You know your baby isn't sleeping through the night when...

You fall asleep on the display couch at Target

(he really did fall asleep for a good 20-30 minutes)

Ever since Kensie was born getting adequate sleep has been nearly impossible. She has not been a good sleeper since day one. The first two weeks she had her days and nights mixed up and was waking every 1-3 hours. Once we got that taken care of she started waking up at 3 or 4 a.m. and wouldn't go back to sleep for an hour or two. Then at about two months she reverted to waking every 1-3 hours at night. Over Christmas break, she started sleeping for six hour stretches! I thought we were through the worst of it. But the last three nights she has woken up every 1-3 hours. The all familiar cycle. Just when I think things are getting better she reverts to her crazy sleep habits.

I know that not getting much sleep comes with the first couple months of parenting but it is really frustrating when I talk to people who have babies Kensie's age who are already sleeping through the night. Not to mention I'm tired of being tired.

We don't ever let her sleep in our bed. I don't nurse her to sleep. Rarely do I rock her. But here are our problems.

She has slept in her bouncer since she was a month old because she wouldn't stay asleep lying flat. Now I can't get her to transition to the crib. Our other problem is the binky. At once it was our best friend and suddenly it is our enemy. She can't go to sleep without it and wakes when it falls out. You would think I could have foreseen this problem right? It hasn't been a problem until recently. Until now, she would fall asleep with the binky and once she was asleep she would spit it out. Our other problem: crying it out. It has been hard to stay consistent with crying it out because she gets really gassy. When she is gassy she cries indefinitely. So...how can you overcome crying it out if you can only be consistent when her tummy isn't hurting, she isn't sick, you're not on vacation, etc.?

I thought this would all be a lot easier trying to get an infant to have good sleep habits. It sounds a lot easier in the books. Turns out it is much harder than I thought.

Needles to say...I'm hoping for better sleep in 2011.

Merry Christmas

Here is our Christmas card a few days late. I'm not quite ready for Christmas to be over so this is an attempt to drag it out a little longer.

We just returned from our trip to Washington for Christmas! We had an extra special Christmas this year since we were able to spend it with our newest addition, Kensie. We hope you had a Merry Christmas and we wish you a Happy New Year!

Little Miss Niel

I mentioned before that the first thing our doctor said when she delivered Kensie was, "She looks just like her dad!" Babies change so much as they grow, but Kensie still looks a lot like her dad. People tell us that all the time. We were going through pictures and found a picture of Niel at two months old.

Kensie and Niel both at 2 months old

Ummm...Yeah. I'm pretty sure Niel is her father.

Two Months

Yet again, one month behind schedule...don't judge.

Two month stats:

21 1/2 inches long (10-25th percentile)

10 lbs. 9 oz. (25-50th percentile)

37 1/2 inches head circumference (10-25th percentile)

She started smiling and cooing more often

She developed a double chin and chubbier cheeks

Her eyes appear to be turning blue

Her hair is wavy!

She is cooperative with wearing bows now:)

Around seven weeks she got over the colic stage. HOORAY!!!

She loves to be held...ALL the time

She wore newborn clothes until seven weeks

She LOVES baths

At her two month doctor appointment, my doctor scolded me (in a nice way). He told me my baby is parenting me and that I need to start parenting my baby. He told me I need to let her cry more and let her cry herself to sleep.

During and right after her shots she cried really hard. She wanted to be held all afternoon and would do little whimpers that were actually pretty adorable. She slept great the rest the day and was more mellow than usual. Overall the two month shots went a lot better than I thought they would.

"Koala-ty" Award

One Friday afternoon we were getting ready to do the usual furniture shopping trip (see post below). Niel was assigned the duty of getting Kensie in the car seat. When I sat down next to her in the backseat I beheld the cutest thing. First of all she had this little koala bear stuffed animal I had never seen before perched on her lap. But even cuter, she had her hand rested on it like it was her little buddy! She kept her hand on the koala the whole car ride!

