Wednesday, May 30, 2012

38 weeks



38 weeks and soooo ready!!!  I think we are as prepared for the arrival of baby #2 as we are going to be and now we are just waiting.  I have been realizing that I am much more of a control freak than I ever realized or let myself admit before.  This need for control is making it so hard for me not knowing when this little one will make his arrival.  I was induced at 41 weeks with Nolan and hoping that doesn't happen again this time, however I am also nervous about going into labor on my own (because of the lack of control of when that would happen and also because of how quickly Nolan was born...I want to make sure I make it to the hospital!).  Nolan seems to be ready and open to the idea of having his baby brother to come and live with us.

We would appreciate your thoughts and prayers over the coming days and hopefully not more than a week as we anticipate the arrival of baby boy #2 (no he does not have a name yet!).  

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

37 weeks and counting



This weekend we got more of the baby stuff out and Nolan had to try out the baby swing.  Luckily he has learned that he is too big for the swing and he has switched to swinging his Elmo in the swing.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Mother's Day Weekend

Here are our week 36 pictures.  Nolan wanted to make his own sign to hold.  I think we will try to take weekly pictures from now until the end....only 4 more weeks to go!



On Friday we went out our first Indian's game of the season.  We went to one last year with our friends Erin and Matt and had a lot of fun.  Friday nights after the game they have fireworks, which Nolan LOVES!  Nolan had a good time making friends with some other kiddos sitting close to us.  He took a particular liking to a little girl who was 6-years-old.  She turned to her mother at one point and said "I think he's in love with me".  haha  



Me looking particularly ripe...


We went into Broadripple this evening for a short walk on the Monon, took some pictures, and ate some ice cream.  The last two pictures were taken at the Indianapolis Art Center.



Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Food Nolan Will Eat

Nolan is a picky, picky eater.  When we started him on baby food there wasn't really anything he wouldn't eat. He ate fruit and veggies no problem.  However, when we started table foods the picky eater emerged.  One of the most frustrating parts of this picky eater is that he usually won't even try the food to know whether he really likes it or not.  He just looks at it and says "I don't wike it!" and runs away.  There are so many foods that I know he would like if he would just try them!!  I mean until recently he wouldn't eat chicken nuggets, grilled cheese, or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. What kid doesn't like those things?!  I finally got him to try grilled cheese and pb&j by using animal shaped cookie cutters to cut them into different shapes.  For the most part Nolan prefers things to be plain:  pasta without sauce, plain rice, toast without anything on it, etc.  He also doesn't really care for a lot of sweet things...he has to be in the right mood for candy and again it has to be pretty plain (kisses, jelly beans).  He won't eat things like cinnamon rolls and he's not a big fan of ice cream (this makes me wonder if he is my child). As time has gone by I have tried not to stress about his eating habits, however sometimes I can't help but worry that he's not getting everything that he needs...especially since he doesn't eat veggies (unless you count pasta sauce..and corn).

Now that I have started to say that Nolan is a picky eater, I have been shocked at some of the things that he does like considering how picky he can be.  For example:  tonight we got Chinese and Nolan ate an entire spring roll...veggies wrapped and fried!  or I make a lasagna with chicken, spinach, pesto, and mushrooms that he will eat.

At 2 1/2 here are some of the main things Nolan WILL eat:

PB&J
chicken nuggets
French Fries with "chech-up"
pancakes
waffles
hot dogs
grilled cheese
pasta
yogurt
almost any fruit
applesauce
bacon
fruit snacks
poptarts
jello
baked beans
corn on the cob
plain rice
plain toast


I hope that one day Nolan will be open to trying more foods but for now I guess we will keep offering things to him and be happy for the things he will eat! :)

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Early Morning Thoughts

Once again there is so much to write about.  It is currently 5:12am and I have been awake for at least the last hour.  This is starting to become routine and I'm trying to tell myself that it is again my body's way of getting me prepared for what is to come in a matter of weeks.  This pregnancy has flown by.  It's hard to believe that in no more than 5-6 weeks we will be welcoming another sweet boy into our family.  That thought and reality is exciting yet very overwhelming to me at the same time.  I was talking with a coworker the other day, who recently had her second child, about the differences between our first and second pregnancies.  We talked about the physical differences (earlier aches and pains, increased fatigue, etc.) but most of the conversation revolved around the emotional differences and differences in activities related to preparing for a second baby.  While there have been some preparations related to getting ready for the baby (various projects around the house, organizing etc.) most of the prep has been related to getting Nolan ready for a sibling and thinking about what it's going to be like to have two children and not just one.  With the first child your entire focus is on the pregnancy itself, buying things, getting things ready, taking classes, having baby showers, anticipating all of the changes of adding a new little person into your life.  With the second child, especially since we are having another boy, there aren't many things to buy, no classes to attend, and while there is obviously an awareness of the pregnancy and great anticipation for who this little one will be and what it will be like with two boys, my focus is not just on the pregnancy because I have a very active 2 1/2 year old to run around after.  Because of these differences it has been important to me to find ways of making this pregnancy special and unique in other ways.  For example, when we had our ultrasound and found out that we were having another boy I wanted to make that announcement to our family and close friends in a unique way.  Kevin downloaded a song with the lyrics "lets hear it for the boy..." and sent it out through email.  It has also been important to me to include Nolan in the pregnancy and preparations.  One way that we have done this has been through the #weeks pictures.  Nolan gets pretty excited about helping mommy make the sign and holding it up to show how many weeks his little brother has been in mommy's tummy.

Similar to the first pregnancy, the anticipation is definitely rising as we get closer to the due date.  The anxiety related to the actual labor is starting to set-in and wondering how Nolan will respond are consuming my thoughts.  I am more aware of all the "lasts" that are happening:  last trip up to Goshen with one child, last holidays spent as a family of 3, last outings alone with Nolan, wondering what night will be the last night tucking Nolan in before he becomes a big brother, etc.  These aren't sad lasts but they are strange to think about...life is again getting ready to change!

Soon my focus will not be on reflecting on the differences between my pregnancies and how to make them each special and unique but rather it will be on the wonderful differences between my two sons and the importance of making them each know how special and unique they are to me.

32 Weeks!

So as I am writing this I am actually almost 35 weeks so I will be posting another updated picture soon.  For now, enjoy these! :)


Getting Closer!!

Nolan wanted to make his own sign to hold after helping me with the 32 weeks sign.