We went to our third (elective) ultrasound today at Meet the Baby. At first baby #2 was asleep with her backside turned toward us. After a few minutes she woke up, but refused to cooperate otherwise. She flipped her little body but turned her head away from us. We were there for about 25 minutes and were about to reschedule, but the u/s technician had another idea. This is when she called for back up...

With two u/s technicians by my side, we talked to, sang to and jiggled baby #2 into a better position for the u/s. At first baby #2 seemed more annoyed than anything else, but once she got going, she started posing and giving us some pretty good shots. I honestly wouldn't have minded returning for another u/s but I was happy she finally cooperated! I need to give a shout out to my ladies at Meet the Baby in Brandon... thank you for giving us some beautiful shots of our baby girl!

She already looks so much like Bella!

Look at that perfect little hand!

Love that cute little face.

Smiling already!

Another funny anecdote from the day was the way baby #2 would respond to the sound of Bella's voice. Ian took Bella out for a break and upon their return, Bella was giggling, shrieking and talking (quite loudly). Much to our amazement, baby #2 moved her head toward the sound of Bella's voice! It was so cool! We encouraged Bella to talk to baby #2 and we watched in awe as baby #2 continued to move to the sound of Bella's voice. These two little girls are bonding before baby #2 even makes her debut. 

We left with over 80 images of baby #2 and a DVD. I can't say we ever watched Bella's u/s DVD, but maybe that is something we can show to the girls when they're a little older. It's pretty amazing to have these keepsakes, even if u/s images tend to look a little creepy to the average eye. Before leaving, we scheduled a maternity photo shoot. I can honestly say that I am not looking forward to the photo shoot. I don't like having my picture taken on a normal day, much less when I'm 32-weeks pregnant. This is not something we did when I was pregnant with Bella and I've always kind of regretted it. I'm hoping we get a few decent shots that we can actually share with people. Here's to hoping!

I loved seeing baby #2 today and I'm a little sad we won't get to see her again until she arrives. I'll be 30-weeks on Tuesday, which means we'll be meeting this little girl in about 10-weeks! If she's as punctual as Bella, she will arrive a little bit early. Bella was born at 38-weeks, so if baby #2 follows in her sister's footsteps, we could be meeting her in only 8-weeks... how exciting!

Love always,

Ian, Kim, Bella & Baby #2

Welcome Luke!

Today was a big day in our household... I became an aunt, Ian became an uncle and Bella became a cousin! My sister and brother-in-law welcomed their son, Luke Thomas, into the world. This has been a much anticipated event and our entire family is over the moon! We finally have a little nephew!

Luke was delivered via c-section at 10:37am, as my sister had several pregnancy complications (Type I Diabetes and pre-eclampsia) and induction would have not gone well. He weighed in at 4 pounds 5 ounces and measured 18 1/4 inches long! If you're thinking he's a small baby, he is. He was born at 35-weeks, so he's a premie. Luckily the doctors prepared for his early arrival several weeks ago and gave him some steroids to improve his lung function. Mom and baby are said to be doing great! Luke is feeding from a bottle and breathing on his own just fine. 

Baby season is upon us and this marks baby #4 out of 8 woman I know who are expecting in the next few months. Last week we welcomed Miles Patton, Olivia Meeker and Alexandra Franc into the world. And just today we welcomed Luke Weber into the world! Next up is Daniella Peluso, who is expected to make her debut on or around February 10th! I cannot wait to meet all these little bundles of joy... especially my own!

Love always,

Ian, Kim, Bella & Baby #2

Dishing with Dee Dee

Dee Dee, or the woman better known as my mom recently had surgery to repair the rotator cuff in her right shoulder. She's had a lot of free time on her hands and so we've been talking on a regular, almost daily basis. We've had some good conversations recently and today was no different.

While talking with my mom this evening, she remarked that I looked like I was glowing. She even ventured to make a guess that baby #2 is a boy. Obviously she didn't have any concrete information as to why she felt this way, but it made she said I looked like I was having a boy. It made me giggle because I have no idea what we're having and I don't have a feeling one way or the other. My mom doesn't have a preference either, she just had a feeling that this baby may be a boy.

My mom and I then discussed a reoccurring statement that irks me to no end, "I bet Ian hopes it's a boy..." Are you kidding me?!? Neither of us have a preference on gender and contrary to popular belief, Ian isn't hard pressed to have a son to carry on our last name. Simply put, he wants a healthy baby, boy or girl. I obviously feel the same way and couldn't care less about whether or not baby #2 is a boy or a girl. A little boy would be great, but so would another little girl.

We then discussed a question my mother-in-law recently posed, "Can I be in the delivery room?" HELL NO! In all honesty, my mother-in-law is the last person on the face of the Earth that I would ever want in the delivery room. The amount of stress this woman inflicts on our daily lives is often too much to handle and I couldn't imagine the amount of stress she would bring to the delivery room. Ian and I are both certain that she does not belong in the delivery room. We thought maybe giving her a specific, yet very important job (i.e. taking care of Bella) would suffice, but she suggested that my mom take care of Bella because she was in the delivery room the last time. As disappointed as she may be, she needs to understand that I am the one giving birth and therefore, I am the one who gets to decide who is in the delivery room. She will not be allowed in the delivery room and she will just have to understand that... end of story. I asked my mom to be in the delivery room when I had Bella; she never asked or assumed she would be there. I wanted Ian and my mom there for comfort and support, which they both provided quite well. Labor and delivery is not some dog and pony show!!!

