32 Week Survey

The 32 Week Survey

How far along?: 31 weeks and 6 days!

Total weight gain:  No change since last week... still 28 pounds.

How big is baby?: About 4 pounds and somewhere around 18 inches!

Maternity clothes?: Yuppers, most definitely! I really wish I had more pairs of pants! Also, sadly... I had to buy new undies. Lol.... Had to go up to a size medium! Shock and dismay! ;-) Hey, it was a good excuse to shop VS!

Stretch marks?: Still none... hooray!

Sleep: Not much has changed since last week. Sleep is still difficult. Can't get comfortable, have to pee, and have heartburn. We did however get a new mattress and it is heavenly.... but still doesn't quite help the fact that my belly is big!

Best moment this week: Seeing the nursery completely painted and cleaned up! It's starting to take shape! We have moved the glider, rug, and dresser in... now for the crib and hutch!

Movement: Duh. He's a mover and a shaker alright! ;-) Sometimes these movements realllly hurt Mommy, but I'm still glad that he moves a lot... makes me feel better!

Food cravings: Grandma bought these mint fudge cookies that taste JUST like Thin Mints from the Girl Scouts... only these are $2 as opposed to $4 a box! They are awesome and I can't stop eating them!

Gender: I saw this on a shirt and it made me laugh... "The future Mr. Right" hehe...

Labor Signs: Still none. I'll take that as a good thing!

Belly Button in or out?: At least it stopped it's progress on the trying to stick out deal!

What I miss: Not having back pain. Ouchies.... Oh, and snuggling with my hubby all the time. Stupid million pillows. Cristina suggested switching sides, so we'll see how that works out!

What I am looking forward to: Sadly right now all I can think about is whether or not he's going to continue to grow normally or if this placenta business is going to make him slow down. So, I'm looking forward to our next visit to Dr. Blanco for a good ultrasound!

Weekly Wisdom: I may have said this before, but don't over-do it. Luckily I have a great job, and an awesome husband, so help is easy to come by. The other day I tried to do too much and just ended up hurting my back even worse, making my ankles slightly swollen, and draining myself of all potential "extra" energy. So, take breaks.... remember you're pregnant, even if you think you're a super hero!

Milestones: Baby is gearing up for d-day by sleeping more! He should be having sleep cycles of 20 to 40 minutes long. He's also putting on a lot of fat! Bulking up! His skeleton is also hardening up, expect for the head of course. Momma has way more blood circulating than ever before, which explains why I am so thirsty and must drink so much water! Also, my stomach is out of room so I eat smaller meals, more often.

Ignore the stylin' outfit.. I was baking and didn't want to get dirty!

I'm still-a-growin'!

  *No changes in measurements this week, surprisingly!

You know you're a cheapo when...

... You're currently pregnant, yet you consider buying a box of pregnancy tests simply because you have a $3 off coupon, and you remember how much those dang things cost so $3 off is a lot of dough! ;-)

Just a little humor for your Friday morning. I may or may not have been the subject of this post. haha!

Late Pregnancy Revelations

You may remember these posts: Early Pregnancy Revelations and Mid Pregnancy Revelations. Both in which I reveal all of my acquired knowledge... haha, or something to that tune! ;-) I still don't look very pregnant, still have an amazing husband, and babies are still expensive. Those things don't change, regardless of the time in your pregnancy! ;-)

Some new things I have begun to realize....

- My little boy is STRONG. Ok, maybe he's just a normal baby, but I haven't ever been pregnant before, so I'm not used to all of this movement. Some of his stretches, kicks, jabs, whatever, really hurt! Especially when he feels the need to stretch out his legs.... into my ribs. That is not comfortable!

