32 weeks!

Baby Will is the size of a 3.75lb bag of potatoes..  He is officially 226 days old :)  I am 80.7% of the way through the pregnancy. You gotta love iphone apps for information.  We have 54 days or less until we meet our new baby boy.  I am getting SO excited! 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Well, I have officially gained 25 lbs. This past week at the OB I didn't gain anything basically because I have been on the go with Big Brother. 

Maternity Clothes: Besides shirts and dresses...all I wear is maternity clothes.

Gender: He's a BOY! We have officially named him William Collins and we are going to call him Will. He is named after some very special relatives and friends...which I love that he will have role models to look up to!

Movement: Baby Austin is a mover. We can constantly see his little body moving all the time. Zachary was the same way....praying that I have enough energy to handle play with both of my boys when Will arrives.

What I miss: Sleeping!  I am still using my pregnancy pillow but it's not working as well as it was during the 2nd trimester.  I am so uncomfortable. It doesn't help that as soon as I get in bed & in position Baby Will thinks it is time to wake up and play.  He has some super ninja skills. 

Cravings: Desserts and Candy....not a good craving to have. Especially when Kevin is trying to watch what he eats. 

Symptoms: For whatever reason most of my symptoms from the previous week have subsided. Some are still present but it wasn't a bad week at all...compared to some and for that I am extremely thankful! Heartburn, swelling, cramping, and fatigue are all a part of my daily schedule but it has been tolerable this week!

Exciting things this week: I had my 2 week OB check up.  Baby  Will is doing great.  I am measuring 37 weeks! YIKES!  But not to worry...at this stage in the game with Zachary I was measuring 35 weeks. My OB said that since my body is so compact that the baby has no where to go except out. She's not worried that he's going to be TOO big. She's just glad he is growing and that I have tons of fluid to keep him swimming in.

4th of July!

I'm trying to get caught up on my blog....can you tell? Our 4th of July weekend was busy/full weekend but we had a great time.  On Saturday our "old" friends Craig & Fawn were in town. I call them "old" because Kevin & Craig have been friends since they were 18 years old and freshmen in college.  Fawn & I had our first children within a month apart and travelled the journey of motherhood together. A couple years ago they moved away from our city.  It's terrible to say but I had not seen Fawn, Carina & Callen since their move. Kevin and Craig meet up once or twice a year to fish but that is all. We were thrilled when they called to let us know they were going to be in town over the 4th of July weekend!  We had them over for a quick visit, brunch, and to get the kiddos together.

Zachary, Carina, & Callen loved playing together.  At one point in the morning the kiddos asked to watch a movie. Our dvd player in the living room is broke so I set them up in our bedroom.  It was hilarious because as I was setting them up they crawled under the covers and got cozy. 

After brunch we went up to Kevin's office for a tour.  The bright sun was in the kids eyes....it was BRIGHT!

After our visit with Craig, Fawn, and kiddos we headed to Miss Charley's 5th Birthday party. Charley had a Wizard of Oz party that had everything from a pinata to a live magician. Zachary could not contain himself and thought it was HILARIOUS! Which it truly was.

The party guest with Martie the Magician &  Rabbit Charlie

Zachary was selected to come up front to do a trick. He was so excited!

 Zachary doing a magic trick....crack me up!

Charley's adorable cake

 Zachary's a ladies man...

 Watch out....I purposefully requested that Z be at the end of the line for the pinata. It was a good thing he was because he wacked it open. 

 After the party we stuck around for an evening of fireworks. We have made this an annual tradition since the kiddos were first born.  It's hard to believe that they are 5 (or almost 5 for Z) and that both of our families will be having a new baby soon.  So much fun!

On Monday the 4th we went to a little impromtu get together at Betsy & Andy's.  It's not the 4th of July if I don't make some patriotic snacks. Here's the chocolate covered strawberries I made and took to the party.

And Kevin's personal favorite a fruit pizza. I've been making this on the 4th of July since Kevin and I started dating.  It's kind-of and expected treat on the 4th.

Zachary and Miss A were the only kiddos at the party (Miss M was sleeping) and they had the best time together.  Here they are in the new hammock swing.

Of course Kevin had to try it out too.

