The First of Many

We pretty much live across the street from a major amusement park.

We can see the Screaming Eagle from our back deck.

We drive pass it on our way to the grocery store and daycare.

When we decided to move here we knew we would be getting season passes.

We hope to take advantage of the water park and late afternoon trips when we are bored at home.

Leah has always known what it was and that we would go "someday".

Someday = Saturday!

Leah was SO EXCITED!!

She was at first a bit overwhelmed.  All the people.  All the big rides.

She refused to ride anything.  She just wanted to be held and watch.

After 2 hrs of walking around and watching (and this 36+ week pregnant woman trying to stop and rest on every bench possible) Brian had her watching the Log Flume.

She suddenly said she wanted to ride!!

So off Brian and her went to get inline...

I thought for sure they would return as the wait was over a half hr and she would get scared or inpatient.

But they made it and I was a proud momma!

Leah was loving life afterwards and ready to tackle another ride... a ride mommy was actually allowed on too! 

The Ferris Wheel.  

I was entertained taking their picture while we waited in line.  It took probably 45 minutes and Leah was getting beyond tired as we were far past her nap time.   Brian was exhausted from holding her constantly.  The sleepy girl did not want to be put down. 

She loved playing with his ears and facial hair. 

my pretty girl

so sweet

We headed out after the ferris wheel because Leah could barely keep her eyes open and passed out in the stroller. 

If you are counting... that is 2 rides in 4 hrs.... 

And it was EXHAUSTING! 

We hope to head back again soon, probably more in the evening, after dinner when the crowds have started to leave. 

Maybe we will even get to enjoy the water park just once before baby Emily makes her arrival too!

Picture Overload

I admit I hadn't picked up my camera in a few weeks.

It has been too hot out lately to get outside, we have been super busy, and I was just tired of taking pictures of Leah with her back to me.

But yesterday I got it out... and I feel like things made a little more sense when I was taking the pictures...

Here are the "keepers"...

Already loving her "big sis" shirt!

more bored than anything... 36 weeks. 

working on baby laundry

1:30 pm snack... I really am only surviving on the "lots of mini meals" rule rather than normal meals. 

Yep, working from home is awesome. 

pretty day, pretty clouds

Can you tell Emily really favors my right side?

practicing my focusing... 

Off on our walk to take pictures

Leah loves weeds.  I loved taking her picture while she was so distracted! 

This child seriously needs minimal toys... just some balls, a bike, and yep.. that's about it. 

My pretty girl. 

So... better?  Tips and advice?  

Baby <= 4 weeks

• First off... Leah is back to her normal self! 
• A neighbor who was there and came over when I yelled for help stopped by to check on Leah.  She commented on how calm I was during it all.  I surprise myself. 
• We met a new neighbor yesterday... when I said we lived on the next street over, in the Grey house, her response was "Where the ambulance and all was this weekend?"  Yep.. that's us!
• People! Less than 4 weeks till baby...27 days at the most.  18 more days of work! 
• At my Dr. appointment yesterday I was told that if I start to have consistent contractions I can head to the hospital and just have my c-section then.  There was no statement of how consistent or for how long they had to be... I say bring on the contractions! 4 more weeks sort of feels like torture with how I am feeling right now. 
• I was having contractions last night... but not consistent or regular... but this is WAY earlier than I ever started feeling any last time. Last time I did not feel anything until days before my due date... Emily is head down...come on girl! 
• I think I am the most sleep deprived that I have ever been in my life.  I have consistantly only been getting about 5-6 hrs of sleep at night.  I typically prefer 8-9! If I actually do not get up every 2 hrs to pee, Leah will wake me up, or my brain will just not stop.  ... Or like last night, I wake up, glance at the clock, realize I already slept for 6 hrs, get excited, and then all of a sudden I cannot get back to sleep.   So annoying!! 
• I dont think I have slept thru the 4 am hour in weeks.  I am always up for it... falling back to sleep somewhere in the 5 oclock hour, only for an alarm to go off at 6. 
• Where is my end of pregnancy, must prepare, burst of energy?!?! I felt it for about 2 hrs yesterday and then it quickly disappeared. 
• I feel my nesting kicking in a bit... but not in a cleaning way... more in a "I want to decorate and make the house pretty" way.  Not good for the budget... 
• I think I might begin to pack our hospital bag today. I am feeling the need to prepare a little bit for baby girl. One infant carseat is installed already, but it still needs the infant padding to be added. 
• Two 2 year olds trying to give each other high fives might be the funniest thing ever.  Leah had a play date the other day with her friend Grace and they decided they wanted to give fives (after giving hugs) when it was time to leave... they just kept missing and smacking each other.  SO. STINKING. CUTE!
• I love my job and the people I work with.  Even though I am on baby #2 and already have everything I need, my coworkers are throwing me a shower on Monday.  I seriously will never be able to change jobs.  This one is just way too perfect in every way! 
• And speaking of jobs, I am actually getting new job duties once I come back from maternity leave.  I will no longer be working on MO cost of care, and moving over to KY.  I will then officially have no one in my office that I work with on projects. It will be weird... and may call for trips to Louisville in the near future... I am excited for the change and interested to see how it all goes. 
• I officially did the "paper work" for maternity leave at work. As long as Emily does not leave early I will be hopefully enjoying a nice 10 weeks of summer where I will be home to watch all of the Summer Olympic games!! I LOVE the Olympics! I am so excited!! Hopefully there will be some entertaining daytime TV and I can kind of freely stay up for the random middle of the night games! 

