The first two weeks....

The first two weeks have been pretty amazing, I must say! Funny the things that you forget, though, about having a newborn in your house. Although I have to say that between each baby being different, as well as our circumstances, it's really hard to determine if life is just different, or if we truly have forgotten some of the best and most challenging moments of having a newborn.

Nursing...is going extremely well! I have been blessed again with a daughter who latches easily, and was a natural at nursing. I know so many friends who have experienced challenges with nursing and I feel so, so, so lucky that we haven't encountered any problems. Well, other than the fact that I produce enough milk for 3 kids, it seems, so poor Ruby has to take some breaths in between nursing otherwise the girl spits up everything she just ate cause mama's 'letdown' is fierce! But if that's the worst of my problems, I'll take it :)

Sleep....well, all things considered, I feel blessed. Ruby sleeps (for the most part) 2-3 hours, then nurses, then usually goes back to sleep fairly easily. There have been a few rough nights where she wants to nurse for what seems like 1-2 hours straight (yes, straight!) and other moments where she will nurse and then be wide awake and not want to return to sleep as easily. But for the most part, I'm up 3-4 times a night, and we're sleeping from 11pm-9ish am. So I consider that a B+ (and I know if she was on formula, she'd sleep even longer but this is the trade-off with breastfeeding).

We gave Ruby her first bath once her cord stump fell off (and yes, I saved it, much to my mother's displeasure! She calls it 'a scab'. Ha!), and just like Ginger, she didn't enjoy bathtime! Let's just say she didn't chill in her baby bath with a smile on her face :) Ginger grew to love her baths fairly quickly, which I'm hoping will be the case with Ruby. However, once she was in her jammies and was able to cuddle she was in heaven.

Ginger just LOVES her baby sister. She is very proud to tell others about 'baby Ruby', and is always very eager to let me know when she is crying, fussing, etc. Ginger usually shrieks and says "mama, baby Ruby, baby Ruby!" as if I don't notice that she's crying. It's pretty cute. She is VERY hands on, so we have to be watchful that she doesn't go overboard. The other day she took a blanket, thinking she was going to wipe some spit-up off of her lip, and practically smothered the poor girl in blanket! She does struggle a little bit with not getting 100% of the attention, usually by either having a little melt-down, or using her 'outside voice' when i ask her to speak softly. She continues to go to daycare 3-4 days a week, mostly for her benefit in terms of keeping her in routine and on schedule, but also to allow me to experience a similar bonding experience with Ruby that I had with Ginger. And it's working out fantastic, as I'm able to pick her up early from daycare but also have time to nap when Ruby naps, etc.

Ruby has had 2 rather difficult photoshoots at this point, and I've determined that she may have a strong-willed personality if her temperment at the shoots reflects her future. Both times, she was peaceful, nursed, and sleeping until she was placed in front of the camera. Then she woke, expressed her displeasure when posed, got the hiccups, wanted to cluster nurse, yep- she did it all. After the first session our photographer offered to reshoot the following week, which was sweet but after round 2 of the same behavior I think it's safe to say that we'll wait before taking her in for another studio session! Once we get into our new house, our friend Kymberli will be coming over for another photoshoot- hopefully when Ruby is in her own element she'll be more agreeable!

Speaking of which- yes, I said "new house"! We are so excited to be in escrow on a new house just a few miles away that can easily be considered our dream come true. It offers 4 bedrooms, plus a bonus playroom, family room, formal living room, dining room, breakfast nook, and jacuzzi tub in my master! (That was a must for me, as our current house has only one teeny tiny bathtub that I never, ever fit into) The house also has a pool (with diving board!), is on 1/2 acre, has 8 different fruit trees, an amazing rosh bush garden, and a full sized basketball court that will serve as the future pad for a 3-4 car garage at the back of the property for Paul. PLUS, and most most most importantly, the house is in a great neighborhood, which offers a fantastic elementary school for Ginger and Ruby to attend. We knew if we stayed in our current home, we would have been forced to place the girls into private school as the elementary school has mediocre (at best) test scores so this really is a dream for me. We close escrow on 1/7/2011 and hope to move into the new house sometime the following week. So exciting!

Overall, there are some crazy challenging moments where Paul and I have looked at one another with the "what did we get ourselves into" look, but otherwise baby Ruby has integrated pretty well into our little unit! I just cannot WAIT to continue watching Ruby grow up and start to recognize Ginger, play with her, immulate her, etc. But I'm learning to take each day at a time and enjoy these moments, and not try to rush past any phase in order to get to the next one. Especially now, having seen how Ginger's baby days just RUSHED past us, it seems, I'm really trying to honor Ruby by just enjoying the moments. It's been wonderful!

Meet Ruby Olivia...

Ruby's birth story...

you would think it could be explained in just a few words, it happened that fast. But there is more to the story and so, here it goes...

On the morning of Tuesday, December 14th, I dropped Ginger off at daycare at 9am and upon arriving back home, I knew that I was feeling a bit off. I had been attempting to accomplish something, big or small, on the days of maternity leave befor Ruby arrived, but on that day all I could do was lounge, relax, and watch some tv. That felt like work to me! Around 10:30am, I started getting some very, very dull pain that wouldnt even equate to pms cramps- just some tightening in my stomach. Throughout the day, I noticed that it was happening rather consistently, every 4-5 minutes. But it was so, so, so, barely noticable that I did not even assume these were actual contractions.

Paul arrived home around 4:30 and I let him know about how I was feeling. He asked if he thought we should do anything about it, I made mention that maybe we should just put our bags in the car, put the carseat in (yes, we lagged that long on installing the car seat!), and at least that way we have peace of mind. I honestly didn't thing anything was going to happen.

