Well folks, today marks the day that I am considered full term. I am officially 37 weeks pregnant. AND I could potentially have 5 more weeks (**groans inwardly**). Right now it is just a waiting game. Every new pain or twinge that I have I wonder "could this be it", and then it goes away and another day comes and goes. I am REALLY trying to be patient and know that she will come when the time is perfect (for her...not necessarily for us). It is hard to imagine though that I could be anymore full of baby! She takes up so much space right now and is so cramped. It makes me wonder how big she will be. She will ocassionally poke a foot out on my right side and I can't help but think how in a few weeks (hopefully less), I will be able to see and touch those feet. Very bizzare indead!
With this new beginning looming on the horizon, I think back over the past two years and I am amazed at all that has happened.
Two years ago this time, I was just getting back from General Assembly with Mindy and Chris. I was not married (about 5 months from it), living in Manhattan, KS with a semester left in my undergraduate at Kansas State University. At the time, I was living with our good friends, Bobby and Lindsey in their home and working at Big Lakes Development Center...getting up at 5:40 am M-F to work (bleh!)
Now two years later, I am sitting at my desk waiting for the arrival of my first child, a little girl. I have been married now for a little over a year and a half and Ben and I live in our house in Shawnee, KS. I am JUST completing my first year of graduate school at MidAmerica Nazarene University. I currently work for the Johnson County Government as well as TLC as a student therapist...and I am still getting up at 5:40 am M-F to get ready for work!
Can you believe how much has changed? Not just for us either. Mindy and Chris (who I went to GA with the summer of '05) are preparing to leave in a matter of days for a brand new adventure in Germany! They have a handsome little boy, Luke, who is 13 months old and another on the way!!! Bobby and Lindsey have moved into a new home and Lindsey is halfway through vet school...on her way to being Dr. Lindsey! It is just amazing where a couple of years can take you.
Sorry for the little trip down memory lane, I am just a firm believer that you can't know where you are going unless you know where you came from. I know that so many of my friends are scattered across the country (and now across the world!), but being able to stay connected, even if just through blogspot, is such a blessing!
Well that is about all I have time for today. I see the doctor in a couple of hours and hopefully I will have made progress this past week. If you think about it...pray that this little girl shows up sooner rather than later :)
Amber
7.23.2007
Doctor Update
Well, this past Friday marked the beginning of my weekly appointments. While I am sure that I will get tired of waiting in the office once a week, I am really excited as this means that the end is in sight AND that I will be able to get weekly updates on my progress. Friday was the first time that the doctor checked me.
Just a little warning...this may be too much information for some. You are now warned.
As of Friday, July 20th I am dilated 1 cm! I am fully aware that this process can be a long one, however I was very excited to hear that I had made a little progress. The doctor wasn't able to tell if it was the head or the bum she was feeling, so she sent me over for an ultrasound. I was very excited to have this done, considering I haven't *seen* my baby in 16 weeks! After waiting in THAT waiting room for an hour, the tech was immediately able to tell that our baby was in fact in the head down position. I also asked the tech to confirm (if possible) that it was in fact a girl. Yes, it was a little too late for all the pink we have, but I figured it didn't hurt to ask. Sure enough...she is WITHOUT A DOUBT girl! I also got a great ultrasound picture of her foot. She kicked me in the side just as the tech was taking pictures and got a picture of her foot. From the looks of it, she may have feet like her daddy's :)
Over all it was a very good doctor's appointment, and I can't wait to go back this Friday and find out where things stand! Only downside...now I get to be weighed EVERY week :(
Friday night was also my baby shower. I could not believe my eyes when my friend Jacqui walked in the door. Jacqui and I used to live across the street from each other. When we were about 2, my parents moved to Fort Worth, TX and moved into the house across the street from Mike and Tyrena. They had 3 children...and Jacqui (their youngest) and I became best friends. We moved when I was about 4, but we were able to stay close because our moms were best friends! My mom and Tyrena, despite the distance, have stayed close for the past 24 years! Jacqui and I have also been close, however with our schedules (she and her husband live in Shreveport, LA where he is a pastor) we haven't seen each other in 4 years! Well, Friday night I was sitting in the living room chatting with the ladies that had come to my shower and suddenly in walks Jacqui and Tyrena! To say the least...I was shocked! It was such a nice surprise and even though I only had a short amount of time with them, I couldn't have thought of a better gift. We spent the day on Saturday doing "girl" things and it was incredibly sad on Sunday to say goodbye. We just can't let 4 years go by this time.
