2019: Our Year in Review

2019- you were so very good to us! As I collected pictures and reminisced on all that has happened this year, I can't help but smile. We've had our downs, and it was so nice to see all the ups that this year provided us.

So let's look back at all 2019 had to offer!

First up is our weekly Bachelor nights with Erin and Nichole! I'm already looking forward to doing them again this year.

In March I tagged along with Ashley to Bloomington for the Hearts at Home 2.0 Conference. It was a conference full of love, laughter, and Jesus. I'm bummed that I will be missing this next year, but it's for a good reason! 

In April we spent some much needed time in St. Louis with our friends Jaycen and Katie. We don't get to see them nearly enough, and I loved hanging out with them and their daughter Riley. And now they have Hank and we need a return trip for some extra snuggles with him!

June was a great month all around! It started with a Schackmann family vacation to Breckenridge Colorado! This place was just beautiful, and we took in some white water rafting, fly fishing, mountain hiking, jeeping, and so much more. 

The day after we got back from vacation, I underwent our third IVF transfer! Our first two attempts were unsuccessful with one embryo, so Eric and I talked it over with our doctor, Dr. Dayal (who is the BOMB), and we all agreed to try two embryos this time to give us a better chance. This day was also my first time getting acupuncture done! 

June ended with our first positive pregnancy test since Madison. Two blood draws later and we were officially declared pregnant by my RE! 

At the beginning of July, Eric and I flew off to California with Brian and Mara Fehrenbacher to take a trek down Highway 1. This trip was SO fun. We traveled all the way from San Francisco down to San Diego, hitting up so many great places in between, including the Golden Gate Bridge, Muir Woods, Alcatraz, Big Sur, Sequoia National Park, the Hollywood sign, and the most amazing beaches I've ever seen in between. We already have plans for another vacation together soon!

Two days after getting home from California Eric and I were headed to St. Louis for our first ultrasound. I think both of our hearts skipped a beat when we saw two little babies with strong heartbeats on that ultrasound screen- we are having TWINS! There were a few scares in there with bleeding and spotting, but every checkup we saw two healthy little babies, which is all we could ever ask for. 

I got to watch this cutie a few times this summer and loved every minute of it, maybe almost as much as Grant loved to swing!

From July on it's been all about watching these two babies grow inside me- thankfully as healthy as can be! They are way to big to get pictures of the two of them together anymore, but I just adore this one from an early ultrasound. 

October ended with celebrating Eric's sister Erin's marriage to Chad Niebrugge. What a beautiful wedding for such a deserving couple. And the very next day Eric finally felt one of the babies kick! Those are moments you can never get back and I'll remember his smile forever on that one. 

In November we made lots of headway on the babies' nursery! Eric painted the room gray and put together both cribs and the changing table. It finally looks like we might be ready for these babies come February!

November also brought us one of the greatest gifts- our newest niece Emily! Watching her big brother Grant grow up has been such a treat, I can't wait to do the same for this pretty thing. We love you Emily!

And we are finally on to December, which was just as exciting as the rest of the year! First up was my baby shower where we finally revealed the genders of our babies- a boy and a girl! The shower was everything I could have hoped for thanks to my mom and mother-in-law. We received so many amazing gifts and came home with a great start to our diaper stockpile. 

By the middle of the month, Eric and I were officially van owners! Check out our newest ride- a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country Limited. I'm in love, Eric is in love, and there's so much room for our babies and all that comes with them. 

We've celebrated some amazing Christmases so far and have a fancy Christmas dinner party with friends to look forward to this weekend. This year Eric and I also celebrated our six year wedding anniversary, as well as Ian's fifth and Madison's second angel-versaries. 

By far our biggest blessing has been carrying these twins. I wished I would have done this picture with Madison, so I made sure to get one in with these guys before the tree comes down (who knows when that will be). 

As I sit here and finish typing this, the babies are kicking away and reminding me that 2020 will be our best year yet. I know it won't be easy, but man oh man will it be worth it and all that Eric and I could ever dream for.

BRING. IT. ON.

Baby #3 and #4: Weeks 29-30

Now that I'm down to seeing the doctor every two weeks, I figured it was time to do my chalkboard updates in two week increments too. After all, who knows when these babies will get here. (Though we are hoping for late February!)

