12 Weeks

We were all very excited to get to see you yesterday baby! We've decided to do our prenatal care here on the Big Island in Waimea, so we made a day of it. First we stopped at Beach 69 for lunch, a swim and sand castle building. We all had so much fun! Your sister enjoyed floating and swimming around in her tube. We can't wait to introduce you to our family beach days!

We then headed up to the Women's Center and checked in. Autumn has a cold, so her and daddy stayed in the car until they called us into office and then they came in. The Nurse Mid-Wife was very nice and asked us all sorts of questions about our family and giving us information about having a healthy pregnancy. Then the best part - we got to see you! Six weeks ago when I got to take a peep at you, you were a heart beat! Yesterday we saw you, you loaded your legs and took huge spring jumping practice a couple of times! So fun! You only measured 2 days older than we thought, so they will leave your due date as October 9th. We prepped Autumn through out the week, letting her know that we were going to get to see you and hear your heartbeat. She's been asking questions and telling me things like - "you need to change the babies diaper, the baby is laughing (after she gave you goobers through my tummy), will we get to hold the baby tomorrow? will we bring the baby home? the baby is a girl, the baby is a boy" After seeing you, we got to hear your heartbeat. The Mid-Wife guessed you are a boy based on the speed of the heart rate. We will have to wait! I'm leaving it up to your daddy to decide if we will try to find out if you are a little boy or a little girl at our diagnostic ultrasound or at your birth. He has a few more weeks to ponder (-:

We love you baby!!! Can't wait to meet you!!!

Love,
Mommy

More practice

A friend of mine had her sisters in town for spring break and thought it would be a fun gift for their mom to get some photos taken. I definitely have some more practicing to do to feel more comfortable orchestrating posing for more than 1 person. I'm thankful that the senior photo shoot was first, as it was much easier and comfortable. I also feel like getting fill light when there are more people is harder with an on camera flash, thank goodness for photoshop to save the day on a few of the photos that were way to dark. However, I'm afraid that these pictures will be quite pixelated at larger sizes. I will have to go read some more articles (-:
All in all - it was still a sucessful shoot and I hope they are happy with the ones I got!

http://taraphotogallery.blogspot.com/2012/03/sisters.html

Two and a half

Autumn, a few days ago you turned two and a half. This year is absolutely flying by! September seems like a short month or 2 ago, but now we are half way to the next September. Although the physical changes have slowed, you continue to amaze us with your growing thoughts and independence.

Activities: The last few months have been fairly slow. We did start going to our new church, Kona Bible Church in February. You enjoy nursery with baby Calvin. We've taken a few walks on Wailua with Bekah and Calvin, spent a couple of weekend evenings at Pine Trees with friends, discovered a new to us beach Mahaiula's with some other friends and went to the Cherry and Avocado festivals. We've done quite a bit of relaxing and resting as well.

Interests: You've really started to show an interest in helping in the kitchen and with the laundry. You are able to help with simple things and even put your toast in the toaster oven and get it started. You help me knead bread, mix cookies, spin lettuce and anything else that isn't dangerous. You help sort laundry, put it in the washer and dryer and even try to help with folding and putting away. You are able to fold a wash cloth quite nicely.
You still love your babies and enjoy changing, feeding and caring for them. You have a constant dialog going with them or the little people as you play. You also enjoy active ball play, trying to hula dance, coloring and puzzles. You've gotten quite good at the puzzles you currently do and now goof around purposely doing them wrong and then asking, "am I being funny." You do silly things with the pieces, hide them in silly places and giggle up a storm. You did to your 12 piece bordered jigsaw on your own the other day and got a good start on the 24 piece butterfly puzzle before asking for help.
You enjoy the beach, but have been spending more time with the digging toys on the beach than in the water lately. This morning at the Keiki ponds you did float around in your tube and try to kick and scoop to propel yourself around. One day we took you out on the surfboard to ride little waves in, but you've had no interest since then. I can't wait until you can wear a mask and enjoy seeing what is under there, can't be too long until you are ready.
Lately your drama at home with us revolves around your room being a hotel. You have us lay down, get up, clean up, feed us, picnic with us - but we are at your hotel. Sometimes the hotel is in Thailand, sometimes Colorado and sometimes - it is just a hotel. You will go out to the shopping center, go to work at the Pregnancy Center and go to school while we rest at the hotel.
The last few weeks you get so excited when the trash truck arrives! You shout and ask to get to a place you can watch. Many times it is as we are walking down to the car and you stare in amazement. You have informed me several times that "when I get older I will drive a trash truck." (-:

Conversations: The complexity and depth of your conversations grows every week. You ask good questions and make fun inferences. This morning as we walked down the stairs you said, "my legs feel like they are going to break, I need to do my push ups tonight." You say fun and funny things all the time! Yesterday you saw balloons on cars and asked who's birthday it was. I tried to explain that it is just the car people trying to sell cars, but we saw more and you informed that they were for someones birthday.

Memory: I think your memory is better than mine of late. If I want to remember someone I met's name, I'd be better off telling you! We met some of Daddy's college friends month ago and about a week after that I was talking about them and you said "you mean Kristen and Paul?" I'd heard their names many more times and couldn't remember. You know who goes with who and if you see one of them without the other, you always ask where "___" is? You remember things we did ages ago, ask about friends we haven't seen in a while and remember when we offer to take you to the park, pool or beach.

