Jonomac Orchard

A couple of years ago, Mike and I went apple picking and got attacked by mosquitos. This year the weather was much cooler, no mosquitos were in sight, and we had Audrey with us! We picked up some delicious apples, and Audrey enjoyed the chance to run around outdoors.

Better From a Box

If you ask Audrey, juice is way more delicious when sipped through a straw.

Watching Daddy Mow

One of Audrey's favorite things to do is watch Mike mowing the lawn. The way she chooses to watch him makes her mother very nervous!

Congrats Kelly and Dan!

I gained a brother this weekend! My family celebrated the wedding of my sister Kelly and Dan Friday, and today we are recovering from a ton of fun on little sleep. We had a blast and are so happy for the couple!


Getting ready on the big day.


Emily looking fantastic in her bridesmaid dress.

Almost ready!

Audrey was the flower girl.

Kelly and Dan's first dance.

24 Weeks!

I'm more than halfway through this pregnancy now at the 6-month mark. The regular doctor appointment today went well. It was a quick checkup. My blood pressure, weight gain and tummy growth are good. The baby's heartbeat was strong and quick--the doctor joked that he liked hearing her voice. The doctor also complimented me on my outfit, so good visit!

We are getting excited for our little boy to get here, but we're also a bit nervous about going back into newborn mode. The more independent Audrey becomes, the more we realize it's a few short months until we're in the thick of it again. It will all be worth it, though, and I'm looking forward to when Audrey meets her brother for the first time.


We already got a little outfit hanging in the closet for Wetzel Jr.

Does This Come in XS?

Audrey had a lot of fun putting Mike's T-shirt on and off Sunday morning.

Daddy-Daughter Day

Audrey and I got to spend the day together today and it was awesome. At on point she was having about a minute long conversation with Sophie. This video is the last 10 seconds I caught of it.

Weekend in the North Star State

We headed up to Minnesota for the weekend to visit relatives and attend a cousin's wedding. As always, it was great to catch up with all the aunts, uncles and cousins. Audrey was a real trooper throughout the weekend and handled longish car rides much better than her parents did. Then Monday we happily welcomed home my sister Emily from her travels in Southeast Asia.

Here are a few bits of the weekend.

Thanks to our hosts--my A. Anita and U. Bob--for a relaxing boat ride (Audrey's first) Sunday.


Audrey loves rocking chairs and assumes every chair is one. So every time she climbs into a chair, she leans forward and back singing, "Rock, rock."


Blowing kisses with Grandma at the wedding.

Careful with that precious cargo, Mike!

Mommy-Daughter Day

I'm returning to work full time next week, so on my last Tuesday at home with Audrey, we made a special excursion just the two of us to the Rockford Discovery Center, a neat little children's museum. In fact, we stayed there much longer than I thought we would. The museum had a large area dedicated to kids under 6. Besides that, several exhibits in the larger portion of the museum grabbed Audrey's interest, as well. I wish the museum was a little bit closer, so we could go more often. But the 45 minute drive was well worth it for the special day.

I took a bunch of pictures, which can be seen at www.flickr.com/thewetzels. But you'll get the gist with the photos below.


Fun at the water works in the Tot Zone. As you can see, we had the place pretty much to ourselves.

Audrey of course found a baby doll at the play house in the toddler exhibit area and carried it around everywhere. She cried when I made her put it back before we left.

Audrey also did not want to get down from driving this construction truck. It's a good thing it was not crowded, so she wasn't taking any other kid's turn.

More fun with water. The museum also had a large outdoor water table that we spent some time playing in.