Parker Elizabeth is here!

I woke up Tues. September 13th at 4:30 am and couldn't get back to sleep. I was having some very mild contractions, but it was not the first time. I had contractions on and off the whole week before. I didn't pay very much attention but let Dave know again that he may need to come home early. I wanted to keep busy so I wouldn't pay too much attention to them so Sammi and I went to the fabric store and Walmart. I also had a craving for a Mcgriddle so we went to McDonald's for breakfast. After calling the midwife so late last time and her barely making it Dave was understandably nervous about waiting too long, so he called her and gave her a heads up that I was having regular, although still mild contractions. He asked me to time a few and I let him know they were about 9 minutes apart. He came home at lunch time and we ate lunch then went for a short walk. Since my contractions were getting a little closer and stronger we assumed this would be the day but tried not to get too excited yet. After our walk we took a nap, Dave, Sammi and I all snuggled in our bed. Contractions continued and we got Emma off the bus, debated what to have for dinner and decided to call the midwife and give the photographer and Aunt Jenn a heads up that we would need them for sure that day but still didn't know when. After talking with the midwife she decided to come over and check on me and we decided to go to Hyvee and get Chinese for dinner. We told Emma it would be today and she was super excited. Her and Sammi were bouncing off the walls they were so excited. It was very sweet. I relaxed knowing our midwife was on the way and while we were at Hyvee around 6pm my contraction got longer and closer together. We arrived home about 6:30, midwives arrived shortly after us and checked on baby and my vitals, etc. I was nervous about baby's position so we decided to do a vaginal check. She told me I was at a 7 and they would stick around. She told Dave that when I contracted I was a 9, but kept this from me. They went outside to let us labor and we called my mom to come down and hang out with the girls a few minutes before 7. Everyone else was on their way. Dave was his usual awesome self! He was right there with me the entire time, coaching me. This labor didn't have the difficult transition that the first two did. I didn't feel the confusion like I did the first two times. Labor got very intense at that point and we were trying to fill up the pool. We never got enough water in it and soon it was time for me to push. When we stepped up to the bed to start pushing my water broke. I asked if that was meconium in the water and Cheryl said yes, and to get on my hands and knees. My body pushes very quickly so we had agreed that I would try not to push. There is a picture of them taking baby's heartones and 5 minutes later there is a picture of me nursing! The girls wanted to be in the room but it was too much for Emma and Dave said she looked like she might be sick, so she stepped out into the hall. Mom said she leaned on the wall threw her hands up and said "I am not going back in there until that baby is all the way out!" It was the hardest pushing stage of the three girls, but we did a good job and I only ended up with minor tears this time! I wouldn't have been able to do it without Dave's amazing coaching. The entire time he kept telling me how great I was doing. Yay, no stitches! We promised Emma she could be the one to tell us whether baby was a boy or girl so after she was born we covered her up and I waited for Emma to tell me it was a girl. She lifted the towel and said it so matter of fact! Parker Elizabeth was born at 7:20pm on Sept. 13th. She weighed 8lbs 1oz and is 21 inches long. She is so far, a good sleeper and a very calm baby. The big girls are completely enamored with her. And of course Cheryl was there supporting us the entire time. My midwife and her assistants were amazing. They were so supportive throughout the pregnancy and labor.

baby update!

We are 38 weeks so we have about 2 weeks or so to go! It is exciting! I can't wait to meet this baby and find out if it is a girl or boy. I am definitely more restless this time, it is all I think about, which means I will never go into labor! At my last appt. midwife informed me that baby is OP which means they are sunny side up. She can tell by feeling my belly and by where the heartbeat is. She said this is one of the reasons for my being so uncomfortable! Well yay, I was afraid that I was just getting to be a whiner. I have heard that back labor is the worst so we are hoping that baby will decide to roll on over before labor. She suggested that I scrub my kitchen floor on my hands and knees to encourage him. I did once, guess I should do it again. We will have the cleanest floor ever! Last night I told Dave to tell the baby to roll over and he was acting silly and putting his mouth right on my side to talk to the baby and Trey started dancing around! It was so funny! Trey is also in what she called an oblique position which means his head is by my hip bone instead of my pubic bone. She says when baby decides to move down onto my cervix labor will probably begin very soon. So everyone send thoughts of baby getting into the right position my way next week!

