A VERY BIG LITTLE THING

My boys love the Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever.  Eli's favorite page is the page of "Little Things" shown above.

Today we have big news about our very own, new and exciting little thing.  It's a baby and it's a very big little thing for this mama to think about.

The current estimated due date for the littlest Petermann babe is May 14, 2016 and we will schedule a C-section a week or so before that.  We got a sneak peek of the little bean, via ultrasound, yesterday.  We're convinced that he or she will be the perfect end cap to our family.  

It is hard to imagine how another kiddo will fit into our family and round out our family dynamic.  It is hard to imagine the boys being soft and quiet and gentle with a new baby.  It is bittersweet to think of our Eli not being the baby anymore.

I've been checking out all the mom's in the grocery store with three tiny ones - trying to see how they're making it work and affirming that they are making it work.  I still remember those first terrible trips with two kids in tow and can't quite imagine how I'm going to do it with three.  But, of course, I can and will and eventually it will just be our new normal.

This baby has us thinking about things like minivans and kids sharing bedrooms.  These are things that, not so long ago, felt like they would be concerns of the distant future.  Time passes, my friends.

So far, this pregnancy has been okay.  Not great, but not terrible.  I've experienced a lot of days of just feeling "yucky" and quite a few headaches and tummy aches, but really nothing debilitating.  I think it was a little bit better when I was pregnant with Sam and a little bit worse (although shorter lived) when I was pregnant with Eli.

Sam was born via emergency C-section and I didn't give much consideration to a VBAC for Eli.  But I've recently been clued in to the (possible) speed of recovery after a vaginal birth and it has had me thinking about it a little bit this time.  That idea makes Brian pretty nervous - and me a little, too - so we will probably stick with the C-section, but a more speedy recovery sounds so nice.  (I clearly remember one of the first days that I felt completely normal and healthy and just "like myself" after Eli's birth and it was nine weeks postpartum.  That's just YUCK and too long and not something I'm looking forward to doing again.)

And despite all of these things to feel and things to think about and the fact that my ab muscles are shot, so my belly is popping out at record pace, the reality of baby number three hasn't really hit us yet.  I often forget that I'm pregnant or that we have big changes ahead of us.  I am looking forward to next May.  I can't wait to see who this little person is and to snuggle their little newborn self.  But I also want to really savor these last six months of living as a family of four.

We are so incredibly blessed and so incredibly thankful for the opportunity to be (and become) our very own little family.