It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

It's now December and things are coming along smoothly! I'm a few weeks into my 3rd trimester (i'm 31 weeks along...and exactly 2 months til my due date). I've been feeling good, but I can definitely tell she's gaining weight. I feel heavy and it's getting more uncomfortable to sleep now. I've been keeping Charles up..but he's a good sport! My glucose test came back okay! No problems there. I just started going to the doctor every 2 weeks and will continue that until my last month, then I start going every week. Charles and I picked a doctor for the delivery. Dr. Bill Hudson. We did have a different doctor, but so far we've only met him once, which was my first time in. So, we decided to go with the one we've seen the most and feel the most comfortable with. I understand the reasoning behind seeing all of the doctors in the practice (in case someone else is on call and your doc can't make it) but WOW, it would be nice to see the doctor you're supposed to see at least twice before it's time to deliver. I don't think that's asking too much.

The nursery is looking TOO cute these days. We got a dresser in there and I put away all of her clothes so now all I have left to get is a changing table, or at least something else to put all of her diaper stuff in. Right now it's occupying half the floor.

Did I mention Charles and I are SO excited and can't wait to meet this little bundle of energy that's been dancing and prancing around in my belly the last 7 months? She's getting big. When she "kicks" now, it's more like an undulation of my entire belly. I just can't believe how active she is.

Charles and I went to Gatlinburg last weekend for a little "babymoon" which was GREAT! We rented a cabin for the weekend, fully equipped with a hot tub and a heart-shaped jacuzzi. It was so nice to get away for a while...the weather was beautiful! We used the fireplace the whole time we were there. As far as sight-seeing went, we mostly walked around and looked in the little shops. We also went to the Ripley's Aquarium and the Guinness Book of World Records museum. All-in-all it was a really good mini-vacation. So I'm including some pics of our trip...enjoy!
Gatlinburg, TN









































































Nursery pictures!

Happy Turkey Day!

It's Turkey Day and Charles and I are heading down to P'ville to eat with the fam! I've had a pretty busy past week or so! The big baby shower was this past weekend and it was awesome! I got lots of great gifts and it looks like this little girl is going to have no shortage of love. (see pics below) I didn't get a lot of good pics from the shower, but I believe everyone else did. We put all of the trimmings on the bed..and it looks so cute! I finally decided to finish up the wall painting last night. There wasn't much left, just some touch-ups so I dove in and finished in about an hour or so. I'm ready to get organized!! I believe we are going to try to get the dresser up here this weekend..so hopefully that happens. We can no longer see the floor in the dining room, so needless to say it's sort of a mess right now. But a good mess. I can't imagine what we would've done if we had to buy all of this stuff ourselves. Wowwww. Take out a loan I suppose?

Turkey Day picture!















And my favorite time of year is coming up! Christmas! My mom is bringing a tree for us along with the dresser so I'm pretty excited about that too!! It's going in the dining room...well, once all of the baby stuff gets moved.

I had a doc's appt yesterday where they did my glucose screening. I won't get the results back until next week because of the holidays, but I think everything will be fine. I drank some delicious solution, got my blood drawn, peed in a cup, and got my finger pricked. I was pretty much a lab rat yesterday. But they said everything looked good. Heartbeat was on target and my weight and measurements were great as well. I'm REALLY starting to feel big these days. She's big enough to where she's starting to kick my ribs. I'm not enjoying that part.

One other thing to report...we are taking a vacation next weekend! YAYYY!! We are taking off of work on Friday and leaving that morning for Gatlinburg,TN..then coming back on Sunday! We rented a cabin for the weekend and can't wait to just get away for a few days. So we're really excited about that! I know I'm due in for some belly pics, but I'll get to them this week. Happy Turkey Day everyone!

Month 6...

So far I think this has been the easiest month. I haven't been having many migraines thankfully and I can still move around easily. My belly is certainly growing and little girl is going to be a ball of energy. She doesn't stop moving/bouncing/kicking/punching all day long, including the night. She's not quite big enough to really wake me up at night, but I know it will only be a matter of time. The nursery is coming along really well...Natalie and I are almost done painting. As you can see, we really only have Pooh and Christopher Robin (plus 2 other characters) left to paint and add some grass underneath them and we're done. My mom came up this past weekend and we got the crib! Probably start putting that together this weekend. It's starting to actually look like a baby room. I can't believe in just 3 more months we'll have a little girl around here. It's really going by fast!

