Tomorrow

Tomorrow, my baby will be born. I have so many amazing feelings about this. I'm excited but nervous. She will be born by c-section, so thinking about surgery can be a bit daunting, but I've been there before, and I feel confident that everything will be fine.

Baby Matilda, I am so so so excited to meet you! Your Daddy and I are as ready as we can be, and your big sister, well, I'm not sure if she's ready, but she says she is.

One thing is for sure, your nursery is all ready and waiting for you. Created for you with love, sweet girl.

And based on how my belly looks, I'd say that you're ready to meet us as well.

January 2015

It's here! It's here! It's really here! This is the month when our baby girl will enter the world and our family will be complete. I had another growth scan today, and Tilly is measuring in and around 7 lbs 13 oz. They figure she will be about 9 lbs, just like her sister. I can't wait to meet my sweet, squishy girl.

Check out this baby belly from the top down!

We are moved into our new house now, and we are working on getting the nursery put together. The furniture is all in place, except for the rocking chair. I have to dig some of the decor out of a box, which is around here somewhere... Once all of the pieces are in place, I will take lots of pictures.

Yesterday, Brad (with a little help from Nora) got the crib all put together, which was VERY exciting for "big sister".

Adoring her (and your) Daddy

Yelling "Baby sister!!"

Cheeeese!!!

I hope Nora's enthusiasm remains once you are here, Tilly. Right now, you're almost all she can talk about, which makes this momma's heart happy.

Picture Post

Back before Thanksgiving, we had family and maternity pictures taken. I'm so glad we did because I want baby Matilda to be able to see how much she was loved and adored before she ever entered the world.

Matilda Ann, you are so precious to us already, and we are so excited to meet you.

And time goes by...

I can't believe how quickly this past month has gone by. In just 6-7 short weeks, we will welcome our beautiful baby girl. I can't wait!! We have a lot coming up in these next few weeks (Christmas, moving to a new house, getting ready for baby's arrival). It seems overwhelming at times, but I know that in no time, we will be settled into a "new normal" for our family.

I have a couple of cell phone selfies from the past few weeks to share.

This one is a bit out-dated. It's a Halloween picture. I already shared one similar, but I'm sharing this one with you because this is how most of my "baby belly" pictures have been taken so far. In the private bathroom in my classroom. A dirty bathroom mirror selfie ha!

I took this one on my way to my 28 week appointment. I'm drinking the dreaded orange glucose drink, and I'm happy to report that this momma does not have gestational diabetes. Phew!

Two big things that we've done since I last posted an entry....

Family and maternity pictures. I love this picture so much because all FOUR of our family members are in it, even if baby Tilly is a little bit hidden.

And we got to see baby's sweet, sweet baby face at a 3D ultrasound appointment. Look at how beautiful she is already!!!

I can not wait to kiss those sweet, chubby cheeks.

Dear Baby

Hi sweet baby girl,

I have been wanting to talk to you. It feels a little funny to write this letter to you before you are even in my arms, but the truth is, I love you so much already, and I want you to know how your Daddy and I are feeling as we wait patiently for you to arrive.

First of all, I am finally in my 3rd trimester of pregnancy. If everything goes according to plan, you will be safely in my arms 11 weeks and 2 days from now. (But who's counting?) I am feeling pretty good overall. I have some typical aches and pains, and I'm pretty sure you're tap dancing on my bladder because I pee about 100x each day, but I have no complaints. In 2 days, I get to see you again because I'm having a growth ultrasound to see how big you're getting. I can't wait! I hope you'll cooperate and let me see that sweet face of yours.

You've been moving around a lot. I'm not very good at telling how you're moving-- kicks, punches, rolls-- but you are definitely a mover and a shaker. Something that's funny is that for the longest time, whenever I would ask your Daddy to put his hand on my belly to feel you, you would immediately fall silent. You're a little trickster already, playing pranks on your Daddy. BUT FINALLY last night for the first time, you cooperated. We were watching football on TV, and we were curled up on the couch. You were moving all over the place, so I got him to put his hand on my belly. After a few minutes, you must have felt bad for the poor guy because you started thumping away. Maybe you were giving him high fives. I'm not sure, but I know he was happy to finally "meet" you, and it made my heart happy for him to have that moment, too.

So, here are some things you need to know about your family:

You have three dogs! They're getting up there in age. I hope you'll have all 3 of them long enough to have memories of them because they're a pretty big part of our family. They whine and bark too much, and I'm sure there will be moments when I am mad at them for barking while you are sleeping, but they are sweet, and I'm sure they will love and protect you as they do your sister.

Copper, Brandy, Bailey

You have a big sister. I may be biased, but I'm pretty sure she's going to be an amazing big sister.  She talks a lot about how cute you are and she blows raspberries on my belly for you. She rubs and hugs my belly, and if I ask really nicely, she sometimes sings you a song. She already adores you, and while I'm sure you'll have some ups and downs, I have high hopes that you will grow to love and cherish one another and be the very best of friends.

It was Halloween recently-- your sister was a pretty pink butterfly

You have a huuuge extended family that loves you and can't wait to meet you. You have 2 wonderful sets of grandparents: Dede and Grandpa on Daddy's side. They live nearby, and you'll see them often. And Nanny and Grampy on Mommy's side. They live far away, so you won't see them often, but when you do, you can bet they will spoil you like crazy! You have tons of cousins. Your closest cousin is Naomi-- she lives nearby, too, and you'll see her a lot. You have so many aunts and uncles who also can't wait to love and spoil you. Family is everything to us. Both your Daddy and I grew up in very close families that love each other very much. You are so, so blessed to be born into these families, and we are so, sooo blessed that you will be joining us.