I asked Niel where the bear came from. He responded briefly, "Work." I had to prod him a little bit more to find out why he got a stuffed animal from work. He told me he won the "Koala-ty" award. I chuckled. It wasn't until later that I found out why he received the award. Apparently a patient wrote a letter to the orthopaedic group praising Niel. He didn't seem to stoked about the stuffed animal but at least Kensie liked it:)

Furniture Shopping

Moving from a one bedroom, 800 square foot apartment, to a 2,600 square foot home has required us to do a lot of furniture shopping. By 'a lot' I mean basically every piece of furniture one would need for a house. Our place looked bare and we were anticipating about twelve people coming to stay with us for the baby blessing. We felt an urgency to get furniture; especially a couch and a dining table. Once Kensie was three weeks old we started our journey of furniture shopping. Our Friday nights, Saturdays, and sometimes weeknights were consumed by shopping in an attempt to get a table and couch by the time our company came.

Furniture shopping (or shopping in general) wouldn't be so complicated if I didn't have some very annoying shopping quirks. I drive myself crazy (and my husband) for the following reasons:

1) I hate paying full price.
2) I like to see all of my options before I make my final decision.
3) I tend to be very indecisive
4) I frequently experience buyer's remorse and return things

5) I am very picky

We have been to about fifteen different furniture stores all around the city of Las Vegas (reference point #2). Some of which we have been to multiple times (point #3). We returned our couch and re-bought it (reference #4). I wished we hadn't re-bought the couch after returning it (reference #3) We bought and returned two area rugs (point #4). And we currently have an entertainment center that we have paid for but have delayed delivery because I am not sure if I want to keep looking or not (point #1 ,#3, & #4)

As if my pickiness and indecisiveness doesn't make furniture shopping hard enough, we have done all of this with little baby Kensie. I have nursed and changed diapers in furniture showrooms numerous times. Below is a story about just one of the many furniture shopping adventures I have had with Kensie.

One day imparticular I decided to brave furniture shopping on my own while Niel was at work. Kensie was about five weeks old. I packed a lunch, armed myself with a fully loaded diaper bag and headed across town. After one store I had to feed Kensie in the car and change her diaper. After being inside the second store no more than fifteen minutes I had a crying baby and had to leave. Since I was already on the complete opposite side of town I was determined to hit up the RC Willey outlet while I was there. After that stop Kensie and I were exhausted. I put her in the car and hoped she would be able to make the 35 minute drive home before having to eat again. Five minutes into the car ride she was screaming at the top of her lungs. I knew I couldn't take that for another half hour so I pulled over to feed her. Just as I was about to put her back in the car seat to head home, she pooped her pants. The thought of doing another diaper change in the car didn't sound too appealing. Especially since she has a tendency to cry, pee, and poop as soon as I open her diaper. I was anticipating her cry as I laid her down awkwardly on the seat of the car and started to change her diaper. I was pleasantly surprised when instead of crying she looked happy that I was changing her diaper! It was a warm, sunny day in Vegas with a breeze and I had the door open. I guess she liked getting her diaper changed in the open air. I was so shocked by her pleasant response to the diaper change I had to take a picture. After returning home from that five hour shopping trip, I vowed to never go furniture shopping again by myself and the baby.

So...did we ever get a dining room table and couch in time for our visitors? Yes and no. We finally picked out a dining table and went to order it. We were informed that the table we wanted was on back order for another two months. The couch we bought was supposed to arrive the day before all of our company arrived. And it didn't come. So there we were. After a month of religiously furniture shopping with our newborn baby in an attempt to get a dining room table and couch for our guests we were unsuccessful. Instead, our guests enjoyed eating at a fold-up table and sitting on folding chairs. It didn't end up being all that bad in the end. In fact, it probably ended up being better that we didn't have brand new furniture since we had about ten of our nieces and nephews here.

Lesson learned from this experience: Haste makes waste when furniture shopping.

Auntie Kristin

Niel's cousin Kristin came to visit shortly after we moved into our new house for a week. She was our first visitor! Kensie loved all the attention she received from her. I had lots of things to take care of with my swimsuit business while she was here that involved going downtown to the ghetto part of Las Vegas. I'm so glad I didn't have to take my baby with me to all of the germ-infested city buildings by freemont street. I have been so blessed with all of the help I have received from family since the birth of Kensie. It isn't easy living in a different state from the rest of our whole family. I couldn't have imagined doing everything without the help I have received from family as a new mom AND moving.

