Thankful

Thanksgiving came and went really fast this year.  I almost forgot when it was and I swear I lost a week somewhere.  Tim was a great help getting the gooey butter pumpkin cake and sweet potato casserole made.  Then we packed up our little boys in their little doggie bed and headed out to see family for Thanksgiving.  It was a good time.  How can you not have fun when you have little 5 and 3 year old nephews running around and into football as much as you are?!?  The bonus was the snuggles from the 2 month old nephew...so cute!

We worked in a lot of our favorite Thanksgiving traditions...too much food, lots of football, a little shopping, and being with family.  Tim and I are definitely blessed.  This year I know we feel it in every bone in our body.  We relish that this will be our last holidays as a couple.  We relish the sleeping in, but also relish the hopes and dreams for next year.  We sit relaxing on the couch, talking about how we're going to chase a kiddo around next year.  We put up our Christmas decorations but hatch a plan of how to do so with a 8 month old wandering around the boxes next year.  We relish knowing where we were in this infertility battle last year and are grateful that we kept fighting to get where we are today. 

This year, this Thanksgiving, I'm thankful for science. Thankful for IVF and that I'm here in 2010 using the technology that was first successful just a short 30-some years ago.  Thankful for Drs Edwards and Steptoe in England who developed this treatment.  When everything on paper appeared as if Tim and I should have no problem having a baby, but then month after month after month...something was missing.  I'm thankful for the science.  That bloodwork has developed to catch my negative RH factor, that ultrasounds are clear enough to catch the band of scar tissue (that could have been devastating but isn't thanks to perinatal specialist visits), and that science has helped get us through this.  I know some may wonder where God is in all of this and let me tell you....he is here.  Going down the path Tim and I now have, knowing so much more of the "what-ifs" and the negative "could-be" side of things, God is here.  There's no way this could have been possible without him...he is in the science.  And for that, I am thankful.

25 weeks!

How Far Along? 25 weeks

Weight Gain? I'm really starting to not like this question...stupid scale.

Maternity Clothes? Time to go all maternity!  But need to find time to go shopping for that to happen.  I think I just need a couple more pairs of pants for work, and one more pair of jeans and I should be all set.

Symptoms? Baby is getting bigger, so there is definitely less and less room for my bladder.
Movement? LOTS!  And its glorious!  We can even see him moving from the outside now.  I'm so glad that he loves to move so much.  Going through IVF makes you a little more paranoid than usual, so the constant reminder that all is good is great.
Sleep? Still pretty good.  Only getting up once or twice a night.  Getting in and out of bed is a little bit trickier but still good.
Food Cravings? Still desserts but I'm controlling my cravings better.

Best Moment of the Week? I'm going to say it's going to be tomorrow at 6ish pm.  Then I'll start my four day weekend....so excited!
Gender?  BOY!

What I Miss? Really truly....not much at all.  Being pregnant is such a gift and I don't know if everyone out there really realizes that.  So I make sure to soak in each day because I only get 9 months.

What I'm Looking Forward To?  Getting peanut's blanket done.  I've completed the crib skirt, now I just need to do the blanket.

Weekly Wisdom?  Listen to your body, it usually knows best.  I.e. working 55 hours in a week isn't always the best...so then you need to take lots of naps over the weekend.
Appointments? Monthly Dr's appointment is next Tuesday....I hope they do another ultrasound.

Random Thoughts

This week, I keep thinking of all the little bits I forget to add on here.  Not that it matters too too much, but I like to keep my family, some who are out of state, as close as possible.  A huge way of doing so, is through this little science experiment.

So it turns out that my best friend and I continue think a lot alike.  She already has my all time favorite onesie at her place....waiting for me. 

Awhile ago I saw closet dividers for nurseries, so you can clearly see all the 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months clothes and etc. Ingenious! I had extra clips from the goodie bags from my baby shower. I couldn't bear to toss them out so I hung on to them. Yesterday I was washing all of lil Will's clothes and hanging them up and it hit me...they fit on the closet!!! So I just marked a little 0-3, 3-6, 6-9 on them and now I have uber cute, and really meaningful closet organizers. THANKS!!!!

When my sister and mom were out for our annual girls weekend, we got some shopping in....

Here is baby's first Mizzou tiger!  And like most of our uncommon sport situations in this family, we are also currently on the search for a little cornhusker-ish hat.  I'm thinking a little beanie that looks like corn with some green husk, or a mini version of the corncob hat.

