Baby #2 was a complete, unplanned and planned, but wonderful blessing we found out about on Wednesday, June 8th (5 days before Liam's first birthday). I was actually rocking Liam to sleep for a nap (he had been really fussy and clingy, would not go down without being in my arms). As he slept, I sat there bored and started looking over my calendar in my phone. I noticed I was a bit late on my monthly gift (which had just officially returned in May). Thinking it was more of a breastfeeding/hormone issue, I decided I'd test just to rule that out as soon as Liam woke up (thinking it'd be negative--or else, trust me I would have waited for Kevin to return home from work first!).
Keep in mind, we had been told it would take a while for my hormones/body to return back to normal after coming off of the mini-pill (which I had just stopped at the end of April) combined w/ the bfeeding we were told it may take months, maybe even a year to get pregnant again. We stopped the pill in April, as we're limited on shore duty time and want to have our babies when there's no chance of Kevin being deployed. We were hoping for a baby sometime late this year/early next year.
After Liam woke up and I got him settled with his toys/activity I took a test. The negative sign showed up right away, but then to my surprise another line started appearing. I absolutely could NOT believe it. I called my friend Jenee, who was already on her way over for a visit, who was so excited, she literally swept me off my feet. I barely remember anything we said to one another, I know she was excited and I was stunned. As she watched Liam, I followed up with a more reliable digital EPT which came back looking like this:
Jenee and I sat in my bathroom with our boys and discussed all sorts of things (I was/am so fearful of having 2 under 2, especially since my son is so active and keeps me on my toes all day). Jenee reminded me of what a blessing my new baby is and I had to smile, laugh and agree with her. But, I was still in shock!
We only had a few minutes before Kevin arrived home (he had called and was about to run a bunch of errands for Liam's party, for me since he was in town) but I convinced him to come home (trying to be sly, but he said he could tell something was wrong, but just thought perhaps Liam had worn me out more so than usual that day). So Jenee and I quickly brainstormed a way to tell him. We went back and forth between her staying or leaving and "ways" to tell him. We could not come up with anything that didn't seem too "out there" or strange.
Jenee actually came up with an idea that I thought could work. I had ordered Liam a bday shirt and had called Kevin earlier to talk to him about how sad i was about how it turned out. Jenee suggested I pull up a "big brother" shirt on the internet, then ask Kevin to look to see if he liked the new birthday shirt better, so we could order a new one. I got a shirt up just in the knick of time, we saw Kevin's truck in the driveway. Well, here's the video of how the rest of it played out...
Jenee left shortly after this, Kevin and I sat and watched Liam play while we discussed all sorts of things. Then, we decided we had better come up with a way to tell our parents. We contemplated a surprise at Liam's party, but decided we wanted that day to be all about Liam. So, we felt like we needed to get the news out a bit faster. We started talking about how quickly Kevin's parents family expanded (they had grand child #2, then #3 within 8 months of one another, now grand child #4 is on her way in July/August and another now #5 due in February!). I guess that gave Kevin this idea...
The photo we emailed his parents
and the photo we emailed my parents!
We thought it worked, as it involved Liam and we really wanted to do something different than a tee shirt or "big brother" surprise. Our parents were MORE than ecstatic, despite us being a bit worried about the future. We pray this is a healthy baby and a problem-less pregnancy (I guess I am at a higher risk, since I didn't give my body 18+ months to recover between children).
Our siblings were told via text message (so exciting I know)... err, I think I called my sister. Regardless, we wanted the news out there and "worn off" a bit before Liam's party. We feel each of our children deserve his/her own time in the spotlight. And in case you missed it we told our followers, friends and family that follow us from all over the country via Blogger and Facebook like this:
Baby #2--you're quite a surprise, but definitely a welcome one. We look forward to adding you to our crazy, but loving family early next year (hey I was pregnant in 2009-2010 and now 2011-2012. What a way to spend 4 years!).
