Pregnancy Update

Time for a baby bump update! Notice the lack of a picture- that was done on purpose. I am huge, that's all I'll say. And I haven't gotten up enough courage to see what I look like in a picture. Maybe at a later date I will expose the belly pics....but not today.

The biggest piece of new I have is not GOOD news per say, but it's news none-the-less. My dotcors have moved my date BACK to November 21st instead of November 10th. They said that she was measuring small for the original date, so they now expect me to have a Thanksgiving baby. I'll admit that I wasn't happy at this news. I don't want to be pregnant LONGER. I want her here now, thanks! But she will come when she wants to come, and many of my friends are proving that fact since everyone i know is having their baby before me!!!!! But I refuse to compain.....




Ok, so here are a few tid bits about my third trimester.

1. I have to apoligize to many people for my lack of correspondence latley. This trimester has officially made pregnancy no fun. I went back to full time at work, and by the time I get home I am in so much pain that I usually take my dinner to my bedroom, eat, and go to "sleep". Sleep is a relative term these days since I get little to none of it. I'm so uncomfortable ALL the time. I went to the doctor a couple weeks ago, and he was concerned about how much pain i was in, and suggested to cut back on my hours at work- that I was giving no time for my body to recoop from the strain of work. And for those of you who may not know what I do, I work with 12-24 month old's for about 9 hours a day- that means picking them up all the time to either change them, soothe them, or whatever the case may be. I'm also picking up after them all day, which means I'm constantly bending over. It's painful. But work is not paying for my maternity leave, so i have to work as long as I can so I have enough money to pay bills. So for all of you who have called to check up on me and I haven't called you back, I sincerely apoligize. Just bare with me these next few weeks....

2. I finally got the baby furniture! Her room is FAR from being done, and the nesting mommy in me is going bonkers because of it. So on my day off this week I went to babies r us, and ordered a crib, a changing table, and a armore (i think that is how you spell it) for her. It's a beautiful dark cherry wood that goes so well with the quilt my mom made her. I'm so excited to put it together and have the room all set for her arrival.

3. I've offically gained 30 pounds now. Can't complain about that at all. If I go full term then I'm guessing it will be more toward 35 when all is said and done. As much as you know that it's all a part of pregnancy, it's hard to see that number rise higher and higher when you step on the scale week after week.

4. Ah, the dreaded words......Stretch marks. They have appeared on my once spotless belly, and I am trying my hardest to make them go away. They are are on the very underside of my belly, so i didn't notice them until recently. They are small, but still there. Grrr... Cocoa Butter is my best friend now, and I'm hoping it will do the trick. Everyone keep their fingers crossed.

5. My waddle is offically OUT OF CONTROL. I actually have people come up to me in the grocrey store telling me that I am in labor because my walk is so ridiculous. And like I said, I am in pain a lot, so I'm sure the looks on my face don't help. There are women who try to put me the carts that you drive around because they don't think it's safe for me to be walking on my own. It's annoying and funny at the same time.

6. My poor poor husband. I really don't want him to have to move into the guest bedroom at night, but I keep him up all night with my tossing, turning, moaning, groaning, peeing, and cramping episodes that he is a walking zombie during the day. I've just been really selfish with having him in the room with me in case anything goes wrong. So now we've put an air mattress on the floor so he's still only a few feet away instead of a room away. He's still not sleeping to well because I still make so much noise. I'm gonna have to suck it up sooner or later and let him reside in the guest room. Grr.

7. I'm tired of going to the doctors. I am now going for weekly check-ups, but on top of that we have tours of the hospital, epidural consultations, and all that jazz, so i feel like we have baby appointments every day. And to make it all even more fun, the check ups have become more.... intimate... so I don't look forward to them at all. Before all they did was check my weight and blood pressure, make me pee in a cup, and check her heartbeat. I still have to do all that, but.... i'll save the details since i know people of the male gender read this. to sum it up, it's no fun.


that's about all the details I can think of right now. If God shines his mercy on me and lets me have this baby soon, this very well may be my last update. I just cannot wait for her to be here, and for her to meet all of u!

Oh, and the baby name thing....

here are my hints:
1. Three syllables
2. Not biblical
3. A word name (like grace)
4.Not a uni-sex name


So far I've had one freind guess it, but she doesn't know she is right. Leave your guesses, and we'll see if I reveal it...

A Summer of Pictures

So I've been going through a lot of my pictures from this past year, trying to choose some of my favorites for my new website that will be going up in the next month or so, and thought it would be fun to show you some of them. Some pictures I've already posted, and some I haven't. So I hope you enjoy all of them. The pictures are of:

1. Bethany and Aarom
2. Rob and Jesse
3. Matt and Meg
4. Matt and Beth
5. Rachel's senior pics
6. Nate and Kaila

Enjoy!