Oopsies

One day while Kensie was sleeping I went in to check on her. I found Kensie shaking her head back and forth with the bow over her eyes. I started laughing pretty hard because she looked hilarious. Then she closed her eyes and settled back to sleep with the bow still over her eyes. Silly girl.

Testing 1..2..3..

We had Marleen, Spencer, and their girls over to our house a few weeks after we moved in. We had a picnic at the park behind our house and then tested out our pool and hot tub for the first time! Their girls loved the hot tub and didn't want to get out! Niel was brave enough to jump in the pool (it wasn't heated yet). We've used the hot tub several times and we're looking forward to lots of pool parties next summer! We can't wait to get Kensie in her swimsuit and take her swimming!

Church

We took Kensie to church for the first time when she was three weeks old. I felt good enough to go and thought it would be nice to get out of the house. Bad idea...

Side note: Since I thought we were going to have a big baby I didn't buy any newborn dresses. I had this one dress (pictured) that was given to me size 0-3 months. It was still huge on her!

It ended up being way more stressful than it was worth and I didn't get anything out of church. I spent half the time in the mother's lounge feeding her and changing diapers. The other half was spent sitting on the pue rocking, bouncing, and doing everything in my power to prevent her from bursting into an outcry (she was very temperamental that day). Since she was only three weeks old I got nervous whenever someone sneezed, coughed, got close, etc. The next week at church wasn't much different. I always wondered why some women waited like six weeks to take their babies to church. Now I know... Note to self: Wait until baby is at least five weeks to take to church. It's worth the peace of mind.

First Month

Kensie was two months last week but I am just getting around to documenting the first month of her life. I will catch up one of these days.

At Kensie's first month appointment she screamed bloody murder almost from check-in to check-out. Everyone in the waiting room was giving me dirty looks. The nurse said, "Wow, she has some lungs". The doctor confirmed my suspicions that Kensie has colic but assured me that it should get much better by two months.

First month stats:

25th percentile for weight: 8 lbs 5 oz.

50th percentile for height: 21 inches

10-25th percentile for head circumference: 35 1/2 cm

Here is a summary of the first month with Kensie.

I will never forget those first few days after she was born. At the hospital she laid in her little box next to me and I couldn't keep my eyes off her. I couldn't believe that this tiny, beautiful, baby girl was ours! Bringing her home from the hospital was so fun as it felt like we had a little doll to take care of. She was so tiny, cuddly, and sweet.

Kensie was a natural at nursing from the start. It didn't take long until she was wanting to eat ALL the time. She would root and act hungry and then fall asleep after eating for about two minutes. This ended up being a vicious cycle because shet wanted to eat every hour. ugh. SO...my doctor told me to do whatever it took to keep her awake. I kept a wet washcloth on the rocker every time I fed her and would wipe her forehead with the wet washcloth to keep her awake. I also tickled her toes and back. It worked sometimes but she still got really sleepy. This got a little better after about two weeks but I still have to work to keep her awake.

The first two weeks she had her days and nights mixed up. She slept all day long and then kept mom up most of the night. She was waking up every hour at night and would have a fussy time late at night. She wouldn't go to sleep until 11 p.m. or midnight. At about three weeks she got things figured out and started sleeping a lot better. She starting sleeping for two to four hours at a time.

Kensie didn't cry much the first two weeks of her life. The first time we heard her cry loud was the first time we gave her a bath. At three weeks she started getting more fussy and letting mom and dad know she had lungs! Every night around 7 or 8 p.m. she would start crying. Then it would escalate quickly to a full-on scream mode. Nothing we did could console her. That was SO hard.

Cute little things she did during the first month...

She makes funny facial expressions just like her dad

She sticks her hands straight up and waves them in the air

She does cute poses and rests her face on her hands

She thinks she is falling and flails her arms anytime you lay her flat on her back

She does a kissy face

She grunts like an old man all the time, especially when she sleeps

When she is done eating she purses her lips

She does BIG stretches and arches her back

As soon as we change her diaper she likes to poop and pee in between diapers

She wore newborn clothes the whole first month

She likes going outside and going for car rides

When I change her diaper she sticks her legs straight out and holds them mid-air

The first month with Kensie was a lot harder than I imagined it would be between the sleepless nights and the colic. But even after a long night of crying and keeping me up, the next morning I couldn't even stay mad at her because she is so stinkin' cute:) Even though she has been a challenging baby we love her lots and love having her as a part of our life.

