Some thoughts...

I am going to have a daughter soon. I cant even wrap my mind around that thought. A daughter. A child. John and I are going to be parents. Wow. I feel so incredibly blessed. In my journey to get pregnant and during my pregnancy I've met and read about so many women who struggle to get pregnant and stay pregnant. My heart breaks for them. I cant imagine what they are going through. I'm sure like me they have wanted their entire lives to be mommies. Sometimes, I wonder why I am one of the lucky ones? But most of the time I just try to enjoy each and every minute of my pregnancy, even the tough moments. Who knows if I'll be able to have another? All I know is that God answered our prayers and has given us an incredible gift that I hope I never take for granted. I hope I can lead my baby girl to Jesus and she can love Him with all of her heart and share Him with others. I have such big dreams for her. I cant wait to meet her and see her grow. I'm already crying as I write this- I dont know how my mama heart is going to make it the rest of my life! :D

As I think about how exciting our lives are about to become, I cant help but think about all the wonderful people that have helped us to this moment in our lives. Then that leads me to think about my daddy. There are no words for how much I miss him. There are no words for how much I want him to be a part of this journey of mine. Of everyone that is excited for our little girl to be born, I know he would have been the most excited. He was head over heels for all of us growing up and I know he wanted a grandchild so bad after we got married. I can picture him now making fun of my belly and poking at it. I can picture him holding our baby girl and taking her for rides in his wheelchair. I can hear him telling her all sorts of stories about me when I was little. I can hear him telling her all kinds of jokes. I can see him giving her all of the hugs and kisses. The fact that I cant hear or see any of this for real, brings me to my knees in tears. Oh how I wish he was here.

Going through this part of my life without him has definitely been the hardest. I would love his advice, hear his side of how pregnancy was for him and mom, hear how it was to raise his babies. I want him to hold my hand and tell me I'm going to be fine delivering this little girl and afterwards tell me how good of a job I did. I want to be able to share this with him so bad. I want to be able to share her. I just want my daddy. 

I am so thankful that John is such a great man. I know without a doubt this little girl is going to love him so incredibly hard. I know without a doubt that he will be everything to her that my father was to me. Every little girl should have that in their daddy. I'm just grateful that my dad and John were and are above and beyond what is expected of a father. Of a daddy. Of the first love of a little girl's life. 

Daddy, I miss you so much. 

I am so thankful for a daddy who loved me this much: 

Look at the two of you dancing that way

Lost in the moment and each other's face

So much in love, you're alone in this place

Like there's nobody else in the world

I was enough for her not long ago

I was her number one, she told me so

And she still means the world to me

Just so you know

So be careful when you hold my girl

Time changes everything, life must go on

And I'm not gonna stand in your way

I loved her first

I held her first

And a place in my heart will always be hers

From the first breath she breathed

When she first smiled at me

I knew the love of a father runs deep

And I prayed that she'd find you someday

But it's still hard to give her away

I loved her first

How could that beautiful woman with you

Be that same freckled face kid that I knew?

The one that I read all those fairy tales to

And tucked into bed all those nights

And I knew the first time I saw you with her

It was only a matter of time

I loved her first

I held her first

And a place in my heart will always be hers

From the first breath she breathed

When she first smiled at me

I knew the love of a father runs deep

And I prayed that she'd find you someday

But it's still hard to give her away

I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed

When she first smiled at me

I knew the love of a father runs deep

Someday you might know what I'm going through

When a miracle smiles up at you

Yeah, I loved her first

38 Weeks!

October 24th

Baby girl is the size of a Pomeranian this week! She's probably around 7lbs and 19 1/2 inches (again all guesses at this point!). She has an eye color now, but it could change during her first year. Still really cool to think about what color her sweet little eyes might be :D She's packing on more fat and is rolling around good in my belly even tho there isnt much space left. lol

