One Year Ago...

One year ago today, we were looking at this...

and now we are looking at this...

It may sound cheesy to say but today brings back a total flood of emotions. I cannot even begin to explain how I felt the moment that I held that pregnancy test in my hand and saw that it was positive one year ago.
After struggling with fertility issues with Allie, pregnancy tests became such a negative thing to me. They brought frustration, sadness, anger, depression, etc. I quit buying them because I was so sick of going through the total high of anticipation while waiting for the results and then the devestating low of seeing the result that you don't want to see right in front of your face. Although I never got to see an actual positive pregnancy test with Allie, I do think it's cool that Matt actually found out before me that I was pregnant (I had had a blood test and the doctor called Matt with the results) So this time, taking a pregnancy test with Sienna and finding out that I was pregnant was a new thing for me...and it was GREAT!!!
We had been trying to get pregnant for about 6 months and it wasn't happening. It didn't totally surprise me since I went through this for almost two years with Allie, but I have to say it was a little easier this time around. Getting pregnant didn't consume my every thought and I felt sooo blessed to have Allie but of course longed for another baby. I remember for the first time not feeling very well at a birthday party for my bff's son. But I totally brushed it off, trying not to think about it. This continued for about a week, but again, I just did not want to get my hopes up so I tried to ignore it. Finally, I sat down and realized that I was almost 2 weeks late and decided it was time to go to the store and pick up the dreaded pregnancy test. I still did not think that it was possible that I was pregnant so I bought the absolute cheapest one there, a single pack, generic, and it was probably on sale. I did not want to waste my money on another one of these things! I went home, locked myself in the bathroom, prayed to God that He would protect my heart and prepare me for whatever was to come and...well, you know what I did. :) IMMEDIATELY it was positive. I couldn't believe it. I burst into tears, finally I was crying happy tears after taking a pregnancy test. I had always thought about doing something creative to tell Matt that I was pregnant but I was a mess and he was right in the next room so I couldn't wait! I walked into the room, tears streaming down my face and told him we were going to have another baby. We were amazed!
God certainly answered a huge prayer of ours and I was so thankful! And the best part was, this all happened on Thanksgiving day last year. Yes God, I know, You were in control the whole time and I am soooooo thankful :)

What happens when you are desparately waiting for the hospital to call....

It's almost noon and the hospital still hasn't called. I've been up since 3:30am and I'm bored out of my mind and going crazy, so I needed some things to do/make.....

Allie is 2!!!

Time flies...whoever came up with that phrase should definitely win an award for the most relevant statement pertaining to life. Our (baby) girl turned 2 on Monday and I swear it feels like last week that I was in the hospital having her. The last two years have definitely been the best of my life. Our sweet Allie Grace is the biggest blessing of our lives and I can't imagine my life without her.
We spent the weekend up in Prescott with my parents at their house swimming, eating, relaxing and having a ton of fun. Allie woke up on Monday morning and I had hid her presents around the family room for her. She loved ripping open the paper and kept saying 'ooooohhhh' with each new thing. It was so cute. Then we drove back home, Allie took her nap and we headed over to my brother and sister-in-law's house for a small family party. We swam, ate pizza (well, Allie ate a pb&j sandwich since she won't eat pizza) and sang happy birthday with a cupcake tower (because again, Allie won't eat cake!). She had so much fun playing with friends, opening presents and entertaining us, which she does best! Happy birthday my precious princess, I love you more than you can imagine!
A little sleepy on her birthday morning (even though she woke up at 9:00!!!)

She loves her new tricycle from Gammy and Tompa

Having fun swimming

A birthday hug from her boyfriend, Ty

Then sneaking in a little kiss (luckily the daddy's were there to supervise:)

Maybe our last picture of our family of just 3 :)

Uncle Ryan and Auntie Lindsay

Allie's new car

I finally bribed Allie into wearing this skirt (which she wanted NOTHING to do with on her birthday) and letting me take some pictures. I made her the shirt to match :)


And of course I had to bling out her flip flops and paint her toes. I LOVE little girls!!!

