3 weeks ago we celebrated Easter Sunday, one of my favorite Sundays of the whole year! I always look forward to the renewed excitement the church feels as we celebrate the resurrection and anticipate the Saviors return. I mean, we carry this with us throughout the year, but the expression of it on Easter always makes Heaven seem a little closer.
I was afraid we weren't going to make it to church Easter morning because Reaghan got sick in the middle of the night and woke up in a mess of her own throw up. I had a feeling it was just from the treats she had eaten at her Grammie and PopPops {we had spent all day Saturday there} but I wanted to be sure it wasn't anything more. Thankfully after I got her all washed up and back in bed with Mark and I she was fine and never showed another sign of feeling bad. We skipped Sunday school to give her time to make sure her breakfast was going to stay down just in case so I got to enjoy a lazy morning in bed with all my favorite people before getting up to get ready.
Of course I bought the girls matching dresses... Lilly is pretty much a pro at timing her spitting up to right after I get her dressed and/or prop her up for a picture... thus the wet mark on the front of her sweater ; )
We're officially all grown up now... we're the proud owners of a mini van - aka swagger wagon, aka mom mobile, aka.... thats all I can think of... hmm... I thought there were way more nick names for minivans when I started that sentence!
Lilly Jean turned 2 months old on Monday! I can't believe I only have 3 more weeks of maternity leave left. : ( I had to go to a continuing education course this past weekend, so I was gone from my girls from 6:30am to 5pm Saturday AND Sunday, and it was hard! I know a lot of mama's do it, but I'm so glad I don't work full time. I think the sleep deprivation alone would really challenge my ability to be a good wife and mom! It was Mark's first time flying solo with BOTH girls this weekend too and everything went great! Lilly did struggle with the bottle a bit the first day though. We had given her a bottle a few times before and she had done fine, but for some reason the flow was way too fast for her this weekend. Maybe her sucking power has really increased! I ran out Saturday night after the course and bought some slower flow nipples and Mark said she didn't have any problems on Sunday. It's a little stressful to get a text saying your baby is struggling to eat when you're 20 minutes away and stuck in a classroom and theres nothing you can do! It literally made my boobs hurt! haha Weird breastfeeding symptom! Thankfully Mark is super daddy and made it work.
Lilly is definitely out of her newborn stage! She's very alert and animated now. It's bittersweet but of course there's nothing like watching your baby grow.
Lilly is definitely out of her newborn stage! She's very alert and animated now. It's bittersweet but of course there's nothing like watching your baby grow.
So this probably isn't a real exciting post but I love to document these kinds of things to be able to look back on. I know I could do it in a baby book, but this little blog has become my favorite place to post. And now that we have Lilly its so easy to go back and compare stories... like reading Reaghan's 1 month post as I did Lilly's.
Reaghan is 2 1/2 today! We are in the thick of the toddler days with her and while she is a total sweetheart 90% of the time because of her more reserved, quiet, God-given disposition, she's still a toddler. She can whine and cry and sass with the best of them. She is more inclined to whine about things than to throw an all out temper tantrum {I honestly don't know what I would prefer} but the few times she's had a full on melt down have revolved around using the potty {randomly she'll decide she doesn't ever need to poop again} or when we've allowed her to have screen time with her little kindle that we got for road trips. {once it was because she had to stop using the Kindle while she was on the potty -- double whammy! -- and it happened right as a visitor walked through our door to bring us dinner after Lilly was born. It was a humbling moment.}
Reaghan is 2 1/2 today! We are in the thick of the toddler days with her and while she is a total sweetheart 90% of the time because of her more reserved, quiet, God-given disposition, she's still a toddler. She can whine and cry and sass with the best of them. She is more inclined to whine about things than to throw an all out temper tantrum {I honestly don't know what I would prefer} but the few times she's had a full on melt down have revolved around using the potty {randomly she'll decide she doesn't ever need to poop again} or when we've allowed her to have screen time with her little kindle that we got for road trips. {once it was because she had to stop using the Kindle while she was on the potty -- double whammy! -- and it happened right as a visitor walked through our door to bring us dinner after Lilly was born. It was a humbling moment.}
I'm the worst at blogging right now. I posted Lilly's 1 month update before I even shared her newborn pictures. Oh Well. Let's just rewind time for a minute and go back to my beautiful babe at just a few days old. She's already getting so big and more alert, {which I love!} but there's nothing like that first week with a fresh baby. That time before its important to start getting into a schedule... when all that matters is lounging around and cuddling and getting to know the sweet new life that's become a part of your family. *Sigh* Nothing. Like it.