- When you see pregnant ladies having a hard time bending over... don't laugh at them. I really think I am a small pregnant lady. Most people at church who just got my baby shower invitation told me that they didn't even know I was expecting! haha! And I see these people every Sunday! So, yes, I'm little. Therefor I did not think I would have problems with day-to-day tasks, such as bending down to tie my shoes, putting socks on, or even clipping my toenails. Boy was I wrong! I don't think it's necessarily that my belly is getting in the way... more so that my lungs just really don't have ANY room. I run out of air quickly when I bend down, which is not fun! Oh, it's also really hard to kneel down and then try to get back up, haha! In church when we genuflect, I really like to put my knee all the way to the ground..... well... that might be ending soon!

- This may not be pregnancy specific, but I am addicted to amazon. Granted it is a good addiction in some ways, because I have found some pretty good deals! For instance our camera that I got for $100 less than in stores! Or, our mobile that I got for $20 less than retail! Bargain shopping is fun.

- Sleep is hard to come by. If I'm not getting up to go pee, then I just plain can't get comfortable. Or, I have horrible heartburn, or leg cramps.... you name it. Plus, snuggling is a thing of the past which makes me really sad. I have a huge maternity pillow on one side of me, then another regular pillow wedged up against my back for more support. Poor Darren barely has any room on the bed, and hates that he can't snuggle up with me!

- There are not enough hours in the day to get everything done. We've been trying to get our upstairs ready for baby, plus guests, and so have neglected the downstairs... you know, dishes, laundry, cleaning in general. It's driving me crazy but I just don't have time! Plus, when I want so desperately to go to sleep at 10pm, but can't until 11 because we're still running around doing stuff, then I get frustrated and even more tired. Oye. I know it's only going to get worse! Oh joy!

- Weight gain, although perfectly normal, is still hard to come to grips with. When you've weighed X amount all of your life pretty much, and then you get on the scale and see all of these new digits... it's quite scary! But, then I remember that at least it is mostly baby, fluid, breasts, etc... and not necessarily that my butt is getting huge or my thighs. lol. 

I'm sure there are more things, but I can't think of them right now. I'm only getting to blog because our computers are down at work, haha. Guess I could be filing... oops! ;-) There are exactly two months until my due date as of today. Wow. Can't wait to meet our little boy! Darren tells me to "cook him faster"... haha! I wish! But, remember.... we don't have time for him yet! ;-) Or energy for that matter!

3D/4D Ultrasound!

Last week we went to Midland to my specialist doctor (well that's what I like to call him) for a 3D/4D Ultrasound. Apparently the difference is between images and video. The 4th dimension in ultrasound land is time, so video would be in 4D! It was really a wonderful experience, even though we had to pay for it out of pocket. You see, insurance companies do not believe that you "need" a 3D ultrasound, because quite frankly you don't! They can tell more on a 2D scan then they can in 3D. Therefor, that's why most ultrasounds are only done in 2D. Anyway, Darren and I decided that we would spend the money to go do it.... it's really just a great excuse to see your baby again, but in a whole new light! Little man was squished up against the side of my placenta almost the whole time, so part of his face didn't scan well. This made for some interesting images! At first I thought he looked like a dinosaur, lol! The scan was going through his skin to his skeleton so it looked a little freaky. I didn't think going in to it that I was going to get a good image of what my baby was going to look like once he is born, and I'm glad that I didn't hope for that! I just wanted to see him! It was so neat to see him in "real life". On the video we watched him yawn, stick out his tongue, kick, and I think suck on his hand some. Our little boy is quite the gymnast! He's not like a normal baby that is in the fetal position with their knees tucked up to their chest... oh no... our little guy has his legs totally bent in half to where his feet are at his head! However, he sometimes stretches them out, but then puts them back up! Too funny! That would explain why even though he's head down I feel kicks low still! At one point the scan went through his eyelid so we could see his iris. This was a little creepy looking too, but at the same time it was neat! They said that we could go in and try again if we weren't satisfied with the pictures, but really, he's running out of room! I doubt if we went back in and tried that we'd get any better pictures or video. So, we stuck with what we got which was fine with me! =) Just so neat to see our little boy in his current state!

Here are some of the images that we received... it may be the face that only a mother can love for now, haha, but I know that he's going to come out so stinkin' cute! ;-)

My favorite because the nose and mouth are so clear!

