Happy New Year! - From Hannah

To all my friends who know how to read already I wanted to wish you a Happy New Year! Needless to say I didn't make it until midnight but I did make it until almost 8:30! That's a really late night for me you know.
Tonight was a special night for me. Mommy and Daddy invited my friend Molly and her parents over for dinner. Mommy made a special eggplant parm that Daddy claims he only gets about ever 4 years and Daddy made an awesome cheesecake that he only makes when Mommy is pregnant! It was "delicious"!
"Charen" brought Daddy's favorite spinach dip and all of us ate really well. Did you know that eggplant actually tastes good? Who would have though!
Molly and I had a great time playing after dinner. It was nice to have a friend to run around with and burn off all the calories and energy from the chocolate. Molly and I gave one another lots of hugs and love to ring in the new year in style. It had been a big year for both of us. We both turned 1, learned to walk, learned to talk, and were celebrating the last year we would be only children. Both Mommies and Daddies were excited for all that the new year holds for our families and enjoyed the time to actually talk to each other since we are such big girls now and can play on our own!
By the end of the night we were exhausted. We laid on the floor and just stared at Daddy and the camera. We were overtired and I had a major meltdown. Boy is staying up late fun for Mom and Dad.When Molly left, I tried to go to sleep on the floor in the family room I was so tired. Mommy finally put me to bed. There have been fireworks going off all night here and I'm so tired even that isn't causing me to get up. Hope you guys all enjoy your midnight.... I'm enjoying my sleep. Hope Mommy and Daddy aren't crazy enough to stay up because 8am comes early!

I'm David....

As most of you know we have a dvd player in our car. Normally it's use has been reserved for long trips of over an hour during which it keeps Hannah's attention and the peace while I am driving. Recently, I have noticed (with all the small stops for Christmas) that Hannah is becoming more difficult to get into her car seat...especially after the 4th or 5th stop. With my ever expanding belly and the stress of her fighting me while other people wait for our parking spot I have given in to the fight..... she will get in if I turn on the "tb". So it is done!
I have justified it's use by letting her watch Veggie Tales.... at least it is a positive show right? Well it is official... my daughter is a Veggie Tales addict. She now knows all the words to the opening song and asks for the "mato and cumber". The only draw back of the dvd player that we have is it starts every time from the begining, and while she doesn't care it is driving me NUTS! Today though my nutty factor turned into pure laughter. Jeff and I were out shopping for some last minute gifts and the David and Golith show came on. (This is her all time favorite.) Hannah then proceeded to exclaim in a very loud and clear voice.... "My name is David... and I have lots of brothers!" We couldn't stop laughing. A complete sentence, perfect!
Guess it's time for a new dvd, huh?

Jeff's Job Update

Jeff called home about 10 minutes ago and I had to blog quickly to ask for some prayers. His current boss told him today that the new job did in fact call today for a reference. YEAH!!!! We of course think this is a great sign! Please take a minute to pray that he would hear soon about the job. The cut off for his 30 day period to not have to start a new semester at school is tomorrow. We are hoping to hear quickly... although know it is unlikely and there is a potential that he may have to start the new semester. We are looking forward to the potential of a New Year bringing him a new job and our family new challenges as we navigate living in a small home with a toddler, a new born, and Daddy working at home..... but it is a challenge that we really would like to embrace!

Baby update: Drew is moving more and more! He is alot stronger than Hannah was at this stage. Jeff has yet to feel him since he doesn't cooperate but you can start to see my stomach moving so it's only a matter of time. 21 weeks down!

Hannah ism of the day: Before breakfast today when I asked her if she wanted to say the blessing she said "Yes, thank you Jesus and penguins" Not sure what the penguins have to do with Jesus... but in her world they are related!

Craig's List Rocks!

So I am now an avid Craig's List junkie! I just bought the best double stroller ever for less than 1/2 the price. Since we got pregnant Jeff and I have been looking at the Graco Quattro Tour Due stroller. It is basically the same stroller that we have now but for 2. It retails for $250 plus shipping. I was able to purchase it through Craig's List for $140! It was used about once/twice. The wheels look dirty but the seats are perfect and there was even the crinkly paper inside one of the sunshades that leads me to believe it was never even opened up. Best yet... she delivered it right to my door!! How awesome!!

