Christmas w/Boys & Surprise Weekend

After a very treacherous drive last weekend, we arrived home with the boys. We had to open presents right away... OF COURSE!!!

Chris bought himself an IPOD. It's a long story, but the gift was To:Chris From:Chris

He had a mp3 player that worked just fine, so we said if he wanted an IPOD he would have to buy it for himself.



Santa brought the family one gift this year instead of small gifts for specific people. We got a Wii and all the accessories.

All week I have been cleaning and organizing knowing that my parents were coming to visit for the weekend. The task of cleaning though was made a little more challenging because no one else knew they were coming! HeHeHe! The expressions upon their arrival were priceless and totally worth a week of stressing.

We coordinated schedules and just after Chad went to the ceremony, I left to get the kids and my parents came to the house. They were in the baby's room and Shawn walked past them. He did a double take and exclaimed, "Grandma and Grandpa are in the baby's room!" It was great.
We arrived on base and went in to the ceremony. Chad was expecting us so as the boys and I rounded the corner, he said, "Wow the boys look good." He was totally oblivious that my parents were just behind us. Suddenly it registered and he kept saying, "you drove 4 hours.... for me?" He couldn't believe I did that and actually surprised him. All night he put events and things from the week together and realized how all the pieces fit together.

The ceremony was great and Chad is officially a Master Sgt in the U.S. Air Force. Way to Go!!!

After we went out to eat, we opened presents. Baby Thomson got a travel first aid kit from Aunt Annie and Tristan. The gift is fitting seeing how Annie is a nurse and Tristan is a Fire Fighter/Paramedic.

We had a really great weekend with family. I am so pleased that the surprise went off without a hitch and that we got to spend quality time together.

I will try to post week 27/28 pregnancy pictures later this week.

Murphy is 4

Happy 4th Birthday Murphy!!!

Murphy is 4 years old today. He celebrated by relaxing in the sun all day, chasing rabbits and eating Doggie Ice Cream.

Chad and I also celebrated 4 years together. We had our first "official" date 4 years ago today. We had spend a lot of time together the 6 months before this, but nothing official up until Jan. 1 2005. Our date consisted of going out to dinner and then seeing The Phantom of the Opera together. I am glad we rang in the New Year together 4 years ago and still enjoy celebrating each new year together.

Christmas 2008

TADAH!!!! - We have nursery furniture!!!

We decided that with both of us having a week off, we would create a list of things to accomplish. Yesterday I accomplished cleaning (top to bottom) the master bedroom and rearranging it. While I did that, Chad fixed the washer (Thank the Lord!) and sealed the basement wall. He also mopped and cleaned the laundry room.

This morning we took time to relax and enjoy the quiet. Then this afternoon we created a nursery. We put together the changing table and the crib! It looks great and I can't wait to finish putting in the last new door and the trim.

Christmas was spent without the boys (they are with their mom) but Chad and I got to spend 5 days with my family. We spent Christmas Eve with Mom and Dad, after spending the morning cleaning up the mess from a broken wash machine. We opened gifts with everyone (Mom, Dad, Annie, and Tristan) on Christmas Morning. Then we went to the movie "Yes Man." We relaxed the rest of the evening.

Friday - We shopped and ran errands in Mason City with my Mom.
On Saturday - We had the Meyer Family Christmas. Most of the family was able to make it. Below is a picture of the cousins who were there and willing to be in the picture.

Pictured - (L-R) Brian, Rebecca, Annie (behind her Tristan), Brittany, Erika, and Andrea. Behind me is Melissa. We were missing Levi, Amanda, Carl, Jacob, Jennifer (and husband Scott), Lisa, Crystal, & Nick.

It was good to see family and enjoy an afternoon together. The next time we all see each other might not be for awhile. However, this spring will provide many opportunities to gather.

Baby Thomson Arrives around April 12

Brian and Annie turn 21 (April 25 and 27)

Brittany, Lisa, Erika, and Jacob graduate High School (Early May)

Christine (cousin on mom's side) gets married (Late May)

Baby Thomson has proven to be a kicker. Lately it seems that he is practicing soccer or Tae-bo. Either way, he sure is active. I enjoy being able to know his presence. I think my family also enjoys finally being able to see/feel him.

Well - We are gonna grab something to eat so I will try to post more later. If it's not before New Year's..... HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Snow Day

We have been so busy with the Holiday Season quickly approaching that it has been a while since our last post. Shawn had his 3rd grade program at school. His class performed a variety of songs from Seussical the Musical. I still love his enthusiasm and musicality. He certainly has a gift of entertaining. ( I posted a video at the bottom of this post.)



We have been going to Bethlehem every Wednesday during Advent. Well, not really, but our church has activities and experiences set up for the kids to enjoy during the season to help them remember the real reason for Christmas. They got to experience the Parfumerie (they made their own bubble bath mixture), the Toy Shoppe (they each got to make tops), The Dye Shop (they dyed cloth to make handkerchiefs), The Synagogue (they experienced a brief ceremony/service), the Farmers Market (they tried... yes my kids tried CousCous and actually liked it), and the Candleshop (they made candles). Every week, the boys looked forward to Wednesday and could hardly wait for Bethlehem Village. As a parent, it is always exciting to know that the kids are excited about Church.



