IT'S A BOY! | WELCOME BABY LINDEN

It's a boy!!! Linden is here!!

 

We are so excited to finally announce that our sweet baby boy has officially entered life in our family.  Guys, let me tell you this little boy is a dream and has the ability to melt your heart at first glance.  So, if your heart melts, you've been warned.

 

He's already the perfect addition to our family and a huge blessing to have in our home.  Completely opposite of Conner in the best way possible.  Conner was a handful from the moment he was born.  This little guy just goes with the flow, and in my mind, when you're dealing with an overwhelming firstborn, this is the kind of child you need to even out the score.

Name

Just about everyone asks me about his name.  Linden is not a name that you hear much these days unless you are referencing the former president Lyndon B Johnson.  But, that's not who this little boy is named after.  Conner was named after his grandma and grandpa on Joe's side so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to name this little boy after his grandma and grandpa on my side.  So, Linden was named after two very special people in his life just like Conner was.

 

Stats

Even though Linden is the little brother, he's already bigger than Conner was at birth.  He was born at 8.0 pounds even and 20.5" long.  I was not expecting an 8 lb baby.  I wasn't even expecting him to be bigger than Conner, but I was wrong! And he almost nailed his expected delivery date, but held off just a little.
 

 

Birth Story

Linden's labor and delivery was a thousand times easier than Conner.  If I rate Conner's labor pain as a 10, Linden's labor pain was only a 4-5 at its worst.  Conner's labor/delivery was classified as traumatic according to the medical staff, and having the best doula around to help with this labor definitely brought about a different outcome.  Linden's pain level was so much lower than Conner's that when we left for the hospital, I thought for sure I'd only be at 5cm.  You'll read later I was way off.

 

We had the 40 week prenatal appointment last Monday morning where I was told that I was at about 2 cm.  Not a big deal.  But right around 2:30pm I had a feeling like my Braxton Hicks were turning into something so I took advantage of Conner's nap time to take a nap myself.  From there, the mild contractions woke me up 5-6 times.  Let me tell you, I hate that time period where you can't tell if Braxton Hicks are getting the best of you or if this is the start of the real deal.  So I waited until 6:30 before calling our doula, Karra.

 

Her advice (and I would definitely advise anyone else to try this) get in a super hot shower for 20 minutes.  If the contractions get stronger after that, then you know it's baby time.  What do ya know... the contractions were 5 minutes consistently and stronger after that shower.  Karra was at the house around 7:30 after hearing that.

 

From there we spent the next few hours laboring at home.  Oh my word, hot showers are the best pain reliever especially with back pain!  Karra in her wisdom and knowing how I am, had a pretty good indication that this baby was posterior and went ahead with telling me that this baby facing the right way.  Well played, Karra. Well played.  If I had know that this baby was posterior, I would've flipped out and started asking for an epidural.  That's just how my mind operates when I know too much info.  I try to escape the pain.

Towards the end of our time laboring at home, Joe and Karra started packing the car up with our stuff.  That's when I had the feeling... that feeling where you have to push.  So of course I chime up saying that I have to push and from there everyone moved fast and we drove nearly 80 mph to the hospital.  Not fun when you live about 35-40 minutes away. Joe was on the phone with the doctor, and I was bracing myself in the car pushing while Joe was telling me to keep my legs together and stop pushing.  Yeah. Right.  That's like telling me to make my heart stop pumping blood.  I can't.

When we arrived at the hospital, they ran me down the halls, bypassed triage, and got right in the delivery room.  The only moment I don't remember about the labor and delivery was getting from the wheelchair onto the hospital bed, but I do remember them telling me I can start pushing when I had the next contraction. Finally, someone was telling me I could push.

I am so grateful for each person that was in that room.  I was so exhausted that I could barely move even though they had me getting into different positions.  I hated every time they made me change positions and being to the point of exhaustion that I couldn't even open my eyes didn't help.  But, looking back, because of trying so many different types of positions, we found one that worked with the shape of my pelvis. (My doctor suspected that the shape of my pelvis naturally causes my babies to face posterior and in Conner's case, get stuck.) Having the right people there to find that perfect way to push made all the difference.

Each and every person there made for the most encouraging team to get us through this successfully.  I get very anxious in a hospital and wanted to call it out of pure exhaustion, but I could hear every voice in that room giving me the support I needed and Karra and Joe reminding me that I could find the energy to finish since we've come this far.  How lucky am I to get every person I needed.  And on top of that, not one person in that room even hinted that this baby was posterior (again, if I'd known that it would've been game over mentally for me).

So, four hours later, we had a successful VBAC, and I was in tears just knowing that I did it.  And then I heard the doctor mention to the nurse about Linden being posterior.  As soon as heard that and got over my disbelief, it was complete joy and the adrenaline kicked in.  When it seemed like nothing went right with Conner's birth, we had a second chance with Linden, and we nailed it.  His poor head ended up as swollen and bruised like his brother no thanks to the shape of my pelvis, but we did it.

