Belly Movements..

Check it out! I finally caught Kelsey moving on camera. It helps to focus on the left side of my tummy. It looks like little waves across my skin. There are some good ones movements at the very beginning and again between 20 and 40seconds. After I tried to move her at the end she didn't do much more. Enjoy!

What a Day...

It's been raining in Spring for the last 24 hours! The roads are soaked and John told me this morning in Cypress there was 7-8 inches of water on the ground. All this rain and my kids at school had to take their Math TAKS test. Kelsey will finally be able to have a stress free home however, I no longer have to worry about how my kids did. I've done all I can do, now it's all up to them and how well they 'used their Math strategies' (as all us teachers say!). During the test we have to stand up and 'actively monitor' the kids all day. I realized how much extra weight I am actually carrying now! Thank goodness I had a pair of flip-flops up at school to stay comfortable in. 4 hours of walking around a classroom is exhausting to a pregnant woman :) I can't believe it will be May at the end of the week. I only have 5 more weeks of school, then 3 weeks of relaxing before the baby comes! I can't wait :)

On another note, I am thinking about interviewing a baby sitter either this weekend or next. I found her on Woodlands Online and she lives right around the corner from our neighborhood. She just had a baby herself in February (her first), so I feel she will really understand the needs of a newborn. I'm so nervous, as any new mom would probably be. I really wish I could stay at home with her myself (or have my parents living here so they could take care of her), but I know everything will work out like God wants it too. She's only $125/week, so it's very reasonable. I want to find out how many other kids she is planning on keeping and contact her references to make sure she is reliable. I don't get a lot of sick days next year so I definitely need a reliable babysitter. John and I are fortunate in that aspect however, one of our friends works from home and said she would be available last minute if anything ever happened with our babysitter. Hopefully we won't have to use her too much, but it's nice to know someone we trust is available and willing!

Well, here are some updated belly pictures. Hope you enjoy!

Getting BIG from the side! And no those aren't stretch marks, thankfully, Bailey jumped up and scratched me.

Big ol' belly from the front.

Baby Shower!

We had our first baby shower this Saturday, hosted by my amazing best friends, and it was certainly a great time! We had around 30 friends and family show up and Miss Kelsey got spoiled to no end! John and I, once again, are so thankful for all the wonderful people we have in our lives! John's mom was able to make it in town from Kentucky, which was very exciting, but I'm a little disappointed we didn't even take a family picture together :( Hopefully we'll see her again before she flies out. My parents couldn't make it this weekend because they were celebrating their wedding anniversary, and my mom had a busy busy day at the tearoom. Gotta make that money :) The weather cooperated for the beginning of the shower, but started raining down towards the end. Overall, it was an awesome experience, my friends have done such a great job hosting! I owe them big time when they get married and have kids! Below are just some of the pictures from this weekend..

One side of Kelsey's room with her goodies all spread out!

The other view of her room, we got our pack 'n play, and both strollers (travel system and jogger)! Thank you soo much!

Bailey wanted to feel more girly so we gave her one of Kelsey's bows to wear..haha

Some of our wonderful friends from College Station, Archie & Kristy, and Brittney & Ryan

Whose belly is bigger?? You be the judge :)

John and the beautiful hostesses!

My best friends!

Baby's first Astros T-Shirt. John registered for this gift!

I just love this picture!

John's friends from HS...Marcus & Amanda, and Steven and Shannon. Thanks for coming!!

Renee & I after the shower...friends for soooo long :)

Us with our yummy cake!

The hooded towel made by Mrs. Rene Whitaker! I forgot to mention my AMS friends made it to the party! I miss them and it was so great to catch up and see Miss Zoey.

The Parents-To-Be!

Lauren, Me, Lauren, and Renee

AMS friends and Grandma admiring the new baby!

Once again, THANK YOU everyone for coming and celebrating our new beginning with us. John and I are so excited...only 9 more weeks!

We've made it into the 30's!!

10 weeks and counting....this pregnancy has gotten to the point where it is uncomfortable. I can't sleep the way I want to, and getting in and out of bed (or off the couch for that matter) takes more effort than in the past. I literally have to get a rolling start..haha. I'll put some belly pictures up tomorrow. I'm really lukcy still and I'm carrying all in the front. Everyone at school tells me that from the back you wouldn't even know I was pregnant. It's a good feeling - but I definitely need to get back into a walking routine or something, the legs and arms are starting to feel a little more 'loose' than in the past. :) All our friends are coming in town this weekend for our first baby shower! John and I feel a little selfish considering it was about a year ago when we had our wedding shower, but we are VERY thankful to have such wonderful friends that support us!

Here's what's going on inside my belly this week: Your baby rivals a good-size cabbage in weight, tipping the scales this week at 3 pounds. (Length: about 15 3/4 inches, head to heel.)

