Happy 4th Birthday, Jackson!

How was this picture taken four years ago?!?!

This past weekend, we drove up to Southlake to celebrate the boy who made our whole family a hundred times better. Our very own Baby J turned four! (Below picture with neighbors Scarlett and Coleson)

The party was at a trampoline park and everyone had fun jumping, including my dad and Patty. Oh, but not me; trampolines are a no-no for pregnant ladies.

Dean wasn't a jumper, but enjoyed walking around the whole place :)

After some pizza, the cupcakes were brought out and everyone sang happy birthday to their favorite person - well, the Armstrong's and Liggett's favorite person.

We opened presents, played with new toys, and sang a couple more times!

The weekend was very much like our other Southlake weekends, complete with maximum play time, catch-up time with Lindsay, and not as much sleep as I'd like. But I wouldn't have wanted to do anything else this weekend than spend time with Jackson. The past four years have gone by so quickly, and Nelson and I are lucky to have such a close relationship with Jackson. He has lots of energy, but is one of the most thoughtful and sweet little boys. He loves his family just as much as we love him <3

And when we were leaving, I told him that the next time he saw me, my tummy would either be even bigger or the baby will already be here. The smile on his face was unforgettable, and he exclaimed, "Cool!" I couldn't agree more, Jackson!

32 Weeks Down, 8 To Go!

Welp, we're officially in the single digit weeks left! There's still so much to do, it makes it stressful if we think about how little time is left. But I cannot WAIT to meet her and hold her and kiss her <3

My appointment was fairly uneventful, and I just saw the Nurse Practitioner, Jen, as Dr. Cowan was in surgery that day. Baby Girl's heart rate was around 140 bpm and my fundal height measured exactly 32 centimeters. I made a comment to Jen that, yes, I was feeling her moving all the time, but I had no idea how she was laying in there. She told me to lay back and felt around, and she thinks Baby Girl is already head down with her back along my left side, bottom up by my left ribs, and then arms and legs going over to the right. Let's hope she stays that way!

We had our breastfeeding class, too. Nelson was so sweet and came with me, and I didn't tell him that Emily said Grant didn't and that there weren't many husbands in the class. Luckily there were about four other dads there, so it wasn't too awkward for him. It was pretty informational and I think we both learned a lot, including what flat and inverted nipples look like (with pictures to help). 

And a birthday picture at 31 weeks!

Mom's Take at Week 32: Nothing really new to report since week 28. I'm still working out and doing what I can - RPM, Body Pump, and the elliptical. My right hip flexor still gets pretty sore and tight, and it seems to have gone a little more into my hip, so I just have to be cautious not to overdo it. Baby Girl is moving quite a bit, too, but they're biiiiiiig, slooooooow movements. She isn't really into making the quick and jerky movements. I'm really enjoying taking video of her moving, as you can tell :)

Dad's Take at Week 32: Nelson's officially in his own nesting mode. He's checked out two books from the library, one about how to get babies to sleep through the night and another titled "Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters: 10 Secrets Every Father Should Know" <3 Other than that, he knows it's happening and is helping me get things ready around the house. He seems to be saying less negative stuff and freaking out. I guess that's what knowing you have two months until your life is "over" does to you!

A Shower Sans Pictures

This past weekend, my "running mom" Anne hosted a shower for me and Baby Girl, and all my best friends came to show us love. I had so much fun talking with everyone, laughing about Nelson's wish for me not to eat sweets, and eating yummy food that I didn't take a single picture. Oops!

Anne got a precious Baby's First Year book and a pink Polaroid camera. It's an adorable way for me to document all the things to look forward to over the next year!

She took a picture of each girl (except Beth, who expertly avoided this step) and posted it in the book. Then they each wrote words of advice or encouragement to me :)

Baby Girl and I went home with some thoughtful gifts that we can't wait to set-up, use, and wear <3

Oh, and what did Nelson do this weekend? Go to a gun range with his gym and practice shooting. In other words, watch out future boyfriends of his daughter ;)

Showering Baby Girl

This past weekend, I had my first (non-surprise) baby shower in Houston with family, Nelson's mom's friends, and some of my own :) I really just enjoyed having everyone in one room, talking and laughing and eagerly anticipating the arrival of Baby Girl. But the shower itself was a lot of fun with some cute games, not to mention the food was all delicious (Chick-fil-A chicken nuggets <3) and I went home with some pretty good loot.

