I wish I could write everything down

I had this feeling that Kyle would be cutting teeth while we were in Dallas visiting family...and wouldn't you know it, that bottom tooth showed up the afternoon after we arrived back in Phoenix this week. It was a good visit, but not much sleeping for either of us, even with Kyle under the influence of infant Motrin. He now officially has five teeth and I'm expecting a couple more in the next week or so with the way he's been carrying on, drooling, and chewing on everything.

Thankfully, Kyle is eating more solid foods. Today he conquered 1/4 of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch; I can see this eating solid food thing is going to keep me skinny as he likes to eat what I'm eating during the day! A large portion of the jelly landed in his hair, but what fun is learning how to eat if it's not messy? Additionally, he will now hold his own sippy cup of water if he's truly thirsty.

Kyle's tumbling class starts up again tomorrow and his swim lessons start on Monday. I'm taking a dance class and ice skating this summer, while Kevin is doing a piano class.

We're pretty sure Kyle could walk if he wanted to; we often let go and he stands on his own or takes a few steps before realizing we've let go. This past week or so he's really gotten a lot stronger. Also, he's saying dada, mama, nana, and dog (minus the "g").

In other news, we've come to the decision that Zoe, our cat, needs to find a new permanent home. Despite how much Kyle enjoys her, we've had our problems with her waking him up in the night, and most recently she peed on his plush gorilla chair. It seems we just don't have the time to give her the attention she needs and she's acting out more and more as Kyle gets older.

And congratulations go out to our old college friend Celeste, as her and husband Chris are expecting a little girl in October.

Lastly, GO SUNS!

Baby chic...

Kyle will be sporting one of these at Ever Since Something's next gig.

Hush a bye...

I recognized Kyle's cry today. Not in the "I can pick my child's cry out of a crowd" way, but in the "Oh, I cry like that too" cry. We've been working hard on having him put himself to sleep by laying him down in his crib awake for bedtime and his naps. Well, this afternoon it was all just too much for him. I walked in to his room and immediately knew the cry; it was one I had cried often early on in my pregnancy when I was upset and frustrated. Now, I'm not saying he got it from me or remembered hearing me cry that way when I was pregnant, or even that him crying the same way I do means he's feeling the same things I feel when I cry that way.

But anyways, it's not a very wet cry, not many tears or snot, but it's a cry of frustration. I rocked him to sleep and he went down in minutes. Poor guy. He just couldn't calm himself down this afternoon to get himself to sleep. Ah well.

Last night was long and his teeth seem to be working themselves out again. Kevin and I are always fairly cautious about immediately giving him pain medicine when we suspect it's his teeth. We try to rule out all other possibilities; regretfully, that left us giving him infant motrin at 5 a.m. and getting a good 2 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Here's to some new teeth in the very near future (cross your fingers).

I wish I could remember it all...

Would you believe Kyle has been his angelic little self since daddy came home from his trip? Yep, no whining or crankiness in site. I talked with one of Kevin's colleagues, who has a 2 year old daughter, and she said that her husband had some of the same problems with her that I was experiencing with Kyle while she was at the conference. Who knew kids would react so strongly when one of the parents was away?

Mother's day was nice; I woke up to a gift bag with a card "signed" by Kyle and Kevin. Kyle gave me the book he had picked out and I received some much appreciated "mom's night off" coupons from Kevin. Additionally, Kyle gave me the gift of sleep mother's day eve, by sleeping 10 hours without waking up. I did still feed him twice, however, it was more out of necessity for my comfort than his.

Kyle seems to be doing something new everyday. He now does this petting motion with his hand when he wants to pet the cat, eagerly knocks down toy castles that Kevin builds him, and plays hide and seek with us every night.

Lately, I've been using the sling to take him to and from the car, while leaving the car seat in the car. It's so much easier with him getting heavier and the car seat being so bulky.

And in other news, Kevin fixed our washer and we found the digital camera, so here's to new pictures of Kyle!

Traveling

So, Kyle seemed to be doing better yesterday and I decided to forego the nightly dose of ibuprofen. Let's just say we were both up every 90 minutes or so until 3:30 when I gave him some medicine. He then woke up at 5:30 to start his day!

