Levi: 2 1/2 Years

Two and a half years ago, I met my sweet baby boy for the first time. The last couple of years have been filled with more joy than I thought possible. I'm amazed at how much Levi has grown up in the last 6 months! Every new stage is always my favorite, but right now, where he's at, it's my favorite!

By far the most significant change in the last couple of months has been Levi's speech. He started speech therapy right after he turned 2, and it's been a game changer. While some of it I'm sure is coincidence, just because most kids start talking more around this age, I'm convinced the therapy has played a major role in his development. When Levi turned 2, he would basically just say "car" ALL. THE. TIME. He knew how to say "go" and would occasionally (and by that, I mean, maybe a total of five times) repeat after us. But that was as far as his speech had gone. Within the first month of therapy, Levi started saying "Dada" and "Mama," as well as making animal sounds for a few different animals.

And it just snowballed from there. Before we knew it, Levi was doing almost every animal sound, making car noises when playing with his cars, and identifying the different types of cars (ko-kuk for tow truck, mint kuk for cement truck, choo chain for choo choo train, etc). He has come up with the cutest nickname for his new little sister, and Ro-Ro has really stuck!! My favorite thing he says of course is, "I love you, Mom." Oh for Pete's sake! Recently, Levi has begun using simple sentences (I watch Airplane, Is Mama back?) and Brett's favorite, "Go Irish!" It's been insanely fun having conversations with my sweet boy, and hearing his take on the world around him. 

Levi became a big brother four months ago. He has been phenomenal! I really can't believe it, still! From the day we brought Caroline home, he has been nothing but kind and considerate of her, and has recently even enjoyed laying down on the floor with her as they babble back and forth to one another. I'm so proud of how well he has not only transitioned but has risen to the occasion and surpassed our expectations! It's been awesome getting to know Levi in this new role of Big Brother, and I'm blessed to see his heart be so compassionate towards his sister. 

The older he gets, the funnier he becomes. Levi's sense of humor is fantastic! In the midst of his laughter, he often stops what he's doing and gives us a kiss or a hug. He still loves being chased and tickled. And he still loves chasing and tickling the dog...it's so cute. Levi has the most wonderful cousins on both sides of his family and he gets so excited when he gets to play with them! He and his cousins on my side of the family each smack their own lips together to create a popping noise, and they do this back and forth to each other and just laugh and laugh. Levi, of course, is generally the ring leader in all of their shenanigans. Cracks us up.

Levi has started to become more embarrassed when he gets in trouble, or even if he gets corrected slightly. He sticks his bottom lip out and puts his chin to his chest while burrowing his brows. Then he lets out a little sigh. I've learned that sometimes he just needs to be reminded that we love him and that we're proud of him, but that what he was doing that the time wasn't ok. That reassurances seems to help him. It's like he doesn't want to disappoint us, but he also doesn't want to be told what to do. This should be a fun combination in the future! :/

We pray more and more each day that God would continue working in his heart. Our greatest desire for our son is that he would grow up and fall in love with Jesus. We pray that he would chose to spend his life serving God and others with deep compassion and integrity. That he would be filled with joy and the strength to become more like Jesus, even when it's difficult. We pray that Levi may see his sin for what it is, and become all the more grateful for God's gift of His Only Son. May he know that the love of Jesus is always the answer and pursue Him with great determination! 

We love you, Levi!!

Caroline: Three Months

Three Months

Miss Rosie-Ro, you are just the sweetest thing. You love laying on the floor and talking to us with your sweet "oooh's" and "iiiiii's" and occasional giggles. The moment we make eye contact, your face lights up and you start talking. I'm hoping you stay that way forever, telling Mama your secrets! You're growing so fast, yet remain a petite little lady. My favorite new thing you do is play with your hair. You keep one arm up and twirl your hair in your fingers. It's the sweetest. We love you, sweet girl, and thank God every day for the chance to know you and watch you grow into the beautiful woman God has called you to be. He loves you even more than we do, and we pray that one day, you'll know His love personally and chose to follow Him! We love you, Caroline!

Life with Two

I've had every intention of keeping up with this blog better than I have lately, mainly because I want to write details about life now that I'll likely forget later. However, duty calls and it turns out this motherhood gig gives you joy out the wazoo, but takes away every last ounce of free time. :) So here's a quick recap of the last three months!