The shower was wonderful too. Jacqui, Tyrena and my mom did a great job with everything and I had a blast. We got so many great things and I can say with absolute certainty that we are just about ready for our little ones arrival! I am just so grateful to everyone that came and really appreciate all the wonderful gifts. It was also so nice to see how many people, friends and family, really are there for our child and how many are anxiously awaiting her arrival, too! I can't wait for the day when we can call and tell them she is here.
Just a little warning...this may be too much information for some. You are now warned.
As of Friday, July 20th I am dilated 1 cm! I am fully aware that this process can be a long one, however I was very excited to hear that I had made a little progress. The doctor wasn't able to tell if it was the head or the bum she was feeling, so she sent me over for an ultrasound. I was very excited to have this done, considering I haven't *seen* my baby in 16 weeks! After waiting in THAT waiting room for an hour, the tech was immediately able to tell that our baby was in fact in the head down position. I also asked the tech to confirm (if possible) that it was in fact a girl. Yes, it was a little too late for all the pink we have, but I figured it didn't hurt to ask. Sure enough...she is WITHOUT A DOUBT girl! I also got a great ultrasound picture of her foot. She kicked me in the side just as the tech was taking pictures and got a picture of her foot. From the looks of it, she may have feet like her daddy's :)
Over all it was a very good doctor's appointment, and I can't wait to go back this Friday and find out where things stand! Only downside...now I get to be weighed EVERY week :(
Friday night was also my baby shower. I could not believe my eyes when my friend Jacqui walked in the door. Jacqui and I used to live across the street from each other. When we were about 2, my parents moved to Fort Worth, TX and moved into the house across the street from Mike and Tyrena. They had 3 children...and Jacqui (their youngest) and I became best friends. We moved when I was about 4, but we were able to stay close because our moms were best friends! My mom and Tyrena, despite the distance, have stayed close for the past 24 years! Jacqui and I have also been close, however with our schedules (she and her husband live in Shreveport, LA where he is a pastor) we haven't seen each other in 4 years! Well, Friday night I was sitting in the living room chatting with the ladies that had come to my shower and suddenly in walks Jacqui and Tyrena! To say the least...I was shocked! It was such a nice surprise and even though I only had a short amount of time with them, I couldn't have thought of a better gift. We spent the day on Saturday doing "girl" things and it was incredibly sad on Sunday to say goodbye. We just can't let 4 years go by this time.
The shower was wonderful too. Jacqui, Tyrena and my mom did a great job with everything and I had a blast. We got so many great things and I can say with absolute certainty that we are just about ready for our little ones arrival! I am just so grateful to everyone that came and really appreciate all the wonderful gifts. It was also so nice to see how many people, friends and family, really are there for our child and how many are anxiously awaiting her arrival, too! I can't wait for the day when we can call and tell them she is here.
7.11.2007
Are We REALLY Prepared???
So this past weekend we had our meeting with the Maternity Care Coordinator at our hospital on Saturday and then on Sunday we went to our Childbirth Prep Class. This is what the hospital calls the "Marathon Sundays", because we went ALL day from 9 - 4:30 pm. The time frame wasn't too bad and for the most part it moved quickly. The funniest part was watching all the 34-37 week pregnant ladies leaving the room at random times to go to the bathroom. It was also funny when we went on break and we all lined up for a stall. There were 13 couples and only 2 stalls in the little bathroom...you do the math.
For the most part we learned a lot. However, I am sure that when the time comes, most of that information will go right out the window. We learned all about the various stages of labor, the "physiology" of labor, and of course watched the exciting videos of a natural birth, the laboring process, and a C-Section. Most of the parents in the room were "first timers" like us...so occasionally you could hear the ripple of giggles go through the room...mostly just nervous laughter. It was pretty hilarious looking over at Ben during the video of the natural birth and seeing his eyes the size of saucers. I don't imagine he had ever seen anything like that...but I am glad that he at least is going into the situation with SOME idea of how things will go.
