Baby Coming Soon!

We had our weekly doctor's appointment yesterday and have learned that our new little one will be here for sure by next Monday!  Things have been progressing much quicker with this pregnancy, and we are scheduled to be induced on Monday, November 4, if I haven't had her before then!  It's so crazy to think that this is our last week as a family of three.  Prayers over the next couple weeks would be much appreciated!

It's so hard to describe all the emotions that are wrapped up in a second pregnancy.  I can't decide if I'm more or less anxious this time around, given that I now know more about what to expect.  However, I know it will all work out, and we can't wait to welcome our new little one into the world.  As with Payton, we keep envisioning what it will be like the moment we lay eyes on our little girl, and we feel beyond blessed to be able to experience this again!  In addition to being so excited, overjoyed, and grateful, there are parts of us that are a bit sad in thinking that Payton is no longer the "baby" of the family and that what we now know as our everyday"normal" is about to change.  Also, it is SO hard to fathom that in a week, we are about to feel all of the love, cares, worries, etc. that we feel for Payton for another child.  It's hard to imagine having that much love to give, but we know we will!

I always have to remind myself that God always give us the strength, peace, wisdom, and guidance that we need if we just turn to him. I read a blog recently about parenting and balancing multiple children, and one point that the author made that really stuck with me was how as a parent, we have to learn to trade our "doings" for His "doings".  We need His patience, His joy, and His love. Trying to do all of this on our own without God is simply impossible, nor is it expected.  Something that I have learned to really reflect on while parenting Payton and dealing with all the challenges and certain struggles is the fact that God loves her SO, SO much more than I ever could.  Because of this, I know that He knows what's best for her, and by simply asking for His guidance and wisdom, or at times, just laying something completely at His feet, is more than enough to give me peace of mind that everything will work out!

Oh how we cannot wait to meet our new little girl within the next week and how exciting that my next post will include pictures of our new family of four!!

38 Weeks!

 

 The "soon-to-be" Big Sister sporting her Minnie Mouse Halloween Costume!



36 Weeks!

Yay!  We are finally considered full-term with this pregnancy!  I went to the doctor yesterday and got to see the final pictures of our little Miss before she makes her grand appearance, hopefully within the next couple of weeks.  This is the first time we have had an ultrasound since around 20 weeks, so we were definitely anxious to get to see her sweet face again. Everything measured perfectly, and our new little one is weighing in right at about 6 pounds.  We were told by the ultrasound tech that this baby has "a ton of hair," so I definitely added a few extra hair bows to the hospital bag. :) 

It's so crazy to think about how much our lives are going to change within the next few weeks.  There are times I get nervous thinking about balancing two children, but I know we will adjust and it's so exciting to think about how much love and joy a new little one will bring.  I was once told by someone that the best gift you could ever give your child is a sibling, and I'm thrilled that our girls will always have each other!

As for Payton, she could actually use some prayers right now.  We got some "not so good" news on Tuesday at her doctor's appointment.  When I was 37 weeks pregnant with her, we discovered via ultrasound that she had something called Hydronephrosis.  This is a fairly minor and somewhat common condition where there is extra fluid built up on the kidneys.  Payton actually has this on both her right and left kidneys, as well as dilated ureters. We were told that in most cases, this tends to correct itself by the time the child turns 2.  However, if it doesn't go away, more tests have to be done to try to figure out what's causing the fluid to build up, which could in time cause serious kidney damage.  In some cases, this could be due to kidney reflux or due to some sort of blockage in the ureters. Up until this point, all we've had to do was to have her monitored with ultrasounds every 3-6 months to keep a close watch on the condition, and see a Pediatric Urologist.  Up until recently, we were headed in the right direction.  However, her last scan showed no improvement and actually showed that the condition was worsening some.  Because of this, we have been referred to Riley's Children's Hospital in Indianapolis to have an additional test ran to ensure that her kidneys are each functioning equally and to rule out that there could be any reflux from the bladder back into the kidneys. We are a bit nervous about this scan.  It involves a catheter, IV, and sedation, definitely not something any parent wants to put their child through, even though we know it has to be done.  If something shows up on this scan,  there is a possibility that surgery may need to be done to correct the condition.  If all comes back ok, they will most likely continue to watch her every 3 months via ultrasound, in hopes that the condition will improve.  The blessing in all of this is that we've been told that if caught early, like we have done, the condition is 100% treatable.  Also, as of now, her kidneys look healthy indicating that there is no kidney damage thus far! We realize that this could be SO much worse and we are SO thankful to be dealing with something that does have a very high success rate! We understand that not all parents are this fortunate, and I can't imagine having to deal with some of the illnesses and terminal sicknesses that some families have to go through!  However, some extra prayers would be appreciated, especially considering all the changes Payton will already be experiencing at home with the new baby.    

