So blessed! So thankful!...So excited!!!

Mima Rinker and Aunt Brittney hosted Karson's shower this Saturday while we were visiting over Thanksgiving.  We were fortunate to have family and friends take time out of their busy holiday schedules, including a couple who had a long drive!  Thank you to all of our guests for sharing in a special day, and for helping us celebrate the pending arrival of baby Karson!  And a special thank you to Dee Dee and Brittney for putting together such an adorable shower!!!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here are some of my favorite pics!

How cute are these decorations?!

Game time!!!

And here are some fun gift photos:

A super cool antique plane we'll be using as a night light!!!

A special monkey from Becca:



Justin announcing people should NOT buy him a matching sweater vest!

Me joyfully realizing this snuggly outfit has ears!!

Mima showing a tiny outfit that Justin came home from the hospital in...and it was too big!

Looking at a blanket that was made for Justin by his own great grandma.  Couldn't help but tear up a little.  

Thanks again for all those who participated!  We've already been busy putting things in their place in the nursery!

I am officially exhausted from the weekend.  BUT, I hope to soon post about our Christmas decorations, 30 week update, and nursery update.  And we'll have a shower with my family and KY friends coming up in just a few days.  (Is Karson a blessed little fella or what!)



Thankful (Tis the Season!)

It is Thanksgiving after all, so I thought I should post some things for which I am thankful.   So pull up a chair, let's sit around an imaginary table at Grandma's house, and rattle off some things that have blessed us this year...I'll go first...

I am thankful for a good job.  When we moved, there was some uncertainty as to where I would land.  There were times when I thought I might "settle" for A job rather than a GOOD job.  If I had needed to do that I certainly would have.  Fortunately a great opportunity opened up and not only did I not settle, but instead I have a higher salary than I left at OH, better retirement benefits, and double the vacation time.  And it's a new challenge in a industry I had been interested in exploring.

Speaking of - I am thankful for a kind boss who values family.  I could not have asked for a more supportive or understanding manager as we go through this pregnancy.

I am thankful for a house that became home so quickly.  Sure, we ran out of closet space, could really use a basement, hate ladybugs, and really miss having gas heat (and a gas stove!).  But our house has felt like "home" from fairly early on.  And it feels like the right place to bring Karson home. 

I am thankful for a church and church family that has felt right.  In some ways I felt like we never stopped looking when we were in OH.  Our church here found us fairly quickly.  We miss a lot because we travel too much, but we have still been able to get involved with a small group, and meet some other young couples.  And I'm sad when we miss.  Not because I feel guilty, but because I really feel like we missed out on something special.  That's a nice feeling.

I am thankful for a husband who loves, supports, and provides for me.  He also makes me laugh, makes me think, and makes me love more than I knew I could.  And I can't wait to see him become a daddy.

I am obviously thankful for our pregnancy, and the pending arrival of Karson.  But I'm also thankful for God's timing.  Sometimes I don't get what I want as soon as I want it, and I've learned to be thankful for that as well.  We are in a better place now than we would have been had we gotten pregnant immediately.   And we were able to enjoy some couple time, and trips to Vegas, Chicago, and New Orleans that I'm not sure we would have taken had there been a baby on the way.  And in the meantime, we've done some saving for "future house". 

I could keep going, with health, family, friends, etc.  But I'm sure each of you are thankful for those same things, and I'm already getting long winded.  Here are some less cliche things I'm thankful for:

I'm thankful for:
*Quiet nights by the fire pit with Justin.
*A neighborhood where we can take walks, see a fox and deer, but still get to the interstate in 3 minutes.
*Winter evenings by the fireplace snuggled on the couch.
*Memories of when we both actually fit on the couch...
*DVR.  (well, I am...)
*The generosity and selflessness of others, including baby gifts, maternity clothes, help with our move, help with painting, supportive words, prayers, and willing hands and ears any time we've needed them.  I can't name all of you, but you inspire me to be a better person who is more aware of others as well.
*Moments that makes me cry happy tears.
*A full belly.  A warm bed.  And a happy life.

Ok, your turn.   Pass me the rolls first.

28 week quiz (and belly pic!)

How far along? 28 weeks!

How big is baby? Hard to say.  The estimates start varying now from site to site.  But my doctor estimated 3 pounds.

Weight gain? 18.6 at Friday's appointment.  Very happy with that!  But we'll see how I fare with the holidays...

Stretch Marks? Not yet!!!

Maternity clothes? While looking for clothes for our photo session, I discovered a few items from Auburn I had previously missed.  New favorites include a short sleeved red sweater, and a black and gray casual shirt.

Sleep? I'm hanging in there.  I don't wake up to go to the bathroom, so I'll count that as a success story.  I was officially woken up by Karson for the first time I believe.  Sunday morning I was dreaming about drums (no, really) and woke up to feel strong kicks on each side of my belly.  Who knows what he was doing in there!

Cravings? Not pregnancy related, but thanks to Dad's pumpkin cheesecake I have a new favorite dessert.

Nursery update? No updates since the 25 week quiz really.  We hung curtains. Otherwise I'm waiting until our two upcoming showers are over to start laundering, organizing and putting away. 

Movement? This little guy is crazy!  I think he's a drummer.  And he still likes to get in to a weird position and stick what I think is his rear end out really far.  It's always on my right side.  I'll get a photo one of these times.

