We are now a family of 5!

When I started this blog, I thought we may only have one child. God has been so gracious to us! After four miscarriages between Blue Rock and Princess, I have had two more relatively easy pregnancies and healthy children. I am so pleased to introduce you to our 3rd born child, we'll call him Blue Knight. Knight because chess is one of his brother's favorite games and knight is one of my favorite pieces from chess. I'll start with a letter to him and will include some sweet details from my labor and delivery. Only read if you want to know his birth story. Otherwise, here's his stats: 7 lbs, 10 oz, and 20.5 inches long. He was born in the evening after almost 11 hours of labor.   

Dear Blue Knight,

This is your birth story. I want to start off with saying how happy and excited that God placed you in our family. You are welcomed with lots of love from me, Dad, your brother, and sister as well as many others, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

You were born on at 7:27 p.m. You weighed 7 lbs, 10 oz, and were 20.5 inches long. You have dark hair and blue eyes. You came 10 hours and 45 minutes after my OB broke my water. Normally I would not schedule an induction but I felt with the planning of your siblings care, that it would be fine to schedule a partial induction. It was the hardest and most exhausting and painful day of my life! But you are more than 100% worth it! After my water was broken, Dad and I did lots of walking, climbing stairs, I sat on different birthing balls, and was able to let you progress without the use of Pitocin, IV, and pain medicine. Your birth has been my hardest yet but I was so happy I was able to pull through and have another drug free labor and delivery. You are so handsome and we are so blessed!!

I ended up with a 2nd degree tear and am trying to take it easy as I recover. It took about 5-6 pushes to get you out! We arrived at the hospital at 7:30am, the doctor broke my water at 8:45am. I was having mild contractions at first so Dad and I walked and walked and climbed stairs. The nurse kept thinking I should get Pitocin to move things along. My wonderful OB recommended that we just wait it out and not have any extra medical intervention since I've had two natural births in the past. I was able to eat crackers, pudding, popcorn and a protein bar that I hid in my bag on the way to the hospital, and drink lots of water and juice. I requested no IV and was able to not have one. But that meant I had to drink lots of fluid on my own.

Since you were born so late in the evening and they said it would take about 2 hours before I could go to my room for the night, I decided to wait to let your brother and sister meet you the next morning. Plus Dad and I were exhausted! When Blue Rock came in the room to meet you for the first time, he raced to my bed and confirmed you were his brother. He asked why you were not crying. When Princess was born, she cried a whole lot at the hospital. He then asked to hold you. When Princess came over, right before Blue Rock, she wanted to hold you right away as well. She kept saying, "baby, baby. Hold hold the baby." For a 19 month old she speaks very well and can even say your name. Both kids got to hold you and kiss you. Opa and Grand C came to the hospital to meet you and so did Aunt M. We had some church friends visit us as well. We are looking forward to our friends coming by and meeting you at our house over the next few weeks.

The first night at the hospital you slept great. We were even able to swaddle you and put you in the bassinet by my bed. You did one 3.5 hour stretch of sleep. Of course a nurse came in around 4am to take 3 viles of blood from me so I didn't get to sleep that much. But you and Daddy both slept through it. We were hoping to leave the hospital soon after your 24 hour check-up. You looked great except you are a little jaundiced so they wanted to keep us another night to check your blood in the morning. We asked if we could just leave and come back in the morning. Thankfully our nurse got a hold of your doctor and she said we could go home. We were released from the hospital at 10:30 pm the next day.  Your first night home you slept well but wanted me to hold you and nurse you almost all night. From about 3:30am to 7am, you had a good stretch of sleep. Which is excellent for a newborn. You are calm and as sweet as can be!

We praise God that you are here, healthy, and part of our family. We love you, Blue Knight!

Love,
Mom

Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from Him. - Psalm 127:3

Here are some pictures from your birth and the first few days at home.

After my water broke walking the halls in the atrium at the hospital

Dad and I getting excited and thinking about your arrival!

It was great not having an IV and pole to drag around as I labored

You can labor and deliver in a hospital without being attached to things in the U.S.!

Princess looking forward to her baby brother to be out of my belly!