It's hard to believe that in just 5 short months, we will be back in labor and delivery. I am looking forward to meeting this little one, but I also have some anxiety about giving birth again. My labor and delivery with Bella was relatively easy, with the exception of me hemorrhaging afterward. I didn't have time to be nervous when I had Bella because my labor was so quick and delivery was a breeze. I think I'm anxious because I fear that labor and delivery will be difficult this time. What if there are complications with the baby? What if I have to have a c-section? There are so many "what ifs" and it's strange because this is my second child. I know it seems silly because this isn't my first rodeo, but I can't fight these anxious feelings. This too shall pass...

Well, it's been a long day and I am one tired mama. Good night y'all!

Love always,
Ian, Kim, Bella & Baby #2

Halloween Play Date

Bella and I have been participating in a weekly play group with a small group of friends. We have 10 (well, I guess now 11 with the birth of little Tanner on Monday) kids and 10 moms. Most of the time we have about 8, due to two moms returning to work. t's a small enough group that we've gotten really close over the past year. Bella knows her little friends and she enjoys playing with them. I enjoy chatting with the moms and having adult conversations... even if it's intermixed with conversations with toddlers. We meet each Thursday, around the same time and we rotate the hosting responsibilities. If no one is in the mood to host, we sometimes even meet at the zoo or aquarium. I like knowing that one day a week we meet with our friends and play for a few hours. 


This week was our turn to host and so I hosted a Halloween themed play date. I made treat bags for each of the kids and personalized a mini-pumpkin for each kid. The kids even dressed up in their Halloween costumes, which was super cute. We managed to take a few pictures, which is a rarity for a group of 18-month-olds.

Bella, Logan, Gia, Layla, Luke, Connor and Lily.

Uh oh, and the melt downs begin...

My little lady bug.

Last year Bella dressed up as a bumble bee and this year we decided to stick with the bug theme and Bella dressed up as a lady bug. She refers to herself as "Buggy" when in costume and actually enjoyed wearing the dress, tights and shoes. She did not enjoy wearing the antennae, but I cannot blame her. I tried to take her out of her costume several times and she refused. By the way... how cute is she?!? 

It was a fun play date (as usual) and it wore my little lady bug out, as she took a marathon 4-hour nap! I also napped, but only took a little power nap for an hour. I really do think I enjoy nap time more so than Bella. What am I going to do in April, with two on two different schedules?!? I better rest up now because come April, I am going to be one tired mama...  but the sleep deprivation is definitely worth it though!

Love always, 

Ian, Kim, Bella & Baby #2

P.S. Our play group is growing, slowly but surely. My friend Sarah H. gave birth to a daughter, Tanner Lillian, on Monday. I am expecting, as are 3 (yes, 3!) other moms in the group. I'm due first, with another due a week after me, another due 2-weeks after me and another due a month after me! It's crazy to think that our group of 10 has recently grown to 11 and in another 7-months will grow to 15 little ones! 

To pierce? Or not to pierce? That is the question.

I'm going to take a moment to discuss the often controversial topic of ear piercing. While this may not seem like a hot topic, when the ears aren't attached to your body, it becomes a hot topic. There are pro-piercers and anti-piercers, and I find myself somewhere in the middle. When your daughter is an infant or even a toddler, the decision to pierce her ears is made by you, the parent. Personally, piercing Bella's ears are not something I plan on having done any time soon. Bella's ears belong to her, so how do I know she would even want them pierced? And honestly, what is the point of having a 3-month-old with pierced ears?!? I just don't get it. 


Since Bella was born, I've been asked many, many times, "When are you going to get her ears pierced?" I usually respond, "When she asks me to get her ears pierced." Those cute, little ears aren't attached to my body, so what difference does it make to me if they are pierced or not? I made the decision and asked my mother at the age of 7 to get my ears pierced. Together, my mother and I weighed the pros and cons of getting my ears pierced. I was the one responsible for taking care of my ears, rotating the studs and cleaning my ears. Obviously if I needed help, my mother gladly assisted me, but I was responsible for my ears. 


I'm not totally against infants, toddlers and children having their ears pierced. As a woman who has her ears pierced, belly button pierced and a tattoo, I'm not completely opposed to modifications made to the body. I wear earrings every day, I wore a belly button ring until I was about 12-weeks pregnant with Bella and I love my tattoo. But all three of these modifications were decisions made by me. Our pediatrician won't pierce a child's ears unless they verbally request it and have the permission of the parents. Now that's smart!


So for those of you who actually care, here are my pros and cons of ear piercing before the age of 5.


Here is my list of reasons to pierce an infant's ears:
1. She won't remember the pain... Right?
2. Cultural... Certain cultures are pro-piercers, I can appreciate and respect that aspect. 


Here is my list of reasons to not pierce an infant's ears:
1. Those ears aren't mine to pierce... Why inflict unnecessary pain?
2. It's dangerous... What if the earring gets ripped out on a blanket or by a friend?
3. Ears grow...  Those lobes are so little! How symmetrical will they look in 20 years?
4. Hygiene... How does a 1-month-old take care of freshly pierced ears? 
5. It looks tacky... A 1-month-old with gaudy gold studs? Umm, no thank you.


Needless to say, for me, the reasons to not pierce Bella's ears significantly outweigh the reasons to pierce Bella's ears. Maybe I am an anti-piercer, but so be it. If and when the time comes, Bella can ask me to get her ears pierced and together we can make a decision. Until then... Bella's ears shall remain un-pierced. And her belly button shall remained un-pierced and her skin shall remain un-inked... until she's 30! 


Ultimately the decision is up to you, and hopefully, your child... it's just some food for thought. =)


Love always,
Ian, Kim & Bella