Owen Roger - 10 Months Old

It sure is true that the 2nd one gets jipped when it comes to baby books, blog updates, weekly photos, etc. Especially when they're so close in age!! And if their mommy works a full time job.

Anyway - here's some Owen stuff!

WAKE TIME
He's awake for about 2 1/2 hours in between his naps. He goes a long 4-5 hour stretch at the end of the day, depending on how well he napped during the day.

Formula
Owen is offered 4 6oz bottles a day. He averages maybe 18-20 oz a day. I'm going to start mixing in milk soon. The debate on the table is: Vit. D? Or 2%. Thoughts?

Solids
Here piggy piggy. I remember Henry doing this as well -- Owen will keep eating all night long. And then when he gets down to play, he'll puke because he over ate. He's eating a lot of our table food now, and it's becoming a struggle to get the good baby food (fruit/veggies) in because he wants our food!!

6:30 - 6 oz bottle
8:00 - 6 oz jar of fruit, toast
9:00 - nap
10:00 - 6 oz bottle
11:30 - 4 oz yogurt, 4 oz fruit, table food
1:00 - nap
3:00 - bottle
4:00 - snack (usually crunchies or puffies)
5:15 - 4 oz meat/veggie, 4 oz veggie, table food
7:15 - 6 oz bottle, bed

NAPS
Owen is doing great at going to sleep. While he usually falls asleep in his 5 minute rock routine, if I have to lay him down awake, he usually goes right to sleep.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
For the most part, Owen sleeps from about 7:30pm until 6:30 when I wake him up. Weekends he'll sleep until 7 or 7:30. Allergies, sicknesses, and teething have been disrupting this a couple of nights a week. And if he's wide awake - he will not go back to sleep without a bottle. I know he doesn't need it, he knows he doesn't need it - but he gets it because I'm tired and what else can you do at 3:00am?

OMM
Owen no longer goes to OMM therapy - his head is looking pretty good.

Milestones
He has 2 bottom teeth, and the top gums are just opening up.
He can pull himself up and walk around furniture, and loves walking if you hold his hands.
He's a speed demon crawler.
Just last night, there were several instances where he chased after me, whining, and said "mama".

I have been horrible at taking his weekly monkey photos. I know I've missed the last two weeks. I sure hope I remember this week, poor guy.

It is so funny to watch Henry and Owen begin to have meaningful interactions. They are starting to play together - and torture each other. It's awesome :)

Owen Roger - 6 Months Old

What? 6 Months? *sigh* My baby is growing like crazy. I keep looking at Henry's 9 month and 12 month photos, and thinking about how Owen will look like this soon - and I cry.

He has his well child on Wed - so I'll update the stats then :)

WAKE TIME
Same here - about 2 hours, sometimes more depending on what we have going on.

Formula
Owen usually has 4 - 7oz bottles a day

Solids
This boy loves his food. Loves it. For real. So far he eats: rice cereal, green beans, peas, carrots, bananas, peaches, squash and sweet potatoes.

In the beginning we had a mix of cereals going on, but some were causing him digestion issues. Eventually, we figured the rice is best. He's on kind of a weird schedule, but it looks like this:

6:30 - 7 oz bottle
8:00 - rice cereal, starting to add fruit this week
8:30 - nap
10:30 - 7 oz bottle
12:00 - nap
3:00 - bottle
4:00 - 2 oz vegetable (sometimes rice cereal mixed in to thicken)
5:00 - cat nap
6:00 - 7 oz bottle
7:00 - 4 oz rice cereal

Maybe over Holiday Break we'll work on getting him closer to a good breakfast/lunch/dinner schedule.

GAS
I've been giving him gas drops still - especially before bedtime.

NAPS
Still a struggle -- I can't wait until we get past the 30 min. nap in crib issue...

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
For the most part, Owen sleeps from about 8pm until 6:30 when I wake him up. Weekends he'll sleep until 7 or 7:30. We had a rough couple nights this week, but I honestly think teething is just around the corner.

OMM
Owen still goes to therapy every 2 weeks for his crooked ears. It seems to be working, but there's still a big difference from right to left, and we'll continue the therapy probably until he's 1 year old.

Milestones
The boy is so close to crawling. He does his own roll/army almost-crawl so he is able to get where he wants to go for the most part. Of course, I can never see it or video tape it, I just look back and all of a sudden he's all the way across the room! He doesn't have a lot of core strength so he's not really close to sitting up yet.