While everyone arrived and chatted, they were given a diaper to write a note on for me and Nelson, and a little card with sentences to finish for Baby Girl. I haven't finished reading all of the notes to her, but I know I'll love rocking with her in her room and reminding her that those who love her hope she becomes whatever she wants in life - there is no limit, or isn't afraid of trying new things, or to be a fun as her mom and responsible as her dad. As for the diapers, I read them all aloud and selected my favorite, which was Irene's that read, "Remember you wanted this" haha! Another fun game was a breast milk cooler bag full of small, random goodies. Ladies put their hand in to feel around and had to guess what was inside, and Lindsay won this one!

The last game we played was a way for everyone to see who knew me and my decisions best. They all had little cards that they completed (see below), and then I had a big card for each answer and held up my choice. This one got pretty intense as it brought the competitiveness out of some people *cough* mom *cough*.

I opened so many wonderful gifts from everyone, and am excited to put it all to use! We got the carseat, so I think we're technically ready now since that's all we need in order to leave the hospital ;)

We got an awesome A&M / UT blanket handmade by Michelle Rice. I think the side facing up will vary depending on who's using it ;) And Diana said she just couldn't resist getting the precious A&M dress onsie <3

I made it my goal to take a picture with every person that was there, and I almost got it! Unfortunately Kaitlin had to leave early for work, and I somehow missed my own mom haha :) Oh well...

My wonderful hostesses: Diana, Suzanne, and Valerie

Grace, a wonderful friend since my senior year of college <3 And I wouldn't have met Nelson without her! We've experienced so much by each other's side, and I'm glad this is another one!

Irene, Nelson's cousin:

Leanne, soon-to-be nǎinai (!), and Nhi Cmerek:

Aunt Lindsay - eek!

Shelley, Laynie, and Lexi:

Aunt Ellen <3

Patty's daughter Christy:

Debbie :) I hadn't seen her in forever!

And Patty!

I also set everything out when we got home. It was so fun seeing everything all in one place :) Not pictured: the high chair that didn't fit in our car and we had to leave in Clear Lake, or the stroller my mom gave me that we decided not to take (thank goodness since we had a packed car home) just to bring back.

That night, we had a pre-birthday celebration with my dad, Patty, Peyton, my mom, Lindsay, and Nelson's parents at Pappa's Seafood. It was fun being with everyone and eating my favorite chocolate cake <3

As soon as the candles were lit and everyone started singing, I mistakenly said, "Shhh..." so they got even louder. You can see the embarrassment by the look on my face - sheesh.

I had such a wonderful weekend full of family, laughter, and love - both for me and Baby Girl. I have some more showers coming up over the next few weekends, and this just has me even more excited to keep celebrating her upcoming arrival!

Because when you're rear-ended in December....

You have to be rear-ended, again, in January! Yup, you read that correctly. A couple weeks ago, the insurance company finally called to say that the other driver was liable and the repair to my car would be fixed. We had held off on doing anything until this was done. I don't actually know if they talked to the other driver and he assumed liability (they hadn't been able to get in touch with him for several weeks) or if all of the proof I had provided (multiple pictures of his truck and insurance, screenshot of a text from him asking me not to go through insurance, etc.) proved that he was liable. But I was so excited to finally get the call so my car could be fixed and this could all be behind me!

Last Monday was a holiday and the repair shop said they could do it in one day, so we dropped it off early in the morning and picked up my car with a brand-spanking new bumper that afternoon. Life was grand :)

Until last night. I was driving home from the YMCA and sitting at a red light, waiting to turn left. I had just barely missed it (I was actually being cautious and stopped at yellow because I wasn't in any rush), so had a while to wait. I just sat there and watched all the cars drive around me... and then I felt it. A light tap that every-so-slightly bumped me forward. WHAT?!?!?! I whirled around and looked at the car behind me. They were just sitting there. I said some expletives aloud because this feeling was annoyingly too familiar. I finally rolled down my window and peeped my head out just enough so on-coming cars wouldn't decapitate me, and the other driver did the same. I yelled out that we'd pull into the lot right after turning and she agreed.

As I sat there, I thought, "What happened? Did someone hit her and it was a chain reaction? We were all just sitting there. How could this happen? Seriously, how could this happen AGAIN?" And then the light turned green and we made our way into the Detour Bar parking lot.