Here we are with just two months to go! I think we finally agreed on names and have all of our supplies for our birth kit! I have been trying to clean up projects around the house and Dave went on his trip and is home from now on so we are ready! A few short weeks and we will meet baby trey!

I made baby Trey's quilt! Dave bought me a new sewing machine for our anniversary and it works so well! I finished it and it is soooo cute! I got the idea for it and most of the instructions off of littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com

They have a lot of quilting tutorials. I used the applique tutorial for the elephants and the free motion quilting tutorial to quilt it. It turned out really well, there are rookie mistakes if you know what you are looking for but I am happy with it. It is really only my second quilt and the last one was a rag quilt so this was very different. On their blog they have an elephant quilt that has an elephant template, I printed it out and made it bigger then traced it onto freezer paper (great tip from their website) and cut that out. I put heatnbond light (learned the hard way to use lite!) on the wrong side of my fabric, then I ironed the freezer paper onto the right side of my fabric and cut around the elephants. I tried using heat n bond ultra because I had it on hand, it is not sewable! Don't use it! Ok, then I used a zig zag stitch to finish the edges of my appliques. After that you stack your quilt layers and pin them then trim them to match and you can quilt them. I did practice for quite awhile before I actually quilted on my quilt. I made practice sandwiches. Then I used premade quilt binding to finish it. Next time I would love to make my own binding out of a really cute fabric but for this time I needed easier. So there you go.

I think everyone has that moment during each pregnancy where reality sets in and you panic a little bit. You are not just pregnant, you are going to have a baby. I know, that is what being pregnant means but it is really easy to lose sight of that. We get a lot of attention, there are so many things to get done and all the pregnancy symptoms that distract us from the fact that we will in fact be bringing a new person into the world that we will be responsible for very soon. With Sammi it was towards the end of my pregnancy when Emma and I walked into a public restroom and I saw the changing table. I suddenly realized that I would have to start using those again, no more easy trips in with my potty trained big girl. I was having a baby. This time that moment came today when I got my weekly email updating me on the progress of my baby. I thought I was 33 weeks. Somehow I lost a week and am 34 weeks today! That means I have only 4-8 weeks to go until we meet baby trey and I am the mommy of 3 small children! Scary! Plus there is the whole impending labor thing. There is a lot I would like to get done before baby makes their appearance but I am going to have to just take a deep breath and realize it may not all get done and it isn't necessary. We have everything we need to have this baby, so what if my living room needs to be painted or I don't get all my sewing projects caught up. Although it would be nice to have a name picked out before baby gets here. But that is a topic for a different day.

Everyone keeps asking me how I am holding up in all this heat. I have to say I don't think I am any hotter than anyone else. (Ask me again in Aug and the answer could change) It is hot and yucky out there but that is summer. My bigger complaints are the back problems and the massive mood swings. I am ready for Sept to get here just so that I am not so moody. And the pregnancy brain drain is getting out of hand this time. The other day I got out my toothpaste and grabbed my toothbrush and started brushing my teeth. I thought, man this feels weird, why is my toothbrush so tiny today? Oh, because I was using Samantha's princess toothbrush. How did I make that mistake? Eww!

Boy or girl, cont...

I forgot to mention the most important one. The girls are sure that baby Trey is a boy. Emma was positive that Sammi was a girl even though I thought we were having a boy. She told me the entire time that I was wrong and her child's intuition was correct. This time both of them say boy so...

Are we having a boy or a girl?

