Santa!!

Oh, the excitement!  We went to see Santa yesterday at Easton.  Emarie was sooo ready to see him and tell him she had made good choices and really wants the 'High School Musical Castle' (a barbie house as the HSM set-too bad Santa didn't want to spend 130 on the thing... :)) 

Later that evening Emarie and I went to the movies to see High School Musical 3 just the two of us.  The boys stayed home.  She loved it of course.  She is such a musical lover.

Today we went for a visit at work and watched the high school chorale perform for the kids.  Luckily, we sat in the back so Em could boogie as we watched. 

Off to make the most of naptime!

Time flies...

Three weeks into maternity leave...and starting to feel 'normal'.  Two kids is definetly a change. Emarie is doing farely well with the transition.  She tends to act up when she knows I can't move, like when I'm feeding Preston.  :)  Too smart for her own good.  

Preston is a perfect baby.  (yes I'm a bit bias)  He sleeps well (4 hrs at night :)), eats well, gaining weight well, and he's gorgeous to top it all off.  

Maternity leave and Christmas don't go so well together, trying to shop, take pictures, Christmas cards, decorate, etc...and re-coop and bond with my baby, is a bit overwhelming.  I wish I could take more time.

New slideshow of the Christmas pictures I took of the kids, enjoy.  

Welcome Preston!

Preston Martin Gueth is here!
12:02 a.m. Saturday 11-22-08, 8lbs 7oz, 21 inches long

He is gorgeous! Everything went so well. My water was leaking Friday afernoon, so we went in to verify that it was indeed my water breaking. Checked into triage at 6:45 and he was born 5 hours later, I felt very little thanks to an early epidural. So, the delivery was absolutely wonderful! The recovery is much worse, wish they could give an epidural for that, but I guess the vicodin will do. :)
Emarie is doing great! She was soooooo excited to meet him Saturday morning. She has been a little attention hungry, loud and busy, but has shown nothing but affection and compassion for Preston. She has to hold him at least 4 times a day, and first thing in the morning she comes running to check on him.

38 weeks, who'd of thought..

Well 38 weeks, went to the dr today and I'm still 3 cm 80% effaced. I'm so ready and can barely walk.... so she agreed to induce on Sunday night if I don't go before, meaning I'll be 39 weeks, can't believe I made it that far!! I'm going to try to work the rest of the week, sitting most of the time working on alternate assessments and progress reports in the lounge, yeah, yeah....but it's better than letting the time stroll by at home.

I check in at 6:00 on Sunday night, she said eat a good dinner and come on in. So, I'm thinking the 24th (mon) will be his birthday and then should be home by Thanksgiving. How's that for something to be thankful for?

Yeah, the end is near!!!

Full term!

I can not believe we've made it to full term. I'm so excited for him to come, but getting super anxious as well. I've had so many bouts of 'false labor' or rather 'practice labor' that it's messing with my head. I feel gigantic and I'm so ready for him to come. Not to mention fearful that he is huge! I've been working, having to talk off about a day a week per exhaustion or contractions.

We've been pretty consumed with getting him out, so not much social stuff going on. Walking, walking, walking, and working.

Trick or treat was fun. Emarie was Dorothy from Wizard of Oz, Todo and all. I walked the whole way and afterwards we went to visit the Ontko's and the three little monkeys (the triplets) and their banana (the six month old). TOO CUTE!

Emarie had 'watch week' at dance class last week. We were able to sit in the room and watch her. So cute.

Everyone hope for a baby, maybe the full moon will do the trick!

Getting close!

Wow, a long time since last post. We've had Emarie's 3rd birthday! Lots of fall fun, and a busy, tired pregnant mom who can't seem to post on her blog.

I'm now 34 weeks and counting. However, got to spend the night in the hospital Saturday night after having contractions and some other symptoms. They got them stopped and sent me home in the morning. So, now I'm home on 'modified bedrest' whatever that means. It could be anytime. The good news is this boy is huge. 3 weeks ago he was approx 5.25 pounds, so now he's plenty big and my belly is measuring 38 weeks. We'll see!

Emarie had a blast at her birthday party(s). We ended up having three events over three weekends. A cousins party (4 have birthdays within a month ish of eachother), a family/friends party at our house, and a party up north for the fam up there. She is definetly loved!

While we were up north we got to go to the 'Wooley Bear Festival', yes the festival for the caterpillar. Very interesting I have to say. We saw a three hour long parade and people racing caterpillars, and others dressed up as caterpillars, their dogs too. :)

We got to go to a pumpkin patch on Friday with some friends. Gotta love COTA day.

Saturday, we went to the annual fall party at Aunt Dorothy's. Fun times with the cousins, until mommy started having contractions and we had to speed back to Columbus. Em got to stay with Abby and Nate which she loved though.

Check back to see when our little guy decides to show up!

I'm surviving!

