Ana won! Ana won!

Posted on June 11, 2010 by simzgirl

Today I got an email from Bethany over at the Sport Princess Blog informing me that ANA WON THE CONTEST! Now before you get too excited, she didn’t win the Grand Prize for the most votes (but a huge THANK YOU to all of you who DID vote) but she was the second Grand Prize winner for the random drawing. She won $250, some fun Sport Princess gear, a Soccer Princess book (when it is published) and a custom Sport Princess gown! Can you believe it?! I am so excited and proud of my little Sport Princess!

Doctor’s Appointment Report

Posted on June 11, 2010 by simzgirl

I had my 18 week (I’m rounding up, since I will be 18 weeks on Sunday) doctor’s appointment this morning and have this to report back:

Weight: up 3 lb since last month (7 lbs total gain)
Blood Pressure: 100/70
Baby’s Heartbeat: Normal, 155

Today was just a routine appointment and everything looks great. The only thing of excitement is we scheduled the date for the BIG ultrasound for July 6th and we will (hopefully) find out if we are having a boy or a girl! Yippee!!

Happy HALF Birthday, Ana!

Posted on June 9, 2010 by simzgirl

Ana has been so excited about being three and a half that we actually started counting down toward the big day. Well today, June 9th, is that day. So all day long I would say things like “Of course you can watch some more TV. It’s your HALF birthday today!” or “Sure, we can have a Girls Date for lunch. We have to celebrate your HALF birthday!” I had to make some treats for thank you gifts, so I decided to set a few aside and make them “half birthday treats.”

Ana and her “half birthday treats.”

The pink cake balls.

Pretending to blow out the candles.

Enjoying the first bite. After which she said, “Oh. My. God. These are so tasty!”

You can see all the pictures from Ana’s half birthday here. Enjoy!

16 Week Belly

Posted on May 30, 2010 by simzgirl

And so it begins. I am 16 weeks today and I have officially entered the point in my pregnancy where I feel like I need to start taking belly shots. I’m trying not to compare this to my first belly shot with Ana at 17 weeks. Everyone says you show faster with the second pregnancy and I am firmly supporting that theory. Well, it’s certainly not because I’ve been eating too much lately! Quite the opposite, in fact. Food and I are not on the best of terms right now. When something does actually sound good, I get about half way through eating it and I am done. Like, get it away from me. NOW. And we won’t be eating that, oh, ever again. Yep, I am still overcome with morning sickness.

But enough about that, let’s get to the baby bump! Here is Baby Bateman 2.0:

And Ana wanted to be in the picture too, so here she is giving some lovin’ to her future sibling.

My Little Ballerina

Posted on May 24, 2010 by simzgirl

Ana had another ballet recital today (the last day of her “Tip Toes” Ballet class is always a “recital” performed on the stage). It amazes me how well she is doing in her ballet class. I know she has been doing it for a year and a half, but she’s only three! Heck, I couldn’t do half the things she does. She is so comfortable up on a stage or in front of a crowd, that I can definitely see performing in her future. But more than anything, I love seeing the happiness on her face when she dances. It just warms my heart.

You can see all the pictures from Ana’s “recital” here. Enjoy!

Doctor’s Appointment Report

Posted on May 15, 2010 by simzgirl

I had my 14 week (I’m rounding up, since I will be 14 weeks tomorrow) doctor’s appointment yesterday morning and have this to report back:

Weight: down 1/2 lb since last month (3 lbs total gain)
Blood Pressure: 130/70
Baby’s Heartbeat: Normal, in the 150s

It was just a routine once-a-month doctor’s appointment, but it’s always nice to check on the baby and hear the woosh, woosh, woosh of that little heartbeat. Ana loves going to my appointments with me because my wonderful and amazing doctor really likes to get her involved. She is always asking Ana to help her out and this time Ana was THRILLED to get to help run the fetal Doppler that allows you to hear the heartbeat. All in all, things are looking great and I go back for my next appointment in a month.

I am so happy that I was able to keep track of my pregnancy with Ana here on my blog. It is so comforting to go look back through my archives and remind myself that all this is normal, I went through it before, and everything turned out just fine. I know every pregnancy is different, but it’s still fun to compare (sorry, baby #2, but it looks like the comparing-you-to-your-older-sister actually starts in the womb). For example, this pregnancy has followed the same trends as with Ana: I’m nauseous, I’m exhausted, I can’t stand to eat vegetables, and brushing my teeth is one of the worst forms of torture. However, things aren’t quite as intense. Maybe I’m not as dramatic this time around or maybe it’s the fact that I’m keeping up with Ana and don’t always have the time to focus so much time on ME. I will admit that not having to go to work each day as been the greatest blessing. When I get tired, I just curl up on the couch with Ana and we read a book or watch a movie. Ana still naps, so most days I get to nap as well. Even if I don’t actually fall asleep, I still get to lay down and rest. Plus I have Sim around to help me anytime I’m not feeling well. Having him work from home has been such a blessing. He’s quick to bring me a glass of juice and a wet washcloth when I get sick, he puts on a movie for Ana when I’m curled up in bed with a headache, and he is understanding beyond belief when I suddenly can’t eat certain foods that I have always loved, when I refuse to eat leftovers, and when I can’t eat the same food more than once (as you can imagine, I’m quickly running out of things to eat here). I have an amazing support system around here, and I couldn’t do it without them. I love you, Sim and Ana!

