Big News....

Yep. It is official. I spent enough time in a few bottles of wine in Napa to decide that why yes, being pregnant and having a newborn was so fun I'm up for it all over again!! Let's do this thing!

As it so happens, Adam and I are apparently extremely fertile. He so much as looks at me and BAM! There's a baby in there. We decided to start "trying" in February because it would mean the birth of our second child would happen at the end of Adam's golf season. 

While it lands in the middle of my school year, we decided Adam being home was more important. Well, I had the main influence over that. Baby number one was extremely hard on me mentally and physically. Hard to imagine now that she's almost two and so good. SEE??!! This is why people do it again. They forget. They forget everything. Anyways, on top of that, Adam was gone 90% of every day. Throw in the fact most of our family lives far away and a dose of PPD that caused me to want no help whatsoever created a big storm of a hell I hope never happens again. I wrote about all of it when I was coming out of it and I hope one day I can find the strength to share about it all. 

But that's besides the point. Let's get to the fact that we started trying in February and by the end of February some funky spotting was going on so on a whim I took a pregnancy test. I mean, there was no way I was pregnant....right?

Sure enough, that little test showed up a nice faint positive. This was quite different from Adly's three tests in a row that turned a bright blue positive immediately. I called the doctors office to find out the chances of a false positive test. The regular nurse wasn't in, so I spent an hour on the phone with the hospital, trying to convince them I didn't need to come in and that I wasn't having a miscarriage. I mean, I spent two weeks heavily bleeding with Adly, hence why we didn't know until around 8 weeks. Plus, I was so early this time I didn't think there was major cause for concern. I went in the next week for blood tests and sure enough, I was pregnant at about 4 weeks along. 

Knowing you're pregnant so early suuuuuucks. I felt like crap for most of it and had nothing fun like a hangover to blame for it. Then there's the constant, incessant worry. I would much rather live blissfully unaware until the end of the rocky first trimester and then be all like "Oh! I'm pregnant! And I only have 28 more weeks to go! Lovely!" I started to feel amazing again around 9 weeks after feeling pretty crappy, which of course in the twisted world of pregnancy is never a good sign. At 11 weeks I was a nervous wreck as we went in for our next ultrasound. As soon as we saw inside, that little baby was a kicking and a punching, which put my mind at ease....for a week.

Then we went to Mexico and I felt soooo good, I just couldn't believe I was still pregnant. So by the time I made it to my 13 week checkup, I was convinced something had happened. I mean I didn't feel pregnant in any way. I could've easily been drinking my way though Mexico, dancing the night away (until 10pm because oh my God I cannot stay awake!!)  Sure enough, she found that little heartbeat be-bopping away immediately. It's just another reminder that this time is no different. We pregnant ladies are all CRAZY, no matter how many times you've stepped into the ring. 

Now comes the waiting game of finding out the sex. This is our last and final child and I want to know more than ever. With Adly, I had a feeling of her being a girl from the moment we found out. It was just this weird feeling. This time, I'm not having a strong feeling either way. Some days I feel it's a boy, some days I feel it's a girl. However the other day, I came home from work and Adly was feeling quite snuggly. She leaned up against my stomach, rubbing it saying "Mama got a baby in her belly. Adly be gentle." These sayings are all normal. Then she whips out "mama got a brudder in her belly."

I'm sorry, WHAT!?!?

Never before have any of us mentioned her possibly having a brother. If anything, I'd expect her to say sister since we always call her a big sister. So either my child is a creepy psychic or its just by chance. But I swear if it turns out to be a boy, I'll be watching her from now on out of one eye. Always.

