Our Family of Four

Miles Birch came into the world on Wednesday, November 3 at 12:24 a.m. He weighed a whopping 9 lbs, 6.8 oz, and was 21 inches long! More details and photos to come!

Trick or Treat 2010

Despite my love of quirky or homemade Halloween costumes, Rowan insisted on being "Iron Man 2" this year.

Yep. My kid asked to be a character from a sequel to a movie that he has never even seen. Man, those marketers are smart!

But he did make a pretty darn adorable Iron Man 2. Here he is before venturing out with some of our neighbors.

What a tough guy!

He felt so proud to be cruising the neighborhood with the big kids.

Meanwhile, we are still waiting on the arrival of our littlest pumpkin. I'm due on Tuesday!

Link your Halloween post, or see more cute Halloween pics, by visiting The Snyder 5!

Waiting for Bubsie

Some stuff I've been doing while waiting for our newest addition to arrive:

• Obsessing about what to name our new little one. (Rowan's top choices: Rowan Kyle, Kyle Rowan, Angie Kyle, Kyle Angie, Rowan Angie, Angie Rowan, Duckie or Bubsie)
• Astonishing Rowan's pre-k classmates with my hugeness. ("Whoa. That's big." has been the most amusing comment thus far.)
• Tackling projects that will have no real impact on our quality of life, such as replacing the felt floor protectors on our dining room chairs and dusting the top of the refrigerator.
• Astonishing kiddos at Target with my hugeness ("Oh. Man." has been the most amusing comment thus far.)
• Trying not to roll my eyes when people ask me if I'm having twins.
• Hoping that I will go into labor soon!
• Enjoying our remaining days as a family of three...

...and this weekend, that meant pumpkin carving!

Happy Halloween!

My Big Boys!

This past week brought two big milestones...

Rowan, my first baby boy, turned 5 — an age at which a little guy is truly marching down the path to big-kid-dom.

And Bubs, my unborn (and as-yet unnamed) second baby boy, reached the 37-week mark — a stage at which he is now considered full-term.

Last weekend, we celebrated Rowan's 5th birthday with our families on a gorgeous fall day. Our plans for this weekend? We will celebrate Bubs' full-term status by installing the infant car seat, purchasing last-minute essentials, packing our overnight bags and RELAXING. Sounds lovely to me!

WW: I Grew...And Grew...And Grew!

21 Weeks Pregnant

22.5 Weeks Pregnant

29 Weeks Pregnant

30.5 Weeks Pregnant

36 Weeks Pregnant
(Yesterday!)

21 Weeks ~ More Than Half Way!

On Tuesday, I hit the 21-week mark. More than half way done!

I can't believe how much faster this pregnancy is going than my first. We've been so busy, busy, busy that I've barely had time to blog.

But we did snap a picture this week. I plan to be better about taking weekly pictures from now on. This time around, though, my belly will be covered. I'm not sure why I thought I'd want photo documentation of my bare skin stretching and growing during my pregnancy with Rowan. Older and wiser now, I guess.

I'm feeling good at this point. The nausea subsided some time ago, and I even eat eggs without gagging! Chipotle still isn't my fav, but I think that's probably just a case of burrito burnout.

My energy level is decent, and I can move around without trouble. We've started visiting the pool and going on family walks for exercise. I park on the top level of the parking ramp and take the stairs at work.

We're eating TONS of veggies, thanks to our community supported agriculture share. And I'm trying to eat lots of healthy proteins as well.

I have no idea how much weight I've gained so far, since we don't have a scale. I gained about 40 pounds with Rowan, though, so I won't be surprised if this pregnancy follows that pattern. (But I would be absolutely FINE if it didn't!)

I've been feeling Bubs kick since about 16 weeks. Kyle felt a little nudge on the outside of my belly around 18-19 weeks. Rowan still hasn't felt him move and is quite frustrated! Bubs even got a little lecture the other day about not kicking hard enough! ("C'mon, Bubs, it's me! Your big brother!")