There were several times when the instructor was giving us "worse case scenario" situations (i.e. breaking your tailbone during the birth, C-Section, NICU, etc), and Ben would look over at me and say "don't do that". I just had to laugh at him...since we all know how much control I have over THOSE things. We also went on a tour of the labor and delivery section of our hospital. The first thing that Ben noticed...the waiting room is VERY small and VERY uncomfortable. We are going to make sure our families know that before we encourage them to come wait for 18 hours while I labor. ;) Our hospital is in the middle of doing a lot of renovating and rebuilding and the L&D has had a few changes. Almost all of the labor and delivery rooms have been updated and are REALLY nice. Five of the rooms have whirlpool tubs that you can labor in. Most women that use these are going the natural birth route, and I don't think I will be comfortable in a tub. When I told Ben this he said "well what if I wanted to use the tub". Yeah...ever the jokester :)
The post-delivery rooms are not nearly as nice, as they have not been remodeled yet, however, ALL of their rooms are private, so we won't be sharing a room. I was very excited to hear that. In general, I am very happy with our choice of hospital, and I look forward to when we are there to have our baby!
Well I am now almost to 35 weeks. We have friends that were due 4 weeks before us and just had their baby on Monday! That just made it even more real to me that we could go at anytime. I am now past the point of feeling under-prepared and I am moving on to "I am ready to get this baby out of me" :) I will miss feeling her move all day long and knowing she is with me everywhere, but I can't wait to begin to get to know her and see her develop, physically and in personality.
Sorry no pictures today, as I am updating at work (they don't allow you to hook anything up by USB). More to come later.
For the most part we learned a lot. However, I am sure that when the time comes, most of that information will go right out the window. We learned all about the various stages of labor, the "physiology" of labor, and of course watched the exciting videos of a natural birth, the laboring process, and a C-Section. Most of the parents in the room were "first timers" like us...so occasionally you could hear the ripple of giggles go through the room...mostly just nervous laughter. It was pretty hilarious looking over at Ben during the video of the natural birth and seeing his eyes the size of saucers. I don't imagine he had ever seen anything like that...but I am glad that he at least is going into the situation with SOME idea of how things will go.
There were several times when the instructor was giving us "worse case scenario" situations (i.e. breaking your tailbone during the birth, C-Section, NICU, etc), and Ben would look over at me and say "don't do that". I just had to laugh at him...since we all know how much control I have over THOSE things. We also went on a tour of the labor and delivery section of our hospital. The first thing that Ben noticed...the waiting room is VERY small and VERY uncomfortable. We are going to make sure our families know that before we encourage them to come wait for 18 hours while I labor. ;) Our hospital is in the middle of doing a lot of renovating and rebuilding and the L&D has had a few changes. Almost all of the labor and delivery rooms have been updated and are REALLY nice. Five of the rooms have whirlpool tubs that you can labor in. Most women that use these are going the natural birth route, and I don't think I will be comfortable in a tub. When I told Ben this he said "well what if I wanted to use the tub". Yeah...ever the jokester :)
The post-delivery rooms are not nearly as nice, as they have not been remodeled yet, however, ALL of their rooms are private, so we won't be sharing a room. I was very excited to hear that. In general, I am very happy with our choice of hospital, and I look forward to when we are there to have our baby!
Well I am now almost to 35 weeks. We have friends that were due 4 weeks before us and just had their baby on Monday! That just made it even more real to me that we could go at anytime. I am now past the point of feeling under-prepared and I am moving on to "I am ready to get this baby out of me" :) I will miss feeling her move all day long and knowing she is with me everywhere, but I can't wait to begin to get to know her and see her develop, physically and in personality.
Sorry no pictures today, as I am updating at work (they don't allow you to hook anything up by USB). More to come later.
7.07.2007
Belly, Nursery and the New "Do"
As promised, here are a few updated pictures. I am very proud of myself for getting it up so soon! Enjoy.
Here I am on July 4th. In honor of the holiday, I wore my red top, however it is probably the last time I will be able to wear it considering all day I was pulling it down in the front. It is incredible how much my belly has grown in the past couple of weeks! So there I am...Big and...well just big :)
Some of you may notice the new "do". On July 3rd I called the salon and they said they could get me in that day. I went in and had them cut about 9-10 inches off. The stylist kept saying she was afraid of making me cry. I just knew I was VERY ready to have it off. I LOVE my new cut and it is so easy!
