The All-Too-Big Four Month Post

I can't believe Jack is four months old already! It just feels like yesterday that we brought him home from the hospital, but it also feels like he's been part of our family forever. I wondered if I could possibly love another baby as much as Kate, and I do. I love him so much. I just want to soak every little thing about him in and savor it. He's growing too fast. Poor little guy has a cold AND he's teething. He's been a bit of a bear for the past week, but it will pass. In honor of his four month birthday yesterday, here's a list of Jack's "accomplishments":

-Weighed 15lbs 7oz last week, more than double his birth weight
-Has successfully, exclusively breastfed for 4 whole months
-Can roll over both ways (as of this week)
-Smiles and laughs constantly
-Loves watching his big sister play
-Has traveled to Ohio three times and Pennsylvania twice (yes, we're crazy)
-Is getting very good at playing with toys (or...putting them in his mouth)
-Had been sleeping through the night, but between growth spurts, teething and being sick, he's been waking a little more often in recent days
-Seems to have outgrown his dislike for onions (thankfully!)

He's a sweet, little boy. I can't wait to see more of his personality as he continues to grow. Life's crazy with a toddler and an infant, but I wouldn't have it any other way! Here's a few pics for you to enjoy from our recent family pictures:

"It's the Most _____ Time of the Year"

Today's fill-in-the-blank? Sickly, perhaps. Illness has once again stricken the Bishop household.

Kate had something stomach related Sunday. Jack started sounding like he was getting a cold on Tuesday. Last night, Kate woke up screaming in the middle of the night with a horrible, barking cough. I suspected she might have croup, and I was right. We took both kids to the pediatrician today. Jack seems to just have a cold. They checked for RSV, but it was negative. Kate has croup and her strep culture was negative today. Oh and my throat is sore and my nose is running. Lovely. They sent Kate home with a prescription for a steroid and albuterol (and, thank you, spell check, but I don't mean butterball).

Back to the Kate waking in the middle of the night story: We came home from church last night to find out that the electricity was out. We lit a few candles and sat around hoping it would come back on. We were sure Kate wouldn't go to bed without any lights on. We were right. We finally decided to make Kate a bed on the loveseat and Kraig would sleep with her on the couch. Once everyone was settled in, it was at least 10:30. And right when things were calming down, the lights came back on. Eventually, though, we all fell asleep. Then around 1:30, Kate woke up and didn't go back to sleep. I don't know if she was scared because of the way she felt or what, but she was nearly inconsolable. She'd ask for something, get it and then scream that it wasn't what she wanted. A minute later, she was begging for the same thing again. She was a mess. She decided she wanted to play, so we played. When she was done with that, it was clear she wouldn't be sleeping anytime soon. We finally turned on Super Why and she laid down like she might settle down. I headed back to bed to be near Jack and quickly fell asleep. Kraig was not so lucky. He dozed off and on, but was constantly awakened by a little girl who didn't want Daddy to be asleep. What time did Kate finally fall asleep? 6 a.m. Did she sleep in this morning? Not really. Did she nap extra long? Not at all. Did she go to bed early tonight? Absolutely. We'll see how the night goes.

Situations like this are so difficult. Kraig and I both need to be at church on Sunday, but I can't leave the kids in the nursery if they're sick. Jack hasn't been in the nursery for a full Sunday yet. There's always a willing hand to take him. Kate's not so easy (or easy to keep quiet). I'm praying that she'll be feeling a lot better for Sunday. She can always hang out with the teens in the teen service;) I think she'd rather be there anyhow! I'm very thankful, though, that Kraig was able to go to the doctor with us. It's not fun to drag both of them in there when they're not sick. It's December 1st and I'm already ready for winter to be over. I haven't even seen any snow yet!

In other news, Kraig and I started a diet on Tuesday. I'm actually finding it difficult to get in all the calories I need to eat. It's already starting to show on the scale, which is great, but much too quickly since I'm thankfully still breastfeeding. The goal is to lose 10lbs by Christmas and I don't think either of us will have any issue with that. The hard part will be to not gain it all back during the Christmas travels and celebrations. I'm guessing eggnog is terribly full of calories, fat, and everything else you don't need to binge on. That being said, I need to eat!

Happy December 1st!

P.S. The power was out again today from around 5-7p.m. It made making dinner impossible, but Subway was still open!

It's about time...

...for an update!

It's been a crazy few weeks with the Thanksgiving holiday. We were blessed to be able to travel to Ohio for a few days to visit with my side of the family. Overall, it was a very good trip. On the trip out, the kids were great--even when we got stuck in Marietta, Ohio with a dead car battery (or something like that) when we stopped to feed Jackson. Thankfully, we weren't sitting in a remote, empty parking lot. We were at Kroger which was packed on the day before Thanksgiving. The drive home took forever. Kraig wasn't feeling great and Jackson didn't want to eat according to his normal routine. It was a blast. It's always nice that the trip to wherever we're going is good so that we can enjoy the time there, but the trip back home is never pleasant. And, to top it all off, Kate cried and said, "I wanna go back to Ohio!" It was sad.

Kate is in the midst of potty training. She's doing great, but I'm still nervous about taking her out in public. She's more prone to have accidents if she's actually wearing pants. And it doesn't help that when we're out, it's usually at church where I'm either super busy with music stuff or she's with someone else. She also got her first hair cut! Pics to come when I'm not typing one-handed!

Jackson will be four months old next week. I can't believe how fast this is going. He seems to be getting a cold now, but other than that he's great. He's huge. He's very strong. He's close to sitting up on his own. He's been rolling from his belly to his back since he was born and he's very close to doing the opposite. He's very ticklish and has the best laugh. He went for a week where he was sleeping through the night, but we're back to getting up at least once. Growth spurt? I also think he's teething (so early!), which doesn't help. He's still difficult to get to sleep, but we're settling into a decent nap routine. He's still breastfeeding like a champ. He's very interested in what we're eating, but I'm hoping to hold out til closer to six months. He also loves watching Kate play. He could stare at her for hours! So sweet:)

Kraig and I are great. Gearing up for the busy Christmas season. We're 90% done with Christmas shopping, thankfully, which will help make things easier. Kraig's in charge of the Christmas Eve service this year, which we're very excited about. We're going to be doing Andrew Peterson's "Behold the Lamb of God." If you haven't heard it, you should find it. It's fabulous. I can't wait! We're starting some Christmas music this week with the praise team. Should be fun! We're using several Tomlin arrangements that seem to be a lot more instrumentalist-friendly. Anyway, that's what's up with us!

Hope you're doing well!

Pregnant? Read this:

I'm not pregnant, but it seems there are tons of ladies who are right now. During my last pregnancy, I wrote a rather lengthy series of posts called "The Things They Don't Tell You." Here's the original post and links to the others. Anything you'd like to add?

Things They Don't Tell You, part 1

Pregnancy is full of surprises for most people. Even if you read all the pregnancy related books out there, you're likely to experience something that you never read and you never heard your girlfriends talk about. Here's a few of the "things" that I've heard that can come as a surprise to pregnant ladies about the earlier parts of pregnancy:

1) All pregnant women do not get morning sickness. I've recently read statistics that said around 80% of women do, but not all. For some people, morning sickness lasts a few weeks. For others, it can last the entire pregnancy.

2) "Morning sickness" is not necessarily just a morning problem. There are plenty of women who are sick all day long or find themselves sick in the evenings. Don't let the "morning" part fool you.

3) Just because you're pregnant does not mean you can eat anything and everything. Yes, you will be hungrier than usual, but for a single pregnancy only an additional 300 calories are needed per day. That's like a yogurt and half a bagel.

4) While some women may appear "glowing" during pregnancy, others suffer from a variety of skin problems during pregnancy--teenage-like acne included.

5) Sleep will become increasingly difficult as you learn to not sleep on your back or stomach and your body becomes larger. My hips, in particular, become painful during pregnancy and make sleep difficult.

6) Though you are excited because your pregnancy test came back positive, your doctor may not want to see you for several weeks or more. With my first pregnancy, I did not see the doctor for the first time until 13 weeks. With my second, I was almost 8 weeks. This is not unusual, but it will definitely test your patience.

7) Your belly will mostly likely start to look a little fat before it starts to actually look like you're pregnant.

8) Your first ultrasound, if performed at an early appointment, will be mostly likely performed vaginally. I was completely surprised about during my first pregnancy.

