A love like no other...

Nova has just turned 3 months! Wow, the time has been going by so quickly! These days Nova is attempting to roll over from her back to tummy...only to get half way there and get "stuck" and become frustrated. So I help her to her stomach, only to have her get mad again after a few minutes for being on her tummy! Ah,the life of a 3 month old!

Nova is an amazing baby. She is calm...can sleep through anything...and has the best chunky cheeks EVER! Those cheeks are what get me every morning (and afternoon and evening!) when I come to pick her up and she is smiling and kicking with such excitement of a new day.

I am super excited to be taking Nova to Wisconsin in just a few days...so hopefully (because I obviously stink at updating this blog on a regular basis) I will have some more pictures to share and stories to tell! Until then, Wisconsin get ready for this girl!

Family Pictures!

I am blessed. We were able to go take family pictures yesterday and I am excited to see the results!

A few of my favorite! Enjoy!

In Honor of Mother's Day....

On this Mothers Day weekend I thought it would be the perfect time to reflect on all memories I had with my mother!


Remember when.....


1. You would make a pie...ha ha..a million pies for Thanksgiving. It was an event of epic proportions  the evening before getting them all baked and cooled. I may have had to carry a pie or two the entire way to Wausau just to get it there safely!


2. We would have to have breakfast or lunch (if Santa came early) AND we had to clean up the kitchen before we could open presents! You realize mother, it felt like AN ETERNITY! But looking back glad we had that family time!


3. The trip we took to go wedding dress shopping.


4. We could not lift a baby calf into the back of the truck...we could not stop laughing! Ha, not even sure why we were even laughing at the moment.


5. You would always go to my Parent Teacher Conferences...and I would wait up anxiously to hear what they had to say.


6. You bought me bright pink gloves (not mittens) that were five times to big...but would be the only thing I would wear at school because they were gloves.


7. We biked around Mackinaw Island. Renee fell asleep in the carrying seat behind Dad.


8. I could tell your temper on a Saturday morning (while I was pretending to sleep in my bed) by the sound of your footsteps.


9. You bought us a shake....I mean a Frosty...from Wendy's!


10. The shopping trips to Appleton or Minneapolis to go school shopping.


11. We went into the Wedding dress boutique and we had to make a "run" for it because we did not want to talk to the worker there! We had to have looked hilarious running out of that store!


12. The "cow pie" birthday cake. Enough said!


13. My heart bedroom..or strawberry shortcake room..you could definitely be on HGTV with those mad skills! Those hearts were all so symmetrical!


14. You did not kill me when I spilled nail polish remover on my dresser.


15. You would watch Ryan and I's silly shows -- I still remember the Hound Dog show.


16. We made up the awesome game in the back seat on the way back from Vegas! And could not stop laughing!


17. Moving me to Arizona. Need I say more!


18. You would come driving into town to pick me up after a basketball game. (No matter how bad the roads were)


19. All the help and work you did to create the best wedding EVER!


20. You were able to hold your Granddaughter for the very first time...and you had to wait the entire ride home to see her. You were like a little girl patiently waiting..although I could tell the wait felt like an ETERNITY. (Payback?!? JK)

I could go on and on with all the great times and memories that were made. I am sure I will need to add to this list as I reflect more today. My hopes on this Mother's Day weekend is to with all those Mothers out there a Happy Mother's Day! And I hope to create all those same type of memories with my own daughter!

Week 7

Little Nova has recovered from her first cold, and has since been much better with her daily sleeping schedule. Although there is still some room for improvement, at least it has been consistent! She is quite independent..in the evenings she gets to a point where she just wants to be placed in her crib and have her "me" time. She also would love to be able to just sit up on her own (if she could) all the time. She will cry at times if you do not sit her up so she can explore the world. Nova loves taking walks outside, and we will have to sneak in a few more of those before it becomes to warm outside.

At week 7, she is still the most beautiful girl in the world!

6 weeks

Wow, time sure does fly! I cannot believe my little Nova is already 6 weeks old. It was not so long ago I was counting down the weeks until she arrived, and now she is here.