Tomorrow night we are going to pick up what will be Drew's nursery bedding. It is the same sort of deal. It has curtains, changing pads, 3 sheets, bumper, bedskirt, 2 wall pictures, mobile, and lamp shade for $125! What in the world!?! Most of the pieces are pottery barn to boot.

I might just become an addict. Lucky for Jeff there isn't much that we need for this baby or he would really be in trouble.

Here's a sneak peak at the new nursery!

What is life without a scare here and there?

So the last couple of days have been a little tense around the Page household. Last night I started to spot slightly. It was right before Jeff was to leave for work and I wasn't sure exactly what to do. So we both prayed about it and hoped for the best as he left for work and I put Hannah down. Things seemed to even out and throughout the evening God was good enough to bless me with being able to feel Drew move on multiple occasions.
This morning I was ecstatic that the bleeding had stopped and I was feeling good. Hannah and I went to a friends house for lunch.... and darn if it didn't start again. Luckily, this friend is a mom and pregnant herself and she was very comforting in helping me to decide to push the drs to have me come in and get checked out. (Especially since I felt a little crampy.) Jeff was close to her house and he was able to leave work and pick us up.
After a few long hours, an internal exam, and a meltdown by Hannah we were totally cleared. The midwife doesn't know what caused it and saw no signs of trauma or changes in the cervix. So once again we are free and clear..... guess that boys are just a little more dramatic than girls. Hopefully we won't have to see anyone again until New Year's Eve at our next scheduled appointment.

So to sum up we have a scare monthly:

Sept- baby wasn't big enough
Oct- Couldn't find the heartbeat
Nov- I had high blood pressure
Dec- spotting for no reason

I can barely wait to see what January holds for us!

Think BLUE!

It's a boy!!!
Andrew "Drew" Neill Page

So it is official... Hannah is going to have a little brother. Jeff and I went to the dr today for the ultrasound and were pleased to hear that we will be having a little boy. As most of you know we were a little partial to having another girl; but, how good God is. As soon as we both heard the news it was like it was the perfect thing. Our hearts are so fickle! We can hardly wait to meet our son. Jeff is excited about buy him his first State basketball jersey and I am excited about getting to decorate a new nursery. Hannah will have to learn the word brother now since she has been saying sister ... but she already says Drew like a pro!
At the appointment after the ultrasound they said that all the measurements looked good and the move of our due date was a good decision as Drew (like Hannah) is still measuring a bit small by dates. The other good news of the day was that since they are keeping me on my blood pressure medicine (that was great today) we would get an additional ultrasound between 28-32 weeks to measure the weight of the baby. We are always excited for another oppurtunity to see what's going on inside!
Pictures to come soon!

Hannah comment of the day

So as most of you know Jeff and I love mexican food. Hannah may be worse than us though. She actually will ask for it some days and is certain to eat when we go for mexican no matter when she ate last. Tonight we went out with some friends and their daughter for dinner at the mexican restaurant near our house. When we pulled into the parking lot Hannah said the following:

"MMM, chicky, beans, and rice. That makes me happy!"

I know-- kind of advanced for a 20 month old but if you know her you know that she does speak in sentences these days. I wasn't so impressed by the fact she spoke so clearly but that she spoke so candidly about her likes and her recognition of this restaurant. Oh the things that this next year will hold!

Christmas Pics

We had our family Christmas pictures taken over the weekend. Hannah as usual was a complete ham. She didn't want to do anything the photographer had in mind and she refused to keep her tongue in her mouth. They turned out cute non the less. It's hard to believe that next year we will have to get 2 babies to cooperate. Family photos may become more scarce. I'm not sure my nerves can handle the drama of Hannah plus another one!

Thursday is the big ultrasound. Be sure to keep looking for the update on "who" will be the newest member of our family. Hannah claims it's a sister.... any guesses?

Back in the swing of things!

After a LONG week we are all back in Raleigh. Hannah and I went to stay with my mom for a week since I was feeling so terrible due to this blood pressure medication. To make life more interesting my grandparents had also moved in with her. (Did I mention that the house only has 2 bedrooms?!) So Hannah slept in a closet and I slept on the couch. I'm not sure it helped my blood pressure, but it did help my moral. I was taken care of and fed and loved on by mom which of course is always nice. Jeff missed us alot I could tell but he had to stay and work. So now we are home for a few days and then we are off to the lake for Thanksgiving. Thank you to everyone for all the prayers. I am feeling much better and the medication seems to still be working!