Lilly Jean has been with us for 1 whole month as of last Friday!
Lilly turned 3 weeks this past Friday! I can't believe I haven't taken the time to sit and blog about her birth story but its just been so much more fun cuddling with her on my lap rather than a computer! But I'm finally ready! So here are all the details that no one has asked for but I know you want to know ;)
In my last pregnancy update I left you getting ready to go begrudgingly make a dinner that I didn't want to make because I wanted to be in the hospital having a baby. All of the start and stop labor I'd had over the last week had left me exhausted and I snapped at my husband when he first got home from work and was a little too short with my toddler when she woke up from her nap. Thankfully God's grace penetrated my dark attitude and I was able to turn the evening around and enjoy it with my little family. After we put Reaghan to bed that night, Mark and I sat on the couch talking and I told him we should just start planning the Super Bowl party because I was pretty sure I was going to be pregnant through the weekend. I wasn't upset saying it either, just resigned to the likely fact. Erin called me around the same time to ask how I was doing and encourage me to just be patient and let it be. She encouraged me to rest and stop trying so hard and maybe even go get a massage or visit a Chiropractor the next day to help relieve stress and relax so my body could work. I was all for the massage idea so when I got off the phone I told Mark that I was going to try and make that happen the next day. I went to bed feeling more content and repeating a verse that God had put on my heart the week before... "He will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast on him..." Perfect peace. No contractions since before my nap, but falling asleep with perfect peace.
Only a few hours later I was woken up by a contraction around 3am. Nothing crazy and I was able to fall back asleep. About 4am I was awakened by another contraction and this time this one was MUCH stronger. I could feel it in my low back and thighs and it lasted a good while. I could tell this one was different. This was the intensity level that I had been waiting for. I told myself if I had another one that strong I would wake Mark up and let him know... sure enough 11 minutes later it came again and was even a little stronger than the one before. I stayed laying on my side and breathed my way through it and then woke Mark up. I told him if one more came like that then it was go time! A little less than 10 minutes later the third one came and was so strong I had to get up on my hands and knees to breathe through it. We got up to start getting ready and I noticed it was 5am - I smiled remembering how my water had broken with Reaghan at 5 in the morning! Funny how I was starting labor at the same time of the day! I called Erin to come sit with Reaghan and when I called she said she was actually already awake and didn't know why but hadn't been able to fall back asleep. (I love including these little details because I feel like they are the intimate ways that God takes care of us. He had her prepared.) Before we left the house I had 2 more contractions that stopped me in my tracks and caused me to lean on something for support or get on my hands and knees. I'll admit I was getting a little nervous that I was going to start feeling the urge to push before we got to the hospital, thats how strong and painful these puppies were coming on and they seemed to be getting a little closer together each time! It was hard to breathe through them sitting in the front seat of the car on the way to the hospital and we had to wait for one to pass after we parked before walking inside.
It was 5:55 when we stopped at the desk to check in. I was so frustrated that they wanted me to fill out some paperwork because I had already pre-registered. Isn't that the point of pre-registering? Mark said I was little short with them and I'm sure they thought I was being overly dramatic as I leaned on their counter to breathe through a contraction while a lady holding out a clipboard waited for me to sign the papers, but they didn't know I was already towards the end! When they finally got me into a gown and in the triage room the nurse checked me at 8cm dilated and 100% effaced and little miss Lilly already at the +1 position! You should've seen Mark's face when they said 8cm. Eyes as wide as saucers! He came over to hold my hand, shaking his head and said "we're having this baby soon, aren't we?" He was so relieved to be at the hospital. With all of my prodromal labor he was afraid I was going to wait too long to go in and have the baby in the car or something haha I just told him "See? I knew exactly when to come!" He just rolled his eyes. : )
In my last pregnancy update I left you getting ready to go begrudgingly make a dinner that I didn't want to make because I wanted to be in the hospital having a baby. All of the start and stop labor I'd had over the last week had left me exhausted and I snapped at my husband when he first got home from work and was a little too short with my toddler when she woke up from her nap. Thankfully God's grace penetrated my dark attitude and I was able to turn the evening around and enjoy it with my little family. After we put Reaghan to bed that night, Mark and I sat on the couch talking and I told him we should just start planning the Super Bowl party because I was pretty sure I was going to be pregnant through the weekend. I wasn't upset saying it either, just resigned to the likely fact. Erin called me around the same time to ask how I was doing and encourage me to just be patient and let it be. She encouraged me to rest and stop trying so hard and maybe even go get a massage or visit a Chiropractor the next day to help relieve stress and relax so my body could work. I was all for the massage idea so when I got off the phone I told Mark that I was going to try and make that happen the next day. I went to bed feeling more content and repeating a verse that God had put on my heart the week before... "He will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast on him..." Perfect peace. No contractions since before my nap, but falling asleep with perfect peace.
