Update on Baby Girl -- Week 26 Check-up

Today I had my routine montlly OB check-up and glucose test. The glucose test went well (drank syrupy orange drink and had two vials of blood drawn an hour later) althouth I won't know the results until my next appointment. However there was a little more to my appointment with the doctor than expected. I am so pleased to know that my OB practice is being very proactive in watching this pregnancy since I went into pre-term labor with Philip at 32 weeks. (I was admitted to the hospital and stayed for two nights. The contractions were stopped the first night, but I was given steroid shots to strengthen his lungs had he been born early. The little munchkin must have been annoyed by it because he stayed put and then was born four days after his due date!)

Anyway, my first pre-term labor was due to an irritable uterus which I learned can be reoccuring with subsequent pregnancies. This means I am now going for check-ups every 2 weeks. The doctor will do the normal heartbeat check and stomach measurements. Then I will also go into the ultrasound room where the technician will swab my cervix to check for a certain hormone. This tells them if I will go into labor within two weeks. So amazing the things the medical world has these days. I will also receive ultrasounds during which she checks my cervix for any changes and the amount of amniotic fluid around the baby. Today all of this looked perfect so nothing to worry about yet.

As I was told it happened last time possibly due to being somewhat dehydrated, I'm trying to drink a lot more water. I suppose I should also begin to rest more so I'm going to go lay down since Philip is sleeping now too. I pray everything goes smoothly for our little girl however it was nice to see her again today. I think she waved at us!

A Few Things I've Forgotten to Post

A friend reminded me that I never posted the finale to a big chapter in our lives. Most people know Matthew and I loved our ferrets. Well, our house is now pet-free. After once having three (Merlin, Griffin and Samson), we lost our last ferret, Griffin, on Dec. 17. The other two had died after having some sort of tumors (adrenal gland, we think). Luckily, Griffin seemed healthy although he was slowing down a good bit the last month or so. We think he just died of old age. I was really sad to find Griffin dead on that Sunday night as he had always been my loving, teddy bear ferret. Philip handled it great.

I didn't want to hid the fact from him and so I showed Philip Griffin's life-less body laying in the cage. I told him, "Griffin won't be playing with us any more. He's in heaven." Not exactly certain if that's true but it softens the blow. The next night Matthew buried Griffin in the backyard next to Merlin and Samson. Philip helped shovel some of the dirt back into the hole. For a few weeks after, something just seemed missing around the house. For the last 6 years, we've always kept an eye out 6 inches from the floor to keep from stepping on anyone! We'll definitely be pet owners again one day as we're all animal lovers.

On to another subject...

Here I am at 5 1/2 months pregnant! With Philip's pregnancy, Matthew took my photo every month. This is the first picture from this pregnancy. I guess it's true about the second child getting much less camera time.

And here is our beautiful little girl's face! Our ultrasound on January 8 was so exciting as we could see her arms and legs moving around. May will be here before we know it, but I've still got a lot to do (rearrange Philip's closets and dresser to make room for pink clothes, thoroughly deel-clean the rest of the house, etc.). I am a lot more relaxed this go round and it makes me that much more excited to welcome our daughter. I won't be terrified of her like I was of Philip at first.

My Baby is 2 years old!

No, we didn't forget about Philip's birthday, but I just haven't gotten around to posting pics until now. We had a nice little party for him on Monday night (his birthday was the 22nd). My parents, Ruth Ann, Elise, Mollie and Michael came over for cake, ice cream and presents. I was raised with birthdays always being a big deal so I tried to make Philip's day really special too. We went to Walmart earlier in the morning for a few things including ice cream for the party. He was excited and told everyone there we had come for ice cream! I would tell them it was for his party that night and so he was told Happy Birthday several times in the store.

After he awoke from his afternoon nap, I showed him his wrapped presents from Mommy and Daddy. He was told to wait to unwrap them until everyone came for the party. He did really good but could hardly wait. Finally everyone arrived and we opened presents first as everyone had recently had dinner.

