Home Again

Home again, home again.  Jiggity jig!

We've made it back home.  After two solid days in the wonderful care at the hospital, we are home to start our new adventures as a family of four!

Brian, Maya, and I stayed at the hospital until just after lunch.  Then we got ourselves packed up, got down to the car, loaded our precious cargo, and headed home.  We timed our travels so that we would be able to pick up Kate from school.  She has been staying at our house and we've kept her "school" day routine the same by going to school and coming home at around the same times.  (Thank you, Mimi & Gramma!)  But it has been a bit different because this is the first time that she has been here, at her very own house, without Mommy and Daddy.

Our Kate is a smart girl.  She may not fully understand what is going on just yet, but she has sensed that something is a tad different.  I mean, I can't blame her.  Mommy and Daddy aren't home.  Mimi and Papaw and Gramma and PopPop are taking care of her and she's been visiting Mommy and Daddy at the hospital.  Yes, very different.  She has been such a trooper and has done wonderfully from the progress reports that we've received, but I have been itching to introduce some normalcy back into her life after such a big event, so Brian and I had planned on picking Kate up today.

In hindsight, I probably should've picked her up alone.  That's how it has been done in the past.  There may have been one or two times in almost three years that we've picked her up together, but I digress.  We were both there.  We let Maya stay at the house with our family to make it as easy as possible for Kate.  When we walked in the teachers were shocked to see us, especially just two days postpartum, but I just had to get my big girl back in my arms.  Boy, did I miss her.

She had just gotten up from a nap and was outside playing.  Brian and I walked outside and she came right over to me and started crying.  I immediately picked her up and then started crying myself.  I tried to be as tough as I could in front of Kate and all the rest of the kiddos, but once we got in the car I lost it.  In her defense, she had just woken up and had just gotten knocked down, but I think her tears were that mix of happy to see Mommy again/release of being so strong over the last two confusing days and finally being back in Mommy's arms.  (I heart her.)  I think it all just caught up to her at once, and it kind of broke my heart a little bit.  I just felt for my little girl.  The only thing I wanted to do was hold her.

I sat in the back of the car with her for the whole ride home.  ❤

When we got home, Little Sister was there waiting for us.

Big Sis and Little Sis - they meet again!

We asked Kate if she wanted to hold her.  She was a little apprehensive at first.  I think she held her for maybe 30 seconds, but we took a lot of pictures in that time so it appears it was a lot longer!

Just a tad unsure.

This is her go to "smile" right now!

Um, Mommy?  Little Sis is moving...

I kind of think Kate wants to wrap Maya back up
in this photo.

Such a great Big Sis.

Fearful that she might fall into the yawn or
checking out those perfect gums?  You be the judge.

We are so happy to be home.  Don't get me wrong, the hospital stay was wonderful.  The food was delicious and prepared for you!  There were nurses on hand 24/7 to tend to you.  All the supplies you could think of were available, but it's so nice to be back in our beds, under our own roof, with our big girl by our side.  I missed her the most while we were away.  It was a long two days away from her.

So, here we go!  We are a family of four now!  Let the adventures begin!

Family of Four

Maya Harper Hendricks joined us this morning, July 22nd, 2015, via natural birth at 3:56 am.

She weighs 8 pounds 3 ounces and is 20" long.

All my loves in one little photo.

Our beautiful bright-eyed new addition!

Once again, we have fallen head over heels in love with our littlest lady!  Welcome to the world, Maya!!  We love you!

A Good 4 & An Ice Cube Tray Dinner

Ladies and Gents, we are five days past our due date.  Little Sis was expected around July 16th and tomorrow is my official induction date.  My induction is scheduled for 2 pm and Brian and I are to arrive at 1:45 pm.  I inquired about the early afternoon induction time as opposed to the 7-8 pm induction time like we had with Kate.  My doctor informed me that she usually schedules first time Mommies at the later hours because she expects labor to take all night and then baby to come in the morning.  With me, she said that she fully expects our little lady to arrive before midnight tomorrow if we get induced at 2 pm.  It is so crazy to think that we are going to meet our newest little lady TOMORROW!  I get butterflies in my tummy just thinking about it!  I wonder if she can feel those?!

In lieu of our induction, however, my wonderful doctor wanted me to come in today for one last appointment to see how we were progressing.  We were in an entire week ago, so the nurses said that she wanted to see how we have progressed over the last week to determine how to proceed tomorrow.

