Week 16 Appointment

So, I am actually 17 weeks but had to reschedule my 16 week appointment so it was a little late.  Baby sounded great today with a heart rate of 151.  I scheduled the "BIG" ultrasound appointment today.  November 26th @ 9:30am, we will know whether we will add a son or daughter to our family. It will fall of the first day of my 19th week.  I had to sweet talk them for an appointment that day because they claimed they were booked.  Lucas will be in town still for Thanksgiving and not sure when he will return after that so it pretty much had to be that day.

I can name advantages of either sex.  I would love for Layla to have a sister and I would also love a son so honestly, healthy makes me happy.

I wanted to take this spot to record a few things that Layla has said during this pregnancy so far....

1.  She went with me to my 8 week appt and the doctor did a physical exam at that time.  Layla watched it all and then as we were leaving asked if the baby could talk now??  Maybe she thought the doctor flipped a switch while she was in there?!

2.  The first time Layla saw me throw up because of the baby, she went running out the front door.  No Joke.  I was bent over the toilet, heard the front door slam and had to go after her.  I asked if it scared her when I did that and she just said, "No, its gross, I don't want to see that!".

3.  Unfortunately, periodically throughout the day Layla would ask, "Are you not feeling good"or "are you feeling sick"?  Sweet girl.  Now, if I am being what she thinks is quiet, she will still ask the same question.

4.  Layla quickly picked up on the fact that I would suck on candy to help calm my stomach.  Of course, she started having "stomach problems" too.

5.  After watching several people we know breast feed their children, she told me the other day when she had on footed pjs that she needed a different shirt on so monkey could eat from her boob.  She then preceded to try and feed him that way.

6.  Lastly, today I took off my shirt in front of her and the response I got was, "Whoa, the baby is getting big!".

Any gender predictions?  I say girl, Lucas says boy.  I was wrong in this area with Layla.  I thought for sure she was a boy.  Layla mostly says she thinks its a girl.

We will know soon enough!

Belly shot at 16 weeks and a few days...

I am mostly in all maternity clothes and have had to buy new bras.  I started this pregnancy at 130 and to this date have gained about 4 pounds....trying not to stress but remember that with a little hard work, my body will come back:)  It's all worth it right?

Baby on the way!!!

Ok, so I know that I am now 16 weeks pregnant and it is sad that I am just now blogging about this baby...
I'll start from the beginning and try to make it short.

So, in October of 2011, I quit taking my birth control in hopes of getting pregnant shortly after.  With Layla, it took 2 months and I am not even sure we knew what we were doing the first month:). Because of insurance reasons, my pregnancy would not be covered until January of 2012.  Every month we tried without success and at this point I was not sure I was even ovulating.  My cycles were crazy, ranging anywhere from 40-60 days long.  Then in April, I went for my yearly exam and she told me to come back in August if I wasn't pregnant.  Also, in April, Lucas started traveling back to NY for work, being gone a week and a half to three weeks at a time.  In case, you are new, it takes two people to complete this task, so this was an extra kink in our attempt to conceive a baby.  As you can imagine for a momma who was beyond ready for the a second child, I was keeping the faith, but frustration was definitely beginning to build.  On August 1st, I went to the doctor and she told me to come back the next time I was on my period and the testing would begin.  She talked about different things it could be and talked about the first steps of fertility intervention.  After a break down to my husband and sister (thanks for listening),  we pretty much decided at that time that fertility treatments were not for us.  We would keep trying as long as the blood test showed that thyroid,hormones and everything else was normal.

Well, guess what? I never started my period!  Wouldn't you know this is how our God works??  Pretty sure I was pregnant at that August 1st appointment and didn't know it! I was shocked and so thankful for that positive pregnancy test!

So that is where our journey starts with this new little one.  Due April 22nd.  Yes, we will find out what it is.  Lucas says boy.

This pregnancy overall has been much different than with Layla.  I still had about 5 weeks of throw up and yuckiness.  With Layla at this point I had lost 12 pounds and this one, only 2!  Food cravings include anything fresh, mainly salads.  Ligament pain has been worse, I think that is the norm for #2.  Also another norm for #2, is feeling the baby move earlier, it was first during the 14th week.  I still have a lot of food aversions but for the most part, I am functioning normally with a little nausea here and there.

Layla is beginning to understand a few things about being a big sister.  She knows if she is having brother, that means boy and a sister means girl.  She changes her mind moment to moment on which she wants.  She does asks things like "Can the baby talk yet?".  She got to join us for an ultrasound at 12 weeks and thought it was very neat to here to heart beat.  At one point, she climbed out of her daddy's lap and came over and held my hand while I laid there.  Cue tears now!

Here a couple of pics.  I will try to be more consistent with the updates, mainly for myself, but you can follow along if you'd like:). Yay for babies! Sorry pics are out of order...

