New Pictures of the Baby

The new baby has had several ultrasounds. I have been seeing a Perinatalogist along with an OB during this pregnancy. The Perinatalogist specializes in high risk pregnancies. I am not considered high risk but the baby gets some extra attention because of our family history. Not just Rachel but because of my nephew Cade as well. The doctors have been very helpful and thorough in checking for any problems that could be developing with the baby. I have always opted out of the quad screen and any other blood tests that could tell us if the baby had something wrong with it- I wouldn't abort her no matter what! I don't like to be paranoid but I do feel like we have to watch our kids closely for any tumors that might develop. Better to find problems early! The doctors never believed that Rachel's cancer was genetic but they also didn't know a whole lot about it so I'm not willing to take chances. Some forms of brain cancer are genetic. I will have another ultrasound in 6 weeks but so far the baby looks great. She is going to be big just like her sisters and we expect to meet her in about 9 weeks.

The bubble above her face is her hand

Rachel's Birthday

Last Saturday, Oct. 9th, was a day I had not been looking forward to. It was Rachel's 4th birthday. :( I knew that I couldn't just pretend like it was another day so I planned a jam-packed day for the kids and our family. I really feel like we honored her and were able to share memories with the kids. It's a tradition that Michael and I plan on doing every year with our kids. We always want to celebrate her birthday in some way because it's important for her siblings to know about and celebrate her life. We started the day out at the cemetery. We had balloons with Tinkerbell, Hello Kitty, & the #4 to let go. The kids really enjoyed watching them float to heaven so that Rachel could have them. They even sang Happy Birthday when we let them go- it was Callie's idea! Then, we went to the park and rode the train. We were surprised to see that Rachel's tree had been decorated by a family friend with balloons- the kids loved it! We had cupcakes after naptime and then we went to dinner at the Rainforest Cafe- Rachel's favorite restaurant. (I don't know what happened to those pics!)

Park Pictures

Cade was so excited to ride the train with his best buddy, Grandpa!

Visiting Rachel

Becky & Sony made a styrofoam cake for Rachel with butterflies on it

Making Cookies with Daddy (& Cade & Callie too!)

At Christmastime, we always make sugar cookies and decorate them. I decided it would be fun to do it this year while Michael was visiting since he won't be able to do it in December. I don't know if I will either since that's when the baby's due! The kids did really well with it this year. They are finally figuring out what to do with the sprinkles. We only had one bottle end up on the floor this year- that's a huge improvement! Emily was more interested in eating them but she did help Michael out some.

Comal County Parade

The kids had a blast this year at the parade. They definitely had a good time running around waiting for it to start! We didn't make it through the whole thing but we did make it through about half. Not bad considering the parade is over 2.5 hrs now!! Michael's sister got some really cute pics of the kids- thanks Becky!

These 2 really love each other :)

someone passed out toothbrushes and Emily couldn't wait to use hers

Comal County Fair

While Michael was here, we were able to go to the fair. He loves taking the kids to the fair so it was a nice treat for him that it happened while he was here. The kids had a blast riding the rides!

Daddy's Home for a visit!

Michael was given leave for a week to attend a conference in Austin. He arrived on Sept. 19th and has been able to stay with Emily and me. The first 4 days he was here we only got to see him in the evenings because of the conference. Now he's on a 4 day pass and gets to hang out at home until Tuesday when he has to go back. :( We've enjoyed having him home and it will be hard to see him go. Emily didn't take too long to warm up to him. She was a little apprehensive at the airport but now it's like he never left. She has changed so much since he was here in June so it's been an adjustment for Michael to get use to. She is very independent and strong willed so she's been having to teach daddy how she does things around here! It's been entertaining to watch.

Trip to Cabela's with Grandpa

My dad had a delivery to make near Cabela's so he invited Emily and me to go with him. She had a blast checking out all of the animals.