It's incredible to think that in the next 10 weeks she's going to go from 3 pounds to possibly 8 or 9! At this point she is increasing about 1/2 pound per week...and I think I'm uncomfortable now. Atleast I will be out of school for the last three weeks of pregnancy. That will make life better for me :) All the teachers on my hall are predicting an early arrival because of my symptoms (fatigue, minor nausea at night, etc.) I just tell them it's b/c I'm feeling overweight and eating too much sugar!

Last night I delivered dinner to Kelly and Brian (some friends we made through core group) and was able to meet their 8 day old baby Alyssa. I was in such awe that something so cute and little was developing inside of me! Just looking at her hands and little body made me so excited to see what Kelsey is going to look like. It's incredible what happens inside a woman's body! I picked Alyssa up to hold her and right when I sat down with her, Kelsey started kicking up a storm. Hopefully she won't have these jealousy issues later on in life, because John and I do expect to have more kids :)

Anyways...we have our newborn class tomorrow evening so I'll update you on how all that goes!!

I forgot to mention...

Two of my students gave me little outfits for Kelsey this week. I thought it was the sweetest thing ever! One girl brought me a Winnie the Pooh bib that says "I love Mommy" along with a cute pink dress, some onsies and socks. The other gave me a whole outfit complete from the bonnet down to the slippers. Very cute! Funny thing was, we are 3/4 of the way through the year and they both spelled my name wrong! haha

Another Neat Experience!!

We went out to eat with the Kuhn's on Wednesday night and all throughout dinner I kept feeling Kelsey move around. I felt my stomach and instead of kicks I felt all her little body parts again (possibly a leg or arm??). Anyways - on the way home she was staying active and so whenever she would push one of her limbs up against my belly I would push back and she would pull it away and hide it. Then a few minutes later she'd stretch out again and I'd push it a little and she'd pull it in again. In the scheme of things, I know this is a little experience, but I kinda felt like it was the first time we were really interacting. It was so neat! I like being able to feel where she is and guess what body part may be pressing up against my belly! Hopefully if I see any of you soon you will get to feel her move. I don't think it will be a problem...she's one active girl!!

29 Weeks & Moving Right Along!

Not much to update on from last blog. I've been trying so hard to record belly movements on our video camera but everytime Kelsey moves and I get the camera out she stops. It's surprising that part of me would not want all the attention she can get :) jk. We celebrated Easter this past Sunday and had lunch with John's brother Ben and his gf Jennifer. I got to wear one of my new dresses so I was thrilled about that. Dresses and skirts are definitely the way to go when you are pregnant! Here's the updated belly pics from tonight.

I really didn't think my belly button would be one to pop!

Belly Pictures!! 28 Weeks, 4 Days!

Here are the long anticipated belly pictures. This girl grows by the minute! I love it though, I love my belly and the way it's just popping in front! I'm still working hard to keep everything else the same size, but sometimes no matter how hard you try, body parts tend to 'swell'.

Close up from the front

Close up from the side...my belly button isn't popping, it's stretched to the side though so it creates that little peak on top. You can see it through some of my shirts :)

Full body shot from the side.

...and what I look like from the front when I'm out on the town :)

Hope you enjoy! I definitely am. It's getting hard to reach down now to tie my shoes. I can't imagine what it's going to be like around week 40! I've found a new love for my body pillow. We actually bought it for Kelsey's crib, but I've taken it over for the time being. I've gone to sleeping on one side (usually my right even though all the books say left is the best for circulation...whatever). The only complaint I have is leg cramps! No matter how many bananas I eat or how many cups of water I drink, I continue to get them in the mornings! This morning was especially bad. John's phone rang and woke me up and instantly I was screaming ''OOoowwww'!! These are the charlie horses that you get and easily massage out, I literally have to get out of bed and force all my weight on my heal to stretch it out. It's soooo weird and painful. Sometimes if I point my toes I feel them coming on so I immediately flex my foot! Oh the knowledge I have to pass onto my friends. Pregnancy makes you very aware of each aspect of your body. That's all for now - the kids are coming into the classroom.

Only 12 More Weeks!

That's what little Kelsey looks like right now! I can tell she has her feet up because I continue to get kicked in the side. This morning while I was preparing my classroom she started moving around and her foot was right in the middle of my torso, probably about 2 inches down from my ribs. I felt her strong little bones move again! I think those movements are still so amazing. It gives me little goosebumps that I can feel her actual body inside my belly! According to babycenter.com, this week Kelsey is 2 and 1/4 pounds and is almost 14 1/2 inches long from head to toe! She'll be putting on weight fast in the next 12 weeks, and so will I. The website says in this next weeks I'll gain 11 more pounds! Oh the thought of it.... haha :) Kelsey's eyes now blink and she's sporting eyelashes...hopefully long and beautiful!! If that happens they definitely didn't come from me. I'm going to try and record my belly one night so you can see the movements John and I get see every night around 9:00 PM. I'll post some pictures of my progress (hopefully) tomorrow!