Sunday, May 08, 2011

Happy Mommy Day











...just a few of my favorites from days already gone too fast..

Saturday, May 07, 2011

Strawberries!!!!!



75 degrees and sunny.. perfect day for our first trip to pick strawberries. It did rain some yesterday but thankfully it didn't seem to affect the flavor of the strawberries.. maybe they didn't get any of our rain. They are as sweet as sugar.






Ada found the biggest "daddy strawberry" of the morning.



Margot was very focused on finding "baby berries".



The fun lasted about 25 or 30 minutes.. and that might be a generous guess but they were both super great little girls and stayed in their row and didn't have a melt down and really had a great time. Too bad we can't do this every Saturday :)

Thursday, May 05, 2011

Good Start to the Day..




Pretty sure they watched this at least 12 times this morning. Then we moved on to Gloria videos :)

Wednesday, May 04, 2011

23 and 36



So here we are.. she at 23 weeks and I at 36. Her's a miraculous surprise, mine some awesome divine planning. Her's another boy.. mine.. another girl. 3 boys and 3 girls. Never would have thought we would ever live in the same city much less be pregnant at the same time.



I am not fond of pictures of myself at the end of pregnancy. Who is really? I feel huge.. I look huge.. I am huge. I have a thing about being huge. I don't care for it. It's for a good cause I know.. but I can't wait to get back to my regular wardrobe, selfish and vain as that sounds and is.



Still who could resist capturing this moment in time ?

She took me for a Mexican feast and a DELUXE pedicure ;) Hey big spender. I sprang for two hot fudge sundaes at McD's.

Meanwhile our wonder hubbies took care of the little ones. Stephen told me the cutest story about the girls that I just have to share.

They have been getting much better at sharing lately.. particularly food. Just the other day Ada sweetly fed Margot bites of her own chocolate chip cookie after Margot had eaten all of her own and was crying for more.

Stephen took them to a softball game in the neighborhood yesterday and brought along a couple of lolly pops (DumDums) as a treat(bribe?) for the wagon ride over there. He chose two flavors that would be pink, watermelon and cherry. But when he opened the watermelon it was white. Blerg. Ada was fine for a minute.. until she saw Margot's lovely pink cherry lolly. Then she didn't want her's anymore. She started to fuss and get upset.. we have some seriously emotional and moody girls. Stephen asked Margot if she would share hers with Ada.. "Mmmmm sure!" came the reply. She held it out for her to take a lick. Ada wanted to hold it.. that was crossing a line. So the lick wasn't enough for Ada.. Stephen asked if Ada could have a bite of it (?!). Margot considered and then agreeably bit off a piece and handed it to Ada. Still not satisfied Ada continued to protest.. yeah he could have just let her scream it out.. you know how much fun that is. Instead Stephen asked one more time.. "Margot, would you just trade with Ada?" "Sure!".. and that sweet baby gave her pink lolly to her sister. Of course it doesn't always go this well but it's those moments that make your heart swell. Watching your child's little personality bloom in front of your eyes.. and it's a pretty bloom.

I am pretty sure if I calculated the amount of time we spend putting out fires and fights and trying to contain attitudes and doling out discipline for bad behavior it would far outweigh the moments of peaceful play and sweet sisterly love. Still for some reason those 5 minutes of precious cooperative play make it possible to bear the other stuff. It makes it all feel worthwhile.

Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Four Minutes



Our favorite game to play these days is "Mommy Margot and Baby Ada". This can go on for quite awhile. I can't really blame Ada though.. sitting in a vibrating bouncy seat must be quite relaxing.

Monday, May 02, 2011

The most peaceful room in our home..



We are ready for her arrival... I, for one, and more than stinkin' ready. Holy moly I am so tired of being pregnant. I feel like all I do is complain but seriously.. just over this whole thing. I was about to have the girls by this point with them.. and I could spend all day sleeping and eating and putting my feet up.. this chasing the girls around all day and trying to keep my house together so I can keep my sanity is for the .. I would say birds but it's really for those folks that want really big families or something.. I am so excited that we are having 3.. 3 is a good number in my book.

For the time being I try to escape to my happy place whenever I can. The baby's room is my happy place. How could it not be?! Look at the beautiful quilt that Grammy Mary made for our little lady. You simply can't look at it without smiling.



The return of the comfy rocker doesn't hurt either.



