32 Weeks Along!

I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything, but since we don't have a nursery to work on, the only thing for Evan that's progressing is my belly! -smile-

So, here it is.  A friend of mine was nice enough to take this for me the other day when we were at an Easter gathering for the kids.

Although my due date is June 17th, the plan is to induce me at 39 weeks (June 10th) if Evan has not come on his own by then.  Jillian came at a little over 40 weeks, and Liv was born when I was 38 weeks along so.... we'll see!!!  If he follows Liv's lead, I only have 6 weeks to go!

Happy St. Pat's, from Evan!

Isn't this such a fun idea???  What a great way to celebrate a holiday or special event with your new little one... even before they are born!  -smile-

I was spoiled by an amazing artist and had this done while we were at a birthday party... she was there to paint the kids but I threw a few elbows, and claimed a place in line.  Back off 3 year olds.  Haha!  Teasing....

Anyway- if you happen to be in the market for a face painter, I highly suggest this company (www.crystalooneys.com) They are so talented, very sweet, and do a wonderful job!  They do other creative arts stuff too... check out the website!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

24 Week Belly!

Quilt in progress

Every time I "quilt" I become more and more impressed with the quality of work other people can create (that's you, Shere & Bobbie!)  Seriously, there are some talented people out there!  So, bear in mind that I'm a beginner at this when you critique my work below.  

With that disclaimer in place, I think you'll agree it's pretty cute.  I still have most of the rows to sew together, and then all the rows to attach to each other, but I think I might even get done with piecing the front this weekend!  

Tomorrow we will be 24 weeks along- 15 weeks or less before Evan arrives!!!

The nursery, in progress

Since we are moving before Evan is born, I can't start working on the nursery the way I have in the past. It's been a little frustrating for me to be limited in this way (I'm a planner!!!) but I'm coping.  -smile-

You may or may not have already heard my rant about little boy stuff...  I'm not a huge fan of anything with sports items on it, little fire trucks, puppies...  it all just seems so babyish to me, and something that he will grow out of quickly.

I figure since we will be painting his room, I'd like to plan on making it work until he is transitioned into a regular bed!

So, the solution I came up with was to purchase the full size quilt we will eventually use when he is in a regular bed, and use that as the inspiration colors for his nursery.  I know, I know... perhaps this is a little bit TOO much planning ahead, but I think it will save us a lot of work in the end.

So, this is the bedding we bought for Evan to use eventually:

We bought two of those little throw pillows, so I'll use one of those on the chair or something I'm sure...  But, as far as everything else for the nursery?  I'm planning to make it.  Whew.  Now perhaps you understand why I was fabric shopping on the last day of Jan. when he is due in June.  There's lots to do in four months! And, with two little ones under foot to keep me busy, I'm going to be squeezing in quilt making whenever I can!

My photo below ended up looking a little more red-ish than it really is (I'd say the stock photo above is more true to the colors) but you get the idea.  I'm going to use all the little squares around the edge to make his baby blanket...  it will be a little bigger than the ones I made for the girls so we can use it for the toddler bed as well.  Lots of solids and simple prints- it's hard to find fabric in boy colors that is not nursery-ish, or involving florals!

Here's a close up of the fabrics...  Excuse the frayed edges, I already washed/ironed everything so I can cut my squares...

So, that's it for now on the nursery selections.  Wish me luck as I start to compile all his stuff- fun!

Family Pictures

I shared these pictures Jillian drew on our family blog already, but had to make sure I put them on Evan's site as well so I don't forget to include them in his baby book.  Check him out on the bottom of each of these pictures... my favorite is the bottom one where he is, "really fast and green and likes to run on the grass."    :)

He's Still a Boy!

It's for sure- our newest family member is going to be a boy!  We had our 'big ultrasound' today, and everything looks great.  The doctor that performed our ultrasound was fast...  We remember the process taking much longer with each of the girls but we still walked away with a great feeling that everything with our little guy checked out and measured on target.  He's getting much bigger!


We had been waiting for this appointment to officially announce the name we have chosen.  We're excited to share our little guy will be:

Evan Christopher Kules

There's nothing symbolic about his first name- we chose it because it's something we thought was both classic and slightly unique.   We both really like it, and Jillian's slowly coming around to the fact that his name will not actually be Crouton. -smile-

Christopher is Ryan's middle name, as well as Ryan's Dad's middle name so we thought we'd keep the tradition going.  I think it all flows well together! 

Back by popular demand- I added the email subscription to this site so you can type in your email, and have the updates sent directly to your email vs. visiting the site.  I know this is easier for people, so I went for it.  Promise me you'll visit the actual site on occasion though and comment on an entry??  I really would like to include some comments in Evan's baby book and email replies are not organized for me the way comments are...  Thanks guys!

Okay, that's it for now!  I'm feeling fine, (a little heartburn this time around, and tired by the end of the day) mostly just enjoying the consistent kicks I'm feeling now and the thought that we are going to be welcoming another little person into our lives in less than 5 months!  Wow.