Paul had learned about a lane in Corona called "Gingerbread lane" where all of the homes were decorated with lights for Christmas. Ginger is fascinated with Christmas lights this year, so we decided to pick her up from daycare and drive over to check them out. The "mild cramps" were continuing every 4-5 minutes consistently, but again I was having trouble distinguishing if these were fake or real because with Ginger, I was induced and the pitocin contractions were strong- these were not.

While we drove around and saw the Christmas lights, Ginger was asking if we could get out and walk the lane as many other families were doing. I tried to get Paul to stop, but it was cold, and he knew I wasn't feeling great, and we were going to have to park on a side street and he asked that we just remain in the car and view the lights from there. I agreed but thankfully he knew to say this- I wonder if my water would have broken while walking!

We picked up Islands burgers takeout and drove home, enjoyed our evening, and put Ginger to sleep at about 8:30pm. Same as every night, with the exception of these consistent mild cramps (NOTE TO SELF AND OTHERS: contractions can be light, and still be real!)

I took a shower, and told Paul I still wasn't sure if these cramps were real or braxton hicks. I decided that I would go to sleep, and see what happens over the next day or two. I even called the hospital and they said the same thing- even recommended tylenol pm as it didn't sound like I was experiencing true contraction pain.

I fell asleep around 11:30pm, but was up by 1am and felt the first strong, what I thought to be "real" contraction. I have a contraction timer on my phone, so I started timing them and sure enough, they were happening every 2-4 minutes apart, and the pain finally felt "real". At 2:12am I woke Paul up and said we had to make our calls and go to the hospital.

I first called Shanna, by BFF, and she was at our house within 8 minutes flat to stay until my parents could get there. I called my folks, and my sister Julie, who all started the journey up to Riverside.

Paul drove us over to the hospital, and I knew it was real. The pains were strong, regular, and I couldn't speak while in the middle of a contraction. Thank goodness we live only 3 miles from Kaiser! Going up the elevator, I became a bit concerned because they were now coming every 1-2 minutes, and STRONG! PAINFUL! I thought "I'll bet I'm at 4-5 cm by now". HA!

I was admitted to the hospital at 2:40am. The nurse was going to take us to one labor room, but as we walked there she noticed another room and mentioned 'oh, I didn't know that room was still available'...it happened to be the room that we delivered Ginger in! So we asked, could we have it? She agreed, which was kind of fun :)

I immediately asked for 2 things: the doctor, and drugs. I explained that I went fast with Ginger, once I started contracting. I just knew there was a window of time that we were working with...the nurse said she could check me, and found that I was already at 8 cm. 8 CENTIMETERS!!! I started freaking out, telling her I needed to get the epi NOW. She remained calm, said all she needed to do was get the IV in me for fluids, and that she would call the anesthesiologist. Oh great- the dreaded IV. I have had issues my entire life with IV insertions- not on my end, but my dang veins aren't on the top of my skin, so they have to fish around oftentimes. Which happened then as well. 20 minutes later, and after being poked and prodded (through 1-2 minute contractions at 8 cms, mind you) they finally get the IV in me. My mom and dad arrive at that point, and my dad later told me he heard me down the hallway, moaning and screaming from the contractions. My mom stayed in the room, my dad stepped just outside. My sister was still on her way from San Diego- she was going to be holding one leg for this delivery and I was hoping she would make it in time!(Turns out, she did not, and arrived about 15 minute after Ruby arrived :)

OK, back on story. At that point, the anesthesiologist comes in and tells me that there is no way that she can do an epidural at that point, I was already too close to delivering. PANIC sets in my mind, I start having a minor anxiety attack to Paul saying "I can't do this without drugs, these people are crazy. I am going to DIE!" Thankfully I have an AMAZING husband who calming assures me that I can do this, he believes in me, it's going to be ok. At that moment I was glad he thought so, but I was scared out of my mind.

The anesthesiologist did offer to try to get a spinal in, which she said is kind of like an epi and would be more immediate, one shot, but would only last 2 hours. I was in such pain at that moment that I probably would have agreed to crack cocaine if a doctor recommended it, so I said "let's go for it". She had to go through about 10 minutes of questions related to my medical history (which, isn't that in my computer file? WTH!?!?) And then says for me to turn on my side, she could inject me while I was laying sideways. I turn, mind you in such practically unbearable pain, and I feel her circling my back with the cleaning fluid to poke me. Paul later tells me that this gal was incredibly hesitant and nervous looking, probably because of my pressure and pain and anguish coming out of my mouth!

At that moment, my water breaks (which the nurse had told me earlier was the only thing actually holding this baby inside me, so we were trying to get the spinal in without breaking my water). Laying on my side, I knew at that moment that drugs were just not going to happen. I already felt the need to push, and I told her "get the doc NOW this baby is coming!" So the doctor comes in (not mine, but the one on call so I don't even know her name) and they roll me back over, and I literally tell her get ready because I have to push NOW. The nurse warned me earlier that the sensations I would experience without drugs would feel like really strong burns, but that if I pushed through it, that was the only way to relieve it. If I hesitated, it would just prolong everything.

Well, I felt the burn. And thank the Lord Jesus, I beared down and pushed once and Ruby's head was already out. The doctor says "give me one more good push and this baby will be delivered". So, I found a place inside me that I didn't know I had, pushed like I never had before, and Ruby slipped out, that fast. Two pushes- unbelievable! Ginger came out in 3 pushes, once we were there, so I had beaten my own record. Again, only by the grace of God and my dear husband was I able to get through this labor.

Ruby arrived at 3:35am 12/15/10 weighing in at 8 lbs, 13.1 oz., and was 21 inches long. Yes, that means that within 55 minutes of being admitted to the hospital, this child was delivered! She had swallowed some fluids and a tiny bit of meconium so they had to take her away to immedaitely clear out her throat, lungs, etc. But she was brought to Paul while they were finishing up with me (placenta/stiches for 1st degree tear). I saw Paul full of tears staring at our little girl, and I couldn't WAIT to get my hands on her! Finally, they were done and I was able to get her skin-to-skin. My beautiful baby girl, Ruby Olivia. She is absolute perfection, I must say. Healthy, full head of dark hair, and a strong resemblence to Ginger as a newborn.