Here is another, closer, shot of my new hair. Excuse the mess behind me.
On to the nursery. We are essentially done!!! All we have left is the bumper for the crib (my mom is SOOOO close to being done with that) and the rocker/glider. Otherwise, the nursery is done!
Here is the shot from the door of the nursery.
Close up of the crib. My mom just finished the quilt a week ago. I can't believe how it looks JUST like what I had planned!
Our boppy and the inside of the crib...
The port-a-crib that friends in Manhattan got us. Thanks guys! It is beautiful and we can't wait to use it! (also pictured...the beautiful quilt that Lindsey made us!)
A shot of the dresser and our wall hangings. My mom and I found these at Hobby Lobby, but they were pink and neon green! You can do wonders with a can of spray paint! All pictured is the hamper I got for the room yesterday. Yes, I am going all out on the pink :)
Another shot of the wall hangings.
She is already taking after her mama :) Look at all those clothes!
Here is her "coming home outfit" It is very simple, but embroidered across the front says "baby" and we thought it would be perfect and comfy for her first car trip :)
This was taken from the corner by the closet. Changing table and the new shadow boxes I just got. This is also the corner that the glider/rocker will go in eventually (the port-a-crib will most likely be in the living room/our room).
Here is a close-up of the shadow boxes. On the top of the shadow box on the right hand size are little tiny new born cowboy boots! They are tan and pink. Soooo cute! Pretty soon there will be a little girl to wear them.
Well that is all I have for now. I am so proud of myself for catching you up so soon. I will post again soon.
Have a great weekend!
Here I am on July 4th. In honor of the holiday, I wore my red top, however it is probably the last time I will be able to wear it considering all day I was pulling it down in the front. It is incredible how much my belly has grown in the past couple of weeks! So there I am...Big and...well just big :)
Some of you may notice the new "do". On July 3rd I called the salon and they said they could get me in that day. I went in and had them cut about 9-10 inches off. The stylist kept saying she was afraid of making me cry. I just knew I was VERY ready to have it off. I LOVE my new cut and it is so easy!
Here is another, closer, shot of my new hair. Excuse the mess behind me.On to the nursery. We are essentially done!!! All we have left is the bumper for the crib (my mom is SOOOO close to being done with that) and the rocker/glider. Otherwise, the nursery is done!
Here is the shot from the door of the nursery.
Close up of the crib. My mom just finished the quilt a week ago. I can't believe how it looks JUST like what I had planned!
Our boppy and the inside of the crib...
The port-a-crib that friends in Manhattan got us. Thanks guys! It is beautiful and we can't wait to use it! (also pictured...the beautiful quilt that Lindsey made us!)
A shot of the dresser and our wall hangings. My mom and I found these at Hobby Lobby, but they were pink and neon green! You can do wonders with a can of spray paint! All pictured is the hamper I got for the room yesterday. Yes, I am going all out on the pink :)
Another shot of the wall hangings.
She is already taking after her mama :) Look at all those clothes!
Here is her "coming home outfit" It is very simple, but embroidered across the front says "baby" and we thought it would be perfect and comfy for her first car trip :)
This was taken from the corner by the closet. Changing table and the new shadow boxes I just got. This is also the corner that the glider/rocker will go in eventually (the port-a-crib will most likely be in the living room/our room).
Here is a close-up of the shadow boxes. On the top of the shadow box on the right hand size are little tiny new born cowboy boots! They are tan and pink. Soooo cute! Pretty soon there will be a little girl to wear them.Well that is all I have for now. I am so proud of myself for catching you up so soon. I will post again soon.
Have a great weekend!
7.04.2007
Pictures....As Promised
Ok I won't type much since I have a lot to accomplish during my day off....BUT I wanted to post pictures for ya'll. I have a camera cord. Yay! So here they are with brief captions. Keep in mind, some of these pictures are from FOREVER ago...sobear with me as I catch up. I promise more updates to come...
Here is a cute one of my true love. I think he was a little embarrassed that I took this in a store, but he was a good sport. Is it any wonder why I love him so much???
Here is my baby girl, Olivia experiencing her first snow. It was deep enough that in certain parts it was up over her torso! She didn't know what to think of it at first and then she LOVED it. It was so funny watching her put her face in it and come up looking like she had a beard. This of course was taken at our apartment before we moved into our new house (Oh...7 months ago...YIKES!)
