January & February: First trimester. Nausea all the time, sleeping all the time. Baby Bottle Campaign & Gala preparations keeping me super busy at work. My 33rd birthday and sharing the news about our addition to the family. We didn’t know the gender yet but I was praying about my pregnancy early on and felt God put the name Shiloh on my heart. We never talked about any other girl names. I began praying about taking time off from working to be home with my kids more.
March: Horribly sick with bronchitis for the entire month. Confirmed baby girl. 💕 Very successful Fundraising Gala featuring Lee Strobel – we met our goal almost to the exact dollar. That same day, Jordan got the news that he was hired for a much better job that he worked very hard for. The next day, my OB office called and said my baby’s genetic screening came back with a marker for Down syndrome and recommended some additional tests.
April: Further tests showed she had no chromosomal abnormalities and looked perfectly healthy. However, the extra scan to check on her revealed an issue with my cervix that would not have been caught otherwise. I was put on progesterone/limited activity and became a frequent flyer at the OB office. Officially decided I was going to stop working full-time and be a mostly stay-at-home-mom for as long as God would allow it.
May – July: Super low key summer. I was being monitored regularly for preterm labor and we didn’t go anywhere or do anything. I prayed and cried more this summer than in the last ten years combined. Jordan’s car broke down and we had to buy a new one.
August: Stopped working to stay home with Spencer before baby. We spent a lot of time at the splash pad; he played happily in the water while my giant pregnant self chomped on crushed ice. Jordan & I led a preschool group for VBS, which was exhausting but SO fun. Spencer started preschool at Trinity the week before he became a big brother. Shiloh made it to the week of her due date and was born via c-section on August 26.
September & October: Adjusting to life with two kids and physically recovering. Spencer’s first preschool field trip to the apple farm. Boo at the Zoo and trick or treating with our red Power Ranger. Took a super muddy trip to Relleke’s pumpkin farm, where Spencer rode the tiny roller coaster over and over and over again.
November & December: Thanksgiving & Christmas, our firsts as a family of four. Spencer turned 4 years old and we celebrated at Edison’s. Spencer’s Christmas program at school.
Kristen Stewart, Writer 