Sticking out his tongue!

Possible sucking on his hand

That big clump at the top? Yes, that's his foot!

10 perfect toes!

The iris shot, lol..

31 Week Survey

The 31 Week Survey

How far along?: 30 weeks and 6 days! Only 9 weeks to go!

Total weight gain:  28 pounds... how did that happen so fast?!

How big is baby?: 3 1/2 pounds, which would explain mommy's recent weight gain, and still holding strong somewhere around 17 or 18 inches long!

Maternity clothes?: All day every day! Even pj's are becoming a thing of trouble... I now wear all of Darren's clothes when lounging around the house!

Stretch marks?: Still no! Wow!

Sleep: Difficult. It's hard to get comfortable, and then the heartburn is sometimes unbearable! I promise I don't eat right before bed either, and I stay elevated after I eat.. but it's just killer some nights! Plus the leg cramps, and the fact that little boy likes to dance when I lay down. But, that's ok! It's all good!

Best moment this week: Our 3D/4D Ultrasound that we had! It was so amazing to see our little guy and really get a chance to bond with him! Oh I just can't wait to meet him!

Movement: There is almost no need for me to do my kick counts. It's almost comical how much he moves sometimes! Definitely an active baby! Even in the ultrasound we got a chance to see how much he moved!

Food cravings: Hmm, I don't think so. Well, I did want breakfast for dinner this evening, haha, because the strawberry jelly just looked so good!

Gender: Precious little baby boy!

Labor Signs: Negative! I asked my doctor if it was normal for me to not be having any braxton hicks and he said that some women just don't get any! I am definitely one that has not had hardly any contractions what so ever!

Belly Button in or out?: Belly button? What belly button?! ;-)

What I miss: I'm gonna have to go with the no heartburn thing, again! Seriously.... tums help, but not that much. Pretty much my only savior is to have a bowl of cereal before bed. Or just drink milk in general.

What I am looking forward to: Finishing up the nursery! Hutch is ordered and shipped, so just waiting on it to get here. The room is about half painted, and we're hopefully going to find a rug this weekend!

Weekly Wisdom: Realize that not every pregnancy is the same. Some women are bigger, smaller, have different symptoms, etc... don't google yourself crazy because you may be a-typical. I believe I am much smaller than most women, and I've not had hardly any bad symptoms.... but that's ok! It seems as if God is throwing me a bone on this one! ;-)

Milestones: Baby boy can open and close his eyes, and apparently stick out his tongue and yawn! As seen in our 3D/4D ultrasound! haha! From babycenter:  Though you may feel like Baby kicks your ribs all the time now, he's actually spending the vast majority of his time sleeping. Gaining all that fat is tiring work! Baby's experience rapid eye movement (REM) sleep as well as deep sleep! He also experiences another state of consciousness: an undefined sleep-like state that is unlike an infant's or grownup's and comes from the immature state of his brain. As his lungs continue to mature, his chances of surviving outside the womb get better every day (though if he was born this week he could fit into a large man's hand). It's good that he's sleeping, even if you're not, as the baby is heading into a period of tremendous internal and external growth.

Growing like a weed! haha

Possibly the smallest 31 weeks pregnant lady!

 Fun(?) Facts:
- Breasts: 39"
- Waist at belly button: Almost 39"
- Hips: 38 1/2"
- Current weight: 141.6 - I can't believe it!

Preparing for Baby!

It's that time - time to start nesting! Time to get everything ready for this baby boy, who will be here in less than 70 days (hopefully, haha!). I can't believe what little time we have left, but am so excited! We have started work on the nursery, and have started also trying to get our guest rooms upstairs all set up. Not to mention the rest of the house! Seeing as we'll be having a lot of company pretty soon, it was time to make things nice for our guests! We were a little bad about not decorating anything but the rooms that we spent time in, i.e. the downstairs part of the house, so now it's crunch time for the upstairs! This weekend we, and by "we" I mean Darren, my in-laws, Britni, and Granny, started to paint the nursery! It looks great already! Mommy didn't plan too well though and we already ran out of paint. haha. Oops! We'll work more on it this weekend.

