Month 5 is here!

Here is my 5 month picture. The belly makes it pretty obvious that I am pregnant, which is exciting! However, things in my closet that I am able to wear are becoming few and far between, so it's looking like I may have to go shopping. Too bad!! People often ask how I'm feeling and I am happy to report that for the past month I have felt great! No more nausea and the headaches I was experiencing have not bothered me recently. It really is a blessing from God. I don't have the sort of job where I can take breaks if needed or easily go home because of illness, so Praise the Lord for caring for me in this way! The baby should be about 12 ounces and 7 inches long at this point and I have felt her moving like crazy! A week and a half ago, Ben was able to feel her move for the first time as well, which was very exciting. Please keep praying for us as we continue on this amazing journey!

I am officially 4 months along, with another 5 to go! It's hard to believe how fast it's going. I guess we better get going on our nursery! The baby is approximately 5.5 inches long now. And... if you want to know the gender, keep reading....




Simon had his boy puppy surgery yesterday. I think he was treated as well as Ben was after his shoulder surgery.... What can I say? We're animal lovers!

And, for the news you've all been waiting for.....

It looks like we'll be welcoming "sugar and spice and everything nice" into our house in March. It's a GIRL!!!!

Here I am to update you again on the happenings in the life of the Fullers - and it's a lot right now!


Now that I am almost through my 4th month, here is the picture after month 3. I AM starting to show, even though with my normal attire, you can't tell.

Ben and I spent last weekend in Kentucky to see Daniel play soccer. He is a senior at Milligan, so we wanted to be sure to see him in action before he graduates!

The boys are always very serious when they watch:

Here he is in action:

Tomatoes, apples, cucumbers, it doesn't matter what you are canning or freezing; it always comes during the worst week. And so, when, in the busiest week of September, Mom called to tell me my tomatoes were in, I wasn't sure what to do. Since I need my personal days for baby time in the Spring, I had no choice but to make the spaghetti sauce and tomato juice on two nights in the middle of a very busy week.

So here are some of the results of my labor. I believe I was up until midnight the first night and 11:30 the second night.

And here is the battle wound I suffered. The pressure canner was indeed, very hot!!!

Needless to say, we froze the rest of the sauce on the 2nd day. And I could NOT post this without giving credit to my husband, who was up with me both nights, helping chop peppers and onions, watching the canner to make sure it stayed at the right pressure, and running to get me ice when I burned myself. This was all after he took a trip to the grocery store to buy the peppers, onions, and another box of cans I needed. Yes, he pretty much IS the BEST husband a girl could hope for.

That same week (of course) I helped throw a baby shower for my friend Elli at the church. Here is the group:

And the lady of the hour:

And the baby stroller fruit basket I was quite proud of....

More later..... :)

Well, here it is.... a long overdue post about a lot of things. I'll start with some "belly" pictures just because it's fun. Although, you cannot see much going on in the first 2 months.

Here is month 1. Ben claims I was sticking out my belly. But nonetheless, here it is:



And not much of a change after 2 months passed:



Stay tuned for a 3 month picture coming soon. :) At this point, I was told the baby was the size of a large grape. It's amazing to me how God grows a little baby inside the mother's womb. What an awesome God we serve. Keep praying for a healthy baby Fuller to join us in March!



I've included a smattering of pictures from our trip to Florida with the Swartzentruber family in August. It was so wonderful to all be together and especially exciting for some of us (me included) to meet little Jonah for the first time!


Here are the grandparents with their precious little ones. Aren't these children SO cute?

Here are the guys. Very handsome!

And the ladies...

And Uncle Ben and Aunt Joni with Hannah wearing her dress purchased from Hawaii!

Ben and I celebrated 4 years of marriage while in Florida (yikes! It has been so wonderful that it doesn't seem that long!)

Uncle Ben and Jonah

Hannah also celebrated her FIRST birthday in Florida. Here she is with her very own cake.

Grandpa reading to Jonah. Jonah LOVES to be read to... a boy after my own heart!

Florida is just lovely. There's something about the beach that just can't be compared to anything else. We enjoyed our time and the blessing of being with family.





Here is our little Simon. He's getting bigger and it's taken quite awhile to teach him that biting is not okay, but we have made HUGE gains in the last week, so if you come visit us, you are safe! He is calming down some - today he spent a half hour curled up on my legs while I rested (having to do a lot of that these days!) on the recliner. It was very sweet.

And as all dogs do, he has his own special personality and quirks. He barks at the strangest things. Here he is when he discovered our fireplace. He barked, growled, examined it, and then decided it wasn't such a threat after all. Now he curls up on the tile in front of it when he needs to cool down.

Our latest project is a fence around the backyard. The reasons are two-fold: for privacy from the apartments and for Simon to be able to be out without a leash. It's come a long way, but there is still work to be done. Here's a picture of Ben working on it yesterday.

a little of the work in progress....

and the finished part....

Stay tuned for more on all of these little projects. There is so much to be done before March!

Again, it has been too long since the last post, so here are some updates on the happenings over the past few weeks...

First, the new counter tops!!! We were so excited to get rid of the old green ones and put on something a little more neutral that looks great with the decor of the rest of the house!


Ben had to cut down this wall, and build up the one his left hand is resting on, which required a lot of work, and help from our friend who is an expert drywaller, but it came out very nicely! Thanks Nick! Of course Simon had to be in the middle of everything.


Just in case you forgot what the old ones looked like...


Dad came to put in the faucet and accompanying fixtures. Again, Simon wanted to help.


And the almost finished product is lovely. As you can see, there is some painting to be done.



Here is Simon at 12 weeks, 5.8 pounds.



On the 5th, the Conrads got together at Mom and Dad's for an awesome 4th of July cook-out. Corn hole ended up consuming the evening. As you can see, even Grandpa C. got really into it!


There was a lot of chatting and catching up...




And a lot of flying beanbags.





Simon enjoyed himself - he got lots of attention from new people!


Here are three generations of Conrad ladies! We had such a good time, and I must include that Ben and I were the cornhole champions. However, as close as Ryan and Heather were, we may not be successful next time. Thanks for hosting us Mom and Dad!



Last weekend we went to the Fuller's house in Plainfield, IN for some family fun. Here's the whole gang


We celebrated Michelle's(Daniel's girlfriend) 20th birthday.

Marcia experienced babysitting her granddog for the first time while we went biking.

And the boys enjoyed the final game of the World Cup. We had a great time!


Simon is now 13 weeks and 7 pounds. And he's as feisty and playful as ever.



This is a rare picture...


Usually when I have the camera, he does this:


Well, this should catch everyone up. I will try to post before 3 major events happen again!