Dear Lucy

Dear Lucy,

Yesterday marked three months ago that I was cradling your 7 lb 1 oz, 19.5 inch body in my arms after you decided quite suddenly that you were ready to get on with life outside of my womb.  I was overcome with love.  All my fears of not knowing how to care for you were washed away as I stared at your beautiful face and basked in the realization that you were finally here. The love I felt that day has only intensified over the last three months and I still look at you in awe and praise God for growing our family with you.  

Today is a very special day because your cousin Samuel was born! We have been praying for this boy and are so happy that God is growing our family even more! We haven't met him yet but we will soon and your Mommy and Auntie Melissa are so thrilled that you two will get to grow up together!  I woke up to a text from your Auntie around 3:30 this morning announcing Samuel's arrival and I think you knew something was up. :)  You were doing a little happy dance in your crib, raising your legs and dropping them to the mattress repeatedly, and then you went back to sleep on your own.

A few things about you: 

You are smiling more and more! 

You have the softest, most kissable cheeks.  

You are finding your voice with all your cute little baby sounds, and even a little chuckle here and there! :)

You are not a fan of tummy time, but we're working on it. 

You ARE a fan of bath time.  It calms you if you're fussy and you love splashing and kicking your legs in the water.  Sometimes dad fills the bath a little full and we end up with a very wet bathroom floor.  That's how you know it was a fun bath time. :) 

You love it when your  daddy flies you around the house like an airplane. 

 

You are a mover.  You are not usually content for very long to be held by someone who is just sitting or standing still.  

You like being worn in the moby wrap.  I'm so glad that you do because you spend a lot of time in it when I'm cleaning for clients! 

You love your swing! 

You can almost roll completely onto your side without assistance. 

You are generally sleeping anywhere from 7-10 hours a night. Sometimes less...sometimes more. :)

You are grabbing things more.

You will not take a pacifier.  You took one for your Aunt Kristi when she was here, but so far you won't take it from me or anyone else.  You like to suck on your hands. 

Your dad gave you the nickname Little Munchy (short for munchkin) and sometimes we just call you Munch or Munchy. :) 

We sure do love you, little lady.  I wish I could bottle these days up but I know there are more fun ones to come too! :) 

She Brought The Dawn (Lucy's birth story)

I've been wanting to blog about Lucy Anne's entry into the world while the details are all still fresh in my mind, and here we are seven weeks later.  WHAT?!? My baby is already seven weeks old?!?! How is that possible?!?! What a wonderful seven weeks it has been.  Not without it's challenges of course, but we love this darling baby girl God has brought into our family and can't imagine life without her.  Ryan and I were able to enjoy our first date post baby last night and as we pulled into our driveway he said "We have a fun life with a funny dog and funny baby.  Remember what life was like five years ago?" Five years ago neither one of us had a clue we would be married to each other, let alone have a baby!  Kind of crazy to reflect on that and think of all that has changed and all the blessings God has poured out.   

There are so many things I could say about life since Lucy arrived, but this blog is supposed to be about her birth, so I will save that for another day.  Disclaimer:  If you're a dude, read at your own risk. :)

Tuesday, July 3rd - This was the day that I went into nesting mode full force!  I was dusting ceiling fans, taking down curtains to be washed, moving furniture around (with Ryan's help) and just generally acting like a crazy person preparing for Lucy's arrival.  I may or may not have been a little cranky and emotional. ;) At this point I wasn't really having any "feelings" that she was going to come soon because I had convinced myself that she was comfy cozy in there and wouldn't be coming out for a couple more weeks. HA!  That night we went out to the chapel to sit in the parking lot and watch the fireworks.  We weren't sure if we wanted to go since it was so hot, but I really didn't want to miss the fireworks and we knew the chapel would be open with the air on and an easily accessible bathroom, so we decided to go. I had been having irregular contractions but I just passed them off as Braxton Hicks and not drinking enough water. We got home late and I was exhausted. Before bed I went to the bathroom and noticed the tiniest bit of blood on the toilet paper. That was a little strange to see after nine months of not seeing any blood. :) I assumed it was probably bloody show and when  I informed Ryan of my discovery his response was "She's comin'!" said in a very matter of fact and totally unfazed tone of voice. :)  I didn't want to burst his bubble but I knew that it could be days before she actually made her appearance.  I was trying not to get excited too soon.   