2 weeks ago I attended a Montevallo soccer game with the old crowd (sadly, minus Candice) and was surprised with a baby shower afterwards!! SO exciting! Apparently my sneaky and wonderful friends had been scheming to get me down there to do this, and they were quite successful. Rachel, Natalie, Ms. Susan, Julie, Krista, Laura, Sarah and Tommy. Poor Tommy was the only boy, but he was a good sport. I got some really awesome gifts and can't wait to put them to use. The party them (fittingly enough) was "Pooh and Poo". So needless to say I got lots of Pooh stuff and lots of diaper stuff. Yay! So other than that, things have really been pretty quiet lately. I go back to the doctor on Nov. 24th to have all my testing, and I know everything will go smoothly. Thanks to all for the love and support so far, Charles and I are really thankful to have such a great group of people to lean on. Love to all!

The Nursery...

Work on the nursery has officially begun! Charles and I got started painting this past weekend...a pale yellow color (officially "cornsilk"). I'm so excited and can't wait to get this part done! We moved all of the furniture out of the room...so my computer now occupies the living room. Not exactly what we had in mind, but we ran out of options since the dining room doesn't have a phone outlet and there's just not enough room in the bedroom now that we had to move a recliner in there. I suppose the only room left was the bathroom, and last I checked there aren't any outlets there either. Oh well...feels like the apt in montevallo now. I just can't imagine what we would have done if we hadn't gotten a 2 bedroom by accident. I believe Someone had us in good graces that day...

I still have a few places to touch up, but it's for the most part finished. Natalie (being the fabulous artist that she is) has decided to undertake the task of helping me paint the mural in the nursery. Classic Pooh is the theme...as in, pre-Disney, straight from A. A. Milne's original books. The long wall is going to be the whole gang yanking Pooh from Rabbit's hole, after getting stuck. The other wall by the door is going to be Pooh floating up on a balloon with Eeyore down below. The crib bedding is going to be pink and chocolate brown. It's going to look so cute I might start sleeping in there. :) Though I'm not sure I'd fit in the crib.

The baby showers are going to be underway VERY soon, thanks to the best friends and family anyone could ask for! I have already received 4 pink baby outfits and they're all so adorable! I just can't wait to meet this little thing that is SO restless. I can't believe how much she moves around and kicks...to be so small she packs quite a punch.

Less than 4 months to go....

Oh yeah, and can I share the fact that my crazy dreams have NOT gotten any more normal? Last night, I was a superhero. Yeah, the secret is out. Unfortunately my only power was that I could fall off of buildings and NOT die. Apparently that's in high demand these days. Go figure I wouldn't wind up with a cool super-power.

5th month...

I've finally started to show just in the past 2 weeks or so. My clothes are getting tight and the belly is poking out. I don't have much to update. She's kicking, a lot. And often, so that's a good thing. It still kinda tickles but sometimes she kicks hard enough that it's a little uncomfortable. I guess I should just get used to it. I know she's only going to get bigger and stronger. Got some cute maternity clothes! Yay! We are in the process of beginning the nursery stuff. Classic Pooh will be the theme. Pink and brown crib bedding with a pooh mural on the wall. I'm pretty excited about getting to paint again...it's been entirely too long. A soft yellow on all the walls, with the mural on top. yes yes. Can't wait to get started...I really can't believe I'm already at the 5 month mark. It's going by so fast! Go to the doctor again on wednesday! That's about it for my updates...(plus a new belly pic at the bottom of the page!) :)

It's a girl!!

Well we finally got the big news! We got to see the wee-one in the ultrasound! And, by the way, she waved! Don't call me a liar..we have proof. We caught it on camera. And might I say she's mighty cute! Okay okay, I know you can't really see her face but I know she's going to be cute. She didn't stop moving the entire time the we had her on the monitor. She weighs 9.5 ounces and the doc said everything looks great. I've gained 4 pounds so far. Phew. That was tough. Jk...I know once the pounds start coming they aren't stopping, so I should count my blessings now. My pants actually felt just a little tighter this week. Or perhaps I had a filling weekend. Whichever.

Friday I felt the first kicks...I wasn't quite sure what it was at first, but the 2nd kick I knew immediately. Crazy kid. And she hasn't stopped since. If this is any indication of the future, we are certain to have our hands full! I'm kinda tired and ready to go lay down, so I'm keeping this short. Until next time...

The 5th of September...

is the official day that we find out if we're having a girl or boy. That is, of course, assuming the "wee one" isn't turned where we can't see anything or curled up. Ya just never know with these things...but all things going accordingly, we should know in just over 3 weeks. YAY! We're thinking it will be a girl...but who knows. Either way we will be ecstatic! I still haven't gained any weight, but I do have a knot in my tummy that I presume will be popping out pretty soon. I'm going to be 15 weeks along this week...thankfully well out of the first trimester and supposedly will soon be free of most symptoms as well. I've been feeling a lot better as far as the nausea goes. I haven't thrown up in about 2 weeks now...but the migraines still persist. Of course. The neurologist gave me some medicine for them in case of emergency, but I'm doing my best to avoid them. We went to the doctor last week for the baby and got to hear the heartbeat for the first time. Charles was freaking out..as always. So precious! The heartbeat was about 160, which is normal they say. I just hope and pray the rest goes well and we don't have any future complications. Belly pics will come verrrry soon since I'm pretty sure it won't be much longer now until I'm a fatty! :)

Strange Dreams...