9) At a typical OB/GYN office, you can literally wait for hours. This is a very sensitive practice. Doctors do everything in appointments from routine check-ups, ultrasounds and pap smears, to having to tell a woman she has cancer or may have lost her baby. These appointments take time. If you were in a sensitive situation, you would want the doctor to take as much time with you and not rush off. Remember this when you're looking at your clock, realizing your appointment should have started 45 minutes ago. It's also possible that another patient went into labor and your OB is at the hospital delivering a baby. You'd want him there if it were you! But be prepared!! Snacks and reading material are always helpful.

10) It's okay to feel like a basket case. Your hormones are crazy right now and you're adjusting to the knowledge that you're carrying a baby. It's a very emotional time. And it's very normal!

The Things They Don't Tell You, Part 2

The Things They Don't Tell You, Part 3

The Things They Don't Tell You, Part 4

The Things They Don't Tell You, the FINAL part

Enjoy!!

A whole week at home....finally!

I took the kids to Ohio for a very unexpected funeral on the 30th. It was for a very special lady at the church where Kraig previously ministered in Ohio. It was a crazy trip, but since we were going to go to Ohio, we decided to spend a few extra days and visit my family. It was great to see lots of people that we hadn't seen in a while and to get to spend a little extra time with my family. I have no intentions of going on a road trip by myself with both kids again anytime soon, however. It was a little (or extremely) stressful. We got home on Wednesday night, a full six days later, just in time for praise team practice at church. After over seven hours in the car, the kids were less than willing to be quiet during practice. It was not pretty. Our soundman, Doug, graciously took Kate to play with her. Later on in the evening, he even ended up with a screaming Jack. He was a lifesaver for my already frazzled nerves.

Thursday afternoon, we hopped back in the car again to head to Pennsylvania. Fortunately, Kraig came with us this time. We were headed to his hometown to help out with his grandparents' estate sale. It was a long, exhausting weekend, but another good visit with family. We headed home Saturday afternoon when the auction ended so that we could be back for church on Sunday. The last hour of the trip home was a literal nightmare, with both kids screaming inconsolably at times. By the time we got home, it was bedtime. Thankfully, it was fall-back weekend. Someone forgot to tell Kate, though, and she was up at 6:30 a.m. That would've been early for her without the time change. Not pleasant. We made it to church and relished in the fact that we wouldn't be getting back in the car anytime soon. Thanksgiving is still a little ways away. I'm very thankful for that.

We've spent this week recovering, doing laundry and trying to get back in the swing of things. Our routines seem to be back to normal, and Kate has adjusted to the time finally. We've got a lock-in at the church tonight. Kraig's mom and sister are headed to town to visit and help with Kate while we're at the church. I'm excited for the evening and hoping that Jack will sleep there so I can stay. I hate being away from the action!

Hope you're all having a great week!

I'm a celebrity!

Okay....not really. BUT, you should checkout my guest product review at the Playdate Crashers. It's for a great breast milk freezing/storage product. Check it out here. Did I mention they are also giving away this product and another on their site? Check it out and enter to win! You can also check out the Playdate Crashers on facebook!

If you're a parent, you'll love their website, podcasts, giveaways and more. I promise!

On the home front, I've been in the car with the kids for at least 24 hours in the last week and we're on the road again. The kids are tired and grumpy (and so is Momma), so I'm literally typing one-handed. Gotta love it! More later!

And if you're checking out my blog for the first time, I'm happy you stopped by! Feel free to subscribe!

And, we're back.....

Last week was crazy. A good kind of crazy, but definitely crazy. The "Free Yard Sale" was awesome. We had more stuff donated than we could even give away. We helped at least 580 people this weekend. It was an awesome thing. We were so blessed to just be a part of it. There were people coming to the yard sale to get things they needed that also brought things to give that they didn't need anymore. There was a man who got a toddler size car seat for his child. He took it home and came back a little while later carrying an infant seat. His child didn't need it now that they had a toddler seat. It was amazing to see the people who we consider "needy" to be giving back. Paying it forward. During Sunday's service, people were given the opportunity to share stories from the day and we heard story after story like this. I love that we're a part of a church that is actually being the church.

After a long weekend, we took the kids to Hill High Farm on Monday. They have tons of pumpkins, farm animals to see and pet and lots of fun things for little kids. It was Kate's second year visiting there. It was a bit chilly, but we had a blast. I love making memories like that. We don't take the time to do things like that often enough. Pictures below....

And, the to-do list of the week. Last week's was basically to survive. This week's?

1) Potty training (so far, so good!)
2) Work on music for the Christmas Eve service (this is possible because a friend blessed us with a keyboard on Sunday!)
3) Post a few things on craigslist.
4) Keep the kitchen clean
5) Read to the kids everyday
6) Mop the floors (like, hands and knees mop. Not swiffer mop.)
7) Laundry. Do one complete load per day.
8) Finish putting away the too small/out of season clothing. (They're out and sorted, just need put away)
9) Deep clean the fridge

--I'm sure I'll find more to add, but that's good for now!

Hope your week's are going well!

The official two month post

Jackson has been two months old for 12 days now. How did that happen? We had his two month checkup on Tuesday. His stats were 13lbs 10oz, 24 1/2 inches long, head circumference of almost 17 1/2 inches. We were there a week ago for a sick appointment and he weighed 13lbs 11 oz. The doctor said she thought the scales weren't reading accurately, so who knows what he really weighs. He was also measured at a 1/4 inch longer a month ago. It's hard to get an accurate height for a baby. Anyhow...


He's doing great. He's super strong. He smiles constantly. He giggles. He loves watching Kate play. He's a great sleeper. (Currently sleeping between 6-8 hours during the first stretch of the night and then going back to sleep for 3-5 hours). He's starting to "talk." He's a keeper!

He also got his first round of vaccines. That was good fun. They never really bothered Kate, but he slept almost the entire rest of the day and was super fussy. I know his legs were hurting, because he'd cry every time you touched them. It was sad. He seems to be doing better today, thankfully.

In other news, there won't be a to-do list this week. Our church is doing it's second "Free Yard Sale" this weekend. We collect tons of stuff and have a huge giveaway at the community center in the poorest area of Winchester. Last year we had tons of stuff and were able to help over 600 people. We spend the entire week before, though, sorting through the donations and organizing at the church. Tomorrow we'll load up trucks and trailers and move it all do the community center. It's an awesome outreach event. But, no list this week. I've barely been home.

Are you one of those moms? (You know the kind I'm talking about!)

Are you one of those moms who is sweet, understanding and always seems to be overly patient with her children. Do you look like the picture of grace? Was Proverbs 31 written about you? If you are, tell the rest of us how you do it! Just kidding. I tend to think that people that seem that patient and sweet in public are probably hiding their true mommy style. At least, I hope they're not as perfect as they seem.

I try to be sweet, patient and understanding, but I'm not going to lie. My mommy style is being challenged. Kate is in one of those phases that you hope to forget about. One that you hope never repeats itself. She's obstinate, selfish, hard-headed. She's hit Kraig and I both a few times in the last couple weeks. Our sweet little girl is, well, not so sweet. I know she's two. I know it's a phase. I know it won't last forever. But I'm having a very hard time being patient and disciplining in a way that's effective. There are times when the only discipline that comes to mind involves me banging my head into a wall. Not effective for anyone.

Seriously, though, I find myself yelling far too often. I'm working on it. I broke down and cried on the phone with my mom on Tuesday and it helped. She made it through it, and so can I. (I was never like Kate, of course, but my sister...) It made me realize, though, that I haven't prayed about it. So I started. I've prayed many times everyday for God to help me be the mommy that I'm supposed to be. To be gentle and understanding. To discipline with love. And it's helping. Is Kate being any better? Not necessarily, but I'm handling it better. I've also realized that she needs more one on one attention and more structure activities. She's still a great independent player, but she needs some direction. I'm still not perfect, and I don't have things figured out. But asking God for some intervention should have come to mind a little sooner. He's definitely helping!

So, what's your mommy style? I'm not one of those that I earlier described, but I definitely don't want to be the other mom you see out. The one that's harried, frazzled and is constantly screaming and belittling her children for the whole world to see. I hate to see what that mom's like without an audience! God has called us to be better than that for our kids. I can only pray that God will help me be the kind of mom He wants me to be. I definitely can't do it on my own!

And on that note, Happy Birthday to my Mom:) Thanks for leading by example and being a wonderful mom! Love you!

Bye, bye paci!

I've been meaning to blog about the pacifier-free Kate for a while, but I've completely forgotten until now!

Picture this: Three weeks ago. It's bedtime. I'm nursing Jack. Kraig takes Kate up to bed. Suddenly, it becomes quite obvious that Kate can't find her paci. Kraig searched and searched. Jack finished eating, so I searched and searched. Regardless of the efforts, no pacifier was found. Kate was not a happy camper, but eventually she fell asleep. That was the end.

