T Minus 30 days...and Maternity Pics

Quick post before my Sunday nap...Only 30 days to go until our due date...wowza!!!

And Collin and I were blessed this weekend to have some super awesome friends from ACU fly in to take our maternity pictures for us. Jonathan and Katie Beth flew in yesterday morning and then spent the day helping us document this special time with some awesome photos. It unfortunately had to be a quick trip due to some scheduling issues so they are already headed back to Amarillo now. Jonathan is hopefully going to upload the unedited pictures tonight that I will be able to share with you soon and then will work on editing several that he will get to me shortly. I am so excited to see everything we got and to be able to share them with you. Be looking for a preview either tonight or tomorrow :D.

Thanks Jonathan and KB for coming out to Colorado to take our pictures and catch up. We had a great time!!

Shocking...

I am saddened to report that I have had to break down and by a shock collar for my sweet little 9 lb. maltese, Toby. Collin and I decided it was time to get serious about getting him in line due to his excessive barking since moving into the new house. First, for our neighbors sake. Since we live in a covenant community now we were afraid that someone would call our HOA on us. Second, for our sake. He was waking up WAY too early and barking non-stop until someone let him out. And third, for the baby. We knew it just would not work to have Toby barking all the time once Maddox arrives. We really only had two choices here one being the shock collar and the other to give him away. And I am just not ready for that second choice yet. I do realize that if we can't get him under control then giving him away will be inevitable but I wanted to give this method a shot first.

We have had the collar on him for 2 days now and it actually seems to be helping. One of the biggest problems we were having was him barking at every person that walked by our yard and with the neighborhood mailbox being right outside our fence people come by all day long to pick up their mail. Well, the good news is yesterday 2 people came by to get their mail while he was outside and he just stood at the fence and watched them...YAY Toby!! I also took him to Collin's softball game last night and he didn't bark at anyone which is also an improvement. So, I am thinking that this thing is actually working, even though I feel super guilty every time I have to push that button that sends the electrical pulses to his little neck. Hopefully, he will get the hang of it quickly and won't need it for a long time.

And just for the record...the collar does not hurt him!! It just sends an uncomfortable sensation to his neck to show him his behavior is not ok!!

A Sweet Poem

My mother-in-law e-mailed me this poem that she saw on another blog and I thought I would share it...

A baby asked God,

"They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am

I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

God said, "Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you.

And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the small child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak."

"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?"

God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach you how to pray."

"Who will protect me?"

God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life."

"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore."

God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked,

"God, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel's name."

God said, You will simply call her, "Mom."

NURSERY PICS!!!!!!

Here they are...the much anticipated pictures of Maddox's nursery!! It is pretty much completely finished...the only other thing I will do is put some kind of picture above the square shelves...I just haven't decided which one yet!! And just for fun I have put a picture of my belly at 35 weeks :D

LOTS of clothes...and those are just the Newborn to 3 months...the bigger ones are hung up high :D.

35 weeks...yay!! :D

How big is Maddox? - 35 weeks (and some other stuff)

35/35!!! 35 weeks pregnant and 35 days until our due date!! YAY!!! We are getting so close!!! The nursery is pretty much finished...I just need to hang the curtains and then I will post some pictures. I am planning on doing that today so get excited :D.

I had my 35 week appointment today and things are still right on track. Maddox's heartbeat is strong and I am measuring right at 35 weeks. We will now have appointments every week from here on out, which is another sign we are close. Next week I will have my Strep B test which is something that isn't harmful to me but is harmful to the baby at birth. So, if I test positive for it they will just hang an antibiotic before delivery that will take care of it. I will also start having internal exams at that appointment to see if I am dilated at all yet. My next appointment is next Wednesday at 10:15, so I'll let ya know how it goes!!


As far as Maddox goes, he is about the size of a honeydew melon. He doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds. Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

On another note...the house is finally coming together. We have the kitchen pretty much done (just a little more decorating), the living room is kind of done but we are having an entertainment center built, which isn't finished yet so the TV is sitting on the floor at this point, the dining room is kinda a mess right now because the table has become the catch all for stuff that doesn't have a place yet; our bedroom is finished except we have nothing hung on the walls, the guest bedroom is done except I need to hang a mirror, the craft room is done and like I said above the nursery is done except for curtains. I'm hoping Katy (who helped me with the paint colors) will be able to come over soon to help me finish up the decorating because that is about all that is left. Hopefully I will have things finished soon so that I can post pics for you to see. I know you are all waiting on the edge of your seats to see them :D.

