Chaos Everywhere

I always knew that having two kids would be a lot of work. I also knew that it would entail a great deal of adjustments. Wow, I really had no idea! I am loving being a mommy of two but it is sure a lot of work. All the things that I worried about in terms of adjustment really aren't the issues. Faith has been an AMAZING big sister and adores her baby brother. She doesn't so much act out in regards to jealousy, but rather is acting her age. The 2.5 phase is a tough one at times, but very rewarding at others. One minute we can have a temper tantrum on our hands and the next she can be telling me "I love you my mommy, you're the best in the world".

Colin has been a bit challenging to figure out, but adorable as can be. He is really smiling a lot lately and that makes it all worthwhile. We thought he had reflux but are rethinking his medication. He has been a bit fussy but we are hoping and PRAYING that he outgrows it and that it's just all about him getting adjusted. (and us too) I thought that I would remember a lot more, but I feel like a first time parent all over again. The sleep deprivation is challenging as is the crying, but I hope that it will all be a distant memory in the not so distant future.

Hard to believe that he is already 2 months old and that my baby girl is on the brink of turning three!! We are excited for Halloween this weekend and for the holidays coming up shortly thereafter. What a fun way to celebrate being a family!!

More to come soon, but a mommy of two has very little time to herself these days!! To top things off my favorite client asked me to come back and try out a bit of work, so here goes the chaos in a totally different way. Oh boy, life is sure crazy.......but truly awesome!!

He's Here! He's Here!!

Though this is long overdue, I just had a moment to post the big news. We lovingly welcomed Colin Jeffrey Frederick on Tuesday, August 24th at 9:01am. He was born at 7 pounds 14 ounces and 21.5 inches long. As this was a planned C-section it was much much easier than last time and made for a totally different experience overall!!

He's a doll and we love him so very much!! We are all adjusting to a new baby and our larger family, but just taking things one day at a time. I feel as though I've forgotten everything from the first time around with Faith but am slowly relearning whatever I can. I feel so very blessed and though I am definitely sleep deprived and overwhelmed at times, I am very very happy!!

I will post more soon with our latest adventures, but here are some pictures to make it all official!! We are very lucky, happy, and full of love!!

This Is It!!

So today I sit the last day of being a mom to one.....CRAZY!! Tomorrow is the big day and the C-section is scheduled for 8:30am. Hard to believe how fast this pregnancy has gone and that the little guy will be here so soon!! I'm excited, nervous, anxious, scared, elated, and uncertain all at the same time. I pray for everything to go smoothly and can't wait to meet him and to see what he looks like.

Faith is VERY excited to be a big sister and wants us to get her baby brother here now. I only hope that she has that same excitement once he is here and the reality sets in. I know that there will be an adjustment without a doubt, but my hope is that she stays my sweet and amazing little girl and is a helper as she wants to be.

It's a very exciting time for us and we hope for the best tomorrow. The next time I post God willing I will be a happy mother of two!! Good thoughts and hopefully good things ahead!!

Just Waiting

So we are now 11 days from the scheduled C-section and just waiting. There's a part of me that is so ready for this baby to come and I am anxious and restless. Then there's the other part of me that says to keep him in as long as I can because life will change dramatically. I think back to how drastically life changed when Faith was born, and I know it will make much more of an impact when this little boy comes.

We are pretty much done with the nursery and the nesting. There are little odds and ends that still need to be tended to, but we've made some good headway. I must admit that I'm a bit nervous to be alone with Faith right now just in case something happens. It was one thing when I was 37 weeks pregnant and it was just me. Now there's so much more to think about when I have this precious little girl to think about two.

My blood pressure escalated a bit, but I'm hoping that it stays under control. I pray for a safe and healthy remainder of the pregnancy and delivery. I can't wait to meet the little guy and pray that he will be happy and healthy! Faith seems to be excited about the premise of being a big sister......though I'm not entirely sure that she knows what's about to hit her just yet.

We are hoping for the best as I sit like a ticking time bomb. Enjoying summer as much as we can--taking Faith to the pool, getting her to Chuck E Cheese, and doing whatever we can to enjoy our last few days as a family of three. So more updates to come, but as of now just waiting patiently and trying to enjoy every minute of the journey!!

Catching Up and Nesting

I can hardly believe how long it's been since my last post! It just goes to show how busy life has been as we prepare to become a family of 4!! I am less then 3 weeks from my scheduled C-section date of August 24th. I have mixed emotions......so excited to meet our baby boy, so nervous about the adjustment with Faith, so worried about ensuring that Faith never feels left out, and so ready to have my body back!

