Celebrating Father’s Day

Linc is such an awesome daddy and we tried extra hard to celebrate him this year! Carter painted him a new coffee mug to use at work and a letter “C” to hang on the wall! Our most special gift though was the Father’s Day “D-A-D” collage that we made with our Baby Brigade friends. I love how it turned out and might need to make a second copy so he can have one at the office and one at home! The Sunday of Father’s Day, Linc and Carter drove to my parent’s club where C went home with Hattie and Linc, my dad, and brother in law Ryan hit the course and played golf all morning. I had a tennis match (my third of the weekend!) way up north so I met them at my parent’s house later. Linc then had his own tennis match and came back to the house that evening for a delicious dinner with the Nathans, Trottas, and Morgans. It was a great day surrounded by some of our family and hopefully Linc felt truly celebrated!

We woke Daddy up with lots of presents!

Linc- we’ve said it a million times, but you are simply amazing!

We love you SO much and are so lucky to have you.

We hope you had a great Father’s Day and know how grateful we are for you!!

Lil Allstars

For a week in June, Carter participated in a sports camp called Lil Allstars! It was a four day mini session where two year olds got exposure to t-ball, soccer, football, and basketball! Carter loved Coach Amy and Diane and was a great listener the whole week. He seemed to enjoy soccer and t-ball the most and I can’t wait until he is older and we can sign up for real lessons. Our week of camp was so much fun I think we’ll do it again later on in the summer and then sign up for a ten week session this fall! Here are pictures of all four days (first three were off my cell phone). Can’t wait to go again!

Lego Land

Two weeks ago we joined grandma Bella and our friends the Gordons at Lego Land Atlanta! This was an attraction we had been waiting to see for a while, but unfortunately, I think C was still a little too young to really appreciate it. He did not love the ride at the beginning which consisted of shooting the “bad guys” while being driven through a maze. He was absolutely terrified and clung to me crying and shaking until it was over. Poor little man :/ That kind of set the tone for the first half of our visit but once we finally got to the Lego building room he warmed up and had a great time! We spent a lot of time building towers and race cars and then hit Johnny Rockets for lunch before it was time to head north for nap time. Bella bought C a special Lego telescope as his souvenir and he was in heaven!

C loved playing with his Bella and building lots of towers and castles!

Thanks Bella for a fun day! C loves his telescope most of all :)

Sunday Silence

Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

– John 6:28-29 (NIV)

Bumpdate- 20 Weeks

Once again, this is a little late but such is life! We had such a great time meeting baby h2o on Monday. Make sure to scroll down to read all about our halfway checkup! I think I woke up on the morning of week 18 and had “popped” over night! The belly doesn’t go away now and only gets bigger as the day goes on. I think most people can tell I’m pregnant (instead of just packing on a beer belly) and I have been feeling h2o kick and dance regularly now! Most days I am feeling good, just a few belly aches as things stretch out and only one instance of puking in the last few weeks! Note to self-- baby h2o does NOT like the crust of sandwiches…hahahah

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How far along? 20 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss? Up four pounds since my sixteen week check up (13 total).

Maternity clothes? Switched to all maternity bottoms but a mix of regular shirts. I love sun dresses too because it is getting really hot here!

Stretch marks? I have been lotioning up every day. Hopefully I can escape this pregnancy without too many more marks!!

Sleep? My sister Kristin brought the “snoogle” back and it helps keep me in position. I have been napping every day for about an hour and then going to bed shortly after Carter does. I am SO tired!

Best moment last week? We had our twenty week anatomy scan and got to watch baby h2o on screen for a really long time while the tech got all the measurements and pictures she needed. The baby was so precious and even waved to us a few times! He was a little roly poly and kept us entertained for close to twenty minutes! His heart rate was a strong 150bpm and he was very cooperative for pictures!

Worst moment last week? During my scan, the tech kept focusing back on my lower abdomen and finally explained that I had placenta previa. This was not something we were expecting to hear and got a little nervous until I had a chance to talk to my midwife. The good news is it’s only a partial and I have not had any spotting or bleeding yet. Unfortunately, I was put on “modified bed and pelvic rest” for eight weeks which basically means I can go about my daily life but am not allowed to do anything strenuous including exercise. The biggest bummer? Absolutely no tennis. I know there are so many other people with much more serious restrictions but after having a completely normal pregnancy with Carter and playing tennis up until two weeks before he was born, this came as a big blow. Obviously I know this is best for me and baby but it was a tough pill to swallow since I play multiple times per week and am in two leagues that were counting on me. Thank goodness I went out with a bang and fit in three matches before my appointment! My midwife fully expects this issue to resolve itself and we’ll do an ultrasound at the end of my eight weeks to see how things are progressing. The silver lining is getting to see baby again when normally I would not have anymore ultrasounds at all!

Movement? Baby h2o is an active little fella! His head is near my belly button and his tiny feet are constantly tap dancing down near my underwear line! I can feel him at certain times during the day and it is so much fun. I always try and stop and concentrate on him and soak in those precious little flutters. I know soon enough they will turn into jabs and punches and won’t feel nearly as good!

Food cravings? Eh. Nothing really but at least now I can look at food without gagging constantly. I never had any serious “got to have it now or else” cravings with Carter and this one seems to be similar.

Gender? Have you caught on yet?? Baby h20 is all BOY!!!

Labor signs? Nope. Hang in there little man! No coming out until at least late October!

Belly button in/out? Still an innie but getting surprisingly shallow already.

What I miss: Tennis :(

What I am looking forward to: I don’t want these next eight weeks to fly by, but I will be relived when we can go back to the midwife and (hopefully) see that everything is A-Ok!! My goal was to have a natural birth again so if the placenta previa hasn’t corrected itself that is off the table. I know in the long run a c-section would be fine, and as long as baby arrives healthy than I will come to terms with it.

Milestones: We are so thankful for a healthy, growing baby BOY and can’t wait to watch Carter fulfill his role as a big brother! All along he has been asking for a “buddy” and hopefully they will be the best of friends!

Baby Boy h2o at twenty weeks- 11 ounces