I have been waiting a long time to be able to relax and just say "Okay baby, you can come anytime!" For so long it has been because of Eric's school that we've hoped baby would stay put. No sooner had Eric completed his schooling, though, than Hannah got very sick. High fever, stomach ache, ear aches...and it did not get any better by the second day as we'd hoped, only worse! And in the midst of her illness I started having contractions. Very hard to feel "nesty" and anticipate the birth of baby when your firstborn is so ill. Thankfully the contractions subsided, and one trip to the clinic later, 2 doses of antibiotics, a good night's sleep, and we have a Hannah that is somewhat back to normal. An ear infection and possibly strep (which we won't find out about until later today), but whatever it is, she's feeling better and that's a relief to this mother's heart.
Not only did I hate the thought of leaving Hannah behind (in the event I should go into labor), but I hated the thought that if baby came while she was so sick Hannah would be unable to visit or snuggle with her new sibling. No fun! So we're very happy she's better and baby is still baking away!
In the meantime I've progressed quite a bit. As of my doctor appointment yesterday I was 4cm. The doctor exclaimed so much about my progress that we did not get exact numbers on effacement or station, just that the baby's head was lower than it had been (so in a positive station--yikes!) and a warning that it could be at any moment. She was wary of checking me any further for fear of setting labor off, which we didn't want yesterday since Hannah was still so sick! We go back in tomorrow to be rechecked and then she'll strip my membranes to see if she can't get labor going on its own. We'd love to have my own doctor on call so that is the reason we're willing to try. And nothing will happen if my body isn't ready yet and it certainly seems to be. The idea is just to stir things up a bit...sometimes baby just needs a nudge :-) I would rather have baby before this weekend than to go into labor on Easter when my doctor isn't on call...blah.
In the meantime I am literally waddling about feeling like baby is about to fall out anyway (as if it would be so easy!). And I'm tentatively allowing myself to feel excited about the prospect of our baby joining us so soon, although I will be fine if he/she chooses to wait a bit, too.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
37 Weeks
Not much to report on the baby front and I guess that's a good thing. Had a good doctor appointment today and while there hasn't been much more progress, my blood pressure is great. That is really encouraging since I've never made it past 37 weeks without some issue arising. With Elaina they had just begun to express concern when I went into labor...which prevented it from becoming a problem! I monitor it daily and have been pleased to see the low trend.
I've been sick on an off all last week so even my weight gain was minimal! That's a first!!
Eric is hoping to have most of his schoolwork wrapped up tonight and once that's all submitted we'll be free to concentrate on last minute preparation. Almost everything is done at this point but we do have a few little things left. Particularly practice our breathing...something that has fallen by the wayside with Eric's last big push to get done!
This pregnancy has been a delight as far as the girls' go. When I was pregnant with Grace, Hannah was just too young to really understand what was going on. She seemed to get it a bit more with Elaina, but was still fairly disinterested. She participated by having babies in her own belly :-) At that time Grace was really too young. This time around, however, Hannah has been excited from the beginning. Grace is just naturally more into babies and that sort of thing, so she's also been very interested. Elaina is absolutely oblivious and has, after all these months, finally started pointing to my belly and saying "baby". Does she get it? I'm guessing not.
Hannah won't leave for school without her good-bye kiss to the baby, and they both love to kiss the baby goodnight. I told them a few months ago that the baby could hear them so they should talk to the baby, read books, etc. It was only a few days after that, while I was painting the baby's room, Grace came running in with a pile of books to read to the baby, sure that the baby was bored! I hope their enthusiasm continues once the baby is actually here!
I've been sick on an off all last week so even my weight gain was minimal! That's a first!!
Eric is hoping to have most of his schoolwork wrapped up tonight and once that's all submitted we'll be free to concentrate on last minute preparation. Almost everything is done at this point but we do have a few little things left. Particularly practice our breathing...something that has fallen by the wayside with Eric's last big push to get done!
This pregnancy has been a delight as far as the girls' go. When I was pregnant with Grace, Hannah was just too young to really understand what was going on. She seemed to get it a bit more with Elaina, but was still fairly disinterested. She participated by having babies in her own belly :-) At that time Grace was really too young. This time around, however, Hannah has been excited from the beginning. Grace is just naturally more into babies and that sort of thing, so she's also been very interested. Elaina is absolutely oblivious and has, after all these months, finally started pointing to my belly and saying "baby". Does she get it? I'm guessing not.