How's Mama? Doing pretty good :D I'm definitely more tired, but working from home has helped dramatically with that. Not having to commute is amazing. Monday night I went grocery shopping and oh man. I think I had a real contraction. I couldnt walk through it and it was painful. At my appointment on Friday, they ended up confirming that I probably did have a contraction!! I am 3cm and 70% effaced now! My doctor was pretty shocked and excited at the same time. He laughed when I told him I thought I had had a contraction- he was like just one? lol I was like yep. He almost didnt even check me! But I asked him to since I had started to dilate. I think that's why he was shocked. haha. He's great. He did seem to think baby girl might come this weekend!! We'll see!! Other than the continued braxton hicks contractions and some real ones, I still have lots of heartburn, my hips hurt a lot when I sleep so it's hard to get comfy, and I'm peeing all the time. haha. My belly is HUGE! My belly button is half in and half out- I think it's cute :D I still feel beautiful and am soaking up every last bit of pregnancy I can :D I'm gunna miss this bump!! 

How's Daddy? Well believe it or not, I think this was his busiest week yet! He came home late every night :( I know he is SO ready for a break. Since he worked so late every night, I tried to get as much done around the house as I could. I even surprised him and cleaned his office! You couldnt even walk in there and now it's definitely MUCH better! Not how we want it, but it's clean and that's great for now :D. We started to watch Black Mirror every night as our unwind show- it's incredibly intriguing and very well done. I highly recommend it. It's been nice to snuggle on the couch each night and watch TV with him. 

This week: This week was busy each night with me working around the house and John working late :( At least we got some relaxing in together each night. I had John pick up some more milk one night- and y'all we are in MILK RANGE!

Friday night we went on a date! Thinking it might be our last date night thanks to my doctor! We went to Mellow Mushroom- our favorite! and then checked out the Raleigh Beer Garden- it's a REALLY cool place and it's HUGE. We'll definitely go back some time :D 

                                                

Saturday, my in-laws who are some of the best people ever came over to help us around the house one last time before baby comes. I actually left to get my hair done (it was the last appointment I could get before little girl arrives). My mother in law pulled weeds in my flower beds, while my father in law painted our kitchen ceiling. They were both still at it when I got home. John was doing random little things around the house and I started to sort the baby laundry I had been doing all week. She already has too many clothes. lol. Jane finished outside (I felt SO bad, she got eaten up by fire ants.) and helped me sort and organize clothes and diapers. John cleaned out the closet and the entire room felt so much better and more organized. Jane also cleaned my oven! Next, we worked on the wall. We got our chevron stripes in!! It took forever to put them up. They were a LOT of work. I think they look much sharper than paint would, but you need to have some real patience if you decide to go this route. I ended up watching while they all put the wall up. I was super exhausted and John and I were going to argue. lol. I am so thankful for all of their hard work. It was so nice to be able to knock some big things off our list.

 LOVE!

I love love love how it turned out! It's exactly what I wanted!!! The company I bought the stripes from measured wrong :( So they are a little short, but you cant tell. I was upset though because we paid extra for the extra length. I need to see what I can do. I love more than anything how much John loves me and does whatever he can to make my vision work. He's the best husband and father in the world. 

Sunday, John and I went shopping for all the baby things we still needed. How does someone so small, require SO much. Like, seriously? I had some awful contractions while we were out shopping, so it ended up taking much longer than we had hoped. Hopefully, it's a sign of things to come soon! Although, I'll be happy if she stays in a little longer. I'm not quite ready to not be pregnant. I'll miss her in there and really miss my bump! I also would love a little more time to do a few more things :D 

Week 37!

Oct 17th

Baby girl is the size of a skunk this week. Making it to 37 weeks is another relief for us! She's almost fully grown and would be able to survive if we had her early. (but stay in there baby girl!!) She's over 6lbs and about 19inches long (we learned the weight last week, which still isnt exact). She also has strong reflexes and is putting on more baby fat. 

How's Mama?: Doing great still! When I weighed in at the doctor I had gained 4lbs in a WEEK! But my calves, ankles, and feet were SUPER swollen. They told me not to even worry about it since it was from that. I also learned that I am 1cm dilated and 60% effaced already! Pretty exciting even though it doesnt really mean anything :D I'm just glad to know that my body is doing what it needs to start doing. Hopefully, it means less complications in delivery. Other than all of that, I have some serious heartburn at night- no matter what I eat or drink. Even just water. My hips are starting to hurt more when I sleep and I'm just tired. She's still dancing around in there and I'm trying to soak it up as much as I can since it's almost over!! I cant believe it. 

