Baby Andrew is 5 months!!!

I'm really not sure where the last 5 months went! I thought time flew by when Eli was a baby but its 10x as fast now. I've already had to pack up newborn clothes, 3months and 6 months clothes....this kid is growing so fast!!
Here is a little bit about my baby boy....

5 months

17lbs 12oz - 75th percentile 

25in long - 25th percentile (sorry kid, you'll be short like mommy and daddy!)

Eats every 3 hours during the day and once or twice at night. Goes to bed at 9pm, usually wakes around 3am then is up at 8am. We have a few nights where he's up at 1 or 2 then again around 5....oh I don't even remember what it was like to sleep through the night....oh well!

Andrew loves to be talked to! He likes to be kissed and has the cutest laugh. He laughs the most when Eli is running around.

Andrew likes to watch Mickey Mouse with his brother and enjoys playing in the kitchen in his bouncy seat while mommy cooks or cleans.

Andrew loves looking at himself in the mirror and who can blame him he's so cute!

His new favorite toy is a big red newks cup. Red is obviously his favorite color which works out nicely for this Ole Miss fan and his daddy who's a big Ohio State Fan....pulling for the buckeyes in the playoffs :)

He's still a thumb sucker and not a long napper.

He really likes to be outside but its too cold so enjoys looking out the window. He's a big mommys boy but he also loves his Meme (my grandmother!)

He is wearing mostly 9month clothing which is crazy!!! I love my butterball!!!!!!

An update on all of us....

A little life update....

Steve - he's getting ready for our Christmas music, yes it's that time of year again! We had our kickoff about 3 weeks ago. We've got some great songs this year...I think everyone is really excited!

He's still teaching the college kids as well and we have a pumpkin carving contest this weekend...Steve's awesome so I get he wins!

Eli - wow! Where to begin! He is such a character, full of fun!! He turned 2 1/2 this month and I'm having a hard time thinking he's halfway to 3...time stand still!

He loves to sing and preach...it's adorable! He is potty training/potty trained! I'm so proud of him! The first week he only had 2 accidents and we've only had 2 others since then in the last month. He can count to twenty - kind of lol and he knows most of his colors. He loves going to church and playing on the stage after the service. He's obsessed with cars and would play hot wheels forever! He still loves being outside and would live out there if I let him. He still loves cuddling and I'm thankful for that :) he's so smart and sweet! However his favorite word is "no" so poor thing gets disciplined a good bit...train up a child....it's a never ending task! 

He loves Andrew and for that I am so so thankful! He's been so sweet to him and I pray they grow up to he best friends!

Andrew - he is growing so fast! He's almost 4 months, its hard to believe! He's such a happy baby and loves to talk and smile! But he hates sleep...seriously the kid hates it! Maybe one day soon he'll realize long naps are much better than these short ones! 

He is a nursing champ and quite the chunky fellow! He weighs over 16lbs now :) he's great at rolling from his tummy to his back and can almost roll back to belly! He likes to sit up although he can't do it by himself yet. He's also my little scooter...lay him on his belly and he scoots all over his play may...he may be an early crawler if he keeps that up.

He loves his bumbo chair, being outside, and watching his brother play. He smiles so big at Eli, it melts my heart!

Me - well I'm sorta getting the swing of having two boys but I'm no pro. The second time around some things are a lot easier and some are a lot harder because now you have two babies depending on you for their needs. I nurse Andrew every 3 hours and in the in between time I cook, play, and sometimes do cleaning...lets be honest my house looks "lived in" (that's what I call it)

I'm hoping to start working out soon but can't seem to find the time. I'm thankful nursing helps me lose most of my baby weight but still have about 7 to go and unfortunately its all in my belly. So maybe one day ill be committed to losing it. Steve and I talk a lot about getting back in shape, sadly our coca-cola addition rules that out most days ;)

I'm still loving being at home although I do missing teaching at times. But I don't miss it enough to leave my precious boys.

Currently I'm trying to get our Christmas shopping done...going to be a fun year with two little ones waiting on Santa...I am so excited!!! :) hopefully ill update again before then!

Andrew's Birth Story

As I sit here nursing my 4 weeks old and my 2 year old is asleep I thought this would e. a perfect time to write down all the details from my little Andrew's arrival....

Well after being in bedrest for 10 weeks for preterm labor and a short cervix I was released at 35 weeks. I just knew the minute I was off the couch our little boy would make his arrival but the days past and then the weeks....then this mommy got very impatient!