Wednesday, July 4th - I woke up around 7 AM and I couldn't go back to sleep. I was still having irregular contractions but I wasn't in pain or uncomfortable at all.  I went and sat in Lucy's room for awhile to pray and read some verses that my doula had given me, and then I called my mom and talked to her for a few minutes but apparently I forgot to mention that I was having contractions?!?   I guess I just didn't really think it was worth mentioning.  :)  After awhile I decided to crawl back into bed for a little bit and try to sleep.  We finally got up and went about our day like normal, doing things around home and enjoying a yummy brunch together.  We had plans to go up to Ryan's parent's house later in the day for a 4th of July meal and I was in charge of bringing dessert so we made a fruit pizza together and headed up to their house around three o'clock. Before supper I tried to lay down and rest again as I started to realize that I might be needing all the energy I could get if this was really happening! I called/text messaged my doula, Sarah (who happened to be 36? weeks pregnant at the time) a couple times just to keep her apprised. She was a huge encouragement.  I really wanted to labor at home as long as I possibly could and my biggest fear was going to the hospital too soon and either be sent home or have them pressure me to be induced to speed things up. Sarah gave me the confidence and reassurance that there was no need to go to the hospital at this point, I was doing great and I should just keep doing what I was doing! I talked to my mom again and gave her an update and said it was up to them if they wanted to come then or not because I wasn't sure how quickly things were going to progress.  After supper I sat in my in-law's jacuzzi tub (which felt amazing) while Ryan kept me company and timed my contractions with his phone. They were about 3-4 minutes apart and I could still talk through them but used the time in the tub to concentrate on relaxing and breathing. I text messaged some friends and family letting them know what was going on so they could be praying.  I text messaged my parents telling them that perhaps they should go ahead and come so we didn't have to call them in the middle of the night and have them rush to get here and risk missing the birth! I received an immediate response from my mom that said "We're 25 miles away from Davenport".  Ha!  Apparently dad made the decision to hit the road about one second after he found out I was having contractions and had been having them all day! :)  I got out of the tub shortly after my parents arrived and we went back to our house around 8:15 pm, telling Ryan's family that we would keep them posted. Once home, I went up to our room to lay down because I wanted to get as much rest as possible while I still could. I turned off the lights,  lit a candle and tried to get comfortable by reclining against a bunch of pillows on our bed.  The most "pain" I felt was in my lower back, so with each contraction Ryan would massage and put pressure on my back.  Contractions were getting closer together and between each I would doze off to sleep just in time for another contraction to come.  

Thursday, July 5th (also happened to be my parent's 44th wedding anniversary!) - Around 1:30 am I had Ryan call our doula as it was becoming a little more difficult to talk through contractions. She knew things were getting serious when it was Ryan calling her instead of me. ;)  I wanted her to come to the house and labor with me for a while so she could help me decide when to head to the hospital. While we were waiting for her to get here, I had Ryan load our hospital bags into the Jeep since I had a feeling we'd probably be going in the next couple hours.  When Sarah arrived, Ryan left to take Gilbert up the hill to his parent's house.  Right after he left I went to the bathroom and while sitting on the toilet I had a contraction and a new feeling of a lot of pressure down there and the urge to push.  Sarah wasn't too far away and must've heard my breathing change because she asked if I was OK.  When I told her I was feeling the urge to push she said "well lets not do that here!"  haha!  While waiting for Ryan to return (felt like forever) I had another contraction bent over and leaning on the dining room table for support.  I began to sweat and feel like I might throw up.  As soon as Ryan walked in the door I told him it was go time. He ran upstairs to tell my parents we were leaving, we grabbed a "barf bowl" for the ride just in case, and off we went with Sarah following close behind and my parents and Ryan's parents and sister following not too long after.  Somewhere in all that, Ryan called ahead to the hospital to let them know we were coming.  Although it was very early in the morning with pretty much no other cars on the road, the 25 mile trek to the hospital never felt longer.  I had several contractions on the way there and I was convinced one of three things was going to happen. ONE... I was going to throw up.  TWO... My water was going to break. Or THREE.... I was going to have this baby in the Jeep!  I just kept breathing through the contractions and thankfully none of those things happened.  