Breaking My Own Rules

I have always been a stickler about waiting until the day after Thanksgiving to listen to Christmas music and prepare for the holiday. This year I'm breaking my own rules. I started listening to Christmas music a few days ago. I am also anxious to get our tree up before Thanksgiving and decorate our new house! Why? It seems that every year the month of December flies by. So I thought I'd start earlier this year and enjoy the holiday season to its fullest! One of my all-time favorite Christmas albums is Celine Dion's. I'm not a huge fan of Celine Dion but her Christmas CD is spectacular. Frank Sinatra and Elvis are also favorites. And promise not to make fun of me but I've loved Dolly Parton & Kenny Roger's Christmas album since I was a little girl. I'm wanting to buy some new Christmas music this year including Michael Buble's Christmas CD. Any other suggestions?

Newborn Pictures

I got Kensie's newborn pictures taken when she was three weeks old. In the midst of packing and preparing to move, I failed to find a photographer for newborn pictures. So, I decided to take her to JcPenney to get them taken before she got any older.

On our way to get pictures Kensie was crying the whole time and continued to cry when we arrived at the portrait studio. I started wondering why on earth I was trying to do this (especially by myself) and that there was no way we were getting any good pictures. When we arrived our photographer was really sweet and said luckily there weren't any other appointments. The photographer let me feed Kensie first and then she spent almost an hour taking her pictures! Kensie was SO good-I couldn't believe it! I was nervous how they would turn out but I ended up being pretty happy with the results, especially for the price. Here are a few of the pictures.

This first one is my favorite

I love this sweet little girl.

Hands Up

The first several weeks after being born, Kensie loved to sleep with her arms up. We would swaddle her before bed and somehow she always managed to get her arms out and above her head. She sleeps with her arms up every once in awhile now but not like she used to. I thought it was the funniest thing. She is a little character.

Aunt Lori

When Kensie was a week and a half old, my oldest sister Lori came to visit me. I loved having her here. Since there is a sixteen year age gap between us, we haven't spent a lot of one on one time together. It was great to spend time with her and learn from her as an experienced mother of four. I really look up to my sister Lori. She is one of those people who everyone loves and admires. Lori is a great friend, mother, sister, and wife. She is talented, spiritual, charitable, funny, and not to mention she is in great shape. I hope that someday I can be as good of a mother and wife that she is. She helped me so much while visiting and Kensie loved her. Thanks Lori!

Halloween

Saturday night we got Kensie dressed in her pumpkin costume for the trunk or treat. Just as we got her in the car seat, I received a text from my friend saying the trunk or treat ended early. So we went car shopping instead...and Kensie sported her pumpkin costume.

Niel and I were excited to have trick or treaters for the first time since we finally have our own place. It ended up not being as cool as we thought it was going to be since most of the kids were over the age of ten. Consequently, Halloween ended up being somewhat boring, but at least we had an adorable little pumpkin to celebrate it with! Last year at this time I was really wanting a little baby and this year I have one!

Wicked...

Wickedly cute that is!

Tammy, one of the ladies Niel works with gave Kensie this cute little outfit for Halloween. Kensie pulls it off well.

Bath Time

The first couple of times we gave Kensie a bath she hated it and cried the whole time. Now she likes bath time and it actually soothes her when she is upset. She especially likes taking a bath in the master bath tub like a big kid.

Kensie was able to take real baths not long after being born because her umbilical cord fell off after only four days! I wasn't too sad about it because those things gross me out. We have no idea where that thing went either. I was changing her diaper one day and realized it was gone. I asked Niel if he knew when it fell off or where it went and he didn't know. hmmm. Must have fallen in a diaper. Hopefully. That thing better not show up randomly one of these days in an obscure place.

Binky

Kensie meets the binky.

I decided before Kensie was born for various reasons that I wouldn't give her a pacifier until she was at least a month or two old. I even had the nurses put a sign on her little box in the hospital that read, "no pacifiers." Then my sister came into town, who is an experienced mother of four children. She helped me realize that I couldn't be the human binky. So, we busted out the binky and Kensie liked it! Sometimes she hates it and won't take it but other times she loves it. Talk about a lifesaver. Glad my sister talked some sense into me.

