Carlieness and a bit about her parents...

This is a huge summer for our favorite 4 year old – she has started really swimming and reading! She is still at the beginning stages of both, but enjoys working on them.
Wearing goggles made the difference for her in the pool, she will now jump in and swim to someone on her own. We had been working on it together anytime we were at the pool, but I really wanted her in some lessons and we couldn’t find any here. Then 2 weeks ago we found a great teacher that works with her privately and is helping her with stroke development!
I met with her pre-school teacher before summer break and she called Carlie a “reader”, I didn’t think she was there quite yet. I knew she was close so we’ve been working on it and she is responding so well! I don’t want to burn her out, but I figured it is a good time to concentrate on it before baby comes!
August will be a busy month for our girl she started VBS this week will continue with swim lessons and begins gymnastics.
She always keeps us laughing….
~The other day when we were waiting in line to go through the gate to come on base a car from behind us zipped through the gate in a different lane. Carlie asked why we couldn’t go through in that lane and I explained that you could only use that side if you were Korean and she goes, “Oh yeah, we are Italian.”
~She just came in the study with a bump up her shirt and informed me she was pregnant and that she was having twins and then proceeded to pull 2 baby dolls out of her shirt!
~" I am just really frustrated that you aren't doing what I want you to do and we aren't doing anything fun."
~"You have two choices: we can go to the bowling alley or we can go swimming." Oh really??

 Showing off her 4th of July crafts that she created at home!

 With her buds Katie and Mac at the 4th of July Fest.

 Her first ever sparkler!!  She was excited about them but oh so scared too.

 She looked so grown up the other day before church I just had to take her picture!

Joe has been home so many nights for dinner and has been able to sing Carlie her songs before bed most nights that we are starting to really get used to having him around!!!  He still works super long hours and is trying to finish up a Master's degree, but we still get to see him more than we did in Italy.  He has more of an officey type job, but still gets to fly with the Fiends (the f-16 squadron that is here).  He is excited that we are having another baby girl, however after the ultrasound I think he wanted to race home and try again for a boy ;-).

Birthday Celebration with a White Russian cake

 HOT date night!

 28.5 weeks

I'm doing well and have been enjoying making lots of new friends, swimming, yoga, and I joined a women's bible study.  I've been feeling pretty good I have way more aches and pains this pregnancy which everyone says is normal.   I am also the size of a small car and my belly button popped out about a month ago (it never popped with Carlie).  This little baby girl is so much more active in the womb I felt her swimming around and doing acrobatics at around 18 weeks.  Now that she has less room I just feel tons of kicks and jabs (I think she likes to kickbox especially at night).  I wonder if all this extra activity indicates that she will be a wild one when she is born ;-)!