Family Reunion 2014 : Hidden Springs Ranch in Utah

Our fabulous family vacation / family reunion up in utah was SO much fun.

We drove up with with Blake's parents in a lovely mini van equipped with the greatest thing you could have while driving with a toddler - A DVD PLAYER! (yay)

I'm also super proud of my little boy for keeping his pull up 99% dry while we drove up there, thanks in large part to Blake's mom and her bag of bribe candy.

We stopped at Jill's first to be at the blessing of our newest little niece, baby Annie.

Then we were off... on the road again.

I was so surprised when I saw our cabin. . .

It was HUGE and it was gorgeous. 

We were one of the lucky ones who got a big room and a private bathroom. (thanks to my big boy and pregnant condition.)

But the best part was the company! I'm so thankful to be a part of this family. 

I only with QB could have been there with us too. 

The resort had everything you could want. Awesome rooms, huge kitchen, a fire pit, a bit playground for the kids and a lovely pool and spa.

... even a rock climbing wall.

There was also this tiny little lake you row around in. Kaleb called our row boat "bucky".

It being a ranch and all, there were horses. They smelled really bad. But we were able to feed them hay and then we were cool. 

We also prepared a little song for the family talent show. I think Kaleb was the best part. 

These two. THESE TWO! It had been so long since we'd seen each other and - oh my goodness - it was wonderful to see them. 

I love my family. And that they're my son's family.

It was a very good trip.

Baby #2 : Second Trimester - Announcing our pregnancy and The Gender & Name Reveal

This post covers April 26th to July 21st

At the beginning of gestational week 15, we went to the fabulous Magical 4D Images. We did the same thing with Kaleb because I am the worst at waiting. I honestly don't know how people did it before, I feel like knowing my baby's gender and knowing their name helps me to bond with them before they're even here. We love 4D Images. Their equipment is always the best and I get to lay on the little bed and they have a TV on the wall in front of me so I don't have to crane my neck at the monitor. And Blake and Kaleb sit on a comfy couch next to me and watch a big screen TV. Its Awesome. AND its weeks earlier than when the doctor does the gender test.

So my grandmother had already predicted a girl (she also predicted when I was going to get pregnant) so we were thinking she was right. Well, Blake believed her, I was still unsure... I thought "maybe its a boy." I dont know, I think I wanted a girl, so I set myself up for the "plan B" scenario. I did the same thing with Kaleb. I always wanted a boy first so I kept saying "Its probably a girl."

But when I hopped on the table, and they gelled me up, there was no little boy business to be found.
They told Kaleb "You're having a baby sister!" he seemed unimpressed, but Blake and I were so happy! Granted, she kept crossing her legs and twisting and turing but they say 99% sure its a girl.



Well we went home and started telling all our family. Blake's sister was pregnant with a little girl too, so that was exciting. But in my family, our little one would be the first great-grandaughter and the first girl in something like 10 years. So everyone was very happy. (and thats not to say anyone would have been upset with a boy, we love boys, boys are awesome, but since we're having a girl this is how the story is going.) We also thought that, since we knew the gender and I was starting to show, it was time to tell the world (read: Facebook) as well. I had a whole mini movie and great project planned out as an announcement, but was still on the lazy/tired end of things so just ended up recording a quick announcement by Kaleb... which is posted earlier in the blog.

Anyway, after the gender was discovered our talk quickly turned to names. There was one name I loved since childhood, but when I married a Green I quickly dismissed it. We went back and forth and my forerunner was Penelope. When it seemed like Blake had finally conceded and that would be her name... It didn't feel right. I kept going back to that name I loved.
It was Rachel.
But my fear was that in naming our daughter Rachel with a last name of Green people would automatically think of ...

and even though we love the show and shes awesome in it, I was NOT naming my daughter after her.

But it kept bugging me. So I talked to Blake about it and he basically said "Lets name our daughter a name you love, and the few people that put together the character and the name will probably not think you named her AFTER the character, just that they happen to have the same name."

It made sense and was all I needed to be convinced. :D

So our daughter's name will be:

And we can't wait to hold her in our arms and welcome her in our lives!


... If she still is in fact a girl because then THIS happens...


Week 21 comes along and we go to our medical ultrasound. We figured an ultrasound is an ultrasound so we just choose the cheapest place... WRONG MOVE. This place we went to in Santa Ana was dirty (there was no actual dirt or anything it was just in a crummy building and gave off that dilapidated vibe) our technician seemed to barely speak english, and while my husband and son watched she told me
"ok, you see baby? You see that there? Thats the c*ck."
and I'm like... uh excuse me?
"It hard to see, but that look like a c*ck. Its a boy, ok?"
again I asked for clarification again and she kept spouting the c word about my little baby.
So Blake took a few pictures of what she insisted was a penis (in her own colorful way). I just said "ok", and after she threw a washrag on my belly and told me to clean myself up, we got out of there.

I immediately called Magical 4D Images and told them our medical ultrasound gave us a different gender result. They said I could come right in for another session (on the house, obviously) and they could double check for us.

Well when we got there and I recounted the other technician's bedside manner, and then showed them the picture of what the other place's crappy ultrasound machine picked up they said they didn't see male bits at all.

They lubed me up and took a gander on their brand spankin' new (I was the first client they used it on!) 4D machine and we looked for the gender....

No penis.

They said she was squirmy, but clearly a girl.

Thats good enough for me!

I am still a little nervous that she will come out a he (only because we have girl name and girl clothes, but we will OF COURSE love and be so happy with a boy too) but I'm pretty sure we're having a little lady. . . 90%.