Lillian Claire's Baby Shower

I finally finished all the thank you cards for Lillian's gifts so I figured now I can post why we are so thankful.

On January 20th our church threw a baby shower for Lillian. We I say it was amazing that's an understatement. We were beyond blessed by all the people that attended and showered us with gifts. We literally got everything we would need and more. Kevin was back in Huntsville so i called him after the shower and just went on and on about how we can't move because so many people here already love Lillian.  Sadly, Kevin's job trumps a good baby shower so we still must move but let me show you how amazing our church family is.

The hostesses did a fantastic job with the decorations and food. Showers typically have frou-frou food which means i usually eat the crackers and cake. Not this shower, they made all foods i love to eat, some of the items included, sausage balls (which i craved early on in my pregnancy), pig n a blanket, chicken fingers(of course) chips and cheese dip (which was so good i need the recipe so if you made it let me know!) Cesar salad (i needed something healthy), fruit, and rice krispe treats! And yes i did go back for seconds once everyone else had a chance to get some and i continued to eat while i opened presents. lol. I did not go hungry that night. Here are a couple pictures of the food and amazing table decorations. (thanks to Danielle for taking all the pictures)

Thanks to Mrs. Charlotte for making Lillian's name and that awesome 

owl and she also made the blocks below

The Food!

My Lovely hostesses minus a few

The very yummy cake and punch.(had a couple of helpings of this punch)

We had so many people come and so many gifts that i think it ended up taking a hour and a half to open them all. By the time we were done there may have been 10 people left. It was such an encouragement to see all of these wonderful ladies there to celebrate Lillian. I have been going to this church since i was born and a lot of these ladies helped me to become the Christian i am today and i am so thankful for each of them. 

Everything we need for Lillian

Amazing Godly Women

Me and my mom (Nana to Be)

This is one of the ladies from our Young Couples bible class presenting me with a baby bible that everyone in our class signed for us.

  

You can see the bible better here. Kevin expressed it great when he said this Bible will always be a symbol of God in her life and a daily reminder of everyone's love and generosity.   

Kevin and I cannot express how thankful, grateful, overwhelmed, blessed, appreciative we are of our friends and family and cannot wait for Lillian to make her arrival and introduce her to the people who are so special to us. I know the only people who read this are family or people we attend church with but if you need a church home definitely try out Snellville Church of Christ in Snellville GA. 

Numbers 6:24-26

The LORD bless you, and keep you; The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.'

33 WEEKS IN REVIEW

This picture was (for once) actually taken when I was 33 weeks, may have been 33 weeks and 6 days but still technically 33 weeks. The belly is definitely getting big!

Symptoms: No new symptoms necessarily since i last posted at 30 weeks. But i have felt more uncomfortable and different pains over the last two weeks. A lot of it has just been my lower left back where  i feel i pulled a muscle and i can never stretch it out. (this is what i thought last time was the sciatic nerve and the doctor said it was some kind of pelvic arthritis or whatever) I have also noticed i'll wake up in the early morning and my leg feels asleep so i will flop over to my other side and wake up again with that leg asleep. Its more uncomfortable and annoying than painful. sometime during week 31 I went down to the Atlanta Mart Show while my sister was working and we walked around so much I wore myself out. But that was when I had my first painful symptom in my stomach. It felt like a knife going in to me. Literally the worst kind of cramp you could imagine times 100. i figured it was probably i was just on my feet too much and probably very dehydrated. Makes me worried for when i start to feel braxton hicks or contractions. My belly button is very sensitive to touch but no stretch marks anywhere yet and I pray it stays that way. 

Weight: unfortunately when Kevin moved to Alabama he took our scale with him so i have no idea how much weight i have gained. My last doctors appointment i had only gained 2 lbs since the previous one 2 weeks earlier so I pray I have stayed consistent. I did end up taking off my rings about mid-week 31. They still fit but at times would get tight and I did not want to have to worry about them getting stuck. And i am still proud that my belly button hasn't popped out yet. Not that it would be a bad thing but I have an innie (how would you spell that) and literally everyone close to me has an innie so I'm just not used to what an outtie (sp? again lol) would look like. 

