Nursery's Complete

We finally got the last piece for the nursery on Monday, our rocking chair!  Mom and Dad purchased this for baby girl's room and were even nice enough to go pick it up for us when it arrived.  I was nervous that the color we chose wouldn't match with the rest of the nursery, but it turned out to be perfect:

We are officially "ready" for baby girl's arrival, which hopefully will be any day now.  I've been feeling good the last few days with no signs of impending labor yet.  My actual estimated due date is this coming Monday, June 25, but I would love to meet her this weekend if she's ready.  At my last doctor's appointment, it was decided that if I have not gone into labor naturally by July 5th, we will induce.  That would be 10 days past my due date so I'm really hoping an induction isn't necessary and she comes on her own before then.

I began working full time from home on Monday this week and it's been wonderful to roll out of bed and work in my pj's all day....much more comfortable!  I'm very thankful to have the flexibility to do this as well as the support from my supervisor and co-workers.

We probably won't post again until she arrives, so stay tuned for pictures of baby girl coming soon!!!

ABC Cross Stitch

I was so excited when Mom mentioned that she had an ABC cross stitched picture from my nursery in case I was interested in using it for baby girl's nursery!  The picture was made by Mom, Grandma Jones, and Mema Pair (my great-grandma), so needless to say it's got tons of sentimental value.  I had it matted and framed and I'm absolutely in love with it:

It has such a cool vintage/modern feel and not to mention the best story to tell baby girl and guests.  Zach and I hung it above the changing table and it looks perfect!

I've reached the 36 week mark and here's a picture of me to document the occasion:

The Home Stretch

Well, I feel like we're finally at the point where the end is in sight...or I guess I should say a new beginning is upon us!  Sorry it's been so long since our last post, things have been crazy the past several weeks.  With only 4 1/2 weeks to go, Zach and I have been busy over the last few months wrapping up all our projects, finishing the nursery, and celebrating with friends at some fabulous baby showers.  We are hoping to get most of the prep work done by the end of May so that we can be ready if she comes early and if not, we can enjoy some rest and relaxation during June. 

I've been feeling well for the most part, just the normal aches and general discomfort that comes with getting bigger (and bigger!) and apparently she's still got a lot of growing to do, so it should make for a fun finish to this journey.  Here I am at 34 weeks and I have definitely done more growing since this picture was taken a week ago:

34 Weeks

Also, as promised, here are some pictures from the nursery, which is just about finished.  We do have a chair on order that will be arriving a week before the baby unless she beats it here and a few more pieces of artwork to hang, but for the most part everything is up and ready to go:

A few very special thank you's to Mary for the beautiful crib and to Becca for the incredible dresser/changing table she found and refinished for us.  My parents also gifted us the chair which is coming soon...we'll post some pics when it arrives. 

As we get closer to Baby Girl's debut, we'll continue to keep you all posted.  Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers over the next few weeks as we get ready for this huge life change!  We're so excited to meet our little girl and can't wait to begin the journey of parenthood.  Love to you all!

A Few More...

30 Weeks

I feel like I've reached a big milestone making it into the 30's with just 10 short weeks until we get to meet our sweet baby girl!  For all of you anxiously awaiting my gestational diabetes test results...I passed with flying colors!!!  I chose to celebrate the good news with two cupcakes and a bunch of Easter candy : ) 

We've been making good progress on the nursery and getting the rest of the house prepped.  I promise to take some pictures of the nursery progress soon.  My good friend Becca and her friend have started a new business venture upcycling old furniture, so Zach and I commissioned a dresser/changing table from them.  I can't wait to see the final product; I know they'll do a fantastic job with it!  Mom and I also made some progress this weekend on the search for a rocker/glider.  I think we've found some great options, so I just need Zach to come try out a few before we make the final decision. 

Zach and I did a maternity photo shoot yesterday afternoon with my friend April and she took some awesome pictures for us!  Here are a few of our favorites:

Happy Easter!

We had a great Easter Sunday!  The weather was perfect all weekend and Sunday morning we went to church at Bread and Wine with Mom, Dad, and John then out to an Easter brunch.  Here are a few pictures we took after church:

Third Trimester...the Countdown Begins

As of last Sunday, I am officially in my third trimester!  Here's a picture to document the occasion:

27 Weeks

Zach and I have big plans to really make some progress on the nursery this weekend, so I'm hoping I'll have the energy to follow through with the extensive to do list I put together for us.  Once the room resembles more of a nursery than a junk room, we'll take some pictures for you all to see.

Baby girl is still super active and loves to roll and tumble all over the place.  We've got a prenatal appointment coming up this week where I get to experience the much anticipated Glucose Tolerance Test and finally try the delicious sugary drink that goes along with it.  I'm so hoping to pass on the first try, because it would be torture for me to do without sweets for the next 12 weeks.  Wish me luck!

Update

I'm two days shy of officially being in my third trimester, which is both exciting and a little nerve wracking.  Here are some highlights from the 1st and 2nd trimesters to bring you up to date:

Although we were both thrilled about the baby, I can't honestly say I really enjoyed much about the first trimester.  I had a pretty rough go of it between week 6 and, oh, about week 19 -- so I suppose I didn't LOVE the beginning of the second trimester either.  I won't get into all the gory details, but let's just say "morning" sickness for me was more of a "24/7" sickness and the headaches, exhaustion, and anxiety were just the cherry on top.  The 1st trimester wasn't all bad though.  It was truly amazing to see our little "gummy bear" baby for the first time at the 8 week ultrasound and hearing her little heartbeat was (and is) about the best sound ever!  We also loved getting to tell family and close friends the good news.

The beginning of the 2nd trimester didn't bring much relief from all the yucky first trimester symptoms, but we were anxiously awaiting our 20 week ultrasound to see how things were progressing and of course to find out whether we had a little boy or girl. Right about 19 weeks, I finally started getting some energy back and I started feeling human again, thankfully.

The 20 week ultrasound was incredible...and of course we found out we are having a baby girl!!! Here's a picture of her looking oh so sweet:

The past few months have been great!  I'm feeling good and we're making a lot of progress on our "Baby To Do's".  Zach and I are busy getting the house and nursery ready; trying to agree on a name; and we started our Childbirth Prep classes this week.  Things seems to be really flying by now!  Baby girl is super active these days.  I love to feel her wiggling around in there.  She doesn't seem to cooperate very often when others try to feel though...I can already tell she's gonna be an independent little one just like her mom.

Here's the most recent picture I have of the two of us (promise we'll take more soon):

23 Weeks

Currently, I'm at 26 1/2 weeks and it's so hard to believe that in less than 14 weeks, we'll get to meet our little girl!  This has and will be an amazing adventure for us and we can't wait to share it with all of you. 

Welcome

Hello everyone!  Zach and I recently decided it might be worthwhile to start a family blog as a way to stay connected and share our family adventures with long distance (and local) family and friends.  We are so excited about the new addition coming in just three short months and would love for all of you to share in our experience...the good, the bad, and the ugly.