I keep reading stories about women having more bizarre than usual dreams while being pregnant. Why does this not surprise me that I would have these too? The other night I dreamed Charles and I were at some dance contest, which somewhat resembled Soul Train but not quite, and we were dancing around, blah blah. I don't really remember all of this in great detail, but nonetheless it was really strange. Then the scene skipped to us being outside at a picnic table eating lunch with some random people and I opened a package I was holding. And do you know what this package contained? 2 license plates. Apparently I had ordered 2 to pick from. What is on these license plates you might wonder? One had a photograph of a river. The other was bright yellow and had pink donuts with sprinkles on them. Yes, I had ordered a Simpson's license plate. Custom with "KKirk" on it. Go figure. Then I woke up. I would like to know what a dream analyst would have to say about my dreams. I've had one like that every night, each as bizarre as the next. Just thought I'd share.

As for Baby...no news really. Been a little sicker than normal this week. Who knows. Supposedly it should clear up in the next couple of weeks. I'm 12 weeks this week, next week is the last week of my first trimester. Yay! Back to the doctor on the 9th (I think that's the date). Got my new insurance cards in yesterday, double YAY! I'm getting really excited about decorating the nursery. I've been watching TLC all day (ya know, A Baby Story, etc..) and cleaning. I will probably get started on that sometime in the near future. Not much to update, so I'll keep it short. Just in case anyone has been wanting more belly pics, I'm taking a brief hiatus from the first one because I still haven't gained 1 pound. Once I gain the first bit of weight I will take pics! Until next time...

Ode to Change...

Days like this I'm reminded of some of my favorite quotes that I came across while doing research for my senior exhibition...

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." ~Mahatma Gandhi

“I think that hate is a thing, a feeling, that can only exist where there is no understanding.” ~Tennesee Williams

Change is a funny thing. Some welcome it with open arms, others shun it and deem it the downfall of mankind. I deem it necessary by all means to thrive and grow. I know most of you read this are anticipating an update on the little bambino, and no worries, I'll get to that. Today I feel like writing about some other things, somewhat pertaining to the baby, but mostly life in general. I feel blessed to have the love and support in my life that I do right now. From my mom, charles, my brother, my friends, my grandmother, and all the rest who have offered a hug and an open heart, I'm eternally grateful. But I can't help the bitterness and anger I have right now towards the few who have deemed it necessary to not only turn their backs on me, but to be downright vindictive and hateful. I'm never going to understand their reasoning behind it, and I don't care to. It's just incomprehensible. I'll never understand how one can decide that just because of the color of someone's skin that they are somehow unfit to love. These things will never make sense to me. But anyone reading this can quote me when I say this, my child will never know what it's like to feel abandonment, no matter what.

Now if you came to read about the "Wee One," here's your update.
Went to the doctor yesterday for my 2nd visit. Unfortunately Charles couldn't get off work in time to make it, which would have been fine under normal circumstances. Everything I had read just said that I would be in and out in 10 min., with no big news really, so I wasn't worried. I went it and the doc said we could listen to the heartbeat! Exciting right? Wrong. The doctor couldn't hear a heartbeat, so he ordered me to go have an ultrasound done to make sure everything was okay. I think mostly so he didn't have to send me home freaking out, because, ya know, I kind of WAS! So, I was freaked out. I texted Charles. He was freaked out. The girl started my ultrasound and luckily everything was just fine. After taking measurements, they moved my due date to Feb. 6th and so I'm only 10 weeks along. This explains why he couldn't hear a heartbeat (which can only be heard starting at 11 weeks). I have the pictures from the ultrasound and let me tell ya, this is going to be one cute baby. :) I can tell since it's all of 3.5cm long. Haha..okay, so maybe you can't tell, but it's pretty neat to see this little tiny thing that's growing inside of me. I think I'm going to have a fundraiser to pay for this doctor's visit, seeing as how someone cancelled my insurance. Goooo I'm mad. Enough about that, thankfully my insurance from work kicks in aug. 7th. my next appointment is Aug. 8. Yay! Not much else to update, still haven't gained any weight. I've probably actually lost weight since I came down with a stomach bug yesterday. That made for a fun Saturday. Please keep us all in your prayers! Love you all!

Any ole Saturday...

