In one week...

We started the week of September 9th with Ava's first day of Pre-K.  I thought I'd be a cool mom and take some pictures of Ava with a little sign announcing her first day, and a few things about her at the age of 5.  

 Age: 5

Favorite Color:  Green

When I grow up I want to be:  a Veterinarian

This year I'm excited: to tell Miss Alyssa I can count to 100!

Then on Tuesday night, my water broke (although I didn't know it!)  And by Wednesday evening, we welcomed this little beauty into our family.

a little sun bathing to help with the jaundice.  

It's been over two months since that crazy week, and Hannah is growing like a weed.  It has been fun to see her change, and we can't believe she is almost 3 months old.

          

   

Five...

13 days after Ava's birthday, Miss Hannah made her debut which meant we didn't get to post about Ava's party.  Let me start by saying it was INSANE!  Everyone had a great time and I didn't have to do much of anything, but I think the fact that I wasn't in control made it feel that much more crazy.  Or maybe it was the fact we were at a place where the kids could safely run around by themselves and so we had 11 kids going in different directions.

Ava was born on a holiday weekend, and so we always have to plan her party for the week before or week after. This year we planned her party for the 25th of August at Fun Fore All and invited 10 of her close friends.  Fun Fore All is a local kids play place that has an indoor ball area, arcade games, outdoor rides (think carnival/boardwalk), and putt putt.  Almost everything was taken care of, but we decided to do the invites, cake, and thank yous ourselves.  (Fun Fore All actually gives you generic invites and thank yous if you want them.)  Because Ava wanted a Rio theme I wanted to incorporate that into everything I could.  (Read Crafter for more of what I tried to do.)

Here are several pictures from the party, and a few of Ava opening presents from us.  At Fun Fore All, our birthday package included two kid rides, and we let Ava pick which rides everyone would go on together.  The first was the train, which is a little like a roller coaster, and the second was a large swing.  We only had one little on who was terrified of both, everyone else has a blast.

Once back inside after after everyone ate dinner, Ava got a turn at the birthday wheel.  After two chances at spinning the wheel, trying to land in a red space, I realized we had one very sweet host who then gave Ava as many chances as she needed until it happened.  I'm thinking she had to spin 6 times. The prize was 200 extra tickets (think arcade or Chuck E. Cheese.)

We then had some free time in the arcade.  Ava loves driving games, and from the way she drives, we're glad she has 11 more years before she is able to drive!  Also, my little tom boy is turning into a girly girl (thanks for her girly girl friends.)  Check out that skirt and PINK hair bow!

We also had a pinata, the pull-string kind.  I have no idea how many kids were able to try, and unfortunately I only got this picture...

As I said before, I wanted to get the cake instead of getting a generic cake from Fun Fore All.  As I have done each year, I ordered the cake from Walmart.  We love their icing, and cup cake cakes are so much easier.  I had stopped by the bakery a good month in advance to look at options so when the time came to order I would know what I wanted.  I had ordered the Rio toys on EBay, they were old McDonald's toys from a few years ago, unopened of course.  And thankfully, we had a wonderful girl that decorated the cake exactly the way we wanted and the toys fit with it perfectly.

We are two months late, but...

HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY

 AVA REESE!!!

Family of 4...

Introducing 

Hannah Kate Berry Ann

As much as I would have liked to have been keeping up with the blog, it's the LAST thing on my mind these days, as you can imagine.  So we have a little catching up to do.  Lets start with Miss Hannah and her very unexpected and quick entry into this world.  

I went in for my 37 week check up on Tuesday, Sept. 10th.  There wasn't much going on and I went on my way and made plans for the next week.  I was planning to sing that weekend, to make more meals to put in the freezer, to get the guest room and bathroom cleaned up as well as the rest of the house. Then Ava and I spent the afternoon in the pool.  On a 90 degree day at 37 weeks, I didn't want to be anywhere else.  

 

That night at 3am, I woke up to a small gush feeling and realized my pants were wet.  (Caution TMI:) As many of you know things like that happen when you're pregnant so I went to the bathroom, changed my shorts and went back to bed.  About an hour and half later it happened again.  I still didn't think much of it when it happened for the 3 time either...  although looking back I have no idea why I didn't think something was up.  I was able to get back to sleep and when I got up I decided I should take a shower and get ready in case I needed to go to the doctor.  I told Nathan what was going on, but that I didn't think it was anything, and sent him on to work.  

Ava had Pre-K that afternoon at 1pm so we were hanging around the house, but I had a few contractions from 9-11, but nothing that hurt or increased over time.  After some convincing from my Mom, I called the doctor and they thought I should come in to be checked.  I quickly called daycare to see if I could get Ava in early, and thankfully the ladies there are wonderful and told me to bring her immediately and that they'd take care of lunch.  Once I found my car keys (that were in the garage on my car!) we took off.  

I got to my doctor's office around noon and they took me right in.  My doctor (I actually have 7!), talked to me and told me about the 3 tests that they would do.   As soon as I hopped up on the table, he said there wasn't any reason to do the tests, although he did one just to be 100%, but the he knew my water had broken...  apparently there was a lot more leaking than I thought.  I was in labor!