Being a second time preggo mom with a toddler is very different. I can tell poor baby number two is definitely going to get the shaft in pregnancy. I'm sorry in advance child. I'm exhausted most of the time and I have a toddler who likes to "work" on my keyboard as I do, so blogging about it seems to be extra difficult. And the nursery. Or as we call it, the guest bedroom, will remain that. Baby number 2 will be getting the crib from Adly. The one with beaver chew marks all over the railing (apparently we don't feed her enough). And the same changing table and rocking chair. As far as decorating, I'm not nearly as concerned as I was with baby #1 now that I know they'll spend most of their time pooping, peeing, and spitting up all over any decorating I do get done. And the belly pictures...I keep thinking about starting them but that takes work. And I'm kind of burnt out from working my day job and then my mommy job by 7pm. Heaven forbid Adly actually help me take pictures. I mean, what gives?! Hopefully I can get on board with those sooner than later.

After getting through 3-4 weeks of feeling terrible, eating only cereal and toast, and all kinds of nighttime yucky nausea, I've been feeling amazing since 9 weeks. And THAT I can't complain about. But of course, I'm me, so I will find something. You want to know what is the most not awesome thing so far this pregnancy? My OBGYN went over my charts from Adly at my appointment on Thursday (she wasn't the one who delivered me) and as she did, she balked at the size of Adly at 8lb, 13oz, who was born one week early. Adly had been hiding in there. She hadn't measured big, so we weren't prepared for a giant baby to exit me. I specifically remember the doctor going "woah that's a big baby!" as soon as she came out. Therefore, my doctor is now concerned I may have developed late onset gestational diabetes. I don't know, it may have had something to do with the bags and bags of Sour Patch Kids and cookies and ice cream Adly made me eat, but I'm trying not to point fingers here. Anyways, this time I get to take that God awful diabetes test twice! Let the fun begin. It's ok, I'll just keep stockpiling these moments of amazing things I did for them to bring back up when my children are in high school and want to hate me. 

So there you have it. We have officially entered the rollercoaster of pregnancy and new parenthood one more time. We will be becoming a family of four sometime November 2016! 

Adly's Birth Part 2

Sorry to leave you hanging. My boobies were needed.

Once I sat up for an hour to let gravity do it's thing, the doctor and the army of nurses propped me back to a laying down position. Before I knew it, my legs were being held in the air, spread eagle and I was being told my job was to hold my thighs. Adam was placed on my right hand side to hold my right thigh with me and hold my neck up.

My doctor took position at the end of the bed and the other nurses grabbed various leg areas to help hold me up. I have to note here that one thing that I look back on now and kind of laugh at is the fact that throughout the time I was pushing, there were numerous doctors, nurses, and who else knows walking in and out of the room. They were all there to play their part in the delivery, but it's pretty funny to think back now about how anyone and everyone walked in and saw my lady parts in all their glory.

Anyways, when it came to the labor part I guess I had just assumed that you got to 10 cm and then the baby came out. I had NO idea about pushing and what it was all about. So naive. The nurses and doctor got right to work once my legs were up. During pushing, they watch for contractions on a monitor that is strapped to your belly to show the contractions on a richter-like scale printout. I could also feel the pressure of the contractions coming and going. At this point, my contractions were about every 2 minutes.

So here is how the pushing part goes:

-I feel a contraction coming and/or the nurses saw one on the monitor. Whoever noticed it first would say it was time to go again.
-I curl forward and take a deep breath and hold.
-I push as hard as you could ever imagine for 10 seconds as everyone counts down and cheers me on. I remember things like, "push, push, push, push!!" "just like that, keep going!!" "push toward my finger!! right there, right there!" "you got it, you're SO close! keep going, keep going!!!"
-My personal favorite was, "push like you're taking the biggest poop you've ever taken. go, go, go!!"
-I would push with all my might for 10 seconds, then take another deep breath and immediately do it all over again, four times in a row.
-Then it was break time. This was almost amusing to me. You went from pushing like hell and everyone yelling to cheer you on, to relaxing and taking deep breaths while having random conversations for the time between contractions.
-Two minutes later, it was time to do it all over again.
**We had a labor playlist. I highly recommend this for anyone in labor. It helped to distract us all during the downtime and it also helped during the madness of pushing.**

I can't even begin to explain how difficult the pushing time was. I don't think anyone will ever understand until they've done it. I was beyond exhausted. Sweat was pouring down my face, I had a cold compress on my forehead, I could hardly catch my breath. Yet, the fact that I knew my daughter was thisclose to finally coming out, forced me to dig deeper than I ever have before and find the strength to continue pushing.

