Baby girl.

So I lied a little in my last post when I said life had been, "relatively the same around here." Well, I guess it kinda has been..  except for that now I'm growing baby numero DOSE in ma belly!!!

Chris was ready before I was to try again for another baby. Which if any of you know the story with baby numero uno- you would understand the insanity in that statement. Haha. I felt pretty ready, but mostly just scared because, hi- I've had a newborn at this point and don't take it lightly anymore.

This time around, we had to try for a little while. Which I'm actually grateful for. In the moment it was frustrating seeing that little "Not Pregnant" sign every month, but I feel like now I can have a little bit more empathy for those who have to wait longer to get pregnant. [Sidenote: I am in no way comparing myself to the women who have infertility struggles, I have definitely never had to bear that pain.] 

I was definitely still shocked when I found out though!! I don't think that will ever change. Will and I ran to the store to (of course) buy a couple more tests and we also snagged a t-shirt for Will that said, "The World Revolved Around Me" and at the bottom, I wrote in, "At least until November..."

I took a couple more tests, and sure enough, they were all positive! So I put Will in his shirt, and waited anxiously for Chris to get home. When he finally got home, I waited for a good 20 minutes to see if he would notice Wills shirt. I was dying inside, but of course he didn't pick up on it at all. So I told him to read it! He did, and STILL didn't get it- just thought I had once again bought more clothes for Will. Haha. So I made him read it again, and that time it rang a bell! It was a sweet moment for sure. It felt good to know that he was actually ready this time around, and so excited!

Unfortunately, this pregnancy has been a lot tougher than my first. The nausea started in full swing at 5 weeks, and I literally could not go a day without taking a nap. With Will, the sickness ended around 11-12 weeks, and now I'm 16 weeks and still feeling grossy-jossie. Hopefully the end is near! I will say though- although I feel bad for all the mornings that I've had to lay on the couch for 3 hours, Will has become surprisingly independent because of it, and I'm happy about that. One morning he came over to me with a peeled banana in hand, just munching away... Uhh WHAT?! I still don't know how he managed to get in the pantry, pull the bananas down, and freakin PEEL one?! I mean.. he's 1 and 1/2!!

At 14 weeks, after a solid 3 weeks of using my best persuasion skills, I finally convinced Chris (my accountant husband who never wants to spend money on anything unnecessary (love you babe!) ) to let me go to fetal photos to find out the gender of the baby. I clearly have nooooooo patience. I was slightly hoping for a little boy, and Chris was SUPER DUPER hoping for a little girl. So when the doc from Lithuania (haha have any of you ever been to him at the SouthTown mall?) told us he was 300% sure that it was a girl, it was super surreal! I will admit- it scares me a little. Girls are so foreign to me and it kinda feels like having my first baby all over again! Obviously Chris is over the moon excited, but he's nervous about what it will do to our bank account ;)

For sure the saddest news thus far was when I realized our insurance had changed and I wouldn't be able to see my OBGYN (that I'm totally in love with) anymore. I cried. He's one of my favorite people ever, and he's got small hands.. so... yeah, it was sad.  I found a new doc (Dr. Froerer at IMC) and so far, he seems pretty wonderful! So I guess that eases the pain ;)
After my first initial blood draw, they are realizing that I may not have had the HELPP syndrome when I delivered Will, which was what we originally thought had happened. They are thinking I have an auto-immune blood disorder called ITP. It's not the end of the world, but it means there is a good chance that I will have to deliver all of my babies via C-section, which crushed me a little bit (more about that later.. like, in another post- later)

If you're still reading, then you deserve an ice cream cone (or a Subway sandwich if you're talking to my pregnancy cravings).. Sorry this is getting so long! We just feel so blessed to be able to grow our little family of 3 into 4! I will say it a million times, pregnancy is the most amazing thing I have ever had the privilege of doing. Although its a little more daunting the second time around, I also know how rewarding and beautiful motherhood is.  I can't wait to kiss her tiny cheeks and see Chris with a little girl.

Please bless I don't gain 40 pounds again.. Okay, bye!

14 weeks , when I started to pop out a little. Definitely a lot sooner this time around! Please excuse the ultra crappy quality of these photos, someone in our household shattered my iPhone camera on my phone and this is the result...