Waiting on our Rainbow Baby

A "rainbow baby" is a term used to describe a child conceived after the loss of another. Parents who have lost  call our babies this understanding that the beauty of a rainbow does not take away the ravages of a storm. When a rainbow appears, it doesn't mean the storm never happened or that the family is not still dealing with its aftermath. What it means is that something beautiful and full of light has appeared in the midst of the darkness and clouds.

Avery drew this picture at school for me :)

As I reach the final days, hours and minutes of pregnancy, I'm anxious to meet our little Rainbow Baby. I'm excited to see how he will shape our family and add to it in magnificent ways.

Over a week ago, my midwife told me I was "almost" 3 cm, 80% effaced and that his head was engaged at almost -1... so of course I thought I'd go into labor LAST weekend. I must say I went to work on Monday and Tuesday kind of sad that he still had not made his arrival! Two days ago, my midwife told me that I was still sitting pretty with the same stats as last week. Regardless of any progress or lack thereof, I think once you get to the final stage of pregnancy you feel like your baby HAS to come early because a) surely you are running out of room, b) you are most definitely uncomfortable, and c) it's really hard not to think about every possibility under the sun of how labor will strike. I'm sitting at that point of "in between" one stage and the next. My life is about to change again. I'm nervous sitting here thinking about it all. I do know that I feel thankful that I've made such a happy and comfy space for him, and I'm trying to soak up the last moments of the oneness I feel with him. I'm cherishing all of the sweet kicks, nudges and hiccups knowing this is a special and sacred time. The discomfort I feel is nothing when I think of what my body is preparing for, and what our family has in store!

34 weeks

37 weeks

39 weeks

Even in these final days, I couldn't eat more peanut butter or drink more lemon-y-lime drinks if I tried. These have been my biggest cravings during this pregnancy. I've carried this baby especially low compared to past pregnancies. As I get closer to my due date, I am sure he'll be a pretty big boy!

One thing I want to remember about him during pregnancy is how he moves when I read to Avery. Every single night as I lay down with her to read, I lay on my left side and no matter what the time, he always wakes up and moves around like crazy. Avery is of course highly amazed by this, and it doesn't get old for either one of us. I told her baby boy might have to join us for story time occasionally, which she agreed was a good idea (for now). I feel like he might miss our nightly ritual if we don't include him from time to time! :)

We are definitely on baby watch, taking it easy yet trying to stay distracted and busy enough too. When I get depressed he isn't here yet Jeff reminds me that he IS coming, and SOON. (As if I should need this reminder - haha - but well, yes I do!) We will have this baby in our arms soon.

I love that we know baby is a boy.
I love that we know his name.
I love that he will be Avery and Lucy's little brother.
I love that Jeff and I will finally know the bond of having a son.
I love that we will meet him soon.

Until then... baby boy, we are waiting as patiently as we can! :)

It's a...BOY!

Boy, oh, boy! It's a BOY! Just like that, our lives change forever! :)

Last Saturday we learned that we will be welcoming a baby boy into our family. With great excitement, joy and pure fear (yep) two people who considered themselves total "girl parents" are wrapping their minds around the idea of a little man coming into our lives and stealing our hearts.

The "mystery" cake, baked by my great friend Heather!

A little nervous to find out brother or sister?

The family guesses... pretty split!

The following series of cake cutting photos crack me up... between my face and Avery's, oh my. Haha, these will make us laugh for many years. The three of us were all shocked! :)

Here we go... 

We haven't even found out yet and Avery's already got her hand over her mouth.

Can you tell I'm surprised? Haha. 

Days later, Avery was still saying, "Maybe blue means girl and pink means boy, Mommy!"

Everything about this photo makes me laugh.

There you have it - blue icing in the middle means BOY!

The ultrasound tech put photos in the sealed envelope, so here we are checking them out!
Yep, it's a boy!

Excited to start the journey as the thankful and proud parents of a little dude!

I am VERY glad we found out this time around, because I couldn't go through an entire pregnancy again making assumptions, especially since my guess was so entirely incorrect. It was fun to play the guessing game with the first two pregnancies and it was a beautiful thing to be surprised with our girls, but I knew I needed the info this time. I knew I would be insanely emotional either way after our loss and that it was better if I absorbed the news before I was looking my baby in the eyes.

As the news sinks in, I can sense God's healing and redeeming grace reaching down to touch us. This time I get to imagine my sweet boy's face. The baby boy who will complete our family in ways I can only dream of... a precious gift from heaven above.

Man, we can't wait to meet our little super-dude! Hooray!

School Days!

To say Avery loves her preschool is an understatement. Not ONCE has she told me she doesn't want to go or even hesitated to go. She has actually ignored me or fought with me about not wanting to leave some days. One day as I was picking her up they were still playing outside and she told her teacher (much to my horror and embarrassment): "That is not my Mommy." We laughed about it, but oh my goodness - that child! She dilly-dallies during pick-up time and will tell me, "Wait, I have to clean up," before leaving. Remind me again why I had any fear about moving her from Donna's? She is excelling and loving it! And my job has allowed me more freedom to pick her up early and get extra hours in the afternoon to play. Hooray - so thankful!

Here are a couple pictures from the preschool Trike-A-Thon:

And here is Avery dressed up as Tinkerbell on Halloween:

Trick-or-treating on Halloween night:

It seems like these photos were taken a million years ago already because I am so behind on uploading photos, but I'm determined to get it all done before the end of the year! :) Happy about all of the love support and fun that preschool continues to provide.

What I've been up to

So, blogging has fallen to the wayside for about the last month or so... and I will have some fun posts soon chock-full of pictures (really!). We have been out-of-town in some capacity for the last 6 weeks in a row, and we are exhausted! I also started a new job in June, and have been slowly adjusting to the new responsibilities, new lingo, and new challenges. It's been such a good change for me and for our family, though, and I am really enjoying switching into a marketing role.

I encourage you to check out the website I am working for: www.SignUpGenius.com

Through the site you can create online sign up sheets for many different events and activities. Let me know if you need help creating a sign up sheet, and I'll be glad to assist. From Potluck Parties to Non-Profit events... from Parent-Teacher Conferences to Team Snack Schedules, let SignUpGenius make coordinating easier. :)

Click on the below links to read a couple articles I have written for the site lately. It's been fun to do something new that can hopefully really help people too! It is also nice to have a variety of topics to work with and I enjoy meeting new interesting people along the way.

Potluck Planning Made Easy

Recruiting and Keeping Children's Ministry Volunteers

How to Avoid the Freshman 15

Thanks for checking them out... 

Hope you enjoy!