We're having a GIRL!!!

And her name is.......LYDIA!!! :)

We had our big ultrasound and to my surprise, we're having a girl! I think everyone had me convinced it was a boy, so I really was so surprised!! Justin had guessed a girl and he was right. Chloe had said we were having a boy from the very beginning and I thought her instincts were probably better than mine. haha. Not so apparently! We had her name picked out about a week before our ultrasound. I suddenly realized how much I loved the name Lydia and Justin said he did too. SOLD! :) I think Chloe and Lydia sound so pretty together. It's really fun to call baby by her name. :)

(I feel very wrong posting this picture! haha)

As soon as the ultrasound tech told us it was a girl, Chloe crossed her arms and gave a big scowl. She was definitely not a happy camper. It took her about 5 minutes to get excited about "playing babies and dancing in dresses" with her little sister. She is now so excited for a baby sister and is honestly going to be the best big sister in the world. She already loves her little sister so much!

I'm already daydreaming about all the fun they will have together. I have 2 sisters, so I know how special a sister relationship is and I can't wait to see it unfold :)

Here is my 20 week picture:



And a few more of our sweet little one:





She is moving around a TON. Pretty much anytime I slow down she makes her presence known. :) And it's so fun to feel her and know she's doing so well in there!

It still takes my breath away that God has blessed us with this new little life. He has been so good to us. I am so incredibly thankful!!

We have decided to use cloth diapers with this little babe. When I had Chloe the thought of cloth diapers was insane to me. I honestly didn't know, though, how easy and wonderful they really are! We (I say "we" VERY lightly because really it was me! lol) made this decision for several reasons: Cost (while the upfront cost is more, we will be saving upwards of $1500-2000 by choosing cloth); while I'm not really what I would call a "green-living" person, it really did bother me to throw away SO MANY nasty, non-biodegradable diapers when Chloe was in diapers so this solves that problem; they really are better for baby with no chemicals and soft as butter; and they're dang cute -- the diapers *and* the little baby butts in cloth diapers!!

We got our first cloth diaper already from our sweet friends, Chad, Cassie, and Eli (thanks, guys!):

Isn't it adorable? I can't wait to have Lydia's tiny bum in there!!

I think we have decided to have the girls share a room so our spare bedroom can be our school room. Chloe and I are slowly planning out what we want it to look like and I am getting so excited about decorating for Chloe *and* Lydia in the same room! I have some ideas and the only thing set in stone is that it will have lots of PINK!!! ;)

Speaking of Chloe (no, I haven't forgotten about her! hehe)....she has been having a REALLY fun summer and my next post is going to be all about her and what she's been up to lately!

Almost 20 weeks!

(I'm not sure why the pictures are different sizes...sorry about that!)

Apparently being pregnant has made me the world's worst blogger. I feel like I have so much to say and wish I wouldn't have waited so long to update. This pregnancy has been so incredibly different than my pregnancy with Chloe. With Chloe I was so laid-back (and naive, really, which is probably why I had no worries), but this time I've honestly been a nervous wreck. My anxiety has gotten much better over the past few weeks, thankfully.

I was also having a very hard time believing we would really bring a baby home. One day my mom said, "Hey! we'll have a baby for Thanksgiving and Christmas this year...how exciting!" and in my head I said, "hopefully". That thinking really scared me (because I'm typically a very positive thinker) and made me realize how completely in denial I was. I think trying for a baby for so long really messes with your head.

Weeks 8-12 I was extremely sick and was having a very hard time. It was so hard because we have been hoping for this baby for so long and then to feel like I was complaining non-stop was really hard. I had to quickly learn that I'm human and feeling like crap all day long, whether you REALLY want something or not, is just sucky!!

Now, having said all of that about the first part...I have moved into a very happy, realistic view of this pregnancy and am finally so excited and really feeling like this is REAL! I will be 20 weeks on Friday and I can't BELIEVE we almost are half way there! I have been feeling so good lately and am really enjoying this whole thing!!

I started feeling baby (who we're calling Teeny Tiny for now) move about 14 weeks. It wasn't until 18 weeks with Chloe but I guess I just knew what to expect and feel this time. The first movements were very light and sporadic, but about 16 weeks they became very consistent and I now feel Teeny Tiny dancing around in there every day several times a day. The movements now are harder and much easier to "detect". In fact, Justin felt the baby kick -- flip, punch, twirl, whatever it was ;) this past Saturday morning :) I'm still trying to get Chloe to feel it, but she hasn't yet as baby seems to want to run from her every time -- lol...not sure if that's a bad sign or not!

Speaking of Chloe...she is so SO excited about having a new baby. She is going to be such an amazing big sister. She definitely thinks we're having a boy and really does not want a girl. She told me a couple of days ago that "we don't need another girl". Haha. I think she's a little intimidated by the idea of not being the only girl. She says the baby's name will be Cooper. We have no idea where she got the idea for this name, but when she talks to my belly (which she does often and it's so precious I about die every time) she calls "him" Cooper. Even if we have a boy, the name isn't going to be Cooper, but she's quite convinced. Not totally sure how we're going to handle *that* one, but we'll see!!

I have recently had a few conversations with her about how the baby "comes out". Yeah, that's been fun! haha! I'm trying to answer her questions as age-appropriately as possible and only give her the information she needs to satisfy that moments questions. We're slowly figuring it out :)

We're having a home birth with this one and I am *so* excited!! I have wanted to have a home birth since having Chloe. We have a really amazing midwife and while I'm not ready for baby to be here yet I really am looking forward to so many things about having baby here at home. (If you have any questions about our birthing plan PLEASE feel free to ask!!)

We have our 20 week ultrasound tomorrow to make sure baby is healthy and to find out if it's a boy or girl!! I am so excited!! I really have no "feelings" about what sex this baby is, but pretty much 99.9% of everyone else thinks it's a boy. We'll see!!! More than anything I'm just praying for a very healthy baby! Our appointment is at 9am tomorrow.

I've seen these little questionnaires on a few people's blogs. I snagged this one from Alisa (who I affectionately call my twin because we look so much alike!)
__________________________________________
How far along: 19 Weeks - 20 on Friday

Total weight gain/loss: about 8 lbs

Body Changes: I'm mostly belly, but unfortunately pregnancy expands my butt and thighs at a rapid rate of speed...so there's that ;)

Sleep: I've been sleeping pretty well at night. I sneak in naps every once in a while during the day when Chloe naps.

Best moment this week: Justin feeling Teeny Tiny kick!! :)

Gender: We will (hopefully!) find out in the morning!!!

Food Cravings/Aversions: I haven't really had any cravings (I didn't with Chloe either). I had an aversion to pretty much everything at the beginning, but thankfully I really don't have too many anymore. Meat is still not my favorite thing, but it just depends on the day whether I can eat it or not.

What I miss: Summer Beer!

What I am looking forward to: Tomorrow's ultrasound!!!

Milestones: Lots of movement and feeling great!