Her room!!!

As most of you know, Mike left me for two weeks to go over to England with his father and brother while I was left at home to be miserable. So i gave myself a project. I decided to surprise Mike by painting the baby room so he wouldn't have to worry about it. And just to clarify, I personally did not paint it, my small group from church did it.

I wanted to paint it in purple, Mike wanted it pink, so i compromised and painted it "lilac rose". then I got all creative and put diamonds on the wall in a deeper purple. It was A LOT of work, but I was so pleased with how it came out! Mike was SOOOO surprised when he came home and saw it. We both love going into the room to just sit in it and imagine what it's going to be like to have our daugher in there! We have the letters of her name all set to go up on the wall, but obiviously I didn't take a picture of it! He he.... I'm so mean.

Matt and Beth :-)

Two weekends ago I had the pleasure of being at Beth and Matt's wedding. I've known Beth for almost 6 years now, and it was SOO good to see her again!

It was a beautiful day, and I had so much fun with the wedding party (thank you Ashley and Carrie for being so entertaining!).

I love you Beth! Hope you enjoy the pics!

Baby Bump Update

Me at 28 weeks


So I'm offically in my 3rd trimester, and I thought I would update you all on how my pregnancy is going!

1. I LOVE having her with me all the time. She makes herself known quite often- she's a mover for sure (especially at 2 in the morning!). When we go to bed at night mike and I just watch my belly ripple... kinda freaks Mike out. hehe
2. I'm feeling good. Since my last appointment ( 3 weeks ago), I've gained about 12 pounds my entire pregnancy, and if I stay on track they expect me to gain about 23-25 pounds total. I'm ok with that!
3. I CRAVE friut and dairy! I want my watermelon, grapes, string cheese, cereal, and ice cream (my weakness). I'm pretty lucky that I crave pretty healthy stuff- aside from the ice cream of course.
4. When I gotta go, I GOTTA GO. There is no holding it anymore. Just ask John! But we're talking about a guy who's goal when i see him is to make me pee my pants! Literally. And he almost succeeded a couple times.
5. When I have to eat, I HAVE TO EAT. Becca calls me the mommy monster when I'm hungry. I get cranky. Quick.
6. I don't sleep anymore. I'm a belly sleeper, and obiviously that can't happen anymore. I toss and turn all night,(and by toss and turn I mean I literally have to get out of bed- move the pillows, and get back in to lay on my other side. It's a production) and I wake mike up every time, so he's used to not sleeping as well. guess we're ready to not sleep when she comes!
7. I walk funny. I have a natural waddle anyway,(thanks to the Shaddick side of me) but now is just down right funny looking. Mike laughs at me every morning as a waddle to the bathroom.
8. The baby has officially taken my brain. They say that a lot of pregnant women experience absentmindedness, but mine is just bad. I have trouble concentrating, and I forget what people have told me only 5 minutes before. Mike REALLY hopes I go back to normal when the baby comes. We all do, Mike. We all do...
9. I'm starting to nest. I just want my house to be ready for her so badly. Right now her room is a MESS, and it's driving me crazy! I need to start washing her clothes and organizing, but it's hard when there is no furniture for her. So most of it has to wait until my showers are over and Mike gets back from the UK (he's leaving me for 2 weeks in September....NOT looking forward to it AT ALL) since he's the one who has to paint.
10. The only thing i worry about is that I get very crampy starting in the late afternoon, and lasts till i go to bed. My doctor says it's normal, so i try not to worry too much. They do think that I have Restless Leg Syndrome, which is another big reason why I don't sleep. I've tried a lot of things- eating bananas, drinking a TON of water, and reciently my dad told me to put a bar of soap under my mattress. Old wives tale. We'll see if that works. I'll try anything!
11. WE KNOW SOMETHING YOU DON'T KNOW! Mike and I offically chose her name, but we are keeping it to ourselves until she is born. No, i will not give hints, and no, becca, we did not name her after you. :-) And Denis, I will try my hardest to have her on your birthday. I make no promises tho.

All I can say is that I CANNOT WAIT for her to be here. I want these next two months to go by slow so i can enjoy my last trimester, but I can't wait to see her, to hold her, to introduce her to all of you! She will be one loved baby because of you guys!

Our Finished Bedroom!

Mike and I have been living in our Town House for almost a year and a half, and today we finally have furniture in our bedroom! Yay! Our matresses have been on the floor, our clothes in bins and shelves, and our end tables were old coffee tables from our last house. It was quite sad. But today we have changed all that! We finally have proper dressers, and a proper bed to sleep on. Kemper is getting used to the bed being so high. He is usually able to jump right on, but now he has to really concentrate to make it up. For most of the day he's actually been under it! I think he has a new hiding place!