I thought for sure I would be keeping up with this blog to share with friends and family, and the fact of the matter is I definitely find it difficult to use my time to update this blog. I would much rather either snuggle with Nova...or hang out with my Mark...or maybe catch some zzzz's.


I am hoping to do a blog a month, with some pictures to show from that month.


Until then...enjoy this thing called life!

Nova Rae Clark

The Arrival

Wow! Time has flown by! My precious bundle of joy is almost 2 weeks old already!

Let's go back to the beginning....

Monday, March 10th: This was my first day of "maternity leave" and what I thought would be the day I would be going into the hospital to be induced. Mark and I went to the doctor's appointment, and instead of being sent to the hospital to be induced, Dr. Rathee decided to strip my membranes. This procedure, which only lasted a few minutes, felt like an eternity and was rather painful. In retrospect though, it was not all that bad. After this, Mark and I went home and started the waiting game! I did a lot of walking around the block and bouncing on the medicine ball. I was amazed that I was finally starting to feel cramps. Dr. Rathee told us to come back Wednesday morning and we would do this again if we did not begin labor by then.

Tuesday, March 11th: The longest day ever!

Wednesday, March 12th: Mark and I got up and went to the doctor's office. Once again, Dr. Rathee stripped my membranes. Mark and I drove home that morning and once I arrived at home I begin to feel contractions. The contractions were much more powerful than the usual cramping I was having, but I did not want to get my hopes up, so I told myself I will not go in until this has been going on for an hour. Well, things got real! I lasted 45 minutes and as I sat down on the couch I felt what could be my water breaking. This sparked Mark's attention and before I could say anything we were in the car and on our way to the hospital! We arrived at the hospital at 11:30 am. By this time, my contractions were every 3-4 minutes apart and lasted for 30 - 60 seconds each. I never saw Mark drive with such determination as that day! I never felt so annoyed with techno music as I did during the ride. As soon as we arrived to the hospital and I stepped out of the car, my water broke! So here I am waddling into the hospital with my water gushing out with each contraction! (Not attractive!)

I was ushered into the triage room and was set up with a monitor to watch the baby and I's heart rate. Baby Clark scared us a few times, but once I laid to one side it seemed to calm her down. In the meantime, those contractions kept on coming! I am pretty sure that I asked the nurse each time she came into the room about getting an epidural! The epidural did not happen for another couple hours though! An ultrasound was ordered because Baby Clark was in an awkward position (sunny side up) and they wanted to make sure things were proceeding along. The ultrasound tech mentioned the weight may be just under 8 lbs.

At last, we moved into a delivery room. I also had some much needed relief with the epidural! OMG! This was heaven! For those of you who believe in a natural child birth or were forced to have a natural child birth due to lack of  epidurals back in the day...I am sorry! This was amazing!

Baby Clark was still in her sunny side up position, so once again it was a waiting game. The nurses had me lay on my side in hopes of her turning over on her own. Fast forward 8 1/2 hours later, and it was finally time to begin pushing. At 9 pm, we got the room ready to go. The lights were dimmed, music was playing in the background (Bruno Mars on Pandora), and Mark was ready to assist.

We pushed for 1 1/2 hours and with the last push....Nova Rae Clark entered the world at 10:25 pm. She weighed 6 lbs 12 oz. and was 19 inches long. She was perfect!

Week 40

I have arrived at week 40! I was originally thinking by this time I would either have delivered or well on my way, plans have changed and Baby Clark is showing a side (well most likely my body) of her stubbornness.

At the doctor's appointment, the doctor decided against inducing, as he foresees it would cause for a really long labor and end up with my body being too tired and getting an unneeded c section. As much as I wanted to see my little bundle of joy, I agreed with him. It was exciting to hear I was a whole 1.5 cm dilated! Instead, he stripped my membranes (ouch!) and told me it might kick something into gear. So far, just a lot of cramping...

If nothing happens, I go in Wednesday morning to his office and he does it again. (Those of you who picked your dates....you still have a chance!). The hospital I have decided to deliver at has a new policy where they will not allow doctors to induce until you reach 41 weeks. So we will continue to wait....

Today's plan of action...walk...bounce...walk...bounce! Come on Baby Clark...Mommy and Daddy are really excited to meet you!

