A Little Trip to Arkansas

The weekend before last Nick was heading to Nevada for a little golf trip with the Sutko men...so Grant and I decided it would be a great weekend to head down to Arkansas. Angie and her family moved down there at the end of last summer and we've been wanting to make a visit, especially before we have to add a few hours to the trip when we live in Omaha. So Friday morning Grant and I took off and ended up staying 5 days (once we arrived at their house we found out it was the girls' spring break and figured why not stay as long as we can). And wow did we have a good time! :)

Spring begins to bloom just a tid bit earlier in Arkansas than it does in Kansas City so we enjoyed the beatiful white and pink budding trees, the yellow budding bushes, and the mid 70 degree weather they were having. It truly felt like May instead of mid March and Grant and I felt like we really were on our own little Spring Break vacation.

We went for plenty of walks/bike/trike rides, played in the parks, had picnics, and of course learned plenty of new things from our big cousins. The first picture is from our first day there when we went to see the beautiful new home the Nachtigals are building. We stopped at the little park in their future neighborhood and Grant was a big fan of the teeter-toter. We also had a our first experience at Chucky Cheese's...huge hit with all the kids!


We were able to spend some time at the much talked about Beaver Lake. It was a beautiful lake and we all enjoyed our time there. The girls collected sea shells While Grant collected sticks and threw rocks in the water. We played on the playground and had a great picnic. When they took a bath that night the water was dirty! The girl's taught Grant how to "look to the sky" when he is getting his hair washed...he is still talking about this and all the bubbles they had in their tub. :)

A few other tidbits...
Nick could not believe how much Grant was talking after returning from his 5 day trip (some of this I am sure is just from being around the older girls) but it sure is fun to hear him tell us about his day, his friends, what he did, or what he had for lunch. He has also become our little parrot. Last night we made cookies and when I would tell him what to do in between ingredients, he would repeat it right back (including all my "ums" and "oks"). He has also become a big fan of Baseball and I must say is getting quite good. He throws like a champ and his hand-eye coordination are coming around for hitting. We've had pretty crummy weather this past week so of course all this practice has been taking place right inside.
As far as baby #2, on my birthday we had the big ultrasound where we could find out the sex...but again we decided we would wait till this babe's big arrival to tell us that. The Dr. said the babe looked great, which we were so happy to hear. The baby's movements are getting stronger and we are now able to see the baby move just from looking at the outside of my stomach. Grant continues to stay strong with his "baby Sister" prediction...I think he may be convincing me...but we shall see. :)

Busy, Busy, Busy

This update is long overdue but to our defense there has been a lot going on in the Sutko household! Nick's company-Black & Veatch-has opened an office in Omaha and we recently found out they would like Nick to be in that office. So we will be moving back to Omaha and the date is set for the end of April! It's quite the bittersweet situation as we love Kansas City and the friends we have made, but with the majority of our family back in Omaha and Kearney, we think the close support system will be nice...especially with #2's arrival this summer.
So our last month has been spent figuring things out with his company, finding me a job in Omaha, working to get our house on the market...and the list continues as there seems to be so much to figure out and even more so when there are kiddos involved. I joke with Nick that it feels like we are running a business because the majority of our conversations are what needs to be done, what's happening with the move, when's this meeting or that interview, etc.

But for Grant's sake we are trying to keep the craziness as calm as can be and let him continue to enjoy his little 2 year old life...which he seems to be doing just fine. We celebrated his Birthday at the end of January, it was a little more quiet compared to last years but we all still had a great time. His biggest thing was the Birthday cake, all he wanted was the "happy cake". And he did enjoy it!

Since being 2, Grant continues to be his goof ball, strong-willed, happy self. He loves to help out and is so proud when he does. He has also become a bit more demanding when he doesn't want to leave somewhere (the park, a friend's, etc.) and when I say demanding I mean we are starting to see some tantrums thrown...we are working on this :)

I must say one minute he might be throwing a tantrum but the next he's melting our hearts. Just the other morning he woke up and Nick brought him back to our bed and he gave us both huge hugs, numerous kisses, and I got my head patted...that brought a chuckle. Then the other day when we were playing at a friend's who has a little girl who loves to push Grant's buttons (she's just 1 and thinks they are playing games or something) but for whatever reason Grant seems to think she's bothering him. So the other day when she was making loud noises at him, he told her to "hush". I've never heard him say this before (and I don't think we say it) but he said it in such a grown up manner I could not help but laugh.

He continues to LOVE cars, trucks, tractors, trains, and the newest one "neener-neener's". This involves any fire truck, police car, or ambulance because when there sirens go off that's the noise they make, makes sense right. :) He also will spot these vehicles all over town...many times impressing Nick and I because we have not even seen them yet.

We are anxiously awaiting more nice weather as Grant has absolutely loved our few days we've had it. He's crazy about the park but is just as content getting his bucket of toys out in the backyard and having the freedom and fresh air this involves. I am looking forward to what I think is going to be a very fun Spring and Summer!