We traveled back to Phoenix yesterday; I was going to wait until today (Thursday), but I was so exhausted! My mom had offered to not only help out with Kyle, but celebrate Mexico's Mother's Day (Wednesday) with me too. We had a whirlwind dinner at Macayo's by the Desert Sky Mall, where you could here the little Hispanic children saying something to the effect of: "No wonder he's watching us, we don't look anything like him!" in response to Kyle , the only blond haired, blue eyed person in the whole place, being entertained by the table of 10 next to us!

And currently, we just got back from walking the dog. Kyle would grab her leash from his stroller and "walk" her too; until he fell asleep of course. He's now napping until we head off to the library for storytime!

That's about it...Kevin comes home tonight and I can't wait!

Mystery solved

Kyle: "Mom, I'm not a baby anymore. I'm almost 9 months old y'know."

Mom: "Yes son, I know."

Kyle: "I'd like to sit up to the table to eat now, in my booster seat. I'm too old to use the high chair tray anymore."

And so, Kyle now uses his high chair in booster seat mode and sits up to the table with the rest of us to eat. He polished off almost a whole jar of chicken and apples tonight; back to his usual solid food appetite. Whew!

MIA and out of order

Have you seen our black Bible with our names inscribed on it or our digital camera...they both seem to have disappeared...

Also, our washer started hula-ing across the porch last week and we have come to the conclusion it's time to send it on to laundry heaven. Anybody getting rid of a washer with a few good washes still left in it, let me know!

Kyle and I are off to the mall for some diversion. I think he's better today, but still not himself.

Boohoo...

Kyle kind of slept last night, but I didn't. This morning I felt like the worst mom on earth because I could hardly function and Kyle was super cranky, as he has been for the past couple days. I'm not quite sure how moms who have colicky babies do it; I just want to sit down and cry with him by the time evening comes along.

Right now I'm feeling like the most mediocre mom in the world. Kyle is watching his baby video as part of his bedtime routine, and normally, I would be watching it with him. However, tonight I am guiltily over here typing, updating my blog, checking email, etc... It's not that I won't be able to do this stuff after he goes to bed, I just needed a baby break. He's also too close to the TV, which I know would drive Kevin crazy, but I just don't have it in me to fight that battle tonight.

On an odd note, Kyle hasn't really been eating today. A very small bit of cereal this morning, no lunch, and no dinner (except for nursing). He has been drinking an inordinate amount of water. If his habits continue through tomorrow, I'm going to give the nurse a call.

I'm pretty sure that's it...

Where's dada?

Kevin's gone. He flew out Friday night and I got to go to the Brad Paisley/Sara Evans/Josh Turner concert. Our friend Jordan plays the fiddle and mandolin for Josh Turner. It was so amazing to see him on stage playing for such a large crowd. I took about a gazillion pictures; it felt like I was watching my own kid up there! So, Jordan is the younger brother of one of Kevin's old college roommates, Jon, just to put that in to perspective. He would go to the movies with Kevin and me, hang out with us a lot before and after we got married, when we were still living in Flagstaff. He's only 19 and I am so proud of him!

The night I went to the concert, Kyle was watched by my mom. It was the longest I had ever been away from him and, despite missing him, I was just a little giddy with the freedom of it all. Instead of pumping, I left some lactose free formula in case he wanted "milk" while I was gone. I guess he took two bottles, about 3 ounces each time. I was very pleased with the whole experience, considering it a successful night out!

However, the next night would prove much more trying. Kyle just couldn't sleep; he wanted to sleep, but he couldn't stay asleep. The teething tablets would work for 30 minutes or so: I'd give him two tablets while he was sitting up in his crib and he'd literally fall over on his stomach fast asleep as soon as they dissolved. It was amazing. At 3:30 a.m., my mom ran to Wal-mart for some infant ibuprofen. It helped his discomfort, but he never went back to sleep, at least not until 8 a.m. or so. Even then, he only slept for an hour. It's been a really rough last 24 hours. Thankfully, he is asleep right now, went to bed at 9:00 p.m. and I'm hoping this night will be more "normal" than the last one.

We are back in Tucson for the rest of the week. Kyle seems more comfortable at home, as am I when taking care of him full time. Kevin flies back in to Phoenix on Thursday night, we'll see his family on Saturday here in Tucson, and then Mother's Day! It's been really weird realizing that I officially get to celebrate Mother's Day this year. Ah well.

Has it really been that long?