How's Daddy?: Would you be shocked if I said busy? LOL. He didnt get to make this last appointment or the next one because of work related meetings. But that's okay- they are super quick and I hate him having to take all that time for a 15 minute appointment. Otherwise, he's still trying to get himself to a spot at work where he doesnt leave a ton of work left undone before his break.

This week: This week we haven't been SUPER busy at home, but more so exhausted from everything. Monday night we went and had our maternity pictures taken! A girl from John's work offered to take them for us. She's SO sweet! We decided on NC State and Pullen Park. John got off work a little late, so we had to rush to beat the daylight some. It turned out to be more than perfect. We had the coolest experience! We decided to start at the Bell Tower. I got there before John did and while I was waiting on him, Dr. Stafford (he was the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at State for over 40 years until he retired recently- he also does all the bell tower tours) saw me standing near the bell tower. Well, he came over to me and asked if I was a student- ha!- I told him no, but I was alumni. He was SO excited and asked if I had ever been inside the bell tower. I told him that he actually had taken me in it before and how awesome the tour was. Then, I got the brilliant idea to ask him if we could get a picture INSIDE the bell tower! He was just as excited about it as I was and said yes! He said it would be a historic moment as nobody has ever had maternity pictures taken in the bell tower and Baby M would be the youngest ever inside. lol. So, as soon as John got there, Dr. Stafford gave us the key and let me unlock the bell tower!! and then take as many pictures as we wanted!!! He is such an incredibly nice guy and made the experience so perfect for us! Seriously, what are the odds that this crazy Wolfpack loving couple got to do something so precious at one of our favorite locations? I cant WAIT to see the pictures!! After that awesome experience, we took a few more on campus then headed over to Pullen where John proposed. :D Then we went back to another part of campus and got some with the wolves :D I seriously cant wait to see them :D

Tuesday, John got us free tickets to see the new Jack Reacher movie! that was a fun little date night in the middle of the week for sure :D This was my last week in the office! So I made sure to say all my goodbyes until maternity is over. I'm very much looking forward to working from home the next two weeks!

Over the weekend, the Kinlaws threw an Oktoberfest party! It was so much fun! Everyone for the most part dressed in character! Even Mason! haha. 

Josh made an awesome table!

Dave grilling out- they had an awesome spread of German food!

Hutch!!

Uncle John and Mason :D

We love our nephew!! Yes, that is an apron- what else was a 9 1/2 month preggo girl gunna wear? haha :D 

German game John found online! It was fun!

Kristian made an AWESOME cake. It was so delicious!!!

Sunday, the girls took me out for a pamper day. I have some of the best friends a girl could ask for. We got lunch, mani/pedis, and they got me a massage!! I really didnt expect any of that, so it was extremely nice of them. After all of that, I took a nap and then Andrew made dinner. While I slept through dinner, they let us grab some to-go plates and snuggles with Mason :D Seriously, the best friends :D

Mason was snuggling with his cousin from the outside. I think he's excited? ;D

Week 36!

Oct 10th

Baby girl is the size of a chihuahua this week! I cant believe how big she is getting and I cant believe I am 9 months pregnant. I mean, when did that even happen?! I feel like I just peed on a stick. Not to the point where we could have a baby at any time! She's about 19 inches and weighs 6lbs now! She's almost to full term and is just spending her time packing on some baby fat :D

How's Mama? Overwhelmed. Y'all, I mean seriously. We are going to have a baby soon. Her nursery isnt done, the house isnt where I want it, all the things. I might have been a bit overwhelmed this week. Not to mention that we werent even at our house for part of the week. More on that in a bit. Just feeling a bit unprepared this week. The braxton hicks continue and they do seem to get more and more intense as the weeks progress. All the other fun things include- constipation, not sleeping well, and ALL the heartburn. I've woken up throwing up in my mouth numerous times this week. It's disgusting. I've just gotten to the point where I leave tums sitting out on the nightstand so I dont have to get up. On the positive side of things, she's moving a TON. I thought this would slow down based on everything I've read, but she's just a dancing away in there. It's SO cool to watch my belly move. I've tried to catch it on camera, but she's got some stage fright. lol. She makes all the uncomfortable worth it. :D

How's Daddy? Overwhelmed too. There's just so much going on right now that it's ridiculous. We would be this busy if we werent expecting, so getting ready to have a baby is just an added on HUGE thing. lol. He's still bringing work home and taking care of me :D He also went dad mode and installed the car seat!! It's SO weird to have a car seat in the car!!

