More Addison!

On our way to the hospital!

Waiting for her to make her grand entrance.

Here she is! Peeking out to see what's going on...

Proud papa.

Addie and Grandpa

Luke's first look at his new baby sister.

Grandma Mary meeting Addison for the first time.

I think she's already a daddy's girl! :)

Looking so sweet in her little outfit!

Sleeping peacefully...

Addie and Auntie Em

With Grandma Cathy

I may be biased, but I think she is the most beautiful little girl!

Addie and her Uncle Jacob

Whew! What a crazy week!! Last Monday I had a doctor's appointment that left me so discouraged and frustrated. I knew this was a big baby girl but I was informed that they would not induce before 40 weeks. Little did I know, she'd be making her entrance very very soon! Tuesday evening around 5:30 right as I was fixing dinner, my water broke. I went ahead and ate a quick bite, seeing as how I wouldn't be eating again for who knows how long! By the time we dropped Luke and Peyton off at Jonathan's sister's and got to the hospital, it was close to 7:30. My labor this time was very similar to Luke's--S-L-O-W!!!!! My contractions didn't start getting hard until later in the evening. They started me on pitocin around 1am but I couldn't get an epidal until I was further along. They did give me another pain killer which helped some but only lasted about an hour and a half. Needless to say, those were not fun hours and I was so grateful when I finally could get my epidural around 6:45. The epidural went fine for me, though Jonathan about passed out when he decided to look at what they were doing! :) I felt great for the rest of the morning but around lunchtime I started really getting uncomfortable and feeling a lot of pressure. My doctor had checked in with me and gone back to the office since I was still only about 6 centimeters dilated. They called him back sometime around 1:30 or 2 and I was soooo uncomfortable! It took him next to forever to finally get there and get ready and at 3pm he asked me if I wanted to start practice pushing or wait a little. I was like, "You've got to be kidding me, let's get this show on the road!" I pushed through the first contraction and he told the nurse, "Wow, we need to get ready, I think this baby's coming on the next contraction!" Those were the sweetest words I've ever heard! I was so worried that I would have another hard time pushing like with Luke and I did not want to push for 3 hours again! By the time the next contraction came around, I was ready to go and Addison Marie was born at 3:09! It was so amazing and awesome! She was 20 1/2 inches long and 8 pounds 6 ounces! I am so glad she decided to come 12 days early because who knows what she would have weighed by her due date!! I feel like the labor was harder with her than with Luke but the delivery and recovery have both been much easier. It took us until Thursday to finally pick a name. Addison had been on our list of names we could agree on and after spending time with her and looking at her, I just felt she looked like an Addie! We were able to come home Friday and have been doing pretty well so far. My family has been here which has been such a huge help, I can't even describe it! The first two nights were rough but last night she did much better with sleeping in her bassinet and eating more regularly. Luke has acknowledged her and talks about baby Addie. If we ask her if he wants to give her a kiss or come see her, though, he says no. He has been so busy and his schedule has been tossed out the window, so all things considered he has done a great job adjusting. Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to let anyone who was interested know what our week has looked like! We are so so blessed and cannot thank God enough for our children!!

Addison Marie

Okay, okay, we get the hint, you guys want to see pictures! :) Here are a couple to get you through...I'll post more later when I get a chance!

Drum roll please....

We'd like to welcome to the world our sweet daughter...Addison Marie!!

Welcome to the World!!!

Our precious beautiful, yet to be named little girl made her entrance at 3:09 pm. Labor was hard but I only had to push for less than 10 minutes. Thank You, Lord!!! She is 20 1/2 inches long, 8 pounds 6 inches, and has a head full of dark hair. Pictures to come! :)

She's Coming!!!!

Well, we are in the hospital! My water broke yesterday around 5:30 and we got to the hospital sometime after 7:30. I now have the pitocin going and my epideral in but things are progressing slowly. We'll keep you updated!! :)

Quick Update

I had another doctor's appointment today and though I was hoping for some good news, I didn't get much of anything. He basically came in, listened to her heartbeat (166--high for her, but he said she was active, making it higher), told me she was a big girl (97th percentile), and that they won't induce before 40 weeks and he'd see me next Monday. Not exactly what I wanted to hear. He didn't even check me, so I have no idea if I'm even starting to dilate or anything. He insists that the ultrasound can be off by 20%, though I'm not sure why they are just focusing on her being 20% less than what it says instead of the possibility that she could actually be 20% bigger than what it says. I'm just really frustrated and trying to stay positive for these next two weeks. We're just thankful that she is healthy.