Back to work has exhausted me. I am as full as they can fill me this year, I have 9 kiddos with varying disabilities grades K-3... So, I apologize for not updating lately. Besides work, all is well, baby still do well and I'm holding steady.

We went to a Clippers game, which Emarie loved. We have been shopping for our new arrival, I'm starting to panic! Apparently we need a lot more than I thought we did. We have everything pink, and daddy isn't wanting his little dude in pink. :) So, we need new furniture (we got rid of Emarie's-because they had been used and were a bit rickety), bedding, towels, a bath tub, clothes, blankets, bibs, bottles, etc, etc, etc. So, we are starting to register so all of you loving family members know what we need. There are links to the right side.

We have ordered his furniture and the bedding set so far.

This week we had a photo shoot of my belly and Emarie. I'll attach a few.

So much to do...So little time....

Here's the porch and sidewalk! Now we just need grass...:)

These last two weeks we have been trying to squeeze all the summer out of each day. We've been camping at Alum Creek ( the green monster's first voyage), to the fair, the zoo, hocking hills, worked on my classroom, got a new front porch, a ton of dirt, new edging and new flowers. So, I really haven't sat down to update the blog. Pictures of all included on the new slideshow above.

The first voyage of the green monster was a success. Everything onboard is in working order and it was sooo nice to camp with a comfy bed, running water and most importantly a bathroom! Braden enjoyed learning how to dump the tank at the end of the weekend. The only problem came on the way home when the monster lost breaks!!! Scary, but everyone was safe and turned out to be a slow leak of brake fluid.

We spent a weekend at Aunt Cindy and Uncle's Keith's home in Hide-away Hills. We love going there! Emarie caught a fish, rode a jet ski and loved playing with her cousins Gracen, Carly, Justin and Chase. Braden and I enjoyed being disconnected from society and visiting with the fam.

The fair was a hit, as Emarie LOVES to ride the rides. Who doesn't love the zoo? She even got to ride a pony! Ryan Lee enjoyed his first visit at the zoo, he kept signing more after each animal. We had a birthday picnic by the Sciota River, peach pie included, my favorite, thanks to Nana and 'Jones'.

I start back to work on Monday. :( So, Emarie and I are trying to balance preparation and fun. She is very ready to go back to the sitter, asks me to go every day, so I don't need to worry there.

We had a doctor's appt on Friday and Mom got to come with me to meet the little man. She liked seeing him in 'person' and watching how very active I'm always saying he is. There are three new pictures of our 1lb 9oz 24 week old man on the baby boy gueth slideshow above.

Things are going well, I'm just supposed to 'listen to my body' and rest when I can....easier said than done. I'll continue to go to the dr every two weeks to make sure nothing is changing.

We'll see how these updates keep coming as I start school....wish me luck!

Bumper boat driver....sort of...

Our 'new' home, almost..

Before...

After...Now we just need a front porch... :)

Let's see, lot's of play dates, a party and a trip to Bellefontaine filled our week.
All is still going farely well with the pregnancy, just have been told to 'take it easy', so I'm worrying a little more than I was. :(

We played with Ryan at Tuttle Mall

My little model....looking way too old!

Our new addition....

We have another new addition to our family.....a 1976 GMC motorhome. :) A project for Braden, and a camping mobile for all of us. Right now, she needs some love, but she looks very promising. I told Braden I need to join a support group for wives of men with ADHD. :)

Meanwhile, siding is going on the house this week, nice and noisy. Emarie doesn't seem to mind, still taking those lovely 3 hour naps every day.

Em got to go swimming this week with a few of my students, Nana and Jones came to visit on Sunday, and today we went to the park to play with the friends from the sitters. She's been loving painting in her Wonder Pets book too. We went to my school a couple of days to do some work, which Emarie loves.

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so another ultrasound, will equal more pictures, so check back for those.

Happy 4th of July!!

Fourth of July turned into a busy, fun week!! Thursday, we got to go to red, white and boom, courtesy of our neighbors, Chris, Christine and Ava. Christine works in the heart of boom, so we had prime parking and our own bathroom. :) Emarie loved walking around looking at buildings, the Santa Maria, and of course the fireworks. Earlier Thursday, I lost my wallet at Meijer, which to me was a huge crisis....luckily, a nice lady found it and returned it to our renter at the condo. There are lots of nice people!

Friday, we headed to Deer Creek State Park for a weekend of camping with Abby, Nate and Ryan and my mom. Saturday, we spent some time on the boat and at the beach, then a round of putt-putt. Sunday, was sooo hot and we were sooo burnt, so we spent some time at the lodge and at some shaded playgrounds. Ryan, Emarie and I played in an air conditioned car while everyone packed us up.

There is a new slideshow above of all of our pictures from the weekend.