Blue Rock is super excited to meet his little brother

Last picture as a family of 4 and looking forward to meeting you!

You are here!

You're so handsome and perfect!

Born as the sun was going down

I have the BEST partner ever! Your Dad is the best! I couldn't get through natural childbirth without him!

My doctor who delivered you! She is awesome!

It's so nice to have a supportive medical team.

Big sister loves her baby!

Both kids love their baby!

You are blessed with a wonderful older brother and sister.

We are now a family of 5!

First bath

Getting all soapy

Bath is over! Now I'm just smiling

Friends from church

Home in my big brother's arms

Handsome sleepy boy

Getting some sun

First time we're all in the van together on the way to your first doctor's appt.

3 kids in the back, so precious and blessed!

3 days old with your doctor at your first appointment. You weighed 7 lbs, 2 oz. and are very healthy!

34.5 Weeks with Baby #3!

34.5 Week!

After writing the title of this blog, I was pondering on whether or not I should change the title to Baby #7, since he's really my 7th pregnancy. But for people who don't know me, he'll be known as our 3rd child so I'm going to leave it. I wish miscarriages didn't happen. I wish I had my other four babies here as well. With that being said, I am so thankful for this baby and am really looking forward to meeting him! Children are such precious gifts from God. Here's the update on our babe!

He's measuring big, 37 weeks, 5 days! He weighs approximately 6 lbs, 7 oz. My OB changed my due date down by 5 days. She said you really can't change it more than a week even though I've been measuring at least 2 weeks ahead for the past few months.

Some really good news, he's turned! I pray that he stays that way! I've gone to the chiropractor two times and I've felt him horizontal but wasn't sure if he made the transition downward. My fluid levels look great, his umbilical cord looks wonderful, and he is as handsome as can be! We are getting excited and ready to meet him. Since my due date has changed to August 21st, my doctor said that if he's not born by then, she would induce me if I wanted. She said at 38 weeks she could strip my membranes if I wanted. She did that with Princess and she was born in the 38th week. Considering his size, I would have no problem with that. Although we still have quite a bit to do before his arrival. My husband and I did make some great progress in his room this past weekend. I also got his bedding in the mail today and picked up a few decorations at Hobby Lobby. Our guest room/junk room has had a complete transformation. The really cool part about it is that we're slowly not going to have any "junk" room since we're using all of our house. I don't want junk in the playroom, I don't want junk in the dining room or office. Definitely no junk in the living room or kitchen. Although we somehow always seem to accumulate random things. I think overall we are both getting better and letting go of things. Once everything is completed, I'll share pictures of the nursery.

Big sister and I by our garden

How far along? 34 weeks, 5 days

Baby’s size? 6 lbs, 7 oz, measuring 37 weeks, 5 days

Total weight gain/loss: I have gained 28 lbs! Seems pretty average, a pound per week.

Maternity clothes? Yes! And sadly all of my maternity shorts are starting to feel to snug. =/

Stretch marks? No new ones for this pregnancy that I can see.

Sleep: Not great. I'm getting to the very uncomfortable stage but am so tired I usually fall asleep pretty fast. Although I have to get up to go to the restroom at least once or Grace comes in our room in the middle of the night and wakes us up. 

Best moment this week: Seeing my baby's sweet face in the sonogram!
 
Miss Anything? Sleep and my pre-pregnancy body. 

Movement: He moves constantly.

Food cravings: Nothing particularly, just hungry and I honestly get kind of tired of eating now.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: I've started having some contractions.

Symptoms: Fatigue, big belly, baby movements, and early contractions.

Belly Button in or out? In but will poke out if I cough or laugh.

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and blessed!

Looking forward to: Meeting my son.

Please pray for: A healthy baby and pregnancy.

32.5 weeks!

My pregnancy is moving right along. Our sweet baby will be here before we know it! I had an appointment this morning along with a sonogram. I'm most likely going to have sonograms every visit from here on out, which basically I've been having every visit since I was early on. Nothing wrong with keeping an internal eye on my sweet growing baby. Today was exciting because we got a really great look at his sweet face!


