MAYbe back in the saddle!

So it's May...

Brian's third year of dental school is over. This week Maybrie finishes first grade and Henry turns three months old. I think my pregnancy/newborn phase excuses are past, and it's time to start documenting our life again. (Though my dying laptop excuse is still valid, I have to use Brain's to do this.)

The first week of May included Brian's LAST finals week EVER!!! It was busy and stressful and exhausting like all of the others, but it's over and he passed all his classes. Hooray! We celebrated the start of our fourth and final year of dental school with a BBQ at the Kirkwood's with our fellow classmates: Thayns, Pulhams, Maxwells, Vaughns. The food was ridiculously yummy, the weather perfect, and great company, including Brian's parents who arrived from WA that night. It was a great night that kicked off a wonderful weekend.
On Saturday we went to the zoo and a few sprinkles kept the weather cool and the crowds away. The kids got to ride the carousel and train for the first (and only) time thanks to grandma and grandpa! That night we were spoiled with Chick-fil-a for dinner (a family favorite).
Sunday was a special day. It was Mother's Day and Henry's blessing day. I led the primary kids in singing I Often Go Walking and Mother, I Love You and a special musical number with a small group of children and the young women titled The Miracle by Becca Woolf's mom, Shawna Edwards. The kids sang much better than I thought they would and the other song was simply gorgeous. Maybrie got to sing in that number and she was SO excited. She loves the song and practiced it over and over at home in preparation. Brian gave Henry a very sweet blessing, which I almost didn't hear or take notes on thanks to Thomas having a meltdown over something while Ezra was on my lap and Maybrie needed a kleenex! I thought to myself, "Well, I shouldn't have worried about Henry being quiet, it's these other three monkeys that are the distraction!" haha They calmed down just in time, thankfully. I got to go to Relief Society, which is always a special treat. Brian and his dad made filet mignon, baked potatoes, and asparagus for dinner... it was delish! So nice to have Brian around after a super busy semester and his parents visiting too.

The second week of May Brian had his rotation in the team clinic and he LOVED it! Basically it simulates working in a real private practice because you have a dental assistant, hygienist, and two chairs instead of one. Brian saw his mom the first day and got everything prepped for two new front teeth crowns. Throughout the week he did many crowns and a bridge, racking up the points and lab work causing him to have to go in on Saturday for the first time. He learned so much and is sad to be back in the regular clinic after working in such a nice, clean environment. It made him even more excited to graduate and work in a real office.
The kids and I took grandma and grandpa to the children's museum where everyone had a good time. Brian's parents headed out on a week long trip to Kirtland, Palmyra, and Niagra Falls. On Friday the boys and I went to a birthday playdate at Oakley's house and then I had to run Maybrie to the ER because she had a bad fall at recess and we had to make sure she didn't break her arm. The trip felt pretty pointless since she finally moved her arm once we got there, but at least we knew for sure she was fine, and she thought the x-ray was pretty cool. That night we went to the Baker's birthday party. They are an elderly couple who invited our whole ward over to their house. It was a fun gathering. On Saturday night we had the Daetwylers and Woolfs over for one last Cafe Rio night. Always such good food and company.

Sunday night we said our first goodbye for the week. Our beloved Daetwylers left Monday morning for residency in CA. We went over and I mopped their floor while they packed the loose ends and cleaned their apartment. It was hard to say goodbye to them because we moved in together and they have been such close friends over the past four years. They will be greatly missed this year.
On Monday night Maybrie and Thomas started swim lessons and they are both so excited about it. On Tuesday Brian's parents came back and that night Brian and I were able to go to the temple. It was our first time back together since Henry was born. Brian helped the youth with baptisms and I did initiatories. It was much needed.
On Wednesday we went to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and were going to go to the Hall of Fame museum but didn't because it would have cost $60 to get through the gates since an event was going on. Hearing the cars and seeing the outside was enough. We went to the NCAA museum instead. It wasn't that impressive, but we had fun playing basketball and kicking goals in the soccer simulation with the boys. After we dropped Brian off at school we went and ate lunch with Maybrie at her school. She was so excited to have us there and to introduce Henry to her teachers for the first time. That night I went to Andrea Kenney's funeral. She was 28 and died of cancer after battling it numerous times since high school. It was a lovely and uplifting service. She lived an inspiring life. She had a love of cooking and always said "When life gives you lemons, make pink lemonade cupcakes!" They served some after the service. It was held at the stake center next to the new temple so we were able to walk the grounds afterwards. The purple flowers there right now are simply stunning!
Thursday was a wild, stressful day! Brian went to deliver his mother's crowns that morning and discovered that the lab messed them up. It was such horribly bad luck, especially since they were supposed to fly home the next day. Brian felt awful and tried to fix the situation by driving the crowns and new impressions up to the lab himself just before lunch. By some miracle they were ready to be picked up a few hours later and he was able to put them on his mom before the end of the day. They fit perfectly and look beautiful. He did a great job! Everyone was exhausted from the day, but we still went out to dinner and left the kids with babysitters. We took them to Mama Irma's, a delicious Peruvian restaurant in fountain square. We had such a great time! It was the perfect end to our visit with them. Later that night we went over to the Woolfs, mopped their floor and said goodbye. They too moved in the same summer that we did. We will miss them dearly. It's always hard to see your kids sad to say goodbye to a friend too. The next day we said goodbye to grandma and grandpa as well as they flew home to WA.
Luckily, the week didn't have to end on a sad note because the boys went to the father/sons campout and Maybrie and I had a girls night. They were all so excited! It was Ezra's first time going and he actually did really well. It was rainy, but they were dry in their tent, slept well, and went on a beautiful hike to a waterfall the next morning. Maybrie and I ate cereal for dinner, watched two chick flicks, ate candy and cinnamon rolls, and painted nails. I took advantage of Ezra's absence and sorted, discarded, and reorganized all of our bathroom/toiletry stuff. It was very therapeutic.
Yesterday we had our first free Saturday we have had in a long time. We did some laundry, went to Target, played, grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, and introduced the kids to Star Wars for the first time. We watched the new The Force Awakens movie and they all loved it! It was adorable to see their excitement. Ezra kept pointing and shouting "Star" and "whoa" throughout and Thomas cheered and karate chopped across the floor during every fight scene!
Today we went to church and felt uplifted, took naps (me, Ezra, Henry), played with legos (Brian, Thomas, Maybrie), and had a yummy steak dinner. It was a packed, emotional, fun, overall good week!

