Weekend Update

It was a really nice weekend for our family and we have lots to share with you!  We were super busy but we also had some wonderful time together and we are grateful.  Our weekend started off with our big ultrasound that we have waited and waited for.  The news came back that we are expecting our third daughter!  Everything looked really good and we just couldn't be happier.  I thought the girls were going to be disappointed to not be getting a little brother, but they are just as tickled to have a little sister.  We got some really fantastic pictures so kudos to the nice ultrasound tech who help us.

Isn't this little hand just the most perfect hand you have ever seen?  I feel like she was waving to us. :)

We were fortune to have Gramma and Grampa come to La Grande for the day.  They accompanied us to the hospital for the ultrasound and kept the girls company while we were busy in Radiology.  They spent the entire day with us and we had so much fun visiting, doing Easter crafts, and making cookies.  My mom even brought lunch and dinner for us so what a relief to not have to worry about cooking for a day!!!!

On Saturday we started off by heading to the local "Arts for All" in town.  Each year the Arts Commission has a day where you can come and do all kinds of arts and crafts for free.  We missed it last spring so the girls have been waiting and waiting for it to come around again.  They were able to get their faces painted which were super cute.  Sam had a shooting star and Emma had a butterfly.

They each did about five or six crafts but one of their favorites was the tin art craft.  They used the little hammers and nails to make their own pretty pictures on some tin board.  Their Dad would have been proud of their ability to use a hammer and the pictures turned out great.

Afterwards we went to lunch to a local pizza and games restaurant.  It is one of the girls' favorite places to eat.  Unfortunately I didn't think to bring the camera with me to catch a picture.  After being home for a while and resting our full tummies, we went through baby stuff!  Mark and I thought that we had donated all of our baby things last year when we didn't think we would have any more children but we came across a large tub that was just full of baby clothes!  What a relief!  The girls were anxious to help sort through the different sizes and decide which things we could keep and which things were just a little too used.  Mark did three loads of laundry that night to get everything washed up and ready to be put away in the baby's room.  We had clothes all over the living room!

It was so fun being together and being able to spend some quality time with one another.  We feel so blessed that we have another child coming to our beautiful family but also very blessed to have the two daughters that we have as well as our extended family who are so supportive.  We love and miss you all and hope that you feel involved with us even though you are far away!

Baby Update

I realized this morning that I haven't included much about my pregnancy on our blog so I thought I would give an update to everyone.  As of today, I am 19 weeks along and the past couple of weeks have been pretty stressful for our family.  Two weeks ago I went in for my four month check up and happened to have very high blood pressure.  The doctor took it several times and each time it was high.  So.... this meant that some lab work needed to be done (which I am NOT a fan of) and that I needed to have my blood pressure checked each day so that it could be monitored and recorded.   Of course, I followed the doctor's orders and completed my lab orders and went to Safeway each day to check my blood pressure.  This became exhausting after a few days and so I decided that I would go out and purchase my own blood pressure machine.  I thought it was going to be a great investment but when I returned to the doctor a week later, turns out that my machine wasn't callaborated as closely to the doctor's blood pressure cuff so my readings were off.  Darn!

In the meantime, Dr. Whitaker also suggested that I have an appointment with the chiropractor to help with some headaches that I had been having.  I went to my appointment and then had an enjoyable conference weekend.  Unfortunately by Sunday afternoon I began having difficulty keeping food down and by Monday morning had a MIGRAINE!  The migraine was accompanied by vomiting and although I went to see the chiropractor again that afternoon, it did little to alleviate my severe headache and I was still unable to keep food down.  Tuesday was a bit better for the headache but was still throwing up.  I saw my OB that day and because I hadn't had any nourishment for three days, she diagnosed me as being very dehydrated.  So..... this meant that I needed to spend a few hours up at Labor and Delivery having an IV with some good fluids given to me.  Although my headache was somewhat better, I was still pretty miserable on Tuesday night and unable to sleep but by Wednesday morning I was much better.  I saw the chiropractor two more times during the week and as of today I am feeling pretty good which makes me grateful.  The other good thing is that my blood pressure seems to have calmed down a bit for the time being and doesn't need to be treated.

Pregnancy has never been easy for me.  I have been ill with all three of my children but this particular pregnancy has been especially difficult and I find myself having a hard time being positive and excited about the coming months.  I keep hoping that each day will bring added energy and less pain.  I know that I am driving my husband looney with my endless complaining but thankfully he is a trooper and does so much for me.  On a lighter note, last night I could really feel this little one kicking away and moving around - even Mark could feel it when he put his hand on my tummy. 

We have a milestone coming this Friday - we will have our ultrasound to find out what we are having and we just can't wait!  The girls are hoping for a little brother so badly but will be very happy with a little sister, too.  We'll let you all know just as soon as we can!  Thanks to a wonderful family and great friends who have been so supportive and added extra prayers on our behalf!