Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

I have really been putting off getting Lucas's hair cut. I have absolutely no issues with a little boy having longer hair. I actually really like the "grom" look…that's little surfer for those of you who don't know;) but Kevin asked if we could at least trim it so it at least looks like a style instead of we are just refusing to cut his hair so I said ok. My little sister, Angie, is a hair stylist so I said the next time she visits we'll do it. I desperately needed a hair trim and would have gotten it cut a while ago but Angie is the only person to have touched my hair in the last 8 years so I was waiting for her to visit also. The time finally came and on July 20 Lucas got his first haircut.

Lucas loves getting his hair played with and his head massaged so I shouldn't have been surprised when he enjoyed his haircut:)

Before

Baby #2 - Bump Update

30 Weeks!

On Tuesday I hit 30 weeks. I cannot believe how fast this is going!!

Size of baby: Average for this week - 15.7 in, 2.75 lb, size of a cabbage

Gender: Girl!

Movement: She has started hitting low, like shaking my nerves down my legs low.

Sleep: Decent. 

Maternity Clothes: All maternity pants. Most maternity shirts. Still can wear most regular sundresses but I'm not in a hot place so that's not happening much. I have one pair of maternity shorts and I would really like at least one more because it has been warm but I can't find any that fit:(

Symptoms: Not only does my right hip still hurt at night if I'm sleeping on my right side too long but my right shoulder hurts too. I wake up almost every night in pain having to roll over. Still exhausted! I am anemic but my doctor says I'm not at a level that I should feel this exhausted so we're blaming it on chasing around a little one all day:)

Aversions: Nothing.

Cravings: I would really love a good, juicy cheeseburger…a really good one!

Best moment: There have been a lot of great moments over the last few weeks…seeing that our baby is growing and healthy, feeling her kick, etc. But to point out just one is that we have finalized our daughter's name: Namera Brin. I am so in love with it. Namera (rhymes with Sara) is the name I made up in 3rd grade. I wanted her middle name to be a family name like Lucas's but after going through probably 30 family names (maybe more!) none of them were working or we could agree on so I started putting together options that combined our names, BReanna and kevIN. Brin is what we agreed on and I am really happy with it.

Baby daddy: He talks about Namera more and is really trying to be involved in picking out things for her and her room. I love that he is getting into this.

Big Bro: Lucas has become a bit more lovey and attached the last week or so. I'm not sure if he senses something is changing or if this is just a phase he is going through but I will take his hugs all day long!

Me: I have only been away from my son for two nights in his 16 months of life. I never imagined I would be so attached or have such a hard time being away from my child but the anxiety is real. It is hitting me that Lucas can't be with us when we are in the hospital for Namera's birth and I have had a couple breakdowns over it. Kevin has been really helpful through this discussing our options. My mom will be staying with Lucas and my youngest sister will probably be around for some of the time too and I am completely comfortable with both of them and so is Lucas but I still feel guilty leaving him and then coming back with another baby. So Kevin is going to come home each night after the birth to put Lucas to bed, depending on how the nights in the hospital go he'll try and come home when Lucas wakes up and Lucas will definitely visit us in the hospital.

Baby Bump Update - 24 Weeks

How far along: 24 weeks!

Size of baby: Average for this week - 12.5 in, 1.25 lb, size of a corn

Gender: Girl!

Movement: Lots of kicks and punches. Nothing that hurts though. She seems a lot more "normal." By that I mean I feel a lot more kicks at night and she is a bit more calm during the day.

Sleep: Decent. 

Maternity Clothes: I got a hard dose of reality this past weekend that all of my normal shirts aren't fitting. We were out of town so I only had what I pack and I packed what I thought was a long enough shirt…nope, belly out! So, I am half maternity shirts and half regular shirts as long as they're long enough. All maternity bottoms or my pants with the belly band. Sundresses still fit so that's nice.

Symptoms: I'm not sure this is a pregnancy thing but it's only been since I've been pregnant…my hip really hurts at night if I'm sleeping on my side too long. I wake up almost every night in pain having to roll over. I am exhausted! Like, first trimester exhaustion. Thank goodness the hubby understands that I am pregnant with a one year old at home so he always tells me take a nap, don't worry about the house:) Half my belly button is already sticking out.

Aversions: Nothing.

Cravings: Still fruit, root beer and sandwiches. I can't eat deli meat so this has been somewhat of an issue but I have (re)discovered veggie sandwiches, egg salad sandwiches and roasted turkey sandwiches…yum!

Best moment: Finding out we are having a girl! I would have been thrilled either way but now that I know we are having a girl I am getting so excited about all the girly things in our future. I have known my daughter's name since I was 9 years old but it's kind of different, well I made it up so maybe really different, so I did a couple focus groups to figure out the spelling and we finally have that nailed down. Now we just need a middle name.

Baby daddy: Kevin finally felt baby kick on May 31 and then a few days ago we both could see her kick. This makes it so much more real for him. He is also in full on nesting mode. It's hysterical and awesome. I think about everything that needs to be done but it's overwhelming and Kevin just starts doing it.

