Sweet Mallory

Do I really have to leave already?  It has been nice to visit with everyone and hang out with Miss Mallory.  She continues to be a total cuddle bug, and I love all of her black hair.  My heart is so full and happy when I see my baby brother holding his sweet baby girl.  He is in love with her already, and it is absolutely precious.  

Mallory is a very lucky little lady.  She has great parents to care for her, and a crazy big sister, Ally, to show her the ropes of life.  I tried to snap a picture of the two girls together, but Ally had better things to do.

Meeting Mallory

I am an aunt to a precious baby girl!  My brother, Clint, and sister-in-law, Kristi, welcomed another girl to the family. Mallory Brooke is so stinkin' sweet, and I could not wait to hold her.  I didn't realize that I love newborns so much, and she has a huge part of my heart already.  

Congratulations!!!!!!!

Ridley Claire is here!

Our sweet baby girl has arrived, and she is just perfect.  She weighed 7 pounds 7 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long.  She looks very much like her brother, Reed.  The delivery was the easiest one so far with just a minor epidural issue.  

First picture of Ridley

All cleaned up with her hat on and ready for pictures.

Nana brought Ryland and Reed to the hospital to meet Ridley, but only Ryland was interested in holding her.  He was very interested and eager to get his hands on her. Reed was more reserved.  He is not a fan of hospitals, and he has always gotten a bit nervous acting when he sees me there.  I assured him I wasn't hurt, and I would be coming home very soon.  

I thought this was the sweetest moment.  John Chris and his baby girl.  She has already melted his heart. 

It's a GIRL!

It is confirmed.  It is a baby girl!  I had my big ultrasound appointment today at my doctor's office, and it is now official.  I still can't wrap my head around the news.  I think this is shock.

 

Gender ultrasound

We couldn't wait to find out if a baby boy or girl will be joining the family in January.  Our gender determination ultrasound was finally here.  The baby was awake and moving around but pretty happy in this position.  The ultrasound tech was able to get a few shots, but she couldn't get us that full on money shot of the private areas.  We got a few quick glimpses over 45 minutes.  After trying tons of poking and wiggling, she was 80% sure it was a boy. We were expecting to hear it was a boy, so we weren't shocked.  We both just had this little thought that it would be a girl this time. She set up an appointment for the following Thursday to confirm.

Doctor Appointment

Even after my 8 week check up, I have been a nervous wreck.  I just keep thinking about all the what ifs.  I made a big decision to change OB/GYN doctors after several problems kept happening.  So after 10 years, I made the change to Dr. Flowers in Grapevine. 

 

My first appointment went extremely well, and I feel very comfortable with her. 

I elected to have the non-invasive genetic test to screen for Down Syndrome.  It wouldn't make a bit of difference to us, but it would give us time to learn and prepare.  I had an ultrasound, and I was thrilled to see our little baby doing so well.  The heartbeat was still strong at 160 bpm.  The ultrasound tech made a few measurements, and I had some blood drawn. The results will be back next week. 

 

 

A deep breath ... of pure happiness!

I have stressed about this pregnancy so much since the miscarriage last year.  I have prayed and asked myself "what if" so many times.  As I waited over 45 minutes for my first ultrasound, I thought I was going to be sick.

I was so relieved to see my precious little baby and hear the heartbeat.  The baby measured right at 8 weeks and 168 bpm.  I can finally take a breath, because I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders.  Thank you, God, for answered prayers.

 

Fertility frog

Showing up once again to share the good news.

We are expecting baby #3 on January 24th!

Telling the family

 

We decided to go ahead and send a cute picture to our parents to tell them about the new baby.  We are hoping they get it, and we can't wait to hear what they think.

 

We had a few more printed for the whole family, but we decided to hold off until we know the baby is healthy. 

Pregnancy #3

 

We had our first doctor appointment and sonogram to check on the new baby.  We should have been 8 weeks along, but the baby only measured 6 weeks.  It was shocking to see how little the baby looked compared to our other two pregnancies, but we were thrilled to see the tiny heart pumping. 

After speaking with the doctor about the potential issues, we have one of two things to confirm with a follow up sonogram in one week.  The good possibility is that I ovulated later than expected, and the baby is actually only 6 weeks.  The bad possibility is that the baby isn't growing properly and isn't viable.

All we can do is give the baby a week to grow and continue to pray.

