Introducing Charlie Matthew Ancell

I can not believe that Charlie is 2 months and I am just now updating our blog. Mason already had 4 posts by now, but its better late than never. I went in on August 15 which put me at 39 weeks pregnant to the date. I was suppose to be induced by 38 weeks but my doctor was off and the next time she was on call was when I was 39 weeks. I could have been induced earlier but she would not have been there to deliver my baby and with all of my problems I wanted her around. Things progressed slow at the beginning and I was in a lot of pain. She wouldn't let me have my epidural until I was at least a 3 or 4. So at 12:53 she broke my water and by 4:56 I was holding my sweet baby boy in my arms. Weighing in at 7 lbs. 13 oz and 20 1/4 inches long full of dark hair just like his big brother Mason. Matt and I were so blessed and beyond excited to finally get to meet our baby boy. another BOY!!!! I still can't believe I have 2 boys. My urologist decided he wanted the CT scan done the next morning after Charlie was born. Luckily, the scan showed no stone or mass. There is one more possibility of something else that could be wrong but he wanted to give my body some time to heal before we repeat the scan. I have to go back next month. I feel SO much better but still have some pain which does concern me but I am only going to hope for the best. Next day the urologist came in to release me and we were all on our way home. I got to go home and be a family of 4 and enjoy these past couple of months with my boys. I thank all of my family and friends for the continued prayers while I was in the hospital and all of the sweet texts and phone calls I received from everyone. 

Charlie is such a sweet baby and Mason has been an awesome big brother. Mason is a little obsessed with his brother but I am trying to let him be as involved as he wants to be because I know one day he is going to get so annoyed with him. I love every second of everyday with these 2 boys. I feel like Charlie has been apart of our family forever.

Although life seems to be a little chaotic for Matt and I, I am just trying to remain calm and realize that it could always be worse and that all of these little things are just that, "little". We are set to move to our new house the weekend of November 2nd. I can NOT wait!

The Countdown Begins!

I am at 36 weeks and I though that this mark would never get here. Although things have been so hectic it surprisingly went by quick. At my last doc appointment both the urologist and OB reavulated all of my tests. Since nothing has changed since 24 weeks they want me to keep going as long as I can but will not go any further than 38 weeks. Nothing has been scheduled at this point but I have my doc appointment tomorrow. This past week has actually been one of the roughest weeks I have had since 24 weeks and I have just been hanging in there because having a baby early just freaks me out!   After taking so much tylenol and the hottest showers I can stand it finally hit me this past week that I am more than ready to have a baby and figure out what is going on with my body. There is nothing scarier than the unknown. I have been busy packing bags, buying diapers, getting bottles ready, and trying to find a few neutral outfits so that the baby has something to wear the first few days. When I had Mason, I had no problem finding some neutral clothing but in 4 years things have definitely changed.

I feel like our lives have been in fast forward since we found out I was pregnant and I don't see things slowing down. A good distraction has been our house. I can not wait to get moved in. The floor plan has turned out better than I thought and although there are just a bunch of walls, it already feels like home.

Here are a few pictures of the house and of course Mr. Mason. I could take pictures of Mason all day long. I can't wait to have another stinker to take pictures of and love as much as I love Mason. <3 font="">

Yup, we have hit this awful stage but how can you not laugh at this face???

The pool feels amazing to me and it has been my second home this summer. Mason doesn't really mind ;)

Boy or Girl?????

 

Back of house before trusses. Looks different now ;)

Mason loves going to "daddy's construction site" This day he watched them remove trees

Front of House

2nd Pregnancy........

I can not believe that it is the sixth month of 2013 and I have yet to blog about anything. I guess its because since I found out I was pregnant on December 16th, things have been a bit crazy. So, second baby is on the way and due in August, or so we hope. A lot has happened the past 6 weeks that has made life a little tougher.