Neither do Stephen's precious silhouettes framed in up-cycled frames from Mom.



And then there is the crazy coincidence that my friend Cheri hand knitted a blanket for baby that happens to be the exact same colors as the quilt that Mary made. I mean look at that!!! I never told Cheri anything about colors and Mary and she never spoke. Cheri said she just knew I like vintage stuff so she chose colors that looked vintage.. amazing.

Now I am going to take these cranky kids outdoors and attempt to wear them out. Is it really only 10:30 ....? Sigh.

Monday Morning.. might wanna turn your volume down..



Lest anyone be misled into thinking that our days are filled with smiling girls awash in sunshine... we are most definitely well on our way to being 3 year olds..

Sunday, May 01, 2011

it was oh so heavenly..



..after two pieces each for our family and more shared with neighbors this was all that was left.. and it will be gone as soon as dinner has been consumed.. I think I already need a do-over..




.. and tonight's experiment .. stuffed shells...

Saturday, April 30, 2011

Have you ever ...



...kinda..



..sorta..



..wished you were a two year old with a best friend for life..? Me too.

Have you ever..



..made a strawberry rhubarb pie..? Me neither... I'll let you know how it turns out.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Happiness



"Hey guys.. what are you doing?"
"In a car Mom!"
"Where are you going?"
"Going to my Grammy house Mom!!!"
"I love-a my Grammy Mom.."




This morning is sunny and filled with happiness and sunshine..which is a little odd since I am going to a funeral of a very dear family friend this afternoon. Maybe it isn't that odd after all.. she is in heaven enjoying an even more beautiful day than we are. So maybe it is fitting that my day should contain the faintest glimmer of the glory she is basking in.

I know I have been completely remiss in my writing lately. It's not for lack of having things to say. You could say I have been pretty selfish with my time lately. Every ounce of energy and every moment of my time has been devoted to my family. My house has been clean every week.. tidy every evening (for the most part) when Stephen gets home.. good food cooking on the stove.. leftovers eaten and not wasted in the garbage. Paperwork organized and put away.. things put off for months accomplished in 30 minutes or less. It is as if my visit with Mary recharged my batteries. Once Stephen got home from Paris.. things just clicked into motion and they have been on track ever since. Of course there are hard days.. one this week, for example, left me tearfully hugging a crying Margot while Ada tried to comfort the two of us with her chubby little hands on our hair and soft kisses to our foreheads. Hormones are a pain in the ass man. Potty training is a PAIN IN THE ASS MAN. Yeah I said it.. we are still at 50 % around here.. one Margot trained and totally fine.. one Ada.. acts like it's the first day .. every day. Sigh.
Anyway any moment I have had in the recent days has been devoted to keeping my life together.. making it more beautiful.. keeping a smile on my face.. and that has lately meant much less time with the camera and blog. Still the days march on and I am now in my 3rd trimester and feeling that wave of exhaustion more keenly each day. Can't believe this incredibly active baby girl that is still being knit together will be in my arms so soon. I got my first tangible vision of holding her last night.. all warm and tiny and curled up on my chest. I could almost smell her hair.. I remember getting that feeling about Margot about this point in my pregnancy with the girls. And so in the spirit of continuing to keep things on track.. I am off to fold laundry and get our day going. Hope to be seeing you all sooner than that last post.

Monday, February 28, 2011

Grammy's Here!!!!!!!





Paris



Our Daddy is in Paris. He left Saturday morning to chaperon another school trip. Greece and Paris in less than 12 months..and all for free..? Yes, we really love Stephen's job. His job, the school, the parents at the school.. the teachers we are friends with.. it is all pretty miraculous.









The girls enjoyed helping me go through his list and helping him pack his "airplane".



Ollie was the only one of the small ones among us who truly understood what this all meant.

We miss him tremendously already. He will be back on Sunday and I am counting the moments. In the meantime we are trying to stay busy for the next few hours until it's time to load up and head to the airport to pick up Grammy. Then the real fun begins.

Pink Toes



We have been making more of an effort lately to spend time with the girls separately. I have been taking one girl with me grocery shopping each week and Stephen takes the other on a secret daddy adventure (lately a long walk in the Ergo with a stop by the local chocolate shop). This week we had two days to do something special with them. Stephen took Ada to the mall to get some final things for his trip and Margot stayed home with me.



What to do to make our time more special..? Paint her toenails for the first time! I know I know.. I can't believe I haven't done it before either.