I called Nathan before I even left the room, but he didn't answer.  I then started calling all the other people I needed to tell (Mom, Dad, Ethan - I couldn't sing on Sunday, Jeanlynne, etc.)  I called Nathan again...  he still didn't answer.  I swung by the daycare to tell Ava what was going on so she didn't worry, and to let her know that Mimi was coming to get her.  Finally I called Nathan again and he answered.  To say he was shocked when I said I was in labor is an understatement.  He immediately left and started home.  I headed home and decided to do some laundry and the dishes.  So when Nathan got home and found me doing the dishes, he said "what are you doing?"  You see, I wasn't having contractions...  I felt great.  

This time around was so different from when we had Ava.  Our trip to the hospital wasn't rushed, I wasn't having contractions, and there weren't 8 other women in the ER in labor.   I was the only one there this time, and actually the only one on the labor and delivery floor as well.  And this time we got a nice large room unlike the triage closet where Ava was born.  

Once in the room, after answering a billion questions, they got me hooked up with pitocin.  The next couple of hours we relaxed, I read a book and Nathan napped.  Around 5:30pm I realized it was taking me longer to read each page and thought I'd go ahead and get my epidural.  I was told I could have it at any time and it wouldn't matter since I had the pitocin.  Do to an emergency in the ER I didn't get the epidural until 6pm.  Nathan had been sent out to get a cup or coffee and to call my Mom and to check on Ava.  At 6:19pm they gave me the first dose of medicine through the epidural.  Nothing happened.  Then started a series of tests to figure out if I was getting any of the medicine.  By 6:45pm the contractions were getting much closer and stronger as the pitocin spiked, I was around 8cm.  Fun stuff!  Around 6:50pm my doctor (different than the one who saw me that morning, but the same on that delivered Ava) asked where Nathan was...  he was MIA.

When Nathan finally came back, he walked into a crazy scene.  I was in incredible pain, as the epidural didn't take, and the doctor and nurses were trying to figure out why it wasn't working and watching my contractions on the monitor.  Shortly after 7pm  I couldn't stand it anymore and told them I needed to push, to which they told me I wasn't ready.  But Momma knows best...  When my body started pushing on it's own, my doctor checked me and had to make me stop pushing as she was there!  The medical staff ran around like crazy trying to get everything ready before my next contraction.  The next one hit, I gave one good push, and Hannah was here.  I had no plans to go without medicine, but I am very very glad that it went quickly.  I can't imagine how women labor for hours without it. 

Since then, it's been go, go go.  Life didn't stop when we got home like it did with Ava.  Instead I've had to keep up with Ava's schedule and try to figure out how to do everything that I need to do while juggling two girls and a 3-4 hour feeding schedule.  It's been fun, it's been challenging.  But I couldn't be happier, I'm home with my girls full time.  I'll try to share more photos each time I'm able to post, but these will have to do for now.  

 Day 1

 1 month already!

A name...

We have 38 days to go until BB2's due date, and as of two nights ago, we still didn't have a name picked out.  That's a lie, we had four names picked out actually.  Four names that we really liked.  Four names that were throwing us for a loop, because we couldn't just decide on one.  We were pretty sure about the middle name, but not 100%. 

So finally we sat down after dinner the other night and thew out our opinions, Ava included.  I didn't like one name as a first name, but I did like it as the middle name   That was mainly because it's a nickname and we thought BB2's first name should be more formal, and neither of us really liked the formal versions.  (ie., Liz is short for Elizabeth, Jill is short for Jillian, but both can also be used as just "Liz" or "Jill".)  I was in a dead lock between my top two choices.  One more traditional, one old Southern and different.  Ava preferred the Southern and different name, but she also had come up with names like Pinky Pie Blue Balloon, and Skyla, after a boy (Skyler) at church.  Nathan simply said that on the way home from work he was thinking about it and he liked "...".  And as it was with Ava, Nathan more or less made the decision and broke my tie.

It was done.  We had chosen a name, first and middle.  Ava didn't really like it, but we sure weren't going with Pinky Pie Blue Balloon, Skyla, or even another favorite we had that she really liked.  (Nor were we going with any other name that others thought we should use.  Like we'd actually let someone else name our child!)

BB2's name fits very well with our names, meets our "criteria" for a name, and even has an added bonus that we didn't think about until a friend brought it up to me several days ago. 

So what is the name we've chosen?  Sorry, I can't share that information.  (WHAT?!?)  We've decided to keep it quiet for now.  And don't get upset, we aren't telling our other friends or even our family.  Sorry family, you have to wait too.  We need time to make sure this is BB2's name, and to get used to it ourselves.  It seems much harder this time around, and we just want to be sure.  We don't want to tell everyone and then change our minds.  So we've been trying it out, saying it in conversation, and I've been trying to talk to BB2 and use the name.  I've also used it when talking to Ava and she still insists she doesn't like it.  She says there is another "..." in town, and she likes "..." better.  I tried explaining that there are a lot of Avas, Sarahs, and Nathans out there too.  Oh well. 

