I guess since we're prepping to be a two child household, I've got to at least split the blog title since I've always marked these by Ryan's age!

We can hardly believe this weather. When we found out I was pregnant, I literally feared the oncoming winter since I am a complete klutz and afraid of falling on ice (I mean honestly, I fell and was hospitalized when I was this far along with Ryan after being taken out by a dog. Ice could do some serious damage!) Little did I know we'd basically avoid winter all together! It appears that this early Spring is aligning nicely with my health. After 3 months of almost daily IV infusions, I've been needle free (and thus throw-up free) for almost two weeks now! I'm still on Zofran, but down to twice a day. I am eating and drinking normally now and am so grateful. It was to the point that every morning Ryan would ask me "Does your tummy feel sick?" before he asked said else. The situation took it's toll on all of us: Max had to pick up all the slack (and did so without any complaint), Ryan was patient and sympathetic but didn't get his normal dose of mommy, and I was really having a hard time feeling isolated. Thankfully my parents really came through and had Ryan two+ days a week through winter to try and give me some space..and did I mention my mom cooked those days too?

Now with this change in my health, I'm able to go for walks and do yoga classes again. It's nice to see neighbors and actually have the bandwidth to call friends. This time around though, the entire world is not pregnant as was the case with Ryan, so it certainly has been a different in terms of feeling a sense of community through the pregnancy. The world treats a second child a bit less magically, though it's a miracle to us none the same.

Ryan is so excited: a) for "my baby inside my mommy's tummy" and b) for all the things he gets to do when he's a big brother, including move into a big boy room. So far so good. No jealously. Only the desire to share and understand this really abstract concept of pregnancy. Let's hope we're this blessed when the baby is actually here.

We had our "big" ultrasound last Monday. I say big since we also had one at 5 weeks to confirm the pregnancy. The baby is amazingly on track (guess they can predict pretty well when every sneeze, cough, and ovulation is being tracked :) The ultrasound ruled out 90% of brain and 60% of heart impairments. (So a perfect ultrasound by today's standards.) We're now deep in prep for the actual delivery. We've found a wonderful doula (delivery assistant) who was a labor and delivery nurse for 15 years and has attended over 1,000 births. And we're doing lots of reading and mental prep with hopes of a natural delivery. We'll see what this little one has in store and if that's achievable. Technically I am high risk (35 for delivery, pre-eclampsia with Ryan and the hyperemesis make me as such), but frankly, I'm not buying into it.

As for Ryan, he's on week 3 of swim lessons (without a parent) and doing great. He's in love with the swings this summer after never wanting touch them before. And the world is tied up in trucks and trains....as is our home. You can guess the theme for the big boy room! All in all we have a really bright sumemr ahead of us. That's about all from this neck of the woods. Enjoy this weather...it is Michigan...it could snow tomorrow.

Love Court, Max, Ryan + Baby K2

Ryan after a fun dinner thanks to Auntie K and Nami!

We "lost" Ryan and his friend Abby the other night, only to find them like this in his bed. Guess it could be worse :)

Ryan reading to Cali

Getting every last lick of ice cream.

Looking Baywatch in his new "wet suit" for Florida. He wanted one like a girl named Trinity in his swim class. The previous week a boy was picking on her and Ryan kept trying to stop him by either saying "NO THANK YOU" in a gruff low growl or putting himself between the bully and the girl.

He's got daddy's form!

Here I am at 20 weeks. Half way!

First real pics of Baby K 2!

Must be a boy with that "Kerry Gun Show"! BTW, we don't know the gender. Promise that's not our way of announcing to the world!

And if the baby is 1/2 of each of us and has Max's guns, let's pray it doesn't have my feet!

March? Already?

So it has been an embarrassingly long time since we've posted. And in the months since we have, so much has changed it's hard to even know where to start. Those of you reading along are close enough to already know we're pregnant with Baby K2!

I am 19 weeks along and just now able to find the energy to post. Ironically, Max and I have been using our old posts to compare and contrast my pregnancy with Ryan. The common denominator is morning sickness. Although, this time around it's much worse. (Thinking it's a girl.) I've been on meds since week 5. And then in early January I started having daily infusions (IVs) since I have not been able to consume liquids very well. It's a 2-5 hour long process depending on how many bags I get. Thankfully in the last two weeks, things have gotten better and I am able to go every other day. Grateful for the wifi connection at the clinic for sure! If it weren't for a terrible bug I've had for the last 10 days, I am pretty sure I'd have been done by now. We'll see what the coming weeks bring.

We're at the point of feeling the baby kick. I'm getting bigger, but have only gained 3 pounds so far. I am on the borderline of not fitting into my pants any longer and most people that look at me know I'm pregnant and not just a binge eater. Ryan is so excited for the baby. It's common for him to talk about all the new things he'll get to do when he's a big brother. He has asked lots of questions and generally "gets it." Though he did ask me when my stomach was going to "pop" and the baby was going to explode out...never realized how many strange terms there are for pregnancy that can be misunderstood by a 3 year old.

And since his 3rd birthday has passed, Ryan has become 4. Literally. In January, just a month after his bday, we had to buy 4T clothes for him. He's counting to 20. He no longer speaks Yoda or in fragments, or really in sentences at all. He speaks in PARAGRAPHS. He's an orator. And his observations are pretty incredible. The sweetest is when he thinks he needs to explain things to Max and I that are commonplace. I can only imagine how he explains where babies come from to his friends. (Yeah, he understands IT ALL...after we explained it, he stuck his finger in my belly button and asked "Why doesn't the baby just come out of here?" Frankly, I think it's a good question.)

With this new wisdom has also come the test of limits. It's commonplace for him to not understand that he can't talk back how mom and dad corrects him. He's working on not interrupting. And staying in his big boy bed all the time. He's still in diapers at night, but lately he's taken those off in favor of 2am bathroom runs. Guess he's ready to be completely potty trained. We're blessed in this regard...in all his potty training he's had a single #2 accident and we can count #1 accidents they've been so few (I've got to be careful not to jinx us.) All in all. He's happy. Excited for the baby. And all about trains and trucks. SHOCKING.

On to the picture real to catch us all up. Then you can witness how he's morphed into a teenager:) Promise to update more often as we get closer to delivery!

Love to you all,
C, M, R + BK2

Ryan's third birthday was fire truck themed. Ryan even helped me with the cake!

You'll see a consistent theme in these posts with clothes on the head.

Christmas sporting his carpenter pants and real tools like Daddy's.

All he's missing is the ascot and nightcap!

These two are best buddies these days. Ryan tells everyone about his dog Cali!

More inappropriate clothing on his head.

We dedicated Ryan at church. Everyone melted when the pastor asked people to pray and Ryan folded his hands.

Uncle Billy taught Ryan how to text and the fascination has not stopped there.

My snow angels!

The Kerry / Holohan / Geurink clan. The pictures continue to get more and more interesting as the years progress and these boys grow!