It was around 3 AM when we finally pulled up to the doors of the ER where a hospital employee was sitting in a wheelchair outside and he promptly hopped up and asked if we needed the chair.  As soon as the current contraction was through I sat in the chair and they wheeled me up to the desk where they of course ask all the annoying but necessary questions while you're in labor, only they couldn't find my name in the system which was odd considering I had been going there for all of my prenatal appointments.  They finally asked me my SSN and found me under my maiden name????? Weird.  A nurse led us up to a triage room and on the way she asked "So, what's going on?" To which my awesome husband replied "Um...she's having a baby."  I think he probably refrained from saying "Duhhh".  ;)   Once in the triage room we were asked more questions by a different nurse that had only been there for four months.  She checked me and found me to be 4 cm dilated.  I admit I was a little discouraged.  I was hoping to be a little further along. I looked at Sarah and said "I'm only at a four???".  She was very quick to tell me not to be discouraged and assured me that it was good.  The nurse did say after checking me that my bag of waters was right there which might have explained all the pressure I was feeling.  Less than a minute after she checked me, it was like a water balloon burst and there was no mistaking that my water broke.  They got me settled in a labor and delivery room, asked more questions, had me sign some things, and strapped the monitor on so they could monitor Lucy's heartbeat.  The nurse acknowledged that I did not want to have the monitor on the whole time as I had stated in my birth plan, but they wanted to get a clear reading of Lucy's heartbeat before they took it off.  The problem was that every time I had a contraction they would lose the heartbeat, which resulted in a lot of fiddling with the monitor.  I just kept praying that everything was OK and they would get a good read soon so I could get out of bed...walk around...get in the tub...ANYTHING but lay flat on my back.  If I was only at a 4 I certainly didn't want to be laying in bed the whole time.  During this time some of our family members were coming in and out of the room.  It's all a bit fuzzy to me now.  Of course my mom, doula, and husband were all sitting on the couch quietly waiting to jump into action once I was off the monitor.  Ryan was by my side with each contraction putting pressure on my back.  My sister in-law Melissa was in the room for a little bit and I distinctively remember her saying that she and my father in-law, Jody were going to get Starbucks and doughnuts and bring them back for everyone while we waited for something to happen. Even in the throes of labor I wanted to say "Oh, Starbucks sounds soooo good right now.  Can you pleeeeeeaaaaaase bring me back a caramel macchiato?!".  My contractions were getting more intense but still not agonizingly painful and with each one I felt like I was going to have a bowel movement.  Sorry, for those dudes who decided to read this...I'm just telling it like it is.  I continued to breathe through them and at some point the nurse asked me what my level of pain was on a scale of 1-10.  I think I said six but I was feeling quite a bit of pressure and a little burning sensation down there, so the nurse asked if I wanted her to check me again.  I kind of reluctantly agreed.  Call me pessimistic, but I didn't think it was possible that I had progressed that much.  As it turned out I didn't have to worry about that because all the nurse did was look down there and say "I don't need to check you because the head is crowning! You're at a 10! I need to call the Doctor!" and with that she put the sheet back over my legs.   Um...what????  I don't know what I said...if I said anything at all, but I'm pretty sure I looked at my doula, mom, and hubby with an incredulous look on my face.  None of us were expecting that I would be at a 10.  This is when things got crazy. With the next contraction I sat up a little in the bed and felt Lucy's whole head pop out.  No one else in the room knew this right away because the sheet was over my legs and I wasn't really supposed to be pushing because the Dr. wasn't there yet.  I didn't even really make a conscious effort to push, I just let my body do it's thing during the contraction.  I think I looked up at Sarah and all I could think to say was "the head!!!". I think someone in the room said "what do you mean, the head?" haha!   The next few moments are fuzzy in my mind, but I remember the nurse going into panic mode and saying "press the button! press the button!"  My husband was on that right away pressing it over and over, when my doula pushed him out of the way and said "I'll do that! you get down there!" motioning to the end of the bed.  He got down there pretty much in time to catch his daughter as the rest of her body "squirted" into the world at 5:30 AM, just 2.5 hours after we arrived at the hospital! Ryan jokes that the only thing keeping her from flying right off the bed was the umbilical cord which had actually somehow mysteriously become detached at some point.  Lucy was immediately put on my chest and I was pretty much speechless.  I'm still speechless when I think of how everything unfolded. I'm still speechless sometimes when I look at my precious girl's face.

