And then there were two

I really LOVE having two children; I'm reminded daily of just what a tremendous blessing it is. It's crazy at times, but it's made me so much more intentional about my time with each of them and our play times together. I really am so amazed at how well John Parker has done with the change. It's forced him to be more independent, and he's really started to bloom and learn new things. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of them from the last couple of weeks.

Parallel Play



My 3 Favorite People



Want to play?



1st Family Hike



Saturday Morning Cuddles with Daddy

Beauty and the Rockstar

The Mohawk



The 50's Slicked Look



Claire's First Bath


Contented



Bathtime is always one of my favorite times of day. John baths John Parker most nights now since I'm nursing right around that time. I love to hear them playing and splashing in the tub. His hair is so long now that we can make some wild do's with this hair.

Claire is a little bit more subdued in the bath. I've been washing her in the sink--which I never did with John Parker. I'm trying new things this time around, just wanting to keep things fresh! :) She is such a cutie; she loves to cuddle after her bath and is so alert. I love her little rolls and how she can fit in the sink.

Sweetness

I think these pictures capture the sweetness and newness of little Claire and the Adventurous side of John Parker. My sister took these while she visited a few weeks ago. Claire was just 10 days old and John Parker 21 months. Oh, how I love having two sweet babies. Thanks, Abby!

Claire's Birth Story

Our sweet little Claire was born 3 weeks ago today. I wanted to capture her birth story before the details started to fade. I know that the busyness of life and the sleep deprivation of those first couple of weeks can cause things to become fuzzy very quickly.

As most of you know, my due date was somewhere between March 1st and March 5th depending on if you were charting it from my last menstrual cycle or from the original ultrasound. All I know was that we were excited from the moment we found out that Claire was going to be our spring baby. I have always loved having an April birthday, so I was excited to share this season with our sweet little girl.

I was progressing with Claire much more than I ever did with John Parker. On my 39 week appt, I was 2 cm and 60% effaced. I was so hopeful that I wouldn't need to be induced this time. I was hoping that my body would just do it's thing and start labor on its own. I tried walking each day, eating eggplant, and the like, but she just wasn't ready to come. At my 40 week visit, I hadn't progressed any further, so Dr. Shin encouraged me to set an induction date for March 8th, which would have been 41 weeks.

We were all set to go in that Monday night, but when we called the hospital they told us that they were full and had no room. We waited. They told us that they would call us if they had a room open up that night. Sure enough, they did. They called us at 3:24 the morning of March 8th. We headed in that morning to start the induction. It was a very restless last few hours as we tried to wait until the morning. We were so much more collected this time around as we went to the hospital. It was nice to know what to expect from the hospital and the doctor. I definitely like predictability.

We started pitocin around 9 am, I was 3 cm and 60% effaced, so we were set to start. The morning was enjoyable and the contractions were manageable. I called a couple of friends, we watched an episode of Arrested Development, and anxiously watched the computer screens to monitor our little girl's heartbeat. It was strong and steady at 130 for nearly the entire process. Things really didn't start to pick up until Dr. Shin broke my water and put internal monitors in to measure Claire's heartbeat and my contractions. I vividly remember this point in both of my labors because this was the turning point. This was the "Wow, this is the real deal" moment when my contractions really escalated. I tried to manage the pain with breathing and John's encouragement, but about 2 hours later I was in serious pain. It's so frustrating to not be able to labor and walk the halls because you are strapped to pitocin and internal monitors. I needed an epidural. Thankfully, this eased my pain and lessened my anxiety. Sure, I had the lovely side effect of vomiting, but I would gladly take that over the intense pains of contractions. From that point on, I was able to manage the pain. John and I enjoyed the labor process and were able to rest not feeling the intensity of the pitocin. Thankfully, my contractions also seemed to pick up on their own. Only a few hours later, I had really made progress. I was now fully effaced and Claire's head was crowning. We were in complete shock since Claire was stationed so high the entire time. Dr. Shin rushed over from her office all suited up and ready to deliver our little girl.

John, Dr. Shin, and Mira, were such a great team of encouragers. John stood by my side and was my biggest cheerleader. We did 3 series of pushes and our little girl was out in about 15 minutes. It was blissfully wonderful and so much easier than last time. I remember hearing her cry and watching John cut the cord and being in awe all over again. Our precious little one was here. She was purple when they put her on me, but she was crying so I knew she was ok. All I can remember was hearing the nurses say over and over, "Wow, that is one big baby" as they did her APGAR test and measured her. John was spellbound, he kept saying "She is just so beautiful". I saw his love well up from the moment he laid eyes on her. Sure enough, she was a big girl weighing 9 lb. 11 oz.. I still can't believe that I carried around a nearly 10 pound baby. I had no idea. I now understand why I was so uncomfortable those last couple of weeks.

