Another Update

30 Weeks!!!

Same day, different shirt.

So, here I am. Getting bigger by the day. Doctor says my baby seems healthy, I am measuring right on track, and my weight gain is right where it shold be. I feel like venting... I know I am not huge or anything, and I know I am supposed to be gaining weight, but it still stings every time I see myself gaining like a pound a day. Two days ago in the morning I was one weight, then this morning I had gained two pounds from that day! It just so hard/annoying to watch the numbers on the scale go up and up and up! Maybe part of it is because I know I have gained in other places rather than my belly (ie: love handles and legs... particularly my soft thighs, etc.) and I haven't done anything to prevent that. Another part is probably due to the fact that the past few days I have had to have Nate help me put on my boots because it hurts too much to bend over and try to do it myself. That was a lesson of humility and Nate is just loving every moment of it. I'll just have to work extra hard to be back in shape after my little one comes. I don't want anyone to think I am unhappy with the way I look, I think I look just fine and I know weight gain is normal and healthy and I really do feel great, but it's just watching the numbers rise that tends to throw me off. Does anyone else ever feel this way when they are pregnant? Anyway, that will be the end of my soap box. Sorry for the vent. Hope everyone is doing well!

I Love Girls Nights!

Last Friday I had a girls night with my two cousins, Val and Leslie, and two of their old roommates! It was so much fun!

Cousins: Leslie, Val, and me!

Above: The Girls!

Thanks for a fun night girls!

Little update

Baby
We just had an ultrasound on Thursday and it was SO amazing! I didn't get my profile picture, but we did get to see her face and we saw her yawn TWO times and she kept opening and closing her mouth while sticking her tongue out. It was the cutest thing ever! She also has a comfort position... she loves to have her hands up by her face. That's where they were last time and that's where they were this time. We tried for like 15 minutes to get her to move them and she wouldn't budge!

Also, I'm 27 weeks. Holy cow! I am officially about 3 months away from my due date. I just know these next few months are going to fly by! We are getting quite prepared though. A little over a week ago we bought a dresser and a crib for the baby's room. They both match and are a deep cherry color wood, and they are both absolutely beautiful. The dresser has 4 deep drawers on one side and a cabinet on the other side that has shelves in it, so it will store EVERYTHING from diapers to blankets. I was so excited! We got them both used from a couple in Salt Lake, and we got an awesome deal! So now, our baby stuff includes: a crib, a dresser, a stroller, a car seat, a bassinet, a glider, and a play yard.

Family
Nate's sister Rachel just had her 2nd baby boy, named Cameron! Also, Nate's brother Joe and his wife Naomi just had their baby last night! It's a boy and his name is Layton. Congrats to them both! Also, if any of you know my brother Mike, check out his blog post entitled "the other day". If you don't know him then you may not want to look at his post because you won't understand it the way other people who know him do. A little warning, it's slightly crude but I think it's his funniest post yet!

Birthday
My birthday was a little over a week ago. Nate was so sweet and took me out to Brick Oven for dinner the day of. Later that evening was when we bought the crib and dresser. We had the actual birthday celebration last night and he took me to Cheesecake Factory! It was SO yummy and it was a ton of fun. He also let me buy a really nice flat iron because I just got a new hair cut and need one for it and mine burnt out forever ago. Then my birthday present is a mini shopping spree, which I have not taken yet because I can't decide what to spend my money on!

Nate
Is such a great husband! He was a HUGE help to me when I had enrichment the other night. He was there helping me set up and organize. He also stayed with me during the whole thing, helping with random things, he also helped baby-sit the kids whose mom's were busy with the activity. He even stayed afterwards and helped me clean up! He really was such a great help since I was feeling really tired, stressed, and pregnant. I really love the fact that I can count on him for anything and I know he does all of this because he loves me and wants to make me happy. Anyway, sorry for the little lovey-dovey rant about Nate but he has just been so great lately. I definitely scored big time in marrying him. :)

I'll post pictures soon, I promise!

My Progression

I'm really glad I have been taking progress pictures of my belly. It has been so much fun to watch! Anyway, here is the progression of my pregnancy so far.

14 weeks

15 weeks

16 weeks

18 weeks

20 weeks (or close to it)

24 weeks

I feel like I am growing so much more quickly now! I look back at the earlier pictures when I was so convinced I was showing. I will say that I WAS showing, but compared to what I look like now, that was nothing! I know I'll only be getting bigger.

As for the baby, she is kicking up a storm!!! I first felt her move at 14 weeks but it was really really faint. Starting at 20 weeks, I starting feeling her kick SO STRONGLY! And now, she has only gotten stronger! I can honestly see my stomach moving when she moves and Nate has even been able to feel her kick that strongly since 20 weeks! I think I just have a really strong baby and it will probably hurt toward the end. I'm just praying for no broken ribs!