And I have to mention how supportive Joe was.  I am so lucky to have a husband that stays by my side telling me what I needed to hear.  He knows how I am and can read me well enough to know when I needed the pep talks and the moments to stay silent when I didn't want to hear anyone talking.  He is proud of me, and I am proud of him.  And we are the proud parents of two amazing little boys.

Those cheeks!!

Daddy's Deer Hunter

40 WEEKS

40 weeks.  We made it to our due date!

 

At this point, I am beyond exhausted with the events of this weekend.  We've seen progress on the labor front which really got my adrenaline going to do laundry and finish packing a hospital bag.  The excitement really caught up to me this morning.

 

And then there was yesterday evening.  Like clockwork, our dog Mia ran away for the third week in a row at 9:30am Sunday morning.  We thought with all the fresh snow it would be easier to track her down, but that proved us wrong.  It was over an hour before a neighbor called us to let us know she found her at her house.  It was my fault.  I have leashed her up for months every time I took her out, but with the baby preparation going on, I simply let her out the front door and stood there watching her do her business ten feet away, and then... she took off.

 

The rest of the day she remained calm and slept.  That evening she threw up and Joe called for her to go down in the basement until we knew she was feeling better.  But, as she was walking toward Joe and the basement door, I noticed she was walking with her hind legs tucked under her like she was in trouble.  I thought nothing more than believing she was still scared of Joe from running off on us that morning.

 

Later as Joe went to go feed her, he came back up and told me she peed in her dog bed in the basement.  Red flag! I went downstairs and noticed she was still standing with her hind legs tucked under and uncoordinated while just standing and eating. Oh, my heart sank.  The only thing I could think was that she got into someone's barn, ate rat poisoning or antifreeze and is now going into acute kidney failure.

 

She continued to pee uncontrollably last evening and barely had the energy to lift her head from her bed.  All three of us spent the evening in the basement to keep her company wondering what to do since we are expecting to start labor any time now.  I cried for hours wishing I had just leashed her up and dreading to see her like this.  Toward the end of the night she drank 2 bowls of water as we moved her bed into our kitchen to keep her closer to us.

 

This morning showed some major improvement with her energy level and coordination.  She didn't pee inside the house throughout the night, and I try to keep pushing water and potty time outside with her to hopefully flush out whatever is wrong with her.  I'm not sure what's going on with her, and it makes me nervous and sad.  If it's the beginning stages of kidney failure, I know at her age, she will not have a strong chance of reversing it so I just keep an exhausting eye on her while I hope and pray it's not that at all and she will recover from whatever happened to her.

 

As a result of yesterday's excitement and yesterday's worrying and crying, I am emotionally drained and physically tired.  But regardless, there is a very healthy baby that has reached its due date and is just about ready to make an entrance into our family!! And that requires some celebration!

 

 

How far along?  40 Weeks!!
Total weight gain:  30 pounds. 
Maternity clothes?  Yes, but not for much longer! 
Sleep:  This week - horrible. There have been way too many mornings of waking up at 2:30 or 3:30am with no chance of falling back asleep.  Top that off with life with a toddler and that has been making for one exhausting week.
Best moment this week:  You guys, this is it. The best moment has simply been hitting this due date with a baby that has spent the past nine months healthy.  Our (hopefully last) prenatal appointment was this morning, and everything went better than anticipated.  There have been significant changes since last week's appointment which leads me to believe this baby will be here this week. Now, if only I can convince this little one to hang tight until this weekend.
Cravings:  No cravings this week.  I don't even have much of an appetite these days nor a desire to cook dinner for everyone.  A bowl of cereal is about as ambitious as I get these days.
Symptoms:  Swelling, swelling, swelling.  I forgot how much water retention you end up with at the end! And then there are lots of Braxton Hicks that make me wonder if they are slowly going to transition into early labor very soon.  The baby is sitting low now which brings on a whole new set of painful symptoms.  It must be toughening me up for labor!
Looking forward to:  It this baby's due date, so I think it safe for everyone just to assume that we are most looking forward to finally meeting this sweet little thing.  It's also my first week off work and I'm looking forward to just spending as much one on one time with Conner as possible.



LETTER TO THE LITTLE ONE

Littlest Baby,

Your estimated due date is already one day away!  These nine months of holding you tight as you grow and develop are coming to an end.  Soon you will be born, and I will have to share you and let others share in the great gift of getting to know you.

Your arrival is more of a gift of grace than you will ever know.  At this time a year ago, your daddy and I found out that we were pregnant and were overly excited to be welcoming a new life into our family.  But what ended in so much pain has been healed by the gracious gift of you.  Without that pain and loss of your brother or sister, we will never have this moment now, a year later, that we will get to welcome you, special baby, into our family.  I truly can't wait for the moment that I get to see your eyes soak in your surroundings for the first time, hold you, and give the first of way too many kisses that you'll be getting from this mama.

