Chad's 34th bday

We went to La Cocina for dinner, the food is so good! I'm so excited about the shrimp tacos, I'm craving them again today. We celebrated with family and friends, my dad was in town so it was nice to spend time with him. After dinner we headed over to Killarneys for some drinks, I had water...lots of water. Paul and Shirley took Luke and Avery home so I could join the party. Chad enjoyed himself a little too much, you're only 34 once:) I called it a night before everyone else, because there is only so much fun you can have while drinking water. There is an advantage though, I probably am the only one who doesn'thave a hangover today:) I think that Chad had a pretty good birthday, thanks everyone for coming!

The beginning

Here is the first picture of my belly. I am 10 weeks so you can't tell yet that I'm pregnant. I just feel bloated, how fun:)

First Doctor Appointment

Today was my first prenatal appointment. My appt. was with a midwife, Dr. Cox, and I am really happy with her. I decided to go to San Marcos for my prenatals so that I can deliver at either Zion or Palomar. After what happened with Avery I am not going back to Riverside whatever I do. I was starting to get anxious that everything is healthy and okay with this pregnancy, and it is. So, according to my ultrasound I am 10 weeks, which is what I calculated, and my due date is November 17. All in all I had a really positive experience today and am excited for this new adventure. Since I'm delivering in a hospital, I'm thinking about having a doula this time, having that extra support would be so comforting. I would have another homebirth if money weren't an issue, and would love to try a water birth. My mom has been contacting a doula she knows, and I have a midwife to talk with to decide what my options are. I will just pray to see what path God has planned for me to follow. Everything is in His hands. I just don't want to be separated from my baby for three days, while all the other moms have thiers with them. That was the hardest part with Avery. My next appointment is scheduled for May 30 and my next ultrasound is July 7. Don't worry, I won't wait that long to update you all.

I figured since we are already down in San Marcos, why not make the most of the drive and hit the Wild Animal Park too. I told Luke that after the Dr. we will go to the animal park, he has been looking forward to it all week long. All morning he kept saying, "I'm so excited to go the animal park!" We met Karissa and her kids there and they played in the water area down by the lions. Luke said that he wanted to see lions, elephants, gorillas, tigers, and zebras. After they played in the water for a while we hit the lions and got to see them way up close, they were all lounging in the shade against the glass. Avery just kept pointing and grunting. Boy am I glad that they have that new elevator to bring you back up, those hills are killer and I wasn't looking forward to pushing two kids and myself up it. So then we went to the gorillas and saw gibbons monkeys on the way, which were cool because they kept swinging back and forth. Luke got a kick out of that. On the way down to the lions we saw elephants from the top of the hill, and that seemed to satisfy him. The only two we didn't get to were the tiger and zebra, so those are for next time. We caught the meerkats and some yellow weaver birds that make cool nests on the way out. Luke played inside the big birds nest. Of course we had to get an ice cream and I bought him a little orange toy tiger. We were there for only 2 1/2 hours, and that is plenty of time for me. That's one of the advantages of having a pass, you can go and not feel like you have to stay for the whole day and see everything. When I have my prenatal appointments, we will try and get to the animal park, it is his favorite place.

First Picture of Baby Hilzer #3

Here is the first picture of our little baby. It's so crazy because it's not just a peanut, you can see the head, body, arms, and legs. It is such a miracle, no matter how many times I have seen it before, I am so grateful!

Here comes #3

We are expecting our third blessing! I found out I was pregnant a couple days before Avery's first birthday. Surprise! I was in total shock, as was everybody else. Now that the news has been able to sink in for a while, I am getting more excited. We plan on this one being the last addition to our family. I haven't been feeling well at all this first trimester, by my calculations I am 9 weeks, so hopefully it'll get better into my second. My first Dr. appointment is on April 25 so hopefully I will get an ultrasound to confirm how far along I am and when the baby is due, maybe I'll get some pics too. I will let you all know. Luke is excited, he wants a little brother. Avery has no clue of course but I think that she will love being a big sister. She is always carrying around her baby dolls and she loves "real" babies too. In my week by week pregnancy book it says that my due date is around 11/18, so Avery will be 20 months. She is already more 'grown up' than Luke was at this age, so I'm hoping that it won't be too hard:) Famous last words! We won't be finding out this time what we are having, we want to be surprised. We have already came up with names though, Chloe Jade for a girl and Seth James for a boy.