So the only time I post is when I'm traveling out of town for business!  And then...I'm on an Air Card, so uploading pictures is out of the question.  When I have a chance to jump on while in town, I spend so much time catching up on everyone else's posts that I run out of time for my own posts! Eh...

Morgan is 4 months!  I can't believe it!  In case I come back to read this in the future, here's where we are in life:

-Morgan does not like to eat in the mornings AT ALL!  I am lucky if I can get her to drink more than 3 oz between the time she wakes up and noon.

-Morgan has gotten into a bad habit of drinking bottles at night and not during the day...this has led to 2-3 wake up calls every night from Morgan.  We are trying to break this habit by letting her cry it out....and that is harder than I thought it would be...  I'm told it's normally 3 rough nights...and then it gets better...

-Morgan has recently discovered that her hands can go together.  I've caught her clasping her hands together and staring at them.  She's fascinated that they can touch each other!

-Morgan is a HUGE hand-sucker.  Forget the thumb....fit in whole hand.  Very impressive. 

-Morgan is a laughing machine.  She loves her jumperoo and she loves when we "dance" together

-We tried rice cereal for the first time this week...and she is definitely not ready for it (nor do I think she likes the taste)

-When on her belly, Morgan will push her self almost all the way up - I think crawling is in the near future.  She's already a rolling machine (back to tummy) since 2 months....I think she's a little ahead of her time developmentally...

-Anytime we go to a store, we use the Baby Bjorn....not because I believe in baby wearing per se, but because Morgan hates her car seat in the store (she likes to look around), so she loves the Baby Bjorn...and a pleasant baby in public is worth wearing her.  Plus...I hate her car seat.  It's uber ugly...I wish it was a little more girly with more personality.  I've looked up car seat covers online but they are crazy expensive and not worth the cost (in my opinion).  We're getting a jogging stroller from a coworker...and I think as soon as she's ready for that, we'll switch to the convertible car seat since we never take the infant car seat out of the car when we run into the stores...  But until she sits in a shopping cart...we plan to wear the Baby Bjorn...and I think she and I look pretty cute together with it on....it's how we plan to travel in the airport - having two hands free vs. lugging a car seat sounds like a great plan to me!

-I have been traveling a little more for work recently...and if I want to secure a full-time/permanent job, I may be traveling a WHOLE lot more...and that makes me nervous.  Chris can handle Morgan when I'm not there (though I don't think he'll enjoy doing it that much more often)...but I know it will be stressful for the both of us...  Since, I'll probably have to travel when Chris is in town, and he'll haved to travel when I'm out of town...

-I think we really like the idea of returning to Nebraska to be closer to family (especially since Morgan arrived), but since we purchased a home BEFORE the economy took a nose dive, we won't be able to sell our home without taking a 50K+ loss....and that won't happen.  We'll see if the Christmas trip cures the Nebraska bug or makes it stronger...

-Chris and I will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary this week.  10 years.  A decade.  And that's not 10 years with some off and on....but 10 years of exculsive dating/marriage.  That blows my mind.  10 years ago, we went to our youth group's Christmas dinner together....who would have thought that'd be the start to the rest of our lives?

I think that's all for now.  The battery is dying...and the bed is calling my name!

And another 5 weeks later...

Last post was September 15, 2009?  REALLY?  Holy guacomole....  I do have an excuse though...  I think it's the MAN trying to keep me down.  Yep...the MAN.  If you're not familiar with the MAN - take a few psychology courses, and I think you can blame EVERYTHING on the MAN.  So...here's how the MAN is keeping me down on my blogging.  Below is the agenda to a typical weekday while Chris is in town:

3:30A - Morgan wakes up for a nightly bottle (and a diaper change)
3:50A - I drowsily walk back to the master bedroom after placing Morgan back in her crib
4:45A - Chris's alarm goes off and my first attempt to wake Chris up.
4:52A - The snooze alarm goes off and my second attempt to wake Chris up.
4:59A - My FINAL attempt to wake Chris up (and I get pretty mean with this one).  Chris takes a shower.
5:20A - My alarm goes off and I join Chris in the bathroom and hop in the shower while he finishes getting dressed and shaves.
6:15A - I wake up Morgan to get her ready for the day and to give a final bottle before she goes to daycare.
6:45A - Leave the house to drop Morgan off at daycare
7:30A - Arrive at work
4:15P - Leave work
4:45P - Arrive at daycare to pick up Morgan and get the recap of her day (normally always good)
5:00P - Get home and let the dog out/feed dog
5:15P - Give Morgan another bottle
5:45P - Start Dinner
6:15P - Chris comes home/Eat Dinner/Clean up after dinner
8:15P - Bathtime for Morgan
8:45P - Final bottle for Morgan
9:15P - Morgan in bed and Chris and I getting ready for bed
9:30P - Lights out!  Whew!

And those are the days when Chris is IN town!  The weeks when he's traveling for work are even more hectic because then I have to do all of the cleaning up on my own, trash, recycling, etc, etc, etc.  So really, my only free time to blog would be during lunch at work - but this website is BLOCKED at work.  Seriously...the MAN is trying to keep me down.

Anyhow.  I'm not complaining - just simply giving you an insight to my day.  I love my life, my husband, and my baby.  I wouldn't trade a second of it for anything...though being around family might help sometimes to have a few hours for a date night a little more often...but we have some good friends who are helping us with that!

Morgan is almost 3 months old and that blows my mind!  Here are the status from her two week check-up:
Weight: 11 lbs 5 oz (50th percentile)
Height: ???? (34th percentile)
Head Circumference: ???? (34th percentile)
She's getting to the end of her 0-3 month clothing...and I'm really sad because she has the cutest outfits...and she doesn't even wear them...she normally wears her sleepers all day long at daycare.  During the weekends if we're going somewhere, we'll put her in an outfit...but honestly...she just chills in her sleepers.  I'm such a bad mom sometimes...note to self: take time to dress daughter in some of those really cute outfits hanging up in the closet!  I will do this and take pictures!  :o)

I'm amazed at how much Morgan has grown and progressed!  She holds her head steady on her own and rarely has a head bobble.  She started rolling over from her back to her stomach at 2 months 1 week.  We always place her on her back to sleep, but everytime we go in there to wake her up or give her a bottle, she's on her tummy.  And that girl can move.  She is all over the crib.  Sometimes, Chris and I will take bets at what direction she'll be laying in the crib and then turn on the video monitor to check!  Silliness.  Morgan is a talker.  Every evening, she'll sit on my knee and face me and we'll "chat" for about 10 minutes...and she just goes on and on!  We haven't heard her laugh yet, but she's getting very, very close.  She has started to reach for toys hanging from her playmat or her bouncy chair.   She drinks about 5 oz at every serving and normally downs 7 oz for her last bottle of the day.  I'm really hoping we get to the point where she sleeps a little longer at night...but I can't complain about getting up once a night..  She's just amazing, and I can't wait to see how she grows.  I'm so excited about taking her to Nebraska...she's going to be quite a different girl than the one everyone met in early September...she'll be almost 5 months when we visit Nebraska...

Time to start working again (I'm using an aircard during lunch to get around the block at work)...  I would post some pics...but the aircard makes that a VERY slow process.  Check them out on facebook!

