Our Five Ring Circus: June 2013

Sunday, June 30, 2013

Summer Perfection

Nothing screams summer more than a pool party!  In this case, it was to celebrate Audrey's 14th Birthday!

We all gathered at Audrey's Grandma's pool on Saturday to celebrate. We have such a fun group of friends...the kids and the grown ups!  

It was the perfect summer day!  With the exception of a 10 minute rain that sent us inside, we spent 7 glorious hours at the pool.  The kids and dads spent the day in the pool, the moms sat around and talked, and we all snacked on pizza, chips, soft pretzels, and cupcakes!

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It was such a fun birthday party, celebrating an amazing girl!  It was difficult dragging the kids out of the pool, but an approaching storm ended the fun around 8:00 that night.  Everybody that remained headed back to Amber's house to continue the fun!

It was the perfect day, and thanks to all the fun and sun, we all slept great last night!

Friday, June 28, 2013

30 Weeks with Baby #4

 I finally reached 30 weeks!  This pregnancy is flying by!  This is the week that I went into preterm labor with Dylan, and at 31 weeks with Lexie and Lily, I ended up in the hospital with contractions.  Maybe this one will behave?!?


How far along: 30 Weeks!!!

Due Date:  September 6, 2013

Total Weight Gained:
  I finally gained back the weight I lost!


How big is baby?  Our sweet pea
is
about 15.7 inches long and weighs almost 3 pounds!

How baby is growing:  Baby #4's 
eyesight continues to develop.   {from babycenter.com}

Maternity Clothes: I'm still wearing my regular pants, but I did invest in a few longer, non-maternity shirts. 

 
Stretch Marks: None! I've never had one before, so I'm hoping that trend continues!

Sleep: Sleep?  What sleep?!?

 
Best Pregnancy Moment of the Week:
Watching the baby shift around in my belly.  Pretty much the only thing I love about pregnancy!


Movement:  Baby #4 is a crazy mover.  He/She is strong and very active!

Food Cravings:  None.
 
Food Aversions:
Almost everything.

Morning Sickness:
I still have hyperemesis, and I'm taking daily medication for it.  I'm at the point where I'm used to being sick everyday.  I have been throwing up a lot more often in the mornings again. And by the way?  Morning sickness is a joke.  It's ALL DAY AND NIGHT sickness!


Gender: It's a surprise! We have never found out the gender of our babies!

Names: If it's a girl, she has a definite first name (it was actually our 2nd girl name for our 3 previous pregnancies), but we're still deciding on the middle name.  It's the opposite for a boy.  The middle name will be Dayne, after Grant's dad's middle name (he passed away in October, before we got pregnant), but we don't have a first name.  We have a list, but we can't agree on the name, and nothing sounds perfect!

Symptoms:  Hyperemesis  (ALL DAY morning sickness), Braxton Hicks contractions (irritable uterus), back pain, pressure, abdominal pain, anemia, peeing more frequently, headaches, mood swings, and irritability

ExerciseTreadmill workouts 4 days this week.

 
What I miss: Feeling normal.  I have been sick since January 3rd! I'm going to be thrilled to be nausea-free!

What I'm looking forward to:
My appointment on Tuesday!  It's always a relief to hear the heartbeat and have the doctor reassure me that the baby is growing!


30 Week Picture:


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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Caught Up

We're just about halfway through the year and I'm finally caught up on my 365 project!  I'm calling this a win!

So here's a peek into a week in the life of my (growing) family!

Week 25

June 18th

We woke up early and got ready for a morning playdate.  Once Aubrey arrived, we picked up Amber and her kids, and drove to a local berry patch.  We met up with a big group of friends and spent the next hour picking strawberries.  That afternoon, I took the kids to storytime at the library, and then Jocie and I took our kids to play at the park for a bit.  The rest of the day was spent at home.  That was much needed.  It was kind of a rough day.  I had a headache and bad morning sickness all day, my new SUV got a dent in the door, and Lily fell at the park and got a bloody lip, then fell at home and got another bloody lip. 

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June 19th

I wasn't feeling very well, so we spent the day at home.  The kids played with Aubrey all day, and we had a relaxing evening.  My dad picked Dylan up around 2, and kept him with him for the day.  He didn't get home until after the girls were already asleep.  He is the kind of kid that likes to stay busy 24/7, so he was thrilled to get out of the house for a while!

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June 20th

It was a long, busy day!  My nephews, Brady and Brandon, arrived at 7:15 AM so I could watch them for the day.  Aubrey arrived at 9, so by that point, I had 6 kids in my house.  They were all well behaved, and had fun playing together! That evening, we got an unexpected surprise.  My parents stopped by and took all 3 kids with them for the evening to swim at their friends' house!  Grant and I ended up having a date night!  We started off with dinner at Applebee's, then stopped at Kohl's to buy a romper for our baby, and went through the Dairy Queen drive-thru for some ice cream.  It was so nice to spend time with just him!!!  My dad didn't bring the kids home until almost 10, and they went straight to bed.  It was a great night!

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June 21st

I had a really difficult morning with morning sickness.  Once I got it under control, we went to visit my parents for the afternoon.  My mom, Lily, and I did our monthly stock up trip at Costco, then did some more shopping before returning to her house for dinner.  That evening, Dylan spent the night at their house and Aubrey came home with us to spend the night.  Their friend, Jack, ended up spending the night, too.  They had a lot of fun watching a movie and snacking on popcorn before bed!