Cravings: no cravings so far this trimester. I have been trying to not  eat as many sweets and try to eat more of the healthy stuff i should be eating. I'm pretty proud of myself considering how picky of an eater I am.Once she is born and eating real food her daddy will be making sure he teaches her what is good and to not look at how many carrots mommy stuffs in her napkin. :)

Movement: She is still going strong with her ninja kicks and she must be playing Just Dance in there because she is always moving. The times i always notice her the most is after meals and as I am just heading off to sleep. Luckily she's pretty calm during night time hours so maybe she'll sleep those hours too when she is here. 

Dr. Appt: My doctors appointment isn't until Tuesday but I did have one at 32 weeks. My sister was in town so she went with me which was fun b/c she got to hear the heartbeat. The doctor said when he first started listening her heartbeat was about 175 which is high and then he said she came down to about $160 which is okay but was still high to me because she normally is around 145. He said nothing to worry about, and I'm sure I should have mentioned I had a coke about an hour before my appointment so that probably didn't help. 

Best Moment this week: We had our baby shower at church and it was beyond words amazing and such a blessing. I will post about it next .

Maternity Photoshoot

What an awesome weekend! Kevin came home to visit. He surprised me and got there early Friday evening instead of late Friday night. So thankful he has an awesome job that allows him to do that. Especially with us living in separate states right now. Friday night we hung out and chowed down on my favorite chinese take out place Peking Cafe and enjoyed being together again.  It's hard being apart, especially being hormonal pregnant, but we will survive.

Saturday we went and cleaned out the rest of house because… WE HAVE A RENTER!!! We are so thankful it happened so quickly and very pleased with the person moving into our home. It’s one less bill we have to worry about right now. I also got my haircut Saturday (just getting it washed felt soooo relazing) and then the real fun began.

One of our dear friends from church is a photographer and Kevin had helped her setting up a website. She is a fantastic person and very talented photographer so naturally Kevin asked if she would take pictures for us. It was my Christmas present from Kevin to have maternity pictures taken and then once Lillian is born she will do a newborn shoot as well. I cannot tell you how pleased and happy we are with the pictures she took. She was a lot of fun, she was more excited about it than we were i think :) and she had some great ideas (which was great b/c I had no clue going into it what to do). Please go like her Facebook page here or her website is http://jessicawoodphoto.com/ and you can see for yourself how talented she is. Here are a few of the pictures below she has already edited for us. You'll have to check out her page to see more.

 

 

She made the banner with Lillian Claire’s name on it and bought the balloons. How cool is that gigantic pink one. It was actually pretty “heavy” a couple of those bad boys and we would have been starring in the sequel to “Up”.

Sunday we had our first shower at church for Lillian and that deserves a post of its own. Great weekend to start a new week.

Hospital Bag

First off, I realize I may be a little premature in thinking about this but i like to be organized and maybe there is a small hope she will come just a few weeks early. Hopefully not for at least 5 more weeks though. Secondly, obviously i have no prior experience in what needs to be included in a hospital bag for birth but I have done my research and this is what I have found. Granted my research was done on Pinterest, so any advice is welcomed.

For Mom:
Apparel:
Comfy Robe
Nursing bra/Cami
flip flops for the shower
slippers or socks if i have to walk around the nasty hospital floors
granny panties ( i read hospitals give mesh ones but who knows if my hospital is the same)

Toiletries:
soap/shampoo
toothbrush/paste
pads

Misc:
nursing cream/pads
chapstick
pony tail holder (although i always have one on my wrist)
Boppy pillow
my pillow
Water bottle
Camera
Ipad
chargers for above mentioned
Insurance card
ID

For Lillian:
Coming home outfit
2 sleepers
mittens
hat
swaddle blankets
burp cloth
baby book (if i ever go get one)

For Dad:
Ha! he is on his OWN!

Car seat will already be in the car so we won't have to worry about that. And luckily we are maybe 10 minutes from the hospital so if we need anything or have to stay long than expected Kevin can always run home for something.
Again, for those "been there done that" mommies out there let me know if I am forgetting anything or if I am wasting valuable space with any of these items.

2013 new beginnings!

2013 is a year of blessings and new beginnings for our little family. I am not a fan of change usually but I am very excited about all the changes happening this year. We will be welcoming our first baby, Kevin starts his new career, I will become a stay at home mom and we are moving to Huntsville Alabama. Never would I have thought we would move to Alabama but after visiting just twice I am excited.

With the help of our amazing friends/church family This last week/weekend Kevin loaded up our entire house into a 26 ft uhaul truck.

