One Sweet Bean

2009-03-25T08:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I am a total loser! Sorry about the lack of communication...motherhood leaves little time for this sort of thing...as you well know Stephanie my dear! I wee little one keeps you oh so busy. Speaking of which my little Benjamin is doing great! He was 5 mos on Sunday. Things are going very well...except for the whole sleeping through the night thing, which he is not doing so well. He was doing great until about a month ago, and he is now waking up every 4 hours, it's like he's 3 months old again, Ugh! I started trying the Ferber method last night and yeah, it kind of worked if you could call it that! He was up from 1:30 am - almost 3 am crying. I finally caved and nursed him back to sleep simply because Chad and I couldn't take it anymore! He didn't wake up until 8:30 this morning and went right back to sleep again, so I guess we are making progress! He is usually a pretty happy baby. He is up most of the day, he hates taking naps though, surprise surprise! Oh well, trying to take it all in stride and remember what Steph told me that he'll sleep when he's tired enough! Well I hear my little munchkin now, gotta go!

12 Days and counting!

2008-09-25T04:52:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting at my computer at 5:30 am thinking of how thankful I will be when this is all over. I haven't been sleeping well at all due to massive swelling in my hands which awakens me each evening with my joints feeling as though they're on fire, major back pain, and then I realize, I'm getting a lot more sleep now than I will be so I better enjoy it while I can. I think this is the first time I've been up before my husband since 2005! Anyway, we have scheduled a date, in case you all haven't heard yet, for the 7th of October to deliver our little pumpkin. We will have an amniocentesis first, just to clarify lung maturity, then out he'll come! Chad and I are both obviously very excited and nervous and yes a little terrified at the prospect of bringing an infant home with us. I think new parents must think at some point, "where in the world did you come from." One night you're enjoying a nice quiet evening together watching a movie, the very next night, it's three of you and you don't have a chance to watch that movie between changing diapers and feeding the baby! Weird! We are both just so thankful that things have gone as remarkably well as they have. I have always known that the Lord made my body to carry my own children! I will post my final pictures of this journey later this afternoon. Love you all and thank you so much for the support over the last nine months!

Baby Shower

2008-08-28T10:08:00.000-07:00

Here are the photos I promised. Enjoy!

Third And Final Trimester!

2008-08-21T10:23:00.000-07:00

Well, I can't believe I'm already in my final weeks! I'm glad to say that time has actually gone by quickly and that this pregnancy has been awesome. With all of the previous worries and concerns that I had it is truly miraculous how well I have done. The Lord has truly blessed me and made my body strong to not only withstand pregnancy but allow me to enjoy the process. Sorry I haven't posted in a while, we've had computer issues which has prevented me from being online, however I'm back and will post photos this weekend. We have been working hard to complete the nursery...it's been a lot of work. Of course I have had a lot of projects going at one time and am very anxious to be done with them. It will be worth it in the end. We are also trying to shorten our "favorite names" list. I didn't realize what an ordeal it could be to come up with a name! The problem is we both have 3 favorites, none of which are the same. I keep on reminding myself not to worry, I don't know anyone who hasn't been named, it will come to us. We are both starting to feel excited, anxious, nervous a little scared when we think about our little ones arrival. What a change it will be. We are both so excited to simply see him, hold him and give him kisses. What a wonderful day it will be.
I had my first of two baby showers last weekend at my good friend Jayne Hall's house. It was so much fun. I really enjoyed being able to have my friends all in one place and just enjoy their company. We had wonderful food and fellowship. Chad and I had a lot of fun going through all of the gifts that were so generously given. My second shower will be September 4 at my moms with family.
Until next time...

