Mommy = pillow

I guess Auburn's sixth sense is kicking in because for the past couple of weeks she has been laying on me way more than normal. She has always slept as close as she could to me. Now it has transitioned to on top of me. Thankfully she has not gotten too mad at me when I roll over and send her flying in the middle of the night. Oops!

Baby bump update

I know it's been awhile since I shared a bump picture. So here is the most recent. I will try to get in a few more before it is no more. The countdown begins! :)

37 week appointment

Monday I had my 37 week appointment. I had to go to the office at the hospital since I was doing the non-stress test. And let me tell you, that test is very incorrectly named. They put me on the table and strapped a heart monitor to my belly. They wanted to monitor Mason's heartbeat for at least 20 minutes. What they don't tell you is you may be sitting there for closer to 45 minutes. AND that when he moves away from the monitor you won't hear his heartbeat anymore. So we sat there for 45 minutes thinking his heart kept stopping! Scared the hell out of us. Makes sense but you still wish the doctor was there to confirm that is what happened.

He is suppose to be active during the test. However, Mason has that sixth sense of knowing when you want him to do something. He senses it and stops doing everything. He will be moving and grooving until you want to video him moving or have someone feel/see him moving. We are hoping he moves around a little more next week. They got an ok reading this week and were satisfied but I know they are looking for more. Guess I will need to take a big cup of ice cream with me! Sacrifices!

One thing the doctor did not like was my high blood pressure. Not sure why it was up so much but it certainly concerned them. They said if it stays high they will consider inducing me a week early. If it goes back down, they will stick with the original due date. Since I have not started dilating they even mentioned letting me go a week late. So pretty much, Mason's arrival is very much up in the air.

Happy birthday Doug

A couple days late on the blog but it's said with lots of love!

Happy birthday! Love you so much!

War Eagle Baby!

I didn't want anyone to every question that I have a little Auburn Tiger. 

Thank you to Shannon & Ryan for the amazing gifts. Yall are the bestest friends and we are so thankful to have yall in our lives! I know Mason is going to love his Uncle Ryan and Aunt Shannon.

Mason's library

I enjoy reading. I don't get to do it as much as I would like but it has been one of my favorite things to do. Just ask Ryan. He got the unfortunate task of moving my boxes and boxes of books. Sorry Ryan. When I found out I was pregnant I was excited to share with my baby some of my favorite stories from when I was little. Although I know Mason will not appreciate Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty like I do, we will still have many stories to share. Most of my childhood books were donated since I did not see having children in my future. So Mason's little library is starting from scratch. Thanks to a few good friends, they have made starting his collection much easier. So big shout out to those people, you know who you are. Mason, and I really appreciate it!

I can't wait to see what he chooses as his favorites! 

Baby Shower at work

On Friday I had my "surprise" shower at work. They try to make special events like showers a surprise but since we do something for everybody for everything I knew they would have a baby shower for me. I suggested a good date to have the shower some months back and found out it was already set. So I knew there was going to be one I just didn't know when. Well, last week I called a daycare to schedule a tour for Friday sometime after noon. My coworker, Diana, (who was mid conversation with our supervisor) turned to me and started waving her hands and mouthing "No!" I turned to her, confused because there were no meetings or tasks on our calendar for that day and that time. I told the daycare worker to hold on a second and asked Diana what was up. Still trying to keep the secret she with a smile that day and time was not good for me to be out of the office. After some debate on the time, I told the daycare worker my coworker told me I could come anytime after 4 that Friday afternoon. :) I was a little thankful I finally knew when it was going to be. I have just about ran out of "nice" clothes that I can still fit into. I really would have hate to have shown up in one of Doug's t'shirts and jeans. Thanks to a little phone call I now had the heads up to dress a little nicer.

I know I have said how much I love my job but it is mostly thanks to the great group of people I work with. I have been very fortunate at my last job in Georgia and this one to have met some really amazing people. Everyone at work has been so excited for me. They have really enjoyed watching my belly grow these last 8 months.

One of my coworkers has party planning in her bones. She organizes everything we do. Between her and Diana, I knew the shower was going to be very special. I had cute banners, a very yummy cake and snacks, and even little candy goody bag favors with a baby boy theme. It was too sweet! I got a wide variety of gifts for Mason. From a hand made blanket to books and clothes, they covered it all. I am so thankful for the party and all the gifts. I truly felt "showered" with well wishes for Mason and I. Ha! Thank you to everyone who was able to take time out of their work day to attend. Doug, Mason, and I appreciate every gift and all the well wishes.