I received a little grief from my mom about not posting belly pics for awhile. Even though I don't like the ones with skin showing, I thought I would post one anyway.



Here's what 24 Weeks Pregnant looks like at the Thomson house....

And...

as promised, I got a decent photo of the 3D photo from our last ultrasound. Here is Baby Thomson. You can distinctly see his face and little hand. We aren't sure if his hand is up with the attempt to

a) suck his thumb

b) show that he is a thinker already (beware mom and dad... I am planning trouble!!!)

c) letting the kids at my school know that he's coming out with his fists up ready to fight (for those of you who don't know, I teach students that sometimes exhibit behaviors and.... well - the baby might be getting ready to fight back)

The nursery is about finished as far as remodeling is concerned. We have painted the ceiling and the walls. Chad and Dave replaced the window a couple of weeks ago, and Chad replaced the closet door and all the baseboards and trim. We have the main door to the room to replace before it will be all done, but it is getting closer. Once it is all done, we will be able to assemble the changing table and crib. Then it will really look like a nursery.

Annie and Tristan came to visit this week on their way to California. We enjoyed their visit and are happy that Tristan will be back in March for the 2nd round of testing for the Omaha Fire Dept. We will be keeping him in our prayers as our family would love to have him and my sister move closer to us. I know the boys are especially excited that Aunt Annie might be able to move a little closer ( and as they say... "Now if only we could see Grandma and Grandpa too).

Well - I should get going... I have one more paper to turn in for my 2nd Master's class. Hallelujah!!! I get a two week break and then get right back to it.

Sadly, tomorrow we drive the boys to visit their mom in Wyoming. Even though we know that they will have a blast, we will miss them lots. It's always nice when we can spend the holidays with them rather than away from them, but we get to enjoy Christmas with them when they return in 2009.

If I remember to, I will post again later this week, if not I will post again when we return from visiting family in Iowa.

Happy Holidays -

The Thomsons - Chad, Katie, Chris, Shawn, Baby and Murphy.

Baby Thomson is a.....

Baby Boy...

For sure, no doubt about it, baby boy. We are happy to see and know that all is well with him. He is measuring between 22 weeks 5 days and 25 weeks 1 day. That scares me a little because it means that I will have to be prepared even earlier for him to arrive.

We got some good 3D images. When I have a chance to scan them in, I will post them for all of you to see his cutie patootie little face.

I told Chad that this just means we will have to try again for a little girl in a few years.

We had a funny correlation at Thanksgiving though...

Up until my cousin Jacob was born, my mom's side of the family had all girls. Now... all the girls are having little boys. It's interesting to see how different each generation can be.

I am ready to buy something gender specific now. I saw the pictures, I saw the parts and yes...

The Thomsons are having another boy!

Christmas By The Lake

I have to confess that pictures would have made this post much more exciting, however I had a dead camera with no charger. So I don't have any pictures at all!

On Friday after work, Chad and I along with the boys (and dog) headed to Clear Lake for the weekend. Every year they have a big Christmas by the lake celebration. We got to town just as it was starting to snow and get slick.

Saturday morning - We got up and had breakfast with Santa, saw some cool decorated Christmas trees and visited Santa's workshop. The boys had lots of fun.

Then we headed home to drop off the "boys" - all of them! My mom, my aunt Jackie and I went on the Tour of Homes. How interesting to see the interior of some beautiful Clear Lake homes. It did spark a bit of jealousy though.

We went downtown to check out the festivities around 3:00. At that time, the temp was about 15 degrees. I don't even want to know what the windchill was! Here are a few things we did -
* Drank Hot Chocolate
* Sleigh ride with horses
* Trolley Ride around part of the lake
* Ate Chestnuts from an open fire
* Drank Hot Chocolate
* Watched the lighted Christmas Parade
* Saw some cool Fireworks
* Drank more Hot Chocolate

Sunday we went to Church. I was so glad to see some friends I haven't seen in awhile. It is good to know that everyone is well.

We are just getting ready to head home. It is snowing a bit, however, it appears from the weather report that it will only last for about an hour. We can only hope!!!

NEXT ULTRASOUND

For those of you who check our site....

We have another ultrasound scheduled for Monday Dec. 8. Hopefully the results will be more definitive. We will let you know when we know (and hopefully baby will be more cooperative!!!)

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! We unfortunately did not have the boys with us, but we were able to see my family. My mom and sister were able to feel the baby move which I think was fun for them. We enjoyed good food - Thanks Kathy and Mom. We enjoyed good football - Thank Tennessee Titans!

Overall, the break from school was enjoyable. I was actually ready to get back into the routine. We (and by we - I mean Chad) has been working non-stop on the baby's room. The walls have been painted, the new door is stained and ready to be hung, all the trim is stained and ready to be put up, and the new window is installed and ready to be trimmed as well.

We will keep you posted!!!