Thursday, February 27, 2014

Happy, Happy, Birthday Kate and Matt!!!

Today is a very special day!  It is Katherine and Matthew's 3rd birthday!  

To start off the day celebrating their special day, Matthew and I made chocolate chip muffins.  A breakfast favorite!  And my little guy loves to help me in the kitchen!

stirring the muffin mix

filling up the muffin cups.  and it is his job to first put the muffin cups in the pan.  


When the muffins were done I put candles in a muffin for Kate and Matt and we sang 'Happy Birthday'!  Singing and blowing out the candles were such a big hit they kept asking, "Do it again!  Do it again!"  So we definitely did!  Must listen to the birthday boy and girl's request. :)

I got it all on video:

This first video is a little longer - I tried asking a few 'interview questions' to Kate about things she likes at 3.



These kiddos are a bit confused about their age today.  Kate keeps saying she is 4 and Matthew holds up 5 fingers when we ask him how hold he is.   Lol!

Singing to Matthew.

I can't believe you two are already three years old already!  I am excited for your birthday and party this year as you understand more about birthdays, blowing out candles, and opening presents.  Both of you are very excited to see your family this weekend.  

Thanks for another wonderful year...but you two need to slow down and stop growing up so fast. :)

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Wordless Wednesday - Our week

Like father like daughter.  Kate wanted to take her nap in this particular spot, between the couch and ottoman.  Her idea!  She even brought the blanket and pillow into that spot for her nap.  Daddy also loves to sleep in small spaces now and back when he was a kid.  


Notice how she feel asleep holding onto Daddy's hand.  Adorable, Taters!


This is how I found my son watching cartoons in the morning.

I love this little boy!

Monday after class the three of us went to Panera for a lunch date!

Sunday morning Matthew woke up to this early birthday gift surprise!  This little guy loves his trains!

Tater and I went shopping to Target while Matthew was at speech class and she found these Easter glasses.  This goof-ball loves to wear glasses around the house!

And on another note.....
These two kiddos turn THREE tomorrow!


I can't believe it!  Three years old already!  We are looking forward to celebrating with all of family and friends this weekend at our house for a Curious George birthday party!

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

20 WEEKS!

This past Saturday marked the half way point of our pregnancy!  I am now 20 weeks along.  Seems like it is all going by fast...so far! ;)

Friday, Feb. 21st, we had our Level 2 ultra sound of the baby.  This is the ultra sound where they measure all of the organs and body parts, see if everything is developing properly, and then check to make sure all is working or functioning (ex: the heart, kidneys, blood flow to the umbilical cord, etc).  We were happy to find out all is looking great for our lil' peanut!  Such a relief to hear and gave us such a sense of peace.  

Our lil' Mr. or Miss was such a busy body during the ultrasound!  The ultrasound tech commented several times that this little one is a tricky one to measure since he/she doesn't want to sit still.  By the end of the ultrasound I guess the lil' peanut had moved into so many different positions in my uterus.  Remind you of any body??  I think this little one wants to be just like his/her big brother and be a Wiggles Jr. :)

The baby is measuring about a week ahead as of right now and is in the 61st % tile for size.  We again got to listen to the heartbeat which was at 152 bpm.  

Baby's side profile

Baby's feet - the right and left foot are side by side.  The feet were measuring around 1 inch.  So tiny!

We still was hard but fun not finding out the gender at this appointment.  The ultrasound tech was really good about not giving anything away and had us turn our heads when she was measuring/checking the lower areas of the baby.  So far Kevin and I are split on our guesses.  He is thinking boy and I am thinking girl as of right now.
(I made Kevin take a re-do photo session because he cut off my belly in some of the other pictures and also keep putting his finger over the flash creating a black shadow.)

At the ultrasound they also took a look at my cervix.  Happy to report that at this point it is still measuring nice and long (4ish cm).  Phew!  Relieved again to hear that!  Per the doctors' advice, I have been trying to take it easy during the day, rest and sit when I can, and to not lift the twins too often.  They will measure my cervix again in two weeks at 22 weeks along.

I have been feeling great!  I have a great appetite and feel like I am constantly hungry.  Some of my favorites are: Cheerios, peanut butter and jelly toast, bagels and cream cheese, Mexican food, grapefruit, Pad Thai, orange Hi-C, and apples dipped in yogurt or peanut butter.  I still feel tried in the evenings, but have been staying up way past my bedtime to watch the Olympics and wait for Kevin to come home. 
I have been feeling the baby move around a lot!  I feel the most movement on my right side which makes sense because the ultrasound tech said that's where the baby's little feet and legs are.  Baby #3 tends to do a lot of moving in the morning and at night while I'm lounging on the couch.  This weekend Kevin was actually able to feel a few of it's tiny movements!  Can't wait for more of those moments for Daddy!


Baby #3, you have a silly brother!


