Announcing to the Girls

Now for a fun and up beat post!

I tested positive very early on Saturday morning. Reese had come into my bedroom for assistance using the bathroom. I tried to go back to sleep but kept thinking about my missed period. I wanted to test but then again I didn't want to see another negative. So after 5 minutes of going back and forth I decided to just go test.

I went in to tell Karl that he "was going to have sparkling grape juice for breakfast." We had bought a bottle of sparkling grape juice for the last new year and forgot to drink it. It was in our fridge, so I told Karl (thinking it was going to happen last winter) we will just drink the juice to cheers when we conceive Dale. So, FINALLY we got to celebrate with that bottle. We decided not to tell the girls just yet, but allowed them to drink the juice with us.

When looking at these pictures, remember I don't normally give my girls juice, hence Reese's face.

 

Well, remember this was Saturday morning and Karl wanted to wait until we got a positive test from the doctors to share with the girls and our family. I was thinking two days is such a long time to hold in that secret. Then I remembered that Monday was a government holiday and that I wouldn't be able to go to the Navy Hospital until Tuesday. Thus I convinced him to let me tell the girls on Sunday morning.

Karl brought them their baby dolls at the breakfast table. Then we started talking about how much they like their 'pretend' baby. We asked them if they wanted a 'real' baby. Then after a couple questions they realized I had a baby in my belly. I was sitting directly across from Brady, so this first picture she is looking at my belly.

 Reese decided that she would have a pretend baby in her belly.

 But then there was the question that my belly wasn't big enough to have a baby. So Karl grabbed an M&M for each girl and explained to them that that baby is currently smaller then the M&M.

 Brady then asked if she could get down to hug and kiss the baby! She was more excited about this then words can describe. Within in the first five minutes she hugged, kissed, poked and tickled the baby.

 Reese is um, somewhat in denial. She will either tell me she doesn't want a baby in my belly or that it is just pretend.

Brady wants me to have a boy since there aren't any boys in the family. She kisses the baby every night during our bedtime routine. She has asked if the baby was going to drink mommy's milk or formula. I think she really wants to bottle feed the baby. Also she told me that she wants to baby to sleep in her room. That when the baby cries she will just pick it up and carry it to me. She has also since asked if the baby is bigger than an M&M yet. Oh,I love how excited she is, I guess it will be a pretty good 5th birthday present for her.

Battle with Infertility

I want to start by saying, my struggle this time of 11 months is no where as long as some couples I know. So when I talk about this I am not trying to say I had it bad off. Some couples are counting years of struggles not months. We are very lucky to even have the possibility at all to conceive our own and I am very thankful for that blessing.

But at the same time I want to document the emotions involved in this struggle.

• Each and every month, no matter how long you have been trying, something inside you has hope that this month will be THE month. This has obvious good implications but also has difficult implications. First, it makes each and every negative test hard to take. Also, you put off living your life normally. For example, you don't worry about the weight you have gained because you think soon I will be pregnant and then I can worry about it later. Or you don't buy the cute new clothes you see because hopefully soon you will be wearing maternity. Or for example like me, I put off the laser hair removal I was gifted since you can't continue it while pregnant. All those things you put off build up and then creates even more spite towards the infertility issue. 
• The "two week wait" seems like a full month every time. You just trying to find signs that this time might be THE time. You search of the internet everyday about potential due dates or new signs that might give you a hint. Rechecking your temperature chart to make sure you read it correctly. Then trying to think of things to keep you busy so the time will pass more quickly.
• Another big thing to deal with during this time is the announcement of other ladies' pregnancies. The first time I struggled with infertility, I couldn't even say congratulations to my friends who announced during my struggle. I would go home and cry, especially when they tell me they weren't even trying (or and oops baby). You can't reason correctly during this time. 
• Yes, even if I have two healthy kids that are AMAZING, it is still hard to deal with. Again, this is something I think a lot of people don't understand (maybe even my husband). If I have decided I want a third but struggle it doesn't mean I love my kids less or don't appreciate them, it means I want more just like them. I have committed my body to conceiving a third and when it doesn't happen right away it is painful. 
• Intimacy in a marriage struggles for most during this time. The element of love is almost lost and it becomes a chore. It strains the relationship when 'it' is a chore for a year. 

I can keep going but I don't want to you think I was absolutely miserable during those long 11 months. I still loved my life more than you can imagine and I was/am thankful EVERYDAY for where I am in my life. I will say this past week there is definitely a bounce in my step that was missing for almost a year. 

Journey to Dale

What do I mean by "Journey to Dale" you ask. Well let me tell you...

