It's a Good Week!!

Good news is ALWAYS welcome!! We saw the perinatologist this week. I was terrified I was going to get the bed rest speech. It's so hard to predict what is going to happen from one week to the next. Fortunately, after a full week of taking it easy we were able to see improvements. My cervical length grew from 2.75 to 3.7 in 1 week. Researchers are beginning to discover that the cervix is dynamic (always changing) in some instances. For most women the cervix begins to shorten as labor nears. It is rare for it to grow once the shortening process begins. Of course I am the exception to the rule. I take after my father when it comes to abnormal medical conditions or any accident for that matter. Due to my history the doctor wants to monitor me throughout the pregnancy. From this point on I will be seeing both my high risk ob and perinatologist. I am very optimistic that we will have a much smoother ride this go around. The progesterone injections along with the once a week doc visits will hopefully keep us on track.

As for Natalee... she is developing such a huge personality. She has Trey and I entertained every second of the day. This week she has come out with a few phrases.

"Momma mooo"... Momma move
Anytime I am in her way she pushes me aside and asks me to move.

"Bee Bop"... Tinkerbell
Her new obsession is tinkerbell. I don't know how tinkerbell turned into "bee bop" but it did.

Feels Like Summer

We have some exciting news!!! We will be welcoming a baby GIRL to our family in November!!! We got the 100% confirmation from the doctor today. I'm so excited for Natalee to have a little sister. Everything looks great with the baby. She is growing perfectly.

On to the not so great news... It looks like we will be in for a pregnancy similar to the pregnancy with Natalee. I had been noticing what I thought may be contractions for the past couple weeks. I mentioned it at my appointment today and they checked my cervical length just to be safe. I was very hopeful that I had been paranoid for no reason. It turns out my length went from 3.5 to 2.75 in a 3 week period. Anything below 3.0 is cause for concern. Most women have a length between 3.5 and 4.0 up until about 35 weeks. I will begin seeing a perinatologist next week in addition to my high risk doctor. We are taking every precaution necessary. At this point I don't have to go on bed rest (thank the lord). I was advised to cut my activity in half and stop working out. Hopefully this will do the trick for a while.

Here are a few pictures from our beach trip to Hilton Head. Natalee loved the beach! She cried when we would drag her up to the condo for a nap. The minute she woke up each morning she went straight for her shovel and headed for the balcony to point to the beach. We were really able to enjoy the beach and watch her play in the sand. I hope we are able to take another beach vacation before the summer is over.

Cruisin on her new tricycle

Juice break

Pop, Natalee and Daddy

Floatin in the water

Natalee's Last Day of School

Natalee had her last day of Mother Day out last week. We were so sad to see it end. She really blossomed over the four month period she was there. We were lucky enough to have amazing teachers. One of which was her Aunt Amy. We were a little spoiled!!

Natalee has grown to love any type of art since being there. They had the kids doing various arts and crafts. Unfortunately, I am the least artistic and crafty person you will ever meet. At home all Natalee wants me to do is draw pictures. She hands me a marker and shows me where to draw on the paper. Poor child only sees stick people, flowers and shapes. I need to brush up on my drawing skills.

Here are a few pics of her last day...

Dance Machine

Leading the show

Aloha!

Natalee and Mitzi

Natalee and her teacher " Auma MiMi"

WE'RE GROWING!!!

It all started in March... I wasn't feeling like myself and decided to take a pregnancy test. I didn't think too much of it and continued with my day. I finished up a conference call and realized I had forgotten to look at the results. Much to my shock/surprise I found a positive pregnancy test. I was shocked to say the least. I must have looked like a crazy person pacing my house saying, "OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH, OH MY GOSH..." Natalee was at mother's day out and Trey was working. I was stuck with myself in a state of disbelief. I immediately called the doctor to determine how accurate these tests were. With Natalee I found out through a blood test. I had refused to buy anymore pregnancy tests after almost a year of trying to get pregnant.

I decided to tell Trey in person when he got home from work. I called Liz and she helped me make Natalee a shirt that said, "I'm going to be a big sister" with the due date underneath. As soon as Trey got home from work I sent Natalee in to meet him with her shirt. It took him a minute to read it and put the pieces together. He thought I was joking. Needless to say he was as shocked as I had been. We had been told for months that we would most likely need to do some form of fertility. Shows how much they know :)

We have been cautiously optimitic this go around. My previous pregnancy wasn't a walk in the park. I lived in a state of fear for the majority of the pregnancy. I felt/feel as though I will never have that moment of relief until the baby gets here healthy. So far everything looks great. We have had a few appointments and 3 ultrasounds. My doctors are amazing! We have come up with a game plan to help prevent preterm labor. I will begin progesterone injections next week. This is a shot Trey will give me every week until 36 weeks. He's still not sure he has the stomach to administer the injection (funny since my stomach is the one being poked). We will resort to plan B if he's not up for the job of Mr. Nurse. I'm a little nervous about the shots but am willing to do anything to carry this baby to term.