Naps the first few days were difficult, but she's quite used to it now. Since then we've come across two pacifiers. She found one and was overjoyed. It was immediately in her mouth, but I made her give it up. They're both in the landfill. Haven't found anymore.

I thought for sure giving up the pacifier would be the death of me. But she did it. I'm mortified that it took so long. I was the mom-to-be who swore I'd never give my kid one. But that didn't happen. Finally, at nearly 27 months, she gave it up. (Or it gave itself up.)

Next battle: Potty training. Maybe that'll happen by accident, too?

Yeah, baby. We've got it.

The common cold. It's always such a joy when this time of the year comes around, and I get a cold. It's been an entirely different thing, though, since I've been a parent. I think Kate had one cold that lasted the entire winter when she was first born. Last Wednesday, she started getting congested. I knew it was coming. It came and spread quickly. By Saturday, Jackson was sneezing and snotty. Sunday afternoon (thankfully after the morning worship service), I started feeling it, too. Kraig, thus far, has managed to avoid it. Not sure how. Kate seems to be doing better and Jack really only has minor symptoms, thankfully. I think I've got it the worst, but life goes on when you're a Mommy. It's not been terrible, but it definitely impeded my progress on my goals list for last week. Here's last week's list. Red things got done. Yellow things got done most days. Black things are going back on the list for this week!

Last week's goals:
1) Dust the house towards the end of the week
2) Mop the kitchen/bathrooms (Friday or Saturday)
3) Vacuum as needed (and on Sunday)
4) Clean up the kitchen after meals/before bed
5) No computer time until Kate's naptime (yes, I'm breaking this now)
6) Pump breastmilk at least once a day to stock the freezer with
7) Cook chicken for the freezer and make stock to freeze (Wednesday)
8) Prep the menu and grocery list for next week
9) Bake cookies for Sunday night teen life groups (Saturday or Sunday)
10) Do one load of laundry per day, start to finish
11) Sort through the kids clothes, putting away the ones that are out of season or the wrong size
12) Work on Kraig's birthday stuff
13) Read to both kids everyday
14) Do something artsy with Kate everyday
15) Potty training!
16) No more snacks after 8pm
17) Get some exercise at least twice

This week's list is similar.

This week's goals:
1) Dust the house towards the end of the week
2) Mop the kitchen/bathrooms (Friday or Saturday)
3) Vacuum as needed (and on Sunday)
4) Clean up the kitchen after meals/before bed
5) No computer time until Kate's naptime (yes, I'm breaking this now)
6) Pump breast milk at least once a day to stock the freezer with
7) Prep the menu and grocery list for next week
8) Bake cookies for Sunday night teen life groups (Saturday or Sunday)
9) Do one load of laundry per day, start to finish
10) Sort through the kids clothes, putting away the ones that are out of season or the wrong size
11) Finish Kraig's birthday stuff--it's Saturday!
12) Read to both kids everyday
13) Do something artsy with Kate everyday
14) Potty training--once she feels better
15) No more snacks after 8pm
16) Get some exercise at least twice

Hopefully this week's list goes better!! If you made a list last week, how did it go?

New Year's Resolution?

I know I'm a little late, but I've got to make a change. I'll admit it. I hate housework. I hate laundry. Unless I have motivation, like the knowledge that someone is coming over, I don't always make much of an effort. Sure, the clutter in the living room drives me crazy, so we clean up the toys one hundred times a day. Sure, I have to have clean clothes, so eventually I do laundry. But there's not much routine. I follow a blog/website called MoneySavingMom. There's lots of great practical advice for parenting and running a household, etc. One of the things she's been doing is writing out her list of weekly goals. She also shares her top five goals of the day on Facebook. Does she always get them done? No. Makes me feel good, but it also has inspired me to do the same. So here goes:

This week's goals:
1) Dust the house towards the end of the week
2) Mop the kitchen/bathrooms (Friday or Saturday)
3) Vacuum as needed (and on Sunday)
4) Clean up the kitchen after meals/before bed
5) No computer time until Kate's naptime (yes, I'm breaking this now)
6) Pump breastmilk at least once a day to stock the freezer with
7) Cook chicken for the freezer and make stock to freeze (Wednesday)
8) Prep the menu and grocery list for next week
9) Bake cookies for Sunday night teen life groups (Saturday or Sunday)
10) Do one load of laundry per day, start to finish
11) Sort through the kids clothes, putting away the ones that are out of season or the wrong size
12) Work on Kraig's birthday stuff
13) Read to both kids everyday
14) Do something artsy with Kate everyday
15) Potty training!
16) No more snacks after 8pm
17) Get some exercise at least twice

Today's top 5 goals:
1) Potty training
2) Read to the kiddos
3) Art time with Kate
4) Cook chicken and make stock
5) Clean the kitchen

Getting out...

(It's not as easy as it used to be!)

When I was pregnant with #2, I was convinced I would never go anywhere by myself with both kids. While I haven't done much of it, there seems to be a common theme: Jack always needs his entire outfit changed just moments before we leave the house. We've been to church every Sunday since he was born, which is just me and the kids since Kraig is obviously there for both services. Multiple Sundays Jack has needed changed because he's pooped through his clothes. One Sunday there was projectile spit-up which actually came while I was getting him dressed and managed to get his, mine and Kate's clothes dirty. We were late that day. It never fails. Other than going to church, though, I haven't gone anywhere with both of them. I'm a little intimidated. I grocery shop on Kraig's day off so that I don't have to take one or both of them. It's been that way for a long time, but what if I did take them both? Where would the groceries go? Where would the kids go? I don't wanna know. It won't be long and I'll be forced to do it, but until then I'm pretending that it's not an option.

In other news, we've had several good, non-colicky nights in a row. Praise the Lord (and knock on wood?)! I'm very grateful for that. Kate's doing well, too. She went to bed last night and down for her nap tonight without a pacifier. No, I didn't take it away, we just couldn't find any last night. So, if/when they resurface, they're going in the trash. Next week we're going to start the big potty training push again. She's peed in the potty twice in the past week. Hopefully it'll go well!

Cloth diaper update

In the midst of the chaos before Jack was born (falling, car accident, etc) I switched Kate to disposable diapers. I was planning to when he was born so that I'd have a few weeks off laundry duty, but I needed to do it earlier. I wasn't up to doing laundry, that's for sure. I got some good sales and bought a couple boxes. At this point, I still have about a half of a box left, so I decided to put her back in cloth last week and use the leftover disposables for when we were out of the house. That plan failed. Kate's apparently grown in the last two months or so, and the cloth diapers no longer fit. She acted like it was hurting her thighs when I put one on her, so I readjusted it. She still wasn't very comfortable, but she stopped complaining. The next thing I know, however, is that she has very obviously peed through her diaper and her pants are soaking wet. They're definitely too small. Such a bummer! Since I already had a few dirty, I tried one on Jackson. They're obviously a little bulky on him, but they fit and did the job. He's still in disposables at this point, though, because I have more than a whole box of size ones left that aren't going to fit much longer. I had intended to use them for when we were out and about, but he's growing faster than I anticipated. Oh well!

So, that's the scoop. Not much happening!

I'm alive...really!

Jack will be seven weeks old on Monday. In some ways I can't believe it. Wasn't it just yesterday that we left the hospital? And in other ways, it feels like he's been with us forever. We've done a lot in the past six and a half weeks, though.

Jack got to meet his Aunt Karina. She came and spent a weekend. The following weekend, my best friend from college, Emily, came to visit. That was Labor Day weekend. Because of the extra holiday day off, we decided to head to Ohio last minute. We got up Monday morning, loaded up and left. It was a pretty decent trip, in spite of traveling with two kids. At that point, he was still eating quite slowly, so I ended up pumping in the van and then bottle feeding him when we stopped. He's done quite well at taking a bottle. The lactation consultant recommended introducing a bottle between weeks three and four so that he would be willing to take one without having nipple confusion. Thankfully, he's done great! We spent a nice few days with my family, just hanging out. It was very relaxing. I even got to sneak out for a late-night movie with my mom and sister. Jack, of course, tagged along, but it was a fun almost-girls night.

We got back from Ohio on Friday night and spent Saturday getting ready for Sunday. Sunday afternoon, Kraig's oldest sister called to see if there was anyway we could head to Pennsylvania to surprise his dad for his birthday. We didn't think so, but the way Kraig's day off fell, it worked out. We headed to PA on Thursday after work and came back home Saturday evening. It was a short trip, but he was genuinely surprised. Jack also got to meet his Uncle John and Aunt Shelley for the first time. And we made it in time to get Hank's Frozen Custard before they closed for the season!

