Look at that belly!!!

Well this is me at 34 weeks and I'm always amazed how big my belly is when I see these pictures! I'm definitely a lot bigger now than I ever was with Ethan and I still have 5 weeks to go!! Next week I have an ultrasound to figure out how big she has gotten. Tracy and Ethan are going to be there too--we're excited to see our little girl again. We'll definitely post the pictures after we scan them. So far the medicine has been working and the cramping has stopped. I'm feeling a lot better and hope to start working out again next week.

Ethan is playing peekabo with Daddy using our tape recorder! He is getting better and better at it too!
Look at that sweet face! Isn't he adorable? He has been keeping us so entertained lately. He's added some new moves to his dancing groove. He now stomps his feet as fast as he can and waves his arms by his sides. It is the cutest thing I have ever seen. We also took him swimming last night which we hadn't done for almost a year! He loved it though! Tracy took him in the big pool first and as Tracy went down the steps, Ethan said "Whoooooooooooo!". Then he laughed and laughed and kicked and splashed! He had a blast and we're glad. We had fun too! We can't wait to keep him swimming!

Good news!

Tracy and I went to the doctor this afternoon and the good news is that the cramping has not caused any dilating! They prescribed me some medicine to stop the contractions and told me to rest as much as possible, but didn't put me on bed rest! The medicine will be until I am 36 weeks (2 1/2 weeks from now) and then if I go in to labor, it would be okay for the baby.

Thank you so much for your prayers. I feel so much more at peace now since I'm not worrying about her coming too soon. Her heartrate sounded good and everything else is good, so I think we won't have a problem. What a relief! : )

Cramping Again!

I just wanted to let everyone know that I started cramping again last night and I'm going to the doctor this afternoon to make sure I am not dilating. I may be put on bedrest for a while, which is going to hurt us financially so please pray for us in this as well as for Katelyn and her safety. I will update tonight after my appointment. Hopefully, I'm not dilating and everything is fine.

Nana's visit!

Ethan likes it when Nana comes to visit--he gets time with his Nana and, oh yeah, lots of new toys! : ) Ethan was such a good boy this weekend while Nana and I were busy getting stuff ready for Katelyn. Here he is helping me get the carseat ready for Katelyn.

Nana came to visit this weekend to help me get everything together for Katelyn. She came early Friday afternoon and then picked up Ethan so she could have some time with him. He was very happy to see her! That night we just relaxed at home because we knew we had a busy day ahead of us!

Saturday we did a lot of shopping and washing! We bought a crib set for Katelyn, some plastic drawers for her clothes, and many other things. We put her bassinet together and washed all of her clothes in baby detergent. After all is said and done, I feel that we are pretty ready for Katelyn. Not that we want her to come any time soon, but I feel so much better having things ready. Speaking of which, I've been feeling pretty good lately. I'm trying to take it easy at home and at school. They are very supportive at school and have made it very clear that they are willing to work with for whatever is necessary. I feel very blessed.

Ethan had a rough morning though. Shortly after I dropped him off, he threw up. I went and picked him up and he's been fine all day. I can only assume that he just had a random throw up episode because he's been good all day. I'm glad too--I don't think I could handle him having one more stomach virus again!!

Tracy is finally done with all of his school work! What a blessing! He feels a big weight off of his shoulders. We've also officially changed his major to churchplanting. We both feel really good about this decision.

I only have two more weeks of school left and I'm definitely ready for the summer! Of course, it would be nice if the weather thought summer was coming too. It has been rainy and cold for the last week and a half!

My Doctor's Appointment

I went to the doctor yesterday for my prenatal checkup. I've gained 3 1/2 more pounds! Her heart rate was good and the doctor confirmed that she has gone head down. I mentioned my cramping to the doctor and she was very concerned and said the pain I described was indeed preterm labor. She was ready to put me on maternity leave for the rest of my pregnancy (so that I could rest) right now, but I am out of sick days and I also have SO MUCH work to do at the end of the year. We only have two more weeks of school, so I'm praying that I can at least make it to the end of the school year. However, I do want to take this seriously and not endanger Katelyn so please pray for us! My doctor says if I have cramping again like before that lasts longer than an hour, I need to come in to make sure my cervix isn't dilating. I still get sporadic times of cramping, but nothing like before which lasted so long. I'm trying to take it easy and to pay attention to any pain. I still have 6 1/2 weeks left. I know that babies born at 34 weeks tend not to have any problems, but that is at least 1 1/2 weeks away.

