Putting the nursery together

My SIL came to town this weekend to help me get things put away in the nursery.

She put together our swing :)

Door for nursery...still needs some work!

Our changer, loaded with diapers and wipes :) 

(notice you can see the floor!)

And I still have one more shower...

And bags are getting packed...Jason's on his own, I had to pack 3 bags...he just has 1!!

Now get ready for shower #2 this weekend, I can't wait to get more things and bring it all home. I will finally get to bring the big items home like the bassinet, car seat/stroller, and the wagon his Uncle Trey got him! Baby James is super loved (spoiled) and it makes me super happy!

Baby Shower!

I finally got some photos from this past weekend of the shower. Jason and I are truly blessed to have so many family and friends that care so much about us.

Plenty of diapers and my car seat/stroller set

All the gifts...it was a little overwhelming to walk into the house!

A close-up of my diaper cake...so cute!

My awesome cake...it was soooooo good too! I think I put away about half of it on my own!

Some really cute blankets, this is an activity blanket

Handmade one from his Nana James (that's Jason's mother)

One with a turtle from a sweet sorority sister - couldn't get away without at least one!!!

Handmade one from a sweet friend...it's really soft!

And a specially picked one from my niece

Uncle Trey got him a cute bib

Aunt Jaclyn got him a cute onesie

My mom and MIL

My niece

My SIL

My other niece

My mom and grandma

And finally all my hostesses...minus Kara :(

I was pooped by the end of the day...I needed some help

It's so exciting to bring everything home, I don't think Jason was too thrilled about it but I am so super excited to get everything together in the room. My SIL is coming into town this weekend so I'm sure we will be putting together some things.

36 weeks...almost time!!!

So...approximately 4 weeks from today our lil' peanut could be here, I can't believe how fast this time is just flying by!

(wow...didn't realize how tacky that toilet looks in the background...please excuse!)

PREGNANCY AT A GLANCE

How far along? 36 weeks

Baby's size? We have scheduled an ultrasound for June 3rd, we can get a good estimate of how big he is then, but everyone is guessing that he's going to be a big boy. Jason and I both were 8lb babies so it would be a surprise to me if he came out under 8lbs.

Gender? Momma's boy is spoiled rotten!

Weight gain? I didn't gain any weight in the last 3 weeks from my last doctor's appointment! I was super excited, but I'm pretty sure that this past weekend I put on quite a bit!

Maternity clothes? Look more like curtains I'm wearing these days :)

Stretch marks? Wake up with new ones every morning but they are pretty

Belly button in or out? Some days it looks like it will pop out by the end of the day but others it actually looks normal

Sleeping? Remind of what that is again?

Foods I'm loving? Crawfish and Spoons right now!

Foods I'm hating? Is that really possibly right now?!?!

Best moment this week? Well, it was a best weekend...we had my birthday crawfish boil, Jason and my Bubba did an awesome job on the crawfish!! Then Sunday was my first baby shower, hosted by some sweet friends and co-workers. I can't wait to see photos, it was very overwhelming to walk into the house with all that stuff everywhere! It was a hot day, so I was a little crabby, but soon calmed down and really enjoyed it all. I can't wait to get his shower game gifts, a bunch of "advice cards" and his first Alphabet book!

What I'm looking forward to? Shopping with my sister-in-law this weekend!

What I miss? Being comfortable

Symptoms? Really bad heartburn, some minor aches and pains in certain areas, my feet are hurting more and more by the end of the day, Braxton Hicks are getting stronger, really tired all the time, can't sleep half the time...

Milestones? Nursery is done!!!

Emotions & Moods? Just depends on the day...

Nursery is DONE!!!

We got a call last week that the final piece of our nursery set was in, Jason drove to get it this morning and we already set it up in the baby room! I can't believe it, it's finally done!!! I am so happy and can't wait to clean the nursery all up and it all be ready for baby's homecoming!

This was the final piece, our changer/dresser and the store threw in a free changing pad for all our troubles...how kind huh?

Now we just have to put everything up...it's a mad-house right now in this room but we still have one more shower to get things, I don't want to put everything up then have to re-do it...you know how my OCD is...

Exciting weekend for Baby James!

We had a busy weekend! On Saturday we had our annual birthday crawfish boil. I got my Bubba a cookie cake to celebrate him getting promoted (he was a little angry for the embarrassment!) and we had lots of fish and crawfish! I was a little worried, we were woken up in the middle of the night due to a really bad storm and it rained a little that morning but it finally stopped by that evening, it was nice and steamy though! I do have some pics but I seemed to have mis-placed my camera over the weekend...

 Grandfathers attempting to put the stroller together...

Them:  "Where does this go?"

Me:  "Did you read the instructions?"

Them:  "We're men...we don't need them..."

 One of the awesome chefs!!

 He's secretly cussing me under his breath but telling me to hurry and cut it before anyone sees...

 We're so proud of him!!

