Great things come in...somewhat large awkward packages!

Squuueeeeee! 

What was that?  That was the squealing sound I made last night when I came home and found a large cardboard box on our front steps...my baby's bedding had arrived!   If you had been within a half mile radius you would have known that already.   We loved it online, and thankfully we LOVE LOVE LOVE it in person!

I'm a little behind on blogging, so I also need to add that we had visitors this past weekend as Buck and Sudie came out for a few days.  It was great spending time with them, and hearing Buck and Justin exchange pilot stories.  Of course...we also did a little (ok a lot of) shopping, so thanks to their recent purchases, including but not limited to a mattress and car seat, we can now bring Karson home, and put him to bed!  Not a bad start if I do say so myself! 

Other projects:
Justin and I have been busy assembling and painting planes to hang from the ceiling.  I am attempting to teach myself to crochet a blanket (gulp), and we're starting to think about where we want to stick things on the walls. 

Photos below show the bedding, a curtain stretched over the chair, and the makings of a momma made baby blanket.  (What's that?  It looks like a big string for now?  You are correct.)  There's a close up of his comforter, and a look at his name for the wall.  I've also included one shot of a plane.  Lots of fun going on in the Rinker house these days! 

Karson is also now incredibly active.  He rolls, kicks, and flat out dances on a regular basis.  Justin has gotten to feel all of the above multiple times, and I enjoy evenings when we can sit together to feel and giggle about our kickboxer.  (Ok, I giggle, Justin mostly just smiles.)

We're also looking forward to an upcoming trip to Lexington to catch up with old friends and teammates, and attend a football game, (GO CATS).  Karson will get a shout out...more on that next week!

Nursery Update

Mom and Dad, (aka Nana and Papaw) were up to visit this weekend.  We did some shopping Friday night, enjoyed some pizza and picture time, then hit the ground running today with work on the nursery!  Ok, so we didn't get started until we had scarfed down some pancakes and slept in a little...but once we got moving...we were so fast!

I'm excited to show you the updates!  Mommy and Daddy bought Karson his crib.  We LOVE it, and are hoping it can be used for all the kiddos as a crib, and for someone as a toddler bed and eventually a full bed.  We also hope it has magical powers that help any babies in it sleep soundly through the night.  ;-)

Nana and Papaw bought an awesome glider and ottoman set.  It's super comfy, and seems like a lovely place to hold a sweet little baby!

My favorite purchase may be the ceiling fan.  IT LOOKS LIKE A PROPELLER! How cool is that?  It also has a dimmer and a remote! 

Nana and I also assembled a storage unit, and sorted and put away lots of awesome clothes from Auburn, shared by cousins Gavin and Winston.  Lots of cute items in there!  (Even a WVU jersey for the WV crew!)

The bedding is ordered, and should be in in a few weeks.  We also have frames, his name, and decals to hang.  And a few crafts to make.  Plus lots of supplies to get and organize.  I'm tired just thinking about it.  But we got off to a great start this weekend!  Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go nap in the glider...

Let me know what you think so far!

20 week quiz

(Ultrasound pics and more Dr visit info here.)

How far along? 20 weeks, 4 days.

How big is baby? About 10.5 inches from head to heel.  According to the ultrasound measurements baby now weighs a full pound!

Weight gain? 10.8 pounds!!!  (According to the doctor's scales yesterday).  I had guessed closer to 13...but I'm not a medical professional.  :-)  Anyway, 9-11 are recommended by this stage, so I'm either on track, or barely above.  Either way, I'm happy!

Stretch Marks? Too soon! But I feel pulling more now.

Maternity clothes? At work this week someone said “Melody is all dressed up!” I replied “Melody outgrew her pants!”. I officially had to retire the bella band and move on to maternity clothes for work. My best fitting article of clothing is a black skirt from Jill W. I will be wearing it often until I grow in to some of the later term maternity dress pants.  I'm also loving dresses.

Sleep? Still trying to master the art of staying on my side during the night.  I'm doing better! 

Cravings? Still loving pizza, (I try to limit my intake for those of you gasping). I’ve also drank my weight in cran-apple juice for the UTI I’ve had. But it has seemed particularly delicious this time!

Nursery update? I'm ready!  We'll have family visitors the next two weekends, so we might put them to work!  I'm buying a blanket in the plane bedding online today so we can make sure we're happy with the pattern/colors.

Movement? YYEEESSSS! Frequent now. And getting stronger all the time! Justin has even gotten to feel the baby several times!

High point?  Seeing a healthy thriving baby boy on the ultrasound.

Low point? UTI!

Other: Belly Button is still an innie. But it’s becoming wide and more shallow. Looks a bit odd if you asked me, but I imagine I should reserve my belly button critical comments for when it starts popping out! 

Also, I brought in some celebratory snacks this morning...(no wonder baby has a big belly?)

Boy, Oh Boy!

If you're reading this, you've likely heard the news.  "It" is "He"!  Baby Rinker is none other than Karson Douglas! 

He is healthy!  Justin and I are so grateful for a successful, encouraging appointment yesterday.  We held hands and watched in awe as our doctor went one by one through the various checkpoints, organs, heart quadrants, brain segments, and even a few arteries/vessels/chords.  God is good, and our baby is a healthy one. 