Eli was born at 38 weeks so when week 38 came I was a little disappointed. I was feeling huge and just ready to hold my little one in my arms. I'm pretty sure the thought crossed my mind that I was going to be pregnant forever. (Unrealistic maybe but what pregnant woman hasn't had that thought before, right?!)

I had very few contractions once I was off bedrest. I had some on Father's Day Sunday night and got real excited then they quickly left. So another week of waiting :/

At my 37 week appointment i was only 1cm dilated...not much progrss at all. But by my 38 week appointment I was 3cm and 60% effaced. I was so giddy....we were moving in the right direction!!

I planned to go back on Monday to have my membranes stripped which we were about 90% sure that would send me into labor. So we made plans for Monday to be little man's birthday.

Well the weekend came and I had a few contractions Saturday but nothing strong or consistent. My grandmother suggested I stay in on Sunday because my back was hurting so Eli and I didn't go to church. We had a pretty relaxing morning and then headed to my grandparents for lunch. Steve and I enjoyed a quiet Sunday afternoon while Eli napped and before Steve headed back for the evening service...I have to say my last Sunday with just Eli went pretty perfectly!! Not sure when we'll have another quiet Sunday afternoon. Maybe one day the boys will be on the same schedule but I'm not holding my breath yet :)

Around 4:15 Eli woke up from his nap. I had had maybe one or two contractions all day so I didn't think much about it. We headed back to my grandparents to have some yummy watermelon. Nothing like watermelon in the summertime (TMI warning: won't be having it for a while since I puked it up during labor! Not fun!)  around 5:00 I went outside with Eli and walked him around in his wagon. By this point I had had 2 contractions but nothing strong.

By 5:30 I had another contraction or two so I decided to start timing them. By 6:00pm they were around 8-10 minutes apart. By 6:15 I decided to text Steve who at church and my mom just to give them the heads up. I still wasn't confident this was the real deal but soon my contractions were 5-7 minutes apart and by 6:40 I was calling Steve to come home and starting to panic a little at how quickly this was going.

I think part of me knew I was in labor but since my water broke with Eli before contractions even started I had no experience with the beginning stages of labor so I still wasn't convinced it was the real deal. 

I could tell my contractions were getting a little stronger...I began trying to breath through them, I also swayed back and forth or walked. I was still trying to tend to Eli but thankfully my grandmother was there and took over taking care of him.

 By the time Steve got home I had called the doctor and my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart. Trying to load the car was quite comical since we were in a very big hurry!! I wish we had had a video camera! Steve came running out carrying about 8 bags, half were Eli's and he had to take them back in. Then he couldn't get the birthing ball in...I was laughing hysterically!!

Once we started driving my contractions were about 1-2 minutes apart and very strong. They say once you can't talk through them to come in so we flew to the hospital. Although I did get out of the van at a red light because it was much better to sway during the contraction then have to sit in the van. The poor people behind us probably thought I was crazy!!

I had several friends I had planned to text to let them know I was going to the hospital but my contractions were so strong and coming very quickly I didn't get to tell anyone.

By the time we got to the hospital and checked in it was after 7:30. I was 6cm 100% effaced and I knew I was heading into transition...the hardest part of labor. I wasn't sure I could do it naturally as I had planned but my sweet husband was very encouraging and my nurse was amazing. We followed my birth plan almost perfectly.

They quickly got my IV hooked up for my antibiotics and they tried hooking up the mobile monitor so I could walk around as I had wanted but it wasn't working. honestly I was able to stay focused in the bed and bare through each contraction which were now lasting 90 seconds and about 30 seconds apart. My nurse applied counter pressure to my back and Steve continued this throughout the labor and it helped tremendously! Obviously labor is labor but it made it at least bearable (to some degree)

Around 8:00pm my nurse asked for the room to be set up for delivery. I thought she was joking. People came in and the room was set up by about 8:30 and  the nurse said now we were just waiting on the doctor. I still was thinking she was just trying to encourage me but she wasn't lying...we were very close!!

My doctor wasn't able to be there but the on call doctor was amazing!! She was just what I needed. She came in around 8:40 to meet me and said we'd have a baby soon. I still was in denial it was happening so fast. 

My contractions were now only 10 seconds apart...i remember i kept telling the nurse I needed a break...she kept reminding me Id have a break soon because the baby was coming. 

Once the doctor came in she broke the rest of my water and I got ready to push. I'm not exactly sure what time I started pushing because honestly it all went so fast. I think it was around 9:10 or so. My husband is the best motivator at this stage. I honestly only remember pushing a few times. Having a natural birth was an incredible experience as I could really feel myself bringing our little boy into the world. My doctor talked me through everything and in just a few pushes, sweet Andrew was crying and in my arms. The moment they lay him on your chest is the most amazing feeling in the world. I would do it a thousand times over!

