Dear Henry...

Well. Here we are, son. Nearing the end of week 39! You've been the best baby in utero! Can I just say that I can't wait to meet you?? Tonight I held a one week old baby and you know what? I am SO ready to hold you too! Your brother James did so good when I held baby Josiah, he was so curious, I can't wait to see his reaction when he meets you!

Tomorrow we have an appointment to make sure you're still doing good. But please take your time, there's no rush, I'm feeling pretty good these days, considering how awfully uncomfortable the end of pregnancy can be for some moms. Dad & I even took your bro to Disneyland yesterday! Walking is supposed to encourage you to make your debut, but honestly, I think you're just too cozy. Maybe you'll be a September baby like your mama? :)

Anyway, I just have to say I'm so proud of you for turning over two weeks ago! I was a little nervous about you being breeched at 37 weeks, and all the doctors and nurses were so shocked that you actually flipped over at 38 weeks! You, my sweet boy, seem to like to do things your own way! You stumped the medical world! And you are a testament that prayer truly works! We had a lot of people praying that you'd flip in time, and that's exactly what happened! I felt you turning over on Tuesday morning at 4am, had 4 contractions within' an hour, and then you were so still and quiet at 5am, I knew you'd gone to sleep from all the excitement of flipping over. And then on Wednesday morning at our special ultrasound appointment to see if you'd flipped or if we'd have to schedule a C-section, the tech confirmed that you were the right side up (down!). Here's a little photo of your fist from that morning. I like to think of it as you saying, "I. GOT. THIS."

We are so thankful for the community of friends and family that rallied beside us to pray for you and your amazing summersault skills! We love you and can't wait to meet you!!! See ya soon baby Henry Robert!

-Mom

Henry's Nautical Baby Shower...

Ahoy there, matey! That's right. Henry had a baby shower that was nautical themed! I was surfing Etsy and came across this cool printable DIY for just $10, and was like, "Dude. YES!" A summerish theme for a summer pregnancy for a GREAT price?! =LOVE!

My mom was so excited to host and throw us the shower here in Fullerton, and she was such a wonderful hostess! She gave an amazing speech at the shower, which was held at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Downtown Fullerton. The Fullerton train station is right next door, so needless to say James was SUPER excited about nana's choosing the best location in Fullerton (James is in love with trains-just in case you didn't know), and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves! I know we did :)

Here are a few photos from Henry's special day...

My mother is a beauty, right?!

My mom + her babies! 

These two are the absolute best. ABSOLUTE BEST I SAY!

The speech that had me so teary eyed...in a good way!

Shower games!

RockHarbor Fullerton shout-out! Holla'!

Friends! 

ps-thank you Johnny + Emily for surprising us! 

That was absolutely the best surprise EVER! Love you guys :)

Fam!

More fam!

That cutie wanted to sit by grandma + grandpa :)

Found this on the camera after the shower, gotta love the selfie shot. Lookin' good ma! 

Kid's table! My niece Addison, nephew Bobby, and pal Sebastian!

 These are some cool kids I tell ya!

Nana + grandma 

Thank you friends + family for coming to Henry's shower! 

We felt so loved by all of you that came and celebrated alongside us!

ps-I can't believe how fast this entire pregnancy is going! I'll be 38 weeks this Thursday and am so excited to meet our baby boy. For now, we are getting little things together...hmm, I should probably pack my hospital bag, and maybe have Mitch install the infant car seat soon. Ahh well, we will get to it all eventually! 

Dear Henry...

I can't believe how FAST our time together is going! You're doing great in there son, sometimes I forget I'm even carrying you until you kick me so hard I gasp out loud! Or if I walk past a mirror, or try to bend over to pick up your brother's toys, or get a sudden craving for cereal...

Nonetheless, you have been so wonderful. The dr. says you are growing nicely, and we get to see your cute little face again on August 7th (eek!), which isn't too far away from your due date on August 29th. Will you be late? Will you be early? I ask myself this a lot lately, and I also pray for a quick and healthy delivery for both of us!