Top Ten Tuesday

Morgan is 6 weeks old!  That is SO crazy!  I return to work next week, and Morgan will be at the home daycare full-time starting Monday.  *sigh*  Part ot me is sad because I know I will miss a lot of "firsts" because I have to work, but the other part of me is excited to return to work (and then that makes me feel guilty...as in..shouldn't I WANT to stay home with Morgan full-time and be heart broken to have her at daycare?).  Even when I dropped Morgan off at the home daycare for a "trial run" last Thursday for a few hours...I wasn't heart broken at all...worried, yes...but heart broken, no.  Morgan seemed very content when I returned to pick her up, and her daycare provider was overjoyed with the new baby in the house (Morgan is the only infant).  I'll be leaving Morgan for a few hours again with her daycare to have a few hours to myself on Thurday: a massage and haircut...  Yay!  Maybe things would be different if I had family around to help, so I could have those moments...but I think that's what the home daycare is for me...it's that sense of relief and freedom that most of my friends have the luxury of enjoying anytime grandma or grandpa is able to watch their little ones for an afternoon or a date night.  Luckily, I do have several friends who have volunteered to babysit anytime we need a break...and I would probably take them up on their offer a little more readily if Morgan wasn't such a high maintenance baby... 

Anywho....onto my Top Ten List.  Below are the Top Ten Things I have Learned in the Last Six Weeks (this list is obviously not all inclusive....it's why it's a Top Ten list!):

1.  I can take a full, complete shower (minus shaving the legs) in two minutes.
2.  My daughter is excellent in the car for me...until the car stops moving...and notice I said for me...when Chris is driving...she normally screams for about 80% of the trip.
3.  I truly have a "high maintenance" baby.  Praise the Lord she's not colicky though....at least she is soothable...either by holding her and bouncing, rocking, walking, or swaying.  And a swing or bouncy chair does not cut it.  She knows it's not a person holding her...and she will not have it.  From what I read...she's supposed to grow out of this by about 3 to 4 months....and I am counting down.
4.  Chris gives in to crying faster than I do...he has such a soft heart for her!
5.  6 weeks can feel incredibly long and at the same time seem to have flown by...
6.  I have become someone who gets excited when her baby "makes mommy a poopie!"  I never thought that would happen!
7.  You don't realize how simple life was before baby...my biggest lesson...I can't just hop in the car and run to the store now...it's normally a 40 minute process in prep to do that including feeding, changing, loading into a car seat...etc.
8.  Every morning is a new start and I always get an incredible renewal of patience to handle the challenges of the day.
9.  I really, really, really miss living near ANY family....
10.  Nothing warms my heart more than seeing Morgan smile...

AH...the first 4 weeks!

I have a blog? LOL! It's been so busy here for the last 4 weeks...I'm surprised the house is still standing! We are all adjusting, but I think we're all doing pretty well. Poor Honey is still pretty down and out wondering who is this little being that's taking all of our attention. She's warming up to Morgan...she gave her kisses today..and that's pretty huge. I'm being kind of hard on the dog...she's alway the first one to run into the nursery at night when Morgan wakes up crying...

Crying, crying, crying... it seems to be a constant noise here at the Taylor household. We're starting to get it under control. As the pediatrician said, we have a high maintenance baby with some good vocal chords. Chris says she's going to be a singer just like her mommy! By high maintenance, I mean that when she's awake, she's normally only happy when she's being worn in the baby carrier and mommy (or daddy) are bouncing on the large exercise ball. Without these two tools, she's normally crying! The nights are normally not too bad. She's sleeping 2.5-3 hours between feedings...and for the most part goes back to sleep after each feeding! For the most part... Caffeine has been my very best friend since I've stopped nursing. I didn't WANT to stop nursing...but even after working with the lactation consultants, my milk never came in. The pediatrician classified Morgan as "failing to thrive" and we had to supplement every feeding with formula. At that point, formula became the easier and lower stress option for us. I'm glad we eventually made that decision...because even after we stopped nursing....no milk ever came. No engorgement, no leaking, nada. Poor Morgan would have been a hungry little girl waiting for mom's milk.

Morgan's had a rough first four weeks. The first being the failing to thrive...can you imagine being hungry like that??? Poor baby! She had a pretty nasty diaper rash right around 2 weeks old. And then the poor girl was constipated this weekend. Luckily, we've gotten all three things under control so far. :o) Chris is traveling out of town next week for work and my mom flew back to Nebraska Saturday morning...so it's just me and Morgan (plus the dog and cat) Monday - Thursday. Pray for us! :o) John and Melissa fly in on Friday for the long Labor Day weekend. I don't think they've spent much time around babies...so this will be interesting! :o) I'm looking forward to them being here though!

Other than that...here's some pics!

Welcome Morgan!

Although my last post made well-knowing mothers nod their heads that labor was right around the corner, I'm still shocked as all get out that Morgan arrived 9 days early! I truly thought she was going to be a late baby! We had a special function at work with a Michael Jackson theme on Friday afternoon, and I had to show off my "Thriller" moves... Maybe that kick-started the labor! Ha! Anyhow, while Morgan and Daddy are sleeping, here's our labor story:

After my last post on Sunday morning, the contractions stopped around 10 AM. Thinking that they were just Braxton-Hicks, we went on with our normal day. We didn't go to church that morning because of the contractions (I was not in the mood to put on a dress and do my hair, etc); however, we did go to one of our favorite pizza places for lunch and enjoyed a scrumptious meal! We ran to the dollar theater to check out Transformers 2 (I didn't like it....liked the 1st...but not the sequel), and skipped dinner (we were still so stuffed from the pizza). Around 9:30 PM, we went to bed, setting our alarms for work the next day. My contractions started at 10:20 PM. Again, I thought they were just Braxton-Hicks, but they were now coming every 5 minutes. I got out of bed (I felt bad because I thought I was keeping Chris awake, and I thought, "This can't be the real thing!"). We went for a walk around 11:00 PM because it was driving me crazy to sit at home and feel these pains every 10 minutes! Finally around midnight, I told Chris I was tired of these every 5 minutes, I can't sleep...I think we should head to the hospital to see what they say!

We get to the hospital and enter through the ER. Thankfully, I had preregistered online, so we only had to answer a few questions. The L&D nurse came with a wheel chair, and we were taken to the Triage room. From there, we found out I was about 4 cm, and the contractions (about 4-5 minutes apart) were not as strong or as close together as they would have liked, so they sent me home. I was so confused on the drive home, because we were told during our birthing classes that it was time to go to the hospital if the contractions were 5 minutes apart, one minute in length for one hour. Mine had been 4-5 minutes apart for over 2 hours at that point...but they were only about 30-45 seconds. We got home around 2:30 AM and Chris hops in bed and falls asleep. My contractions just kept coming....and coming...and coming.... still about 4-5 minutes apart. I took a hot shower (and just sat in the shower for 45 minutes), a warm bath (for about 30 minutes). I tried to lay back down...but couldn't relax. I went downstairs and spent another 2 hours trying to decide if I just had a really low tolerance for pain because these contractions were killing me (I was moaning and crying with each one). Finally at 6:00 AM, I woke Chris up and started crying that we had to go back because I was too tired (I had been up for 24 hours at this point). Chris showered and we left for the ER again. This time in triage, my contractions were still 4-5 minutes apart, but I was dilated to 6 cm....time to admit me! Yay!