If someone would have told me that I would deliver Ruby without any epidural, and that quickly, I would have literally laughed out loud. I am just NOT the type of person to give it a go without pain management. But I made it, and did it, and in all actuality, it wasn't as bad as I would have thought it to be. Maybe I say this because it is over, or more realistically I think because it was so fast, that I was able to get through it. If I had labored for hours, maybe it would have been different. Who knows. I DO know that my body MUST be set up specifically to birth children, because both times I've had it pretty easy compared to all of the horrible, long, enduring laboring processes you see on tv and from stories from friends. Nonetheless, we will be holding off at least a few years, if not more, before we decide if baby #3 is in the picture. Until then, we're happy with our new little family of 4 :)

Meeting Santa- the extended cut...

Most of my friends and family have seen the couple of pics I posted on Facebook from Ginger's visit with Santa, but I thought it'd be smart to post the extended cut here on my blog, as we literally couldn't stop laughing so much that Paul and I were crying tears at times, regarding watching our daughter anticipate, talk about, then finally meet with Santa.

It being a rainy day today, our options were limited as the two top choices I had to visit Santa were outdoor venues. So we decided to stick with the local mall here in Riverside, which turned out to be a great decision for the picture, but a bit of a nightmare for the wait! We thought it could go one of two ways- either everyone would stay home and do Santa next weekend because it was raining, or everyone would show up at the mall (indoors) since it was raining. Well, the 2nd scenario occured.

So, it was a bit of a challenge to keep a near-2 year old occupied for over an hour. Yes, it was actually closer to 2 hours total, but luckily Paul and I have some tricks up our sleeves now and only had to worry for about the last 30 minutes. Until then, he and I took turns with Ginger in the stroller walking around the mall and visiting stores while the other stood in line. But after we were locked into the final lane to Santa, we decided to let Ginger get some of her wiggles out after having spent near an hour in the stroller.

Ginger was able to watch the other children meet Santa in the final lane, which built her excitement (but also created a bit of anxiety for Paul and I, as about every other child was crying, screaming, etc. and we really had NO clue how she would behave once in Santa's presence). Towards the end of the lane there were some funhouse style mirrors that thankfully kept our wiggle worm occupied for a few minutes as well. Then we were finally two kids away from Santa, and Paul was pulling out ALL of the stops to keep Ginger distracted, entertained, etc. Me being 12 days shy of 40 weeks pregnant, it was all I could do to sing a few songs with her and occasionally bend down to entertain on her level- but Paul had to do most of the heavy lifting with the entertainment.

So, there we were, 2 kids away. And wouldn't you know it, they had to let Santa have a break so they could change out the printer roll of paper, and I think just give him a 5 minute breather. Oh no!! We were really, really, pushing the envelope with Ginger in testing her patience, and she was acting like a complete goofball which made us crack up, but also we wondered if at any minute her stir-crazy would turn to meltdown.

Thankfully, Santa returned, the next set of children went quickly (however Ginger did run up to Santa right in the middle of their picture, when Paul turned his head for a second and in my current state, I can't run very quickly!), but then it was our turn. And of course, Ginger acted like a pro. She practically wanted to jump into his lap when invited. They played together for a few moments with a little reindeer stuffed animal, and she told him her name, and that she wanted 'new cards'. When asked earlier in the day, she said very clearly that she wanted 'paint, play-doh, and purses'. But with Santa, she talked about new cards, which we believe she is referring to her flash cards that she loves, of which Woody chewed 2of them- very dissapointing for a near 2 year old.

So, Santa asks Ginger to smile at the camera, and they take 3 shots, of which we purchased 2. It was all over within a few minutes but the all-time best moment of the night was when we returned to our car, and pulled out of the parking lot (Paul and I exHAUSTED beyond belief) Ginger says "Mom, Dad, dat was fun". It made it ALL worth it!

Here are a few pics that documented our time- I cannot BELIEVE that next year we'll have a 1 year old and almost 3 year old. Amazing!!

The budding artist...

I promise she is my daughter...

I am 95% proud, yet still 5% amused at some of the likes/dislikes of Ginger's tastes. In no way do I 'force' her to like anything, really, as I'm more observational and probably more flexible than most parents. But I still think it's hilarious that the girl will literally spit out/refuse:

* Chocolate (including chocolate chip cookies, or hershey bars, or m&ms, prefering her organic gummy treats or a nilla wafer as her dessert!)
* French Fries?!?! (sadly, potatoes really of any kind! We've tried red potatoes, baked potato, mashed potato, hash browns, the girl doesn't even like tater tots!)
* Chicken nuggets (unless there is dip, in which case she'll dip the nugget to taste the sauce, but won't actually eat the nugget)

What she LOVES:
* grapes
* carrots
* pasta (she could eat a variety of tortellini, spaghetti, or penne pasta every night if we let her)
* corn on the cob
* grilled cheese
* cherrios (still one of her favorite, favorite snacks, especially on the go)
* quesadillas (but only cheese)
* carne asada (if it's tender, if she has to chew more than 4-5 times before swallowing, it's not going down ;)
* peaches/pears/apples
* mac'n'cheese- still working with Annie's organic at home but has tried kraft at her nanny's house and likes that too, no surprise!
* pb&j- the classic standby, she loves it.

She's usually willing to try anything that mom and dad are eating, and we will sometimes play the game of just serving ourselves initially if we know it's a new plate for her. For some reason, when we have it, it's just so much more interesting than if she gets her own plate right off the bat. So I'll preview a bite for her in the kitchen as I'm serving up the plates, and she'll usually get excited about the taste.