Painting those tiny toes pink with "Strawberry Swing" echoing in my tiny bathroom turned out to be more precious than I thought it would be.



She seemed to really understand what a special treat it all was. Sitting on my bathroom counter with her little feet in the sink. Asking for help putting in each and every hair clip in my personal arsenal. Admiring herself in the mirror. Talking non-stop. Brushing her baby cheeks with my make-up brushes.. sharing her newly honed skill with her mommy. It was truly magical



How could I have ever been sad for a single moment that the wiggly bumps in my tummy were girls instead of boys?

Monday, February 14, 2011

5 Weeks









Stephen took these yesterday while he and girls were enjoying the beautiful weather we had this weekend. I was asleep in bed, nursing the 5th week of this insane chest/head cold that just refuses to go away. I have taken every supplement and OTC drug that I am allowed to take with this little sprout of a girl growing in my tummy. It seemed I was actually mostly better last week and then Sunday night it all came rushing back as I stayed up all night helping a Margot who had come down with the same thing. The last week has been pretty brutal and I was so thankful for the 1/2 day that Stephen had on Friday. I went to bed when he got home and didn't come back downstairs until Sunday afternoon. The doctor finally called in some Tussionex ("The most powerful cough medicine you can get") on Friday and that seems to be helping. I have coughed so hard that I actually pulled a muscle in my seemingly gigantic belly. Sigh. That makes all this coughing that much more fun let me tell you. The lowest point came on Friday when I was so sick I was pretty much crawling around the house taking care of the girls until Stephen got home. Somehow the Lord granted me an extra dose of patience and kind words and the girls were being as cooperative as they could be. I kept coughing too hard and having to go throw up (TMI I know... read at your own risk). At one point I was on my knees being sick in my bathroom upstairs and between.. moments.. calling out the door to the girls in as normal a voice I could manage to make sure they weren't getting into things they shouldn't in our room. When I finally emerged the girls were none the wiser to what had been going on in there and I was able to talk to them in a cheerful voice as we played the last few hours away before Daddy came to the rescue. I sort of felt like a super mom in that lowest of moments, because my kids weren't upset at my being sick and I wasn't letting my illness taint the way I interacted with them. Other than looking like death warmed over I mean. I took that as my accomplishment for the day and felt no guilt at all for sleeping the rest of the weekend away.

Anyway today I am back to my mom duties, solo, and am feeling a bit better. Still would love to be upstairs sleeping but.. that will have to wait until tonight.

In other news, the baby is still doing well. She is very active just like her sisters were. I have only gained 5lbs so far in this pregnancy and the doc said I should have gained 12 by now.. so I am a little behind. He wasn't worried though as being sick for so long and chasing twin 2 year olds around all day will tend to keep one from putting on weight. The other thing is I am just not hungry. Probably because I am too tired to be hungry. Working on that though.

Stephen and I are headed to his swim teams state championship meet Sunday night. Looking forward to an overnight trip with my hubs while Mom and Aunt B wrangle.. I mean play with and love on the girls. This is the last week of these 4:15 am wake up calls!!!! Can't believe we made it through in one piece!! Mostly one piece at least.

I realized the other day that I haven't taken a single belly picture this time around. Need to do something about that. I don't look nearly the circus freaky size I was with the girls.

On the 26th Stephen is headed to Paris for the week to chaperon a school trip. Mary will be here all week to help with the girls and my Mom will be here the weekend he leaves to fill in as well. I am looking forward to some good girl time.

Last but certainly not least, Mary and Larry are officially no longer residents of Tallahassee. Larry got a wonderful job at a church in Orlando and has been there for about two weeks now..? Give or take.. Mary is finishing up things in Tally before making the big move. Here is the really crazy part.. there house is already under contract!!!! They put it on the market and in something like 24 hours the first couple that came to see it put in a bid and in the end agreed to pay full price. Pretty much a miracle in this housing market. Stephen and I haven't let ourselves think about the fact that we will never spend the night in that sweet home again. We are just looking forward to visiting them in whatever amazing new place they land in Orlando. We will be closer to Tampa and Sarasota when we come for visit so we will be able to see all our buddies and family there more often during trips.. Mary is now retired so she will be able to come and see the babies whenever she is able.. for that matter the girls and I could drive/fly down there and hang out with her at any point in the year for however long she could stand us.. to give Stephen a break and just enjoy some time in FL.. the possibilities are the source of exciting thoughts for us both. Most of all we are so thankful for the reassurance from above that this is definitely where the Lord meant for them to move.