Big Sister! You found out on Valentines that you are going to be a big sister! You very much understand that there is a baby in mommy's belly and even ask to give the baby goobers in the mornings on occasion (though my belly of course). The day you found out we talked about how you can help me by bringing the baby their binki (pacifier) and so you talk about that as well. You also brought a few treasured toys out of your room and informed us that those ones would not be for the baby. (-: We can't wait to see you grow into a loving and tender sister! The other night you guessed that you are having a baby brother - we shall find out!!!

Autumn, so are so in love with you! You are such a precious girl with big dreams and potential! God has so much in store for you - we are having so much fun watching you grow and develop into a wonderful little person!!!

Big hugs and kisses,
Mommy and Daddy

Grumpy Mama )-:

Grumpy mama days are tough, they're days I’m not very proud of. I feel like I’m raising my voice all day. A few poor decisions or ears that are not listening very well lead to me getting frustrated. Dollies go in the closet and time outs are had. Unfortunately for both of us, our personalities clash. The frustration doesn’t help Autumn be a better listener or more obedient – it leads her to try everything in the house that she knows she is not allowed to do – pull on the blinds, stand on the surf boards, throw things… sigh. Then grumpy mama gets grumpier. I wonder "am I too harsh? Is the impulse control of a 2 year old good enough that I should expect her to follow the rules she knows?" Likely it is a bit of both, I should have these expectations of her - but should be slower to anger myself. She was put to an early nap, after some prayers and a nap myself - maybe we will wake up kinder people.

Different Pregnancy...

I'll be 10 weeks on Tuesday and I am quite ready to be done with this first trimester. With Autumn, I remember being exhausted, even taking short naps in the car before meetings because I couldn't possibly keep my eyes open. However, I never had anything that even closely resembled morning sickness. This new baby is a different ball of wax. I'm a 2 to 5 out of 10 nauseated all day long. I still feel like I have no room to complain, as many women puke through the a lot of their pregnancy. It isn't like that, I never feel as though I may actually puke, I'm just super uncomfortable. It is worse between 5-8 at night and nothing seems to help - lemon water, crystallized ginger, snacking... well, actually engaging conversation or activity seems to help as my brain forgets my body feels nauseous. Last night was the worst yet and I went to bed at 6pm and slept until morning except to do Autumn's night time routine of puzzles, prayers and songs at 8. All things in life are temporary, so I know this will pass and that is encouraging. I'm very thankful that I have a husband that has stepped up and helped with what I don't feel up to, very glad it doesn't interrupt work, happy it doesn't greatly interfere with my appetite and glad that it seems that this is otherwise a healthy pregnancy. I'll jump on the bandwagon that says morning sickness means good strong pregnancy hormones. (-: (although I would take a pregnancy like Autumn's with none of this in a heart beat too). I am excited that in 2 weeks we'll have our first OB appointment and get to hear the heart beat together as a family!

Mouths of Babes -

On the way home tonight I was explaining to Autumn difference between saying last night and a while ago. When I finished the explanation by saying, "that is when you say a while ago." Autumn said, "yeah, that's what coyboys say!"

Tonight she had gotten her pencils because I needed one to write a list. She beboped around and climbed up on the back of the couch and said, "I'm an ostrich." I asked what ostriches do and she replied, "I don't know."

Then she asked if I was listing. I said yes I'm making a list for dinner for tomorrow. She then insisted she make her own "text list." (-:

7 weeks

Written 2/20

Tomorrow I will be 7 weeks pregnant with this new little one! Today I finally got into my primary care office to get an official pregnancy test and have the GYN check to make sure everything looks good. She even showed me my cervix in a mirror and had me feel where my uterus was - pretty awesome! She said it everything looks great, gave me forms for blood work and the diagnostic US. She sends the referral to the OB/GYN's in Waimea so I can schedule my first appointment with them. What a contrast from my first pre--natal Dr. appointment for Autumn. Somehow again I ended up at the community health center, but this time the nurse was so so so nice and friendly. The Dr. was also super nice as well as thorough and showed/ let me feel everything too. A nice contrast to Maui 3 years ago! I've heard nothing but great things about the Women's Center in Waimea - so I'm sure I'll be happy with their care as well.

Also on Thursday because I wasn't sure when we'd actually get to see the OB. I had my friend at the pregnancy center (who happens to be a Dr.) do a quick ultrasound to see the heart beat. Crazy that at 6 weeks 2 days this wonderful baby has a heart beat. She said everything looked like it should and that the baby was 2 millimeters big. Two millimeters with a heartbeat! God's handiwork is so astonishing! We are so excited to watch this sweet baby be knit into a beautiful child!!!

Here's our wee wee wee peanut!


Sharing the news: On valentines morning we told Autumn she was going to be a big sister because there is a baby in my tummy. It took her most of the day to seem to grasp the reality, but after explaining that she could be a helper after the baby is born by getting he/she a binky - she seems to really get that a real baby is coming. After work we Skyped with family that was still awake and tried to have Autumn tell them - she did pretty good! Since then we've been slowly leaking the news to friends and family. The only person Autumn clearly told was Rebekah - as she asked what we did for valentines and Autumn responded "There's a baby in the belly." Super cute!