I enjoyed a lovely bonfire!

Despite the ice storm, the garlic we planted last fall is up and looking great!

Last week the kids helped Dan get the mower in working order.

Hi goats!

Peonies are up!

We acquired a new laundry sorter and it’s the newest toy!

Check out those teeth!

The ice storm began last Wednesday night and we’ve been out of power since then! The Power company has called in reinforcements as many towns were out of power as well, and are working overtime. The generator is running so we have heat, and a little electricity for light and the stove. But no hot water for showers, laundry or doing dishes. After boiling water for dishes, I feel like I’m living overseas again!

Somewhere in the middle of the snow and ice we were able to meet my parents to drop off the kids, before Dan and I headed south to greener pastures and blooming tulips! A couple months ago, we had settled on Kansas City, MO as a destination for our “Babymoon”, hoping to eat plenty of delicious BBQ, enjoy nice Spring weather, meet up with a few friends and just relax! Mission accomplished! It was wonderful! Once we drove past Sheldon, IA the roads were completely clear!

Easter is near and we’re about to have Easter bunnies! Literally! Peanut Butter, one of the females, is due Wednesday or anytime after that! Just in time for our celebration! We all can’t wait! Now that the weather is nicer (except for the 3-4 days of ice storm), we decided to move the bunny cages to the lawn just behind our house, so we can watch them through our patio window. The kids love it!

This is going to be a short blog, mostly with pictures splashed up from our last three weeks. I realize I have been inconsistent, and as it gets closer to baby’s due date, it will only get worse! I don’t often have a spare 2 hours to dedicate to writing, downloading and editing pictures and then posting on social media. Just so you know…..

Happy Easter! He is Risen!

And that’s the brief news from this ice-storm-and-babymoon week on the farm!

Trying on Daddy’s chores boots!

Licking the spatula clean after helping Mommy make treats!

Silly hats for cold weather!

Playing with the slide in the Machine shed on a cold day!

Our really fun Pampered Chef Freezer Meal Party.

The new double stroller! The kids love it!

Meet “Roger” the rooster, our temporary addition.

A beautiful sunny day to be outside!

Natalie is trying to ride a tricycle.

A much needed date night for Dan and I, which included our favorite Ethiopian food and tickets to the symphony!

The Ice Age Meltdown continues! The kids and I were all geared up to plant some peas in a pot in the basement until Dan reminded me that it had about an inch of water over the whole surface from the melting snow and rain seeping in. So, we didn’t plant anything that day. After it dried out a few days, Nathan, Natalie and I headed downstairs with a packet of pea seeds and mixed in some extra potting soil to fill up the big pot, and threw in a good handful of peas.

This last Saturday Dan noticed they were beginning to sprout, news that excited Nathan. So, thinking he could eat them, immediately went to the basement and pulled our single sprout and proudly came upstairs to show us! Then, we had to have a little talk trying to explain about sprouting, and harvesting, and when peas are ready. Yesterday I drug out the huge pot to the south side of the garage, where we were playing in the magically warm sun. So by the weekend, I imagine they’ll all be up!

Two weeks ago, I hosted a Pampered Chef Freezer Meal party, primarily with my own purpose of putting up a few meals for after the baby comes in July. Seven of us worked in the kitchen and it was so fun and easy the way it was all set up. We each had a cooler of our groceries for the recipes I had chosen, and then stations were set up with directions and kitchen gadgets, knives, cutting boards and towels to assemble the meal. Once finished, it was thrown in a freezer bag or dish and a sticker with instructions was put on for future use, then clean up your station in the sink and move on to the next one! I would totally do it again! After our freezer meal party, some of our family stuck around for lunch and to hang out. The kids were having a blast, but I lost it over a phrase Nathan said to my Dad.

Grandpa E was sitting on the couch next to Grandma, while Nathan was on the floor by his feet playing. Suddenly he looks up at Grandpa E, and says in the sweetest, most innocent voice, “Grandpa, do you have a lot of energy?” Mom and I burst out laughing! I imagine someone must’ve said to him in passing that he has a lot of energy, and he picked up on it. So then, he went around the house finding “energy” to give to Grandpa! I’m not sure he knows exactly what “energy” is, and I suspect he believes it’s a physical object you possess.

Later that weekend when we were on our way home with the kids in their pj’s, I went to put Nathan to bed, and discovered he had put a magnetic ball down his pajamas and it was hanging out by his toes! This kid!