Oh, and the friend I mentioned above, she doesn't know either, but she did know early on of some of our choices.

With September quickly approaching, you'll all find out before too long, don't worry.  And if this little girl is as eager to meet us as Ava was, we could be introducing her in the next 3 or so weeks.  Crazy right?  If not, 38 days isn't too long either. 

P.s. if you're watching the ticker on the side and you realize that I wrote this and there are actually 39 days until BB2 is due, you're right.  But we'd really like to have a September baby, so I don't think saying 38 days instead of 39 is a big deal.  She can be born on Sept. 30th and 11:59pm if that makes any of you feel better, and it wouldn't make a difference to me as long as it's September!  :o)

Crafter...

I'm a crafter... meaning I like to craft.  Not kiddie crafts, but I like making things for friends, family, and our home.  I used to craft a lot.  One Christmas every gift I gave I had made (and I'm not talking about having a picture of Ava put on a mug!)  I gave scarves, and wreaths, and yes, I even had Ava make things... Grandparents and Great-Grandparents LOVE those things.  At least they tell me they do.

Anyway, each year for Ava's birthday I have made her a birthday shirt.  Yep, it's cheesy, but it has made me happy, and she always looks cute.  I know it won't last forever, so I'm doing it while it lasts. Now, Ava's birthday is next week, but her party is this Sunday.  Being born on Labor Day weekend requires us to have parties early or late, as everyone always has other plans on that specific weekend.  So we planned the party for this weekend and got to working on the details.

Being almost 9 months pregnant, I knew I didn't want to have to deal with everything myself, so we outsourced it to a fun joint down the road which the kids love.  And since we don't really have the option of having a theme for the party, we have used all other opportunities for a theme.  The cake, invites, thank yous, and of course the birthday t-shirt.  We talked about it early on and Ava told me exactly what she wanted.  This year's "theme" is Rio, like the animated movie.  Ava has been on a Rio kick for some time now, and although it took a little creativity, everything was going as planned.

I got the party booked, made and sent out invitations, designed the cake and ordered it, and all that was left was the t-shirt.  I got all the pictures and things I needed for it, bought transfers and got to work.  Ava added a few of her touches (a couple extra pictures, she couldn't just pick one!), and it was ready to go.  That was until this morning when she decided she didn't want a t-shirt but instead a tank top.  No problem!  I'd cut off the sleeves, and hem them up so she would have a tank top.  I even had the idea of putting a little bit of lace around the shoulder area to give it more of a girly detail.  Ava's still not a girly girl, but I didn't want her shirt looking too much like a cut off.

Here are the before pictures.  We were going to add some jewels and other things that Ava wanted, but I wanted that to be the last step.  These pictures were intended to be used as a DIY later on.

Unfortunately, things didn't go as I had planned.  When I was hemming the sleeves, my iron got too close to the picture on the front of the shirt and it began to adhere to the back of the shirt (it was inside out so one couldn't see the stitching and pinked edges.)  I of course didn't realize this until after it was done.  So when I went to pull it apart, some of the blue from the front ended up on the back.  Crap!  Well, it wasn't horrible.  A little splotchy on the front, far from the perfect shirt I had in mind, but I figured if I left Ava's hair down, it would cover up the blue that has transferred to the back.  I was so mad at myself for not thinking that one through.

 See the faded front corner?

 Not horrific... but check out the back:

 Ouch! (A few other choice words did come to mind at that time)

I put the shirt on Ava, pinned on the lace and then set it aside to eat lunch.  Meanwhile I emailed my Mom and told her what happened, as she knew I was making a shirt.  She called with an idea.  Maybe if I was able to iron the extra blue onto a towel, it would come off the shirt.  It was worth a try.  (This is by no means my Mother's fault, and I do not blame her in any way, shape, or form.)  I grabbed a towel, heated my iron and went to work.  Only in my haste did I not pay attention and ended up smudging the color on the large #5 that was on the back of the shirt.  Short of taking a blue sharpie and trying to color the 5, and then trying to remove the excess that had smeared, the shirt was ruined. (See the angled part of the 5 in the above picture... yeah, it's not there anymore, it's smeared to the left.)

Man, was I mad.  It was my fault.  I hadn't thought it through enough, even though I had thought it through several times.  There would be no birthday shirt this year.  I failed.  Crafter FAIL!  This is not the first time I've screwed something up, but it just made me so mad.  And I'm guessing it's because my little girl is growing up and she isn't going to want my handmade shirts much longer... or maybe it was just the fact that it didn't go the way I wanted it to.  Either way, there is no shirt this year.  I took the lace off the sleeves and handed Ava the shirt, apologized for messing the shirt up, but told Ava she could wear whatever she wanted on Sunday.  Thankfully she was okay with that.  And she has a new play shirt that she can get dirty, and it has her current favorite characters on it. 

Oh well... things happen.  I'm still bummed about it, but there is nothing I can do.  I'll instead put my energy into her Halloween costume...  yep, I've already started that.  This girl can't ask to be something they sell in a store!  Do you remember last year's zebra?  Yeah, so I'm starting this one early.  Hopefully I won't mess it up!