Work Baby Shower

This past Friday, several of my sweet co-workers threw me a baby shower at my work.

Other than me being 30 minutes late (stuck in a meeting!!), it turned out great and was so nice! We felt so loved and had a great time. And we racked up on some great baby items.

I finally feel like everything is starting to come together and that we are getting more prepared for baby Baylor to arrive.

These were the super cute invitations that were put up around the hospital.

 Unfortunately, since I was stuck in a meeting that went way over I had to run to the shower and forgot to bring my camera. These are a couple pics my co-worker took from her iphone.

Me with (some) of the spread. How cute is it that they decorated with his name on the wall?! Love that!

 The hostesses and I. From left to right, Laura, Grelier, and Bev.

 So, I totally failed and didn't get any pictures of the other guests or the super cute decorations like the table cloths with candles, diaper cake (so cute), and presents, food, etc.

I did take a picture of all the balloons that are still in my office today....

Again, total fail since my iphone doesn't depict at all how cute these balloons really are.

Overall, it was a great shower and I had a wonderful time and felt really supported and loved. I am blessed to work with such wonderful people!

30

We're in the 30's ya'll! Time is flying!

What a difference 10 weeks makes.  



I guess I'm a little bigger?

Here are the stats

How Far Along: 30 weeks, 4 days

Weight Gain: No clue, didn't weigh in this week. Perhaps I am unconsciously beginning to fear the scale since I keep forgetting to step on it.

Sleep: Still doing pretty good on this

Best Moment this Week: Going out for Chow Down with the girls and talking all about babies and pregnancy. Crazy how our lives change and so does our conversations!

Food Cravings: I'd die for a cold turkey sandwich (I am being extra careful and not eating cold deli meat as it raises your chances of getting Listeria, a harmful bacteria). I did however, eat a veggie sub from Publix today which was on point!

Movement: I am currently watching my belly bounce up and down. LOVE IT.

Milestones: We are in the 30's baby! Countdown really begins!

What I am looking foward to: I have my work baby shower tommorrow. This will be my first baby shower! And I'm heading home to Atlanta this weekend to visit my family.

Workouts: This week I have been a slackety slacker. Seriously, we have been busy and things have been kinda chaotic so this is my first week since the first trimester I haven't worked out a lot. I worked out 2xs this week, last Friday and Saturday. I'm not too worried about it, a girl can give herself a break right?

Also, I am still going to the chiropractor for my back and I think it is helping.

I have had several days now of swollen ankles. Aka cankles. And they are scary looking.

My belly button is still making it's way out. Half is out and the other half is hanging on for it's dear life.

29

Pretty please do not zoom in on my pale, larger looking than normal arms. I swear they don't look that big in real life.

How Far Along: 29 weeks, 5 days
Weight Gain: At the doctor this week they said 20lbs, so I'm going with that...(pretty sure I didn't loose a lb, but I'll take it)
Sleep: God Bless the Snoogle. Still pretty great. Other than the 3-4 trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night
Best Moment this week: Definitely by far having our 4D ultrasound and seeing his precious face! He is so beautiful I can't get over it.
Food Cravings: French fries actually. I've had so much sugar lately I think I'm starting to get sick of it....believe it or not. Although that may be the cinnamon sugar coated pretzel bites I ate a few hours ago speaking...
Movement: lots of rolls, kicks, fingers moving, and hiccups. Little guy seems to get the hiccups a lot, but that's okay because I read somewhere that it helps build their lung strength. Hiccup away, Baylor!
Milestones: Last week of the 20's! Can't believe how close we are!
Workouts: Still 4 per week. I am getting a lot more tired easier though and have to take a few breaks during my walks, but I'm still doing it. Gonna try to keep working out until he comes.

Valentines Day

Hope ya'll had a wonderful Valentine's Day! We sure did.

I love romance and being shown affection from my love, so I am a big Valentines Day fan. I mean, who doesn't want flowers and a nice dinner?!

Matt has always been great with showing his affection and love for me, and this years' Valentines he did not disapoint.

Enjoying a few glasses of wine. Don't worry, non-alcoholic for this girl.

He sure knows the way to my heart. Flowers and Vampire love.

Cards we gave one another. Sappy and sweet.

Along with flowers, I got a Lily Plant. I am really excited to see it bloom! I know it will be beautiful.

The best part: my Valentine cooking dinner for me. He prepared a menu back in January and did such a wonderful job of cooking. I think I may have to quit cooking and let him cook for me all the time. Yeah, I know that's really reaching, huh?

We started with a "Field Greens Salad with Strawberry Vinagarette" and for the main course "chicken Cacciatore with pasta"

And dessert. Oh how wonderful dessert was!! He made (and prepared the whole thing the night before as to make it even better) Chocolate Eclair Cake. I wish I was eating a piece right now.

 Don't worry though, I didn't forget about him!

Along with my sappy card, I got him some candy and this book. I thought it was a sweet book that he can read to Baylor. I think he really liked it!



Our beautiful boy

Happy Valentines Day!

I got to spend the day with my wonderful husband Matt (more on that later), but yesterday we got to see our other Valentine, Baylor.

We had our 4D ultrasound and were able to spend about 20 minutes looking at our beautiful baby boy. It is amazing to me how advanced technology is--that we can see our son, in utero, and what he looks like! And of course, he is the most beautiful thing in the whole world!

As soon as they started the ultrasound and we saw his face I said "Oh my gosh Matt! He looks just like you!". Everyone else that we have shown the pictures to (that knows both of us) agree that he already favors his handsome daddy. No complaints here from me! He was so cute and bunched up the whole time, and his feet were all the way by his head at one point! Crazy how crowded it is in there already, and we still have about 11 weeks to go. He also kept smiling and even stuck his tongue out at one point. This kids' got a great personality already, but hey, I may be biased.