Janice comes today to help me get ready for Katelyn and I'm excited. We're going to wash Katelyn's clothes and figure out what else I might need for her. Janice is coming this morning and Tracy is going to take her to get Ethan so she can spend the rest of the day with him. I know she can't wait to see her little man!

I know I wrote last night, but...

Ethan did the cutest thing this morning! While Tracy and I were up this morning getting ready, I heard the funniest noises coming from Ethan's room where he was supposedly sleeping. I heard laughter and other noises and when I went in to his room, he was lying in his crib just entertaining himself talking. It was too cute since he usually fusses to get our attention in the morning. When I came in, he was so excited to see me and wrapped his arms around me so tight! That's got to be one of the sweetest things in the world!

Later when I was getting him dressed, he was so helpful. He always helps me by putting out his arms and lifting his feet. He especially loves it when I put his shoes on. This child loves his shoes (good job, Uncle Kelly!)! I have to hide them when we get home or else he'd wear them to bed!

Ethan meets Kaleb--Love at first sight!

Ethan loves the camera and tries to take it whenever I have it!

Ethan and Daddy wrestling! : )
32 weeks pregnant and growing! I think this was my belly with Ethan at 39 weeks! I don't know if it is so much bigger because my muscles are all stretched out or because Katelyn is a moose! I guess we'll find out in 7 weeks! She moved in to the head down position today and, though she changed her mind for a while this afternoon, seems settled there! She's still making her presence known to me with lots of wiggling and kicking.

Ethan met Kaleb this afternoon since they came home from the hospital and from the very first moment, Ethan was interested in him. He wanted desperately to touch him and pat him and we let him pat his hand. He kept talking to Kaleb, especially when Kaleb was crying as he got his diaper changed. Later, Ethan leaned forward and gave Kaleb kisses! It was so adorable and I wish I had my camera with me then! However, it has encouraged me that maybe Ethan will love Katelyn too!

Kaleb Andrew is here!

For those of you who know Naomi (one of my close friends for almost 10 years), she had her baby boy Kaleb Andrew yesterday at 2:56 pm. He is 8 lbs. 5 oz and 21 inches long! He is quite a cutie with blonde hair and chubby cheeks! I may post a picture of him later if they are okay with it. If not, in the next couple of days, you may view a picture of him on http://babynet.baptisteast.com/. Just look him up under their last name. You can send them a message (they deliver it) by going to the following site: https://secure.bhsi.com/www.baptisteast/ecard.asp?bhcp=1.

I got to see him yesterday and I must say it has gotten us excited about our bundle of joy who is coming in 7 weeks and brought back memories of our time there when Ethan was born (it's the same hospital). We feel so blessed to have Ethan and to have Katelyn coming soon!

Our weekend was very busy between Naomi's delivery, a baby shower and yard sale shopping! Ethan has been as fun as ever. He got to go the park on Saturday and Sunday and is now such a big boy that he doesn't need any help on the slide! He can basically hold his own on the smaller playground equipment and yells "Weeeeeee!" when he goes down the slide! He is too precious!

Doing Much Better

Ethan can now reach the light switch and entertained himself for about half an hour yesterday flipping the kitchen light on and off. It made me a little crazy trying to wash dishes though! : )
I took Ethan outside to get some energy out after our lazy morning and 3 hour nap yesterday! He insisted on bringing his Elmo toy and carried it around outside!

I just want to thank any of you who have prayed for me today. Around lunch time, the cramping stopped and I've been feeling much better! I'm still taking it easy and sitting or lying down whenever I can. I've figured that it probably was triggered from picking Ethan up too much--he's starting to put on a little weight! In the picture above, you can he's starting to get the fat around his wrists again (one of my students said when he was younger that it looked like his hand was screwed on because it was so chunky! I love it!). Tracy has been getting up earlier to carry Ethan to the car in the mornings and I've been encouraging Ethan to climb the stairs by himself. Of course it takes a little longer (since he feels it is his job to remove every leaf on the outside stairs) but my back appreciates it!