Here are some photos we had taken a couple of weeks ago -- I should make our holiday card soon too!

Owen Roger - 18 weeks old

Last weeks Watch Me Grow photo (17 weeks old)

Working full time has turned me into a bad blogger mommy!!

Owen had his four month check up this week. His stats are:

weight - 15 lbs 10 oz - 65 percentile
height - 26 inches - 84 percentile

WAKE TIME
Owen averages being awake for about 2 hours before he needs a nap -- a little shorter in the mornings, a little longer in the evenings.

Formula
Owen averages four 6oz bottles a day. About 4 out of 7 nights, he wakes up for another bottle.

Solids
We've started giving him rice cereal in the evenings -- he still has the tongue thrust reflex, so he spits most of it out -- but seems to enjoy the experience. I'm hoping as we practice, this will help eliminate the night time wakings.

GAS
Owen has some days where he still needs gas drops and is in pain. Other days, he's completely fine. I have no idea what causes the change.

NAPS
At home - Owen does not sleep for more than 30 min. in his crib -- then we finish his naps in his bouncey. At daycare, it seems that he sleeps just fine! He takes a morning nap, a little longer afternoon nap, and then a bouncy or swing cat nap in the evening, usually during our dinner time.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Owen goes down for bed around 7:30 or 8pm. He may cry for 10-15 minutes, then is fast asleep. As I said with his bottles -- half the time he sleeps through the night, the other half he wakes up hungry. We always try to paci him and let him talk a little first, because he may just go back to sleep. I can usually tell if he is moving his mouth a lot when I try to paci him if he's hungry or not.

OMM
Owen had an OMM appointment last week for his poor crooked head. They want us to use a sleep positioner so he can't turn his head the way he likes at night - and also just to turn it as much as we can while he's awake. I haven't done the positioner because they make me nervous. I get that it's a long time for his head to be turned that way - especially when he sleeps through the night because it's 9+ hours. But it makes me nervous. We are doing better with tummy and siting up time - esp. now that he sits happily in his exersaucer for 15-20 min. at a time. I dunno - we'll see what happens.

FTWM
Working full time is hard for me. It's easy when I'm at school, in the "zone" - but when I look at all the things I want to do and get done in my classrooms vs. all the things I want to do with my boys - I struggle. It doesn't help that I'm teaching a new grade level that has a lot of extra prep work - especially since I'm having to make copies of all the materials - but also that I'm the type of teacher who does better, and teaches better when I'm well prepared (wait ... shouldn't all teachers be that way? :P ) It's all a balancing act and some days I do good, and some days I don't. I will say that I am loving third grade - and I absolutely love all of my students. I don't think there's one that I wouldn't take home. Yes, CP friends, even that *one*, holds a special place in my heart.

I've also been slacking on the photos -- did I ever post his 3 month photo session here? *checks back* Nope, sure didn't. Here's a few from a month ago, and maybe one or two more recent ones!

Brothers, much?! :)

Take the Henry vs. Owen challenge ... can you tell which babe is which? Exact same outfit, exactly the same age in life....



They don't look identical ... but I think it's pretty stinkin' cute how similar they look!

There's dust all over my house!

Dust in the Nursery

The following is by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton and was published in the Lady's Home Journal in 1958 as "Song for a Fifth Child."

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth
empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
hang out the washing and butter the bread,
sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I've grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
and out in the yard there's a hullabaloo
but I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren't her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
for children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.



So so true --- can you believe Owen is 3 months today?!? Hoping to have time for his photo shoot this weekend before back-to-school/work madness continues!

Owen Roger - 12 Weeks Old

WAKE TIME
Owen's waketime has extended to about 1 hour and 30 minutes. His first morning nap sometimes comes earlier than this -- and in the evening he can often go 2 hours.

Feeding
Owen generally eats 6 six ounce bottles a day - sometimes he takes great naps and it's less.

GAS
Getting better. We are actually experimenting today with no gas drops at all - so far so good!

NAPS
Owen's naps average about 45 minutes ... I think we've got a major case of the 45 min. intruder here!! Sometimes he'll go back to sleep in his bouncy after waking up, sometimes not. Eventually he just gets tired enough to make it through the intruder and sleeps for a couple of hours.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
We have transitioned to the crib, and it's gone very nicely! Owen goes down around 7:30-8:30, gets up for a bottle around 3-4am, then is down for the count until 7 or 8, unless I have to wake him up earlier. Once in a blue moon he'll wake up closer to midnight, but usually a paci does the trick.


