Happy news to share

Friends, on this day of love, I’m so happy to share that our hearts are growing and growing!

We are overjoyed that another little baby will be joining our family in August! YAY, indeed!!

It seems like it might be easier to take a second baby in stride, but knowing how precious our sweet girl is to us makes me even more grateful for and awestruck by this blessing. It was hard to imagine what our love for a child would feel like before we had June, and certainly how much fun it would be to be a mama — but now I know!! This time around, I’ve loved anticipating all of the good stuff that’s coming (like movement soon!), and it’s been nice to feel a little more prepared for the hard stuff, too.

That being said, keeping my expectations low has been my biggest challenge so far with baby number two. Y’all know how I feel about expectations – I live and die by them, as there are few things that more strongly affect my happiness and overall life satisfaction.

Last time around, pregnancy and life with a newborn was pretty much a gigantic blank slate. Specifically, I never had illusions about how wonderful the newborn phase would be. In fact, I expected it to be hard, frustrating, and exhausting, with a steep learning curve. I wasn’t depressed about this; I just figured it would be something we’d have to get through, and it would get better every day.

And then, we got a dream angel baby who did all the things. And it was SO WONDERFUL! Because I had low expectations, every good thing felt like a revelation. Even the smallest victories and happy moments were a delight.

For me, the key to repeat this experience again is not to have another dream angel baby (though I wouldn’t be mad about that!), it’s to again have truly low expectations. Easier said than done, but I am committed to experiencing this pregnancy and new little for just who he or she is!

Alright — on to the things you really want to know! :)

How do you feel? At 15 weeks, I am feeling good, though still tired in the evenings especially! The week we found out was truly awful – I had terrible back pain (something I’d never even heard of as a pregnancy malady!) and spent pretty much the whole week moaning and nauseous on the coach. John made an emergency run to Target for ginger tea, an extra heating pad, sea-bands, chicken noodle soup, and all the rest — we joked that the cashiers surely must have thought we were first-time expecting parents :) Since that week, though, it has been smooth sailing, with very little queasiness or anything else to complain about!

Are you going to find out whether it’s a boy or a girl? Yes! Yes yes yes. We can’t wait to find out in just a few weeks! My very favorite consignment sale is actually at 19 weeks and 3 days, and I’m considering using my one-time pregnancy diva card to schedule our ultrasound appointment a bit early, ha! My shopping needs will be very different based on the results, so I feel like this is justified :)

Does June know? We have talked about the baby in front of her, but haven’t really had a sit-down chat, and she’s never brought up the subject independently. I don’t think she understands much at this point. I’m sure we will be discussing her big sister status more intentionally as my due date gets closer and there is a belly to point to!

I’ll end the same way I did my first pregnancy announcement. We are grateful. We are trusting in God, who has equipped us with everything we need and has chosen us uniquely for this baby. We are trusting in each other, as we have for the last thirteen years. And we are trusting that all that is to come is the continuation of a beautiful story. Looking forward to sharing it, friends!! Happy Valentine’s Day :)

Biggest thank yous to our dear friend Graham of Anagram Photo for these sweet photos of our growing family!! He snapped them in his backyard a few weeks ago and then Sam served us the most delicious lo mein for lunch, so all around it was a blue ribbon day :)