I don't think I've posted anything about the house since we actually got it, and it's starting to finally take shape! Below are some pictures with the dates that I took them. I try to swing by a couple times per week, potentially more now that progress is actually visual. It took a while for permits to be approved, but now that they're framing, it's actually looking like a real home <3
July 6: They finally poured the street!
September 7: They put backyard gates in. We have a black rod-iron one, and across the street has wooden.
October 3: They had framed for the foundation and were starting to fill it with dirt!
October 12: They spread the dirt (hahaha - what a great update, I know).
October 28: They had more dirt in, and were digging trenches and putting in pipes!
November 9: They put the black tarp over it, and this is when we realized the slab pouring was getting close!
November 16: We were at this stage for a while. It had been raining and they were waiting on inspections. Plus we've been neck-and-neck with the house next to us, so they could've been holding things up since we're pouring together.
November 22: We have a foundation!!! It was a lot more fun to walk on the actual concrete and think, "This is where Baby Girl will sleep" <3 You can also tell how high up the back porch will be. At least there's a good breeze?
November 30: As I started driving down the street, I got really excited when I saw they had started framing!!! Eek!!!
I think we're still on an April / May completion date, so hopefully we stick to the schedule and the holidays don't delay anything. Fingers crossed xx
I'm officially on the back-end of the countdown! 24 weeks is a pretty big milestone because viability outside the womb is almost certain. Baby Girl (that's what I call her now, so I'm switching from Bean to that) basically has all her organs and everything developed. She'll just be spending the next 16 weeks enhancing them (i.e. hearing, eyesight, etc.) and putting on weight.
This appointment was also a big one because I did the glucose test. The nurse had given me the drink (I chose fruit punch) and instructions before we left our last appointment, and it has been sitting in the fridge since. I went to the YMCA downtown early this morning and showered there to avoid Mopac traffic, so drank my juice while I got ready. You hear so many stories about how badly it tastes, but I thought it was actually pretty yummy! And my friends who had just done it talked about how jittery they felt the rest of the day, and I felt just fine. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.... But I'd like to think all my ice cream, cookie, and pie eating has trained me well for this day.
I got to Dr. Cowan's office just before 8:00am for our appointment. As I walking in, I called Nelson to see where he was. He was walking to his car downtown! He thought the appointment was at 8:30, so I told him to not worry about it. We weren't getting a sonogram, it was just a check-up, and then I'd do the blood work. So poor Nelson missed this one.
The appointment itself was pretty uneventful. The protein in my urine was normal, my blood pressure was normal, and Baby Girl's heartbeat was about 140 bpm, so normal. The nurse (who was from another office, but just helping Dr. Cowan that day) did freak me out a little bit because she was telling me how she had her little girl at 24 weeks 2 days, and she has mild cerebral palsy, was stillborn for about 5 minutes, and only has 1/4 of the back of her brain. So of course I'm paying super close attention to every feeling I get this week. But I just think about what I told her, that her little girl sounds happy and that's all that matters, and I feel (a little) better.
Dr. Cowan and I just chatted about some stuff, but everything's all good. I told him we were scheduled for our classes already - first one on Saturday! - and he seemed impressed. Since week 28 falls during the holidays, we won't be going back until I'm technically 29 weeks. That's super freaky to think about!
Mom's Take at Week 24: Baby Girl has been on the move. I'm feeling her a lot more now. It took a while since I have the anterior placenta, but there have been moments where I happen to be looking at my tummy right as she kicks / punches, and you can actually see it pop out. It hasn't been disruptive or kept me up at night (yet), so I'm still in the fun stages. Baby showers are officially in the works! It's weird to think that the holidays are approaching quickly, then we have showers and finish up classes, and by that point our bags should be packed just in case Baby Girl decides to take after her cousins and come four weeks early. I'm feeling pretty good about everything going on and the planning; I only start to stress as I think about bringing her back to Grandma's and where will she sleep and how will I pack with a newborn and how will I unpack with a newborn.... I need to stop writing about it now.