This week: Well, Monday when we still didnt have power and Duke Progress Energy was saying it would be off till next Sunday, we packed up our stuff and headed to John's parents house. I ended up having to take the full day off and John went ahead to work after helping me unload everything. For the most part, everything in our fridge was ruined and will have to be tossed out. We were able to save some frozen meat and brought that with us to Jim and Jane's house. Being at their place was really nice. Electricity, company, cell service, hot showers lol Little things :D 

Tuesday, we found out our power had come back on around midnight! So much for Sunday. lol. We were both so busy for a few days after work the next few days that we didnt even have time to move home, so we just stayed with the Martins. The commute was AWESOME. 25 minutes to work? Yes, please. lol. Anyways, so Tuesday we both worked like normal. I say worked like normal, but my work threw us a baby shower at lunch!! Again,we were overwhelmed with kindness! So many gifts. It was behind nice of everyone!! After work we had a breastfeeding class. We try to make these nights a little special and get dinner together. Tuesday we went to Rudino's before our class :D  It was also nice to have John's parents available to take care of Carter for us so we didnt have to rush back to their place and take him out. 

Ladybug toboggan that a co-worker made! It's freaking adorable!!!

Wednesday, we were supposed to have a concert after work, but it ended up getting cancelled for a medical emergency of one of the members. The 2nd concert to get cancelled in less than a week. We were SUPER bummed. Here we are trying  to do these things that will be too hard with a little one and they get cancelled- twice! :( Since it got cancelled we had originally had a tour of the hospital scheduled. We were able to get that back and went there after work. Getting a tour of the hospital made it ALL too real. Y'all, I'm having a baby soon. AH! While we were on the tour, we found out one of the girls from our labor and delivery class had her baby that day! Then we figured out who was next, and it's me! I just cant believe it. I know it will be fine, but I'm a bit terrified. Since the tour wasnt that long, John- being the sweetheart he is, went to his parents house and finished packing up what I missed earlier that day, and brought everything home. He let me go straight home after the tour. He's the best. 

Thursday, we crashed. Just too busy every night. SO tired! I did go and pick out fabric for little girls room! It was so nice to have a plan put together for colors and what I was going to make. My crazy self decided I couldnt wait for someone else to do it, since so much was pending on the color selected, so I decided to do it myself :D Oh! my mom also took me out to lunch for my birthday (we finally found a time to get together). She gave me the sweetest "Mom" necklace :D 

(picture of necklace!)

Friday, we had another baby appointment! Still doing well, still head down, and still not dilated at all. We got to see our precious little one on an ultrasound this week! :D We learned she's measuring at about 6lbs 7oz- 46 percentile. Which at first had me concerned, but really she's just average and all the doctor's said that's perfect. So I'll take it :D We also learned she is sunny-side up! They said she would likely rotate. If she doesnt, I'll be in for some awesome back labor, I'm sure. 

Friday night, we got to babysit Mason while the Kinlaws went on a date night! They wanted to fit one in before her maternity was over (I cant believe how fast it went!). We had a great time loving on that little boy and were glad we were finally able to babysit him. Honestly, it was very eye-opening for us. haha :D Sleep, eat, eat some more, diaper change, eat and sleep more, and more diaper changes. It was good for us to see what we have coming up :D He's so sweet, I could have held him all night. 

The rest of the weekend was filled football (an awful game that we should have won), and cleaning/working around the house and in the nursery! Hopefully, this next week isnt as crazy :D

35 weeks!

October 3rd

Little girl is the size of a Mini Lop Rabbit! So adorable!! She's between 18-19 inches and between 5-6lbs these days!  Most of her organ and skeleton development is complete and she's growing stronger and stronger each day!