11 Weeks

14 Weeks

Positive Pee test.  Doesn't everyone take a pic of this??

Our little Gumby Bear at 8 weeks.  Hearing and seeing that heartbeat for the first time is a miracle.  HR was 159, it was 168 with Layla, if I remember correctly.

Next belly pic, I think you are going to see a noticeably bigger bump.  Stay Tuned!

Last day as a 2 year old!!

Layla knows that tomorrow is June 1st and that means it's her BIRTHDAY! She has been requesting me sing all day, even though it's a day early.  She would listen to the whole song and then at the end say, "Thank you mom!".  In fact, as I type this I can hear her singing it to herself from her room:).  We have a big play date at the park planned.  About 20 of her little friends have RSVPed.  There is about about a 60% chance of rain in the morning but I am hoping that it will miss us. Although, it wouldn't be the first time it has rained at her party:) She is most looking forward to her daddy flying in from NY to spend this special day with her.  Happy Birthday Eve to my baby girl!

Last meal as a 2 year old...PIZZA!!

Some decor for Layla as she comes down the stairs in the morning:)

Memorial Day Weekend

First Cousin Sleepover where they all sleep in the same room:) 

Layla's first night in a big girl bed!

Layla's TN Birthday party cake

Princesses and Minnie Mouse...what more could a 3 year old girl ask for??

CHEESE!

Blowing out her candles

AWESOME scooter from Aunt Robin and Uncle Jason

Trampoline from Grammy and Granddaddy

CAKE!!!

Back at home, babysitting Annie.  Layla grabbed her hand and held it...so sweet.

Testing out her scooter

Tim's Ford Lake

Passed out on the way home of from the lake.  We had a GREAT weekend!

2 Year Old Dance Recital

Layla has been in dance all year at Decatur School of Ballet.  As a two year old, her and I went together to a Mommy & Me class. She had her recital yesterday, which they actually just call a "demonstration" since 2 year olds often don't do well on a big stage with a long performance.  It also saves us money on all the costume fees.  Instead, they offer old costumes that the kids could choose from throughout the demonstration.

Layla has improved so much over the year.  She is definitely ready for the next step and ready to go without me!  We can't wait until September when she begins Creative Movement I with Mrs. Jessica!

Daddy made sure he was in town from NY to see her:)

Her first costume choice.

with friends Eliza and Gabrielle

waiting for instructions from Miss Dee

Knees Up Farmer Brown in costume choice #2.

Getting ready to stretch

Pointing to her eyes because the song said so.

Stretch!

Stamp time after class!  Everyone loves this part.

We have had such a FUN year together!

STAMP!

All the girls and their mom or grandmother.

Ballerina bear from Miss Dee and flowers from daddy:)

What's to come...

Lucas and I have had many conversations about this season of our lives. We are very much at peace with where we are and the things we are doing. But there is something that is happening that neither of us can put into words. There is something more that is at work, yet neither of us can quite put our finger on it. Through different circumstances, different relationships, and different whispers from the Holy Spirit, there seems to be something working in a realm that we can't quite identify. We both just keep saying, "God is preparing us for something bigger".

So pray with us. What I love about my Father is the unknown is not a scary place with Him. I can wait patiently, in expectation, because I know that He has nothing but the best prepared for us.

Lord, we are willing. When you say "Go", we will go. When you say "See", we will see. When you say "Listen", we will hear. When you say "Learn", we will gain wisdom. And when you say "Wait", we will trust.

Psalms 27:13-14
Yet, I am confident. I will see the Lord's goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be strong and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

Absent

I have been avoiding this area like the plague.  When I come, it just makes me feel so far behind on everything that I have failed to record.  So let me just tell you the trend in my life right now: SIMPLIFY!

Lucas left Sunday, a week ago, and will be gone for 2.5 weeks.  So this puts me about one week in.  After this week I have realized one thing.  I have got too much on my plate!  Lucas and I are a really good team when it comes to this whole parenting thing and with us entering another season of life with him going back and forth to NYC, I am realizing that I cannot keep up everything that him and I make work together.

So, I am letting some things go.  I have taken a step back to reevaluate my priorities.  It means sacrifice in some things that I enjoy but it means securing the most important things on the top of the list. Jesus, unchallenged time with my husband and daughter, and time to invest in my friendships are the areas in which I want to be my best.

So, excuse me in my absence.  I will be back soon to catch up on life.  I really do enjoy this spot. It is often a place to get things off my mind and I hope for it to be that again very soon.  Life doesn't stop, even when we feel like we need a break and I hope to get back to remembering it here.

