Nursery, continued....

Look, Bean!
Here are the newest improvements to your nursery.....We moved in the rocker, which was my Grandmommy's sewing chair. I also finished the little piece of bird art. The bucket of blocks is from Aunt Lynda. I had told her I was looking for some wooden ABC blocks, and she found the cutest set!
I don't think the cd's will stay on the little side table, but for now I didn't have anything else to put there. I am sure I will figure out what I'll need to keep handy when you are here and we are actually using the nursery.

Baby waves....

Good Morning Bean!
Well I am feeling a little nauseous this morning and kinda blah, so I have just been hanging out in my recliner messing around on my computer. I was typing away to a friend from grad school when all the sudden my entire stomach started churning and it was like a huge wave passed across it! I guess you were rolling over or turning around or something, but it was pretty crazy!! Looked almost unreal to see that much of me move!! I had seen a video where a lady's tummy was doing that constantly (she was like a week away from her due date), but this is the first time you've moved that much. I hope you do it again when your daddy's home so he can see it, because it's amazing!
Last night you had the hiccups (one of your several bouts each day), and your daddy could feel you bouncing from them through my tummy. After the hiccup party you put on a good show of pushing around your little bootie and kicking for him, so he had lots to feel. When I was sitting in church you were kicking hard up a storm, too. I think it gets uncomfortable for you when I sit really straight, because that is when you will start to kick and shift and press on my ribs. I don't blame you, that's not my favorite position, either! I'd much rather be in my recliner!

35 Weeks!

Hello, my little honeydew!!
You are 35 weeks today!! That means 5 weeks....35 days to go! Your biggest concern these days is fattening up. And of course the practice breathing that gives you crazy hiccups. You also like to push your butt out several times a day under the right side of my ribcage and wiggle your fingers very low on my left side, under my belly.
Still no sleep for your mama. Last night it was after 2:30 am before I could fall asleep. Luckily I could sleep in a bit this morning and get caught up.
I finished the big painting in your room today...It has verses from Ps. 139 on it. I am also working on a little bird picture for behind the rocking chair. Just a little left to do to finish that. Other than that, your nursery is in really good shape! The only other thing I want to do is find a rug for the floor.
Last night I met with my Bible Study gals and they answered every question I could think of about your birth and newborns and the hospital stay. Even my silly, random questions. It was nice to get advice from some mommies I admire so much!!

H-I-C-C-U-P

Okay, so I know I said in my last post that nothing new has been happening, but I was just reminded of your newest trick. You have been getting the hiccups in my tummy at least once a day this past week. The reason I remembered is because you are in there, hiccuping away, as I type! I can always tell it is hiccups and not kicking because it is very light and very rhythmic...much more so than your random kicks. I read online last week that the hiccups are coming from you breathing in amniotic fluid as you take practice breaths to exercise your lungs. It always makes me giggle to imagine you in there, hiccuping away, and it feels kinda funny to me, too! Keep up the practicing, little one, because you will need those lungs soon enough!

Checkin' In

Hi Bean!
Nothing too exciting going on here these past few days. On Sunday I was tired and hot and lazy...so we spent the afternoon in Aunt Meg's pool just chilling out. Today I worked some more on some art for your nursery and also the little bird mobile I am making. I need to get some more felt and dig out my fabric tub from the garage to get much further on that project. Maybe tomorrow! I also did a little mending on a couple dresses--one that was your Granny's (my momma's) and the other one was the dress I came home from the hospital in. Both of them needed a little something repaired, so I worked on that for a few minutes, and now both dresses are hanging in your little closet, ready for you to model them!
My sleeping has been worsening lately. I have been waking up every hour or so....Having a hard time getting comfy and falling back asleep. My mom (your Granny) assures me it's practice for getting up with you in the middle of the night several times. Last night you had your feet against my upper ribs and it was so uncomfortable that it put me in a grumpy mood...Luckily your daddy was very patient with me and put some cocoa butter on my tummy and rubbed my back a bit while I tried to fall asleep and he read his book. And yup...you heard that right...your daddy has taken to reading!! A new phenomenon for him. I am sure he'll be ready to read to you from your giant basket of books as soon as you arrive, Little Bean! Unless you prefer some Grisham, which is his favorite.

I definitely have him beat!

John and I have been having a belly contest for a while now.....
We took our third photo together today....
I am so winning!!

Nursery Update

Here are some pictures of the progress we've made on your nursery, Bean!
I need to take some more pictures of the other two bookshelves soon.
The next things I want to do in there are find a rug (I am thinking dark brown) and finish another painting I am working on and get it hung in the last bit of wall space in the whole room. I have a couple other canvases I want to paint, but I don't know if there'll be room for them or not, so I am waiting for now.