We got a DVD of the whole ultrasound and a ton of pictures, so here are a few of my favorite pictures.

Look at his little hand balled up on the left side of his face, his other arm is curled around his neck.

More of a side view...FYI the black spots on the top of his head are the shadow of the ultrasound wand

Kinda confusing, but here's what's going on in this pic: on the left you see his leg and foot, in the middle the balled up fist again (next to his face), the bottom right his other foot and mid-top right his face. He is very flexible in there!

My fav...look at that sweet nose and lips

Our doctor's appointment went great. Everything looks great, and we are measuring 29/30 weeks, which is right on (I am 29 weeks this week).

Now we just have to be patient and wait 10-11 more weeks until he arrives. The anticipation is hard especially after seeing how beautiful he is! 

28

Look who's in the 3rd Trimester!!! Me! Me!

How far along: 28 weeks, 5 days
Weight Gain: ummmm do I have to talk about this anymore? Cough21cough. Apparently we had a growth spurt this week. And yes, I know you are only supposed to gain like a lb a week from now on out. I blame the Girl Scout Cookies that arrived this week.
Sleep: Still better with the Snoogle. Which my dogs LOVE and I have to constantly kick them off of it. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and lay awake for a bit for no reason, but it's not too bad.
Best Moment this week: I was at lunch yesterday and this older man (think 80's) was eating alone next to me. As I got up he introduced himself and said he was a priest. He asked my name and asked if he could bless my baby. He held my hand and said a prayer for both me and Baylor. HOW AMAZING IS THAT?! My baby was blessed, and by a priest!! I pray every day that he grows up to be strong Christian boy/man, and this just makes me feel like he is so special.
On a completely different note: I went to the Chiropractor yesterday for my back and it helped! Going to keep going and hopefully it will make a big difference!
Food Cravings: Girl Scout Cookies. What! They only come out once a year!
Movement: No matter how much and how long he has been doing it, I just can't get over how much I love being poked, kicked, and feeling little fingers all the time. LOVE LOVE LOVE it!
What I miss: starting to get sick of these maternity clothes. Ready to shop in normal clothes section!
What I am most looking forward to: Our 4D ultrasound and doc appt Monday! Can't wait to see what our baby looks like!!
Milestones: We are in the 3rd Trimester! Wohoo!
Workouts: 4 times this week! Still going strong.

Big week

We have had an exciting (past) week!

Both Matt and I got promotions at work. I was named Program Manager over the Adolescent Unit which means I am helping to run the Adolescent Acute Unit alongside the Unit/Nurse Manager. My new role will include supervising other therapists, mental health workers, nurses (indirectly), and making sure the unit is run effectively. It is a big promotion and I am so thankful for the opportunity.

Matt's promotion was even bigger than mine. He was named the new Business Office Manager at the Birmingham Surgery Center. He is over the whole business office, managing 15 employees! This is a BIG promotion, and I am so proud of him! I am over a unit, he is now over a whole office! I know he will do great!

Other than getting promotions, I have gotten to babysit this cutie.

Mattox!

He has gotten so big I can't get over it! And he is getting to be so much fun since he now coo's and smiles at me. I'm pretty sure I'm his fav. Just ask him. He'll give you a big grin.

We also had a girls night at my friend Jenn's house. Jenn has a 6 month old baby named Carson (all of our friends have boys or are having boys...crazy we know!) and is a big help in giving tips and advice for pregnant people and new mothers. She lent me her Snoogle pillow, and since I have had no back pain while I sleep and have slept soooo much better.

This weekend we were lazy and for the first time since I can remember we didn't do anything for the Superbowl. Since it was the Superbowl I thought I'd throw together a football party-type menu. Thanks to Pinterest for giving me recipes I can work with last minute using ingredients I already had in our pantry.

Here's what I ended up making:

Yes, I realize my food pictures are never really appealing looking, but I promise that this was really, really good. And I had a beer. Cooked as a marinade with my chicken but at least I can say I had a beer!

Here's the recipe for the Cheese and Bacon Potatoes that you need to try.

and

Here's the recipe for the Crock Pot BBQ Beer Chicken you need to try.

Annnd then I passed out at 8:45. At least I waited until the game was over.



27

How far along: 27 weeks, 4 days
Weight Gain: 18.5lbs
Sleep: ugh. horrible. Terrible. My back hurts so bad I have been waking up every night in pain. Nothing works. I've tried a body pillow, pillows in between my legs, a wedge maternity pillow under my belly, pillows behind my back, sitting up with pillows as if in a recliner position, wearing a bella band for back support....seriously, believe me now that I have tried everything!? I am going to borrow a friends Snoogle today and I am praying it helps!!! It's crazy just how quickly these problems begin!
Best moment this week: went to the doctor yesterday and we are measuring right at 28 weeks, so on time/a little bit ahead. I am just so excited to know he is doing great growing strong and healthy in there!
Food Cravings: still sweets
Movement: LOVE feeling and seeing him move. My belly has been bouncing all day today and it's such a neat thing to see and feel at the same time.
What I miss: sleeping, not having back pain
What I am most looking forward to: our 4D ultrasound which is scheduled for Feb 13. My prenatal massage I scheduled for this Friday
Milestones: This is the last week of the 2nd trimester! It was fun, but I'm ready to move on and get closer to meeting this little guy (and yes I realize the back pain/sleep issues will only become worse...)
Workouts: still working out about 4 times per week. I am still doing my prenatal workout video and walking on the Treadmill.