SAHM
Has pretty much come to an end. The boys went to daycare 3 days last week, and on the other two days Nick and I each took a half day with them, and the other half in our classrooms. This week they'll go another three days - then we've got a 5 day weekend together before it's off to the real world :(

CIO
We started CIO this weekend -- if you can even call it that. Recap:

• Night 1: falls asleep during bottle, stays asleep, no crying
• Nap 1: cries/yells for 5 min, paci, 10 more min, paci - sleeps
• Naps 2 and 3 I'm not counting b/c I left Nick to do it and he didn't really follow protocol!
• Night 2: It took 30 minutes for Owen to fall asleep on his own, with two paci checks, and one pick-up-calm-down session
• Nap 4: No crying at all, straight asleep
• Nap 5: 2 minutes of crying, but then only 10 min. of sleep before a poop interruption, finished nap in bouncy

I just hope he gets to be as good of a sleeper as his big brother is!

Owen's 2 Month Stats...

Owen had his well child check up today!

Weight = 13 lbs 6 oz - 84th percentile
Height = 24.5 inches - 90th percentile

Hearing "I can tell he gets a lot of interaction." or "Wow, that's a three month skill" from the doctor warms my heart.

Hearing "He probably had a pulled neck muscle and you didn't ... appreciate it" makes me cry.

(and what does that even mean? "appreciate it" ? just say what you mean, I either ignored it or didn't notice)

We did notice that he favors turning his head to his left, but I didn't think it was that big of an issue. We've been working on getting him to look the other way, but apparently we need to work harder at it. His ears are now off by an inch because of this -- how weird is it that how your baby lays affects how his head ends up being shaped right now?!? So we have a month to fix it or else he'll be referred to massage therapy or something.

At least he's happier these days - even if his ears are lopsided :)

Owen - 2 Months Old

Today Owen is 8 weeks and 5 days old, or 2 months according to the calendar.

The last week has not been fun. But, the past 16 hours have been an amazing improvement. Read on for more details...


WAKE TIME
We were really struggling here. Due to constant waking early, Owen was always tired. I never knew when to put him down for naps. After a good car ride nap yesterday, I started really focusing on getting him down exactly 60 minutes after he woke. It worked great for his last two naps yesterday, and first nap today. He still fights it, and might cry and squirm, but it seems he needs to throw a little hissy fit to fall asleep. 5 minutes of fighting it is much better than the hour of screaming we were getting. So - the next couple days I am going to focus on this, and see what happens.

Feeding
After Owen eating two four ounce bottles in 2 hours time yesterday, I had a thought. Umm, hello - what if he's still hungry and that's our sleeping issue? So, again, once we got home from our errands, I made a change. I bumped him up to 5 ounce bottles. And again, so far he seems to be doing better. If my baby was a freak for a week because I wasn't feeding him enough, I will ... well, I just feel like a bad mom!

GAS
Same - gas drops at every feeding. He still farts. All. the. time. And we've really been working on getting his burps out. Sometimes it takes 10 minutes of patting him on the back, and then a huge one will come out.

NAPS
They were lasting only 20 minutes at a time. He was even rejecting his bouncey seat. But - with the adjustments already discussed, he's had 3 good naps. I'm working on the routine of swaddling him with his arms out, rocking and singing, then laying in pack and play. So far they've been like this:

Yesterday Afternoon Nap: 10 min. in pack and play, 60 min. in bouncey (bounced on and off)
Yesterday Evening Nap: 15 min. in pack and play, 45 min in bouncey
Today Morning Nap: 45 (!!!) min. in pack and play, currently in bouncey...

Again - it appears that my child wasn't napping because I a.) wasn't feeding him enough and b.) wasn't being consistent with wake-times and routines.

All of these things I knew were important, and I just chose not to go with them for whatever selfish reason of summer fun... not cool mom, not cool.


NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Same here - except he has had a couple nights of sleeping through the night! But most nights, he gets up once to eat. However, he now is fighting returning to his pack and play and loves to sleep with me in our bed. Which is great because he goes back to sleep for a long time - but I only get light sleep because I'm worried about him ... I always lay him on a diagonal so his head is far away from me and his feet are curled up into my side, but it still makes me nervous.