Cuteness

Kensie does the best facial expressions. She is also a little wiggle worm. She loves doing fist pumps, throwing her hands straight up in the air, and flexing her legs straight.

Daddy's Girl

The moment Kensie was born she had her dad wrapped around her finger. She seems to like her daddy a lot:)

Bouncer

This $26 bouncer from Target is the only way I am able to shower and get ready in the morning. Sometimes she likes her swing and sometimes she hates it. Usually she hates it. She won't have it if we lay her on the floor. And don't even try putting her in the bassinet if she isn't already asleep.

I love this bouncer because it is really light weight and easy to move around the house. Plus, the little farm animals and barn will remind Kensie of her small-town roots. Good purchase.

Aunt Marilyn

We are lucky to live by my aunt Marilyn and uncle Carl. When Kensie was one week old they came to visit and brought us Olive Garden. When we moved they helped us unpack the house and put Kensie's nursery together. Kensie is lucky to have such an amazing aunt and uncle that don't live too far away. We have really enjoyed living in the same city as Marilyn and Carl.

Hello.

I love Kensie's eyes. She has big, round eyes and I love it when she is really alert like this and stares at me. She is four days old in this picture.

Kensie Collage

These pictures aren't the highest quality because we took them with our camera phones but I thought they were still worth a post:)

First Walk

My mom and I took Kensie for her first walk outside in her stroller when she was five days old. She liked it for about ten minutes and then decided she wanted to do something else. You can see the look of uncertainty on her face in this picture:) Now Kensie loves going outside and going for walks. If she is crying, she will usually stop if I go outside with her. Notice how huge her outfit is. That gown is size 0-3 months and she was swimming in it! Won't be long until she'll be filling it out though.

Grandma Saves the Day

The first several days after having a baby you're running on adrenaline. You are so excited and overcome with emotion to have this new precious person in your life. And then it hits you. The fact that you've had close to no sleep during the last three days. This combination of no sleep, crazy hormones, narcotics, and a sore body can turn one into a crazy person. Just in the knick of time my wonderful mother showed up to save the day (and my husband). My mom cooked, cleaned, did laundry, held Kensie, tended to my errands, offered emotional support, and most importantly taught me some things about being a new mom. Her trip was cut short when my poor mother got sick but it was great to have her while she was here. I honestly don't know how I could have done it without her, especially since Niel had to go back to work.

Kensie loved her Grandma from the first time they met. I can't wait for her to come back in November!

Take Me Home Please

This cute little girl is the best thing I have ever brought home with me:) This picture was taken at the hospital right before we headed home with Kensie in her car seat.

Who would have thought you don't get ANY sleep at the hospital. People come in your room at all hours of the night for hearing tests, blood tests, lactation consultation, etc. I even had a photographer randomly stop by the room to take pictures of Kensie and a lady from a salon to give me a foot massage. The food was surprisingly good though, especially our 'celebration dinner' of steak and chocolate cake. We stayed two nights at the hospital and headed out Saturday morning. It was so nice to leave the hospital and be home with her at last. She is such a doll.

Brand New

These pictures were taken when Kensie was only a day and two days old. I love the sleepy, newborn look that lasts only a couple of days. She has already grown so much in the last three weeks!

September 16th 2010

September 16th was one of the sweetest days of my life because we welcomed Kensie to the world. At my appointment on the 15th Kensie still hadn't settled into position so my doctor told me she would break my water in the operating room on the 16th in hopes that the baby would settle into place. She kept my scheduled C-section just in case there were any complications. She believed that my chances of having a natural delivery would be slim if she let me go further along in my pregnancy.

At times my doctor's strong opinion to induce me early seemed too conservative. Now I am so glad that we took our doctor's advice and went ahead with getting induced a week early. My recovery hasn't been the easiest and had Kensie been much bigger, I probably wouldn't have been able to have a natural delivery nor would I have wanted that. I am so grateful that I was able to have Kensie naturally without having a C-section and that my doctor handled my situation individually.

Here is a play-by-play of the big day:

5:40 a.m. Arrive at the hospital and prepare to be admitted to the operating room at 7:30 a.m.