So wow...I've really been lazy about this whole baby update thing the last couple weeks. Easter was good. We did Kyle's baby dedication ceremony and got to see all of our immediate family. He did receive an Easter basket with some toys and thought that was pretty neat.

Since then he's been having some trouble sleeping and just recently he's been drooling a lot again and his nose is running. Kevin figured out that he's most likely working on some additional teeth. Also, the big news around here is that junior can now move! Yep, the little guy's crawling. He's gotten a lot faster in the last week or so. Despite everyone's warnings about "wait till he can move", it's been quite the blessing to have him follow me around while I do things around the house. Otherwise, I used to lug him around in the sling to get my chores done, teeth brushed, or breakfast eaten. Also, Zoe is no longer as safe as she used to be. Kyle will crawl right over to her if he wants to see her; sometimes she hangs out to let him pet her and sometimes she takes off, but either way Kyle likes that he can get to her now on his own.

Tonight we celebrate Ellie's birthday (which is actually tomorrow). I can hardly believe she's a year old. I remember the phone call from Kirsten, telling me Ellie had been born, like it was yesterday. This can only mean one thing: Kyle's birthday will be here before we know it.

I can't even tell you how bummed I am that Kirsten, Jason, and Ellie are moving. They'll be packed up and gone as of May 15th. In June they're traveling to Egypt to live for the summer and then they'll be moving to Wisconsin in the fall for Jason to start his Ph.D..

However, as disappointed as I am to see them go, I know Kirsten is probably going to have the rough end of this deal. I still have all of our friends and family here nearby, where she'll be starting all of her relationships from scratch; that can be a hard thing to do when you're a stay at home mom. We're going to do our best to stay in touch, but both admit we're not very good at maintaining friendships across miles. Thankfully, Jason and Kirsten's family live here in AZ, so there is a good chance we'll be able to see them at least once a year.

Enough of that topic! In other news, we have new neighbors; a young couple from Brazil with a 9 month old little girl. Kyle and I stopped over a couple times last week and I'm going to invite them over this afternoon to play. The husband is in school and his wife just applied to start her masters in special education.

Kevin leaves on Friday for a week long conference in Seattle. I've yet to decide whether I'll hang out in Phoenix for the week he's gone or come back to Tucson. It's a little scary thinking of being Kyle's true full time caregiver with no relief for a week. There's also the issue of leaving Zoe for a week if we stay in Phoenix the whole time, so we'll see how it works out. I can't remember the last time Kevin and I were apart for a week...it may very well have been before we were married. I'm really going to miss him.

That's all I can write for now. Here's to a more timely update later this week!

Summer already?!?!

Kirsten and Ellie invited us over for a swim yesterday. The water was icy cold, but the kids didn't seem to mind.

Ellie and Kyle enjoying a cool dip in the pool! 

Welcome...

...to the world of baby shoes:

Robeez

Buskins

Pedipeds

And the good old standby, Striderite.

I am truly amazed at how pricey these shoes are. Occasionally, I see knock offs at babies r us, but my search for a pair of flexible sandals has been in vain. Kyle's feet are practically black by the end of the day from walking barefoot, but his little leather close toed shoes just aren't cutting it anymore. I think his ankles are so chubby that the shoes are digging in to his skin because of the ridges that are left behind when I take them off.

Ah well.

Happy Easter!

A few tidbits...

Kyle was a whopping 20 lbs 6 oz and 28 1/2 inches long at WIC yesterday (with his clothes and diaper on). So I figure he's a good 20 lbs minus the extra stuff. Also, he's been doing this funny noise lately that sounds like "oyoyoyoyoy".

Regretfully, junior is having trouble sleeping because of all the new stuff he's learning. We have just recently found him sitting up in his crib and *gasp* standing up in his playpen after we put him down for a nap. Look for a picture on Kevin's website in the near future.

Tastes like chicken...

Kyle is so pleased with himself. Today he was playing on his little tikes table and turned around to play on his leap frog table; while standing! Also, he falls down now and doesn't cry! He just smiles and smiles as long as he's standing up and walking around. One more thing, he now enjoys "tummy time" or playing while laying on his tummy. We're hoping this will encourage crawling in the near future. Lately he wants to be able to follow us wherever we go if we need to leave the room for a moment. I'm hoping this frustration will ease a little once he can move himself around!