It's been a challenging pregnancy at times, though I can't complain compared to others. I have had a lot of the common aches and pains, but I'm most concerned about the blood pressure as that was an issue last time. I am now under watch as it is slightly elevated but am really hoping that it all works out and that I can still enjoy a healthy pregnancy until he's ready to arrive.

I am finishing one last work project and then that's it until I am somewhat adjusted and ready to get back to work with my Mom's help. I've felt very lucky to have such great clients and hope that continues after baby boy is born!

Faith fratured her elbow 3 weeks ago but fortunately just got the cast taken off tomorrow. There have been a lot of "small tramas" like that happening over the last month and so I feel like things have been turned upside down. So in addition to the normal preparation and nesting that one would go through at this stage, I've been tying up a bunch of loose ends. Faith continues to be an awesome little girl who makes me laugh daily! She definitely exhibits her "terrible twos" at times since she can be a bit stubborn but I would expect nothing less of the age. She has been such a wonderful little girl and I look forward to seeing her with her baby brother.

I've been really trying to enjoy every minute with her and with us as a family of three before things change. I hope that it will be a smooth adjustment but I know it will have its' moments of difficulty. I'm so excited to see what this baby will look like and I can only hope that we are as blessed as we have been with Faith!!

I will keep posting as much as I can, though I have a feeling that this little guy might have a different idea about when he arrives. In the meantime, I will just pray for the best!!

Last Family Trip as a Family of Three

We went on what will likely be our last family trip as a family of three over the weekend. We went to Chicago and had an absolute BLAST!!! Faith did an amazing job through both legs of the five hour car trip and was just so good the entire trip. We stayed with one of my best friends, Mary, who we affectionately call "Turtle". Faith loved being there and we packed a lot in including Millenium Park, the Children's Museum, some shopping, some great meals, and her first ride on a train (the El). We enjoyed every minute of it and really took the time to enjoy her as our little girl. The time is going fast, hard to believe that I am already 25 weeks pregnant!! If all goes according to plan that means that my scheduled C-section is only 14 weeks away. Agh!!

I am really busy with work right now, but that's an excellent thing. The hubby is now into his third week on the new job and really enjoying it. We feel so grateful and I pray that this positive feeling keeps up for awhile. It was a rough time, but I feel that we are stronger because of it. I pray that we can keep this momentum going, that he can keep going well with his job, that I can keep my work going, and that all is well with our family. My plan at this point is to work as long as I can and then to take a couple of months off when the baby arrives.

So much to do and so much to think about before baby boy arrives. I try to take it one piece at a time or I will get totally overwhelmed. I am just doing my best to enjoy every minute and to look at this summer as hopefully my opportunity to enjoy some bonding time with Faith before her baby brother arrives.

More to come on the developments and daily accountings of this crazy but blessed life!

Adjusting to Good Things

So it's official--the hubby started his new job yesterday! Yay!! After ten long months, we are relieved and grateful! I must say though that it is a huge adjustment for all of us. When you go from having somebody around all the time to only having them there for dinner, it is a bit weird at first. Faith seems to be handling it okay though I know that she misses daddy! I cried like a baby when he left for work yesterday morning, but I think a lot of that has to do with the pregnancy hormones.

So we are hopeful that this means that we truly have good things ahead and we truly hope to be able to relax and breathe a sigh of relief a bit. Here's hoping! I am coming along with the pregnancy, already at week 23 which is crazy! Faith has been talking a lot about her "baby brother" and how she's going to feed him and sing to him and be a good big sister. Though I know it will be another big adjustment to good things, I have no doubt that she will be as loving and sweet to him as she is to all of us.

I'm still working away though I must admit that I've slowed a bit. We really enjoyed some family fun time before Jeff started his job and now it's hard to get back into it. I've been really lucky to have my repeat clients keeping me busy and hoping that continues. My plan is to take a couple of months off after the baby comes, but I'm hoping to head back into it after we settle down a bit. Oh how I hope that's how things go!!

So good things right now and hoping that the momentum continues!! In the meantime, my plan and hope is to enjoy some great mommy daughter time with Faith before baby boy arrives!!

Good Things Ahead!!

Drum roll please........I am happy to finally announce that the dear hubby has landed a job!! He will start a week from Tuesday and we are just thrilled. Is it the dream job that he will retire from? No! However we are so grateful for the opportunity and what we hope will be a steady paycheck. This whole thing has convinced him more than ever that he wants to do his own thing and therefore we are working through what that means in terms of timing and goal setting. In the short term however, we couldn't be happier and feel so blessed!!

