Wave.

 

Our little girl last week was waving to ya. Pretty sweet, eh?

And praise be, I had another appointment this morning where all seems fine and dandy with this little girl. June will be a long stretch for me. My next appointment isn't until July 1 when they due glucose testing as well as a bucket-load of blood work. Baby girl will start to be in "viable stage" come that time, too (where she could survive (albeit with major issues and NICU time) if born). Once I know she could survive outside the womb, it makes it all a little more real. I'll start to have loads more appointments and ultrasounds once she hits that point too.

I have been feeling pretty good the last few weeks. Greg was home sick half of Tuesday and all day Wednesday and it looks like both Eli and I escaped whatever he had, so thankful for that. My headaches are happening less frequently and for less time... let's hope I'll just be done with those for the duration of this pregnancy! And I have more energy for the most part. I still have moments where I can think of nothing but sleep, but overall I'm a fan of this stage of pregnancy. This last week especially has brought out the bump in full force, though not enough to be uncomfortable. I'll post proof of that soon.

For now, rejoice with us in this gift and the fact we are over half way there! Wowzers!

-Heather

Sr. Discount Time.

The Linn Girls

It's my mom's birthday today! She's 65. Facebook told me that (of course I already knew) but I figure if facebook is broadcasting her age, I can say it here too! I don't think anyone will let her get a senior discount at first glance. She looks darn good for 65 and I hope those genes are in me. If I got the fat Zander legs, then let me at least hope for the aging-well genes, eh?

The photo above is from our family shoot in March in Arizona. I was pregnant, maybe nine weeks there. I had no idea if baby was a boy or a girl but now knowing, I'm more happy about this photo. It was just "the girls" shot. I remember smiling yet sadly thinking about how my daughter is missing in this shot. And she'll never be. We'll never have Maelee here to be one of the girls. That's never going to change and the finality is still a slap in the face. But the fact that I did have one of my daughters "in" the photo makes me smile.

The hope of me getting a shot with my mom, me, and my daughter... three generations together, that excites me. I can't wait to have a little red-headed girl that wants to call Grammy just like her brother did today.

Love you, Mom! I hope you get your carpet delievered and a perfect MN house that shows up for sale today... that's not too much to ask, eh?

-Heather

2 Hours.

Growing up in Williston, ND, we would drive to the big 'ol town of Minot to go to the mall. It was a two-hour drive one way but hey, if you wanted to see a Target or eat at a food court or buy cool clothes, you drove it no problem.

Now we live in SC and we drive two hours and we see this:

Yes, it's pretty great. We had a fun day at the beach. It was sunny the whole time, however, so us red heads didn't spend allll day there. Don't worry, we put plenty of "sumscreams" on multiple times (that's how Eli says it and it is adorable).

This kid with his daddy and a football on a beach? Not sure it could get more perfect for him.

-Heather

Sister.

I get to shop in this section without feeling like I don't belong or I was robbed. I get to walk by the pink aisles and not feel bummed, not feel that ache. I get to see "mother-daughter" things and not feel jealous. I get to see dresses and dream again.

I got to buy this shirt.

And he bought her a ball. Little Sister's Ball.

She's already melted her daddy's heart. And I've melted in tears just thinking about this gift. I don't know why the Lord chose to give us another girl but I'm forever grateful. For however long we have her, as we just don't know, we will cherish and love her.

At 18 weeks and one day, this girl measured 18 weeks and four days and she passed all the little ultrasound tests just fine. Alive and normal. Those are the words you want to hear. My placenta is low and could get in the way and cause delivery problems (ie, I may need a c-section) but it's nothing to worry or be concerned over.

Many more thoughts to come soon. Thanks for sharing in our giddy excitement and for praying we'll get to bring this little sister home alive and healthy this fall. 

-One Joyful Mommy

Wallet Love.

My Aussie friend worked with Greg (though I did know) to get this to me for Mother's Day (thanks Kara!). It's the Maelee wallet I mentioned awhile ago. So glad for whoever decided to name this wallet Maelee! Best ever!

The Office.