Sunday was all about Baby James! I had my first shower given by some sweet friends and co-workers, they did such a good job! This baby is going to be spoiled rotten! He got lots of clothes, got my big items - car seat and stroller, a wagon, a bassinet, a swing - and lots of diapers! It was really special, one of the hostesses was in charge of the games, Baby James is getting his first Alphabet book decorated by all the ladies that attended! I am getting a bunch of advice cards and can't wait to read them! There are lots of photos but I am waiting on them from the hostesses so I will post as soon as I get them! This is at least everything once we brough it home and I got it all out of bags...I won't have to do laundry for at least the first 6 months of his life!!

All-in-all it was a nice weekend, Happy Monday!

35 weeks - ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!

I can't believe it's almost time to meet my chunky monkey! Time has surely passed us by quickly, in just 5 short weeks we will see him; it feels just like yesterday I was taking a test! It's crazy to go back and look at my belly starting in December and now seeing just how much it's grown...and to think that there's a baby in there!!!

PREGNANCY AT A GLANCE

How far along? 35 weeks

Baby's size? I hope to find out tomorrow, but it seems as though I need to grow some more!

Gender? Still momma's boy!

Weight gain? Seems to be right about the same, I think I've actually lost a couple of pounds over the past few days with Jason being gone out of town

Maternity clothes? Still tight...

Stretch marks? I officially have them all over the underside of my belly!!!

Belly button in or out? It's still in...barely...but it's still in.

Sleeping? Is really difficult!

Foods I'm loving? Heat, sweets and sno-cones, don't think that's going to change!!!

Foods I'm hating? Still haven't found anything that I don't want to eat now-a-days!

Best moment this week? Well, we did complete our Prepared Childbirth Class...got a graduation certificate and all so we are as prepared as we are ever going to be for this sweet baby. Then there was Saturday evening...not really a "best" moment...but certainly something worth noting...I kinda cut the tip of my finger off while working on baby shower invitations...I think the "best" moment I had on Saturday was as Jason is pouring the Peroxide on it our medic/firefighter neighbor leans over and goes "does it hurt?" I wanted so badly to go "no it feels great, please cut my other 9 fingers" but I refrained...

What I'm looking forward to? Seeing all my friends this weekend for my first baby shower!

What I miss? Jason this week, he's been gone all week :(

Symptoms? Still about the same...bladder infections, he's so low that it's making the pains even worse, my feet are beginning to swell a lot now...I have fat rolls on my cankles, he still gets the hiccups which I think are adorable, he's moving a lot more so I love watching him move across my belly, I'm soooooo exhausted all the time and the "nesting" at home is picking up...

Milestones? We graduated from our Prepared Childbirth Class

Emotions & Moods? They're up they're down, they're hot, they're cold

Prepared Childbirth Class...and some real-life practice!

I will go ahead and warn you that this post is not for the weak. It has some pretty gruesome photos.

First off, we had our Prepared Childbirth Class on Saturday at St. Joseph's. It was really good. We got to see videos of births, both natural and assisted, as well as a C-section and the lovely epidural video...I'm glad I don't have to watch that again! I did learn that I can take popsicles in with me though to delivery! Jason "enjoyed" all the stuff that was said and was really attentive to it all, learning pressure points for pain relief on me during labor and the nurse insisted that the husbands go home and practice for homework!! Jason didn't like this idea... Most of the people in the class were due in June or July, but there was one lady that was due on May 23rd! I was afraid she was going to go into labor right then! After the class, we got to go and tour the hospital and the Labor & Delivery rooms, very fancy! And we got to see lots of babies in the nursery...so cute! Jason treated me to some Spoons Yogurt on our way home...YUM!

We didn't have much since we had planned for this class all day but we got out early so we just went home and relaxed. I needed to work on some scrapbooking/baby shower stuff so I was diligently working when it happened...don't scroll down if you can't handle some yucky photos.

Let's just say that I had a minor disagreement with the paper cutter. I am fine, just a little cut that looks really nasty but something that I will always remember my pregnancy with. I keep saying that I got some real life practice on my breathing techniques and managing the pain. It was hard, I did shed a tear or two but it was instant tears, like when you get hit in the nose and they just happen. I did not go to the ER, spending $100 for a band-aid just wasn't justifiable to me so we asked the neighbor to take a look at it, the firefighter. He gave me some blood-clotting gauze and helped me clean it and wrap it up. I think my favorite comment from him was as we were rinsing it out with Peroxide he leans over and goes "does it hurt?" I debated..."No it feels great, please do it again!" but went with "yes it burns pretty bad" instead. Once it was all clean then we rinsed it out with water really good and bandaged it all up. Sunday was a little rough, it's hard to sleep because I was constantly hitting it but I managed to just relax all day, kept my feet up and tried to just remain calm. Went to lunch with Jason and his working partner then back home to relax. Sunday night my finger was really beginning to hurt bad, so Jason convinced me that maybe we should go to the Urgent Care. It was closed by this time last night so I said we could go first thing in the morning. We went, only to get told how good of a job we had taken care of it and for me to get a Tetanus shot...and boy oh boy does it hurt! I know it's going to be hard to sleep tonight! I did get lots of samples of antibiotic ointment though from them, as well as a finger guard and some bandaging wrap. All in all, it was worth the $20 copay there rather than the ER.