Sarah ran out to the waiting room to inform my dad and mother in-law that Lucy was here, which of course shocked them!  My mother in-law called Melissa and Jody right away to tell them the news. They were still at Starbucks and couldn't believe that Lucy decided to make her appearance in the 20 minutes that they were away. :)  The Dr. made it just in time to deliver the placenta (real fun) and check me over.  Somehow I didn't tear at all.  I did lose quite a bit of blood but they got it under control.  

The next couple hours were of course spent staring at Lucy, holding Lucy, and taking pictures and videos of Lucy. Such joy and excitement.  That day I looked at Ryan several times and said "we have a baby".  :)

As if things hadn't been exciting enough...after everyone left us to get some rest, I got up to go to the bathroom for the first time after Lucy was born.  The sweet nurse walked me from my bed to the bathroom, asking me several times if I was doing OK.   I definitely felt weak, but I was doing OK, until I saw all the blood in the toilet. :)  On the way back to my bed the nurse kept asking if I was OK again and I said yes, but the next thing I knew I was crumpled on the floor,  with another nurse behind me holding me up and my poor husband standing there holding Lucy wondering what just happened!  First time I had ever fainted in my life!

It was quite the day and we thank the Lord for the safe arrival of our little Lucy.  The name Lucy means "light" which is appropriate considering she was born just as the sun was coming up!  I pray that she will be a light in this dark world and I cannot wait to see how God uses her for His glory.  

Lucy Anne.  7 lbs 1 oz 19 1/2 inches.  Born at 5:30 AM on July 5th.

If you haven't read my dad's blog about the Lucy's birth, you should.  Make sure you have some tissues handy.   http://jeskeslaw.com/2012/07/07/born-with-the-dawn-a-grandpas-reflections/

Also...this is pretty amusing.  In the last week both my doula and my friend Kristi sent me this little tidbit from a blog entry of mine before Lucy was born.... "My dear husband apparently has so much confidence in me that when asked by his sister if he was worried to see me in labor he said "nah..she'll be fine! she's going to pop that baby right out!". Just like that. Oh dear. Thanks, babe. :) While I'm fairly certain it won't go that way, I'm glad he'll be cheering me on. In the end...how she arrives is how she arrives and I'm trusting God for that. He has the perfect birth plan and it might be different than mine. :) "   He pretty much nailed it. :) 

can't believe she's almost 2 months old already!

Our Little Lady's Room....

We still need to do a few things in her room but it's pretty much finished so I took a few photos yesterday and a few people requested that I put them up on my blog. 

I absolutely love how it turned out.  It's the perfect combination of feminine, peaceful, and not too babyish.  It has vintage, modern, whimsical, and shabby elements that somehow flowed together beautifully.  I know our baby girl won't appreciate it until later, but I will!  I've been reminded that I'll be spending a lot of time sitting in the glider!  :)

bumper pad cover, quilt, mobile arm cover, and fabric garland made by my mother in-law!

comfy glider where I will be spending a lot of time.  the pink blanket was one of my baby blankets, and the pillow and glider were covered by my MIL.

I love how this turned out.  My sister in-law, Melissa found the awesome light up globe at an estate sale.  It has three settings of brightness and will be perfect for those nighttime diaper changes. :)  Inside the small white frames are old postcards that Ryan and I found at an Antique Mall.  They are from places that we both love or have lived. The old frames, shelf, and shutters were either found at goodwill, a consignment shop or an antique mall for cheap! What you can't see is the frame above the shutters which is our girl's name cut out using my friend Kristi's cricut and put on top of a map background.