Tonight for dinner, he ate sweet potatoes with chicken, the strained baby food version. It was so funny because we think he kept eating just because he liked the taste, not because he was still hungry! This was his first introduction to meats.

Kyle also got to see his first real fire engine up close and personal tonight. We went out to eat and the firemen stopped by to open up the truck for all the kids dining at the pizza place. I wish we'd had the camera!

Kyle continues to add new signs to his repertoire: he now does the signs for more, cat, ball, and bed. And lastly, afternoon diaper changes have become quite the adventure. Kyle will scream and twist and turn to not have that diaper changed, but Kevin discovered that he loves to be rolled over while he's turning. This past weekend Kevin was doing the afternoon diaper change and I heard laughing from the bedroom; went to check it out and Kevin was rolling Kyle over again and again on the bed amidst screams of glee. The diaper even got changed!

We'll be in Phoenix this weekend for the Easter holiday! I'll update after we get back!

Now I lay me down to sleep...

We've been struggling for the past week or so with Kyle's nighttime sleep. At first we assumed his discomfort was due to teething, but that seems to be over (at least for now). He has been wearing some new jammies that aren't 100% cotton, so I'm thinking that might be the problem.

Last night we stripped him down to his diaper and he slept in our bed with us...I think it's the most uninterrupted sleep all three of us have gotten lately. Additionally, he woke up happy! I kept saying last night while he was crying, "This isn't Kyle! I just want my happy baby back!". Today he is doing really well compared to the last few days and we'll be using all cotton pajamas tonight.

Walking

So we have a new stroller; I decided to buy it a couple weeks ago after Kyle and I test drove it around babies r us. I'd been looking for a happy medium between the infant car seat stroller and the bare bones umbrella stroller. Basically I wanted something that had cup holders, an underneath basket, reclining seat, and a tray for Kyle to bang his toys on. And of course, it'd be nice if it was light and compact. Well, for about $10 more than what the bare bones umbrella stroller costs, I found this stroller and just love it. However, one feature I had yet to try out was the reclining seat. Every time I'd recline it when Kyle seemed on his way to dream land, he would frantically grab on to the toy tray and sit straight up in alarm that his seat back had just fallen out from behind him.

Today we were on a rather long walk since junior had taken all of a half hour morning nap and entertaining him at the house was just not working. Of course, he started to drift off to sleep since he was still exhausted and I reclined the seat. Panic set in, so I showed him how to lay down in the seat, popped the pacifier in his mouth and he was out in 10 seconds flat; I knew that seat would come in handy someday :o).

Since being pregnant and having a baby I seem to be incredibly absent minded. I'm constantly on a scavenger hunt for my keys and lately I've been neglecting to attach Kyle's pacifiers to him, so they usually get dropped somewhere between here and the Tucson mall on our walks. Well, we hadn't tried a regular orthodontic pacifier with him in quite a while, since the kind he learned to use were the bulb like newborn type. Regretfully, those are also the expensive ones. So, tonight we bought the orthodontic ones at Target; three pacifiers for $2.50. I washed em up, offered one to him and he took it! Thank goodness we now have four pacifiers floating around the house. We had been surviving with just one the last couple days.

On a few more exciting notes, Kyle officially has his "two front teeth". They broke through the gum line last week after a few restless nights and cranky days. Also, he "said" his first baby sign language word: more. Check out Kyle signing in action. His favorite baby talk lately is "da-da" which we like to think means he's referring to Kevin...

Kyle loves his baby classes, as do I! It's nice to talk to a few other adults in the middle of the day! That's about it!

This and that

So, we've been home for a week now and I'm just starting to feel recovered from our road trip to Las Vegas. Kyle and I spent quite a bit of "quality" time together in the hotel room since most of the festivities were at night. He was actually just wonderful during the driving portion of our trip; much better than I anticipated!

This week Kyle has been working hard on learning to crawl and pull himself up on various things ranging from us to the furniture. I washed all of his 12 month clothes and can you believe they actually fit him?!? I'm guessing he must be close to 20 lbs now. Also, he got his 7 month pictures taken on Friday, in U of A gear per dad's request! These pictures are very cute and I can't wait to get them back.

I'm pretty sure he grows another inch every night; I go to get him from his crib in the morning and he just looks bigger! We started three new classes this week: two little movers and shakers classes and a swim class. Well, he seems to have enjoyed all of them, but was definitely the youngest baby at swimming.

