In the winter of 2016, our family took a vacation to Hawaii. It was one of the best vacations I have ever had. Charlie learned to swim without his floaties, Loralai learned to walk more steadily on her chubby little feet. My husband and I new we wanted to come back every year because it was just so wonderful for our kids and for us to relax.

So over Christmas and into the new year of 2017, we touched down again in Hawaii having the same expectations as the year before. Low behold, two days into our trip I started to feel bloated and my favorite Hawaiian smells were just not the same for me. So I braved the trip to the drug store and bought a pregnancy test. I went into our bathroom in the condo, and while I took the test I heard Stuart getting the kids ready to head down to the beach for the day. So when the test read "PREGNANT" time stood still. My heart rate began to rapidly increase and a feeling of nostalgia came over me, almost when you almost see a car accident happen but it all turns out to be fine. It sort of takes your breath away. So when I gained my breath and could finally speak, I screamed "Stuart!".

The reason I haven't blogged in so long is that it has taken me three months to get mentally prepared and ready for the fact that we are going to do this again. We are going to have a third baby. We are going to be parents to three children. I'm going to give birth, nurse, lose sleep, change poopy diapers, and I'm going to do this now with two older kids who still need my love and attention. The entire trip I was in Hawaii I would look at families whom also had three children and look at the parents and think they seem normal, they survived, we can also can do this.

As we made our way home (and believe me, that is a whole other story) we got settled in to our routines, Charlie started back into preschool, Loralai and I make it to storytime and Tykes time every week. We also found out through a new blood test now that we are expecting a baby BOY! I had a gender reveal party and I am excited to have the kids as involved in this pregnancy as they can be. I want to get family and maternity photos done, I want to do all the things I didn't really think I needed to do with the other two. This is our last one (I promise) so I am going enjoy it as much as possible!

I remember a few years ago when I was pregnant with Loralai, my grandma Lael said something that resides with me until this day. I asked her once, "Grandma, you had five kids, how did you do it?" and she responded "Oh honey, you think you can't love your next child as much as you love your first, how do you have any more room for so much love? But you do and you will, that's what make us (women) so special."

Xoxo

~Lexie