Only a few hours later I was woken up by a contraction around 3am. Nothing crazy and I was able to fall back asleep. About 4am I was awakened by another contraction and this time this one was MUCH stronger. I could feel it in my low back and thighs and it lasted a good while. I could tell this one was different. This was the intensity level that I had been waiting for. I told myself if I had another one that strong I would wake Mark up and let him know... sure enough 11 minutes later it came again and was even a little stronger than the one before. I stayed laying on my side and breathed my way through it and then woke Mark up. I told him if one more came like that then it was go time! A little less than 10 minutes later the third one came and was so strong I had to get up on my hands and knees to breathe through it. We got up to start getting ready and I noticed it was 5am - I smiled remembering how my water had broken with Reaghan at 5 in the morning! Funny how I was starting labor at the same time of the day! I called Erin to come sit with Reaghan and when I called she said she was actually already awake and didn't know why but hadn't been able to fall back asleep. (I love including these little details because I feel like they are the intimate ways that God takes care of us. He had her prepared.) Before we left the house I had 2 more contractions that stopped me in my tracks and caused me to lean on something for support or get on my hands and knees. I'll admit I was getting a little nervous that I was going to start feeling the urge to push before we got to the hospital, thats how strong and painful these puppies were coming on and they seemed to be getting a little closer together each time! It was hard to breathe through them sitting in the front seat of the car on the way to the hospital and we had to wait for one to pass after we parked before walking inside.
It was 5:55 when we stopped at the desk to check in. I was so frustrated that they wanted me to fill out some paperwork because I had already pre-registered. Isn't that the point of pre-registering? Mark said I was little short with them and I'm sure they thought I was being overly dramatic as I leaned on their counter to breathe through a contraction while a lady holding out a clipboard waited for me to sign the papers, but they didn't know I was already towards the end! When they finally got me into a gown and in the triage room the nurse checked me at 8cm dilated and 100% effaced and little miss Lilly already at the +1 position! You should've seen Mark's face when they said 8cm. Eyes as wide as saucers! He came over to hold my hand, shaking his head and said "we're having this baby soon, aren't we?" He was so relieved to be at the hospital. With all of my prodromal labor he was afraid I was going to wait too long to go in and have the baby in the car or something haha I just told him "See? I knew exactly when to come!" He just rolled his eyes. : )
Lillian Jean Poindexter decided to finally make her debut last Thursday morning!
So funny to me that she came the morning after writing my last update.
God heard my prayers of exhaustion!
I woke up around 4:30am that morning knowing it was definitely time to head to the hospital and she came crying into this world only 3 hours later at 7:42.
She came at 40 weeks + 6 days, exactly like her older sister did, but the labor was an entirely different experience! One that I'll be sharing soon!
But for now we are enjoying time at home with our new little one, loving on her and enjoying life as a family of four!
I had an OB appointment yesterday for my official 40 week appointment and also to check on baby to make sure she's doing okay since we're past the due date now.
I had an ultrasound first where they checked fluid levels and her heart beat. Everything looked good which was great! She was so low in my pelvis and smooshed up and out of room that was hard to get a good look at her, the tech kept having me flip from side to to side to see if we could get her to wiggle around a bit more but she was content where she was. They did say she was sunny side up which confirms my suspicions because of all of the start-stop labor I've been having. Apparently babes in the position can sometimes have a hard time putting enough pressure on the cervix to keep things going or contractions will start up to try and flip the baby and then fizzle out if the baby isn't turning.