And lastly, Kyle's new favorite thing to do is walk around while holding on to our fingers. This is particularly tiring for mom and dad, but he never seems to grow bored with it!

I keep thinking I'm going to miss the stages he's going through every month as they pass, but I enjoy each new month and it's developments more than the last! I guess that's about all...enjoy the new pictures below!

Brushing... 

...our teeth...

...in Las Vegas 

Still a little wobbly... 

Something new

Kyle is changing so fast lately...He was doing this food snub thing and only nursing the past couple days, but then we tried squash with him and whoa! he ate the whole jar of baby food; that was a first! I think he's starting to develop food preferences! Also, we took him on his first bike ride in the bike trailer yesterday. He seemed a little shocked at what was happening, but had fallen asleep by the time we drove home about 5 miles later.

Maybe we'll have to try Kyle and Ellie in the bike trailer together...hmmmm...

We're off on our first "Real" road trip tomorrow. Kevin is in a wedding in Las Vegas, but we didn't buy plane tickets quite early enough, so we're driving. Truth be told, I'm not really looking forward to it; ah well.

That's about it! I'll update again when we get home from our trip!

Go Jacks! 

Kyle ...

...is tall enough now to use the highest setting on his exersaucer.

...consistently signs when he's ready for a nap or to go to bed.

...thinks our cat Zoe is the coolest living thing around! I'm pretty sure she's in worse trouble when he starts moving than I am!

...can stand up unassisted for a bit while holding on to furniture.

...is trying to pull himself up on everything!

...started biting while he was nursing today. The advice I'd received is to cut off his air supply by covering his face with my breast when he bites. This makes him immediately release and I guess for most babies they prefer breathing. Well, my son thinks it's a game and starts giggling every time he releases his bite to breathe. Lovely.

We continue to make changes to our living space in order to make it more "baby friendly" for our soon to be moving little guy. He's doing better at night now that we just let him cry for a couple minutes to go back to sleep. I'm pretty sure he only woke up to feed last night, but I'm having trouble remembering because I think I'm starting to sleep a little more.

Today for his morning nap I heard him talking it up after only a half hour. Now, usually, if he wakes up happy, that means he's done sleeping. I make a point not to enter his room until it's been at least an hour, but he's never woken up after only a half hour happy. So I finish getting ready for the day, all the while hearing him awake in his crib. I decide I might as well get him up because we have to run over to campus anyways before Kevin goes to class. As I walk in, he's up on his hands staring straight at our cat Zoe, who's sitting on the corner of our bed closest to his crib, and he's just chatting away to her. Now this could be a problem! I think I might have to bar her from the room he's sleeping in when he goes down for a nap now.

I'll take sleep for $100

So I've put Kyle on a pretty strict schedule and it seems to be working well for him! He wakes up at 7, cereal at 9, nap at 9:30, lunch at 12, nap at 1:30, and dinner at 6. Today he is asking to nurse 3 or 4 minutes before his nap time and then he just nurses himself to sleep. I think he's starting to figure things out! I don't mind; that means neither of us is upset about him fussing to sleep!

So our days may be better, but our nights are just downright painful. This morning I gave up around 5 and just stayed in bed when he fussed. Would you believe he went back to sleep and then woke up around 7 just playing in his crib? Thank God! I may have to try that tonight. The problem we're having is we can see his top gums completely puffy and white from the pressure of his two upper teeth coming in, so we want to give him relief if it's his teeth that are waking him up, but we just don't know how to tell the difference between a sleep cycle wake up and a painful gums wake up.

I did purchase him a strip of leather to teethe on, as suggested by our handyman (he raised his son from the time the boy was an infant as a single dad and has all sorts of advice). Kyle seems to like chomping on the leather, so we'll see how it goes. I had noticed he would chew around on his leather baby shoes if given the chance.

In other news, Kyle has been introduced to fruit this week, but doesn't seem as impressed by it as I thought he would. Also, he is really excited about Zoe whenever she comes around and is intent on standing up whenever we'll spot him. I know we need to do some more baby proofing around the house, but it seems a little overwhelming at the moment.

Alright, I'm gonna try to catch a nap while Kyle is taking his!