Obviously presents are not really necessary, but I was glad the things he received did not overlap too much with what he had received for Christmas. Matthew and I gave Philip a child-sized electric guitar which he elaborately "rocked out" on and a Thomas the Train book. He also received some really cute clothes, another Thomas book and a DVD, a playdough set, a kite, a Dinosaur book, a scrubby rhino for the tub, and a great toddler sleeping bag/air mattress combo!

We then enjoyed cake and ice cream. As my mom had worked in cake decorating, I asked if she could put Boz on his cake. She thankfully said she would bake and ice the cake for me as we were in Wilson all weekend. It turned out perfect and Philip knew exactly who it was. I know he won't remember his 2nd birthday, but I will!



You go, rock star!!



Philip really wanted to sleep on his new air mattress, but we were worried he would get up and walk around his room if he was on the floor. Matthew put it onto of his bed and this is how we found him before we went to sleep: lying in the crack between the air mattress and the safety rail! Matthew took the air mattress off and we slid him under his covers. Philip's such a great sleeper that he never woke up.

The next day, Philip had a lot of fun with his playdough set. It came with this cool kid-safe Swiss Army knive.

Our Weekend in Wilson

This past weekend, Matthew, Philip, Ruth Ann and I drove up to Wilson, NC on Friday evening. Matthew's brother Jonathan, his wife Lori and daughter Hannah arrived in Wilson on Thursday evening and spent the night with a church member. The moving truck arrived at their apartment (really it is more like a cute neighborhood of really nice duplexs; I wish I had taken a picture!) on Friday morning so by the time we arrived, everything was inside, boxes everywhere, but the beds had been put together. We all stayed up until about 1:30am (including Philip and Hannah who were very happy to be together again) unpacking boxes, moving furniture around, and feeling like we were getting a lot of nothing done.

Saturday morning, we drove to their pastor's house for his daughter's 2-year birthday party. It was fun getting to know some of the church members and see that Hannah will not be at a loss for friends (probably 10-12 kids there). It was weird just meeting these people and happily enjoying some Boz birthday cake with them. They really are such a loving, godly group of people. I know it won't take Jonathan and Lori long to feel at home in Wilson (at least that's our prayer).

Saturday afternoon was spent unpacking more boxes and moving more furniture. At least, things were beginning to look like they had their own spots. That evening the kids took a bubble bath together and went to bed at a relatively decent hour. The adults kept at it until we crashed at 12:30am.

Sunday was nice as we attended their new church, Christ Baptist Church, which as a newer plant church meets in a local elementary school. Both Sunday School and worship were very Spirit-filled. If I lived in the area, it's definitely where I would attend. Hannah and Philip enjoyed climbing on the risers while the church members set the room up to look like a school auditorium after service.

Philip introduced Hannah to Boz on DVD while we finished packing the car.

Leaving at 4:30pm wasn't as hard a goodbye as it was back at Thanksgiving. Now we're only 4 1/2 hours away and know we'll be back to visit in 6-8 weeks after Lori's baby is born.

As he never took an afternoon nap, Philip was asleep in the car less than 5 minutes after leaving and slept for 2 hours! Matthew drove us safely home through a torrential downpour with a stop at McDonald's for dinner to go.

Like Father, Like Son

I obviously love watching Philip explore this world as he still is learning so much each day. It makes me laugh when he so clearly shows signs of being his daddy's boy. This morning, he kept himself busy for a while just playing with some VCR cables. He also really likes our remote controls and cell phones. He definitely has some technical abilities in the works.

Another thing Matthew and Philip share is their love of sleeping. Neither likes to go to bed that much, but once they're asleep, you better not wake them!

Napping the afternoon away. He's my sweet angel and getting so big. I know he'll look even that much bigger when the baby is born. Your sister is going to love you so much, Philip!

Most importantly, I treasure the Godly-influence Matthew is in Philip's life. Matthew is a dependable Sunday School teacher to our 11th grade boys and a church Deacon. His walk with Jesus is evident and I thank the Lord that we are raising our son in a Christian home. Philip must be understanding some of it as he knows all his Little People want to see the Baby Jesus. If only our world was filled with people that desperate to get to the Savior!

Requests for Prayer

I have a few things to ask your prayers for.