Andrew Foster was born on June 29th at 9:25pm weighing 7lbs 10oz and 19 1/2 inches of perfection.

After a rough pregnancy Andrew's birth could not have gone any better. The Lord really answered all my prayers about delivery that I had been praying for the past 9 months.

We are so blessed and thankful that God has given Andrew to us. Another son to raise for His glory!

36 Weeks

Total weight gain: Over 31lbs  (I don't even wanna talk about it...I'm huge! That's what eating for two and bed rest will get you)

Maternity clothes? Yes

Stretch marks? Not that I know of

Sleep: waking up some, potty breaks of course

Best moment this week: our baby shower at Hillcrest was so fun and hearing his heartbeat after a big scare last Wednesday!

Miss Anything? Just sleep (Ill be saying that for many months!)

Movement:  yes!!

Food cravings:  orange juice!!! And bbq fritos, Caesar salad, strawberries, bananas (seeing why I've gained so much more this time around haha!!)

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still have some morning sickness but its actually been a little better this week (finally)

Have you started to show yet: I look like I'm gonna pop any minute!

Labor Signs: After all the bedrest for contractions I haven't had any since being off bedrest

Wedding rings on or off? Took them off this week, the heat was too much

Happy or Moody most of the time: emotional!

Looking forward to: having my sweet boy in my arms! No more than 4 weeks!!!!!

32 Weeks....

32 weeks

May 10, 2014

Total weight gain: over 24lbs (don't know exactly)

Maternity clothes? Yes, other than tshirts and shorts

Stretch marks? Not that I know of

Sleep:, wake up to go to the bathroom and a few contractions, some nights I sleep better than others 

Best moment this week: Eli putting his play phone on my belly so "broder" could talk

Miss Anything? Not being on bed rest!! Freedom!

Movement:  yes!!

Food cravings:  Mexican food, orange juice, salads, cookies!

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still have morning sickness, talking about or thinking about BBQ

Have you started to show yet:  Of course

Labor Signs: Cramping

Wedding rings on or off? On but they get tighter on really hot days

Happy or Moody most of the time: happy but very emotional!

Looking forward to: getting off bed rest in 2-3 weeks :)

30 weeks...

30 weeks... (30w, 3d but who's counting!)

Total weight gain: over 20lbs

Maternity clothes? Mostly, other than tshirts and shorts

Stretch marks? Not that I know of

Sleep: cant complain too much, wake up to go to the bathroom, some contractions

Best moment this week: watching this baby wiggle and move all around 

Miss Anything? Not being on bed rest!! Freedom!

Movement:  yes!!

Food cravings:  Mexican food, chips and salsa, and ice cream (nothing healthy at all)

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still sick some mornings, the meds I'm on for contractions makes it worse

Have you started to show yet:  Of course

Labor Signs: Cramping

Wedding rings on or off? On but they get tighter on really hot days

Happy or Moody most of the time: happy but very emotional!

Looking forward to: holding this sweet baby boy in my arms...oh I can't wait for baby snuggles :) and getting off bedrest in 6 weeks!!!!! :)

Pregnancy updates....

Ive been meaning to post these for a while and just haven't but this last few weeks have put a new spin on craziness. On ethics day I woke up with a strong pain in my side. With Eli I called with every ache and pain but with this one I realized its just part of the gig. However this pain just wasn't going away. It started around 4am and by 11am it hadn't eased up so I gave in and called the doctor. Because it was constant they wanted me to come in. After an ultrasound I found out my cervix had started to shorten and I was put on medicine and strict bedrest. I've been having cramps a lot this pregnancy and after being told at almost every appointment that it was "normal" despite not having them with my first; they now say they are contractions. I've had follow up appointments each week to make sure I'm not dilating and these contractions don't turn into pre-term labor. Well God is good and since then my cervix looks better and I'm only on moderate bedrest. Now these meds I'm on to stop contractions aren't fun but ill do what I gotta do to keep this little boy cooking.
Needless to say our little beach getaway got cancelled which lets be honest, it sucked! But in perspective, yeah we missed out on our trip and lost our deposit but we are hoping to have a healthy baby and when he arrives it will totally and completely be worth it!
This pregnancy has been a tough one but I'm so thankful for it. With Eli I thought it very well could be my last pregnancy because you never know what God has in store and I feel the same this time (especially with all the complications) so I'm trying to enjoy the great things about pregnancy like watching this baby roll back and forth in my belly. He's such a wiggle worm and I LOVE it!!!!!