Regress

It's been a little rough the past week or so. Kyle would sleep the first part of the night, then wake up every 1 1/2 - 2 hours needing comforting to get back to sleep. Also, he's become clingy, but this time it's just with me. If I'm anywhere near by he wants me right with him (or more likely carrying him) as I do what I need to do. Our sling has gotten more use in the last 3 days than in all the weeks prior combined!

And today, well, I've pretty much come to the conclusion that Kyle has outgrown his swing. He now sits up straight in it and stops the swing by himself, thus rendering it useless as far as napping in it goes. I just attempted to put him down for his first nap ever not in the swing. It took a good 7-10 minutes of patting him on the back as he lay in the crib, but he's asleep; now we'll just see how long it lasts!

Yesterday Kyle had his 6 month well baby check up at the pediatrician's. He is 18 lbs 12 oz and 27 1/2 inches long. At the beginning of the appt. she was asking me how his solid food was coming and I told her (cereal in the morning, veggies at night). She kind of made a big deal about him eating solids more often, but that whatever rate we were comfortable at giving him solids was really fine. I found this comment a little odd, because the majority of babies start solids somewhere around the 4-6 month mark and would still be experimenting with cereal/strained baby food. We talked about a few other things (sleeping patterns, clingy babies, and cycling with a baby). As we were wrapping up she looks down at his file, looks up at me and starts apologizing profusely, "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry about the food comment, Kyle is totally where he should be with that. I thought he was 9 months old after looking at his development chart"! Aw geez, he's even faking the doctor out ;).

So Dr. Lloyd suggested infant Motrin at night because she thinks Kyle's top two teeth are starting their descent and getting ready to push out his gums. She thought that was why his sleeping schedule is so screwy right now because he's probably having some pain/discomfort. Well, we tried it last night and would you believe our sleeping baby is back; woke up twice to eat just like before, but that was it!

Also, as soon as Kyle can hold a helmet on his head, or if we can install his infant car seat in a bike trailer, he's good to go on bike rides! I'm too excited! Walking has become so blah lately.

That's about it...we've all just kind of been surviving our days with the lack of sleep, but here's to a happy baby day!

Dear Grandparents,

I know you like to buy me baby related paraphernalia, so here are a few things to consider:

Mom went through all of my clothes the other day and realized I don'’t own a single pair of pajamas for 12 months, the next size I'll be wearing! Remember these will be my summer sleep clothes, so look for light weight/breathable fabrics.

Also, I can always use size 4 diapers, regretfully the ones that work for me are Huggies; often the most expensive! In the near future I will also need some little swimmers diapers since I'll’ (hopefully) be in swim classes starting in March.

You might be interested to know that it looks like my "big boy" room is quickly taking on a Curious George/monkey theme. I already have a comforter for my twin bed and a plush monkey chair. I figured out I like monkeys during library storytime when I had a monkey puppet read me some books. The next week mom let me pick out any puppet I wanted to read to me and I once again chose the monkey! Although, I think I'm starting to like puppets in general too!

Love, Baby Kyle

P.S.-Save Easter weekend for a special event, more details to come!

I thought I didn't have much to report...

I'm exhausted and have no idea why...Kyle and I have just been doing our normal weekly stuff. He is becoming Mr. Personality more everyday! He'll actually try to engage us in what he's doing now, which is really cute.

We ended up in a Steinmart today and good grief it must've been senior discount day! There were so many grandmas in there Kyle couldn't get enough attention. I kept hearing them say "Look at those blue eyes" and "He just makes me want to go see my grandkids"! From what Kevin said, Kyle was also very popular at dinner tonight (He went to Wendy's with Kevin and Neal so I could have a break). He stared at one college girl in line so much she commented that if any other guy looked at her that long she'd be offended! He also came home with a playskool race car, courtesy of the Wendy's employees. This little guy has got some power; and I'm pretty sure he knows it!

I guess there's really not much to say...Kyle is still sleeping pretty well at night. We've had him start sleeping in his playpen in our bedroom because we'll be traveling to a wedding in March and that will be the setup there. He's adjusted to it almost effortlessly. At one point he was waking up around 9:30 and having trouble putting himself back to sleep. I remembered the doula from our mom/baby group suggested that even older babies sometimes like to be swaddled when they sleep (if you have trouble sleeping without at least a sheet over you, then you know what she means). Well, he now sleeps all wrapped up in one of his quilts (thanks Crothers)! I always put a blanket with him when he takes his naps in the swing, but today I learned that he just likes blankets!