A Prayer Request

I stayed home yesterday from school because the cramping continued. I laid around all day (poor Ethan didn't have too much fun) and felt a little better this morning. I am at school now and it is still cramping, so I'm trying to stay off my feet as best I can. I'm out of sick days and I have so much to do at school, so I can't stay at home any more. Please pray that this cramping stops--it's made me worried for Katelyn's sake! I had this with Ethan and they put me on bed rest for a week! However, I was 35 weeks then and it wasn't as dangerous for Ethan then. She's still active and moving all around. I can feel her little feet and it is just too precious!

A birthday party!

Ethan had fun playing ball with the other kids.
Ethan loves dogs!

Giving Mommy some loving!

Today we went to the birthday party of a 2 year old from our community group. Unfortunately the weather wasn't that great, but that didn't keep the kids from having a good time. Ethan played with the other kids and, although he was the youngest, they made sure he got time to play with the ball. Ethan was tired when we got home and we put him to get a little earlier.

Katelyn is doing fine. I've been having some cramping so I've been trying to get off my feet and to drink more water. We've still got 2 more months and I want her to be healthy!

A Day with Daddy!

Ethan playing with Daddy!

Look at those silly boys!

Look at him stacking the soda cans!

Tonight at dinner

Tracy took a much needed day off today to be with Ethan (the lady who watcheshim couldn't watch him today). And from the sounds of it, they had a great day. Tracy took Ethan to the park after Ethan's nap and he got to play with lots of kids. Tracy said that there were some twins who were 15 months old and Ethan went up to the little girl and hugged her and kissed her. Also, a little 4 year old girl adopted Ethan and played with him. Ethan sounds like a lady's man already!

On my way home, Tracy called me and let me speak to Ethan. He was too cute! He sounded like such a big boy even though he was only babbling. He called Tracy the other morning when I didn't realize it and talked to him for 10 minutes. Tracy said it made his day! : )

Finally some pictures!

30 weeks

I had another doctor's appointment today. I've gained 21 pounds so far! This is a bit high, but I'm measuring perfectly (they measure my belly to see how much she's grown), my blood pressure is great and Katelyn's heart rate sounds good. I still work out regularly so I'm not too worried about weight gain, but it does make me wonder if Katelyn is going to be a chunker! : )

Ethan loves to read his books! :)

Ethan in the bath tonight!

Ethan washing his hair!

Ethan has been a good boy as usual! He came with me to my doctor's appointment and was such an angel. Of course all the nurses wanted to talk to him and told me how adorable he was (nothing new to me : )! Tracy got home at a reasonable time today so he got a lot of time to play with Ethan. On the way home from community group, Tracy was singing "Don't Worry, Be Happy" to Ethan in a silly way and Ethan just laughed and laughed. He has the best laugh and no one can make him laugh like Daddy can!

Ethan deleted his pictures!!

Saturday Tracy, Ethan and I went to a nearby park to see what we could of the airshow for the famous Thunder over Louisville. We took some cute photos of Ethan too. We even got some fun pictures of Ethan on Sunday, but, later that evening he got a hold of the camera, turned it on and deleted all of the pictures! He's getting too good at this!

We had a fun weekend too. I got to go Katelyn shopping Saturday morning and was able to buy the Arm's Reach Co-sleeper that I had been wanting for a long time (we saved up for it). That was exciting for me! That afternoon we saw parts of the air show. Sunday was a restful day and we relaxed.

Ethan is certainly becoming a fireball. Goodbye, baby--hello, crazy toddler! He no longer walks, he runs! He is interested in everything (including what is in the trash can which he likes to bring to me). He is getting good at stacking too. Yesterday he got some of our cans of soda and brought them to the coffee table and stacked them. Fortunately, they were Tracy's sodas! Haha!

He's definitely wearing me out--especially as the third trimester continues and the exhaustion becomes more of an issue! I'm looking forward to the end of school and a little break in the stress level. Speaking of which, pray for Tracy. School is almost out for him, but he's got a LOT of work to do and he's been working record amounts of hours, which isn't conducive to school work.