So, not much to report around our neck of the woods. Went grocery shopping today, finally. (yeah, I know you're interested) We have food. Did I mention we have food? It's kind of a big deal to us right now. And unlike my usual self who tries to steer clear of red meat all together, have decided I'm in the mood for a steak. Uh, I know. Yikes. I'm thinking I need iron. That's the only explanation I have. I've been fighting a headache and some random leg aches all day. Not sure what's causing it/them, but I'm SURE a steak is going to cure everything. :) mmhmmm.

I planned a night of surprises for Charles last night. I bought his wedding ring (finally) a few weeks ago and it came in this week, but I didn't want to just hand it to him and say "there ya go", so I started planning some events for the night. I made him an invitation with my AMAZING design skills (ha) that read "You are cordially invited to an evening out with your wonderfully perfect wife and the "wee-one". Be dressed and ready for departure at 7:00pm sharp. No questions, please." So our reservation was for 7:45 at P.F. Chang's, which was AMAZING. I'm convinced if I had to choose my last meal today, it'd be a toss up between my steak or their lettuce wraps. Soooo good. After that, we came back to the apt (he thought the surprise was over) and lit some candles, along with 2 cupcakes one with 1 pink candle and 1 blue candle (since we don't know if we're getting a boy or girl) and put the ring box in the middle. And surprise! I think he likes it, he seemed pretty excited. Other than that, life has been pretty ordinary lately. My next doc's appt is July 13th so I'll have more to add then. Stay tuned for the next episode...

So it's official...

Had my first doctor's appointment today. All things went well! We navigated St. Vincent's with only 5-6 wrong turns. 5 waiting rooms later we found our way to the Women's and Children's center. My first task was a date with a pee cup and a window in my bathroom stall. (This place ran like a well-oiled machine) There were 6-8 stalls in the bathroom, each with its own individual window to store your pee cup for future pick-up. So after I did that, I rejoined Charles in the waiting area while we anxiously awaited our results. (as if I didn't know what it was going to be)...

POSITIVE!

Yep. It's true. I got a little tote bag with all kinds of prenatal goodies. Mommy-hood is fast approaching. They estimate that I'm 7 weeks along and that I will be due January 30, 2008. It all feels a lot more real now. The doctor said everything looked good, but with Charles in the exam room with me, I wondered if the doctor thought everything was well with himself. I'm pretty sure Charles wanted to break his neck watching the doctor exam me! Ha! But, he managed to calm himself, somewhat, and the doctor escaped unharmed. :)

The first belly pic is up! A new one will come every 2 weeks, unless I forget, which I'm prone to doing. Oh yeah, and I have my prenatal vitamins. Weeeeee for a healthy little baby!

The Day After

Day One consisted of confirming what Charles has suspected the past week...I'm pregnant. Test #1 was conducted Thursday night (June 7) and was positive. But me, being the stubborn person I am, insisted on taking another test the next morning (June 8), because, surely, it was wrong. It wasn't. The real shock of the situation set in on me immediately. Charles, on the other hand, was a 5 year old on Christmas morning screaming like a wild banshee on the balcony. Don't get me wrong, it's exciting. But it's also terrifying, shocking, and overwhelming at the same time. First task was to talk to my boss; everything went smoothly. Will talk to HR next week about my maternity options and such. Task 2: tell my mom; also smooth. Task 3: The girls. All of whom are very excited about becoming aunts. And I must say this child will be smothered by aunts. If it's a boy, he will be a very lucky boy. As Friday came to an end, I was becoming VERY sleepy and my head was beginning to hurt. Which brings us to today...

I woke up with a migraine. Not just any migraine. A crazy my-head-is-going-to-explode-if-someone-doesn't-inject-me-with-some-morphine-migraine. But guess what? Since I'm pregnant, the medicinal options quickly diminish. Now what's a mother-to-be to do with a migraine and nothing but some lousy tylenol? Call every doctor and OB-GYN in the neighboring states for advice. A few rude operators and doctor assistants later, combined with a brief emotional breakdown, I found myself willingly downing a Tylox, since it has no known harmful side effects to the little Bambino, and chowing down on some homemade stew (gotsta get my veggies!). An hour later, on the phone with Sonya, I found myself abruptly hanging up the phone and praying to the porcelain gods while Charles held my hair (I'm sure that was a lovely sight). Pretty sure it was the Tylox, since it usually makes me sick, but if not, morning sickness is going to be a beast. 2 ice packs and 3 additional trips to the bathroom later, I was lying in agony on the sofa. It's now 10:30pm and my headache is slowly edging its way back into my brain. Hopefully it will be better by tomorrow morning. So far I've acquired just about every symptom possible in the first trimester: frequent urination, soreness of breasts, tiredness, nausea, vomiting, did I mention frequent urination. I'm contemplating diapers. We calculated an online due date..it said January 28. But we won't know for sure until we go to the doc sometime next week. Until next time kids...keep all of us in your prayers. The first belly pic coming soon!