Busy

March has been a crazy busy month for us as I suspected it would be.  I just wanted to document a very important event in the Kairdolf household tonight: Layla is spending her last night in a DIAPER!  She has been napping in panties for a few weeks and has been waking up dry from her night time sleep for some time now.  So, I decided and have been telling her that when these diapers were gone, they were GONE! Tonight we put on the last of the pack.  I am resisting the urge to be sappy and sad about it and just choosing to embrace the lifestyle of NO DIAPERS before we add #2.  I am so proud of my baby girl. This has been something that she has totally initiated on her own. I guess since she is ready I better be too:).

More pics and stories to come on what we have been up too!
Happy Sunday, hope everyone has a great week!

Another doctor visit

After going back and forth, I finally decided to take Layla to the doctor today. She has had a cough that sounded worse and then has also had a fever. I just wanted a peace of mind before she went to TN with the grandparents for a couple of days. After looking and listening, the dr concluded that she had an extremely red throat, with a temp of 101 but her lungs and ears were clear. She then sent us for a strep test which was also negative so now we are just to treat the fever at night. Fortunately, the fever OR cough doesn't seem to bother Layla for the most part. She is still sleeping, eating, and playing like a healthy child. I figured that she was okay but wanted to make sure. We ARE talking about a kid who has thrown up in her sleep twice and I didnt even know until the morning. Hopefully, in the next couple of days she will be symptom free.

In other news, my Otterbox arrived today which means I will be replacing my beat up phone tomorrow. Sure hate to spend money on a new phone but mine is almost useless.

Looking forward to a great Friday to kickoff the weekend.
Happy March 1st everyone!
3 months from today, I will have a THREE year old! Wow!

it's the little things...

This week I have taken off the changing pad from Layla's dresser.  We haven't been using it for awhile but I have hesitated in removing it because it was another sign that she is definitely not a baby anymore.  I DO love her age now but watching it go by so fast is just almost too much at times!

She has woken me up again to take her potty but it was at about 6:30am instead of 3:30am.  I did talk her to going back to bed for an hour or so after the potty break but I don't think she ever went back to sleep.  She continues to wake up dry most mornings even without a middle of the night potty break.  Dare I say when these diapers are gone we might not buy anymore?? There is about 20 more in there...we shall wait and see.

Happy Leap Day.  Boy, how life has changed since the last time we celebrated this extra day!

Sunday Sitdown

Okay, so Monday is the new Sunday!

Maybe we will start calling it Monday Meltdown...

Anyway, here's what we have been up too:

The beginning of the week was very routine for us.
Tuesday, We had our girls lunch with a couple close friends and their girls.  We ate at one of my favorite restaurants, Sun in my Belly.
Wednesday, I got back to a Bikram (Hot Yoga) class.  I can always tell it has been too long when my back tightens up again.
Thursday, the weather was BEAUTIFUL so after a morning at church and nap time, we spent probably over 2 hours at the playground.  Just about the rest of the neighborhood was out there as well.  It really did feel like spring time.  It was great catching up with all the neighbors and seeing how their kids have grown over the "winter".
Friday, we spent the morning with our twin friends, Bobby and Sydney, at Hippo Hop.  It is one of those indoor bouncing places.  The kids had a great time and all ate a big lunch at the mexican restaurant afterwards.  Friday night, I went out with my girlfriend (and neighbor) Heather.  She is about 30 weeks preggo with #2 and was needing some R&R.  We dined outside at Leons under the heaters.  Have I mentioned we have the BEST patio dining here??  Anyway, after a peaceful kid free meal, we walked down and grabbed some frozen yogurt.  It as a great evening.
Saturday, we have a busy day.  I started the day, teaching my spin class, and then ran home and hopped in the shower.  We took Layla to a performance of Mother Goose at Decatur School of Dance.  Her teacher at DSOB was Mother Goose and she also got to see the "older"girls dance.  The show was about and hour and Layla sat still in Lucas's lap the whole time.  She clapped very enthusiastically after each performance.  She loved to watch them do moves that she recognized from her 2 year old class.  She said when she got big she wanted to dance like them:).  We then grabbed lunch as a family and I had to run off to another meeting while Layla napped at home with dad.  This year I am co-chairing in the organization of Kirkwood's Spring Fling 5k.  It is a 5k around our neighborhood that happens the morning of the annual festival.  Last year, there were about 400 hundred runners and we are hoping for more this year.  Right now we are trying to tie down our sponsors before the tshirts are printed.  Sign up at active.com.  It's a fun race!  After a busy day, Lucas had some guys over for poker night which meant I got a solo trip to target and a bed time of about 10pm.  Good Day!
Sunday: We headed out the door for church, and on the way Lucas said "you know if you had gotten up earlier we could have stopped for HOT Krispy Kreme".  You bet I will be ready next week:).  When we got home, we took a walk to our urban garden that the neighborhood shares.  We are getting a plot there this year because I am dying to plant some veggies.  I am so excited about having a garden, I can hardly stand it. Thank goodness I have a husband who supports my excitement.  I am sure there will be more on this subject later:).  After a Sunday afternoon nap, we all headed to the ball field for the first softball practice of the spring.  I can't believe it is that time of the year already!  Then after softball, we headed to some neighbors house for dinner.  SO nice to have someone cook for you.  The food was delish and the company was even better. We had such a good time, Layla stayed up until almost 9pm :0.