Daddy priming the nursery! No more ugly brown!

Gia (Andrea's possible name) and Daddy hard at work!

Once we get everything painted then we can start to move in furniture and get it all assembled! I ordered a glider online and it came in this week. It's perfect! The wood matches the crib almost exactly, it's really comfy, and best part is that the curvature on the crib is the same as the arms on the chair! So, it really looks like a match set! I am ordering a hutch online as well (risky, I know...) because we can't find any in our price range at any stores in Texas it seems. Plus, it's so hard to find things in natural oak nowadays. Everything comes in that dark mahogany or ebony... not what we're going for! I love the natural wood look, and plus, it's timeless!

Oh yes, this will work just fine!

Such a handy daddy!

We also sucked it up and used some of our Christmas money, that we designated as purely baby money, to buy a nice new camera. We knew we needed one for when the baby is here! Being the bargain shopper that I am, I found one on amazon (brand new) for $100 less than in stores, plus it was free shipping! We got a Canon Ti, one of those fancy-shmancy DSLR's. So far I LOVE it. We just got it in yesterday so I haven't had much time to play with it, but already it takes amazing pictures. Being the tight budgeted people that we are, we will most likely be taking all of our pictures of the kiddo ourselves, rather than getting a professional to do them. Unless we win the lottery between now and then, but I don't see that happening! This way we can do it! We're also saving money by having our VERY talented cousin(sister) take our maternity pictures! Britni is such an amazing photographer, and has already impressed us beyond belief with her talent! Can't wait to take them!

His new toy!

Perfect for capturing babies!

See explanation below!!!

So, in the above picture, you may be thinking... hmm, ok, that's cool. BUT, what you don't know is that this was taken in the dark! Darren used the long exposure on the camera to capture in a bunch of light. The coolest part is that you can see stars in the sky! I promise, you couldn't see all of this if you walked outside! This camera rocks, and my hubby is an awesome photographer!!!

It's not been fun doing all this preparation and trying to stay on a tight tight budget, but I really think we're making it work. We're blessed to have awesome friends and family who are either letting us borrow or have some old baby gear, and we have so many great people who are willing to help us get things done! I must say I have honed my bargain shopping skills! ;-) I don't buy anything unless I'm getting it for a great price! Which, I mean, shouldn't everyone?! I don't get how some people can go and buy a $1500 hutch or crib, and not even blink. Oh well... whatever floats your boat! It would just sink mine, haha! ;-)

We're blessed beyond measure, and can't wait to meet our little one! I'll post later about our 3D/4D ultrasound that we had!

30 Week Survey

The 30 Week Survey

How far along?: 29 weeks and 5 days!

Total weight gain:  25 big 'ole pounds!

How big is baby?:About 3 pounds, 17 inches, and the size of a butternut squash!

Maternity clothes?: This week the maternity clothes were coupled with scarves, leggings under my pants, and heavy jackets! It was cooollllddd!

Stretch marks?: Still none, woo hoo!

Sleep: Still having my daily wake up calls to go pee. Little boy hasn't really kept me awake though, so that's good! I am starting to get realllly tired again. Like right now, I should be sleeping!

Best moment this week: Seeing our baby boy! At one point we could see him hiccuping, and I could feel it! It was so neat! Also, it was great to hear that he is doing well growth wise... what a relief so far!

Movement: All the time! It makes mommy happy because then I don't have to worry! ;-)

Food cravings: Hi, my name is Kristen, and I am addicted to Reeses. Oh wait, that was pre-pregnancy! hehe... but still, loving my candy!

Gender: Cute cute cute cute baby boy!

Labor Signs: Nope, thank goodness!!!

Belly Button in or out?: The top pokes out, and it's hard to even tell there was a hole there at one point in time!

What I miss: Not being short of breath. The other night it freaked me out! Tonight I was leaning over and apparently by leaning over I made even less room for my lungs, so got a little light headed. Oye.