We've been working really hard getting his room ready for his arrival. His room will be our old guest room which sadly had become somewhat of a dumping ground so there is a lot to move out and get rid of. We gave away our queen bed, have moved three out of 4 bookshelves, and gotten rid of lots and lots of boxes of books and other things. There's still more to go but hopefully we'll wrap everything up within the next few weeks.


Sweet baby boy still growing ahead of schedule, measuring about 2 weeks ahead. His approximate size is 5 lbs, 4 oz, 34 weeks, 2 days. I'm 32 weeks, 5 days. He is also now breached. There's a chance he'll turn on his own but my doctor recommended going to a chiropractor who works with pregnant women. She said a chiropractor could help align my body and help the baby turn. She also told me a few ways to lay to try and get him to turn. The bigger he gets, the harder it will be on me when and if he turns. It seems like he's consistently growing about 1/2 a pound every week. If you know me, I'm a huge fan of natural childbirth. However, I am also an even bigger fan of having a healthy baby and mama! So I'm not going to worry about it too much one way or another. I'll pray for peace and that God helps him come the best way. 

How far along? 32 weeks, 5 days

Baby’s size? 5 lbs, 5 oz, measuring 34 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain/loss: I have gained 26 lbs! I now weigh 2 lbs more than I did when I had my first 6 years ago. 

Maternity clothes? Yes! Frankly, I'm getting kind of tired of them. ;)

Stretch marks? No new ones for this pregnancy that I can see.

Sleep: Not great. I'm getting to the very uncomfortable stage but am so tired I usually fall asleep pretty fast. Although I have to get up to go to the restroom at least once. 

Best moment this week: Seeing my baby's sweet face in the sonogram!
 
Miss Anything? Sleep and my pre-pregnancy body. 

Movement: He moves constantly.

Food cravings: Nothing particularly, just hungry and I honestly get kind of tired of eating now.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: I've started having some contractions.

Symptoms: Fatigue, big belly, baby movements, and early contractions.

Belly Button in or out? In but will poke out if I cough or laugh.

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and blessed!

Looking forward to: Meeting my son.

Please pray for: A healthy baby and pregnancy.

30.5 Weeks!

Monday I had my  regular 2 week check-up. I'm now going every two weeks and will continue until the baby is born. Our son looks great! He's going to be a big boy! At 31 weeks he weighs 4 lbs, 5 oz. Thankfully, my fluid looks great and he does too. We finally got to see his cute face! My doctor advised me to limit my carbs and sugar. I failed the first glucose test by 2 points. They checked my blood sugar and it was normal and we decided not to go ahead with the 3 hour test. I didn't want to take it as I almost passed out from it when I took it in Germany. That was the only option there. I told her I'd do my best. 

Baby boy was measuring 10 days early and based on his size, my new due date would be August 16th rather than August 26th. My doctor said if I made it to my normal due date we'd be looking at a 9 lb baby. I'm having flash backs to being pregnant with Blue Rock. He came on his own 9 days early and was a good 8 lbs. Ultimately, I just want to be healthy and have a healthy baby. 

How far along? 31 weeks tomorrow

Baby’s size? As of Monday, at 30.5 weeks, he weighed 4 lbs, 5 oz!

Total weight gain/loss: I have gained 24 lbs!

Maternity clothes? Absolutely! There's no turning back until the baby is born right now!

Stretch marks? No new ones for this pregnancy. Although I'm 2 lbs away from my pregnancy weight when I gave birth to Caden 6 years ago.

Sleep: I wake up to pee about once, sometimes twice. Gracie is sleeping in her room and usually sleeps until 6:30am. So if I go to bed before 11, I get about 7 hours.

Best moment this week: Seeing my baby's sweet face in the sonogram for the first time!
 
Miss Anything? Sleep and feeling better. 

Movement: He moves constantly.

Food cravings: Fruit and ice cream.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: I've started having some contractions.

Symptoms: Fatigue, big belly, baby movements, and early contractions.

Belly Button in or out? In but will poke out if I cough or laugh.

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and blessed!

Looking forward to: Meeting my son.

Please pray for: A healthy baby and mama!