How's Mama? Much less tired thanks to the extra iron! It also might have something to do with IT'S MY BIRTHDAY WEEK! :D I have started to have even more Braxton Hicks contractions and some of them are INTENSE. Whew-y! I have also started to have some cramping. We had a baby appointment ON my birthday, because hearing her little heartbeat is the best present! I also had my first cervical exam! I'm still not dilated at all- which at this point is a good thing. She is head down though! We are measuring ahead of schedule, so they have ordered an ultrasound for next week. I cant believe my appointments are every week now! Luckily, they are not worried about anything, just wanna check her out on screen. Other than that, I'll share about my birthday down below. It was a great week and I'm feeling pretty good :D

How's Daddy? The best hubby in the world! Our week was INSANE and he still did his best to make my birthday week so special. He even came to have lunch with me one day :D Other than that, he's pretty slammed at work and when he can, he's been bringing stuff home to knock stuff out. I think he's super worried about being out for so long and falling even further behind.

The week: HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEEK! haha :D Monday and Wednesday were filled with baby classes after work. Monday was a bringing home baby class. We learned how to bath, dress, swaddle, and care for the baby. We got to try on carriers and learned a lot about car seats. It probably didnt need to be as long as it was, but I'm glad we went. Wednesday, was our regular labor and birth class. I had started to get concerned about my Braxton Hicks being so severe that I actually asked my instructor about it. She was a doula for 20 years, so I figured she might have an answer. I was trying not to be too paranoid and call my doctor. She told me is sounded normal. Everything always ends up being normal (thankfully!). 

Friday, was my actual birthday! We had our appointment so we both got to leave work early and beat the traffic home after our appointment! That in itself is an awesome birthday present. haha. That night we had plans to go to State for some Howling Cow Ice Cream!, meet up with friends at Raleigh Brewing Company, and then went to dinner at H-Street Kitchen. It was AWESOME! John kept doing everything he could to make my day special and he sure did. I *thought* we had agreed on no gifts, but of course he surprised me with some. He knows my love of scarves and got me the two I wanted for nursing :D He also got me the Rogue Chocolate Stout I had on my birthday last year on our epic road trip- I'm super excited about having it once she comes out. I know he knew how much I was missing our trip and how special something like that would be. :D He's the best.

Erin made me the cutest shirt!!! 

I wore it Friday to work in support of the big game the next day :D

Howling cow! Yes, that is a sundae. No, I do not care what you think :D  And yes, it was before dinner. It was delicious!

 Dinner!

 Love all the people in this picture :D

 And this little cutie!!

 I'm so lucky to have the best date for life:D

 31- AH!

Saturday we slept in and it was game day! I forgot to mention that all week we had our eyes on Hurricane Matthew. He was coming up the coast. The forecast kept changing dramatically (as it does). One day it was going to his us hard, the next we were going to have light rain. Because of this we didnt prepare as well as we should have. We were fine, but hindsight is 20/20. We had tickets to an all day concert festival in Clayton, but it was cancelled, just in case. We were bummed. It did mean we could watch the game Saturday though. The game was at noon game and we had a last minute offer to go to the game! It was Carter Finley's 50th Anniversary and we were playing Notre Dame. If it hadnt been POURING and the wind wasnt ridiculous, we would have gone. But we turned the tickets down and opted to watch it on the couch. lol. It was a very fun game to watch- the field was soaked from the rain and the players were sliding all around. A little after half-time, we lost power. We figured it would be out for a little while, but it didnt come back on. John was SUPER bummed, he really wanted to see the end of that game. Next we lost internet and cell service. Womp.  After sitting around our house for a bit, we decided to make a Target run and just get out of the house. We walked around Target some, picked up a few things, and then went across the street to Carolina Ale House for dinner. We got to watch some football there and turned what was kinda a crappy day into a fun date :D We decided to head home and feed the puppy and then come back and go to the movies. When we got home I realized that we should have gone by the movies to see if they were even open. We couldnt call them, so we just went back up to White Oak- we didnt have anything to do anyways. Of course they were closed. On our way home, there were firetrucks and police in the road of 40. In the short time that we came and went, a river had started to flood 40 and you could barely drive through it. Crazy. We ended up going to bed after we got back- it was late anyways.