Bringing Caroline (or Ro as she's so lovingly referred to around here) home has been such an amazing experience. For starters, she's just a really good baby. I know a lot of people say that about their babies, but Ro's exceptionally good. In the last three months, I'd venture to say she's cried MAYBE a total of 2 hours. Maybe. She's happy and content and smiley and just a bundle of love. Her laid back, easy going personality has made the transition from one kid to two such a breeze. Not that I haven't had my share of exhaustion and feeling like I could very well lose my mind, but those moments have been very few and far between.

On top of all of that, my sweet Levi has really stepped up and grown into an incredible big brother. You guys, I was really worried about this. And not in the way that every parent worries about how a new sibling will effect their current children. I'm talking, this kid, who once clenched his fists and screamed at even just the sight of a baby, is now sweet and, dare I say, GENTLE with sweet Ro. He calls her Ro Ro and has been so great about all my time holding her and loving on her. If he wants my attention during those times, he just joins in on the fun and snuggles with the both of us. For the most part, he just ignores her, which is better than having him smother her with love, in my opinion. But when he pays attention to her, he's content with sitting beside her and showing her his cars. We spent a lot of time this summer talking to him about how we'll be bringing our baby home and what to expect, but you just never know how much a two year old (who wasn't talking much at the time) is going to understand. His transition to now having a sibling has been seamless, I almost feel guilty about it.

By far the hardest part of having two kids is trying to go somewhere. It never fails, I'll get them both dressed and ready to walk out the door when somebody suddenly poops. Once bottoms are wiped and shoes are back on, I can get them loaded up pretty quickly, but then I have to make sure the diaper bag is well stocked, including diapers and wipes, extra clothes for Ro, bib, burp rag, blanket, paci, nursing cover, toys for Levi (depending on where we're going), extra snack, possible cup of milk, the list goes on. And I've always prided myself on being a light packer. But with kids, especially two that are in different stages of life, there's just. so. much. stuff.

Without a doubt, by the time the kids are loaded, their diaper bag is packed and loaded, and I grab my purse, cell phone, and sunglasses, I sit in the car and praise Jesus for deodorant and windows to crack for fresh air because I'm usually sweating like none other. After I praise Him for those things, I look in the backseat and praise Him for the precious boy who's usually talking about his "Choo Choo's" and love of "kuks" (trucks, for those of you who don't speak Levi), and there's a beautiful little girl batting at her toys and I just feel so fortunate that I get to be their mama. All the sweat and chaos is so, so worth it.

I seem to be rambling. That's another thing I do these days. My brain sometimes feels broken so my thoughts come in no particular order. Bare with me.

Football. That's what life has been since Ro's come into this world. I've had the best help between my parents and wonderful friends I've gotten to know through Brett's job, and because of them I've been able to take the kids to every single game of Brett's this year, other than the very first scrimmage when Caroline was one week old. It was chaotic and hilarious and exhausting all the while, but I LOVE showing the kids how important it is to be a part of each other's lives and how we support each other and cheer each other on. They have an AWESOME dad who was born to coach. As they get older I want them to understand what it is to be a family and be there for one another, so I figured we should start at a mere two weeks old! It's so fun being a football wife and a football family, and my kids were rock stars throughout the season. The games and team dinners went MUCH smoother than I expected with two kids, for sure.

God really answered all of my prayers concerning the first couple of months with two kids, and I owe it all to Him. He's been my strength and my rest throughout it all. And He's blessed me with Levi, my low maintenance, entertains himself, outgoing boy who is full of life and energy, as well as now our beautiful baby girl who is just happy to be along for the ride and has a smile so radiant with joy. She's just been an awesome addition to our family, and I'm excited to watch her personality to continue to unfold, as well as watch her and Levi become friends over time. I'm so, so glad for them both and excited to see God work in their lives in the years to come!