So again, I'm fine, but the following photos are from this morning...it's not pretty but it's going to heal just fine.

Yes I did take off part of my finger nail too...

Doctor says it should be back to normal in about 5-6 weeks, just in time for the baby's arrival! I sure hope so because right now I can't feel the edge of my finger...crazy but apparently your sensory nerves run on the side of your finger and he says I probably cut them all down but they will grow back.

I get lots of time now to relax, Jason is gone for the next 4 days for a conference...oh so excited about the bed privileges I will have for the next 3 nights!!!

Happy Monday!

I'm so proud

Yesterday was the Law Enforcement Memorial to commemorate those that have lost their lives in the line of duty. I didn't make it to the ceremony due to work but I'm still proud of my two officers I am blessed to have in my life. I am proud to be the wife and sister to these two that wear the badge, that took an oath to serve and protect and put others above themselves. It makes me so proud to know that they have chosen a profession where they get to help others.

Presidential Inauguration 2009

I posted this video last year during the memorial week, it really is good though, really says a lot about an officer.

Love you guys!

34 weeks!

42 days to go...but who's counting?! Oh that would be me...because I am growing at a very rapid rate!! I'm feeling really good though and really and getting excited as these last few weeks are quickly passing by.

PREGNANCY AT A GLANCE

How far along? 34 weeks

Baby's size? Too big for my body! :) He should be around 4 3/4 lb right now and about 18 inches long...we'll know for sure when we go to the doctor next week.

Gender? Better be a boy!

Weight gain? Still about the same right now, somewhere around 10.5-11 lbs total weight gain, depends on the day though

Maternity clothes? Are getting very tight on me now...there are only a few items that I really feel comfortable wearing

Stretch marks? I officially have them...saw the first red marks two days ago...so it really doesn't matter whether you moisturize or not, if your body isn't big enough then pregnancy will make it

Belly button in or out? It's still in!

Sleeping? Has gotten harder and harder!

Foods I'm loving? Heat, sweets and sno-cones, don't think that's going to change!!!

Foods I'm hating? Still haven't found anything that I want to eat now-a-days!

Best moment this week? Well, it's a surprise...but Jason and I did something very special for our families

What I'm looking forward to? Our childbirth class this weekend!!

What I miss? Sleeping on my tummy

Symptoms? Lots of things...I'm getting bladder infections really bad now, he's so low that it's making the pains even worse, my feet are beginning to swell some and everything "down there" is beginning to ache and make me walk funny, he still gets the hiccups, don't really sleep much, but am soooooo exhausted, starting the "nesting" at home

Milestones? It may seem silly but he's begun to do his contortionist act and I think it's the cutest thing to watch him move across my belly!

Emotions & Moods? I think I might be getting a hold on them...might

Birthday weekend and Mother's Day

Well, this year birthday was just another day, I was busy at work all day long. Jason got called into work due to some excitement in our lovely town, I managed to get a small break to go scarf down a traditional lunch with my mommy at Must Be Heaven, then she took me to our traditional shopping trip for me to get a necklace. I get back to the office and this was waiting for me:

I cut it all up, ate about 5 or 6 pieces and shared too

Jason and I went to dinner that evening at Atami...I really wanted some hibachi and sushi. Saturday was a busy day for us, we had some errands to run that morning and then a fun-filled day! I stopped by my Bubba's house to get my birthday treat from him...these things are to die for!!!

The one on the left is Strawberry Cheesecake and the one on the right is Strawberry...they are both very good!

My birthday present from Jason was a trip to the Ringling Brothers circus that was in town this weekend. Jason got us front row seats, I had a blast, was like being a kid all over again!! I even managed to become part of the show when a clown came and sat on my lap and "cried." Wish we would have had the camera ready for that shot...

Jason learned how to balance a feather on his chin

They began the show by singing the National Anthem

They are hanging by their hair!!!

Elephants were my favorite

They were so awesome!!

It's really hard to tell, but there are 3 motorcycles in there and a lady standing in the middle of it

The end...it was so much fun!

So after we went to go see the elephants

And get our picture with them :)

After the circus we went to the Aggie Baseball game that was just finishing up, then had to go to PD for some stuff for Jason, then he treated me to a sno-cone!! We went home briefly then went to Franklin for their downtown festival with some friends...all-in-all it was a nice Saturday birthday celebration day! 

Sunday morning Jason had to work but then we went and had Mother's Day lunch at my parent's house. That afternoon was nice, Jason slept and I did things around the house, laundry and cleaning. He gave me a sweet card, then when I went to feed Dixie she had a card waiting for me in her food bucket. Jason treated me to a Mother's Day dinner and I had a coupon for a free birthday dessert so it was a nice day!

My hubby, brother, and dog got me mother's day cards, it was really sweet

And then we finished it all off with one last birthday treat for me!

It was a nice, relaxing weekend. We did a lot of stuff but nothing too strenuous. I love weekends like this past one!