We are so overjoyed that you will be joining our family soon.  Over these past months, I've gotten to know your little schedule.  You always wake up and move around at the same times everyday.  And you are such a little mover!  When your big brother lays his head on my belly, you always respond with a little push or kick to let him know that your are there, ready to meet him.  And unlike your brother, when your daddy puts his hand on my belly to wait for a kick, you respond to him with strong movement.

Your daddy and I are eager to see what you will look like.  Will you have dark hair and dark eyes or will those recessive genes get the best of you too? Will you be laid back and easy going or will you be like your brother and want nothing more than to be on the move and setting the pace?  Regardless, you have been wonderfully made, and we just can't wait to see how perfect that will be. 

You are coming into a family that truly wants you.  I know the adjustment of bringing you home will feel difficult at times, but I also know that those difficult adjustment times will only grow a deeper love within this family.  You have a brother that will probably be unsure of your presence at first, but we know that he will grow protective of you.  I trust that your sibling bond will grow and be unbreakable. 

There is so much life here that we want to share with you.  There is so much to teach you, and there is so much that you will teach us about living as a family of four.  We can't wait to meet you, little one.  You are already so very loved.

With all my heart

Mom

 

 

LETTER TO THE BIG BROTHER

Conner

We are only days or perhaps moments away from watching you take on the official role of big brother.  The past 25 months with you in our lives has brought so much joy to your daddy and me.  You have taught us so much in these two years as we watch you grow, develop, and see your vibrant personality and energy come to life more with every passing day.  You are the perfect mixture of sweetness and out of control silliness.  You keep us on our toes everyday, every minute.   Your stunts and playful behavior are what keep the mood in this house light and filled with laughter.  Your little smile is forever printed on our memories.  I will never get tired of hearing your little voice come downstairs in the morning and greet me with a "hi, mom".  Your daddy and I are beyond lucky and blessed to have you as our son.

I want you to know that as this chapter of our lives closes and we enter a new season as a family of four, you are always so very special to your daddy and me.  You are the child that made me a mama first.  You led the path of teaching us through life experiences how to be parents and the child who stole our hearts before any other.  This transition may be hard on you, but I want you to know you will never be replaced.  I'm confident that even as I worry about how your life will be so greatly affected by this, you will rock at this big brother role.  You have been so good at loving on this baby belly (I will miss the countless times you ask to kiss this belly), but I know as you get to meet your little sibling you will share those countless kisses.  You have become such a great helper and Daddy's little sidekick that you will be an even bigger helper with the baby.  Over the months you have amazed me at your recognition for baby items which has only made me even more excited about growing our family.  I know you will be so exceptional as a big brother that there will come a day where you couldn't remember life as the only child.

These last few days with you have been nothing but precious.  There are so many times where this emotional mama just wants to break down an cry because these days of one on one time with you are quickly slipping away.  I remain excited though as we soon get to watch your relationship with daddy and me stretch beyond us and develop with the littlest family member.  Until then, I want to freeze time for as long as possible.

I love you more than you could possibly ever know.  We have been spoiled the past 25 months of getting to know you and play with you one on one.  I wouldn't change that time with you for anything.  You were born for this role, and I know no other child could adapt as well as you will to welcome this new little life into our family.

You will always be our firstborn, daddy's sidekick and mama's little boy.

With all my heart

Mom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GETTING READY FOR BABY | HOW TO INCREASE MILK SUPPLY

House is clean.  Laundry is done. Baby is kicking me from the inside out. All is good!

 

Today I was thinking about nursing baby number two and how things will go.  I've got a great support team lined up, so I am excited.  Conner was a disaster, but I don't blame him or me - just the lactation nurse at the hospital.  Gotta blame somebody, right? Conner and I had the whole nursing thing down pat from the start until the lactation nurse finally came to see us a day and half later and told us we had to do things differently.  Why? Nobody knows, but it took us downhill fast. Lesson 1: if you and the baby are nursing fine, don't let anyone change anything. Lesson 2: make sure you have a good lactation consultant and be very vocal about demanding their time and help.  Lesson 3: if they say you need to use a supplemental nursing system, force them to teach you how to fully use it.  I could go on with the lessons that I learned because I had to do it the hard way.

 

It got to the point where the nurse led us so far astray that Conner wanted nothing to do with me.  He'd scream if I picked him up to try and nurse him and would only quiet down when Joe would hold him.  Thanks to an awesome program called Healthy Futures in our county, we were visited by an amazing lactation consultant/home nurse to help us.  Unfortunately, by then the damage was done and nothing was going to get the kid and me to revert back to our success we had the first day and half he was born. However, the minute that I held Conner and gave him a bottle there was finally a connection/bond between us.  I believe it's that same bond that most moms develop with their baby when they nurse.  It was the first time I could hold and feed Conner and he didn't scream. He just looked at me and I looked at him the whole time. Life was perfect, and it only took a bottle to get us there.

 

I have personally seen and heard far too many women be judgmental about other women using bottles and/or formula.  Those are usually the moms that are also judgmental towards the women who have had C-sections whether elective or not. It's disheartening to hear that kind of talk, but with Conner's birth being classified as "traumatic" and me feeling like a failure on the birthing front and nursing front, I was bound and determined to be successful at producing milk.

