31 weeks

I feel like a terrible Gator fan for updating my blog during Tebow's last game in The Swamp, but I know I'm not going to want to do it when we get back into town tomorrow. We've had a great time hanging out with my mom this week, although I really wish that my brother would have been able to come down from New York. "Grams" was able to feel some hiccups and one big kick. The little one was particularly active on Thanksgiving morning, and gave his daddy a swift kick in the belly while I was giving him a hug. We laughed about it the rest of the day!

This was a big week for major baby purchases. After an exhaustive search, we ordered a glider, a generous gift from my mom. Here is our chair, which we ordered in "oatmeal". (I love the stripes and polka dots in this nursery too.)


I also made my biggest baby purchase, for which I have been saving for months and months. Some people may not consider a camera to be necessary in order to prepare for a baby, but I have long planned to upgrade to a DSLR and definitely wanted to do it before the little one gets here. I researched and obsessed over it until I about drove myself (and my husband) crazy, but finally took the plunge with a big Black Friday deal. I've had fun trying out different settings and learning about aperture, shutter speed, etc. I love being able to take indoor pictures without a flash! Here's my new baby for the next 9 weeks, until the real baby gets here!


And just because it's so darn cute, look at the coat that my mom got on clearance at BabyGap!


I've so enjoyed this little break from work and really wish I could have a couple more days before heading back. But I keep reminding myself that there are only seven more weeks of school (9 weeks total) before my due date. We have a LOT to do before the end of January, especially when it comes to making our bonus room ready for the baby. We had borrowed a crib from my friend and Stewart put it together the night we got it. Three days later came the big Storkcraft recall, and of course the one we borrowed was included in the recall. I had some reservations about using a drop-side crib anyway, so this just kind of confirmed it. So now we're back to our original plan of starting the baby in a cradle in our room, and then using a Pack-and-Play when he's ready to move into the other room. When we move sometime in late spring/early summer, then we'll get some actual nursery furniture.

OK, I'm going to go watch the end of this football game....enjoy the belly picture!

Turning 30

I'm turning 30 today....30 weeks pregnant, that is! (I still have a few more months until I actually turn 30 years old.) Only ten weeks left...unbelievable. I'm so excited for the holidays to be here, and can't wait to head down to my mom's for Thanksgiving in just a few days. I know the rest of November and December are going to fly by, although I doubt I'll be able to say the same for January. I hear those last few weeks seem to take forever!

I had a shower at school this past Wednesday, and it was really sweet. The baby got tons of cute outfits, a Boppy, and quite a few gift cards. I work in a pretty rural area, and so the secretary decided that I needed a camouflage onesie and booties in order to make this an "official" baby of the county. Jennifer (who threw me the shower at her house last weekend) gave the baby a piggy bank. Everyone passed it around the room and put change in it as they gave me advice. Here is some of the advice that I could remember by the time I got home:

• When in doubt, call your mother.
• Be a good parent by being a good wife to your husband.
• Sleep when the baby sleeps (I heard this one several times)
• Listen to the doctor, read the baby books, but always trust your instincts.
• Ask the hospital for the nose sucker thing.
• When he gets to be an adult, he WILL realize and remember how much you love him, no matter what bumps there may be along the way, so don't get discouraged.

Here's a picture of me with my principal and assistant principal at the shower.


As for actual physical updates, this has been the week of the heartburn. Ugh. It comes pretty much daily, and it's BAD. I've never really had heartburn before being pregnant, so this makes me have sympathy for chronic sufferers. There have been times during therapy when I have to stop in the middle of a sentence and just shut my eyes until the pain passes. My poor students just kind of stare at me. There's not really any rhyme or reason as to what makes it start....often I'll just have a small snack in the afternoon (like a half a granola bar) and I'll be in pain for several hours. It makes me not want to eat, but of course I'm hungry! My sleep is also continuing to slowly forsake me. I'm getting up more often to go to the bathroom, and it's not uncommon for me to lay there for an hour trying to get back to sleep. I'm not overly uncomfortable or anything, just can't fall back asleep. Overall though, I still feel pretty darn good, for being three quarters of the way through this pregnancy. I feel very lucky!

We're getting very close to choosing the name for baby. Actually, Stewart is ready to make the final decision, I'm just scared to commit and announce it to everyone (even though if people ask, I'll usually tell them what we're thinking.) We have started calling him one name consistently (instead of rotating through three or so names), so I think the final decision won't be too far off. I'l give you a hint....if we stick with what we're thinking, his initials will be the same as his mommy's!

Picture time! (Susan, are you enjoying seeing all your hand-me downs?)


Have a fantastic Thanksgiving this week, everyone. I guess it's no secret what I'm thankful for...

Baby's first shower!

Saturday my sweet friend Jennifer threw me a shower at her house. Jennifer is the ESE teacher at my school and we work very closely together. She's also my classroom neighbor, and I'm in and out of her room about twenty times per day. She had already offered to throw me a shower at her house when she somehow got put in charge of my "work" shower as well, so she's been doing double shower duty. This shower was a lot of fun, and it gave me a chance to invite my close girlfriends from outside of work. Two ladies even drove two hours to be able to come!! We played a couple games, and the baby got so many cute things! Of course I can't post pictures of everything, but I do want to show off my one-of-a-kind diaper bag that my friend Kristin made for me! I absolutely love it, and want to start carrying it now! She and I had looked at some fabrics together, but I ultimately left the fabric choice up to her and I love how it turned out.

