Last Days As Three

Today was our last day spent as a family of three. Tomorrow morning we check into the hospital bright and early to be induced and meet our baby girl!!! We are beyond excited to see this brand new little one and to hold her tiny hands. These past few days, however, Rob and I can't help but be just a little saddened to say goodbye, in a sense, to the family we have known. We have made every effort to soak up these undivided moments with Bennett, and it has been so sweet. Tonight we went here to celebrate our last evening as the Markley three. We had so much fun! After explaining to Bennett that we would be at the hospital tomorrow, and that he would finally meet his new sister, the little guy did not want to go to sleep. He is anxious about all of the changes.

Our bags are packed as we excitedly, nervously, and hopefully enter into a (probably restless) night of sleep one last time at home before seeing Elodie Grace.

--Kelly

He loved all the babies.
Coincidence? We don't think so :)!

Making treats the other day
(Bennett's first chocolate chip cookie)

Rob here. Please keep us in your prayers over the next day or two: pray that labor would come quickly and progress smoothly. Please pray that the doctor/nurses would have extra guidance and skill. Above all, please pray for baby and momma. Next time we talk, we'll be a family of four!

Sentences

The little guy has been speaking in sentences more and more, and they are getting pretty funny lately. If only my pregnant brain could remember more of them. Here are some samples:

"Bert and Ernie good friends."

"Hey, watch this!!"
(His comment before proceeding to splash bath water all over me).

Bennett: "Mommy. Get it."
(Referring to a toy stuck under the couch).
Me: "Bennett, can you get it, please?"
Bennett: "Mommy, please reach it."
Me: "It is really hard for me to reach it, buddy."
Bennett: "Ya. Belly."

Me: "Bennett, I love you."
Bennett: " I know that."

Preface: "peanut" is how he pronounces the word penis, a recent fascination.
Bennett: "My peanut. Daddy's peanut. Mommy's peanut?"
Me: "No, Mommy doesn't have a peanut."
B.: "Ya. Mommy girl."

Bennett (speaking directly to my tummy): Hi Elodie. See you soon. Meet you.

He's also really into standing on his head right now.

Some Thoughs...

First, thanks so much, friends and family, for all of the feedback on my pregnancy pictures. It is really wonderful to have you all sharing in our excitement over this baby!

I have a little something to say about Bennett. I have been pretty nervous about him transitioning into big-brotherhood. I am actually feeling much better about all of it-maybe a sign that we are ready? Still, the things that have been swirling in my crazy pregnant mind have been exhausting at times!

Here is what I know: I know that he is a sweet-natured boy, and I know that he will be a great big brother. I also know that this is a normal transition that most of us go through at some point in life. We all survive. And he will too. I know these things, rationally. I still worry, though, about how all of those instant changes will affect him, especially in the beginning. He will often have to wait for Rob or me to finish changing/nursing/helping his little sister instead of droppping everything to attend to him. He will no longer always be the star or the center of things. He will worry what all the crying is about (our empathetic son can't stand sadness or crying). He will probably have trouble sleeping in our small house with this sometimes noisy new addition. And ofcourse at some point he will wonder why Mommy is more tired-and possibly-a little grumpier than she used to be (just keeping it real).

I think I have spent about as much time thinking about how Bennett will do when we are at the hospital as I have about bringing Miss Elodie into the world. Will he wake up if it is the middle of the night and be totally confused about where his parents are? If so, will that make him mad at his innocent little sister for causing all of the rucus? Oh, the concerns go on and on...

But then I think about how she will eventually-maybe even instantly-bring tons of joy into his world. There will come a day when he won't remember his life with out her, and he probably will not want to. They will become buddies, playmates, confidantes, and hopefully really good friends. I think about my two sisters -and cousin who is like a sister- and all of the love, lessons, and friendship that we have shared. They have made my life so much richer; there is no other relationship like the one shared between siblings.

Anyway, just some thoughts. Ofcourse there will be some bumps, but I think overall he will be thankful for this little girl...even if she doesn't do much more than sleep and poop in the beginning.

Here is a (completely unrelated) video of our vastly talented son whistling. You may have to turn your volume way up.

Full Term!

Apparently thirty seven weeks is considered full term-I thought it was 38. I am 37 (and a 1/2) weeks along! It is very exciting to be at this point where the baby could come any day, as they say. Though I suspect that she won't be here for a little while longer, walking around knowing that we could meet her any day now is pretty thrilling. I did not get to experience this part of pregnancy with Bennett since he was a scheduled c-section. So, I am probably kind of funny to live with right now...but I will let Rob be the judge of that. I am all over the place, running around trying to have every little thing ready. Our bags are packed, plans are made, and Grammy and Auntie Kate are on call (thank you!).

