Happy News!

Photo by Amber Kite of We Stood Together

Yes, we are so very thrilled and grateful to share that we are expecting a new little baby to join our clan!

Three kids?! Yes really... Are we mad??! Only time will tell, I guess! We are so happy and thankful for this blessing, as well as a tad nervous about being outnumbered by the munchkins in our home! This is (as far as we are planning!) the final little piece of our family jigsaw puzzle, and so I plan to completely soak up this last pregnancy/birth/babyhood as much as I can.

So forgive me for oversharing like a giddy first time Mama but hey... every baby is just as miraculous and hey, what's a blog for if not for over-sharing, amiright??!

We had an early ultrasound just to confirm the dates (we are due late January 2013). Here is that precious little heartbeat, pumping strong! (The video seems to be showing up really small but the yellow arrow points to the heart beat)

This already-beloved baby is only 7 weeks old (well, really only formed in 5 weeks) and yet... look! The little head, the teeny body, kicking legs - all in total measuring a mere 9.2mm. And contained within, incredibly, a little heart fiercely pumping with life, and love and purpose. I mean...wow... the miracle of life huh! What an incredible creation we are...

Little Jellybean... head to the right, little tootsies kicking up on the left

Now, I have to say, it is almost worth having another kid just for the absolute fun and joy it is to tell their older siblings! I have been sooooo excited to tell Lily in particular. Eli at almost 2 is, well, about as interested as he can comprehend (he shouts BABY! every now and then to show his approval), but Lily is so much older now (she was almost two when Eli was born) so I was just dying to tell her the news about her new baby sibling and see her reaction...

Suffice to say it was pretty priceless! After our bed time story (1975 Little Golden Book classic 'The New Baby' no less!) I just could hardly wait to tell my sweet girl the happy news and you can check out her stunned reaction here.... (please excuse Eli's rather tired pre-bed behaviour!)...

I couldn't stop laughing at her shock, and her non-stop questions since then. She is so excited and constantly talking about how happy she is, and how much she loves the new baby. Frequently asking me what the baby is doing now, how I am feeling, and so on! Bless her... it is going to be such sweet joy to see her experience this journey with me, my little supportive companion.

So... that about wraps it up, I just wanted to share the happy news with the blogosphere! As it is still early days I hope you will join me in praying for a healthy and strong baby and continued pregnancy. God has blessed us so richly to be pregnant again - something I don't ever want to take for granted and something that seems even more poignant the third time around.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 193.13-14

Baby, before we even know you, we love you. We love you and we cannot wait to welcome you into our family... Keep growing big and strong, tiny one!