This week, we've been home and it seems we may be dealing with colic. Ugh. The week prior to this, Jack was sleeping very well. The first stretch of sleep at night was lasting between 5 and almost 7 hours. Nothing to complain about. The last week, we've had more nights of screaming for a solid couple hours before he finally settles down to sleep. He's completely inconsolable. I'm hoping it's short lived, because I feel more tired now than I did when he was a week old.

All in all, though, he's a great baby. He's getting huge. We had his one month (five week) appointment last Monday. I was going to ask the doctor if she thought he was getting enough to eat, but then they weighed him. He weighed in at 11lbs 4oz. A solid four pounds from when we left the hospital. He was 24 inches long, a gain of 4 3/4 inches. Ridiculous! Obviously, the kid is eating well. I'm so pleased that we've made it this far exclusively breastfeeding. I was not so lucky with Kate, but he's a champ. Speaking of Jack, he's waking to eat!!

More updates eventually!

Two weeks later...

Well, we officially made it through the first two weeks. Kraig went back to work last week and we survived. Kate's been doing pretty well (with this morning as the exception). Jackson must be in the midst of a growth spurt because he's nursing non-stop. Can't wait for that to end:) He's a great eater. We had a checkup on Friday and he was up to 7lbs 14ounces. He was 7lbs 4oz when we left the hospital. The doctor was quite pleased with his weight gain. I'm very grateful that he's such a good eater and that breastfeeding seems to be going well. It's definitely a lot different than it was with Kate. Jack had been sleeping well, sleeping for three hours in between feedings at night. With this growth spurt, however, sleep hasn't been so great the last two nights. I can tell I need extra sleep, because I'm having trouble being patient with Kate. Yes, she hasn't been great the past couple days, but I know it's magnified because of the lack of sleep.

Physically, I'm feeling great. Recovery has been so much easier this time around. Both babies were the same size, so the only difference is that Kate paved the way. I just feel so much better. We've even made it to church both Sundays that Jack's been here. And remember, I'm a minister's wife who gets the kids ready on my own. Pretty impressive in my book. I'm also super excited about my weight loss. I'm down 19 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight, which is a total of 26 pounds lost since having Jack. Now if only I could find time for a shower...:)

Time to make lunch!

He's here!

Welcome, Jackson Kraig Bishop! Born August 8, 2011 at 6:46 p.m. Weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces. 19 1/4 inches long.

So, in spite of having wi-fi at the hospital, the lap top we were using would not let me post on here. For some reason, it's working now! Obviously, Jackson arrived. Unfortunately, some of you are just getting the news.

Here's the story:
We arrived at the hospital on August 8th at 7:30 a.m. Once we got checked in, they did the routine weight and urine check. They then took me to our room (#3) and I got changed into my fabulous gown. The gowns at this hospital have nursing panels in them--kind of. They're more like giant slits that expose your breasts regardless of what you do. My nurse kindly taped the "lactation access panels" (as I named them) to keep the world from having a constant flash. Next up was hooking up the monitors and checking my blood pressure. Blood pressure was good, but Jackson wanted nothing to do with the monitors. After nearly an hour of constant adjusting to keep him on, he settled in for a little while. It was a battle for the majority of the day to keep him monitored. Blood work came next, then my IV. By the time the pitocin was started, it was around 9:00 a.m. The contractions became steady very quickly. The doctor came in at some point early on to check me and I was still not dilated, but 75% effaced. Jack was still sitting very high.

The contractions started becoming more and more intense. The doctor said she'd be in around lunch time to re-check me. I was hoping to wait until at least then to ask for an epidural. I was afraid that I might not be progressing at all and that I'd look like a big wimp asking for drugs so early. When noon rolled around, I was praying the doctor would come soon. The contractions at this point were so intense that Kraig finally figured out that he should stop talking to me during them. I wasn't really able to listen to him and I definitely wasn't going to be responding.

Around this time I knew I had to pee, but I didn't want to get out of bed and disturb the monitors (since they were actually working at the time). At 12:30, I decided it was about time. I went to ask Kraig to help me get up when I felt a small gush. I thought I'd waited so long that I'd actually peed myself. I told Kraig something along the line of, "Ummm, I need to pee or I may have just peed a little or maybe my water broke. Help me go to the bathroom and we'll see." I moved to sit up more and felt more fluid. And then more. So Kraig suggested I call the nurse. In the meantime, I still had to pee! The nurse came in very quickly and I told her I thought my water had broke. She checked and confirmed that I my water had broken and that the fluid was clear. Then she gave me a towel so I could waddle to the bathroom to finally use it. I was so excited that something in this labor process was going to happen on it's own. I was also super happy that it was obvious that some progress was being made.

After my water broke, the contractions were super intense. I was dying for the doctor to come check me so I could feel justified in asking for my drugs. Dr. Reese arrived around 1:30. She was impressed that I was breathing so well through my contractions and was very encouraging. Then she said something about, "Well let's check and see if we can't get in there to break your water." I must have looked at her like she was crazy and responded, "Umm, it already did!" She was very surprised. She had said earlier in the morning that if there wasn't much progress by 5 or 6 that we could always wait and try again on Friday. She didn't seem very confident to me. At this point, though, I definitely wasn't going anywhere. We were having a baby. She examined me to find I was 3 cm dilated, 80% effaced and at a -2 station. Once she was done, the nurse called for the anesthesiologist. There were already two other epidural requests in, but they put me at the top of the list because my pain level was obviously worse. I was very thankful for that. My epidural was in and finished my 2:30. The anesthesiologist was great. The contractions were so hard and fast, though, that they turned the pitocin down while he was giving me the epidural so that they were at least tolerable and spaced out a little farther. He did a great job. It's such a weird feeling, though. Not painful, just weird. Once it was in, my blood pressure dropped a little and I started feeling very light headed. They laid me down pretty quickly and gave me some medicine to bring my level back up. I felt so much better after that. The relief of the epidural was fantastic. It wasn't as strong as with Kate, though, because I could still move my legs somewhat. But there was no pain.

Once the epidural was in, I thought I'd try to take a nap, but it was never calm enough for that. The nurse checked me again at around 4:00 and I was 6 cm. Things were definitely speeding up. Sometime around here, Jackson's heart rate started dropping occasionally with contractions. They rolled me to my other side, laid me back a little more and gave me some oxygen. That seemed to help, but it didn't totally solve the problem. They scaled back the pitocin and everything looked good again. I started feeling some pressure, I thought, a half hour later and the nurse decided to check me again. I was at 8 cm. Two centimeters progress in a half hour. Can't imagine what that would have felt like without drugs. So glad I don't know! She told me to call if I felt anything different because things were obviously moving quickly. Around 5:30, I asked to be checked again. My nurse (Holly) checked me and said she thought that we were at ten. She's newer to the L&D floor, so she asked the charge nurse to come in and double-check. She was right, though. They called the doctor, who was already at the hospital, and around 5:50 we started pushing a little to see how it would go before the doctor arrived. She came in shortly after and we got down to business. Jack's heart rate started dipping again, so they turned off the pitocin, hoping that my body would continue to contract on it's own. Once the drugs were off, though, the contractions spaced out to about 10 minutes apart. So, we'd push, chit-chat for 8 or 9 minutes, and then push again. It was ridiculously slow, but the pushing was effective. I still wasn't having any pain, but I was definitely able to feel the pressure of contractions. Once his head was crowning, I asked if I could just keep pushing. Who needs contractions, right? I think I pushed twice more and his head was out. She had me stop pushing and suctioned him out. He was crying almost immediately. I pushed once more for the first shoulder and the second nearly came out on it's own. It was quick and easy. He was born at 6:46 p.m. Had the contractions not been so far apart, I probably would've had him out in less than 20 minutes. I'm a very good pusher:) She asked if I wanted him on my chest and I was super excited that it was an option. When Kate was born, they immediately took her to be cleaned off and I barely got to look at her. They put him on my chest and I was ecstatic. He was out. He was definitely a boy. I couldn't stop smiling. Kraig took some great pictures at this point. He stayed on me for a decent amount of time and then they took him to be weighed and cleaned off. I had a first degree tear, so the doctor stitched me up while they were tending to him. When they announced that he only weighed 7 pounds 11 ounces, the doctor was shocked. He never really dropped before we began pushing, which, along with the ultrasound, made her believe he really would be a ten pound baby. She was wrong, thankfully. He weighed exactly what Kate weighed, in spite of the fact that he was born two weeks later and that I had gestational diabetes. I was really blessed to be able to keep that so well controlled.