Ok sorry this got so long...pics coming soon...I promise :D

American Idol

So I know I'm a few days late posting this but YAY for Kris Allen winning American Idol!!! He was my second pick after Danny Gokey so I am super glad he won!! Collin showed me this video he found and I just had to share it. It is of Kris singing the song "God of this City" which is an AWESOME song if you haven't heard it. I had heard that he was a worship minister somewhere but I don't know if that is true or not. Either way, he is a Christian and hopefully will use his new found fame in a way that will further the Kingdom!!!

Bathroom Stalls

So, I realized today it is getting quite difficult to fit into the regular sized public bathroom stalls. I pretty much have to go in and lean back over the toilet in order to maneuver around the door and get it closed. I think I am going to have to start using the larger stalls although sometimes there isn't time to wait for that one to become available because Maddox likes to use my bladder as a trampoline at times (TMI?!?...lol). Yay for the joys of being pregnant ;D.

How big is Maddox and Mommy? - 34 weeks

6 weeks to go!!!! Woo Hoo!!! We gotta get a move on getting things ready!! We have finally started working on the nursery but it is still just a big mess of stuff so no pics yet :D. I did start to wash some of his clothes today and have put the crib together so we are making progress!!

But let's see how big Maddox is this week...


He now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

I can definitely tell he is growing. I can't remember if I mentioned this the other day but I had the worst Round Ligament Pains (RLP) ever on Friday. We had just moved some stuff from the apartment to the house when it started so I was worried that I had maybe hurt myself. I called my mom to ask her advice and she said it sounded like growing pains but that I should call my Dr. just to make sure. So, I called Dr. G's office and the nurse checked with him and he said it definitely sounded like ligament pains but if it got worse I could come in that afternoon. Thankfully it went away that night but man was it painful!!

Now I'm sure you all want to see how much I have grown. So here is my picture from 30 weeks and then my new picture from 34 weeks :D...

Moving Day...

Today is the day!! We have spent all day moving into our new house...yay!! Of course I have felt totally useless but am glad we had a few good friends show up to help up out by moving the big stuff. The house is a TOTAL disaster area right now but I can slowly see it starting to come together and absolutely love it!! We still have quite a bit of stuff at our apartment that we have to get but it's all smaller stuff that Collin and I can gradually bring over on our own. Since we have already moved our clothes and bedroom furniture over we will officially spend our first night there tonight...super exciting!!

Collin's mom is actually going to come out on Monday and stay until Thursday to help me get things unpacked and settled a little more so that will be great. I will for sure post pictures after we get thing's more set up because like I said, right now it is a huge mess :D.

So, thanks to those of you that came and helped us out...it was a huge blessing to us!!

Reading Material

So, this book was given to me a few weeks ago by a fellow mom at our church. She said she read it after her baby was born but highly recommended me reading it before Maddox came along. I decided to start it on our trip to California and am now about half way through it. It is very interesting and super informative. The gist of it is calming colicy, fussy babies. Obviously, I can't try out the suggestions at this point but they sound good. I guess we will have to see how well they really work once our little guy arrives.

I would, however, recommend it to any expectant moms who read my blog. It comes in book form and then also has a dvd that goes with it as well. I got the dvd as a gift at my shower but haven't had a chance to watch it yet. I'll have to let you know about it once I get the time to look at it!! :D

How big is Maddox? - 33 weeks

Another week has come and gone bringing us that much closer to our due date. Only 7 more weeks to go...I can't believe it!!! I feel like we still have tons to do but I know we can get it all done. I had another doctor's appointment this morning and things are still going great. Maddox's heartbeat is still in the 150's and I am measuring right at 33 weeks. The PA said that at this point Maddox will be gaining about an ounce a day...that is just crazy.

At this point Maddox is about the size of a pineapple. He weighs a little over 4 pounds and is around 17 inches long.


Baby may grow up to a full inch this week alone, and his brain is developing like crazy. Pretty soon, he'll be able to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing. Also, his bones are hardening, and he's started to keep his eyes open when he's awake. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Continue to pray for us that things continue to go smoothly as we finish up these last few weeks of the pregnancy and look forward to the birth of little Maddox :D.

We made it back...

