I'm alive!

Go find/follow me over at Three Kids and a Latte to see photos of our newest addition!

Looking forward to getting back into the blogging world. :)

A breath of fresh air.

You know how when you go to a theme park and ride the roller coaster with all of the loops and huge hills, you feel as though you left your stomach at the top of the first drop? And then you finally feel it coming back to you as the ride slowly makes its last curve at the end of the ride? That's about where I am right now and I can not wait until the harness lifts up and I can run to the exit.

Before we got our fetal MRI results back, I got a phone call from the receptionist at a pediatric neurologist up in Lebanon where we had the test done. I had received no phone call saying that we were being referred to the neurologist, so naturally I freaked out and they weren't able to give me any information over the phone. We were able to set up an appointment with the neurologist the next day so thankfully we didn't have to wait long for our results.

Some doctors LOVE to beat around the bush when delivering any kind of news, while inside you are screaming "JUST TELL ME ALREADY". Bless this doctor's heart, the first thing he said to us was that there were NO signs of anything else wrong in Brady's brain. The ventricles are still mildly enlarged, but since that is the only red flag we are in a great spot. I will have a few more ultrasounds before he's born to make sure they don't get any bigger, but we should be in the clear.
For the first time since we strapped ourselves into this this roller coaster ride, I was able to cry tears of relief, rather than the tears of fear and uncertainty that had made it's way down my cheeks way too many times this pregnancy. I am finally able to breathe.

In other news, I passed my gestational diabetes test, which was great news! My iron is low and they have me taking supplements for that. It would definitely explain why I have felt more tired than usual. I'm also down to biweekly appointments! It's always exciting when your appointments get closer together. We are nearing the end! I officially have all of the worksheets and paperwork for the hospital, a prescription for my breast pump, and papers have been signed for a tubal litigation after my c-section. I'm finally confident in saying that I am completely okay with being done having babies. This pregnancy has done a number on me emotionally, and we are happy with 3 kids.
I will do a photo update soon! Brady's nursery is almost done. I have a few DIY projects I plan on doing this week/weekend for both his and the girls' rooms, so I will be doing room tours eventually :)

Thoughts & prayers!

So we are all moved in to our new house! We moved this past weekend and are just about unpacked. I can’t wait to do a house tour when everything is set up and decorated! This weekend we will be finishing up the girls’ room and starting on Brady’s nursery. It has been kind of a catch-all for everything that doesn’t have a spot so that room will probably take the longest. I’m excited to start picking up pieces for it, though!

I can’t believe there are only about 12 weeks left of my pregnancy. I have about 86 days left until my c-section (we don’t have a set date yet, but I will be 39 weeks over Memorial Day weekend so it just depends on when my doctor is on the schedule). I have been trying to enjoy these weeks as this will be my last pregnancy, but we have been going through a lot.

I mentioned how Brady was at an increased risk for Down’s syndrome, but that the Harmony test came back as there being a .001% chance of him being born with it. We thought all was fine and dandy until it came time for my 20 week anatomy scan. They found a spot on his heart that I had to have re-checked at a specialist’s office. So off we went and when we got the ultrasound done, it turns out the spot was just a calcification that cleared up. But… the left ventricle in his brain is enlarged.

I had never heard of this happening before so naturally I freaked out. They didn’t seem concerned and says it will usually resolve itself. I scheduled another ultrasound for a month later, which ended up being last week. I had been praying on good news every night for the last month, but the ultrasound detected zero change. (Which I guess can also be a good thing, because at least it hasn’t gotten any bigger). We had to schedule an MRI in either Boston, MA or Lebanon, NH – both locations have hospitals that specialize in fetal MRIs – and where we went depended on who could get us in faster. Our fetal MRI is scheduled for Wednesday night up in Lebanon (we were hoping for Boston since it’s half the commute – but we wanted this done as quickly as possible so we could have some answers) so we will be making the 2 hour drive while my sister watches the girls.

Please keep us in your thoughts & prayers! We have been sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for some kind of answer. 

Photo Dump

Addie's birthday party is this weekend so I promise a real post then. But for now.. life lately.

Last month we went to ZooLights to check out our local zoo all decked out in beautiful lights. We got this gem of the girls and Santa and proceeded to take an adorable family photo.

I was excited to be able to volunteer in Aubrey's class for their Christmas party! I made a Christmas tree shaped fruit platter and another mom made these adorable snowman yogurt cups.

Little Man's stock pile has been accumulating! Baby boy clothes are so fun to shop for!