I am experiencing some morning sickness (mostly just nauseated and VERY picky about food--not much I want to eat besides fruit!, and I have thrown up a couple times). VERY sensitive to smells, Liam's diapers make me ill (doesn't matter what's in them). Last night I took my prenatal vitamin and folic acid before bed (as opposed to after breakfast) and woke this morning feeling refreshed and not sick (I even managed to get some cereal down for breakfast, as opposed to nothing!). Perhaps I should stick to taking those at night.
I am so exhausted! And I don't have the excuse that it's because I run after a toddler all day and am pregnant, as Kevin has been on leave since I started feeling sick and has been doing EVERYTHING. He has literally been Mr. Mom--from diaper changes to feeding Liam breakfast, snacks, lunch and dinner, to chasing after him, cleaning up his messes, baths, etc. he has been doing it all. Today is Kevin's first day back --hopefully I survive!
First doctor's appointment was yesterday. The super boring one where they go over your medical history, family history and determine a due date based on the dates you provide of your last cycle. They determined my due date as February 5th and say I am 7 weeks along. Next Wed. will be our first ultrasound to date the pregnancy and hear baby's heartbeat.
I believe with all my heart that this is a girl (which makes me nervous, I have BOY stuff and know how to raise a BOY). I was right with Liam, so we'll see with this one! Either way, we'll settle for healthy and happy! We Love You Baby #2 (or Deuce as Daddy calls him/her). And I KNOW you're going to enjoy your big brother, just as much as he will enjoy you. I think he's going to fit into his new role really well!
12 month well baby Liam had his well baby checkup yesterday, which was sad (5 shots--ouch! and a blood draw--you would have thought he was being killed!). I was so glad Kevin was there to help me out, I was already feeling ill and Liam was really struggling (it was well past nap time, since he woke up @ 5:45a.m. yesterday and his appointment didn't end until 10a.m. By the time we did shots and the blood draw it was almost 11. Boy was he super fussy. I firmly believe he would have done better if he weren't tired (he usually does pretty well with appts. and shots). Besides being extra tired, he seems to be doing okay with the shots (although he did wake several times last night, which was really rare). We cuddled, kissed and offered TLC and he finally settled.
Liam weighed in at 20lbs, 5oz and is 28'' long. The doctor said he is still on the small side, but growing so it is nothing to be alarmed about. She said he is just petite and looking at mama she deemed that might just be normal for him.
We discussed eating habits, milestones, and behaviors. He seems to be on track, even advanced in some areas. She's proud he is walking alone (running sometimes) and talking (he knows the words duck (dughk), bad dog (baa dah), mama, dada, that (dat), love you (uh ooo) blows kisses, plays peek-a-boo, claps his hands, gives high fives, completes simple tasks, gestures for things, scribbles with a pen (that's how he signs greeting cards), gives kisses, is goofy and happy go-lucky but can also be very tempermental, waves bye-bye and imitates a great deal of what he sees. His two top teeth just came in, so now he has four total. He adores dogs, especially his own and loves to bear hug Porky (he tries it with Bruiser, but B isn't into it!).
She congratulated us on being such caring, involved and answer seeking parents and encouraged us to embrace Liam's independence like offering him two foods at meal time, where he gets to choose his meal, but also encouraged us to stick to our guns and follow through, despite a tantrum when we've said "no." She also encouraged us to ask Liam to take on small tasks, so he feels gratification. She congratulated Liam on being so inquisitive, strong willed and determined and said these are traits we may see as challenges now, but later we will cherish them, so she said to be proud of and embrace Liam's strong willed personality. Phew! Sounds like everything we've been doing... a little pat on the back for mom and dad!
By the way, we've just started weaning the past week or so, as it's literally draining me to breastfeed, combined with the exhaustion from pregnancy! So far it is going okay, some days are better than others. Weaning needed to happen regardless, as Liam's teeth hurt pretty bad since he's a biter and he can barely sit still long enough sometimes to eat well. If anyone has any suggestions or advice, we're listening...