What I am looking forward to: Painting the baby's room! We're going to start tomorrow, but it'll be a process! Everything upstairs needs kilz before we can paint. Not fun!

Weekly Wisdom: Don't forget about your hubby! It's usually all about the momma during this stage, but the daddy is usually doing a lot of the manual labor, while momma handles the real labor. haha! My hubby has been so amazing and helped so much around the house, so it's always great to remind him how much it means to me!

Milestones:Wow. 10 Weeks to go! Next week will be single digits! Now for some baby info! This week and the weeks to come, baby is busy plumping up. He's laying down two kinds of fat beneath his skin: brown adipose to generate body heat and white adipose that is an energy source and helps infants maintain their body temperature. By the end of the week baby will have made about 2 ounces of fat, which is about 3.5% of his body weight. By the time he's born fat will account for 15% of his body weight, which means a major growth spurt is coming! While the baby is still kicking and jabbing like crazy, he's already settled in to his head down position! Bone marrow has taken over the production of red blood cells, and his brain has been growing like crazy! He'll be so smart!

Not much change measurement wise. Like Pearl's nose?

Where did the weight gain go? hehe

Daddy wanted in a picture! ;-)

Fun(?) Facts:
- Waist at belly button: Still 38"
- Weight at start of pregnancy: 113.6
- Current Weight: 138.6 - yowza!

Counting Down!

We're nearing the end! Only 10 weeks to go now! So far we're still on schedule, due date wise, so we'll see when baby boy decides to make his appearance! As I reflect upon this pregnancy, I realize how blessed I have been. Not only did I have a pretty easy pregnancy, besides the whole circumvellate placenta thing, but I also had a really amazing husband, and a really supportive job. I'm reading "Belly Laughs" by Jenny McCarthy right now, and it is so freaking hilarious. However, it definitely made me realize that the few pregnancy symptoms that I've had to experience have really been nothing! I'm glad that baby #1 has been super easy! Darren has been the best husband ever. Lately my back has been hurting (probably all the extra weight, haha), so he's been giving me nightly back rubs. He also has helped out around the house so much more, and pretty much spoils me! As for my job, it was so easy when I was feeling under the weather. I was able to nap if I needed, go to Grandma's to get some toast when I was sick to my stomach, I can go to the doctor whenever I need... you name it. It's been amazing. I'm so blessed! I don't see how women with other jobs do it. I mean, just the throwing up if you're sick thing... what do you do?! haha.. Then the time off for doctor's appointments... that's crazy! I've also been pretty blessed in the fact that I have Carylon as my go-to lady for all medical questions. Also, I have some amazing friends who have been there/done that, who always give the best advice and help! =) What can I say.. I'm a lucky gal!

I can't wait until our little boy is here. He doesn't even know how great he is going to have it. Maybe not financially, haha, but definitely he will be so loved, and will grow up in a great home with two loving parents! =)

Monday Minute

It's been a while since my last Monday Minute... I blame work! ;-) haha. Anyway, just wanted to do this quick one for the week to get my morning rolling nicely! Go link up at Cristina's site by clicking the button below!

(1) What is your favorite TV show of all time?
Easy. Gilmore Girls. Hands down. No Question. I could watch that show all day every day and not get tired of it. There are very very few episodes in all 7 seasons that I have yet to see, and most of them I can quote from. My all time favorite quote: Rory to Lorelai: "You ate the fuzzy certs!" - Lorelai's response: "They tasted like keys!" You'd have to see the episode to appreciate it's greatness!

(2) What is the worst job you've ever had?
This one is a toss up. My freshman year of college I had two awful jobs. First, I was a "campus representative" for Campus Fundraiser. Where I basically asked people to sign up for a credit card, and made they buy t-shirts. I spent more money than I made at this job because I was too lazy to sell the stuff on my own so I just bought it. I still probably have about 20 "Love Happens At Northgate" t-shirts lying around somewhere.