Last week I had some pre-labor developments. Don't read this paragraph if pregnancy details freak you out. I had a bunch of Braxton-Hicks contractions at the beginning of the week (Mon.-Wed.). No big deal, just the tightening and loosening of my belly, I knew it was nothing "real." At my doctor's appointment, however, I found out I am 1cm dilated. Now to some, this may not seem like much, but I was pretty much jumping for joy. In all honesty, until last week I didn't have a lot of faith that my body would do the labor thing on it's own. Then on Wed. night, I had all kinds of contractions- close together, in my lower abdomen, and my lower back (a sign of labor). I was pretty sure it wasn't labor, but again, I enjoyed every moment of it-I'm weird, I know-because something was obviously happening. Thursday morning came, and she had dropped; I am pretty sure that is what all the commotion was about. Nothing much has happened since that exciting evening, but all signs point to baby Elle getting ready for the real world. Rob is actually out of town in Sacramento this week, so if she does come soon, hopefully she can at least wait until Thursday night :)!

Here are a couple of pics. Rob took yesterday:

Maybe our next post will be baby pictures!

Two of His (and our) Favorites

Dancing and Laughing.

The lighting isn't so great in this video, but it is still really fun to watch my boys dance. Notice how Rob is trying to hide in the corner as if the neighbors are going to spy on him :)!

I have watched this one over and over, and it still makes me laugh out loud!

P.S: Check out the baby count down at the top of the page-less than 30 days to go!

The Things We'll Miss

Naturally, since we have been here in the bay area, we have thought a lot about what we left behind. We are really pleased to be in the northern part of Cali., and to be settled and through with moving around (Lord willing!). It is just all part of the process, though, to look back a little and think of all that we experienced in our previous home. For one thing, Long Beach will always be Bennett's birth place. I will never forget walking endlessly in our first neighborhood with our tiny newborn. That was pretty much all we did was walk around and explore, since we didn't know anyone. The beach was only about six blocks from our house, so we went there often. We eventually settled in and made friends-it felt like it took forever. Looking back, it really didn't take that long.

I became part of a mom's group, and that gave Bennett and I something to do. Later on, in a class Bennett took, I met my friend Christy. For some reason our friendship totally took me by surprise-and it was such a sweet surprise. I have never mentioned Christy on our blog before, probably mainly because she is not a fellow blogger. She and her son Wiley were a big part of our everyday life in L.B, and both Bennett and I have really been missing them since we left. Bennett often asks if Wiley will be there when we go to our "new park", and he has even asked to email Wiley a couple of times :). Christy is also pregnant with baby number 2, only about 6 weeks behind me. While we are/were both busy chasing our boys, we always found time to hang out. I am really going to miss our regular visits, and the much needed breaks that we provided eachother. Whether at the park, farmer's market, one of our homes, etc., our friendship provided a little sanity when life became a little too centered around toddler and baby living.

Anyway, I didn't plan on writing a whole dedication to Christy and Wiley, that just sort of happened. But here are some pictures of the things we will miss:

The Randalls (sis. and fam.)
It goes without saying. It has not quite
sunk in for me yet how far we are from them...ugh.
Bennett cried, actually cried when he couldn't go see Ally
our first day here.

Beach time

Buddies!
Bennett's first friend, Tyler

Bennett's good friend, Olivia, a.k.a. "O."

Playing with O

Our playgroup (not everyone is pictured).
Most of us moms were either pregnant
or had a newborn. This is a great group
of ladies!

Evan

...and ofcourse:

Wiley!

Christy and Wiley

Here's to good friends, good times, and a happy first 2 years of life in the L.B.C.!

And So It Goes...

We had a second appointment yesterday w/my new Dr.F. He was concerned last week about my high blood pressure, and, well, yesterday it was worse (174/94). So, he sent me over to the hospital to be monitored and have blood and other tests done.

For anyone who may not know, I was put on bed rest right about this time in my pregnancy w/Bennett for the same reason. I have been hopeful that things wouldn't go this way again, because my B.P. numbers have been way better this pregnancy.

Anyway, it was much easier yesterday having been through this before. Still not my favorite thing to be hospitalized, of course, but Rob was a rock, and Bennett handled the hours of doctor time like a little champ. The hard part is always waiting with out answers, but I felt confident that everything was o.k. The best case scenario would have been that it was just high blood pressure, not effecting my platelet count, liver function, and amniotic fluid level.... the worst case scenario would have been that some or all of those things were impacted by the b.p, and the baby would need to be delivered. All of my tests came out normal/good, and they sent me home with a prescription for blood pressure medication. Hopefully the meds. will get things under control and I won't have to go on bed rest.

The good news was, she is still head down (unlike my breech Bennett), and the doc. says if my blood pressure stabilizes, I am a good candidate for a vbac. Also, I'm lovin' this doctor! Not in an inappropriate "pregnant lady has a crush on her OB" kind of way (that happens a lot, you know). We just feel super comfortable with him, his office, and the hospital. I know I mentioned it before, but I think it is worth repeating. I wish we had moved into his care sooner!

I have a blood pressure cuff at home, and today I pulled it out, and Bennett said: "bud-pre-pur... baby...um hm." Translation: Mom's checking her blood pressure to make sure the baby is o.k. I have never explained that to him; he always knows more than we think! I will continue to keep you all posted. I need to post a couple of funny videos, too, so you will hear from us soon.