Hannah won't leave for school without her good-bye kiss to the baby, and they both love to kiss the baby goodnight. I told them a few months ago that the baby could hear them so they should talk to the baby, read books, etc. It was only a few days after that, while I was painting the baby's room, Grace came running in with a pile of books to read to the baby, sure that the baby was bored! I hope their enthusiasm continues once the baby is actually here!
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
36 Weeks
The last weeks have been busy getting ready for baby. Dragging little yellow and green outfits out of storage, washing, and putting them away. Folding blankets while tenderly remembering how my little girls looked wrapped in them. Pulling the bassinet out of storage and situating it by our bed. Moving the rocking chair up to our bedroom and getting it all set up for late night feedings. Practicing breathing exercises and hoping I'll actually remember them when the time comes...yep, lots of preparation going on here!
It seems like most everything is done and so now we wait. Of course the biggest thing we are waiting for is Eric to be done with school. He is officially done April 16 so we are hoping that baby does not make his/her arrival until after that time. However, this is his last week with homework due. Next week he'll probably be scrambling to put the polishing touches on his final project. I'm hoping that he'll have it done enough in advance that there won't be any conflicts should baby wish to appear, but I'm not holding my breath on that one.
Things are looking good so far...no blood pressure issues yet. Hoping that remains the case. Things are moving along. I've been checked for progress the last two weeks at my doctor appointments...today I was almost 3cm (out of 10), 80% effaced (out of 100%), and baby's head was at 0 station (+4 being the goal). Last week I was at 2cm, 70% effaced, and baby's head was at -1. Sooo...things are moving forward slowly. And that's good since I'm not in any hurry, as much as I'm eager to meet this little one.
I am still hoping that this baby will hang out until at least the 19th, preferably until after Easter. Your prayers that baby will at least wait until Eric is done with school are appreciated. That would be an amazing blessing on our family...
But God is the master of all timing, so we shall see what He has in store for us this time around!
It seems like most everything is done and so now we wait. Of course the biggest thing we are waiting for is Eric to be done with school. He is officially done April 16 so we are hoping that baby does not make his/her arrival until after that time. However, this is his last week with homework due. Next week he'll probably be scrambling to put the polishing touches on his final project. I'm hoping that he'll have it done enough in advance that there won't be any conflicts should baby wish to appear, but I'm not holding my breath on that one.
Things are looking good so far...no blood pressure issues yet. Hoping that remains the case. Things are moving along. I've been checked for progress the last two weeks at my doctor appointments...today I was almost 3cm (out of 10), 80% effaced (out of 100%), and baby's head was at 0 station (+4 being the goal). Last week I was at 2cm, 70% effaced, and baby's head was at -1. Sooo...things are moving forward slowly. And that's good since I'm not in any hurry, as much as I'm eager to meet this little one.
I am still hoping that this baby will hang out until at least the 19th, preferably until after Easter. Your prayers that baby will at least wait until Eric is done with school are appreciated. That would be an amazing blessing on our family...
But God is the master of all timing, so we shall see what He has in store for us this time around!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Nursery
I finally got a nursery to decorate! It only took until my 4th kid. Today I finished it. All I am waiting for is a mobile, but I'll be getting that soon enough.
When we bought this house we envisioned this room to be a perfect kids' room. It is a bit small, but it has those cute built-in's that make up for space since you don't need dressers.
Now, officially decorated, I love how it turned out. Still not that big, but I love how cozy and warm it feels.
The crib nook. Love how cozy the built-ins make that area.
Facing the door
I hope to get some pictures up of how the girls' room turned out (as soon as they clean it!) I am loving the upstairs now.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Miraculous Timing
As we were doing our taxes this year Eric and I were paging through paperwork looking for documentation regarding the purchase of our home. It brought back memories of just how amazing our home selling process was. And how faithful God was to us.
We had our house listed for awhile when they extended the "first time home buyers" tax credit to "long time" homeowners--people who had owned their home for at least 5 years. We knew getting that was a total longshot since the tax credit expired on April 30 and we wouldn't reach 5 years of owning our home until April 28. So we'd literally have to sell our house and find the new one and close within those two days. Highly unlikely, right? Yes, we had pretty much figured that would never happen.