Party, Party, Party!!

We celebrated you some more, today, Little Bean!! Lots of John's family came to town and Aunt Lynda and Laura had the sweetest party to welcome you! Everything was done in your nursery colors and all of the little touches were perfect! The food was amazing...I definitely went back for at least thirds....and I got to bring some home, too, so we'll be snacking all weekend!! It was such a relaxing and fun time, and great to see everyone! John has the greatest family and I'm so glad they're mine (and soon to be yours, too) now, too! You got lots of new goodies and I had fun putting them away in your nursery this afternoon. Thanks for a wonderful time, Laura and Lynda!!

More pictures....click here...

Light!

Finally found some ribbon I liked that had all my colors in it so I could "accessorize" the lamp Aunt Karen gave us. It looks so cute up on the bookshelf. The tiny pink booties were Megan's. :) Baby Bean will wear them home from the hospital if her toesies fit in em!

34 Weeks!

Welcome to week 34, Bean!!
I think you are somewhere over 5 lbs by now, if your last ultrasound was right. You are still small enough to manuever around in my tummy, though!!
You are continuing to put on fat so you can keep yourself warm when you're born. Just remember, you're gonna be born in a Texas September, so there isn't much 'warming' you'll have to do that time of year. :)
Your lungs are maturing more this week. Your eyes open when you are awake and close when you are asleep, and you have learned to blink.
In nursery news, I found some ribbon for the cute lamp your aunt Karen gave you....I am working still on some art for the walls. The shelves still haven't made it up, but I am hoping before the week's over!! I need to go get some mattes for the picture frames I plan to do on the shelves. Maybe this morning..... It's coming along!!!

Here's what we did yesterday...

Hi Bean!!
You've been a little traveler these past few days. When we got home from OKC this past weekend, your daddy had a letter from the State Optometry Board that his license was ready. We'd been waiting for that FOREVER!! So yesterday afternoon your daddy took the afternoon off and we drove to Austin to get that little piece of paper in his hands. We celebrated afterward with some pizza and then drove back home. You were a squirmy little thing, pushing and kicking and turning the whole trip there and back. Your daddy drove with one hand on the wheel and one on my tummy so he could feel all your movement. So now your daddy is official....and he can start all of the other processes such as insurance boards, etc. and hopefully be a REAL workin' boy by August!! Yeaaaaa!

Why our weekend rocked....

Well, Bean, we had the best weekend!!! This was because we got to hang out with our very good college friends AND my family!! It was the perfect storm. ;) I stayed with Amy and Matt stayed with Leo in his awesome new house. This meant that we got in a lot of movie watching, chatting, and eating with friends. We also got to see lots of other college pals...We ate with the Heather, 2 Ryans, and David on multiple occasions and it was terrific to get to catch up with everyone. On Sunday we hung out at the mall, and Amy, Mom and I tried on some bling. Those gals also gave me some moral support in purchasing nursing bras....there are still some parts of motherhood that I don't quite feel grown up enough for....that was one such task. :)

Here we are....I lived with Heather and Amy for two years in college and we were great friends all 4 years. You will get to know them very soon, Bean! They promised a visit soon after you're born, and I'm planning to hold them to that!! Alie was thrilled to get to come along (a 7-hour car ride is a dream come true to that crazy dog...) and she spent the weekend with her new pal Rory at the Askews. It was apparently quite tiring for her, because she has been sleeping since we picked her up yesterday morning. Lots of chasing and playing, I think!!
This is Leo, one of Matt's favorite friends. The two of them spent most of their weekends together last summer when Matt was externing in Tahlequah, and I think they are having withdrawals of eachother. I know they enjoyed staying up all night watching violent movies and laughing at jokes only they think are funny.



The wedding was very nice....Dad and I took pictures.











I got to meet my cousin Miranda's new little one, Kaylen, and practice holding a newborn a bit. So sweet! Made me even more excited for you to come, little Bean! Everyone tried to talk your daddy into holding her, but he wasn't being a good sport. Guess he's saving his baby holding for you!!





All in all, I think it was my favorite weekend of the whole summer, so far!! It was amazingly relaxing, although we were on the go most of the time. OKC was really green and pretty, too, and the weather felt cool to us without the humidity. It is strange to think that the next time we go for a visit, we'll be bringing along someone extra, little Bean!!

Here is your daddy, camouflaging my stomach with the biggest present on the table. That's why I love that boy. :)











Me, mom and Chel

More wedding photos....click here.