 

I had a lot going against me since I had a section, I never even attempted nursing Conner until 3 to 4 hours after he was born, and I had a huge mental block of frustration on what just happened to our once successful nursing. Pumping was the only way that I could feel like I hadn't lost everything.

 

Like every woman, I started at square one.  Producing barely anything and wondering if I could make enough to keep up with what that little child needed on a daily basis.  I did my research and followed the advice more strictly than anything I've done before.  Let me tell you, if you put the effort into it, it can work.  I talked to my sister in law who shared her pumping advice with me and how she was able to pump enough within the first 6 months to quit and have enough in storage to last until her baby turned one year old.  I was immediately sold on that idea because, let's be real, pumping sucks. I guess pun intended.

 

I went from producing barely anything to producing 75-80+ ounces everyday.  It's not easy. It's especially not easy when you have a newborn that only take 30 minute naps and demands to be held when awake.  So that whole idea of sleeping when the baby sleeps is no where near possible. 

 

I also had lots of days where I had to drive 4+ hours each direction and spend all day in an office or construction site that had zero spaces for a mom to pump.  Those were the days when I would have to hide in my car and pump when I would arrive to the office or site and again when I would leave praying that nobody would pay attention to me. Those were during the cold winter months. I'd get up at 2:30am to pump and get on the road stopping halfway at a rest stop to pump again and again when I would arrive to my destination.  Then I would leave that same day and make the same long trip home.  Only instead of stopping halfway at a rest stop to pump, I became quite proficient at pumping while driving.  I know, totally not ideal, and I would never suggest anyone do it.  But that's what I would do just to get home a little earlier.

 

The reason I bring those past memories up is because that is a lot of stress to deal with and to show that everyone has it hard when they're a working mom (or even a stay at home mom) who pumps.  Everyone has stress and deals with it in their own way, and we shouldn't discount anyone's stress level because we may not find their situation to be very stressful to us.  It just is what it is.

 

In the end, I was able to pump enough within the first six month to have enough milk stored to last Conner well past his 1st year.  We even had to borrow a friend's chest freezer which was filled to the brim with milk.  Getting to that point was misery and a lot of work but it paid off.  I got to be done pumping after 6 months and truly had my body back.  That was a huge deal for me because the prolactin hormone that produces the milk was blocking my body's ability to lose the baby weight (and believe me I had a lot there to lose).

 

Okay, enough background chit-chat.  Here are my top pieces of advice to help increase milk supply.

 

1) Demand. Demand. Demand. 

This is the single most important thing you can do to increase your milk supply.  Your body only makes milk if it's needed so unless you put a demand on your body, you won't get the supply you want.  This is not an easy one to stick to.  I read articles that you need to keep pumping for 5 minutes after your milk runs out to help build it up.  I can tell you 5 minutes wasn't enough for me.  There were times early on the I would literally sit there for 25+ minutes pumping nothing time and time again to put that demand on my body. 

 

Beyond the duration that you're pumping, the frequency matters too.  In the early days, I would pump after every single time that Conner ate - day and night.  That's exhausting to feed a baby at night, wait for him to go back to sleep and then finally sit there for 30-40 minutes pumping before I could go back to sleep for a little while before it was time to do it all over again.  Halleluiah for an amazing husband that took one for the team by taking a lot of the night feedings so I could pump while Conner was eating and giving me a chance to sleep a little more at night.  

 

When Conner turned three months old and stayed at daycare during the day, I began pumping every 3 hours.  That includes getting up every three hours through the night too.  That's another biggie - if you're trying to store enough milk, you can't lose that nighttime demand or your supply will go down even when you're baby starts sleeping through the night.

 

2) Quench that thirst!

Producing that much liquid really takes a lot out of you.  If your body is dehydrated, you just won't be able to keep up.  Since I was pumping 75-80 ounces each day, I would drink double that amount in water.  Every morning, I would fill up a gallon container of water and have it finished that day.

 

3) Oatmeal

I ate oatmeal like it was the only thing left on the planet.  I'd have a bowl at breakfast, lunch and dinner.  No joke.  We went through so many large containers of old fashioned oats.  Oatmeal is considered a lactogenic food or galactagogue which simply means it's a substance that increases milk supply.  You can get creative and look on Pinterest for different ways to eat oatmeal.

 

4) Fenugreek

This is a fairly common supplement that you can easily find at Walmart or most stores.  If I remember correctly, I took 1500mg at breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Basically, when your armpits start to smell like maple syrup, you know you're getting enough. No joke. You will smell like maple syrup.

 

5) Invest in a nice pump

If you are pumping exclusively, this is a biggie.  I really recommend the Medela Pump In Style. It's got a great mimicking effect and is easy to travel with.