7:00 a.m. First emotional break down. I got really nervous about whether or not I would need a C-section. Also, they put something in my IV that made me extremely tired and I couldn't imagine 10+ hours of labor ahead of me. I felt exhausted and like all I wanted to do was take a nap. I told Niel, "I don't think I can do this."
7:30 a.m. Nurse tells me I won't be sent to the operating room for another 40 minutes
8:00 a.m. My doctor arrives and checks position of the baby. Baby has dropped so she decides to start me on pitocin and see if I can go into labor without breaking my water
8:30 a.m. Nurses start my pitocin. Contractions are manageable.
10:30 a.m. Doctor checks baby's position again. Dilated to a three. Baby's head has floated up again so she decides to break my water
10:45 a.m. Wheeled into the operating room, receive my epidural, and get my water broken. Baby's head came down into position so they wheel me back into labor and delivery for a natural delivery! Hooray!

2:00 p.m-ish Dilated to a four. Really frustrated that I hadn't made hardly any progress. Can hardly feel the contractions with the epidural and playing on my iphone to make the time pass.

4:00 p.m.-ish Dilated to a seven!

5:30 p.m. No progress

7:00 p.m. Dilated to an eight. Second emotional break-down. At this point I was starving and thirsty because I hadn't had anything to eat for almost 24 hours because I had to fast in case it was a C-section. Tired of being hooked up to cords, monitors, and not being able to move hardly. The oxygen mask was getting the best of me. Contractions are getting more painful as the epidural drip machine was malfunctioning. Wondering when I would ever have this baby.

8:30 p.m. Dilated to a ten! Surprise! Time to push at last! Nurse and Niel help me with several pushes and then they call the doctor.

9:00 p.m-ish Doctor arrives and whole team of about five other people. Everyone is cheering me on.

9:19 p.m. Kensie is born! First thing the doctor says is, "She looks just like her dad!" I get to hold my baby girl for the first time.

I thought she was super cute the first moment they handed her to me. I couldn't believe I had actually given birth to my baby. Childbirth has always been a big fear of mine as silly as that may sound. I've always worried whether or not I would be able to give birth naturally because of my small frame. This moment was so empowering for me as they handed her to me. I did it! Baby girl was finally here and I was able to hold her in my arms at last.

Craziness.

Our life has been crazy the last couple of weeks. As if bringing home a newborn isn't a big enough life changing event, in addition we closed on our home and moved in with a two week old baby! I've been meeting appliance installation dudes, scheduling carpet cleaners, getting a U-haul, finding a maid service, scheduling tile cleaners, packing, getting pest control, signing loan docs, haggling with homeowners insurance, unpacking, changing addresses, switching utilities, etc.

We have had some other interesting events occur including our car breaking down right after Kensie was born. This meant I drove Niel to and from work with a three-day old baby. Niel has been working really long hours and his surgery schedule has been insane. We've had a broken disposal, no internet, no washer, and a leaky dishwasher.

But, believe it or not we are still sane (somewhat) and things are starting to slow down a bit. Even though it has been very stressful and crazy to say the least, we are so happy to be in our home with our beautiful baby. Now...lots of backlogged posts to come with pictures of Miss Kensie:)

Little Cupcake

I saw this little cupcake outfit in newborn size a couple weeks before Kensie was born. I thought it was so cute but almost didn't buy it because the doctor kept telling me we would have a big baby and everyone says not to buy newborn clothes. I'm glad I bought newborn clothes after all because 0-3 month clothing is huge on her. Do you like her bow? She wore it for about two seconds and wasn't having it. Don't worry, she will learn.

Meet our newest addition...

Kensie Marie

6 lbs. 13 oz.

19 inches long

September 16th, 2010

9:19 p.m.

Mom and baby are both doing well and are healthy. She already has mom and dad completely wrapped around her finger. We love her more than we could have ever imagined.

You know you're nine months pregnant when...

• The cold produce isle is now your favorite section of the grocery store
• Your husband is replaced by the body pillow
• Bathroom breaks have increased to three times a night
• You feel like a beached whale when trying to roll over in bed
• Everyone stares at your belly wherever you go
• Strangers constantly ask you if the baby is coming any day
• You haven't taken off your wedding ring for over a month...because it's impossible
• Pedicures have never felt better in your life
• You keep the thermostat at 72 degrees at night and still get too hot with a blanket
• Even maternity clothes are fitting snug
• You feel like a small hippo
• You instinctively locate the bathroom as your first order of business when shopping
• When you drop something on the floor you have to consider whether or not it is worth it to bend over and pick it up.