It wasn't long, and Jack was back in my arms and we began nursing. He latched on very well almost immediately and nursed for about a half hour. Once he was done, we brought Kate in to meet her little brother. She did well for a few minutes. She held him and hugged him. Then something spooked her and she tried to push him off her lap. I wasn't surprised. She's terrified at the doctor and of anyone wearing scrubs. Kraig took her back to the waiting room and his parents came back. Then my parents came back. Then we brought Kate in again. We gave her a present from Jack at this point and she seemed to be a lot more at ease. She asked to "hold it" again. She's in love. Once she left again, my nurse helped me get up and cleaned up and we gathered our things to move to the Mommy/Baby unit. At this point it was about 8:45, and we sent our dads down to the Subway to get us dinner. I was SO ready to eat! I got to hold Jack as they wheeled me out to the other unit. We went past the waiting room, where we were able to tell everyone goodbye and get our food. Then we settled in for our first night.

Our hospital experience was great. It's definitely a great place to have a baby. Jackson is doing very well with sleeping and eating. I can't complain. We got home from the hospital Wednesday afternoon. He had a checkup on Friday and he's doing well. He was already up three ounces from what he was when we left the hospital on Wednesday. He's definitely getting plenty to eat. Today, he's a week old. It's hard to believe, but I'm so glad he's here. He's a beautiful baby and we couldn't love him more. What can I say? We make cute kids:) I'm feeling great. Recovery has definitely been so much better than it was after delivering Kate. I only gained 7 pounds total this pregnancy, and I've already lost 21 pounds. I currently weigh 14 pounds less than when I got pregnant. It's awesome. Once the baby belly has shrunken, I'm not going to have clothes that fit. Pretty fantastic.

More on how things are going later. Here's a few pics:

For my non-facebook readers...

I'm still here. No baby. However, I'm being induced Monday morning!! Can't wait to meet little Jackson. Pictures and details coming soon:)

Please pray for a smooth delivery, a healthy baby and for our transition to a family of four!

Thanks!

Another appointment down...

Yesterday was my weekly appointment at the doctor's office. I'm 75% effaced, but not dilated yet. At this point, I've been pregnant for two days longer than I was with Kate. I'm only 37 weeks, 4 days. We'll make it! If I don't have him by the 8th, they'll induce that day. Woohoo. I'd love to experience going into labor on my own, though, so hopefully it'll happen first. Kraig will be home from camp today, but VBS starts on Monday. I guess we'll see what happens! I've got lots of walking to do...if it ever cools down!

37 weeks tomorrow!

When I was pregnant with Kate, I wrote a note on facebook for each trimester about how things were going. I haven't done quite the same thing this time around, since I've updated here more frequently, but I thought I'd take a minute to talk about the last two trimesters overall....

The Second Trimester
The second trimester with pregnancy #2 was much like the first. Not much going on other than a growing belly. I felt pretty well and had decent amounts of energy. We found out baby #2 was a boy. That's about it.

The Third Trimester
Oh where to begin. It didn't take long for the third trimester to become complicated. I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Good fun. I got it under control with diet and an insulin injection at night. No biggie. I even lost 8 pounds. Not too shabby. At 32 weeks pregnant, I traveled with our youth group to Tennessee to attend a summer conference there. It was hot and miserable, but I survived by driving myself nearly everywhere we went. It was just too much walking. My muscles were really starting to ache about this point and walking very long got to be pretty painful. That hasn't stopped. At 33 1/2 weeks pregnant, I tripped and fell while carrying Kate. Kate and Jack were fine. I tore up my leg and spent two weeks sleeping on the couch because of it. Walking was very painful. At 34 1/2 weeks pregnant, I was in a car accident. That was 2 1/2 weeks ago, and I've had steady contractions coming at least every 15 minutes since then. It's good fun. After the accident, I spent seven hours one day being monitored and three the next. Fortunately, the contractions haven't yet caused any dilation. As of tomorrow, we'll be full term. I'd love to get him out of here, but I'm grateful that he won't be considered a preemie at this point. Also at 34 weeks, I started having doctors appointments twice a week. I have NSTs at the hospital on Mondays and one at the doctor's office with a regular appointment on Thursdays. Things have definitely been busy! I'm very glad this pregnancy is coming to an end. I've loved most of it, but I'm done. These last few weeks, especially, are hopefully enough to make me remember in the future that I don't want to do this again. Two are enough for me!

All in all, with gestational diabetes and the fall and accident, things could have been much worse during this pregnancy. I'm very grateful that God has really watched over us through all of this and I'm very excited to meet our little boy. At this point, if I don't have him in the next 15 days, they'll induce. I'm hopeful that I'll be able to go into labor on my own this time, especially since my blood pressure is staying where it should. So the countdown continues. When will Jackson arrive?!

The End of an Era

As the end of this pregnancy draws to a close, I'm finding myself a little sad. I'm very glad this pregnancy is almost over. In spite of the diabetes, it had been a fairly easy pregnancy, but since my fall and car accident it's been crazy. We're nearing two weeks of solid, every 15 minutes or less contractions. Sometimes they're very close together and I think it's time to head to the hospital. But we're still here. I'm very ready to meet my son. I feel, however, like my baby is no longer a baby. It almost feels like we're replacing her. She's a big girl now. She has a big girl bed that she successfully sleeps in. She looks huge. She's very independent. She's not a baby. It makes me sad and proud. Strange combination, but I have a feeling there will be many sad/proud moments as we continue this journey as parents. I don't like it.

In pregnancy news, I'm definitely still contracting. I think my water's just going to have to break so that I actually know that it's time. Jackson's still very active and looking good on my NSTs. Tomorrow I have an ultrasound, an NST, and a doctor's appointment. It'll be nice to see him again and find out if my cervix has made any progress since last week. The ultrasound this time is to check his weight to make sure he's not too big for a vaginal delivery. Based on the ultrasound I had at the hospital after the accident, I'm guessing he's about 7 1/2 pounds. Not too big, thankfully. I just hope we don't go clear to 39 weeks before he arrives. We'll see! I'm guessing he'll make his arrival next week while Kraig's at camp. He seems to like to do things the complicated way, so it won't be surprising! I'll update tomorrow after my appointments, hopefully...

Quick update

I had my 35 week appointment yesterday. On Thursdays, I now go to the office for a NST and a regular appointment. The NST went well. Jackson was cooperative for once. The doctor was concerned that I'm still having so many contractions since the accident, so she checked my cervix again. I'm still not dilated at all, surprisingly, but it's apparently very soft. That's a good sign that labor is coming, but not necessarily of when. She decided to do a quick ultrasound to check my amniotic fluid levels. She discovered that I'm quite blessed with amniotic fluid. Funny way to put it, but that's what she said. Jackson is definitely head-down, though, which is great. Everything is looking great. I've still only gained 3 pounds overall. I'm hoping that after he's born, I'll drop the normal amount of weight and end up weighing a good fifteen or more pounds less than I did when I got pregnant. That would be fabulous! My blood pressure is still good. Diabetes is well controlled. Because of everything else, though, the doctor acted like she was really hoping that I'd make it to 37 weeks, but she didn't sound very hopeful. They can say that all they want, but there's no good way to know. Regardless, I'm glad I've kicked it into high gear to get stuff done around the house. Guess I should pack my hospital bags!

They're trying to put me in a bubble...

So last week I blogged about my fall. Well, just as my leg was finally starting to not be the most painful thing ever, I had another little accident. Seriously.

Last Friday, Kraig had the day off. We didn't do much in the morning, but when Kate went down for her nap I ran to town. I was just going to drop Kraig's check at the bank, so I didn't even bother to shower. After finishing up at the bank, though, I decided to run to Target. We had a friend at the hospital in labor and I had a joint baby shower on Saturday (for me and another friend), so I needed some gifts. Not long after I got into the store, a huge storm started up outside. It was so loud even from the inside that you could barely hear yourself think. I finished my shopping and decided to walk around more and hope that the storm would let up if I killed some time. Finally, I'd had enough. It was still raining, but I was ready to go home. My leg was sore from the walking and I was done. I checked out and ran to the car. I happened to have Kraig's car at the time. I threw the bags in the passenger seat and attempted to get in the driver's side. The person beside me was so close that it was a struggle to get my ever-growing belly inside without damaging both vehicles. But I managed.

