19 weeks

19 weeks

Here we are at 19 weeks, and this will be our last picture in front of the tree.  It is going down today!  I am always kind of sad to take down the Christmas decorations.  The house looks so empty once they are gone.  I laugh as I look at this picture of our tree noticing how there are no ornaments about half way down.  Someone may have pulled our Christmas tree down at one point, and we had to move everything out of toddler reach :).

I am still feeling great and my bump is probably about the same size at this time with Brady.  You can see that picture here.  However, I was overall bigger with Brady.  I started off weighing less this time than I did last time. (Those jeans I am wearing snugly in that picture literally still fall off of me now.)  Apparently chasing a toddler around in the best weight loss program there is.  Especially when you have one as busy as ours!  The boy NEVER stops.  Thank goodness for naps and a good nights sleep.

How big is the baby? About 6 inches long and 8 1/2 ounces head to bottom. (About the size of a heirloom tomato)

Weight Gain: Still don't think I have really gained any weight.

Gender:  GIRL!

Maternity Clothes? I just started wearing some of them and am not sure why I did not sooner.  I am so much more comfortable!

Sleep? Sleeping great

Food Cravings/Aversions:  The other day I was really craving CHEESE- so random.

Movement: Feeling more and more movement.  They are still just little pokes here and there, but you can see them from the outside if you look closely.

What I miss? Nothing significant..

What I'm Looking forward to? Our 20 weeks appointment next week where we have the big anatomy scan ultra sound done.

Christmas Day 2012

Our little boy was so good this year, and Santa was good to him!  He was so excited when he woke up to see all the gifts under the tree.

"Look what Santa brought me Mommy!"

He really loves this giraffe pull toy and "The Belly Button Book" as he loves to point out our belly buttons these days.

...and he loves his table and chairs from Pottery Barn Kids.

This was a definite favorite, the Batman battery powered 4-wheeler Nanna and Papa got him.

He has his own chair now!

 We spent the morning at our house just relaxing and playing with new toys.  After Brady's nap, we went over to my dads house.  My brother, step-sister Katie, her boyfriend, and my dad and step mom were all there.  We had a wonderful meal and opened some more presents!

My big boy!

The new book Waldo and Frankie got him to keep at their house.

My brother and I (...and my big 'ole cup of water)

Love this one :).

Waldo and Brady!

Who needs toys when you have a box?

This was such a wonderful Christmas.  Brady had a blast!  It is hard to believe that next year we will have another baby at Christmas time.  We are so blessed, and I am looking forward to a wonderful 2013!

Christmas Eve 2012

Wow, this was such a great Christmas for our family.  Seeing Brady light up with all of the excitement going on just melts my heart.  I wasn't sure if he would be into it all yet this year, but man, he had a blast!  He just loved being around all of his family and of course all of the gifts he received.

We hosted Christmas Eve dinner at our house and had my mom, grandparents, brother, and Paul's parents over for dinner and to exchange gifts.  The dinner was fabulous (thanks to my sweet husband), and we so enjoyed spending time with everyone.  Brady was having so much fun he didn't want to go to bed!  He was up at least an hour past his bedtime.

First things first though, we started our family tradition of making Christmas cookies for Santa!

Then, Brady waited patiently for everyone to get here for dinner.

Our 2nd Christmas Eve as a family of 3

Paul, Brady, me, and my mom

Paul, Brady, me, my mom, Dustin, and my grandparents

...everyone plus Paul's mom (Paul's dad was taking the pictures!)

After dinner, we opened some presents.  Brady racked up on goodies and was especially excited about the battery powered 4-wheeler his Nanna and Papa got him.  Although, mama is not so sure how she feels about that one.  He loves it though, and so far has been pretty good about operating it.  It didn't take him long to figure out to push the button to make it go!

 Baby girl also got some goodies herself!

I love how they both have their tongues out.

More goodies!

Uncle D got him the whole sports package and a Carolina sweatshirt for next year's football season!

Santa came!

Riley was there too :).

First trip to see Santa!

We took Brady to see Santa for the first time this week.  We happened to show up while Santa was on his "lunch break".  So, we had to stall for about 1.5 hours between waiting for lunch to be over and then waiting in line to see Santa.  Needless to say, Brady was getting a little cranky by the time we got to the front of the line.  But, he did surprisingly well and was not scared of the jolly old man at all.  I think he enjoyed all the attention :).  $60 later and we have our first pictures with Santa.

17 weeks

It is kind of hard to believe that I am already 17 weeks pregnant.  I still don't have too much of a noticeable bump yet, but it's growing every day.

17 weeks

I am feeling great these days.  I am trying to soak up the "glory days" before I get huge and uncomfortable :).  Here is a little survey that I have seen on a lot of other woman's blogs that I thought was cute.

How big is the baby? About 5 inches long and 5 ounces

Weight Gain: As of my last apt I have lost about 4 pounds...the first trimester was rough!

Gender:  GIRL!

Maternity Clothes? Not yet.  I use my belly band sometimes when the pants are feeling a little snug. 

Sleep? Sleeping great other than getting up to pee at least once a night.

Food Cravings/Aversions:  I really haven't had too many cravings.  I have really not wanted to eat pork for some reason...

Movement: I am just starting to feel those first little flutters :).  I love it!

What I miss? Really nothing at this point other than the occasional glass of wine would be nice...

What I'm Looking forward to? Feeling more frequent and stronger movement from the baby!

A Day at the Zoo

Last weekend was so gorgeous here.  It definitely did not feel like December, so we decided to take a trip to the zoo.  It was a great family trip, and I personally love the zoo.  Brady really enjoyed it!

His favorite place to ride!

The Kangaroo Walk About

Checking out the birds

"Look at the Toucan daddy!"

Checking out the reptile exhibits

Let's hope he is little more afraid if he were to encounter one of these in person.

Pointing at the monkeys!

Pretty zebras!

Love my little monkey!

BLUE or PINK??

I was so excited about my doctor's appointment this morning.  We got to find out the gender of our baby!  Like last year when I was pregnant with Brady, I wanted to make it fun (and torture everyone) by having our family over for dinner and to cut the cake to see if we are thinking blue or pink!  This year I just decided to make the cake myself.  I am no baker, so it was not the prettiest thing....

And, here's the group (minus Paul's dad who was taking the picture and Brady of course).

Our family of three, but not for long!

The moment of the big reveal...

We're thinking PINK!  It's a GIRL!!!

Brady was very happy to partake in the activities.  We made sure he was the first person we told about the news.  He's a great secret keeper ;).

I am sooo excited that we are going to have a little girl!!  I feel so blessed!  I have always imagined having a boy and then a girl, and it is surreal that my dreams are coming true.  Bring on the pink!