I looked up some of the wives tales that "tell" you if you are having a boy or a girl. Am I carrying high or low? I am not sure, I guess low. The website I was on says that means boy but I have heard that one both ways, so... By the Chinese gender prediction chart I am having a boy and it was correct on the girls. The chart I used is here www.parenting.com/chinese-gender-pedictor/start
OK, they say if baby's heart rate is above 140 it is a girl and if it is slower than 140 it is a boy. Well we are on the border on this one. It has been slower but last time it was in the 140's so I guess it could go either way! Apparently the Mayans had an even odd test. If conception and mom's age are both in an even or odd year then it is a girl, if one is even and the other odd then it is a boy. Well I was 32 and it was 2010 so that means girl. Another one said if I was sick it was a girl and if not then boy. I was sicker this time, although still not as sick as a lot of people get. So that would mean girl, but that would also mean Sam and Em should have been boys. There is also one that calls for draino but I am not running out to buy draino for a gender test so we will skip that one. I guess you pee in a cup and add some draino to it and see what color it turns. I think it said green was girl and blue was boy. Then there is the wedding ring test where you tie it to a string and swing it over you belly. If it swings in circles it is a boy and if it swings back and forth it is a girl. I can't do that one either because my wedding ring is at the jewelry store being repaired. I took an online test here http://pregnancy.about.com/od/boyorgirl/a/quiz/boygirl.htm
I scored a 50% which they said means boy. There is also one about what foods you are craving, sweet or salty. What if you crave them all? So everyone keeps asking my if I have a feeling about it one way or the other. I do but I have terrible intuition. I was positive Samantha was a boy. She is definitely not! I have been a lot more uncomfortable this time in a lot of ways. My hips spread very early on, I was sicker and I have had a lot of headaches. So the pregnancy has been a lot different from both girls. But, I am also in my 30's this time and it is my 3rd go round with this whole pregnancy thing. It could just be that. My boobs got a lot bigger this time, which didn't happen with the girls and my back didn't start hurting until later in the pregnancy. I guess what I am trying to say is I have no idea and we will have to wait and see who arrives in September.

Man, I am good!

So I got a lot done this week for the baby! All of the gender neutral clothes are washed and put away. I washed the crib bedding and cloth diapers. We blew up the birth pool to see how big it is and make sure it didn't have any holes. And I started working on a quilt for the baby. It is going to be really cute! I will post pictures as soon as it is done!

I made a wet bag for Trey's diapers! I loved this fabric! So cute! And super easy. I followed a tutorial here.

http://littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com/2009/05/wet-bag-tutorial.html

Trey had the hiccups last night for the first time! I love that, it is so cute. They were so small and fast. We had a midwife appt. yesterday and all looks good! Baby's heart rate was in the upper 140's. I am feeling a lot more kicks now, which is so exciting. When I lay down at night I sometimes feel like Trey is using my uterus as a hamster wheel, just running and running on the bottom. Emma is really enjoying feeling all the baby movements and it is easy to pick out little limbs too. I think I will do some of those wives tales that determine gender and see if they are right. I will blog all about it. First I have to look them up. We begin seeing the midwife every two weeks now. That is when it really starts to fly by. I have a lot I want to get done before baby arrives. Now to find the motivation.

I am amazed at how fast this pregnancy is going. Especially considering I found out so early that I was pregnant. We only have 11-15 weeks until we meet baby Trey. Which also means we only have about 8 weeks of summer vacation left. Hopefully Trey decides to come somewhere in the middle around 13 weeks. That is where I feel like they will arrive. We shall see. I am enjoying the hot weather so far, of course talk to me in August. I am hot but not unusually so, and it is unusually hot here for so early in June! I have sunburned my belly twice in a week. I guess I burn more easily than normal when I am pregnant. The first time I thought, oh we will get a little sun on all this white skin. I was only out there about 10 min or so. The second time I went swimming and put on sunblock. I guess I need to reapply more often!

