Daddy update and more

Dave's surgery went well but the outcome was much worse than we anticipated. I spoke with Dr Branch just minutes after surgery and he told me that not only had Dave completely torn one of the tendons in his rotator cuff off the bone, but also had a bone spur in his shoulder. Recovery went from 3 months to 6. I am due in 5 months and I am just scared to death of having to carry Emma around the last trimester. She's already over the recommended weight limit and getting bigger every day. I guess little girl is going to get a lot of practice climbing stairs!

The wait in the hospital felt like an eternity. It's times like those that you really remind you how much you love your husband. Two long hours passed, which felt like eons, as I waited in anticipation for the doctor to call me in to see Dave. He was pretty groggy from the anesthesia but within an hour we were headed home. The first two days were the worst, and after it all I have no clue how anyone can raise a family alone. Between cooking, cleaning, feeding, walking the dog and all the other mundane tasks I had it was plain chaos.

Dave did alright after surgery but the first weekend was rough. He ran out of his pain meds and they wouldn't fill the good stuff over the phone. He settled for a less potent pain killer and struggled through the weekend until we could meet with the doctor again Monday. He resorted to icing down his shoulder every 30 minutes for three days stright and managed to give himself a small case of frostbite. He's now doing much better and weening himself off the medications, which has been a long process. He's going to therapy three times a week until further notice but if you ask me he's doing much better than I thought. He's even testing his wife's patience by lifting things he's not supposed to lift. Men.

Here's a pic with daddy amd Emma just a few days after surgery:


We went to Fredericksburg for Easter this year... Emma loved the little plastic eggs and looked simply sute in her Easter dress.




We went to Fredericksburg again this past weekend and Emma got her first baby doll. She is so in love and I often find her kising her baby.



Poor girl is missing naps consistently these days because she's teething (molars) which makes for sour afternoons. If this video is any indication of how tired she is at the end of the day....



She was a little happier when we got home...

And one last one to make you smile...


I'm feeling pretty good these days. I'm less tired and have more energy to get things done. The bathroom is still a mess but my savior dad is coming to help in a few weeks. Yay for dad!

Here's the update for this week. I promise I'll have belly pictures soon!!!

16 week update:
Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.

Yeah for the avacado!!!!
Love to all!

Headed to Fredericksburg

I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Easter. The Simpson clan is headed down to Fredericksburg tonight until Monday morning for a little r&r, yummy Grananny cooking and birthday celebrations. We're celebrating Dave's, mine and Scott's birthdays. Maybe Emma will like cake now, hmmmm.

This post isn't just to wish a happy holiday, but more so to tell everyone that I have the most wonderful husband in the world. For my birthday he took me to Mike's American Grill in Springfield, while Barbara stayed late to watch Emma. Just after we ordered dinner he gave me my present. This was not just any present, it was the best birthday present I have ever gotten aside from my engagement ring. Actually, it's pretty darn close.

I opened the box, roughly the size of a shirt box, to find a bound book. I turned it over and immediately started crying. In fact, I'm welling up just thinking about it. My dear husband hired our friend Anas to design a coffee table book for me based on this blog, following my entire pregnancy with Emma. Together they spent three weeks gathering, copying and laying out this book that follows my blog from the first post to the post just after we brought Emma home. I still cannot believe that he thought to do something so touching, something that I will cherish the rest of my life. It's truly amazing and I wish I could share it with each and every one of you. Well, if you're a follower you know what the book says, but just to have it in my hands is more special than anyhting. I am so grateful to have a husband that knows enough about me to know that that gift was absolutely perfect and touched my heart. I am so blessed. I will post pictures of it later next week.

For Dave's birthday I got him Family Tree Maker software. He's been very interested in tracking his family tree lately and thought it would help keep it all in digital format. In fact, we've started it with not only his family but mine as well. I am so anxious to sit down with my grandparents and other relatives to fill it in - there's so much to learn and I know our children will appreciate it later in their lives. I never knew much about my ancestry and it's conforting knowing that I now have the tools to learn, as time allows, and create something for my family that I can pass down through generations. We hope to gather stories and pictures of relative long past so if you have anything that you think we'd find useful please let us know.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday weekend. Don't eat too many peeps!

