32 week appointment

Obviously, I've had many doctor appointments during this pregnancy, however I felt this one was particularly blog worthy. :)

I had to bring Jenna with me. Yes, my two and a half year old went to the doc appointment with me. She behaved fairly well except for when we got in the actual exam room, then she decided we should go. See she is a fan of doctors, but also not a fan of them. She gets weird whenever we are in hospitals and doctor offices because she knows something is up. But did I decide to write this blog post because Jenna was with me? Not really...

The doc went over my blood glucose numbers and agreed that I don't need to take any blood sugar meds right now. Things seem under control and I am working hard. My weight is down, but I am eating healthy and exercising so she said she wasn't worried about it.

We also went over my birth plan, and that is what I am most excited about. She pretty much agreed with everything that I put on my plan. We had the opportunity to talk about how she does things and no matter what birth I have, VBAC or RCS, barring something wrong with me or the baby, it should be able to happen just the way I wanted it. She said that they could do skin to skin in the OR and that if everything was looking good, I could do that. She also said that they could wait to take the baby's blood glucose until after the first feeding, they also could wait to weigh and bathe the baby until I wanted as well too. If I am having trouble nursing, she said they could use the SNS system and that was the standard at this hospital.

She was hopeful that the baby might come at 38 or 39 wks and that maybe we might not have to have a c-section. She agreed to everything I said I wanted for a natural birth in my birth plan and said they had the type of monitoring devices I wanted.

It's just so very nice to talk with a doctor and to have them listen to you! Also to have them be up on the research as well so they agree with what you're asking them to do, rather than be stuck in the dark ages and not agree to anything. I am getting excited! :)

Reflecting

Lately I've spent a lot of time reflecting, I think it has to do with the lack of sleep and pregnancy hormones making me nostalgic or something. But lately I've been reflecting on friends. Friendship is something you have to work hard to obtain and keep. You can't just have friends, you have to meet people, get to know them and trust them then let them into your life. Some people are easier to let in than others and some just aren't the right fit. The past few days I've been kinda mourning the "loss" of easy friendships that I had in other areas of Washington and in Oregon and elsewhere. I am still friends with all these dear people and will be forever, but it's just not the same was it was when we could just "hang out" together whenever we wanted.

Up here it's been work to make friends. Some friendships I feel I need to work at and are more work for me in return. I haven't met many people (only a couple) yet up here that I feel like myself with and feel like I can invite them into my home. Part of that is that we haven't quite found the right church fit for us yet. That is a process within itself that I won't get into yet. But once we figure that out, hopefully things will be easier to get settled into and meet people around our age at our stage in life.

Until then, I go to play dates, go to church and hope that there are some moms who are hoping to connect with me as much as I am with them. It can get tiring being the newcomer all the time, but at least I am learning how to do it right. :)

Week 26 of pregnancy with Lily

Here I am, in the thick of week 26 with Lily. I think with Jenna I blogged every day. I had often wondered why other moms with more than one kid didn't blog like I did, now I know, they are too tired/exhausted to blog. There's simply no time. The time you do get you desperately want to watch that one favorite show, or take a shower, or sleep. I'm going to do my best to blog some more, but even as I type this I am yawning. :)

Lately the heartburn stage has really set in this pregnancy. It seems I can't eat anything without feeling it, which is a bummer. I still feel tired a lot, which I wonder whether it's due to some other health issue or the fact that I am running around almost literally after my almost preschooler. At night I get pains in my hips, back and wake frequently to go to the bathroom. I tend to be a light sleeper, so getting up a lot and then trying to get back to sleep is hard. Plus if I get in that weird awake/asleep mode, it makes it even harder for me to sleep or think straight.

Overall this pregnancy with Lily hasn't been too bad. There was the morning sickness for a while there, and the tiredness that isn't seeming to go away, but overall it's been good. I've decided to go VBAC with Lily and so far barring any health issues, my doc is for it and has assisted on VBACs numerous times. This hospital I am going to is VBAC friendly and I am thinking about hiring a doula (have one in mind) to assist with the birth. Why not just have another c-section? That's the same as asking someone why not just have a major surgery instead of an outpatient surgery. Why should I go big or go home? I figure if I can, I might as well try. So far so good, so we'll see. I won't be heart broken if I have to get another c-section, but if I don't have to, I definitely don't want to.

I think this is as much blog as my brain can muster today..... ttyl. :)

Two?

I can't remember if I posted on here, but we found out that we're going to have another little girl. We're quite excited about it. Her name will be Lillian or "Lily" for short. Jenna is super excited to be having a little sister even though she can't quite comprehend why or how there's a baby in my tummy or when the baby will be here. She's wanted Lily's ultrasound photo with her at times and even wanted me to post it on the wall so she could sleep by Lily. I have a feeling when Lily comes Jenna will be excited.