My mom found this adorable elephant at Pier One!

close up of the quilt

the wall hanging was made with my friend Kristi's cricut.  She did most of the work. I just mod podged the letters on to the canvas. :)  It's a sentimental piece because it's some of the lyrics to a song my husband wrote for me and it was the song we walked down the aisle to after we were pronounced husband and wife.  The little set of nursery rhyme books were Ryan's when he was a baby. 

The dresser/changing table was an Estate Sale find.  My hubby did a great job making it look beautiful!

I'm not sure exactly how old this cabinet is....but it came from the house my MIL grew up in.  It was in her craft room for a long time, then it became my craft cupboard and now it is holding baby blankets, books, hats, and various other baby things!

Hello, Paddington! :)  I have a whole bin full of Paddington Bears but we decided he will be more appropriate in a boy's room if the Lord blesses us with one.  I couldn't resist putting one in her room though.

Fabric garland close up.  It was the perfect thing to fill the space above the crib since I didn't want to hang anything heavy on the wall above her crib.

Vintage diaper pail.  It was used as a decoration at the baby shower a few weekends ago and was filled with beautiful pink peonies.  I was secretly hoping when i saw it that it was for me to keep! :) 

My mom found this really cool tray at pier one.  Currently it's holding my thank you note, birth plan, birth class binder, bible stack. It will soon probably be holding snacks that everyone keeps telling me to keep nearby while nursing, burp cloths, and whatever else I need to have within reach.  The table and boxes were found at Gordman's, I believe.  So sweet.

So there you go. :)  Also...the paint color is Pale Seafoam which we got at Menards.  I think it's Pittsburgh brand.  It was kind of by accident that her room was painted my favorite color, but I'm not complaining. :)   Ryan was a little concerned at first that the room wouldn't be girly enough and there wouldn't be enough pink.  While I don't hate pink like I used to, I knew I didn't want to go overboard with it, but I think there ended up being a sufficient amount to satisfy Ryan. ;)

I'm 36 weeks and one day.  Wow.   Still waiting for time to slow down like everyone says it does in the last month.  We're going to be so busy these next few weeks and I'm still cleaning for all of my clients pretty much until I go into labor if I can.  So thankful that I've felt well enough to keep going. We're getting more and more excited to meet this little one!

On Friday night Melissa took some maternity photos for us. Here's just a few favorites....

my friend Kristi pointed out that this reminded her of a picture from our early dating days....before we even held hands!!!!  So for fun I found that picture and decided to post it here too......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

awwwwww.  memories.  This photo was taken at the Barsness farm when were were freshly dating. Little did we know that we would have our wedding ceremony there! 

 

 

 

That's all!  I'll try to post something in the next few weeks before baby comes.  No promises! :)

Baby thoughts...

Can I just say that I enjoy rainy days?  Now if I lived in the Bahamas like a certain someone I know and it was raining every day for a week then it wouldn't be so fun. ;)  We really haven't had much rain here lately besides the out of nowhere major downpour on Memorial Day, during which we forgot the sun roof on our jeep was open.  Awesomeness.  

Call me crazy but I'm actually hoping and praying for a few rainy days right after our little one is born. Is that bad?  It's Ryan's busy season for work and if it's rainy then maybe he can have a little more time at home with us right after she's born. :)  

I know a lot of people getting married this summer....but isn't that true every summer?  I'm so thrilled for all of them and it makes me smile as I think back on my own wedding day and first days and weeks of being married.  Such sweet moments that you wish you could bottle up and revisit in person sometimes.   

Honeymooners!