Week 39 Belly...

Still Pregnant!

In the words of my doctor..."Good news is you cannot stay pregnant forever....!"


Today is my last day of school. It will be bittersweet and I will definitely miss these students.


Updates soon...hopefully with lots of pictures and a name announcement!

Oh Sweet Little Baby...

Ahhh, so it is officially getting close! At the last doctor appointment, it was decided that if I do not deliver on my own I will be induced on March 10th. So that means...in less than 2 weeks I will be holding my sweet little baby in my arms!


AMAZING!!!


Sorry to disappoint those who guessed (included my husband and I) the birth day much later on. I guess we can always start guessing on the weight and height! Any takers?

Let the betting begin.....

So I officially have a few entries into the "when will Baby Clark arrive" poll.

Grandma Haas (ha..aka my mom): March 21st.
Me: March 16th
Mark: March 16th
Sam: March 17th
Erin: March 14th
Heidi: March 18th
Chris Rossi: March 21st
Kayla: March 20th
Dad: March 14th


Add a comment with your guess....

Week 37

I am not considered "full term"! Wahoo! Still pushing through to make it until spring break! Although secretly Mark and I are way to excited to meet our little pumpkin! I can it is getting near the end though because I no longer get the "how are you feeling" questions, instead I get "how much longer do you have"!


I was blessed to have a small little baby shower at work the other day. I received a diaper cake...and after I brought it home to deconstruct it I realized that that probably took Miss Emma a long time to make it! I was also blessed and she made one of her famous tres leches cakes. Simply delicious! (might explain the ever growing belly as well--I mean really how much bigger can it get! lol)

Until next week....

Doctor Visit

All is well! I had the ultrasound today, and according to this Baby Clark is 5 lbs 14 oz. I was a little worried about her size, because the doctor mentioned before she could be big. I am happy to report she is average in her weight. The doctor anticipates her being about 6-7 lb baby once she arrives in a month (or before).


I have not heard any more mention of big feet either, so we should be safe there as well. Doctor's orders are to walk a lot within the next few weeks and let gravity do its thing! Should be easy to do when I am still walking about the classroom and teaching.

Here is the latest of Baby Clark's room. All the clothes and blankets have been washed and put away until her arrival.

Beast Mode!

This little girl inside me is officially considered a "Beast"--and I mean that in the best possible way! For the last 4-5 days, she has been moving and kicking ALL day long! When she is taking a small break she likes to stretch out in my shrinking body and keep those legs tucked safely into my rib cage! A few neighbors have said that once she quiets down, I should be ready at any time! So now every time she takes a break, I analyze any movements to see if this is it! Lol...I still have a few more weeks left though!


In other news, Mark and I were in Beast mode this past weekend. We got up early on Saturday and made a quick trip to get his oil changed in his car, ran to Target, and then came home and cleaned out the dresser to make room for Baby Clark's clothes and such in her room. We are officially done pre-washing clothes and blankets. Diaper bag has been packed for the hospital and Momma's (what...someone is going to call me Momma!!!!) bag is also packed (although if you know me and have ever seen what I all seem to cram into luggage, I am sure there will be more added to this bag). I am trying to be minimal with the packing though, as I will need to have extra arms to carry my DAUGHTER out those hospital doors!


Just a few more hours and I will get to have my last ultrasound done. I am pretty pumped, because I have not been able to have one done in a long time. I also get to see if I am moving any closer to delivering my sweet child. (Updates to come later today)

Baby Shower

I am so blessed to have friends and family be a part of the baby shower whether you were there or back in Wisconsin or in other parts of the country. Mark and I are truly blessed! And here are a few pictures from the day! (I am finally to the point where I look at pictures of myself and I was taken aback by how pregnant I look....lol..sounds silly, but true.)

Let the games begin!

Gunner would not leave my side during the shower....he is my buddy! For those of you who don't know he is my awesome neighbor's son, and will be unfortunately really jealous once Baby Clark arrives. Sorry Gunner!

Can never go wrong with diapers!

My helper!

The whole group!

A beautiful cake!

My niece, Sydney and sister in law Jana who made the trip!