OUTINGS/EVENTS
We've been busy busy busy --- at first Owen did better on outings and car rides. Yesterday, not so much.

SAHM
My summer as a SAHM is quickly coming to an end. I am excited to get into gear of teaching a new grade -- but am starting to get really, really anxious about sending the boys to daycare all day. Thankfully we have an amazing daycare provider, and I know they'll be fine... but it's more me being sad that I'll miss out on so much Owen time that I was able to have when Henry was young. I know, I know, poor me. At least I have a job that we needed me to have. And at least I have two amazing boys to love and miss all day.

And now - for Owen's photo frenzy :)

Owen - 6 Weeks Old

Oh, how the time is flying by!! Our summer vacation is half way over - this makes me sad for the time with my children and fun summer activities, but also excited and anxious as I'm starting yet another new grade this year. I'm considering starting a different blog for that adventure - but then again, who has time for such things? I can barely keep up with this one!


WAKE TIME
Still no clue -- I thought it was exactly 60 minutes, but sometimes it seems to be more, and sometimes less. He is so, so confusing during the day.

NURSING
All done with nursing and pumping. Bittersweet really.

GAS
He still gets gas drops after each feeding. We've also moved to the Gentle formula. He no longer wakes up or screams when he has to pass gas.

NAPS
On the average day - Owen takes several 10-30 min. cat naps throughout the day. You need to bounce or rock him for him to sleep, or drive him in the car. This is so not ideal. The only good part is by mid-afternoon he's so exhausted he will sleep with me during Henry's nap time, so I usually get at least a 30 min. snoozer in there too. The problem is I was going to stay home and do CIO bootcamp next week when it's going to be miserably hot outside - but really, the problem isn't him falling asleep. It's staying asleep. I cannot figure out what's waking him up all the time.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Lovely here -- he goes down still between 8-9:30ish - gets up usually only once to eat, and goes right back down most nights. Once in a while he's awake and I need to bouncy seat him for 15-20 min. before we go back to bed.

OUTINGS/EVENTS
Owens best napping happened this week when we took a car ride at every single nap time. He took 3 solid naps this day. And he was a happier, more interactive baby because of it. I know he needs better naps.

EMOTIONS
Doing much better here - only had one evening of major breakdown this last week.

HEARING
Owen passed his hearing test! Thank goodness!

SAHM
Oh, this is not easy. The thought "Why on earth does anyone ever have more children" has entered my mind more than once. I am so lucky that Nick gets out of work at 2pm so he's home by 3 most nights. And I'm so so lucky that he's unbelievably helpful with our children!

My other issue here is that Henry does so much better (as do I) when we try to get out of the house at least every other day, if not every day. But to really sleep train Owen, I need to commit to being home all day for a week or two. Hmmm...

We have been having lots of fun traveling to visit friends, toddler time at the library, and the zoo.

Owen - 3 Weeks Old

Time for an Owen Update!! :) He really is such a good baby - we are so blessed. He gets cranky, mainly in the evenings. And he still has a little reflux and gas issues that make him scream. But I'm already getting a 6 hour sleep stretch about every other night - so high fives all around for that!

By his two week appointment he was still 21 inches (they had said he was 1/2 inch shorter at his 1 week appointment than they said at birth) and he was back up to 10 lbs 8 oz.

WAKE TIME
This week my goal is to really work with Owen on his wake time -- as I haven't been keeping track until yesterday, and I realized a couple of his screaming fits were actually because he was too tired and needed help getting to sleep. Opps - bad mommy!

NURSING
At the beginning of this 3rd week, we moved to me pumping and giving Owen mix bottles of formula and breast milk. Right now, he gets 2oz of each in a bottle. He takes about 5 bottles a day. At night time during his "witching" hours, and in the middle of the night, I nurse him. I am undecided as to how long this will continue as I will not be pumping when I return to work. I already have about 50 oz stored in the freezer as well.

GAS
I am giving him gas drops at almost every feeding. These seem to help him not scream and writhe in pain. As often. I'm curious as to how switching to full time formula will help or hinder this, as he's had the gas issues since he was on full breast milk.

NAPS
I've yet to figure out or set a nap schedule, but plan on working on it this week. Will keep you posted.

NIGHTTIME SLEEP
Most nights Owen goes down in between 9-10pm, and will sleep until 2-3am, nurse and poop and spit up, which often requires 1-2 outfit changes, then eventually pass back out until 5-7am.