Sienna's 'Sprinkle'

I can't get over how blessed I am to have not only the most amazing mother, but the most amazing mother-in-law as well. They both love me, spoil me, help me and comfort me whenever I need it. Most of all, they love my girls. :) Since I'm having my second baby, AND it's another girl, AND I'm due the same month I was with Allie, AND I already had a baby shower for Allie, I certainly was not expecting to have a shower for Sienna. But of course, in come my 'moms' to spoil me. They planned the most wonderful 'sprinkle' for me (not a full on shower, just a sprinkle...love it!) and some wonderful friends and family at Bloom restaurant in Gainey Ranch. We had a great time eating lunch, chatting and celebrating my next little princess's arrival. I felt so blessed to be surrounded by my family and friends!

Me and my girl :)

My moms

The best sister-in-law, Lindsay

My grandma and Matt's grandma

Long time family friends of my parents, Joyce and Nancy

Long time family friends of Matt's parents, Kris and Martha

More of the ladies

Maternity Pics

I was so blessed to have my best friend take some maternity/family pictures of us a couple weeks ago. For those of you who know her, Bri Anderson is an incredibly talented photographer and I'm so glad that she is now sharing her talent with others on a professional level. If you have her take pics of you/your family/your kids, you will get some of the most incredible pictures that I know you will cherish forever. I loved that we were able to capture the memory of being pregnant with Sienna. In just a few weeks(hopefully), we will have this little baby in our arms, so it's fun to remember the time that she is growing inside of me. Here are a few of my favorites...










Thank you so much Bri for capturing our family in such a special way! I love you!

Our Last Weekend Fling

Matt and I spent last weekend up in Northern California for a last getaway before our second little munchkin is due. Our good friends were getting married so it was a good excuse to get away. The first two nights we stayed in Pleasanton. Matt worked at his home office on Friday while I shopped and relaxed in the hotel, then Friday night we took the BART into San Francisco and met my good friend Lauren and her boyfriend Mike for dinner. Dinner was AMAZING, I don't know how you can go wrong eating anywhere in San Fran, and it was great to see Lauren and catch up with her. Then on Saturday, we drove about 2 hours north to this beautiful winery for the wedding. I must say, getting married at a winery is soley worth it just for the pictures. I can only imagine how Curt and Jenna's wedding pictures are going to turn out, it was absolutely gorgeous up there. We got to see and spend time with a lot of good friends at the wedding, it was wonderful. Now that I'm home for good for several months, it's time to continue to nest!!!
Me and Lauren in Union Square

Matt and I with Annie and Justin at the wedding


The beautiful bride and groom

Of course a little Blue Steel, or is it Magnum???

Wedding Weekend in Austin

Matt had the honor and privilege of serving as the Best Man at his best friend's wedding this past weekend (Ryan and Matt have been friends since 7th grade!). The wedding was in Austin so he and I got a chance for a mini get-away just the two of us (Allie was COMPLETELY spoiled at her Gammy and Tompa's house) Although we missed Allie terribly we had such a wonderful weekend. The rehearsal dinner was at a well known restaurant that was unlike anything Matt and I had ever seen. It was on a gorgeous lake called Lake Travis, was 5 stories tall and seated over 1,000 people. Every single table in the restaurant had a view of the lake. We had a private room, ate wonderful Mexican food, then we all went onto the balcony and watched the sun set over the lake. It was amazing. The wedding on Saturday was in a beautiful church with an incredible wooden ceiling, then the reception was at the Omni hotel in downtown Austin. Brandie and Ryan did such a good job with all the wedding plans, everything turned out great, and we were honored to be able to celebrate with them!
Matt and Ryan at the rehearsal

Just moments before walking down the aisle

The church was amazing, the entire ceiling was woodwork like this

Mr and Mrs Hubele!