Thursday, February 20, 2014

Bringing the Olympics Here

I guess Katherine and Matthew are getting into the Olympic spirit and are bringing the Sochi 2014 Olympics to our home.  We have created our own games - 'Jumping over Daddy' and 'Couch long jump'.   Matthew's practicing at an early age on sticking his landings!  Lil' Olympian 2026? ;)


Matthew totally miss jumped at the ended and landed right on Daddy!  Lol!  He did make the rest of those jumps except for the one I got on video.

Kate's still working on getting some air on her jumps. :)




Monday, February 17, 2014

Valentine's Day Festivities

We had a fun Valentine's Day (week)!  Kate and Matt got to exchange valentine's with their classmates at their several classes during the week.  Matthew loved being a helper when passing out his and Kate's to his ECFE friends!  And of course, all of the candy they received was a bit hit!

On Valentine's Day, the three of us went over to our friends house for a Valentine's Day party.  The kids got to frost and decorate heart-shaped cookies.  The kids really liked frosting, but I think actually eating the cookie was the best part! 




Nicole, our gracious host and fabulous cookie maker, and her son Gavin.  
Gavin and Kate are bud-dies!  They love to play together and Kate especially loves it when Gavin chases her!  It's a little 2 year old romance. :)

Matthew and Gavin frosting cookies...or Matthew's licking more of the frosting than decorating!

Emily and her two boys Colby and Joshua

Decorating with Tater.  She only wanted to participate if she could sit on my lap.  The cookies didn't interest her.  This girl doesn't have much of a sweet tooth.  But she did enjoy playing with the M&M's.

Nicole's sweet baby girl, Hailey.   We also had a 6 week old little baby at our party, too!

After frosting cookies, and enjoying the sugar high, the kids played with all of Gavin's cool toys!


That evening after Kevin got home we had the twins open up their Valentine's cards and gifts.  Their 2 favorite Valentine's gifts we gave them were glow sticks and the movie, 'Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown'.  I think we have watched the movie everyday since!


The four of us then headed back over to our friend Nicole's house for a Valentine's Day supper.  It was a relaxing evening of eating pizza and watching the Olympics.  We enjoyed Nicole and Korwin's company, and I know the twins had a BLAST playing with Gavin and baby Hailey again!  In fact, Kate was so tired out from our Valentine's day, this is how she was when trying to get her coat on to go home that evening.  Completely out, fast asleep!  


We hope you had a great Valentine's Day!
xoxoxo

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

God's Plan - Baby #3!

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Jeremiah 29:11

It was one of those moments where you're reminded that God's plan for you is much bigger than you know.   A plan that is His.  Not ours.  Known just by Him.  Just when we thought we had things figured out or planned for the next stage in our lives God gave us this amazing surprise!  

SURPRISE!  Positive Pregnancy Test on November 4, 2013

Kevin and I were surprised to see this 'blue plus sign' to say the least!  Completely Shocked actually!  This little blue positive sign to me was a reminder that God does listen to the prayers and the desires of our heart.  I had prayed for this surprise pregnancy moment and still was personally struggling with not being able to get pregnant on my own.  But God knows our thoughts and struggles and will answer with what's best...when the timing is perfect for us! 

The next morning I called the doctor to let them know I had gotten a positive pregnancy test.  I went in to the clinic that day and then again a few days later to check my hcg and progesterone levels.  My hcg levels were increasing...meaning pregnant, yes!  But my progesterone levels weren't as high as the doctor would like to see so to help control those levels my doctor put me on a progesterone suppository through the first trimester.  

We had our first u/s early on November 13th.  This was to help get an idea of how far along I was.  That ultrasound measured me at 5 weeks and 2 days.  I was sent back again on November 22nd for another u/s to check the growth of the baby and again see if it is matching with how far along they thought I was.  At this u/s I was measuring 6 weeks and 6 days.  Making my due date right on track for July 12, 2014.  At this appointment we heard the baby's heartbeat for the first time, too!!!  It was beating at 130 bpm!  It was an emotional u/s for me hearing this little miracle baby's heartbeat.  Made this whole surreal experience officially feel real.

Baby Willms #3 u/s picture from our November 22nd appt.

Kevin and I had waited to tell our family until we had heard the baby's heartbeat.  Thanksgiving was just the next week so I got my wheels spinning thinking of a fun way to tell our families over the holiday.  I made this Thanksgiving card from the twins to give to the grandparents to announce the news they were going to be a big brother and sister!  It was so much fun telling and surprising our parents and family!  Kevin and I hadn't really mentioned too much to our families in the past about having a third child.  So it was a cool surprise to give them and priceless to watch their faces as they figured out what the card was telling them!   

(front of card)

(inside of card)

Kate and Matthew don't fully understand Mommy has a baby growing his her tummy and they are going to be a big sister and brother.  When we tell them there is a baby is Mommy's tummy they lift up my shirt expecting to see a baby.  Maybe as my baby bump grows bigger they will understand a bit more.




