Guess What!!

Guess what came in today!!!! This (from my in-laws for Christmas...in a caramel color...it will be in our bedroom for the first few months at least), this (I think it is soooo pretty!!), and this (we even got the rails!!) :) SO EXCITED!!!!

The nursery is soon to look like a real nursery!! :)

P.S. It took Brad like two seconds to assemble the crib...it seems sturdy though! I told him he should at least make it sound like it's really difficult to do! lol :) Check out the paint, I love it! It looks like cotton candy to me! :)


BVOTD: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." Matthew 7:7-8

He's a 4 Pounder! :)

Life has been busy but good around here lately. Had a bout with head congestion/cough/sore throat/chest congestion last week that had been going around at work. Went to the doctor on Thursday and he gave me antibiotics to get rid of the infection. I am super glad to be sleeping through the night again! It was really rough there for a bit...I would wake up coughing every two hours and then for a while every hour. Very annoying. Hopefully I can completely shake this bug soon.


Since I wrote last, we had two more baby showers! Mary Anna McKenzie, Mel, Riss, & Dayne threw one at MAM's parents' house with friends last Saturday (11.24.07). We got tons of clothes at the friend shower...as well as a Penney's gift cards, the extra car seat base, a Bible verse blanket, and a wrap. And I also received two books, a snuzzler (the little pillowy thing that goes in the carseat to support a newborn) and some burp cloths in the mail from friends (so fun to come home and see a box on the front step!! Love it!). We played the "guess how big Lacey's tummy is" game...Amanda won and was really, really close to how big my belly was!! We also did some baby puzzles. We had chocolate cake, fruits, veggies, nuts, cheeses, and meat. Little Anika was the star of the party, though. Her laughs and smiles kept all of us girls entertained throughout the party. :)
















We also had a surprise shower at CBS on Monday night before our Christmas party. We got our really awesome stroller at the CBS shower...and a handmade minibook with wisdom from the CBS leaders...I love it! It has Bible verses, quotes, and advice from the leaders at CBS...some of my favorite quotes from the book...

"A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for." -Anonymous

"Kiss and hold him tight often as he grows, pray with him, take billions of pictures both still and video, create precious family memories and by all means don't blink because the years will fly by, cherish every laugh, funny face, funny word, temper tantrum and every tear." -Mrs. Linda

If I had my child to raise over again...
"I'd build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I'd finger paint more and point fingers less.
I would do less correcting and more connecting.
I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.
I would care to know less and know to care more.
I'd take more hikes and fly more kites.
I'd stop playing seruous, and seriously play.
I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.
I'd do more hugging and less tugging.
I'd see the oak tree in the acorn more often.
I would be firm less often and affirm much more.
I'd model less about the love of power,
and more about the power of love."

"There would be fewer problems with children if they had to chop wood to keep the television set going."

"I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." -3 John 1:4

"When he gets older, instead of saying "How was your day?" which only gets a one syllable answer, ask "How can I pray for you?" I think my kids opened up more with that than anything else I could have asked." -Mrs. Paula

"Know that God has the perfect plan and you just guide." -Mrs. Therese
"Enjoy the new gift God has given you! My words of encouragement are: When you pray for your children, also pray for the little child that will one day be his/her spouse, and for the parents of this little child that God will work in them as well." -Mr. Matt

"Trust the Lord and let Him guide you in the best way to raise Baby Luke! The Bible has all the answers! - Mrs. Julie

"I know Casey and I don't have kids but... Don't sweat it, if you mess this baby up you can make another just like it and start all over. My brother was the "starter baby"!" -Devin

I love the book and know I will go to it often :)


Since I wrote last, Amanda and Vicki slaved away painting Luke's room (12.2.07) (the color is Windwood Spring from Behr...a light and bright blue...reminds me of cotton candy!)...and Brad cleaned the carpet in there with the Rug Doctor.

Pictures will follow once the room is more set up :) We will be getting his crib soon!

We moved the bookcases and changer back into the room. The stroller (completely assembled) is also sitting in his room...just waiting for a sweet boy to fill it. We started cleaning out the closet in his room to make room for all of his new presents and made some good headway. We put all the XL bags that Vicki put his diapers, blankets, and random items into in the closet. His clothes are all hanging arranged according to size. Now I just have to wash them and get them back in there ;)


Brad is making plans on getting a storage closet of some kind to put in the back yard. I would be really excited about that!! I could store all of our house decorations (currently taking up a lot of space in Luke's closet), all of Brad's camping stuff (currently taking up all of the coat closet), extra wedding presents (currently taking up the highest shelf in my scrap closet), and maybe even some of Brad's work stuff (currently taking up much of the Christmas tree room). It would be totally exciting to have places to put all of that stuff (that was not so in the way!)!! It seems that we are growing out of this house pretty quickly! Anyone know anyone that is need of a sofa, oversized chair, and otto right now? We have too much "stuff" in this house!! (And that includes large pieces of furniture!)