Betsy picked up some lantern fireworks. I guess they are the "IN" thing since the movie Tangled came out.  They were super neat and everyone was impressed.  Here's Betsy unfolding the first one.

The group getting ready to release the lanterns in the sky.....

Kev & Zachary's lantern was a little faulty but it eventually it went up in the sky.

And they are off...it was a beautiful scene!

I don't think we could have packed anything else into our 4th of July weekend.  We did have a blast though and made a lot of memories!  It's one of my favorite holidays!

Making room for Will

Last week was a very productive week for me. Zachary and I were able to stay home from our daily routines & errands which meant that we could really knock out a lot on the "getting ready for baby" list.

We spent one entire day sorting and washing all of the Baby boy clothing size newborn to 12 months. Fortunately my sister and I had our first baby boys within 8 months of each other. So we shared a lot of items (bouncy seat, swing, clothing, jumperoo, etc).  The past 5 years we have been transporting large plastic bins back and forth from each others houses for the boys to share/re-use.  I did have some nostalgic moments as I went through the bin of newborn clothes. I would pull something out and holler for Zachary to come and see how tiny he was, etc.  Of course some of the items had to be put in a garage sale pile because they have been used on three boys (E, Z, and J) but for the most part everything can and will be used again. 

I think this was load #25! LOL!


Here is the progress on going through the bins.  Will definitely has a ton of socks and bibs. His nursery is coming together nicely...it just takes a long time for everything to find a home.  I will be doing a nursery reveal once it is done. I am keeping my fingers crossed that it will be done by August.  We'll see!

My mom came over one afternoon and evening to help me with my project list.  I LOVE PROJECTS!  I have been compiling a list of things I wanted to do for this baby since I got over the morning sickness.  I would gather items as I went to Hob Lob and then set them aside waiting for the perfect time in our busy schedule to pull everything out.  Mom was a HUGE help.  Zachary did quite well too. He would help and then go off and play without us. 

As you can see in this picture we had everything out in my basement.  By the time we were done on the first night it looked like a warzone.  My mom offered to help me pick it up but I knew there were going to be at least 3 more days of projects so I begged her to leave it a mess. 

Thankfully my mom and I were able to knock out 2 BIG projects.  The following day I was able to sew a few custom items for Will.  My in-laws offered to take Z to a butterfly release at a park for the morning so I was able to pull out the sewing machine and sew away.  I will do a post about the projects when they are all done and ready for Will. 

31 weeks

31 weeks!  Will is the lenth of an 18 inch pineapple this week!

Baby Will is weighing in at three-plus pounds and measuring 18 inches long, your baby is quickly approaching his birth length — though he's got to pack on another three to five pounds before D-day. Also developing at an impressive clip: your baby's brain connections (he's got to make trillions of them!). He's now processing information, tracking light, and perceiving signals from all five senses. He's also putting in longer stretches of sleep, which is why you're probably noticing more defined patterns of wakefulness (and movement) and rest (when he’s pretty still).


Total Weight Gain/Loss: Well, I have officially gained 22 lbs. This past week at the OB I gained 2 lbs.  I go to the doctor again in a week so I will have an updated weight gain...I'm quite sure there has been some sort of gain.
Maternity Clothes: Besides shirts and dresses...all I wear is maternity clothes.

Gender: He's a BOY! We have officially named him William Collins and we are going to call him Will. He is named after some very special relatives and friends...which I love that he will have role models to look up to!
Movement: Baby Austin is a mover. We can constantly see his little body moving all the time. Zachary was the same way....praying that I have enough energy to handle play with both of my boys when Will arrives.
What I miss: Being able to carry Zachary. I can't do it...he's just too heavy for me AND SLEEPING! I wake up a lot in the night because I am hot or uncomfortable. My body automatically wakes at 6 am. I just pop up ready to go for the day. Usually I will hit the treadmill for a walk or drink a cup of coffee with my daily devotion before the rest of the house wakes up. To be honest...I love this time. However by 9 pm I am EXHAUSTED!
Cravings: This week all I have wanted to eat is Strawberries and I crave sweets (Wives tales says that this is totally sign that the baby is a girl....so anyone who is pregnant and does not know what they are having please disregard this wives tale. It is true for boys too.)
Symptoms: For whatever reason most of my symptoms from the previous week have subsided. Some are still present but it wasn't a bad week at all...compared to some and for that I am extremely thankful!  Heartburn, swelling, cramping, and fatigue are all a part of my daily schedule but it has been tolerable this week!