First trimester this pregnancy has been a lot different than when I was pregnant with the twins.  At 8 weeks I started to have morning sickness.  This was something thankfully I didn't have with the twins.  Along with being sick, I also was very, very tired!  I tried to nap a lot of the days when the twins did to help me make it through the day.  But by the evening, I was ready to crash.  My usual routine was falling asleep on the couch around 8:30.  Luckily Kevin was able to be home by bedtime in December so he pretty much took over helping the kids.  Good job, Daddy!

Baby #3's ultrasound picture at 9 weeks and 5 days.

waving hello to us!

side profile

I definitely have had some particular cravings!  I have been wanting to eat anything pasta and lots of cheese!  One of the only things that sounded really good to me while I was having morning sickness was Kraft shapes mac n' cheese.  So the kids and I had that a lot during lunch!  Besides mac n' cheese I ate a lot of spaghetti-o's!  Other foods that I have wanted are: queso dip, Mexican food, tomato juice, grilled cheese sandwiches, and fruit - especially clementines and apples.  Chocolate and sweets haven't sound good to me at all!

I started taking belly pictures at 14 weeks - January 12, 2014.  Now the start of my second trimester.  I've got my little helper with me. :)


Proud Big Brother!

So far our plan is to work with our high risk pregnancy doctors (the ones I saw with the twins) along with a regular OBgyn.  The high risk doctors are going to do my level 2 ultra sound at 20 weeks (next Friday, Feb. 21st) and also at 22 weeks and 24 weeks.  Each time they will check my cervical length to make sure it's not shortening like what it did with the twins.  If everything continues to look good after 24 weeks then I will just see the OBgyn for the remainder of the pregnancy....as long as nothing develops.

I feel good with this plan.  Checking my cervix every 2 weeks will give me some peace of mind that if a cervical change has happened I will know about instead of having to wonder.  The thought of bed rest is always in the back of my mind.  I do have anxiety over any kind of pain, tightening, or twinges I feel.  It's hard because a pregnancy with constant contractions is all I know.  So it's hard not to worry that it could be preterm labor all over again.  In case my previous problem was an incompetent cervix the high risk doctors have prescribed me to take a weekly progesterone shot.  The progesterone is to help calm the uterus.  I am going to start these shots today through week 36.  A nurse will come to my house to administer the shot to me.  Hoping this shot will help do the trick as I have already started to feeling tightening and pressure that I had with the twins.  So we did go into the doctor on Monday night and they checked my cervix and so far it's measuring nice and long at 4.1 cm.  Thankfully!  Praise God!

17 weeks - February 1, 2013



Funny Faces!

Now into my second trimester I feel a lot better.  I still get tired out by the end of day resulting in an early bedtime.  My appetite is back and I'm still find myself craving the same foods I did in the beginning.  I am happy that I am feeling better since Kevin has started busy season hours.  It's much easier to take care of the kids by myself when I feel better!

At 17 weeks I started to feel little flutters that feels like baby moving around.  It's pretty awesome to feel those movements again!

18 weeks - February 8, 2013




I'm looking forward to our level 2 ultra sound next Friday.  It's always amazing experience to see the little one that's growing inside of you.  We pray the baby is healthy and all has developed normally.  Kevin and I have decided not to find out the sex of the baby!  We are leaving this little one a surprise!  

Saturday, February 8, 2014

Just like at the park!

Since we can't get outside and play on the playground at the park, we'll cheat and find one inside!  Kevin and I took the kids to Rainbow Play Systems in Bloomington, MN.  We also met some of our friends there Kelly: Joe and William and Allison: Lyida.  Kevin finally didn't have to work finally this Saturday, so I was happy he was able to come along on this play date!

Rainbow Play Systems is where you can buy some very cool (and pricey) swing sets.  Their store is a huge showroom where kids can come and play on all of the play sets.  They have a lot of swing sets with some pretty cool features - rock climbing wall, tunnels, big slides, swings, playhouses, and a jump house.  

It's a fun place for all ages.  Of course, Matthew was a lot more adventures!  Kate was content with either swinging on the swings or tire swing.  It was nice to have Kevin's help so we could split up and take turns helping Kate or Matthew.




Allison taking Lydia down the slide

Miss Kater, the lover of swings!  She kept telling us she was going to swing on the pink swings after we told her were going to a place where she could sit and swing.  Not sure where she came up with that.

Mr. No-Fear Rock Climber!  This kid's coordination amazes me (and determination to do it himself!)

Made it!

Their friend Joe (age 2)


Kelly and her new little one William (3 months)

Joe cheesing it again for the camera!


Lyida (1 year old)

More climbing...




Swinging again (sorry blurry action shot).

Someday Minnesota winter, we will get back outside and play again!  We had a fun morning playing with our friends!