Adly kept getting stuck at my pelvic bone during the pushing. Apparently it's usually the hardest part and takes a lot of effort to get the head past it. It was here that I began to get nervous she just wasn't going to make it out that way. So I stopped and leveled with my doctor. My worst fear was that I would've gone through vaginal labor, only to end up in c-section and have to recover from both. She responded with a lot of enthusiasm that we would be able to get her out....we just needed to keep on pushing.

After pushing for a little over an hour, I felt some intense pressure and then, there she was on my belly. There was no pain, it happened so quickly. Adam cut the cord and then they took her away to clean her up and run some tests on her. He followed Adly, while the doctor worked on me. I tore, so there was some stitching up to be done. According to Adam, there was also an explosive mess of blood, poo and bodily fluids that came shooting out just before Adly that needed to be cleaned up. Fun times, right!? I don't remember much of this time, I was just so exhausted.

Once Adly was good to go, they brought her over to me and laid her down on my chest. This is where I lost it. On my chest, I started talking to her. She immediately opened her eyes and started looking at me, moving her body upwards and her head to me. She recognized my voice right away. Then Adam walked over and began talking to her. She turned her head to him and started cooing and moving towards him. She also knew his voice right away. We spent the next few minutes, both sobbing,  bonding with our daughter. It was an unbelievably special moment and brings me to tears every time I think or talk about it.

We got to spend about an hour alone with her before family started streaming in, two by two to meet their precious grandchild and niece. It was so special to have all of our family there to meet her right away. Once their quick visits were done, we were whisked away to the mom and baby unit where we stayed for the next two nights.

I would not change a thing when it comes to the delivery. In all, I pushed for only a little over an hour. It felt like much longer, so I feel terribly for the women who push for hours. It is exhausting work bringing a child into this world!

So that's it. One of the most amazing days of my life to date. We are beyond thrilled that she is finally here and out of my belly to join our little family.

Party of three. 

Adly's Birth Part 1

As you know, Monday we had a "false alarm" when it came to Adly's pending arrival. I was really bummed out after that happened and struggled with dealing with the emotions of when she'd actually come. I wanted her here so badly. How I dealt with that was to convince myself in my head that she was not coming for at least another week. I mean, she wasn't even due until the 15th.

By Tuesday evening, I had convinced my family to drive back to Michigan and wait it out. They were set to leave Wednesday morning.

I'm including this part because I really think it might've actually had something to do with jumpstarting labor. Late Tuesday night, I was sitting on the couch after everyone left and Adam went to bed. I was continuing to have contractions and was just generally frustrated. So I started looking online at natural ways to induce labor. I'd been having contractions for 3 days and was dilated to 3-4cms. I had to be on the verge of it. We had tried all the other ways of naturally inducing with no results. What else was there to try!?! Well, I found this blog post about nipple stimulation jump starting labor. This woman swore by the process working and even had a whole routine written out to follow. At the end of the post were countless comments by people it had also worked for. So, I decided to try it. Yep. At 11pm at night, by myself, big as a whale, massaging my nips. Sexy.

After about 30 minutes, I decided to give up. First of all, it just felt odd. Secondly, I have a husband who can do such things, so I decided to wait until the next day and let him try it. Off to bed I went.

Well, around 3am, I was awakened by a feeling of peeing my pants. Yep, the classic water break. I felt my shorts and they were all wet. I still wasn't convinced, thinking maybe I just pissed myself. Hey, it happens. So I got up and checked it out. It was clear with no smell. Yes. I smelled my panties. The things you have to do while pregnant! Hmm...ok. Maybe it was my water. I woke Adam up and told him, "I may have broken my water. But I want to go back to sleep. So wake me up at 5:15 when you get up and I'll call the doc."His response was, "How am I supposed to sleep now!?!" Ten minutes later he was snoring away. Hmph.

