She's here!!

Our newest baby girl is here!!  Raelyn Rebecca arrived on June 27th at 8:14 am after a fairly quick (and intense) labor.  She weighed 8 pounds 9 ounces and was 20 inches long.  We are in love!  Her sisters are in love!!  And we are slowly adjusting to life with four girls to raise.  I am already finding it challenging to post (this has taken two days to get up), but hopefully will get easier (or not!!).  Regardless I am vowing to keep on blogging for my girls and our memory books.  Birth story and more pictures to come!!

She looks a lot like her sisters did when they were newborns!  We are soaking her up!

Dance Recital-aka Cuteness overload

Olivia and Claire had their dress rehearsal and dance recital this last weekend.  This is Olivia's second full year of dance and Claire's first full year.  Claire usually didn't want to go to class, but once there she always had fun and she really enjoyed doing the dance recital and didn't seem to scared.  Olivia loves to dance and often dances around the house.  I think they both have learned a lot in their classes and we were so excited to watch their show and see them perform and do so well.  Olivia did really well remembering her dances and really doing her lines and steps really well.

I took all these pictures the day of the rehearsal because we could be right on the edge of the stage and get better shots than when we were in the audience the next day.  At the recital Hans video taped the performances (they each had a tap and a ballet song).  I haven't gotten them uploaded yet.

But here are some of the cute photos I got.  Claire and Olivia both love getting their hair all done and putting makeup on.  Claire especially loves that part!!

Claire's tap performance (Do Re Mi was the song they song):

 Her and her friend Selma were so cute dancing next to each other (they are in class together).

Then Olivia danced her ballet performance (I Feel Pretty music)

Her lines are so pretty

 Then Claire danced her tap dance to It's Me...super cute!!

Finally Olivia did her tap performance to the song I'm a Girl

Here are the girls before we left for the recital on Sunday.

 Claire decided she wanted a bun instead of curls since Selma had a bun the day before.

The girls after their performance with their flowers.  We got Aubrey one too so she wouldn't feel left out and she was so cute carrying it under her arm.  This is the only picture Olivia smiled in and of course the next ones are the ones that Claire and Aubrey look good in and Olivia was pouting because she didn't want me to take any more pictures and she thought it was cold.  Oh Girls!!

We are so proud of you Olivia and Claire!!  I hope that you will continue in dance and continue to improve and grow.  You are both beautiful dancers and I love watching you!!

Waiting...

and waiting and waiting...

Each time I think I am prepared for the waiting game but each time it proves to be one of the most difficult parts of being pregnant.  Only with Olivia did I not have a waiting game as I didn't know what to expect, was sure she would be two weeks late, and really didn't even know I was in labor till it got pretty active about 6 hours before she was born.  And she was 5 days early!!

But ever since I have had all my babies natural (no drugs) and I know what to expect.  Plus Olivia set the standard of coming early and the other 2 have not really been early just right on their due date so I have had to go through the waiting game.  Of course this time is no different as far as the waiting game, but is different in that I am planning a home birth instead of a hospital birth.  I have had a bit more to prepare, but not too much.  And now I am (and have been) in the waiting game.  So the date that I think I am due has come and gone (which was the 22nd), but the midwife put my due date the 25th according to my early ultrasounds.  You see this baby is not fitting in the mold of the other girls' pregnancies.  She has always measured smaller, I have been smaller and not gained as much as with the other girls (which is good for me), and I am not retaining water (still wearing all my rings) which never happens!!  So this one is just different.  Will she be in the low 8 pound range like her sisters or much smaller?  Will she be super late so she can get up to that 8 pound range?  Who knows!!  And only time will tell.

In the mean time I am in the waiting game (along with those around me).  Waiting for those early contractions and the big day of meeting our new baby girl.  It is so tough and these last days seem to drag on, but I know she will arrive sooner or later.  Although I am really hoping for the sooner.  I have all my baskets with my stuff for the birth and stuff for the baby right after birth all set up (hanging out in the laundry room), the tub which I hope to labor and deliver in is all set up, and I have some food for after the birth ready to go in the freezer just needing to be heated up.  We are ready and waiting.

Last night I got in the tub to test it out.  It felt good and I think it will feel really good when I am in labor.  I am trying to mentally prepare for going through a natural labor for the 4th time.  It is tough because I know how intense it gets, know what to expect, yet don't know how it will really go this time.  I am nervous and anxious as I just want to be all ready and then just get this going (and over with) and have the wonderful prize at the end.  I have no idea when the big game will start so I am constantly thinking about it and preparing for it.

Today the girls will be doing a dress rehearsal for their dance recital (which is tomorrow).  I am looking forward to focusing on them and kind of glad that baby girl is hanging in their a bit longer so I can enjoy helping them get ready and watching them.  Hopefully I will be able to post about their show soon.  And that our baby has arrived...very soon!!

Until then...we are just waiting...

Growing up

My girls are growing up!!  Olivia and Claire both decided they wanted to get their ears pierced.  They love watching me put on my earrings and Claire especially has been wanting her own for a very long time.  So after some discussing we decided to let them both get their ears pierced.  I almost cried, because it is such a big thing for them to be big enough to decide they wanted them pierced.  

Olivia didn't want to go first, but the lady wanted her to since she was the oldest.  I was nervous she would cry since she seems to cry easier than Claire, but she did great and so Claire was brave enough to go too.  They both did so great and they are doing really well at taking care of them.

A little nervous

First look

A little nervous

First look

Aubrey wanted to go to, so she pretended and sat up on the chair with the bear

Olivia's self portrait on the ferry

Olivia and Claire's New Room

When we moved into our house four years ago the girls were pretty young so I just picked a popular girl theme and designed a Tinker Bell room for them.  Which I personally loved!!  The walls were a light green and all the furniture was purple. Both Olivia and Claire slept in there.  We had twin day bed with a trundle that my father-in-law built for them before we moved in. But recently we started about thinking getting the girls a different bed set up so we would have room for Aubrey to join the big girls someday.  And since Rapunzel had recently come out the girls both decided they would rather have a Rapunzel room.  So since we were changing out the beds anyways and would need new bedding I decided now was as good of time as any.  

So this project has been going on in different phases since the beginning of March when my parents came for a visit and Claire's birthday.  So back in March we repainted the whole room.  Here is what we found the day we went to paint the room.  Claire had decided to do some art work.  It was a good thing we decided to repaint.  Silly girl she is like her Uncle Josh used to be and likes to do her art work on the wall.  We have some other painting we need to do because of her!!  I can't find the before pictures on my lap top and don't want to take the time to search for them.  So this will give you an idea of the before.

So while my parents were here we got the walls all painted and got most of the room put back together.  I chose a blue for half of the room and coral pink color for the other half.  The furniture stayed purple that was already painted purple.

After my parents Hans and I put up some shelves and Olivia and I put up all the stickers I had purchased.  But we still had the day bed and trundle so it wasn't complete.

Then in the first part of May, Hans parents came and brought the girls' new bunk beds designed and built by Eric (my father-in-law) with some input from Hans and I.  They took the top part (the day bed) back with them (we will probably bring it back some day in the future when we have more room) and we kept the trundle bed so now our little girl room could technically sleep 4 people.  The bunk is a full on the bottom with a twin on top and the twin trundle underneath.  It is a pretty bed and the girls have loved having it. (THANKS Eric!!  We are so lucky to have you build us so many amazing pieces of furniture!)

So here is the finished room!