First thing on the list: epidural. Oh...sweet, sweet epidural. I was her first patient of the day, and I was SO happy to see her. That process took longer than I thought, but the outcome was definitely worth it! I never lost the use of my legs (they had the pins and needles feeling), but I never felt a contraction after that! Around 10 AM, they came to check my progress, and I was still at 6 cm, so they broke my water. At 11 AM, I was STILL at 6 cm, so they added Pitocin to my IV line. At about 1:00 PM, I had progressed to 8 cm. I still couldn't sleep through this process because of all the beeps and noises from the machine, but Chris was able to get a few good naps in during this time. At 3 PM, I was at the full 10 cm and able to push! 45 minutes of pushing (which is some hard work!!!!) - and out comes Morgan weighing 7 lbs 5 oz and 20.5 inches long. Whoo! I did have to have an episiotimy, so hopefully it heals well.

Morgan is a screamer - that's for sure! I think she screamed for her first 12 hours. Not crying....screaming. This was so hard for me to handle... I was tired (didn't sleep for about 40 hours straight) and my body hurt....and I couldn't figure out why my new daughter was SO upset. I think I just shut down at that point (I think I scared Chris)...I just stared at her and had a hard time making the connection that this was my new daughter. After feeding her at 8 PM and 11 PM, we did send her to the nursery, and I got about 3 hours of sleep. When they brought her back into our room for her 3 AM feeding, I felt like a completely different person! This is my daughter! Breastfeeding now became much easier, and we've been doing well ever since! We still send her to the nursery when we want to sleep (every coo, sneeze, or sucking noise wakes me up)....but she's my baby, and I absolutely love her.

We are being discharged tomorrow morning, and I'm a little nervous about handling all of this without any nurses to help! Pray for us! I know we'll be ok...but...did I mention she's a screamer??? LOL!

Welcome, Morgan!

Not for the squemish....TMI? Probably - but I need the help of ladies who have been in labor!

Some odd things happening physically... Ladies who have been through labor before....need your thoughts on what's going on...

Symptom #1:
I use the restroom probably 3 times a night. Well on one of the trips last night, I thought I heard a little splash.... kind of odd because I was just peeing...but I was half asleep and didn't think twice about it. When I woke up in the morning...I remember the "splash" and thought...huh...I wonder if that was my mucous plug????

Symptom #2:
This morning I wake up and notice a pink stain on the undies... I am still spotting 3 hours later. If this was right after the internal exam, I would have blamed it on that...but that was on Friday and I was completely fine on Saturday. Plus this is quite a bit more than what I was experiencing after the appointment...

Symptom #3:
I am getting really, really bad menstrual type pain very low in the abdomen. It woke me up a few times...and I was timing them for a while and they were about 9 minutes apart...but have kind of slowed down. When I do get them though, they are pretty, pretty painful. Not like to the point where they are in the shows and movies screaming...but they make me stop talking or moving until it passes.... Are these just Braxton-Hicks? Or is this the beginning stage of labor?

Are we thinking a baby soon? Or are we thinking...Diane - hold your britches sweetie...we got a ways go go....that's called false labor....

38.5 Week Checkup!

C'mon baby! Come to mama!

I FINALLY had an internal exam to check for dilation. 3 cm. Woot! Woot! I think we were all pretty shocked that I was even that far along (I was expecting like 1 cm). She said Morgan's head was very, very low...and was able to feel the head during the internal exam (which is kind of weird to think about). Anywho! Let's keep our fingers crossed to hope that she's well on her way...and definitely NOT late. No contractions yet. Just a lot of cramping and pressure....

They did mention on the news that this month has had the hottest average temperature than any other month in recorded Phoenix history. It's been a joy being 9 months pregnant during this record breaking month. I'll be sure to share that with Morgan when she gets older!

I'm pretty exhausted. I finished wrapping up pretty much everything to where I feel comfortable taking my maternity leave. Anything else I can do is just icing on the cake....

Yes...I'm ready... Hopefully, Morgan is ready soon!

37.5 Week Checkup

I think this was the fastest check up of them all! The typical urine sample, weight check, blood pressure check, and heartbeat check. Ok....wait....I think some of this needs comment:

-Urine Sample - Of course it's important to leave a urine sample at these visits. They can check for sugar in the urine as well as protein. But you know what? Asking a 9-month pregnant woman to get a decent amount of sample in a teeny tiny cup when you can't even see what you're doing down there - I think this is really just for the doctor's office's amusement. :o)

-Weight Check - I lost two lbs since the last appointment.... ??? I think I had eaten quite a bit before the last appointment - and that number was overstated. So...now that puts me at a 4-5 lb weight gain for the pregnancy. The doctor didn't seem concerned over the weight loss...the baby belly is still measuring right on target with my week.

-Blood pressure check = low and good. Wahoo!

-Morgan's heartbeat check - 160 BPM. Average for her gender and gestation. That's my girl...49th %-tile....as average as can be. Who knew I'd be so excited about my child being "average?"

At the last appointment, they asked me to bring a birth plan to this appointment. We honestly never planned on creating a birth plan, we really felt that the Dr. would know best on what to do in any situation...but since they asked, we jotted down a few notes and talked about it at this appointment. Nothing major... I really thought there would be an internal exam at this appointment (HELLO?!?! I am 37.5 weeks!!!!)...to check for dilation and effacement....but nope! She said it would be at the next appointment (38.5 weeks). I asked her if she thought I was going to go until 40 weeks. Her response: "as textbook as this pregnancy has been...maybe you'll be one of the few to actually deliver on your due date! But of course...you could really go anytime between now and 42 weeks..." *sigh* Patience, patience, patience. Chris is traveling this next week M-Th, so let's hope it's sometime after that.

Other than that....that's all that's going on with us. Last night it clicked to both of us that even if I went to 40 weeks, we're looking at only 2.5 weeks left....and he's traveling for one of those weeks. I think we both have these mental to-do lists...and not much time to get them done. Maybe that's why I got up so early this morning...but then why am I blogging? :o)

A note to Chris

Dear wonderful husband, Chris,

Just a quick note to say: your daughter is kicking the crap out of my insides! :o)

Love,
Diane

Baby Shower Weekend!

'Tis the weekend to celebrate babies in Phoenix! :o) I had my baby luncheon yesterday afternoon. Olive Garden....yum! Yes...I loved the idea of having a lunch vs. a traditional baby shower in Phoenix....thank you Lashieki and Michelle! It was so nice to sit down with the ladies and have a relaxed, casual lunch! And now, I'm sitting on the couch before getting ready for another baby shower this weekend. Melissa's baby is due the day after Morgan, but she has a scheduled c-section for 8/6. Lucky girl! She has the official countdown going. My countdown is something like this: 3 weeks 3 days until the big day. Or...I guess she could arrive as early as 37 weeks and be considered full term....so the countdown could be 3 days.... OR she could arrive as late as 42 weeks before the doctor induces labor...so it could be 5 weeks 3 days. Ok...so therefore the Morgan countdown is anywere from 3 days to 5 weeks 3 days. I will say that with it being 115 degrees out, I'm going to try to put my foot down and not go longer than 40 weeks. I think I have my doctor convinced on that! :o)

With the last Taylor baby event completed, Chris and I headed to Babies R Us last night to finish off our baby registry. Luckily we had a 10% coupon for any items remaining on our registry and some very generous BRU gift cards from my work! All of those little items add up very quickly! We finally have bottles, burp clothes, towels, a hamper, a second convertible car seat for when Morgan outgrows her infant seat, an umbrella stroller (conveniently in Husker colors), breastfeeding accessories, receiving blankets, and a ton of other stuff. Whew! Everything else from our registry is for when Morgan is a little older...and we can wait a while before buying those things. I'm going to buy a baby sling and nursing cover from Wal-Mart since it's on clearance (and OH so much cheaper than BRU) and a breast pump from a retailer online as soon as I receive my Alltel bonus...and we should be set! Whew!