Here are some recaps....

27 weeks:

Total weight gain: 18lbs 

Maternity clothes? Mostly, other than tshirts and sweat pants

Stretch marks? Not that I know of

Sleep: wake up to go to the bathroom, some hip pain, some contractions

Best moment this week: Eli loving on my baby belly after seeing Steve do the same 

Miss Anything? Not being on modified bed rest

Movement:  yes!! All the time!!!

Food cravings:  Mexican, crackers, cereal, bananas, brownies 

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still sick some mornings

Have you started to show yet:  Yes!

Labor Signs: Cramping and contractions

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: very emotional!

Looking forward to: picking this boy's name 

24 weeks...

Total weight gain/loss: 15lbs just a couple pounds past my pre-pregnancy weight with Eli. This kid loves Taco Bell and sweets right now :)

Maternity clothes? Mostly other than tshirts and sweats 

Stretch marks? Not that I know of

Sleep: Just waking up to go to the bathroom and some hip pain

Best moment this week: Feeling baby move a lot!!

Miss Anything? Seeing my hip bones

Movement:  yes!! After almost every meal :)

Food cravings:  pizza, taco bell, ice cream, and crackers 

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still sick most mornings

Have you started to show yet:  Yes!

Labor Signs: Cramping

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: very emotional!

Looking forward to: picking this boy's name 

19 weeks...

Total weight gain/loss: Gained a lot, this kid loves pizza and pasta ;)

Maternity clothes? Some19 weeks...

Total weight gain/loss: Gained a lot, this kid loves pizza and pasta ;)

Maternity clothes? Some

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: Is okay, but I wake up a lot through the night.

Best moment this week: Feeling baby move a lot

Miss Anything? Just sleep without having to get up to pee

Movement:  yes!! Almost every morning since 16 weeks :)

Food cravings:  pizza, pasta, cookies n cream ice cream

Anything making you queasy or sick: 

Still sometimes sick in the morning

Have you started to show yet:  Yes!

Labor Signs: No

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: very emotional!

Looking forward to: Finding out the baby's gender thi

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: Is okay, but I wake up a lot through the night.

Best moment this week: Feeling baby move a lot

Miss Anything? Just sleep without having to get up to pee

Movement:  yes!! Almost every morning since 6 weeks :)

Food cravings:  pizza, pasta, cookies n cream ice cream

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Still sometimes sick in the morning

Have you started to show yet:  Yes!

Labor Signs: No

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: very emotional!

Looking forward to: Finding out the baby's gender this week :)

Busy Beavers....

Yes, that's us, the Busy Beavers. The next few weeks are about to get crazy busy at our house. Not only are we anticipating the arrival of sweet little brother in about 14 weeks (yes 14 or less most likely) but we also have another sweet little boy that will be turning 2 in just 3 weeks. We are celebrating with a cookout with the fam and lots of Mickey Mouse decorations. Eli loves "hot dog" as he calls him, and can spot him a mile away in a store. I'm so excited for our house to be covered in Mickey. Eli will love it!! Plus my little helper is obsessed with helping me in the kitchen so we found a kitchen for him at a consignment sale (cause I wasn't about to some over $100 on a toy kitchen). I can't wait to see his face when he sees it. I know he will beam from ear to ear! :)
In the meantime Steve has lots of stuff at church going on. He's had visitation every Monday night this month so we've been going over to visit NaeNae and Papa while she's been so sick. Nothing like a cuddly almost 2 hear old to cheer ya up. We also have our Easter program we are getting ready for. We have 2 extra practices this month and a dress rehearsal in April.

We planned a quick little get-a-way next week and I can't wait! It'll be nice to be out of our norm routine for a day or two. I'm just really hoping the morning sickness doesn't follow me but if it does we'll make the best of it. Looking forward to having time as a family of 3 before we become a family of 4!

I'm also helping with a wedding shower in a few weeks and we have 2 weddings to attend before baby comes (if he waits till his due date, we'll see.)
So those are the big events but of course we have our day to day task that need to be done and lots of baby prepping things! We are working on transitioning Eli to a big boy bed when we get back from our trip but we aren't holding our breath. Baby brother will sleep in our room for a while then the boys will share a new cute room I've got to finish (I mean start) decorating :) lots of baby clothes to wash and all our old equipment that needs to be cleaned. All this while battling my continuing morning nausea isn't so fun but gotta get things done. Lots to do but lots to look forward to!