After the ultrasound I went and grabbed lunch to try and get something in my belly so the baby would be more active for the next appointment and then after that I headed to a non-stress test. You guys, I would totally sign up for a non-stress test at every month in my pregnancy if I had to. I literally sat in a recliner with monitors on my belly watching HGTV for an hour. It was like getting a little nap!
I had an ultrasound first where they checked fluid levels and her heart beat. Everything looked good which was great! She was so low in my pelvis and smooshed up and out of room that was hard to get a good look at her, the tech kept having me flip from side to to side to see if we could get her to wiggle around a bit more but she was content where she was. They did say she was sunny side up which confirms my suspicions because of all of the start-stop labor I've been having. Apparently babes in the position can sometimes have a hard time putting enough pressure on the cervix to keep things going or contractions will start up to try and flip the baby and then fizzle out if the baby isn't turning.
After the ultrasound I went and grabbed lunch to try and get something in my belly so the baby would be more active for the next appointment and then after that I headed to a non-stress test. You guys, I would totally sign up for a non-stress test at every month in my pregnancy if I had to. I literally sat in a recliner with monitors on my belly watching HGTV for an hour. It was like getting a little nap!
40 weeks! Actually today I'm 40w+2 days. Apparently my babes like to spend extra quality time with their mommy before making their appearance.
Early this fall I had envisioned getting some family pictures taken that would sort of be a 3 in 1 photo shoot. {1} being General Family pictures {2} a few Maternity shots and {3} 2 year old photos of Reaghan to replace her 1 year pictures hanging in our hallway.
For reasons that I can't quite put my finger on, we kept delaying them and not finding a good weekend to get with my sisters to get them done.
Finally the first week in December I was all bummed out because we had no pictures to use for our Christmas cards and my body was entering the massive stage of pregnancy, not the cute little baby bump stage and we still hadn't taken any pictures! My sisters were going to be free the next day so I begged Mark to go take some pictures on what was looking to be one of the coldest days of the season so far! He tried to insist that we didn't need to send picture Christmas cards this year, so it took a little convincing, but he finally went along with it.
But it turns out... I probably should've just listened to him and scrapped the whole dream of getting pictures done in time for Christmas cards because you guys - it was like 30 degrees outside and Reaghan was not loving it. At. All. I tried to do everything right to prepare my toddler for the photoshoot - as in make sure she gets a good nap before we go - but I forgot 1 key toddler necessity. We left so quickly after she got up from her nap that I never gave her anything to eat or drink. *gasp* Freezing weather + hangry toddler is not a good combo for getting cute, loving and giggly pictures. Not to mention the the cold caused her poor little nose to run the whole time and you know how toddlers LOVE having their noses wiped. You know another thing toddlers LOVE? Having their coats taken on and off every 3 minutes to strike another pose. {please tell me you can hear my sarcasm.}
Erin and Mallory graciously tried to snap pictures while their hands were freezing and get Reaghan to smile. They're pretty talented so they managed to squeeze out some good ones that I'm really grateful for! I don't know how they did it because over all it wasn't quite what I had envisioned! I was surprised when we got them back that there were actually ones of Reaghan smiling! haha
Oh well. Lesson learned. Don't take pictures when its 30 degrees outside. Don't take pictures with a hangry toddler. Aaaaand its probably a good idea to listen to my husband's advice a little more. ; )
For reasons that I can't quite put my finger on, we kept delaying them and not finding a good weekend to get with my sisters to get them done.
Finally the first week in December I was all bummed out because we had no pictures to use for our Christmas cards and my body was entering the massive stage of pregnancy, not the cute little baby bump stage and we still hadn't taken any pictures! My sisters were going to be free the next day so I begged Mark to go take some pictures on what was looking to be one of the coldest days of the season so far! He tried to insist that we didn't need to send picture Christmas cards this year, so it took a little convincing, but he finally went along with it.