We hit thirty weeks this week, which honestly freaks me out thinking that the babies could be here in 6 to 8 weeks. But let's focus on week 29 first!

I'm not joking when I talk about the babies getting on my nerves that week. It started last Wednesday with some minor pain in my rear when I moved the wrong way. I messaged my chiropractor for some stretches to do to help out my new-found sciatic nerve pain. I was literally in tears that night as Eric helped me attempt to complete some of the exercises. 

Thursday provided some relief, but by Friday I could barely move without it hurting. Thankfully Sam was able to get me in a week early to try to help relieve some of the pain. I may have cried while she was adjusting me, but I was already feeling better by Saturday so I know that it helped!

Last Thursday was also a big day for our household as we became the proud owners of a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country Limited! For being over ten years old, this thing was practically brand new- I mean it still had less than 15,000 miles on it. We definitely lucked out in finding this thing and snatching it up before someone else could!

Last Friday I had another doctor's appointment. Both babies are still transverse, which means they are laying across my stomach with both their heads on the right side, and they are both still measuring two weeks ahead. I know there's still time for them to turn, but I'm hoping they do it sooner rather than later! 

Baby boy's heartbeat was 156 beats per minute and clocked in at 3 pounds 7 ounces. Baby girl's heartbeat was 144 beats per minute and she weighed 3 pounds 6 ounces.

This week we celebrated Christmas! We celebrated at my mom and dad's, and I'm pretty sure the babies, who aren't even here yet, already had more presents under the tree than Eric and I. I hate to see what next Christmas will bring! We get to celebrate with Eric's family this weekend, and I'm looking forward to watching Grant open all his presents and getting to snuggle with Emily. 

I'll be back in two weeks for another update!

Ian's Fifth Angel-versary

Ian, my not so baby boy anymore, today is your birthday and you are FIVE. I find that so hard to write. Five. What in the world would it be like to have a five year old running around our house? Who would be your favorite? Would you like basketball as much as your dad would have wanted you to? Would you be singing your little heart out in the front row of your preschool program?

These are questions that will remain unanswered forever. And as time goes by, I'm learning to accept this fact. No, it doesn't get any easier. Yes, my heart will always yearn for my firstborn babe. As much as I hate to admit it, time does ease the pain. But I guess I should be thankful for that, too.

Looking out my window today I saw a world of whiteness. Five years ago, even though the weather outside wasn't white, my mind and body were. I was numb, in shock, and honestly just going through the motions. But today, oh today I've smiled. I've felt like a human. I've sent my love to Ian, and told his brother and sister all about him and how much he changed my life. And I'll continue to do that until the day I die and am finally reunited with the baby I held in my arms for so short, but in my heart forever.

Happy 5th birthday sweet boy. Mommy and daddy love you!

Baby #3 and #4: Weeks 25-28

We've officially hit the third trimester this month- woo hoo!! It feels so good to finally be in the home stretch and getting one step closer to bringing these babies home. So let's take a look back at this crazy awesome month!

25 weeks was the date of our 3D ultrasound at Catching Glimpses in Effingham. We did this with Madison at a place in Indiana and I loved the pictures we were able to get there. This time we did the scan almost a month earlier than we did Maddie's scan since there's two in there and they are running out of room quickly. I was so pleased that we were actually able to get some picture's of Baby A (which the world now knows is a boy) because before then we literally had no pictures of his face. His sister likes to sit on his head and squish him down into his sack/placenta. Here's a few favorites from the scan!

At 27 weeks I had my one hour glucose test. I'm always worried about the glucose test, which I know has a lot more to do with baby's placenta than what I eat, but with two placentas this go around I knew my chances were higher of getting diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I was so happy to hear that my test came back below the threshold and I am GD free!

I found out that I gained three more pounds this month, and from the ultrasound measurements, the babies took two of those pounds! Both babies were measuring almost two weeks ahead, and both were weighing 2.8 and 2.9 pounds. I pray they keep growing big and strong, but it's making me worried for what things will be like come delivery time ha!

I finally bit the bullet and hit up a chiropractor this month. My back has been killing me, and I figured that a trip to get adjusted couldn't hurt anything. I'm super pleased to say that the last week of this month I have felt SO good (thank you Sam!!). I'm excited to continue these appointments to keep my back pain in check.