We went on a walk and I was putting him back in his stroller after doing some shopping with him in the sling and he was fussy, kept grabbing the sling. I took it off and gave it to him and he was thrilled; just kept holding it in his hands and putting it up near his face. After the sling had gotten stuck under the stroller wheels a couple times (it's quite a long piece of fabric), I exchanged it for a blanket I had in his diaper bag, which he still loved! (Side note: please don't buy him any more blankets. We have so many that there are some with tags still on them)!

Also, he's eating cereal twice a day now; his favorite time to eat is when we're eating! If I snack in front of him in the afternoon, sometimes he wants a teething cookie or just a bite or two of cereal simply because I'm eating! Drinking is yet another thing! He is fascinated when we drink anything in front of him out of a cup; especially if he can see the liquid through the cup. Kevin has started taking an empty Circle K soda cup with him when he walks Kyle down to get a soda so that Kyle won't ask for his cup as he drinks it on the way home. On another eating note, nursing has become quite the chore because Kyle notices everything. He'll be eating and the cat will meow or Kevin will walk buy or the microwave will ding; just about anything is cause to pop off and look around to see what's going on!

That's about it!

And the decision is...

So I broke down, purchased the Consumer Reports highest rated forward facing car seat. Basically it was on major clearance, $30-$50 off depending on what fabric you wanted. We installed it in the car to make sure it would fit (we found out after we bought our new car that Kyle's infant car seat was a little snugger than we would've liked), and it does. For any other new parents that might be interested, the Cosco Summit model 22260 is $69 at Big Lots this week (at least in Tucson).

I figured if Kyle needed a different seat down the road, we'd cross that bridge when we came to it.

In other news, I picked up Kyle's most recent portraits and they are his best yet I'd have to say. He is soo cute with all the motorcycle props! I made another appt. to get his pictures taken again when he's 7 months old; I think that'll be close to Easter. Also, Kyle has been eating a bowl of cereal and half a jar of baby food every night for dinner. He just loves it; practically inhales the stuff. And, ah yes, he was 19 lbs, 27 1/2 inches at his WIC check up on Tuesday.

On Monday I signed him up for "movers and shakers" classes through the Tucson Parks & Rec department. Regretfully, I forgot to sign him up on Saturday for his classes and didn't get him in to swimming, but we are on the waiting list for all of those classes, so cross your fingers that we get in! I am so looking forward to doing something new with him...I'm not sure if he's bored with our weekly outings to the park, mom/baby group, and storytime, but I'm ready for a change!

That's about it; he's still sleeping like a champ!

Sweet sleep

2/9/06
As many of you know, Kyle sleeps with us. We put him to bed in his crib, then transfer him to our bed when we go to bed. Well, last night we decided we'd "play dead" or pretend to sleep when he woke up in the middle of the night. Little guy did great! He would fuss a little and put himself back to sleep in five minutes or less; and he ate less often: Once when we brought him to bed at 11:45, again at 3:45, and this morning at 7:00 when we all woke up.

I'm not going to get my hopes up, but he's also doing better during his naps; being able to put himself back to sleep if he wakes up sneezing and such. It's only been a couple days that we've been implementing new middle of the night sleep waking procedures.

If nothing else during this process, we know we've got a little genius on our hands. Of course, we've always thought he was smart, but last night when Kevin would go in to give Kyle a little pat if he woke up, Kev found him all the way in the corner of his crib closest to the door. He definitely knows we don't disappear when he goes to bed! Also, he's figured out how long we wait between times to come pat him when he wakes up. He hardly fusses until the 5 minute mark is reached, then he lets out a howl. We're going to up it to 7 minutes tonight I think and see how that goes.

2/13/06
UPDATE:
Kyle sleeps in his crib without so much as a peep now until we bring him to bed with us! This happened three nights in a row! However...

Kyle loves to sleep next Kevin when he sleeps in our bed. The problem is that Kevin moves quite a bit and it's been waking Kyle up to the point where he's unable to put himself back to sleep. So tonight we'll try Kyle sleeping in his crib the whole night instead of joining us in bed. I'm a little sad because my favorite part about this whole process has been waking up to Kyle smiling, cooing, and playing with us in the mornings!