And then along came March. By this point we'd had the house on the market for 9 months and were growing weary of the entire process. But then, finally, we received and accepted our first offer. And with a leap of faith we put the closing on April 29th...which would give us about a month to find a house to move into and get the tax credit. And on March 29th we finalized our offer on the house we now live in...giving us a month to move out and into our new house. Neatly clinching our tax credit but a mere one day margin.
I remember we were in total awe at the time because it just seemed so unreal. That was absolutely no way we could have orchestrated that, it was a God thing. Going through our taxes and seeing the corresponding dates...April 28, 2005 we purchased our first home and April 29, 2010 we sold it. The home we purchased was actually listed on the same day as our first home...just 5 years later.
The entire journey of selling our home taught me a huge lesson. God's timing is perfect. Throughout those long months of trying to sell our home I certainly envisioned what would be the "right" timing. I saw the house I wanted come and go and couldn't imagine finding another home I would love. But we did. And we would not change the way things happened.
Our home how we first saw it. It looks a little bit different now...but not a lot! We hope to "beautify" the front a bit more this summer. Hopefully with Eric being done with school we'll have a bit more time!
I've surprised myself a bit with this pregnancy. As much as I want to "control" when baby makes an appearance I know that I can't. And I don't need to. God's timing is so much better than mine. He's proven that to me time and time again. I get it :-) And every time I feel myself wanting to snatch back the "control" (as if I really have any!) I just remind myself that I don't need it. Every time I think I know how to do something the best way, God shows me that His way is much, much better.
We had our house listed for awhile when they extended the "first time home buyers" tax credit to "long time" homeowners--people who had owned their home for at least 5 years. We knew getting that was a total longshot since the tax credit expired on April 30 and we wouldn't reach 5 years of owning our home until April 28. So we'd literally have to sell our house and find the new one and close within those two days. Highly unlikely, right? Yes, we had pretty much figured that would never happen.
And then along came March. By this point we'd had the house on the market for 9 months and were growing weary of the entire process. But then, finally, we received and accepted our first offer. And with a leap of faith we put the closing on April 29th...which would give us about a month to find a house to move into and get the tax credit. And on March 29th we finalized our offer on the house we now live in...giving us a month to move out and into our new house. Neatly clinching our tax credit but a mere one day margin.
I remember we were in total awe at the time because it just seemed so unreal. That was absolutely no way we could have orchestrated that, it was a God thing. Going through our taxes and seeing the corresponding dates...April 28, 2005 we purchased our first home and April 29, 2010 we sold it. The home we purchased was actually listed on the same day as our first home...just 5 years later.
The entire journey of selling our home taught me a huge lesson. God's timing is perfect. Throughout those long months of trying to sell our home I certainly envisioned what would be the "right" timing. I saw the house I wanted come and go and couldn't imagine finding another home I would love. But we did. And we would not change the way things happened.
Our home how we first saw it. It looks a little bit different now...but not a lot! We hope to "beautify" the front a bit more this summer. Hopefully with Eric being done with school we'll have a bit more time!I've surprised myself a bit with this pregnancy. As much as I want to "control" when baby makes an appearance I know that I can't. And I don't need to. God's timing is so much better than mine. He's proven that to me time and time again. I get it :-) And every time I feel myself wanting to snatch back the "control" (as if I really have any!) I just remind myself that I don't need it. Every time I think I know how to do something the best way, God shows me that His way is much, much better.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Germs, Germs, Go Away...
I feared that this was going to be a rough winter in the health department because it is Hannah's first year of kindergarten and so she is exposed to (and bringing home) all sorts of new germs. We started off right away in December with some sort of fever/congestion deal. Elaina was first and then Grace, and finally, just before Christmas, Hannah caught it. And hers turned into an ear infection. While they were battling their sickness, I got to battle the stomach flu. But miraculously all were well in time for Christmas and the ensuing week of vacation.
