Eeeek! ... Nine More Days!!??!!

So I was talking with my good friend Amanda Mo yesterday and I was reassuring her that she had LOTS of time to get her "to do" list done before she came out here. She in turn exclaimed to me that she did not, she also very sweetly called me a Mo - then went on to proclaim that we only had a little over a week before my possible induction! GASP! WHAT! Where have I been??? What have I been thinking???? She was right! I only have 9 more days until they are going to possibly induce and 12 more days until my due date!!!! YIKES! This pregnancy has FLOWN by. So... needless to say I am now in the mode to really get prepared. Talk about a wake up call! I truly thought I had at least 2 weeks left... crazy preggo brain. You would be wise to not ask any advice from me right now... :-)

Everything A-OK

Just a short follow up post:

Went to the doctor this afternoon and my blood pressure was great! My blood work came back fine, and everything else with baby looks good. I am thankful! (and enjoying my newly mopped floors!) :-)

Keepin' You "Posted..."

I went to the doctor on Friday for a regular appointment. They took my B.P. as they typically do, and found that it was high. I normally NEVER have high blood pressure, it is usually low. I can't even remember ever being told it was high. I usually get comments at how low it is. So... I was a little surprised. So was my doctor. He asked if I had experienced the following: headaches, seeing spots, or a pain in my upper abdomen. I answered yes to all. I have experienced those things, but figured they were all normal pregnancy related issues. Based on that and the high blood pressure, he ordered some blood work. He also stated that they would immediately take my b.p. again and if it was the same or higher then he wanted to "talk" to me right away. The concern would be Toxemia. They took my blood pressure again and found it to be slightly lower (but still high for me). My doctor was satisfied to at least see it going down, and so just followed through with blood work and asked me to come back on Monday (today). So I will go in today and we will see ... not sure what to expect. All of the "symptoms" could just be unrelated pregnancy things.

Now I really have to make sure my floors are mopped TODAY! (Just in case) :-)

Update...

The countdown is on! I am 37 weeks!

Phillip has just started a new job (super big YEAH here b/c it is local) and that means that he doesn't have a whole lot of time he can take for vacation when baby Justus arrives. My doctor has agreed to an induction because of this. So... we are looking at May 7th or 8th for the induction. My due date is May 10th. I am thankful! After three out of five babies being over 1olbs. I have no problem with getting this kiddo out before he hits that mark! This means I have all of 16 or 17 days to scramble and get things done! Yikes! Floors to mop, drawers to organize, and on and on... You think I'm crazy, I know. This is just how I am before a baby comes home. A little over the top. In all reality, most of my list will not be achieved. I just cannot believe that we are this near already. Just seems like yesterday I had a sneaky suspicion.

I will keep you "posted."

The Pink Castle

The "pink castle".

Getting ready to go.

Walking the "princess walk".

So adorable.

All smiles and excitement.

We did her hair special for just an occassion.

Being a big girl and looking over the menu.

Rose petal tea. My absolute new favorite. This is real rose petals, and tastes wonderful.

Putting cream and sugar in all by herself.

Mmmmm.... so good! The scones were also delicious!

Chloe eating her scones.

Topping it off with chocolate cake!

Last week my boys flew down to Arizona to drive back up with Phillip. They had a wonderful adventure both in the flight and in the drive. Meanwhile, the girls and I made a day of girly things. There is a tea room locally which also serves dessert and lunch. I dressed Ellie up as a princess and took her to what she calls the "pink castle". You see, it is a pink Victorian style building. On one side is a doll shop/gift shop and the other side is a very quaint little restaurant that specializes as a tea room. It was something that I had only dreamed about as a young mother with three robust boys - my little girls having tea. Wonderful. Chloe was a bit under the weather, so that was a bit tricky. However, we did fine. Phillip had flowers delivered and waiting for us when we got there. It was especially fun because a few nights before (prior to us even making these plans) I had made up a story for Ellie while we snuggled in bed. This is something that has become routine. The story was of a young princess who lived in a beautiful pink castle on top of a hill. Imagine her excitement when I announced that we were actually going to have tea at a pink castle! It was her that then came up with the idea of dressing the part. How could I deny such a fun notion.

After tea and lunch we went to Walmart and shopped for new little baby Justus. It was a fun day out for us girls. I am very thankful for Phillip coming up with the idea. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

More Pictures

Here is a picture of Gabriel that Kelly recently took in preparation for an upcoming school session she has scheduled. She truly does a wonderful job. Go to her website to see pictures of the rest of the clan. Just click here: http://www.kellyzaikophotography.com/
Make sure you leave her a comment letting her know what you think. It is always encouraging to hear from people regardless of personally knowing someone or not.
Thank you Kelly for these beautiful images of my most beautiful blessings. You have done a superb job and I know others would be pleased by your work as well.

Maternity Photo Session

I recently had the blessing/opportunity to have some maternity pictures done in a friend's studio. I had so much fun laughing and chatting with her late into the night. Kelly, you did a wonderful job and I can't wait to see the other images. For those of you who would like to see more from this session you can visit her blog at: http://www.kellyzaikophotography.com
Let us both know what you think. I am trying to decide on my favorites.
Enjoy!
Kelly - thank you for your help in making a little something special take place during this pregnancy. This was such a treat!

Girly Girls

One day recently, Ellie and Chloe wanted to both play with their baby dolls. Both girls have these dolls that are so pretty that their aunt gave to them as gifts. Ellie's sort of looks like her and so does Chloe's. Ellie's has long brown hair and Chloe's has red. Cute. I kept trying to get Chloe to smile, but she was all seriousness. Then she thought it was funny to stuff her little body deep into the cracks of my sofa. Ohhhhh.... Chloe. (big smile here)

Why the pictures? Well, after so many years of boy toys, dirt and worms - it was one of those moments of which I had dreamed about previously. Watching sisters play with their dollies. It was sweet - I had to capture the moment. I hope there will be many more to come.

Making Dinner and a Lesson Learned

A couple of weeks ago Phillip had to run an errand. He let Ellie and Ethan stay home to "help" Mom make dinner. I sort of rolled my eyes when he left, thinking that I could get dinner done much faster if I didn't have these little hands to contend with. However, I soon discovered that their joy was contagious. They were literally thrilled to have helped prepare the salmon for baking. They marvelled at how the sugar melted in the saute pan and covered the pecans just so. They were tickled to be able to munch on the candied pecans while they arranged them on the salad with the strawberries. That evening we had a beautiful dinner. Beautiful in that I had two little "helpers" who took much delight in presenting their handiwork to their father. It wasn't the actual work that made their hearts skip a beat - but the look on Daddy's face, showing his approval. I can't help think of the parallel of how we as Christians should labor for our heavenly Father - not taking delight in our own accomplishments, but looking to how it would bring a smile to our Saviour's lips.
I enjoyed making dinner that night, in taking the time to have fun with the preparation. I enjoyed watching my children's faces as they received much acclaim from Daddy. I am thankful that in even this, there was a lesson learned.