Second worst job, being a to-go server and hostess at Salsalito in San Antonio. They got busted by the INS not too long ago. Shocking? No! The owner was AWFUL. So mean. And the food wasn't even that good. Plus I didn't make much money, and some days I had to walk to and from work!

(3) Name one toy that, according to your parents, you loved as a child.
Not a toy, per say, but horses! I spent all of my time outside with my pony and then my horse Della. I rode or brushed horses as much as I could! Toy wise, it was probably something horse related or doll related. I was a girly girl, despite having two younger brothers!

(4) Bert or Ernie?
Hmm... Bert. Just because. ;-)

(5) If you could have lunch with any person, who would it be?
The question didn't specify, but I'm going to pick someone alive, just because lunch with a dead person might not be that interesting! I'm going to pick A&M's former President, and current Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates. Dr. Gates was so awesome while at A&M, and now he's trying his damndest dealing with the government and protecting our country! I would want to tell him how awesome I think he is, and plus, we could talk Aggie stuff! =)

29 Week Survey

The 29 Week Survey

How far along?: 28 weeks 4 days!

Total weight gain:  23 and a bit! Holding steady this week!

How big is baby?: At our Midland appointment on Monday, baby boy weighed 2 pounds 6 ounces! So, I bet he's gained at least an ounce by now! He's also around 17 inches long already!

Maternity clothes?: Suprisingly I love maternity pants, much more than regular pants with the bella band. So I wear the same couple of pairs of jeans, and wash often, haha!

Stretch marks?: Nope! ::Knock on wood::

Sleep: Getting more difficult! My belly finally mostly fits on my pillow, so that helps, but little boy likes to wake up around 4am, and I usually have to pee anyway around then. Plus, it seems as if every night I am on the verge of a leg cramp. I have to stretch out my leg really fast or else it hurts like crazy!

Best moment this week: Seeing our baby boy! At one point we could see him hiccuping, and I could feel it! It was so neat! Also, it was great to hear that he is doing well growth wise... what a relief so far!

Movement: Oh my goodness! All of the docs/nurses/techs always comment on how much he moves. At night I can always watch my belly dance! And then the hiccups... so cute and so funny!

Food cravings: We were watching the food network and they did a short bit on how fruity pebbles were made... so naturally I had to go buy some fruity pebbles the next day when we were in town! ;-) They looked so good!

Gender: Daddy's future hunting buddy! Which, yes, could be a girl, hehe, but in our case he's alllll boy!

Labor Signs: Nothing this week! Not even any possible contractions!

Belly Button in or out?: Still trying to poke out at the top... oye.

What I miss: Not having heartburn. Man is it getting old! My whole life I've lived without heartburn, probably because I don't eat spicy foods... but now it's here EVERY day, regardless of what I eat... and in full force! Milk does help it though, thank goodness.

What I am looking forward to: Shopping this weekend! Also, we bought the paint for the nursery, and hopefully my dad's going to get to come and help us paint!

Weekly Wisdom: When your doctor tells you to drink a million gallons of water per day, listen to them, or else you're going to get in trouble! I had to do that lovely urine analysis and I only filled about 1/4 of what I should have.. oops! So, I got reprimanded! hehe..

Milestones: Little boy is head down! Hooray! Which means that I am getting more and more kicks to the ribs, lungs, kidneys, you name it! He's supposedly running out of room but he's still squirming like crazy, and still manages to kick and poke at his momma all day! Organ and Nerve development are complete, so now baby boy is focusing his energy, or well, my energy, on making fat! In momma's news... we're now to the point of going to the doctor every two weeks! Wow! Time has flown by and our little one will be here in 80 days or so!

Not much of a change from last week, even though I feel bigger!

I swear I look bigger in person, haha!