We stocked up on some diapers from Costco this weekend. Holy cow! I didn't realize how many diapers we'd be going through in a month. Thank goodness Costco is much cheaper than buying the diapers from Wal-Mart. At least Christmas gifts are easier this year: Costco gift cards! :o)

Chris is installing the baby seat bases in the car this afternoon while I'm on my baby celebrating extraveganza on the west side of Phoenix. Yay! It's kind of weird to think I'll be driving around town with a baby seat in the backseat starting tomorrow...but hopefully that will help reality set in. Chris was supposed to travel next week and the week after and be in town by the time I'm 38.5 weeks, but unfortunately the entire bridge group is behind from the 2nd quarter and he can't travel for any third quarter bridges until the second quarter bridges are completed. Oi! I hope he's not traveling when I'm 39-40 weeks!

Other than that....life is good and things are progressing normally. At my 35.5 week appointment, everything was looking great. I'm measuring right as I should. I did have another 2 lb gain....so I think that puts me at a weight gain of 5 lbs total? I think...I can't keep it straight now. I thought for sure we'd be moving to weekly appointments, but she wanted to push it out to another two weeks. So my next appointment will be at 37.5 weeks. I did eat a kid-sized frosty before my appointment, so Morgan's poor heart rate was at 180 BPM and she was going NUTS during the appointment. LOL! Starting 3 days ago, my feet have started swelling. They are pretty gross by the end of the day. Chris calls them my fat feet. My hands are also going numb in the middle of the night...looked it up in my What to Expect book - pregnancy induced carpal tunnel. Awesome. Anytime I have any cramps or anything is slightly out of the ordinary, Chris frantically tells me to drink some water (we learned that dehydration is the #1 cause of preterm labor in Phoenix). Water is the cure to any pregnancy problem in Chris's eyes! LOL! We finished our Newborn Care class and our Breastfeeding class. We've met our Pediatrician...and LOVE him! So we are ALL set!

All right....enough lounging around....I should at least SHOWER before that baby shower this afternoon! :o) I'll post after my next doctor's appointment.

34 weeks and Nebraska Visit!

We are at the 34th week....almost! Just a few days shy...but still I can't believe that we are only 6 weeks away from the big day. Hopefully only 6 weeks...I probably won't be too happy if we go much longer than that. Good strong heartbeat at the checkup - 164 BPM. Yay! Low blood pressure for mommy and a weight gain of 2 lbs from the last appointment. Everything is looking good and on track. Next appointment is 7/10 - and after that, we move to appointments every week!

We went to Nebraska for Heather's wedding - and a baby shower during the same trip. The baby shower was SO fun. It was so nice to catch up with people I haven't seen in almost a year. Here are some pics:

The beautiful cake! I absolutely loved it! I think Augusta did a FANTASTIC job!




The diaper cake:


Opening gifts:


Heather also got married (and this was the reason for the trip to Nebraska). It was perfect for them! The outdoor setting was picturesque...but very warm and humid for the 8-month pregnant girl... but nonetheless - a very, very nice wedding. Here's some pics:

Chris and me before the wedding started (we were hiding in the A/C cabin!)


Three (out of the 4) of the Tegeder family (waiting for the ceremony to start):


The music for the ceremony. It was SO good!


Keith walking Heather down the aisle:


The newlywed couple:


Chris's side of the family:


Cutting the wedding cake:


Meagan and her new beau (they are so cute it makes me crazy!):


And...this is pretty much my permanent face towards the end of the afternoon...it was pretty hot and humid..... :o)

(and yes...that's the side shot of my 33.5 week belly!)

Now you're all caught up!

Pictures!

Cleaning out the camera this weekend...here are a few pictures from the past few weeks.

Chris and I drove to Canyon Lake and wanted to take the Apache Trail in the Jeep. Unfortunately, I wimped out on the dirt roads on the side of steep cliffs with no guard rails. We made it about halfway before I asked him to turn around (literally have never been that scared before!). We did take pictures of our new ride in front of Canyon Lake. I joked with Chris that it should be on the Jeep's website!





























Honey's favorite toy is a $1 bouncing ball from Wal-mart. She likes to kick the ball around all on her own! Here's some action shots:





























Finally, here are a few shots of Morgan's Nursery. Please excuse the tools in the changing table! We have several "smaller" things to get like the hamper and baskets/totes for the changing table.

The view from the door:


The view from the opposite corner:


A straight-on picture of Morgan's crib:


The picture above the changing table. The verse is from James 1:17 (Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above...)


There you go! The camera has been cleaned out and the blog is updated! :o) We are traveling to Nebraska next week for a wedding, so there will be plenty of pictures from that trip!

31 weeks...

With one week, to go until my 8th month, I've decided to allow myself one whole post where I can talk about the negatives of being pregnant...and these are some of the things that you never hear people talk about after having a baby. I think it's because the glory of the baby overshadows all of the discomfort of being pregnant! But as a solace for other expectant mothers...you are not alone! Here are some of the negatives of being "3rd trimester" pregnant:

- Exhaustion comes back into play during the third trimester. You're exhausted your first trimester - feel great your second trimester - and then BOOM - you have to force yourself to wake up in the morning and to get off of the couch in the evenings and on the weekend during your third trimester.

- Baby's foot being "stuck" under my rib. I'm 5'3" (sometimes I'll stretch it to 5'4")....Morgan is not an exceptionally large baby (remember, she's in the 49th percentile)... However, my torso is not exceptionally long... Since Morgan is already head down...she likes to tuck her little toes underneath my ribcage...and it feels like a stick under my rib cage all day!

- Hemorrhoids....ick. nuff said.

- Not being able to sleep at night...you would think because of the exhaustion listed above, I'd pass out every night and not wake up until morning, but Morgan likes to kickbox right as I try to fall asleep...plus I get up several times a night to potty.... boo.

- Being STARVING...but only able to eat about 5 bites before you feel like you're stomach is going to explode because you're SO full! It's a bummer because the food smells SO good - but you can't eat to your hearts content anymore...

- Itchy tummy! With the skin stretching like crazy, it will dry out and itch, itch, itch. But don't scratch it - that can make stretch marks worse!

- Stretch marks.....oh stretch marks. Mine aren't horrible...but there's definitely a few there. I've tried cocoa butter, vitamin E, baby oil.....you name it, I've tried it. And honestly....if you're going to get them, you're going to get them and there is not a product out there that can save you.

- Forgetfulness. I spent over 20 minutes yesterday afternoon trying to remember for the life of me the name of the kennel where we take Honey so I could make a reservation when we go to Nebraska in a few weeks. I've also spent 25 minutes trying to think of the last name of a coworker I've worked with for the last 2 years....it finally came to me out of nowhere. One time, I was phone-screening a candidate and forgot what the starting pay for the position was...and I had to call the candidate back 2 hours later to let them know the rate!

- I get about 2-3 bloody noses every week. According to "What to Expect" this is completely normal. Yuck.

- Leg cramps in the middle of the night. Oh the joy - Not only do I wake up several times a night to go potty...but now a shooting pain in my calf wakes me up at night as well.

- Everyday activities are getting harder and harder! Transferring clothes from the washer to the dryer is the hardest chore now...the tummy gets in the way of reaching far down into the washer. Plus bending up and down and up and down. Whew!