Yesterday he spent the morning with Natalie at a friend’s house while I had a delightful prenatal massage. They had just finished lunch and we were on the way home, with the warm sun streaming in the windows, all of us cheery from the lovely weather. I overheard Nathan begin to sing “Old MacDonald Has A Farm” and I smiled as I listened to him scroll through the list of animals….cow, cat, dog, goat, chicken. Then I laughed when he sang that Old MacDonald had a bird that said “tweet tweet” and then I had to call Dan and tell him how funny he was after he sang that Old MacDonald had a squirrel. He paused, and said, “Mom! What sound does a squirrel make?” I didn’t really know what to say. “I think a squirrel says toodle-oodle-oo.” And he went on singing!

Sunday he was a bit hyper after we went through the car wash, so while Natalie was desperately trying to fall asleep on the way home, he was talking to her asking her questions:

Natalie! Are you a dog?

Or are you a cat?

Or are you a tractor?

Or are you a diaper bag?

Or are you a barn?

And the list continued, as Dan and I just laughed and smiled at each other! Where does he come up with this stuff!?!

Yesterday, the weather was gorgeous, so we put out a blanket on the south side of the garage, where it blocked the cool wind, and collected the sidewalk chalk, bubbles and a few tricycles to play and have fun. The cats all followed the sound of our voices, and Natalie crawled around on the mostly dry (and fairly green) grass chasing them, saying “hi” and “meow.” A few strips of snow remain and Nathan used his chalk to make some snow art, so Natalie followed him over to the snow. Suddenly, I hear Nathan giving Natalie instructions about how she should not put her hands in the snow because it’s cold and it will hurt. See!, he said and showed her his red hands. It was hilarious! He was basically repeating how Dan reminds him to wear his mittens when he helps with chores because otherwise his hands will get cold.

Dan finally located a used double stroller, the exact brand we wanted at a discounted price and it arrived in the mail last week. I was more excited than the kids! It was like Christmas, as I ripped open the box and began to assemble it. It was too cold to use outside for a few days, so instead, I pushed the kids around the living room and kitchen, which they loved! We finally broke it in on our sloppy driveway, and has now been on several walks, and I am thrilled to have something that represents “freedom” for this Mama!

Natalie cannot stop saying “hi” and “bye” and her newest word is “bite”, indicating she wants to eat something you have, even if it’s a drink of water. She now flies up and down the stairs, and is especially aware if they are carpeted, which she loves. She keeps getting more teeth! Both of her canine teeth are now coming in, and her appetite is enormous! She walks on her own with confidence now and then, but loves to hold your hand. She is obsessed with belly buttons and wants to see everyone’s! Her latest fascination is the light switch she can reach on the stairway. She and Nathan must’ve played with it, laughing hysterically for more than 30 minutes yesterday! She imitates actions perfectly and now will join in the songs at Library time or pretends to eat something when she and Nathan play together.

Last Saturday, Dan took the kids to the Luverne Farm Store Pancake Appreciation Breakfast while I got the opportunity to have some time to myself. I had two objectives in mind: paint a changing table we’d acquired with Annie Sloan’s Paris Gray chalk paint, and deep clean the bathroom! I accomplished both, but not without knocking over the very expensive quart of paint and spilling almost half of it! Dan just laughed! The combination of my normal clumsiness, combined with a big belly that lends itself to balance issues, is a recipe for disaster in my world!

It certainly has been an eventful couple of weeks!

And that’s the news on this snow-then-sunny-weather-and-funny-Nathanism’s-week on the farm!

Little passengers who helped Daddy rescue Mommy.

Nathan had a blast hauling his dump truck and excavator out to haul snow!

Trying to find the mailbox after all this snow!

Nathan is checking out the empty bunny cage and waiting patiently for the bunnies to come join us!

The bunnies are here!

The theme this week could be the title of a popular movie, called Ice Age: The Meltdown. The temperatures are soaring in the 30’s like a heat wave, and when I went to my prenatal massage appointment on Monday, I found myself so overheated from the sunshine and my bun in the oven, I had to  roll down my windows to cool off! That’s a change!

Last Thursday was a day for the books here at VanMeeteren Farms! The morning started as usual, and then my midwife joined me for a prenatal appointment and the kids got to hear the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. Nathan really seems to understand what’s going on, while Natalie just thought it was fun to poke at my belly button. I’m 23 weeks now and feeling quite s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d. Morning and evening yoga really make a difference in managing any sciatic pain as well as stretching my arm and shoulder muscles, which often go numb when I sleep at night.

Back to the events of Thursday, I passed the parent baton to Dan and he cautioned me to take it easy driving to town since there was ice in some patches. I popped into my Mom Minivan and headed to Refit (my dancing exercise class) in Luverne, about 30 minutes away. At the corner of our gravel road and the paved county road I apparently didn’t turn wide enough and just slowly slid into the deep, wet, snowy shoulder, and I knew I wasn’t going anywhere! I was really disappointed as I called Dan for rescue, knowing he would just be sitting down at the table to relax and eat supper, and it would take him awhile to get the kids bundled up and ready to pull me out. So, in the meantime, I did what anyone would do when they have time on their hands……I called my Mom for a chat! As I patiently waited, 3 trucks and a semi cab stopped to make sure I was ok, and help was on the way. After 20 minutes Dan pulled around the corner in the truck, with two little people passengers in the front seat and a chain to haul me out. The kids thought it was pretty exciting!

