Laguna Beach

We have made it safely to California and are already enjoying our time here. The weather has been nice and today we made the short trip from Newport Beach to Laguna Beach. It is beautiful there. Here are a few pics...

Signing Our Lives Away

That's what it felt like we did yesterday afternoon as we signed the many, many papers agreeing to our 30 year mortgage. 30 years...that's a lot!! If we end up paying our our entire loan we will be 55 years old when we are finished. Pretty crazy. But regardless of how crazy that sounds we are SO very excited to be official homeowners. I love our house and can't wait to move in in 2 weeks after we get back from California!! The house is in perfect shape and all we have to do is paint a few rooms and that is just because I want to and not because we have to. We are so thankful that we are able to get a house and look forward to having people over and watching our little Maddox grow up there. We feel so blessed to have so many special things going on in our lives right now.

On another note, I am sitting here writing this blog at the Denver airport as we await our flight to Los Angeles, California. We are so excited to be getting away for a couple of weeks. We will spend a few days in Newport Beach with Collin's parents, then go with them to San Diego for a couple of days, then head to Malibu for the Pepperdine Lectures, and then finish up with a couple of days in LA just the two of us.. It is nice that we are able to have one last big trip before Mr. Maddox arrives. I will be posting during our trip as long as we have internet access, which I am pretty sure we will. Be praying for safe travel for us!! :D

How big is Maddox? - 31 weeks

Maddox now weighs about 3 1/2 to 4 pounds, about as much as 4 navel oranges, and is about 16 inches long. He is going through major brain and nerve development these days. His irises now react to light, and all five senses are in working order. (He won't pick up anything from his nose until after birth, though -- smell is transferred through air, not amniotic fluid.) He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

I had another doctor's appointment yesterday afternoon and got the OK to go to California tomorrow (YAY). I'll admit that even though Dr. G said it was fine, I am still a little bit nervous just because you never know when something could happen. So far things have gone smoothly so I have no reason to worry but I guess worry is just one of those things that comes with motherhood :D. Please be praying that both Maddox and I remain healthy and safe as we travel over the next 2 weeks. Maddox's heartbeat is still strong and Dr. G said that I am measuring at about 30 weeks instead of 31 but since I was a "thin" girl to start out with he wasn't worried about it. He also told me that if something were to happen while we were gone that I could call and he could either call me in some meds to stop contractions if that was the problem or advise me on what to do. He also mentioned, since we are going to Cali, to be aware of that crazy swine flu and that if I had any flu like symptoms at all I could call and he would call me in some Tamiflu, which is safe to take during pregnancy.

It's funny, I have never been one to worry much about stuff but from the moment I found out we were pregnant I think I have worried more than in the whole rest of my life combined. I just want everything to be perfect with Maddox and so far it has and I am so thankful for that. But please just be praying for peace for me especially over the next couple of weeks as we are away from our Dr. And like I said before, also be praying for health and safety as we travel. Thanks so much!!

P.S. We close on our house this afternoon!! YAY!!!!

Showered with LOTS of Love

Well it was really more like flooded than showered. Today we had our baby shower and I cannot even begin to tell what a blessing it was. We received more stuff than I ever could have imagined!! There was about 85 people that showed up and then even more that weren't able to make it but sent gifts anyways. It's amazing to me that we have only been here for about 9 months and already have SO many people who love us enough to give us a gift during this special time. I can't say thank you enough to everyone that came, gave us a gift and helped out with the shower. Collin and I feel so blessed to have a church family that loves us as much as they do. I can't imagine being at a better place. Here are a few pictures from the afternoon...

My hostesses (minus Judy who was out of town)

Me opening a gift

SOOOO much stuff!!!!

the precious cake

the sign-in table

the napkins with Maddox's name on them

Me waiting for the first piece of YUMMY cake ;D

Thanks again to everyone who helped make this day special!!

Graduates

We officially graduated from our prepared childbirth class last night. After four weeks of class we feel a little more prepared for what is to come in the next few weeks. Last night we had a pediatrician come and answer some questions, which was very informational. Then we watched a video about newborns. We also talked about the second and third stages of labor, which include the actual delivery of the baby. We finished up the class by talking about postpartum. To me the recovery after sounds worse than the actual labor itself. But I guess I will just have to wait and see. We are glad to be finished with the class but feel like we learned a lot of useful information in it. I have two other classes that I am going to take...one by myself and one with Collin. The one by myself is a breast feeding class and the one with Collin is an infant care class that teaches about practical things for the first month of their life, like feeding, bathing, sleeping, etc.