- I'm already tired of my maternity clothes....and I still have two months to go! :)

And ok....now I am done complaining. I know Morgan is worth every bit of discomfort! :o)

She is such a cutie!!!

We had our growth ultrasound this afternoon. Morgan is in the 49th percentile! Way to be average! Wahoo! :o) She's such a cutie though. Here's the best 3D shot of her face:

I think she has Chris's lips and cheeks!

Total weight gain: 1 lb from my starting weight. Total weight gain from the lowest weight in my pregnancy: 9 lbs. Not too shabby - think I'll have some Ben & Jerry's! :o)

No Gestational Diabetes for Me!

The tests results came back perfect! No gestational diabetes for me - bring on the Oreos! J/K! I think I learned my lesson - no french fries before the initial glucose test!

We are down to doctor appointments every two weeks - can you believe it? Our final ultrasound is scheduled for 5/29. We should hopefully get a great shot of Morgan at this ultrasound - she'll be much more developed.

Chris heads off to Kingman for the next three days, but then he gets a 5 day weekend for Memorial Day weekend. Nice! I'll miss him while he's gone, but I can't wait to have him home for 5 days!

I am beginning to feel HUGE lately! I feel like all belly! I'm also to the point now where I feel like I can not get any sleep. I had the same thing during my 1st trimester - I would be exhausted - but I can't sleep in. *let's keep our fingers crossed that I get some good night's sleep while Chris is out of town!

Little Rock and Glucose Testing

This past week, I had to travel to Little Rock for business. It was one of the best business trips I've had. Because we are a smaller HR department, I was able to really get to know people I wouldn't have before! I took an EARLY (6 AM) flight out to Little Rock on Wednesday to spend a few hours with Leah before meeting up with all of my coworkers for dinner. It was SO nice to see her again! We've been friends since 8th grade! Life has taken us to different areas of the country, but she's always been a friend that I can call and have a serious or random conversation with! It's the best. She's expecting her third baby and is due about 4 weeks before me! Who would have thought we'd see each other while both expecting!


Back to the business side of the trip, we spent the day at Lake Hamilton in Hot Springs. So beautiful and so fun! I loved being on the boat in the afternoon. I got some sun on the legs and a pretty nerdy sunglass tan on my face! :o)~ We flew home on Friday morning, and I had my doctor's appointment that afternoon.

Unfortunately, my sugar numbers were a little high for the glucose test. The determining mark for additional testing is 140. A more conservative doctor will send you for additional testing at 130. My glucose level came in at 137. Everything else is looking perfect! Textbook weight gain (1 lb/week) and my tummy was measuring right at 26 cm (which corresponds to my 26 weeks). With my 1 lb/week - I am now back at my original weight! I took my 3 hour glucose test this morning. Let's keep our fingers crossed and say our prayers for good results on Friday at our next appointment.

And WOW! I was looking at my little ticker at the top of the blog - we are almost to the end! Crazy!

On Mother's Day, we painted the letters for Morgan's nursery. We also found some wall decals that we want to place on the pink wall in the nursery - they are pink themed animals....how very Diane!

We found out that AT&T is purchasing the majority of the divested Alltel properties. We don't know what that means long term - so as of now, it's business as usual. Thankfully, the FCC and DOJ approval should take 4-5 months, so at least, I will be able to enjoy my maternity leave before having to worry about my job!

I guess that's about it. We're ALMOST done with the nursery - and I promise when we are done, I'll post a picture!

Where the birds come to die...

After this weekend, I've concluded that our house is where any bird must come to die! Morbid, yes. This weekend we had 5 dead birds at our house. Ew, ew, ew. The first three birds were found by Chris when he was installing the new sprinkler timer. They were just tiny little things, so we think they fell out of a nearby nest and didn't survive the fall. Chris took the time to bury them in the yard. The second incident/fourth bird occurred while we were eating breakfast in the nook near our patio door. We were happily munching on our cereal when a loud thud resounded on the patio door. We turned to look and a poor bird must have flown straight into the window. First of all...I got physically ill because the poor thing didn't pass right away...it sat there and struggled for a good minute. Honey saw the whole thing and started to flip out! Chris was able to clean up the mess quickly before we had to leave for our hospital tour (couldn't leave the bird out there with Honey panicking). I didn't let him bury the bird this time...I don't want a whole graveyard of birds.... So we found another permanent resting place for the bird in our outdoor trash can (in several plastic bags of course). Finally, later that evening, we were leaving the house to see an almost adult bird standing in the driveway near our garage door. Most birds would be scared by an opening garage door. Not this bird. We decided to let it be and hopefully it would be gone before we returned. When we returned home, we saw the bird huddled in the corner near the garage...poor thing. We thought maybe he's just trying to get some warmth back or regain his energy. Unfortunately, the next morning before church we saw him in the driveway with his feet in the air. Poor, poor thing. And poor, poor Chris for having to clean up all of these little birdies! I think we'll be happy if we never have to see another bird ever, ever again!

Onto baby-related news: we had our hospital tour this last Saturday. It was like a slap in the face by reality. Maybe not to Chris: but to me! They discussed what entrance we would use when I was in labor. The safety procedures to prevent any baby theft. What amenities are in all of the labor and deliver and post-partum rooms. The do's and don't's and visitor restricitons. They explained the tools they have available to aid in labor... Oi, oi, oi! 15 more weeks to go! It sounds so far away, but at the same time seems SO close! I found out that I have to select Morgan's pediatrician soon. They will not let you leave the hospital until they have a pediatrician's name on file. I guess I'll have to check who's covered by my insurance and who's affiliated with the hospital we'll be at.

I hope ya'll had a great weekend and have a great week ahead. I'm going to change into some comfy clothes to go on a walk with Chris when he gets home!

A belly pic?

Yes, yes, Molly, you're wildest dream has come true! LOL! We took a belly pic for YOU! Here I am at 23 weeks:


I just noticed after looking at these pics that my baby belly is kind of pointy! :o)~

We had our 22 week check up last week. Things are going well! Little Morgan's heart was pounding away at 160 BPM (look at my strong little girl!). I have my gestational diabetes test before the next appointment. Let's keep our fingers crossed! I did have some weight gain with this appointment: 4 lbs. HOWEVER, they gave us the wrong weight numbers at the last appointment...so even with the 4 lbs of weight gain, I am still 4 lbs lighter than my first OB appointment in December. Who would have thought? Honestly, it just makes me realize how much extra weight I was carrying before becoming pregnant! Good to know (and to remember)!

When uploading these pics, I realized I had some pics from our Shreveport trip. Honey got to meet Chris's dad....and they became the BESTEST of friends!






And for those of you who know Katie (our cat), this pic of her and Honey on the same couch are for you. We didn't know how long it would take for them to get used to each other, but I think they love each other in their own love-hate kind of way!


Take care everyone! (Molly - I hope you appreciate the belly pic!) :o)

We did it!

We finally registered at Babies R Us! Melissa (my sister-in-law) braved the adventure with me. If only you could have seen us sitting on the ground (it hurt to crouch for that long) looking at the different breast pumps and accessories needed....the different bottles....the different aspirators...the different thermometers... :o) We came up with this strategy: go middle of the road...not the cheapest...not the most expensive. Whew! We did manage to finish the registry in 2.5 hours...which I heard is not too bad! Most of the larger items are neutral (allowing us to hopefully use it for a second child). Being that we don't really know all of what we'll need for a baby...I'm not sure the registry really includes everything of what we need...but oh well! We'll play it by ear.