Exciting things this week: My mom and I were able to cross a bunch of things off the list that I wanted to get done before Will arrives.  All of the clothes have been washed, sorted, and organized!  That was a two day task in itself. We also worked on some of his nursery decorations of which I will post later when everything is done.  The crib and mattress came in this week so Kevin & PaPaw are going to work on that tonight!  It's been a great week!

30 weeks!

30 Weeks!

*Again I am a week late getting these posted. We had family in town so my blogging has declined greatly! Hoping to get caught up this week! 

Will is approximately 3.0 lbs - 3.9 lbs.  He is around the size of a honeydew melon.  I asked Kevin to pick me up a three pound melon at the grocery store.  He brings home the BIGGEST one they had.  I think this melon in the picture weighs 5lbs.  Kevin said he thought it looked like my belly. LOL!

 **Photographs taken by Zachary this week....just a little blurry. But thankful he remembered before we went out the door for church.  Zachary's picture was taken the day after (before we cut into the melon) before karate.

 I have approximately 69 days until my due date! We are just so excited to meet our new little guy! However we are praying that he stays put inside my belly for another 9 weeks. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Well, I have officially gained 22 lbs. This past week at the OB I gained 2 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: Besides shirts and dresses...all I wear is maternity clothes. To be honest...I would rather wear nothing!  My sister laughs at me but as soon as I am "in for the day/night" I put on the floral nightgown that is a tank top. She says it looks like a MuMu.  It's the most comfortable thing. So if you come to my house any time after 5 pm be warned!

Gender: He's a BOY! We have officially named him William Collins and we are going to call him Will. He is named after some very special relatives and friends...which I love that he will have role models to look up to.
Movement: Baby Austin is a mover. We can constantly see his little body moving all the time. Zachary was the same way....praying that I have enough energy to handle play with both of my boys when Will arrives.

What I miss: Being able to carry Zachary. I can't do it...he's just too heavy for me AND SLEEPING! I wake up a lot in the night because I am hot or uncomfortable. My body automatically wakes at 6 am. I just pop up ready to go for the day. Usually I will hit the treadmill for a walk or drink a cup of coffee with my daily devotion before the rest of the house wakes up. To be honest...I love this time. However by 9 pm I am EXHAUSTED!
Cravings: This week all I have wanted to eat is Strawberries and I crave sweets (Wives tales says that this is totally sign that the baby is a girl....so anyone who is pregnant and does not know what they are having please disregard this wives tale. It is true for boys too.)
Symptoms: My biggest symptoms for this week are bone pain/arthritis like pain, charlie horses, and braxton hicks contractions, and some other female issues that I am afraid is TMI. I have increased my calcium & potassium intake however my body just aches. I had nothing like this with Zachary but my OB reassures me it is "common". It has been a rough week on my body.....I'm counting down the days!
Exciting things this week: We had our family in from Virigina for the week.

Cupcake Love!

About two years ago my mom and I dreamed up this idea that we wanted to open up a cupcake shop.  You know one with an adorable store front. One that sold cupcakes, homemade dessserts, milk, and coffee.  Please remember this was only a dream but we researched cupcake flavors and even thought about different locations.  It was totally unrealistic because I had a busy 2.5 year old running around and we have no idea about owning our own bakery.  Plus if I was going to return to the working world I would chose my current profession...dental hygiene.  I love and miss dental hygiene.  On another note know that there was NOTHING like this in our area. We always joked about it but never did anything. Now in our town there is at least 3-4 cupcakerys.  To be honest the shoppes are adorable but the cupcakes are mediocre.  So fast forward two and a half years....my mom came across a cupcake decorating class at the local junior college.  We discussed how it would be a fun activity to do together and she signed us up. Well a couple weeks ago we went to our class.  We had a great time however I would not really recommend this class. Mom and I realized we knew a lot more than we had given ourselves credit for prior to taking the class.  We did learn a few pointers about filling an icing bag and that you can wash your tips in the dishwasher but that was about it. Mom already had hidden skills and was far superior than anyone else in our class.  I realized that I really do not have the patients for the fancy decorating....I think I just like the eating part :)

Practicing with white buttercream icing

My final product

Mom's final cupcakes

So here are my thoughts on this class.....