Big Bro: He still has no idea what is going on but since my belly sometimes hangs out he thinks the mole I have on it is a fun thing to poke at…not fun. He also has figured out his belly but I can't say for sure if that's related. Whenever we see little babies, especially girls, I point them out and if we know them have Lucas get closer and say "we're going to have one of those soon" or just explain "baby." He smiles a lot at them so hopefully that will stick:)

Baby #2 Bump Update - A Comparison

For this one time I want to do a little comparison of my pregnancies so I can remember some things.

How far along: 18 weeks!

Size of baby: Sweet Potato

Movement: At 13 weeks I felt the baby. Not a kick, actually felt the baby with my hand on my stomach. Baby must have been really moving and I was able to feel their back? Head? I have also felt flutters this time around where I never felt any movement with Lucas before his first kick. On Saturday, May 3, I felt an actual kick and have felt them here and there since then.

Sleep: I am having to get up to use the restroom once a night again. I hate this because Lucas is finally sleeping through the night and now I'm back waking up in the middle of it. I also cannot sleep past 6:15 am. I am pretty sure this is just because I am the mother of a child who doesn't sleep past 6:15 though:)

Weight: This is not a subject I talk about. I am someone who can focus on weight too much and that is the opposite of what needs to be done while I'm pregnant as long as I'm healthy. My doctor weighs me each appointment (as they do every pregnant woman) to make sure I'm in a healthy range. Anyway, even though I won't talk about this again (except for the final results) I do want a comparison of the two pregnancies. With Lucas I gained 20 pounds and lost 35 lbs. At my first doctor's appointment with baby #2 I was 10 pounds less than I was with Lucas. I am very curious how my weight will be/look this time around because I started showing so quickly this time around and I know I've already gained some weight since that first appointment 10 weeks ago but I feel healthy and that is all that matters:)

Maternity Clothes: I have pulled the clothes out from storage. I can wear most of my regular pants with a bellyband. Half of them I just can't button so I go out just like that making sure my top can cover it;) My maternity jeans all have the full belly coverage which just isn't necessary yet and I don't fill the butt part so I found a great Gap pair online that is just a short band at the waist. They had my size and I love them! With Lucas I pushed wearing maternity clothes until absolutely necessary but they aren't cheap and they are comfy so I am wearing all that I can this time around. No tops yet but they are hung up and ready.

Symptoms: Headaches, headaches, headaches. Stuffy nose at night (I still don't understand this one). Oh, did I mention the headaches?! 

Aversions: Nothing.

Cravings: I crave fruit again. Last time it was especially pears but this time it is oranges…oh my a delicious juicy orange! And orange juice.

Best moment this week: Feeling the baby kick. Since I have been so nervous this time around feeling the baby kick has been so reassuring and amazing!

Worst moment this week: A migraine a few days ago. Ugh! I ended up in tears. Running after a 1 year old with a migraine for 8 hours is no bueno. When Kevin finally got home I just couldn't take it anymore. When you're pregnant you can only take Tylenol for pain but at the beginning of this year some university (or something) in Denmark (or somewhere) came out with a study that pregnant women who take Tylenol have a 30% higher chance of having a baby with ADHD. I happened to see this on the national news and then my doctor said not to take anything until more studies can be done, just drink lots of water. Well you can only drink so much water. You are also not supposed to be stressed while pregnant. Well come on people! Figure it out! So I took two plain Tylenol. I HAD TO!

Baby daddy: Kevin feels (and I agree) that Lucas is growing so fast so he is incredibly thrilled to know that we have another little baby on the way that will need him and want to be cuddled by him all day long.

Such a difference! 

                                               

                                                          18 weeks with Lucas

18 weeks w/Baby #2

Here we go again!

On the morning of Super Bowl Sunday we headed to CVS to get ice before our guests arrived. I had been exclusively breast feeding but the month before that time of the month arrived anyway so when I woke up that day I thought, I think I'm late, but then again there may not be a "regular" for awhile. Since we were hosting a "party" I wanted to know for sure if I could have a drink. Since I was still breastfeeding I didn't really drink but I would occasionally have a beer, when I'm pregnant I don't drink at all. So as we pull up to the store I casually tell my husband not to freak out, I don't have any symptoms, but I'm going to be buying a pregnancy test just to ease my mind. Kevin's response: You are so pregnant. Thirty minutes later I peed on a stick and low and behold…PREGNANT!

We knew we wanted another one soon so we were ecstatic. It was just a bit shocking because we weren't trying and really, it happened very fast, pretty much as soon as it could have happened. So then a bit of worry…wait, we still have a baby! How am I going to manage two babies?! They'll be about 18 months apart. How am I going to still take Lucas to swim lessons? You know, the important things;) Two cribs?! But wait…we're having another little miracle! This is going to be amazing! Ooh, our three bedroom house is getting filled real fast. A few days ago I reached 16 weeks.