After returning home safely, I settled into some play time with the kids. Dan was sitting in the living room with us, so I positioned Natalie in his direction and told her to walk over to Daddy! And…..she DID! No giggling, totally focused, at least 5-6 solid steps completely on her own! What a triumph! Her confidence lifted, she continued to attempt to walk the path between Mommy and Daddy and sometimes just to the couch! It was a developmental milestone at 14 months! I guess Nathan thought she was getting too much attention, so he decided to pee in the potty too! A wonderful night to stay home!

Friday morning was clear and sunny, so we headed to the Children’s story time at Rock County Library. The theme was a cute, fuzzy lamb. So as the book was read, I whispered to Natalie that the animal was a sheep, and asked her “What sound does a sheep make?” With perfect timing, the room was silent, and Natalie hollered out a crystal clear “baa!” and I couldn’t help but laugh! After we glued cotton balls on our lambs, the kids and I headed upstairs to pick out books, and Nathan didn’t disappoint as he loaded me up with “Biscuit” books, a cute little puppy that always gets into mischief! In one book, the little girl who owns Biscuit, brings home the class pet, which is Nibbles, the rabbit. So, Nathan and I discussed how excited we were to be “bunny sitting” for my friend Berty! The weather was still warm, so we bundled up and put Natalie in the sled and then…. this 23-weeks-pregnant Mama hauled my big self up a couple piles of snow with Nathan, and once with Natalie under one arm! I should mention that the sheer volume of snow we’ve had makes the piles more of a one-story mountain than a small hill. So, I think I should get an award for such an exertion of energy! Nathan was brave and instead of sliding down, counted to 3, and took a huge leap off the pile! After one success of fun, he continued on 4 or 5 times, until Natalie was ready to move on! He is so adventurous!

Saturday felt a little like blizzard conditions, so no traveling. Sunday was the exciting day the bunnies arrived at VanMeeteren Farms! Even Natalie was thrilled after she met Peanut Butter, Cookies and Shawn. She likes to stand by the cages and peek in, saying “hi” in her adorable high pitched voice! Nathan likes to chip at the ice in their water and tear off bits of hay from the hay bales to throw in. The plan is to breed them this month, so we’ll have super cute baby bunnies in no time! Can’t wait! That will make it really start to feel like Spring!

I’ve been so anxious to have my hands in dirt, it literally feels like a pregnancy craving! So tomorrow, the kids and I are going to plant something in a pot in the basement! I haven’t decided what yet….maybe lettuce, maybe peas, something that likes cool temperatures, but we are going to get our hands dirty in some soil. And Dan and I have to do a quick little seed inventory to determine what few seeds we will order for a small garden this year. I have my eye on some wildflower mixes I want to plant in an entire 25 ft. row, so we’ll see. And we’ve been bantering back and forth on some long overdue landscaping in a little dirt patch by the back door.

With St. Patrick’s Day right around the corner, corned beef and cabbage are in abundance at the grocery store. So we stocked up and I’ve made fresh coleslaw several times, and my all time favorite Reuben sandwiches! So yummy! This week’s menu is full of comfort foods, like creamy chicken tacos, one pot macaroni and cheese, shepherd’s pie, and meatballs with mashed potatoes with, of course, super healthy veggies on the side and fruit for dessert!

Dan just walked in the door tonight from picking up groceries and when I turned around he had put a pint of my absolute favorite Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream on the counter. I saw it and just hugged him and almost teared up! He said, “I wasn’t expecting this kind of response!” to which I said, “It’s better than if you’d gotten me a bouquet of roses!” So, half a pint later….

And that’s the news from this Natalie’s-walking-and-we-have-bunnies week on the farm!

Since our tropical excursion to the Butterfly House and Aquarium, things have gotten a lot more snowy!

Dan has had to pile so much snow that I now can’t see out my kitchen window! But it makes for a great snow slide!

These are the drifts on the west side of the grove.

The chicken coop is surrounded and heavily insulated with snow! You could climb right up onto the roof!

Nathan still loves to be outside scooping snow and collecting icicles! He wanted to bring 3 of them inside and ate them with his lunch!

Natalie doesn’t like to be outside quite as long, but she does love to put on a hat!

Nathan’s big boy bed filled with as many blankets and animals as it can hold! There’s barely any room for him!