Caroline: Two Months

Two Months

Sweet Ro, you're two months old! You're quickly moving out of the newborn stage and into the infant stage! You started sleeping through the night right at 8 weeks old, sleeping from about 10pm until 7:00am. You still sleep quite a bit during the day, but you're wake times are growing longer all the time! Now at 11.8lbs, you smile all the time and have started to coo to us! We are so grateful for your sweet demeanor and that God saw fit to place you in our family. You melt our hearts daily and we continue to pray that God would do a mighty work in your sweet heart. We want you to grow to know how much Jesus loves you and we want you to experience His grace and redemption like we have! We are excited to continue to watch you grow and become the beautiful girl God created you to be! So much love, sweet sister. 

Caroline: One Month

One Month!

Wow. I really just blinked and here we are. My baby girl is one month old! Oh, sweet Caroline, you really are just perfectly sweet. We think you have cried MAYBE a total of 50 minutes this whole last month. You're just happy and content, and when you are upset, you have the sweetest little whimper. You're sleeping so well at night for your mama, sleeping until 3:30 or 4, then going right back to sleep until 7 or 8! It's amazing. Weighing in at nearly 11lbs, you're already growing out of your newborn clothes and getting some sweet little rolls on your arms and legs! You love standing on our laps and love facing out and looking around. The only time you're unhappy is when you're in your car seat. Your snuggles and smiles are the best things ever and we just love you to pieces! 

Caroline's Story

A couple of weeks have passed and I still haven't had the chance to sit and write down Caroline's birth story. Something about being the second born and Mama slacking...either way I still love her so much and I want to remember every detail of her birth day. So here it goes...

Forty weeks had come and gone, just like I knew it would. I had started feeling anxious about labor starting, because I knew summer was almost over and Brett's school year/football season would be in full force in no time. There was no chance he'd miss the birth, really. I just really wanted him to have a few days home with us to get to know our baby and to help me as I recovered, and I knew that window of time was fleeting. I continued to pray that she would come on her own, and that regardless, God would fill us with peace in knowing that our baby was in His hands and that he/she would come at the perfect time.

Backing up for a minute. At 39 weeks, I had gone to my doctor for my weekly check up. At that time, I was barely 1cm dilated and 0% effaced. Baby sounded great, and my doctor told me that if I was induced at that time (which I didn't want to be) that it likely would be unsuccessful because my body was showing no signs of being ready. 

And back to 40 weeks. Going in for my appointment, I knew my doctor would mention induction because he doesn't like to let his patients go past 41 weeks, so he would make mention of it and I could do what I wanted with it, Again, I was nervous about getting induced because of my fear of a repeat spinal headache from the epidural. My goal was to go without the epidural so that the chance of a spinal headache would not exist, in hopes for a much better and faster recovery. I knew that entering pitocin into the mix would make an epidural-free labor much more difficult.

Anyway, at my 40 week appointment, my doctor informed me that I was 2cm dilated and 50% effaced. I was encouraged by my body's progress and a little more open to the idea of being induced, having high hopes of it being successful. With Levi, I went from 1cm to 10cm in just 5 hours, so I also had hopes of this labor being even faster. So after talking to my doctor, we decided that a couple of nights later, I would go in to be induced if I hadn't gone into labor on my own yet. That would still give me a chance to start labor on my own, but also give Brett a chance to have time with us before the craziness of fall began.

On a Wednesday night, I went in to begin cervadil. That day I had been having lots of signs that labor was near, including a few random stronger contractions (side-note: from this side of labor, I laugh at my use of the word "stronger.") I felt confident that the induction would go well. That night Brett and I spent the evening watching Big Bang Theory and eating a bunch of food. The calm before the storm. 

Thursday morning (our 4 year anniversary), we were about to begin pitocin. I made it to 3cm and was more effaced, so while I was waiting for them to begin the pit, I took a hot shower and tried to ease the tension in my back during contractions. I had heard such horrible things about back labor and had a feeling throughout the whole pregnancy that I would have back labor, due to how baby was positioned. While in the shower, it started to hit me that back labor had begun and I had a bit of anxiety. When I got out, I started my playlist on my iPad and prayed throughout the worship songs that God would just give me peace and be my strength. And then began the pit at 9:30am.

The nurse kept asking about how I was managing my pain. I remember thinking that she seemed concerned then pleasantly surprised that I was doing ok. I felt like maybe I had been overly worried about the intensity of labor. HA! After about an hour, things started getting more intense. I had reached 5 cm and had my water break. My water was clear this time, which was a huge answer to prayer. After that, it seemed all hell broke lose.