But it turns out... I probably should've just listened to him and scrapped the whole dream of getting pictures done in time for Christmas cards because you guys - it was like 30 degrees outside and Reaghan was not loving it. At. All. I tried to do everything right to prepare my toddler for the photoshoot - as in make sure she gets a good nap before we go - but I forgot 1 key toddler necessity. We left so quickly after she got up from her nap that I never gave her anything to eat or drink. *gasp* Freezing weather + hangry toddler is not a good combo for getting cute, loving and giggly pictures. Not to mention the the cold caused her poor little nose to run the whole time and you know how toddlers LOVE having their noses wiped. You know another thing toddlers LOVE? Having their coats taken on and off every 3 minutes to strike another pose. {please tell me you can hear my sarcasm.}
Erin and Mallory graciously tried to snap pictures while their hands were freezing and get Reaghan to smile. They're pretty talented so they managed to squeeze out some good ones that I'm really grateful for! I don't know how they did it because over all it wasn't quite what I had envisioned! I was surprised when we got them back that there were actually ones of Reaghan smiling! haha
Oh well. Lesson learned. Don't take pictures when its 30 degrees outside. Don't take pictures with a hangry toddler. Aaaaand its probably a good idea to listen to my husband's advice a little more. ; )
Family Pictures 2016
Okay so technically tomorrow I'll be 39 weeks pregnant but I didn't get around to sharing my 38 week picture and all the fun that happened last weekend!
Friday I went and got a pedicure with a friend from work. Back in December she was my secret santa and gave me a gift card to our favorite nail salon and then a few days later everyone else at work gifted me with another gift card to the same salon for my birthday! I'd been saving them up to use at the end of my pregnancy when I knew my feet would most appreciate it. My feet have been way more swollen this time around than they were with Reag. Oh and stupid me, I wore SKINNY JEANS to the salon. *face palm* I could barely pull them halfway up my calf which meant I didn't get a full calf massage which happens to be my favorite part! Also, they were really constricting which made my feet swell worse. Kind of the opposite effect I was hoping for. Pregnancy brain is real ya'll.
The next day I had to work in the morning, but that afternoon my mom and sisters threw me a super cute baby shower at my parents house. My grandma and aunt came down from Charlottesville and even 2 aunts and a cousin that are in transition right now - moving from Massachusetts to South Dakota! - came down to help celebrate our sweet baby. My mom and Erin made soups and salad with artisan bread to go along with it and a sweet young girl from church made strawberry cheesecake cupcakes to go with the big cheesecake. I probably had 3 bowls of potato soup and like 20 cupcakes. It was delicious! I got a lot of fun clothes for Baby girl which was perfect because Reag's newborn clothes are mostly summertime outfits which just won't work for this January baby. Of course Mallory took a lot of pictures and I can't wait to share them with you when she gets them to me but here is what I got on my phone that afternoon.
Weeks Pregnant: 37 Weeks and 2 days
Symptoms: Heart Burn continues... especially if I eat anything chocolate or with red sauce. I've had some hip joint pain this time that I didn't have with Reaghan where if I step or sit funny it feels like my hip is out of socket. So weird! and not fun! Pubic bone pain. I had this AFTER I gave birth to Reaghan and the Dr called it osteitis pubis, its pretty painful sometimes but stretching my adductor muscles help. I've definitely had some contractions and cramping over the last 2 weeks! Getting closer!
Fitness & Weight Gain: I weighed 171 at my last appointment. Thats not too bad, I thought I'd be way past that point by now based on how I was gaining weight a couple months ago but if I can stay under 180 for this pregnancy I'll be happy! Especially since I know I haven't kept up on working out like I did with Reaghan. There's basically zero exercising happening right now except for taking brief walks with Reaghan and Piper - but even those have been limited because of the cold! Hopefully I don't regret it when it comes time to labor.
Cravings: Peach cobbler. Man have I been wanting some Peach Cobbler. They way my mama makes it! And pretty much all comfort foods like waffles, chicken n dumplings, mashed potatoes, soups - I don't know if its the recent snowy weather or my pregnancy though! :) I have been eating a lot of oatmeal recently too!
Aversions: Hamburgers for some reason. They just don't sound that appetizing to me right now!
Best Moment this Month: Getting all of the baby stuff out of the attic after Christmas! I bought Dreft detergent and washed all the newborn clothes and *sigh* I can't get enough of that sweet smell. We set the swing up in the living room and the rock n play up in our bedroom. Reaghan is using them both for her baby dolls right now and I love how she keeps talking about her baby sister coming soon.