33 Weeks!

Hey Bean!
Well, you're my little pineapple this week!! You're a little over 17 inches, and according to averages, a little over 4 lbs, but you were actually well over 4 lbs last week, so I am guessing you are approaching 5 at this point if the ultrasound was correct. You are continuing to practice your breathing, your head is growing and your little bones are hardening. Today when I was looking at ultrasounds of babies at 33 weeks, it was hard for me to believe you've grown so much in so short a time. Seems like just yesterday you were a little tadpole in those pictures!
Today at work I was at the computer and you stuck your foot out against my side. It was the first time I could actually recognize it visually as a body part (I can usually tell by how it feels from the inside) and I reached over and grabbed your little foot!! It was the coolest thing!! I told your daddy about it tonight and he wants to see, too, so can you please give us a repeat performance??!!
Your daddy painted your shelves and some picture frames for your room tonight and I started working on some artwork for your walls. I had to enlist your daddy's help, though. Who woulda thought art involved math???!! Yikes. Anyway, I am not even close to done with the project, but I'm happy to get a start on it!! It seems I never get as much done in the evenings as I'd hoped...guess because I am kinda lazy these days. :)
We are taking a looooong roadtrip to Oklahoma this weekend and I am hoping it is an easy one and my feet don't end up the size of pillows by the time we get there. I am going to have to munch on watermelon the whole trip and see if that helps!! I can't wait to see all our friends and family....it will be awesome to see so many in one weekend!

Crazy Girl!

Hi Bean....
I think you've been watching too much UFC with your daddy, because you are trying out the moves in my tummy. Last night I was reading in bed and I think you flipped from being head down to horizontal, because I felt A LOT of pressure and then you started pushing out on both my left and right sides. Your daddy was laughing because he could feel it so much by laying his head next to my tummy, but I was grimacing because it hurt!! It felt really strange and kinda scared me a bit that you were changing position so extremely. It took you a while to settle down, and as a result I was up pretty late. Today your daddy went running and we had a plan that he would meet me when he was finished and we'd walk together. You got pretty wild then, too, and had your feet (I am guessing) mashing up under my ribs, and it was so hard that I couldn't bend over to tie my own shoes. I had to get your daddy to tie them for me when he got home. I think the walk musta put you to sleep because you've been calm the rest of the night. I'd better be careful what I say, though...you're probably waiting for bedtime to start throwing your arm bars and side kicks. :)

Five Years....

Saturday was our fifth anniversary, Little Bean. Funny, because I always thought we'd be married far longer than five years before we had any kiddos, but guess we'll keep you anyway. :) I had been out of town last week and we're going to OKC this next weekend, so we really didn't make any plans to travel to celebrate like years past. I was a little disappointed, but also knew 3 weekends of traveling would be too much for me. BUT...your sweet daddy surprised me with the perfect getaway. He took me down to the Heights to a Bed and Breakfast. It was in a historic district, and the house was built in the 1800's. It was super cool with high ceilings, antiques throughout, old big trees...our room had a spiral staircase that led to a balcony on the roof (and yes, I did heft myself up there to check out the view...) Also we had a little window that looked out that was so cute.
We got there Saturday afternoon and our bed was so comfy with a big ceiling fan above it that made it so nice and cool, and the best thing in the world to me was a nap. So while I snoozed, Matt enjoyed the cable. I know, I know....we're so exciting, huh! But it was so quiet and peaceful...that was the best nap I think I've ever had.
Saturday night we went and ate at one of our favorite Honduran restaurants downtown, which of course was excellent. Then we went and browsed some shops downtown and stopped by Central Market to get a dessert to share. Today we visited a few more stores and hit Ikea on the way back north to buy some shelves for your nursery, little one!
Your sweet daddy gave me a gift certificate for a massage and a pedicure. Both will come in handy...especially the pedicure, because it's getting rather difficult to reach around and paint my toes these days! It was the perfect weekend and you must know, little Bean, saying yes to that bloody-nosed boy at midnight, in the dark, in Paris five years ago was one of the best decisions I've ever made! I'm glad he's my baby's daddy! :)

More pictures here......

Love in your nursery.....

This is how your little crib was all set up when I got home on Wednesday. Your Mimi and Aunt Lynda had gotten your room all fixed up for you and even arranged to look SO CUTE! You had lots of surprises scattered throughout, and inside the crib were some lovenotes from them and more cute things!! We loved it, didn't we, Bean!!

Here is the crib skirt that your Grandma Candi sewed you....looking oh-so-fine on your white crib!! I loved the fabric when I saw it in the store, but seeing it finished and hanging on the bed, I love it even MORE! It adds great color to the room and fit perfectly! We can't wait for Grandma Candi to see it in person.