I Still have no idea how it all fit but I know it was all because of the help we had to get it packed. I think they had the whole truck loaded within 4 hrs. Kevin and my dad left on Thursday morning to head out of GA and to our new rental home in Huntsville. Kevin had hired 2men through a service with Uhaul to help him unload when he got there bc we didn't know of we would have anyone to help there and we have big furniture. Luckily one of our friends from church has a cousin that lives in Huntsville and they offered to help get some people from their church to help. Such amazing thing to be part of the church and the willingness of fellow Christians. They had a few guys, one being the preacher, come and help Kevin unload the truck and got it done again in like 4 hrs. The women also brought us some dinner, water, snacks, and yummy cookies. We are so thankful for their help and so glad to have met them. Friday morning my mom and I drove to Huntsville to unpack everything. It only took us about 3hrs 45min. so its a nice quick easy ride. We didn't have very much to unpack except the kitchen. I didn't realize how much stuff I have and I'm not even a big cooker or baker. I was very thankful to have my mom and dad there to help. They were a little tired Saturday...

We didn't have anything to do Saturday so naturally mom and I went shopping! I bought my first thing for the nursery, a rug, it's soft and nice bc the house we are renting is all hardwoods except one room. With all of our stuff moved in I told Kevin it already feels like home and I hate that I had to leave. I am staying in Georgia with my parents until after Lillian is born. This way I won't be somewhere new and new doctors and get to introduce Lillian to all the family and friends that already love her here. I've already realized how hard it is without Kevin but I am continuing to work to bring in a littl extra cash and know it will be worth it when I get to stay home with her instead of working.

 We ended up visiting Chase Park Church of Christ www.cpcofc.org on Sunday and so happy we did. This is the church that our new friends/moving helpers attend. EVERYONE was so friendly and we met so many people. We tried one other church there too last time I visited and loved it too. We thought for sure that is where we would end up going but felt like we could do more at chase park since it is quite a bit smaller. We love our young couples class at our church here in Ga and are sad and will really miss them when we leave. Hopefully i can find some crafty girls in AL to have a GNO with, if not i'll just come back to GA each month. :)

Kevin actually started his new job yesterday. He is working for a company called Northrop Grumman and after his first day he loves it. I was so happy to hear he loves it. Having a job you love makes it so much easier to wake up and know you will enjoy the day.

30 weeks

As i write this i am 31 weeks and 3 days, i think i will always be behind when i write these. This week was a big one. Lillian made sure all week that I knew she was still there and the pregnancy symptoms came out of the woodworks.

 

kevin is no longer here to take my picturefor me.

Symptoms: where to begin. This week was the hello incase you didn't realize you're pregnant week. My fingers started swelling more. at the beginning of the week i could still wear my rings but by the end of week 30 i would put the, on and few minutes later have a really hard time getting them off, so i am not weari them now but my hand feels so naked without them. I have also had a pain in my left booty/lower back. Everyone told me thought it was the sciatic nerve but the doctor said it was something about pelvic arthritis b.c of hormones, I don't know what it is but it hurts. I have also noticed in the mornings my legs fall asleep so I have to switch from one side to the other to sleep. And lastly my face started breaking out slightly this week too. :( I'm am still thankful it took this long to really have any symptoms and that they are not any major health problems for myself or Lillian.

Weight: luckily there hasn't been any weight difference in the last two weeks I seem to be holding steadily although my belly feels like it is sticking out way further.

Cravings: no cravings and my appetite is back to normal. I haven't been one of those preggos  that eats junk all the time but I may or may not use the fact that I am pregnant to eat 3 krispy Kreme donuts vs 2.

Movement: Lillian moved around alot this week. Which I don't mind at all bc it's not like it hurts and it's comforting to know she's still in there and growing. She did kick me really hard one morning in church and it made me jump.

Dr. Appt: I did have a normal weekly checkup this week and I finally got to meet the last doctor, Dr. Walker, I really liked him and he actually talked to me instead of just measuring and looking for heartbeat.

Other happenings: big week this week for our little family. Kevin moved out to Huntsville and starts his new job on jan. 7th. I am very excited for him but I am already hating being back in Ga without him. I have no idea how military families do it. Luckily I know he will be home in 2 weeks and its an easy drive out there so we will see each other often. We were in different states while we were dating and i was in college but it's very different when you are not with your spouse for an extended period of time.