Pregnant with a Fever = Overnight stay at the Hospital

Baby Boy 25 weeks

I'm now 27 weeks along. The picture to the right is from 25 weeks. I just have been too busy to post anything. We still have not seen his face. Hopefully at my next appointment we will.  Overall this pregnancy has gone great. I've felt good overall and the baby has been growing well and everything has been very normal. 

Wednesday night around bedtime, my throat started getting sore. I rarely get sick so this was a little concerning. I gargled with hydrogen peroxide before bed. In the morning it felt worse. My right middle finger was also in pain from a hangnail. Throughout the day I felt worse and worse. I did all of the natural remedies I could. Gargled with salt water, gargled with salt water and sage, ate some raw garlic cloves, drank apple cider vinegar, made a smoothie, and blended 3 cups of water with a lemon and some strawberries. But nothing was really helping. I rarely go to a doctor because of a sore throat or a hangnail problem but something didn't feel right. I called my family practitioner and they didn't have any openings on Thursday. I decided to try CVS's minute clinic once my husband got home. I figured they could confirm whether or not I had strep throat and if my finger was infected. By the way, the Minute Clinic was great! Easy to get into, not a lot of sick people around, etc. 

Once my husband got home, I had him drive me over there. I didn't want to take the kids to the doctor alone. Anyone with small kids knows taking little kids to the doctor is only asking for trouble. I had been having chills and low energy most of the afternoon. The nurse practitioner at the minute clinic checked for my temperature and it was 101.9. She also checked for strep, no strep, and said my finger was infected but enough to cause a fever like I had. She said since I was pregnant I needed to go to the hospital or an emergency clinic so they could put 2 liters of fluids in me and figure out where the infection was coming from. I wanted to cry. So off to the maternal ward at the hospital we went. With all of the pregnancy issues I've had, I know to just go to the maternal ward if there's ever a problem. 

The nurse checked me in and took my temperature. They hooked me up to some monitors. My heart rate and my baby's was very high. This was most likely due to my fever. Sure enough they put an IV in me and started fluids. They took 3 vials of blood and were able to check my blood count, strep throat, mono (just in case it was that), my thyroid levels, and anything else. Thankfully everything came back fine. However, I was having mild contractions and with a fever they could not send me home so they kept me overnight. They said I would need to stay until my fever went away so I didn't go into preterm labor. The hospital is not very restful as they needed to come in and check on me every few hours. I also had the tight baby monitors around my big belly, which around 1am, I was able to have them taken off for a few hours. I also had the painful IV in my hand. However, I would rather make sure everything is fine than go home and things go bad. I was sad to spend the night away from my family, as I have never spent the night away from Princess but sometimes we have to do what we have to do. 

My husband did great with the kids. I told him before I knew I was going to stay the night to head home with the kids to get them to bed. My dad said he could take me home from the hospital when they released me that evening before I knew I was staying. They gave me three rounds of antibiotics through the IV, 3 liters of fluids, two doses of pain pills, and things looked up. Thankfully I was able to go home Friday around 11. 

We told a handful of people and my husband was able to find someone to watch our kids Friday morning. Thank you, Micah! I was able to pick them up after lunch, although I still needed to rest. I also knew Princess would need a nap. I'm just so glad the baby and me are doing good. We are still not sure what caused my temperature to go up so high but now I know to call my OB for anything, even a sore throat and to get care from her when pregnant. I love my doctor and am glad she's always willing to go the extra mile for me and my baby. I'm still not 100% better but I feel a lot better than I did. I'm just thankful to God that it wasn't something more serious. 

18 week baby boy #2 update!

I'm now 18 weeks along and feeling good overall. I wish I knew what the four babies were that we lost. I don't know if this baby is our 2nd boy or 6th! Most likely he's somewhere in-between. We really need to decide on a name for our son. For some reason I have a strong desire to refer to him by his name. Maybe because I already have a boy and girl and I call them by their name. We have two names we really like but are not 100% certain what to name him yet. I hope we don't wait until the day he's born to decide but we might!