Making the Official Announcement

Posted on May 2, 2010 by simzgirl

Well, it’s been a long time coming, but I am finally ready to make the official announcement: I AM PREGNANT!! We are going to have another baby!

Two lines! Two lines!

Seven week ultrasound picture.

Nine week ultrasound picture.

I am 12 weeks pregnant today and just starting my second trimester. The chance of miscarriage drops significantly at this point which is why we are finally comfortable sharing the good news. This gives us a November 14th expected due date! Wahoooo! In light of my previous experience, it’s really hard to let myself get excited and be happy, but I think we are finally at that point. I cannot wait to share this journey with all of you.

So backing up a little bit, after my miscarriage, the doctor told us to stop trying for a cycle to give my body a chance to recover. Then we tried the Clomid again. We did the same dose as before, since obviously it worked, just something else didn’t. I charted, tracked BBTs, and had my blood drawn (checking various hormone levels) more times than I care to recall. But it was all worth it in the end. I brought my doctor my successful chart and she joked that it was the most perfect chart she has ever seen, saying she would have thought it was the sample chart if it didn’t have my name on it. I couldn’t have been more happy!

I have been keeping a little journal for myself (since I wasn’t able to post it all here yet) and wanted to share that with you now. Ya know, just to catch you up.

3/9/10
My boobs are killing me, my face is breaking out, when I opened the fridge the combination of all the smells made me gag and I’m over-reacting to every little thing (I can see myself acting crazy but I can’t seem to rein it in). I must be pregnant. There is just no other logical conclusion.
(Please let me be pregnant. I know it sounds like I’m complaining, but I’m really not. Please, please, PLEASE let me be pregnant.)

3/14/10
After 18 days of elevated BBTs I took a pregnancy test as soon as we got home from the beach tonight. I know the tests all recommend the first urine of the day, so I had low expectations. You can imagine my surprise when the second line showed up immediately, confirming what I already suspected: I’m pregnant!!

3/29/10
Despite the fact that I have taken SEVERAL pregnancy tests over the last couple weeks, it was still a shock to me when I had an ultrasound today and we saw a baby! We were even able to see (and hear!) a heartbeat. It was so comforting to have a positive outcome and happy tears. Looks like I am a little over seven weeks along and are looking at a November 14th due date!

4/14/10
I had a doctors appointment today (I’m 9w3d) and we got to have a mini ultrasound to check on the baby. I was so nervous, but sure enough there was a tiny baby and a steady heartbeat. They printed the picture and Ana carried it around the office telling everyone it was a picture of HER baby.

A big thanks to all of you who have offered us support and shared your experiences with us along the way. We are excited and scared but we wouldn’t have it any other way. I have started a “Maybe Baby TWO!” category where any and all baby related pictures will be posted. Check back often!

Ana’s Got a New Pair of Shoes

Posted on April 28, 2010 by simzgirl

I signed Ana up for a “Shuffle, Point, Swing” (a combo of ballet, tap and jazz) class this summer so I knew eventually she would need a pair of tap shoes. Today while we were waiting for Sim to meet us at our favorite Thai place, we went into Dance Togs next door to pick up her shoes. Ana was very excited and as soon as we got home she ran upstairs, put on her leotard and wanted to show off for her Daddy. Having never even witnessed anyone tap dancing, we had no idea what Ana would do. So obviously we were a little surprised when she whipped out a little routine like she’d been doing it for ages. (Had I known she would be so good, I might have used a camera with a little better quality than my iPhone, but whatcha gonna do?) See for yourself:

(Oh and incidentally when I was in Dance Togs, the lady that helped me mentioned that they offer a 10% off discount to people taking classes through Tualatin Hills Parks & Rec because they refer so many customers their way, as for the shoes she love them, she is like her mother that love to buy shoes, and I even use Luxury shoes authentication services when I got branded shoes as these are important to me. So make sure you mention THRP it if you happen to shop there! The lady was incredibly helpful and encouraging, which made the experience very memorable for Ana. Bonus points in my book.)

Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival 2010

Posted on April 16, 2010 by simzgirl

As is our annual tradition, once again we headed to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Woodburn. It is an amazing time and I highly recommend it if you have never gone. This year they added a few extra activities and the kiddos were happy to participate! It had rained the night before, so the fields were extra muddy (we were prepared with our rain boots!) but it was sunny (I was not prepared with sunscreen and as a result I got a lovely burn) and beautiful the entire time we were there.

All the tulip festival pictures are here. Enjoy!

The Easter Celebrations

Posted on April 12, 2010 by simzgirl

I just unloaded my camera’s memory card and was shocking to see all the pictures from Easter still on there. It feels like Easter was AGES ago. Anyway, here are the major highlights of our Easter Celebrations.

First we had our annual MOMS Club Easter Egg Hunt at Foothills Park. The weather was horrible that day, but you would never know it based on the pictures. We had about 10 minutes of blue sky and no rain, so the moms hid the eggs and we did the fastest Easter Egg Hunt ever. As we were loading up in the car, the downpour of rain started. It was perfect!

The Easter Egg Hunt pictures are here.

Then we dyed Easter Eggs. This was the first year I was brave enough to do this with Ana, so we kept it pretty simple. Ana (and Sim!) had a great time!

The Easter Egg dyeing pictures are here.

Then it was actually Easter! We spent the morning at home (so the Easter Bunny could find us, of course!) then went to my Mom’s house for the afternoon.

(Last photo courtesy of Ana.)