I was also showered with love at my baby shower in week 27. We received so many wonderful gifts, and announced to the world that the babies were a boy and a girl. We can't wait for our little guy and gal to get here!

In other news this month, I've officially lost my belly button and my ankles. Never fear though, I've gained some fabulous cankles and the start of an outie belly button. I don't even want to know what they will both look like in another month! I'm getting up more often again at night to use the restroom, and just because I'm having a hard time getting comfortable for the entire night. I still remember Eric rolling over to me one night and asking if I was OK since I'd been up and moving around so much that night. Thanks for your concern babe, my hips just can't take one position for too long. I've debated getting a big ol' pregnancy pillow, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. We will see how these next few weeks go and if I finally place that Amazon order ha!

Our goal now is to make it as long as possible with these two still cooking so we can hopefully avoid a NICU stay after they are born. Here's to hopefully another 10 weeks or so to go!

Baby #3 and #4: Baby Shower

Yesterday was the most perfect afternoon for a baby shower! My simple, gold and greenery shower was brought to life by my mom and mother-in-law and I couldn't have asked for anything more. I think that most people there were most excited to find out what Baby A and Baby B were (which are a boy and a girl by the way!), but I was most excited to see my family and friends come together to celebrate and rejoice with me and our two precious miracles.

The decorations at the shower were very simple, and elegant, which is just what I wanted. And I topped it off with ultrasound pictures from throughout our pregnancy so far, both from my OB's office and some of the 3D ones we had taken at Catching Glimpses Ultrasound a few weeks ago.

And these are the two women who made it all happen- Theresa and my momma! Can't forget my two favorite sister-in-laws and newest niece too.

I'm lucky enough to still have both of my grandma's and both of Eric's grandma's in my life, so I couldn't pass up a picture of them with their newest great grandchildren.

And these girls. I could write post after post on them (and I have, it won't take long to find them!). They are my best friends, my best support system, and my best cheerleaders- outside of Eric that is. They've been with me through it all, and I'm so happy that they were there to celebrate their newest honorary niece and nephew!

And we couldn't forget our typical picture sans Kendra with Yvonne. It's a tradition that dates all the way back to high school.

Eric and I can't thank everyone enough for all the love and support that has been showered upon us. We received so many beautiful gifts at the shower, and I can't forget to mention all the wonderful gifts that were sent straight to our house prior to this weekend. I think the babies are set on almost everything they need!

Baby #3 and #4: Weeks 21-24

Wow what a month! I'll try to recall all the exciting things that have happened this past month, because it's a lot.

The first big thing was celebrating Erin and Chad's wedding date. It was an absolutely beautiful day, and the babies had a blast dancing around in momma's belly the entire day. During the ceremony, I even saw two white butterflies dancing around outside. I'm glad that Ian and Madison decided to stop by for the special occasion.

The day after their wedding (20 weeks 3 days) Eric finally felt the babies kick, or at least one of them anyways! To see the excitement on his face when he realized that it was truly a baby kick was priceless. He doesn't always notice them unless he's paying super close attention, but he's been feeling them kick ever since then.

Speaking of the babies kicking, in week 22 I was finally able to see the kicks from the outside. I need to try to catch it on video sometime soon, as the video I have of Madison's kicks is one of my favorites.

I also just want to note that by week 21 I was officially bigger than I was by week 40 with Madison. And at 22 weeks I was up 17 pounds total so far.

We've made lots of headway on the babies' nursery this month. It is no longer a storage room, and no longer yellow! We've got both cribs and a changing table set up. We still need a dresser and then to decorate and get the finishing touches in there before babies make their arrival.

We had another ultrasound a few days before week 23 and things are still looking good on both babies. Baby A is still being stubborn and not letting us get a good picture of its face, but baby will give in eventually I'm sure.

Week 23 also brought some more exciting news- the arrival of our new niece (and babies' new cousin) Emily! She is a doll. I am so looking forward to watching her grow in the years to come. I'm especially looking forward to watching Emily and our babies grow up together. I hope they are the best of friends, or can at least tolerate each other ha!

It's hard to believe how fast everything is going now, and I can't wait to see what's in store for us in the coming weeks. And while we can't wait to meet these babies, I'm really hoping they wait till late February to make their arrival!