37 Weeks

38 Weeks

This week's doctor appointment didn't have the best of news. Baby's head is down but off to the side a little bit and not fully engaged. My doctor won't induce me on Thursday unless that changes by Wednesday. Instead, she got all crazy on me and scheduled a C-Section for Thursday in case the baby hasn't settled into place. That was an emotional day. After going home and thinking things over I decided I won't have it. I'm putting my foot down and will refuse the scheduled C-Section for Thursday if she won't induce me. So...there is a chance baby might not be coming this week...but we are hoping that she cooperates so that I'll have her on Thursday...

Because let's be honest...do you really think my belly can get any bigger? I think not.

Prenatal Yoga

As I progressed in pregnancy my choices for physical activity dwindled. Riding my bike and playing tennis became very uncomfortable around five or six months. Joining Niel in his P90X workout wasn't an option as it is not tailored to pregnant women. My daily walks were beginning to feel monotonous so I started to look for something else.

I bought the prenatal yoga dvd by Shiva Rea and have been doing it the last several weeks in addition to walking. I wish I had bought it sooner in my pregnancy. It isn't much of a workout but the stretching and yoga squats feel great. With the extra weight and change in posture, it helps to open up the joints and improve mobility. As my belly grew larger I didn't know how to stretch the muscles that needed to be stretched. This dvd helps solve all those problems. If you are pregnant, the $12 dvd at Walmart is a good buy.

Baby Shower #2

My good friends Mollie and Marleen threw me a wonderful shower! The theme for the shower incorporated birds because baby girl's nursery theme includes birds. The invitations were adorable and custom designed by Marleen's sister in law, who is a graphic designer.

The shower was at 10:00 a.m. so they served a yummy brunch. Pancakes, frittata, fruit, cinnamon rolls, sorbet, and juice. It was delicious. Mollie arranged the flowers herself and decorated so cute. The guests played baby gift bingo as I opened my gifts.

I received some really cute clothes and great gifts! It is so much fun opening presents for baby girl. I can't wait to doll her up in all the darling outfits we've received. Mollie and Marleen couldn't have thrown me a better shower. I'm so grateful to have such good friends!

4 Years

August 26th marked our fourth year anniversary. We figured we needed to celebrate right since this would be our last anniversary for many years without any munchkins. A friend suggested Mon Ami Gabi, a French restaurant inside the Paris hotel. We both ordered their 'famous' steak and were not disappointed. It was probably the best flavored steak my taste buds had ever experienced. Then we had their homemade eclairs and ice cream for dessert which were equally delicious. We will be back.

After dinner we checked into our room at the Paris. When we booked our room, we got the least expensive room to save money. As we arrived at check-in, we devised a plan to get an upgraded room. I sported my enormous pregnant belly (came naturally) and made it known to the check-in lady we were celebrating our last anniversary before the baby came.

She hooked us up. We were on the 25th floor with an amazing view of the strip and the Bellagio water show. The room was definitely an upgrade.

View from our room at the Paris

Anyways, this year has been my favorite year of marriage so far. I feel like we have grown a lot closer over the past year. While living in California we both had such crazy schedules and didn't see a whole lot of each other. It was almost as if we had our own separate lives. It has been so exciting to share this experience together of bringing a little person into the world. Although it is somewhat bittersweet as we say goodbye to living the carefree life without children, we are both excited to be parents. I know Niel will be a great dad and I am looking forward to year five together: our first year as parents.

Cravings

One of the most common questions I have been asked while pregnant is, "Have you had any cravings?" I heard that some pregnant women have crazy cravings at odd hours of the night for bizarre things like banana and peanut butter sandwiches. Honestly, I don't think my cravings have been any different than usual. I get really hungry every few hours and if I don't get food in my system I become fatigued and grumpy. I always have cravings for sweets (pregnant or not).

But then the other day I realized what my 'craving' has been. Watermelon. It always sounds good. It is cold, refreshing, and delicious. Maybe it is because we live in this crazy hot desert and something cool and refreshing always sounds good. Or maybe it is because I am pregnant. For now, I'm declaring it my pregnancy craving.

