19 Weeks + Letter to Emmi

My dearest, little Emmi,

Mommy, Daddy, and Luci are getting more and more excited to meet you everyday! Mommy is finally getting to feel your little kicks...so keep it up! Luci talks about you all the time. She is so ready to meet her new sister!!

This week you are 6 inches from head to rump...about the size of a large heirloom tomato!

Now Emmi, I hate to be strict with you...but we need to come to an understanding here. You need to quit making Mommy sick every morning. Your sister is very familiar with time-out...and unless you want to be familiar with it real soon, why don't you just concentrate on growing healthy and strong...and forget about the sickness stuff! Oh, and can you shift a little as well...my tail bone is killing me these days...Remember to listen to Mommy little one...

Mommy and Daddy have finally started making some decisions about your nursery! I ordered some bedding and it should be here soon! Once the bedding is in, we will start picking some paint colors. September seems  so far away, but I know the summer will fly by. We are trying to kick it in gear to get things ready for you!

Keep growing healthy and strong!! We love you Emmi and cannot wait to meet you in September!!

Love, Mommy

Emmi and Mommy...19 Weeks!

Random Catch-Up!

Sorry...long time no blog...life has been a little hectic lately!!!...and I've been a little tired lately...

So what has been going on in the Minnick household???

We took Luci on her first bowling night!!! She LOVED it!!!

I just loved the tiny bowling shoes!!

All dressed up ready to go eat dinner at Fuji with the Magee's!

We re-mulched the flower beds this weekend...well, some of them...still have more to go! Luci was quite the little helper!

Watering plants!

Emmi is growing...and Mommy is too! I feel like I finally "popped"!!

18 Weeks!...19 on Friday. I am so short...so I feel so much bigger...Actually I am getting bigger all over! Yikes!! 

I will try to blog more later. For some reason I just haven't been much in a blogging mood lately. It almost feels like a chore sometimes. I love the benefits of blogging...but man, sometimes I just get tired. I am going to try to push through for Emmi's sake...she needs some documenting too! I have more things to share about Emmi when I do my next weekly post!

17 Weeks

Baby is 5 inches long from head to bottom and weighs as much as a turnip.

Baby now has a name...Emmi Reese!!!

I am starting to feel a few flutters every now and then but nothing major.

Still throwing up almost every morning(I know you were just dying to know that). I threw up every morning with Luci until I was about 6 months along...so I guess this one won't be much different. Thankfully it is just morning sickness, and I feel better fairly quickly.

Our stroller we ordered came in this weekend. It is a Stand-On tandem stroller. Emmi's car seat can ride in the front, and Luci can either sit or stand in the back. Even though Luci will be 4 when Emmi is born, Mitch and I both agreed that we still want an option for Luci for when her legs are tired or especially if just one of us are out with both of them. I want both of them where I can see them at all times!

Still craving Cutie oranges...& now strawberries and bananas...oh and um maybe some ice cream!

I am really struggling with clothes these days it seems. Belly needs maternity pants and some shirts...but most of my stuff with Luci is still way too big. I am seeming to be smaller with Emmi than Luci...well for now...not holding my breath on that one. Thankfully, I have had some great friends donate to the cause! I just don't want to buy a bunch of clothes that I know I will really only wear for another month or so. Eventually I will get big enough for the Luci maternity clothes!!!

Rules of Naming

Sooo...I may have been a little dramatic yesterday in my Week 16 post about not having any idea of a name. We have had ideas...lots. It was just a matter of figuring out what we liked best. Mitch and I have had a lot of rules this time around when it comes to naming. Yes, some of them may seem weird...but here they are...

1. Fairly short name. Less than 7 letters...and preferably only 4. I have the world's longest first/middle/last name combo...so, I was looking for shorter names for my kids. Also, no more than 3 syllables...and Mitch really only wanted 2.

2. Not a completely common name...but not so uncommon that no one has ever heard of it.

3. It can't start with an M. All of Mitch's siblings have the "MM" initials...so, since we didn't do that with Luci, we didn't want to have only one of kids with the "MM".