Next up on the agenda...Church tonight, then FPU tomorrow night, then the Rockies game Friday :D.

How big is Maddox and Mommy? - 30 weeks

I CAN'T believe we only have 10 weeks left until our due date!! Time has seriously flown by!! I am so thankful that things have continued to go so smoothly. Let's see how big Maddox is this week and then since it has been 4 weeks since my last belly pic I'll put that on too...I am definitely getting bigger :D

Maddox rivals a good-size cabbage in weight, tipping the scales this week at 3 pounds and lengthwise is about 15 3/4 inches, head to heel


As baby's skin smoothes out, his brain just keeps getting more wrinkled. All those grooves and indentations increase surface area, meaning more room for that oh-so-essential brain tissue. He's also adding some brawn -- his grip is now strong enough to grasp a finger.

As for me...here is my 26 week picture and the new 30 week picture...You can't tell here but my belly button has officially popped out and become and outie. It's ok with me as long as it goes back to being an innie like before after Maddox comes :D.

And a few things I'm looking forward to coming up that you can be certain you will hear about...
1. We have our last childbirth class tonight.
2. We are going to the Rockies game on Friday and will be sitting in AWESOME seats.

3. Our baby shower is on Sunday...YAY!!
4. Monday I have a doctor's appointment, which are much more fun when you are pregnant :D.
5. Tuesday we close on our house!! FUN!!
6. And then on Wednesday we leave for California!!

Talk about a fun few days coming up!! I can't wait!!

I survived

In case any of you were wondering (since I haven't blogged since Saturday morning)...I survived the blizzard and Collin made it home safely. Like I said on Saturday my friend Jennifer (who is awesome!!) came and picked me up so that I could get out of the house and have some human interaction. We had a fun time playing in the snow and just hanging out until the guys got home at about 10:30 Saturday night. I will admit that I am really glad to have Collin home. It was a rough few days here in Colorado. But thankfully I made it through my first really Colorado blizzard and Collin made it back here safely. I did learn one thing from this experience though...the next time Collin decides to go on a trip, I'm either going with him or I'm going home to Texas to see the fam!! No more of this being stuck in the house by myself in the middle of a giant snow storm. :D

Hopefully, this blizzard marks the end of winter and the beginning of a beautiful spring.

Snow Day

Here are some pics of us playing in the snow...yay for human interaction!!! :D










And here is a video...

Making a Break for it...

So, after about 60 hours straight of being in my house (all alone mind you) I am making a break for. My amazing friend Jennifer is braving the snow to come pick me up and take me to her house where I will be able to have some much needed human interaction. I'm not gonna lie it's been a rough couple of day for me. Collin has been in Arizona on a guys golf trip where it has been sunny and in the 70's while I have been trapped in our apartment for 2 1/2 days with just me and Toby (our dog). I think at this point we have gotten about a foot of snow and it is still coming down. Yesterday was the worst because I was just getting so bored and frustrated about the whole situation. I will admit there were some tears shed but today I am doing better because I'm getting out of the house and because Collin is supposed to come home tonight. Say a prayer that their flight doesn't get cancelled and that they make it back safely. I'm pretty sure with all that has gone on plus the added joy of pregnancy hormones that if he doesn't make it home tonight a few more tears will be shed. Here are a few pics I took on my cell phone of the snow we have gotten...the first 3 are all of the same thing so you can see how much has accumulated over the last 24 hours or so...it's waaaay too much for my taste...

This is from early Friday

This is from Friday afternoon.

This is from Saturday morning.

Saturday morning again

Going Nuts!!!!!

I have officially not left my house for about 36 hours and it's not looking promising that that's going to change anytime soon. Yesterday, the weather was rainy and yucky and today we are having a lovely (NOT) spring blizzard that is supposed to bring anywhere from 10-20+ inches of snow. Anyone who knows me or reads my blog knows that I am not a fan of the snow AT ALL!!! It's really just a big pain!! I was supposed to go have dinner last night with friends but we had to cancel because the snow had started falling...then tonight I am supposed to have our monthly girls bunco night but there is no way I'm driving in a blizzard...and then tomorrow morning I am supposed to go to a friends baby shower that I don't know if I will be able to make now. It is just so frustrating!!

I have been so bored and am going stir crazy being stuck in the house. So, I guess it's fair to say that I am still a Texas girl through and through and am so not acclimated to Colorado yet. I'm actually not sure if that will ever happen. I guess only time will tell. Say a little prayer for me that I don't go totally crazy being stuck in my apartment!!!

