Seattle

May 1-4

We have been talking with our good friends, Matt and RaShae Tillotson for about a year that we need to plan a trip together.  We finally made it happen and planned a last minute quick trip to Seattle.  We stayed in a townhouse on capital hill and had such a fun time.  Asher did great and just tagged along with us wherever we went.  (And we were very grateful to Matt and Shae for keeping him so entertained.) We enjoyed so much good food and a lot of exploring outdoors.  

We walked along Alki Beach, skipped rocks, and Marcus and Asher dipped the tips of their toes in the cold water.

Beautiful, beautiful view from Gas Works Park.

We rented canoes and spent a couple of hours on Lake Washington.  We saw turtles and herons and paddled through a beautiful arboretum.  Asher was thrilled to be in the canoe and loved that he got to paddle with his own yellow paddle.  He was so adorable, and after awhile he fell fast asleep.  He slept for about an hour until it started to downpour.  It was kind of a rude awakening for him, but we were able to wait it out under some bridges until it slowed down.

We drove out to Snoqualmie Falls.  The falls were huge and so beautiful.  (It was sunny and misty here...a little hard to keep our eyes open.)

We got delicious sea food at the Crab Pot.  Asher was so curious about the shrimp (with their beady little eyes and legs still on and why we were hammering our food.  He did not want to try any of it and was happy eating his noodles. 

We rode the big ferris wheel that went out over the ocean.  The boys would probably say that it wasn't worth our money, but I thought it was fun (and really kind of scary) and Asher liked it too.  

Afterwards we walked around in the rain for awhile.  It was getting dark and raining pretty hard.  Matt encouraged Asher to run around and jump in the puddles and although he ended up soaked from head to toe, he was in absolute heaven.  If you ask him what his favorite part of the trip was, it was jumping in puddles.  

Beautiful walks and views from Discovery Park.  We could have spent lots more time here, especially if it wasn't so rainy.  

One last visit to Pikes Place before we had to go to the airport.  

Until next time, Seattle!

Easter

We had a beautiful Easter Sunday.  Stella was still here with us, and they were just so adorable together in their cute Easter outfits.  They love each other so much and I was so happy to have captured a little bit of it in these pictures!

After church we went to my parents house for Easter dinner and a fun egg hunt.

Quick California Adventure

April 3-6

We took a quick trip to California and had such a good time.  We stayed in a beautiful Hyatt Resort in Huntington Beach which was amazing and just a walk across a bridge to the beach.  

Disneyland!
(Friday)

I know it is called the happiest place on earth, and now I know it is called that for a reason.  Asher was so happy there and it was seriously so fun to just be there with him and watch him love every second of it.  He loved riding the rides and didn't mind the lines too much.  He didn't love the rides that were in the dark with loud music, like Toad's Wild Ride, the Buzz Lightyear one, and Winnie the Pooh.  He would sit close to us, lift my hand to cover his eyes, and say he was ready for it to be over.  Once we were out he would say it was ok though.  He really liked Dumbo but his all time favorite ride was the teacups.  We rode it three times and he would have kept riding it over and over again.  He was just so happy!  He loved spinning it and would giggle and giggle.  

He also really loved the parade.  He would cheer and wave to each character as they went by.  He especially loved Donald Duck, Mickey and Minnie.

Probably my favorite part of the day was when we met Mickey Mouse.  We explained to Asher that we had to wait in line to see him and go through his house.  We asked if he wanted to do that or if he would rather ride rides, but he said he wanted to wait to meet Mickey.  We went through his house, and when it was our turn to go into the room where Mickey was, Asher absolutely lit up.  When we got to go stand by Mickey, Asher leaned over and gave Mickey the biggest hug.  He had a huge grin on his face and turned to us and said, "I gave Mickey a hug!"  Then he hugged him again and said, "Two hugs!"  He was completely thrilled and kept talking about it all day.

horrible picture quality but it's the best we've got...

sharing a dole whip...