John and Melissa were in town for the long weekend. We had a great time! It was so fun just to hang out and chill with my brother and sister-in-law. We took Mel to her first NBA game (Suns vs. Kings). Even though we won that night, it looks like our chances for the playoffs is slim to none. Boo. On Saturday, we drove up to Sedona for a wonderful (cold) day! We did some hiking at Slide Rock. It was so fun and being almost 6 months pregnant...I think I did fairly well!

I promise, promise, promise....pictures coming soon!

Double Top Ten Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday – Did They Really Say That?

I’ve learned that when you are expecting, people are very generous with their comments, stories, and opinions. In celebration of that, here’s my top ten list of things I can’t believe people have said to me:

1. "Yeah...you look really pregnant in the face now!" - while tapping their own cheeks.
2. "Wow! Almost there, huh?" - Nope...we have another 20 weeks to go, but thanks!
3. "Make sure you keep up on your kegels!" - From a random candidate that we did not hire.
4. "You're pregnant? I thought you just stopped going to the gym or something!" - the stage right before you start to look obviously pregnant is a sad, sad stage.
5. "She's a wiggler! Glad she's not going to be coming home wiht me!" - from the Ultrasound Technician...very encouraging...
6. "I can tell you're going to have a BIG baby!" - you're making that assumption based on the size I am right now, huh?
7. "Do you think you should be eating that? Is that good for baby?" - Let's see...I've given up caffeine, smoking, alcohol, recreational drugs (J/K on most of these by the way!)...and now it's not okay to enjoy a piece of chocolate every once in a while?
8. "Are you sure it's a girl? I don't know if I can see you having a girl....a boy definitely...but a girl???" - I can't put my finger on why exactly this comment bothered me...but it did.
9. "Ugh...I hope you don't have the same long, horrible labor that I had..." - normally a graphic, disgusting labor and delivery story is inserted here...

This last one made the list because most of the other comments are negative; therefore, I can not believe someone actually said something out of the norm:

10. "How far along are you? Wow - 21 weeks...you look fantastic! I would have never guessed you were that far along!" - Bless her heart! :o)

Top Ten Tuesday – Part Deaux

Now for the double-dose of Top Ten Tuesday…moms I need your help…send me your Top Ten list of “Things I couldn’t live without” to help me get started on my baby registry this weekend!

We've picked a name!

Morgan Lee Taylor

We've received pretty good feedback from family on the name. I think everyone likes the name...some are struggling with name association from someone we never really knew...but this will just give them a good opportunity to associate with their first niece or granddaughter!

We've been pretty busy getting ready for John and Melissa's visit this weekend. We're so excited to be going to a Suns game on Friday night. The Suns aren't up to their usual level of excellence, but it will still be fun. I think we're also planning a trip to Sedona, which is always beautiful! The nursery is 70% cleaned out. Chris has been busy getting everything from our "miscellaneous" room into the office. I picked up some paint samples, so it's just trying to find the right match with the comforter and the base color. We're hoping to paint the majority of the room a light tan with a pink stripe about 3/4 of the way up bordered by a white stripe on the top and the bottom. We'll see how it goes...it will certainly test our taping skills!

I didn't realize how pregnant I looked until this weekend. We got together with some friends that we haven't seen since February, and the first comment was "Wow! You really are poking out now!" Yeah... I promise...pictures soon... I really hate belly pictures...so it probably won't be a posed side shot...but with John and Melissa coming in town, I'm sure we'll be taking plenty of pictures.

Ultrasound Pictures!

We had another ultrasound today. On our original ultrasound, a small little nothing was found, and we were scheduled for a higher-level ultrasound just to check things out. Everything looks good...and the small little nothing was even questionable during the ultrasound today! PTL! Here are some of the pics from the ultrasound today. Because it's a higher level ultrasound, the pictures have more concentration on bones (etc) instead of the general ultrasound pictures. Our little girl is a wiggle worm and doesn't stay still long for pictures...in this ultrasound or the last. So...pictures aren't as wonderful as some of the others I've seen...but she's our little girl!

Profile Pic...


Her Left Arm


Her Right Arm (see her little hand?)


Her Left Leg (the foot is pointed up!)


Her Right Leg (with the knee bent)

Bedding and Names

I have never been this indecisive in my life. Normally, I'm just one to make a decision and run with it. With the pregnancy, I've made up my mind, tried to run with it....just to change my mind in the future. It's just personally irritating....

Chris talked me into changing our minds again about where to register. He prefers Babies R Us...he likes being able to see everything there vs. ordering a good number of items online at target.com. We did a price check on some of the big ticket items...and both stores are equal in cost. We started looking at crib bedding at both stores...and I hated them ALL! I'm just not a princess-y kind of girl....or even a modern girl. I don't know...I would have had a much easier time picking out boy bedding with little puppies or trucks or something. I just didn't like the idea of a "unisex" room...we know the gender now...we want to cater to it... PLUS...I have a really hard time swallowing a $150+ price tag for sheets and a comforter.... Anywho....we found a girl crib set for an excellent price online (we originally saw it in the store)...I think it's on it's way of being phased out. So we purchased it and are waiting for it to be delivered. Here's a pic:


We are VERY close to deciding a name. We have it narrowed down to two. We did have it narrowed down to three...but then we realized the third would have the initials of BLT...and I refuse to do that to her. Both options would leave her with the initials of MLT...with the L standing for Lee (my middle name and mother's maiden name). I'm purposely not sharing the two options (if you know me fairly well...you already know one option)... We don't want everyone's opinion clouding our decision. We know no matter what we decide, someone is not going to like the decision....or prefer one name over the other. We'll see... $5 to anyone who can guess the two options! ;o)

It's a....

GIRL!

Ultrasound pictures to follow!

Can't Sleep!

I am so high strung! Our ultrasound is scheduled for later this morning... I woke up around 3 AM to use the restroom...started thinking about the ultrasound...and couldn't sleep after that. I drifted in and out and in and out...and finally got out of bed around 7 AM. In attempt to make this morning go by a little faster, here's a recap on the past week (or so):

Chris's grandma passed away on Thursday morning. Chris was actually in Yuma for work when we received the call. He and his partner finished inspecting several bridges and drove the 3 hours back to Phoenix. He left work early and met me home around 4 PM. It was a crazy night trying to get ready for the 18 hour car drive the next day. By the time we finished laundry, packing, airing the tires, cleaning out the car, prepping the car for Honey..... Oi! I think we crawled into bed around 11 PM....to wake up at 3 AM! Yay! We were both supposed to wake up at 3 AM, so that Chris could finish packing up the car while I showered...but if anyone knows Chris, you know that he did not get out of bed until 3:30. All details aside (and me loading the car that morning...except for the heavy luggage)...we were on the road by 4:15 AM. I drove the first leg from Phoenix, AZ to Lordsburg, NM while Chris slept. Chris drove from Lordsburg to Van Horne, TX....I did not sleep (I've never been able to sleep during road trips). I drove from Van Horne to Abilene...with Chris dead to the world. Chris drove the rest of the way from Abilene to Shreveport, LA. A very, very long day. We got into Shreveport around 11:30 PM (CST....or 10:30 PM AZ time). Sleep....