Pregnancy & Life Updates

This week was a busy week for doctor's appointments. First, I had another ultrasound in Midland on Monday so that they could check my placenta and check little boy's growth. So far he's right on schedule! I was 28w1d when I went, and he measured 28w0d. So, not too bad! He weighed a whopping 2 pounds 6oz! Not sure how they determine that, but that's ok! ;-) The ultrasound tech did mention that she still saw that my placenta was circumvellate, but the doctor did not mention anything when he came in. We kinda got screwed in my opinion on this appointment. We didn't have the same tech or doctor as last time. This doc was late by 30 minutes (meaning I was at their office for an hour and a half), the heater was broken in the office, and our pictures came out blurry because the tech didn't take enough time to do them. Bummer! We asked about a 3D one and she said that their machines don't do them well enough or something like that, so we'd have to go to Odessa and spend about $150. Hmm, I think I'll try the college again, because that is way too much! While at the Midland doc, my blood pressure measured way higher than normal. I think it was 140/80, which for me is really high. So that freaked them out and now I am having to do all of these extra labs, and a 24hr urine analysis... which believe me, SUCKS! This may be TMI, but oh well! I have to pee into this cup and then pour that into this bucket that I keep in the fridge. Gross, huh? I do this every time I go pee for 24 hours! They also did a CBC and are doing some sort of uriatic acid something or another when I go back in to drop off the collected pee, haha.

I saw Carylon yesterday for my regular OB checkup. My fundal height and baby's heart rate were great! He was squirming around like crazy, which made my nurse laugh. I love Carylon's nurse, Brandy. She's awesome! Anyway, I had to do my glucose screening for gestational diabetes, so I drank 10oz of the worst tasting, horribly sweet, orange liquid. It made my head spin there was so much sugar in there! 50g to be exact! I had to wait an hour before I got to go have my blood drawn for the test. They'll call me with the results in a few days. Hopefully I didn't fail it or else I'll have to go back for a 3 hour test. Carylon let me hang out in her office while I waited my hour, thank goodness, or else I would have been so bored in the waiting room by myself! Darren didn't get to go with me since we were short handed at work, sad! Plus, he's been super busy with customers lately! I guess that's a good thing! My blood pressure yesterday was perfectly normal. 110/72, which is about where it normally is. Carylon said she is not worried about my blood pressure and that it was probably a fluke thing, but that it is better safe than sorry, so we went ahead and did the labs anyway. As Evan said, and I'm going to paraphrase, not direct quote, you don't mess around with BP during pregnancy! ;-) hehe..

In other news, we're making progress on this whole "getting ready for baby" thing! I bought paint for the nursery yesterday, and this weekend we're going shopping for furniture! Hopefully we'll come back with some good stuff! I also found our pediatrician, and know that he is taking new patients, so that's good! I got us on the waiting list for the daycare in Garden City, so now I just have to find someone to keep him over the summer while they are still full. Hopefully they have an opening in the fall, or I am back to square one! Lastly, I got our packet in with all of the information on a college fund! Yahoo! Now, if only we had the money to put into it! ha! That's the only problem that we're stuck at for now, but we'll make it work! Scrimp, Save, Coupon....

I can't believe that we are less than 3 months away from meeting our little one! I am getting so excited! Oh, we have my shower planned too! Hooray! And, I've graduated to going to the doctor every two weeks now! Man, we're making progress! ;-) Only about 80 days to go! Can't wait!

A New Year

This time last year all I could think about was babies.... Wanting a baby, Trying for baby, Hoping for a baby, Praying for a baby... This year, I am in my 29th week, and can't believe that in less than 3 months I will be holding my baby boy. Wow. God is so good.

