Drum Roll Please!!!

Welcome to our new little family blog! Glad you hopped on over here and joined us. I would love it if you would become a follower of this blog. You can sign up on the right hand side of the screen. That way you can be informed whenever I post anything new and keep up with our exciting lives!

I really, really, want to do better on here about posting about the every day little things that occur in my life. Not just the things about my children (although they take up pretty much my entire life, and they are often times all that I really have to talk about), but if other things come up and I want to share my thoughts, feelings, cravings, or favorite pizza toppings - well then, I just might do that!

So...to begin...

Why don't we start with a little pregnancy update shall we??

I turned 18 weeks yesterday. I know this because I went to the Doctor and they told me. I have been so bad this time at keeping track of just how far along I am. With the boys I knew the exact week and the exact day, but this time I know a rough estimate of where I'm at, but then I let them tell me, just to make sure!

My cow shots are going along just fine. Chris's Mom is an R.N. and she taught Chris how to give me the shots. Nothing like having your rear end exposed in front of your husband and mother-in-law while they discuss where the upper right quadrant of my heinie is before plunging the needle in! I only have like 20 more shots to go, so the end is in sight. Ha!

I am continuing to feel fantastic. Heartburn has getting reaquainted with me again in the evenings around 9:00, but so far it hasn't been a problem for me to sleep at night and I'm not yet laying in bed with twenty pillows (give or take 15) propping me up to try and lessen the pain.

Just this past week I have started to feel the tiniest of little flutters. They are totally sporadic and very faint, but I'm just going to say that's what it is! I remember with the boys it wasn't until after 2o something weeks when I started feeling them.

And yes...we did find out the sex of baby #3! We weren't sure if we were going to or not, but Chris really wanted to, and I was on the fence. Well yesterday I had a quick ultrasound and the technician said that she could certainly get a good glimpse and picture if I wanted her to. I caved pretty quickly! She told me to turn away, so I did. She then took a picture of the little parts, put the picture in an envelope and sealed it up. I drove all the way home with that little while envelope staring back at me and I didn't even open it!

When I walked in the door after my appointment yesterday Chris, Ethan, Grayson, and myself sat down together on the couch and we opened it up. This is what we saw:

Chris and I both started to cry. We were completely thrilled and over the moon with the reality that a little girl would soon be entering our family! Ethan and Grayson just looked at us with these huge grins, and Ethan even covered his open mouth mimicking my response! Oh, if only they could understand what this means!!

I instantly had to call my Mother and all I could say was "It's a girl! It's a girl! It's a girl!!" She just cried along with me. What a gift a new little life is, especially during this difficult time of just losing her Mother and my Grandmother.

We would have been completely, completely, completely satisfied either way - but this to me is perfect for our little family. I'm excited to see who this little one is going to look like, will she have my lips like I share with my mother, will she have my sassy attitude that my parents used to love when I was a preteen, will she have dimples from her daddy?

I know that I am going to be a busy Mama. Trust me, I am already. I know that I will suffer from lack of sleep for a while. I will have moments where three under the age of two is going to seem like a bit more than I can handle...I am certain of it. But I am also certain that this little family of five is a HUGE blessing and gift. I am so thankful that I am being granted the privilege of raising and caring for three children! Bring on the houseful of laundry baskets, burp clothes, baby spoons, and teddy bears.

I can't imagine it any other way.