Sweet Baby Bean

I subscribe to this feed that sends me a weekly email on "What's Hot" on Etsy, one of my favorite craft retailer websites....One of this week's hot items is jewelery called "Sweet Baby Bean." I agree, it's very sweet. :) So funny that is the item for the week!

Big Bean

Hi Bean!

I talked to the medical genius, AKA Aunt Karen, and she wasn't surprised to hear my doctor predict you to be around 8 lbs at birth. She said she thought you looked good-sized and have a big tummy. So I guess we have to stop calling you Little Bean and upgrade to Big Bean. :) I am sure it was all of the cheetos and pasta I ate in the first few months I was pregnant with you that beefed you up. haha. Anyhow, guess we won't be needing any of the preemie outfits. I'm excited to see your chubby cheeks soon!

(I think you will be the bean on the right, sweet Bean!)

Other news..

In other news, little Bean, we got lots done while I was in Wyoming. We bought a little outfit to bring you home from the hospital in. You will just have to wait and see what it looks like when you are born, but it's not a dress nor pink. :)
Your granny also got a pack and play. We picked the navy-colored one, in case your new little cousin is a boy. We figured navy would work for both of you!! She also got bedding so she'll be ready for visits from you and baby Sparks!
I found a little backpack with an aluminum frame at a thrift store. We'll be ready to take you hiking and camping soon, Little Bean!
You got a few gifts from your Great-Grandma and Great Aunt, too!! I also picked out some yarn so your Great-Grandma Jan can knit you your first baby hat to wear in the hospital. It's a nice, bright turquoise color with little specs of green. Hopefully it will bring out your blue eyes. :)

8 months!!

Well, little Bean, you are 8 months as of yesterday! That's the size of a large jicima....

We went and had an ultrasound done yesterday afternoon, soon after I flew into town. It was much harder to see you this time because you are getting so big and we can only see parts of you at a time. We did see that you have some hair on your head. The tech said you are "DEFINITELY" still a girl....also, they estimate your weight right now at 4.4 lbs. My doctor thinks you will weigh around 8lbs at birth. I was surprised, as I figured I'd have a littler baby since my sister and I were both around 6lbs and your daddy and Meg were in the 7's. We'll see, I guess!! Other than that, everything looked good with the ultrasound. The tech says you have chubby cheeks, and you kept your fists against your forehead most of the time. It will be interesting to see if you sleep like that once you're born.

This is your face--you can actually see your teeth inside your gums. They form in utero, but don't come out until around 6 months (or a year, if you take after me!!). This picture is a little scary, my little alien baby! :)Here is your foot, which was pressed against your forehead at one point. Guess I see how you can fit inside my tummy when you are all pretzled up like that!! You are head down now with your bootie and feet up high. I have been feeling your hard little butt pressed against my upper right side, right under my ribs, and lots of kicking along with that. I can feel your little hands (much softer than your kicking feet!!) in the very low left. You should stay head down until you are born, so I am glad to know you're where you need to be. Here's your little fist. You have been more active lately....kicking, squirming and moving around, especially when I am sitting down. This is your lips and nose, a little hard to see, but the nose is left and above the words on the picture. We saw you take a few "practice" breaths and your rib cage expanded. We also saw your eyeballs moving around under the eyelids.

It's exciting to think that the next time we see your little face you will be in our arms!! 8 more weeks, little Bean!!!

My next dr. appointment is August 4th.

Nursery's coming along!!

You have the cutest crib skirt, little Bean!! Your granny and I made it while I was in Wyoming. It was a lot of work with 2 ruffles and ric-rac, but it turned out great! I put it on your crib as soon as I got home and it fits perfectly and really adds some color to the room!

In other nursery news, your daddy and Uncle Mike painted the room....I LOVE the color and it is exactly what I wanted. Mike and Lynda arranged all of the furniture, put up some adorable curtains, added some lighting, and then your Mimi accessorized with all sorts of goodies that will come in useful when you arrive!! It was a sweet surprise to arrive home to, and I had fun checking everything out last night when I got home.

Your daddy had the crib all painted. It looks great white and I love that you will be using the same bed your daddy slept in when he was your age!

Thanks, everyone, for your hard work on Bean's nursery!! I know she will love her little nest!

Of course I am trying to get you addicted to Taco Johns even in utero...

Hope you enjoyed the Potato Ole's right along with me, Little Bean!!! If you're in this family you have to be a Taco Johns addict. Yummm!!!

Driving the hot rod

Well your Grandpa finished restoring his Valiant convertible, so of course I wanted to take it for a test drive!! I had been riding around in it all week, but I needed to get behind the wheel. It was easier to drive than I expected, and I didn't even run anything over. I love riding in it--especially with how perfect the weather was all week!! Sweet ride, huh Bean!!