The Bartletts

Sunday, December 30, 2012

Sarge the Sledding Bulldog

There are no limits to what this dog can do......

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Baby #2 is at 24 weeks old and over the half-way point. Mommy is feeling well and the baby is getting big! We haven't found out if we're having a boy or girl yet, and not sure if we will. The one thing we definitely need help with is names. We can't seem to agree on anything, so any suggestions are welcome!

From www.babycenter.com on 24 weeks: "Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon."

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Weekend Get Away

This past weekend we packed up the car, boarded the dog, and headed on a road trip to Minneapolis! Our 6th anniversary was Sunday and we took Caleb with us to the Twin Cities for some new scenery and a little shopping.

Caleb wasn't so sure he wanted to leave Friday morning, as he was really into his cartoons!

Our first stop was the Mall of America & the Sea Life Aquarium inside. The aquarium boasted a large fish tunnel and we couldn't let Caleb miss two of his favorite things....fish and tunnels!

We got back to the hotel that first night and Caleb thought he'd hide in the end table!

The next day we got up early (not by choice) and went to IKEA! IKEA is Trish's absolute favorite store. If you've never been there, it's kind of like a maze that you walk through. We thought it'd be best to put Caleb in the baby back pack so he couldn't reak havoc on foot in the store! It worked out pretty well.

He was passed out by the end of the store!

By chance we found out that our friend Katie was in Minneapolis the same weekend. She's a coach on the South Dakota State women's basketball team. They were playing in the Best Buy Classic on the University of Minnesota campus. We watched their first round game versus Villanova, but unfortunately they lost. They did pick up the consolation game victory the next day though against Washington State!

On the way to the basketball game we passed the Gopher's football stadium and showed them what we really thought! (Although it was a pretty awesome stadium!)

At the game....Go Jacks!

Caleb was on the go all day Saturday and trying to keep him seated at the game was a challenge. One trick is to give him Mommy's phone. Here you can see the tuckered out little man fell asleep holding the phone and we took it out of his hands! He literally fell asleep with 3 minutes left in the game!

Another highlight for Caleb was the hotel pool. We had to swim both nights we were there and it was like pulling teeth to get him out of the water!

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Trick or Treat!!

Monday, October 22, 2012

Awesome Weekend

Andy finally switched to his "winter" work schedule and this past weekend was his first weekend off. We planned a mountain of fun and it all played out according to plan. It all started Saturday. We decided to go to Deal's Orchard near Jefferson. They touted pumpkins, petting zoo, pony rides, a corn box, and a giant jumping pillow! It sounded like Caleb's idea of paradise.

Caleb's got his new bibs on & he's ready to go!

Caleb & Momma on a hay rack ride at the orchard.

Feeding the goats.

The sign says it all!

The giant jumping pillow. We had a hard time getting Caleb off this thing!

Checking out the donkey

Corn box. Another hard thing to pull him out of.

Caleb had a little trouble picking out what pumpkin he wanted to bring home.

Of course there was time for a tractor ride too!

We finally found the perfect pumpkins. Caleb had to help push the cart too.

After the orchard we went to our farm. Caleb fell asleep on the way, so when we got there Mommy & Daddy put in a couple gate posts and trimmed a few trees. Then we headed home to relax.

Andy went out hunting Saturday night with a friend, but wasn't able to get anything. Saturday night we'd like to forget. We were all excited to watch the Hawkeyes play, but they managed to lay a giant egg on the field and we went to bed glad for the day, but disappointed at the game.

Sunday's plan was to wake up and find a pair of boots for Caleb. We went to Theisens in Ames. Upon walking into Theisens, Andy was floored. They had expanded their store and it was HUGE. It is now a Super Theisens. Andy could have stayed there all day.

After a stop at The Western Edge, we finally found Caleb's boots. We came home and relaxed for the afternoon. The evening wrapped up with a hunting trip for the whole family. Andy was able to shoot a deer with Trish & Caleb there to help. That is a whole other story in itself and you can read about it here.

Overall it was an AMAZING weekend and if it's any indication of those to come for our family this fall/winter, we'll have many more stories to follow.