I started throwing up from the pain. I kept telling myself during contractions that it would peak then die down, then I'd have a minute to regroup. Except I didn't. The contractions were one after another with sometimes no more than 20 seconds between them. I could barely catch my breath. I sat on the birthing ball and clung to the pillow on my bed, telling myself over and over again that, even though it felt like my body was breaking in half, my body was actually doing what it was supposed to and if I would relax, my baby would be here soon. See, I told myself the right things. But I still wanted to die. (Not to be dramatic or anything, right?!) :)

That's when I caved. I told Brett to get the nurse and tell her I needed the epidural. I don't think he could have jumped up faster to call for her. He hated seeing me in pain. The nurse came in and, bless her heart, encouraged me to try a warm compress and counter pressure. It was cute, she was doing her job so well, but I didn't care about anything else. I needed real relief.

While we waited for the anesthesiologist (are you impressed that I spelled that correctly without spell check?!) she and Brett both did counter pressure on my back, which I had always heard brought some welcome relief. But no, I just couldn't have anyone touching me. I needed the juice! After what seemed like forever, an angel of the Lord appeared the anesthesiologist came into the room. The nurse explained to her my history with the spinal headache and the doc seemed to really know her stuff and felt confident she could help me.

As she began, every contraction I had, I would tell myself it was likely the last contraction I was going to feel. Relief was on it's way. It wouldn't be long. But no. It was awful. She had to stick me several times, during multiple contractions, and she kept telling me to sit up straight. I was sitting up straight and honestly keeping my composure as best as I could. After she'd set the epidural, she'd press on four spots on my back. Each time, there was one spot she would touch that I would just scream in pain over. She would ask, "Oh are you having a contraction?" and every time I'd respond, "NO, it's YOU!" (I later apologized.) After probably 25 minutes, she placed the epidural and I started to feel less breaking of bones in my back. I told her that, even though I was still feeling contractions, that it was gonna have to be good enough because I couldn't stand anyone else touching me.

I had to lie back very carefully as the Juice Doctor explained how she couldn't place the epi as far down as she should, because I had crooked vertebrae that likely caused the spinal headache last time. I was so grateful for her attention to detail and for her being so thorough, but I was mostly glad to be able to breathe in again. Within just minutes, she and my nurse left the room. She had just told Brett that if he wanted to eat lunch, now would be the time to run downstairs and grab something because in the next couple of hours I'd probably be pushing. So he headed off downstairs. Apparently I called my mom at this point to give her a quick update (I say apparently because I don't remember this at all, but she has the phone log to prove it) 

So, after that quick phone call, it happened. The baby was suddenly coming. I looked around at my empty room in a state of disbelief. I reached over to press my nurse call button when I realized the pager had fallen to the floor. Every minute or two, super intense pressure came over me and my body was pushing my sweet baby out. After what seemed like forever, Brett came back into the room and was greeted by my hysterical, "IT'S COMING OUT, GO GET SOMEBODY!" He called for the nurse (and quickly scarfed down his lunch) and the room got all crazy. It was 12:00. Brett guessed the baby would be here by 12:15, and I said there was no way, that Baby wouldn't be here until closer to 12:45.

My doctor came right in and it made me excited because, with Levi, I pushed for an hour before he showed up. I knew it was happening and would happen quickly. As they finished prepping the room, I kept yelling that baby was coming, and my doc and nurses kept saying in unison as if they hear this all the time, "Don't push!" It was insane. Before I knew it, pushing began. I'll spare you details, but here are a few key words: contractions, ring of fire , hysterical nonsense. However, 3 contractions later, our baby made it's debut with it's hand next to it's face and the cord wrapped all around. My doctor held my baby over me and said, "What is it, Mom?!" I sat up and looked and got to proudly announce, "It's a GIRL!"