4. Steer away from family names for first names. We were open to a middle name...and if it was a boy, his middle name would have either been Lee or Brock...but first names were generally off limits for family names. Also, since we didn't use a family name for Luci's middle name, we just didn't want things to be different for the 2nd since we were having another girl. I know...weird and way too thought out.

5. No names that a handful of my best friends have called "dibs" on for future children. They don't use mine. I don't use theirs.

6. We wanted it to be girly and cute...but not so girly that it wouldn't sound "ok" as the name of a CEO! :-)

7.  If it could end in an "i" and still look and sound right, we want an "i" on the end of the first name...like Luci.

So, there you have it. The rules of naming the 2nd Minnick girl. Yeah, I know. It is a wonder this kid won't have "Baby Girl Minnick" on her birth certificate. BUT she won't...because last night Mitch and I finally decided on a name for our sweet girl!

In September, we will welcome Emmi Reese Minnick into the world!
 Luci and Emmi...we absolutley love it!!!!!

Btw, when we told Luci...she said she did not like the name...crossed her arms and said, "you can call her whatever you want, but I am calling her Baby Winky". Sigh.

16 Weeks

I have just decided that I will end up posting late every time...I just can't seem to keep up...

I am 16 Weeks! Baby is the size of an avocado!

I swear my morning sickness is getting worse. I am only sick in the mornings now...but almost every morning is spent throwing up. Bleh.

Well, no more guesses on the gender, Baby M is a girl!!!

We have spent this weekend discussing names...and we are just nowhere at this point. I am totally open to suggestions!!!

Still craving limeades and oranges...and lately, lots of pasta!

Wearing mostly maternity pants now...and few maternity tops.

I feel like I am hungry  more...but I get fuller faster...I guess that is a good thing???

We are starting to discuss nursery ideas, but have nothing set in stone. I feel like I am so much more indecisive this time...which for anyone that knows me...I am not an indecisive person. I can't decide on a name. I can't decide on nursery. I can't decide on a stroller. I know I am not very far along...but geez...usually  I am on top of things! I have got to get it together!

I have a little visitor in the background! :-)

Weekend Recap- Friends, Tulsa, Phone

We had a fun weekend!!!

I spent Friday night at Girl's Night Out eating and catching up with some friends!!! I have another GNO this Friday night as well! Nothing like a little girl time!

On Saturday we got up and headed out to Tulsa for some lunch with Mitch's folks, baby shopping, and then dinner with Kerri and Taylor. Of course we lunched at Cheesecake Factory! I seriously cannot get enough of that place!!

Baby shopping made me just as overwhelmed as it did the first time around. Soooo many choices and soooo  many decisions.

As you can see, I was not the only one that was overwhelmed...

Someone wasn't overwhelmed at all! She was just happy to be along for the ride!!!

After time in Bye-Bye Baby, Babies R Us, Pottery Barn Kids, and Target, we came home with nothing! lol!

After target, we sent Luci back home with Grammy and Granddaddy, and Mitch and I met up with K & T for dinner at Chuy's. That place is soooo good! I was so glad we tried it! After dinner, we went back and visited with Mitch's folks for a bit, and then headed back home!

We woke up on Sunday and headed out to church! We are off of our nursery shifts for now, so it was nice to finally be back in service...and at the later service instead of the early morning one! ;-)

Someone decided to be a little silly in her Hello Kitty sunglasses before church!

After church, lunch, and naps, we headed over for a little sidewalk chalk fun with our neighbors! Luci and C have become friends through gymnastics and really enjoyed getting to play together for a bit! While the girlies were playing, the adults were having a mini-heart attack (especially me) for a while!