Dad's Take at Week 24: Nelson felt her for the first time last week a couple days before Thanksgiving! Most of the movements are sporadic, so it's hard for me to time it well. But one night I was on the couch and he was laying on the floor, and I felt like she was awake and active. I told him to come sit by me and see if he could feel. The first movement must've been like a graze because I actually didn't feel it, but he goes, "I felt it! I felt it! I felt it!" and immediately put his hand back. This happened, again, another graze, and his reaction was the same. The third time was an actual punch / kick that I could feel. It was fun to see him excited about it :) Other than that, he just stares at my bare tummy and comments on how big it is - so thoughtful. I think he's in for a rude awakening come week 34 haha! He's still been very supportive and loving and helpful, and part of it (I think) is because he knows how emotional I am right now and how easily I cry ;)
Since we'll be going to Southlake for Christmas, we spent Thanksgiving in Clear Lake with Nelson's mom and sister (his dad left for Taiwan on Tuesday). I was terrible and took zero pictures, so I'll just include one from my company's Thanksgiving potluck the week prior. I think I was the only person who took two plates from the get-go, but I am technically two people, right?
We drove to Houston Wednesday after Nelson got home from work, and spent the evening having dinner with Dennis and Kim and playing games. It was super low key and exactly my kind of fun :)
Thursday morning, Nelson and I met up Sally and Andrew for coffee / chai. I haven't seen her in so long, we had A LOT to catch up on. It was so good to see her and made me realize how much I miss talking to her regularly <3 The rest of the afternoon was spent lounging and napping. Nelson's mom got the turkey from Kroger and it was a "meal deal" that included the sides, so I just cooked a pecan pie at home and brought that. Everything else just had to be re-heated. We feasted, and then Nelson and I went on a short walk to get the blood flowing to places outside of the tummies.
Friday afternoon, Nelson and I went back to Dennis' to watch the UT game, and that was pretty much it for that day - perfect!
Yesterday morning, we all went to the YMCA to work some of that Thanksgiving meal off, and that evening went over to my dad's and Patty's for dinner. He smoked the best turkey and Patty made all her delicious sides, including a really yummy pie. It was like a Thanksgiving meal without all the hustle bustle of the actual day. It was fun seeing them and showing off my growing tummy, too :)
This morning, Nelson and I went to Clear Lake Chinese Church with his mom. Evidently they went there when he was born before switching to Houston Chinese Church, so it was funny to see all the women react to how much he had grown. And then they all had to tell me what a huge baby he was. The sermon was following up on the theme of Thanksgiving, and the pastor announced that everyone would be coming up to the front to tell the congregation what they give thanks to God for. After giving Nelson a glaring look that said, "Where did you bring me?!" and looking around to make sure there weren't too many people in attendance, I started thinking about the past year. While there have been sad events, like the passing of both Grandma and Nǎinai and Lindsay moving to Southlake, there have been so many things with which I've been blessed. Nelson and I both have great jobs, we're in the process of building a new house, and we have a healthy baby girl on the way; our families are all healthy and happy; and we have wonderful and supportive friends in our lives. We were sitting up near the front, so were maybe the fourth or fifth ones to go. I walked up to the microphone, bent down (tall people problems), and said, "I give thanks to God for my healthy and growing family." Short, brief, and to the point. And it couldn't be more true.
We met up Leanne and Rudy for lunch before heading back to Austin to prep for the work week ahead of us. It was a great Thanksgiving holiday spent exactly how I think it should be spent - with family, with lots of food, and with no agenda.
Our plans for this past weekend were to go to College Station early Saturday morning for the Aggie football game against UTSA with the Crew group, and then spend the night hanging out with them and catching up. We'd have breakfast on Sunday morning at Nevels' (really Baker, but she will forever be Nevels) house, and then head back to Austin for some things happening here.
Nelson called me Friday morning to let me know that his Nǎinai (dad's mom) had passed away the night before. She had Alzheimer's and had been living in a hospital-type nursing home for some time, and we visited here there when we went to Taiwan. When Nelson's parents were there last month, her health took a turn, so they were prepared. His dad booked a flight for this Tuesday to go back and help with arrangements and be with family. Therefore, Nelson wanted to go to Houston and see his dad before he left. Unfortunately, I had some of the groups' tickets, and then Nelson's parents didn't want us to drive down Friday night due to bad weather, so we were able to figure out a way to do a little of both.