 

6) Lactation Cookies

There are three main ingredients in lactation cookies that really help.  Oatmeal, milled flax seed and the main one... Brewer's Yeast.  You may have to go to a local whole/natural foods store or go online to buy this.  When I was eating these with Conner, I made mine from scratch.  I remember it being so incredibly stressful trying to bake or cook anything and it didn't hit me until so much later to buy the cookie mixes where all you have to do is add butter and eggs.  I suggest buying an oatmeal cookie mix and adding 4 tablespoons of brewer's yeast and 1 tablespoon of flax seed to the mix.  Chocolate chips are always a welcome addition to these cookies!

 

7) Stress

I believe stress is the biggest factor on milk supply dropping.  Think about women who go back to work after maternity leave and how many times you have heard or experienced a drop in supply.  The days that I had to travel for work were stressful for me and it showed in my supply. I'd go from 80oz the day before to 30oz on the day I traveled.  Stress.

 

Stress is one of those things that people tell you to reduce or eliminate, but how? You can't change the environment around you that is inducing the stress.  I personally had to figure out what exactly was stressing me out.  Most of the time it was the idea of me not making my daily quota of milk because of stress factor A, B and C.  Figuring out what I was really worried about helped me because then I could just say to myself, "okay, who really cares if I only make 10 oz of milk today because I have this stressful day to take care of. Just pump and see what happens. Let go of the worry and get through today."    

 

8)  Massage

When you massage and squeeze the boob while nursing/pumping, you will get more milk.  I promise.  I've heard that babies naturally push on your chest but if you're pumping, this will help mimic that pushing/massaging that the baby would typically do.  I admit, I felt like a milk cow when I did this, but it was so effective at getting the job done, that I would squeeze away like I was milkin' Old Bessie.

 

9) Heat

It's amazing at how something as simple as heat can really help.  Lansinoh makes a great product called TheraPearl.  I love these.  You can throw them in the microwave for a few seconds before pumping and they're designed to fit around the pump flange.  They are wonderful.  And, when you are ready to wean, you can throw these in the freezer and use them as cold packs to help with swelling.  Oh, and clogged ducts?.. yep, these bad boys work wonders for that too.  If any of my friends are getting ready to have a baby, they will probably be the recipient of a pair of these for themselves.

 

10) Rest

I feel obligated to put this down, but let's be real, rest is non existent with an infant.  And that is why it is last on my list.  If you are able to rest, that will help reduce stress levels which we discussed earlier.

 

Those are my top tips for helping with milk supply. There are so many other helpful tips out there from other mamas that are incredibly helpful for some.  These are what personally helped me, so if your goal is to increase milk supply, get researching and start trying different things! And good luck!

 

And if you still need to supplement or strictly use formula, don't feel bad at all! You still love your baby all the same, and that's all that matter, right!?

 

Happy Friday everyone!

WHAT'S COOKING | CHICKEN AND RICE STUFFED PEPPERS

Last week I had a hankering for stuffed peppers and chicken kabobs. Naturally, the only thing to do is a mash-up between the two and voila, we get chicken stuffed peppers.  The flavor was amazing and even as we were eating it, I kept thinking of all the different ways to eat this even as leftovers.  And by the way, this tasted so dang good as leftovers the next day.

 

The best part is that we already had the ingredients lying around the house which always makes trying out a new recipe even better.  I only snapped one quick (and not so glamorous) picture of the finished product because I was so excited to get this in my belly asap.  So let's just get straight to the recipe.

 

Chicken and Rice Stuffed Peppers

 

4 green bell peppers

4 slices mozzarella cheese

1 c shredded Italian blend cheese (or mozzarella)

1/2 c Italian dressing, divided

2-3 chicken breasts

2 boxes wild rice (I used Rice a Roni)

 

Trim the fat off the chicken breasts, slice breasts into thin halves and marinade with 1/4 c Italian dressing.  Cut the caps off the bell peppers and remove any seeds from the inside.  Begin cooking the rice according to the directions on the box and warm up the grill to about 400-425 degrees.

 

Place the peppers on the grill laying them on their side.  You'll want to rotate the peppers 90 degrees every 5 minutes or so.  At this time place the chicken on the grill too.  The chicken should be ready to flip after about 10 minutes.  When the peppers and chicken are cooked, remove from the grill.  By now the rice should be cooked as well.

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place the peppers upright in a lightly greased baking dish.  Place one slice of mozzarella cheese on the bottom of each pepper.  Cut the chicken breasts into small chunks (bite-sized). Mix the chicken and cooked rice together adding the additional 1/4 c of Italian dressing.

 

Scoop the chicken/rice mix into the peppers and the remaining amount in the dish spreading it around the peppers.  Top each of the peppers and any extra chicken/rice with the shredded cheese.  Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and gooey.

 

Scoop those peppers onto a plate and get eating!

 

The leftovers did taste really great.  We didn't have any peppers left over, but there was plenty of the chicken/rice mix left.  One great way to eat the leftovers is to steam some broccoli and mix that into it.

39 WEEKS | FULL TERM

I can't believe it! We are 1 week away from our due date, but I'm still hoping this baby comes between the 28th and 30th.  We'll see what happens!