Another prayer request is for Jeff. He has an interview today. It is a perfect fit for him, although we still don't know specifics as far as the amount of travel or the pay. We are excited about the potential opportunity. Please pray that God would open and close the appropriate doors!

Answered Prayers

I went to the dr today and the blood pressure medicine is working. My blood pressure has dropped 20 points in less than 48 hours. Thus the reason that I have felt so crappy over the last 36 or so. The doctor said that that feeling should go away in the next couple of days. (I hope so cause dizzy+Hannah doesn't equal a good situation.) I still have to be monitored through the weekend but then hopefully won't have to go back until Dec 4th when we will find out the sex of the baby! Thank you to everyone for all the prayers!

Prayer Request

So the OB appointment today was interesting as usual. The midwife was new and extremely nice. She found the baby's heartbeat right away and it was 150 bpm! We were very pleased. The difficulty came when they took my blood pressure. It was 120/90.... which is very high. They were concerned enough that they put me on medication right away and did bloodwork. I also am scheduled to go back on this Thursday. Please pray for the doctors as they try to make decisions about what to do, my health, and the safety and health of the baby. Needless to say Jeff and I are both concerned about what this means not only for me but the baby, and for Hannah as our life potentially change.

Christmas in November

At the end of last week my grandmother took a pretty bad fall and ended up in the hospital. While we were all trying to figure out how bad it was and if we needed to go up to Pennsylvania to interveen we went to Greensboro to have a family meeting of sorts. When we got there Hannah realized that Christmas had come early! Obviously in our bid to get out of the house as quickly as possibly I forgot to pack of all things TOYS! Well there was no need to worry.
Da (grandpa) had bought her an amazing toy... it is a powerwheels (sort of). The problem with powerwheels of course is that she is still too young and way to short. However, I don't know where he found it but this one has a remote control feature so that we can drive her around! It is adorable and she loves it! It plays European techno music, has a horn, and turn signal. It also has a place to hook up your ipod!!!! It's a little red roadster with a roll bar and everything. Pictures to come as soon as I can get them uploaded. Needless to say she had a blast!! Merry Christmas Hannah! I guess you will be celebrating for over a month!

Heartburn

So as if the maternity clothes and the tummy were not clue enough.... the heartburn has begun and it is official that I am preggo! I normally am not a heartburn type of person. However, when I am pregnant, it is terrible! Pepcid is my bestfriend and I take it almost daily. It is the only thing that helps. I've tried to change my diet but that doesn't seem to matter. Even water can give me heartburn.
I am officially 15weeks pregnant at this point. I go to the dr again next Tuesday so I will update you after that. This appointment should be pretty typical: bloodpressure, pee in a cup, weight, and heartbeat. Hopefully, we will have more luck with the heartbeat this time! The next appointment in Dec. should be when we have the ultrasound and find out the sex.
So for now my heartburn, maternity clothes, and expanding waist line are the only things that continue to remind me that I am pregnant. Hannah keeps me so busy that I often forget. I am begining to feel some fluttering but they are not regular yet .... although they should be in the next couple of weeks!

Happy Halloween!

Hannah had a great Halloween! As usual she surprised us all. Normally she hates her Halloween costume. We have spent weeks trying to get her to like it... but it hasn't work. So Halloween night we were assuming it would be the same old same. Boy did she shock us!
We went over to one of her little friends house for dinner, little Miss Molly (she's her bestest). Another couple with a toddler came too. We all had chili and the girls played and had a good time. Then the bewitching hour arrived. All the mommies were concerned because none of the girls liked their outfits. However, it was a magical night. I'm not sure if it was because they saw other kids at the door in the costumes or what... but they ALL put there costumes on and grabbed there bags and Hannah led the charge with "let's go!".
We had planned on going to about 3 or 4 houses to trick-or-treat. Just so we could say that we had participated. However, all 3 of the girls were so excited that we went to about 20 houses! They would run between the houses yelling "treats!" Then they would knock on doors and say "tank you". It was adorable.
Hannah did try to go in one house. The woman looked to be about 45 weeks pregnant and was having trouble standing up, but Hannah tried to bowl her over because she saw a dog in the kitchen. Luckily, Daddy was close at hand and our breaking and entering child was obtained! Here are the pics from our fun night!















All in all we had a great Halloween! Oh and now Hannah loves her costume. She was up at 3am with a cold last night and insisted on being a bee before she would go back to bed! It was quite amusing. Especially to daddy who was woken up by the flapping and buzzing of a fully outfitted bee!

