Welcome to the world Carver Elliott!

On Wednesday, July 27th at 7:47 am Carver made his grand entrance into the world via a c section. It isn't what I originally had wanted but it went well and I am happy with the choice I made. Riley stayed at my parents house the night before and Jeromy took me to the hospital at 5:15am the morning of the 27th. Once Carver had arrived he waited til I was out of recovery and went to pick up Riley to come and meet his new baby brother. They both spent two of my three nights in the hospital with me, and I was thankful to have them both so close. Saturday afternoon we all made the trip home and Jeromy was able to take Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday off to help me at home. He's been amazing and it's made this transition so much easier than I expected. Riley loves spending time with Carver, talking to him and snuggling with him. Carver is a pretty good sleeper and eats like a champ. I am looking forward to be taking off restrictions so I can start walking with the boys and some other moms. Carver is 13 days old today and such a sweet little guy. We all feel so blessed to have him here after all these months of waiting. I know this time is going to fly by and I am doing my best to enjoy it while it lasts. Getting no sleep can be hard, but in no time at all he'll be sleeping through the night and I'll miss his tiny face greeting me during the wee hours of the morning so I am thankful for every moment we spend together.

Sometimes plans change

Yesterday at my 36 week appointment I had an ultrasound. It was wonderful seeing our little man again. The tech pointed out some hair on his sweet giant head, and he slept through the whole thing. She estimated his weight to be 7lbs 7 ounces and he was measuring about 2 weeks ahead in growth. My doctor and I spoke in length about him being larger than average (92nd percentile) and we decided to schedule a c section for July 27th if Carver does not come on his own beore then. I would love to get my VBAC, but I also know the risks go up as Carver gets bigger and this will probably be the safest way if he doesn't arrive on his own before then. I am excited and nervous and really hope my body does things on it's own before the 27th but if not I feel I'm making the right choice for me and baby. During my appointment yesterday they measured my blood pressure 3 times and it was too high. I was sent to birthplace to be monitored for an hour and luckily it came down. This weekend was our annual camping trip but doc told me I'm on bedrest til at least Monday when she can see me again and check on my blood pressure. I will make a day trip, at least, with a friend but other than that I will be staying in bed growing our newest addition. Ri and Jeromy will hopefully have a great time up in the hills enjoying some bonding time. Right now, each day is one more day closer to meeting Carver. We are all so excited and grateful that right now he's safe and healthy. 19 days or less and we will finally meet the little man we've been dreaming about for so long.

Even the bad days aren't so bad.

Tomorrow I'll be 34 weeks pregnant. I'm tired, I'm sore all over, work is getting harder to deal with every day, and walking is a challenge in itself. I feel blessed. All these pains and difficulties are getting me closer each day to meeting Carver. I could whine all day about this stuff, but why? Soon I'll be holding him and introducing him to his daddy and big brother and our lives will never be the same. Sometimes I wonder if Riley really expects a baby to come from all this. To a 4 year old it must seem like I've been pregnant half his life. Lately I've had a lot of contractions and other discomforts and my doctor is happy to see I'm 50% effaced because it's a good sign that my body is prepping for the big day and gives me a better chance for a VBAC. Today when she measuring my belly it was measuring 37 weeks. Since baby has been measuring ahead a couple weeks and I have extra amniotic fluid this is to be expected and could mean I deliver a bit before my due date, but that's not a sure thing.  Except for a few small items we are pretty much set for Carver whenever he decides to make his grand entrance. I can't wait for him to meet all the amazing people in my life who have loved him from the first day they knew he existed. I feel like we were waiting for him even before he had been created, he was just waiting for the right time to bless us with his existence.

"Maybe it's because you like me this time."

     That is the comment Jeromy made when he realized how quickly this pregnancy is flying by. I have to admit, I DO like him more now than I did then. We were young, scared, and new at being in a relationship when I was pregnant with Riley. This time around we are older, wiser, married, and our lives are so much more stable. Becoming a mom again is still scary, but I know that no matter what we will make it through and come out stronger.
     On 5/26/11 we went in for a 30 week ultrasound because my belly was measuring 36 weeks and our doctor wanted to check on Carver's growth. I am happy to report that carver is healthy and growing strong measuring 32 weeks. Doctor estimates he is nearing 4 lbs and we will have one nice plump little man by the end of this pregnancy.

I was amazed at how detailed and beatuful the ultrasound pictures turned out. Jeromy and I wee both surprised (pleasantly) at how much our little guy looks like a baby now, complete with chubby cheeks. I have just under 10 weeks until my due date and wouldn't mind if he decided to come a week or two before that. I'm just so anxious and excited to meet the newest member of our family and start this new journey with all my boys. Tomorrow if all goes well we will be bringing home a beatuful bassinet, swing, and crib from a friend and will be getting our room all ready for Carver's arrival. If you asked me 5 years ago if I thought I would ever be this happy, I probably would have said, "Not in my wildest dreams."

The Belly!

24.5 weeks!