This is a picture of the scrape on his nose and gash on his eye he got from his 2nd night in the bed. I think he just jerked in his sleep and hit the side somehow. But he didn’t notice it at all, unless someone pointed it out, then he would start whining or crying. 🙂

Natalie girl is getting her teeth all at once! She currently has about 6 coming in, including two front top teeth and two molars! She lets us know when it hurts! Poor girl!

Nathan is our little monkey. He climbs on everything! Here he is on top of the trash can to get the keys to the van hanging over our calendar.

Time spent inside means we are doing more and more crafts. Today we picked up some watercolor paints, and he is doing a great job!

The snow has been so heavy and the wind so strong that the empty fields look like oceans of white with foamy waves drifting across! It’s actually quite beautiful! Last Friday the forecast was a “few” inches of snow, which turned into, like 6 inches! It was the kind of snow a winter bride would wish for on her wedding day. No wind, but big beautiful flakes, floating down from the sky, lightly resting on your hair and melting.

And if it’s snowing, and not windy, then it’s warm enough to be outside. So I put on my snow pants, as best as I can at 22 weeks pregnant, throw on my heavy Carhartt jacket and gloves, then labor in trying to put on Natalie’s one piece snowsuit, and Nathan’s two piece snowsuit until we can finally go outside. I put Natalie in the infant size sled, and Nathan pulls her around, unless he needs to “work”, which means he has to scoop snow. His coordination for scooping snow is perfect. And even better, he does it with a smile on his face! I’ve even climbed up a few of the snow piles with Nathan, mostly to make a snow “slide” with my weight for him, until Natalie starts crying that I’ve left her alone in the sled, or the cats are getting too close! On days we haven’t gotten out at all, we often load up in the minivan and drive around the section to see what we can see, before we get the mail and go home for supper. A few neighbors have cows and horses out, and yesterday we saw a pheasant and skunk, which was quite exciting to them!

In N&N news, Nathan is really acting like a big boy and less like a toddler, except for those rare occasions when he chews on Natalie’s pacifier! He even cuts up her food with his plastic knife so she can eat it, and tries to calm her down when she’s upset. They chase each other around the table, giggling the whole time. Natalie is now doing more of a bear crawl then crawling. It’s hilarious and she’s very fast! She got a little scrape on her finger, and if I ask where her “owie” is, she points right to it and says owie. She imitates other children laughing or crying and is very aware of her teeth emerging. When I discovered that her second tooth was a molar instead of another bottom one, I texted Dan and told him we’d been looking in the wrong place this whole time! One of her favorite teething foods is actually the core of a fresh pineapple! Aldi’s has had the BEST fresh pineapple lately, and so every time I start cutting one up for supper it’s like I have bloodhounds for children. They immediately descend and start crying for a pineapple core, which I give them of course! And they happily munch on it until supper is ready!

Nathan is really into Curious George and Thomas the Train books. He was so excited when I found him a Thomas show on Youtube! Nathan hasn’t been napping as much in the afternoon, and Natalie is poised to give up her morning nap. I’m still hoping that as it starts to thaw and we spend more time outside, Nathan will continue to take naps. This summer I would really, really like to have 3 children sleeping at the same time, so I can rest too!

The chickens are laying eggs, even though many are still frozen when we get them. The goats and donkeys have a lovely thick coat of fur and look quite fat from filling up on hay and staying warm in the barn. The cats tolerate the cold well and usually come running if they hear human movement. In a few days time we will start our job babysitting bunnies for the next 6 months. Nathan couldn’t be more excited! It will be fun to have baby bunnies around this spring! Caged, of course, so as not to disturb the garden.

Our weekends are filling up with activities like a freezer meal party, friends coming to visit, prenatal appointments, tickets to the symphony which were a Christmas gift from a friend, birthdays, Easter, and a much anticipated Babymoon. In case you’re not familiar, it’s just a little getaway for the parents before baby comes. Kind of like a honeymoon, and definitely without the kids!

And that’s the news from this snow-tunnels-and-teething-week on the farm!

This weekend we visited the Butterfly House and Aquarium. The kids (and adults) were mesmerized by all the interesting creatures!

Sub portal view of the aquarium.

This precious face!

Hello in there!

The wonder of a child….

Then on to the butterfly house. It was quite warm!

Smile for the camera! A good cheesy smile from Nathan!

He finally caught a butterfly!

Mom caught one on her back!

And Leah on her arm!

Her shirt says…”Daddy’s little princess.” So true!

Fun was had by all!

View from the top!

Our little car princess has mastered driving the toy car….now just to master walking!