We woke up early and met Erin, Adrian, and Reidy (again, really Mowrey, but she will forever be Reidy) at Post Oak Mall to take the bus to campus. We got there about 45 minutes before kick-off, so took the opportunity to take some pictures in front of the newly renovated Kyle Field. It really is amazing how much things are changing over there; I didn't even recognize a lot of it.
My little Longhorn in Aggieland :)
The whole gang <3 (L to R: Josh, Kimberly, Brian, Joe, Scott, Jenni, Catherine, Reidy, Nelson, Ben, me, Nevels, Kevin, Erin, Pandios, and Adrian)
Luckily it wasn't an intense game that took a lot of watching because I really didn't see much. I spend most of the game playing musical bleachers and talking with everyone (I am my mother's daughter). Since we weren't staying the night anymore, I wanted to make sure I got in as much catch-up time as possible!
I'm so glad I had let Erin and Reidy know that we would be leaving right after the game the night before because Nevels had actually planned a surprise baby shower for me and Kimberly for Sunday's breakfast! So we were able to make a quick adjustment and all went to her house after the game for a mini-shower :) It was so sweet and I absolutely loved it - even if we could only stay about an hour. She had decorated and had some snacks to munch on.
Kimberly and I took turns opening gifts, including clothes, bows, beautiful handmade blankets by Nevels herself, and a changing pad cover! (Not the most flattering pictures of me, but this is life.)
I had so much fun celebrating the arrival of Bean with some of my closest friends, and absolutely cannot wait until she's here and can meet everyone! We'll still have to get together for our annual reunions; they'll just look a little different with naps and earlier wake-up times :)
We left the shower and went straight to Clear Lake to spend the rest of the weekend with Nelson's parents. It was good to see them (we hadn't since mid-September!) and spend time together. While we mourn the loss of Nǎinai, we can celebrate the full life that she lived with her husband and four beautiful children. And much like G was excited about, she had a glorious reunion in Heaven when she got there <3
Well that was a first, and probably a last. And it was too good of an experience not to fully document. Let's give a little history, shall we?
Electronic Dance Music (EDM) has been the new genre of music for a little while, and I've taken a liking to it. I listen to a station on my XM radio with those songs. I'll admit, not all are for me, but most have a really good rhythm and they're all mostly upbeat. When we went to Nelson's friend's birthday party at the spin studio, that was all of the music we rode to, and Nelson realized he liked it, too. There's a specific DJ, Marshmello, that he really liked. In his usual stalking of a new interest, he found out Marshmello was playing (is that the right term for a DJ?) in San Marcos, so we talked about potentially going. His friend found out, and before we knew it, we had a little group for the show!
Fast forward a month and the night was finally here! Since it started at 9pm and finished at 2am (!!!) on a Thursday, and I'm 22 weeks pregnant, I knew in advance I couldn't hang and go to work the next day, so I strategically took Friday off :) We met Nelson's friends in San Marcos for a quick bite before heading over to the venue, The Marc.
Side note: I had a couple concerns regarding the night:
Since we were getting there before 9pm and it was going to last until 2am, would I be able to eat if I got hungry?
Will there be a place for me to sit? I wore my Converse shoes, but even non-pregnant Holly would've been tired of standing that long.
When we arrived, I decided to address my concerns as quickly as possible. The door girl, upon scanning our tickets, mentioned, "If you leave, you won't be able to come back in until midnight." WHAT?! So I said, "What if I get hungry?" and she said, "You can have food delivered to the door." Concern #1 solved. And just to get it out of the way, I never got hungry, so this wasn't even an issue.