The 12 week ultrasound

All went well with the ultrasound last week - baby Simpson 2 is right on track with a revised due date of October 8. This 12 week ultrasound is called a nuchal translucency, which tests the fold at the base of the neck for risk of down syndrome. All is clear with a measurement of 1.4. Anything above 3 is considered risky.

All the other measurements were great, and the heart beat was a steady 167, a bit higher than Emma's which was 158 at 12 weeks. If you believe the wives tales about heartbeat then this one's a girl, but everyone seems to think boy this time, including me. I'm not sure why - I guess because I am craving different things this time (salt and vinegar pototo chips - yum!!!). Of course, we're just happy it's a baby and regardless of it's gender we'll be ecstatic to meet him or her. Our next appointment with Dr Ferrier is on the 14th for our monthly follow up.

Here'sour little one at 12 weeks:

I'm feeling pretty good aside from having a hard time sleeping. Dave is dreading the anaconda pillow that's neatly stuffed under Emma's crib but I think it's going to see the light of day sooner rather than later. I just can't get comfortable. I think it mostly has to do with our 15 year old bed, but I do remember feeling this way with Emma too. Other than that I'm a little more nauseous this time around and actually made a b-line for the bathroom once. Cinammon toast did not like me that day. I'm still in my regular clothes although I have resorted to the stretchier pants and loose fitting shirts. I can't imagin it'll be too much longer before i give up trying to not look pregnant! Expandalbe waist line here I come!

Here's the BabyCenter weekly update:
Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

Shrimp. It's a good name for a little 2" person don't you think?
The bathroom is coming along nicely, just not as fast as Dave and I anticipated. Between Emma naps, meals and bedtime it doesn't leave much time to work. The bathroom backs to Emma's room and any sounds wake her up, especially the wet saw. We're still showering with plastic covering the walls and the smell of mortar wafting the air. You're lucky if you don't walk out of the bathroom with plaster stuck between your toes. We're praying to be done by this weekend but it's going to make for a pretty hectic week over here. Dave's surgery is quickly approaching and after "s-day" on the 16th you can pretty much assume the bathroom is going to stay unfinished for a while if it's not done! Um dad????

I tried to snap some pics of Emma before she went down for her nap this morning but as you can tell she wasn't really in the mood. The camera bag was much more appealing than mom's squeaking noises to get her attention.




She's like..."moooooooommmmm, really????" But, just look at the outfit though... dahling!


Emma's sporting 8 teeth with quite a few brewing. And that hair... it's growing but barely. I simply can't wait to put it in ponytails although with her personality I'm sure they won't last long. I'm surprised she even keeps her clothes on! And shoes... man, the second she hits the car seat they're as good as gone!

Love to all!

Amid Plaster Dust...

We're at it again. We've decided to remodel again because what better to do when you find out you're having another baby! Yup, little Simpson number two is on the way and will be making his or her appearance in October. The official due date, as of this week, is October 10th, a day we share with my nephew Nicholas' birthday.

The reactions we've received with this pregnancy are much different than with Emma. Apparently having two children a mere 20 months apart is the most ludicrous thing known to man. Well, we must be clinical because we planned it and we're thrilled to be adding to our bunch so soon. Sure two children in diapers is going to be hard, but my brother and I are 18 months apart and I remember looking up to him so fondly growing up.

Sure we fought and he pulled my hair, but that's what siblings do, right? I remember him chasing me with a weed whacker, but I also remember him taking care of me and doing whatever he could to protect me. My most precious memory is when I awoke after having my wisdom teeth out to my brother at my feet. He was there to protect me and to make sure I was okay. What makes the story even more touching is that he had just gotten his teeth removed too and the first thing he asked for when he woke was me. It's times like those that make having a close sibling so wonderful. We were there for each other growing up and although we had and continue to have our moments, I'm pretty sure we still love each other.