After weeks of snow and more snow, and now this morning even MORE snow (I think around 8-10 inches and still going) it was a real highlight to find a place as tropical as we could here in our neck of the woods! Saturday afternoon we invited family to join us at the Butterfly House and Aquarium in Sioux Falls for a little taste of warm weather and family fun!

Nathan was shy at first, but after a few minutes fully embraced the opportunity to touch the slimy, wet sea cucumber, the bumpy purple and pink starfish and the prickly sea urchin. He had more courage than I did! They both stared intently at the aquariums as we pointed out different colored fish, both large and small. A small pool with sting rays swimming in circles was in the center of the area and it reminded me of Dan chasing them with our friend’s underwater video camera while we were on our cruise last fall!

The butterfly house was deliciously warm, and I dressed us all in layers to accommodate for such an environment. We stripped down to our t-shirts and walked the path filled with crumbly, fresh soil, green bushes and plants, flowers, a small waterfall and river with Koi fish and a handful of turtles, and breathed in the “fresh” warm air. After 20 minutes Natalie and I looked like we had fevers with bright red cheeks, so I had to exit and cool off a little before returning again!

I noticed that the size 3T t-shirt Dan had dug out for me that morning was quite short on Nathan, baring his belly button, and I thought to myself, I think he’s had a growth spurt! Sure enough, some of his pants are only going to his ankles! So this morning, after 8 inches of snow and Dan’s attempt to get to work and a return home after gently sliding in the ditch less than 4 miles down the road, he located the 4T bin in the cold attic, so I could start transitioning Nathan over! He is so tall and not even 3 years old yet!

In N&N news, the two of them now share a room, since we’ve transitioned Nathan to his “big boy” toddler bed, which he LOVES! Originally we were going to wait until his 3rd birthday, but this seems to be a good time. The first night went as we expected. Lots of giggling, and jumping, and getting out of bed. Dan would go in to tell them to go to sleep, and Natalie would be standing in her crib, see him, and then throw herself down. It was pretty funny! Last night was much better, but nap time is still a struggle. Yesterday was a l.o.n.g. day when neither of them fell asleep until after 3:30pm, when I had tried to put them down at 1:30pm!! Nathan kept waking Natalie up, and I finally had to take him out of the room, where he finally passed out on my lap reading books at 4pm.

Last night around 3am, I heard Nathan crying, and went to see what happened. He appeared to have fallen out of bed, but seemed fine. This morning when I went to get them out of bed, he had what looked like a rug burn on his nose and a small cut by his eye! I hadn’t seen it in the dark, and I have no idea how he got a cut, since the edges of the bed are round! It’s a mystery! But he’s not bothered by it at all, so that’s good!

Natalie is poised to walk. She uses our vacuum base as a walker and just giggles as she slides around. Her new favorite activity is pushing herself forward and backward on her little car while Nathan leads or follows in his little toy car. Dan tried to get her to walk a few steps to me, which she loved, but she giggles so much, it makes her a little wobbly in her balance! At least she’s not crying! She tries to say words like ‘hot’ and then blows on her food, as well as ball, Mama, and Dada. She’s also quite good at doing animals sounds like a cow and kitten and loves books that have flaps to open. The other morning she had climbed up into Nathan’s bed, where Nathan had a stack of books, and he tried to read to her! It was pretty cute!

I’m 20 weeks pregnant already, halfway there! I can’t believe it! July seems so far away on a snowy day like this! I’ve put up a couple more freezer meals in preparation!

And that’s the news from this nearly-walking-and-butterfly-house week on the farm!

Bean art craft project.

After five years, I finally finished my little lavender project!

We had to break out a “new” old toy to get past the daily grind of staying home in this cold, yucky weather.

Our new tooth princess! As I mentioned last week on Facebook, Natalie finally has her first tooth!

Our days are filled with crafts, music, books, coloring, homemade play-doh, baking treats, fort making, step climbing practice for Natalie and lots of farming and construction with Nathan’s toy equipment! It’s hard to feel as if there’s much to say in lieu of news.

I haven’t seen the goats in ages, although Dan sold our billy goat on Saturday since we are done with breeding. The animals all seem to be weathering through this cold winter quite well, though the chicken eggs are often frozen and cracked, but we eat them anyway once they thaw.  Dan took the kids out on Saturday, when it “warmed up” to 45F, and they made a snowman. It had a bit of a Picasso vibe since the snow kept crumbling and refused to maintain a round shape. But they loved doing it anyway!

In N&N news, as I mentioned on Facebook, Natalie got her first tooth on the bottom last week!! I think her ravenous appetite might be reflecting this change, along with her active crawling, climbing and exploring. She and Nathan love to chase each other around the table! I can only imagine how many “steps” they would have on a FitBit. Especially since it’s not uncommon for Nathan and I to just run “laps” around the table, until we catch and tickle each other! It must be in the thousands! Natalie can certainly communicate what she wants and doesn’t want, and shrieks anytime she sees a stuffed animal, or live animal, for that matter. Maybe one of them will grow up to be a Veterinarian.