You can check out some of the other great things Kristin has made on her etsy site, Sewn Sunday.

Me with Jennifer, the wonderful hostess :-)

Welcome home, Auntie Amber!

Stewart's sister just got back from a two-week medical mission trip to Cambodia and Thailand. She's a physical therapist, but spend most of her time working in the eye clinic and pharmacy. On one of their days off they went to see an elephant show, and she brought back this adorable silk elephant for the baby. His first international gift! Thanks Auntie A, we love you and are proud of your continued dedication to sharing the love of God with people across the world!

29 weeks

As you can see, he has grown to the size of a squash. (Anyone know what kind of squash this is??) My baby shower was today, and it was so much fun! I'll write about it and post some pictures soon. Earlier in the week, I wasn't feeling as many movements from the baby and it was starting to worry me a little bit. But yesterday and today he's been back to his old active self. It's amazing how relieved I feel after just a few big kicks or turns.

I have to give my husband some props this week for helping me with my wardrobe dilemma. I spent all day Wednesday at the mall looking for something cute to wear to my shower, and basically came home empty handed. I was far more upset than I should have been, and tried giving myself a stern talking-to in order to turn my attitude around. I mean really, does it matter what I wear?? I've had a smooth pregnancy, the baby is healthy, and someone cares enough to be throwing me a shower. I was clearly blowing this outfit thing out of proportion. But as soon as I stepped back in my closet, the frustration would set in again. So on Friday night I bribed Stewart with a cheeseburger dinner and then dragged him to the mall to help me find an outfit. And thanks to his suggestions, I came away with something that made me feel somewhat cute and will be wearable after the baby comes. Thanks for enduring my wardrobe-induced moodiness and the evening of shopping, honey!

What, you thought I was going to show you this outfit? Nope, you'll just have to wait for the shower pictures! But here's a belly picture to tide you over...

28 Weeks

12 weeks left, and the baby is enjoying his last week as the size of an eggplant. He's most likely over two pounds now, and I can believe it! His movements have seemed much bigger and more jarring in the last few days. The other day I woke up to two of the biggest kicks yet...I was laying on my side and I swear his foot made contact with the bed. I'm also starting to be able to feel more stretching and pushing, instead of just kicks. Guess he's starting to feel a little cramped in there. Sorry buddy, you've still got a while, so get cozy!

I had another routine checkup this past week, nothing new or exciting to report. Much to my surprise, they asked if I wanted to get the H1N1 shot while I was there (even though several months ago they had said that they weren't planning to get any.) I did get the shot, and I'm comfortable with the decision, even though I know that not everyone likes the idea of the vaccine. I know my mom at least is happy. :-) My arm was a little bit sore for about a day, but nothing to write home about. Other than that, no ill effects. My appointments now go from once a month to once every two weeks. Yet another milestone that makes the little one's arrival seem so soon!

This should be an exciting week....tomorrow we're going to go check out the brand new BabiesRUs that is opening in town. I have Wednesday off for Veteran's Day and am going to get my free facial that I won at the OB last month. Most exciting is my first baby shower, which my friend from work is throwing for me next Saturday. I can't wait!

27 week picture

When I started this blog I decided that I wouldn't be posting bare belly pictures, mainly out of deference to my BFF, who is kind of uncomfortable with seeing that kind of thing. But since we were at the beach, and my big white belly was already out there for the world to see, I figured I'd make an exception this once (sorry Robin!)


Obviously this belly has not seen the light of day in quite a while....

27 Weeks

Well, I believe this is the start of the third trimester! (According to TheBump it started at 26 weeks and 6 days, but I just rounded to the nearest week.) We're two-thirds of the way there, which is pretty unbelievable. I don't have a belly shot right now, because we were at the beach with my college buddies this weekend and I was more focused on them than my belly. My friend did take a picture of me on Saturday (in my bikini....eek!), so when she sends that to me I'll post it, unless I decide that I look too hideous. In that case you'll just have to go without a picture for the week.

According to BabyCenter, the babe is sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and possibly sucking his thumb. I've started being able to feel when he gets the hiccups, which is pretty weird! My energy has picked back up a bit, and I've been trying to get in some more activity. Mainly walking after school, although I did do some frolicking in the waves this weekend too. I know eventually my energy is going to drop off again, so I'd better take advantage of it while I can.

Since I don't have a picture to post, I'll give you a little glimpse of what a baby looks like at 27 weeks gestation. This is a really cool website that shows the development of a baby inside the womb...you click and drag the bar under the pictures (the one on the left is through week 8, and on the right is week 8 through week 40.) It is an illustration of a woman's internal anatomy, so if you're squeamish about those kind of things, then skip this link. I just think it's a really cool visual (drag it slowly, and then try it fast!) The thing that's amazing to me is to see how all the other organs are already all squished up at week 27! No wonder I have heartburn, everything is all out of place. Here's the link: 9 Month Miracle (hint: sometimes I have to fiddle with the website a bit, move the pictures up and down on the screen until they show up.)

I came across another cool website today: 1001 rules for my unborn son. I had planned to spend some time looking through it and tell you some of my favorites, but I've spent too much time online so I'll leave you with Stewart's favorites instead:
322: Sympathy is a crutch. Never fake a limp.
395: Be mindful of what comes between you and the earth. Buy good tires, good sheets, and good shoes.
393: Never eat lunch at your desk. (Wish I could follow this rule...)
360: Never under any circumstances as a woman if she is pregnant.
"Hold doors, pull out chairs, easy on the swears." -Fresh Prince