She was the only car that turned in after me. When we got out, she immediately started talking, "I don't know what happened! My foot must've slipped off the brake! I'm so sorry, I don't know how this happened!" Of course I told her that I'd just gotten my bumper fixed eight days ago and I'm sure that made her stomach drop. That or my big belly, which was very apparent because I was wearing a tight tank from working out. She was wearing stiletto heels, so our thought is that her foot must've pivoted while she was sitting there and she didn't realize it (distracted much?) until she idled forward and hit me.

Luckily she was nice (although I was still cautious and took all the necessary information). She started crying when giving me her phone number, so I was actually the one hugging her, telling her that it was ok and at least we weren't hurt.

Nelson obviously wasn't happy when I got home and told him, but I just had to remind him (and myself) that at least Baby Girl and I were ok, and that's what we should just be thankful for. After all, it's just a car (that had just been fixed).

It's minor bumper damage, this time on the plastic part. She had large bolts holding her front license plate in and those made nice little indentations (you can see the bottom left one below the "N" of "Highlander", the bottom right just a bit over). But now I'm going through the process all over, again. At least I know what to do?

28 (+1) Weeks Down, 12 (-1) To Go!

I'm officially in my third trimester! It's crazy to think I'm 2/3 of the way there, my appointments are going to get closer together, and Baby Girl is essentially fully developed and just gaining weight at this point. I became 28 weeks the day after Christmas and, since we were gone all week, I didn't do my belly pic or have my doctor appointment until this week - hence the strange title :)

My appointment went well, per usual. Baby Girl's heartbeat was around 140 bpm, and the nurse said it was perfect (of course she is!). I told her that we were those weird people who bought our own heart rate monitor and she didn't think we were weird. She said that she was in the office almost every day, so it was different for her, but can understand why we would. I told her that it took more effort to find the heartbeat earlier, but now I can usually hear it on both sides of my belly. Nelson mentioned that one side sounds like a galloping horse and the other is more "swooshy" sounding, and she said that's because (and she complimented his analogy) the galloping horse is hearing the heartbeat through the backbone and the "swooshy" sound is hearing it through the placenta. Pretty neat! I will say I don't listen quite as often now that I feel - and see! - her moving around consistently throughout the day.

Dr. Cowan came in and said I was one of his role model patients :) But I wonder how many pregnant ladies he tells that to in order to make them feel better as their blowing up? He's very pleased with how everything is progressing and happy that I'm doing well. I came, for the first time, with a list of questions that have come up over the past month:

• I often wake up (and fall asleep) laying on my back. Is that bad?
• No, there really aren't any official, legitimate studies that show that I can't be on my back. So long as I'm comfortable, that's fine, so sleep how I want. Woohoo!
• I stopped running about five weeks ago due to a very sore right hip flexor that seems to be sore every day. Is this a problem (the hip flexor, not the no running)? Could my hip dysplasia as a baby be a cause and, if so, will it get worse? What about during childbirth?
• The sore hip flexor is caused by more than likely a change in my gait. I have a lot more weight up front that I'm not used to carrying and I've adjusted how I walk to accommodate. Just keep stretching and taking care of it, and if it gets really bad, he would recommend physical therapy. He doesn't think it has anything to do with my hip dysplasia, but if my right leg does pop out during childbirth, he will be creeped out. (Really? You deliver thousands of babies and see everything down there and that's what creeps you out?)
• My friends with Dr. Wang get a sonogram with each visit to see position and size of the baby. Does he not do that because Baby Girl will be moving all over the place?
• Yup, he doesn't see the need to do that each time since it's most important at 36 weeks.
• I have a blood blister on my face. My sister had one and a friend has one. Is this from having more blood and the capillaries are full and one happened to burst?
• Uhhh... No, he didn't think they were related.
• If there's a cake with whiskey in it, is it bad or can I have a piece? (Note: I asked this for Jenni because Meagan made some for dinner the other night and I didn't eat a piece... because Nelson didn't want me to. I had to clarify this with him because I got a look when I asked the question.)
• If the whiskey is in a cake, it is so diluted. It's perfectly fine to have a piece. Plus, he emphasized that she's just gaining weight and everything's developed (except lungs are being refined). He said, "Off the record, having a drink every now and then during the third trimester is fine. It actually might help you sleep some nights!"