Well, that's it on this proud mama's 2 kiddos (that is still so weird to me!). We were just discussing the other night--when and how did we get old enough to be parents? let alone of 2? My how time flies.
I am going to try to keep up on this blog, but sometimes I just don't feel up to it (cannot imagine why). So don't give up on us if you do not see a post for a while. We'll be back soon! Have a great day!
Keep in mind, we had been told it would take a while for my hormones/body to return back to normal after coming off of the mini-pill (which I had just stopped at the end of April) combined w/ the bfeeding we were told it may take months, maybe even a year to get pregnant again. We stopped the pill in April, as we're limited on shore duty time and want to have our babies when there's no chance of Kevin being deployed. We were hoping for a baby sometime late this year/early next year.
After Liam woke up and I got him settled with his toys/activity I took a test. The negative sign showed up right away, but then to my surprise another line started appearing. I absolutely could NOT believe it. I called my friend Jenee, who was already on her way over for a visit, who was so excited, she literally swept me off my feet. I barely remember anything we said to one another, I know she was excited and I was stunned. As she watched Liam, I followed up with a more reliable digital EPT which came back looking like this:
Jenee and I sat in my bathroom with our boys and discussed all sorts of things (I was/am so fearful of having 2 under 2, especially since my son is so active and keeps me on my toes all day). Jenee reminded me of what a blessing my new baby is and I had to smile, laugh and agree with her. But, I was still in shock!
We only had a few minutes before Kevin arrived home (he had called and was about to run a bunch of errands for Liam's party, for me since he was in town) but I convinced him to come home (trying to be sly, but he said he could tell something was wrong, but just thought perhaps Liam had worn me out more so than usual that day). So Jenee and I quickly brainstormed a way to tell him. We went back and forth between her staying or leaving and "ways" to tell him. We could not come up with anything that didn't seem too "out there" or strange.
Jenee actually came up with an idea that I thought could work. I had ordered Liam a bday shirt and had called Kevin earlier to talk to him about how sad i was about how it turned out. Jenee suggested I pull up a "big brother" shirt on the internet, then ask Kevin to look to see if he liked the new birthday shirt better, so we could order a new one. I got a shirt up just in the knick of time, we saw Kevin's truck in the driveway. Well, here's the video of how the rest of it played out...
Jenee left shortly after this, Kevin and I sat and watched Liam play while we discussed all sorts of things. Then, we decided we had better come up with a way to tell our parents. We contemplated a surprise at Liam's party, but decided we wanted that day to be all about Liam. So, we felt like we needed to get the news out a bit faster. We started talking about how quickly Kevin's parents family expanded (they had grand child #2, then #3 within 8 months of one another, now grand child #4 is on her way in July/August and another now #5 due in February!). I guess that gave Kevin this idea...
The photo we emailed his parents
and the photo we emailed my parents!
We thought it worked, as it involved Liam and we really wanted to do something different than a tee shirt or "big brother" surprise. Our parents were MORE than ecstatic, despite us being a bit worried about the future. We pray this is a healthy baby and a problem-less pregnancy (I guess I am at a higher risk, since I didn't give my body 18+ months to recover between children).
Our siblings were told via text message (so exciting I know)... err, I think I called my sister. Regardless, we wanted the news out there and "worn off" a bit before Liam's party. We feel each of our children deserve his/her own time in the spotlight. And in case you missed it we told our followers, friends and family that follow us from all over the country via Blogger and Facebook like this:
Baby #2--you're quite a surprise, but definitely a welcome one. We look forward to adding you to our crazy, but loving family early next year (hey I was pregnant in 2009-2010 and now 2011-2012. What a way to spend 4 years!).
I am experiencing some morning sickness (mostly just nauseated and VERY picky about food--not much I want to eat besides fruit!, and I have thrown up a couple times). VERY sensitive to smells, Liam's diapers make me ill (doesn't matter what's in them). Last night I took my prenatal vitamin and folic acid before bed (as opposed to after breakfast) and woke this morning feeling refreshed and not sick (I even managed to get some cereal down for breakfast, as opposed to nothing!). Perhaps I should stick to taking those at night.