I am so sad that we haven't been able to decorate the house for Christmas yet! Christmas will be here soooo soon and I haven't been able to access the tree to decorate it yet!!


Went to my 8th doctor appointment (my 32 week appointment) on December 5th. My blood pressure was good...weighed in at 158...gained 2 pounds since my last appointment 3 weeks ago (even through Thanksgiving, people! Woo hoo!!!). So I have now gained a total of 28 pounds. Not sure what my belly measured because she didn't tell me...

I asked her why all the other ladies in my childbirth class can still wear their wedding rings and I can't...she said that because I am smaller and because of the way that Luke is hanging out in there (with his head down) I am retaining more water.


She did an ultrasound and he is weighing in at 4 pounds, 2 ounces. She said that he is not growth deprived but that he is not going to be a whopper either. Can you hear my sigh of relief?! I thought I was going to have to birth a big baby!! She figures he will weigh 7 or 8 pounds. I can deal with 7 or 8 pounds. :)

She said that I have good fluid in there and she asked me if I drink a lot of water and I told her I do. :) His heart rate was 140. He is head down and facing the left. He was kicking while she was doing the ultrasound (last appointment when we listened to his heartbeat he was kicking then too!).


So the doctor says I have a pretty healthy baby in there and things are moving along nicely. :) We tour the hospital and fill out tons of papers very soon.


Overall, I am feeling pretty good these days. I try to put my feet up at work but usually end up getting up a bunch of times. I haven't been walking on my treadmill much lately...my feet are so tired at the end of the day!! I am, unfortunately, probably losing all of my muscle!


I have been eating pretty healthy still. For the most part I don't miss all the unhealthy stuff...except that I still have my sweet tooth and still love my DP Fridays. Luke loves those too and kick like crazy after I have them!

Since I can't wear my rings anymore I have been wearing my fake wedding ring on a chain around my neck (too scared to put the real one on there because I feel like I might lose it!). I totally miss wearing my rings! I still check my fingers tons of times a day and feel like I lost them.


He is apparently a very strong boy because he really kicks the heck out of me sometimes. He will push as hard as he can on my belly...not sure if he is trying to make more room in there or what? It can be pretty startling sometimes!


Started childbirth class last Tuesday night. I didn't learn a ton last week that I didn't already know but I did not realize that being dialted 10 cm is a coffee can...goodness gracious that is scary! No thanks!


Went to childbirth class again last night (12.4.07) and watched some (very frightening) childbirth videos. Oy. Not looking foward to laboring for a gazillion hours!! Next week we tour the facility...not much good to me since that is not the hospital where he will be delivered! But I guess that's okay...we're also supposed to work on some deep breathing...


Still working quite a bit...I feel like I am there all the time! This week I actually worked over 44 hours! (I usually work around 38 since I take Fridays off...but this week I ended up working both this Friday and Saturday so I had more hours then usual.) With Bible study on Monday nights (though we only have our leaders Christmas party left) and childbirth class on Tuesday nights I feel like I am not home much. I feel so behind on everything at home!! I made 30 of my thank you notes but haven't started writing any of them. I hope to get some of them done tomorrow.


And I will leave you with a random factoid...both Brad and I snore these days. This is a new thing. Apparently Brad woke up in the middle of the night two nights ago and said that I was snoring. A few nights before that (when I was sick and awake every couple of hours) I heard a funny noise...I whispered to Brad, "What is that noise, Brad?" (because I thought he was awake)...then I realized that he was sleeping and the noise that I was hearing was him breathing very loudly...lol :)


BVOTD: "This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live." Deuteronomy 30:19

Snoogles are the Best!

• Went to my 6th doctor's appointment (my 27 week appointment) on Halloween and naturally was scheduled to be tested for gestational diabetes...I thought she should have made it for the next day to make sure I didn't eat too much candy, lol. I haven't gotten a call yet (they only call when the results are bad) so I suppose my tests results were good. The flat orange tasting soda stuff wasn't so badn (it was even cold!). However, even though I asked Hilda to be gentle with me when she took my blood, I still ended up with a bruise on my arm. Oh yay. ;) She used a skinnier needle this time and everything (and she only pricked me once instead of twice!) but still. What is up with that?

• Got to see the baby so I hauled Brad along this time...have a couple new pics of our little Luke. It was hard to tell what is what in the photos but we have a photo of his head from the side and one straight-on looking at this face. He is face down (part of 75% of babies that know it is time to go head down...see, I told you he was smart ;) and facing forward. I enjoy the fact that when I am sleeping he is sleeping the opposite way. :)

• His heart rate was 140 this time and he looks happy in there...kicked around a lot yesterday...starting to make me nervous...this baby boy may never sleep when he comes out! My next appointment is on the 14th of November...I will be going every two weeks from now on. Hopefully that will help me track my weight better!