Yesterday I had my monthly doctor's appointment and I am still in shock that I am pregnant. I have been so afraid this pregnancy. Can we be this lucky? So I have been very hesitant on spreading our news. But yesterday, when I saw our new little miracle bouncing around and waving at me I realized, yes, you can be this lucky. I am so thrilled to be able to carry another child. With Lucas we found out the gender "early." Kevin said 20 weeks will come fast enough and that with a little one running around we can wait. So we get to find out a little more about who this new one will be on May 12. People keep asking if I have any feelings about it. I do not. I have had two dreams about the gender, one with the baby being a girl and one with them being a boy. I have accidentally called the baby a he and she. I also honestly have no preference. I think it would be amazing for Lucas to have a little brother but then my husband, being one of two boys, is afraid for me with two boys:) So a girl would be amazing too!

I have also been asked how does Lucas feel about this. Well, he's one, so he has no idea what's going on. I've only held a new baby once around him and he didn't seem to care. That was three months ago though. I do feel like he is a bit more cuddly and affectionate now with us so I'm not sure how it will go. In a few months I'll start reading on how I can prepare him but he'll still be too young to understand what exactly is coming until the new little one arrives. He did ruin all my attempts at an announcement though so maybe he kind of gets it;)

I'm not sure how regular I will be able to post about this pregnancy but I do want to have some record and comparison in the books so hopefully they won't be too far apart. 

Well off I go…the current "baby" is calling!

Happy Easter!

This was Lucas's second Easter but he was only 6 days old for the his first one so that didn't really count. We had a very small, casual, perfect day. My mom's birthday was the day before so she came up and we had a playdate with some of her friends and one of their granddaughters. It was a gorgeous day.
Since I'm going to New Orleans for my middle sister's bachelorette party and we're heading to the wedding from there my mom and Lucas will be in the city with us. They'll be staying at their own house for the weekend though. I've never spent a night away from Lucas, no one beside Kevin or me have even put him down to bed, so Saturday night we had a practice round. Kevin and I went on a date night, the first in a year!, and my mom stayed with Lucas. Thankfully it went amazingly and without issues.
My mom left in the morning. When Lucas woke up from his nap the Easter Bunny had left him a little basket and eggs had been "hidden" on our front lawn. Lucas loved finding the eggs. He would get an egg, show us and then put it in his basket. Friends of mine from were visiting the bay area so they stopped by to hang out for a few hours. We had another hunt out back and once again Lucas just loved it. We loved that we could enjoy our patio with friends on this gorgeous day. We had a perfect holiday and I hope you did too!

12 Months Old! Or should I say 1 year?!

Dear Lucas,
You are a year old today! I cannot believe a year ago you entered this world and changed our lives forever. The year has flown by but Daddy and I couldn't imagine life without you. You are funny, cuddly, strange, loud, happy, emotional and just flat out amazing.

I will update your measurements on Thursday after your doctor's appointment. You love brushing your teeth. If you see mom or dad doing it then you must get in on the action. Sometimes it is the only thing that will calm you down. Never too early to start good hygiene!

You had a lot of celebrations this month. We celebrated Fiona's first birthday.

You celebrated your first St. Patrick's Day. Daddy and mommy love making food this day. Corned beef and cabbage is probably one of our favorite meals. You weren't too fond of it but you sure liked your shirt!

You also had your first birthday celebration and ate your first bite of sugar. At first you weren't too sure about the frosting but then you were all in on the cake. 

You love sharing with mommy and daddy. This included the cake but also includes anything you take from another kid. We need to work on who you are supposed to be sharing with:) You did have a lot of fun with your cousins at your party.

You "drove" a car for the first time. Now you want to do it all the time. Between us, when we are pulling the car into the garage from the driveway we let you:)

You are still very much into books. Every morning we play with them and read some and then throughout the day you'll head back into your room just to get in some more book time.

Auntie Angelina visited a couple times and you have so much fun with her. She let's you play with her phone and you quickly figured out how to scroll through pictures and talk to Siri.

She also has been playing with you lots. She can really get you to laugh hard.

You absolutely love playing peekaboo. As soon as we say the word no matter what you are doing you will crouch down and then stand up and say "ada!", even if you aren't hiding behind anything. But you also do hide behind things and play too. You started doing this thing where you rest your head on your high chair and I'm pretty sure you just do it because you know it looks cute.

Hanging with Daddy may be your all-time favorite. You love "guy time" whether it be bbqing, pulling weeds or just resting.

Your second all-time favorite thing just may be running up and down the hall. You love to scream and laugh up and down and up and down. Sometimes you bring something with you. You really started loving stuffed animals. We will give you an animal and you will hug it or lay on it for a minute. It's too cute! And now you even run up and give us hugs. We didn't know if you would be a cuddly kid and we absolutely love that you are.

Happy birthday little man! We love you so much and love the person you are becoming. Thank you for choosing us as your parents. We are so excited to watch you continue to grow. 

Love,

Mommy and Daddy