Baby Movement: She's not as crazy active as she was last month and the month before but still feeling her regularly. My belly obviously moves with her movements as she's getting bigger. The other night I thought she was trying to bust right out of my belly. She's a lot lower now, feeling sharp pains down low every so often when she moves.
Looking forward to: Her Arrival! Only 3 weeks to go! Hopefully she comes in January and isn't a week late like her big sister was.
Sleep: Probably waking every 2 hours to use the bathroom. Thankfully heartburn hasn't been keeping me up if I take tums before I go to bed. I was getting excited that she might come soon until the other night when I was remembering back to that last week or 2 with Reaghan when I was really miserable! I remember hating going to bed at night because I knew I wouldn't sleep or be comfortable. I'm not quite at that point yet with this one so I think she's staying in a couple more weeks atleast.
Reaghan's Thoughts: She loves to put her hands on my belly and say "I feel her coming" "She's coming soon." It's adorable. Whenever we go shopping she will pick out clothes and say "Oh this would be toot for baby sister." And when she helped me wash and fold all of the clothes and blankets she kept saying "is this for baby sister? Oh okay. Thats good." She's going to be the sweetest! We've had lots of talks recently about whats going to happen when the baby comes and keep reading her her "new baby" books. She know that mommy and daddy are going to go to the hospital when its time for baby to come and then Grammie is going to bring her to the hospital to meet the baby where she'll get to hold her. Hopefully she'll be fine when we actually drop her off with Grammie, but she's had a few sleepovers already so it should be fine. I did start worrying the other day about how she's going to react when she has to LEAVE the hospital after visiting and it made me so sad. I know it will be fine, but my hormones are already making me tear up at the thought of her crying when she has to leave mommy and baby at the hospital.
Preparations: Just packed my hospital bag today! I need to buy a few toiletry items and a coming home outfit for baby girl but I'm glad that I've got a few things in there in case a surprise arrival happens sooner than we think. We are still working on the nursery! Yikes! But she'll be sleeping in the basinet when she first comes home anyways so no big deal. I need to pack Reaghan's sleepover bag and get some size 1 diapers and I think we'll have all of the necessities. :)
At my Dr's appointment last week (36 weeks appt) I was 2cm dilated and 50% effaced! I knew with all of the contractions I'd had that I had to be on the scale somewhere! I was excited at first but I was the same way with Reaghan - I looked back and I said was 3cm and 60% effaced at 37 weeks. I'm remembering how my body labored long and low with her. Long as in over the last 3-4 weeks of the pregnancy and low as in low intensity until my water broke and then BAM she was here in 5 hours. I remember being really frustrated having contractions almost every day that never progressed past 8-10 minute apart and would fade away after an hour or so... but this time I know what my body's doing and I'm respecting the process. I'm really trying to relax into the contractions and cramping that I'm having here to encourage progress and not tense up and fight it. I'm really curious to see if my water will break again or if I'll have to go in based on contractions alone. It's exciting!!
My mom and sisters are throwing me a baby shower this Saturday with just some family and close friends and I'm so grateful and really excited to have a little get together before the baby comes!
Just for fun - a little compare and contrast with Reag's pregnancy and this one!
I actually think I look smaller this time around!
It sure doesn't feel like I'm smaller haha maybe the winter clothes are just more slimming in pictures. ; )
Officially wishing you all a Happy New Year!
Only a week late... not too bad! I don't know about you but 2016 had some pretty crazy moments. Am I right? It was a little crazy watching through the eyes of social media and news outlets as our country went through shootings, riotings, the crazy election season and what appeared to be an overall loss of common sense and morals among our population. As Christians we know that society will continue this downward spiral of morality just as the bible warns. So when I take a step back I can say I'm not surprised, but my heart is always saddened by the hurt people cause and as parents it is a bit scary knowing we have the responsibility to raise Christians in this fallen world. So, so thankful that we have this Hope as an Anchor for our souls in times of uncertainty.
So what did 2016 look like for our family? It was kind of a big year - new house and getting pregnant! And I totally bailed on almost 3 months of blogging thanks to my body hating the first trimester of pregnancy. Its literally a battle to survive during that time, I can't concentrate on anything else. But anyways, enjoy the little recap of our year below. :)