Pediatrician - check

At our childbirth class this week (which I just realized I forgot to post about) we were told that we needed to have a pediatrician lined up for when Maddox is born because every day that we are ing the hospital after the birth he has to be seen by one. So I decided I would get on that and get one lined up. It's always hard to find new doctors when you haven't been in a place for long but conveniently my OB's wife just happens to be a pediatrician. He wasn't the one to tell me that but I have some friends that go to her and really like her a lot. So that made it easy. I called this morning and have gotten all registered with them so it is nice to be able to check one more thing off of our list!!

And since I forgot to blog about our childbirth class this week I'll do it now :D. This week we talked about what they call "interventions" but what we all know as drugs...lol. We watched a video about epidurals and the pro's and con's of having one and not having one. We also talked about c-sections and watched a video about that. We then got to take a tour of the hospital and see where everything is going to happen. It was neat to see the delivery room, nursery, and postpartum room...they are all very nice.

Nursery Letters

Today I was feeling crafty so I decided to paint the letters for Maddox's nursery. I have been looking for some for a while but they are always kind of expensive, like $18.00 for each letter. So, I decided I would try to do them myself. I think they turned out great and the best thing is they only ended up costing me about $5.00 for each letter :D. I can't wait to move so I can see what they look like in the nursery :D.

How big is Maddox? - 29 weeks

Today marks 29 weeks for us, which means only 11 weeks until our due date and 8 weeks until we are officially full term...it's hard to believe!! We are starting to accumulate more and more baby stuff and I know when we have our shower in 2 weeks we will have a whole lot more stuff!! Maddox is continuing to grow so let's see how big he is this week...


He is about as big as a butternut squash, weightwise, about 2 1/2 pounds and lengthwise, a tad over 15 inches, head to heel. Baby's energy is surging, thanks to white fat depositing beneath his skin. And since he's growing so fast (weight will triple by birth), things are getting kind of cramped in the womb. What all this means for you: Get ready for some more kicks and jabs to the ribs.

Another Good Doctor's Appointment

I am thankful to report that I got another good report at the doctor's office this morning. I am measuring right on track at 29 weeks and at this appointment I got my finger pricked so that they could check my iron levels to make sure that I'm not anemic. My levels were good so I am happy about that. Maddox's heartbeat is still strong which I am also very thankful for!!

I got the OK to go to the dentist (I have a filling that broke that I need to get fixed...boo). I just have to be double covered if I have to get x-rays and I can't have any ephenedrine (sp?). So, I will be trying to make an appointment soon to get that taken care of even though the dentist is my LEAST favorite place to go!!!

I also got the OK to go on our trip to California for the Pepperdine Lectures in two weeks. I had called a few months ago to see what they said about traveling during the 3rd trimester and they told me as long as there are no complications it is really up to the patient's discretion. I will go back to the doctor for my next regular check-up 2 weeks from today and will get a doctor's note for the airline just saying that I am not more than 36 weeks and that the doctor has approved my travel. Collin and I are both super excited about our trip and are really looking forward our last big trip before Maddox arrives.

Thanks for the continued prayers for both Maddox and me. I pray that things continue to go smoothly and that we both stay healthy and hope that you will do the same!! :D

Happy Easter

Just wanted to wish you all a Happy Easter. I hope you had a blessed day.

And I wanted to show off Collin and me in our super cute coordinating Easter outfits ;D

Ouch!!

So tonight we were having dinner with some friends when Maddox decided he wanted to turn over or something. For a while he has been head down and has had his feet up towards my ribs. Recently he has been doing this thing where he presses his foot up against my belly button which up until now has just been pressure when he does it but tonight he was doing it so hard that it was actually hurting me. He was pressing his foot there so hard that it was sending pains right down my belly. He did it several times over about 20 minutes or so and then I could feel him roll over so I guess that's what he was trying to do the whole time...but man it hurt. I guess that just shows me that he really is getting bigger. It really is crazy all that goes on inside there...lol.

Vote...

Everyone needs to vote in the new poll that I put up. Who do you think little Maddox resembles more....Collin or me?!?!

3D Ultrasound - Round 2

We had our 2nd attempt at the 3D ultrasound this morning and Maddox was much more cooperative this time!! We got some really good pictures of his face. Here are a few of them (they are pretty self explanatory...I think all but one is of his face and the other one is of his foot)...

We also got a 4D video on DVD...It's like 16 minutes long and you are more than welcome to watch the whole thing but if you skip to about 10 minutes I think it is a bit more interesting :D. (this is my first time to put a video on here so hopefully it works...it took forever so it better work :D)...