I loved when they put her on me and I could hold her--really hold her!!! She was beautiful, so new, so innocent, so precious, so little!!! When she looked at me and nuzzled close to my heart, I lost it. There are no words that can adequately capture that moment. My heart was in awe of this life before me--knit together by the Lord in my womb. She is a gift from God. I hope and pray that we can point her to the Lord. Claire, we love you and are so grateful that you are a part of our family.

Introducing Claire Mae Ritsema

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We are excited to introduce you to our sweet little girl, Claire Mae Ritsema. She was born on Tuesday, March 8th at 4:13 pm. She weighed a whooping 9 lb, 11 oz and measured 21 3/4 inches long. I am still in disbelief that I was able to push a baby of that size out of me. Had I known how big she would be, I don't think I could have mentally done it! :) My doctor said she had just gained bragging rights in the practice for delivering such a big baby.

I apologize for posting this so late, but life with a 21 month old and newborn is quite eventful. Our big girl is eating every 2 hours, so in my downtime I'm been play with my little guy or nap. My sweet husband has been home on paternity leave the last 2 weeks, which has made a world of difference. He has been super dad and taken John Parker to Gymboree, Storytime at the Library, and spent many a day playing outside with our little guy. I am also so grateful to my mother-in-law and father-in-law for showering John Parker with love and affection and taking care of our basic needs like grocery shopping, sleeping, and keeping up with the laundry over the last couple of weeks.

I'll share her birth story in a later post, but for now here are a few pictures from the hospital.

Our Little Ham

Singing to me in the morning



Loving his yogurt mustache



Haming it up in his sister's glider



Letting me know naptime is over



Trying to get Daddy's attention at the park



This may be one of my favorite ages yet. John Parker is quite the little ham. He has a new found love of his nose and wrinkling it. He loves to sing at the top of his lungs. He imitates so much of what we do. He wants to ride the slide just like daddy. He loves to sit in the rocker just like mommy. His faces and expressions make me laugh. I love his animation and character.

Serenbe-Our Getaway

John and I were able to get away for a baby moon a few weekends ago. It was just what we needed. It's was refreshing to be able to pull away from the fast pace of life and just be. I was reminded of how much I much I love my hubby. Sometimes it's easy for me to get hyper-focused on being a mom that I lose the joy of being a wife first. I think weekend getaways like this help to put in all in perspective.

Serenbe is this quaint community in South Atlanta that started back in the early 1990's. We'd heard so many great things about it from friends that we thought we'd check it out for ourselves. The owner coined the name based on her desire to have visitors experience "Serenity" and just "Being". We felt like we were visiting Seaside on the Farm. Adorable homes and eclectic restaurants and shops line the streets. If you are looking for a great little getaway while in Atlanta, you definitely need to check it out.

Pregnancy Ponderings

Tonight, I wanted to take a few minutes to reflect on how this pregnancy has been different from the last. I love that this blog allows me to document and remember--something that I will treasure for years to come.

I've craved such different things--bean burritos from Taco Bell, Jamocha Shakes from Arby's, french fries from Chick-fil-A, and pineapple just like last time. Thankfully, these cravings have subsided as the pregnancy has progressed. I have definitely put on weight much faster this time. I really started to show around 14 weeks. At my 36 week visit, I had passed my total weight gain from last pregnancy. I'd like to think that that's normal. I had a nice bought of acne early on and some wonderful morning sickness from about 6-10 weeks which made for very long days.

Caring for John Parker has definitely caused this pregnancy to fly by; I really haven't had much time to think about how I was feeling. I have been preoccupied with keeping him entertained. I have been far less vigilant about my diet as you might have noticed from my cravings. I allow myself to have a coke or two each week. I haven't worried about my feta or turkey intake like I did last time. I can honestly say, I have really enjoyed this pregnancy. It's been nice not to worry and to just enjoy the little life that is growing within me.

I am so grateful that I didn't have Gestational Diabetes this time. I was convinced that if you had it once; you would have it again. It has been such a relief not to have to take my blood four times a day and track my meals for the last couple of weeks. The Lord has been so good to me.

Honestly, the only real negatives that I can think of have been sleeplessness and lower back pain. I look at the current sleep deprivation as preparation for the months ahead. Sleep is always a luxury those first couple of weeks. I imagine once I drop some of this access weight and really start to exercise again I'll hopefully lose the lower back pain.

Thanks for letting me share my reflections with you. I can't wait to post pictures of our precious little girl in a few weeks.