Background information: For my first pregnancy, we called the (at the time) unknown baby, "Baby Orthner." Not surprising right... well that got shorten to B.O. We always got a chuckle out of that. Ironically, B. O. ended being our little girl with the initials BOO. With pregnancy number two, Karl's code name was Dash Two. This is a aviation term for when you are flying in form, the second aircraft is called Dash Two. That was shortened to Dash.

Another piece of background information: Karl loves NASCAR. His first driver he ever followed was Dale Earnhardt Sr. His car number was three. In college, as a joke, Karl would use the word Dale instead of three. Thus if he counted he would say "one, two, dale, four..."

I am sure you see where this is going. When discussing the possibility third child, especially in front of the girls we used the code name Dale. So like Karl will pat my belly and ask how Dale is doing.

So for the journey part....

Last year in July I had a serious case of the baby itch. I had three friends have a baby within a week and I was ready for that again. At that time Brady was 3 and Reese was 18 months. Karl was not ready at that time for Dale, so we tabled the discussion. Then in November Karl felt ready for the third. Thus November of last year we began our Journey for Dale. As you can probably guess we were struck with infertility woes yet again. In another post I will document what it is like to struggle with fertility. I believe it is something that is hard to understand if you haven't dealt with it.

I was on my third round of Clomid (fertility meds) when the doctor and I decided it was best I discontinue using it. I was having BAD side effects including blood clots. We didn't know what the solution was from there but the doctor had set up an appt. with a specialist. In September the earliest appt. was mid December. Broken hearted, I had to tell myself to be patient. My last cycle on Clomid I tested negative at 28 days. I decided it was time to get my weight under control (I am 15 pounds over my norm). I meet a couple times with a nutrition and fitness coach, got my plan set up for the next three months. Meanwhile, I was expecting my period. When it didn't come, I tested again at 35 days... POSITIVE!!!

I cried when I saw those two lines! After 11 months of trying, seeing the result was just as exciting as the first two times. We are VERY excited about Dale. Brady is already gearing up.

I plan on posting about the struggles of infertility and how we shared the news with the girls and friends very soon!

Wordless Wednesday: Elation!!!

 Please excuse what looks like the beginnings of a baby bump...that was my need to lose weight...but that will have to wait now!

Run Brady Run

We have found Brady's physical niche. We figured out about a year ago that Brady had a very good running stride. Well, Karl is working on making that running a part of her regular routine. Karl has started running with Brady on Sunday mornings. Reese always wants to join (which she is welcome to) but doesn't get far before she asks to go back home.

I love how Karl stretches with the girls before the morning running. I really enjoy watching this daddy/daughter bonding time. Here are some of the pictures I have captured for you to enjoy.

Mrs. Pumpkin Head

Last year, I bought a neat potato head kit to use on a pumpkin. I pulled it out again this year and boy oh boy has it been a hit!

Without realizing it, I bought the perfect sized pumpkin. Both of the girls carry it around the house like it is their baby. They take turns being the mommy, drop the pumpkin off at pretend school, put down for a nap, etc. I had no clue how much fun this would be for them. I love their imagination.

Leader of the Day

Reese was the leader of the day at preschool last Tuesday. I have written about Brady's experience as leader of the day, but this was Reese's first time to experience it.

She choose apples and bananas to bring for group snack. Here she is prepping the snack.

Moms, I want to share a trick that the teacher did, that I personally never thought about but it makes a big difference. To make the apples managable for Reese to cut, she sliced them in half horizontally. Therefore, there wasn't as much apple for Reese to push through. Also, the apple is then already cut into little pieces. And if you are like me and end up no where near the core at the bottom, it helps with that too. 

Reese choose to bring the Bonsai tree that Kaddie (my father) sent her in the mail last week. The students were very intrigued by the plant and had a in depth conversation as to whether the tree would get a lot bigger.

Reese also got to walk the line and change the date on the calendar. 

  

Reese was very proud to be the leader of the day. And for the first time, she has said she loves preschool. Feels good to hear that, she just had to adjust.

Orthnerisms

September 25:

Brady sat down to watch TV with Karl. He was tuned into a NFL game. Brady seemed pretty interested which always gets Karl happy, then about 5 minutes of watching Brady proclaims:

"Why do all those people keep falling down, they are so silly!"


October 2:

Reese: carried a pair of khaki shorts up to me "These are dark clear!"

------
a side note for this story: I have a friend, Stephanie, who works in real estate. My other friend, Erica, takes care of Stephanie's children while she is at showings.