The funeral service and wake started at 11:00 AM the next day. A beautiful, intimate service. We followed it by dinner at a mexican buffet with Chris's immediate family. Chris's mom and Keith left right after the dinner to spend a few days in Smackover, AR. We spent the next day with Teresa and family and had a wonderful day! We threw the baseball around with Triston for a good chunk of the day...and I don't know who enjoyed it more: Triston or Honey! Anytime Triston missed the baseball, Honey was right there to scoop it up and run around for a while. It took Honey a while to get used to the kids (she's never really had time with any kids)...but she eventually calmed down and started giving out the kisses! We visited with Chris's aunt and grandma (on the other side) and followed it with a dinner at a local pizza chain....yum, yum, yum! We spent the rest of the evening walking around on the boardwalk, which is a really cool shopping complex. Teresa and family left town that evening to drive through the night home...and the rest of us crashed. We spent the next day completely relaxing. It's so cute...Honey absolutely LOVES Chris's dad. She wanted to follow him anywhere...and cuddled up with him anytime he was on the couch. She definitely made a new friend! Then came the long drive home.... I've concluded that Texas is the largest, largest, largest state in the world! Long story short, we left Shreveport at 6 AM CST and got home around 11 PM AZ time...or 1 AM CST... It's good to be home!

I've had my first set of belly touching while in Shreveport. Chris's aunts all wanted to touch the belly! I really started "poking" out last week. Several people at work noticed it...and family definitely noticed it. Chris said he still doesn't notice it unless I wear certain shirts. Yesterday we noticed the lovely linea negra. I didn't know the official name for it until I had to look it up...but it's the dark line that runs from the pubic area up to the belly button and beyond. It's still fairly light and really thin...but it's definitely there. Read about it in my trusty book...and yep...normally pops up in the second trimester and is more predominant in darker skinned women. According to an old wive's tale...if the line only runs up to the belly button it's a girl...but if it runs up to the ribs, it's a boy. I'm not going to tell you where mine stops...we'll just see if the old wive's tale holds true!

My husband must really love me! We purchased a crib/changing combo from Baby Depot earlier in the month. We liked the design, we liked the quality...and we liked having the drawers on the changer built in. It was on sale...and the only one left in AZ....so we bit the bullet and bought the crib....shoved it in the trunk of our car and drove home with it. We never took it out of the box...it's just kind of sitting in the dining room. Well last night, we were walking in Target, and I ran across a similar crib without the changer attached. The crib is cheaper...and for a total of $100 more, we can purchase an entire dresser and just add a changing pad on the top of the dresser. Yep...we'll be loading the original crib into the trunk of the car again to take it back to Baby Depot and adding the new crib and dresser onto our baby registry. Oops. Fun news though: we found a stroller we love at Target (the stroller was the only thing at Babies R Us that was not carried at Target)...so we'll only have the registry at Target. Yay!

Anywho...our ultrasound is later this morning. Hopefully my next post will have "It's a ....." with pictures of Peanut! Crazy!

Top Ten Tuesday

All right...I will be honest...I have been a bit of a whiner/complainer this past week. A really good friend of mine pointed out that I have a pretty wonderful life...with an absolutely amazing husband...and I should concentrate on the good things I do have... So to piggy-back off that idea, here is my top ten list of things I love about my husband (sorry if this is too mushy!):

1. Chris LOVES animals! His face lights up when the cat jumps on the couch to come and visit him...and you can catch him cuddling the puppy like a baby... Even looking at pictures from when he was younger...there are pictures of him cuddling a puppy they got for Christmas, laughing as he plays with a tonka truck while holding a kitty, and looking at amazement at a bunny on Easter. Being someone who has always had a soft spot for animals, it's been nice having someone share that passion too!

2. We are both non-cuddlers while sleeping. BUT....when Chris is half asleep in the mornings, he'll cuddle....and it's nice!

3. Chris never ever nags me about what I eat. It doesn't phase him when we go out for steaks and I order pasta and a salad. Growing up in a household where you cleaned your plate, I always feel guilty about not finishing my meal (especially when eating out), but Chris is awesome about letting me know that it's good to say "no" when you're full!

4. Every morning before going to work, Chris gives me a good-bye kiss. Granted, I have morning breath and I'm only half awake....the kiss is on my cheek!

5. When Chris comes home from work, he asks me, "How are my two favorite people in the world?" When Chris is out of town traveling for work, he'll text and ask me, "How are you, Peanut, Honey, and Katie?" :o)

6. He'll watch chick flicks with me.

7. He has an incredible attention to detail. I don't always take the time to organize the wires/cords behind the TV or sometimes I take shortcuts when vaccuuming...not Chris. When he does anything around the house, he always finishes everything to perfection...

8. Chris is really involved with this pregnancy. He definitely has his opinion on the nursery and wants to be involved in pretty much all aspects of this pregnancy. He's definitely excited about the prenatal classes, newborn care classes, and hospital tours.

9. He's gotten to be a sports nut.... We love watching the Suns play...and don't ever miss the Huskers play. I'm glad I don't have to watch these sports alone!

10. He's my best friend. Period.

Again...sorry for the mushiness....but sometimes you just need to take a moment and jot down things you are thankful for.... I am definitely thankful for the wonderful husband I have!

Baby Registry...

OK mommies...I need your help!

Babies R Us is the mega baby super store and has any and everything you could possibly imagine for a baby (and subsequently for a baby registry). HOWEVER, Babies R Us is incredibly expensive. If you compare prices on items that are identical at Target or Wal-mart, you are paying quite the premium for Babies R Us. Babies R Us has a few things (like the stroller we want) that is not carried at Target and Wal-Mart. The only thing Babies R Us does not carry (and Wal-Mart does) is the crib that we want. So - do we register at Babies R Us hoping that family and friends know they can get the items cheaper at Wal-Mart or Target - so we only have one registry to keep track of...or do we have a few items at Babies R Us with everything else from Target??? Babies R Us is so convenient because it's an entire store vs. a few limited aisles in the other stores with the majority of the items online (can't see them in person)...

What do you think?

Bring on the belly!

Yes...yes...it's happening. I woke up this morning and all of my pants are tight in the tummy. I changed outfits 6 times this morning and finally settled on some dress pants that originally were so big, my mom made fun of how they fit when I was at home for Christmas. They were definitely snug in the waist today...so snug...the metal clasp on the front is no longer attached on the top and bottom....just the top. I still don't feel like I look pregnant...just fat...so that's exciting. According to the weight gain chart, normal weight gain for 15 weeks is 7-9 lbs. So far, I've gained 2 lbs of the 7 I lost in my first trimester. I know I definitely want to have normal weight gain (nothing crazy high)....but also a steady weight gain - so 1-2 lbs/week vs. no weight gain and then in one week gaining 6 lbs. I'm thinking that would lead to stretch marks. Here's for hoping no crazy weight gain this pregnancy! :o)

Too bad my cravings aren't going to help me in the weight gain category. I've had a major craving for Ruffles and Kraft French Onion dip. Sad news: I can not find a grocery store in the valley that carries Kraft French Onion dip. I've been to 8 grocery stores: nada. Thinking I was being smart, I looked up what stores carry the dip on Kraft's website. Supposedly, Safeway carries this lovely dip...but 3 Safeways later: no dip. I've had to settle (ha!) on Cool Ranch Dorrito's. I also crave fresh fruit, so we have plenty of grapes, apples, and bananas in the house.

We've started looking at baby names. Nothing too serious yet. Since we are planning on finding out the gender of Peanut in about 3.5 weeks, we don't want to stress ourselves out about picking names for both genders...we're just going to wait before getting serious about deciding. It's been fun though.

I think I'm going to have Chris take a belly picture next week (16 weeks) - will post then! :o)

Happy Valentines' Day!

