Annabelle coming home from the hospital

we were excited to bring Annabelle home from the hospital. She wore the same sweet dress for her trip home as Brooke. I found this bow on Etsy and just knew it was perfect for her. It has a little diamond broach since she is an April birthday with a diamond birthstone. I couldn't believe how little she looked in her carseat.

Annabelle day 2

Annabelle and I enjoyed our time in the hospital. We had so many visitors and time for resting/healing.All of Keith's residents came by to meet Annabelle. Lindsey brought baby Julia to see Annabelle. They were born only 6 weeks apart. Brooke made her second visit to the hospital with my mom. She was able to climb in the bed with me and snuggle a bit. We even took a walk in the hallway with Annabelle.

Introducing Annabelle Kay

My mom and Keith flew in on Saturday April 28th. I was so glad to have them in Pittsburgh. We went into the hospital for the scheduled C-Section on Monday the 30th. The whole process went much better this time. The dr. got my IV in the first time, they did a wonderful job with my epideral and keeping me from throwing up. The surgery went very well and I only threw up once during recovery. Annabelle was born weighing 7 lbs and 1 oz. She was 19 inches long and had quite a bit of dark hair. We were instantly in love. She is the perfect baby. Brooke and mom came to meet Annabelle later that day. Brooke did pretty well with her sister for the first time. She was very gentle and sweet.

Brooke's school work

Here are a couple of Brooke's art projects from April. Brooke also figured out how to unzip her onsie PJ's. I looked at her on the camera one night and saw her bare bottom. She had taken off all her clothes, including the diaper. The bad thing about her stripping down at night was that she falls asleep and then pees in her bed. She continued doing this for a week straight so I decided to ditch the PJ's. I bought a big pack of onsies that snap and she hasn't been able to get them off even once. We will welcome PJ's back once she is potty trained. We bought Brooke a stool to help her get into the tub on her own. She pushes it around the house and uses it to get into everything.

Keith's trip/open house

Keith left on Sunday April 22nd for a week long podiatry seminar/workshop in Dallas and Seattle. He was very nervous to be traveling 1 week away from my due date. That same Sunday we had our big open house. Brooke and I went to Jessica's house after church and stayed there for the afternoon and dinner. We were so excited to hear from the realtor later that night. We got an offer on our house and we accepted. It was a little tricky to get all the paperwork signed and completed with keith being out of state but we did it. Keith's trip went really well and he enjoyed the conference. I was just glad to have him back home on Saturday.

Prayer Shower

Our church hosted a prayer shower for our family on April 12th at Shauna's house. I was so touched at the number of ladies that turned out to pray for our baby. It was such a lovely evening and I felt so much better knowing we had so many people praying for the birth, our move, and my health.

30th Birthday

I turned 30 on April 9th. We have been so busy that it really didn't seem to be a big deal. We officially listed our house with Howard Hanna on the 1st of April. I have been so focused on getting the house ready for showings and preparing for the baby, that my birthday didn't really rank this year. I did get to have a child free dinner with Lindsey and Jess to celebrate all of our birthdays. We found a great mexican food place in the Southside. Keith gave me a thoughtful card and a few CD's for our drive to Texas. I am really looking forward to my girls trip in July to celebrate all of our 30th birthdays. We are going to be staying at a lakehouse in Tyler for 4 days and taking a full spa day.

Easter Sunday

Brooke and Keith were so cute opening their Easter baskets. Keith got all his favorite candy and the Muppets movie. Brooke got new sippy cups, M&M's and the bubble bucket. The bubble bucket is the perfect thing for a 2 year old. She can dip the wands in the bubbles herself and if it tips over nothing spills out. Brooke was instantly enamored with it. She cared about nothing else for the rest of the day. We had a wonderful Easter service at church. It is so humbling to be reminded that God sent his son to die for us. After church we headed over to Matt and Megan's house for lunch with the other residents. They had a delicious meal and an easter egg hunt for the kids in the back. Brooke was so focused on her bubbles that she didn't pick up one egg. Christian benefited from that! They all suprised me with a birthday cake and sang happy birthday. It was so sweet!

We enjoyed our last Easter in Pittsburgh.

9 Months Pregnant

I was not very good about taking belly pictures this pregnancy. Here is my last pregnant shot on April 1st after church. Overall, this was an easy pregnancy. I did have a couple weeks of nausea recurrence at the end and a bit of reflux, but otherwise no issues. It was a relief not to deal with gestational diabetes this time. I ended up gaining right at 30 pounds for this pregnancy. It was a little tricky trying to figure out clothes at the end because the weather kept changing. We had a really warm march, so I had plenty of "maternity" clothes that fit. Then in April it stayed cold and I didn't have anything besides comfy clothes to wear. Brooke is very interested in what's happening with mommy's belly. She likes to give her sister at least one kiss each day. She also knows that I can't get on the ground to give her a bath anymore. When I put her in the tub she asks me to sit and then says "no, mommy too big." She is also very interested in all the baby stuff that we have brought down from the attic. She has played in her car seat and bouncy chair and pushed her babies in the swing.