One year ago today...

One year ago today I dropped the dogs off at the groomer and headed straight to Walmart. I bought the cheapest pregnancy test they had, because I KNEW I was not pregnant. I made a b-line for the women's restroom so I could confirm that I really wasn't pregnant. I stood in the stall and watched those two blue lines show up and almost fell over from shock. I was pregnant. 
I texted a friend a picture of the test. She immediately called me. I think I said something like, "what am I going to do?" Her response was, "you are going to have a baby." Not me! This was not in our plans! I then called the doctor and asked if they would do a blood test. I still could not believe this was happening. The nurse told me that there was no need for that, because I was indeed pregnant. I can't even remember what I said. I think at this point I was so shocked I didn't know what to say.  Once I picked the dogs up from the groomer I headed home. I called my mom on the way home to break the news. She was obviously thrilled, and I couldn't stop crying. I texted Adam on the way home to tell him that he needed to come in the house once I got home. I was scared to death to tell him, because we never intended to have another child. 
It took a few days for the shock to wear off for both of us. I had moments of total glee and moments of complete panic. I won't lie when I say I laid in bed and cried on and off about the fact that I was pregnant. What was I going to do with another baby? How am I going to take care of two kids? Is Ella going to be a good big sister?  Ella never wanted a sibling and now she was going to have one. The list of worries could go on and on. Our life as we knew it would never be the same. 
Flash forward one year...

Life is definitely not the same but has changed for the better. Paige has filled our lives with so much joy and happiness. She has filled a void we didn't even know we had. My days are filled with smiles, giggles, cries, cuddles, and that wonderful baby smell. Life with two kids is busy all the time. Someone constantly needs something, and I have little time for myself. You know what? I wouldn't change it for the world. I was given the greatest gift you could ever ask for, and I will always be grateful for my sweet baby Paige. 

Paige || 4 months old

Our girl turned four months old on 9.11.15. I am not sure what we ever did without her.  She is such a joy (I think I say that every month)! She is still holding onto her title as best baby ever. Always happy, always smiling! Everyone comments on what a good baby she is. 

 As hard as the baby stage can be I would love to bottle her up and keep her like this. It's so fun to see her grow and change but knowing she is my last one makes it bittersweet as well.  I'm definitely trying to enjoy every single moment, because I know babies don't keep! 

This is Paige at 4 months old: 

Weight: 13 pounds

Height: 24 1/2 inches

Eyes: I'm going with green on this one. Her eye color is exactly like Adam's. 

Hair: Brown of course and getting thicker by the day. I'm so interested to see if it will be curly or straight. 

Clothes: It needs to get cooler soon, because Paige has almost outgrown her summer clothes. She is in size 3 month clothing right now. Size 3-6 months is a tad too big but it won't be long. She is growing like a weed. 

Diapers: Size 2

Sleeping: Paige goes to bed at 6:00pm every night. This is fine most nights, but it can make it hard to have a life.  She is sleeping through the night often, but still wakes up around 3am or 5am for a bottle some nights. She will typically go right back to sleep. She is an awesome sleeper. She goes to sleep very easily, and she can get herself to sleep on her own. I definitely can't complain about her sleeping habits. 

Eating: Paige takes a bottle every 2 and a half to three hours. She is up to five ounce bottles except when she wakes up and goes to bed. She is especially hungry after she wakes up in the morning so I make her six ounces. I also give her six ounces before bed.  She loves to eat!

Likes: smiling, eating, sleeping, baths, being sang to and talked to, swinging, watching other kids, chewing on her fingers, sucking her thumb
Dislikes: being startled, loud noises, the snot sucker, 
 Milestones: Smiles spontaneously, holds head steady (most of the time), holding toys, brings hands to mouth, recognizes familiar people, babbles

Ella and Paige | Week 18

Finally getting caught up to last week. It was only a four day school week which is always nice. The week seems to go by so much faster. Since Monday was a holiday Autumn spent the entire day with us. You would think adding another child to the mix would make things harder, but it actually makes things easier. Don't get me wrong, it's still wild. The girls are really good about playing together and keeping themselves occupied. They also will include Paige if she is able to do something. We had a fun day, and it flew by. 

