8 Week Belly Bump

How far along - 8 weeks

Weight gain - 0 lbs

Morning sickness/nausea - I get it once in a while. More so in the late afternoon/evening time, sometimes randomly, and also when I smell something that doesn't agree with me. Sometimes eating helps it.

Pain - I still get pain in my neck from sleeping. I can't figure out why. Maybe I need a different pillow?

Stretchmarks - Nope.

Maternity clothes - I've gotten them out and am tempted to wear them. Most of my pants and shorts are tight and I have to unbutton them when I sit down. Some I can't button at all and have been having to pack them away for the time being.
 
Food cravings/aversions - No aversions, Still crave Asian food. Sometimes I can't make up my mind as to what I want; it's horrible at a restaurant. Those poor waitresses! Also cereal, I eat multiple bowls a day.

Boy or Girl - We're not finding out this time! But secretly I think it's a girl.

Lowlights of the week - My allergies, the evening sickness, and the EXHAUSTION! I went to bed on Monday night at 6:30, slept until 7am, and still felt like taking a nap the next day!

Highlights of the week - Christian is in love with the baby already. He's constantly trying to feed me because "the baby needs food", he'll try and share toys with the baby, talk to my belly, kiss it, and give it hugs. And he has just started not letting me pick him up because he thinks he'll squish the baby. I love that he is so caring!

Anything to add - Alena doesn't talk much about the baby but she has started to talk about how the baby will eat. (Gabe and I explained that they baby will nurse from my breasts.) The other day in the car, I turned around to see her with her shirt pulled down "nursing" her stuffed animal. I so glad she understands. :)

7 weeks

8 weeks

 Um, yeah... THIS is why I'm not really fitting into my clothes anymore. Holy cow! I did not think I was that big until I saw this picture!

This is why my body is growing!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

The baby is measuring perfectly with a good strong heartbeat!

Who's Excited for DWTS?!

Reality TV is my guilty pleasure. Mainly American Idol and Dancing With the Stars. And if you're a fan of DWTS, you're probably well aware that a new season is starting  next month! Unfortunately, I did not start watching until four seasons ago so I did not get a chance to see a lot of these contestants. I did however, youtube their dances to get to know all the contestants better and can tell this is going to be a GREAT season!

Let's just go down the list...

1. Apolo Anton Ohno - Won season 4 and will be filling in one of the athlete spots this season. I loved his freestyle from that season. He's partnered with Karina Smirnoff this season.
2. Bristol Palin - She came in 3rd in season 11. I don't think she should be in the All Star season but they needed to have someone be there for all the controversial votes. She is partnered with Mark Ballas again, which I don't like. He is so good and I would love to see him with some of the other ladies.
3. Drew Lachey - He won season 2 and is partnered with Anna Trebunskaya. I like Anna and I'm glad to see her with a partner that could win.
4. Emmitt Smith - Ahh, the fan favorite and nicknamed twinkle toes by Carrie Ann. He won season 3 with Cheryl Burke and they will be partnered together again.
5. Gilles Marini - The eye candy... Came in a very close 2nd in season 8 and is partnered this year with Peta Murgatroyd. She won last season and I really like her so this should be a great match! She is so tiny though so I hope their height difference doesn't affect anything.
6. Helio Castroneves - He won season 5 and is partnered with Chelsie Hightower this year. I'm not sure why he won because I am not a fan of his personality or his dancing.
7. Joey Fatone - He came in 2nd in season 4 and will be with the same partner, Kym Johnson. Great personality, great dancer; I think he could be another fan favorite!
8. Kelly Monaco - Winner of season 1 and dancing with Val Chmerkovskiy. Compared to what the contestants dance like now at the end of the season, she is near the bottom but she did win even as the underdog.
9. Kirstie Alley - Season 12 runner up dancing again with Maksim Chmerkovskiy. She was quite the dancer. I think they were great in their season and am excited to see them together again!
10. Melissa Rycroft - Placed 3rd in season 8 and dancing again with Tony Dovolani. She's a great dancer, but come on, she was a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader!
11. Pamela Anderson - She never did make it to the finals in the 10th season. She is partnered with Tristan Macmanus and I think they will be the underdogs of the season.
12. Shawn Johnson - Winner of season 8 and my personal favorite. She is dancing with Derek Hough so I think we're going to see some really good stuff from them. She's my prediction of the female to get the farthest in the competition.
13. Sabrina Bryan - The viewers' choice winner to come back and dance again. She was shall I say... robbed in the 5th season. She was one of the first contestants to go but was an EXCELLENT dancer. 

