July BABY Blanchard!

 

Welllll, we have some VERY exciting news to share! BABY Blanchard is arriving JULY 2023!!!!!

Now, if you're reading this blog, there's a 99% chance you already know this, and you've probably been wondering where mention of this baby has been on my blog previously, but I didn't want to just briefly slide it in on another (delayed!) recent monthly update post that I was quickly catching up on.  Also, due to our two previous miscarriages, I didn't really want to jump the gun and start posting about it until the 3rd trimester. I also didn’t want to be one of those who gets pregnant and acts like they are the only person in the world to ever experience pregnancy/having a baby. 🙃

This Sunday we will already be in the 3rd trimester...which is crazy to think of!

We've thankfully been living with hope and contentment rather than fear this pregnancy, so we've been celebrating, preparing, and talking about this baby for months with our friends, family, and those that we see in our day to day lives. However, we've been keeping it on the DL on JenerallyLemonade...but not anymore!

As you can see, we took our baby announcement picture in Washington DC. One of Shane's family friends took the picture for us, which was so very kind! We wanted to take advantage of this being a Virginia-born, near Washington DC baby. Who knows where our other future kids will be born?! We shared this picture above on social media in mid-March, although our family and many of our friends found out in December.

I feel like I have so much to say about this pregnancy and baby, and there will definitely be more upcoming posts about this, so I'm not going to feel pressured to get it all out here and now. 

Instead, this post is to share how very blessed and fortunate we feel to have had made it this far along so far in this 3rd pregnancy (but first baby!) of ours. We are so appreciative of everyone's support and love throughout this process.

I will say that our 2nd miscarriage baby would have been due this week. We continue to celebrate our current baby that is truly meant to be ours while honoring our two pregnancies that came before. Our rainbow baby is on its way!

We know many others face easier, many others face similar, and yet many others face much harder pregnancy journeys, and since announcing our high-risk, double rainbow baby that's on the way, we've had many others reach out to us to discuss somewhat similar journeys. We pray for all those families and families-to-be often...and we thank you for showing love to this extra special little one of ours who has already proven to be a determined little fighter.

It's hard to put into words when you finally are on the path to get something that you have ALWAYS dreamed of and poured all of your wishes, hopes, and interests into. I’m sure many of you can relate to that- whether it’s through motherhood, a career, a marriage, or something else.

I'm the one who worked at camp for preschoolers for 10 years, worked at a daycare for babies/toddlers during college, nannied for newborns and a toddler, went on vacations with a family I babysat for, and have worked in education/childcare ever since. After taking care of many, many, many other kids...now we will finally have one of our OWN!

I'm that girl that played with dolls way later than most- up until 7th grade! I was always playing with my dollhouse, dolls, and just pretending to be a mom. 

I'm the one who cut out pictures of baby nursery items from magazines when I was a kid- and glued them on paper to dream up nursery ideas.

I'm the one who started helping to take care of babies and toddlers when I was in 4th grade (and I would cry when the time came for them to leave my house/for me to leave theirs. My mom had to threaten that I wouldn't be able to watch babies anymore if I kept that up!)

I'm the one who started babysitting in 6th grade and continued babysitting multiple times a week and every weekend through high school.

I'm the one who remembers sitting at the table in science class in 6th grade, being overly excited when Tuesdays came around because that was the day I was able to babysit my baby/toddler neighbors and not just play with them outside like I did every other day.

I'm the one whose middle school Science Fair project was about which diaper brand absorbed the most liquid (Luvs!).

I'm the one who read parenting magazines for fun in high school- and I've been reading mom-life fiction books and blogs ever since, dreaming and journaling of the day when I would have this life!

I'm the one who took a child development class just for fun in college.

I'm the one who always had someone else's baby on my hip at family events.

I'm the one who has ALWAYS had this dream and desire on my heart.

That's definitely NOT to say any of this makes me more prepared, or better, or more equipped, or more interested in being a mom. I know that desires and talents can pop up any time and be just as strong and shown through a variety of ways. After all, I hated dogs my entire life and now my two are my world!!! 

It's simply saying that being a mom and being with babies has always been on my heart...this has been a LONG time coming.

I don't have the positive words to describe how it feels to finally be turning that into a reality. Maybe those words will come someday, or maybe they won't. Regardless, we are here and we are feeling so incredibly blessed and excited about what God has already started.

We are so excited to share the excitement of Baby Blanchard with you. We are savoring our time with each other and just Cash & Caylor now, while being busy prepping and so eager for July to get here! Sending love to all of you from the growing Blanchard family <3