Whew!

September

I had my first ultrasound and was pleased to find one healthy baby inside. We decided to tell the kids about the baby because I was afraid that it was becoming obvious and I wanted them to hear it from me first. They were so excited, especially Maybrie, though Ezra has no clue what is going on. I have been having a lot of fun spending my days with Thomas and Ezra. They are such fun little sidekicks and we are getting into a routine, enjoying lunch, grocery trips to Kroger, and nap time at home. One day we ate lunch with Maybrie at school. They all had a great time and Ezra was very sad to say goodbye to Maybrie when it was time for us to leave. He loves his big sister. We announced the upcoming arrival of baby #4 on Instagram and Facebook saying that we were going to celebrate "Labor Day" in March this year.

On Labor Day we drove down to Kentucky and met Darin, Christy, Makaela, and Elise at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. It was pretty neat, but not a place I would visit again, especially because my allergies acted up so bad. The kids had fun playing with Makaela and it was fun to meet our newest niece Elise, who is so sweet. That afternoon we went back to their house in Richmond, KY for a BBQ dinner and birthday cake for Makaela's 6th birthday. It was a good visit.

We bought Thomas a new pair of tennis shoes for the year, which he thinks are awesome and make him run super fast! Brian participated in the IUPUI Regatta canoe races on the canal downtown again. Brian totally smoked his heat, but they didn't make it to the finals. It was a fun day as it has been each year. The boys and I went to several playgroups... the mall play area and we finally discovered Holliday park which is so awesome! I can't wait to take Brian and Maybrie there. They have a nice nature center, trails, and probably one of the coolest playgrounds I've ever seen. Maybrie had a day off for parent-teacher conferences and was able to come with us to Anderson Orchard... I look forward to their apple cider slush every year. The beautiful fall weather has meant lots of evenings playing outside at the dinosaur park. Andrea took our family pictures in the lovely Holcomb Gardens at Butler University. Another great hidden gem in our city. We love how the pictures turned out.

August

For my birthday some friends surprised me and took me out to Orange Leaf. Brian spoiled me the entire day, making me French toast for breakfast, letting me go out shopping by myself and take a nap, and then out on a date to dinner. He took me to Bonefish Grill but we had to leave because the smell of fish was making me sick. We went to Moe's instead. 

I spent most of the month taking many naps because I was so sick and nauseous. Luckily Thomas and Ezra were good at entertaining themselves playing and watching TV. When my posterity asks about the lack of pictures from this month I will say... mommy was sick and pregnant, enough said!

July

On the 4th we went to the ward's annual breakfast and then we spent the afternoon/evening at the Hay's house celebrating with friends. They had water toys, bubbles, and a bounce house for the kids, plenty of good food and fun visiting with friends. Rocky and Ed always have fun shooting off fireworks over the pond for us. We had a great time. 

We were thrilled to discover I am pregnant with baby #4! The kids and I snuck in one last visit to the Children's museum before Maybrie headed back to school. Brian and I discovered we like Cajun food at the delicious Papa Roux's where we celebrated Gabby's 40th birthday. Brian spent a lot of time at the dental clinic assisting and trying to get patients. The kids and I survived a monsoon of rain getting to our car from inside Shoe Carnival thanks to the ingenious and kind workers who made the kids ponchos out of bags! The crazy rain led to serious flooding in our area, entering apartments at the end of our row and ruining cars that were stuck in the parking lot. Maybrie got an adorable back-to-school haircut.

We also enjoyed the open house for the Indianapolis Indiana temple. Brian and I were lucky enough to volunteer. I was a tour guide and Brian was a door greeter. It was so cool to hear some of the background on the building of the temple and have the opportunity to teach and bear my testimony to people of various beliefs. It was a very spiritual experience. The temple is simply beautiful and it has been so neat to be a part of such a historic event that means so much to the saints here. We also took the kids through and Brian was able to go through with some dental school friends as well. Brian worked with the youth on the cultural celebration which he said was an amazing event as well. I wish I could've seen it. Brian and I also attended the dedication at our church building. President Eyring and Elder Ballard were the presiding general authorities. 

We found the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV show at the library... the kids love it and I may have gotten sucked into a few episodes myself! haha We said goodbye to summer with our first Indianapolis Indians baseball game at Victory Field. It was so much fun! We had great weather, friends, popcorn, and an awesome fireworks show to finish off the night. 

Maybrie started first grade at Blue Academy. Her teacher is Mrs. Bangel. She was so brave and has had no problems adjusting... so much growth since Kindergarten where she took months to open up and start talking. She loves school! Thomas and Ezra love going outside every morning to wait for the bus with her. Thomas cries anytime she runs off before giving him a hug goodbye! We celebrated the start of a new school year with a movie night on Friday... something that is quickly becoming a regular weekly event the kids look forward to.