Hannah's birthday is the week after New Year's, so it falls just when we are trying to get back into routine. We noticed just before her birthday that she was having a hard time hearing. Of course, wouldn't you know it, the ear infection never actually cleared up all the way, so round of antibiotics #2. She had her hearing mostly restored in time of her first birthday party and was able to enjoy that day to her utmost ability! However the next morning I woke up with the beginnings of a nasty cold. Which has not left (despite receiving its eviction notice multiple times). I can't take much for it, so it really is just a matter of endurance and rest. And of course, just because a cold is never enough to plague a pregnant woman, I got pinkeye on top of it. Just a bonus, you might say :-P And ironically I'd never had pinkeye before until I was pregnant with Elaina (so now I've had it twice). So apparently pinkeye enjoys picking on pregnant ladies. I think I'm starting to head toward recovery, though. Just in time for Grace (and now Eric) to catch some sort of virus that involves the throat. We thought it was probably strep, but the strep test was negative for Grace. She seems to be pretty much over it, though, so now we just wait on Eric :-)
I'm sincerely praying that this is the last of it. My poor immune system needs a break! I'm so grateful that this time around we are expecting a late spring baby. So I can weather all this sickness without worrying about a newborn being born into it. Hopefully by the end of April/beginning of May everyone will be healthy and outside enjoying spring weather!!
We have some fun things coming up around the corner, too, so we need to be healthy for that!
Fun for me, perhaps (and maybe not so much for the rest of the family), is that we're soon going to start decorating the nursery. It will the first actual nursery I've had to decorate, so I intend to enjoy this one. We'll hopefully be doing that over the next couple weekends. We need to tackle the girls' room, too, since we'll be moving Elaina in over there shortly. That room was a "nice" shade of pink with a horrid sand texture, so we need to re-plaster the walls so that the walls stop leaving scratches on our girls' hands while they are sleeping.
We'd like to get our room painted, too, since it is this shade of yellow:
This is our bedroom before we moved in. And what this picture doesn't truly show is the darker color of yellow that goes around the trim...and how it fails to blend with the rest of the wall. Ugh. I do not feel rested in our bedroom! And since I'm soon to be spending many hours at night awake, I want to enjoy our bedroom.
Besides home improvement Eric and I are going to a couples retreat at Lake Lundgren Bible Camp with some friends Valentine's Weekend and then I get a "girls weekend" at the end of Feb. where, for the first time ever, I will be leaving Eric alone with the kids *gasp* for an entire weekend! And then we've enrolled the girls in a "big sibling" class which will probably be more fun for Mommy than them! And mixed in there somewhere, hopefully, will be a visit from Grammy and Grandpa from PA.
I will leave you with some pictures from the last few weeks:
We had to get rid of Daphne in November because she started peeing consistently in the house and despite our best effort (replacing carpet to remove the smell, frequency of cleaning litter, better lighting by the litterbox, etc) she just didn't stop. So we rehomed her with some friends up north, where I've heard she is happily living the life of a farm cat. And Sophie is the newest member of the family. So here is Elaina snuggling with Sophie (Elaina is a huge fan of cats, the cats for Elaina? Not so much)
After Christmas Grace got her first "big girl" haircut and got to go to the kids salon where she got her hair styled and a mini-manicure. She was in her element!
Hannah's 6th birthday came and went. I can't believe that it has been 6 years since she was born and I became a mom! Somedays it just seems like yesterday.
Eric playing "duck, duck, goose" with Hannah's party friends.
Hannah's little party enjoying their treats. She loved it. Parties for Mommy? Not such a big fan.
Hoping that this next month brings lots of before and after pictures and good health!!
Hannah's birthday is the week after New Year's, so it falls just when we are trying to get back into routine. We noticed just before her birthday that she was having a hard time hearing. Of course, wouldn't you know it, the ear infection never actually cleared up all the way, so round of antibiotics #2. She had her hearing mostly restored in time of her first birthday party and was able to enjoy that day to her utmost ability! However the next morning I woke up with the beginnings of a nasty cold. Which has not left (despite receiving its eviction notice multiple times). I can't take much for it, so it really is just a matter of endurance and rest. And of course, just because a cold is never enough to plague a pregnant woman, I got pinkeye on top of it. Just a bonus, you might say :-P And ironically I'd never had pinkeye before until I was pregnant with Elaina (so now I've had it twice). So apparently pinkeye enjoys picking on pregnant ladies. I think I'm starting to head toward recovery, though. Just in time for Grace (and now Eric) to catch some sort of virus that involves the throat. We thought it was probably strep, but the strep test was negative for Grace. She seems to be pretty much over it, though, so now we just wait on Eric :-)
I'm sincerely praying that this is the last of it. My poor immune system needs a break! I'm so grateful that this time around we are expecting a late spring baby. So I can weather all this sickness without worrying about a newborn being born into it. Hopefully by the end of April/beginning of May everyone will be healthy and outside enjoying spring weather!!
