I've had to keep a teeny, tiny secret for nearly the past month, and it hasn't been easy. When you want to tell everyone you see, and shout it from the rooftops to anyone who will listen, it's incredibly difficult to hold it in. Especially for me. :) Truth be told, I'm not the greatest when it comes to secrets. I'm a very open person, and don't enjoy holding things in, or keeping things to myself. Having a secret all but consumes my thoughts! But now, I can finally tell you all...
That...
We...
Are...
PREGNANT!!!
Our little sugar bean at 7 weeks, 3 days ~
(If you're not the best at deciphering ultrasounds, the big, black semi-circle on the left is my uterus. The baby is attached to the top right-hand side of the circle.) We had our first ultrasound, as you can see, and saw our precious, tiny baby with a strong heartbeat flickering away. We even were able to hear the heartbeat! I can assure you that it was far better, clearer, and more amazing in person! It's a great thing that Ryan was able to be there, as the picture leaves quite a bit to be desired. :) Our doctor tried several times to get a good shot, and that was the best she could do. Hearing the heartbeat just beating away was incredible.
We found out we were expecting again on the day that we took Brooke sledding for the first time, when we had a snow day, January 28th. As I watched the test develop, I thought I was seeing things as a line began to develop. I ran out of the bathroom, and shook Ryan awake, "I know this sounds crazy, but is this a line?!" I asked him, handing him the stick. "Yeah, there's a line." I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped. "Well, what does that mean?" he asked. "That means we're PREGNANT!"
We are due October 5th! So, our children will be just a little more than 2 years apart. I think that's a great age gap, and I know that Brooke is going to be a fabulous big sister. She loves babies! I know it will be a big adjustment, and I'm sure it won't always be easy having two kids relatively close in age, but we are beyond thrilled. Our families know, and so I now feel ready to tell everyone else. :) We feel so blessed!
Brooke will be 18 months old on Wednesday. One and a half. When she was a newborn, I could only think about how time was bound to fly by, and how she'd be a year old before we knew it. I knew I needed to treasure each moment, each "new thing," and every change. Now, she'll be TWO before we know it.
It's been a while since I've done a real Brooke update, so I figure today is as good as any. :) Physically, she's getting a lot taller, is still pretty slender, and her hair is growing longer and thicker. I can't wait for the day when I can finally put in pigtails! As it is, she could use some hair clips, but I've had a difficult time finding any. (aside from at Gymboree, which just seems too expensive just for hair clips!) When I was her age, I'd never leave clips in longer than a few seconds anyway, and I could see Brooke doing the same thing. :) She still has her blue eyes, and hair that is lighter than mine was at her age. She does look a lot like her mama.
She loves to dance, and will dance to music on TV, on the radio, and even to my singing. :) She is getting increasingly more independent, and is a very good helper. She likes to organize things, and loves to put things in the trash for us. While we had the sofa cushions on the floor for playtime, she picked a tiny crumb off of the sofa without prompting, and proceeded to go put it in the trash can! She will get things for us if we ask, and is fairly obedient. She has needed discipline and boundaries, as every child does at this age, and though she's strong willed, she loves for us to be pleased with her. She gives hugs and kisses, and loves to cuddle... when she's not on the move, of course. She's very sweet, and loves her stuffed animals, and our hamster, Copper. She has known basic body parts for months now, (head, tummy, legs, eyes, ears, etc) but even knows where her fingernails, toes, and teeth are. She is saying more words more consistently now. Until now she's mostly been what I call a 'novelty talker'--conquering a new word, and moving on to the the next, never to say it again! She's a great sleeper. I repeat, she's a great sleeper. She's still holding strong at 16 teeth, which she has had for at least a couple of months now. Those final molars will come in eventually. She loves the playground, and loves to run. She gets excited when she sees animals on TV, and is unafraid of any that she sees in person. She's wary of strangers, but fascinated with other little children and babies. She's such a joy!
Here are some pictures of her that I took yesterday. Enjoy!
Brooke in her pretty dress after church yesterday ~
To get her to smile, I started singing the Miffy and Friends song, and she proceeded to grab her stuffed bunny that her cousin Stephanie made her! It DOES look an awful lot like Miffy, so we call the bunny Miffy now. :)
I really appreciate all of the prayers and support from you all! The trip went pretty well. Our drive up only took about 4 1/2 hours, which was nice, and included a surprise visit with MEGAN! I text her when we were about half an hour from where she lives, and she text back saying we should meet up during her lunch break. Turns out, her office was on the way. :) It worked out perfectly. Such a fun surprise! I'm probably crazy, but to me, you can talk to someone nearly every day for years, and still be amazed to meet them and realize they're really real. :) Highlight of my day!
We had the viewing at 5, followed by a super late dinner at a relatives house. Over the weekend, I met a lot of relatives for the first time. :) We didn't get to our hotel until 10PM, so it was a pretty long day. To save money, we split up in just two rooms, which meant that Ryan and I shared a room with Jamin. So, I woke up on Valentine's Day with my brother-in-law in the room. Interesting! There were three actual services. Grandpa was a Free Mason, so he requested a Mason service, which was after the viewing, and then he had a military service (he served during WWII) right before the regular service on Saturday. The military service gave me chills. Ryan and Jamin both got up and gave eulogies, and both, while different, showed how Grandpa was such an amazing man, and just how much he will be missed.