The only show we have watched from its very first season and have watched (we think) every episode since is The Office. Tonight is the last episode. It should have probably been a few seasons ago. We both got a little reminiscent and thought of some fun ideas to commemorate the show's end. My hair is wavy today and there is a skirt and dress shirt involved. Greg thought about wearing three black dots on his shirt. And here was our supper tonight:

Jelly beans, beets, big tuna sandwiches, hot dogs, Awesome Blossom (okay, I didn't get the real thing because Chili's was too far of a drive), grape soda, mexican lemonade, aaand one attempt of our mini stapler in jello (if you've seen most of The Office, then you need no explanation).

Silly entertainment these past nine years but something we've enjoyed together and for that, it's special.

-Heather

Mom Day.

We both have great moms who both have/had great moms. That's a pretty amazing tradition to be a part of. We love our mamas! Thanks for all you are!

This day was so tough for me three years ago. Losing Maelee was still so raw. The good that came out of that rough weekend was being able to empathize with so many others who also struggle with this day for any number of tough reasons. It can be such a hard day.

Knowing this fuels me to be deeply grateful for what I've been given.

Notice the Maelee Bear colored in the top.

Love.

-Heather

PS- A great big Happy Birthday to one most beloved Grandpa K and Dad today! Eli has said a few times "Grandpa hug" and oh how we wish we could give him a birthday hug in person today. We love you!

Hoop Love.

Most mornings Eli wakes up and shortly thereafter utters "breh-fast" because he can't think of anything else but his hungry stomach and filling it with his beloved cereal.

But now, now I overhear him uttering something altogether different to his daddy. "Baketball" or sometimes "baket hoop" and then I hear much joyous laughter and noises coming from our living room.

My son received this great birthday gift from my parents. It was an idea from my husband so we know that really, it's as much a gift to Greg as it is to Eli. It's a kids hoop but it can actually go up to 6 feet so it's going to be around for awhile.

Too bad the thing is ginormous and takes up half the living room. If he didn't love it so much I'd put it away. I just don't have the heart, this kid adores shooting a ball. 

And it's pretty rare for Eli to not have clothes, but we were out romping "in the woods" with some friends this morning and Eli got overheated. Our little fair-skinned boy was red as a tomato from the walk and hot drive home. Summer is here! I think it's time to head to the beach.

-Heather

UPDATE: Eli was sleeping next to Greg in our bed Friday night (he woke up screaming so he got to take my spot for the rest of the night) and at some point he woke up and said "shoot the basketball" then went right back to sleep. Greg swears this happened. We can be certain the kid even dreams of basketball!

Hurdle Check.

This weekend I went through the bins of bigger size clothes and maternity clothes I have accumulated through the past few years. I tried on almost every pair of pants to see if they should be kept or not. It took some time! Then I went through my now normal clothes and packed them away...for now.

After hours of doing this, my main thought was "oh I hope all this work was not in vain!" I didn't want to do all this re-shifting and then have to do it all over again miserably too soon.

And this morning when I heard that little heartbeat at my appointment, I was so grateful to know baby made it alive through April and I will continue to need bigger pants. Although I'm in a different season this go round so I may end up actually having to buy some hot weather maternity pants. Or I'll just wear pajamas and stay inside all August and September so I don't melt. Ha. Sort of kidding.

For now, rejoice with us that this little one is alive! And in a few weeks we will have an ultrasound to see how he or she is progressing and to know if we have a baby brother or baby sister in there!

-Heather

ROYGBIV.

Back when I decided we were going to have a weather party, I knew right away I wanted to do a cute photo where the kids dressed up. I envisioned a row of kids, dressed in ROYGBIV under a cute banner on our fence, smiling and looking happy. I even had a plan for the two babies we knew to be the clouds.

And that could have worked if maybe, just maybe, I planned this party five years from now when Eli was seven and most of his friends were that age, too. But that's not the case. Most are actually younger than him. Plus one of the older kids got sick, a few couldn't make it, and our other cloud baby had to be out of town. I did coordinate with moms to get the kids to wear a certain color and it worked out that Eli got green because it was in the middle and I had just bought him these sweet green pants.

Trying to get this crew to cooperate was hilarious, though. Every time we'd get one settled, one would run away. Thanks to the parents for indulging me and at least trying!

Uff-da. Also I just realized the kids are in VIBGYOR order. Oh well. Here's a few of the better shots... where we at least got all kids:

Notice the full-on two-year-old back arched screaming tantrum happening here. 

Notice Eli got a stick that made him happy.

It's still pretty darn cute!

-Heather