I left the parking lot and headed home. As I neared the area where we lost our piano during the move, someone in front of me made a last minute decision to turn and came to a very quick stop. No turn signal. I managed to get stopped in plenty of time, but I could see in my rear view mirror that the car behind me wasn't slowing down. Right about the time that the car in front of me turned, the car behind me hit me. I was shocked. I saw it coming, but it was still shocking. I put my car in park and sat there for a few seconds, shaking uncontrollably. The driver of the other car got out to see if I was okay, and we decided to pull off the road into a nearby parking lot. As far as I could tell, I was okay. I didn't recall any of my body parts making direct contact with the steering wheel or anything else. The other driver was okay. His car looked awful, but he was okay. Kraig's bumper is pretty messed up, but that's what insurance is for! I called Kraig when I got into the parking lot to tell him and I also told him that he couldn't come help. I had the keys for both vehicles with me for whatever reason. He called Josh, one of the minister's at our church, and he came over to make sure I was okay and that the situation got handled right. The other guy called the cops. Kraig called my doctor. The cops came eventually and handled the situation. The doctor told me to head to the hospital. I was already having contractions from the accident or the stress of the situation, so I figured it was probably best.

I got to the ER around 4 p.m., after stopping at McDonald's for a snack. I was hungry! I sat for probably 20 minutes before they called me back. The doctor checked my neck and back and they performed and ultrasound before sending me to labor and delivery. The ultrasound looked good--no tearing or damage was detected. Once at labor and delivery, they hooked me up to the monitors where I had to stay for four hours. I was having consistent contractions every 4-6 minutes. They weren't the most painful things ever, but it was a little scary. Half way through the four hours, they checked my cervix. Fortunately, the contractions weren't causing any dilation. Because of this, they finally let me eat dinner. At this point it was like 8:30 and I was beyond hungry. I sat for another two hours and they checked my cervix again before releasing me. The "doctor" on call from my practice was the midwife that I was originally seeing. I love her, so I was very glad she was there. She offered to let me spend the night there since I was still contracting, or she could send me home with a sleeping pill. I opted to go home.

The sleeping pill didn't help much. The next day, I continued to contract. It was exhausting. Once the evening rolled around, they started getting closer together and more painful. I laid down. I drank more water. I got up and cleaned the bathrooms. Nothing was making them let up. Finally, about 10:30, I decided I needed to head back to the hospital. At this point, the contractions were every 2-4 minutes and they were lasting at least a minute each. I had one that lasted four and a half minutes. Didn't know that was possible. I called Sara to come stay with Kate, who was already in bed. Once Sara arrived, we headed out. We got to the hospital a little after 11 on Saturday night. The same nurse and midwife from the day before were there, so it was nice to not have to explain myself again. They checked my cervix again. It was soft, but not dilated. They hooked me up to the machines for another two hours, and the contractions finally started to slow down. By the time we left, they were coming about every 10-12 minutes. Much better! Over the past few days, I've continued to contract, but so far they don't seem to be doing anything. I have an appointment tomorrow for an NST and they'll check my cervix again then. Yay.

I really don't think Jack's going to hang out in here much longer. Kraig's hoping to make it through a week of camp when I'm 37 weeks, but we'll see! At this point, I'm 35 weeks 2 days. We'll see how far we get!

Kate's 2nd birthday

Yesterday, Kate turned two! I can't believe it. Kraig's family was going to come in last weekend to celebrate, but between my allergies and falling, we canceled. I was not up for company. It was a bummer to not have a big celebration, but we still had fun. We didn't do much during the day to celebrate, but after church we had cake and let her open the presents that were here. She had a blast. She woke up this morning talking about her birthday. We're planning to make more of a day of it tomorrow, when Kraig's off. We're going to go to the park to swing and go to the pet store to see the animals and buy a fish. She loves the fish.

In honor of her birthday, though, here's a little update on all her achievements:
-She talks nonstop.
-In the last two to three weeks, she's started using quite a few short sentences and phrases, rather than just words.
-She knows several long words, like quesadilla, basketball and motorcycle. And she likes to use them.
-She's growing like a weed. I can't wait to see her growth progress at her checkup in a couple weeks.
-She's finally able to climb onto furniture and get back off.
-She's a pro at the stairs.
-She loves to help unload the dishwasher.
-She's very, very polite. She says "thank you" and "please" like a champ.
-One of her favorite things right now is to lift up my shirt, put her hand on my stomach and say, "Jackson's moving?" It's adorable!
-She spent her first whole week away from Mommy and Daddy when we were at CIY and she did great.
-She loves to swing.
-She loves to swim.
-She loves to talk on the phone.
-She's still a great sleeper. Hopefully she can teach her brother.

There are plenty of other things I could say, but that's sufficient. She's getting her toddler bed put together this weekend. Hopefully that will be a smooth transition. We've had a few decent attempts at potty training, but I've given up until we're settled into our new routine after Jackson's born. No pressure.

We've really been blessed with an awesome kid and it's hard to believe she's TWO! Where did time go?! Pictures to come in another post. The camera's upstairs and I don't feel like hobbling up to get it:)

I promise, I didn't fall off the face of the earth...

I just fell onto it.

Last Thursday, I was feeling pretty crummy. After returning from our CIY week in Tennessee, my allergies went on major attack. I didn't feel well and I wanted french fries. I quickly got Kate dressed around lunch time and we headed out the door to go to McDonald's. We got out the door, I locked it, stepped off the front step and...stumble, stumble, trip, fall...I was down. Not really sure what happened, but in the slow motion moment of it all, I knew that Kate's head was headed straight for the concrete sidewalk. It wasn't going to be pretty. My mommy instincts kicked in and, with some serious help from God, I managed to fall in a way that completely protected Kate and Jackson both. I knew I was hurt, but I stood Kate up and checked her for damage. She was clean. Not a single scratch. Then I surveyed the damage on me. My left leg had a little bit of concrete burn. My right hand had three torn up knuckles. My right leg had a seriously large amount of skin missing and there was a large patch of scrapes on my right foot. It was starting to bleed. It didn't help that it was super hot out that day, but I was starting to feel faint and nauseated. Luckily, my cell phone was in reach, so I grabbed it and called Kraig. Apparently, I didn't bother to tell him that the babies were okay, just that he needed to come home because I'd fallen. He headed home and I called my mom to keep myself distracted so I wouldn't pass out. Kate was a trooper. She ran around the front yard and was a very good girl. We sat outside for at least 20 minutes before Kraig got home. It's normally a 10 minute drive, but he got stuck in construction. I sat in virtually the same spot on the concrete as where I'd fallen. I wasn't sure if anything else was wrong, but I didn't think I could/should stand on my own.

Kraig got home and took Kate inside and then he came to get me. Standing was painful. We made it in the house and he checked everything out and got me a washcloth to clean the dirt off with. He then headed to the store to get some antiseptic/numbing spray. It was supposed to be "no sting." It may have been antiseptic and it may have numbed eventually, but it was quite stinging. Eventually, I even got some McDonald's. Kraig stayed home with us for the rest of the afternoon. I wasn't sure if I could even get up and down the stairs to put Kate down for a nap. It was miserable. I was feeling decent on Friday, so we went to Walmart to get paint for Jack's room and to grab dinner. By the time we got home, I knew it had been a mistake. The next day I could barely walk. Until yesterday, I'd barely left the couch. I'd gone downstairs twice for a shower. I didn't go to church on Sunday. I hobbled my way to my first non-stress test (NST) on Tuesday. That was about it. Yesterday I finally made it to the grocery store, but I regretted it. Even some random stranger at the store asked me what in the world I did to my leg. It's nasty looking and can't be overlooked. I can't believe how painful it's been. I have an actual doctor's appointment and NST today, so we'll see what she says about it. It's definitely feeling better over the last day or two, but it's got a long way to go.

I'm very thankful that Kate and Jackson were both okay through it all. It could have been so much worse for all three of us.

And about CIY...
It was a great week! After the first day, I realized it was too much walking for me, so I drove pretty much everywhere. That really helped. It was a seriously sleep-deprived week, but it was great. We had four kids get baptized as a result. The music and speakers were awesome. I was so glad to be able to go. Do I wish I hadn't been pregnant at the time? Heck yes.

Home, Sweet Home!

We're home and alive. We had an awesome week:) More on that when I catch up on my sleep!

Oh the drama!

