36 week sonogram

It's hard to believe that we're going to be a "Party of 5" in just a few weeks! When I went for my 36 week ultrasounds this morning, I was told that our "little peanut" appears to be healthy and BIG. They technician estimated that our baby is already 7 pounds 14 ounces, and she thinks that the head is in the 97th percentile. So, it looks like I'm going to get induced at 39 weeks:-) I can't wait to meet the little person that I've been feeling moving around inside of me for months! Our technician took some pretty cool 4D shots this morning. The one I posted below is my absolute favorite! Although we don't know if we're having a boy or a girl, I'm guessing that we're having a boy, because that little face looks just like Andrew's (right down to the tongue sticking out). I'm anxious to hear what they'll tell me at my appointment next week... if I make it that far!

We can't wait to meet you sweetheart! xoxo

Happy 75th, Pop!

Hurricane Irene didn't stop us from getting the entire Klein family together to celebrate Pop's 75th birthday!!! We may have lost our power for most of the day, had some water come in through the kids bedroom, and dodged a bunch of fallen trees along the journey, but we made it to LuLu and Pop's ready for a good time:-) As always, Grace and Andrew had a blast running around the house playing with their cousins. We are very blessed. Thankfully, no one in our family had much damage from the hurricane. We are truly fortunate to have each other and our amazing Dad/Pop:-) The big guy certainly keeps us entertained. He's never afraid to speak his mind, he's always willing to lend a hand to those in need, and his feistiness always has us laughing. Happy 75th birthday, Dad/Pop! We love you like crazy! xoxo

Happy 75th Birthday! xoxo

Our Jersey Shore Vacation

We've just returned from a fantastic 5 night/6 day stay in Beach Haven, Long Beach Island and Lavallette, and our trip was totally complimentary thanks to the Eller's and Winard's. It's certainly nice having friends with beach homes! Although our vacation got cut short, it couldn't have been better! We had beautiful weather almost every day, and it was great having so much uninterrupted family time! We enjoyed both beaches, lots of ice cream, delicious meals, and trips to Fantasy Island and Jenkinson's Aquarium. The weather was gorgeous today. It's hard to believe that Hurricane Irene is going to be as huge as they've been predicting. We had a lovely afternoon at the beach, and then we headed home due to Lavalette's mandatory evacuation request. It has been such an amazing summer. We've been so fortunate to spend so much family time together. I hope that traveling will continue to be this easy when we're a family of 5!

Our Little Man had so much fun playing in the sand!

LBI... Bernadette Grace Colonna has arrived!

1st night in Beach Haven, Long Beach Island

We went bananas waiting for a table at The Black Whale.

It was worth the wait! The food was delicious!

We loved our condo. We had such a beautiful view of the bay, and we sat on the porch as much as possible.

Our view from the porch

Grace and Andrew had so much fun playing in the ocean, building sand castles, and going for walks.

Daddy's girl... on our way to Fantasy Island

My little boyfriend

Relaxing on the beach in Lavalette

We love Terry!

No trip to Lavallette is complete without a trip to the Colonial Bakery! Grace and Andrew loved their Elmo and Cookie Monster cookies, and Danny and I couldn't get enough of their crumb cake.

Annual family photo on Terry's deck

Point Pleasant

I started the day with some contractions. So, we almost cut our vacation short. However, after an hour I came to the realization that I was just experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions, and we decided stay and make the most of our first overcast day of the week. It wound up being the perfect day to head to Point Pleasant and check out the Jenkinson's Boardwalk. On our way to the amusement park rides, Andrew fell asleep, and I felt bad that he didn't get to go the rides. Grace, however, had a blast ride hopping. We had a quick lunch on the boardwalk, and then we went to the aquarium. The aquarium was spectacular! I was amazed by the creative exhibits and the diverse collection of life from aquatic habitats. We saw lots of turtles, sharks, seals, piranhas, penguins, and various other undersea creatures. Grace and I enjoyed the "Please Touch" exhibit, and we were all amazed when we watched the seals at feeding time. We had such a great afternoon, and we were sure to stop at the Sweet Shop for some salt water taffy before heading back to "Terry's house" in Lavalette. It's been a fun filled week! I love spending time with our family without any distractions!

Doesn't this look like a scene from Mary Poppins?

Andrew was so excited to stick his head into the diving mask!

The Colonna boys enjoyed checking out the frogs.

Grace is all about striking a pose these days;-)

Jellyfish

It was amazing how many cool tricks the seals were able to do during their feeding time!

Andrew was fascinated by the monkeys.

The aquarium even had a cute learning center with lots of fun activities for Grace and Andrew.

The Macaws reminded Andrew of Go, Diego, Go.

Seahorses

Seaturtle

Grace was astounded by the size of the shark's jaw on exhibit!

She wasn't too sure if she liked the feel of the starfish in the "Please Touch" exhibit.

The penguin exhibit was our last stop at the aquarium. I look forward to returning here in the future!