Of course, I couldn't sleep. So I spent the next 2 hours researching and trying ways to determine if it actually was my water. When Adam got up for work, I called my doctor with what had been happening and she said to come in ASAP. Now, let me tell you, the only "gush" I ever felt was the initial one. After that, it was a slight continuous almost drip- kind of just like normal discharge. Additionally, there was some blood in it. Turns out, that is from your cervix and really common.

Still convinced I was only going to be turned away again once I got to the ER, I didn't eat any breakfast. We grabbed a few things and we left. We arrived to OB Triage around 6:30am. They did all the normal things, except this time when I explained what had happened, we started to be told we wouldn't be going anywhere. Then I panicked. "OMG I didn't eat breakfast!!" (This girl can NOT live without food). Once you're admitted, they don't let you eat anything besides ice chips. Luckily, one of the nurses let Adam sneak me a scone so I was able to get something in my belly. Ladies, even if you think you might be turned away, EAT before you go to the hospital.

Around 8:30, three doctors came in and did a few tests to see if it was in fact my water that broke, and it was. At that time I was around 4cm dilated still. At 9:30am I was officially admitted to the hospital for delivery. Our nurses were FANTASTIC. The one I had all day was so nice. I think the most disappointing thing about delivery is it takes so long in most cases, you see a shift change. I totally became attached to our nurse, Agnes, and was so sad when her shift was over that evening. When I arrived, Agnes suggested I wait out the epidural as long as I could. They started me on pitocin, and the contractions started revving up. For around the next 3 hours, I handled the pain of the contractions. I'm not going to lie...they hurt. But, I'd been feeling them for four days at that point, so I was somewhat used to the actual pain. I also began to notice when they were coming on and deal with it then.

Agnes also made sure to keep me informed whenever the anesthesiologist was available. I've heard stories of girls waiting and when they were ready, the anesthesiologist was busy in surgery or with other patients, leaving them hanging for up to an hour. Ouch!! Around noon, I was more than ready and the doc was available so we went for it. They made Adam leave due to the fact that a lot of husbands pass out at the sight of the big needle. I'm not going to lie, I probably would have too. Luckily, I couldn't see anything. Agnes was amazing and held on to my shoulders the whole time...and talked to me about anything random I thought of to distract me.

Getting the epidural does not hurt. They gave a local anesthesia to cover the pain of the big needle and that wasn't bad at all. I think more of the "pain" comes from thinking about how big the actual needle is from visions you've seen on TV or from random sources. Additionally, you have to remain curled up in a ball, and with contractions, that hurts enough in itself to take your mind off the pain in your back area. As soon as the doctor was done, I was in heaven.

At that point, we shut off the lights closed the curtains and I napped. Having been up since 3am, I was exhausted. The beauty of an epidural is that you can't feel A THING when it comes to contractions. I could feel pressure, but at that point, that was nothing. You are numb from the waist down, and life can continue as normal. To me, this was heaven and SO worth it. All day I sat in amazement that some women do not get the epi. For me, it helped to make my birth experience so amazing and truly something I'll remember for the rest of my life, because I was able to enjoy it. I am not against natural in any way- in fact I highly commend the women who can do it. I just don't have the pain tolerance.

Agnes continued amping up the pitocin throughout the afternoon. Around 3, I had a cervical check by my doctor. I had dilated to 6-7cm. She also discovered my water bag was still full. She grabbed a hook and actually broke my water. What I had "broke" at home was nothing. THIS was the gush you hear about. More like flood. Adam got to witness that event firsthand and apparently it is not pretty.

By 9pm, I was dilated to 10cm- the ending point in dilation. At that point, the doctor propped me up basically to standing position (but sitting due to my legs being completely numb). This was to let nature do it's work along with gravity, hoping to make the baby drop as far down as possible on her own using just contractions for an hour.