Speaking of little man.. I went for an ultrasound recently where they turned the 3D feature on. This is my 4th pregnancy and it was my first time getting a 3D ultrasound. Pretty neat! They are estimating him to be a pound already. My little squish <3

Ever since finding out we were pregnant, Keith has thrown the name "Brady" into every baby-related conversation we had. At first I hated it, but slowly it started growing on me. I decided to surprise him with this ornament on Christmas morning to let him know he won the battle. We will be welcoming Brady Frederick sometime on Memorial Day weekend! Frederick was my dad's middle name. I wanted to honor him in someway and I think it goes well with Brady!

The girls got messy with some ice cream cones

Aubrey's #1 wish this Christmas was for an American Girl doll, but once she saw this knock-off doll at Target with purple highlights in her hair, she had to have her! I'm sure Santa appreciated saving the $100 ;)

I found these Legend of Zelda dolls at a local comic store and knew Aubrey HAD to have them. She is obsessed with watching me play the game. Addie got a Minnie Mouse drum with a ton of instruments in it. Be on the look out for her debut album. She goes hard on those drums.

To get ready for Brady, we transitioned Aubrey's IKEA loft bed into a bunk bed to get Addie out of her crib! We were pretty nervous but she has been doing GREAT! Up until the bed, we would hold her until she fell asleep and then put her in her crib, so I was nervous she would keep getting up. The first few nights, Keith had to lay on the floor with her for upwards of 2 hours until she fell asleep, but now we put her in there and she cries for a few minutes and goes right to sleep. She still gets up halfway through the night and makes her way to our bed, but baby steps!

Even though she goes to bed on her own at night, I still love snuggling her to sleep for naptimes during the day.  <3

We battled a month-long plague. It was awful. 

I recently became obsessed with tea. Teavana is my new favorite store, and I totally love this Teatanic tea infuser!

Can we take a second and talk about how BIG little Lillian is getting? If you've been following the blog for a little bit you'll remember when she was born at 27 weeks gestation last year. We will be celebrating her first birthday next weekend and can't believe how far she has come in a year!

Keith got me this gorgeous new camera. We haven't ventured out much since I got it, but I did get to take it to Disney on Ice last weekend and it took great photos! 

I recently took a couponing class to learn the basics of saving some money on our grocery bill. 

And last but not least... the most exciting photo we have to share.. 

So thrilled to be moving OUT of an apartment and into a house! We will still be renting, but we are thinking this will be the perfect "for now" home while we work towards getting a house a few years down the road. It's a 3 bedroom, so the girls will share a room and Brady will get his own room. The backyard is humongous (look at it!!), and there is a nice sunny playroom for the kids to play in. We are literally 2 minutes away from our favorite park and bakery, and the school district is good! Spending my whole childhood growing up in the city, I have never lived in a house with a backyard so I am really excited to be able to have this for my children. I can't wait for swing sets and little swimming pools, and cookouts in the summer! I asked our landlord if we would have access to the garden boxes, because I think Aubrey would really enjoy starting her own garden, but I guess they rotted and had to be removed. I am going to ask him if it would be okay for me to build another one. We are moving at the end of February and it can not come soon enough!! We are putting down our security deposit and signing our lease tomorrow and then the fun and packing begins!

Disney on Ice: Worlds of Fantasy

Last night, Aubrey & I went to a Disney on Ice show with her Girl Scout troop. It had been a few years since the last one that we went to and we had a blast! My dad used to take me to Disney on Ice shows all the time when I was a kid and every time I get to go to one, it brings back some fond memories.  

I was really excited to try out my new camera that Keith got me. It took some amazing pictures, although I definitely need to get used to the different settings!

Worlds of Fantasy features Cars, The Little Mermaid, Tinkerbell and Toy Story and each of the sets were amazing. 

The show started off with Mickey & his friends, as it usually does. They travel to each of the different "worlds", starting off at Radiator Springs to visit Lightening McQueen and Tow Mater! We aren't huge Cars fans in our house (although that may change with a little boy on the way!) so I didn't get a ton of pictures.

Next up was The Little Mermaid! They played a few of the classic songs (Under the Sea, Kiss the Girl) and told a shortened version of the movie. I think the Cars and Little Mermaid sets were only about 15 minutes each.

Next we visited Pixie Hollow to see Tinkerbell and her fairy friends. I love all of the flowers and decor in this set!

After a short intermission, it was time for Toy Story! Aubrey & I agreed this was our favorite part of the show. It told the story of Toy Story 3 and was definitely the longest set. It started off with Andy packing his toys away to put in the attic just like in the movie and it hit all of the major scenes, right down to the incinerator and Andy saying goodbye to his beloved friends.

The scene where Ken frees Barbie and gave everyone a fashion show with all of his different outfits was a hit! 

During the incinerator scene, they used real fire, which Aubrey thought was amazing!

"The claw!"

We had a great time and can't wait to go again! Next time, Keith & Addie will definitely be tagging along.