Today's visit went great! The baby is developing right on track and had a strong heartbeat of 155bpm. I have been confident we were having a boy from the beginning. I have felt great and totally avoided morning sickness. Already this pregnancy has been totally different. Even my weight gain is on the lower side. We all know I didn't hold back with Natalee. I indulged in everything and packed on 50lbs to prove it. Trey has been firm is thinking we were having a girl. He wouldn't even think too much about boy names. It was a waste of time to him. Much to my surprise the ultrasound tech agreed with Trey today. After having 2 different types of ultrasounds she said with almost certainty, "LOOKS LIKE A GIRL!!" She couldn't find anything that resembled those little boy body parts. I was shocked! Trey was sitting there with the biggest grin on his face. He was beyond thrilled! He has always wanted girls. All I care about is a healthly baby. Having 2 little girls so close in age is going to be so much fun. Maybe even a little chaotic at times. I'm holding Natalee back so they will only be 1 grade apart. I'm so excited for Natalee to have a partner in crime. I know she is going to be an amazing big sister. Look out Trey!! You're now going to be dominated by a house full of women!! We can only hope and pray for a safe and healthy pregnancy. Can't wait to meet the newest little Mack in November :)

Here's a look at our ultrasound. My scanner is acting crazy so it isn't the best shot.

Mothers Day Weekend

We had a fun filled Mothers Day! My favorite place in the world is the lake and luckily Natalee's a happy girl on the water also. We spent the afternoon on the boat. She was finally back to herself and full of personality after a week of being sick. Unfortunately, I managed to get the cold she had. We just can't stay well in this house.

I think Natalee knew it was Mother's Day. She was extra sweet and cuddly. She also picked up on the fact that I didn't feel well. She is really starting to pick up on how people around her are feeling. When she hears a baby cry she says, "Awww" and starts rocking her arms like she's rocking the baby. I have watched her interact with the kids in her class and she always seems concerned when one of the kids is upset. We are really enjoying watching her personality come out!

Natalee's personality isn't the only thing developing. Lately she has come out with the funniest phrases. Here are a few...

Uncle Lee = " La Le"

Nana = "NiNa"

too tight = " too tie"

Auntie Amy = "Auma MiMi"

Bullseye (from Toy Story) = "Bull Bye"

thank you = "ta ta"

please = "pease"

juice = "duece"

let's go = "let's doe"

where are you = "are you"

cow= "tow" pretty much anything that starts with a "c" comes out with a "t"

All in all we're doing great. If we can all stay well we will be in good shape. We are getting very excited about going to the beach. We are headed to Hilton Head over Memorial Day for a much needed vacation!

Looking at the birds with Dad

Lee and Brandi

Somebody loves the wind

Sporting Mommy's sunglasses

Easter Weekend Festivities

Happy Easter! I hope your Easter weekend was as great as ours has been. We drove up to Townsend on Saturday to visit DD and JJ at the river. Natalee always has so much fun up there. Her favorite outdoor activity has become finding rocks. There are plenty of rocks up there and she literally spends the entire time throwing them in the river. Who knew that could entertain a toddler for hours.

When we got home we dyed Easter eggs and painted Easter stained glass. She was interested in the eggs for a very short amount of time. I ended up letting her decorate plastic eggs with stickers. Much more kid friendly! She really got into the painting. My patio table will unfortunately show the evidence for a while.

Today was filled with candy, Easter bunnies and Easter eggs. I think Trey and I consumed far more candy than Natalee did. After church we came home and sent Natalee out and about to hunt Easter eggs for the first time. She picked up on what to do so fast! She got so excited every time she spotted an egg. Icing on the cake was when she discovered the candy inside. Once that happened she just wanted us to get the eggs for her and bring her the candy (smart girl). She didn't like going in the mulch to grab eggs. She would say, "Ewwww" every time her feet got dirty. Such a girly girl. The finale was her Easter basket full of the most random stuff. I found ridiculous glasses at the dollar store to put in her basket. I thought she would like over them without a second thought. Much to our surprise they were the first object she grabbed. She proceeded to put them on and wear them while she looked through the rest of her basket. It was beyond hilarious.

I put up a few pictures from the weekend. Enjoy...

Natalee and Nana being silly
Her new Dora umbrella

Such a silly girl

Natalee's two favorite eggs

Looks like she found the kit kats

On the hunt

Spotting her first Easter egg

Chillin in DD's chair

JJ helping her find the perfect rock