This entire pregnancy has been different, and not good different, bad different. I have not felt well and have had pain since the time I found out I was pregnant. Our first ultrasound at 8 weeks went great and Ancell #2 was right on track. At this appointment  I had a new doctor and not my regular OB. Since I am on glaucoma drops, (yes, I was born with glaucoma) and there is no studies on the drops I use she suggested I see a high risk doctor and get a second opinion. I did not take the drops with Mason because I was scared I would hurt him and in return I caused some damage to my optic nerve and my eye doctor said I can not go without these drops with my next pregnancy. So, I saw the doctor at 15 weeks, had another ultrasound, and things were still good with baby. Doctor saw no reason to see me again, (even though I told him how much pain I was in on my right side) and wanted an ultrasound done every 4 weeks to monitor baby's growth until further notice. OKAY, second doctor I told how much pain I was in but all I kept hearing was "your pregnant and every pregnancy is different"

Week 24 I go in and again, baby is doing good but I am in fact STILL not feeling well. At this appointment I asked my mom to go with me just in case something was wrong. She got to see how squirmy this baby is and was amazed at the things you can see. I got a pink slip which meant that I only had ONE ultrasound left because baby is good...YAY1!!!!!!!!!!! As usual, I had my OB appointment following the ultrasound to discuss anything they may have found. This month I gained 10lbs which she thought was a bit much but what are you going to do?? ;) Again, I told her that I get this hard spot in my belly and it is so painful on my right side. In fact, at this point, it hurt to touch my right side. She thought maybe I had a cyst, fibroids, or the baby is already poking me. She sent me back down the testing lab to make sure what exactly it was since I have been complaining about this pain since week 8. In my mind, I thought no big deal, finally an answer and I can set my mind at ease. But like my sister says, it is never that simple for me, and this time it wasn't. It ended up being my kidney. It was a grade 4 hydronephrosis at only 24 weeks pregnant. This is very common in pregnant women but not this extreme so early. Right away things changed and I was about as anxious as they come. I thank God my mom was there with me although she was as confused and worried as I was. So, they sent me to a urologist that week and I had an ultrasound done on both kidneys and bladder.

Week 25 I see the urologist. Luckily it is only in my right kidney and the other one at the moment looks good and so does my bladder, or what they can actually see of my bladder. He does say that something else is causing the kidney to be so backed up but at 25 weeks pregnant, anything that we do can start labor, cause infections, and more harm than monitoring the growth of the kidney. I had another ultrasound done at week 29 and of course, no change. Doctor was really hoping it would be better, but it wasn't.

Week 29 last ultrasound and finally an appointment with my old OB. Urologist wanted me to discuss things with my OB. At this ultrasound baby was breech and this was the only the 2nd time Matt got to see the baby. All became so real for the both of us....baby #2 is coming :). Baby being breech is the least of my worries, and the baby has time to flip around. At this appointment we finally got some answers and it was plain and simple. Not the answers I wanted, but answers. OB wants me to get to week 34. At week 34 baby can come out, not that we want that to happen but if pain continues, infections arise, or kidney starts to fail we have to take the baby. She consulted with my high risk doctor who was monitoring me and he suggested the same thing. Plan is: ultrasounds of kidneys every 2 weeks and blood work on kidneys to check function. But if things get worse before 34 weeks, I will have to have to put a stint in to drain the kidney. Not what I want at all, but at this point I don't want to lose a kidney. By week 34 if things are still the same, they see no reason why I can't keep carrying the baby.

Matt and I both asked the doctor if full term was possible and she danced around the question both times. Mason was a big baby, and so far this one has been measuring big (not huge). My goal is week 34 and anything after that will be a gift. I have good days and bad days. I am not on bed rest as rest is not going to make this go away. I am instructed to only sleep on my left side, minimal lifting, and rest. I always wanted my kids much closer than what Mason and this one will be, but I thank god they aren't. Mason is at an age where he doesn't need to be held. He can go to the bathroom, dress himself, and watch movies with me on the couch all day if I have to :). After the baby is delivered, while I am in the hospital they will do another ultrasound and a CT scan. They think I either have a kidney stone, mass, or something else that is causing my kidney to be so large.