As far as cravings go, you seem to like cereal and that's about it. Although we shared a bbq chicken pizza from Pieology on Sunday and we BOTH had an awesome time eating that up! You seem to be a heavy sleeper, not even the sound of worship music at church on Sundays has woken you up, but you do get a little startled if your brother screams when he's right next to you in my tummy. Or whenever he climbs all over me and doesn't realize he's climbing on you too :)

We ask James, "Where's the baby?" and he points to my tummy. It's awfully cute and I choke up a little each time. I can't wait for the day when I walk into your room and you guys are huddled together under your blanket fort talking about super heroes and trains and dinosaurs. I love being your mom and can't imagine my life any other way than it is at this moment in time.

Your dad is curious about you. We think you will be even quieter than your bro, maybe even a good sleeper (yes please!). Dad is so in love with your brother, he can't wait to fall in love with you too (even more than he already loves you now).

So keep growing baby boy (you're kicking me and rolling around as I'm wrapping up this letter to you) and we will be seeing you in about 8 weeks!

x's and o's times a bajillion,

Mom

Henry Robert...

My son. Our son.

We are so excited to meet you! We can't wait to see who you will look like, if you will resemble your older brother James, or if you will be your own little person completely different and wonderful.

I have to tell you, if you're anything like you've been in my womb, then I think you're going to be a quiet boy. My pregnancy symptoms have been so different with you! I didn't have symptoms until I was almost 4 months pregnant, and even now the only ones I have are headaches, some reflux, and that's about it! No backaches, no constant sobbing, and I can brush my teeth without losing breakfast which is wonderful!

We have some baby clothes that used to fit your brother James, which I know you won't mind using since you'll be oh-so-stylish. You're birthday is somewhere around August 29th (20 weeks away!) which means this summer is going to be a long one for your mama, but that's ok. I'm looking forward to watermelon, museum and movie theatre trips, and even pool/beach days!

And we loved seeing you yesterday! You showed us your back, femur bone, and a quick shot of your profile. Your brother was busy getting into drawers, which I'm sure he'll tell you all about once you're able to explore with him, but your dad was staring at you saying "oh wow" :)
The technician said you're about 12 oz already! 4 oz away from a whole pound! Way to go, Henry! The average babe at this stage is about 10oz, so you're doing wonderful son!

That's all for now. Keep growing strong my little banana (that's how long you are this week), and we will keep you healthy with your favorite foods Raisin Bran, Mac + Cheese, and mango salsa. YUM!

Pregnancy Round 2...

Baby is the size of an onion! 

Photo credit: The Bump

Well, I can't believe I'll be 17 weeks this Thursday. Here's a short list of how it has been going and some things that Mitch and I have started to discuss...

Pregnancy #2 is COMPLETELY different than when I was pregnant with James. I didn't really have any symptoms with Baby Fierro until about a month ago. Then the nausea, cravings, and EXTREME thirst for water kicked in.

The headaches. Oi. The headaches have been the worst of it. I'll be completely fine and then BOOM! Headache. Lots of water is supposed to help with this, but to be honest I am lacking in that department. I seriously need to carry around my water bottle more...

It all seems to be zooming by so quickly! I know a lot of this has to do with me being 100% preoccupied with James, which I don't mind at all. I can see how the days and months are going by so quickly, I guess I just didn't expect it to go by soooo fast!

Quickening! I can feel Baby Fierro moving around a lot sooner than I thought I would. Suppose it has something to do with already knowing what it's like :)

AND SO...

This leads to thoughts on delivery and a summer pregnancy. Ugh. Not looking forward to either one, but I am looking forward to lots of watermelon, tank tops, museum and beach trips, and a trip to San Diego. And of course meeting our little babe at the end of August.

We've also been talking about trying out new baby products this time around. Like the Ergo instead of the Bjorn. And thinking of which double stroller to purchase (2 of everything! Whoo hoo!). A mom I met at Disneyland told me the Phil and Ted's  Verve is the best for double strollers. It's a little pricey, but we'd definitely check consignment stores + Craigslist for something like that first. And whether or not our Subaru is big enough. I think it will be fine, but Mitch isn't so sure.

So that's how it's been going so far! Nothing too crazy this time around. No sudden out bursts at unfit macaroni and cheese making (on Mitch's part), no violent crying because a character died in a book I've been reading (like when I read the Hunger Games), and no horrible vomiting every time I go to brush my teeth! Hurrah!

ps- today James dropped my iphone 5 in Teddy's water bowl. I almost cried. ALMOST. It's sitting in a bowl of rice as I type. And I had a horrible craving for a java chip frappaccino. Baristas everywhere on the planet are judging me as I type.