I've decided Jack is going to be the dramatic kid. I ended up spending three hours at Labor & Delivery last night. So exciting. I've been having mild Braxton Hicks off and on for the past day or two, but yesterday they got worse. They tell you to call if you have more than four in an hour, and I had six. I called the doctor's office a little before 4 and they told me to go to the hospital to be monitored and examined. I quickly packed a bag for Kate and found a friend to watch her (thanks, Erica!) and we headed to the hospital. It took forever to actually get there, but I was still contracting the whole time. They took me right in and hooked me up to the monitors. We did this twice with Kate and both times the contractions had stopped by the time they got the monitors on. This time, however, they just kept going. They were coming between every six and ten minutes at this point. Super exciting. After about an hour on the monitor, the doctor came in to examine me and perform and Ffn. Fortunately, I'm not dilated at all, so they're not productive contractions at this point. The Ffn is a test that can predict preterm labor. It came back negative, which means that I have less than a 1% chance of going into real labor in the next two weeks. That's good. Once that test came back, they sent me home and told me to come back if the contractions got more painful. They still hadn't stopped yet. They also gave me a shot of steroids to help develop the baby's lungs faster, just in case.

Thankfully, things seem to be okay. I'm still contracting, however, which is a little confusing. I have an appointment with by doctor today at 4:15, so we'll hopefully get some more information and I'll find out whether or not they're going to let me travel next week. Travel, you say? Yep. I'm supposed to be leaving with the youth group on Sunday to head to Tennessee for the CIY Move conference. We're going to be in a bad place if I can't go! Kraig and I are the only adults going that are old enough to drive the vans. Yay. Guess we'll see what the plan is this afternoon and hope for the best. I need to do what's best for Jack and I, and I know God will tell us what that is through the doctor's advice today. Good times. I did get Chipotle for dinner at nearly 9:00 last night. That helped make up for the long evening:)

Update coming tomorrow!

Our trip to Ohio

Kate and I went to Ohio last Sunday afternoon to visit my family. It's probably the last time I'll attempt to travel by myself with children for a couple years. The trip out was good. Kate was awesome. The trip home was awful. Not a fun day!

We got there around dinner time Sunday and got to enjoy the evening and all of Memorial Day with my mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law and nieces. It was good fun. Dad went back to work on Tuesday and the girls went shopping. All six girls (mom, sis, me, Kate and twin nieces) loaded up in my van and headed to Hobby Lobby. For those of you who don't have a Hobby Lobby, you're seriously missing out. It's the best craft supply and home decor store out there. Unfortunately, there aren't any in Virginia. Going to Hobby Lobby is a must when we're in town. We're decorating Jack's room with a vintage Cleveland Browns theme. I found tons of great stuff there that was football related and brown and orange. It's like they knew I was coming. We ended up with three wall hangings, a light switch cover, an awesome lamp and a cute teddy bear piggy bank. I was ecstatic. I can't wait to get his room put together so I can show off the pictures! After Hobby Lobby, we took the girls to the mall to play in the kiddie area. Kate had a blast playing with her cousins.

Kate loved being able to spend so much time outside. She loved the porch swing, though she was adamant that being on the porch was not outside. She loved playing with the kitties. She loved having the girls to play with. She's talked about nothing else since we got home. We had a great visit, but it definitely didn't last long enough! It had been a while since we'd seen my family, but we'll get to see them again when the baby comes! It's nice to know when the next time will be.

Kate also had her first ice cream cone while we were there. My sister had stuff to do Wednesday evening, so I volunteered to keep the girls and take them for ice cream. It was a blast! Every time I see my nieces, they've grown in some big way. They'll be four in a couple weeks, which is so hard to believe. I promised pictures, so here they are:

Quick update

Kate and I had a great trip to Ohio. I'll post more on that with pics eventually.

I had my 30 week checkup yesterday and finally got to meet my new doctor. She's okay. Not bad, but I wasn't impressed. Anyhow...I'm down 6 pounds from my appointment two weeks ago. Guess the gestational diabetes diet is good for lots of things. The doctor said that weight loss was actually a good sign, because it means I'm losing any excess fluid. I officially weigh less than I did when I got pregnant. Too weird. At my last appointment, I was measuring 31 weeks but was only 28 weeks along. Yesterday, I measured about 31 1/2 weeks at 30 weeks. Seems like things are slowing down, thankfully. We talked about induction. Gestational diabetes babies can have slower lung development, so they won't consider it until 39 weeks unless there are other issues. She did say, however, that once we see how big he is via ultrasound, we'll be able to discuss what we want to do (aka vaginal vs. cesarean). She acted like this was a "we" decision, not a "her" decision. I'm thankful for that. Hopefully the growth will continue to slow down to a normal rate and size won't be an issue. I'm also hoping I go into labor on my own earlier than 39 weeks. Who knows.

My fasting sugar levels when I wake up in the morning are still high. All the others are fine, regardless of what I eat, but not when I get up. It's a hormone thing, I guess. But we tried adding extra exercise, snacks and even eating in the middle of the night, but nothing helped. So, I'm starting insulin tonight. Everyone tells me it's not that big of a deal, I just know it's going to be hard to work up the nerve to actually do it. Prayers, please!

All in all, things are good!

Twelve minutes

I have twelve minutes to post before it's time to check my blood sugar again. Yay.

My doctor's appointment on Monday was kind of disappointing. I had already been scheduled to see one of the other doctors, which is a routine thing at 28 weeks when you're seeing the midwife. The doctor I saw, however, was not the one that I will be seeing for the remainder of the pregnancy. She was nice, but I'm glad she's not mine. She talked briefly about the diabetes thing. I'll be seeing the doctor more frequently now, since I'm considered high risk. I'll start doing weekly non-stress tests (NST) at 32 weeks, I think. I'll have an ultrasound again at 36 weeks to check the size of the baby again. There will be another ultrasound at 38 1/2 weeks, if I make it that far. She said they definitely wouldn't let me go past my due date and would start considering induction around 38 weeks. If, however, any ultrasound reveals that he may weigh ten or more pounds, they'll make me have a c-section. Not news I wanted to hear. I can't imagine having a c-section to recover from while dealing with a newborn and a 2 year-old. Hopefully, it won't come down to that.

The gestational diabetes management class yesterday was very helpful. I met with a dietitian to create a diet for my needs. We had an actual class about what diabetes is, how to control it and how to eat. The meal planning section was especially helpful. I'm feeling a lot more in control of that aspect now, thankfully. I'm testing four times a day. So far my numbers have been good, except for in the morning. I'm going to experiment with a few things in the next few days and see if I can't get that to level out. If not, I'm guessing they'll put me on medicine to control my insulin overnight. We'll see. I go back next Friday to meet with a nurse there again and review how things are going. My next doctor's appointment is the Monday after that.

That's the update:) Other than that, I'm feeling pretty good. I officially began the third trimester on Monday. When did that happen?! In other news, I'm stripping my cloth diapers for the first time today. Hope it goes well! I'm planning to travel with them this weekend, so we'll get to test out how cloth does on the road. More on that next week!

Oh the drama!

I found out yesterday that I failed my glucose test. The lady from my OB's office called to tell me I had gestational diabetes. Wasn't expecting that. I have four prescriptions I need to pick up at the pharmacy for testing supplies and I have a four hour gestational diabetes management class on Tuesday. On top of it all, because of the "complication," I can no longer see my midwife. I have to see one of the other doctors in the practice. It's a little disappointing to get through 2/3 of your pregnancy and suddenly have someone different to see. Oh well. Out of my hands.

I had an ultrasound this morning, since I'm measuring large. And large he is! I'm 27 weeks, 3 days today, but he's measuring at 30 weeks, 3 days. I'm sure it has to do with the gestational diabetes issue, but I'm not sure what all it means in terms of due date and delivery. I don't actually get to see the doctor until Monday. IF they moved my due date up three weeks, I'd be due on Kate's due date. If I had him at the "new" 37 weeks, that would be 6 1/2 weeks from now. Surely that's not how it's going to work out, but holy cow. He'll be here before we know it!

I was pretty upset about the diagnosis yesterday, but I'm feeling better today. I know that it's going to be well monitored and controlled, which is the best thing for me and Jackson. I'm not thrilled about poking myself multiple times a day, but I know it's what's best. I'll still have a healthy baby and rest of my pregnancy as long as I take this seriously and get it under control. No biggie. Plenty of people have dealt with this. I'm just ready to have my class so I can really understand a little more about it and get the process rolling. Right now, I feel like I'm in the dark.

Oh yes, and Jack weighs approximately 3lbs 6 oz. That's all the more weight I've gained this pregnancy. Pretty crazy!

In other news, I get my "new" cloth diapers today! Pictures coming!

Score of the week

(I'm thinking this may become Monday's weekly post....)