Nursery furniture

We finally ordered and put together the nursery furniture. Everything is really starting to come together now. Big thanks to Mom & Dad  for the crib and changing table. We got the crib that will change into a toddler bed and a full size bed. Hopefully Mason won't destroy it and it will last a long time. Boys will be boys!

Week 35 appointment

Last Wednesday I had my 35 week appointment. The doctor said everything looks good with me and baby and we are still on track for an April 16th delivery estimate. Mason is dropping low (which is making things really uncomfortable for me) and his head is down towards the "exit". He is pushing his limits and trying to manually stretch my belly to give himself more room. He has also found a "toy" on my left side. He likes to punch it, kick it, and what I think is squeeze the hell out of it.

I go tomorrow for my first internal exam and then the next three appointments I have to go to the office at the hospital both the exam and for the Non Stress Test. The NST is being done since I have a history of high blood pressure. Even though it has been really good throughout the entire pregnancy, they are performing the test just to make sure everything is good to go. They will put a heart monitor on my belly and monitor the baby's heartbeat for 20-30 minutes (super fun for mommy!). I will take sitting still for half an hour over needles any day of the week!

Mind blown!

I signed up Doug and I for a newborn class at the hospital hoping to learn a few things about how to take care of Mason. I was also hoping to leave the class with more confidence and less anxiety. Boy was I wrong! I realize now more than ever I have no clue on what to do. Everything I though you should do, I was told not to do. Even a lot of stuff I thought we needed I was told not to get. Then there is the list of things we need to get that I had no clue we even needed. Oh my goodness my head is spinning!

Here are some examples...
We need Vaseline and gauze pads for little man when he gets circumcised.
Alcohol wipes for the umbilical cord.
Can't tub bathe until cord has completely fallen off.
Sleep on back only!
Baby room needs to be between 68-72 degrees.
We need Benadryl and Pedialyte on hand at all times.
Ambesol and Orajel are no no's.
Bottle warmers and sterilizers, sippy cups, walkers, frozen teethers, playstations, and so much more are out!
Milk is served at room temperature, dishwasher is your sterilizer, cups with straws after bottle, cold teethers, and rice cereal fed via spoon.
Maryland has outlawed crib bumpers.
No water to drink until 1 yr old.

The list goes on and on! I tried to take notes but I really feel like I should take the class again. And take more of them! Now more than ever I feel like I need all the help I can get. I will be doing tons of reading and research over the next few weeks.

I did kinda learn how to swaddle (we are far from experts) and hold baby in the "football" position. Diapering, bathing, and clothing a live baby versus a doll is two very different things. In class, it was easy! Screaming, wiggling baby not so much.

So wish us luck and say lots of prayers for our anxiety. Hopefully we will become more educated, more confident, and less likely to have child protective services called on us! :)

Me and my "Buddha" baby

Nursery

With all this snow, I have had some extra time to work on the nursery.

The closet has been assembled and organized!

We put together the glider. It only took an hour and a half thanks to me putting on ONE part incorrectly!! 

Then there was the bassinet... I was doing fine until I got to the bedding/material portion. Tried it one way, turned it around the other, then realized I had it right the first time. Grrrr!

We get the crib and changing table in next week. I think we will be calling in backup for those. Any volunteers??? :)

Snow!

We've had some decent snow storms in the past few weeks. We missed one while we were down south but it was cold enough for the snow to still be here when we got back. Since it has been so cold, the snow has really just stacked up. The snow has been great but the ice it is turning into has not. We are super excited for the warmer temperatures coming this week. I may be able to park in my spot by the end of the week!

Here are a few pictures from the last snow we got. After it was all over, we got a little over half a foot. Put that on top of what was already on the ground and we had a bunch of ice and snow!

Auburn loves eating snow!

Shovel, ice, repeat...

My snowman was covered in snow and my tree looks more like a snow topped mountain. 

My last measurement and it snowed a good hour and a half after this. 

Frozen, snow covered Magnolia tree

Pictures from AL shower

AL portion of trip

Auburn wasn't at my parents long before she was running around the yard and getting dirty. Since my parents bought some land behind the house they took down the backyard fence. This made it extra difficult to contain her and catch her. She thought it was hilarious when we got close to her and she would run off again. Thank goodness for the word treat. If not, she would still be outside running around the house. 

The best part about going home (besides seeing family, of course) is Momma's homemade strawberry cake, peanut butter balls, and sausage balls. You never go hungry at Momma's house!