I am also happy to report that Baby Number Two is.......a BOY!! It's been awhile since I've been on here and so I had to update with the good news. We had the ultrasound a couple of weeks ago and it was so wonderful to see him! He's a mover which I love as I didn't get to feel much movement with Faith. So I am hoping that the movement continues!!

Faith is doing well and keeping very busy. We're back in school for a few weeks and that's a highlight. We're enjoying the warm weather whenever it comes our way and looking forward to a nice summer. I am hoping that we can enjoy a lot of great time together as mom and daughter since that will be it for awhile once her brother arrives. I am quite busy with work (as is the hubby) but that's a huge blessing even if it does make us crazy busy at times!!

So I will continue to look to GOOD THINGS AHEAD and enjoy this moment of happiness, hoping that it means many more are ahead of us!!

Plugging Along

Life with a toddler can be unpredictable at times....okay well most of the time really! Faith continues to be my little sweetheart and that will never change. HOWEVER there are days where she eats like a champ and then days where she barely picks at any of her food. Now her favorite phrase with a big smile is to say "I don't like it". There are days when she sleeps tremendously well and then days where she barely catches a wink. Sometimes she sounds like a caged animal in her crib as she kicks the wall and throws things about. She's our darling little girl and I love her immensely, but whoever said that the newborn phase was the hardest was crazy. We continue to have fun with her though!

I'm starting to feel baby number two move around a bit here and there, which is exciting. I of course want to feel the movement all the time, but am enjoying what I get. If all goes well, we may just find out what we're having on Monday afternoon. Stay tuned for details to that exciting news!

Nothing really new on the job front for the hubby, though I keep hoping and praying and trying really hard to stay optimistic. I'd be lying if I said I don't have my moments of breaking down or getting frustrated. It's been nine long months if you can believe it! We're doing okay and both working tremendously hard, but it's not always easy. Oh I so hope that there are GOOD THINGS AHEAD in that department, but in the meantime we keep trying hard to enjoy the amazing blessings that we do have.

Until next time, hoping and praying for some resolution and to be able to just sit back and relax a bit!

I'm Back.....and It's Been Too Long!!

I can't believe that it's been so long, likely the longest I've ever gone without a post. Craziness! To say I've been busy is an understatement, as things have been hectic. Without further delay, I can share my big news that I am PREGNANT!! Yes, baby number two is due around August 30th and we are very excited. Faith will be a great big sister, but of course I'm a bit nervous as I know it will be a major adjustment and transition. I'm 16 weeks now and hoping that the nausea is behind me because it was a bit of a rough ride. In the meantime though, I am doing my best to enjoy and savor every second of the pregnancy and with just Faith.

I've been super busy with work, thankfully getting a lot of work through my existing clients. The hubby has had some interviews and has been quite busy with his freelance work as well. So far so good, and still hoping for more GOOD THINGS AHEAD!! We feel very blessed with this pregnancy and are just hoping that things work out with our situation before baby number two arrives in the late summer. Faith is bringing us much joy right now--we can hardly believe it when she repeats absolutely everything. We're in shock when she recites her "A, B, C's", and we are stunned when we hear her count up to 15. I'm so in awe of her and continue to just love her more and more everyday if that's even possible!!

So that's it......still trying to balance it all and having my good points and bad. Some days are awesome and I feel as if I can handle anything. Other days I feel like I struggle with even the easiest task and worry how in the world I will balance my career with my growing family. I'll do it and I know that I will, but hey it's going to be a wild ride in the meantime. More to come on these latest adventures of our family......I'm sure there will be plenty to tell over the next few months!!

How Has It Been This Long?

Where has the time gone? Have I even posted in the New Year yet? Here we are nearing the end of January, and I haven't had a moment to post a thing. I've been very busy as is to be expected, but it's all good because it means more work. Here we are in a new year and my hope is that it brings many new wonderful things for my family and I. Our situation is still the same, but I try to remain hopeful for GOOD THINGS AHEAD!!

Faith just turned two on Saturday--I can hardly believe where the time went! My little baby has turned into a little girl right before my very eyes. She had a wonderful birthday celebration with her closest friends and family, and it was just perfect. Her eyes just lit up when everybody sang "Happy Birthday" to her! She continues to be such a joy, as always! Though I will say that two is a rather challenging age in some ways (namely tantrums and very disrupted sleep), I continue to love her more and more every single day!

I hope that the work continues and that we can settle into some good things. The New Year started off on a positive note, and my hope is that it only continues to grow from there. I will have some news to share shortly, and in the meantime I will continue to be a new and more positive version of me for what I hope will be one of the best years of our life!