The place was empty. Nelson's friend, Lawrence, kept pulling up pictures of Marshmello's latest show in LA so we could see how packed it was. "Lawrence, that's LA. This is San Marcos." Until things picked up, I decided to address concern #2. I found someone who worked there and inquired if there was anywhere to sit besides the bottle service tables. The guy said sorry, there wasn't. So I casually held my now obvious pregnant belly and said, "Really? There's nowhere?" He took one look and goes, "Oh! Yes, we can definitely find something for you." There was a blocked-off little balcony area between the lights / sound booth and a bar on the lower level, so he put a chair there just for me! He said that if anyone asked, just tell them Hector said it was ok. Here's my VIP (Very Important Pregger) chair:
I went back down to hang out with Nelson and the guys for a little bit. The place slowly started to fill, and Nelson suggested I go sit until it picked up so I'd be better later in the night. I headed up to my VIP chair and did some serious people-watching. Only one employee asked who I was, and I said I was with Hector. My weird choice of wording confused him, and I was standing by now, so I pointed to my belly and he goes, "You're good!" Nobody wants to mess with a pregnant lady. After an hour, I headed back down to hang out. The people-watching was just as good down on the floor.
I look crazy and Nelson looks drugged, but we know we're neither!
One particular girl I noticed come in when I was resting earlier was wearing just spandex shorts and a white sports bra with the Marshmello eyes. She was dancing near us on the floor, and it was very apparent she was under the influence of something (how old am I?!). There's a reason I'm bringing her up. The first DJ came out and it was fun; we didn't really know what to do, so just kinda stood around. The crowd got fuller and fuller, and tighter and tighter. Nelson seemed concerned about protecting me (and Bean) from anyone around us, and it was starting to get uncomfortable with just so many people. I mean, this is one of the reasons I don't go to ACL or stuff like that - I don't really like crowds. So I told Nelson I was headed back to my VIP space until Marshmello came out. It wasn't very easy getting out of the crowd, so I had pretty much figured I was never getting back in, and I was ok with that.
I'm sitting in my chair, enjoying myself, and sports bra girl is suddenly standing next to me at the railing. So many things happened over the next couple hours, and a friendship was born. Here are some of the highlights of my night with Kennedy:
When she talked to me, her face was about 3" from mine and her breath had a very distinctive smell.
Suddenly, her arm was around my shoulders, her phone was in front of us, and we took a Snapchat selfie.
She learned I was pregnant, asked to touch my belly, and also asked if I had a boyfriend or "what my situation was."
Kennedy came over, again, with her phone ready for another selfie, so I go, "Oh, we're taking another one?" to which she replied, "Oh.... did we already take one???"
She asked where I was from. This following conversation ensued:
Me: Austin.
Kennedy: I live in Austin, too. Where?
Me: South Austin.
Kennedy: Do you know where The Domain is? Up there?
Me: No, south of downtown.
Kennedy: I used to work at Barton Creek. There?
Me: Yeah, that's south, but I'm a little further south.
Kennedy: (pause) Ok, so like San Antonio?
Me: Too far south.
I learned that she was a 21 year old student at UT studying Fashion Merchandising. She was working and putting herself through school, so she had 2 more years left. No, her parents weren't helping, and she seemed a little bitter. I told her it'd make it that much more special that she did it on her own when she graduates, evidently the same thing her parents are saying.
She suddenly kicks her right leg up onto the railing like she's stretching her hamstring. She bends over because she can't stand very well, so I eventually lean over and say, "Sweetie, you should take your leg down because it doesn't look very appropriate from the back." Again, how old am I?!
I saw some of her designs from a school project.
Kennedy took amazing selfie Snapchat videos. I don't know if she was sending them or posting them to her story (or whatever), but she would drag her hand down her face really slowly.
I'm amazed at how well she's texting all of her friends. She's doing all these things on her phone, and I can't figure out how she's able to do this so well, but she's having a really hard time standing against the railing. Then I start to think about the phone I had at her age, and how there wasn't a thing called "auto-correct", so maybe that's why she can do this.
When the last opener finishes and walks off, everyone knows Marshmello is coming up next. We're all waiting, and Kennedy turns to me and goes, "Are they gonna play another album and we'll all have a good time?" What?
I notice her screen is getting really dark and I wonder how she can still see as she texts. I should've clued in that her battery was dying, because it did. And then she was left figuring out how she was going to find her friends, her ride home, without her phone. She asked me a couple times if I knew them (she said their first and last names), but alas, I did not.