Update on the Kids

Monday Luke and I both had doctor appointments. Luke had his two year check-up and looks great! He is 28 pounds and 34 1/2 inches. His growth is right at the 50th percentile, which is where he's been nearly every time. They asked me if he knew 7-20 words and I almost laughed. Are you kidding me?? The kid probably knows 720 words! Okay, so that may be an exaggeration but he knows waaaaaay more than 20 words! :)

Not much was new with baby girl on Monday. Her heart rate was 138. My doctor wanted me to have another ultrasound to check on her weight. So last night we headed back in for another look at her. With nearly three weeks to go she is measuring 8 pounds 4 ounces. I nearly had a heart attack when I heard that. But the technician said it can be off by up to 19 ounces, so she could only be 7 lb. 1 oz. Or, if you see the glass as half empty (as I of course did) she could be as much as 9 lb. 7 oz. Needless to say, she's a big one. At my last ultrasound three weeks ago, I was measuring with a due date of August 2nd instead of the 10th but my doctor didn't change my due date at all. This time, though, I was measuring 11 days further along that I am, making her due in a week, around the 30th. I am hoping that when I go back on Monday my doctor will start discussing with me options about inducing. I cannot imagine how big this girl may get if she goes full term! Pray for wisdom for him and patience and strength for me, as I am even more anxious for her to get her sooner rather than later!!

Saturday

Last Saturday we met my old college roommate, Erin, and her family for a cold picnic by the river and then an afternoon at the G.R. public museum. We had a great time! :)

Luke enjoyed trying out some different instruments.

Checking out an old store with daddy.

Go, Luke, go!

Enjoying the day with daddy.

He was not too sure about the carousel.

Hanging on for dear life!

Luke and Emma checking out the river after our picnic. Who knew it could be sweatshirt weather in the middle of July??

He's Growing Up Too Fast!

Since turning two, Luke has climbed out of his crib twice. We decided it was time to go ahead and set up the big boy bed to get ready for the big switch. Last night, we got home late from Grandma and Grandpa's and decided to give it a go since Luke was pretty tired as it was. We figured he wouldn't put up much of a fight if he was that tired. He did amazing!! We put him in bed with his favorite stuffed animals and never heard a peep out of him! When I went to check on him later, though, there were three Bibles in bed with him. Apparently, Luke felt the need to read the Word before turning in. :) This afternoon I put him down for his nap and heard a little bit of rustling going on. I peeked in his room and he was behind the door with all his animals. He looked really guilty and I told him he needed to get back in bed. I haven't heard anything since, so I'm assuming he's either sleeping or playing really really quietly! lol

4 weeks and counting...

I had my 36 week check-up Monday morning. My doctor is not changing my due date, so it's still the 10th. Everything still looks good, although he did say her weight from the last ultrasound (5 pounds 15 ounces) is in the 75th percentile, so she may be big. Yea. We'll have another ultrasound in another week or so to keep an eye on her size. Dr. Delapp informed me that she is right up under my ribs and that "that must be really uncomfortable". And then he saw her kick me on my right side and stated that that is right by my liver and gallbladder, which must also be uncomfortable. Gee, thanks for the insight there doc. I had no idea. As of Monday, I was not dilated at all. I am having lots of Braxton Hicks, but nothing major by any means. I head back next Monday--weekly visits are here already! :)

Birthday Pictures!

Here are the many pictures from Luke's busy birthday weekend. He had a wonderful birthday and enjoyed all the cool new gifts he got, including more cars, videos, a real golf club, and a bat, ball and tee set.

Showing everyone how old he is now!

One picture of my birthday thrown in for fun. :)

Aunt Emily working hard on the amazing cake.

Luke loved his Elmo train cake!! Thanks so much Auntie Em!!!

The finished product--looks awesome!!

We can't believe he's two!!

He was debating about whether or not to blow out the candles...

This is just the little dessert we had on his actual birthday...he's still not too sure about those candles. :)

"I'll have seconds please!"

"Mmmm, this is pretty good!"

Playing in the pool with Aunt Emily.