That hour was intense for many reasons. After all the waiting, we now knew she was going to be here in a very short matter of time. That is an unbelievably surreal feeling. Adam started to stress out and looked like he was going to pass out. This inwardly made me start to panic. I tried my best to calm him down, and suggested getting my sister to come in, in case he couldn't do it. He insisted he was fine. And before we knew it, the doctor and three other nurses had arrived and were laying me back. It was GO TIME.

Adam had gathered himself by then and jumped right into action like the amazing man I know he is. They positioned him on my right, to hold up my neck and right thigh. They asked me how I count down for things, what works for me. I asked that everyone count down from ten each time I pushed. I had NO idea what I was in for....

Ready, set, GO!!

shot, shot, shot, shooooot!

Unfortunately we're not having a party at the moment with Lil' Jon cheering us on in the background, telling us to take shots.

No, my friends, we live in the exciting world of pregnancy. Therefore, our shots come in the form of required vaccinations even us parents have to have. And by parents, I mean myself and Adam. Two weeks ago at my last checkup with my OB/GYN, she tried to get me to get the Whooping Cough vaccine. Problem was, I still had to pack up my classroom and the shot leaves your arm pretty sore. So I put it off until tomorrow's visit. She also ordered me to have Adam get the shot. Guess who was not excited about that request?

Let me just try to capture how that conversation went.

Adam: What?! I don't really have to get the shot, do I?
Me: Yes, you do.
Adam: Well.....is it going to hurt??!!
Me: (Do you even know what I'm about to go through? You don't get to talk about pain!!) It might. But not so much that a sucker wouldn't be able to fix the pain.
Adam: Well.....so are they going to give it to me in a vein? What if they miss the vein?
Me: (Are you kidding me?!? A VEIN?!) Oh no, they'll just give you a little poke in your upper arm. Don't worry, it won't hurt a bit.

So today, I dragged him to our local CVS to get his arm stabbed. My reason for going with was two-fold. One, I wanted to ensure he got it done. Two, and most importantly, I wanted to see him suffer. Especially after the conversation we had about the shot.

Sure enough, he survived.

And with that, I continue my thoughts how there is no way possible there would be a human race today if men were the ones in charge of carrying a child.

The Father of all Fathers

When I think of a hero, I think of my dad. He may not be a "hero" in every sense of the word, but to me he is someone I look up to, adore, and love more than words could ever say. I like to think I won the lottery of all lotteries when it comes to dads.

My earliest memories are of time spent with my dad. Playing on the pontoon boat, driving to school every day playing the "opposite game" and on special occasions getting to take the "hippety-hoppety road". Throughout high school and beyond, my dad has been my rock. Someone I can always count on  to answer the phone when I'm sad, happy about something exciting, when I was in need of anything (usually money), or when something goes wrong that needs fixing. Whatever it is, he's always been there to help me sort it out.

 Deep thoughts at the ballpark with his #1 fan.

Drying off from the pool in daddy's t-shirt! I was still having difficulty growing hair. 

All dolled up for Uncle Mark's wedding!

Walks through the apartment complex. I'm sure there were some deep convos taking place. 

Before I left for college, I would regularly and mysteriously get applications from all of the in-town colleges that I wanted nothing to do with. Someone was trying to get me to stay. When I went away to college, I would regularly get panicked phone calls every few days if I hadn't spoken with dad. "Kelly, are you alive!?! I haven't spoken to you in a few days." Of course, I always was. And lets face it, I was only an hour away.

Then I graduated college. After dad helped me through a heartbreak, I broke his heart when I dropped the bomb on him that I was moving. Moving far, far away to a big city called Chicago. For what? I had no idea. I just knew I needed to start fresh. So without too much resistance, he helped me pack up the U-Haul and once again moved me to another city. Only this one was big and scary. I know it wasn't easy by any means for him, yet he never said, "don't do it."

