Baby Shower!

I had my dream baby shower on Saturday. It was held at Joan's house and I couldn't have dreamt of a more beautiful shower and set up. I know Joan prepared long and hard for that day, and it definitely showed! My mom, who also hosted, spent countless hours putting the perfect party favors, diaper cake, food, autograph mat - you name it, together. I couldn't believe how much these two had done and planned, down to the very last detail. THANK YOU OVER AND OVER MOM AND JOAN!!! I had 30 friends and family shower me with love. Thank you to everyone!

Here are some pics of the day. That night we celebrated Bob's birthday at Bucca Di Beppo, pics of that are included in my slideshow. Enjoy!

PS - There's a + button on the bottom left of the slide show to make the pics go faster...

More Fun!

Let's talk about my weekend! It started with us meeting Steve's Aunt Kathy & her lovely friend Kathy, and Joan at Coronado Cafe for lunch on Friday. The Kathy's were in town from NY for the week and they couldn't have picked a better week to visit AZ! Man was the weather nice. (What happened? Now it's back to cold and rainy.) After lunch, I rushed to the airport to pick up my friend Rachel who flew in from NC just for my baby shower! We spent the afternoon doing our usual - laughing and laughing some more. We got pedicure's that night and met up with Steve for dinner at Liberty Market.

Saturday we (kinda) slept in and Steve made us waffles before leaving for my shower. I had a lovely baby shower (see above post) and spent that evening with a big group of family and friends at dinner for Bob's birthday. I would also like to acknowledge my Aunt Ginger and Uncle Denny who came in from CA for my baby shower as well. What a special time!

Sunday, I woke up early to take Rachel back to the airport and that afternoon we had a photographer come to our house to take maternity pictures. We got our proofs back yesterday and they came out AMAZING! I was very pleased and can't wait to share them... There's 2 types of maternity photo's that I've noticed people usually get -- 1, Either fully clothed pictures, usually done outdoors. Or 2, studio type pictures done indoors really showing off the belly, as in minimal clothing. I opted for #2, but don't worry, I won't be posting anything scandalous. :)

I've spent the last several days going through all the loot we got and really getting ready for baby. We (finally) got our changing table delivered yesterday. After a trip to Babies R Us this weekend, I should have the room done and updated pics.

Quick side note - we took a Baby Care class last night at the hospital and it was definitely worth it. We learned lots and as usual, it made us even more excited. That was our last class we planned on taking. However, I'm now looking into taking an Infant CPR class... we'll see if we can fit that in soon.

Hope you're all doing well and having a great week. Friday's almost here!

34 Weeks!

34 weeks pregnant, 42 days to go... aaahhhhh!! :)

Here's a cute cartoon I received today:

Big weekend coming up! Probably the busiest weekend we've had in a long, long time. What does it consist of, you ask? (or perhaps you're sick of my weekend updates, ha ha) It starts with lunch tomorrow with Steve's Aunt Kathy who's in town from NY. Then I'll be picking my friend Rachel up from the airport, who's coming in from NC for my baby shower! She'll be staying with us until Sunday. Then Saturday afternoon is my baby shower and that night is a big family/friend dinner at Bucca di Beppo to celebrate my Step-Dads birthday. Sunday I take Rachel to the airport nice n early and have a maternity photographer coming to our house to take pic's of me, Steve, and my belly. After that, a nap will be in store, then the real fun begins, as I get to put away all my goodies I get this weekend. Next week will surely be spent washing clothes and setting up swings, bouncers, car seats, etc. Then the waiting game begins!

We had another great doc appt yesterday. All is well, and in 2 weeks I'll start getting weekly exams to see how much I've dilated and effaced. I am SO FREAKING EXCITED!

I've been getting up 4-5 times a night (literally every 1.5 - 2 hours) to go pee. I usually have no problem falling back asleep, except sometimes I start thinking of everything under the sun. When that happens, I dream very bizarre things for the next 2 hours until I wake up again. I might as well, at this point, have a baby crying every 2 hours waking me up... my sleeping days are over for... what would you say... the next 4 months? But I'm not complaining!! I wouldn't ask for anything else in the world right now. XoXo

Weekend In Review

Let me start out by acknowledging this gorgeous AZ weather we've been having the past few days. It makes me so happy when it's mid 70's and the sun is shining down... nothing beats the warmth it brings!

We had a great weekend! In a nutshell, we got our baby furniture, attended a breastfeeding class, and had a nice Valentine's Day.

The furniture came in super quick! With the help of my mom and Bob, we picked it up on Saturday and spent the evening with them. After we got the furniture home, we found out that the changing table was broke in about 10 places... and I mean BAD! Luckily Babies R Us will be delivering a new one within 5 days. We went out for Mexican food and had a great time with them.