We have made it back to Colorado safely and are glad to be home. We had a great time in California but have a lot of things to look forward to in the next few weeks here. We are planning on moving in to our house this coming Saturday but before that happens we are wanting to get a little painting done. A friend from church is coming over to help me pick out paint colors tomorrow so that will be fun!! Then we have several things being delivered on Friday like our washer and dryer :D. I also have another doctor's appointment in the morning, which is always fun!! I can't wait to get moved in and settled in our new house. I'll be sure post pictures of the house so you can see the progress :D.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!!

Just wanted to say happy mother's day to my favorite lady in the world...my Mom!! I hope you had a wonderful day...sorry we couldn't be there to celebrate with you!! Thanks for everything you do for me!!! Love ya!!!

Congrats Little Sister

Today my youngest sister, Morgan, graduated from Abilene Christian University with her degree in Biology and minor in Chemistry. I'm really sad that I couldn't be there in person but thanks to today's technology I was able to watch her graduation live online from over 1000 miles away!! She is planning on taking a year off to work and then going to PA school. I am so proud of her!! Here is a short video of her walking across the stage...of course its really bad quality because its of my computer screen but that's ok....I'm just glad I got to see it.

Catch up post...

Sorry I have been such a slacker lately. Honestly, I have been so exhausted by the time we have gotten back to our dorm (that's right I said dorm...more on that in a minute) that I haven't felt like blogging. But here it is...my catch up blog for the last few days.

Let's start out with my weekly how big is Maddox update that I usually post on Tuesdays. We are now at 32 weeks...only 8 more to go until our due date :D


By now, Maddox weighs around 3.75 pounds, pick up a large jicama (whatever that is), and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.

I am definitely feeling like a pregnant girl now. Being up here in the warm weather and walking this super hilly (don't know if that's a word?!?) campus has caused my hand and feet to swell which isn't comfortable at all. It also doesn't help to be sleeping on an extremely uncomfortable, twin-sized, hard as a rock bed at 32 weeks but what can ya do?!?! I can definitely tell I am getting bigger. I feel like I've grown a lot even in just the last few days. It's funny because I think pretty much anyone that talks to me out here uses me being pregnant as their conversation starter. I am starting to get the comments like "WOW you look like you're due any day now" and the constant stares of pity as I walk around the Pepperdine campus. For the most part, I am still doing really well but I am definitely getting in to that uncomfortable stage of pregnancy.

On another note, if you haven't pick it up yet, we are now in Malibu at the Pepperdine Lectures. I'll be honest and admit that lectures are NOT my thing. I have a pretty short attention span and sitting in a room and listening to someone speak for an hour is just not my idea of a good time. But Collin LOVES it. The ACU lectures have been one of his favorite times of the year since we started school there in 2002 so I suck it up and follow him around because I know it's important to him. I will say the location is a bit, ok maybe a lot, better here at Pepperdine than at ACU but I am kinda feeling like a small child with my nose pressed against the window of the candy story but not able to go in. Every day I walk out of our dorm room that we are staying at here (not the best accommodations but it was free since Collin is teaching a class) and see the beautiful Pacific coast line and amazing beaches but I just can't go. For one, I don't have anyone to go with (I need to start bringing a friend with me in the future...any takers :D) and two I don't have any way of getting there. We don't have a car out here and the beach is a few miles away so I am stuck here just able to admire what I long for from a distance. Sad I know. LOL. And just an interesting tid-bit about our trip...the dorm we are staying in is really more like a 2 bedroom apartment with living room and a bathroom to share. We met the people who are sharing the "apartment" with us yesterday afternoon and found out that the husband of the couple is actually and OB doctor, sorta ironic with me being pregnant. It kind of gave me a small sense of peace knowing he is the next door over even though I hope I won't be needing his help. LOL. And just in case you were wondering...we haven't had any encounters with the swine flu. I have been conscious to wash my hands frequently and bought a little bottle of hand sanitizer to carry around with me.

At this point, I think I am ready to go back home. It is beautiful here but all the walking, sitting and listening to lectures and meeting tons of new people is exhausting!! Plus, as you know Collin and I have our new house just sitting and wait for us to move in to and I can't wait. I find myself often sitting and picturing how I am going to arrange the furniture in the different rooms. It's a fun thing to look forward to after we get back.

Sorry this is so long. I don't blame you if you don't read all. Please continue to pray for our health and safety as our trip comes to a close in a few days. I look forward to getting back to Colorado and seeing all my friends :D.

Huntington Beach

Today we headed down to Huntington Beach and had lunch at Ruby's on the pier. Unfortunately, it was a cool, cloudy day but here are a few pics we took...