• My belly went from 24" last month to 29" this month. I ::gasp:: gained a bunch of weight once again (a large 10 pounds...so I am up to 156 pounds...soon I will weigh more then Brad! I am hoping this font is so small that mom can't read it! My doctor assures me this is okay and that my body is just preparing for breatfeeding! Nonetheless I have to cut back...stinky part is that I am hungry all the time! I am cutting out all extra Chick visits except for Fridays!). I do believe a lot of it is water weight though because the doctor looked at my legs and told me that I was retaining water (and I believe it because they look pretty fat...and a lot less fat early in the mornings). Oh joy. I just don't have much time these days for putting my feet up and laying around. Too much to do!! And you should see our mess of a house!! (But you will be happy to hear our mess of papers is MUCH better!! I filed all my bills and stuff in that blue box! Now if I could just get rid of all my CBS stuff I have to store, lol!) We really need to kick it in gear to get ready for this baby!!

• Went to Babies 'R' Us last Sunday to register. I got Breann to go with me to point me in the right direction. I had no clue what to get so I was really glad to have her there!! And they just found out this week that they are having another girl!! :) So excited for them! Little Anika is 11 months old now and cute as can be!! Alicia and Robert also came to Babies 'R' Us when we registered because they are expecting too! Since they don't know what they are having yet they just took it all in. She is due in May so Luke will have a cousin that is 3 or so months younger then him!

• Went to the grocery store last night and the checker was really friendly (they usually aren't very friendly at HEB). After I put all my items up on the belt she said "You know, a lot of people are trying to eat healthier these days" and I told her, "Well, I have reason to". She said, "Why, are you...?" and I leaned over and pointed at my belly. She was very excited and asked me how far along I am and if this is my first baby. Then she insisted that the bagger gal take my groceries out for me. People are so nice to pregnant people, it's great!! :) I told the gal that I could get it myself and headed home. Glad to have the fridge restocked with milk! I go through that stuff like there's no tomorrow these days!

• Some of our nursery furniture has trickled in. We received the changer, bookcase top & bottom, and mattress. I am still sad I can't get the dresser! Especially now that we got the bookcases in...they are corner pieces and won't hold very much! Unfortunately, the bookcase top came in broken so Brad has to haul it on down to Penneys to return it.

• Good news is I tried ordering the conversion rails for the crib online and I think I can get them...not sure why they wouldn't give us them when we tried ordering them at the store, but whatever! As long as I get them, I'm good! I found out that the bedding, crib, and conversion rails (if they really do exist) are coming in December. Bummer about the bedding because I was going to find my paint color off the bedding! I have to have that room painted before then, though! Will just have to come up with something I suppose!!

• I am feeling pretty good these days. Bought some really supportive tops that I can't say enough about. I didn't wear one yesterday and by early afternoon I was really feeling the weight of my belly! I think I have learned my lesson! Bought a snoogle (a body pillow) last week at Babies 'R' Us and I love it!! I'm sleeping good at night! (except this morning I woke up with an evil leg cramp!) I haven't had a leg cramp in a while!

• My upper back (left side of my body) is killing me these days. My doctor says it is from tension and she prescribed me some muscle relaxers (that sounds kinda rough to me but it is a class B drug so that means that it is completely safe during pregnancy). I haven't gotten the prescription filled yet. I need to invest in a good heating pad.

• My face is still ugly as can be. I am thinking I might have to go to a dermatologist soon. I certainly thought this mess would have gone away by now...or at least leveled off...it seems to be getting worse!

• Heading to Dallas today (just for the day) for a shower for Dayna. Still can't believe she's getting hitched! So exciting! :) Should be lots of fun :) Love those girls! So crazy to be off on a Saturday...I worked yesterday instead! And don't worry, MAM is driving! I am in good hands :) Hope to update with pics soon...

• BVOTD: The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion -- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. Isaiah 61:1-3

Prospective Baby Bedding...

The nursery furniture we are thinking about...

I have been thinking that I want to do the room in blue & brown with polka dots & stripes. I even love the bedding on this set! :)





























































I love the crib because it turns into a full sized bed...and the furniture will grow with him I think... I don't think it looks too baby-ish...

I want to paint the room spa blue (that would match the blue in the bedding). I plan on getting Alicia to pick the right color...I never know what shade to pick. I don't want it to be too light or too dark (and don't worry, Julie A. has volunteered to the paint the room so I don't have to inhale the paint fumes ;)

I plan on getting the crib, bedding, bookcases & changer. I was thinking I would use the changer to store diapers & wipes and the bookcases to store his clothes & toys in baskets...would the dresser be better??

The furniture is all from JCPenney but unfortunately it is a catalog-only item so I can't see it and touch it before I buy it... I am a hands on kind of gal... And I want to make sure that it is completely safe for baby before I buy it!

Any thoughts? Would love to hear what you think...

Thanks for the help! :)

BVOTD: "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." Romans 10:4