1. It was fun and a nice night from my normal routine. Thanks to my wonderful husband for entertaining Z all night so I could have a night with my mom.

2. I enjoyed the time with my mom.

3.  The class was not really what we thought it was. We wanted to learn flavors, recipes, and newer techniques to decorating cupcakes not the 1980's version. It was not organized, it was out-dated, and overpriced. 

4.  I learned that I no longer have a desire to open a cupcake shoppe and I can cross that off my bucket list :)

Now mom and I are dreaming about other things....again it's all a dream. But who says you can dream?

29 Weeks!

29 Weeks:

Baby Will is approximately 2.5lbs- 3.11 lbs this week. He is approximately 15-18 inches long and is the same length as a head of romaine lettuce.  I have approximately 75 days until my due date!  We are just so excited to meet our new little guy! However we are praying that he stays put inside my belly for another 10 weeks :)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Well, I have officially gained 22 lbs. This past week at the OB I gained 2 lbs. 

Maternity Clothes: Besides shirts and dresses...all I wear is maternity clothes.

Gender: He's a BOY! We have officially named him William Collins and we are going to call him Will. He is named after some very special relatives and friends...which I love that he will have role models to look up to!

Movement: Baby Austin is a mover. We can constantly see his little body moving all the time. Zachary was the same way....praying that I have enough energy to handle play with both of my boys when Will arrives.

What I miss: Being able to carry Zachary. I can't do it...he's just too heavy for me AND SLEEPING! I wake up a lot in the night because I am hot or uncomfortable. My body automatically wakes at 6 am. I just pop up ready to go for the day. Usually I will hit the treadmill for a walk or drink a cup of coffee with my daily devotion before the rest of the house wakes up. To be honest...I love this time. However by 9 pm I am EXHAUSTED!

Cravings: This week all I have wanted to eat is Strawberries and I crave sweets (Wives tales says that this is totally sign that the baby is a girl....so anyone who is pregnant and does not know what they are having please disregard this wives tale. It is true for boys too.)

Symptoms: My biggest symptoms for this week are bone pain/arthritis like pain, charlie horses, and braxton hicks contractions. I have increased my calcium & potassium intake however my body just aches.  I had nothing like this with Zachary but my OB reassures me it is "common".
Exciting things this week:  I PASSED my blood glucose test!  This is HUGE!  My sister and I tend to fail this with each of our pregnancies.  When I had Z I failed it by 7 points and had to spend 5 hours at the outpatient hospital lab having the "longer" test.  My sister has been a trooper with both of her boys and failed both test and had gestational diabetes.  I think it just runs in our family genes. However this time I ate low carbs the day before and completely fasted the day of the test.  I was hungry but I passed....that's all that matters!

Mother's Day Gift and Good Book

About a year ago in September I started reading a book....a very good book.  You see I never really "have time" to read books but before we go on a vacation or trip I hit the local bookstore and pick out a few.  Kevin laughs at me because as soon as I get Zachary and myself settled on the plane the book comes out and I tune out everything.  Within the first 3 days of the trip the first book is done and I am on to book #2.  Anyways, we went to Colorado back in Sept 2010 I purchased this book...

Here is the overview for the book found at Barnes & Noble. com

Kurt Warner is the two-time NFL MVP–winning quarterback of the Arizona Cardinals. Brenda Warner is an ex-Marine turned stay-at-home Mom who collects coats for low-income kids and rocks babies to sleep at a center for chronically ill infants. Together they’re the parents of seven children, going into their thirteenth year of marriage. Their formula for success? They put First Things First—faith, family, and giving to others—it’s their family motto, and it drives everything they do. First Things First is an honest, entertaining, and insightful look at life inside the Warner house. Kurt and Brenda speak candidly about their marriage, the values they’re working to instill in their kids, things they’ve done right, mistakes they’ve made, the importance of giving back, and the legacy they hope to leave behind. Kurt Warner fans will enjoy this behind-the-scenes look into the Warner family daily life. Includes 16 pages of color photos