I'm going to just throw out some super early predictions and say that Bristol will be first or one of the first to go. I also think this will be another male winning season.

Any other DWTS fans out there? Is there anyone you would have brought back that they didn't? (Mario Lopez! Woop woop!) Let me know what you think of this All Star line up and if you have any early predictions too.

Choo Choo

Christian loves trains and is always asking us to build him a bigger and better train track. There's only so much you can do on those small train tables. Every once in a while the kids get the idea to build their own track system throughout the house. They will use every possible piece they can to make it as long and big as possible.

 I don't mind because it occupies them for a long time, gets them out from in front of the TV, and has them thinking creatively.

As you can see, it's the entire length of the hallway and then curves into the living room.

This Dog...

So Flower is six months old now and acts JUST like a toddler. I feel like she's our third kid. You take your eyes off of her for a minute and she WILL be getting into something!

She seems to have a thing for paper. Whether it's tissues, scrap papers, books, toilet paper, anything of the paper variety. If it's left out in her reach, she will chew and destroy it.

Like this morning... The kids and I went to gymnastics while Gabe stayed home to do homework. We came home and Alena comes running from the bathroom screaming "You gotta come see this! The bathroom is destroyed! Toilet paper EVERYWHERE!".

Sure enough, Flower had gotten into the bathroom and unrolled and chewed through a brand new roll! Gabe assured me she was by him the whole time we were gone chewing on her bone. I swear this dog is secretly a ninja because she can be so quiet and sneaky. Hence why I say she's like a third child and toddler.

So not only do we keep our bedroom doors shut all day from her, we now have to keep the bathroom door shut too.

Has anyone else had a destructive dog? What did they do?

6 Week Belly Bump

Remember when I announced I was pregnant and said I was five weeks along. Well I went back to the Dr's last Tuesday and the ultrasound confirmed that was wrong. So my due date has been pushed back a week and now I'm six weeks.

I can't believe how "big" I am already. I mean, I'm small enough that any growth is noticeable but it still seems a little early.  Oh well, I feel great and the baby is growing and that's all I care about.

6 weeks

How far along - 6 weeks

Weight gain - 0 lbs

Morning sickness/nausea - none! Thank the lord!

Pain -  Every morning I wake up with a sore back and shoulder pain. I need to figure out a better way to sleep. I already sleep with a pillow between my legs. Also have sore boobs.

Stretchmarks - none! I'm slathering on body butter to make sure it stays that way.

Maternity clothes - I've gotten them out but I shouldn't need them for a few more weeks. Some of my pants and shorts are tight and I have to unbutton them when I sit down.

Food cravings/aversions - No aversions, I just couldn't cut raw chicken this week because I started gagging. I've been craving Asian food! Each pregnancy, I've craved something different. With Alena, I always craved Taco Bell. With Christian, it was Big Macs.

Boy or Girl - We're not finding out this time! But secretly I think it's a girl.

Lowlights of the week - My allergies! They are HORRIBLE!

Highlights of the week - The kids are loving on this baby so much! Also, I got to see the heartbeat yesterday!

 Here's the 5 week ultrasound. Just a little sac.