He is also BIG!  Every time we saw a body part the doctor would say "big head", "long fingers", "thick thighs", etc.  You would think he would realize the baby was big all over and get bored of pointing it out, but nope.  In his second to last view, we looked at the belly, and he said "BIG Belly!".  Overall the baby measured 1.5 weeks ahead in head/femur measurements, and 2 weeks ahead in the belly!  Baby is eating well!

He is a HE.  Then the final view came.  He asked if we were ready, and we of course said YES.  Doc then went to "the view" and asked what that looked like...and I said..."That's a BOY!".   We all agreed there is no doubt, so we can paint, purchase, embroider, etc with confidence.  :-)

And finally, "he" is...Karson!!!  We're so excited to be able to add a name, and start working on some fun details, like paint, bedding, etc. 

We made a stop on the way home last night to buy a couple of warm outfits for his first few weeks, and potentially an outfit to go home in.  Yay!

Here are a few (very grainy) ultrasound photos.  (Heartbeat, feet, and the goods!) Enjoy!

Last Chance For Guessing!!

*Note - I will put out the 20 week quiz after our appointment on Thursday when I have a more meaningful update, and some ultrasound pics!

Wives Tales are probably pretty useless. My own doctor, before I said a word about the rate, clarified that heartbeat is not a predictor of gender. I asked if he believed any of them, and he said they are 50% accurate, “at best”.

BUT – what fun is that? I thought I would show you where my wives tales stand in terms of gender prediction BEFORE we get the final verdict at our ultrasound this Thursday.

There are others I have been “tracking”, but they are neutral, or mixed, or I have no idea. (How do I pick up a key? What color is my pee?) Anyway, here are the ones for which I think I have a “result”:

BOY:
Headaches
Clumsy Momma
Nips are darker (Yes, I said it)
Minimal Morning Sickness
History of parents’ kids (both had boys first)
Estimated conception happened “later” as compared to ovulation
Carrying weight out front
Belly is more of a basketball than a watermelon
Craving more Salty
Pillow faces North when I sleep
Baby kicks right
No/Little weight gain in the face
Dreamed of having a girl

GIRL:
Age at conception plus month is an odd number
Grandma’s hair color is not gray (natural or dyed)
Chinese calendar
Fetal Heart rate above 140 (166, 144, and 144 at visits so far)
Crave fruit over meat (although I prefer Cheetos over either!)
Baby kicks Low

For those counting – that brings the tally to boy = 13, girl = 6. That’s a pretty drastic difference from the quiz results! I will also add that the people who spend time with me, (Justin and my coworkers) are guessing boy. So my guess?

I refuse to make one!

Either way, Justin and I are super excited to welcome a little HE or a little SHE in to our lives. We’re just hoping for a productive ultrasound that shows us healthy organs, bone structure, size, and whatever else our little wiggle worm will let the doctor see. Oh…and a very distinct look at some reproductive parts…so no shy baby!

Thursday at 3:30 – here we come!!!

Like Mother, Like...baby.

Justin felt the baby move last night!


After having very little discernible movement for the longest time – I now feel movement quite often! AND it’s strong enough to be felt and even seen from the outside.

I was so excited to show Justin the baby moving last night, but became disappointed after feeling nothing all evening. We finally gave up, turned the lights out and turned in for the night…then…movement!

I put Justin’s hand in the right place, and right on queue – KICK!

Since sleeping comfortably takes work, I now have pillows behind me, between my knees, and I have quite a spastic ritual of getting them all fluffed and punched in to shape before I settle down. Some nights Justin and I both laugh uncontrollably at my “nesting” fits. So last night, upon feeling a few kicks right before bedtime, Justin said he couldn’t help but picture the baby punching and fluffing his “bed” before settling in for a good night’s rest. 

Fall is here!!!

Mentally, I moved on to fall quite a while ago. But now it’s officially fall! I LOVE this season. I get excited about each of the seasons when they arrive, for different reasons. But this one is my favorite! I love the weather. You can wear jeans and a t-shirt and be ready for nearly every occasion! Fleece jackets and hoodies reemerge as the evening wear of choice as you enjoy football games, hot dog roasts, and crisp cool evenings outdoors.

The food is delicious. Chili and other soups for cool evenings…Pumpkin spice latte for cool mornings (I miss these!)…Fresh apple pie for every occasion!

The return of TV! We’re excited to get back to watching Glee, House, Fringe, Hell’s Kitchen, and lots of the 30 minute shows (How I Met Your Mother, The Middle, etc). I admit it, we’re tv junkies, and having two boxes with dual DVR capability has only enabled our addiction.

And of course – the return of football! We haven’t been able to watch the Cats on tv yet. We probably won’t get many, if any of their games. But we are NFL junkies on Sundays. And our fantasy teams keep us interested all season long.

This particular fall will of course be even more exciting as we learn more about and plan for our growing baby. We can now SEE my lower belly “move” and poke out from time to time. And I can’t think of a better way to spend our fall than getting the nursery ready!

So – HAPPY FALL!! I hope you enjoy this one as much as Our Rinker Family plans to!