 

As far as growth goes, this baby is a little over 7 lbs now and around 20" long (Babycenter.com).  That is approximately the size of a small watermelon, and believe me I feel like I'm carrying around a watermelon all day.

 

How far along?  39 Weeks.  7 days left! Any day now, little baby!
Total weight gain:  31 pounds. 
Maternity clothes?  Yes, but I still hate maternity pants so I opt to wear normal jeans still.  I wore maternity jeans one day this week and couldn't stand it.  I feel like I only have two maternity shirts that fit over this belly at this point.  How did they all fit me the last time around?? 
Sleep:  I've just accepted that sleep is not going to be great or even good for the next 2+ months.  Naps are pretty much essential these days.
Best moment this week:  Today was the 39 week prenatal appointment so of course I have to say that was one my favorite moments for the week.  Everything is still normal which in my mind is perfect.  The best part of the appointment was when the doctor put the Doppler up to my belly and the look and huge smile that Conner got on his face when he heard the heartbeat was hands down priceless.  He loved hearing that heartbeat as much I did.

This past weekend was incredible for weather in November.  It meant so much for me to be able to get outside with Joe and Conner and spend some time downtown leaving jackets and coats at home.  Everyday is a new realization that it might be our last as a family of three so I want to soak it in as best as I can.
Cravings:  The cravings have gotten so real these past couple of weeks.  I haven't really had any cravings this whole pregnancy that were strong enough to act on, but not these days.  Hand me the mint choco chip ice cream!
Symptoms:  Mild swelling still, Braxton Hicks, nesting, and some serious nerve pain from this baby bearing down hard. Ease up, baby.
Looking forward to:  This is hopefully my last week of work for the year.  I'll be taking vacation and Thanksgiving holidays next week which means there will be lots of freedom for Conner and I to really spend time together without any juggling of work if this baby gives us one more week. 



Since this little baby is officially full term, I cannot wait to find out what color the eyes will be, what color the hair will be, will it even have hair, how big will it be, and will this baby be another posterior baby. (I seriously hope and pray not - that back labor pain is for real and unbearable.) Joe and I had no doubt in our mind that Conner would have dark hair and dark eyes - we were caught so off guard when they told us that he was bald, blonde, and blue eyed.  We can't wait to see if the recessive genes play out strong with this little baby.

I'm really looking forward to announcing the name more so the gender to family and friends.  The poll is about 95% voting girl and 5% voting boy give or take.  Not many people are trying to guess the name though.  Papa thinks it will be either "Jo Anna" or "Josie".  We'll see!

WEEKEND WRAP UP | NOVEMBER'S WARMTH

What an offbeat weekend.  For real.  Saturday was normal. Sunday could've played out a little differently for us.

 

The weather has been unusually amazing for a November up here.  Friday was the exception.  That day was an all day mix of snow and rain and really the first snow that I've seen in the area as we head into the cold months.  Conner and I bundled up and went for a visit to see friends for a little while.  Nothing like going over to someone's house and playing with all of their toys and eating nearly all of their raspberries in the house.  (I forgot how much that little bird loves raspberries.)

 

So since we were halfway to the grocery store, we braved the weather a little longer and got the shopping done for the week.  Big win here everyone...  We made it through the stores without stomping all over the groceries (a very common problem) or running all through the aisles. However, there was a lot of junk food consumed to get us through those quick trips.

 

While we visited with Karra and Amy, the discussion of home break ins and strategic gun placements came up. I bring this up because it plays into this weekend.   I used to be paranoid about living out in the woods, but that fear has gone away.  I don't worry about people trying to break in or cause harm to us.  I've grown content with the quiet area and became more comfortable as we slowly get to know our "neighbors" more. 

 Can this boy be any more comfortable eating his snack?

 

When I got home I talked to Joe about looking for a small handgun for myself.  This is something we've discussed before, but I had forgotten about it completely because of the feeling of confidence I have with being out here.  Joe was all in for looking at guns Saturday morning, but I told him I was in no hurry.  And I'm going to bookmark that story here and we'll pick it back up a little later.  In the meantime, let's talk about Saturday.

 

Saturday's weather was awesome.  We made a trip to pick up chicken feed and a quick Walmart stop.  After that quick run into town, Conner took on the roll of daddy's little helper and spent the next 2 1/2 hours out in the garage "helping" Joe build the new dog pen.  There is nothing more that kid loves than to be right in the mix of whatever project Joe is working on.

 

I had to be the mean parent by breaking up their fun and sending that little boy off for his nap.  Yeah, he wasn't happy over that.  But we got to spend the evening with Uncle Phil and Aunt Lori after he woke up.  Lori's taking on the huge, helpful role of taking care of Conner when it's time to leave for the hospital.  Let me tell you, that boy is going to have a blast and probably won't want to see us come back home.  He loves playing with Lori!

 We haven't gotten past the newborn stage of sticking Everything in his mouth.

 Can life with these two get any cuter!?

 

 

Sunday.

