August 26, 2014

On pregnancy #4

I'm sitting here, feeling contractions and knowing that this baby girl will likely come today or tomorrow and feeling panicked because I haven't recorded much about this pregnancy.  I suppose it's to be expected by baby #4 . . . there's no time to sit down and write.

I've had as much, if not more, swelling with this pregnancy than I did with Jack's.  I didn't have much swelling or carpal tunnel issues with Ben or Claire.  But this time around it's awful.  I think it was exacerbated by all of the painting . . . I'm not sure it would be this bad otherwise.

I'm so excited to meet Hattie and to not be pregnant, but I'm really, really sad for this pregnancy to be over.  It's my last, and I feel like I'm saying goodbye to an old friend.  Part of me is elated that I'll NEVER HAVE TO DO THIS AGAIN!  Another part of me is so sad that I'll never GET to do this again.

I've been much more relaxed with this pregnancy, likely because I've been so consumed with busyness and moving that I haven't had much time to think about anything else.  I feel like Hattie moves less than the others did at this stage, but it might just be that I sit still less than I did at this stage with the others.

Watching Jack, Ben and Claire prepare for a new sister has been fun.  Claire calls all of her dolls "Hattie" and "baby sister."  She bathes them, changes their diaper and is overall pretty gentle and loving.  I hope it stays that way!

Jack has become pretty helpful, and won't let me carry anything.  Even pizza boxes.  I think he's seen Kyle take care of me in that way and feels like he should, too.

Every time I ask or tell Bennett to do something, he says, "Because you're pregnant?"  It's funny.

All three of them hug and kiss my belly.  They talk to Hattie and laugh when she moves.  When Claire asks Hattie questions like, "Do you love your big sister?" I'll gasp and say, "She just shook her tushie!" and Claire cracks up like it's the funniest thing she's ever heard.

I've had a LOT of trouble sleeping over the last 2 weeks, mainly because my hands hurt so bad from the carpal tunnel.  On the bright side I've had lots of extra time to paint, unpack, etc.

I'm so excited to meet this little girl, and while being pregnant isn't my favorite, I feel so, so fortunate to have the privilege of carrying her.

August 25, 2014

Backing up

We're in our new house!

But let's back up a little.  We were out of our old house on the 26th.  That last night was an emotional one.  I watched Claire fall to sleep in her crib for the last time and then tucked the boys into their bunk beds.  Jack was openly emotional, but Ben was just struggling to keep it together.  Kyle and I were both overwhelmed with nostalgia and spent time talking about our years at 11534 Hillary Drive.

We are SO fortunate to have as many friends and family as we do who were able to help us move.  Our small group came on Friday to help us pack up our uhaul and take it to storage.  On Saturday, quite a few of our summer staff came to help us pack up the last of our belongings.

We took the kids to my parents that night, and Kyle and I got the trailer ready to live in.  We're so grateful that Kyle's parents let us use their trailer, so that we didn't have to rent anything.

That first morning, we woke up, and I just sat on the edge of the bed and cried.  Like, ugly cried.  I was just so sad to leave our home, and so uncertain about when we'd move into our new house.  At some point during that next week, our closing was moved to "on or before August 21."

We cleaned out the house over the next few days, and both Kyle and I were emotional about leaving.  We came into that house as a couple and left as a family of 5 1/2.  We have so many memories there, but now most of our kids' memories will be in a new place.

We were in the trailer for a little more than 2 weeks.  There were good times and bad times, for sure.  Bedtime was rough because they all just wanted to play.  Claire didn't sleep well, and when she woke up, EVERYONE was awake.  On the second night, she woke up around 4, so she and I went for a drive.  We went to Walmart and were the first in line when Starbucks opened that morning.

I didn't sleep well.  A little because we were in a trailer, but mostly because I'm pregnant.  At home, I'd watch tv or do laundry, but in the trailer I couldn't move without waking someone up.

We did have good times.  It was nice to be together as a family and enjoy living at camp.  It was almost like a little "reset."  We weren't packing.  We weren't unpacking.  It was just some in between time.

We closed on our house on August 4, and the previous owners were out on August 9 . . . my 36th birthday.  We spent my birthday sitting around waiting for the call that they'd moved out.  As soon as Kyle got that text, we loaded up and headed to the house.  The kids hadn't seen it before and it was so fun to watch them run around and explore.

It's been a little more than 2 weeks, and we're feeling semi-settled.  Most of our belongings are in boxes, but the bedrooms are unpacked and livable, which was what I'd hoped to accomplish pre-baby.