I am so exhausted! And I don't have the excuse that it's because I run after a toddler all day and am pregnant, as Kevin has been on leave since I started feeling sick and has been doing EVERYTHING. He has literally been Mr. Mom--from diaper changes to feeding Liam breakfast, snacks, lunch and dinner, to chasing after him, cleaning up his messes, baths, etc. he has been doing it all. Today is Kevin's first day back --hopefully I survive!
First doctor's appointment was yesterday. The super boring one where they go over your medical history, family history and determine a due date based on the dates you provide of your last cycle. They determined my due date as February 5th and say I am 7 weeks along. Next Wed. will be our first ultrasound to date the pregnancy and hear baby's heartbeat.
I believe with all my heart that this is a girl (which makes me nervous, I have BOY stuff and know how to raise a BOY). I was right with Liam, so we'll see with this one! Either way, we'll settle for healthy and happy! We Love You Baby #2 (or Deuce as Daddy calls him/her). And I KNOW you're going to enjoy your big brother, just as much as he will enjoy you. I think he's going to fit into his new role really well!
12 month well baby Liam had his well baby checkup yesterday, which was sad (5 shots--ouch! and a blood draw--you would have thought he was being killed!). I was so glad Kevin was there to help me out, I was already feeling ill and Liam was really struggling (it was well past nap time, since he woke up @ 5:45a.m. yesterday and his appointment didn't end until 10a.m. By the time we did shots and the blood draw it was almost 11. Boy was he super fussy. I firmly believe he would have done better if he weren't tired (he usually does pretty well with appts. and shots). Besides being extra tired, he seems to be doing okay with the shots (although he did wake several times last night, which was really rare). We cuddled, kissed and offered TLC and he finally settled.
Liam weighed in at 20lbs, 5oz and is 28'' long. The doctor said he is still on the small side, but growing so it is nothing to be alarmed about. She said he is just petite and looking at mama she deemed that might just be normal for him.
We discussed eating habits, milestones, and behaviors. He seems to be on track, even advanced in some areas. She's proud he is walking alone (running sometimes) and talking (he knows the words duck (dughk), bad dog (baa dah), mama, dada, that (dat), love you (uh ooo) blows kisses, plays peek-a-boo, claps his hands, gives high fives, completes simple tasks, gestures for things, scribbles with a pen (that's how he signs greeting cards), gives kisses, is goofy and happy go-lucky but can also be very tempermental, waves bye-bye and imitates a great deal of what he sees. His two top teeth just came in, so now he has four total. He adores dogs, especially his own and loves to bear hug Porky (he tries it with Bruiser, but B isn't into it!).
She congratulated us on being such caring, involved and answer seeking parents and encouraged us to embrace Liam's independence like offering him two foods at meal time, where he gets to choose his meal, but also encouraged us to stick to our guns and follow through, despite a tantrum when we've said "no." She also encouraged us to ask Liam to take on small tasks, so he feels gratification. She congratulated Liam on being so inquisitive, strong willed and determined and said these are traits we may see as challenges now, but later we will cherish them, so she said to be proud of and embrace Liam's strong willed personality. Phew! Sounds like everything we've been doing... a little pat on the back for mom and dad!
By the way, we've just started weaning the past week or so, as it's literally draining me to breastfeed, combined with the exhaustion from pregnancy! So far it is going okay, some days are better than others. Weaning needed to happen regardless, as Liam's teeth hurt pretty bad since he's a biter and he can barely sit still long enough sometimes to eat well. If anyone has any suggestions or advice, we're listening...
Well, that's it on this proud mama's 2 kiddos (that is still so weird to me!). We were just discussing the other night--when and how did we get old enough to be parents? let alone of 2? My how time flies.
I am going to try to keep up on this blog, but sometimes I just don't feel up to it (cannot imagine why). So don't give up on us if you do not see a post for a while. We'll be back soon! Have a great day!
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