Nathan is becoming such a big boy. He can now put on his pants by himself, and needs some help with his socks. It is tricky to get all those toes in there! He is so helpful and cheerful to fetch me things that I need, especially at mealtime. He sits in a big boy chair, and is more than ready for his big boy bed. He is definitely nearing 3, which features a phase of constantly asking questions. He loves to tease!

The big family news is that we acquired a minivan last week! It is SUCH a blessing! Especially the part where I can start it from inside a building and the heated seats!! I find myself being corrected by Nathan when I say, “I’m going to start the car” and he looks at me and says, “Van, Mom. ” Oops. Guess I haven’t adjusted yet. He totally understands that a baby is coming. If we’re eating something, I’ll say to him that we have to save some food for Daddy and Mommy, and he’ll reply, “And the new baby!” Yup, that’s right. Baby needs to eat too.

In pregnancy news, I am hungry all. the. time. I probably eat 6-7 mini meals a day! Mostly healthy, but sometimes not. This week I’m making a trail mix with nuts, dark chocolate and dried cherries! My kind of healthy snack! I’ve also been focusing a lot on putting together freezer meals for this summer, for both breakfast and supper. Once Dan goes back to work, it will probably feel a little chaotic, so having meals ready will be a huge help. The mornings are always difficult because the kids are still young and they want cuddles with Mom and breakfast ASAP. Since we are committed to living a healthy lifestyle without processed foods, we don’t really do cold cereal, except maybe Granola, and Natalie barely has teeth, so that doesn’t really fly for her. Plus, I need breakfasts to be nutrient dense and filling, so eggs, hashbrowns and bacon, oatmeal and fruit, spinach and fruit smoothies, whole wheat pancakes, granola with Greek yogurt, etc. are on the rotation. So I’m making doubles and freezing them as I go, with the goal of once a week, so as not to tax our grocery budget or feel stressed out.

I’ve also asked a few people to make some meals, since we are kind of specific about our food, and then I’m organizing a Pampered Chef freezer meal party to put away a few more. So I’m feeling more optimistic. Tonight, I’m making corn and black bean enchiladas, and I’ll double it, and stick the other pan in the freezer. Nathan and I have already made 3-4 dozen muffins and zucchini curry soup. I’d like to include some breakfast burritos, waffles, hummus, cooked shredded chicken, quiche, egg muffin cups, and smoothie packs to start. So if you have any other great ideas that are super healthy, and generally low or void of sugar, dairy and pasta, send them my way!

At this point, we are just looking forward to spring and dreaming of nice, long walks, green grass, planting season, sunshine AND…..we’re bunny sitting for my friend Berty while she is gone on a long hike on the Continental Divide Trail. She’ll be hiking from the border of Mexico to Canada and we are excited to care for her rabbits that she raises for meat while she’s away. It’ll be a great addition to the farm this Spring and the kids will just love it! Add in some fluffy chicks, cute baby goats, and kittens, and it will sure come alive here at VanMeeteren Farms!

And that’s the news this Picasso-snowman-minivan-and-freezer-meals week on the farm!

Below zero temperatures didn’t keep this hard core kid inside! He wanted to scoop snow!

Nathan discovered our stash of sunglasses and so we had to wear them!

Snow cream! It’s what we do when it’s too cold to play outside! We collected snow and made chocolate “snow cream.” It was delicious!

Since we’re inside so much, Nathan and Natalie have “redecorated” the living room. Nathan is reading to Natalie while she climbs up and down off the couch.

One afternoon our snack was a spinach-blueberry-mango-banana smoothie.

Fun in the bathtub!

The whole landscape is covered with white, powdery snow. It’s so bright that at night it seems like someone left the lights on outside! Earlier last week, we had sunshine for a few afternoons, and it was blinding to the eyes, so we had to break out our sunglasses!

If someone had walked in our house, they would’ve found me lying on the linoleum floor in the sunshine, like a cat by the big patio door. The kids joined in and crawled all over me as we enjoyed the warmth and put on our sunglasses to look outside. Then it got cold. Really cold. Previously, I was saying things like, “It’s 40 degrees out and sunny! It’s SO nice! Let’s go outside!” or “It’s 20 and sunny, but no wind. It’s nice out. Let’s go outside!” But then it hit zero. And then below zero. And now I know it’s cold, because at night I no longer throw off the comforter and tear off my socks in the middle of the night as my little “bun” heats up the oven.