My mom is still struggling with getting her health back in order. She continues to have 3-8 bowel movements a day, some days being painful while others are not. The main request is that her bladder begin functioning normally again. She saw her urologist last Wednesday and was told it is still not emptying to an acceptable level. When urine remains in the bladder, it can cause urinary tract infections (which she had) and even kidney problems if left unchecked. Her doctor prescribed some medicines which she will take for a month and then have another ultrasound to check the bladder level. If that does not work effectively, she may have to begin catheterizing herself again. She really doesn't want to go back there.

Secondly, my brother-in-law Jonathan, sister-in-law Lori and niece Hannah are moving from Florida to North Carolina this weekend. Moving overall is hectic as it is, but Lori is also eight months pregnant with their second daughter. The Lord directed Jonathan to become Associate Pastor of a new church in North Carolina. The moving truck left Florida yesterday with their belongings. They will drive from south Florida to Lori's mom's house in Jacksonville tonight. Tomorrow afternoon, they will continue on to North Carolina. If you would like to read the full store so as to know how better to pray, visit Lori's blog.

Thirdly, thank you for continuing to pray for our baby girl. I can hardly believe I entered my 6th month of pregnancy this week! Finding out I was pregnant seems so long ago and now the delivery date is quickly approaching (May 7). She is beginning to move a good bit and I'm excited for Philip to feel her over the next several months.

I pray God's blessings for you and your family.

Matthew's Toy Plane

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This Christmas, I thought Matthew's been such a great dad to Philip that he deserved a toy all of his own. He's mentioned wanting a remote control airplane throughout our marriage so Philip and I headed to our local hobby store and bought a really nice one. Last Saturday, we drove around town looking for an empty field so he could try his hand at flying it.


We found a great field and after working out a few kinks (charging the battery a second time while we ate lunch!), the plane soared upward... for about a minute! Unfortunately, the wind picked up and Matthew's new plane flew straight into the power lines about 10 seconds after the video ended. It came crashing to the ground. Thankfully, only the wing (styrofoam) broke and the body and engine were fine. We're going back to the store tonight in hopes of buying a new wing and maybe going flying again tomorrow.

Super Philip!

As all parents know, our kids go through funny phases. One of Philip's new phases is that he wants the bath towel put on his head so he can run around after bathtime like a super hero! Go Super Philip!


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The Results Are In!

In May, Philip will become Big Brother to a new Baby Sister! We were so excited and blessed to find out yesterday morning that our second child is a girl! The ultrasound images were VERY clear (and comparing them to Philip's ultrasound pics, I have no doubt!). Even more important, our little girl is strong and healthy. She's measuring right on track to be born on May 7 and currently weighs 1 lb. and 5 oz. Knowing the baby is a girl makes it that much more exciting for me as I'm now beginning to picture little dresses and dolls around the house in a few months. At the same time, it's a little scary as all I relate to now is little boy stuff. For the last few weeks, we've been asking Philip if he wanted a brother or sister. Sister was the answer 100% of the time! He's going to be a great big brother. I enjoyed watching how sweet he was around Amber and Gracie in KY. Hopefully we'll all adapt ok to having a sweet baby girl in the house this coming summer!

Planes and Tractors, O Wow!

When he gets excited, Philip's new phrase is "oh, wow!" (I think he did get it from Hannah.) Well, he had plenty to say "oh, wow" about in Kentucky. Another bonus of Uncle Dennis being a contractor in Kentucky where each house is surrounded by several acres is that he owns cool tractors and other such vehicles. Here is a sampling of the ones Philip tried out.







Michael J., are you jealous? :)


Windy even let Philip take a spin on her new Dora 4-wheeler.



A BIG thank you again to the Pollard family for being so loving as always! We miss you guys and hope to see you again soon.

The highlight of Matthew's week came when his cousin Brian offered to take him for a flight in a private, 4-seat plane. Brian is a pilot by profession and even teaches others to fly so I wasn't worried. They called us from the airport to watch outside as they would fly over the house!

I wasn't nervous about Brian's ability, but was glad I didn't go along after Matthew came back and told us how it was. Brian let Matthew take the controls for part of the flight and even showed Matthew how you could stall the plane, let it begin to nose-drive but then recover and straighten out! Glad you had fun, sweetie!