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June 22nd

We woke up early, and 2 of Grant's friends arrived to help him with an outdoor project.  One of his friends, Lily, and I took our SUV to go pick up the supplies we needed.  Once home, they completed it quickly, so I ran out to get them lunch.  Dylan was gone all day.  He went to my sister's house and ended up spending the night.  That evening, after dinner, Rex and Jack stopped by to visit.  We put the girls to bed, and watched TV for a few hours before heading to bed.

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June 23rd

We had a really quiet morning at home with just one kid!  Dylan was still with my nephews and went to the pool with them.  My niece, Michelle, her fiance, Ryan, and Aubrey picked Lexie up and took her swimming with them.  That afternoon, after Lexie got home, we picked Dylan up at the pool and went to visit Grant's mom, brother, and Nannie.  Dylan ended up sleeping almost the entire time!  Once home, we had dinner, then sent the kids to bed early.  They were all exhausted!

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June 24th

We had a quiet day at home. Aubrey came over for the day, and the kids played all day!  After she left and Grant came home, we had dinner, then spent the night relaxing.

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Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Trendy Tot Tuesday



I am linking up with Kelly,  Megan,and Lindsay for Trendy Tot Tuesday!

This is my absolute favorite link up and I'm so excited to be the guest host this week!  I love participating in this fun blog hop every week, and checking out all the cute tots!

{Liliana}

Lily has tons of clothes, but I couldn't pass this dress up on Friday.  It was only $9.99 at TJ Maxx, and thanks to it being the next size up, she will be able to wear it next summer, too! 

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Dress: Nannette
Shoes: Bare Hugs
Headband and Flower Clip:  Girls Crochet Headbands

{Alexandria}

Lexie likes to shop for her own clothing and pick out her outfits for the day.  I'm happy she still prefers dresses and skirts!

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Shirt:  Lydia Jane
Skirt: The Children's Place
Sandals:  Josmo

{Dylan}

Dylan can be found in athletic clothing and playing baseball pretty much all the time these days!  He picks his own clothes every day, but I can't complain.  At least he matches!!!

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{Baby #4}

Although we do not know the gender of this baby, I felt bad that we didn't have any newborn boy clothing for summer.  I got one of those free gift cards from Kohl's, so we purchased something last week!  And if it IS another girl?  No big deal...at least the romper was free!

Carter's Striped Crab Polo Romper - Baby
{source} 

Last week's Tot of the Week is Ava!  How cute is she?!?



 Why don't you join in on the fun, and link up a post featuring your little cutie(s)?

*Trendy Tot Tuesday is a chance to talk about kid’s style, and pretty much anything goes.  Pictures of your cutie, talking about their style (that you buy and dress them in, ahem!), a Polyvore board, linking to the new kid’s line at the Gap – anything!  All ages welcome, from you sweet pregnant mamas stocking up a closet to the teenagers that probably pick all their own stuff out now.

*This is a hop-style link up – please follow your hosts (KellyLindsay and Megan) – we are in spots 1-3, and your guest host.  Also, jump around to meet other bloggers!  We hope everyone gains some new followers from this link-up and finds some fabulous new blogs!

*Please link back to (at least!) one of us, and feel free to steal our badge if you’d like.  If you’re a tweeter or instagram-er, use #trendytot

* Interested in guest hosting?  Please email Megan to get added to the list!


    Monday, June 24, 2013

    The Happenings of Week 24

    Week 24

    June 11th

    Dylan, Lexie, Lily, and Aubrey spent the morning playing.  That afternoon we had storytime at the library, then went grocery shopping.  That evening, we had a Thanksgiving in June dinner with our friends.  Aubrey ended up coming along.  After dropping her off at home, we returned home and put the kids to bed.

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    June 12th

    We spent the day at home, enjoying the gorgeous summer weather.  Dylan, Lexie, Lily, and Aubrey had a great time playing in our backyard with the sprinkler, pool, and water table.

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    June 13th

    That morning, we had a playdate picnic indoors at our friend, Amy's house.  It was our official kickoff to summer playdates.  Dylan ended up spending the afternoon with his friend, Jack.  That evening, after Aubrey got picked up, my dad came over to watch the kids.  I rode into Pittsburgh with my brother-in-law, Eric, and his girlfriend.  We met Grant at PNC park for the Pirates game!  Even though they lost, it was a lot of fun!

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    June 14th

    We spent the afternoon visiting my parents.  That evening, after dinner, my sister and my nephew stopped by to visit.  Dylan ended up going home with them to sleep over.

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    June 15th

    We had a lazy morning at home.  That afternoon, Dylan had his last baseball game of the season, followed by an end of the season pizza party at a local pizza/frozen yogurt place.  After the party, we went over to our friend's house for a few hours.

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    June 16th

    Happy Father's Day!  We spent the day spoiling Grant.  That afternoon, Grant's mom stopped by to visit.  That evening, we went to visit my dad.  On the way home, we picked up Chinese takeout for dinner.   We put the kids to bed, and enjoyed a relaxing evening at home.

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    June 17th

    Dylan, Lexie, Lily, and Aubrey spent the morning playing.  My dad came over shortly after noon so I could go to my 28 week OB appointment.  It was a quick one, so I managed to get a few errands done on the way home.  That evening, after Aubrey got picked up, we had dinner and went swimming with our friends.  It was the perfect summer night!

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