It led me to think about when Lily does come. Two girls. Two GIRLS in the house. Most of you know I grew up with two younger brothers. I never had a sister to share all the girly stuff with and my mom is wonderful and lovely but doesn't do a lot of the girly stuff. So I never really grew up with figuring out hair, makeup and nails and all that jazz. Sure I dressed up, but ask me to put on makeup other than mascara and well it throws me for a loop. So I am trying really hard to learn and figure out this girly stuff so that my girls grow up knowing how to do it. Or at least when they get to that age we'll try things out on each other and figure it out.

But it's honestly really hard for me to grasp that there will be a baby here in August. I feel so unprepared. Yes, I know how labor might or might not go, yes I have a crib and a car seat so I guess on a very basic level we're set. But I was counting down the months and there's not a lot of time to get things done before Lily arrives, especially since we moved into a new house. I went online to register for some things and I realized that there are actually a lot of things out there that are more helpful than when Jenna was a baby.

I did realize that I haven't set a shower date or anything yet and I hear others have already figured that out. I don't really know who would host or what since it's the second baby and there's always a certain etiquette. I am one that loves to plan and get things figured out way ahead of time. I know it could be at my house since I finally have a place big enough, but I don't know much else. Things like this sort themselves out right? We'll see. My pregnant brain worries. :)

I am looking forward to having two girls around. My poor husband will be so outnumbered. But he's as excited as the rest of us. Until August it's time to plan and dream and figure things out! :)

Ultimate Blog Party 2013!!!

http://www.5minutesformom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/UBP-2013_500px.jpg

It's time for the ULTIMATE BLOG PARTY from 5minutesformom.com. I can't believe I almost forgot about it. It's sometime I like to do every year because it's fun to check out other people's blogs and get to know them. Plus well...winning things is always nice.

Let me introduce myself for those that are new to this blog.
 My name is Kristine and I have a wonderful husband named Eric and a now two and a half year old named Jenna.
Currently I am pregnant with what will be my second born baby (fourth pregnancy). We don't know what gender it will be, but hope to find out soon! This blog is where I write about my life with my little one and my pregnancy stuff as well as hopes, dreams...you know.. that kinda stuff. Right now we live in Washington State. We just moved up here from Oregon almost a year ago for my husband's job. It's not easy moving and transitioning with a two year old and being pregnant, but it's sure interesting. I like to blog about my interesting days right here. :)


Most days in Washington seem dreary...

But when it's nice, it can be really pleasant to live here.

I've found fun groups of mom friends to hang out with and go on adventures with. There are also a lot of farms here to pick produce. Here's a pic of my little lady picking strawberries:

We've also picked blueberries, squash, potatoes and other fun fruits and veggies. This year we're hoping to grow our own as well. It's never too early to teach children where food comes from.  Once I am settled in our new place, I hope to start the many many many Pinterest projects I have waiting for me. Here are a few:
http://pinterest.com/pin/55450639134429268/


Felt Bandaids


Felt Book


Any many many more things. I also love to cook so I am getting back into making fun recipes I find on Pinterest too. Here are a few I've made recently:

http://arismenu.com/cranberry-apple-chicken-salad/


Crispy Potatoes
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2011/11/ultra-crispy-roast-potatoes-recipe.html

Chicken, Kale and Sweet Potato Enchiladas. YUM.
http://www.andwhatiate.com/2013/01/chicken-black-bean-kale-roasted.html

There are many many pins I have on Pinterest of projects and things I am interested. If you'd like to follow me, you can @ http://pinterest.com/live4adventure/

Aside from my cooking, baby making and sewing aspirations, my family is super interested in other cultures and helping out as we can. Right now we are sponsoring a little guy from Indonesia through Compassion International. http://www.compassion.com/  We feel it's a great way to help our daughter gain cultural awareness while in the States and to help out a very deserving little guy and his family. I would highly recommend it. We get letters from our little guy and send him letters in return as well as paying to allow him to get valuable enrichment activities and training as he gets older. If you have any questions about it, please feel free to contact me!

My husband and I also are very interested in mission aviation. What's that you ask? Well it's using airplanes to go into areas that have no roads or are virtually inaccessible by any other means to deliver: food, medicine, people and other aid as well as practically sharing with people what we believe as Christians Jesus has called us to do, which is love others and share with them the hope they can have in Jesus. No matter your background, no matter your religion, I think we can all agree that mission aviation is much needed in remote areas to help bring food and supplies in. An organization we're working on joining is called Mission Aviation Fellowship. http://maf.org/  They are in multiple countries are really are saving and changing lives through the use of aviation and technology. I'd highly suggest checking them out. :)

Well I shouldn't make this post too long, but I hope you decide to follow me via the options to the side of the page so we can keep in touch. Let me know that you've visited via the Ultimate Blog Party and I'll visit you too! I love getting to know new people and hearing more about their lives!

Love,
Kristine

Moving and Pregnancy

I had quite the thought the other day, lately I have been reluctantly stepping forward into motherhood. Seriously. I have lots of moms that say it is the joy of their life and they love every single day, and while I do love spending time with my daughter, I think this transition period has been hitting me hard. We've been up here for almost a year and I've made adequate process "settling" it's definitely been both harder and easier with a toddler.