Halloween Fun

This month Hannah has been growing leaps and bounds. It is continuing to amaze me as she is speaking in clear sentences most of the time now. She truly is telling us what her wants and desires are. 2 weeks ago we went to the pumpkin patch and had a great time. She took her first hayride, rode the train, played in a teepee, and picked her own pumpkin. She is really getting into the holiday season.




Today we hosted a Halloween playdate! The kids were adorable in their costumes and they made dirt cups as a holiday treat. It was a mess but they loved it. Hannah was able to stir her own pudding thanks to Jello singles and loved beating the oreas with a spoon in order to make the topping. She wasn't into the gummy worms but enjoyed licking the chocolate pudding off of them. Here are a few pics of the pumpkin patch to tie you over. More info on our beach trip from last week to come when I get the pics uploaded.




PS- Baby two is starting to kick! I am feeling him/her already. It's incredible to think this time next year there will be 2 of them!

What a month!

So it has been a while since I posted. Hannah has been the topic of the last month. In addition to all her normal action she had her 18 month dr's appointment. At the appointment she weighed only 18lb! She was growing length wise and her head was growing but both the dr and I wanted to make sure that everything was going well on the inside and that there wasn't something keeping her from gaining weight. So poor Hannah had 3 adult size viles of blood drawn. It was a horrible experience. Both Mommy and Hannah cried through the whole thing!
The doctor was looking at everything from kidney problems, to liver, to Celiac Disease, he even used the word cancer! Needless to say it was a long wait to get an answer. When we finally heard back 4 days later it turned out everything was fine... .except she was anemic! (Nothing to do with her weight issue at all..... apparently she just has a good metabolism.) So the dr put her on an iron supplement and this is where the story gets fun!
So Hannah takes iron for 2 days and I notice she has the diarhea. I called the pharmacist and he says it should stop in another day or so. On day 5 it is terrible. Her bum is almost purple from it and it is pouring out of her and black. I called the dr. He said to take her diaper off and let her go free and stop the iron. Ok- now is it just me or is the fact that baby that has black diarhea pouring our of her without a diaper on a bad idea!?! To top it off we had just gotten new carpet 2 days before.
So picture this... my entire linen closet has been laid out on the ground in the family room. All other rooms are barracked and Hannah is stark naked running around the house with black water pouring out of her tail! It was horrible. A week later she has final gotten better and the diaper is back on. So much for the iron...we are now trying a better diet and some vitamins..... a better option that we should have started with.
Needless to say, with all this going on I haven't had time to post much... in fact I haven't even had time to remember I'm pregnant! I have forgotten at least twice in the last week..... although I guess that is a testament that my morning sickness is getting better!

So here are some pics of what the tiny tot looks like today.... clothing included!!

We are going to the pumpkin patch on Tuesday so hopefully we will have some more good pictures to come. My little bumblebee is having a great time pretending and getting ready for Halloween. She refuses to say trick or treat. She will only say TREAT.... although I can't blame her!

Baby two kicking!

So baby #2 is doing well. I went for another ultrasound today to get a better date of when I would be due. Much like Hannah, this baby is measuring small based on my last missed period. So after 2 ultrasounds it is confirmed that the baby is doing well and growing, just about a week slower than they thought it should be. Because of that they have changed my due date until May 3rd! That's right Uncle Paul we are trying to invade your graduation! Things looks well and the dr. was pleased with the progress so far.
He has told me to stay on the metformin until the 12 week mark and that he thinks we are fine to forgo the genetic ultasound that is offered at 12 weeks. I am torn about it honestly. I would love to see the baby again. It's amazing how much it has grown in just a week and a half so I know that 4 weeks from now it will really look like a baby (and not a sea urchant.) At the same time all that it would do would be to calculate the risk of a genetic mutation and since we know we wouldn't terminate the pregnancy regardless it seems rather pointless to cause needless worry for 28 more weeks. Medically there is no benifit to myself or the baby so I'm pretty sure that we are going to stick with that decision... although I want to be selfish and see my baby. Maybe they could just do it and not tell me the results? :)

Time Out

So today Hannah proved to us that she understood what Time Out means. For weeks now we have been using time out, possibly even months. It seemed kind of in vain and has been more than a little frustrating. Today however, she proved that it was working. Jeff and I have been very consistent with the sequence we use with time out. We have a particular corner, behavior, and after effect.