Then we have the six week ultrasound. Bigger sac and a teeny tiny little baby. So far, just one heartbeat. Gabe was upset it wasn't twins, and I was a little (just a little) upset too. But at least there's one in there!

Let's Can! - Hot Pepper Butter

So this may be my favorite canned recipe so far and I will be making it every year. You can use this stuff as dip, on hamburgers, sandwiches, whatever you want. Seriously good stuff! We shared a can with some family and went through an entire pint jar in one day.

Hot Pepper Butter

you will need

20 green peppers
a few banana peppers or green chilies (I used 5 green chilies)
1 c yellow mustard
2 c white vinegar
3 c sugar
1/2 Tbsp salt
1/2 c - 1 cup flour (I used rice flour because of Gabe's gluten allergy, but you can use wheat flour)
3/4 c - 1 c water

• Chop peppers into small pieces (I threw mine into the blender)
• Put into large pot and add mustard, vinegar, sugar, and salt
• Bring to a boil
• Meanwhile, make a paste with the flour and water
• Add paste to boiling mixture and cook for an additional 5 - 10 min or until paste has dissolved.

Put it into sterilized jars and water bathe them for 15 - 20 min. It will make around nine pints. 

The pepper butter is a perfect mixture of sweet and spicy. If you want it less spicy, leave out the banana peppers or green chilies and add a couple extra green peppers.

ENJOY!

Pregnancy Announcement

First off, let me welcome all my new followers. Thank you ladies! I tried to follow each of you back so if I didn't, just holler at me and I'll fix it. :)

So I scoured the internet and Pinterest to try and come up with a cute pregnancy announcement. There wasn't much out there that we could do without having someone else take the picture or use a self timer. I liked the photo booth pictures I saw and decided to put a couple of my favorites together.

I went out and bought a can of Prego pasta sauce and off we went to the mall. There are two photo booths in the mall and we walked to the closest one first. They give the option of using your debit card so after practicing our poses, Gabe swiped the card. Hmm, didn't work. Tried again and realized the card reader was not even turned on!

So off we went to the other end of the mall to the second booth. Practiced again then swiped the card. This one was on but didn't accept the card. Tried a different card, no luck. The card reader was showing a message, "Not able to accept cards at this time." Well, shoot.

Luckily, I remembered we had some cash in the car! I go to the car, grab the cash and head back to the booth. It worked! We choose our design, and as the first picture was about to be taken, we realized the camera was stuck pointing at the ceiling and it wouldn't move! So there Gabe and I were; standing on the tiny bench inside trying to hold the kids up high enough to get in the picture. Before the first camera click, I lost my balance and fell OUT of the booth! Well, there goes that picture. We must have looked like a bunch of goons! It was not happening at this booth so off we trudge to the OTHER booth yet again.

We only had enough money for one more try so this was it. We put in the money, pick our theme, and would you believe it... the camera was STUCK AGAIN! This time it was low so Gabe and I had to slouch down low but it was perfect for the kids. All this trouble for one little pregnancy announcement!

But we did it and love the result! Unfortunately, when I put it on Facebook to announce it to everyone, the words on my sign were barely readable. :(

What do you think? Don't you just love the theme we picked? Here comes trouble. Perfect...

20 Questions

I love doing and reading these types of posts because you can learn about others and others can learn new things about you. So here's 20 questions for you to get to know me better.

What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday? I'd say spending the day together as a family watching movies, relaxing, going out to eat... Pretty much a day where we're together and having fun.

List your top 3 favorite TV shows. We don't have Cable or satellite so we stick with Netflix and Hulu. I will watch Dancing With the Stars and American Idol on the computer though. I also love Up All Night with Christina Applegate and Will Arnett.

Would you rather be in pictures or take them? Definitely the one taking the picture!

Why do you blog? Living across the country from family and friends, blogging has been a good way for them to see what we're up to. It's also a fantastic outlet for me to get my thoughts and feelings out there and sorted out.