High point? Two!  1) We took some maternity photos this past weekend, that I'm anxious to share with you once they are available.  2) Decorating for Christmas!

Low point? Soreness.  I may have overdone it a bit between the Christmas decorating, the driving, and the photo session.  I finally had some pain and soreness Saturday evening.  But a long night's rest seemed to help a lot.  I also think it was related to a growth spurt I can tell happened the last couple of weeks.

What am I looking forward to? Gaining 10 pounds this holiday season and doing so guilt free! ;-)

Here's a 28 week belly photo...with our main tree as a backdrop!  (Quite a growth spurt this time I think!)

Thankful! ...Fantastic even!

I don't have time for a long post.  Places to go and people to see!  ;-)  But I wanted to say that today's 28 week appointment went well!  I drank the orange gunk like a champ, had blood drawn for glucose testing, and had a great visit with the Doc.

He believes Karson has already moved in to a head down position, which is good!  He was pleased with all measurements and stats, and even used the word "fantastic"!

I then scheduled my 30 week appointment.  Can you believe we're already to the point where appointments are two weeks apart???

I'll post the 28 week updated quiz and belly shot soon.  I just wanted to share the quick update. 

Have a great weekend!

Dear Karson - Welcome to the 3rd Trimester!

Dear Karson,

It's me, your mama.  I wanted to congratulate you on reaching a big milestone!  As of today (or last Tuesday depending on who you ask, but whatever), we have officially reached the third trimester.  Great teamwork!   

For me, it's been a pleasure!  Carrying you has not been a burden, or an inconvenience.  It has been a joy!  Knowing how well you've been doing so far has been such a relief to your daddy and me.  We both love the moments when we feel your sweet kicks and rolls.  And I will never get tired of hearing your heartbeat at the doctor's office.

We have been busy getting ready for you.  You should see your daddy putting together the planes that we plan to hang from your ceiling.  He is so careful and slow, wanting every piece to fit together perfectly.  That's nearly impossible since we only paid $2 per plane - but that doesn't stop him from trying!  We've also made progress on your nursery, and I can't wait for you to see it!  I hope you'll find it a cozy and fun place to call home.

We spent the last weekend with my family, and as we played with your cousins, I couldn't help but think of how exciting it will be when you're with us too!  You have a lot of family across the miles (on both sides) who are looking forward to meeting you!

This week we are decorating for Christmas.  It will be our last one without kids!  That's hard to believe.  Even though you won't be here physically yet, you're with us in spirit.  We've ordered a special Christmas ornament to always remind us that in 2010, you were on the way!

More to come soon. 

Love - Mama

Third Trimester

We're here!  And I can tell!  Friday I was a busy, but happy camper here at work.  Today, I have to sit perfectly upright or I feel like this large bowling ball in my belly might completely squish out any air I have a chance at breathing.

I've never been a gal whose boobs rested on her belly.  I've never had the boobs nor the belly for that to be possible.  What a bizarre feeling.

No, I don't think I changed that much over the weekend.  But growth is definitely happening!  And Karson appears to have added a room on to his temporary home, somewhere in the lung region!  I'll let him expand his home for now, but he better not get too cozy as I plan to evict him in approximately 3 months!!!

A Case of the Mondays

Have you ever had a case of the Mondays...but on Thursday?  I did yesterday. 

I'm not even sure why. 

I can recall being frustrated at work about having to do and redo some things, and in fact I'm nearly a week behind on something because of some unexpected issues that have arisen. 

I recall eating a late rushed lunch at my desk while working. 

I recall having horrible traffic on the way home. 

I recall having my quiet ride home where I usually talk to Karson (crazy alert, I know) and pray turn in to some weird moment where I started imagining worst case scenarios and in fact brought my self to tears.  Ok, not tears, more like sobs.  (No really, I can do that with my imagination...)

I had a simple project for an upcoming event that I wanted to take care of, but even that went wrong and resulted in a trip to Staples when I should have been doing one of the three loads of laundry that we needed done before today for upcoming travel reasons. 

So when Justin called me I answered gruffly and told him I was in a bad mood.  Now mind you, by then I couldn't completely remember why, I just knew I was feeling a bit cranky and raw, and he should be warned. 

I then pouted a bit all evening, and when I realized I wasn't feeling mopey enough, upped the mope factor.

But why?  It's as if I thought I was due for a bad mood, so I performed it to the fullest so I could check it off of my to do list.  I would love to blame pregnancy hormones, but if I'm honest, I'll admit to you that I've always been an emotional gal.  And this was no pregnancy related funk.

I'm back to reality this morning.  And in retrospect, yesterday wasn't actually that bad of a day.  I get paid to do my job, who really cares if the day is filled with some rework.  That quick lunch was yummy.  I don't think the commute home was any worse than usual.  I got all three loads of laundry done.  The Staples task really didn't go well, but I think it can be remedied before the deadline.   As for my self inflicted pity party on the ride home - it was in fact self inflicted, but perhaps a good cry is healing every now and then.  Aside from that I had a somewhat relaxing evening, got lots of points in my fantasy league from the Thursday night game, got to bed on time and slept well.  And I enjoyed all of that evening from my warm comfy home with a loving husband.  Does that sound so bad?

Not really! 

I've decided we're entitled to a funk every now and then.  Even if it's completely unjustified.  Just try not to take it out on others, and if you do, make sure you let them know how much you appreciate them tolerating you during your Monday Thursdays.