Autumn and Paige sat like this for at least twenty minutes. They were both very content. I think I need to have Autumn here more often so I can get some things accomplished. Ella will not let Paige sit with her like this unfortunately. 

 They insisted Paige go "swimming." Paige was more than happy to sit in the water. 

Ella now has weekly spelling tests. It took me a couple of weeks to figure out that the spelling words go up on her teacher's website the weekend before, and if they get them all right on the practice test they don't have to take it on Friday. Ella and I practiced all weekend, and she got them right on her first try. 

This past weekend was SO nice. Paige didn't nap on Saturday so she enjoyed some time out on the swing to keep her from fussing before bedtime. 

 Ella loves to swing too and see who can swing higher. She of course wins every time. 

All the swinging wore Paige out. She needed a short cat nap before bed. 

Love these two girls! I think they look a lot alike in this picture. :) 

Ella and Paige | Week 17

I'm a couple of weeks behind on my weekly posts, and I'm starting to not even remember what happened each week. One of these days I will get caught up but until then here is week 17 in pictures. 

Left: Paige at mom's day out orientation. She slept through the whole thing. Right: Paige is starting to suck her thumb. Makes me laugh every time. 

 The big girls love to play with the baby stuff. 

Ella's front tooth is extremely loose and the other one is not far behind. 

Paige and Ella in the same sleeper. Definitely starting to look different!

Nothing better than baby rolls! I love those legs!

We think Paige and Adam look so much alike!

Ella invited her friends over on their three day weekend and had so much fun. I love that she has school friends that she loves to see outside of school. Never thought I would see the day!

Paige has moved up to a big girl bath, and she seems to be loving it. She is so relaxed at bath time. 

First Day of Mom's morning out

Paige started Monday's for Moms at church today. I heard about this and signed her up even before she was born. I originally signed her up, because I thought I would need a break. Lol! After she was born I realized I didn't need a break, but it would be good for her to go. I want to get her socialized a lot sooner then her sister. She will be in this building for school for hopefully the next 8 years so she may as well go ahead and get used to being dropped of there. 
I know one of Paige's teachers, Anna, so that eased my mind when I dropped her off. Anna even texted me pictures and updates throughout the morning just so I would know Paige was just fine. 
Here she is at drop off with Ms. Amanda. Laid back as usual! I just dropped her off and left. No tears from either of us. I know she is in good hands. 

 She had a rough morning of eating and sleeping. She took in a nap right in the middle of everything and did just fine. I packed in as much as I could in those three and a half hours. I forgot how much you can get done without any interruptions. 

She was happy as a lark when I picked her up. They said she was happy the whole time and didn't make a peep. Such a good girl! 

They also made this adorable artwork. I'm so happy they were able to get her hand prints. I will treasure this forever. 

Paige's first zoo trip

Paige is experiencing all kinds of firsts lately, and today was her first time at the zoo. The weather was perfect with little humidity and a light breeze. The zoo was the first place I thought of this morning, and Ella was all for it once she woke up. 
This was the first time Paige rode in her stroller without the car seat. She doesn't typically mind her car seat, but she doesn't like to be in it for long periods of time. She is finally stable enough to sit in her actual stroller. 

 We had to make a pit stop to feed Paige, because she was a little fussy when we got there. Once she was fed she was good to go. 

 I bought an  ergobaby carrier this week. It's so nice to be able to carry Paige on my chest but not actually hold her. She stayed like this for most of the trip. I have a feeling I will get a lot of use out of this thing. 

 While waiting for the tram I decided it was the perfect time to take a few pictures. We ended up waiting at least half an hour for it. It's not like the zoo is a happening place in Evansville so I'm not sure what was going on. 

Love these two girls so much even though they wear me out on a daily basis. 

Paige was still perfectly content on the way out of the zoo. I think she was out even before pulling out of the parking lot.  

Ella said, "I love this Sunday" while we were at the zoo so that definitely made it a worthwhile trip.  It was a great day and a  great first trip to the zoo with Paige. I'm sure it was just the first of many more fun times to come at the zoo.