First...we don't celebrate Valentines' Day in our marriage. We don't buy cards, flowers, or go out for dinner. It just doesn't have a lot of meaning for us. However, it's another wonderful weekend day this year that we get to spend together!

We got to hear Peanut's heartbeat yesterday. Amazing!!! 153 BPM. Chris said it sounded like when his dad imitates a car running. Metaphors aside, it was an amazing moment. The next appointment will be the big ultrasound! We've decided to find out the sex of Peanut.... yes...we gave in! I'm pretty excited though. Just 4 more weeks, and we'll know whether there's another grandson in the family or the first granddaughter. My money is on a grandson. I think everyone at work (except for one) thinks it's a boy. I think Chris secretely wants a boy...he's tired of a house full of females. What can I say? Honey, Katie, and I rule the house!

I hope everyone is having a great Valentine's Day!

Wrapping up the first trimester!

I can't believe the first trimester is said and done with! Time has FLOWN by! Mark the day: Yesterday (January 30th) was the first time my pre-pregnancy clothes were uncomfortable. Probably not from a belly or anything....more like bloating since this morning my jeans were very comfortable. :o) I think it served as a preview of a few weeks down the road.

I've had questions for belly pics. Here's my answer: all we have now is Diane's belly without Peanut making a difference. So...we're going to wait until a few weeks down the road before posting any belly pics! ;o)

I was looking through the symptom guide the other night and was pointing out a bunch of symptoms that I don't have. That always leads to worrying if you really are pregnant... Anyway, I prayed that the Lord would grant me peace or let me know somehow that I truly was pregnant. I was expecting maybe a sense of peace.... God decided I needed some ferocious stretching pains this morning! See! God answers prayer the way he wants to! PTL for answered prayers!

Happy 26th Birthday!!!!

Holy cow! What a crazy week it's been!

I flew out to Little Rock on Monday afternoon and spent Tuesday through Thursday training and working on-site. I caught a pretty nasty cold in Little Rock that is still lingering... My birthday was celebrated several times while in town! My boss's boss brought in these delicious gourmet cupcakes and milk to help celebrate my birthday. I had a peanut butter & jelly cupcake - and as weird as it sounds....it was DELISH! On my actual birthday, my former boss took me and the Tampa ladies out for a yummy Italian dinner. Good time, good times - but I missed Chris SO much on my birthday. We cut the night short, so that I could head back to the hotel to pack (my flight departed the next morning at 6-something AM). Here's how my day of traveling went:
-Wake up at 3:30 AM AZ time to get ready for the day, check out, and take a taxi to the airport
-Work from the airport for about 45 minutes until it was time to board
-Take a short 1 hour flight from Little Rock to Dallas
-Go to my gate in Dallas
-Change gates in Dallas
-Notified of a 30 minute delay for maintenance
-Notified at 10:30 AM that my 10 AM flight to Phoenix was being canceled due to maintenance issues
-Call Corporate Travel in a panic - told there are no other flights with seats available in DFW until 6:45 PM.
-Yelled at Corporate Travel that I needed to get home ASAP for a Dr. Appt
-Thanked Corporate Travel profusely for booking me the last ticket on a Southwest flight that departs at 12:30 PM and stops in San Antonio before heading to Phoenix
-Paid (actually Alltel paid) a ridiculous amount for a taxi to transport me (as fast as possible PLEASE) to Lovefield (the other airport in Dallas) for a flight that departs in about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
-Arrive at Lovefield with less than an hour until my flight departs
-Go through security
-Arrive at my gate as they start boarding the plane.
-Take-off and fly to San Antonio
-Switch seats to be closer to the front of the plane when we land in Phoenix
-Yelled at by some lady who claimed I stole her seat
-Rolled my eyes - and moved up another row.
-Take off and fly to Phoenix
-Got a bloody nose
-Became incredibly nauseous during the descent into Phoenix...
-Threw up in a barf bag
-Landed in Phoenix at 3:30 PM AZ time.
-Grabbed my luggage, ran to the car, and SPED to the doctor's office
-Arrived 5 minutes late for my appointment.

I can't imagine why my blood pressure was so high when they took my reading! :o)

We didn't have the opportunity to hear the baby's heartbeat. The doctor's office likes to wait until after 12 weeks to listen for a normal pregnancy. Oh well - next appointment it is. We did find out some great news - we will be able to have a traditional birth if all goes well AND we will also be able to breastfeed if that is something we choose to do. Yay! Such great news! Other than that - everything else seems pretty normal. No weight gain yet - actually at a loss - but have no fear....I'm sure it will come eventually. I will be 11 weeks tomorrow - which just means one more week or so until I'm officially out of the 1st trimester! PTL for His blessings so far!

Chris took me out for a quick bite to eat after my appointment, and we went home. I was SO exhausted!!!! There was a cake waiting for me at home - and Chris broke out the surprise: he planned a weekend getaway in San Diego starting the next day! He made hotel arrangements, planned on things we can do while in town, and made Honey's kennel reservations. What a wonderful surprise! We went upstairs to pack - and then I literally passed out. I realized later that I was so tired when packing for the San Diego trip, I didn't do a great job of packing clothes that I would really want to wear in San Diego - but oh well!

We woke up around 6:30 AM the next morning, got ready, packed the car, and dropped Honey off at the kennel. Five and a half hours later we were in beautiful San Diego at Mission Beach. What a gorgeous beach! Here are some of the pictures:




After Mission Beach, we went to Sunset Cliffs. We were there for over an hour watching the surfers and listening to the waves crash into the cliffs. We were too impatient to wait around for sunset, but here's some pictures from the Cliffs:






Chris booked a great hotel right on the Marina. This was our view from our windows and door:


Plus, we had a visitors every morning and evening right outside our door:




Sunday, we went to the San Diego Zoo. I will have to say that in Omaha, you are quite spoiled with a fabulous zoo. I don't know if I would say San Diego is so much better than Omaha - it's a different zoo experience complete with ski-lift type things that take you from one end of the zoo to the other and guided bus tours...but the animals....same at both zoos. Plus in Omaha you have the Jungle, Aquarium, and Desert Dome. SD Zoo has something very similar to the Lied Jungle - but not to the level of the Omaha Zoo. Anywho, we had a great time at the zoo...and some of the fun things we got to see that we either haven't seein Omaha or just thought were pretty amazing include:


















(I loved the Pandas if you couldn't tell!) :o)

We had been keeping up with the Cardinals game via my cell phone the entire time at the zoo. When we left, we stopped by an ice cream shop, picked up an ice cream cone each, and watched the final 2 minutes of the game. And crazy enough to say: The Cardinals are going to the SUPERBOWL! What???? :o) I'm excited for them! I'll wear my red on Superbowl Sunday.

So...we decided to head back to the cliffs to watch the sunset before heading out to dinner. We figured it was named Sunset Cliffs for a reason, right? What a beautiful, beautiful, and romantic experience. The pictures don't do justice, but here are few we took:








We had a great dinner in the Gaslamp District in downtown San Diego. We found a really cool shopping complex right next door, but didn't buy anything. We finally went home, so we could pack to leave the next day.

On the way out of town, we stopped at Imperial Beach (south of San Diego). Not my favorite beach by any means....but we can check it off the list now! There was definitely a difference in the population in Imperial Beach, but while walking the pier, we ran into a fun little guy:




After that, we hopped in the car and drove the 5.5 hours home! What a great birthday surprise!

Hope you enjoyed the pictures!