OUTINGS/EVENTS
This week we took Owen and Henry to the zoo -- it wasn't too bad except Owen seems to dislike car rides and being in the stroller. Due to my back pain, putting him in a carrier isn't really an option. My only hope is that he sucks it up and just gets used to it!

We went to church today, but ended up outside of the auditorium once the sermon started b/c Owen was pooping very loudly, and then he was hungry.

EMOTIONS
I'm in a glass case of emotion!! Seriously. Well, some of the time. Usually at night, I get really frustrated with Owen's screaming. And I cry. Then I cry because I'm crying. Then I cry because I feel guilty that Nick's helping me when he needs to be mowing the lawn. Or I cry because I'm mad he's not helping me. Or I cry because I'm resentful he's out doing something and I'm home with a crying baby. Even though I told him to go. Dumb dumb hormones and emotions. Last night I didn't cry at all and handled it much better. Perhaps the slight PPD is wearing off ...

HEARING
Owen failed his two hearing tests at the hospital, so we have to go back on July 6th to get him retested. I've seen him respond to sound so I'm not too worried, but the opening to his ear canal on one side is way smaller than the other side. So we're accepting all prayers that he will pass the next test. Also, he needs to be sleeping to be given this test - so I'm super nervous about taking him since he hates car rides and strollers and wakes up as soon as you stop moving!

SAHM
Nick is off to summer job land tomorrow -- and I'm rockin' the SAHM job for about 6 weeks or so before the kiddos head off to daycare land while I return to full time work. Henry will continue to go to daycare 1 day a week and Nick is staying home on Thursdays so he can golf Thursday nights. I am nervous and anxious about being on my own with both kiddos all day, but also hopeful because Henry does so much better on a consistent schedule, and I'm betting Owen will settle into one soon too!

Here's some pics of our little boy to end this post!

Current Nicknames: Oden, Peanut Butter


3 Week Watch Me Grow Pic

Owen Roger

I cannot believe my baby is 1 week old already!! I want time to slow down and speed up at the same time :)

Birth Story:

We got up at 4am and made it to the hospital by 5:45 (only 15 minutes late, oops!). By 7:25 I was being wheeled into the OR. I do not like the OR room, it's cold and shiny with metal equipment. My spinal block went much better this time - and then Nick got to come in and sit by me. He did an amazing job at distracting me - we talked about where we're going to put the swing set we're getting from a friend.

Owen was born at 7:50am - he cried right away, easing my worries. Everyone in the room started guessing weights - but no one guessed high enough! He was 10 lbs 6 oz. He has a huge head - no wonder I'd been walking around feeling like he's going to fall out!

The best part of this delivery is they've changed their policies and both Nick and Owen joined me in the recovery room right away. Instead of a bath they just wiped baby down, and we got to try nursing immediately. With Henry, I had to wait the full hour to see my baby. So much better to have them with me!

Our stay at the hospital was uneventful until the end - our last 15 minutes ended with me having extreme bathroom issues and pain. After 3 horrible, sobbing hours later - I had to get an enema and then was all better and clear to go home. I only tell this embarrassing story to remind my dear mothers-to-be to be prepared for that part of postpartum!!

HOME:

Our time at home has been great. After the adreniline wore off, I had a few teary breakdowns on Wednesday. But I just needed more food and sleep. Last night Owen slept for a couple 2.5 hour stretches, which is awesome.

Henry is handling the transition as good as I could hope for. He does get jealous when his dad holds baby, but not all the time. He's definitely pushing our boundaries as far as being a little naughtier than usual. Overall, he just likes to give Owen his paci and kisses on the head - then he goes back to his own little world.

Owen does have a little bit of reflux and bad gas pains. Sometimes the only way I can get him to calm down to get his poops out is to nurse him. He's eating great and already gaining weight back.

And for my C-Section mama's out there -- the second time around has been so so much easier! I don't know if it's the case for everyone - but I feel great. I have to remind myself that I just had surgery sometimes because I try to do too much sometimes. I don't know why anyone would want to do the whole labor thing after this!

Last night Nick and I took Owen's 1 week photos -- I'll do some editing and post them later!

Overall - we are so happy and blessed. I still can't believe we're a family of four!!


"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21

39 weeks and 5 days...

39 weeks and 5 days pregnant with Owen Roger

And to compare...