This book is AWESOME! Kurt and his wife give several examples about raising up-standing, honest citizens. Kurt and Brenda want their children to appreciate all walks of life, art, and everyones talents. One way they teach their children to appreciate art, is they display their childs art work (good, bad, or ugly) in their home for everyone to see. Not only does this teach their children to appreciate their God-given gifts it builds their childrens self-esteem. Immediately upon reading this chapter in the book I wanted to do something like this for Zachary ( and any future children in our home). Fast forward to Dec 2010....I went to a couponing class that my sister invited me to. The funny thing about this class is my mom, sister, and I did not know the person hosting the class. We just showed up, got some couponing tips, and that was it. While in this sweet persons home I fell in love with her home decor and style. During a break the home owner/coupon class hostess and I began talking. Come to find out her husband had just gutted their kitchen and living room. Long story short...she had an "ART WALL" that looked like it came out of Pottery. B*arn; instead her husband made it. It was adorable. Immediately it reminded me of Kurt & Brenda Warners book. I wanted one! I came home and told Kevin that the "art wall" was what I wanted for Christmas. He had no idea what I was talking about or describing. So Christmas came by and no "art wall" was given. Totally not Kevin's fault..I only mentioned it a couple times but he seriously had NO IDEA what I was talking about.

So as the months went by I kept thinking about this wall. Every time Z would come home from preschool or church with a new project he would ask if I would put it in a frame. He loves it when we boast about his creations. The wheels kept turning and I really wanted the art wall. I contacted the sweet gal from the coupon class via FB and asked if she had a picture of hers that I could share with Kevin. Low and behold they were moving and she had already taken it down. Go figure. However she gave me tons of advice about it and offered to help in any way that she could. As Mother's day was approaching Kevin asked me what I wanted. Guess what I told him...an art wall. I think he was shocked that I still had the idea in my head. Next thing you know we are at a local home store picking out the supplies for my "art wall". The night of Mother's Day Kevin installed everything himself....that is a true gift in itself. I usually call on my father-in-law for any tasks like this. I was so impressed with Kevin. As soon as he was done installing my "art wall" I began hanging pieces of Z's art. When Z woke up that next morning he immediately ran into our kitchen with the BIGGEST SMILE on his face. He was so proud of his work and so honored that we would hang it up. It couldn't get much better than that. He loved it as much as I did. Since the "art wall" has been put up it has been a huge blessing. Z makes more of his "art", I display it, and then we oooo and ahhhh over it for months. Kurt & Brenda were right...showing your kids that you appreciate their gifts really helps their self-esteem and makes them feel important. So without further ado...here's my homemade "art wall". Thank you Kevin for providing such joy to Z & my heart.

All the "art wall" is is curtain rods (measure to fit your space) and hooks for drapery. VERY EASY!  One last commercial....read this book. There are so many great ideas and thoughts that I have pulled it back out to re-read.  It is an inspiring story, as well as, a great parenting tool.

More friends come to visit...YAHOO!

As you can see from my previous post we had a BUSY weekend last week.  On Sunday, our good friends Ryan, Becki, and Libby were in town. Actually they came down eariler in the week for a little family vacation.  We were thrilled when they let us in on their plans.  We joined them for lunch on Sunday after church and then took them to Kevin's office for a quick tour.

Here's sweet little Libby admiring Zachary.  They had the best time playing together. 

 Becki is due on Sept 4th with sweet little baby girl Elin Jane...about 2 weeks before me. However she is having her c-section at the end of August.  I joked with Ryan that I was going to have to come up to their house for a week to get in all the fun girl stuff and he can come down here for a week to do all the guy stuff that happens in our home. :)  Isn't Becki just the cutest preggo....she only has a ball bump. 

 Whenever we are with Ry & Beck we always say how we wished we lived closer. Becki and I have so much in common and we all really enjoy our time together! 

 Beck & Ryan "pretending" to have a maternity photo.

 Here's our first try at taking a timed photo. OPPS!

 After about take #20 we finally got one of all of us looking. 

  Thanks Ryan & Becki for stopping by. I wish we could have spent more time together but I am thankful for the time we had.