Beach Day! 
(Saturday)

 It was a gorgeous sunny Saturday at the Huntington Beach.  The water was freezing but Asher wanted us to carry him into it over and over.  He was nervous to be set down but he wanted us to dip him in and didn't mind getting soaked by that cold water.  He played in the sand and built sand castles with Marcus.

We warmed back up and finished the evening at the hotel waterslides, pool and hot tub.  Asher loved the slides.

(Sunday)

 We watched the first session of general conference in our hotel and then wandered around at the Huntington Beach Pier before heading to the airport to fly home.  

And suddenly I felt like Asher was a teenager or something.  What the???

It's A...

GIRL!!!

Asher is pretty excited and is already so sweet about it.  When we got home from the ultrasound he asked if we could look at all of the pictures of his baby sister.  He sat with me and looked at her little face, her spine, her legs, arms, and fingers.  

Boy or Girl?

Before we go find out what we are having today, I wanted to record what Asher thinks about it all.  We didn't tell him we were pregnant and having a baby until the news was out, about two weeks ago.  But up until that point he has been telling us that he needs a baby brother, or that mom needs a baby.  A lot of the moms around here have been having babies so he is very aware of babies and keeps seeing his friends getting younger siblings.

Once we told him we were having a baby, he said, 'T is having a boy, so we must be having a girl.' (My sister Tierra is pregnant with a little boy, due just 3 weeks ahead of me.)  He was so matter of fact about it, and that was it.  Since that day he is convinced that the baby inside of me is a little girl.  He tells everyone that he is having a sister.  A few of his conversations: 

Someone asked if he was having a brother or a sister.  He looked at them and said 'A sister.  But I really wanted a brother.'

The other day someone asked if the baby was a boy or a girl.  He of course said girl.  Then they were explaining that it could be a boy or a girl still and that we don't know yet.  And he said 'yeah, but it's a girl.'  

There's just no question in his mind that he is getting a little sister!  I don't have any strong feelings about it either way (and I was wrong with Asher!) but I am feeling that it might be another boy.  We can't wait to go find out and see if Asher is right!

Big Brother

Coming September 7, 2014.

We are thrilled that we are pregnant and feel so blessed to be able to experience this again.  A lot of people have been asking if we got pregnant naturally this time around, but it pretty much took the same process as getting pregnant with Asher.  (With less waiting around I guess, since we had gone through this before.)  

I know that while I have been struggling to get pregnant (both times around) I loved reading about other people and how they handled this process.  So I don't think I could post a pregnancy announcement without a few of my own thoughts. 

(Feel free to skip ahead to the pictures if you're not interested)

This time around was obviously very different from last time.  For the most part, I would say it was easier.  I was already a mom.  I was already doing what I loved on a daily basis.  I knew that my body was capable of carrying and delivering a baby.  And I knew I could do it again.  That made giving up control and knowing that it wasn't up to my timing so much easier.  But there were things about waiting for a second baby that were also harder.  Guilt.  So much guilt.  I felt guilty for wanting another.  Hadn't I begged and prayed just to get Asher here?  Suddenly I felt greedy wanting another.

Once I got pregnant I was obviously thrilled.  And relieved.  So relieved to not be starting over on another month, another cycle.  But lingering there, was this strange mix of other emotions - guilt, sadness, and pain.  Like I was somehow undeserving of this or like it shouldn't be my time yet.  Sure, I hated our process of waiting - hated the artificial insemination, the awkward doctor visits, and the nasty side effects of the fertility medication.  But still, our process was relatively easy.  Especially compared to so many others.  

I know it doesn't seem normal to be feeling all those feelings at a time when I should have just been so happy, but I think the struggles of waiting for a baby stick with you, and definitely change the way you think about all of this.  My fertility problems and the process we've gone through to get our babies here has forever shaped me and become such a big part of me.  I hope it has changed me for the better: made me more loving, caring, empathetic, and nonjudging.  

And for all of those people out there who are still waiting - please don't give up hope.  I pray for you that your time is soon.  And I will never, ever take this little baby inside of me for granted.  

And now just some fun pictures of Asher as he goofed around while I tried to get a decent picture for our announcement:

and thanks to Kate, Rilee, and Tommy for their help with these pictures!