I am at week 31 and have a check up next week which I will be 32 weeks. My family and friends have been so supportive and I am so thankful for all of them. Mason's daycare has been great, which helps Matt and I out so much. But most of all, my husband has been more than a husband but a best friend that has listened to my every ache, pain, worry, and crazy thoughts that have popped in my head. These last 6 weeks have been very rough. I loved being pregnant with Mason. In fact, it was the best I have ever felt. This time, I am wishing the weeks by just so that I can get to week 34. The movements are not as enjoyable because baby likes to stretch their legs on my right side which is so painful. I also have Braxton hicks contractions all of the time, which I never had with Mason. Also, very painful to my right side. I am just trying to keep myself busy which is hard. The unknown is so scary, and being that I have to worry about another life other than mine, makes it even scarier. I now trust my instincts, I kept telling them something was wrong and I kept getting the run around. I felt like such a baby complaining all of the time, but I knew something didn't feel right.

So keep thinking happy thoughts for me. Doctor says to take one day at a time and that's what I am doing. This is all out of my control and I am just trying to go with the flow which is probably one of the hardest things for me to do.

Catch Up

I can not believe how long it has been since I last wrote. Summer was crazy, then fall, and now Christmas is approaching. That being said, I looked back on everything that I wanted to accomplish this year with Mason and I have everything crossed off except for putting him in a big boy bed!!! Of course this is last because this is also a bittersweet moment. Clearly, life has to go on, but I can not believe that in just a few short weeks, my baby is going to be 3!!! Mason is an unbelievable child. I know more about dinosaurs at the age of 29 than I ever learned in the 4 years of high school and the 5 years of college. But, with Mason, it's different. I am learning things about his life and what makes him happy. He has taught me so much about what life is really all about and helped me deal with many things this year. We have had a lot of little speed bumps happen to us this year and as much as I try to not "sweat the small stuff", it's a very hard thing to do at times.

Since life has decided to take a different route for me, I have started indulging in many projects. I begged Matt to get me a nice camera for my birthday and Mother's Day and he was so reluctant because I swore I would take it and use it everywhere. ;) So, he gave in and I bet I have only used it a select few times. It was so over my head I got frustrated and just put it away!!! Finally I decided to start taking classes or doing something other than let it sit. I luckily found this amazing photographer to start helping me. She loves taking pictures and has the most amazing story of why she started photographing that she couldn't wait to help me!!! She tells me that I am a natural but when I look at my pictures compared to hers.....I don't see it ;) I don't want to be a photographer, I just want to capture my son at the special times in our lives. We bought this nice camera so now it is time to use it!! Now that she taught me a few things, I can't seem to put it down. I enjoy messing with technology and just having fun. Here are a few shots that I have taken. Nothing special and I am still learning but enjoying it all at the same time!!

 Meet little miss Anna Rhodes. Our friends just had a baby and I snuck a couple of shots of her while we visited. Welcome to the world Anna :)

                                                 View from our front door.

                                               Mason was not feeling a photo shoot today

STL Zoo

Back in May, we spent a weekend in STL and did all sorts of fun things. Although this post is really late, I still wanted to document the trip. This was Mason's first trip to the STL Zoo and he had a blast!!!

Mason is 2.5 already!!!!

I can not believe that Mason is already 2.5 years old! I looked back at this time last year on our blog to see what he was doing and I thought he was such a big boy, but compared to now, he was still just a baby.

Mason,
You are such a joy to your mommy and daddy. You make each day special and I can never wait to see what you will do next. Your mom and dad couldn't wait for you to come in to this world and now I just want time to stop because I enjoy you SO much!!! As a baby, you were a little tough for your mommy and I felt like I was always sweating the small stuff with you and not focusing on how truly blessed and wonderful you are. You have your dadd'y temper and your mommy's stubborness. You are a very independant 2 year old. I don't think I have met any other kid like you. You love dinosaurs, dogs, tractors, swimming, boats, fish, walks, truck rides with you dad, throwing rocks, and WATER!! You are talking up a storm and sometimes you make sense, while others I really have to figure out what you are saying. Singing songs and dancing are your new favorite things to do. You can name your dinosarus very well, but colors and letters are still troubling for you.When we go places, you finally aren't scared of everyone that talks to you! This was an awful stage but we managed to break you of it. I look forward to everyday with you.
Love you sugars!!!