This was a good idea for me.  I'm always very curious to see if we've made progress and I've been having very consistent, mild contractions since 6 am this morning.  By consistent I'm talking every 4-5 minutes and by mild I mean I can only feel them if I sit down and focus on them.  Surely we've made some progress, right?!

YES!  Our doctor said that we are a GOOD FOUR centimeters dilated!!!  And by a good four she means closer to five than four!  She honestly thinks that we will be going into labor tonight rather than making our induction date tomorrow afternoon, and she told me that based on my history of pretty quick labor to get to Labor and Delivery as fast as possible if my water breaks or if I have any contractions that are uncomfortable for 30-45 minutes.

As a matter of fact, she said to just get in the car and call the babysitter on the way which I still haven't entirely figured out.  Did she mean to leave Kate at home and call someone to take care of her while we are on our way to the hospital?  Or did she mean bring Kate with us and call someone while we are on our way to meet us at the hospital?  Yeah, nonetheless, we won't be worrying about that because Brian's Mom, Mary, aka Kate's Mimi, is going to come down tonight and stay with us.  Just in case we do go into labor tonight and need to jet quickly.

I am still 75% effaced and Little Sister is still at -2/-3 station but my doctor thinks that when it is go time we aren't going to have much time to think so the fact that we are almost five centimeters dilated is almost enough to say it's go time!

In lieu of our last night as a family of three, and since I my appetite has pretty much been null all day, I decided to make an extra special dinner for Kate - an ice cube tray dinner!.  I bought a pack of two ice cube trays from the dollar store to do something fun with and decided tonight was the night.

You can make it semi-healthy and fun too!

Kate loved this!

This is kind of her what in the world? face!

My little girl is going to be a big sister in less than 24 hours.  I can hardly believe it.

She looks so little yet so big.

So adorable!

Last Mommy and Me selfie as an only child!

Last, but certainly not least, is Little Sister's room.  I don't believe I shared the final outcome of it but it is 100% put together, painted, and ready for our little girl to sleep in it, play in it and be loved in it.

A view from the doorway!

I love how PINK it is!!

A view from the corner by the gray chair/closet door!

And, of course we put our hanging flowers to good use again!

A view to the hallway and hallway closet!

And the newest addition - a brand new canvas to adorn Little
Sister's walls.  And a reminder: The world is full of adventure...
...never stop dreaming.

We are so happy with the outcome!  We were able to use all of Kate's nursery items yet still make it look completely new and different from her old nursery.  I was hesitant, at first, and was kind of looking forward to a room decorating challenge, but with the lack of time that we've clearly had, this was the best for all of us and allowed us to re-use our creativity!

SO, in more or less than 24 hours, we are going to meet our newest little girl!!!  I am just bursting with excitement, anxiousness, nervousness, and love!  I cannot believe the day is here!

#hashtagnine

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#stopthat  #alwaysbemybaby
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#newpetcat  #shenamedhimcharlie  #auntamy
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#itsmorefunwhenyoucanbringyourdoggie  #besties

#burritotime  #cheeseface  #soadorable
#nowimhungry  #almostabigsis

Summer Celebration 2015

Last year was the first year we attended the local Summer Celebration, and we loved it so much that we made sure that it was on our agenda for this year!  For a free festival, you cannot complain!  There are tons of activities and crafts and inflatables perfect for Kate's age and up.  When we noticed the Summer Celebration was going to be held this year on our official due date, we penciled it in and decided that we'd go should we not be in labor!

Well, we weren't in labor...and still aren't...so we went and celebrated summer!

Rolling up to the celebration!

Kate really wanted to go down this slide again...

...but she wanted to go with me, and the sign
clearly stated no preggos.

So we made some sand art instead.

Daddy helped hold the magic container while
Kate chose another color.

Pink and purple are still top contenders in Kate's world!

We have since referred to this as our "pixie dust".

Train selfie!

Look how much Kate has grown since last year's train selfie!

We even got Daddy-O on the train this time!

Keeping the pixie dust safe!

Family photo including "Charlie", Kate's purple and yellow
balloon cat!

And we stopped for a yummy grape snow cone...

...just like last year!

Inflatable nation!

Once again, we had a great time enjoying the summer weather and being outside!  This time next year we'll have two little girlies with us!

Incredible!

Pregnancy Update: The "Clearly I Was Wrong" Edition

Ok, for the majority of this pregnancy, I have sworn that Little Sis was going to be arriving early.  It is July 14th, our due date is July 16th.  We have two days.  And by "early" I wasn't thinking two days.  I was thinking more like a week.  And so I'm officially throwing in the towel and admitting I was wrong.  I don't think she's coming early anymore.  Granted we still have two days but I don't think she's coming early.  I give up on predicting delivery days.