Below, some photos of the ultrasound today:

A check up, and a drawing

We had a check up this morning and everything looks good!  Heart rate of 154.  During resting time today, Jillian drew this picture.  Ryan was a little mad not to be included in our first family depiction.  I however, feel pretty special to be included in this picture with my kids.  It's so hard for the Mom to get in front of the camera, so this is nice.  -wink-  

Have a great day!

16 Weeks Along- It's A Boy!

Okay, bear with me and use your imagination a little bit.  He is only 16 weeks along so this is early for gender determination, but it's there.  As Jillian put it, "Our baby has a penis, and Mommy has balls in her belly."  I'm so glad Jillian is so dainty about the whole thing.  Ryan and I really need to stop saying sarcastic and ridiculous things within earshot of her.  lol

See the little bulge to the right of that leg?  That's a penis/scrotum.  The other leg is off to the right a little bit.

No genitals here, but you can see his spine along the top pretty well:

Another cool one of his LONG leg!  The technician kept commenting on how BIG he is.  She said: "Wow!  That's a huge head.  Oh my, his hand is giant!  Wow, were your other babies huge?  Look how LONG his arms and legs are!!!"

Oh, goodie.  lol

And finally, another decent shot of the "boy parts".

After the ultrasound, still in the office.  Look how unsure Jillian looks.  -smile-

A BOY?!?

"AHHHhhhhh!"  Just kidding, I had to tell her to do this.  I thought there was going to be major drama surrounding this news, but Jillian is actually taking it like a champ.  The technician saw what we were having and before she told us, or pointed it out she said, "Jillian- come over here and I'll tell you a secret.  She whispered to Jillian and then said, "Tell your Mommy and Daddy" Jillian said, "It's a baby brother. (really quietly) so I told her to tell Daddy again and she repeated (a tiny bit louder) "It's a baby brother."  Ryan said, "What?!"  lol.  It was very cute.  Even this morning before we left for the appointment Jillian was talking about how she "only likes sisters" so I thought this would be earth shattering to her but when we asked her how she felt about that news she made a huge cheesy smile and danced a little bit.  Okay!  I'm so glad she instantly got over it!

We're so happy things are developing well with our little BOY!

Ryan thinking:  'I'll take your word for it if you say there's something in this picture which indicates this is a boy...'

I guess it's a boy?!

And finally, a picture of "The Boys".  Ahh...  Must feel good to Ryan for the scales to be tipping in his direction a little bit.

Another Ultrasound!

We went to the OB just before Christmas (on the 22nd) for a quick check up.  I can't explain it, but I've been feeling SO nervous about this pregnancy so every appointment is a very welcomed confirmation that everything is progressing as it should.  And, since we had another great check up, I'm finally starting to chill out and look forward to meeting this little person we are creating.  Such an amazing process.

Anyway- just to get my blood pressure going, they tried to listen to the heartbeat with the  doppler but could not find it (here's me freaking out a little bit for the 10 minutes it took to get me into a room with an ultrasound machine to check on baby).

Sure enough, he/she was looking great, wiggling around, and had grown quite a bit since our last ultrasound.

The doctor was nice enough to take a quick picture for us, so here's the latest peek at the baby:

P.S. I tried to put on regular jeans yesterday and um.... not so much.  I'm going to blame it entirely on the little buggar pictured above vs. the holidays and all the treats I've been eating, okay??  :)

M&M's opinion.

When a friend of mine was pregnant, a couple of us gave her some pink and blue M&M's all jumbled up in a bag.  The idea is to count them, see which there is more of and, voila!  You'll know what gender baby you are having.  The M&M's stand a pretty good chance of guessing correctly seeing how it's about 50/50.  -smile-

Anyway- today, she returned the favor for me.

Here are my two bags of M&M's.  In the pink bag there were 221, in the blue?  228.   I'm not sure how this factors in, but Jillian promptly ate the 7 extra blue.  Hmmm.... guess we're still waiting to see.

Thanks, Erin.  :) 

Conversations....

A friend of mine who is about a month ahead of us in her pregnancy found out she is having a boy today.  I told Jillian about it, and her response was hilarious.

Here's the conversation:

Me: "Jillian, did you know our friend found out she has a baby boy in her belly?"
Jillian: "WHY did she pick that?!"
Me: "Babe, you don't pick if your baby is a boy or a girl.  When a baby starts to grow in your belly, it's already one or the other.  You just have to wait to find out until it is a little bigger."
Jillian: "Oh."
Me: "When you were in my belly, you were already girl, and when Liv was in my belly, she was already a girl"
Jillian: "What about when you were a baby?"
Me: "When I was a tiny baby in Grandma's belly, I was a girl too.  And do you know what?  When Daddy was a tiny baby, HE was already a BOY!"
Jillian: "Oh... well... I sure hope our baby decides to be a girl.  Or maybe you will have a cat in your belly. I want a girl, or a cat."
Me: "Uh... well, I'm sure it won't be a cat."