Brett and I just beamed with pride as we marveled over this sweet baby girl. She had so much hair! She let out a tiny whimper at birth, and then laid on my chest completely silent and wide eyed and content. We did delayed cord clamping and skin to skin and nursed for an hour or so. Sometime during all of that, I looked up at Brett and said, "It's Caroline, right?" He quickly agreed, which was a huge deal! (We have always struggled coming to an agreement on names!) After a while, I lifted her blanket just to look at her sweet little body, and I noticed how pink and perfect she was. As I was looking at her tiny little feet, I noticed purple blotches on her leg. I asked the nurse right away, "Is this a blood clot?" The room grew silent as three nurses and my doctor rushed over and stared at her leg for a few seconds. Soon after, they agreed that it was just a birth mark (port wine stain) and that she was just fine.

My epidural was taken out shortly after she was born, and within the hour I was able to get up and walk without help. The tops of my legs were a little heavy, but nothing else was numb yet, it all happened so fast. From the time the pitocin began to the time she was born was 2 hours and 45 minutes! Such a whirlwind of a morning but completely wonderful and perfect. We spent the next couple of days in the hospital recovering well and resting. I praise God so much for our healthy baby girl, and for a much smoother recovery for me this time! I'm so glad Brett got to have a few days with us before school began, and that everything went so smoothly. God has His hand in every detail and I'm so blessed by His goodness!

Thirty Eight Weeks

How far along?: 38 weeks! (posting this a week late though!)

Baby is the size of a: I would guess about 6lbs?

The Bump: We are at max capacity here, people.

Symptoms: Contractions, exhausted

Food Cravings: Orange Juice and Donuts

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Sleep: I'm trying to get good sleep, but I'm peeing about every hour on the hour, plus my hips are so sore, it's been difficult getting comfortable

What I miss: Talking without panting for breath

Weddings Rings On or Off: On, but will probably come off soon, thanks to the heat!

Any Names Picked Out Yet: I think so? But we'll wait to finalize when baby's here!

Movement: Baby's still pretty active

Maternity Clothes: You can usually see a bit of my belly peeking out of my shirt, and I only have about 1 or 2 pairs of shorts that fit. Enter: Brett's t shirts and shorts. Thankful to have such a burly, handsome husband!

Labor Signs: Nothing really, just contractions and lots of pressure, but not dilated or effaced.

Best Moment of the Week: Levi started saying "mama" (again after a year hiatus) so that's pretty much the cutest thing ever

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: I wanna meet this baby :)

Thirty Five Weeks

How far along?: 35 weeks!

Baby is the size of a: I don't know fruit, but baby's likely about 18 inches long and shy of 5 1/2 lbs!

The Bump: Every week I'm convinced it won't get any bigger, and every week I'm astounded that it really did!

Symptoms: Acid reflux and crampy. Trying not to count down the weeks or days, but I'm certainly getting anxious and uncomfortable.

Food Cravings: Nothing really..WHAT? is that the first time I've said that in 8 months?!?!

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Sleep: Decent sleep, interrupted by pee breaks and the need to roll over and get situated...again and again and again and...

What I miss: I'm just ready to be comfortable again. That said, this pregnancy really has flown by, so it's not like I have much to complain about! 

Weddings Rings On or Off: On

Any Names Picked Out Yet: They're on the table...we will discuss it again when baby is here :)

Movement: Baby's still pretty active

Maternity Clothes: My belly hangs out of them :(

Labor Signs: Braxton Hicks, baby is still head down, I don't expect much more for at least 5 weeks, if not more!

Best Moment of the Week: Brett, Levi, and I swimming with my parents. Levi's loving the pool and becoming more and more brave! 

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: The 4th of July this weekend! It will mark the "Officially One Month Til I'm Due" date, we are planning on spending time with friends and family outside playing cards and grilling out, and my husband always turns into Mr. Stars and Stripes and acts ridiculous all day long. Yum, I love that man. I'm hoping Levi gets to see some fireworks and enjoy some sparklers for the first time :)

Happy 2nd Birthday Levi!

My boy, you're two years old! As much as I can't believe it, I'm really excited for this age. Your personality continues to shine through and you're a joy to get to know more and more! When you turned one, I was glad for you but sad for me, because I felt like I just blinked and you grew up! But now that you're turning two, I'm not exactly sad, just AMAZED that you could possibly be becoming a big kid already!

You bring joy to my heart and a smile to my face every single day. Whether it be your sweet kisses, how you play with your toys, or watching your face as you discover something new for the first time, you make me smile and I'm delighted to be your mom.