Sunday we slept in some and then found we were still without power, internet, or cell service. So we decided to go run some errands. The rain had stopped and it was a gorgeous day. John had said for my birthday weekend we could do whatever I wanted, that mostly got killed by the weather, I was really sad we couldnt do the concert Saturday. I was totally up for returning baby stuff on Sunday though  (we got a ton of doubles) and going to At Home to look at decorations for her room! We drove all the way up to North Raleigh and stopped for lunch at Twisted Fork. Of course I had to pee when I was leaving Twisted Fork and unfortunately found that I was bleeding some. It freaked me out. I ran out and grabbed John and got him in the car. I tried to call my doctor but their lines were dead from the storm. John was doing his best to calm me down, but I was in freak out mode. He finally had the great idea of trying to call our Labor and Delivery instructor, Toni. Somehow I had her phone number in my email and called her. She was SUPER helpful. She told me to call the hospital and see if I could ask a nurse there about it or if they could get in touch with my on-call doctor. After talking to the hospital- we were going in to get checked out. I started balling. I wasnt ready for this. This was not how the day was supposed to go. We got all the way to the hospital and my doctor called!! She ended up telling me that a cervical exam (like I had on Friday) could cause bleeding and all the other symptoms I was having and that I didnt need to worry or go to the hospital. PHEW. So,bless John. He turned around and we went back to North Raleigh to exchange baby stuff.

Let me stop and say that John is my rock. He was totally calm and in control the entire time, which was exactly what I needed. I know he will be everything to me in the delivery room when the time comes to have her. I love that man more than you can imagine.

So, we went to Target and Babies R Us and then headed to At Home. Y'all, I didnt spend ANY money in there! It's usually worse than Target for me. I want all things. haha But I showed some self control and decided that it was too hard to decorate her room  until I had all the bedding done and the right color teal decided on. After shopping, we decided to head back home. We ended up hanging out with the Kinlaws for the rest of the night. We made some food and played a board game. We kept calling Duke Progress Energy to see if they had any updates (We could make calls every now and then, but couldnt text or really receive any calls). We called around 9pm and they finally had an update! They said that power would be back on by 11:45 Sunday and then I hung up the phone as we celebrated! Around 11pm I called  again to see if there were any changes and we listened to the whole thing this time. The whole message said 11:45pm Sunday Oct 16. A WEEK FROM THEN! Talk about crushed hoped. lol. We went home deflated. We had contacted our respective supervisors that day while we were out to let them know we might not be in to work or late if we could make it work. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my birthday weekend, but John made it awesome anyway :D. Next time, we know to prepare a little better for the power being out for so long!

34 Weeks!

September 26th

Baby girl is the size of a Quokka this week! SO CUTE! She's about 18 inches and about 5lbs now! She's peeing up to a pint a day- so weird to me. haha.

How's Mama? Tired. But that's the norm now. haha :D We had a baby appointment on Monday!! I love going and hearing her little heartbeat and ensuring she's doing great in there!  We also found out that my iron is low, which is probably is a huge reason as to why I'm SO tired all the time. They had me start an iron supplement. I kid you not- the first time I took it, I noticed a difference. I had SO much more energy. I mean I'm still tired, but like normal tired, not dragging and need sleep ALL. THE. TIME. Tired. So thankful for that! they also told me to start taking colace with the extra iron to help with any constipation that might occur. yay. lol. On a happier note, little girl is getting so strong in her kicks and it's so neat to watch my belly move some now! :D

How's Daddy? He's good! Tired and very busy. He's gotten to go through all the presents with me! We didnt end up doing it over the weekend because we were WAY too tired. haha.  I know all my tossing and turning is making him sleep even worse than before :( 