But we've had to learn the hard way a few times to just be flexible, patient, and provide her with a few healthy options as go-to's (string cheese, yogurt, fruit, pretzels) when she's not feeling the desire to try new things.

We've decided that we're not going to be "finish your plate" parents, but will also not have significant snacks later to compensate for not eating meals. She also knows that dinner comes before bread, and also dessert so if she doesn't give dinner a decent attempt, she'll not get either of the others. There's been a few times where she's learned these two lessons the hard way, but for the most part she's a pretty good eater, when she's hungry. :) She's been in about the 50th percentile her entire life on weight, so unless she starts trending downward we're confident we're taking the right steps with her!

23 days...

well I've hit the breaking point- the point at which I'm DONE. Ready to go. As ready as I wil be, as my comfort level is at an all-time low. Lots of womanly discomforts that I won't mention, along with a belly that is carrying what feels like a large watermelon. The anxiety is starting to creep in, which I know logically is completely unneccessary as I feel so much better prepared having gone through this once. But it's still there, wondering how this transition will go and if I'll wish that I had a few more days of carrying this child all to myself. I know there will be sleepless nights, but at this point I am already so uncomfortable I'd prefer to at least hold, snuggle, and nurse my newborn vs. being in this physical state.

My doctor's appointment was cancelled unexpectedly today, so I'm going to have to wait another day or more until I know what the state of the state is. I am very curious to hear if doc feels like I'll go all the way to my DD, 12/16/10 as I do have a suspicion that I might go a few days early. We will see. :)

Success!!!

It only took 5 nights, but it has happened. Thank goodness- I was about to give up after a few rough patches in transitioning to the toddler bed, and now I'm glad I didn't! Just a few moments ago, Ginger and I read stories in her room (of course, incorporating Elmo's "big enough for a bed" story, which I cannot emphasize enough how invaluable that book has been!) and then she got in bed, I put her blanket over her, we turned on her ladybug nightlight, and sang twinkle twinkle little star. Then a kiss, hug, our classic "sweet dreams" and "I love you" exchanges, and mommy walked out and closed the door. I watched as I exited, and she snuggled into her blanket, got comfy, and settled in. No crying, whimpering, struggles, she is (I hope!) officially settled in her big girl bed. I literally walked down the hall raising my hands in victory. Paul is gone tonight in Vegas at the SEMA show, so of course the timing couldn't be worse as I would have loved for him to experience this together. We've worked through this together though, in fact last night he was able to put her to sleep without fussing (but he did rock her almost completely to sleep) so I knew it was possible. But tonight she did it all on her own, with some reassurance and love from me. Wow she's getting to be such a big girl!

G's Big Girl Bed...

Our little baby girl has graduated to a big girl bed. Well, it's day 2, so I suppose I shouldn't speak too soon. It's been quite a new experience, lots of highs and lows in the past 48 hours. Paul and I had everything in position by the time I brought her home from daycare on Friday night. We recorded her reaction on my camera, which I'll try to post, but needless to say she took to the idea of a toddler bed right away. She kept thanking Paul and I (tank you....mom, tank you....dad) and was all smiles. We thought "hey this is going to be a piece of cake!". Even that first night she climbed up on the bed, on top of the duvet cover I had made especially for the bed (we'll introduce "covers" later) and then we laid her blankie on top of her, said sweet dreams, and our princess slept the entire night through until 7:30am the next morning (which was Saturday). Lots of praise, love, and kisses came next- she got to jump in bed with us, watch cartoons, drink some milk, and generally be spoiled as she was such a big girl!

Well, that afternoon, I can't say that naptime was the same experience. I made the mistake of giving her manderin oranges at lunch, which must have wired her because she was in NO mood to take a nap. And this is a girl who walks herself to her crib each and every naptime/bedtime, and tells US that it's time for her to go to bed, like clockwork. Paul and I both worked on stroking her back, comforting her, rocking her in the chair, but she wanted NOTHING to do with napping in the toddler bed. I had read a recommendation to use a pack-n-play as a backup option for the first few days of transition, so we pulled it out and set it up, but by then she had no interest in napping anywhere.

I can't even remember the last time Ginger hasn't napped during the day. Um, never. She has always liked (and needed) her rest. So, by 6:15pm that evening, on our way to the Olive Garden to grab some dinner, Ginger fell asleep in the car and there went dinner :) We grabbed takeout, came home, and put her to bed in the big girl bed where she slept soundly until 8:10am the next day when I went in to wake her up.

It is now 3pm, and we have had a (what I would call!?!?) successful nap transition today. I served a no-sugar lunch, no tv or cartoons after lunch, just books in her room with a dim light and lots of snuggle. Thankfully I had purchased a book called "Elmo and the Big Bed" and we read that about 3 times along with her "I'm a big sister" book. Lifesavers, I tell you. Upon putting her in her toddler bed, she did run off and opened the (cracked) door and jumped in daddy's arms. He rocked her and walked her back to her room, where he laid her down and put her blankie over her. She protested as he left and closed the door, but no screaming or crying, just a whimper.

She must have realized her new found freedom because for abouut 25 minutes she played, sang, whimpered, and jumped around her room. But then, after a few whimpers, it was suddenly quiet. That was 1:45pm. And now it's after 3. So I call that a success. I WISH for anything that we had a video monitor, as I don't know where she is actually sleeping at this moment (and I don't dare poke my head in, for fear that she wakes and I kill this naptime) so suffice to say that whether she is on the floor, in her big chair, or on her bed- she is sleeping.