He yet again helped me sort through my problems and misguided decisions as I tried and failed a few times at starting my post-college life in Chicago. Throughout my 20's as always, dad was always there. Even from another state, I could count on him to make me laugh from the way he posts on Facebook, to his idiosyncrasies over phone conversations, to the way he dotes on me when I come home. There was the time I broke my nose in Chicago from my good ole knee giving out and ended up in the ER. I was home to MI two days later for the holidays with a black and blue face and a swollen knee. I immediately plopped on the couch only to have dad staring across the living room at me saying, "What do you need? Ice? Asprin? I have asprin. Let me get you some asprin. You need water? I'll get you water. Here's a cup of water for you." (I kid you not, this string of sentences came out without a response from me). To this day, when I make the drive home from Chicago, he always "takes my car for a spin" to check the oil, the engine, and fill up the gas tank.

Before graduating a second time.

Then I met the man of my dreams in Chicago. My dad has always been supportive of me finding the love of my life, unlike some dad's who are extremely overprotective of their girls. No, my dad has wanted nothing more than for me to find a man, get married, and make him a grandchild.  Since I was 22. I know by the time I reached my late 20's he was starting to think there was no hope for me. He says he remembers when I called him after my first date with Adam. And he knew then that it was something big. If only Kelly can sucker this guy into actually marrying her.....

With this hand-off goes my daughter on her own cell phone bill....

Of course, I did manage to sucker him into it, and then even better, managed to get knocked up the first weekend we were married! Wooo-hooo! Double whammy for Grandpa Dan! The icing on the cake has been the type of man I found to spend the rest of my life and start a family with. Not only who he is, but the relationship he also has with my dad. While Adam never fails to tease me about it, I know he understands and looks up to the closeness of our relationship. I could not have asked for anything more than when my dad calls for our usual conversations at night and Adam will willingly jump on the phone to catch up as well.

Now as we venture into having our own daughter, I want nothing more than for Adly and Adam to experience the same relationship I got to experience with my own dad. And I don't think I could've picked a better man to step up to that plate.

So with that, I say Happy Father's Day to all the amazing fathers out there, especially the ones in my life.

Babies 101

This week, Adam and I took our first newborn class at the hospital where we are going to deliver. While I grew up babysitting and taking care of my little brother and sister, I'm definitely a novice when it comes to newborns. This would most likely be because nobody in their right mind wants to leave the sight of their precious new bundle of joy. Therefore, we figured both of us could use some brushing up on all things baby/newborn so we signed up for this class.

Here are some things we learned. I will say I walked away with my head about to explode over the information. There is so much to know.

1.) There is a man named Dr. Harvey Karp who's practices the hospital endorses. I swear he is the freaking baby whisperer. He is the creator of the 5 S's when it comes to calming babies who cry non-stop. The man would pick up a shrieking newborn with frazzled parents looking on, only to calm the baby immediately using one or a combo of his 5 methods. Our jaws were on the floor. I've got his DVD locked and loaded in the online shopping cart, ready to order on a whims' notice if needed.

2.) We now know how to properly swaddle. From what I hear, babies are not typically fans of swaddling. Either way, guess which one of us was a rockstar at swaddling? You guessed it: Adam. I don't have patience for step-by-step processes. I'm more of a "just wrap it up like so and tuck it in and it'll work somehow" person. Adam, however, has every step down to a science, so he will be known as the Swaddling Savior, I've decided.

3.) I'm terrified of overheating my baby in her sleep. It stresses me out that there's no real way to know if they're too hot because they don't sweat as newborns. It didn't dawn on me until this class that my child is being brought into this world in the middle of our hottest time. My husband sweats "like a rat in a wool sock" (his words) so our AC is always blasting in the summer. Gah. Will she be too hot? Will she be too cold? What about me and my wants/needs!?! And the bumbling through parenthood begins.

4.) Adam also rocked at holding the baby. He has the football hold and the one-armed hold down flat. I on the other hand felt awkward in every position. This was the first time I experienced the pang of "what if I'm just not a good mom?" Of course, I know I will be a rockstar. I've held plenty of babies and none of them were rubbery, unbendable shapes. It's just a weird moment when you're holding this doll that you realize that in a short matter of time, the one in your arms will be all your responsibility.