When we first got over there, I set my phone on D's front bumper of his truck...for whatever reason. It wasn't smart...but I just wasn't thinking. Well, D ended up having to run to the office for a bit and drove off with my phone still on his bumper. About 10 minutes later, I finally realized my phone was missing. I immediately panicked because I had remembered leaving it there. Mitch immediately pulled up the "Find my Phone" app and located the exact location of my phone...about 3 streets over. He jumped in the car to go get it. I was a nervous wreck. Guess what? My phone got ran over and thrown up in D's tire (he remembered hearing his tire hit something). And guess what else? MY PHONE IS NOT DAMAGED!!!!!! The Otter Box (and the grace of God!) kept my phone safe and sound! When Mitch found my phone, it was literally out of the Otter Box (which if you have one of those, you know how hard it is to get those cases off anyway). So, all I am out is a new Otter Box! AND, even better news...Mitch contacted Otter Box and they are sending me a new one!!!! Trust me folks, Otter Box is the way to go!!!

Well, our weekend ended with a little Olive Garden and laundry!!!! Fun weekend...ready for next!

10 Fingers...10 Toes...

Get ready for more Barbies and Bows!!!!

The Minnick family will be welcoming another girl in September!!!!

Our friend Laura gave us a sneak peek ultrasound yesterday and it was really apparent that Baby M is a girl!!

Our reactions? Mitch and I were both pretty surprised. We had really thought it was a boy...along with most everyone else! Mitch and I always just want a healthy baby...but I think we already feel comfortable with a girl...so another one doesn't make us nervous! ha! Luci has been telling us forever that she wants a sister. She was excited...but not really as excited as I thought she would be. I still think she is just really unsure of everything at this point. It is taking forever for this baby to come in her mind!

A name? We have one or two that we have in mind. I am pretty sure we have a middle name. We just aren't 100% yet...and not quite ready to announce yet! I will let you know as soon as we figure it out! Trust me, Mom has to get started on the monogramming, so we are trying to hurry! :-)

Laura said that the brain, heart, and spine look healthy at this point. She said that the 20 week ultra sound that I will have at my doctor's office will be able to tell more. At 20 weeks you should be able to see all 4 chambers of the heart, etc. So, we are thanking God for a healthy baby so far and praying that the health continues!

15 Weeks

Ok, so I am late posting again...but here it is...15 Weeks!!

Baby is 4 inches and the size of an apple!

I am mostly nauseous in the morning. The afternoon nausea has mostly subsided. Now if we can just start working on that morning part... 

Mostly wearing maternity pants. Wearing a maternity shirt here and there, but regular shirts still fit.

Still craving orange juice and all things orange...and Sonic limeades!!!

I think Mitch and I have settled on names for both boy and girl! We may know the gender pretty soon...I will keep you posted!!

Me and Baby M...baby is growing...and so is Mommy!!

Easter Fun + Branson

This is a long post!!! Let's rewind to last weekend. Mitch's folks came up for our Annual Easter Egg Coloring!! Plus, Luci had her first egg hunt of the season last Sunday. It was sooooo cold  here on Sunday so the egg hunt was moved indoors!!! Sooo glad!

This past weekend we headed to Branson for probably our one and only Branson trip of the year. We are heading to South Carolina for our family vaca this year...plus with the new baby on the way...we just figure this will be our only trip!! It was a pretty fast trip, but we still managed some Silver Dollar City fun and shopping. The weather on Friday was perfect SDC weather. It was such a beautiful, fun day!

We got back home from Branson on Saturday afternoon, and I got Luci's Easter basket all ready to go for Sunday morning. 

Sunday morning! So excited that the Easter Bunny visited!

The Easter Bunny hid eggs all in our living room for Luci to find (It was raining). Most of the eggs were money eggs, but a few even had some candy inside!!!

After the Easter Bunny visit, we got ready to head to church in FSM. Here is our girl all dressed in her Easter dress! After church in FSM, we headed to Paris to catch the last 30 minutes of Easter service at my parent's church and then we headed over to their house for a big Easter lunch.

My lunch contributions were potato salad and deviled eggs!

After lunch, Mimi hid eggs in the house for the grandkiddos. The ground was sooo wet from the rain that we just did the hunt inside. They didn't seem to mind!

And here is our Easter family photo...Me and Baby M, Mitch, and our Luci girl!

Here is Mimi and PePaw with the grandkids. And of course, Ellie is being a little uncooperative! :-)

We had so much fun with our Easter celebrations and I am so thankful that we serve a risen savior!!!