I love the way you babble. You babble with such intensity and desire to be taken seriously. You burrow your brow and scrunch your nose as we try to figure out what you're trying to say. Not to imply you don't say any words. Your favorite word of choice is still "car." Everything is a car. But especially cars!! You love their steering wheels and the big tires and especially the cars with DVD players like Nana's! You also love talking about gui-TAR's and "gahngahngas" (bananas) and "dum" (drum)'s. You're finally saying "Da!" again when Daddy comes home, too, which totally makes his day.

Speaking of when Daddy gets home, the first thing you usually do is run away from him with high hopes that he'll chase you. You surrender with ease because deep down you really just want Daddy to wrestle with you and tickle your belly. Oh, you're laugh, kid! It's so sincere and genuine. Brings a smile to everyone's face!

Your favorite things to do consist of riding on the golf cart at Nana and Papa's house, as well as snuggle with Sophie and running cars up and down our arms and legs. Every morning as I unload the dishwasher, you bring your cars and sit your legs under the open door and run your cars back and forth on the door. But nothing makes you as happy as the freedom to RUN. You love to run all over our backyard, talking and laughing all the way. You get especially excited when we're somewhere with a wheelchair ramp. Up and down and up and down...shouting "GO!" every time you run downhill. It's really quite easy to keep you happy, so long as you have nothing holding you back :)

You now have 14 teeth...your pearly whites just sparkle when you throw your head back laughing! You enjoy brushing your teeth, but not as much as you enjoy eating the toothpaste! You weigh 32lbs and continue growing into a strong, healthy boy! Now that we have a new van, you're able to climb into the car and up into your seat all by yourself! This will be so nice for your mama when your new baby brother or sister is born! Your daddy and I know you will be such a great big brother, once the initial shock sets in, of course :) 

I've been reminded so much lately of my last few months being pregnant with you. The song, "Courageous" by Casting Crowns was on the radio a lot, and I would listen to the song and pray these words over your life. 

"You were made to be courageous, you were made to lead the way.

You could be the generation that finally breaks the chains...

Let the pounding of your heart cry, 'I will serve the Lord!'

The only way you'll ever stand is on your knees with lifted hands!

Make us courageous! Seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God."

Sweet baby (yes, you'll always be my baby, no matter how big you get!), these words will continue to be the cry of my heart for your life. No matter what comes your way, may you become a man of courage with a heart that longs to serve Jesus and His people. May you lead others and bring them closer to Him, and may you be a significant reason the Kingdom of God continues to grow. Be kind, be humble, be obedient to Him. We love you as big as the world, kid!

Thirty Two Weeks

How far along?: 32 weeks...not much further to go!

Baby is the size of a: I think he/she is about 4lbs now, but it wouldn't surprise me if this baby was a tiny little one!

The Bump: I see little hands and feet bulge out of it about every night now...high fives will have to do until I get to kiss this sweet baby's face!

Symptoms: Heartburn like nobody's business. Exhausted. So grateful I can carry this baby but it definitely is hard work!

Food Cravings: Ice cold popsicles. It's hot!

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Sleep: The struggle is real! I toss and turn and just when I'm about to fall asleep, baby wakes up and wants to play in my belly!

What I miss: Being able to breathe and talk at the same time.

Weddings Rings On or Off: On

Any Names Picked Out Yet: :)

Movement: This kid is fierce!

Maternity Clothes: I don't know how pregnant women get by without them.

Labor Signs: Braxton Hicks and baby is head down! Now it's just a matter of time!

Best Moment of the Week: Brett's done with school now, so we've been able to enjoy lots of family time! Whether it be swimming, working in the yard, or just eating together, it's been so wonderful spending time together!

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: Spending time with friends this weekend! 

Thirty Weeks!!

How far along?: 30 weeks (when did this happen!?)

Baby is the size of a: cucumber? aka Just shy of 16 inches long! Weighs in around 3lbs!

The Bump: Bump? More like a mountain. But makes for a great hill for Levi's trucks, apparently!

Symptoms: Just feeling huge! 