On Saturday Emma felt baby Trey kick and she got all excited and her face lit up. She said "that is the first time I felt it, I lied to you those other times." Nice Em, I guess she got tired of being patient and waiting for baby to kick so she just lied. Now she is all excited to feel baby. Sammi always wants to feel baby Trey, she asks "Is baby Trey awake?" then she yells at my belly, "wake up baby Trey!". Those girls are so silly! They are both really excited to be big sisters. Last night I had my first weird birth dream, and it was a good one. I am sure it was inspired by my reading birth stories before bedtime. In my dream I had the baby by myself because Dave was in the shower and I didn't know I was in labor so I didn't call the midwife or anyone. After baby was born I dressed him (yep, it was a boy in my dream) in a pink sleeper because I was too lazy to find another one. Since I was really early we still didn't have a name picked out. I was walking around with the cord still attached waiting for the bathroom to open up so I could deliver the placenta. Apparently in my dream after baby was born I put on pants? Weird I know. Then my mom came to see baby who by now I had laying in a round laundry basket, and got mad that we hadn't named him yet. And of course everyone assumed it was a girl since I had him dressed in pink! Gotta love those pregnancy dreams!

A short rant!

OK, I am going to go off on a little rant here. I hate maternity clothes. Not just a little, not just "oh I don't care for them" I hate them! First of all, why are all of the "affordable" ones so ugly? I am gaining a ton of weight, I need my clothes to help me feel cute. And people always tell me oh, go to motherhood maternity or this other place or wherever. OK, first, their stuff isn't any cuter, second it is not affordable for me to buy a shirt for $40 that will fit me for maybe 3 mos. I am sorry, call me cheap but that is just silly to me. I have found stuff I like, but it costs upwards of $80! Are they serious? OK, so it is overpriced and ugly but that is not the worst of it! Does it ever fit anyone? No, really, does it? It either cuts into me somewhere or never stays up, or both. And I am uncomfortable enough without my butt hanging out of my pants all day! And the shirts are always too short and wide. So we have ugly shirts and poorly fitted pants. They seriously stress me out to wear. That is why I mostly refuse to wear them. I have invested in a lot of stretchy tops and summer dresses and stretchy leggings and short leggings. And if my stomach hangs out a bit, well so be it. It is the only time it will be acceptable for a grown mother of almost 3 to bear her midriff!

So someone asks me almost everyday if I want a boy this time. I have to say, I really don't care. We didn't decide to have another to try for a boy. I think Dave and I would both be just fine with 3 daughters. And we are both pretty sure that 3 is enough for us no matter what. We won't make that decision for sure until a little later down the road but we are fairly confident that we are done after this baby, boy or girl. That being said, would I like a boy? Hmmm, a boy would be an exciting new adventure! I know Dave would love it and would like to have someone that can carry on the Rinaldi name. We would have to get all new clothes and toys (I like to shop, so not a bad thing) since everything we have is pink! It would be a whole new ballgame. But we would be happy if we have another little girl, too. We already have everything. We know what to expect with girls. We are used to emotion driven little girls! And if we have a boy now he will be surrounded by barbies and princess music all the time. Not that that matters, he will be man enough to wear pink and nail polish I am sure. The girls are both saying it is a boy. Emma was right last time, when I thought for sure we were having a boy. They both want a brother, for now. We will see if they still feel that way when and if he is a boy and starts blowing up their barbies!

Sonogram day!