Christmas in KY

As I stated in an earlier post, Matthew, Philip, Ruth Ann and I traveled to Kentucky on December 26 and stayed through January 1. Matthew is blessed with a wonderful, loving extended family, and therefore I'm blessed by knowing them also. His Aunt Linda and Uncle Dennis are blessed with a prosperous contracting business which allows them to live in big, beautiful houses which we are blessed by staying in when we visit them.

This Christmas was especially fun now that their three children, Lindsay, Cheryl and Patrick are grown and married and the girls each have two daughters of their own. Lindsay and husband Matt have 2-yr-old Windy and 5-month-old Amber. Cheryl and her husband Gary have 2-yr-old Bailey and 4-month-old Gracie. Needless to say, Philip was not lacking playmates during the week.
We enjoyed a lot of just sitting around and talking. The house is beautifully decorated so it really felt like being on vacation and not just visiting family. Good thing too since I was still battling that head cold. Usually not fun being sick while traveling but visiting the Pollards is so much more relaxing than being at home!


This is where Philip was most meals. He found this little booster chair and I guess it reminded him of home. Either way, he kept Gracie company on the floor.


This was Matthew's and my room. Linda has great decorating taste. Too bad she and Dennis can't move to SC to build and decorate our next house! Philip slept with Grandma in the room next door; he in a crib and Ruth Ann in the bed.

This was the bathroom adjoining our room (also gorgeous!) and the location of Philip's baths...

which he LOVED because the tub had whirlpool jets. He thought the "Bubbles!" were very fun.



I love this picture! Maybe I should send it to the bathtub company and they could use it in brochures.


Another fun room in the house was the theater room. Cool having your own mini-movie theater, right? Matthew and I watched two movies alone, a movie with his cousins, and he and the guys even played XBox on this big screen!

Philip liked watching Boz on the big screen!

The kids having fun together outside playing ring around the rosie! It was pretty cold and I had originally hoped for snow. We never saw snow but enjoyed gorgeous blue skies for most of the week. One day it monsooned which sounded nice on the tin roof.


Both girls received Dora skates for Christmas so they let Philip take a turn too. Such sweet faces. Windy is on the left and Bailey on the right.


Linda took us to visit Grandma Brown (Ruth Ann and Linda's mom) in her nursing home. Unfortunately, she has dementia and didn't know any of us, but Philip did make her smile.

We also got to meet another new family member when Matthew's cousin Brian and his wife Carrie stopped by with their son William. He was so bright-eyed and never stopped smiling. Next Christmas maybe Philip and William can play together!

Christmas in SC

Here are some photos from our Christmas celebrations with our family in South Carolina.

Saturday evening we went over to Matthew's Aunt Elise and Uncle Arden's house. It was nice spending time with Paul and Kellie who live a few hours away now as well as Grandma Brooks. We enjoyed a great dinner of oyster stew. Philip loved the soup too. Then came present time!



Philip opens a present as Mollie and Grandma look on.




Philip checks out his new talking alphabet book. Kellie, Paul, Michael and Mollie, we thank you for giving Philip such great gifts.



Christmas Eve was special as we worshipped in the morning at church. However, I had begun feeling sick on Saturday and by Sunday, I was on the couch all afternoon with a fever and chills. We did want to let Philip open one special present on Christmas Eve to reinforce the true meaning of Christmas. We bought him the Little People Nativity set. Here are the photos including the additional animals from Mollie and Michael which Philip thought should also worship the baby Jesus.





A little girl in Ruth Ann's class passed out "Reindeer Food" (oatmeal and glitter). Philip sprinkled it on the sidewalk to insure Santa would stop at our house.

The glitter attracts their eyes and so they stop for a snack during their long flight on Christmas night!


Christmas morning was fun at our house as our parents came over to watch Philip open presents, exchange our presents and eat breakfast. Philip received a train set and Weeble town from Santa, but I was excited to see that he liked the Elmo Workbench we gave him best.


He is definitely all boy as the hammer is his favorite object these days. This workbench is really cute as it plays the Sesame Street characters' voices when you use each tool. Hopefully Philip will play with it for months to come.