Babies are fighting over their "puppy" .. a green pull along frog on a string.. now Margot is putting it in time out and Ada is crying real tears of this state of affairs.. gotta go.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

$10



Went to the half price day at a the Kids Exchange (a local consignment sale). I am feeling like poo with the cold that I can't seem to shake but I stayed home from church to keep my germs contained and get a little more rest. So I was feeling rested enough when S and the kids got home that I headed out anyway. Normally I really just go for the toys.. which are always better at the beginning of the sale. By the time half price day rolls around there ain't too much left.. at least not much worth taking home... but I have a pretty good eye for finding treasures in those piles.. even when the "good stuff" has long since been snatched up. I went looking for some sort of memory game(s) for the girls. I tried a homemade one a couple of weeks ago and they not only loved it.. they were really good at it! I found several contenders but the catch of the day was this amazing Goodnight Moon Game!!! How did so many people look at this and not snatch it up?!?! Perfect condition.. all the pieces.. and you can play it 6 different ways so that everyone from 2 1/2 to 6 years old can enjoy! The girls grabbed it as soon as I got home and we played it.. they loved it and were complete pros right off the bat. I also found another cool memory game called Mom and Baby or something like that (too lazy to go look at the name right now) and it's a little over their head right now but they will be ready for it by the summer. Basically you get to be a Mommy animal and take turns looking for your baby animal. It's cooler than I just made it sound. I also made away with a new FP doctor kit (with all it's pieces included and in great condition!), a bag with 3 Kipper books, and a Plan Toys Fishing Game.. which I have never seen before. It is SOOOO cool.. AND it came with TWO FISHING POLES!!! SCORE FOR THE TWIN MOM!!! I got all of this for $10 .. ten stinkin' dollars ya'll! I think that's pretty dang good. I had some clothes that I gleaned from the endless racks as well.. but then I saw the line. Holy Lord.. the folks nearing the front said they had been there for 2 1/2 hours. Yeah, not doing that. I like saving $$ but.. yeah.. so there was an express line for 5 items or less and I dropped the clothes I had collected and made a bee-line there with my 5 precious items. Still took me 40 minutes to get through the line but I am so glad I took the time.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Nonspecific...



This morning I decided to forgo my shower for day number two and take it easy so that I could recover from this nasty sore throat I have had. Still, I was feeling a little crafty so I decided to make the girls some muffin tin crayons. They are pretty tired of the ones they have, ready for a change of pace. Worked like a charm. While we were waiting for them to cool, I added a little food coloring to some plain yogurt and let them "finger paint" with it. Things were going great until I came around the corner and caught them painting the wall a lovely shade of purple. No worries! It had just happened and a wet cloth took it right off. Sigh of relief. They weren't even concerned that I erased their fresco. Most of the rest of the morning was spent hanging out in their travel cribs. Props to Shing Daddy who busted these out over the weekend. They read books in there, make forts, had some sort of battle with foam counting cubes.. ate snack.. played mommy and baby.. it went on and on.. I was pleasantly amazed at how a little time with an art project in the morning (or two) and some travel cribs could make two little girls so happy and contented. I didn't even bother to get them dressed.. they took their jammies off to paint and they were so cute running around in their little princess panties.. so soft and cuddly.. we just had a naked day.

I am feeling much better this evening.. throat is better.. just really really tired. Starting to get a little panicky about this baby kicking around in my tummy. Not panicky so much as just feeling unprepared. I just made myself go on BabiesRUs and start a registry. There are a few things we need for this little one.. like a crib.. since the girls cribs converted to the toddler beds they are currently sleeping in. There are others as well, but for the most part we have all the gear to bring her home in comfort. Need to get new car seats for the big girls so everyone will fit in the backseat of our little car. It's gonna be a tight squeeze but there is a brand .. Sunshine Kids I think.. that is narrow enough to work. I just.. I don't get it. It is really strange how I can't seem to slow down long enough to get serious about this little girl. She is coming! She is coming whether I am ready or not! I am excited she is coming. So excited. For some reason I just can't get my mind to really accept this fact though. Honestly, I keep thinking in the back of my mind.. if I get the crib.. we will lose her. If I register for the swing.. we will lose her. If I go ahead and start making concrete moves towards her arrival.. I will lose her. This is a hard way to exist. These thoughts are so far back in my mind that I can't even battle them.. they just are. They simply exist there, a haunting shadow of doubt. I feel foolish to doubt.. and foolish to be confident. Just.. it's kinda hard.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Millionaire



Have you ever thought about what you would do if you won the lottery? Of course you have. If you haven't then you are a humble non-materialistic masterpiece and I admire you from afar.