I love Ryan's smile. :)

And to think that when we celebrate our second anniversary we will be holding a three month old in our arms. Also around that time, Lord willing, there will be another newborn babe in the family! :)  My sweet sissy in-law and her hubby have the opportunity to adopt a baby that's due October 1st!  We are all praying about this and trusting the Lord.  To be both excited and guarded is a tricky thing.  How wonderful it will be if our babies are only three months apart!  :)

I really cannot believe we're five weeks away (give or take a week or two) from seeing this wee babe that's been growing inside of me.  I'm not so much nervous about labor at this point.  I'm more unsure and worried that I won't be a good mommy and I won't know what to do.  I've never really considered myself to be naturally great with little kids or babies.  Give me a teenager and that's a different story.  I realize I probably won't be saying that when my daughter is a teenager.  haha.  Recently I had a timely and encouraging catch up with my friend Rachel, and she shared with me that when her little boy was born she was surprised at how she just stepped into her role as mommy and was able to do things she didn't think she could!  I know it will be that way for me too and I know it's different when it's your own kids. That being said....I cannot wait to see this little girl.  To hold her and love her and kiss her cheeks and to see my husband hold his baby girl. I'm thankful for the help and grace God gives, and I know I will gain a fresh appreciation for it in the coming months and years.  

At the baby shower both moms shared some words of wisdom that I never want to forget.  Shirlee spoke of the importance of raising our daughter in the Lord and I was reminded at church on Sunday that as a mom I will have such a unique opportunity and position to be the first to evangelize my children.  I pray for our little one, that she will come to know the Lord at a young age, and Ryan and I will be faithful to teach her about Him.   My mom reminded me to continue to cultivate my relationship with Ryan and the importance of keeping God first, then your spouse, and then your kids.  Easier said than done at times, I'm sure. I am so thankful for the example of my parents and that I never doubted their love for each other.

The baby room is almost done and it is perfect.  With the help of my mom after our first baby shower a couple weekends ago we got everything organized and put away. Ryan finished the dresser/changing table, and my MIL sewed the most adorable bumper pad cover and pillow for the glider.  The only big things left are getting the blinds and curtains hung and a few things up on the walls!  She'll be sleeping in our room for awhile after she's born but I wanted to have her room done before she comes so I don't have to worry about it later.  I'll post pictures soon of the whole room when it's done.  :)  

proud of his work. :)

eventually we're going to get some glass drawer pulls for the dresser

I love how it turned out!

I've been finalizing our birth plan.  I know some people would say "why have a birth plan?  it probably won't go the way you want it to go anyway, so why be disappointed when it doesn't?"  but my opinion is I'd rather have a plan of how I'd like things to go if there aren't any emergency situations that arise. Obviously I am going to do what's best and pray that I will hold my birth plan loosely if necessary.  I'm thankful for the information and education Ryan and I have been given regarding all the procedures surrounding birth.  I'm also thankful for the strong support system I have through my husband, doula and other family and friends that might be attending the birth.  My dear husband apparently has so much confidence in me that when asked by his sister if he was worried to see me in labor he said  "nah..she'll be fine!  she's going to pop that baby right out!".  Just like that.  Oh dear.  Thanks, babe. :)   While I'm fairly certain it won't go that way, I'm glad he'll be cheering me on.  In the end...how she arrives is how she arrives and I'm trusting God for that.  He has the perfect birth plan and it might be different than mine. :)

To end yet another lengthy post (because I can't seem to be consistent with my blogging) I will leave you with some cute quotes from the dad to be....

While laying quietly on the floor in baby girl's room he all of the sudden says "so...when is this baby gonna come?!?"  Um...excited much????  :)

"I can't wait until winter time so I can be on vacation with the baby!"  :)  Winter is slow season for him so he'll be home a lot more. 

"I can't wait until we have a kid so we can take her places!"  hahaha. 

While laying on the couch one night "If our baby was here right now do you think she'd be laying on my chest?"   

So sweet.  I love hearing him wonder and talk about her out loud. 

a full heart

Hi.   Just a little catch up blog.  :)

St. Patrick's Day weekend we took advantage of the abnormally balmy weather and had a picnic at West Lake.  Gilbert joined us and thoroughly enjoyed sniffing new territory.