Unexpected Events

I wish I could be writing only about our trip to the hospital yesterday morning for Leah's big sibiling class, but the event was quickly over shadowed by our second trip to the hospital yesterday.

The day was going great... Hospital class & tour, watched 1.5 innings of the local baseball team and Brian's Alma Mater's game, a nice nap on the couch, and then up to play outside in the sprinkler in the heat.

We had been outside for probably 45 minutes.  Leah, Mommy & even Daddy played in the sprinkler and blew bubbles.  Things are going great and Brian was about to start BBQing dinner.  We took a small drink break where Leah was drinking a Gatorade.

All of a sudden Leah just dropped her bottle.  Brian and I kind of scowled at her.  Leah did not respond at all and just kept starring off into space.  We said her name a few more times, tried to get her attention, Brian waving his arms in front of her... and then she looked like she was about to fall over.

I grabbed her, looked her in her eye... and saw her pupils almost disappear... I knew something was wrong.

I looked at Brian and told him to go call 9-1-1.

He went inside while I was left to deal with things getting even scarier.

I picked her up but her lack of response worried me so I laid her in the grass.  She was starting to turn blue and not breathing.  I smacked her chest a few times.  Tried to my best at CPR where all I thought was "I have no idea what I am doing! I dont know CPR!  I am going to watch my daughter die!"  It was probably one of the most terrifying moments of my life.   Just thinking about her laying there, with nothing in her eyes, her face a purplish blue, is something I am sure I will never forget and will haunt me forever.  I wish I could block it from memory.

A house that we sort of back up to happen to be having a Cinco de Mayo party and were hanging out on their fancy new back patio.  Knowing that I did not know how to help my daughter I picked Leah up and headed towards their house where I yelled for help.

Things are a little blurry.  I know I laid Leah back down on the ground... 2 guys rushed over... and something happened that Leah all of a sudden coughed. Her eyes had life in them again.  She acted like she had just woken up.  Stretching, looking around, a bit unsure.

By then more people had come over.  Someone had touched Leah, realized how hot she was, and told me to take her inside to cool down while we waited for the ambulance.  Once back in the basement some women tried to comfort us, one of them on the phone with her EMT husband who was on his way over.  Next came in 2 police officers, firemen and EMTs.

At initial checking, Leah was a bit lethargic.  She had not said anything but would answer the EMT's questions with her eyes.  Answering where her mommy and daddy were.  Her heart rate was 160, faster than her unborn baby sisters.

They had not taken her temperature yet, but gave her ice packs to just try and cool her down.  By the time we were on the way to the hospital and it was finally taken, it came in at 105.7.

Leah was still pretty out of it.  She did not even flinch when they put in her IV.

She eventually started to wake up and come around.  By the time we were nearing the hospital, which is only about 12 miles away she was crying for me.  When it was time to get out she responded with "we at grandma and papa's house?"

As the IV did its magic and medicine was given, her fever quickly fell and our Leah began to return.  She even became a crazy, bossy, super talkative, sassy, pretending to be a doctor, little girl.  I joked that her IV was filled with caffeine or something because she had done such a 180 and was just in such a great mood.  

While we waited for the results of her blood test, x-ray, and examination from the doctor, I couldn't help but to question myself as a mother.  Did I do something wrong to make this happen?  Did she not eat or drink enough all day? Did I overlook her runny nose and cough? Is there something horribly wrong that will appear in her blood test? My mind questioned everything and wondered to the worst of places.

Blood work returned perfect.  X-ray showed nothing.  But an ear looked infected.

We believe Leah had a febrile seizure as the result of her spiked fever.

I know they are very common in little kids.  And even the best sort of seizure to have when it comes to seizures.

I am extremely grateful that Leah only has an ear infection as well.

But it does not make it any less terrifying and traumatizing.

I hope it was the worst day of my life because I do not know how I would handle anything worst happening to Leah or my future children.

According to my mother, who experienced similar events with my brother when he was younger, this is why parenthood gives you grey hairs.

Our Newest Addition

I am the newest owner of a 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan. 

I admit I feel like I aged 5 years. I can't fully explain it... maybe I just feel a little more grown up, the mom of 2, no more crappy car... but I am loving it!

And so is Leah.  This is her first ride in it.... right to sleep she went.  Must be comfy.   At daycare yesterday she supposedly talked about it all day long too.

Cant wait to bring home our baby girl in it and begin our new comfy life as a family of 4!