Exiting the work force

Shortly after I found out I was pregnant, I was offered a job at Ernst & Young Accounting firm as an executive assistant and also a job at Robert Half International as an account representative. At the same time I was offered a part time job at State Farm. I was really excited about the job opportunities at both Ernst & Young and Robert Half. Both were the type of career opportunities I had been hoping for. Even though I was offered both of these great opportunities, I was also disappointed. Why did I get two great job opportunities right after finding out I was pregnant? I had been looking for a job like this in California and ever since we moved to Vegas. Why now? Why not three years earlier?

As much as I wanted to take one of these positions, I knew what I should do. Both of those job opportunities were downtown and would have been demanding, high stress positions. I turned both of them down and took the part time position at State Farm as an office assistant. The position at State Farm ended up being a good opportunity. It was about 30 hours a week with a short commute. The job wasn't a career by any means but a good opportunity for the time being.

At times I have wondered if I would go crazy as a stay at home mom. I like the structure of going to work everyday. The social interaction at work is nice. There is also a sense of achievement when you are working daily and accomplishing projects, reaching goals, and earning money. From what I hear, being a stay at home mom is a full time job and more. In some ways a lot harder than working full time. Both are very challenging in different ways.

The career opportunities at Ernst & Young and Robert Half came and went...and I don't regret passing up either career. August 20th was my last day of work at State Farm. It was a good feeling and I couldn't have been happier. I know that the Lord's plan was for me to raise this little girl. Am I nervous? Yes. Do I wonder if I am capable and able to raise a child? Yes. But I know that this is what I am supposed to be doing right now...and I look forward to beginning this new phase of my life!

34, 35, 36

Alright, I know everyone is SO over these maternity photos but you will have to suck it up for the next couple of weeks because this belly growing process has got to be documented. Then you can look at pictures of our baby instead!

34 Weeks

I will not be wearing this outfit again. On the day I wore this outfit I had two people tell me, "You look like you are going to pop!" What do you say to that? Thanks, but I actually have a month and a half to go you big jerk!

35 Weeks

This week will have a post of its own because it was a monumental week.

36 Weeks

I bought this dress when I was 36 weeks. Who buys more maternity clothes when they are that far along? I did. I was so sick of my three maternity dresses that I had been alternating the whole pregnancy. Not to mention my maternity jeans continue to get more uncomfortable, especially with the heat. This dress is super comfy and lightweight...exactly what I need in this blazing hot desert we live in.
After some hesitations I finally bought a body pillow in hope that it would help with my back pain. My back still hurts but it is a lot better and I am able to sleep through the night now. Body pillow=best ten bucks I've spent this pregnancy.
Only three weeks left.

Baby Bargains

The first time I stepped foot into Babies R Us I was completely overwhelmed. Have you ever been in that store? It is ginormous and has thousands of items "needed" for your baby. I knew that babies were expensive and that there were lots of things to buy but I was rudely awakened after reading baby cost estimates and baby product checklists. A rough estimate of baby's first year is about $6,000 assuming you breast feed, don't use child care and not including labor and delivery costs according to babycenter.com. There were things on the baby product checklist I hadn't ever heard of!

I didn't even know where to start. What items are a waste of money? Which brand is best? Is it better to pay more and get the name brand or or get the most affordable item? Being completely overwhelmed by all of the products I needed to pick out, my sister suggested this book to me: Baby Bargains by Denis & Alan Fields

This book has been a total life saver. It has complete product reviews, safety reviews, and product comparison charts. It discusses which products you really need and which ones you can do without. When spending more money on a brand name makes a difference and when it doesn't matter. Estimates are provided for how many diapers, wipes, onesies, bibs, etc. you will need. Everything from maternity clothing to baby gear to nursing necessities-it is covered. It is very well organized and one can look up specific topics quickly. I even take it with me whenever I go baby shopping and look up product reviews.

I have spent hours and hours reading and referring to this book and it has definitely been worth the $15. I've saved hundreds of dollars and avoided purchasing unnecessary products. In addition, I feel confident about all of my purchases.

If you are pregnant, have a baby, or are thinking about having a baby, you should buy this book. It is worth every penny.