I had my 18 week appointment on Monday. Our son looks fantastic! We saw him in 3D. He hid his face but we confirmed what we already knew from the blood test that he's a boy. His heart and lungs look good, his hands and feet look good, everything seems to be developing normal which is what every parent wants. I've only gained 4 lbs which is crazy! I've never gained so little weight this far along in a pregnancy before. Of course I'm still nursing Princess so that might have something to do with it.  

How far along? 18 weeks

Baby’s size? 5.5 inches long, about the size of a bell pepper! He weighs almost 7 ounces!

Total weight gain/loss: I have gained 4 pounds at my 18 week check-up! 

Maternity clothes? Yes and no. My stomach is pushing out so I need maternity shirts or longer ones. Some pants are getting a little snug but I can still wear most of them.

Stretch marks? No new ones for this pregnancy.

Sleep:  Since Princess still isn't sleeping through the night, I still get up with her two to three times every night! 

Best moment this week: Seeing him move and wiggle in the ultrasound. He wouldn't show us his face but I know he's handsome!
 
Miss Anything? Sleep. But I'd sleep fine if I wasn't getting up to take care of another sweet baby. :)

Movement: Yes. I've felt him off and on for a few weeks now. Nothing super consistent but at certain times I feel him.

Food cravings: Mostly Mexican food, especially hot sauce and chips! Also Marble Slab Ice Cream and Snow Cones.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Not yet, thankfully!

Symptoms: Besides being tired, feeling him move, and having to go to the bathroom more than usual.

Belly Button in or out? In.

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and blessed!

Looking forward to: Meeting my son.

Please pray for: A healthy baby and pregnancy.

We are having another...

11.5 weeks

We are having another BOY!! I found out yesterday morning, Feb. 20, 2015, that God is blessing us with another precious boy! On my 3rd doctor's appointment, when I was almost 12 weeks along, I did the blood test that lets you know if there are any issues going on and will tell you the sex of the baby. I'm still in somewhat of a shock that I'm really pregnant and this is really happening. I've had three sonograms and our sweet boy has looked great in everyone! At my first appointment, the sonogram nurse predicted a boy since his heart rate was below 150. The last two his heart rate was just above, so we weren't sure. With all of the losses we went through between between Blue Rock and Princess, when I was having Princess, I just felt so blessed to be having another child and wasn't sure if we could or would have anymore. I am very delighted that God is blessing us with another child!

To reveal the gender, I surprised my family by making a cake. I was going to either make a blue or purple cake. My husband's birthday is this weekend so it's doubling as the birthday cake for him and surprise. We would have waited for his actual birthday but everyone really wanted to know!

Blue Rock already knew we were having a boy! Just like he knew with his sister! He is so excited to have a baby brother. He loves his baby sister as well and is truly the sweetest and best big brother one kid could be. My husband and I are over the moon with excitement as well and I know Princess will love her little brother just like she loves her big brother. 

I'm 13.5 weeks along and will be beginning my second trimester next week. I haven't written very much about this pregnancy mostly because we've been very, very busy! I will do my best to blog a little more!

Here's my first pregnancy, pregnancy update besides our announcement. 

How far along? 13.5 weeks

Baby’s size? Almost 3 inches long, the size of a pea pod! He weighs almost 1 ounce!

Total weight gain/loss: I had gained 1 pound at my 12 week check-up!   

Maternity clothes?  Not really but sometimes I wear the two items I still have after getting rid of almost everything after having Princess!

Stretch marks? None.

Sleep:  Since Princess still isn't sleeping through the night, I still get up with her one to two times every night! I've never been so tired in my life but I love my growing family!

Best moment this week: Finding out we're having a boy!
 
Miss Anything? Sleep. But I'd sleep fine if I wasn't getting up to take care of another sweet baby. :)

Movement: Not yet.

Food cravings: I go from sweets to salty quite often. Also I've been craving fruits and red meat! Also hot sauce and chips!

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Not yet, thankfully!

Symptoms: Exhaustion, hungry all the time, will get nauseous if I don't eat frequently. Also I have to go to the bathroom more than usual.

Belly Button in or out? In.

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and blessed!

Looking forward to: Meeting my son.

Please pray for: A healthy baby and pregnancy.

13.5 weeks, 1st pregnancy picture