Luke was so glad Auntie Em and Uncle Jacob came to celebrate!

Relaxing in the hammock with grandpa.

Enjoying a twizzler.

Reading some good Bible stories with Uncle Jacob.

Opening his new golf club from grandma and grandpa.

And of course some golf balls, too!

Trying it out...(we told him that this would be the only time he ever got to play golf in the house!)

Getting some help from Uncle Jacob...

Anxiously waiting for his new tee to get put together.

Luke turned two on Thursday. He decided that day not to take a nap. He also decided that he can now climb out of his crib. Yikes! Not only did he not nap Thursday, but he refused to nap Friday, Saturday, and Sunday! This video was taken Sunday evening at 5:30 shortly after my family left. Thankfully, he is taking a nap right now as I write this. :)

Luke is 2!!!!!

It is so hard to believe that our little boy is two today!! We are so blessed and grateful that God has allowed us to be his parents. He is such a sweet, amazing boy and we love watching him learn and grow. I tried to get his annual birthday picture in the chair, but he wasn't cooperating, so I will have to try again later today. I'll be sure to post it then. Luke's party is Saturday afternoon and most of his cousins and aunts and uncles will be there, including my family. Aunt Emily--the cake master--is going to try her hand at another awesome cake this year. I'll leave you in suspense as to what she's going to make! :) Here are some stats about Luke at two:
* has a vocabulary so big, I have no idea how many words he knows--easily a couple hundred I would guess
* knows tons of animals and animal sounds
* knows his main body parts (arms, legs, elbows, knees, nose, eyes, mouth, chin, cheeks, etc. etc.)
* still LOVES to read
* absolutely loves anything with wheels--cars, trains, planes, buses, tractors, motorcycles, etc.
* is becoming a little more picky when it comes to food--things he used to eat he now turns his nose up at.
* enjoys watching Sesame Street and Veggie Tales (though we limit his tv to just an hour or two per week, if that)
* imitates everything we do--it's made us really careful what we do and say around him! ;)
* can jump and dance
* has an amazing memory
* can count from 1 to 10, though he still usually skips 5 for some reason
* whenever we pull into our subdivision after going somewhere, he says, "Yea! We made it!"
* is not really into potty training yet. Jonathan can almost always get him to go before a bath, but I just haven't had the energy to really crack down on it yet and I honestly don't think he's ready.
* points to my belly and says, "baby sister"
* makes us SOOOO very happy!!

4th of July

We headed to my family's lake place in northern Indiana for the 4th this year. It's actually over an hour closer to our house than Jonathan's parent's lake place. Obviously, this was my last trip anywhere outside of the Grand Rapids area until after this baby comes! :) We had a fun--but chilly--time watching fireworks, going for boat rides, and celebrating my dad's birthday. Enjoy the pictures!

Luke with the birthday boy--aka Grandpa. :)

Luke and Daddy.

Giving Uncle Jacob some pointers on his cornhole throwing.

Enjoying some marshmallows by the fire.

He really enjoyed "driving" the boat!

What a ham! :)

Aunt Emily spoiled him with some early birthday presents.

Trying to figure out how it works...

"Are you sure you know what you're doing Auntie Em??"

Luke and Uncle Jacob.

Baby Girl's Ultrasound

I had my ultrasound last night and everything is looking good. It was so amazing to see her!! I've not had an ultrasound this late in my pregnancy before, so to see how much she had grown and changed since three months ago was truly awesome! She is still a girl (whew--we can keep all the girl clothes out!) and she's head down. Although not completely accurate, she is measuring 5 pounds 15 ounces!! I still have about six weeks left and I thought I read somewhere that the baby gains about a half pound a week?? If that's true, I'm looking at another nine pounder! Yikes!! But, the technician did say that I was measuring more like 35 1/2 to 36 weeks, putting my due date at August 2nd instead of the 10th. I like that a lot better! I go back to my doctor on the 13th, so we'll see what he says. In the meantime, enjoy these new pictures we got last night. They are both of her face. The top of her head is on the right and her face is sideways. The picture on the left you can mainly see her forehead (and what I like to imagine is a head full of dark hair--haha!). The one on the right you can see her nose, lips, and chin. Part of her face is obscured by the placenta in both of them. I just think she's the most beautiful little girl ever...but I'm not biased or anything! ;)