New Blog Design

Well, I attempted a new blog design (which is way out of my league), so bare with me as I make a few improvements. I like it so far, but the pictures are blurry and I am OVER trying to figure out how to fix that this evening. Any advice? Thanks for your patience as I give our blog a little makeover. I will leave you with a little Giants Gear that was super fun to purchase for our little one. Be back soon....xoxo

Who Knew?

Who knew laundry could be so fun! I am quite sure the novelty will wear off, but for today, I am having fun organizing and doing our son's first load of laundry. Just the scent of the finished laundry makes me think there's a baby around...oh wait...it's quiet and the house is clean...no baby here :)

Our little one has been moving around quite a bit. I wouldn't say that he is a super active one (although what do I know...), but lately I have felt him a lot more! It is so fun to see my stomach rolling around and to wake up to (in the morning that is) a "punching" feeling on both sides of my belly. I am carrying pretty low so I haven't felt any rib shots, nor have I felt the hiccups. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining :)

Alrighty, back to the laundry and organizing...adios for now!

I can't believe how time flies...

I can't believe we have 77 "days to go" or some number somewhat close to that ;) Things here have been in full swing as they have been for quite some time. The room is painted and most of the major furniture is on its way. A loving shout out goes to Justin for painting twice, no wait, three times, without any complaint :) We have our car seat (see picture below) with special thanks to two very special people who had one of our shower gifts delivered early. It all feels a little more real with a car seat lying around...a baby must go in that right???

I am still feeling great, although I feel as though most things take just a tad longer to accomplish. I treasure the days I get to wear cozy clothes. The children in my class are getting more and more interested with my belly and say funny things like: "Your baby is getting very big." I have one child who says hello to him every day-it is so adorable. He comes up to my belly and says, "Hi Baby." They so badly want to know his name...time will tell...

Below is a very recent belly shot as well as info about our son for this next week of development. I promise...as we put things in the nursery I will post photos...right now it is just an empty room freshly painted. We start our child birth class this Tuesday and I am very much looking forward to getting more information about our baby's birth day :)

New Year Breakfast

This morning my parents came over (with mimosas in hand) to ring in the new year. I tried a new recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, The Pioneer Woman, and without "tooting my own horn" might I say that it was quite yummy. In case you are interested... you can find her recipes and blog online. I made her breakfast bowls, which are kind of like breakfast burritos minus the burrito. The nice part is they are great for when you are having people over because everything can be cleaned up and assembled before they arrive :) I am officially a big fan of breakfast bowls (as is the hubby).

We had a nice morning together, a yummy greasy breakfast, and even took cat naps together! Today is the day where we all have to start remembering to write 2011-crazy eh!

Happy New Year blog readers!

You can't really tell, but they are made by layering the following ingredients: potatoes/onions, ground breakfast sausage, jack cheese, bacon crumbles, egg mixture, tomato/basil/green onion mixture, and cheddar cheese. For Murray and Justin's I added diced jalapenos and hot sauce for some spice!

I told you they are super healthy... ;)

All in favor of the above ingredients should definitely try this recipe!

26 Weeks (almost 27)

Although I have been on Christmas vacation, things have been in full swing around here...you could say "nesting" is the feeling. The nursery is empty and ready for painting, furniture, etc. Our "new" guest room has been transferred and is ready for guests! Come visit us... :) In the process of cleaning and moving furniture around I have been able to organize-love that feeling! Yesterday Justin and I went to Home Depot (by far his favorite store...aside from maybe a hobby store) and found shelving, etc. for the baby's closet (pics to come soon). Aside from the occasional add-on, our registry is complete and it has been very fun researching and compiling a list of things our son will need/want. Below is a picture of my belly at 26 weeks. On Monday I will be 27 weeks and before we know it Spring will be here with a special delivery :)

For Christmas we received an adorable jacket from my parents. On the back of the jacket my mom had it embroidered with an airplane and a sweet phrase (see below). The best thing about the jacket is it totally reminds me of my mom and something boys would have worn when I was growing up. I love the corduroy sleeves!

Happy New Year everyone!

As we begin to get the nursery ready I will post pictures.

Oh Christmas Tree...

Before Thanksgiving (yea you heard me...I know, I know, I broke my own rule) we went and tagged our Christmas tree at a local tree farm, Moon Mountain. Every year I look forward to the tradition and humor of tagging a tree. My Mom and I went there when I was growing up and it hasn't changed a bit...well, maybe the prices. I will take tradition over prices any day though. I can't wait to take our son up there next year all bundled up to find his very first Christmas tree. Below are the pictures of our fun adventure!

Justin being silly as we are trying to take a picture....no way, never!

This is no laughing matter...we get very serious about the perfect height of the tree. This is Justin setting Murray straight on how tall this particular tree is. It was super funny!

Look at that beautiful couple! You should ask them to tell you the story of the adventure we had taking the trees home. You will get a kick out of it! I know I did as I sat innocent in the back seat :) :0

Where do I begin?

I broke my promise...so sorry.

I have not blogged in a while but my oh my are things in full swing around here to get ready for our baby boy. I was 24 weeks on Monday and still feeling great! My feet get sore by the end of the day, but whose wouldn't when your with first graders movin' and groovin' all day :)

Below is a picture of me right now (literally...Justin took it 5 minutes ago). It's nothing special, but it shows you how much I have grown in the last bit. The baby is moving more and more, but I still wouldn't consider him super active at this point (ya know...cause I've had so much experience in this department :) wink wink). He doesn't wake me up yet, so I suppose that's a bonus. Justin has felt him move twice and it was super cool! He described it as "really neat and kind of weird." I don't blame him...there are some movements that our son makes that feel REALLY foreign. Don't get me wrong, I love it when he moves, but at times it feels very different.

Alrighty, below is the picture and the WebMD/Baby Center update:
xoxo for now!

Week 24

Baby: Your baby, now about in its 22nd week of development, is 8.4 inches from crown to rump and weighs about 1.2 pounds. It is starting to produce white blood cells, mostly for combating disease and infection, and may respond to your touch or sounds. If you haven't felt hiccups yet, you might feel some jerking motion now.

Mom-to-be: Your uterus is about 1.5 to 2 inches above your navel. Expect to gain about a pound per week this month. Glucose screens for detecting gestational diabetes are given between this week and 28 weeks.

Tip of the Week: Dad-to-be might be able to hear the baby's heartbeat by putting his ear to your abdomen.

How your baby's growing:
Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.