Our breastfeeding class Saturday morning was... kinda a dud. We learned a few things, but not too sure how helpful it was. I suppose like everything else, we won't really learn about it until we do it - or I do it. :)

On Valentine's Day, Steve did the grocery shopping (a treat in itself) and I made stuffed french toast for breakfast. I got a dozen red roses, we put the crib and glider together, then Steve had plans to make me a surprise dinner that he promised I would LOVE. I cannot get over how good he is at everything he puts his mind to... he made Chicken Cordon Bleu with fresh carrots, squash, green beans and french bread. OH. MY. GAH! I scarfed it down and am not just saying it was good to flatter him. I honestly couldn't believe how yummy it was! And it was his first time making it!

~Steve putting the crib together~

~Putting the glider together~

~Starting from the left side of the room - bookcase & closet~

~Crib~

~Glider~

...and the changing table will go on the wall next to the glider.

~Letters for above his crib~

(I painted the letters myself)

**Can't wait to finish 'er up after my baby shower on Saturday! Then I'll post the final pics!

and last but not least... ~Steve's impressive dinner~

~My flowers~

Have a great week everyone!

33 Weeks

Today I'm 33 weeks pregnant. 4 more weeks and I'm officially full term!

Tidbit:

Your baby is proportioned like a pineapple when it comes to weight - a little over 4 lbs. Length: more than 17 inches, head to heel.

That's a nice tidbit, but another website has this to say about my week to come -- Week 34:

What's new with your baby this week? He's clocking in at 5 lbs and could be as tall as 20 inches by now.

That's a pretty big difference, so who really knows how much he weighs or how long he is. In a few more weeks the doctor will start checking me to find out his weight and that's when we'll have a better idea of how big he'll be.

While Peyton continues to grow and gain weight this coming week, here's what his mama will be doing:

Wishing my father-in-law a happy birthday tomorrow, Feb 12th! (Olympic time too)

Attending a breastfeeding class at the hospital on Saturday

Celebrating Valentine's Day with my baby's daddy on Sunday

Going to dinner 2 nights next week with friends

Going to yoga Wed night

Preparing for Rachel to come on Friday for my baby shower - can't wait to see her!

Then that next week is just as busy, starting with my baby shower and my step dads birthday on Saturday!

Hope everyone has a great weekend and a lovely Valentine's Day.

Hugs and Kisses from us!

Here's What's Cookin! (other than Peyton, of course)

I had another great doctor’s appointment last week and learned that Peyton’s head has dropped down into my pelvis area. I was a bit shocked at how low it was. So with him definitely kicking my ribs & his head as low as it is, he’s a lot longer than I thought! The doctor said he could still move positions; fingers crossed he doesn’t because I like knowing he’s not breech. It’s also pretty cool to feel his hiccups daily - knowing where they’re coming from helps me determine how he’s positioned. So far they’ve been coming from the same area for weeks now, so I’m guessing things haven’t changed.

After learning that he’s dropped and the fact that my backaches have eased up tremendously, I put two and two together (well, with the help of Joan!) that his new, lower position is causing less pressure on my back. Can I get a HALL-EL-U-JAH!!!

The nursery is coming along quite nicely and we spent a lot of time on it this past weekend. We put the bookcase together and put up a few decorations. The furniture is ordered and should be here next week. After my baby shower on the 20^th, I can put the finishing touches on it and call it a day. Still on track to be done with everything by the end of this month!

I had a few boxes full of books from my teaching days and a box labeled “Childhood Books” that I pulled out for his bookcase. Talk about memories! I had about 10 books from when I was a little girl and I remembered each one of them like it was yesterday. This is the moment I’ve been saving them for and I can’t believe Peyton will be reading them soon! The books from my teaching days... let's just say the memories weren't as pleasant, ha ha! Nonetheless, they’re still on the shelf. :)

~32 Weeks~

I had a conversation with my friend about bare belly pictures. I think bare pregnancy bellies are beautiful, she thinks they're gross! So if you're one of the people who dislike them, hopefully you're not offended when I post my bare belly!

Too-da-loo!

XoXo

4D Ultrasound!

This past Saturday we took our parents to a 4D ultrasound, just for fun. We had 30 full minutes of viewing Peyton in my womb. I can't get over how big he's gotten. We saw his amazing heart beating, his eyes blinking, and his mouth/tongue moving aka practicing breathing. His little hand was up by his face the whole time, so although we didn't get a perfectly clear face shot, we got a few good hand shots!

We all had a great time laughing and pointing out the different parts that looked like Steve or me. To name a few, he has Steve's cute little nose and everyone seems to think he has my lips. I thought his lips looked huge! The first thing I noticed though were his chubby cheeks. :) What do you think?!

The place we went to (Prenatal Peek) was awesome. The staff was SO nice and we got a video of the whole ultrasound, 43 pictures on a dvd, and they printed 12 pictures out for us. After we went to lunch at the Matador and filled up on some yummy Mexican food.

All the grandparents with mommy & daddy

Peyton's face!

Another face shot with his hand covering his left eye

This is a great hand shot!

Here's a leg and food shot

A scrunchy face shot :)