They never stop amazing you

Riley turned 4 on April 3rd! I cannot believe my little baby is such a little man. I was watching him sleep a couple of weeks ago and it hit me, he does not look like a sleeping baby/toddler anymore. He looks like a child. His face is taking on a sharper look and isn't as pudgy and round anymore. Where does the time go? His baby brother is itching to grow up and move out of my belly already. At my 20 weeks ultrasound he was almost a week ahead. At 23 weeks he was two weeks ahead and now at 24 weeks he is 3 weeks ahead! Our doctor isn't worried yet but will be keeping a close eye on his growth and may do another ultrasound in the third trimester to make sure he isn't getting TOO big. Ri is still enjoying Carver kicks and I get a little obsessed with staring at his kicks and punches. He likes to "run" from our doctor so it always makes figuring his heart rate interesting. I don't sleep nearly as much or as long as I'd like to since my bladder cannot go more than a couple hours without needing to be emptied, but I feel ok. My "morning" sickness has been showing back up in the evenings and making life fun again, but my hips and pubic bone haven't been causing as much pain as a few weeks ago. It seems like I have a long way to go before meeting Carver until I think weeks. When I think it's only about 16 weeks til I meet him it seems like it's just around the corner.

Carver Elliott is growing strong!

On March 14th we got a good look at the little person growing in my belly. He's a HE! We had already decided on a name and Riley loves talking to his little brother via my bellybutton. Carver Elliott Lackner is following in his big brothers footsteps and is growing ahead of schedule. He was measuring almost a week ahead and would now be due July 28th, but my doctor agreed not to change the due date so that I will have more til to go into labor before they push a c section. Yay! The last few days Riley has enjoyed feeling and seeing Carver's kicks on my belly. The little guy is getting stronger everyday. Jeromy is totally in love with the idea of having another little boy and I couldn't be happier. We've now past the 20 week mark and are counting down to when we will finally meet this new addition to our family.

16 weeks and growing strong!

Tomorrow I will be 16 weeks pregnant, which of course means our little Marley Moonshadow is now 14 weeks old. Monday (valentine's day) we had an appointment and heard a good strong heartbeat in the 150's. Ri got a kick out of it. Still counting down the days til we find out what's kickin' in there. The appointment for my ultrasound is scheduled for March 14th bright and early in the morning. I feel like I'll be really happy whether we are having a girl or boy, I just want to know. I am not a big shopper, but when it comes to baby stuff I am dying to get started. I really don't have a lot that I have to buy for this baby since I saved a lot of Ri's stuff, but if it's a girl I'll need some new clothes. I am getting excited to buy my first cloth diapers, and to do some online shopping. An update on my Jan 31st Colposcopy...there are indeed abnormal cells, but not a huge amount and doc will not biopsy til baby is born. We're hoping they will go away after baby comes, but who knows. Doc isn't worried so I'm just going to enjoy my growing family and not stress about things I can't control right now. I am feeling pretty good these days, but still battling a big of "morning sickness" in the evenings, and tend to feel sore every morning especially in my lower back. Pretty sure my bed is a bit too fluffy, but we can't buy a new one at the moment so I'll just make due and hope it doesn't get worse. Worse case? I start sleeping in the recliner or on the couch, which is pretty darn comfy. I am having some pain from my early pubic bone separation but luckily as long as I don't push myself with crazy long walks or take a lot of stairs, it doesn't get too bad. So far I am just trying to enjoy this new life adventure and soak up the last few months of having an only child. Ri is such a sweet little guy and always wants to hug and kiss my belly and talk to the baby. He even claimed the baby was riding a bike in my tummy! I asked how the bike got in there, but that just confused him. He comes up with some pretty silly stuff. At least at his age we can talk about what is going on so the shock of a new baby in the house won't be so harsh. Hopefully my next update will include a gender update! We're all waiting very impatiently for March 14th!

One day at a time.

I am now 12 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Monday I have a simple check up, but it's the appointment on the 31st that is making me nervous. At my 9 week exam the doc discovered that my cervical cells have changed. This could mean nothing, or it could be a problem. There isn't much they can do to fix this until after baby is born because messing with the cervix is just not a good idea in pregnancy. So on Jan 31st they will just take a closer look at my cervical cells so they can see how severe or not sever the changes are. From what I understand this is a pretty common issue so hopefully everything is fine. Because of light spotting and cramping my doc has recommend I take it easy over the next few days, but at this point we're not too concerned about it. Riley has a lot of fun looking over the pregnancy books with me and hearing about how baby is growing. He loves the pictures and since they are "actual size" pictures he is getting a kick out of seeing how big baby is each week. I love that he's excited and we are talking a bit about how life will change when baby comes. I hope I can schedule date nights with Ri after baby comes so we will be sure to just have Ri and I time through the week. He needs daddy nights too of course. I have been feeling ranom little flutters and at this stage it's hard to say if it's baby or just my body making internal changes and such. A few more weeks and I should start feeling the for sure, real thing. I can't wait. Our next official prenatal appointment is Valentines Day. I can't wait to hear our little ones heartbeat again. The next 6-10 weeks of waiting to find out the sex will hopefully fly by.