We had our sonogram yesterday and it was very exciting. We took both girls with us and they were thrilled to see baby Trey on the big screen. We went to Prenatal Imaging Center and it was a very cool place. They had two huge screens to watch on. We could have fit all our friends and family in there! Em and Sam both got 'I'm a Big Sister' bracelets. Sammi is still insisting that she has a baby in her belly, too. She says she is having a girl, she is going to name Leah. She said "put your hand on my belly and feel her kick". Too cute. The sonographer said, "the butt is really cute to look at but since you don't want to know the gender we will stay away from there." Then Emma kept saying "look at the butt, look at the butt!" She wants to know so bad she can't stand it! She told me yesterday morning "I might be able to figure it out at the sonogram" I said, "well, don't tell me if you do." Em"I am going to." That is why she can never know any secrets! I think it made it more real for them to see baby's face and little feet. But they were most fascinated with the gel they put on my belly. We still don't know if we are having a boy or girl but I use he to refer to Trey since I am a she. Trey has his feet tucked in one side of my uterus and his face hidden in the other! We saw him stick his finger in his ear. We got some very cool pictures and a video of the entire exam. Our due date looks to be right on so I imagine we will meet this baby in the first two weeks of September. I will add pictures later today.

We hit a growth spurt this month! Next week we go for our sonogram and I will have pictures of Trey to post! Yay! It will be fun to see the girls reaction to seeing the baby.

We have been reading baby name books all week with no success. We haven't even found any we like yet to make a list. Oh well, legally we have what, 6 months after baby is born to name him/her? We have plenty of time.

Here are pictures of me in labor with each girl. Emma is on the bottom and Sammi is on the top. Wow, I was big with Sammi! We shall see how big I get this time. I was gaining weight a lot slower but I made up for that this month. I gained as much in the last 4 weeks as I did in the first 16 weeks. Ha!

little kicks!

Dave and Emma both got to feel the baby move for the first time this week! Those little bumps are so exciting! Sammi was very patient the first two times we tried to get her to feel the baby. But it didn't happen and now she has lost interest. That is ok, as baby gets bigger and busier she will get to feel it. It is so fun to see Emma's face when she feels a little kick! Tomorrow we have our next midwife appt.

So we were talking about the baby yesterday and Sammi can't wait until it gets here so she can change it's diapers. Emma is excited to find out what it is. I told her she could go with me to my next midwife appointment on Monday and she asked if we were finding out then. I said no, the midwife doesn't do that, we would have to do that at a sonogram. Emma said, "Well Ms. Forbes (her teacher) found out what hers is!" Yeah, but not at her regular appt. Em. Silly girl knows it all! She also informed us this week she is not sure she wants to have kids. Her exact words were, "I don't even know if I want a baby yet. I wanna play with one but I just don't know if I want to lay in bed all day to have it." LOL!! Sammi says the baby in her tummy is going to be a girl and I am having one of each. Whoa. She and Emma got in a screaming match the other day over whether or not it is a boy or girl. Silly girls! Baby Trey is moving more all the time. Some of them can even be felt from the outside now. Yeah, my favorite part!!!!

Ok, so for those of you reading my blog I need help! We haven't come up with a single name for a boy and only one so so option for a girl. Please put ideas in the comments on here or on my FB page. Just put the name though so people can wonder wth we are doing!

Almost halfway there and I finally feel a lot better. The back trouble is starting up but that is better than being sick. We are confident that this is our last go round so I am trying to cherish this pregnancy, which is much easier now that I am not feeling so awful. A few weeks ago I had a bad cold or the flu. Since I can't take anything when I am pregnant and probably wouldn't anyway I relied on home remedies to get me through. First, lots of rest. I have finally come to the point where I realize it is not worth it to keep going when I am sick. I parked myself on the couch on Friday and stayed there until Monday. Thankfully I have Dave to allow me to do that. Then I drank a lot of hot lemon water, lemon is full of vit. c and a naturally detoxifies. I did take Tylenol for severe pain or high fever. At night when I was so stuffy that I couldn't breathe I sliced onions and put them in my socks and they opened my nose right up. And of course I couldn't live without my nettie pot! I rinsed my sinuses a lot! Now the weather is warming up and hopefully all the germs are gone so we can be well all summer!!!