This is a bittersweet feeling for me. I am thrilled that with persistence, she will hopefully transition nicely in these next 6 weeks before baby girl comes along. We've hidden her crib behind closed doors in baby girl's nursery so it is out-of-sight, out-of-mind. But I am a bit sad to think that I will never go and pick up Ginger from her crib anymore. I didn't cherish that last night the way that I should have- we kind of spontaneously put the new bed together and I never had that "last crib night" moment with her.

But, the show must go on. Ginger will be growing out of this toddler bed in no time, probably just in time to give it to baby girl #2, and then our plan is to bring the girls in a room together with the crib which converts into a full sized bed. So Ginger will get it back again in the future, but in a very different form!

Big moments at our house these days...

**EDIT** When she woke and cried out for me, I went in to find her laying on the cushy rocking chair. Oh dear...looks like this is going to take some time! :)

City Slickers...

Remind me to never, ever go to a "off the side of the highway" pumpkin patch the weekend before Halloween! No, it wasn't that bad, at least we didn't have to pay admission or parking. But it was nothing like our visit to Peltzer Farms last year. We had big plans to visit Peltzer two weekends ago, but Ginger got sick the night before and we thought we'd make it down sometime before now. Turns out my mom and dad went out of town, and we decided to try something local this year. We made the best of it- Ginger had just as much fun and we laughed, visited the petting zoo, watched big kids bungee jump and slide down inflatable (and questionable) huge contraptions, and took a few token pumpkin patch shots. It was WAY too crowded for nice, quiet, family pics so it just didn't happen. But here are a few of the cute ones.

Went for it!

So, I just ordered baby girl #2's Christmas stocking...with her name on it!! We are in ♥♥♥ with the name we've chosen, just taking a few more days until we decide how/if we'll share before we deliver. Still working on a middle name, which may impact our decision to share if we need more time to come to a conclusion...

But the name has been chosen!

(Side note: I had to order her Christmas stocking as soon as they became available online, as last year they sold out fairly quickly and I want to make sure that baby's stocking matches the rest of ours this year. Plus, I am due on 12/16 so I'm sure these next 59 days or less will be a whirlwind for us- one less thing to think about! ;-)

Yep, I confess....

I am totally, completely, and utterly in love with our daughter. To the point where I post too many pics on FB, tell too many stories in conversation with coworkers, and dream about everything she does that is wonderful (and forget everything she does that is, well, not wonderful).

It's hard even to describe to people who do not have children what this experience is like. For those who do, most of them get it, but possibly have been worn over time with more challenges, obstacles, and multiple children. I can't even imagine every feeling that way, but maybe that happens? Who knows.

But for those without kids, I get a lot of half-smiles, where behind the smile they are questioning "is this girl looney?" when I gush about little Ginger Lauren.

The greatest feeling in the world, though, is not caring how the message is being recieved. Sure, I try to tailor who I'm talking to, but once you get me going I am not bashful in wearing my heart on my sleeve about my love for this beautiful little girl.

Today we tried on her Halloween costume to make sure it fit properly in anticipation of a few fun nights in the next few weeks. It fit like a charm (sized 12-24 months- don't know how this would fit a 12 month old, unless they were huge!) but she looks like a darling little ladybug princess. Ok, there I go again :) But to look at this pic and see how much she's grown in just 12 short months, it's pretty incredible. Paul and I have grown significantly during this time as well. What a journey this is!

31 weeks

Only 9 more weeks (or less!) to go- awho-hoo!!!!! We went to the doctor yesterday for a check-in, and everything is looking just fine these days. Dr. did an ultrasound and I was able to watch as this baby flipped and flopped, punched and kicked, and didn't sit still for a minute! Just like Ginger, doctor was amazed at how much movement was going on, in the visit alone she said some women don't get that all day long! I told her I rarely need to do kick counts because even before 10am I know she's awake, alert, and already given me way more than 10 punches/kicks :)

Dr. also said that baby was measuring a bit larger today than 31 weeks, at 5 lbs 4 oz. typically babies are around 4 lbs at this point, but she also pointed out that ultrasound estimates can be off sometimes as much at 2 lbs. I was also told with Ginger that she would be close to the 9 lb range and she was only 7 lbs 15 oz. so for now she didn't want me to worry. I'll be heading back for visits now every two weeks, my amnoitic fluids look great, everything she said is looking fantastic.

Unfortunately baby girl was moving so much that the ultrasound pic came out rather blurry and indistiguishable. But I scanned it here just to remember. I've also included a scan from the ultrasound 2 weeks ago where you can see baby's (BIG) brain and head front and center!

31 weeks- can't even really make it out, but there's a hand in there!


29 weeks, and that big ol' brain of hers :)

Now this is the kind of news I need to hear...

Well, all the results are in. While we will need to continue to monitor my progress and the situation, all of my labs came back either normal, or just mild at worst, so doc feels very good about these results. She reassured me today that the point of this escalation was for precautionary reasons, that she wants what's best for me and this baby, even if that means going overboard with precaution when there are any, any signs of need.

So I feel good about that. I know I'm in good hands. Her reassurance was helpful. Things could change in a moment's notice, so I am planning on taking it easy, reducing my overextended workload (trying to be the hero before taking my maternity leave, not the right thing to do I'm realizing now) and taking care of myself and this baby first. I have a great support system and I just need to remember that I can lean on them and not try to do everything myself!

Thanks for all of the prayer and encouragement to my faithful blog readers. I'll keep you all informed of how the next 10 weeks (or less?) plays out, I'm sure!

And to my baby girl, thank YOU for kicking me, punching me, and remaining active throughout these past few days. It gave me confidence to know that you're a strong litle fighter in there!

the bubble has burst, if only a little bit.

well, i suppose everything couldn't be perfect the whole way through, God must think I'm too strong of a woman to waste an easy, carefree pregnancy on...

today I arrived at the doctor, gave my usual urine sample, and was told that my protein levels were high for the 2nd time in a row. They immediately sent me upstairs to the lab to complete a lengthy series of tests, if only for a precaution, they say.