Wednesday we got ready and drove to Columbus. Our first stop, McAlister's for lunch! Yummm sweet tea! After that I took mom to Babies-R-Us. She hadn't had baby time with me yet so I figured a store full of baby stuff would put a smile on her face. I think after three hours she was good. From essentials to just darn cute, we looked at it all. There was no way we were leaving without getting a few things. :) In the time we spent at the store, Doug got my oil changed, tires rotated, and went to about 5 stores. So he was more productive. We had more fun. :) 

After all that shopping I was in need of refueling. Luckily there was an Atlanta Bread right next door. We forgot about all the yummy baked goods they have there. I went for a cookie and ended up leaving with a cheese danish, two muffin tops, and a hot chocolate. Yummy goodness! And no, I didn't eat it all at one time. But man do I wish we had an Atlanta Bread close by!

Auburn's second home is my parents house. She loves playing with my dad and running around their big yard. She was exhausted every single night from all her play time. He even took her on walks. She doesn't get many of those this time of the year at home.

Play time with Grandpa!

Then pay time with Grandma!

Then nap! 

Spoiled much?

She loves curling up with her mommy :)

Wednesday night we had dinner with my mom's side of the family at San Marcos. It was great getting to see everyone and spend time with them. I knew it was going to be crazy at the shower so having that time to sit and talk with them was very nice! 

Thursday we headed to Auburn to see the new trees and do some shopping. I hit all my favorites: Kirklands, Tiger Rags, and J&M. I may have gotten a little (or a lot) teary eyed when I saw the Lutzy bracelet. :( Makes me sad. But the trees helped cheer me up! Unfortunately it was freezing and windy so we didn't stay outside too long. And instead of lemonade at Toomer's Drugs, mom and Doug opted for coffee. I went into Auburn Art and now have a new store to add to the list to visit. They have the neatest stuff. Expensive! But they have things no other store does. I got the best onesie for Mason's birthday. I plan on putting him in it, taking a picture, and taking it right off of him. That way he hopefully won't get it messy and I can frame it.

The start of his collection...

Even Auburn got a little something. 

That night we had pizza at the Williams' house. I have spent a very large portion of my childhood in their house so it was almost like a second homecoming. It had been a very long time since we all were able to get together. I can't wait for Mason to meet them and feel the love they have given me. After pizza Doug and I walked down to my aunt and uncle's house (Maria and Tony) for puppy time. My aunt got a new puppy a little over a year ago. I got to meet little Cooper last Christmas when I went home and we became instant friends (after a little piece of turkey). This year, my aunt's daughter got a puppy. So I had to go by to meet the new family member and see my old friend. I forgot how playful puppies are (and how sharp their teeth are)! Poor Cooper was getting terrorized the entire time. But I think he loved it! It was hard to get them to sit still or stop aggravating each other but it was so cute to watch. And I got lots and lots and lots of kisses! It made me want my next puppy even more.

Friday was a straight up couchin' it, no shower, lazy day. The only one that did anything was Auburn when Dad took her for a walk. That night she passed out! I guess the trip and all the play time finally wore her out. First  she was in Doug's lap then in my arms. I got my first taste of rocking my baby to sleep. It was amazing! Auburn never sits still while I am holding her. That hour was quite precious and will be most cherished!

Our last day in Alabama was the day of the shower. We got to the church early but we already had gifts and people waiting on us. I think for two hours I did nothing but hug necks and open gifts. I was exhausted by the time we left. It was a good exhaustion though. I absolutely loved seeing all my family and friends. Some drove many hours just to be there and some I have not seen in many, many years. I could have stayed for hours longer to catch up with everyone but Doug would have had to carry me out. I am ever so grateful for everyone that came. You all mean so much to us and we just can't thank you enough for celebrating Mason with us. I have a lot of uncertainty in my life right now but one thing I know for sure is that Mason will be loved oh so very much! We can't wait to introduce him to yall!

We almost headed home after the shower but the weather back home was not supporting that decision. There was ice and snow from the Carolina's all the way to our house. We got about 5 inches of snow at home. So we relaxed and did the entire trip on Sunday. Of course the little bit of rain the lingered made the trip a bit more difficult for Auburn and us in turn. We made it home in good time and went straight to bed since I had to work the next day. 

It was a long trip with a lot of driving but I am so thankful we have great family and friends who wanted to share this time with us. We will be heading back down before we know it with another passenger in the car with us. I think next time we are renting a van or a camper!