We go back in three weeks for my 32 week appointment (since we were a week late for this one), and then I start going every two weeks until 36 weeks when I switch to weekly. EEK! Nelson doesn't like to think about this too much.... The next 11 weeks are going to be super busy with a lot going on: five baby showers, Jackson's birthday, a breastfeeding class, a child and infant CPR class, and getting everything ready at home. Ladies and gentlemen, we are in the home stretch!

Mom's Take at Week 28: I can see and feel her moving all the time now. She has a pretty consistent schedule, too. I often wake up to my alarm and lay there while she tumbles around for a bit. I can tell she's awake in late morning, around 10:00 - 11:00am, and then she gets pretty active towards the end of the work day around 4:00pm. I start feeling her, again, at night before heading to bed. Dr. Cowan said we'll notice that same pattern after she's born, too. Luckily she still isn't waking me up at night and I don't have to wake up to pee (yet). My tummy lurches sometimes, too, and that's really bizarre. I've tried to get it on camera, but the best one thus far is below (you can vaguely see it on the left). I mainly took this for my co-worker who sits in front of me that thought I'd fallen asleep at my desk one day as I just sat there watching my belly intently haha :) I haven't figured out how she's in there, but I feel most kicks / punches on the left and right sides, so maybe she's horizontal? I'm still trying to do the work-outs that I can, mainly Body Pump and RPM (spin). I've done some barre and pre-natal yoga, too. The elliptical doesn't hurt my hip flexor, so I try to mix that in for my cardio. I'm starting to work on my maternity leave plan at work, and that's proving to be more stressful than I thought. Mostly because I don't have a whole lot of motivation to do much there these days ;) But I'm pretty good about planning everything at home and to prepare for her arrival, so these next few months will be plenty busy with that!

Dad's Take at Week 28: Nelson's the same. He's Nelson haha :) He has been more open about his worries and what stresses him out, so we've spent time talking through that and making him more comfortable. Unfortunately year-end just hit, so he's working super long days right now. That certainly doesn't help things, but I'm just thankful it'll (hopefully) be done before Baby Girl gets here. He likes to put his hand on my belly or stare at it in hopes of feeling or seeing her move, and I love that <3 I have to talk about the time we have left as little as possible because he starts to rub his temples or his eyes get wide or he looks around frantically. Nelson does like to ask interesting questions; for example, we were sitting at Taco Deli during breakfast yesterday morning and he asked, "What do you think our Saturdays will look like once she's here?" Uh.... I don't know. But that's the stuff he thinks about, so I go along with it and come up with ideas that aren't too far off from what we do now or his comfort zone. And that's been good enough for him now haha ;)

The weather's nice - open a window!

Here's your house update: we have windows! Not only is the house framed, but there's a roof with shingles, they've painted the eaves, and just installed windows. Up next is all of the electrical and HVAC - not very exciting in the "visual" department, but a big step in the process! We went today when it was actually light out, so I was able to take pictures of each room.

And without further adieu, a house tour:

Nelson being my ever-so-sexy model.

House entry from the front door.

Upon entering and turning left, this will be Baby Girl's room.

Here's Baby Girl's bathroom (her room is on the other side of the right wall).

Here is the guest bedroom (on the other side of the left bathroom wall).

This is the study, just behind the garage, but will probably be a downstairs playroom in the interim.

Walking further back into the house, there's the formal dining room that will probably only be used during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. (Baby Girl's room is on the other side of the left wall, and the kitchen is on the other side of the right wall.)

My kitchen <3 That middle piece will obviously be a big island with a sink, and cabinets will be all along the back wall and to the left. The right section with windows is the breakfast nook.

Shifting your gaze to the right, you see the living room (and the master bedroom back there).

Here's a better view of the master bedroom! I love that there's a water retention pond behind the house, so that should be our view forever :)

Master bathroom, enough said.

After walking up the stairs (on the right side of the picture, in front of the half bath), I went to a corner of the upstairs game room. Please note Nelson looking pensively out the window.

And then I went to the windows where Nelson was standing and snapped this view. You can see the tall entryway ceiling in the back. And that will be a half-wall so nobody can glance up and see a mess of toys - win!

So exciting to see it all coming together! And also so stressful doing this with Nelson as he looks at every single board and judges its condition and wonders if he should have them replace it....