High protein levels, combined with other symptoms (some I have just barely, like swelling of the hands/feet, some not at all, like high blood pressure) could be a sign of preeclampsia, which is also known as toxemia. It's a danger to both the mom and baby. Worst case scenarios include stroke, kidney failure, and loss of life to mom and baby.

Mild cases usually result in just being a bit more cautious, monitoring with more frequest doctors visits, and getting to the 36 week mark and then letting doc decide when it's time to move.

I have a level 3 ultrasound tomorrow, and begin the exciting process(!) of collecting all of my urine over the next 24 hours for testing. More concrete information will come once all of the results are in and the doc has reviewed and made a prognosis.

If you are the praying type, pray. If you are the 'sending out cosmic vibes' type, do so. If you are the crossing fingers type, I'll take that too.

Really trying not to be overdramatic. 90% of me knows that this should be ok. 10% of me can't stop thinking about it.

28 weeks

Act 3...(I thought I'd never get here)

Well, I've finally arrived at the 3rd trimester, and let me tell you- for those women who told me that their second pregnancy has "flown by", I can't say that's been my experience. These past few weeks are starting to pick up, but I think I'm just impatient and want to hold and kiss my little baby girl SO bad. It's unreal.

Ginger is starting to understand the concept of baby in the belly, now that I'm getting bigger. She likes to give baby kisses, and the other day when I asked her what we should name the baby, she said "sister". Well, that makes sense!

Which brings me to the naming topic- we are STILL going back and forth with a few names. It's definitely MUCH more difficult with baby girl #2 than with Ginger. I think the moment we found out G was a girl, we were sold on the name. But this time, there are more layers of complexity in choosing a name. We have a few we go back and forth with, but I seriously doubt that we'll make a decision anytime soon. Another big difference from last time.

bb #2 is enjoying a lot of kung fu in my belly these days. I don't mind it one bit, though it catches me off guard a majority of the time. She's a strong little one, preferring her arm at the top right of my belly, and her foot at the bottom left (almost feels diagonal at times). Who knows, maybe she's doing summersaults, all I know is how happy I am to place my hand where she's kicking to hopefully transmit a bit of love through the belly.

I have had a crazy obsession with cheese popcorn this pregnancy, especially in the past two months. And I've had an aversion to chain fast food (other than maybe Chick-fil-A) which is totally different than with Ginger. I've also come to love drumstick ice cream cones (no nuts) and have one almost every night. The upside of being pregnant :)

With only 12 weeks to go, I realize I am behind, big time. We still haven't moved the house around, though I figure there's no rush when we're going to have Ginger continue to use her crib/nursery for at least the first 6-8 weeks of bb#2's life. It's not as easy to be "set" as last time around- by this point I had literally everything in place. Crib, furniture, bedding, everything decorated just the way that I dreamed. The good news is I'm not really stressing about it. That's probably what I enjoy the most about this 2nd pregnancy, the fact that I've known what to expect (well to a certain extent) and that's good for me. The drama of the 1st time around is curbed a bit. But I still worry, and just want to know the baby is healthy and home and we can start our new beginning as a family of 4.

People have asked me whether we'll keep trying for a boy. For now, I say "we'll see". Both Paul and I could really end up feeling fulfilled with two girls, and while we always thought we'd have a brewd of boys running around here, we're kind of taking to the idea of a pair of sisters to raise. Girls truly do melt your hearts, and I was always fearful of having a little girl to raise, but I'm really enjoying it with Ginger. She is so thoughtful, sweet, and loving, and I just can't wait to see how she takes to being a big sister.

Enough for now, but sweet bb#2 I am SOOO ready for you! Can't wait to smell, kiss, snuggle, and love on you!

if only my eyes were a video camera...

I'm sure all moms, once in awhile, see their child do something that will forever be implanted in their "mommy memory". Well, it happened today. Ginger and I have had a few days to ourselves, as Paul is on a weekend vacation up to Northern California to visit his friend Jeff. Today, I decided to take Ginger out to breakfast, and then to the park for some mommy and me time. We had the entire park to ourselves for about 20 minutes, and as usual I overdid it chasing her, going down slides, swinging, etc. I still forget sometimes that I'm 6 months pregnant, if that's possible! My sore back and feet are killing me!

Anyhow, a Dad brought his little girl to the park and she looked to be about Ginger's age, maybe older on first glance. The park we go to is big, but they made it over towards the structure we were playing on, and here's where the memory begins. Ginger RUNS over to this little girl, who is a complete stranger, and throws her arms around her, giving her a big hug. She says "com'on", and waves for her to come join us. Where did that come from?!?! Ginger is a friendly little girl, but that was too much. So the little girl comes running over with Ginger, her Dad not too far behind. We say hi, both of us clearly touched by Ginger's action. the girls played together for a minute, and Ginger said "hi!", squeezed her hand, and smiled while saying "sit" (we were under a big structure that had a little built in picnic table where Ginger and I had been playing). The girl comes and sits, and the Dad asks how old Ginger is, I said 19 months, and asked how old his daughter was, he said 21 months. He was trying to get his girl to talk to Ginger, who was just chatting away with her, but the little girl didn't have the speech skills, from what I could tell. She was adorable, just a bit more shy. And there's my Ginger, just jibber-jabbering away, trying to get her to interact verbally. Seriously proud mommy moment, especially because I could tell, for once, that Ginger has my "gift" (if that's what I'd call it) for communication. We've seen her display more of Paul's skills (art, especially) so this was such an important memory for me! The Dad tells us, "her name is Adrianna" an Ginger says "hi Anna, me gin-ger" and pats her chest indicating "gin-ger" was her name. My jaw, as well as the other Dad's, was literally on the floor!

