Family of Four Coming Soon!

Ahhhh! It feels so surreal finally being able to share this with you all!

We've known for over two months now, and I'm honestly shocked my husband hasn't spilled the beans. (If you know, he isn't the best at keeping secrets lol.)

Before I launch into all the details and feelings, I want to put a little disclaimer on this post. If you are in a place that might struggle to share this excitement or find it hurtful, please know I see you and I am sensitive to how you might react to this news. You have full permission to close this and move on with your day. I will sprinkle in related content over the course of the next 6 months, but it certainly won't be the bulk of what I share. Please follow your intuition to make the best decision for which articles might be best to skip. I may not know your exact situation, but I recognize that everyone's path to parenthood is different. It isn't lost on me how fortunate we are, and I pray you will feel support, love, and peace with wherever you're at on your own journey.

This pregnancy has, so far, been almost an exact replica of my pregnancy with Ember.

Finding Out

I found out almost exactly at 4 weeks. I just had an internal inkling that I should take a test - no other symptoms or reasons.

I told Nick by surprising him with a ladder he had been eyeing along with a note that said he was about to step up his dad game. (For Ember, I surprised him with a Yeti cooler and a note that said, "Every new dad needs a new cooler!")

Due Date

This baby is due mid-March.

We were really hoping our kids would be around 2.5 years apart, so the timing could not be more perfect! I'm excited to have one child born in the fall and one in the spring. It will make them feel unique and leave enough room for celebration!

Symptoms

I have had basically zero symptoms, which is also the same as Ember, except I had a few food aversions with her (the smell would bother me and the thought of eating it would make me feel a little nauseous) during the first trimester. This time around, I have been able to eat everything and feel great.

Now that I'm entering the second trimester, I think I'm in the clear for any sort of sickness. I'll be interested to see if I notice any differences as we go now that I'm parenting a toddler, also.

Gender

We are, again, planning to find out the gender of this baby! We like to wait until the 20-week ultrasound, as it is a nice way to break up the waiting and still give us a little surprise.

It's fun for us to know ahead of time to prepare baby's room and buy all the cute outfits (if you know me, then you know!). Plus, it really helped us to feel like we could connect faster with Ember knowing she was a little girl in advance.

Name

We won't share the name until baby is born, which is a good thing, because we haven't finalized any yet!

Our boy name is mostly nailed down, but we have no top girl name (exactly the opposite of our situation with Ember, ironically!). If we find out it's a girl at our anatomy scan, then we'll really start putting in the work to choose the perfect name for her.

Ember's Feelings

This girl is NOT ready to welcome a new family member (LOL). In case the picture doesn't prove my point...

• If you ask her if she wants a brother or sister, she says, "No"

• She loves to look at pictures on our phones, but when we get to the announcement pictures, she makes us swipe right past

• She will point to pictures of families in books and say who each member of the family is (Mommy, Dada, etc.). When she gets to the children, she calls each of them, "Ember." Clearly there is no room for any other kids in her family!

With all seriousness, though, she loves to take care of her baby dolls. She is also so smart and helpful. I have no doubt that six months from now, she will be the best big sister!

We are excited to enjoy the next few months as a family of three as we anticipate our Little Leystra's arrival!

Do you have any burning questions about this pregnancy or baby #2? Is there anything you'd love to see me share throughout this chapter? Let me know!