The following weekend we had a really unique and first time event at our chapel.  For lack of a better name, we call it the Karen/Chin/Burmese day!  haha.  We've recently had a group of Karen people start coming to our chapel.  There are varying degrees of understanding and speaking English among them, but they are the sweetest people and we have loved getting to know them!  We had the opportunity to have a man named Kap Thang come speak for the weekend and our Karen friends invited a bunch of people.  Kap spoke Burmese and we were able to have another man translate to Karen.  It was really interesting to be on the other side of things and not really understand everything that was being said but I do know that the gospel was presented clearly!  I felt so honored to be a part of it all.  We are loving watching God work in the lives of these sweet people.  

love these girls.

cute cute cute kids.

Caleb and Hay Seet

They made all the food for the weekend and it was delicious!

Karen youth choir

Kap Thang

Entertaining the kids.  Did I mention how cute these kids are?  Oh, and who is that big kid in the plaid shirt?  He's really cute.

The weekend after that was pretty much the only weekend in March that we didn't have ANYTHING going on and it was wonderful.   It was a welcome rest from all of our busyness.  We slept in, and enjoyed brunch together which included some fresh eggs brought to us by our doula, Sarah!  The rest of Saturday was spent getting some house and yard work done.  It was nice to just be at home together.  

Gilbert has taken to laying in the mud lately so Ryan has been working on putting rocks where the dirt is to prevent Gil from getting so dirty.  :)

I found these at an antique mall after seeing some fun ideas on pinterest for re-purposed shutters.

Ryan spray painted them pink for me and they will hang on the wall in baby girl's room.  It's going to look so good against the color of the walls! :)

This past weekend we got to spend Easter with my family.  It was fun being together and one of my favorite memories from the weekend was playing story line around the dining room table.  There was some major laughter happening.  The kind of laughter that makes your stomach hurt, and tears run down your cheeks.  I don't think I had ever seen my brother laugh that hard before.  It makes me smile just thinking of it.  

 My husband, brother and nephew helped my dad with a lot of yard and house projects on Saturday while me, my mom, sister in-law and niece went shopping and pampered ourselves with manicures and pedicures! :)  It was so nice.  I can count on one hand how many pedicures I've had in my life.  I used to be so scared of getting them because I am very ticklish.  I really have to use a lot of self control so I don't kick my pedicurist in the face. haha.  It's worth it though!  

Easter family photo! 

I also got to visit with a friend of mine that I grew up with!  We're both pregnant with girls and she's due the 26th of this month.  This is her 3rd pregnancy and the longest she's been pregnant since both of her boys came early!  I'm glad it worked out for us to see each other while she was still pregnant! It's always fun to catch up.  

This past Saturday marked the beginning of my 3rd trimester!  Yikes!  3 months, people. THREE MONTHS.  I really don't understand where the last six months went.  We've been so busy and the next few months are going to be packed full too! 

As I type, my darling little girl is squirming around.  I have no idea what is happening in there, but it's certainly fun to watch from the outside.  :)

I hope you all had a fabulous Easter weekend!

Special delivery!

I am feeling a little spoiled this week.  We have received a special delivery in the mail almost everyday! It's fun for us, it's fun for Gilbert because he gets to bark at the delivery man, but it's not fun for the delivery man because he's probably terrified of Gilbert. For two of the deliveries our signature was required so it wasn't too much of an issue, but we always chuckle when we find packages at the very end of our driveway instead of on our front porch.  Nobody has the courage to brave the giant, white, barking, fluff ball on the front porch.  I don't blame them.  He takes his job as guard dog very seriously.  What they don't know is that he would probably just slime them with his long strands of drool.  :) 

My brother Mitch, and his wife Jess told us a couple months ago that they wanted to buy our stroller/car seat for us.  What a blessing!  Jess told me a few days ago that it would be arriving on Wednesday, but on Tuesday I came home to a baby swing in the same pattern I had chosen for the travel system.  I wondered if it was a mistake and Target sent the wrong thing until I read the note that came with it and I realized it was no mistake.  As if Mitch and Jess hadn't been generous enough, they sneakily ordered the baby swing for us too!  Words cannot express our gratefulness. 