Nate and I are doing well. We're both busy working. He is getting ready to start school again soon and is beginning to prepare for interviews for recruiting season this fall. We're both excited, anxious, and nervous. The next couple of months will be very very busy and will just fly by! We love this time of our lives and how we are just living so spontaneously! Life is good!

Shopping Spree!!!!

Yesterday I was finally able to go buy some maternity clothes. I have been getting bigger and bigger lately, not all my shirts are fitting anymore!! I also thought I had a stomach ache yesterday but really, my stomach muscles were just expanding! I wasn't the best feeling and getting bigger makes you feel... well... big. Anyway, my mom and step-dad are in town and they came with Nate and I to go shopping, and they were so nice to buy me 2 dresses and 2 shirts! Nate and I bought a bunch of shirts and a pair of pants and they are all SO CUTE!!! The best part of the trip was that Nate saw my huge pile of clothes that I had and decided he would come in the dressing room with me to speed up the process. So he wouldn't let me hang anything up and he had the next shirt ready for me after I had gone out and showed my parents my clothes. He didn't mind shopping when the process goes by a lot quicker and he actually had something to do rather than just sit and wait! Yea for shopping! Below are some of the outfits we bought.

Hilarious

I may be biased, but I think my baby is just down right hilarious! She isn't even born yet and she has already got loads of personality! She probably has no idea what she's doing but it seems like everything she does is intentional. Here are the reasons why...

1) Well this isn't so funny, more sweet than anything. When we went to our ultrasound and found out about her clubfeet, I was really bummed because I couldn't get a profile picture because she was facing my spine, showing us her back side. When we found out that clubfeet could be related to some spinal defects, we were so grateful that with her position we were able to get a really good look at her spine. Such a blessing in disguise because I know now that I would have been freaking out even more if we just had an "okay" view.

2)This is sweet and funny. She has been kicking up a storm! The kicks became so strong beginning in my 20th week, which let me know that she is really able to move her legs. I mean seriously, you can see my stomach moving and everything! I just really feel like she's trying to let me know that everything is going to be okay.
The funny part of this is that every time I lean forward when I am sitting down, the little girl we love so much just kicks and punches until I straighten up and give her more space... the ATTITUDE she has!! Furthermore, Nate went to hold my hand the other day and had his arm resting across my belly and she decided to kick his arm until he moved it! For some reason, this is absolutely hilarious to me. Can you imagine when she gets bigger?!! What will happen when I wear a pair of pants and she doesn't like where the waist band sits? We're going to see full on fists flying out at anything that makes her feel a little less comfortable. I might not think it's so hilarious then, but really... the attitude is great!

3) I'm pretty sure she knows where my bladder is and thinks it's funny to step, hit, or nudge it in any way. Today, I almost lost bladder control about 20 times during school. I'm just sitting there, taking my test when all of a sudden I could swear that I was going to pee my pants in front of everyone! It's like she has found a new pillow or toy that she just can't get enough of. Needless to say, I have had to make several bathroom trips to avoid any accidents that may come my way. And yes... I know it will only get worse.

Anyway, we're feeling much better about her and her situation and I feel like I can tell she has some personality already coming out. It's getting me so excited for her to be here!!

Drumroll please....

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!! Haha, Nate and I are SO excited and happy to know that we have a sweet little daughter growing inside me. At first she was being really shy so the ultrasound tech kept poking at her to open her legs and finally she went spread eagle! She already has her mother and father's (mostly mother's) stubborn personality! Anyway, we weren't able to get a profile picture of her face because she was facing my back, but we did get a good look at her spine, heart, and brain and everything there looks good so far!

One thing they did find, however, was that her feet didn't develop properly. It's a condition called Clubfoot (basically her feet are turned inward). So yesterday and today we've been researching about it, and we've come across several people who had it when they were younger (including Mia Hamm, Troy Aikan, and Kristi Yamaguchi) and some friends whose baby has it now. Of course it's a concerning thing, but they did a thorough ultrasound and are pretty certain that this has only affected her feet and nothing else. It is also something that is correctable in almost all cases (especially if it is only affecting her feet). We won't know exactly what her situation will be until she is born. More than likely she'll have to go through some treatment right after she's born for a little while, and luckily they have clinics in Utah that specialize in treating it. We feel really confident that things will work out the way the Lord intends them to.

Anyway, we don't want people to feel sorry for us. More than anything, we feel sorry for our precious baby, but everyone says she won't even remember it when she is older. We also don't want people to feel like they can't talk to us about it or ask questions. We're concerned, but the last thing we want to do is avoid the situation like it doesn't exist. We love our little girl more than anything and this little trial she will have to go through just makes us love her even more. She is already such a blessing in our life and we're so grateful that the Lord is entrusting her in our hands.