Pickles before bedtime

is a very bad idea.
We decided to grill hotdogs for dinner tonight. As Cliff was grilling outside Aaron was running around on the patio getting excited that we were going "to have a picnic". Everybody enjoyed their dinner outside and we shared about 5 pickle slices with Aaron which he loved. Ever since then he doesn't stop asking for water. So, now I wonder how many sheets and diapers I am going to change tonight and if I am going to get any sleep...

Update: It wasn't too bad. He had an accident at 5:30 am, almost right before he usually wakes up. He did have a hard time going down. Cliff was putting him down for almost 2 hours. After 1.5 hours of surfing internet in the hallway, taking a short nap on the floor, Cliff decided to come downstairs thinking that Aaron was already fast asleep in his bed. Not a chance:) As soon as Cliff came downstairs, Aaron ran up to his door and called out: "Papa!" I thought it was cute that he was calling out his papa, but Cliff kept asking me what the deal was:)

A new haircut

Yesterday afternoon I decided to give Aaron a haircut. No, I didn't get carried away. I knew it was going to look something like this:) I felt like I was getting worse and worse with my haircutting skills and I thought it was a good time to "reset" his length and try it again when it grows back the same length. I still can't get used to this new look. It feels like he grew up about a year with his haircut. Not like he needed a haircut to make him look older than what he actually is...I went shopping for some girly clothes this morning and found lots of good stuff which Aaron approved. Sometimes I wonder how much he understands about his sister. He bring up his little sister in conversations even when I do not talk about her. Does he really believe in what he's never seen? Like this morning, he came up to my belly and said "Hi" to her, then he said he was going to read his book to his baby sister. He calls her by name which means we are most likely to keep the name we already picked for her. At the same time I wonder how he will act when the baby is actually here. I watched him interact with Vitaliy: at times he'd be gentle with his baby cousin, bring him toys, give him a hug. Then other times he would want to sit on his cousin who happened to be crawling by, or push him away. I know, though, that ultimately he'll be the kind of a brother that Cliff and I teach him to be.
Not much new with our little Miss. She's growing fast. I gained about 14 lb since the beginning of my pregnancy. I am 26 weeks pregnant and am very thankful to God that He's allowed me to carry her this far.

Summer In Pittsburgh

Aaron and I spent a week visiting Seriy and Jules and the boys in Pittsburgh. We had such a great time and felt very welcome there. Thank you, Jules, for delicious homemade meals and for being such a wonderful hostess.
The past week was full of new discoveries about Aaron. I didn't see Aaron playing so well with another child. He loved wrestling and playing with Nikolai, and just doing things together. Also, Aaron's sharing skills were put to a real test and I must say they need some work:)
There are many pictures that I opened a new album for (Summer in Pittsburgh). Here are some of my favorites to summarize our time in PA.

24 weeks

Little Missy is now 24 weeks old in utero. I had another ultrasound yesterday to check her heart (the tech couldn't examine it at 20 weeks as she was all curled up). We praise God, everything looks good. Her little heart was beating at 138 beats/minute. I think she was resting during the exam but usually she's a very very active baby, especially at night:) I could see her opening her mouth, her little fingers were near her face. During the exam she was head and feet up in the air, like a gymnast. Once the sickness of the first trimester passed the time started flying fast. In 4 weeks will be my last appointment of the second trimester and after that I will be seeing my doctor every 2 weeks. I try to enjoy every day of this pregnancy but looking forward to holding her in my arms when the time comes.
As far as her name, we keep going back and forth. At the moment I think we have decided but that could change by the time she's here:)


Her big Bro is doing well though we've had some troubles with his sleep (should I had mentioned anything about what a great sleeper he was in my last post?:)) Some days he wakes up on the wrong side of the bed-everyting is wrong, he can't even pinpoint what exactly:) It's also something I am learning how to deal with correctly as I don't see this behavior in him very often. But then the next moment is all fine-happy and smiling. The weather has been hot but we're trying to hit our playground in the morning before the heat of the day, and spend a lot of time inside doing crafts. This weekend we'll be visiting Aaron's big cuz Nikolai who turns 3 today! Happy Birthday Nikolai! Aaron can't wait to give you your present:)