Matt and Meg

I personally have never photographed a more expressive couple than Matt and Meg! The way they looked at each other all day long oozed (yes, i know it's a funny word, but it's true) love and passion, and it moved me every time I saw it. But not only was it an emotional wedding for me, but one that brought so much laughter. Thank you Pete George! He was up to his antics again, and I laughed so hard!

Here are some pics from the day! Love you, Matt and Meg!

My poor baby....

Since Kemper is a hypo-allergenic dog, he has hair and not fur. So every 6-8 weeks we need to take Kemper in to get groomed. We like Kemper really fluffy and furry because he's so soft, so we waited a little longer (like 11 weeks) to take him in. Well, we waited TOO long because his hair was matted on his ears and feet. So the poor little guy had to be cut REALLY short. Usually they cut it so his hair is about and inch - inch and a half, but this time it's about a quarter of an inch. It's so wierd looking!

He is so timid now- it's like he feels exposed or something! But I never realized how tiny he really is! It's like having a whole new dog in he house!

I think he is too funny...

I'm a HUGE fan of the office, and of John Krasinski, and I found this video and laughed so hard. It's a bit long, but it's worth watching!

Farwell Old Friend....

This week I offically went part time at work because of all the travelling I have to do for my wedding phototgraphy, so I only work Tuesday-Thursday. This weekend I don't have a wedding, so I spent a lazy morning in bed, and in the afternoon I ran a bunch of errands and had a photo shoot with a friend.

While I was running errands at our mall, my beloved video ipod AND the car charger were stolen from my car! I couldn't believe it! The car was locked- i made sure of it because I had my camera in the trunk and I always get nervous. BUT my mistake was that I left the passenger window open about 3 or 4 inches (obiviously a big enough crack for an arm to get through). I was in the mall MAYBE 10 minutes! I was in complete shock that I just sat there for about 5 minutes with my head in my hands trying to figure out what to do next. Should I call the police? Get mall security? I had no clue. I called Mike, who was golfing so he didn't answer (and as I write this I still haven't gotten ahold of him.... did I mention that it was HIS ipod?). So i called my dad next to see what he thought I should do. He said that the police couldn't do anything, but that maybe our home owners insurance would cover it. So once I talk to Mike ( and hopefully I'll still be married after I tell him) we'll figure out if we are going to be replacing it or not.

I'm so sad.... I loved that thing. I had many hours of listening enjoyment (and watching The Office) on that thing. We don't have a cd player in the Passat, so the ipod served as that. PLUS we had an ipod dock in our house where we used it ALL the time.

Sigh.....

Her First Picture!

I can tell you right now that our little girl doesn't like getting her picture taken because we had to work HARD just to get this one!

We went in last Tuesday for our second ultrasound because the first time she was on her belly and they couldn't get any measurments for her face. The moment they got her on the screen we knew that it was going to take a while. She had her legs and feet in front of her face- the ONE place we needed to see. So they moved me onto my left side to try to get her to shift, but the thing that stunk about that was I could no longer see the screen. All I could do was watch mike ohh and ahh while i begged him to give me a play by play. But all he kept saying was, "wow, look at her" or "Rach, how cool was that?" Thanks, Mike. Every time I tried to look over my shoulder to catch a peek at what he was gushing about, i would be told to stop moving. SO frustrating. She finally got so tired of being poked and prodded that she arched her back and stretched out (so Mike says) and started to suck her thumb. And that is what she is doing in the picture. For those of you who haven't seen ultrasound photos before, our doctor has handy labels it for you. All you see is her profile and hand. I want to point out the obivious Freer nose that she has! Look at that thing! Thanks dad for passing on the genes!

Kristen and Adam's Wedding

Here are some pics from this past weekend for all of you to see.



My friend Beth and I. We're two months apart.


Jaime hard at work.


One of my fav shots of the day


The lovley bride and groom


Classy pic of Kristen.

Congrats guys! I love you!

A gift for my daughter!

Last night our friends Ashley and Ryan took us out for a celebration dinner, and when I opened the car door, I was greated with a beautiful diaper cake! It has not only tons of diapers in it, but lots of other little goodies for her! I was SOOOO excited! It's so wierd to see all this pink stuff- it's totally settled in that I'm going to have a daughter in 4 months, and I cannot stop smiling! Mike and I had a celebration breakfast together after the appointment, and as we did, we talked names. I'm pretty sure we've picked one, but no one will know until she comes! You guys have to be surprised about something!!!



Isn't it so beautiful!!



The little slippers were my favorite! It's hard to believe I'll have a baby so little that her feet will fit in them!