2010 was a crazy year for us. I graduated at the end of 2009 and we moved to Garden City where we started working on a house from the 1940's. We shivered through the winter (literally, it was about 49 in our house at all times because propane was too expensive to run the heater at all times!), but enjoyed our little home. I began work for Eco-Drip, and left the life of the student. It was a great transition, I must say! In the spring we had to put Darren's old family dog Deets down, which was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. However, God soon replaced our animal love with a great addition. We got our puppy Pearl in the late spring, and have never had a dull day since! We also got two kitties, so added to our family pretty fast! In the summer we found out that we could move in to the big country house if we wanted to, so of course we said yes! Little did we know at the time that we would need more room! I took a round of clomid in June to help with my fertility problems, and as you all know, it worked! It was a hard month as the meds really did a number on me! Hot flashes in June are NOT fun! In July we went to visit my family in New York, and on our first morning there learned that we were pregnant! We were beyond the moon excited, but managed to keep it a secret until we were home and could do more tests, plus go see our doctor! In August I found out that I was accepted into the Masters of Agriculture program through Texas A&M. I was beyond excited to finally get my masters and get my degree from A&M! We continued to work on our new house throughout the summer and beginning of fall, and moved in to the house in September. Pregnancy was really not too bad, I was just tired all of the time, so we enjoyed the fall together by going to the Bearkat football games, and by taking a vacation for our 3 year wedding anniversary. This winter we visited family in Arizona, finally, and I got to see my mom for the first time since I had been pregnant. We had a wonderful last Christmas without any kiddos, and a great New Years Eve!

In 2010 I grew to love my husband even more than I could have ever imagined. Although the stresses of fertility problems were not fun to deal with, he always was right there, reassuring me, praying with me, and more than anything, loving me. He is my best friend and I know he will be such an amazing father to our little boy, and our kids to come! He already is the best dad ever to our puppy Pearl! ;-) She adores him, and that's an understatement! haha! We have been together over 6 years and married for over 3 now... my how time flies!

We know that 2011 will be a year we'll never forget! We can't wait to meet our blessing from above! Praying for a wonderful year for all of our readers as well! We love you guys!

28 Week Survey

Late again, big surprise. But that's ok because yesterday was New Year's Eve! Happy Year of our baby's birth! Aka, Happy 2011! This is bound to be an amazing year for us, and I can't wait to get it started!


The 28 Week Survey

How far along?: 27 weeks and 5 days! (On Friday I was!)

Total weight gain:  20 some odd pounds... I believe it's around 25. ;-)

How big is baby?: About 2 1/4 pounds, and 15 inches. Again, more precise measurements to come Monday!

Maternity clothes?: Most definitely! Keep buying more and more just to make it through!

Stretch marks?: Still no and I am super surprised!

Sleep: Not bad, but not great. I wake up about once per night to go to the bathroom, and when I do little boy decides that he needs to wake up too...

Best moment this week: Celebrating the new year with my amazing hubby and family, and knowing it'll be our baby's birth year now!

Movement: All the time. He's quite the athlete. However, he is stage shy, and doesn't like to perform for anyone but me and Darren. Little turd is already stubborn!

Food cravings: None really! I have been enjoying a bowl of honey nut cherrios every night though! ;-)

Gender: Mommy's little cowboy!

Labor Signs: I think I might have had a braxton hicks contraction, but it's so hard to tell what I'm supposed to be looking for. The other night my uterus was definitely tight and hurt, so I laid down and it went away.... dunno what it was!

Belly Button in or out?: Sticking out now, just at the top... oh joy.

What I miss: Having an ample selection of clothes that fit and look cute. I have a great selection from Cristina, but it still seems as if I am always wearing the same things over and over! hehe.. I'm such a girl... I like selection!

What I am looking forward to: Monday is our ultrasound, and we'll be buying paint this week to start on the nursery! Woo hoo! It's about time! Plus this weekend we're going shopping at Lone Star Baby while we're in Dallas for a wedding, so hopefully we can find some good stuff that we need!

Weekly Wisdom: If you're tired... sleep. Don't try to push yourself too hard! I really need to start listening to my own advice!

Milestones: Hello Third Trimester!!! Baby boy can now smell, crazy. Also, I'll start going to the doctor more often now, both to Midland for our ultrasounds, and Big Spring to our regular OB. Little boy is still growing like a weed and can now blink! Also, his lungs have reached the point of maturity, so it would probably be ok if he was to show up early, but we'll make sure he stays in there about 12 more weeks!

Starting to look a little rough.. I think my face is growing!

Not so pretty, but that's ok!

Fun(?) Facts:
- Waist at belly button: 38", growing every week!