The Anabelly at 34 weeks

I went for my 34 week check up this morning. I cannot believe that this pregnancy is almost over...and at the end of it, I am going to be responsible for a completely helpless human being!

The Good News: Anabelle has turned and is in position, she is also beginning to drop. Plus, we are both happy and healthy.

The Bad News: She is reportedly going to be a big baby. Thank God for drugs! Also, my hands and feet are starting to swell and it is hot as hell outside.

Here is a picture Don took of me yesterday, I am looking a little ragged as it was a long day at work.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all of you wonderful moms out there! I am blessed to have an awesome mom and stepmom who have both been incredible influences in my life. Equally important, I have two very wonderful grandmothers who definately played a role in shaping who I am.

So, Happy Mother's Day mom, Julie, Memaw, and Grandmother Kathleen...I love you all!

This is a picture of my mom and I on my wedding day

And here is my mom with her mom, Grandmother Kathleen

Me and my sisters with my stepmom, Julie

My dad's mom and my Memaw, whom I spent a lot of time with growing up.

LOVE IT!!

Most of you who read this blog know that we were having Anabelle's crib bumper made sinceyou provided your wonderful opinions on my fabric choices

Well, after the long wait it arrived TODAY!!

I love it, I love it, I LOVE IT!

Totally worth every penney.

We haven't yet assembled the crib so here are pics of it on our floor. Let me know what you think, I am really happy with the finished product.

Speaking of things I love, here are the gifts that Ashley, Becky, and Jennifer gave me at my shower

They had all of this stuff made to match the fabric I picked out for Anabelle's room...how smart are they?!


This is the boppy cover, burp cloth, changer, bib and what I learned is called a "taggie blankie"

This is an awesome diaper bag and wipes case.

How cute am I going to be with all of my matching gear!

Baby Showers

I have to say, I have THE most wonderful friends. Becky, Ashley, and Jennifer threw me a baby shower a couple of weeks ago at Ashley's house. We invited my close girlfriends that live here in Texas and I got a bunch more baby essentials. Most of my friends have babies now so their advice and guidance have been so valuable to me. I feel incredibly blessed to have such a wonderful support system.

Here are Robin and I, she just had a baby boy named Miller in March

This is me with my friend Renallie, I call this picture "Fat Girl With Skinny Girl"

In this picture are: Courtney, Alyson, Amy, Meri, Jennifer, Me, Ashley, and Becky

Then, last Friday, my co-workers and boss from the private practice I work in took me out to dinner at Macaroni Grill for a small shower. My boss had a really cute cake made with a baby and blanket on top (I didn't have my camera, so no pics) and they gave us some more clothes and our bassinet. Again, Don and I are just so lucky to have such wonderful people around us!

Joy And Sorrow

I have experienced a vast array of emotions this weekend. On Saturday, my close friends threw a baby shower for me that was absolutely lovely. It was so fun to have all of my girlfriends in one place and Anabelle got a bunch more cool stuff. I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful support system. I haven't had time to upload the pics but I will do that this week and post them.

This morning though, one of my best friends, Becca, sent me a text message that her Aunt Jane had taken a turn for the worse over the night. Becca has a very close knit family and her Aunt has been battling cancer for about the last 6 months. Since I grew up with Becca, I have spent a lot of time with her Aunt Jane over the years and her youngest son was friends with my brother, Aaron. I received another text message from Rebecca around noon saying that Jane had passed away. So, that was sad. Then I realized that tomorrow marks the 3 year anniversary of the death of my stepdad, Paul....things have just been so busy that I haven't been paying attention to the date.

Shortly after all of this, Don and I had to go to Baylor Hospital to begin our childbirth classes. The instructor started off by showing us a video of some births and it struck me as so profound that for these babies and for my baby, life is just beginning. Yet for other important people in my life, their journeys are ending. It awe struck me. But, you know, I actually feel really at peace with it all...especially during this Easter season when we are reminded that we have victory over death through the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.

This was the obituary for my stepdad in 2006:

Turn Baby Turn!

So, I went for my monthly doctors appointment today. It was tons of fun, I had my screen for gestational diabetes today so I had to drink this lovely sugar beverage that made me and Anabelle vibrate for about an hour. I am supposed to get a call from my doctor to let me know if I have diabetes sometime in the next couple of days. Other than that, Anabelle is doing great and her size is right on target. I did find out a couple of interesting things though.

1. I am in fact, having Braxton-Hicks contractions. I had one while the doctor was examining me. I thought that sensation was Anabelle moving. I have been telling them every month that I have not had any contractions...oops!

2. Anabelle is still in the breech position. She was in breech during my last appointment and should be moving into the birthing position, but she hasn't started doing that. My doctor said she has another 4-5 weeks to get into position before we have to start looking at options. A c-section does not scare me, so either way, I am fine. I did, however, come home and look up ways to assist Anabelle with turning and found these suggestions, which I found to be utterly ridiculous and hilarious. These are my favorites, tell me which ones you think I should try!

- Do headstands, preferrably in a pool
- Visualize the baby turning while saying something like the following:

I am lying here in a tilt, I take long breaths and relax my body. Your head presses toward my chest. The pressure of your head makes you wiggle. Come around baby! Move your head, move your body to take the pressure off. Turn around, tuck your chin and come toward my cervix. My cervix and vagina are your opening to the world. Come close, so you will be all ready to come out when the time is right and Ill be ready to welcome you. Turn around so I can welcome you, I am giving you room to turn around

- Put my iPod in my pants and play classical music
- Place a flashlight to my skin on my pelvis and play music to the baby, which will make her want to "go towards the light" as the saying goes
- Place clothespins on my pinky toes (supposedly this is an acupuncture technique)

In other news, we had a good but fairly uneventful Easter. We went to church and gave each other baskets. I hope that all of you guys had a good Easter too!

What A Weekend!!

I had a VERY wonderful but VERY busy weekend. It all started Friday morning when I went over to Robin B.'s to see her and the precious baby Miller. He is very sweet and a really good baby. Robin has had him home for a little over a week now and she is doing an awesome job. Hopefully, I will be able to adjust as easily as she has.

From there, I drove to Little Rock for the weekend for my baby shower and nephew's b-day party. On Friday night, I had dinner with my friends Kathryn and Becca, we have been friends since elementary school so it is always fun to hang out with them. I wish that I could see them more.

On Saturday afternoon, my mom and step-mom hosted a baby shower for me. It was for family and close friends, but there were a TON of people there. My family is so wonderful, they always go overboard. So, Anabelle got her first taste of what it is like to be spoiled rotten. It took me a solid hour to open all of the gifts and some creative thinking to get them all in my car. It was a really nice shower and I got to see a lot of people who are very dear to me, including my oldest sister Sarah, who flew in from L.A. for the event. Here are some pictures of the fun:

Sunday, we celebrated my nephew Lucas' 2nd birthday. He actually doesn't turn 2 until the 14th but since they were in town for the shower, we took the opportunity to celebrate. His party was at the zoo and the kids loved it. Lucas got some really cool toys too.