39 weeks pregnant with Henry Mercer

I feel like the bellies are two different shapes, which makes sense since Henry was breech. I should have worn the same shirt for a more clear comparison!

How far along? 39 weeks and 5 days
Total weight gain/loss: Looks like a grand total of 42 ... three less than with Henry! Now - how am I going to lose this all, plus more in 6 weeks before a wedding that will have tons of people from high school at it? :)
Maternity clothes? Yuck!! Though, I might pick them over my husband's basketball shorts that I'm going to be living in the next couple of weeks...
Stretch marks? Why do the new ones always show up like 3 days before delivery?!?
Sleep: Awful. Just laying on my side, even supported with 7 pillows hurts me.
Best moment this week: Enjoying all my time with Henry - knowing it's going to be a challenge the next few weeks.
Movement: I'm ready to not feel like this baby is going to push an elbow through my girl parts at any moment.
Food cravings: Surprisingly, nothing really.
Gender: Boy
Labor Signs: Still contractions everyday, some mucus plug lost, but that's about it.
Belly Button in or out? Outtie out out
What I miss: Being able to hold and run and play with Henry
What I am looking forward to: Getting to the point of being comfortable taking care of both children on my own! (I know - a few weeks off I'm sure... or years?? haha)
Weekly Wisdom: "But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him."
Milestones: This is the start of my last 12 hours of pregnancy. Potentially ever.
Realization of the week: I'm having a baby tomorrow. Enough said.


Oh my, it still barely feels real. This has been the longest. pregnancy. ever. But now that our day is here - wowza. I don't know how I feel. Nervous and excited. Happy and sad.

How can I not be happy to add another handsome man to my life? :)

32 weeks and 3 days...

Dear Owen,

Please get your big head off of my cervix. You're hurting mommy.


But I still love you,

Mom.

32 Week Belly Pic:

28 weeks and 3 days...

Let's do a little comparing, shall we?

28 weeks preggo with Henry:


And now 28 weeks preggo with Owen:


I'm terrified of how big my final pictures will be!!

24 weeks

How far along? 24 weeks and 3 days
Total weight gain/loss: about 10 lbs
Maternity clothes? Yes, all the way now!
Stretch marks? No new ones yet
Sleep: I haven't been waking up more than once to pee, which is weird - but I do wake up and now feel very awake ... a mild case of insomnia I guess?
Best moment this week: Owen's moving and kicking is so much stronger now, I feel him all day long!
Movement: So reassuring to feel tons of movement!
Food cravings: Last week I really needed a vanilla milkshake, it took me two days, but eventually I got it!
Gender: Another boy!
Labor Signs: N/A
Belly Button in or out? Way out - not sure how much more out it can go!
What I miss: Not feeling out of breath just from moving ... he's already pressing so much on my lungs!
What I am looking forward to: Enjoying the summer home together! I love being a teacher!
Weekly Wisdom: Just trying not to feel guilty about being such a lazy mommy and wife right now!
Milestones: Henry now loves to rub my belly, and last weekend he even gave it some kisses! So cute!
Realization of the week: 16 weeks to go sounds so much better than 17! :)

24 Week Belly Pic


Me and my little man - he's getting so big!!


We have the most beautiful sunsets in our backyard - a constant reminder that God is good!!

21 weeks and 4 days

Since most of you are my facebook friends - you probably already know - but we're having another BOY :)
Owen Roger is happy and healthy in there - growing big and ahead of schedule, just like his brother always was. Nick of course, is relieved. I am excited. The only sadness I feel from not getting a little girl is when I see the super cute outfits, and big ugly flower headbands that I want to put on her head. But overall, I have no sadness about this. It just feels right - this is what my family is meant to be!

Here's the 20 week belly photo:


Now my biggest issue is the pain in my a** --- seriously, a sharp, sometimes aching sometimes shooting pain in my booty. It lingers for a majority of the day - and zings me when I get up from a chair or the floor, sit down, and walk more than 10 feet. Getting into my car after a trip to Target last week - I looked like a ridiculous old lady, and some guy sitting in the car across from me was just staring. Last week the OB nurse gave me a stretch to do - every other day it helps, then the next day it's 10 times worse. Called again today - they said they'll refer me to physical therapy, which is great if it works and I can fit it into my schedule. Something tells me it won't be a good thing to take H with me in the morning!

So - that's it for now - we'll do a 14 month update on Henry soon! :)