We have some fun things coming up around the corner, too, so we need to be healthy for that!
Fun for me, perhaps (and maybe not so much for the rest of the family), is that we're soon going to start decorating the nursery. It will the first actual nursery I've had to decorate, so I intend to enjoy this one. We'll hopefully be doing that over the next couple weekends. We need to tackle the girls' room, too, since we'll be moving Elaina in over there shortly. That room was a "nice" shade of pink with a horrid sand texture, so we need to re-plaster the walls so that the walls stop leaving scratches on our girls' hands while they are sleeping.
We'd like to get our room painted, too, since it is this shade of yellow:
This is our bedroom before we moved in. And what this picture doesn't truly show is the darker color of yellow that goes around the trim...and how it fails to blend with the rest of the wall. Ugh. I do not feel rested in our bedroom! And since I'm soon to be spending many hours at night awake, I want to enjoy our bedroom.
Besides home improvement Eric and I are going to a couples retreat at Lake Lundgren Bible Camp with some friends Valentine's Weekend and then I get a "girls weekend" at the end of Feb. where, for the first time ever, I will be leaving Eric alone with the kids *gasp* for an entire weekend! And then we've enrolled the girls in a "big sibling" class which will probably be more fun for Mommy than them! And mixed in there somewhere, hopefully, will be a visit from Grammy and Grandpa from PA.
I will leave you with some pictures from the last few weeks:
We had to get rid of Daphne in November because she started peeing consistently in the house and despite our best effort (replacing carpet to remove the smell, frequency of cleaning litter, better lighting by the litterbox, etc) she just didn't stop. So we rehomed her with some friends up north, where I've heard she is happily living the life of a farm cat. And Sophie is the newest member of the family. So here is Elaina snuggling with Sophie (Elaina is a huge fan of cats, the cats for Elaina? Not so much)
After Christmas Grace got her first "big girl" haircut and got to go to the kids salon where she got her hair styled and a mini-manicure. She was in her element!
Hannah's 6th birthday came and went. I can't believe that it has been 6 years since she was born and I became a mom! Somedays it just seems like yesterday.
Eric playing "duck, duck, goose" with Hannah's party friends.
Hannah's little party enjoying their treats. She loved it. Parties for Mommy? Not such a big fan.Hoping that this next month brings lots of before and after pictures and good health!!
Monday, January 3, 2011
Baby's On The Way
While this hasn't really been a "secret", it is still unknown by a lot of people. Our fourth (and likely last biological) child is on the way. We had the privilege to sneek a peek last Tuesday and it was an amazing experience. I love the ultrasound for the simple reason that it is our one chance to "meet" this little person before we actually get to meet them. To catch a glimpse of little fingers and toes, and if we're lucky, a face.
We did get to see the face this time, too. Probably better than we have with any of the others. Unfortunately there was no picture to show for it, but we got to see the most precious nose, mouth, and chin. Can't wait to kiss them!!
Baby is due May 2nd and we'll see if he/she actually holds out this long. I'm hoping to actually make it beyond 37 weeks this time. I would love, love to not have a baby on my birthday (April 15) so I'm concentrating on holding this one in!! My birthday falls right about at 37 weeks, too, so I can't let this one have an early exit pass!!
Meet Baby #4
We are patiently awaiting his/her arrival!!
We did get to see the face this time, too. Probably better than we have with any of the others. Unfortunately there was no picture to show for it, but we got to see the most precious nose, mouth, and chin. Can't wait to kiss them!!
Baby is due May 2nd and we'll see if he/she actually holds out this long. I'm hoping to actually make it beyond 37 weeks this time. I would love, love to not have a baby on my birthday (April 15) so I'm concentrating on holding this one in!! My birthday falls right about at 37 weeks, too, so I can't let this one have an early exit pass!!
Meet Baby #4
We are patiently awaiting his/her arrival!!
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