Oh, the places I took her...

I was given 17 weeks and 6 days to carry April.    I learned  I was pregnant on January 15,  and she was born asleep on April 15.   For those 3 months that I knew she was with me and we had a really good time together.  

I thought I would fill in the gap that I left in my blog from February 7 to April 13.   I didn't have a blog post once during that time period,  and I really feel a need today to document our family life during the time we anticipated our precious baby,  for it was the only time she was here with us this side of Heaven.

Before I even knew she was growing,  we took April to Great Wolf Lodge with all of her Hopkins cousins and Grandparents.  

We enjoyed surprising Daddy that his hope and dream for a 5th child was going to happen.   I remember so clearly the reaction that Dan had.   He was excited, while I was very unsure about what having a family of 7 really meant.   I was scared but felt that we had been given a precious gift.   God answered the prayers we had prayed last fall as to if our family was complete.
The very next day,  we ice skated as a family up at Mom & John's.   I clearly remember skating around the rink with my new found secret growing inside.   Dan was especially giddy that day,  but only the two of us knew why.

The weeks went by and at 8 weeks we decided to tell our family and friends that Baby Dieleman #5 was on his or her way!!   I was fortunate to have an early ultrasound at 10 weeks and this is the precious picture I have as a forever keepsake.   I'll never forget that harried morning with Joy and Juliet in the ultrasound room with me.   I left there feeling extremely blessed and still in awe that I was truly pregnant again!

Off next to New York City!!   The trip had been planned since December,  but being pregnant made it a bit more eventful when traveling by plane and NYC cab.   After many a nauseous moment,  I had a fantastic time with Jamie & Katie,  Dana and company...

We rounded out February with a Hopkins cousins party hosted by Ron & Cheryl.    We had a great time catching up with them and sharing the joy of our pregnancy.  

 To be continued with March happenings...