 Five websites you visit daily. Facebook, Pinterest, MSN, Blogger, and Google (I'm always googling something!)

Your dream vacation...  I can't name just one. I'd love a secluded island paradise or cabin in the mountains. But then I'd love to visit big cities (Rome, Paris, London) too. I want to see it all and do it all.

 Favorite snacks? I don't snack that often, but when I do, it often depends on my mood what I eat. I love Oreos and milk, nachos, popcorn, and salt and vinegar chips.

Do you have a pet and what kind? We have five. We have three dogs. Two yorkies and a lab mix. One cat and one chinchilla. It's a zoo around here!

What three material possessions would you not want to live without? My phone, computer/Ipad, and the car. Without my phone or computer, it would be really hard to stay in contact with friends and family who live across the country from us.

What's your favorite drink? Alcoholic, Strawberry daiquiri and Ace Pear Beer Non alcoholic, water and sweet tea

Do you enjoy cooking? The more I experiment with different recipes, the more I'm finding that I really like cooking. It's great to know what is going in our food and that I made it.

Do you have children? We have two and one on the way. A five year girl, a three year old boy, and the baby in my belly that we've waited and struggled for for so long.

What are your favorite hobbies? I don't get much of a chance for hobbies. I love taking pictures, doing puzzles, and I'm going to start learning how to sew (wish me luck!).

Would you consider yourself shy or outgoing? In high school, I was the bubbly, outgoing cheerleader but as I've matured, I'm often fairly quiet until I get more comfortable. Then I loosen up a lot.

If you could change one thing about you, what would it be? I've always struggled with my self confidence and worrying too much about what other people think.

 Who is your favorite actor/actress? I really don't have favorites. Maybe Sandra Bullock and Robert Downey Jr.

What's the coolest thing you've done this week? Apparently I'm not that cool because I can't think of anything. Haha

Do you live near your family? No. Our families are in Ohio and Michigan. We are trying hard to come up with a way to move closer to home.

List three of your talents. I know how to play the trumpet and am learning piano. I am an excellent navigator and can always pick out which direction (N, E, S, or W) we're heading. I am fluent in the Korean language.

What is your greatest attribute? Hmmm, this is tough one to answer. I'd like to think I have a great sense of humor and am great at working with other people.

So there you go. 20 things you might not have known about me.

Three Years in the Making

God has answered our prayers! After three years of wanting this child and 7 months of fertility treatments, we are FINALLY pregnant!

Obviously, we are overjoyed and quite frankly, still in complete shock. This baby is truly a miracle.

I was supposed to have surgery on July 27th where they would be putting a scope into my stomach to try and see if there are problems, and if possible, fix them then and there. They would also have put a scope UP into my uterus to see if there are problems in there. If they would have done any of those procedures, the baby would not have survived.

I was having pain/cramping/soreness/tenderness basically since conception and just felt like this might be it. I told Gabe and we both agreed that I've thought this MANY times before and it was always negative. But I just couldn't shake this feeling. There was one day where I was peeing all the time, and I was also feeling as if my stomach was stretching. Still, I tried (didn't succeed though) not to think about it so when my period came, I wouldn't be so upset.

I went in on July 20th for some pre surgery testing. They had lab orders to do a urine pregnancy test. I knew when I ovulated and told them that IF I was pregnant, the urine test would show negative because it's still too early and I needed them to do a blood test. They told me they only have orders to do a urine test, so that's all they could do. Well, I wasn't having it. I drove over to my fertility Dr and demanded politely asked for a lab order for a pregnancy blood test.

I got the new order and after talking with the nurse, we decided that my best option would be to have the test taken on Tuesday of the following week (3 days before the surgery) because that would the day of my missed period and so they could have the results on Wednesday and be able to give the hospital enough notice to cancel the surgery if it turned up positive.

