Reuterskiold Family Blog

It’s hard to believe that I went back to work this past week!  It feels like summer went by so fast.  The last month or so we were super busy having lots of fun though!  Here are a few highlights…

Gilroy Gardens: Water Fun

Gilroy Gardens: Artichoke Ride with Daddy

Being Silly!

Last Day at Daycare

California Mid-State Fair: Lunch!

Morro Rock: Climbing rocks & sand.....I love this place!

First Day of Preschool

Happy Hollow Park & Zoo: Merry-Go-Round Fun!

With all of that fun it’s no wonder that I am worn out!  At my 32 week appointment I also did a glucose test and a blood test.  The results said I was not suffering from gestational diabetes – yay! but, that I was anemic – boo!  I’ve been taking an iron supplement, but with the stress of re-painting & re-carepeting our house plus going back to work, I am just so tired.  Usually I have a hard time sleeping that first week back because I keep thinking of all of the things I need to do, but not this year.  I’m also feeling big…

First Day of School: 29 weeks

They say the second baby can do that to ya – and I’m feeling it.  I can only hope that means that the baby girl in there is going to be bigger than the 4 pounds 11 ounces that Carina was.  I can’t believe I still have 10 weeks to go (hopefully!).  I’ve also started monitoring my blood pressure and baby movement at home to watch for a possible return of the pre-eclampsia I had while pregnant with Carina.  The doctor wants to see my bp stay under 140/90.  So far, so good!  The kid can definitely move too!  She seems much more active than Carina did and Carina loves it.  She likes to come feel the baby when she’s wiggling around in there!

We had held off on telling Carina that she was going to be a big sister for quite awhile.  We finally told her that the reason Mommy was getting a big tummy was because there was a baby in there and that she was going to be a BIG sister.  Her first words, “What are we going to name her?”  She then came up with two names to add to the list: Mikayla and Avery.  The next week she was super excited to show off her “I’m Going to be a Big Sister” shirt while having fun at Gilroy Gardens…

Check this out!

She is very excited and is telling us about all of the things she’s going to teach her little sister.  So far she’s also feeling generous and tells us about how the baby can use all of her old “baby” stuff.  How sweet!  Let’s hope that lasts when the baby actually gets here!

We headed over to the “Rose, White, & Blue Parade” near our house for Fourth of July.  It’s not much of a parade really, but Carina likes it and she gets to wave her “United States of American” Flag as she calls it.  We were all decked out in our red, white, and blue….even Fetus 2.0….

5 Months Pregnant

Speaking of that little lady, she’s doing well in there.  Kicking like crazy and so far keeping her Mommy’s blood pressure normal.  Yay!!

The following day we headed to Moran Lake Beach in Santa Cruz with our friends the Streepers.  It was COLD!  That didn’t stop Carina and her friend from putting on their swimsuits and playing in the sand though!

It's a Little Chilly!

And, the cold didn’t stop us from stopping by our favorite ice cream place, Marianne’s, on the way out of town!

…and I know how to use it!

When Dave was in Yosemite he called me up to confirm the fact that I had never been there.  He was correct.  I was born in California, have lived here my whole life, and had never been.  I’ve wanted to go, of course, just never got around to it.  Dave said, “We’re coming next weekend.”  So, he booked us a yurt (sort of like a cabin) for the following weekend.

We had a great time!  Our first hike was to Bridalveil Falls.  We knew we’d get a little wet from the spray off the falls, but we weren’t really expecting this….

That's not really what I had in mind when I said I wanted to see waterfalls.

I think it was on this first hike that Carina discovered her newest passion in life though: rock climbing.  We have a pretty strict “No Carrying” rule while we hike.  This means that hiking takes awhile since we have to slow down for Carina’s breaks and dawdle time.  On this hike it was all about the rocks….every one she could find, she climbed up.  She was pretty good at it too.  Next, we did our best to dry our clothes and we headed over to Yosemite Falls.  The hike out to Lower Yosemite Falls is nice and has lots of rocks…

Rock Climbing with Daddy

The waterfall is beautiful, and luckily for Carina, the spray was not quite as dramatic…

Family Photo

We had worked up quite an appetite, so we found a nice spot to have our picnic lunch.  Carina was a little worn out so we decided to drive up to Glacier Point so she could have a bit of a nap in the car (and maybe Mommy had a bit of a nap too).  The view from Glacier Point was amazing…

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point

After a visit to the small museum and gift shop, we headed back to the yurt for hotdogs and s’mores.  Yum!  The following morning we headed over to the Happy Isles Nature Center.  There is another little museum and nature center with lots of interesting information.  My fourth graders finished up the year with our unit that covers rocks, minerals, and erosion.  I kept thinking about what amazing natural forces shaped the valley and was happy to learn more about it.  Then we did the Happy Isles hike which was the best place yet for toddler rock climbing…

So happy!

The hike covers two small islands in the Merced River.  The river was running very fast, but we found a small alcove perfect for playing in.  Carina had fun taking off her shoes and socks and playing in the mud…

That's some COLD water!

After that it was time for lunch.  We found a nice little spot in the woods and ate…

Yum!

We made a final stop at the Tunnel View lookout area and then started the drive back home.  Carina passed out pretty quickly in the car and slept for quite awhile.  Overall, we had an amazing time and are already looking forward to a return trip!