Baby boy's crib skirt is finished and on the crib.  The baseball fabric is so cute!  I can't wait to get the actual blanket done!

Most of the Christmas decorations are already up!  Thanks to us not holding Thanksgiving at our place this year :)  Mostly we've got our 12 foot tree left to get up and decorate.  I'll post pics when we're done.

And Tim's sick.  I think a cold that gave him a sinus infection.  Let's hope I don't get anything...please work flu shot please!

I'm in Love

with this perfect onesie and hat. 

I HAVE TO HAVE THIS!  After seeing it, I can't imagine bringing our baby boy home in anything else.  Of course, I'll need to get him little pants and jacket for it since he'll be coming home in March.  But this is definitely his coming home outfit...our coming home outfit.

It is my wish for all my IF buddies to someday come home with their own little one that will definitely be worth the wait.

Lil Kicks

So maybe there's a pattern here...I have lots more time to blog when Tim's out of town.  :)

He's on his way back from his latest trip to Bethesda tonight.  Unfortunately his flight was delayed, so it'll be late when he gets home.  So I'm here trying to stay awake.  Peanut is trying to help me stay up by kicking lots.  He's been pretty feisty today.  And I definitely don't mind!  Starting Sunday, I have been able to see my belly move when he gets a good kick in.  Right now it looks like a concentrated hiccup but you can definitely see it.  The awesome thing was my Mom was still in town Sunday and she was the first to see it.  How cool is that!?!  So until Tim gets home, I'll just continue to sit here and stare at my stomach :)

One of Tim's Fave

Here's a sneak peek of one of the adorable pieces of clothes we received at the shower.  Tim's in love with it.

Happy Anniversary

One year ago today I was in a very different place.  I was still here, sitting on the couch, typing on this old laptop, entering in my very first post on this blog.  But babies seemed like an impossible dream a year ago and here I am now getting kicked by baby boy.  What a difference a year can make! 

Plus it has been a rowdy last week to wrap up the year.  Last week at work is one for the record books!  I had to let an go employee on Monday.  Tuesday, one of my other employees turned in her resignation.  The other Assistant Director had to let another employee go on Wednesday.  Then Thursday, two employees were demoted and my Director was let go.  I was asked to take on the Director role for the interim.  I haven't even been there for 6 months yet!  Crazy!  Good news is that I love my job and feel good taking care of things.

This past weekend was my first baby shower that was a joint shower with Amanda, Tim's sister.  It was a lot of fun and definitely overwhelming....I never would have dreamed of so many loving friends and family around us.  Plus it was definitely a "shower" of gifts!!!  As soon as I get the pics all together, I'll get some posted.  We have our stroller and car seat, boppy, high chair, Cubs furniture,  and too many cute outfits to count!

Happy Anniversary!

Lucky Number 23

How Far Along? 23 weeks
Weight Gain? 19 pounds!!! Hopefully it doesn't look like 19 pounds!

Maternity Clothes? Definitely running out of my normal clothes that fit...but I'm too picky with maternity clothes.  It's hard to find ones I like.

Symptoms? Nothing crazy...a lot less congested...get up once or twice during the night to use the bathroom...but that's it.  The only crazy symptom are my emotions.  Supposedly I take things very personally these days :)

Movement? Oh yeah!  And it's fabulous!!!  One weekend he kicked me ALL weekend long.  His usual playtime is between 2-4am.  Then this morning, my alarm was about to go off and there was a dance party happening in my belly!  I LOVE IT!

Sleep? Still good!

Food Cravings? Sweets, but I've always liked sweets.

Best Moment of the Week? Girls weekend!  My mom and sister flew out for our annual girls weekend.  I had a blast.  We got a lot of shopping in!  Plus a few great things for peanut!

Gender? Our specialists ultrasound reconfirmed....It's a BOY!

What I Miss? Having enough hours in the day.  So far the baby to do list is completely good and manageable, but combine that with my HUGE work to do list, plus holiday shopping to do list....that's when I need to figure out how to clone myself!

What I'm Looking Forward To? This weekend.  Mom is flying back into town with Larry!  And we're having Tim's families joint baby shower for his sister and I.  Her present arrived in the mail yesterday and is super cute!!!

Weekly Wisdom? Tell your husband you love him lots!!!!  He will really appreciate it coming from his wife who was momentarily taken over by pregnancy hormones and had morphed into a crazy lunatic!
Appointments? Regular monthly drs appointment at the end of the month.

Baby Size? Over 12 inches long and over a pound!