At one point during Marshmello, she turned to me and said, "I don't care about the election either." Again - what?
Kennedy finally saw her friends (or so she thought?). The show was almost over, so I asked if she was going to them so they'd be together. She gave me a great hug (smushing my face into her arm and getting glitter all over me, I realized when I got home) and walked out. I turned to watch the staircase down to the show floor to make sure she got down there ok... and I never saw her, again.
Kennedy - wherever you are, I hope you made it home safely. And I hope you felt ok this morning when you woke up.
Here are a couple videos I took so that you'd get a feel for a true EDM show :)
After the show, Nelson and his friends met me by my VIP section. I immediately noticed his hair was wet, although I could see him the whole time and it surely wasn't sweat from dancing. No, people were doing champagne showers - fancy!
We drove home, showered, and went to bed around 3:15am. All in all, it was a really fun night! I saw an EDM DJ I like, I got a couple free bottles of water from staff who had pity on the pregnant girl, and got quite a few stares (#motheroftheyear) from kids. But I think it's something to check off the bucket list, because not sure another show will top the one I saw with Kennedy :)
Note from Nelson: He'd like to try a show in Las Vegas because he thinks they'll be classier there. So who knows if that really was the last one....
This weekend was a lot of errand running (maybe because we were both finally in town and had things to cross off our lists?) with a few "giving" events mixed in.
On Friday night, Nelson hurried home from work to come get me for the Boys & Girls Club of Austin Annual Gala. RetailMeNot had sponsored a table, and the GM of Gift Cards asked Nelson if we wanted to go. I don't think it's exactly what he wanted to do on a Friday night after a tiring week, but we never go to stuff like this, so it'd be a fun experience - plus I was pretty sure the food would be on point. So we dolled up (Nelson in his suit and me in a big dress with high waisted belt to accentuate the pregnant belly versus Pad Thai lunch) and headed to the Hyatt Regency. A couple highlights / things I took with me from the night:
Before it started in the ballroom, we were all hanging out in the Silent Auction space in the foyer. There were Boys & Girls Club kids dressed up and talking to attendees, sharing their experiences with the club and how it's impacted their life. Cue the waterworks from the pregnant girl. Nelson asked if I wanted to talk to them and of course I could not because my tears would probably turn to sobs. Ugh.
Rich people don't stop talking for programs to start. It was kind of sad how many times Jim Spencer, the emcee, had to get people to tap their glasses to get others to stop talking. Rude.
Never wear a belt that is fitted and just-not-snug to something where you'll eat a lot, especially when you know your belly grows after eating. That belt couldn't come off fast enough (read: before we were even in the parking garage).
From the live auction and paddle donating alone, almost $500,000 was raised for the Boys & Girls Club of Austin, which was so amazing in itself. It was great being around so many selfless people who were dropping $13,000 on a trip to France at the drop of a hat.
Saturday was pretty much reserved for errands: Old Navy, Target, HEB, Warby Parker. You get the gist.
Sunday morning, we woke up early to head downtown for Run For The Water. This is an annual 10 mile and 5k run that The Gazelle Foundation hosts. Each registration provides 1 person in Burundi, Gilbert's home, clean water for life. I knew I was already pregnant when I registered, so Sarah (also pregnant) and I did the 5k. We headed over to the start together, took some pictures, went potty, and got ready to run!
It was so different from all other races we do: we weren't insistent on getting up to the front to avoid all the walkers and neither of us was wearing a watch (or even looked at the race clock when starting). We were running this purely for fun! Nelson, our cheerleader, was there at the end to support us through the finish :)
We chatted the whole race, mostly about pregnancy and baby stuff, made sure we didn't trip, and didn't even notice the time when we crossed haha :) Nelson looked it up later and we ended up running a 31:43 5k, a 10:10 pace. Definitely not what we're used to, but those tummies are new to us, too. The whole point of races is to have fun, and we definitely did! And it's also a good feeling knowing a couple people in Burundi now have clean water for life <3