We celebrated Valentine's day on Sunday. Growing up, we would always come downstairs to find little goodies waiting for us, and so that's what I did for Ryan. Some traditions should never change! He also got me a couple goodies of his own. :) We don't usually spend much on Valentine's day, but we make it fun. The gigantic Scooby Doo balloon was obviously for Brooke, who saw it in the grocery store, and was crazy about it! It's not in the picture, but Ryan also got me a pot of beautiful purple hyacinths. I love flowers that don't die! :)
I made a pretty extravagant dinner later that day--Deviled Crab Boules with Buerre Blanc--(You can find the recipe HERE) which required me to buy more fresh herbs and ingredients than I ever have for one meal, ever. I fixed roasted asparagus with it, the veggie of choice shown in the picture. I was pretty satisfied that the asparagus was on sale, ($1.79! vs. typical $3.79) and is one of our fave veggies. :) The meal took over an hour of constant preparation and cooking, but was so, so good. Ryan was thrilled that it was a recipe I'd never made before, and I was just thrilled it turned out well.
But, really, who actually care about the meal, right? Of course, I've got some new pictures of our girl. She quickly claimed the little balloon that came in the gift bag that Ryan gave me as her own. Red eye is a terrible problem, you can see, having a blue-eyed girl.
Sweet girl~
*sigh* I think she looks more grown up with each passing day! She will always be my "baby," but there's no mistaking the fact that she is definitely no longer a baby.
Yesterday, I thought the most unexpected thing to happen to me that day would be the mouse I saw scamper into the copier room on my way down the hallway at work. How quickly things change.
Ryan got a call yesterday morning to let us know that his Grandpa was back in the hospital. Shortly after that, he got another call to tell us he had been admitted into the ICU. Not too long after that, Grandpa S. passed away. Even though it wasn't completely unexpected--he was 88 years old, and hasn't been doing that great, health-wise, since around Thanksgiving--it was still unreal to get the news. We'll be traveling to northeastern Pennsylvania, where he and Grandma are from and lived for so long, for his viewing on Friday evening, and funeral on Saturday morning.
He was a Godly man, and for that especially, we can have peace. When I was first able to really spend time with him, he immediately made me feel welcomed in the family, (even introducing me to everyone we saw as his new granddaughter) he loved his grandchildren so much, and absolutely adored Brooke. He called her his "sweetheart." I'm thankful for all the time that we were able to spend with him, especially this past Christmas, and am extremely happy that he was able to meet Brooke, his first great-grandchild, and get to know her. She won't remember him, I know, but we have so many pictures, and so much video of him with her, and that will always be special.
Here is a little snipit of what I wrote about that trip, to give you a feel of what he was like.
2/12/06 ~ "Anyway, his grandparents and I talked about politics--they're involved in their community, which I thought was really interesting, so we talked about that. I really love Ryan's grandparents. They're the kind of people that are so kind, and big-hearted, I already feel comfortable calling them Grandpa and Grandma. They're just really nice, sweet people, who make you feel at home."
Well, we've made it to Friday! I've been really busy this week, so I'm extremely thankful to have a whole weekend to recover. :) In spite of the fact that I'm still holding out for a good snow storm this winter, I'm very excited about the warm, spring-like weather we're supposed to have this weekend. I'm sure that the majority of our time will be spent outside playing, and introducing Brooke to the push tricycle we got her on Freecycle. She is always eyeing it in the garage, but it's been way too cold!
Brooke has had an exciting week of firsts. :) Grandmom got her a My Friends Tigger and Pooh (one of her favorite shows) giant coloring book and some Crayola Tadoodles, and let her go to town on Tuesday. She has never tried coloring before, so it was a fun, new thing for her to try, and she apparently enjoyed it!
Brooke and her masterpiece ~
She also FINALLY enjoys talking on the phone.. and by "talking" I mean listening and grinning ear to ear, of course. :) She also now has a pretend cell phone to play with--my old one which doesn't make calls but will turn on. She wouldn't play with her toy cell phone, because it's not like Mommy and Daddy's phones!
Dialing Daddy!
Hello?
Scrunchy face!
Yesterday we went to visit my Aunt Norma and Uncle Vance. Once she warmed up to being there, Brooke was all over the place! She was especially fascinated, however, when Aunt Norma began to play the piano. Of course, then Brooke wanted to try! She has a little toy piano at home, but it's obviously nothing like this. :) It was pretty special, because this was the piano that my Dad learned to play on when he was little, that I learned to play on growing up, that many of my cousins learned to play on, and that countless others have learned to play on over the years.
I also snapped a quick video of her making "beautiful" music. :) Enjoy! (You'll need to download Flash to view it, if you don't have it already)
- Fresh snowfall awaiting us this morning - Surviving Monday - American Idol night - New shoes for Brooke, who has outgrown her shoes, from Freecycle - Winter sunsets
- Having our jobs in this tough economy - My sweet Mom, who graciously watches our daughter from 8-1:30 - My big, wonderful family--both sides :) - My joy, our blessing, Brooke Avery - My best friend - the one who, one day not so long ago, I felt as long as I had him with me, everything would be all right
- Good friends to share with - Knowing that wherever we are, whatever circumstances we're under, we will always, always, always be provided for
I'd love to know: What are you thankful for today? :)