Sunday was even better with the weather.  However, we dealt with some unexpected events.  We got ready to head off to church in the morning to point where I had Conner in his carseat and the car warming up.  But, I had no idea where Joe was.  After about a minute of searching, I see him walking back to the house looking quite angry.

 

Apparently, the dog ran off on him. So, instead of heading to church we had to spend the next 45 minutes searching for her.  Eventually, a couple of young guys found her and returned her to us.  Oh boy, she was in trouble.  This is a h u g e flaw of hers.  She runs away too much hence is the Saturday project of building a new dog pen for her.

 

So, since we had to change our morning plans, we didn't want to pass up this extremely rare November day.  We got back in the car and headed into downtown TC.  I love walking the downtown area so we did that for a little while, had lunch at the Mackinaw Brewing Co, and played at Clinch Park.  Before we knew it, it was already past the start of Conner's nap time so we headed home.

 

This is where I'm going to pick up where I left on from the "I feel safe at home" conversation from Friday.  As we approach our drive, I hear Joe ask, "What's in the ditch?" I start searching and all of a sudden I see this incredibly suspicious, ragged looking guy in our ditch.  Joe slowed down as we passed and he laid down as flat as he could in the weeds, but we had made eye contact.

 

Joe pulled in, got out and started walking back out to talk to the guy.  Oh. my. word.  talk about the fear of what could've happened next.  And of course it was the one day - the one day - that neither Joe nor I had our phones charged. I watched as Joe walked down the road to find this man in the ditch wondering if this guy had a gun, if he had just done something terrible and was on the run, if something awful was going to happen to Joe.  So many outcomes were going through my mind and since I always jump to the worse case scenario, I thought for sure this wouldn't end well.

 

My next thought was to check the house.  If this guy robbed us, I wanted to know now.  I ran inside and quickly scanned the first floor and bedroom for any signs of a break in.  Nothing that I could tell, so I ran back outside to stay close to Conner who was still in his carseat.  By then Joe was confronting the man.  I couldn't hear Joe, but I saw the man spring up from the ditch with both hands up.  I could hear him telling Joe, "Don't tell anyone what you saw, and I will leave you alone."  Perfect.  He kept telling Joe that as he held his hands up and crossed the road.  Eventually, he ran off over the meadows across from us and Joe came back up the driveways signaling me to call 911.

 

Guys, I've never called 911 before, but Joe said the 911 folks were not very helpful. Like flat out worthless and even hung up on him. Doesn't give you too much confidence in a 911 dispatcher when they hang up on you!!! But, at that moment a sheriff's car came driving down our road.  Joe started chasing and waving down the sheriff's car.  The cop must not have seen him, but a random driver did and stopped to talk to Joe and ended up giving him a ride to catch up with the sheriff.

 

Meanwhile, this full term pregnant lady and her 2 year old were left back at the house without a phone since Joe took mine and no real idea if there was any other suspicious guys out in our woods or even hiding in our house.  Not really knowing what to do, I kept Conner occupied in the backyard playing with the chickens as I kept a close eye on the woods ready to grab him at any moment and run for my car just in case.

 

After what seemed like forever, Joe returned with info from the cop.  They were already looking for this guy.  They knew this so called "Brent" guy and were apparently very familiar with him.  So to bring closure to this story, this Brent character lives not too far from us, (yay.) has a drinking problem, and this is clearly not the first time this guy has been in this situation. 

 

Unfortunately, the cop told us there's not much you can do about this but he's harmless. He's much more of a nuisance than anything. Joe mentioned the whole fact of him trespassing, but the cop asked him if we really wanted to pursue that and if it's worth it. Umm... no I don't want to go through the effort and yes I do want something done because he has no business being on our property acting creeping and suspicious like that. 

 

Just when I got to the point of feeling completely safe out here, this happens and you do feel uncomfortable.  Fortunately, like the cop said, this man is harmless and was able to give us some info on this guy if we ever saw him on our property again.  Well, Brent, you better hope I don't find you on our property again or I will probably give you a "talking to" that your parents apparently never gave you growing up to set you straight.

 

It does shed light on the fact that I need to fully set out a plan on how to protect my kids especially if Joe is away.  I've gotten too comfortable and naïve about harm never coming our way.

 

So, that's our weekend in a nutshell.  I did ask Joe if he'd paint my toenails for me.  Long shot, I know, but I'd figure I'd ask.  And after a long pause in which I thought maybe he'd actually agree to try it, his response ended up being, "There's spray paint out in the garage.  I can do a quick spray over your feet.  You can choose from green or yellow."  So there's that.

We stopped in at Cherry Republic for tasty samples and hit up their indoor play area before lunch.  Ball pits are awesome. Until it's time to get out.  Then it's a tantrum.

 I really wish this wasn't blurry so you can see how cool the indoor playhouse at Cherry Republic is.

The splash pad at Clinch Park is still fun even without the water.

 Fox hats... yes please!

 This man takes naps anywhere.

 Umm... practicing his stunt moves maybe?