It could have been from the big breakfast with maple syrup that sugared Ginger up into this gabby little 19 month old, but I will never, ever forget how much pride I felt for her this morning.

STILL asleep....

So, yeah, we've determined that Ginger is unique in many ways, but this one tops it off. At 9:30am on this beautiful Saturday morning, our little girl is still in bed, presumably asleep. What 20 month old sleeps in like this? I've been tempted over the last hour to go in there and get her up like I usually have to do, but at this point I almost want to see how long it will go. Paul and I usually can't sleep past around 8:30 or so anymore, so we've been up and going, just waiting for our daughter to make her appearance. This continues to make me laugh, but still gives me pause even though the doctor has said everything is fine, she just likes her bed, and her sleep. The only idea I can muster is that she may wake in the early morning and play with her baby doll that she sleeps with, or something. Because otherwise she is going to be one challenging teenager to get to wake up for school!

What a difference a year makes...

I didn't realize it when snapping a quick photo of Ginger at Costco today, but the pic on the left was taken on the exact same day last year, 8/15. What a difference a year makes!

Proud mommy moment...

On the way home from daycare this afternoon, as always I asked Ginger about her day ("How was your day"? "Good", "What did you do?" "ou-sid" (played outside) "What else?" "color"..) I think we have this same conversation every day, so it kind of is our special thing...well today, as usual, I asked her if she wanted to sing a song, which she replied (as typical) "♪la♪la♪la♪la♪la♪". Again, we go through this every day, nothing special or "new" news to report.

However, just for fun, I thought it would be fun to say letters to Ginger, and see if she would repeat them. I had no inclination that she would even pay attention, as this was not part of our typical conversation. So i assumed this might take awhile to integrate.

Well, SO not true! I say "A", she repeats it...clearly. Then "B", again, clear as night, repeats it. We go through "C", "D", "E", and then she stumbles on "F". But this was not just the sound. It was crystal clear letter formations coming out of her mouth.

Of course, my jaw was dropped to the floor. I know everyone thinks their child is intelligent, but at this moment I though she was pure genius. I was so proud that she was this far, not having had worked on it with her. I will be sure to ask Maureen tomorrow if she's started to introduce letters, but for now, I'm just reveling in the moment. :)

20 weeks

So, unlike my first go around with pregnancy, I am not posting this pic at 20 weeks and thinking "look how fabulous I look!" Well, to be fair, I didn't fully experience those thoughts round 1 either (though I had been working out prepregnancy last time and that made such a difference! Note to self!). Turns out your own percieved body image doesn't change much pre, post, or during pregnancy...BUT, here is my demonstration of putting vanity in the closet in order to take a snapshot of the 1/2 way point. Our baby girl is worth it!

Going to...."school"...

Lately, we've been using the term school to reference Ginger going to her daycare, as Ms. Maureen is spending an hour or two daily on teaching pre-pre-school lessons. Ginger is learning her colors, of which her favorites to say are "yellow" and "blue". She would say yellow all day long if I didn't try to change the subject. It is absolutely adorable, I must say!

This morning was not a typical waking of Ginger (she never wakes on her own, I have to get her up at 7:15-7:30, otherwise she'd sleep until 8:15-8:30am. Around 6:55am, I hear her SCREAM bloody murder through the monitor, scream like I haven't heard her scream in a LONG time! I rush in to get her and she had her blanket stuck over her head and I think it scared her. She frightens me by enjoying sleeping with her blanket over her head, almost every day I go in to wake her up and her head is covered with her blanket. Well, today she got to join Mommy and Daddy in bed for a little snuggle time, which is pretty rare given she is usually the last one out of bed in the mornings!

After snuggles, she and I sat and ate some breakfast while Dad got ready, then we switched places and he took Ginger off to school. While waiting for Dad to finish getting ready, Ginger decided she wanted to play with her kitchen for a bit. I took a few quick snaps- and looking at these amazes me at how big she is. She's a full blown toddler girl- no baby left in her!

It's a......GIRL!

On Thursday Paul and I FINALLY were able to have our 2nd ultrasound completed and found out that we are being blessed with another sweet baby girl. I say finally because in hindsite, we should have just made an appointment at our 4D ultrasound place to find out earlier, like we had with Ginger. I think because you pay there, the staff is just more warm, friendly, and gives you a moment of excitement, and generally seems like they care. In the situation this time, not so much. We had an overworked 6 foot tall amazon woman who seemed more interested in getting the shots she needed to get this "over with" than providing an experience. So, if we do this again, we'll definitely go to our 4D place first.

That said, she did take all of her neccessary pics and scans first, and then asked (flatly) "so you want to know what it is?" and we screamed YES! She said, it's a girl! I started laughing, saying "No way" and Paul was just silent with a little smile on his face. We both really did think it was a boy this time around, although in the back of my mind I actually DID know it was a girl. But I didn't trust my intution because with Ginger I really did think it was a boy.

We went out for ice cream after to celebrate, and of course started visualizing our life to be. We shared positive thoughts of a close sister bond, reusing all of Gingers (HUGE bins) of clothes, watching a 2nd girl and their unique differences, etc. We also talked about what scared us a little, having the expense of a 2nd wedding, the fright of a 2nd PMSing teenager, and the crazy squabbels that I'm SURE Ginger and her little sis will have. But I think overall we are more pleased than anything that we know, we can plan, visualize, and dream over the next 20 more weeks until baby arrives.

We picked up Ginger afterwards and told her the good news that she is getting a sister. She seemed happy enough, but yesterday I went out and bought her her first baby doll (girl) that takes a bottle, laughs, and cries, and she has NOT let it go. She is even napping right now with it in her crib. When I told her it was nap time, she squeezed it tight and looked at me with these eyes of "can I Pleeeease sleep with her?" and I couldn't resist. She laid right down in her crib and squeezed baby doll tightly and kissed her on the cheek as I exited the room.