2 year-old wellness check up

I took Aaron to his pediatrician today for his scheduled wellness check-up.
So, at 2 y.o. he weighs 30 lb 6 oz (75th %), his height is37 1/2 inches (97th %) and his head circum. is 19 3/4 inches (75-90th %)
He got his Hep. A and Prevnar vaccines and was tested for lead (not detected) and hemoglobin (13.1). As always, he was such a little trooper. I admit, I had to bribe him. I promised him one gummy penguine after the Doctor looks at him, and then another one before the "mosquito bites" (shots). When the doctor left the room (Drs. leave the dirty job of administering vaccines to nurses:)) Aaron just couldn't wait for the "mosquito bites" as he remembered that he'd be rewarded with another gummy penguine:) He hardly cried for the shots but he was so pittiful when the nurse was taking blood. And I just felt terrible. He wasn't hysterical, he just kept saying that his finger hurt, and tears were running down his cheeks:(
Overall, he's doing great. He's a happy and healthy little toddler (I forgot to mention his hazelnut allergy to the Dr.) Thank you, Lord!
As the Doctor was asking me questions about Aaron's milestones, the little guy was climbing all over me, giving me hugs and kisses and reminding the doctor every now and then that this is HIS mama:)I thought it was precious (not sure how it looked to her:)) and this public affection won't last much longer...

Also, about a month or two ago Aaron started sleeping through the night (too bad I don't any more) and going to bed completely on his own. Cliff gives him a bath, we read him books, pray, give kisses and hugs, then he asks us to turn off the lights and leave the room:) The last part still seems surreal to me. We didn't have to go through nights of screaming and hysterics. It just happened on its own. The first time Aaron asked us to turn off the lights and leave the room Cliff had to clarify with me that that was exactly what he understood Aaron saying:) Because of that we took down the gate to his room as there was no need in it any more. In the morning, at 6 am sharp I hear a thud, then toddling...then the steps stop (Aaron is still used to stopping at the gate:)) then toddling again and finally he's in our bedroom climbing on my side of the bed. 30 more minutes of waking up and he's ready to go:)

Not a whole lot with his eating habits. He independently eats what he likes (pasta, buckwheat, rice, french fries, bitochki, kotlety, omlet, pancakes, tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, watermelon, grapes, ice cream) using a spoon when appropriate, and I feed him the rest (soups, morning cereals...)
He's reciting rhymes and making up his own (no kidding!) He still loves books...as long as they have trucks or things that go in them. So it became a bit more challenging to sit him down for an educational book. He pretends he can read and often guesses the word correctly. He loves to play hide-and-seek though he usually helps us find him on the first try:)
He has an amazing spirit of giving and sharing. It's not just letting other kids take his favorite toys. He actually picks up a toy he's playing with and hands it over to the kid who asked for it. I hope he keeps it up.
And yet, as a normal toddler, he has both good and bad days. We see some temper tantrums, and his negation of our every other statement seems to be at its peak right now. He's learning and we have fun teaching him.

Аарон играет в прятки/ Aaron playing hide-and-seek

Аарон и Клифф прячутся в шкафу. Я иду искать:
-Хм...где мой Аарончик? Может быть он под подушкой?
(Голос Аарона из шкафа): -Нет, он не под подушкой!
-А где же он?
Тот же голос:-Он в шкафу!
---------------------------------
Aaron and Cliff are hiding in the closet. I am looking for them:
-Hm..where is my Aaron? Maybe he's under the pillow?
(Aaron's voice from the closet):-No, he's not!
-Where is he...?
The same voice:-He's in the closet!

Firefighter's Busy Day

We decided to celebrate Aaron's birthday one more time, at home. Just because I felt like doing something special for him. So, in the morning we went to the waterpark in Gaithersburg. At first Aaron was apprehensive and would cling to me like a monkey, though he wouldn't want to leave the pool. In about 20 minutes he warmed up to it and wouldn't want even to hold my hand-he wanted to swim all by himself. The pool was adjusted for kids. It was shallow at first and then gradually became deeper. So Aaron would walk from the shallow to the deep part until his face appeared almost under the water. Then of course he did not want to leave.
While he was napping I made him a firetruck cake and we sang Happy Birthday Aaron one more time which made him very happy:)
This morning after church we took him to ToysRUs and let him pick presents from GiGi and GiGiPa. He picked an Emergency Playset, two sets of Lego Duplo blocks, a Construction set, a traffic mat and a golf set. Earlier this week I took him to a bookstore and let him pick a present from Great Grandmother. He picked Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things that Go book, and a Truck Sticker book which we already did together (60 stickers). The new book is now his favorite. We'd like to thank the family for their generous and thoughful gifts. They made Aaron's birthday (week).