Meeting Ally

The boys and I made a trip to Texarkana to meet Ally. I am thrilled to have a niece, and she is absolutely precious.
Kristi and Clint are great parents and are obviously in love with their daughter.

Ryland gives his cousin, Ally, a kiss.

Uncle Clint entertains Ryland

Reed is a crawling machine.

Induction date is set

After visiting with the doctor today, we have set an induction date. We are scheduled for this Saturday, March 5th. It is not the way we wanted this pregnancy to end, but out of concern about the baby's size we have agreed to move forward. I am hoping he ends up a little smaller than estimated, but I really just want a healthy baby boy. It is so odd to schedule the day your child will be born.

I am hoping and praying this induction goes a lot easier on me and the baby. It is odd how all the emotions start to come into play. I am prepared for the epidural not to work again and the pain that comes with childbirth, but I am optimistic that the 3 hours of pushing won't happen again. As far as the baby, I am just thinking positive. I am praying for no NICU this time, and my baby boy being healthy without complications.

Latest baby progress update

I was upset when I received a call this morning that my doctor would be unable to see me due to an unexpected call at the hospital. I cringed at the thought of seeing Ruth, the nurse practitioner again. It seems that every time I have seen her in the past I have left upset. After the kidney scare a few months back, I swore that I would refuse to see her again. Well, I saw her again today for my check up. I am still not a fan, but everything went OK.
The baby's heart rate was 137 bpm. I am 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced. She said the baby could come at any time. I was excited to hear that I was making progress, and that the baby may come on his own terms. I have been dreading an induction due to how Ryland's turned out. I had a stress test, and the baby did just fine. I need to make it through the weekend, because my doctor is out of town. After that I am ready to get this party started. Mother of 2 boys. I am very excited!

Baby progress

My appointment went well this morning. We had a sonogram first, so we could get a sneak peak at the baby. He looks great, and he seems to be pretty darn happy. It was no surprise to us that he would measure big, and he didn't disappoint. He is currently measuring about 2-3 weeks ahead and weighs in at 7lbs 10 oz (plus or minus half a lb). This is a bit scary for me, because he could get pretty darn big by his due date. After speaking with the doctor, we are going to see how things go, but we are tentatively planning on inducing at 39 weeks.

Completed nursery

The nursery is complete! We moved the glider rocker and ottoman downstairs tonight and put the finishing touches on the room. I sat down in the chair and had a moment of realization. We will be bringing a baby home very soon. I think it was the fact that the room was complete and all the clothes and blankets are in place. How soon our lives will change.
The motorcycle prints set the theme for the room. I had a challenge finding exactly what I had in mind, but I knew that these would be perfect.

The replica antique motorcycles were a gift from Nana, and they are the perfect accents for the room. We are really excited to have the room complete and can't wait to bring our new baby boy home.

Doctor appointment

Baby Allison is progressing right on schedule, and his heartbeat was 150 bpm on this visit. The doctor says that all of my cramping is due to the constant up, down, and playing with Ryland. She was not concerned with my blood pressure on this visit but wants me to continue to monitor it closely. My final sonogram is scheduled for next week, so we will get a sneak peak at how big he is. I can't wait!

Picking a fight with baby brother

Ryland was having fun playing with Dad's flashlight tonight when he decided to shine it on my belly. He would shine it on my belly and laugh. John Chris and I were laughing so hard at his enjoyment.

The baby didn't seem to mind, and he didn't even move. I guess this is the official start of the boys picking and fighting with one another. We are going to have our hands full.

Doctor appointment

It was time for another doctor visit today to check on the bambino. Once again it was all good news. Everything looks great and progressing right on track. 145 bpm - one of the best sounds in the world.

Doctor appointment

I had my bi-weekly doctor checkup today, and everything still looks great. The baby is progressing well, and I am not having any complications. The baby's heartrate was 145 bpm and measuring right on target.

Baby update

I had the monthly doctor visit, repeat sonogram, and glucose test this morning. I was a little nervous about the sonogram, and I was really ready to have an answer. I have thought about the potential kidney issue for the past month, and I had an odd reassuring feeling that the kidneys were just fine. I started with the sonogram and was pleasantly put at ease. The kidneys were visible and functioning, and the baby looked great! The baby's heart rate was 146 bpm, and I will have the glucose test results in a couple days. So far so good.