Natalie is making some real developmental changes. She says “uh oh” and her comprehension and execution of following my instructions is really good. She likes to play the game where she pretends to throw her food on the floor and then laughs, because she knows she’s not supposed to. Natalie now has a second mother in the house: Nathan. He isn’t shy about telling her the rules, and how she should say ‘please’ or ‘thank you’. She is crawling up the steps and gets SO excited to do it. Now she has to just master coming down! She is not only pulling herself up with incredible confidence, but now shuffling along couches and chairs to get where she wants to go. She blows kisses, waves hello and goodbye, and turbo speed crawls to Daddy when he gets home, which just melts his heart! She pretends to read books to herself and is really getting coordinated with her fine motor skills.

Nathan is becoming a big boy and is sitting at the kitchen table without a high chair, so Natalie graduated into his high chair, and the baby one gets put away until Baby V #3 is ready for solid food. His speaking is so impressive as he repeats and recalls words we say. He is still full of antics! One day when he told me he was going to refill the toilet paper holder, I discovered that he and Natalie had unrolled an entire roll of paper towels and bits of toilet paper! It looked like it had drifted snow in our bathroom! It was amusing to say the least!

He wants to be in a big boy bed, but I’m not sure I’m ready for the transition yet. Most mornings start with breakfast and then we go upstairs to get dressed, after which (or during) Nathan jumps on the guest bed in his room like a trampoline, for exercise, singing at the top of his lungs, while Natalie tries to jump in his crib and entertains herself throwing out all his animals and blankets. They are quite a pair!

I haven’t been out to see the goats in probably a month or so. Hopefully they are all bred, and spring kids are growing. The cats always hang around the back door in the afternoon, waiting to be fed. The chickens are laying 4-5 eggs on occasion, some that are brown, so we know the newer hens are fin.a.lly. laying! Dan and I still need to finalize what we’ll plant in our garden this year, since it will be so little, but I must have some melons and flowers as well! I need beauty!

On our first prenatal trip to my midwife in Marshall, we talked out our financial, family, business and spiritual goals for the year. After assessing last years goals, we were pleased that we had accomplished about two-thirds of them. My favorite goal that we read from our Marriage/Family category was: Decide if we want to have another child.

Ummm…check! Baby on the way! Haha! Everything was great at my first prenatal appointment, as I expected. I was excited to hear the baby’s heartbeat. It was strong and easy to find. I have made my peace with being an “older” Mom.

Side tangent: When I say older, sometimes people don’t understand what I mean when I say it. It’s not that other women haven’t had babies at 40 or older, but those women often have older children who are self sufficient, and, more importantly able to help with the younger ones. The women I know who’ve had babies at 40, had children older than 2, almost 3 years old. My oldest child isn’t even 3 yet, and I’m pregnant again, and we’re not sure if this will be it or not. The women I know who are my age, have at least tweens and teens. Recently, I read this question on a local Mom’s Facebook page asking how old you’ll be and how old your kids would be in 10 years…….so yeah, I was BY FAR the oldest with the youngest kids. I know it’s trending in Hollywood to be an older Mom just starting out, but again, they could probably hire a nanny, and a personal trainer, and chef and butler, and housekeeper…..if only! Parenting is challenging no matter your age, and we’re all in it together! I just might arrive at the designated child pick up spot slower, because well, the weather is making my ankles hurt! So, I feel it’s a bit of a unique situation.  It isn’t how we planned it, but I am beyond blessed to have these 2, and 1 on the way!!

Dan is busy researching and trying to find a company that will ship us some bees this spring so we can try again. Fingers crossed!!

And that’s the news from this snow-and-sunglasses week on the farm!

Natalie was in awe of our Christmas tree. The wonder of a child….

Nathan loves to scoop snow!

Grandpa and Grandma E upgraded us to a bigger sled!

Nathan helping Daddy make homemade ice cream for Natalie’s party with Mommy’s new electric ice cream maker!

December 16th, our baby girl turned 1!

She wasn’t so sure at first….

Nathan helped her blow out the candle….

But once she got a taste of it, there was no turning back!

She caught on pretty quick to opening presents….Nathan helped too!

She loves her stuffed animals and hugs them all the time!

Natalie made an announcement at her party….

After the cake and ice cream, we headed to the Live Nativity, which they both LOVED!

Then came Christmas with LOTS of presents!

After New Year’s the snow started to melt and it was slushy enough to make a “Frosty the Snowman.”

Just a little everyday fun!

Okay!! It’s been an entire month since I posted…..I know! I’ll just jump right in with the big news first and go from there. It can be summed up as follows: Natalie turned 1 and she’s going to be a big sister! Baby#3 is due next July!