Some of the easier aspects of moving with a toddler

• People want to be your friend. Just walking down the street with my cute little lady makes people smile at me and wave no matter where we are at. Neighbors go out of their way to say hi to you, whereas maybe before you hanging out in the middle of the street would seem a bit creepy to them. 
• There are many many moms groups available. Before when I moved I had to fight to find a church group that had people our age in it. Now there are many many more mom's groups to join and that's how I've met the friends I do have currently up here. 
• You get out more. As I said above with the walking, you have more incentive to be at a park or just walking down your own street when there's a little one who needs their energy out. 

Some of the harder parts of moving with a toddler and being pregnant

• No time to unpack. When you want to unpack, they are always there wanting to "help" and creating more of a mess than you started with. Then when you get the opportunity to unpack, you are so exhausted from helping them get their energy out all you feel like is sitting down, eating lunch and watching a movie. With the addition of being pregnant, there are restrictions on what you should and could lift, even though you are clearly strong enough. 
• No time to relax. This goes with the above statement, but basically your life is raising your kiddos. There's no time to veg at a starbucks thinking and planning about the future, things are happening now and whether you are ready or not, you have to be there. 
• No time with the hubs. Moving means no babysitters around that you trust to help you get a date night in. It also means that you are so busy unpacking and setting the place up that by the time you get any time to spend with the hubs, you both are so exhausted you just want to sleep. Then the cycle starts all over again. 

There are many more things, but I think being a planner/organizer is my downfall lately. As a teacher, I like to figure out my day and have it scheduled out. Lately I've barely had time to plan dinner let alone plan a cool fun craft activity for my toddler. Which means we watch a lot of tv and do a lot of electronic activities when it rains. It also means a lot of impulse buys because I don't have the time to plan things I would normally plan. As someone who organizes and cleans to destress, not having time to have my house in order has meant I've been on edge. I am hoping as we transition into this house that on-edge feeling will go away once we're fully unpacked. 

I love my daughter and I love the little one growing inside of me. I do love hearing her discover things for the first time and laughing and having fun. I just want to be so much more than I am, which I guess means maybe I am doing something right? We'll see...

Raising a kid in the tech culture

My daughter is growing up in a very technological age. Both my husband and I love techie stuff and therefore she's been exposed to it every since she was a tiny baby. While I did my best to shelter her from the television, I quickly gave it up because whenever we went over to a relative's house the TV was on 24/7. So instead of alienating our relatives, we embraced the television. Something we think about time and time again, but don't really regret doing. She's learned a lot about the world around her from the television shows and can quickly identify many things while we're out and about and see it in real life.

By the time my daughter was a year and a half we had an iPad. We might have had it before then, but right now my pregnant brain won't let me think about specific dates. She would watch her tv shows on there when we made several long road trips and occasionally when we were going out to eat on the road, we'd sneak it along for her to distract her. She quickly figured out how to turn it on, unlock it and scroll past the apps she didn't use to the ones that interested her the most. I put educational apps on there to help her learn letters, numbers, colors, reasoning skills...etc. I think it's been a great educational tool.

One thing that has been a negative about this culture of technology is that she's learning that she doesn't need to wait to get anything. She has any tv show she wants readily available on Netflix and can switch from game to game by a flick of her little fingers. It's something that is becoming more and more real as she gets older, this lack of patience. So.. I am finding new ways of curbing that.

She seems to LOVE DVD's and I'm learning to love them again too. With a DVD, it's one show (maybe multiple episodes) or one movie and she has to make a decision to pick it and watch it. There's no second guessing, once it's in the DVD player that's it. We only have a few little kids DVD's but that's about to change. I think I'm going to shift from using Netflix and just use the DVD's most of the time when we want to watch a show. That way she sees an end to things, it's not a continuous choice.

Another thing I've almost refused to do is to buy books for her on the iPad. My daughter LOVES paper books and I do too. I am growing my library of kid books every day. She goes to the shelf every night before bed and chooses the books she wants us to read to her and we do. There's just nothing like the feel of paper between your fingers. I know it's becoming a relic this day in age and I will teach her more about ebooks from using the iPad once in a while, but ebooks for her won't be the norm. It teaches her that there's an end to the book as well and teaches her to take care of things.

I also plan on having her help me cook food more often after we move. I think the act of making something and then waiting for it to finish is very rewarding and teaches a great amount of patience. It also teaches that being patient is rewarded with something nice. (Typically... I might not bake from scratch with her anytime soon, I am a horrible baker)

So it may seem backwards to go back to DVD's and to use actual books, but I want to instill in my daughter values that aren't taught in this tech generation while still keeping her exposed to the technology so she's not behind when it comes time for her to go out and use it. It's quite a different parenting battle than our parents had to deal with, but with some planning, I think I might be up for the battle. :)