I go to the doctor again on Thursday (if I make it that long-wishful thinking I know! haha!) to check up on the new baby, and will try to post another update after that!  Things are definitely moving right along! :)

Sweet face! She's starting to get a bit crammed in there!

Our hospital bag is ready to go, complete with matching accessories! ;)

Miss Payton painting her pumpkin that she selected at the pumpkin patch last weekend!

Pumpkin Patch 2013

We took our annual visit to Shreve's Pumpkin Patch this weekend.  The weather was gorgeous and Payton picked out a pumpkin for each of us.  We should have lots of fun painting and/or carving them this week! Payton's Halloween costume came in the mail on Friday.  It's Larry the cucumber from Veggie Tales, which she selected herself.  However, we cannot get her to put it on!!!  Hopefully, she will warm up to the idea of dressing like "Larry" over the next couple weeks, or there may be no trick or treating for us!  Haha! We shall see! ;)

Fall Days!

We sure have been enjoying our fall days, but we are definitely ready for some cooler weather! I will be 36 weeks on Monday, and I must say, I am tired of this heat.  However, I can't complain too much because this pregnancy has went pretty smooth.  Other than being extra tired and it being a little more difficult to chase Payton around, things are going great!  We went to the doctor yesterday, and our sweet girl is measuring perfect and head down.  I thought I started to feel the first minor contractions over the weekend, so maybe when we go back to the doctor on Wednesday (We are going every week now!) I will have made some progress.  We also get another ultrasound on Wednesday, which we are SO excited for!  We haven't gotten to see our little one, since around 20 weeks, so we are hoping for some good pictures!

Payton seems to be pretty excited to become a big sister.  Ryan and I bought her a Veggie Tales movie with the theme of becoming a big sister, and she likes to talk about how she is going to get a little sibling just like the character in the movie.  We have also read some books at the library about bringing home a new baby, so I think she is starting to understand as much as she is able to, what is about to happen.  Speaking of Payton, she has been growing like a weed!  I can't believe how much she has changed since her second birthday.  In 6 months, she has given up her pacifier, moved to a big bed, and is potty trained!  Her language is also SO much more developed.  She can pretty well communicate with anyone, and for the most part, is very easy to understand.  Her eating is getting much better.  She is starting to enjoy things like steamed broccoli, asparagus, corn, potatoes, tomatoes, and cucumbers!  I never thought this would happen, so moms....if you have a picky eater, just keep on pushing the vegetables!  Your little one may eventually come around. I would always fix Payton a plate of veggies at meal times, even knowing that there was a good chance she wouldn't touch anyone of them.  Most of the time, I was right, but over time, she has started to try new foods and has realized that she actually likes them!  Yay!! Her request every morning for breakfast is French toast and eggs.  Ryan and I think this is SO funny because it doesn't matter if she's had it every day of the week, every morning when I ask her what she wants, her response is like clockwork.

Payton and I have gotten into a new schedule this fall.  We go to play group on Tuesday mornings, Story time on Wednesday mornings, and Kindermusik class on Friday mornings.  Payton loves these activities, and she has improved greatly on following directions and getting along with others!  We take Tinley with us to playgroup, which Payton loves, and her other friend Addi, joins us for story time on Wednesdays.  It is so neat watching her begin to develop friendships, so I am trying to do all I can to facilitate this.  She LOVES her music class!  Her teacher is a male, which I selected intentionally.  Payton has always been really intimidated by males, and we actually had to quit going to her gymnastics class when the instructor switched to a male because she refused to participate.  I guess I shouldn't see this as too much of a bad thing! Haha!  However, her music instructor is excellent, and it has really helped her get past this!  The class has been awesome, and she looks forward to going every week!

I am going to try to post updates more frequently as we get closer and closer to our due date.  We still haven't completely confirmed a name yet, so hopefully within the next few weeks we can come to terms on that!  Prayers for a smooth delivery with a healthy baby would be much appreciated. Only about 3 more weeks to go!!

35 Weeks!

 

Payton and Elliot on Elliot's first birthday!

 

Reading with Addi at the library!



First trip to the Fall Festival!

Enjoying our Music Class!

More fun at Story Time!



 

Enjoying a day at home-Cutting out letters from play dough

 

Completing some art work!