I can't believe how fast we are approaching the halfway point of this pregnancy! Exciting! Somewhere around there we will have a sonogram and make sure all is developing normally but not (gasp) find out the gender of our baby. This drives our friends crazy! Dave's best friend even offered to find out but keep it from us last time. I am pretty sure he was joking! I can't really tell you why we don't want to find out. I guess we like it to be like in the old movies where the baby catcher announces "it's a..." I hear the funniest things from strangers about it too! One lady told me "Well, I wanted to pick out a name." Umm, I got to pick out two names, one for a boy and one for a girl. Then I heard "I wanted to decorate their room" Yeah, we did that too. Our nursery is white with safari animals. It is cute for a boy or girl and we haven't had to buy all new stuff for every baby. Plus, it was a lot of fun to decorate Emma's room for a big girl when she moved out of the nursery. With the girls it wasn't hard for me not to find out. I don't usually get anxious until the last few weeks to know who will be joining our family. This time is a little harder for me. I don't know if it is because it is our last baby or because we will be having a baby in a new season and I don't know what will work from last time. But we will wait to find out who is in there until they make their first appearance in Sept. I did hear a really compelling reason once to wait to find out what the your having until birth. Most of us deep down have a preference about boy or girl, at least a little. Finding out what you are having at the sonogram can often lead to disappointment, at least for a moment. Don't deny it, I have heard many of you say, oh, I really wanted another boy or wanted that little girl. But if you wait to find out what you are having until you meet your baby it is really hard to be disappointed at all looking into those beautiful little faces!!! And she didn't want a moment of disappointment about her baby.

So my girls are very close. They love to be together and take great care of each other. Yesterday Sammi got in trouble for picking on Emma and when I got on to her she turned to Emma to hold her and baby her! But they are so close that I wonder how the new baby will fit in with their twosome. Will they be as close to Trey as they are to each other? Will it make a difference if it is a boy or girl? And this baby will be 3 1/2 years younger than Sammi. Will that make a difference? Emma and Sam are right at 3 years apart. I think Sammi needed the extra time as the baby. Emma was always more independent and mature. Sammi liked being the baby. Until recently she insisted that she was not a big girl but "mommy's baby" Now that she is 3 and in Emma's room she finally says she is a big girl. And they are both excited about the baby. We have started watching birth videos and reading big sister books to prepare them. Emma knows what to expect since she has done this before but Sammi is in for a surprise. At first I didn't think she would like being a big sister as well as Em but now I think she is looking forward to it and will take to it pretty well. Emma loved being a big sister from the first moment. She held Sam as often as I did in those first weeks. She still wants Sammi to be the first person she sees in the morning and after school. It is so cute!

When I was pregnant with Emma I craved pineapple for a small window of time. With Samantha I craved frozen waffles and frozen pizza the entire pregnancy and ate them almost everyday. With this baby, I am craving everything! Now for those of you who know my eating habits, it is not unlike me to have food cravings, anytime. But man, everything I see on TV, I want. And I want it now. Dave does not like to go get me my cravings, especially after the kids are in bed so for the most part I have to make do with what is at home. Although I did make an 8:30pm Jimmy John's run the other night for myself. I really want a turkey sandwich, but since I can't have deli meat, I have to stick with their veggie sub. It is still yummy! And really restaurant turkey doesn't have any taste. I want curly fries, Jose Peppers, guacamole, ice cream, lemonade, pretzels, lots of oranges and apples, salad, big time! At least a lot of it is healthy. Hopefully that means this baby won't be a picky eater. I don't know that that really has anything to do with it but I ate pretty well with Emma, although I worked time at Sonic so there was a lot of fast food, but still. With Sammi, being home full time and craving frozen food, I ate like crap. Emma is my adventurous eater and Sammi is very picky and limited in the new things she will try. I don't know how long the cravings will last this time, hopefully not too long.

