Baby G #3!!

Yep...the rumors are true. I'm pregnant! I can still hardly believe it. It was such a huge shock. Needless to say, we weren't trying at all. Our "plan" was to wait a few years before we wanted to even think about trying. We hadn't even decided if we were going to stop at 2 children. But, God had a VERY different plan for us.

It's already been an eventful pregnancy. I had a subchorionic hemorrhage that started at week 7. This was so scary! It ended up not being a big deal, but I thought for a week that I was losing the baby. Since the scare, I have had the easiest first trimester. No morning sickness!! The only weird thing was for a couple of weeks, dinner sounded gross. So far, this pregnancy couldn't be more different than my pregnancy with the boys.

I'm due in December. My due date has changed a couple times. Right now, it's December 19th, but I think that is still about a week late. I really think somewhere closer to the 12th is more accurate.

We're so excited to meet this next bundle of love!

Dr. Eric J. Groen

Eric graduated...medical school is over! Eric has had mixed emotions over this change. He is really going to miss the friends he's made over the past few years. He is also getting very anxious and nervous about starting his intern year. He has complained quite often over the past year that he doesn't get to do much during his rotations, yet now that he will be given more freedom and responsibility, he is questioning his readiness. During his internship year in Chicago, he will spend each month doing something different (ie. pediatrics, OB, critical care, etc.) and Eric just found out his first month is pediatrics. As Eric says, "I don't do babies and I don't do ladies." Needless to say, he's getting especially nervous starting in peds.


Below are a few pics of his graduation. It was a lovely ceremony and we can finally call him doctor! :)

Waiting for the ceremony to start. We had to get there early to get make sure we got a spot where we could easily escape if the boys were getting loud. They did great, despite missing their morning nap and stayed the entire time.


Eric is the tall blonde in the third row from the bottom and smack dab in the middle.

Our little family.

With my family

The doctor with his boys.

With Eric's family.

A cool shot Eric's dad took.

Eric with some of his friends from medical school: Melissa and Robert Nelson, Anna and Russell Horton, Saul Rosenstein and then us.

This picture cracks me up. Look at Carter giving Saul a look!

Saying goodbye to everyone

The boys turn 1!!!!!

Holy moly, I can't believe it...they're already one! The boys' birthday was on Wednesday and Eric and I tried to make it special, even though the "real" party isn't until next Saturday.

When the boys woke up and after every nap, we sang "Happy Birthday" to them. They had a grilled cheese sandwhich with grapes and manderine oranges for lunch (their favorite foods). They got to go swing at the park AND go the pool in the afternoon. Eric and I (okay, let's be honest, it was all ME) reminisced the entire day of what happen the day the boys were born. At 5:16 and 5:17 pm (the times they were born), we sang "Happy Birthday" to them again.

Mom, Kaylyn and Mamaw came over for dinner and we had pizza. Then we all sang "Happy Birthday" again (I think this might have been the last time!) to the boys and watched them smash their own cupcakes and smear it all over their face.

I think Eric and I were way more excited it was the boys birthday than they were. I can't quite figure out why it's so special to us...it is because we made it through the first year? Is it because they're no longer babies and we have toddlers? I don't really know. But I do know this: we couldn't love these precious little boys if we tried! Our lives have been so blessed by these little ones. We have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know their fun and unique personalities.

Here's everyone enjoying the pizza. Think we should start thinking about getting a bigger table?:)
Brandt feeding his grandma
Me and my firstborn

Carter inspecting the cupcake

Beginning to dig into it

Brandt after his cupcake destruction. By this point in the evening, the boys were getting pretty tired. Let's just say that the combination of tiredness and chocolate in the eyes didn't make for a happy Brandt.

And then, right after this picture was taken, my camera died! I didn't get a picture of Carter all messy. Oh well, there's always next weekend!

Getting ready for a bath

The boys get so excited when they climb up the stairs and hear the water running in the bathroom for their bath. They crawl straight to the tub and stand at it until we put them in.


Here are the boys when we're getting ready for a bath

Books

In the past month, these boys have fallen in love with their books. For the longest time, I've tried to read to them, but they haven't had any interest. It wasn't until THE alphabet book. The boys love to sit with me and go through the book and hear the sound of each alphabet letter.

In addition to reading their alphabet book, they love to eat their board books. One book has already been destroyed. Poor book...it was even the cool kind with buttons that make noise. The only thing left is the buttons for the book!

Here's Brandt with his pile of books

Carter reading the alphabet book

Random pics

Eating blackberries for the first time

Having fun with the dishwasher

Two boys playing nicely
The boys love opening and closing their toy chest

One way to know when your child is too big for a bouncy chair is when they are able to flip out of it and crawl away with it on their back:)

Our new painting

My mom completed another painting for us. We LOVE it! She is uber talented. When Eric and I went to Europe a few years ago, we had a great time in The Netherlands and loved the countryside. We love how Mom captured it for us. Thanks, Mom! We LOVE YOU!