5.) We learned allllll about what baby poops should look like in the first weeks. There's a whole rainbow of colors you should expect to see. Something tells me our child is going to have some real beauties in that department. No worries. I'm already planning to be "napping" during any explosive, up the back episodes.

6.) Adly was kicking and moving about like crazy anytime the babies on the video were screeching and crying. This leads me to deduce two things. One, she was pissed off, trying to get them to cut the racket out as she would never, ever do such a thing. Or two, she was gleefully kicking away in anticipation of joining the ranks of newborns who cry non-stop. I'm going to go with number one for my own sanity.

What I mainly walked away with:

Having a newborn is a whole lot of looking at each other and going "What the hell does this mean?" or "What the shit do we no now?" or "Is this right!?" or "Pleeeeease stop crying and go the F**K to sleep!"

Next up, Breastfeeding 101.

It's a......

Yesterday was a big day. Not only was it a big day, it was a sweet and memorable day for Adam and I. I took the day off and we started our day by heading to the doctors office to peek inside my belly one last time and find out who Baby B really is. Boy, was it ever a glimpse of our child.

The ultrasound lasts about 30 minutes. They check every body part and measure it as they go. In the waiting room, Baby B was doing karate in my belly making itself known to anyone within 4 feet. Maybe it has dance skills like its mother? One can only hope.

Of course, once we got settled in for our ultrasound, jelly on my belly and baby on the screen, Baby b decided it was nap time. And it was NOT going to budge. The poor technician tried poking, moving it from the outside, and turning me on my side. Nada. Oh, how I so adore our stubborn child. And wouldn't you know, while checking for its gender, it also decided to cross its legs. After much poking, prodding, and turning, they were finally able to get Baby B to move enough to get a snapshot of its goodies. The doctor tried like hell to also get a cute profile picture for us. While Baby B did make some adorable movements of the hand to its eyes and nose, this was the best facial profile picture we got. It is just the face. I feel that's important to reiterate since, after I texted it to my dad he reported back he was "trying to identify all the body parts". This was after I told him it was just the face.

After the doctors, we packed our bags for our "babymoon" downtown. Once we checked in, we couldn't wait any longer. So, we opened the card the technician had sealed away the info in and this is what we saw:

There it is, people! Adam now has two loves of his life.

After tears, champagne, sparkling pink lemonade, and some shopping, we got all done up and went to a late dinner. By late I mean, 8:30. We went to Del Frisco's steakhouse. I can't even explain to you just how badly I wanted a dirty martini. For some reason those are always the best at steakhouses. Instead, I had a mommy cocktail and bacon wrapped scallops. It was tasty and delicious. Adam of course celebrated with a meaty man steak and a few cocktails.

When we woke up this morning, our amazing babymoon continued with Adam getting to finally feel our little girls kicks for the first time. A memorable weekend at its best.

I leave you with a glimpse of how a romantic, memory filled day ends when you have a pregnant wife.

So much excitement to be had!!

Welcome to our family, you sweet, stubborn little girl. We love you more than words can describe.

Love,

a letter to baby b

Dear Baby B,

    Tomorrow is the day we find out if you are a boy or a girl. I never knew something the size of a banana could make me feel so much love. You haven't even arrived yet and already you've changed our little family in so many ways- for the better. Whether you are a boy or a girl doesn't matter to me. I'm just so excited to be able to call you by the name we've picked out for you and really get to know you. I'm starting to learn the times you move in my belly and something tells me you're picking up on when daddy and I are trying to catch a kick from the outside. You always stop moving. But I've been sneaky and caught a few of them. Don't worry, its just your parents trying to get to know you from the outside in.
   Whatever you are, boy or girl, you already make my heart swell to sizes I never knew possible. I can't wait until the moment when I can hold you in my arms and kiss you.

Love,
Mommy

Registering....

In the world of babies and things they need, A and I have not a clue. Sure, I've babysat for years so I know things that work for their kids. But what about mine? What things do we absolutely need and what things are just gimmicks and what things would be good to have but not a necessity?! It's a crazy world out there in baby land!!