Dede and Grandpa

Grampy and Nanny

Last but not least, you have two parents who love you like whoa! No, really, we love you more than words can say. We aren't the youngest, hippest, richest, coolest parents on the block, but no one, and I mean no one, loves their children any  more than your Daddy and I love you and your sister. We would do anything to keep you safe and healthy and happy. We have so many hopes and dreams for you as you come into this world and as you inevitably grow (we learned with Nora that babies really don't keep), and we can't wait to meet you and watch you become uniquely YOU, whoever that may be.

Here we are on our wedding day-- where it all began.

Wedding day, September 6, 2003

Here's a more recent picture of your handsome Daddy. You are going to think he hung the moon. (Nora and I already do.)

And here I am showing off YOU. This was taken just a few days ago on Halloween. See how I had you all dressed up for the occasion?

Sweet Matilda, I hope you grow to realize how blessed you are. We are anxious to meet you and start showing you every day that we love you to the moon and back.

All my love forever and ever,

Mommy xo

Introducing Matilda Ann

Here she is! Sweet Matilda Ann.

We had a follow-up anatomy scan today so that the doctor could get a better look at her heart. Everything looks perfect, and we got this sweet shot of her little face. She was having so much fun while we were watching her. She was grabbing at her feet, opening and closing her mouth, and just dancing all over the place. She's an active little thing!

We also found out today that she has flipped and is head down. That combined with the fact that my friend the fibroid doesn't appear to be growing means I might have a chance at a VBAC. Time will tell, but I'm excited about the possibility. However, no matter how she comes into the world, I can't wait to meet her.

As for her name, Matilda is after my Papa's only sister. Papa was very special to me, and his sister was very special to him. We also simply love the name, so it made perfect sense to choose it. Nora doesn't say Matilda very well right now. It sounds more like Ah-tilla (as in "the hun"??) so we've taught her to say Tilly, which was my great-aunt's nick name. I'm not sure if this little one will be called Matilda, Tilly, or both. Time will tell.

Her middle name, Ann, is after Ann Preston, a great-aunt on Brad's side of the family. Ann didn't live past the age of about 2 years old. She was his maternal grandmother's sister. She was also Uncle Spott's twin sister, which is ultimately why we chose Ann as a middle name. If we'd had a boy, his middle name would have been Spottswood, like Brad's, to honor Uncle Spott. It didn't seem to suit a little girl so well, but it was still important to us to honor Brad's namesake in some way. With Ann being his twin, we felt like it was the perfect fit.

And so, Matilda Ann it is. We love her name and we love her.

Half-Baked

As of Monday of this week, I was "half-baked". 20 weeks. Half way (at least) through this pregnancy! So far, time is flying. I had Brad take this rare non-selfie belly picture for me. I swear I thought I was smiling. I'll do better next time.

I haven't done one of the pregnancy surveys since 6 weeks, so I guess I'll do one of those for now to catch up on what's been going on.

How far along? 20 weeks 5 days

Total weight gain? 15 lbs as of my most recent official weigh-in. I was really hoping not to gain as much this time around, but it's like my body is a weight gaining sponge during pregnancy. I'm trying not to stress about it. I'm just focusing on drinking lots of water and eating the best that I can.

Maternity clothes? Oh, yes. Exclusively except for 2 non-maternity maxi skirts.

Stretch marks? Not yet. I'm sure they will come closer to the end like they did last time.

Sleep? Just ok. I wake up a couple of times to pee. Nora still wakes up most nights at some point for me to get in bed with her. At least I'm still sleeping comfortably. I know that will change soon, too.

Best moment this week? Finally feeling baby girl swimming around in there and a few random thuds. Nora has been really sweet, hugging on my belly, and telling me how cute baby sister is and how much she loves her. (Though she did point to my belly and in reference to the baby ask with a bit of alarm in her voice, "How did this happen??" Um.. that talk is for another day, kiddo!)

Miss Anything? Walking up stairs without getting winded.

Movement? Yes, finally! Not a lot but enough to make me smile.

Food cravings? Random cravings now and then but nothing crazy. Anything making you queasy or sick? Chicken is still hit and miss. Brushing my teeth makes me gag.

Have you started to show yet? Yes! More people are starting to notice and comment on it.

Boy or Girl? Sweet baby girl.

Labor Signs? No, thankfully. It's way too early for that.

Belly Button in or out? In, but it's getting wider.

Wedding rings on or off? On! I had to take them off late in 2nd trimester last time. Hoping to avoid that this time, but the swelling of my feet has begun so I'm getting my hands aren't far behind.

Mood? I feel good! I'm in that 2nd trimester happy zone. I'll take it while it lasts.

Looking forward to? Follow up anatomy scan on Wednesday. I can't wait to see my baby again!!

Other things to look forward to-- I booked a mini maternity photo shoot for mid-November, and I think we're going to schedule a 3D ultrasound for later in November as well. I know those things are still a while away, but it's exciting to think about all of the fun things that are in store for us in the coming months.