I have all sorts of plans for what I would do if I came into a large sum of money. Mostly that have to do with paying off debt, family debt, and then making sure that my family is taken care of for the rest of our days.. good investments .. that sort of responsible nonsense. I am a saver.. it's in my nature. There are moments though when I think about what I would do if I didn't have to worry about the balance of my checking account as much as I do. These thoughts seem to strike me when I am feeling particularly indulgent while going about the functions of my daily life. For instance, I was cleaning the house yesterday and as I did my quick wipe down of the bathroom with my Method Bathroom Wipes that smell like eucalyptus and mint, I was suddenly so thankful that I can afford this little delicacy. It makes me feel so fresh and happy to smell a newly cleaned bathroom. Then I went on to clean the bathroom mirror. I have been using the same bottle of Mrs. Meyers Lemon Verbena glass cleaner for over a year now. It came from the mother of one of Stephen's students and she also sent hand soap, shower spray, and a bar of soap in the same scent. I have not been able to afford to keep us in Mrs. Meyers hand soap but I certainly enjoyed it while it lasted and I just recently finished off that bar of soap. I have, however, determined that when I have run out of the glass cleaner I will make certain to replace it. I always clean the mirror very last in my bathroom cleaning routine and each and every time I spray this refreshingly scented non-toxic cleaner I feel revitalized. I find myself feeling so thankful for the bottle that I own.. and my mind skips to a parallel universe where I am able to purchase Mrs. Meyers products exclusively with absolutely no thought as to the cost. Mrs. Meyers cleaning products make me feel like a millionaire. This inevitably leads me to ponder what else I would love to be able to purchase in abundance at will. My eyes glaze over as I think about endless supplies of raspberries and ripe mangoes , coconut milk ice cream (coconut flavor) and all the Hugo Naturals Geranium Effervescent Bath Salts and matching lotion I could possibly use... enough to take two baths a day for as long as I felt like it. I imagine a bottomless container of Trader Joe's laundry detergent and enough dark chocolate covered cranberries to fill a wash tub. Soft cotton sheets. These are the things that make me feel decadent. Things that I am blessed enough to find in my every day.. not always... but when they do turn up.. I feel like a millionaire. I find it interesting that I don't long for new clothes, movies, music, electronic gadgets, all the books I could read.. shoes.... I'm sure I could find plenty of things to spend money on if I had it to burn but things that I can experience seem to top the list when my mind wanders in that direction.

Friday, January 14, 2011

It's just..I mean.. I can't even.. uh...







..because I need to remember right now.. I need to remember how much fun we have had in the last two weeks.. how much love has been shared between us..right now I just feel so defeated I can hardly put a sentence together.

I am not a fan of whiny posts on here but I need a place to vent.. in writing.. so read at your own risk.

The girls started getting up at around 5:30 or 6am last week.. a great improvement from 4am.. and we were so excited .. feeling like we were finally turning a corner.. and now we are back to that 4am wake up call.. I mean they are getting up even before Stephen's alarm goes off at 4:30 for swim practice. Seriously guys?! You are exhausted.. we are wiped out.. why can't you just SLEEP?!??!?!? Send you back to your room and you scream .. put you in bed with us and there is a 50/50 chance that you might go back to sleep..