Me and my handsome hubby

The four of us

Hanging out in Austin on Sunday (apparentely that is some famous building in the background, don't ask me what it is???:)

20 Weeks! Halfway through!!!

Well, actually, I am hoping and praying that I am MORE than halfway through! Allie was 10 days early and was such a chunk that if this little girl is similar at all, hopefully I will deliver early again! I cannot believe though that I have officially hit the halfway mark. I feel like it has gone by soooooo fast. Probably everyone would say that with their second child since this time there is another little munchkin already taking up all of your time. I am feeling great which I am so thankful for. Sleeping is getting a little hard, with frequent position changes and trips to the bathroom but I'm actually finding I'm not too tired so that is a good thing. And for some reason I am so much smaller this time too which is weird because everyone says you show faster and are bigger with your second but I guess that's not the case with me. I'm not complaining because I KNOW that I will be huge in a few months regardless. :) The best part of being pregnant right now is feeling my little princess move inside of me. I would say that is my favorite part of pregnancy in general. I love feeling (and even seeing on the outside) all the kicks and stretches that our little baby is doing. It is the best and I NEVER get tired of it! I think it makes it so much more real for Matt too, he can't keep his hands off my belly and always asks me if she is moving. I love it and I continue to pray every day for this incredible blessing that God is forming inside of me!

It's a GIRL!!!!

These past 24 hours have been filled with thoughts of pink, tutus, tea parties, dresses, hair bows and all things GIRL!!! That's right, Matt and I found out yesterday that we are expecting a second little princess in July! We are truly excited but especially thankful that everything went well at the ultrasound. The 'big 20 week ultrasound' is oh so exciting but is also a little frightening as well. As much as we completely trust God that he is forming our little baby in exactly the way He intends to, we of course wish for a perfectly healthy child and this ultrasound is really the first time that you get a pretty good health report of your child. So far, our baby girl is perfectly healthy and for that we are rejoicing! I think Matt is a little overwhelmed, especially coming from a family, and really a lifetime, of all boys, but he has been making the cutest and sweetest comments over the past day so I know he is excited. There is something about a relationship between a daddy and a daughter and I know Matt is so incredibly thrilled about having two daughters now. And of course, being the girly girl that I am, I can't wait. I tried to scan our ultrasound pics but something is not working so I'll have to post a few later but she's just adorable already. :)
Since it's a sin to post without a picture, here's the first princess...

16 Week Baby Bump!

One of the best things about being pregnant is actually looking pregnant! It's kind of a weird phase in the beginning when you look completely the same, and sometimes even feel the same (although not really in my case) but you have this little person growing inside of you. When you can actually see the evidence of this on the outside is when it gets really exciting. According to my Babycenter weekly updates, our little one is about the size of an avocado right now and is starting to grow toenails! How precious! I can't believe we will be finding out whether we will be painting a room pink or blue in less than 3 weeks! I must say I'm completely obsessed with decorating kids rooms and I can't tear myself away from the internet looking at bedding and decorations for the new baby and for Allie's big girl room too. There is going to be so much excitement in the next few months for us I can't wait!

The best Christmas gift!!!

This Christmas will definitely be very high up on the memory list for Matt and I. We (finally!) got to tell our families that we are PREGNANT!!! It's been a secret that I had to keep for over a month, which was sooooo hard for me but Matt was adamant about wanting to wait until Christmas. Matt's family came over in the morning. We had a present wrapped for Allie and asked his parents to help her open it. Well, inside was a shirt for Allie that said 'Big Sister'. Immediately screams and tears came. Then that afternoon, we drove up to Prescott to be with my family. I had re-wrapped the shirt so we did the same thing with my parents. It was sooooo much fun. I will write more about what this pregnancy means to us, but it was amazing to share the news on such a special day which reminds us of the reason we are here. Here are some pictures of our wonderful Christmas day...
Telling Matt's parents first

Then my parents, I don't think my dad got it right away, or maybe he didn't see what the shirt said

Ohhhhh, I get it now!

Allie's Christmas jammies - last year I started a tradition of getting Allie a special pair of Christmas PJ's to wear on Christmas eve night. Last year's were soooo cute and I think this years are equally adorable

Complete with a tutu and ballet slippers

A baby Allie - actually spelled the right way!

Our child does NOT sleep in the car so we were shocked that she nodded off on the way to Prescott. Must have been all the excitement. And it didn't end there. She slept until 8:30 the next morning which is unheard of!!!

It was such an amazing day!