I'm now solidly in maternity shirts. I can still wear some of my prepregnancy dress pants with a BeBand, but I'll likely need to invest in some more maternity clothes soon.

That's enough rambling for now! Time for bed!

Wordless Wednesday: Definitely a Boy!

The ultrasound tech said she would have had a hard time hiding it. Naturally, Kyle was a proud papa. ;-)


Meet our sweet baby boy! I shall be the queen of this house! (Hmmm. Where can I build a second bathroom?)

These Buttons Are Bursting!

Wow... I think it's time to find some loose fitting tops for my expanding belly. Last time, I made it to 20 weeks before needing maternity tops. But sixteen weeks seems to be the turning point this time around.

Any tips on starting a maternity wardrobe? After five years, I feel like a newbie again!

Top 10 Questions I Received After Making My Pregnancy Announcement

As an introvert, I must say that the hardest thing about announcing a pregnancy is responding to the sudden barrage of questions. So here are the answers to the top 10 questions people asked when I announced that we are expecting a baby in early November.

You ARE?

Yep.

Are you excited?

Of course we are!

Have you been “trying?”

Uh…yes?

I mean, have you been trying this WHOLE time?

Oh, I see. No. Not at all. It just took some time for us (especially Kyle ;) to decide to have another baby. Even before we had Rowan, we knew we weren’t “two under 2” kind of people. So we weren’t in a hurry. And then, once Rowan was out of diapers, was able to dress himself, and was enrolled in preschool, it was hard to think about starting over.

Is Rowan excited?

Yes. He is now, at least. His first reaction was, “Are you serious?” followed quickly by “Why didn’t anyone ask me about this?” But after we told him that people might bring him presents after the birth being a big brother is really special, he started to feel much more excited.

Are you hoping for a girl this time?

Not really. I mean, I’m not NOT hoping for a girl. But I’m also not desperate for one either. I know it’s cliché, but I’m really just hoping for a healthy baby. And to be honest, raising boys is pretty darn fun…and simpler in many ways. (And we already have all the stuff!) But I’m sure a girl would be a fun change of pace as well. So the simple answer is: I will be thrilled whether it’s a boy OR a girl!

What about Rowan? Is he hoping for a brother or a sister?

Oh, now that’s a different story. Rowan wants a little brother. A brother. A brother. A brother. When we told him that we don’t know whether the baby is a boy or a girl, he said: “If it’s a girl, we can start over, right?” Um…no. “Well, then we have to keep it in a time out.” Okaaaay, then.

So…we might be finding out the sex of the baby this time around. That way, we have some time to prepare Rowan either way. If it’s a brother, he’ll be ecstatic. If it’s a sister…well, we’ll just remind him that people might bring him presents after the birth sisters are really special.

How are you feeling?

Good. I had a few weeks of morning/noon/evening sickness, but that seems to have lifted at this point. It’s nice when hunger actually feels good!

So your mom told me you were pregnant, but she said it was a “secret.” What was that about?

Ah, yes. The secret wasn’t that I was pregnant. The secret was that she told YOU that I was pregnant before I wanted her to. HA! Totally kidding! Actually, the real deal is that I told family about the news before I told work. So I just didn’t want anyone “outing” me on Facebook before I had all my ducks in a row. What can I say? I’m in marketing. I like to control the spread of information! Much harder in today’s world, I must say.

Are you experiencing [gas, nipple pain, discharge or other intensely private symptom]?

Uh…unless you are my midwife, a close female relative or a very good friend, I’m not really going to respond to that. Sound good?

Bonus Question (because no one has really asked this one): Do you have a nickname for the baby?

Yes. We call the baby Bubs.

That about does it! Now that I’m feeling less nauseous and a bit more energetic, I’m excited to get back to blogging (and reading YOUR blogs, too). See you around the blogosphere!

Wordless Wednesday - The Real Reason I Took a Blog Break