Then there is the potty training. The girls were doing great.. no accidents.. then Ada regressed a bit and started pooping in her pants.. and peeing.. then she turned it around and got better again.. no accidents again.. suddenly Margot started doing it.. now they are both doing it.. not so much with the pee.. but the poop (oh so much more fun to clean up than simple urine).. don't seem to even make an effort to go in the potty.. just look at me with a panicked look and say "Oh NO mommy!!!! Poo-poo yucky!!!" You said it friend. Poo-poo EXTREMELY YUCKY. I am losing ground day by day. I was so proud of how well they were doing.. so proud of them.. ready to tell anyone who would listen.. now I have put away the big girl panties.. got tired of throwing them away covered in poo... They are in "princess panties" (Pull-Ups) until they start going poo in the potty again.. they can tell when these are wet so I feel better about that.. at least they don't think they are back in diapers. I was following my potty training e-book to the letter.. even making sure to make them stand up while cleaning up accidents so they wouldn't mentally revert to babyhood while laying down getting cleaned up.. my poor pregnant back can't take the frequency of these episodes now.. I laid Ada right down on the floor this morning and felt like a total failure as I changed her "poo-poo yucky" that she graced me with at the breakfast table. I know regression is a natural part of it.. but how long does it stinkin' last?!!? I am so tired.. so pregnant. so.. having a pity party I know. Just need a break.. some light at the end of the tunnel.. Stephen called me while I was grocery shopping Wednesday to tell me that Ada had gone poo in the potty and I literally cheered while standing in line at Trader Joe's.. then I got home and he said right after she had done so well.. she had a sicky poo right in her panties that spilled everywhere.. sigh. Cling to the good.. cling to the good.. cling to the good for heaven's sake Sarah!!!

And now.. to make sure that someone out there gets a chuckle out my crazy idea to potty train my twins... here is the "funniest" potty incident of this week. I have already started to laugh about it a little myself.

While watching something on the computer so I could get my quiet time in, Ada suddenly stood up and let loose in the chair she was sitting in.. a fountain of pee flowed down the legs of the chair and onto the carpet. I jumped up, grabbing her and racing her to the bathroom, leaving a trail of pee behind us. Cleaned cleaned cleaned.. changed clothes.. rinsed clothes. Back to life. Twenty minutes later I walk past Margot and smelled an unmistakable smell.. yeah.. she was sitting in it pretending it hadn't happened. Carry a crying Margot at arm's length to the bathroom to deal with the incredibly nasty accident she just had.. her lower half is covered in poop... it is falling in drips and drabs on the bathroom floor.. I am feeling thankful that I took my Zofran that morning.. still in the midst of the clean-up process (and starting to get pretty loud about it all to the room [and the twins] at large) I hear Ada yelling from the kitchen "Uh oh Mom!! Pee-pee yucky!!!". Peering around the door with wild eyes I see my daughter standing in the middle of a giant puddle of pee on the linoleum "Don't move!!!" I shout out. She looks down at her feet and starts to splash around in it as though she were outside on a rainy spring day. What to do!? Margot is still dripping poo.. Ada is now looking around for her galoshes .. Swallowing a mouthful of four letter words I screamed at Ada to stand still until I came over to her.. continued cleaning the poop from Margot with a little more urgency. Raced over to Ada and disinfected her and the area of our home she had befouled .. herded their little naked hineys upstairs and into fresh panties and clothing.. chased them into their beds and walked out of their room in a huff.. refusing to even sing a single lullaby. Holy frijoles. If I wasn't pregnant.. if we had vodka in this house.. just sayin'...

Here's to a new day.. and fresh new day that started at the crack of 4:22am.. hey it's better than 4am on the dot right??? .....right..?

Sunday, January 09, 2011

Friday, January 07, 2011

Baby Sister



Here she is. This is the least creepy looking picture that they sent home with us on Wednesday. I still think these 3D images are a bit strange looking but at least she is looking human at this stage.

She is absolutely perfect and was so busy moving/swimming around that the tech had a hard time getting the measurements she needed but in the end she cooperated. Her little heart was so beautiful to me. All four chambers beating their tiny rhythm in harmony. I have been feeling her little pokes and jabs for the last few weeks and they are getting stronger. If you are patient, you can feel her exercises on the outside of my belly now.

Funny how almost everyone in the doctors office felt the need to look at Stephen with sympathy. Three girls, poor Daddy. What they don't know is that he was hoping for another girl.. and so was I. We didn't discover this hidden secret until the day before our appointment. We have been referring to the baby as "he" and we would have loved a boy in our home, please don't misunderstand. It's just, as it turned out, we were both trying to talk ourselves into the idea of a boy because that would have been the biggest surprise outcome we could think of. Deep down we are both relieved and almost giddy that we will be raising another sweet little lady. Who would have thought that we would end up loving parenting girls so much? I was so sure I wanted boys and only boys. Stephen is such a great father for girls. Granted.. our girls are not the girliest girls .. yet.. but they are ours. Maybe the newest member of our tribe will be the first to bring the world of princess play into our home.