Food Cravings: I've reached the point where I have to eat a lot of small meals, otherwise I get indigestion and a little acid reflux. In fact the other night the pain got so bad, I started wondering if there's something possibly going on with my gallbladder!? Needless to say, stomach's a little squished these days!

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Sleep: I still toss and turn, but I'm usually tired enough to fall back asleep right away

What I miss: Having energy! There's so much I want to do, especially with this nice weather, but I wear out quickly.

Weddings Rings On or Off: On

Any Names Picked Out Yet: I think we've made progress!!

Movement: I have a little acrobat in my belly :)

Maternity Clothes: They're a saving grace, but...I don't know. I'm just not enjoying them like I did with my first pregnancy. Although recently I got a few maxi dresses and skirts and those have been wonderful!

Labor Signs: The never ending Braxton Hicks

Best Moment of the Week: We bought a mini van :) I can't believe we grew up so fast! I'll miss driving my sporty little car but I'm so happy with the van we chose and am excited to make new memories in it, driving around as a family of four.

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: Brett's done with school this week! It will be so nice to have him home. Then this weekend, my sweet Levi turns 2!! I'm excited to celebrate with family and enjoy our weekend with him. He's such a trip these days.

Twenty Six Weeks

How far along?: 26 weeks...last week in the 2nd trimester!!

Baby is the size of a: about 14 inches long and weighs about 2lbs! That's why I can hardly breathe!

The Bump: I look like I swallowed a basketball

Symptoms: back and hip pain, braxton hicks, and dare I say, a little "on edge" ;)

Food Cravings: Popsicles, poptarts, and everything else that's edible. I can't stop, I won't stop!

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: just the constant bending down to pick something up and standing back up that is required of a mom of a toddler. it's exhausting

Sleep: I have been going to bed shortly after I put Levi down, waking up when he wakes up, and napping when he naps. EXHAUSTED.

What I miss: sleeping on my belly

Weddings Rings On or Off: on

Any Names Picked Out Yet: Really haven't even talked about it much! We've been so busy!

Movement: Pretty active! In the last week my belly has started going crazy! It's my favorite part of pregnancy!

Maternity Clothes: Yes. But I tell ya, I don't know if it's the clothes or just the stage of life with Levi, but nothing seems to fit well, and everything is irritating! (I told you I've been on edge!)

Labor Signs: Just Braxton Hicks

Best Moment of the Week: You mean month?? ha Yes I've been a bit M.I.A. with Levi having bronchitis and me being sick. But anyway, I'd say getting back in the groove has been so good. This year has been insane and emotional with losing Brett's mom and all that goes with losing a loved one...It's nice that the weather is improving and we've been able to find some delight in our new normal

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: Going to the zoo this week to kick off the season :) And having Brett home for the summer! Just 5 more weeks! It can't come soon enough!

Twenty Two Weeks

How far along?: 22 weeks (a week late) ...I'm droppin the ball here!

Baby is the size of a: spaghetti squash...and almost 1 pound! no wonder I feel huge this week!

The Bump: stretching and growing and making my belly button pop...already!

Symptoms: back and hip pain...seriously folks, I walk like an old lady!

Food Cravings: I feel like I'm starting to feel full now that the baby has made less room for my stomach...but if you set 5 steaks in front of me right now, there wouldn't be much left come bed time!

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: no way! this is the fun stage of pregnancy!

Sleep: actually sleeping a little better! still toss and turn, but I must be getting used to it

What I miss: Not much at this point. But while on vacation this last week, I would have given my right arm for a frozen margarita! 

Weddings Rings On or Off: on

Any Names Picked Out Yet: We are making some progress! But nothing set in stone. I have a feeling with this baby, we won't "officially" choose something until Baby is here!

Movement: Belly's moving! My mom and sister have been able to feel him/her!

Maternity Clothes: Pretty much all I'm sporting this days.

Labor Signs: Just Braxton Hicks

Best Moment of the Week: Spending time on the beach with my family. Brett and I managed to sneak a little date night in, we got to play with Levi in the pool, and Brett gave me some poolside time while he stayed inside while Levi napped! It was nice having some quiet time in the sun, interrupted by some sweet kicks and rolls by the babe!

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: Having my taxes done! (Wow I'm pathetic!) But it's so nice having them done, I feel like I can enjoy time at home so much more.