With surgery just a few weeks away for Dave we're frantically trying to put our house together. We've decided that the bathroom was in need of some tile repair so we're in the midst of redoing the one bathroom we have. We also reorganized our tool closet, finished the kitchen counters (which look awesome), and are working feverishly to straighten and organize the office. Not only are we trying to make it more relaxing, but we're making way for my brother Andy who will be joining us for the summer.

We're very excited that Andy is coming to DC with his friend Stacy this summer. They've found an apartment about 7 miles from here, just a short walk to the Metro. Andy will be working with us as Simpatico part time and is looking for another job to supplement his time. We could really use the help and I think it's going to be a great learning experience for him. Plus, as long as I buy the pizza and make sure the Direct TV is working I'm pretty sure I can get a free babysitter! Yay!

Miss Emma is doing great. She takes off running these days on a mission to pull Cooper's tail, eat Cooper's food or pull the weather stripping off the front door. She loves playing in cabinets, reading books and mastering her fine motor skills by stacking cups and carrying 18,000 things in her hands at once. She's quite the little independent child these days too. She's not too fond of being held and loves to get down and run around. Her favorite toys aren't really toys at all, she loves the remote, the phone and containers like egg cartons, bread crumb cans and tupperware.

She's still pretty small, weighing just over 20 lbs. She's wearing 12 month clothes, but her little waist is just too tiny for some of her pants. Her feet on the otherhand are right on pace - she's in a size 4 shoe these days.

Aside from chasing Emma and working very hard our only big news is our new addition. We have an ultrasound scheduled for this Thursday so I'll be sure to post the little one's first pictures.

Love to all.

little girl in puffy snowsuit

As promised, here are the pictures of Emma in the snow Monday. She were very skeptical and wasn't too much of a fan of the cold wet stuff that was under her butt. It might have been the Ralphie-style snow suit too...

We tried to throw snowballs at daddy and got a little smile...


But it didn't last long....

Aunt Su has decided that snow must look like cake frosting, and, as we learned form the last post, cake frosting is really scary. Hmph. Maybe next year.

Emma's First Birthday

We celebrated Emma's first birthday a few weeks ago with two parties, one with Dave's family and one here at home with a few close friends.

Emma's first experience with cake was less than monumental. In fact, cake was the last thing she wanted and made it very clear to all of us to get that thing away from her. The candle and cake looked cool at first and even smiled for the camera, but within seconds you could tell she wanted no part of the celebration.

We tried again after her nap, this time with a smaller less frightening cake, but still, the cake thing didn't fly. So, we gave up and opened presents.

A week later and the day before her actual birthday we had some friends over and tried the cake thing again. Mom got creative, maybe a cake shaped like an ice cream cone would clear her mind of the traumatic cake experience from the week before.

Wrong.
Maybe next year.

Emma wants to say thanks to everyone who celebrated her birthday with her and for all the nice presents. She got books, clothes, puzzles and lots of fun new toys. Also a big thanks to the grandparents and aunts and uncles who sent a donation for her new car seat, her old one was getting a bit too tight and big girls deserve big bright yellow new car seats!


Since the momentous day she's decided that crawling is a thing of the past, cupboard opening is the next best thing to playing with phones and remote controls, Cooper's food is yummier than hers and drinking from a bottle is for babies.

She's now walking about 90% of the time, with periodic falls of course, climbing in cabinets to fetch containers and hidden toys, nabbing Cooper giblets when we're not looking and drinking solely from a sippy cup. Wow what a difference a few weeks makes in the life of a child.


Cooper is doing great as far as his leg is concerned. He's still not doing stairs, but he's getting around much better. Bad news is he still has to wear his lampshade, poor guy has a hot spot above his eye that he won't stop scratching. If he would only get healthy we'd take the plunge and get pet insurance.... dang dog keeps getting sick!!!!

Other big news is that we finally broke down and got a new car. It's a Dodge Durango which we lovingly call Big Red.
It's so nice not to have to cram into the Nissan with a 70lb dog, car seat and luggage for the weekend.... this one even has a DVD player which Emma is already a fan of. She gets in her seat and immediately looks up to it. Long car rides here we come!!!!