How could this not crack me up??!!  This is not the first conversation Jillian and I have had about having another baby and if it will be a boy or a girl.  I'm nervous if we do end up having a boy because she is ADAMANT that she "just likes sisters".  Haha.  Seriously, she would have months and months to get used to the idea so I'm sure she would come around but for now, she's picturing pink.  Which, I suppose is really just a big compliment to her sweet sister.  -smile-

The latest ultrasound!

When we went for our check up on the day before Thanksgiving, we were NERVOUS!  I was not feeling as 'pregnant' as I wanted to be and honestly, I thought maybe things were not progressing as they should.  Imagine our thrill when the nurse did an ultrasound and revealed our baby wiggling around, swimming in circles and looking MUCH bigger than last time we had an ultrasound!  Everything is looking really good!  Baby is growing right on track, and I'm finally starting to believe we're actually going to have another baby!

Our little Pumpkin Family!

It was a little difficult to post these photos because although we're staying optimistic, you gave us a little scare over the weekend. We went back to the Dr. on Monday, Nov. 1st though, and things were still looking good. So, whatever you're doing in there to cause problems- Stop It! :)

Picking out our pumpkin family at the farm:

Daddy, Mommy, Jillian, Liv & Crouton:

Our family, all dressed up:

Happy Halloween littlest pumpkin!

First Ultrasound

Today Ryan and I went to our first appointment in Annapolis. The people there were really nice, and our appointment was reasonably quick. I was a little nervous about the whole thing because this is the first time we will be using civilian care vs. going to a military treatment facility but so far, so good!

Here we are showing the first (of MANY!) photos of the newest little blob:

And here's the actual ultrasound. Yup, that white-ish spot inside the darker grey-ish spot is a tiny .5cm baby. Strong heartbeat, and looking good! Is it just me, or does that look like a big pink bow on the top of it's head??? ;) (Just teasing!) I know it looks like a blob, but it's our tiny developing blob and we love it!!!

Number THREE, how can it BE?!?!

10-10-10

This morning I took a pregnancy test, and it said yes. Seriously. It said yes.

I'm a little surprised because I had taken two prior to this HOPING they would be positive, but since they were not, I'd kinda lost hope. Not as though I was depressed about it, but more that I had resigned to the idea that it just was not going to happen this month. But, it did.

How do you express being speechless on a blog?!?! I'm speechless. Three kids. It is an incredible blessing. And now, we wait until our doctor's appointment, and verification that this is really happening, and that everything is okay. I hope hope hope everything is okay.

I know the line is faint (it was this way with both the girls too) but it's there:

We've known for about 7 hours now. It's fair to say I'm still a little shocked.

My family. I can't help but dream about what that third little face will look like. A boy? A girl? At the risk of having to apologize to our future son, I'm kinda leaning towards having another girl- Ryan said three girls would be "Charlie's Ryan's angels"

The biggest sister:

She sure loves that Daddy! How lucky our kids are to have such a wonderful Dad...

Family photo:

Seriously? Another one? How could we be so lucky?!?

I know this is totally gross, but Jillian asked to hold the pregnancy test and I told her she could not. When she asked why, I didn't want to lie so I told her, "The way you find out if you are going to have a baby is by peeing on this test. So, there might be some pee on there and I don't want you to touch it." She said- "Oh, I don't mind touching pee pee." lol. Still, no.

Yes, I told her to make that face:

In this photo I believe Liv is thinking- "Did that stick just tell you I'm stuck being the middle child??? Aw man- prove it!"

For documentation sake, I also have to record how I told Ryan. There's a story before the story...

A few days ago, Jillian and I were talking about car manufacturers and how vehicles are built. She was curious if they used a crane to build cars. I explained the process and she said, "Ohhh... and then you bought this car so you could drive us around wherever you want, whenever you want- like just now, to the store!" Yup, that's correct.

Then I added that if we added another baby to our family we would have to get rid of the SUV I drive now, and get something with more room.

Jillian agreed- "Yeah, we would need room for more car seats."

Then she asked- "Mommy, if we have another baby, what will it's name be?" I said, "I don't know Jillian, what do you think?" She pondered it for a moment and then said (totally serious) "Crouton?" When I laughed, she decided she was being funny so she added more silly stuff (strawberry, pineapple...) But Crouton. That's a riot. We're considering it for a middle name. (Just kidding).

Anyway- I had told the story to Ryan who thought it was rather funny...

So, fast forward to this morning:

Me: "Jillian, go tell Daddy that Mommy has a crouton"

Jillian: "okay Mommy!.... Daddy! Mommy has a crouton!"

Ryan: "(suspicious) Where is the crouton? In her belly?"

Jillian: "no... well... um... Mommy? In your belly?"

I nod.

Jillian: "Oh, YES! In her belly!!!"

Ryan: Big grin.

More later!!!!