Travel System.  I put this together by myself while Ryan was at band practice last night.  He surprised me by having the swing put together, so I thought I would be handy and figure out how to assemble the stroller.  I'm pretty sure the baby swing was more complicated but I think he was impressed with my efforts nonetheless. :)  I showed him how to lock the wheels, fold up the stroller, and attach the car seat.  Then, I watched as he practiced pushing the stroller around our living room and removing and attaching the car seat a couple times.  It was adorable.  I have to share the note that accompanied this package because it's just too cute!  "Baby _______ , Here is for a comfortable ride, whether in the car or on long strolls.  Love you! Aunt Jessica and Uncle Mitch"

I tried to pick something gender neutral and somehow chose my favorite color?!?! Hmmm. :)

The swing!  So sweet!  And the note that came with it..."Baby ______ This should help you get into the swing of things and rock you gently to many peaceful slumbers! Love you!  Aunt Jessica and Uncle Mitch" 

My dear husband painted the little lady's room while I was out of town last Saturday.  I had no idea that he was going to do that, and when I got home he took my hand and led me up the stairs to show me.  It looks beautiful!  I will post pictures once I get the room set up a bit more.  He blessed me in a big way by doing that because he knew I was anxious to get it done so I could start putting the room together. :) 

My mom and I were able to go shopping together a couple weeks ago.  We went all over the place and surprisingly didn't spend that much money, but we did find some cute clothes and a changing pad at a consignment shop that's in great shape and was half the price of a new one! We'll make a cover for it, and it will be perfect!

I've started hanging baby girl's clothes in the closet in order by size.  It's amazing how much I've accumulated already.  There are a only a few things that are brand new and they were all gifts.  The grandmas and aunties and honorary aunties have all been going crazy in the clothing department. ;)  I still have a bunch more to hang, but I ran out of hangers!

My MIL and SIL found this lovely little lamp to  hang in the room.  I love it!

Gilbert is carefully studying the map and planning a trip.

Today I enjoyed a day at home, which rarely happens these days.  I washed off our patio table and had my breakfast and devos out on the deck so I could enjoy this glorious weather that is just so deliciously warm for March!  It does make me a little afraid for what summer will be like.  I am not a fan of blazing hot temps and humidity....especially since I'm going to be great with child this summer.  no thank you.  

the baby belly.  and Gilbert waits patiently for a scrap of food. :) 

 

 

 This afternoon yet ANOTHER package was delivered!  Somehow, in the midst of moving to the Bahamas, my sweet friend Kristi found time to send a little love my way!  She is really good about that kind of stuff.  There were a few outfits for baby inside, as well as a fun pair of earrings for me and a packet of chai which came just in time, because it was the perfect day for an iced chai!  The only thing that could have made it better was if Kristi could have enjoyed the chai with me!

Tomorrow night we have Child Birth class.  We've really been enjoying it and learning a lot.  We chose to take our classes through Little Lambs Birthing Services rather than through the hospital because we wanted the support, encouragement, and knowledge for a more natural and pure birth.  I do not look down on people who don't go the all natural route....it's a personal decision for us.  I also realize that there are emergency situations and sometimes things don't go as planned.  We have learned a lot and it's been especially good for Ryan because I think he thought I was a little crazy at first for not wanting drugs.  :)  We both feel better prepared.

At my last appointment the Dr. told me that everything looked good from the sono, but they were not able to get a clear view of the umbilical cord which is something they check during the anatomy ultrasound. Most umbilical cords have three vessels and if they only have two they like to monitor the baby more closely as it could sometimes result in growth issues and renal and kidney problems. Ryan did some research on it and said that most of the time it's not an issue even if there are only two vessels. The Dr. did not seem concerned because from what I understood, they couldn't even seen the umbilical cord so I have another ultrasound scheduled for Monday so they can hopefully get a better view of it.  A few people have asked me if I'm nervous or worried, and honestly....I'm not.  I really haven't had time to think about it, let alone worry about it!  I'm just trusting the Lord that whatever happens it will be okay.  It will be fun to see our girl again, and this time both my mom and Ryan's mom are going to go with!  :) 

That's all for now!  I hope everyone is having a great week!  I can't believe tomorrow is Friday already!