So several strangers and acquaintances have noticed I am pregnant just by my belly. I think I just look like I drink a lot of beer but apparently that is not the case. Beth has been telling me for weeks how round I am, and I guess she is right. I always pop out early so to all those who keep saying twins to me, it's not. It happens every time and earlier with each pregnancy for everyone. I took a picture today, it's not great, my face isn't even in it but you can see what they are talking about. I haven't gained as much weight this time as I did the first 3 times during the first trimester. And boy am I excited to be finishing the first trimester!!!! Pregnancy tip, for anyone that wants to know, and I will warn you this is a little TMI. Constipation is a normal part of pregnancy, and I am no exception. Although this time, it was the worst case of constipation I have ever had. I was miserable! Anyway, my midwife recommended 2tbs of flax seed meal every morning in a fruit smoothie. It took four days but finally worked! Yay! Now I take it everyday. So for anyone suffering from constipation and looking for a natural remedy, there ya go!

So I have been thinking a lot lately about how different my two girls are. I didn't think they looked alike for a long time, but Sammi looks more like Emma everyday. Even the kids in Em's class notice. They always comment that Sam looks just like Em when we go visit for lunch. I guess if kindergarteners see it it must be there. Last week at the store the cashier told me Sammi looked like me. "Really?" I said. "Not just looks like you, but really looks just like you!" she said. I have heard that for years about Emma but never Sammi before. I don't see it but...I do see some of Dave's features in both girls. Emma's face is shaped just like his and they both have his eyelashes (thank goodness!) and teeth. Emma's smile looks a lot like his as well. Now they don't act alike at all! Emma is just like her momma, high strung, emotional. She is a very serious kid most of the time. Sammi on the other hand is laid back like Dave. And she is the funniest 3 year old I have ever met. She is funny on purpose. She likes to be the clown and make silly faces and do silly things! I know you are saying, "Hey, I thought this blog was about the pregnancy?" Wait for it! So why am I going on and on about the similarities and differences of the girls? It is just amazing to me how genetics work. Which traits they get from which parent and how they combine. If you think about it, it is amazing thinking there used to be just two of us and now we have made brand new people! OK, here is how it ties into the pregnancy. I am very curious to see what traits this baby will share with us. Will we finally have a baby that looks like Dave? And will it be another laid back kid or another high need baby? We have one of each so what will we be blessed with this time. I think that is one of the most exciting parts of being pregnant, wondering what kind of personality baby will have!

Yeah, a baby!

So we heard the heartbeat on Monday, which was very exciting! Thanks to Amelia for suggesting I ask about B6 for the nausea. It seems to be helping. I don't feel great but I do feel better and I think I am feeling better everyday. Hips are still sore but not as bad. My biggest complaint now is my shoulder. I hurt it somehow and it feels awful! Can't do much for right now. Emma is very excited to be a big sister again. Sammi doesn't really understand yet. If you ask her if she is going to be a big sister she usually says no, she will be the daddy! Silly kid! I am especially excited to have a birthday in Sept. The only other bday we have that month is Jenn's so it will be a nice change from all the winter bdays. And with Emma at school I will still only have 2 at home during the day. Although I will miss having my big helper home to help with the baby. Emma is very motherly and likes to help. I am not sure that Sam will take to the baby as well as Emma did her. We shall see!

We are excited to be expecting baby number 3! We have decided to call baby Trey until he/she arrives. I thought I would blog about it for all my friends who live out of town. That way they can keep up with how we are doing and see pictures! We are almost 8 weeks along and most of you don't know we are expecting. After we hear the heartbeat for the first time on Feb. 7th everyone will know. So far I feel awful! My back is already killing me and my hips hurt so bad I can't sleep. I am more nauseous than I have ever been in any pregnancy. It gets worse as the day goes on. So by the time the evening arrives I feel awful!!!!! Also everyday I get a huge headache. It starts in the afternoon and gets worse as the day goes on, too. So that is my laundry list of complaints for this time.