We are feeling very blessed to live in a great city, with a great community.

Layla and her two loves.

This cat lives in the pet store in down town kirkwood.  We walk by there almost everyday the weather permits.  Layla loves to stop and see the 2 kitties.  I swear that this one "Ginger" waves to her every time. 

Homemade pretzel making with dad

in the bubble on the playground with Kyson

such a daddy's girl. she was watching him in the garage.

running the bases

this awesome tree and swing in the woods by the garden

who doesn't love a sleeping baby.  She had both feet hanging out:)

when did they get so big??

getting Mrs. Dee's autograph

Cheese!

Sunday Sitdown (happening on a Monday)

Highlights of our week:

1. Layla finished ANOTHER session of music class on Friday.  I keep looking for a way to weave this out of schedule, but she loves it more & more.  We start the Spring session mid march.

2.  Friday was Girl's Night!  A few of my close friends and I went to see The Vow and then hit up Starbucks afterward.  The movie was really good but we were kicked out of Starbucks before we were ready to leave:)

3.  Saturday turned into a rainy day so we pulled out another movie from our stash.  Have I mentioned this to you guys??  We joined the Disney Movie Club and got 7 Blue-Ray movies for about $13.  We just have to pay full price for 2 Disney movies in the next 2 years.  We received all the movies the same day, so we put some away to pull out on a rainy day.  Princess and the Frog was the first one and Saturday, we introduced Alice in Wonderland.  Layla loved both of them and we have watched them multiple times.

4.  So VERY THANKFUL for our church home here in Atlanta.

5.  We spent Sunday afternoon at Natalie and Chris's house.  We had ribs on the BIG Green Egg.  They were delish.  Layla napped there and then woke up in a crazy mood.  She was very entertaining for everyone:).  Last night we kept sweet Annie while her parents went out.  Did I mention I LOVE being a aunt?? Enjoy them and send them home:)

6. Productive Monday so far!  Dance class, watched Kyson so his mom could grocery shop in peace, & completed my ironing.  After nap we have storytime and then grocery shopping!  Maybe a play ground trip in there somewhere?

Life is good, I LOVE my job;)
Happy Presidents Day!

Blame it on the book

I have been a bad blogger lately and I am blaming it on a book.  I am re-reading Redeeming Love for book club this month and I am captivated by it.  What a fantastic story of God's love for his children and how he can redeem us from whatever our past may be.

Here is what we have been up to!
Because of the cool weather, we decided to take Layla bowling for the first time after church on Sunday.  She knew before she got there, after watching youtube videos, that she wanted a purple ball!  Luckily, they had one and she got to use it.  Even if it did weigh 15 pounds!

She is still into "posing" for pics

Size 8 Bowling shoes are ADORABLE!

Pushing it down!

"Go Ball!"  She even bowled a strike once!

CHEESE!!

We had a GREAT time and she can't wait to go back!

Lucas and I have never celebrated Valentine's day but this year, Layla and I made him homemade gifts (Thanks Pinterest!).  We invited cousin Annie over for our art project, so that she could make one for her daddy too! 

Looks like Layla is eating paint here....

Layla hated the paint on her hands and feet, but she was a good sport.  And Daddy Loved it!

Annie Girl!  Who is already sleeping through the night:):)

After rebelling against her nap for two days, this is how Layla was Wed. morning....

Thankfully, it was just a SHORT phase and she is back to regular napping.  She stayed in her bed the whole time when she wasn't napping and was just singing and talking!  It was sweet.  Thankfully, she is still bound to the crib.

In other big news, we are down to just 1 diaper a day now!  Layla went for about a week where she consistently woke up from her nap dry.  She would even take off her diaper and show me.  I asked her every day if she was ready to nap in big girl panties and she said "No, I want to wear diaper".  So, I didn't push it for fear that it would screw up nap time.  Yesterday, she said she wanted to sleep in big girl panties.  She woke up dry and chose to wear them again today!  Even more than that, she has woken up about 5 mornings totally dry.  Not consecutive mornings, but still I have been impressed.  We have not even limited her fluids at all.  I didn't know it was physically possible for them to hold it that long?? I am not waking her up in the middle of the night, so she can go pee in the zombie state.  I figure it will happen when she is ready, like the naps did.

On a final note, Layla got a big Valentine surprise in the mail from Granna and Papa yesterday.  Thanks to them, she had candy for dinner last night.:)

"My child is spoiled because no one will spank grandma" definitely applies here.  

Back to reading!  Have a happy day!