On another note 2 of my best friends are pregnant at the same time as me and one just found out she's having a little boy too!! I'm pretty pumped they will be about 8 weeks apart. And we have another niece or nephew on the way. We're pulling for a nephew since they already have 3 girls but we will see :)

Well gotta go convince my sweet Eli to eat more than just the marshmallows out of his lucky charms :)

A much needed recap....

Just realized I haven't even blogged since I got pregnant...wow...guess pregnancy sickness/tiredness and keeping up with an almost 2 year old (dare I say that our loud) makes for little time to blog. 

So here's a quick recap because one day I want to look back and remember these days (hopefully ill block out all the morning sickness though)

**October -

 I found out I was pregnant and was thrilled about it! After being terribly sick with the stomach bug I thought all that could have thrown my cycles off but no, it was true, 3 pregnancy test later (cause I'm a doubter) I was sure. We had a couples retreat that weekend so I decided to wait and tell Steve then. Little did I know he would totally take the words right out of my mouth. He already had a hunch :) I'm thankful he's so in tune with me and we share each others thoughts (at least sometimes)

*We had a great fall...we picked pumpkins with Eli and he loved it! We didn't waste money on a pumpkin patch, we just went to our local fruit stand and Eli ran up and down the pumpkin aisles for a good 30 minutes. It was a blast! He was a fireman for Halloween and had a great time at our church's fall fest!!

*November brought about a yummy date night out for my birthday while NaeNae and Papa kept Eli. We really thought about telling them about the new grand any on this night but decided to wait. Little did I know morning sickness would hit me like a ton of bricks about a week later and I desperately needed my mom so I spilled the beans. She was holding Eli when I told her and almost dropped him out of shock :)

We told my grandparents soon after since they live right down the road, they've been a huge help!

Thanksgiving was fun being with my family for the first time in 4 years but I couldn't eat much :( which is pretty disappointing on Thanksgiving.

December brought Christmas music but I wasn't able to help as much unless I carried around a bucket. But Steve did amazing on the Christmas music. I was so so proud of him!

Christmas was an absolute blast this year!!!! Eli got so many great things and he loved it all! He really liked wearing his "ho,ho" Jammies and singing jingle bells. We were blessed that Adam, Amy, and Beth got to join us for Christmas this year, made it really special. We opened gifts, had a yummy breakfast and played games all afternoon. It was great!!! I love Christmas!

Eli's favorite toys included a microphone, drums, riding tractor, umbrella "umbo", bguitar, and Lego wagon.

January seems like ages ago! I was still very sick and the cold weather kept us stuck inside most days. Thank goodness Papaw and Meme would rescue us some days and come pick us up so Eli could "drive" in Papaw's truck. Seriously such a blessing to be down the road from them.

By February I was feeling a little better but still sick in the morning...true morning sickness. I figured by 14 weeks id be better like I was with Eli but not the case. Steve had several trips with the church so we got to spend time at my parents which is always nice. Eli loves being with them.  We also had a gender reveal party with my family. We had fun announcing Eli would be having a little brother. I pray they are best of friends!

Eli is such a little chatter box and full of personality. He loves to sing and preach...he gets his bible and shouts "amen" and "God" all the time...I love it! And he loves to pray!!! Now he will pray with his teddy bears and its absolutely precious!!!

March has arrived And a few days of warmer weather which has been so nice. Eli loves to be outside and I do too!! We've taken a trip to the zoo and park already; soaking in the spring weather when it makes an appearance. On the other days we color on cardboard boxes, Eli helps me do laundry (he's learning how to fold the bath clothes and always helps throw the clothes in the washer). He a little obsessed with watching "hot dog" aka Mickey Mouse and he still like Barney. We play in his toy car a lot (have I mentioned our neighbors were going to throw it away so we snagged it for free) its been a blessing. Eli loves to pretend he's going places. He'll go to the store and bring me some of my plastic fruit I have on a shelf. So stinkin cute! He's starting to assert his will more so discipline has had to be an almost everyday thing around here. We've had a few meltdowns but we are both learning what will and won't be tolerated. I'm hoping he'll learn quickly because its exhausting.

He's still so incredibly loving!!! He loves to give hugs, high fives, bumps, and blow kisses. He would snuggle with me every nap if I let him and occasionally I do ;) I love when he runs up to me to hug me and say "momma" in his sweetest little voice!!! Oh I just love him so much! 

We are prepping for baby #2 (who still has no name yet, praying The Lord gives us a name soon!!) I ordered bedding for him today and plan to update Eli's room since they will be sharing eventually. Steve has been a huge help starting to get things in order...we still have lots to do though...around 15 weeks and baby will be here!! I can't wait! :)