Twenty Weeks...halfway there!

How far along?: 20 weeks (a week late)

Baby is the size of a: banana

The Bump: loud and proud!

Symptoms: back and hip pain

Food Cravings: still, all of it. it's insane

Anything Making Me Queasy or Sick: nope!

Sleep: i typically wake up around 1:30 then toss and turn until the morning. not the funnest.

What I miss: nothing, really. i really like being pregnant once the throwing up subsides!

Weddings Rings On or Off: on

Any Names Picked Out Yet: boys names are hard!!

Movement: sweet little love taps all day long, but nothing insane. it's fun watching my belly move a little here and there!

Maternity Clothes: i'd be screwed without them!

Labor Signs: braxton hicks already!

Best Moment of the Week: seeing our sweet baby on the ultrasound! we laughed because Levi was so active and difficult to measure during his anatomy scan...this baby just chilled and completely cooperated! what a lovie! Also, Levi has been fascinated with my belly lately, giving it hugs and kisses, then he lifts up his shirt and puffs his belly out. Makes my mama heart so full. I pray daily these two would become best friends.

What I’m excited about/looking forward to: warmer weather!!! 

21 Months

My boy is just 3 months away from being 2! My heart can't even handle it! I LOVE this age and soooo look forward to the next stage as well, but I'm pretty sure I just delivered this little one yesterday, so it seems impossible that he could have grown up this fast!

You guys, he is a HOOT. I don't know if it's his facial expressions, his laugh, his stance, or a combination of it all, but you really can't be around this kid long without laughing at something. He scrunches his nose up and purses his lips, while standing tall with his belly hanging out of his shirt at least an hour a day. I just sit there and watch him sometimes, soaking him all in. He is just too much.

• He is all into fake sneezing. His "achoo" is rather silent so you need to listen up if you're gonna catch it!
• Levi "baa's" like a sheep, and affectionately refers to dogs and horses as "gwo" Albeit nonsense, it's consistent and I know what he means :)
• While he's still going through a picky eater phase (hopefully it's just a phase!), he still loves food. One day I heated up a plate of leftovers and brought them to the living room to eat while Levi was playing with his toys. When I sat down, he ran to the kitchen. Before I know it, he came back with a spoon in his hand, and walked right over to my plate and helped himself. I was dying.
• He started saying so much these last few months, although the last couple of weeks he has laid off a lot. But he's been able to say things like "hank ew," "alb ew" (love you,) "doggy," "ok," "huh?" occasional "mama & dada" (especially when he's whining,) guitar, gar (grape), and his all time favorite, "car." Everything on God's green earth is a car to this little dude. Bless.
• We're still going through the "I hate babies" phase. It's an uphill battle, but his fits around little ones have shrunk in intensity and length, so I'm gonna chalk that up as a win. I still fear a little for this new little one, though, and pray for a hedge of protection from the jealousy of the older brother. Poor babe's gonna need it.
• Levi is a determined little boy. He knows what he wants and doesn't know how to say it (awful combination.) Disciplining him has been a humbling experience because all my years of "I would just do this if my kid did that" has failed us and sometimes we wonder if we're doing it right. That being said, we've also seen a look of "uh oh" and even a little remorse when he's being disciplined, so I *think* we're heading the right direction. I was a really good parent about 3 years ago :) and now I feel a little clueless sometimes, but we pray a lot and beg God to work in Levi in spite of our best efforts so we are just trusting He will do just that :)
• That being said, this boy is SUCH a sweetheart. Levi is a snuggler and loves giving hugs and kisses. He'll be in the middle of playing when he will stop everything he's doing, run over, and rest his head on my shoulder. Just for the sake of being lovely. He thinks it's cool when I sing along to Daniel Tiger and loves to dance to music, taking the time to clap for himself when he is done. While he still has a long way to go when it comes to sharing, he does take the time to bring toys to little ones (once he's done throwing a fit) and is very gentle and sweet with them.
• My favorite thing these days is when I ask, "Where's the baby?" He stretches out both arms and rubs his hands on my belly. Be still my heart.

Have I mentioned I'm so grateful for this boy? :) Levi you are my joy and you make my world sweeter. I love you to the moon and back, Hammy!