So, I've redeveloped my love for couponing. Yes, I'll admit some of it has to do with TLC's Extreme Couponing, regardless of the fact that it's mostly absurd and impractical for the average person. Nonetheless, I've got my coupon stash going and I've had some great deals. I get an email every week that outlines what's coming in the Sunday paper. Some weeks, the coupons are great and it's worth buying multiple papers. This week didn't look so great, so I only bought one. After grocery shopping, I regret it. There was a $1.00 off any box of Ronzoni Garden Fresh pasta (I think that's what it's called). It's the pasta that's different colors because it's enriched with veggies. Anyhow, it was on sale for 4/$5 at Martins, so $1.25 a box. With the coupon, I got it for a quarter!! Almost free. Cheap enough in my book to count as a steal. I only bought one paper, though, so I only got one box. You live, you learn! That was a good deal, for sure. Yoplait yogurt was on sale and I had a coupon, so I got each of them for $.23 less than usual. Not too bad. I didn't need much this week, so I pretty much got milk and the rest were sale/coupon items. I love it when the stockpile's big enough to do that. It meant I spent $25 on groceries this week and we got to eat out multiple times this weekend on the rest of the grocery budget. That makes this Momma happy!

My best score of the week, however, comes from craigslist. I got a text from a good friend this morning letting me know that someone had listed a lot of cloth diapers on there. I immediately raced to my computer to see this listing: wahm fitteds/fleece all in ones, fleece cover, cloth wipes, small wetbag, snappis. I think theres around 18 diapers. $65 for the whole box. After emailing the seller to ask for pictures and details, I learned that there are 22 diapers--none of which require prefolds. Woohoo. Upon the condition of seeing them and approving the condition that they're in, I offered her $60 and she accepted. She apparently got them from a friend and then forgot about them until after her baby was too big for them. Being that they're newborn/small size diapers, they won't last long, but they should get us from newborn until our Kawaii one-size diapers fit. SO excited! It's a HUGE savings. I can't wait to go see them and put pictures up on here. Thankfully, she has boys, so they're all boy prints! Perfect for little Jackson. I'm so thankful that God helps watch the budget for us with deals like this. And super thankful to Erica for the tip!! It's just a good thing she has no interest in cloth!

And a shoutout to the hubby: I had my glucose test this morning. My doctor's office requires the two hour test the first time around, so I sat for a while. My appointment was at 8:30, so I was up and out before Kraig and Kate were awake. When I got home, though, Kraig had been super productive. He'd swept the front entry floor and the little bathroom, he'd gathered trash in the kitchen, bathroom and living room, he'd cleaned the little bathroom and taken a bunch more stuff that didn't belong in the living room to the basement. Yes, we still aren't done unpacking. AND, he fed and changed Kate. I was impressed, proud and grateful, so I thought I'd brag. I love my husband:)

Can you tell we've been busy?

I can't believe it's been so long since I blogged! It's still pretty crazy around here. We've got a few piles of things to unpack still and we're still getting used to living here. Perhaps one of the biggest changes is that Kraig doesn't come home for lunch (at least not everyday). It's just not as practical as it was when we lived two minutes from the church. Not to mention the additional gas costs! Things are going well, though!

Kate is getting three new teeth, I think, so she's been a bit of a bear. Hopefully it'll pass quickly.

I had my 26 week appointment yesterday. Everything went well. I'm up around 5 pounds total so far. Not too bad. At my 18 week ultrasound, the baby was measuring about a week farther along than my due date and yesterday, I measured about a centimeter ahead. I'm having an ultrasound next Thursday just to get a weight estimate on him and sneak another peek:) Then I'll go back the following week for my 28 week appointment. I can't believe we're to the point of going every two weeks already!

In other news, I planted tomatoes, green onions, basil and cilantro yesterday. I don't quite have room or interest in a full-sized garden, so container gardening is fine for me. I got tomato plants on clearance at Lowe's for $0.25, so I bought four. We could never eat that many tomatoes, but we'll see if they all live!

So much to write about...

It has been a very eventful two weeks! On Thursday, April 14th, we closed on our first home. That afternoon we made a few trips to the new house with our car and a borrowed truck. Friday was the biggest move day. We did a few trips on our own during the morning and early afternoon. The help started to arrive around 5:00 and we loaded up our car, another car and three trucks for our first load. As we were driving between the houses, we realized it was looking like rain. We decided to make another quick trip and worry about dinner later. So we drove back and loaded up.

One of the first things loaded in the second trip was my piano. I had two couches in the back of my truck and another truck had the large entertainment center. We headed back in caravan style, with me bringing up the rear, following our friend Todd. About two miles down the road, I noticed the bungee cords holding the mattresses in next to the piano were starting to slip. The wind had picked up significantly, and it was making our memory foam mattress move like paper. So I called Todd and told him that we should pull over and adjust the straps. We slowed down and turned right, into a parking lot. As Todd's truck turns, the piano falls off of the side of the truck and lands with a roar in the parking lot, in the outgoing turn lane. I watched the whole thing happen and was totally speechless. I pulled my truck around to block the debris from traffic and called Kraig to come back. Tyler and Josh were in the third truck that was just ahead of Todd and they heard the noise and turned back. Luckily, there were some teens walking through the parking lot that helped Todd get it out of the roadway. We were all speechless. We took pictures and loaded it back in the truck in all it's many pieces. It's now in the landfill. It was sad. My great aunt bought the piano as her first major purchase from her first big job. She gave it to me when we got married and now it's gone. I held it together when we were dealing with the situation, but then I got in the truck and cried the whole way home. I called my aunt to apologize and to get some sympathy. It was dramatic.

Luckily, we got most of the big stuff moved on Friday because it literally rained all day on Saturday. We had a few more hands on Saturday, so we took one quick trip and tarped everything for protection. That took care of all the big stuff and we've been making little trips here and there to finish up the little stuff and clean. We're hoping to have a yard sale at the old house this weekend because there is lots of stuff to get rid of! We paid rent through the end of the month, and we're gonna use the house until the end of the month!

The next week was crazy, making trips and getting unpacked. Kraig took one of our teens to Johnson Bible College for a campus visit from Wednesday through Friday. Both of Kraig's sisters and our brother-in-law arrived Thursday to spend Easter weekend with us. His parents arrived on Friday. Fortunately, they didn't mind the moving mess! It's not as bad as I make it out to be, I don't think, but I hate feeling unsettled. Once I'm ready to decorate and can put away the tubs of extra decor, we'll be doing better. We had a good Easter weekend though and enjoyed spending time with the family.

Kraig's regular day off is Monday, so we did some more cleaning and unpacking on Monday morning. When Kate went down for her nap, we cleaned out the car and cleaned the car. We need a second vehicle, and we're ready to trade in our Focus. So we ran an errand after Kate woke up and stopped by the Ford dealership to see what kind of options we had. We got there around 5:15, planning to grab dinner out when we were finished. At 9:25, we left the dealership with no Focus and two new (to us) cars. We were surprised that we were able to get what we wanted. They gave us $11000 in trade for Focus and we got a 2006 Mazda 5 for me and a 2004 Pontiac Grand Am for Kraig. Kraig's car is orange. It's perfect. They both have sunroofs. Kraig's car has quite a few miles on it, so we got it pretty cheap. The van looks brand new. It's not a huge van, it's more like an SUV with a third row of seats and sliding side doors. It's gonna be so convenient when we have two car seats. What a crazy turn of events, right?! All in all, we're paying a little more per month but we now have two cars. The first Sunday that we lived in the new house, Kraig went to first service and then ran home to get me before second service. We were almost late. Not so great when the minister can't be on time! Now we don't have to worry about that:)

In other news, I'm 24 weeks pregnant. Moving while pregnant is the worst idea ever. There's so much you can't do and I know I overdid it. My body is still sore. Kate's adjusting to a new house. It took her a few nights to be comfortable falling asleep in her room by herself, but things are much better now. Kraig's parents brought her a new toddler bed when they came this weekend, so we'll transition to that when she's more settled here. Kraig's been run ragged with all the chaos, but things will settle down soon.

AND, I won a giveaway last night!! I won a $10 store credit to JackBeNatural from The Cloth Diaper Fairy. I've ordered all my diapers from JackBeNatural. Their customer service is second to none. They are fantastic! The Cloth Diaper Fairy is a fellow Christian mommy who cloth diapers and is also expecting her second baby, and we've made a nice connection because of that. You should check out her blogs! I can't wait to order something from JBN. I'm thinking I'm going to get some diaper specific laundry detergent, but ordering another diaper is always tempting:)

Pictures of all our lastest excitment are coming soon....as soon as I figure out where I packed my camera cable!