Registering for our wedding a short 10 months ago was much easier. A new toaster? Sure! Oooh we need a new clothes iron. And how about a steam mop?! I've always wanted one of those! Baby registering is by far much more difficult. Not only do we not know what our little bundle of joy is going to be like, we don't exactly know what it is we will need in order to keep our little precious happy and safe. 

So, in order to help guide us, we've relied on the advice of one trusty friend who's just been there done that and the book I recommended earlier, Baby Bargains. Today we hit the stores today armed with a long list, my Baby Bargains book and excitement. I do have to say, registering for Baby B actually was much more fun than wedding registering. It helps it all seem much more real and for me, it helped to begin to form an image in my mind of what life with a new baby will be like. We were honestly both excited to be picking things out, although both very overwhelmed.

Here is a conversation that happened at the last store:

Me: Oh, I think we might need one of these little bathtubs for when we give it baths.
A: What? Why? We'll just wash it in the kitchen sink! Its a huge one!
Me: Umm ok. So, we're just going to drop the baby in our sink for bath time?
A: (Scoffs). No, K. I wouldn't just drop it. I would you know, hold it in there. We even have a sprayer!

To be fair, I think we both were exhausted at this point. But A really was trying to make a point that some things we just don't need. Problem is, we don't really know exactly what those things are. This is where having a Type A personality does not come in handy. (Side note: we ended up picking a bathtub that even has a sprayer attached! Can you guess who picked it out?)

Despite our preparation, it's still exhausting trying to determine which brand, price point and safety features are the best. There are so many options out there! But for our first time out, I think we did a good job of getting the essentials nailed down. I honestly don't know how people wait to find out the sex of their baby and I can't believe we thought we were going to. It was impossible not to look at all the adorable clothes options and most of them come in colors that are not exactly unisex. Therefore we've decided to set back out again into the baby land jungle to complete registering after the big reveal next weekend. 

And we just couldn't resist one little buy for Baby B. We both loved this onsie and it was in limited availability so we jumped on it. It's so cute and makes me talk all girly and high voiced and awwww when I look at it. Ahhh I just want Baby B to be here already!!

Hey Baby B, Whats your Load Size??

This weekend, A and I were with a couple friend of ours, Jamee and Dan. Jamee is one of my nearest and dearest friends who also stood up with us in our wedding in October. Since Jamee hasn't done enough for A and I in the last year, she's also going to be throwing a baby shower for me in Chicago along with another nearest and dearest of mine, Lindsay (also a bridesmaid). I'll owe these ladies my second born child at the rate I'm going.

Jamee, Dan, A and I got to talking about the baby shower when Jamee brought up the idea of a Diaper Shower for A. Diaper showers are something where A and all his beer guzzling buddies get together and drink all they can in a last hurrah- or in our case- an extension of his bachelor party. The only catch is, every attendee has to bring a package of diapers for Baby B.

Great idea, right? Dan and A were excitedly talking about how fun it could be when A got serious and asked how we could make sure Baby B didn't get all one kind of diaper. And this is when he dropped the best soon to be dad bomb I've heard to date:

"So, do I ask the guys to bring different load size diapers?" A asked in wonder. "They come in load sizes, right?"

To which all of us burst into laughter at. I love my husband. But I also love when I get to make fun of him.

LOAD SIZES!?! So, what do you think is going to happen? Newborn Baby B's gonna shoot you a wink and say, "Hey dad, after the amount of breast milk I had for dinner, I can feel a real BIG load comin' on tonight. Better diaper me up accordingly."

Oh my word I am dying laughing even as I type this. Hilarious. And oh, so innocent at the same time. After we stopped crying laughing we were able to explain that diapers come in baby age sizes, not load sizes. Phew. I'm so glad we had that conversation before A went on his first diaper buying adventure. I can just picture it now.

"Excuse me, ma'am, what load sizes do you carry in diapers here?"

xo,