Here is Ben in our new home...sans our furniture. We moved in a week early because we had made an addition to our family. MOOSE! He is the little guy there on the right. We didn't think we could handle even a week in our apartment with TWO puppies....SO we moved a few essentials over and stayed at our new house with a backyard. It was a long week, but it worked out.
Here is a cute one of my true love. I think he was a little embarrassed that I took this in a store, but he was a good sport. Is it any wonder why I love him so much???
Here is my baby girl, Olivia experiencing her first snow. It was deep enough that in certain parts it was up over her torso! She didn't know what to think of it at first and then she LOVED it. It was so funny watching her put her face in it and come up looking like she had a beard. This of course was taken at our apartment before we moved into our new house (Oh...7 months ago...YIKES!)
Here is Ben in our new home...sans our furniture. We moved in a week early because we had made an addition to our family. MOOSE! He is the little guy there on the right. We didn't think we could handle even a week in our apartment with TWO puppies....SO we moved a few essentials over and stayed at our new house with a backyard. It was a long week, but it worked out.
Here are our two little pups playing with eachother. They had so much fun without any furniture in the house. They had this HUGE play area and all you head on the wood floors was the "clack, clack, clack" of their claws.
Here I am with the two pups, unknowingly pregnant. Ah...how I wish I still had that figure :) Pardon the exhausted expression. That whole couple of months of closing on the house and then moving really took it out of me. And of course being 6 weeks pregnant didn't help either
Here is a comparison of our baby Moose. He was little and cuddly :) Now he is a big boy that still THINKS he is little and cuddly.
Ok...so our little pup isn't so little anymore. Here is Moose at about 6 months old. He is so pretty and this picture really doesn't do him much justice, but I love how he lounges on the back deck in the sun!
21 weeks
This one was taking in April on Easter Sunday morning. So that would have made me about 5 months along. Whew, I thought I was huge then but I hadn't seen anything yet. I WILL post a current picture in the next couple days so you can see me at almost 8 months along.
Here is Ben beginning the trim work in the nursery.
Second coat, please. I DID help...I promise :)
Painting...Check. Crib put together...check
Once we got the mattress in I HAD to put a sheet on it. The nursery is now almost done, so I will post more updated pictures when I put up my new belly pictures. Man, I have so much to catch up on!
Here is another shot of the nursery. I had the letters on the wall at this point and the curtains up. Once again...we have done more, so there will be more to come.
I hope you enjoyed the little picture update. I promise to do better now and not let it go so long between pics!
Have a happy Fourth of July!
Here I am with the two pups, unknowingly pregnant. Ah...how I wish I still had that figure :) Pardon the exhausted expression. That whole couple of months of closing on the house and then moving really took it out of me. And of course being 6 weeks pregnant didn't help either
Here is a comparison of our baby Moose. He was little and cuddly :) Now he is a big boy that still THINKS he is little and cuddly.
Ok...so our little pup isn't so little anymore. Here is Moose at about 6 months old. He is so pretty and this picture really doesn't do him much justice, but I love how he lounges on the back deck in the sun!
Ok, so I have been really bad about taking pregnancy pictures. I just don't think about it at the right time. Here are my few pictures I do have.
13 weeks
Ok...this one may be more than some folks want to see. But I was just finishing my first trimester in this picture. It amazed me how you can see the belly already but when I had my shirt down you could barely tell. Of course everyone said they couldn't see anything but I already felt huge!!! I soon found out "huge" is a relative term.
13 weeks
~about~ 16 weeks
This one was taking in February. I don't know how many weeks I was. Like I said I am bad at pictures. I would have been right around 3.5 months along.
21 weeks
Here is Ben beginning the trim work in the nursery.
Second coat, please. I DID help...I promise :)
Painting...Check. Crib put together...check
Once we got the mattress in I HAD to put a sheet on it. The nursery is now almost done, so I will post more updated pictures when I put up my new belly pictures. Man, I have so much to catch up on!
Here is another shot of the nursery. I had the letters on the wall at this point and the curtains up. Once again...we have done more, so there will be more to come.I hope you enjoyed the little picture update. I promise to do better now and not let it go so long between pics!
Have a happy Fourth of July!
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