Almost two weeks!!

I can't believe how fast the time is going by. I am amazed how well all the kids have adjusted to having a new baby. They all love her!! She is such a calm, sweet baby. She cries only when she is hungry. She sleeps great; I can usually count on at least one 4 hour stretch, sometimes two at night. It's been great. We have had lots of visitors including Aubrey's first friend, Zander. He is my friend, Angela's new little one. They took their first nap together in Aubrey's crib.

We ventured out as a family this past weekend to lunch and a few errands. It's always fun to watch people watch us. The kids were all pretty good. The grandma's have been a big help with house work and keeping the kids busy. Now that i am feeling normal I am trying to get things back to the routine that they are used to. School starts in a few weeks!! Logan is so excited for his first day! We will keep you posted!

She's Finally Here!!

We thought things were well on the way Wednesday at 3:00 a.m. to have our baby, then we hit a road block. My contractions weren't strong enough to keep dilating so I got stuck at 4 cm. The on call doctor decided that she wasn't going to help out by giving me pitocin or breaking my water, so I labored ALL day, still 4 cm at 2:00p.m on Wednesday. Finally, we decided to ask for a second opinion. The high risk team at Winnie Palmer came in at 8:00p.m. to discuss options. They decided the best thing to do was an Amniocentesis to determine Aubrey's lung maturity and go from there.

We waited all night for the results to come back. Thursday morning at 7:30a.m. the high risk team came back, gave us all the data, the test came back that her lungs were mature and we were going to deliver!! The nurse came in and started pitocin at 8:30 a.m, I was 5 cm. My doctor came in a broke my water at 12:00 p.m., I was still 5 cm. At 12:55 p.m., still 5 cm. But 10 minutes later at 1:05 p.m. she was crowning!!

I delivered at 1:12 p.m. She is 5 pounds 2 ounces, 19 inches long, with dark brown hair!!! After quite an ordeal we have a beautiful baby girl. We can't wait to get home so everyone can enjoy her. The kids adore her. Jayden is a proud big brother, Ainsley is elated, Logan is sweet and gentle, Carson is very curious. We are going to be busy!! Thank you all for your prayers through our pregnancy. We will try to keep updating with pictures and use this site as a blog for our entire family now!

And so it begins...

The time has arrived! We are at the hospital now. Danielle started having steady contractions at 8:00 pm last night. She was able to get some sleep from 10 to 12, but she has been steady since then. We arrived at the hospital at 3:15 am and it is almost 6 am now. Danielle got her epidural and seems comfortable. My mom and her mom are here. Our video camera was broken when we got here, but Uncle Jeremy saved the day and brought his camera here at 5 am! Way to go Jeremy! We'll keep everyone updated....

Counting the Days!! 35 weeks!!

We are in the home stretch! I can't believe I've made it this far! Everyone is getting so anxious for Aubrey to make an appearance, especially Daddy. We've had a couple false alarms, which ended in them sending us home, but at 3 cent it won't be long!

Since our last update the kids have gotten out of school. We've been keeping them busy with gymanstics and soccer camps. They did Vbs and had a blast! Moslty they've been spending lots of time swimming. Logan and Carson took swimming lessons, although Carson wasn't the biggest fan, Logan has become a little fish. Ainsley is growing more excited about her sister everyday. We have been working on the nursery, which is, of course, pink!! We'll post a picture as soon as it's finished. Thanks for all your continued prayers, We'll be sure to announce when she arrives!!

27 Weeks

27 Weeks and she is growing so much! We had an appointment with the high risk doctor today. She is doing great. She weighed in at 2pounds 7ounces, so she still has a lot of growing to do. The kids are getting so excited about their new sister's arrival. Carson loves to lay across my belly to fall asleep. It is so sweet! Ainsley talks to her all the time, and loves every opportunity to feel her move. She got to feel her hiccup! Jayden is bracing himself for another sister,he is always willing to lend me an extra hand around the house. Logan loves to sing her "wullabies". In the pictures, she already looks like Ainsley with her round little nose and round cheeks. The ultrasound tech got a great view of her head and we could see hair.

After several opinions from family and the kids, we have chosen a name for our baby girl. She will be called Aubrey Olivia. Ainsley helped us choose her middle name. Olivia has been Ainsley's favorite name since she was old enough to talk and name her baby dolls. Aubrey is well on her way already to filling her closet with sweet little clothes. Ainsley and I can't pass up a chance to peek at the baby section in whatever store we are in.

We are looking forward to a quite summer, spending a lot of time in the pool! Thank you to all our friends and family for praying for us through another miracle in the making.

It's A Girl!!! 18 Weeks!!!

We haven't been the greatest at keeping up with the website, but at least we post the important things! We went this past week for our second sonogram and our little girl is perfectly healthy. She was being very shy at first, but after some persuading, she moved into a good position to say "hello"! Needless to say, everyone is very excited and we can't wait to meet her. We are pretty sure on her name, but you'll have to wait until later for an announcement. So far, I have been feeling good. I am getting big! James and the kids have felt her move, she is very active in the evening. I began getting the progesterone injections three weeks ago. I wasn't expecting the amount of soreness that comes along with it. By the time my hip stops aching, it is time for the next one. It will all be worth it when we have our healthy, hopefully full term, baby girl. Thank you for all your prayers and support with our growing family1

It's A Girl!?

So, they told us it's a 90% chance that it's a girl! At this stage in development things look a bit different in that area. The doctors look for certain characteristics to determine the gender and they saw what is a girl! James and the kids are estatic. Ainsley was so excited when we told her, she was speechless. Her face lit up! I am excited, in a cautious kind of way. I want to be prepared if they tell us in 5 weeks that it's a boy. The appointment with the high risk doctor went great. The baby looked healthy and right on target for growth. I am going to be starting progesterone injections in three weeks to minimize the risk for preterm labor this time. Hopefully this will help me carry closer to full term without as many complications. All we can do is pray for the best!!

12 Weeks!

Since Danielle is catching up on her beauty rest, I'll take this opportunity to catch everyone up. First, the picture to the left I am extremely proud of. In fact, it almost makes me cry. (I know, spare me the jokes) I am so proud of my wife and sister and how well they are doing. My sister has had a very difficult pregnancy and thank God for my wife, who has been able to hold my sister's hand because of her own experiences. If anyone would like to check up on my sister, her blog is themossnews.blogspot.com .

Danielle has been doing great! I think it is amazing how she takes care of our children and is able to get through the morning sickness. She gets tired faster and smells get to her. In fact, I now have to shower everyday just so I don't make her sick. We are so excited about this baby. We are hoping for a girl. We don't even discuss the possibility of the baby being a boy. I think God really knew my heart and my desire for another daughter, that is why we are being blessed with this baby.

Here is our first picture of the baby! We are excited to watch her grow! Danielle is going to be seen by the high risk doctors again, which means that we will get to see the baby each month. Also, her doctor delivered Tiger Woods' baby - I thought that was pretty cool. In fact, I think we are enjoying this pregnancy more than any of the past pregnancies. I think this has to do alot with the realization that this is most likely our last. The kids are still excited and Ainsley remains set that is has to be a little sister or she may just send it back if it's another brother.

We are truly blessed! People look at us like we are crazy at times, but God gave us this wonderful family to build his kingdom and more children only increases the love within our family and the love that we can share. God bless each of you!

James