Granola

So how do you get ready for a baby? My two ideas... paper products, and granola! For some reason this seemed to be haunting me. My kids love granola and I feel like a good mom because it's healthy (kind of) and they can put it in yogurt and stay full for a while. So At 9 p.m. when Jake was home from work, we made it. (Really Jake just did what ever I asked)

He refused to use a spoon saying that would be too messy...

Doesn't that just look delicious?
I borrowed a food dehydrator and it made the job SO EASY!

And everytime I came in the kitchen, this is what I found. Jansen has learned to open containers... and this one is VERY hard!

The quick update

So as some of you know... I went in Thursday to the high risk doctor, and little boy didn't respond well during the stress test. So they told me to call Jake go to the hospital and 60% chance they were going to deliver the baby right now! Of course the tears started coming and I could hardly think or talk. The nurses kept telling me it was only 5 days earlier than I expected. So they gave me an IV and started me on Pitocin. They wanted me to have 3 contractions in 10 minutes and have baby respond well to all of them. After a few hours baby did well, Jake got to leave and went to work (he had 17 patients scheduled!) and I got to go home and have a baby shower that night. What an EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER!

I went in today and they said I looked good, and Tuesday will be the big day! I'm so excited, but scared and nervous all at the same time...

Me getting to leave the hospital

Breech!

If you've been wondering about baby #3, keep reading, otherwise just skip this post and go to the fun stuff!

So here's the 411 with my cute little baby boy... Yesterday I went back to the high risk pregnancy doctor I've been seeing for a month now, and this little boy finally dropped below the 10 percentile in weight. So they've decided it's time for him to come out. So they want him to try and make it 10 more days in me, and then they'll take him. They'll keep doing all the non-stress tests and ultrasounds biweekly to make sure nothing changes in between now and then. The crazy part... on Tuesday he flipped and is now BREECH!!! Can you believe that little stinker? I've been so excited to have a regular delivery with an almost 4 pound baby. Doesn't that sound so easy? But because he's small, they don't recommend trying to turn him around. Usually it will cause fetal distress and lead to an emergency cesarean delivery. If he didn't have all these risks, I think I would try and have him flipped, but too much risk to this little guy. So we're just scheduling a c-section. I can finally say (or type) that without crying. But the good news is they think he is just a small healthy baby, and we'll take him anyway he wants to get here! Can't wait to meet him. Love you already.

Maymont Part

Last Wednesday we found the neatest park in Virginia. It totally made me feel like we were in Europe!... well maybe just back in Ohio visiting a Metro Park. But it was so pretty and the weather was so nice. We took the kids there to go explore. It was so big there are many parts we didn't get to see, but figured we'd just be back for more!

We first went to the Italian Gardens. There were so beautiful!
There were lines of roses the kids loved to smell. We had to keep a close eye on them to make sure they didn't pick any!

Here's the smallest little butterfly Reesa found. She LOVES bugs!

Waiting for the tram to take us somewhere... we didn't wait long enough to find out.
I really took it easy, Jake took the kids to the Japanese Gardens where they have stepping stones you can walk across the pond on, with 18 inch fish swimming right by your feet. Jake said Reesa DID NOT want to leave!
Running down the hill to the aviary. Jake decided it was too far for me to walk, so we saved it for another day and just relaxed in the grass and shade.

This is all Jansen wants to do when I hold him.

But come on, he's sooo cute!

Just like dad

Jansen is not scared of any loud noises. Whenever I turn on the vacuum he comes RUNNING to try and help. It's the same with barking dogs, motorcycles etc. So when Jake started mowing our lawn, I wasn't too suprised to find this...

Jake just loves having this little man idolize him!

You can see our new mini van in the back, we bought in preparation for baby #3! I must say I am surprised at how much I like driving it. The best part is my stomach doesn't hurt from being scrunched when I sit... getting so fat!

Look at that concentration, this must be hard work!

And of course since it was such nice weather, we had to let the kids play on their bikes.

Ward Campout

Our ward went camping last weekend and of course we went along. They had kayaks, 4-wheelers, fishing poles, bubbles, so many fun activities. The kids went on a snipe hunt, and they actually hid little snipes they made for the kids to find. Reesa found 3 and carried them EVERYWHERE. She called them her "snaps" and needed to sleep with them, and first thing when she woke up, wanted to know where her "snaps" were. It took me a while to figure out what she was talking about!
Reesa really wanted to go on a boat ride, but when it was our turn, Jake had Jansen on a 4-wheeler. I tried to convince Reesa to wait for dad to get back, but finally decided to just take her out myself. (I'm not supposed to exercise anymore this pregnancy, but I figured we'd just go slow...) Here she is totally unsafe in a life jacket way too big. We came home "tick free!" But decided Jansen needed a buzz for the summer. He just won't hold still long enough for me to give him a style. I still like the spikes, but he's so cute anyway.

AND we cannot forget the pink flowers. Everytime we go outside, Reesa asks if I can take her picture in front of the pink flowers. But of course she won't look at me and smile. Such a girly girl!

Ribs

The first time your child does ANYTHING, isn't it the cutest thing you've ever seen?!? Well, we've had bad luck taking our kids out to eat because there is nothing on the menu I think they will eat. They don't like hamburgers, chicken nuggets, etc. So we went to Chili's and they had ribs on the kids menu, so we decided to give it a try. AND can you believe it, they were a hit!
A lady at the table next to us told me this baby looked so cute eating such grown up food, she took a picture of us and MAILED them to me! Isn't that nice? So I figured if she went to all that trouble, I might as well share them with you too! And of course we just thought Jansen was the cutest thing ever, so nice to have it validated by a stranger...

Mother's advice

I need something... So I'm having this baby in about 6 weeks and I'm terrified! I could hardly sleep last night. Maybe if I felt better prepared, I could handle this easier. Jake told me last night, he doesn't think he can take a week off work and still keep his numbers. He'll get 4 days off, 2 of which I'll be in the hospital, right? My mom can't come out here until almost 2 weeks after I have this baby, and my sister will be out of town and is very busy with her own family. Can I really do this alone?

Reesa and Jansen are so physically demanding I don't know how I'll take care of them. PLUS, don't you feel like you've forgotten everything you have to do for a newborn? Does anyone want to come visit and take care of us for a week? I'll even pay for your plane ticket?

But seriously, I need some suggestions. How can I plan/ prepare for this baby? I need to get rid of this sick feeling I have, and gain some confidence. I was SO spoiled in Ohio with zillions of helpful friends who practically did everything for me... now what? I just have to laugh, I feel so pathetic, but I don't know who has great advice on this matter... or I would just call you and ask!

Send me any advice you've got...

--Kellie