Well, it's a snow day here, almost 7 inches outside and I've decided I'm taking the day off. Emma, daddy and I are going to play in the snow after lunch so check back for some "little girl in puffy snowsuit" pictures!

ta ta!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Hi all. Long time, huh? I'm feeling less and less committed to this blog and I am starting to simultaneously feel guilty about it. There's always so much to tell about but until I find a few extra uninterrupted hours in my day I'll resort to guilt and move on.

So... what's new...hmmm.... Did we have a Christmas not too long ago? It sure doesn't seem like it! :) As I recall it was good times all around. We went to Michigan for a week, which was a much needed break from the rigmarole of day to day life here in VA. Emma and I flew direct from DCA and Dave met us there the following day after a 13 hour drive. Normally it takes 9.5. You can ask him why he wanted to drive, I still am baffled by it. :)

The first night Emma and I joined Lynn's family and went out to dinner for grandpas K's brithday. Grandpa loves his free bithday dinner at Finley's and goes every year. I was mostly excited since it has been years since I've been able to attend. My neice Kaitlin and cousin Molly had a blast with the sting cheese while Emma nibbled on some shredded cheese of her own.



We spent Christmas Eve with my mom at my brother's house and all had our pictures taken by Nicole Cottom of Art & Soul Photography. Nicole is amazing and I'm really looking forward to seeing the photos. Here's a sneak peek:

We hung out at Mike and Jen's after pictures and my dad, Lynn, sister Jenni and brother Andy came over to exchange gifts with Mike's family.

Nicholas and Emma packed in some quality time playing with cars....

And we played a little wii (I was sore for days!)

Christmas morning was spent at my family's house. Emma opened some presents and made quite the mess - she loved tearing the paper into tiny pieces.

She even got to do some pull-up on mommy and daddy's new toy...


She spent quality time with uncle Andy while mom made Beignets, a family tradition for Christmas morning.



Later that afternoon Lynn's family came over for dinner and more presents.

Emma was great with all the commotion and looked adorable in her Christmas dress.

SHe even got her first sip of beer...

The day after Christmas we had dinner with dad's side of the family. Aunt T tried for some Emma time but Emma wasn't having much of it.

On Saturday we went to my aunt Doreen's house for Christmas with my mom's side of the family. We had a nice dinner, opened presents and let the kids run around as we caught up.

We made the trek home on the following Monday only to turn around again and head down to Fredericksburg for yet another family Christmas, this time with Dave's fanily. The whole family gathered, opened presents and played Blokus for hours on end.

We spent New Years Eve trying not to fall asleep as we waited for the clock to strike 12. The kids had a blast though.

Now for the not so fun part of this post. Not only did I fall down our stairs just before Thanksgiving with Emma in tow, but that fall caused a little tear in my hubby's rotator cuff when he carried me to the couch. (I'm really not that heavy, he had injured it a few years ago, the "carry" just did him in). We met with Dr. Branch, Dave's orthopedic surgeon, a few weeks ago and confirmed that Dave will have to have surgery. Our next home purchase is likely to be a runner for our overly-slippery stairs.

To make matters worse, we met with Dr. Brehm at SouthPaws and learned that Cooper needs surgery too. His fall down the stairs a few months ago caused a tear in his cruciate, or ACL. We're opting for a procedure called a TPLO where they essentially splice his bone and rebuild his knee so that the ACL is no longer needed. It's pretty intrusive, but after long thought and contemplation we've determined it's the best thing to do. Coop goes in for surgery tomorrow morning at 7am. I've been emotional about it all day. Our poor dog has been through so much this year and it saddens me to think what he's going to have to go through. We're expecting nearly 8 weeks of isolation and recovery. We're now trying to figure out how we're going to get him up the stiars, especailly since Dave's surgery will likely be in a matter of weeks from now. I'm trying to stay upbeat, but it seems like whenever we get ahead we're faced with trying times like these. Please pray for our family, that we make it through these next few very tough weeks with our heads up.

Well, I can't end on a sad note so let me leave you with this... amidst all that's going on here Emma decided it's time to start walking. She took three steps last night and before we know it will be running circles around us. I am so proud of my little girl - she's so independent and the sweetest little muffin you'll ever meet.