We love you all and appreciate those who communicate with us!

It's been a good week so far. Ethan has learned how to play Ring Around the Rosy and loves it! He has been enjoying the warmer weather and whenever I take him for walks he just loves it! He's also getting better and better at playing with other kids. Last night at community group he was running around with the 2 and 3 year old and playing peekaboo! It wasn't too long ago that he couldn't keep up! It was pretty funny too as the 3 year old growled at Ethan and he growled right back! Everyone thought it was so funny and said the 3 year old had met her match!

Easter was nice, but it was a little weird since we go to church in the evening. We had a nice long nap on Sunday (both Ethan and me!) and then went out for lunch. Afterwards we just came back to the apartment since it looked like it was going to rain. I guess Ethan had most of his Easter fun at Nana and DaddyBob's!

I got my information on my C-section and we have to be at the hospital at 5:30am! Tracy was hoping for a 10am appointment! Katelyn has been rolling around a lot. Ethan was always a kicker, but Katelyn is always moving around. It's such a funny feeling! When I press on her, however, she'll give me a good kick! She's reaching my ribs now! Oh no! I still remember Ethan bruising my ribs so I couldn't sleep on my side for a week!

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It was beautiful outside so we went to the park!

It was such a pretty day outside that I decided to take Ethan to the park. He loved it and everyone there thought he looked very cute in his little sunglasses. We even walked on some of the nature trails though Ethan got tired and wanted me to carry him. Despite all this activity, he had no problem staying up a little later with Daddy who had to work late. I'm sure he will sleep well tonight! There are more pics on his website!

Yesterday when we got back from school, Ethan was hot so I let him run around in his diaper. However, he wanted his sandals on! He wore them all evening. I just thought it was too cute!

A Great Baby Shower!

I had a lovely baby shower on Tuesday and got a lot of cute clothes for Katelyn. I haven't sorted through everything completely yet to see what items I still need, but I know I still need diapers and towels. There are a few bigger items I am saving up for on my Babiesrus registry, but we're getting closer to being ready. I can't believe she will be here in 2 1/2 months! This pregnancy has FLOWN by! I'm very lucky that it has been such an easy pregnancy.

I had another doctor's appointment Thursday and I've gained 17 pounds. The doctor said my blood pressure was great and her heartbeat was once again very strong. We made the appointment to have my C-section on June 26th. It seems more final now! I've moved to appointments every two weeks now!

Ethan was a little gentleman at the shower and shook people's hands. I thought he would be really shy, but he loved the attention! He's such an angel!

Ethan goes to the zoo and my belly gets bigger!

Ethan went to the zoo yesterday with me, Dad and Tracy and had a blast! He got to see an albino alligator, lions, giraffes, a polar bear, gorillas and even got to pet some goats. At the end of it all, Ethan was exhausted (and so were we!) and took a 3 hour nap which I appreciated. For more pics, see his webpage!
I'm 28 weeks pregnant now and getting bigger. My belly really seemed to grow over the last couple of weeks! I can feel her moving all the time and I can press on my belly and feel her little body. It's so exciting! We've been getting more clothes for her from yard sales and consignment shops and it's so exciting to prepare for her. Tomorrow I have my first baby shower, and I'm excited to see what else she gets!

The outfit I chose is....

I actually chose the outfit with the blanket and hat though everyone has guessed the red and blue jean outfit (which I really like by the way!). I think it was the thrifty side of me that saw an outfit, a hat and a blanket for $2.50! I love consignment shopping! : )

We're Back!

Ethan got his first haircut! He sat still the whole time and was such a good boy. He even got a lollipop when she was done, which he had never had before. He liked that!
He's strutting his stuff outside! He certainly enjoyed the warmer weather and loved walking up and down the hills outside Bob and Janice's house. He's getting to be such an independent boy! : )

We had such a great time visiting with Bob, Janice, Dale, Judy, Kelly and Amy! The weather was warm and sunny. We did lots of shopping for Ethan and Katelyn and we're starting to get ready for our next bundle of joy. : ) We got back Tuesday evening and are now trying to get Ethan adjusted to Daylight savings!