 Stepping stone to a high ropes course right here.

TODDLER LIFE | 25 MONTHS

It's so hard for me to fathom that it has already been a month since this little Conner bear turned two.  Time does an amazing thing at flying by and leaving you in a blur of what just happened.  I try to soak in every moment as a life of three before his little world is turned upside down, but somehow I still let this time thing get the better of me and here we are.  Time gone by too fast.

 

This month has been especially meaningful to me since it is our last month before our three becomes four.  And it's been in this past month that Conner has exploded in communication.  I spend a lot of time flipping through picture from last year, last month even, and I'm amazed at how much he has physically grown.

 

He has such an amazing physical ability at whatever he tries that Joe and I are no longer surprised when he accomplishes something new.  I feel like I catch myself saying, "Well, that's a first" more and more frequently as he learns new skills and new words and new concepts.

 

As more and more baby gear and baby items keep popping up around the house, Conner doesn't miss a beat at recognizing them as for the baby.  He still loves to come up to me and give this baby belly so many kisses one after the other so freely.  Little boy, I hope you continue to give those kisses to your little sib after they arrive.

Conner, you are the sweetest, most energetic little boy I could've ever imagined.  There are moments that you can have me almost in tears with the stress of managing your temper and energy and the next second have me laughing until my side hurt.  Your precious little voice saying "Hi, mom" makes my heart melt every single time you say it.  The way you look up to me holding up your finger asking to kiss this baby belly one more time will forever be printed on my memory.  Your smile gets bigger and brighter every month just like your personality.  I love when you come to snuggle in bed with me after you wake up from your nap which will always end in you jumping on the bed and diving into me.  You are so smart.  So happy.  So funny.  So cute.  Your are the best, little boy.

 

TODDLER LIFE - 25 MONTHS

Toddler Talks

Every week we are hearing new words come from him.  We aren't even coaxing him to say most words that he chooses to say.  He'll just surprise us by grabbing an object and saying what it is when we least expect it.  He has really been catching on to the ABCs and can now say the most of the letter in the alphabet.  There are handful that he hasn't quite figured out yet, but he loves pointing to letters and telling us what they are.  And this little boy is starting to form more and more sentences.

The biggest pitfall we're having this month is him not being able to make up his mind.  One second he's asking for an apple and when you hand it to him, he screams "NO!".  Then when you put the said apple away, he gets mad that you're taking it away from him and demands that you return the apple.  This of course doesn't end there.  You return the apple to him which is all of a sudden no longer wanted and he once again screams "NO!" Eventually, we get to a point where when you hand him the apple, he takes it.

Toddler Play

Nothing changes much with this boy in terms of what he prefers to play with.  Every night he still runs his Tonka truck through the house and sits and watches his train go around the track.  And don't even dare thinking about turning that train off if he's not even playing with it.  He'll notice the minute it goes silent and demand that you turn that train back on.

 

When we go to the playground he has more interest in playing with other kids and gets over his typical shyness after a few minutes.  But he is so much like Joe that he is so content with keeping himself occupied without anyone being there to entertain him.

 

He has figured out how to dance which make this mama pretty excited.  (I can finally have a dancing partner.)  He's also developed a love for watching Scout from Leap Frog on Netflix.  You could leave that boy watching the same episode of Leap Frog for hours and he'd be happy.  Unfortunately for him, he has parents that don't let him do that.  But, these Leap Frog episodes have done an incredible job at developing his ABCs.  So there are some plus sides to TV.

Toddler Eats

I wish I could get this little boy to eat meat.  If it's not in the form of a hotdog, chances are there is no getting him to eat it. Period.  Joe has been shredding chicken into the tiniest pieces to sneak onto his fork without him recognizing.  We're successful for about the first two bites and then there's no more eating whatever we were trying to sneak it in.

He's got a sweet tooth like his mama so he really enjoys getting an occasional sugar dose through candy or cookies.  This month he's really been loving on apples, peanut butter, string cheese, yogurt, oatmeal, goldfish, broccoli, pizza and a serious love for chocolate milk.

 

Toddler Sleep

What can I say? Our big boy is an awesome sleeper.  Ever since time change, he's been getting up earlier in the morning - something I'm not thrilled at, but Joe's a morning person so those two hang out and do their thing having manly time together.  Joe and Conner still have their time together at bedtime which I love.  I love that Conner has a dad that he loves spending so much time with, and I love that Joe is that dad that loves his son and wants to do things with him like putting him to sleep at night.  It's a beautiful thing.

Naptime has gotten a ton easier too.  With this being the first week Conner is home with me, I have refused to lay in bed with him until he falls asleep for his nap.  Something that he has always expected in order to fall asleep for a nap.  But, with a newborn on the way, we needed to get this under control and he has gone right to sleep after I place him in his bed and walk out of his room closing the door behind me.  I mean, getting to point of putting him in his bed for a nap is a battle.  He fights me tooth and nail, screaming and kicking all the way, but as soon as I close that door, he gets down to business of sleeping.

24 Month Photo Dump: