Bean at 6 months old

Our Bean at 6 months

I don't know how it's possible that I haven't blogged in almost 6 months except, well I have four kids and one is a baby. We keep busy and I try to document as much as I can on my phone.  Thank goodness for social media and that I can look back on pictures on my phone and share the experiences of the past 6 months.

I have to say that Bean has been a great baby and life is going really well. It doesn't stop, it doesn't slow down, and if anything it seems to go by faster with the more children we have.  I attribute it to the big kids and all of their activities. The more they do, the less I'm home. But I will say that while I'm not blogging everything, I am experiencing it and really trying to be in the moment.

My brother and I with our little ladies.

Six months was a busy time for the Bean. She took her first plane ride and she and I went to visit her brand new cousin A., my brother's baby.  It was the first time since college that I have traveled by myself.  My husband and I have been together over 13 years and we usually travel together except when he travels for work.  I was really nervous about the plane flight and all the stuff I had to bring (stroller, carseat carrier, diaper bag, my carryon).  I had so much help on the way to Omaha.  There was a man traveling by himself and offered to help me load up the stroller onto the belt at security. He told me he has 3 kids and he was traveling alone this time on business and he knew all the ins and out of traveling with little ones. He flipped down the stroller like a pro and flipped it back up in the right position after it went through security. He made sure I had everything before he went on his way to his own gate. I noticed he was wearing a St. Michael's medal and I felt that God was giving me a helping hand on my journey. Bean and I had great seat mates and when it was time to leave the plane the gentlemen behind me not only helped me pull my stuff out of the overhead bin, but walked me off the plane and helped me load up the stroller.  My brother met me outside and I was able to spend three days cuddling my niece, giving my brother a chance to sleep while I took care of night time feedings, buying some furniture to help them with all the extra clothes, and decorating A's wall with fun wall clings.  I enjoyed spending time with my sweet niece and loving on her while I could.

Bean and her cousin A. meeting for the first time

My brother and I aren't very close and in a way I pushed my way into a trip to visit him. He wasn't ready for me to visit, but I desperately wanted to be of some help to him. I wish he would accept it more often, but he and I are very different people I think me being the older sibling makes him feel like he is being judged all the time. I wish he would see that my help was what it was...help. I remember the days of having a first baby and learning the ropes.  He is my only sibling and I just wish we were closer.  I spent the 6 months I knew of A's impending arrival extending the olive branch with regular and frequent phone calls to check up and to offer emotional support. My visit was the same.  I'd like to say the regular phone calls and visit made us closer, but for whatever reason it didn't.  We are back to status quo. Sigh. I continue to extend the olive branch, but I don't think it is being accepted. So I pray and I keep trying.

Six months was also marked by Bean's first Easter and celebrating the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior.  As always we make it to my in-laws house for the annual Easter egg hunt. Next year I see her giving it a go. This year she was happy to observe.

If you look closely you can see her newly adorned ears.

We also had her ears pierced!  This is a cultural custom. In the Philippines baby girls always have their ears pierced. I think mine were done at 3 weeks old. Here in the States they like for you to wait until you are 6 months old.  I love my husband. He knew her 6 month birthday was coming up and said, "So when are we getting Beanie's ears pierced?"  He was also the one to sit with her and hold her. My heart did stop for a second when the gun became stuck and they had to pull a little harder to remove it from the earring and the ear attached!  Bean was a trooper and after a few tears and a nursing session, she recovered quickly and her ears are adorned with pretty gold balls.

At 6 months she continues to sleep in her co-sleeper and she sleeps well. She is sitting up in her Bumbo and had her first try of baby cereal. She is not a fan of any kind of baby food and would much prefer to eat what we eat.  But the child needs some teeth first. In the meantime she is eating mushed bananas, mushed sweet potatoes, and anything else we can mush.  She is a delight and I can't believe that she is well on her way to becoming a year old.

Happy Easter!

Bean and A. shared a crib while we visited my brother.
Bean just turned 5 months and A. just turned a month old.

Hanging out with the girls after a late night feeding.

After I decorated A's wall. Not too bad if I say so myself

A milestone is that Bean learned how to give kisses.
I LOVE her kisses.

Mr. Bananas and Bean hanging out together.
Mr. Bananas loves sharing the iPad with his sister.
He really can't get enough of her.

31 Weeks Pregnant

30 weeks pregnant at the beach

We are 31 weeks pregnant with baby #4 and I can't believe the time has absolutely flown by.  I cried when I heard her first heartbeats. I was so excited that she was viable, that our baby was really there. I had a scare with the last baby and I thought I would lose him.  He stayed and he was born and he is now a downright delightful 3 year old.  Now we have baby #4 growing and getting stronger every day.

There are so many thoughts running through my head. One of them being, I wish I had blogged, posted, journaled throughout this pregnancy. But quite honestly, I was downright exhausted from the get go.  The first trimester was tough with the morning sickness and the exhaustion.  I was thrilled when the morning sickness did not last as long as it had with Mr. Bananas.  I think it was only 13 weeks of sickness.  Most of the first trimester are a blur of being sick and taking naps.

The second trimester was busy. I was Flipper rep again for our local swim team and spent endless hours at the pool.  I was too busy to be sick and to notice the exhaustion, although I treated myself to a nap every afternoon after lunch. My children made do with PBS while Mama napped on the couch. They were troopers. They also learned a bit of independence getting themselves snacks while Mama napped.

I continued to run as long as I could hoping to run throughout this pregnancy.  I did pretty well until about 6 months along where I had to definitely switch it to walking intervals. Whenever there was a spurt of energy I ran for a minute.  Overall, I feel really good this pregnancy. Even though the first trimester was probably the roughest of all four pregnancies, the second and third trimesters I have felt pretty good.  I'm still exercising and I'm still moving around pretty well. I've dealt with a lot of swelling with my feet and the doctor's recommendation was:  stay off my feet, stay out of the sun, drink more water.  This was difficult to do while on the pool deck. I was constantly moving around speaking with parents, asking coaches questions, and well, I was in the sun. But if that is my biggest complaint all pregnancy, then I'd say I'm doing pretty well.

We do have a name and have had picked it out since the last baby was born in the hopes of having one more and in the hopes of having another girl.  We do not have a middle name yet, but I'm going through names I like and I will give Buggy a list of 3 or 4 names to choose from and let her pick out her sister's name. Boogie picked Mr. Bananas' middle name and we'll let Buggy choose one for Baby Batty.

We've had fun speculating on her hair color and eye color.  The kids are excited and every once in a while Mr. B. will look down the neck of my shirt and say, "I love you, Baby."  Boogie who is not much of a snuggler will hug me and say into my belly, "Hello Baby, it's me your big brother."

Buggy had a rougher time when she found out we were having a girl.  Right before we found out we were having another daughter she said, "I want to be the only girl." She was struggling to find a place in her changing world. I am happy to say that she has recovered and she is really looking forward to being a big sister. It was a big help that our babysitter took Bugs under her wing and told her that she loved her like a little sister and we were able to say, "Coach A. doesn't have any sisters and all the cool things she does with you, you can do with your baby sister."  Coach A. even had Buggy over for a tea one day and it was just the big girls.  I am grateful and love our babysitter/swim coach that much more.  Another big step for Buggy was that one of the Big Team coaches on swim team put Buggy in her first swim meet and she had to swim across the pool all by herself.  He really asked her out of desperation because we were trying to fill lanes. But in the end it worked out for everyone. She earned points for the team at every swim meet and she felt like one of the big kids.  His need for an extra swimmer built up her confidence and she was ready to accept a big girl role and is now ready for a baby sister.

Hubby and I could not be more excited.  We were hoping for one more baby and we are blessed that we will have one in a little over 2 months. Yikes!  It is bittersweet that I am starting to give away our boy clothes. I am happy to be able to give away things that I have been saving for 8 years, but on the other hand, it means that this may be it for us.  I am desperately trying to savor this pregnancy and it is flying by. Part of me can't wait to hold her, especially as she pushes on my bladder, periodically suffer from insomnia, can't run like I want, and the pull of exhaustion is great.  But I'm not foolish. At least I'm not up every 3 hours, my breasts aren't leaking (yet) with milk, and right now she is pretty portable.  I look forward to seeing her sweet face and having one more to add to our beautiful family. 9 weeks to go!

Easter 2014: 11 weeks pregnant

My Best friend and I pregnant with our fourth babies.
I'm about 12 weeks pregnant and I think she is about 20 weeks pregnant.
She's having a boy an I am having a girl!

14 weeks pregnant and still running