Ok, now, before I get to my appointment stats I just have one thing to say: MY DOCTOR IS BACK!!!

Remember how I was so bummed a month-ish ago about how she herself had to go on medical leave and I swore that she wasn't going to be able to be there for me and I kinda needed her to walk by my side during this last month of our pregnancy?!  Well, she has returned!  She is doing well and I nearly jumped off of the table and hugged her when she came through the door today.  It was such a wonderful sight to see her and know that she is back!

The stand-in doctor was very, very nice and professional.  To be honest, it was really nice getting to know her and toward the end I starting feeling very comfortable with her too.  So regardless of the situation I was going to be in good hands!  The stand-in doctor, however, discussed with me last week of possibly inducing us on our due date or the day after.  This was a bit soon to me, so we left it at we would see how much we have progressed at our next appointment and talk about induction dates.

Well, since my regular doctor is back, she has the same protocol that she had with Kate.  Hello, Comfort!  Our induction is scheduled for six days past our due date - July 22rd - should Little Sis not decide to make her debut sooner.  It would be one week, but our doctor's schedule was full on July 23rd, so July 22nd it is.  This makes me way more comfortable!  Thinking we would be induced ON our due date or the day after just didn't make sense to me.  I'm very comfortable with giving my body and baby a little extra time to work it out itself.  Thank you, Dr. Gaiser!!  And welcome back!

In stat news, I am still down a few pounds.  I've lost a couple at the last two appointments and have held pretty steady at this one.  I am still 3 centimeters dilated, 75% effaced, baby is still at -2/-3 station and she is still head down.

I was placed on another non-stress test today because of a lower heart rate reading but, once again, all returned normal and my doctor explained that this just must be "my normal".  With both of my babies, toward the very end of my pregnancies, their heart rates started decreasing a bit, perhaps preparing for labor.  Good to know...for future reference!  Wink!

Non-stress testing...again.  And, no, I'm not
stressing either.

So, we are scheduled to be induced on July 22nd.  We are progressing well and our official due date is in two days.  I am officially handing over my birthday predictions to someone else and we are all getting VERY EXCITED to meet our sweet bundle!!!

It's going to be soon!!!

39 Years Old

Happy Birthday, Brian!  My husband of almost five years just turned 39!  I officially started my maternity leave today so I picked Kate up a bit early and we headed to the grocery store to pick up our cupcakes and select some sprinkles to decorate them with.  Kate picked neon pink, green, and purple disc sprinkles and a Frozen balloon for Brian!  Wait.  Whose birthday is is again?!

Kate has been eyeing this Frozen helium balloon!  Every time we go into the grocery store together she points it out.  When I suggested we pick out a balloon for Daddy for his birthday she was all in and knew exactly which balloon she wanted to get him!  I'm sure Daddy appreciated Anna and Elsa wishing him a happy birthday too!

At 39, Brian is about to be a Daddy to his second daughter.  Prior to me being on leave, Brian would get Kate ready and fed and dropped off at school in the morning and then head into work.  He's been working at a corporate company for about 1.5 years and I think he loves it.  The corporate game is totally up Brian's alley and he is always coming home with positive accolades and glowing progress reports.  While I don't think this is his dream job, I think he has learned a lot from the role he is in and the company he is with and continues to grow both professionally and personally.

He's usually home around 5:15-5:30 and we usually all have dinner together.  He is still an AVID sports enthusiast and a social networker!  He is determined and loving and caring and positive and strong willed and his (almost) three girls mean the world to him!

(While I secretly hoped Little Sister would arrive on July 4th, I think Brian secretly hoped Little Sister would arrive on his birthday - July 13th!  Little Sister has plans to arrive on her own day.  Whatever day that might be it will be the perfect one!)

Birthday dinner over the weekend with Tom and Mary!

Decorating Daddy's birthday cupcakes!

Cupcake perfection!

Kate performs a bit of quality control!

I kind of want to too!

Brian's stash!

Brian's birthday love!

We love you to bits, Bri, and hope you enjoyed your 39th birthday!  Next year, we'll be celebrating a 40th birthday and a 1st birthday around the same time!  Brian says we can celebrate the 1st birthday during the day and the 40th at night...

(Between you and me, I think it might take him 40 days to recover from that one if that is really what happens!!!)