Embracing Pregnancy

2008-07-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

We are now at week 25, soon to be entering into my 7th month, WOW! I can't believe it. As you can see there is absolutely no doubt that I really do have a little one in there, although these days it isn't looking so little. I am trying to embrace, uhm, accept all of the, shall I say "side effects" of pregnancy including but not limited to lets call it poofiness syndrome? Yeah, I am there. No matter what I do, walk every day, eat nothing but salads for dinner with absolutely no sweets for an entire week, my body continues to swell. But I keep reminding myself, this happens to every woman, right!? Oh yeah, let's not forget perpetual peeing. Yes, you all know what I'm talking about. Every time I get up from a sitting position, all of a sudden there it is. Oh well, just one more reminder that there is something big happening. You like the picture of me and my little buddy. I decided the picture was too cute to not publish even though it took a great amount of courage for me to bare all of my poofiness to the world!

Well Chad and I are enjoying working on the nursery together. My mom said the colors reminded her of teddy bears. So I thought that would be a good theme. It's going to be browns, blues and creams. It will be pretty modern looking, no cartoon animals or things of that nature, more little boy. Stephanie and I had a great time going to Target to register for my upcoming baby showers. Yes, I said baby showers. I am having two. It was so much fun aiming that little scanner gun at all of the things in which will hopefully become mine. It really is amazing to see all of the gadgets and things that we just have to have to keep our little ones happy, entertained, you know. Well, until next time...By the way, if you would like to see an image up close, simply click on the picture for it to become full size.

6 Months And Counting!

2008-07-11T07:59:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been that long already. I feel so blessed that I have been able to enjoy the process as much as I have. I pray that the rest of the pregnancy goes just as well. As you can see from the pictures we had a fun 4th of July weekend. My mom and I spent Friday at Yellow Bay on Flathead Lake and Chad joined us later that afternoon. It was a perfect day to be on the Lake. It was so relaxing to just lay and soak up the sun.

We joined the rest of the fam at Justin & Stephanie's for fireworks later that evening. Wyatt was absolutely mezmorized by the fireworks. Uncle Chad had a great time with him. Wyatt didn't quite get the concept of the sparkler, he of course thought it was a candle and insisted on trying to blow it out! Tyler is back from school so we are planning on having a great summer this year. Chad and I are taking lots of day trips to the woods/lake since we are unable to camp. We are really trying to take advantage of the time we have on the weekends to enjoy the nice weather. Well, enjoy the pics and I hope to hear from you all soon.

We're having a boy!

2008-06-22T15:27:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to find that we will be having a son. My ultrasound was on Thursday, and as you can see, he's very proud! Chad is especially thrilled. It has made the pregnancy a lot more real for him. We had fun this week looking through lists of baby names and writing down the ones that caught our attention. We'll probably pick out a few and name him when he's born. Everything else looks great. His growth is right on target, he has all of his parts, his little heart beat is perfect. The second ultrasound shows the head with the eyes, nose and mouth being quite visible as well as the left arm and hand.

I am definately feeling more and more pregnant as the weeks pass. I am starting to feel a little stretched this week. Chad and I went to the lake yesterday, and really for the first time I found it a little difficult to get comfortable. I am really thankful that I quit working when I did so that when I need to rest, I can. For the most part however, I feel great! I am really trying to embrace this time. Stephanie has really helped me as well as my mom and husband to not obsess about weight gain, instead, make healthy choices and excercise, but otherwise, not to worry. I have to face facts that I am going to be gaining some weight weekly from this point on. I do have to admit that I think I look great! I really don't look any different than I did pre-pregnancy. Well enjoy the pictures and I will write again soon. I love hearing from you, so please post comments. Love you!

2008-06-09T19:43:00.000-07:00

I told you I would get you more pictures...Chad had fun trying to get some snapshots...doesn't he know that a princess always has to pose? Counting down the days to our next ultrasound. What do you think it's going to be? Enjoy!