I used all the will power I had to wait to take an at home pregnancy test until Monday morning. I should have waited longer because that was negative. I didn't learn my lesson because come Tuesday morning, I took another one. This time, I could have sworn I saw the faintest second line but was still trying not to overreact. Of course, Wednesday morning I took another test. This time, there was definitely a second line, still fairly light though. Gabe and I looked at each other and just smiled. We wanted it so badly but knew we still had to hear the results of the blood test.

It felt like the longest day ever having to wait for the phone call from the dr with either good or bad news. I couldn't hold out any longer and called them at 11am. No luck, they took a message and said they would call. Gabe came home for lunch and asked me to take another test. I did and there was barely even a trace of that second line. UGH! We just couldn't wait any longer. I called the Dr's office again and asked if the results were in.

They were! And guess what?! It was positive!!! I am pregnant. It still feels surreal. I mean, we've waited for this moment for so long, that now that it's here, I don't know how to react! I have so many emotions (all good!) running through me right now. Sometimes, I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming. This is real. This is real. THIS IS REAL! I'm really pregnant. There is actually a baby in there!

Just a few of the tests I've taken so far. These were the early tests that didn't show up very good.

We told the kids right away and they were excited too. They're constantly kissing my belly, hugging it, talking about their new baby brother/sister. They kiss the baby and tell him/her goodnight. I just want to cry with all the love and excitement our family is sharing right now. Christian is convinced I'm having a boy AND a girl. Alena says just a girl. Gabe wants twins and I have no idea.

I feel like I'm already growing (which makes me think twins), my boobs are sore, and I have some cramping/soreness in my stomach. But other than that, I wouldn't even notice I'm pregnant. I'll be 6 weeks this Wednesday and I'll update everyone then. Also, I have an appt Tuesday and HOPEFULLY they can tell us if there is more than one baby in there. They're also doing another blood to make sure my numbers are going up like they should. I will give you a complete update on all that for my 6 week Belly Bump post.

5 weeks

 Stayed tuned!!!!

Vacation Part 7 - Final One!

Thursday was a lazy day. We sat around my mom's house watching TV and relaxing. At around 1130, I dropped Gabe and the kids off at my sister's house so Gabe could continue on his homework. I left them to go see a close friend who had just had a baby.

I got there around 1230 and we started talking. I got my baby fix by holding her tiny little one. I forgot how little they really are! Before I knew it, two hours had passed and it was time to go.

I left and went back to pick up the kids to head to a local splash park. Apparently, Christian had gotten in trouble while I was gone, so it was just Alena and I. We met Rhoda and her boys there. Unfortunately, Alena didn't want to play in the water so we didn't stay too long.

We were going to my aunt and uncle's house later that evening so we went back to my parent's for dinner before heading over. I've said before how I grew up Amish and my aunt and uncle are still Amish. We had a great time as usual. We sat, talking around the fire ring outside while the kids played. I love that they all get along because it makes it so much more enjoyable.

And I even took pictures to show you what a true Amish house, just in case you wanted to know. :)

This is just to the right of the door.

Looking in from the door. The kitchen and dining room.

The dining room. Hall to the left leads to the bathroom and living room.  The door at the right leads to the living and stairs.

The living room.

More of the living room.

The upstairs hallway.

Different view of the dining room and kitchen.

Isn't it great?! I love that the rooms are so big and open.

On Friday evening, we had my nephew's birthday party. He turned 10 years old!

Chocolate faced boy.

Happy Birthday!

The dogs looking for a handout.

And they got it.

Alena was feeling good and threw up a few times, so Saturday, we stayed at my parent's house. Sunday was pretty much the same thing. It was Justin's birthday so they came over and we grilled some chicken.

We really didn't want to leave, but sadly, we had too. :( Monday morning we got up super early again and headed to the airport. We had the same problems as last time with trying to get seated together. Luckily, the attendants were a little more willing to help out this time.

We would love to move back home and are trying to figure out a way to make it happen.