So my excuses for not posting can now be made public…..extreme exhaustion and some good ‘ol morning sickness from the first trimester of pregnancy, the kids have been on and off with cycles of sickness for at least 6 weeks, Christmas, hosting Christmas, more sickness, New Year’s, I finally got a fever and sickness, and well I guess that’s it! How’s that for excuses?? 🙂

Dan and I realized we were pregnant shortly after we returned from our cruise, which wasn’t too much of a surprise since we’d been trying. However, after a failed attempt at potty training with Nathan, I started doing the math of just how many diapers I would be changing per day come July if he wasn’t trained. I calculated an average of 15-19 diapers per DAY!

Let’s just say the romantic idea of being pregnant suddenly hit reality and I had myself a little meltdown. No one knew we were pregnant of course, so when I mentioned to friends or family that we had given up on the potty training, the response was well intended consolations about how Nathan will do it when he’s ready, probably when he turns 3, which made me want to cry too! I was thinking, um, he turns 3 the end of April, which is also when we planned to transition him to a big boy bed, and I will be 5 weeks away from giving birth…..how will I even be able to bend over and wipe his little rear!?! Let alone run after him as he makes his way to the bathroom. Then the age math, Nathan will be 3, Natalie 18 mos and then a newborn! Phew! I have committed to saying “no” to almost everything that comes my way!

The GOOD news in the diaper war, is that I have a feeling Natalie will train pretty quickly, and they might even do it together. By my calculations, I think I could have both of them trained by the time the baby is 4 months old! Let’s pray it comes true!!

In preparation of anticipating our little one, and that it’s going to be summer, we are on the look out for a really good, high quality, can-handle-heavy-use-on-gravel-roads double jogging stroller. Man, are they expensive! So, just to get the word out, our top choice is a Bumbleride Indie Twin Jogging Stroller. It’s super spendy….$800, but we’re looking for a good used one. So let me know if you know someone who knows someone who knows someone who’s selling one, k?!

The benefit of this particular model is it also has a “mini board” attachment that can be clipped on the front so Nathan can stand and ride (it kind of looks like a skateboard) if I want the other two in the stroller, which I think he would love! I’m imagining carrying the baby in a wrap at first while both Nathan and Natalie sit in it, or Natalie in one seat, the infant car seat in the other, and Nathan riding the mini board, or as I mentioned the baby and Natalie in the stroller and Nathan riding the board. Since I am an older Mom of littles I need to be very conscious of my health, and so we will be taking LOTS of walks! Just for some fun facts, I had Nathan at 38, Natalie at 39 and this baby will make the cut at 40! So this is the kind of stuff that consumes my thoughts these days…..that and nutrition of course. I told my friend Berty on Saturday, that since this is my third child my attitude is fluctuating between “the motivation of growing new life that makes me want this to be the healthiest pregnancy yet” and “well, the other two turned out fine….”

In N&N news, besides her birthday, she is pulling herself up on EVERYTHING! She started out in a downward dog yoga pose, but now she can lift herself up to anything, and the stairs will be next! She has mastered sign language for “more” and “all done.” Her comprehension is quite good. I pointed to the diaper box the other day and told her to go get one and bring it to me, and she did! I was quite shocked, actually! No teeth yet, but she loves to “talk.” Nathan just gets smarter and funnier every day. He repeats everything I say to her, so when she pulls herself up, he’ll go over and say “You’re such a big girl, Natalie!” It’s REALLY cute! Of course, she gets into his things, and he says “No! No! Natalie!” as well. We’re working on sharing, but overall they do play really well together, which is good since they’re going to have to entertain themselves when #3 comes along. Last night, Dan’s parents came to visit and said to Nathan that he was such an entertainer. His response was, “Nathan is NOT an entertainer! Nathan is Nathan!” We busted up laughing! The other day I didn’t want Natalie to play in my tupperware cupboard, so Nathan looked at me matter of fact, and said “Mommy, tie some string (around the handles) and then Natalie and Nathan won’t get in.” I asked him if Dan told him that. He said no. I asked Dan if he had said that to him. He said no. I was like, where does this kid come up with this stuff!? He’s not even three!

In farm news, the egg factory is closed. The hens are only laying 0-1 eggs per day, and depending on the weather, they’re frozen, but we still eat them. The goats and donkeys and cats are doing just fine with their thick winter coats and love when we have sunny days or visitors to scratch behind the ears. I tried to add up how many jars I canned this summer, but it was too much work….I stopped counting after 200….so there you go! This summer we will not do much canning, other than maybe some fruit, like peaches, cherries or applesauce. The garden will be just enough for fresh eating, because managing that and 3 littles will just be TOO much for me to handle this year.

I trust you all had a wonderful Christmas season and Happy New Year!

And that’s the news from this “month” on the farm!