New Routine

2008-06-09T13:41:00.000-07:00

So, this staying home thing is really cool, however a girl who organizes and fills every space of time is having a difficult time getting a new routine going. Last week I was in vacation mode as it was really the first time that I was a "free woman." I took myself to the matinee, went shopping and hung out with my mom and Wyatt. This week is the week to get myself on a schedule. I have plans for myself after all. This morning I was up a 7:30 got myself ready for the day, went for a walk and came to work to trail the newby. I felt great! So, I think that will be my "norm." I want to rise early, get my workout done and get ready by 10 am. It's after doing hair/makeup that I start feeling lost. A cute girl wants to go out and do something but that cute girl can't go shopping every day because let's face it, I'm not made of money!!! My house is always clean, so then what? I haven't figured that out yet, but stay tuned, I'm sure I'll figure it out. Baby is growing every week, pretty quickly now. My weight gain has picked up the pace a little. I have only gained 6 pounds since February, so about 1.25 per month but am expecting to start gaining around 2.5 pounds per month from this point on. I am still sticking to my goal weight of 15-17 lbs total. I know that some women gain in upwards of 25+ pounds however, it's crucial for me to not gain more that absolutely necessary. I am only taking in an additional 200 calories/day and am going to focus on some kind of physical activity every day to keep burning all those consumed calories. I know I'll do just fine. I have no new pictures as of yet, don't worry, I'll keep them coming! Love you all.

The End Of An Era

2008-06-02T16:56:00.004-07:00

So, Friday was officially my last day at work! How strange. Although I will be training my replacement for the next couple of Mondays...It is a bittersweet feeling although don't get me wrong, I'm very happy to be entering into this new season in my life. Chad is so happy to have me home. We've both always wanted for me to have an opportunity to be a wife and mommy at home taking care of my family. My wonderful friends at work took me to a "farewell" lunch on Thursday which was really awesome. Chad and I have really been enjoying our time together. We had our first "Open House" and garage sale weekend before last. The open house was ok, we had about 5 "tire kickers" come to tour the house, but have yet to receive a phone call. I keep encouraging Chad that it was a crappy weekend for househunting due to the bad weather. We were able to get out during one of the nice days and spent some time at the lake fishing and sunbathing, my favorite, the latter by the way. Love you all!

Flutters...

2008-05-22T07:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I had to write you all a quick one this morning because I felt the baby move for the first time night before last!!! It was so awesome. I lay in bed every evening with my hands on my tummy thinking about our little one and sure enough I felt that "flutter" that Dr. Lavin and other mommies have been telling me so much about. I wanted to wake my husband and tell him, but I just savored the moment, besides he just would have been bummed since he wouldn't have been able to feel anything. Thanks everyone for reading and posting comments, I love to hear from you. Please leave your name if you post as anonymous...This will be a huge, exhausting weekend but the Lord will give us both strength and stamina to get through! Have a great Memorial Day!

2008-05-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

So, today I am 16 weeks. I can actually see my belly expanding as the weeks go by. I have been told that from this point on, I should start taking pictures as the baby's growth and development really start to pick up speed. I really enjoy logging onto BabyCenter.com every week to see what my little one looks like. This week, he/she is about 4.5 inches long and weighs approximately 3.5 oz. It's about the size of an avocado. I think it's funny how they compare babies to fruit! I am definately showing now and am still struggling with the body image thing, but that's ok, I know it's quite normal for first timers. So, that will be the last time I mention it. Chad is really starting to get excited now to have a little one around. I know that it's different for the guys because their experience is so much different than the womans. I think for him to have heard the heartbeat and see my tummy growing has made it more real for him. It's so cute! We have been really busy working on the house to prepare for selling. We finished this weekend and it looks amazing. I want to stay now! Our open house/garage sale is this Memorial Day weekend and I will let you all know how it went. I will also post some new pictures for you next week with my post. Until then...God Bless.

Beginning The Journey

2008-05-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it has taken me quite some time to get this up and going, but better late than never! I am now just into my second trimester, 15 weeks. The changes taking place are something! My swelling tummy is taking quite a lot to get used to, constantly having to remind myself that I'm not getting fat, just getting pregnant! Chad and I are having fun playing "find the baby" while in bed! What a feeling it will be too when I can feel it move. Just had my appointment with the Perinatal Specialist from Missoula and everything is going great. Mom was able to get some of her own questions answered and I was reassured. We have all agreed that it is best to simply take this one month at a time and see how things progress. It is more about my own ability to stay comfortable than anything. I will be leaving my job the end of this month, so I will have plenty of time to update you all...See you next week!