Busy girls

This week Em and I have been very busy. Tuesday, we went to a baby shower for a fellow teacher and both got to see our friends from school. Thursday, we all went up to Mansfield to meet all of Braden's family for dinner to celebrate Gee's birthday. Friday, we had lunch with our friends (Anne, Kelli, Konnor, Megan and Samantha) and then went to the Groveport Aquatic Center to swim with them all and Joyce and Chloe. It's so nice to have friends that have kids, making everyone happy in one environment. Afterwards we went to the Ontko's for dinner. Saturday, Nana and 'Jones' (my grandma) came to see us and we went to the parade of homes. It was fun going through all of the houses, gathering ideas, and dreaming. Monday, we got to go play with our friends the Ontko tripletsand their new baby brother.

I've had two doctor's appointments (one with my primary OB and one with the perinatologist) this week and everything still looks good. More ultrasound pictures to share (I added them to the slide show), still a boy, which is good. :) I'm glad I had an ultrasound this week as we are right at the same time as when we lost our last pregnancy. So, this ultrasound gave me piece of mind to help me get through the next couple of weeks.

Emarie went with Braden and I to the dr. today. She wanted to give the 'baby a checkup', it's fun for her to see the ultrasound pictures. Afterwards we went to my school to play on the playground with 'Glo-glo' our fabulous sitter and all Em's friends.

Ahhhh summer time...

17 weeks and going strong. Started my weekly progesterone shots this past week. There is a nurse coming to my house every Weds morning to give me a rather painful shot of hormones. The good news is I saw little side effect other than headache. I can feel definite movement in baby now and daddy purchased a home doppler so we can check the heartbeat whenever we want.

In other news, the summer projects have begun. As I type my front yard is dug up. Braden, his dad and the boys have dug trenches (with the help of a rented machine) to add drainage away from the house and a sprinkler system. A significant saving versus having it done, but what a mess. In the process our front step is gone, so entrance only from garage or back door. However, we will be gaining a much better and more functional front porch out of the deal, and our basement should be saved from any water, clearing the way to start that finishing project.
Inside the house, I am in summer clean out/organization mode, and attempting to clear out the garage. So, keeping busy!

Emarie and visited a historical farm this week with her
babysitter pals. She had a great time,and misses her friends like crazy so that was great.
We also went home to mom's to go to a wedding of a family friend. Emarie liked the wedding seeing all the princesses, and dancing her heart out, not to mention the cake. We went with my mom, sister and her son, Ryan.
We had a sleepover at Nana's and got to visit with 'Jones' (my grandma) and then went to Abby's for a bit to visit with my dad. Good times had by all. Wish I had more pictures but my camera died. :(

IT'S A BOY!

I'm 16 weeks today, showing, and starting to feel better...physically and emotionally. I start progesterone shots this week, weekly for the duration. We went to the perinatologist last week and all looks good. We also got some new ultrasound pictures. :) IT'S A BOY!

It's summer break for me! Which is great for Emarie and I. Lots of time together.

We just got back from camping this weekend. Overall, a fun trip between storms. This was Emarie's first camping experience and she did well considering. Braden got us an air conditioner for the tent. :) So, my only complaint was the walk to the bathroom for both I and Emarie. We spent a lot of time on the boat and at the beach. Great time had by all. Here are some pictures of the weekend. I also attached a video of Emarie being a 'ham' as usual.

Good news all around!

Seven weeks...and feeling OK... Nauseous and my chest is painfully expanding....my face looks like a broken out teenager. :) All good signs things are going well...even though I'm constantly worried, and probably will be until the end.

I switched doctors for this pregnancy and so now my doctor's appt isn't until the 30th...which is just a chat and some blood work...soon after that we'll have an ultrasound and you will all start getting this blog. :) We just want to make sure things are going well before we spread the news.

Other news....Emarie is completely potty trained at 2.5!!!! Yeah Em! I got teacher of the year for my building this year! And, I rippled the waters enough at school to have my kids stay through 4th grade like their peers...they had been transitioning in third grade to another elementary. So...good news on the work front.

Today, Mom, Jones, Em, Braden and I are going to the butterfly exhibit at Franklin Park. Should be interesting. I told Em that butterflies would be flying all around and one might land on your head or your shoulder, etc....and her response was...'But they will hurt me'. So, I went on to say they might land on Mommy or Daddy too and mommy would say 'look a pretty butterfly on my shoulder, that's silly'....she then modelled and seems ok. We'll see how it goes.

Welcome to our blog!

I wanted to create a page that friends and family could visit to get updates about our family. So...here it goes.

Today is my last day of spring break. Emarie and I have had a great time staying home together. We've had a play date here at our house, cousin Ryan came to visit to get his pictures taken and we went to a children's museum to play. Easter was great. Nana came to spend the night so she would be here Easter morning. We went up north to see Mimi, Grandpa Steve, Gee and Pa, and all the aunts and an uncle too. Sunday morning Braden and I got a present too, we discovered that we are pregnant once again. Obviously, we are scared and excited at the same time. I have my first doctor's appointment April 20.

I've attached some recent photos of Emarie (2 1/2), enjoy!