Ginger is going to make a great big sister, we just know it. We are SO blessed and thankful for where we are in our lives right now. It is so exciting!

Beach trip- party of "4"

18 month Doctor's appointment

Our Ginger is a well baby, that's for sure! This morning was her 18 month check up, and I decided to bring Paul along because I was so nervous about having her get shots being so aware of what was to come. I completely overreacted, of course. She was fine!

First, Ginger weighed in at 23.8 lbs, and was measured to be 33 1/2 inches tall (no longer called "long"- that was always so weird to me!) We get to see her growth chart on the computer which shows that she is in the 95% for height, and right at 50% for weight. Dr. Shah couldn't be happier- he said kids no longer are measured in a "good" category if they are too high on the weight chart, so the goal these days is 50%. And this girl can chow some food, so she has a healthy little metabolism and digestive system.

Dr. Shah always brings in a new book for Ginger, this time it was "Clifford goes to Bed". He reads the book to Ginger, which talks about mommy taking clifford into his bedroom, then getting his teddy bear, then getting a blanket, then getting a kiss goodnight. On each page, before he would say what Clifford would get, he asked Ginger the question- what is he getting? Proud mom alert- she got each one right- teddy bear, blanket, kiss.

As we were waiting for the nurse to return with the shot, I explained to Paul that that was a test, that Dr. Shah was watching for Ginger's ability to listen and pay attention, her verbal skills, etc. He was dumbfounded- totally thought Dr. Shah was just a hell of a doctor, giving Ginger a new book and actually reading it to her. We both laughed about that...

Then nurse comes back in, and 1-2-3 Ginger gets her shot, cries a few tears, and then is back to her old self again. Thank goodness she only got 1 shot today, Hepatitis A. Afterwards, we all go out to a family breakfast at our favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurant called Kountry Folks. Ginger LOVES eggs, sausage, hash browns, french toast, she is JUST like her mommy in loving breakfast foods. Here is a few pics we snapped- clearly this girl was NOT phased by her shot, right???

4th of July at Big Bear Lake

Being pregnant makes summer holidays a little difficult, in my mind. There is no glass of wine, rarely can you make it past 11pm at the latest, sleeping is good, but not great, and of course, being pregnant with a toddler means the show never stops. So, with that in mind, I decided it was time for our family to head up to the mountains, to experience something new for our first family vacation. Big Bear is only 90 minutes away from us, and we could rent an entire cabin for the same price as getting a hotel room by the beach. Woody was invited as well, but we've found that Woody is more like a cat on vacations, than a dog. He just wanted to sleep, upstairs in the bedroom, and didn't even notice the squirrels, bunnies, etc. outdoors in the backyard. Lazy, lazy dog.

We arrived on Friday and set up shop. The cabin was even better than the pictures, as the owner had purchased a new sectional couch and new bed linens which were mountainy and fabulous. That evening we went to venture out for our first meal, and decided to stop at Village Pizza, which was a good choice.






The next morning, we woke up bright and early, and had mama's big breakfast of eggs, sausage, english muffins, and mini doughnuts (hey, it's vacation!) We packed a bag and headed out to Big Bear Marina, to pick up our pontoon boat we rented for several hours until lunchtime. I grew up on a lake, always water skiing, vacationing on a houseboat, and boating in general, so it was clear that Ginger has my love of being on the water! She ADORED being on the boat, never complained or whined once, despite a life jacket that was a little big and made it hard to sit down! Her favorite spot was definitely at the front of the boat, where she could feel the water splash on her face and the wind through her hair. It was an unforgettable experience. Dad did a great job driving, and both Paul and I marveled at all of the amazing homes on the lakefront.





That afternoon we played outside at the cabin, and then headed out for dinner to a Mexican restuarant called El Jacajitos. I name it because it was delish! I even ordered a virgin margarita that tasted pretty good, for being virgin.






We all slept in on Sunday morning (yes, Ginger sleeps these days from 8pm to as late as 8:30am, if I let her! She is an awesome sleeper, takes a 2-3 hour nap every day from 12:30-3:00 or so!) and then after getting ready for the day, we headed over to the Big Bear zoo to check out the alpine animals. It was just amazing to watch Ginger act so independently, she wanted to walk on her own, point at the animals, chat with mom and dad (and others) and generally she acts about 5 or 6 years old most days. It's pretty unreal.







We stopped by a few antique shops, then headed home for lunch and a nap. We decided to just enjoy the cabin for the afternoon, and then headed over the village in Big Bear to walk through some of the shops. We ate dinner at a great little place called the Peppercorn grill, and even got some gelato for dessert across the street at the candy store. We planned on calling it an evening, and went back to the cabin for bathtime for Ginger, and put her in her jammies. Then, we looked at the clock, and it was a little after 8pm. Ginger was in a great mood, and we decided in the spur of the moment to pack up, drive down to the lake, and see if we could possibly find a place to park and pop open the back of my SUV to watch the fireworks for a few minutes. Well, we were in luck! Though the entire area around the lake was PACKED, we found an open parking space quickly, found a plce to sit quickly, and had time to spare before the show started! Thank goodness for green grapes- gave Ginger just the sugar high she needed to make it to the 9pm show (that is a huge stretch for her!) We had the most wonderful moment as a family, watching the fireworks together. This is what the trip was for- to make memories, to enjoy each other, and to remember this special moment when we were just a one child family.







All in all, this was a trip we will never forget. Thank you Ginger Lauren, for being such a special little girl. We are so blessed and thankful for your beautiful spirit each day. I love being your mommy, and Dad loves being your daddy, you completely and utterly melt our hearts each and every day (let's see if that still rings true when you're a vivacious teenager!!)