He's a champ though :D 

This week: This week was another busy one. Monday I helped throw a baby shower at work for a co-worker. Remind me not to take on a lot this late in my pregnancy next go around. I cried tried to wrap the presents because I couldnt figure it out. I'm pretty sure John thought I was losing it. lol. Wednesday we had baby class again! The classes have been so helpful, I'm really glad that we signed up for them. It's just helpful to know more about what to expect- even if everything is different for everyone. lol. John had to go out of town for work Thurs-Saturday. It was his last trip before the baby comes! Crazy!! The Kinlaws also went out of town, so I kept Bailey. It was nice to have a little time to myself :D Friday night I was my first real night back at PNC. It was great to see everyone again!!! However, by the end of the night, I was done. I had to call it quits and I dont have plans to go back until after maternity. It was too much on my body. I'm really glad I tried though, because I would have been mad at myself if I hadnt. OMG. While I was there, a lady started to choke! The whole table ran over to me to help and do the Heimlich. I went to help her and then remembered that I'm 8 months pregnant and that couldnt really happen. It was super scary though. Luckily, I was able to help someone else do it and a HUGE piece of turkey shot out of her throat. I'm so glad she was okay! So scary. Saturday and Sunday were filled with relaxing and working on the house more :D 

Celebrating Baby M's Impending Arrival!

Y'all, John and I have been completely overwhelmed with the kindness and excitement from all of our family and friends. Our little baby girl is already adored and loved by so many and it just warms my heart. 

I have the best best friend, sister, and mom in the world! They threw me an amazing baby shower at our home. It was just about a month ago at this point (sorry I'm so behind!). John and I got up the morning of the shower and cleaned the house (remind me to do this BEFORE the day of next time. lol) Then I got ready and got out of the house. My mother-in-law, mom, and I had plans to get lunch and get our nails done :D I thought it would be nice to spend some time with the grandma's-to-be before the shower. Then we went and enjoyed a nice pedicure and I got a manicure! It's so nice to have someone else do your nails. Especially, now that I cant really reach my toes well. haha

Krystal and Sherry wanted me back at the house a little before people started arriving so I could see the house decorated. It looked SO good y'all. Like so pretty. These ladies know me so well and for that I am so thankful!

Entry- with a bowl of Oreo Truffles Pops for people to take!

 Flowers and presents!

 Sherry did an incredible job with the decorations!

 Everything was so pretty :D 

 They even decorated her room! :D

Sherry made the coolest diaper bouquet!! She's so creative.

I LOVED it!

Selfie before the shower!

The food was delicious! Of course Krystal heard me say that I really wanted some Ham Delights a few days before the shower and so she made some! and she also surprised me with mini pumpkin cheesecakes- they are by far my favorite!! She is awesome!

Sherry painted and decorated the mason jars you see on the table- they are so adorable that they will be going in little girls room :D

My sweet Aunt Rhonda was so gracious to make my cake and OMG. It was just as delicious as I remembered it. She did a fabulous job. 

 Love her!! 

I was completely overwhelmed with how many people were able to come to the shower. My cousin flew in from Chicago! John's aunts drove in from Fayetteville, my grandma drove in from Jacksonville, friends from my neighborhood, work, childhood, and college years, SO many people I love! They all came to celebrate my sweet baby girl with me. Seriously, words cannot explain how honored and loved I felt :D

We all got some yummy foods first and everyone got to chatting. It was so nice to be able to catch up with some of these people! I wish time would go slower. haha.  After awhile we stopped and played some games :D Then we opened up presents and ate cake!- I dont even know where all the time went! It went by so fast! We were definitely showered with TONS of gifts and John and I are just so thankful for that!

Baby games!

 OMG. The cutest little toboggan for her!!! Mrs. Wuf! 

The last gift I opened was by far the most precious of them all. My mother-in-law gave us John's hospital outfit from when he was born. Look how tiny he was!!! I dont even know how she kept up with it all these years, but it is incredibly sweet to have something so precious from her. I know it had to be hard for her to give it to us. It made everyone cry. 

The shower was perfect and everything I could have wanted it to be. :D The guys had a nice time out doing guy things- I know John needed the guy time! and time away from worrying about projects around the house. After the shower, the boys came home and we all hung out and ended up going to dinner. It was a lovely day. :D 

My sweet hosts!

Here are some pictures with folks from the shower! 

(I'm horrible at remembering to take pictures!)

John'a Aunts and Mom :D 

 Grandma to be!

 Aunt Julie!

 Kristen came over early and helped the girls set up. :D  

 My grandma :D 

Me and Kim :D She's the one who had the Mrs. Wuf toboggan made!

 Jennie! We've been friends since 2nd grade!

 My sweet cousin Christina :D