Today she goes over to the wall socket that has the vaccuum plugged into it. She goes to touch it and then say "no no, time out" She then proceeds to put herself in the time out corner and sit there. Then she got up, said "sorry mommy" and walked over and gave me a kiss. Now you tell me she doesn't understand time out!

HEARTBEAT!!

It still continues to amaze me that we can see a heartbeat so early on! We went for our first ultrasound today. (I'm suppose to be 8 weeks tomorrow.) It was a little intimidating because we had to wait for almost an hour. By the time the midwife got in there Hannah was ready to go! The midwife was nice but she couldn't get a good view because my bladder was full. So she sent me to the bathroom. Then she still thought I was measuring small so she called for the dr. Hannah was scared that they were hurting me. So she laid on the table behind me and I had my head in her lap.... SO CUTE! I wish I had a camera... but who brings a camera to a vaginal ultrasound! The doctor did the ultrasound for a 3rd time and said I was only measuring 6.5 weeks. However, Hannah measured really small too so they are not concerned. I do get to have a bonus ultrasound in 2 weeks just as a precaution. Worse case scenario seems to be that they will change by due date to May 4th. Oh well.... as long as it's healthy I dont mind being pregnant a little longer (as long as the morning sickness ends earlier!)

Ultrasound pic to come... don't have a scanner. Although realistically there really isn't much to see. Just imagine a circle with a smaller blob like circle in the middle. There you go... now you've seen my baby!

Dr's visit #1

We went to the dr for the first time on Thursday. It's funny that it was just a few short years ago but so much has changed already. Overall, it was basically useless as far as knowing if everything was ok. We met with the nurse and she told me that my due date is April 25th. Then I went and got the prenatal blood work done and was given all the same information that I received with Hannah and then the insurance lady told us how much our payments would be and such.
There was some new information as far as new regulations for what prenatal screenings needed to be done, and new ultrasound technology that allows them to test for genetic defects. It was fairy overwhelming and this was our second time. I can't imagine how people with there first are feeling. We go this thursday for our ultrasound. I will feel alot better after that.... I think.

Pregnancy Tests are confusing

So I wasn't "feeling" pregnant today (in other words I wasn't throwing up!). So like any other woman with additional pregnancy tests just lying around I decided to take one. As soon as the pee hit the stick the first line turned dark and really thick but the second line never showed up for almost 5 minutes! I became very concerned and confused. The directions said the first line was the test line and the second line was the control line. So what in the world was going on? I called the help line and the woman laughed at me! She said that I was definitely pregnant and the problem was that I was probably too pregnant. Apparently once your hcg levels get to a certain point they can actually pull the ink from the control line to make the test line darker. So .... I am pregnant and my levels are extremely high... hopefully it's only 1!!!

Salsa and PB&J

So is it weird to put salsa on your pb&j?
With Hannah I never had any weird food cravings.... not a 1 during the whole pregnancy. I get them this time at 5 weeks! This is apparently going to be a whole new experience of pregnancy. Today it started innocently enough. Hannah and I were having pb&j for lunch and we were eating chips and salsa. Suddenly it hit me.... wouldn't it be good together. So I tried it! It was pretty good. I did have some sickness a few hours later. Not sure if it is morning sickness or the yucks from such a combiniation. It was pretty good though think we'll have it again!

She doesn't care that I'm sick

So it is apparent today that Hannah really doesn't care if I'm pregnant or not.... her world is going to go on and she is going to continue to test her limits. Pregnancy number 1 was great. I had morning sickness and all, but I had a wonderful husbands and parents to take care of me and make a fuss. However, now my morning sickness is simply met with a screaming and demanding toddler. So while we are just beginning our journey it is become very apparent today that this pregnancy is going to be much harder. My employer (Hannah) has very little empathy and is very demanding despite my condition! :) Playdates, walks, tea parties, and dinner must go on. Only 35 more weeks to go!

Hannah's going to be a big sister!

It's official.... after 5 pregnancy tests to confirm it, we are PREGNANT! We are cautiously optimistic since we have had trouble in the past and would be grateful for your prayers as we begin this journey. It was a fitting day to find out. It was Jeff's first day of school. So it was a day of first!
Hannah is a bit confused as at one minute she says "baby" and points to my belly and at another will say "no baby...belly". Luckily she has a few months to figure it out.
Looks like the due date is April 24th, we go to the Dr. next week to have in confirmed!