Brady: To Reese, "You know that Stephanie bring her kids to Erica's house and then goes to work. Ok, so, Reese you will drop your kids at my house and then go to work. okay?"

Me: "Brady are you going to have your own kids?"

Brady:"No"  ME: "why?"

Brady: "There is a sharp knife when the baby can't slip out, and I don't want them to cut me with a sharp knife"

HAHAHA... I went own to explain to her about adoption and having your own babies without ever having them in your belly. We know a couple families who adopted and she thought this was the best idea ever and told me she wanted to do that. I even had to explain the whole process of how you end up with a new adopted baby.

A picture is Worth a Thousand Words

I noticed this week that the girls have both grown leaps and bounds in their drawings. Not that they are super talented in this area, but I like seeing the growth.

I was doing paperwork at the table and Reese asked to color too. I handed her a stack of white paper and pen and she whipped out all sorts of artwork. Here are a couple of my favorites.

This first one is "a sunshine"

 The second one is a self portrait. She added lots of details into her self portrait. She has her curly hair, is sitting on a booster seat, wearing the clothes she had on that day....

As for Brady she brought a drawing home from preschool, but then decided to add to it. The picture has a VERY in depth story that she repeats the same every time. This is a first for her.

Here is the story...

This is a house. The two striped rectangles are beds, belonging to Brady and her friend from preschool, Piper. Piper has two sisters, Emoree and Rilyann. The two sisters share a room with Reese, which is the dark rectangle on the far left. Then next to that is Piper's parents bedroom, and then Karl and my bedroom. There is two pools, you may be able to pick the one out in the lower right corner. The pink triangle is a tent. Also, notice the letters on the bottom of the page... Reese, Rilynn, Brady, Piper, Emoree...all their initals.

I have gotten so used to the random scribbles that these pieces made my heart happy and wanted to share them with you. I know it means more to me as the mom, but they are still glimpses of their presonalities!

Wordless Wednesday: Pet Shop Birthday Party Reaction

Paper-Free Kitchen

Yep, you read that right, for about a week now the Orthner kitchen has no paper products.

I read about a friend doing this on Facebook and at first I thought it was crazy and not worth it. But the more I thought about it the more I like the notion. I took all my saved up coupons to Bed Bath and Beyond and  created an easy system for all my family to follow.

Black=napkins
White=floor messes or super messy table messes...aka spilled yogurt like we had this morning
Colorful=hand towel/dish towel

I currently have the basket on the counter top so that we get used to grabbing for these clothes like we did paper towels  Hopefully I can move it one day into a cabinet!

Why did I choose the categories above?

Napkins are obvious, we need a small hand size cloth to clean our hands while we eat. But I needed to differentiate between hand/dish towel and floor messes. I want to know when I pick up a colorful cloth to dry my dishes that it has not cleaned up the floor.

So my family knows, the black napkins go straight to the washing machine after a meal, the white floor clothes go directly to the washing machine after use and the colorful dish towel gets changed every other day.

I just throw the clothes on the bottom of my washing machine and they sit there until a load of wash is done. A few clothes doesn't effect the size of your load, so I will just have a few to fold with each load, so there isn't much extra work with the laundry.

It feels good to do my part to save money in the long run while helping the environment. You may think there is no way your family can do this, but really if we can, so can you!

Mail Call

We have gotten TONS of packages lately! Whether it was gifts from family or things I bought, the mail-lady has been busy visiting us.

Here is a taste of some of the awesome things that have shown up at our house:

Bonsai Tree

 Special Mementos of Nana

 Disney toys

 First set of fall clothing

Pictures from Disney

 Bows 

 Legwarmers

 Cowboy Boots

Man, I love my mail lady! Also, my friend who is a Thirty One consultant brought over my bags I ordered....FUN! Got a free attachment to my kitchen-maid mixer, a free book that I am using as a Christmas gift...

Ballet Buns

Reese's hair is still very short and she still has those short short bangs. SO every week on ballet day she tells me she wants a bun. But her hair is too short for a bun so I always shove a couple bobby pins somewhere in her hair and she is happy. Well this past week, I tried the pigtail buns and YAH there was enough hair to do real buns and she was quite pleased with the outcome. 

I will have to admit, I think these two girls are pretty darn cute....I can't get enough of them!

What Disney Princess are you?

My father recently sent me this link to do with my girls:

http://disney.go.com/games/#/games/play3/&content=204062

It is a fun quiz that tells you which Disney Princess you are most like. Both my girls got Cinderella even though they answered the questions very differently.  I am apparently most like Ariel. There is a fun little blurb at the end like a horoscope that describes you.

So take the quiz and tell me which princess you are most like?