In other news, we traveled to Chandler for a bike race this weekend. I had a good time, although failed to make it to the main event. Kevin went on a road bike ride and Kyle got to hang out with a good showing of his grandparents while we were there!

Nothing too new...

Thank goodness for this journal! I picked up a baby book to fill out for Kyle last week, and if it wasn't for this blog, I'm not sure I'd remember things like "The first time mommy and daddy heard my heartbeat was..." or "The first time mommy felt me move was...".

Kyle is doing well; looking more like a little boy everyday. The reason Kevin hasn't posted any pictures lately is because I left our camera in PHX a couple of weekends back. We'll hopefully pick it up this weekend. I'm going to try to do a state championship qualifier race on Sunday. We'll see how that goes. BMX practice was thwarted tonight by a shredding sidewall.

Kyle actually thinks some things are humorous now. He'll just laugh out loud at us or his baby video. I laid him down on a blanket today and dragged him around the house. He thought that was great! As far as eating goes, he kind of snubs the baby cereal now, but loves the liquefied baby veggies we feed him every night.

Also, he's been falling asleep or just playing when we drive in the car now. This is sooo nice compared to the screaming that used to commence. I've been doing some car seat research, as he'll be moving to something new as soon as he outgrows this infant seat. Thankfully, our infant seat is one of the one's that goes to 29", instead of just 26". I guess Ellie is pretty much out of hers now at 9 months and she has one of the 26 " seats.

My favorite seat is the Britax Marathon. However, it's also very pricey. I've been looking for something that'll fit Kyle in height longer than it'll fit him in weight. It seems that he may have some tall genes working overtime in that little body of his and we don't want to have to buy yet another car seat after this one simply because the restraints won't go any taller. The car seat that Consumer Reports rates highest is currently on clearance at BRU, but I've read too many reviews from too many parents who say their tall toddler did not fit in this seat. Ah well.

Here's to sleep!

Are you sure you were pregnant?

So, we still have a few mementos hanging around the house from before Kyle arrived. I noticed the 7 up bottle of soda from when we were in labor still resides in the fridge...

And I haven't quite been able to bring myself to the point where I can throw out those first home pregnancy tests we took when we found out we were pregnant. I know, I know what you're thinking, "Mindy, you peed on those little sticks. That's so gross!". I thought that after Kyle arrived, I would no longer need the the HPTs as evidence that I was/had been pregnant. Ah well. Maybe I'll just take a picture of em...the lines that show you're pregnant are still perfectly clear.

Pictures

I was picking up today and realized we have a lot more framed pictures out and about now that Kyle has arrived. Not only that, but they are professional pictures. Good grief. I never used to care about stuff like that; getting pictures taken every so often to document the months and years. Kyle gets his picture taken every 2 months or so. The pictures he took this week are sooo cute; I can't wait for them to come in. However, that also means I need to go purchase some more frames to put these up, LOL.

I had never done this before, even with Kyle, but I spent a good $80 on pictures of him this time. It was some special engagement that they weren't taking coupons for and now that he's older, well he just gets cuter every time we get new pictures taken of him! So there went my Christmas money; funny what is more important once you have kids. I thought, 20 years from now, when Kyle's in college, will I remember the clothes I bought with this money? Naw, but I will remember those pictures!

Nothing new...

So another leaky diaper this morning...this is getting really old. There is one brand of diapers that Kevin and I both noticed fit him really well when he was younger, so I went and got some of those this morning to try out at night. Of course, they are one of the more expensive brands, but if I don't have to wash his swing pad every morning, it's worth it for me!

I laid on the floor this morning with Kyle, both of us on our backs, and read him a couple books. Boy was he tickled! Then we went to babytime at the library this afternoon. He just loves it now that he's older...which, by the way, the little guy turned 5 months last week.

Babies r us sent me a coupon this week so I went and got a few things I'd been wanting to buy, but really didn't want to pay full price for. Things like baby food bowls with lids, a stroller cup holder, a food grinder, and some sippy lids for the baby juice he'll be getting soon.

I put together his activity table earlier this week also. He really likes his little baby friend's table, but didn't seem as excited about the one we own. It says it's for 6 months plus, so maybe he'll like it more in a couple of weeks!

That's about it!

Moving on up...

After 4 stained outfits and 2 nights of leaky diapers, we have officially started using size 4 diapers...you'd think I'd learn to watch Kyle's signs that he needs the next size up in diapers, instead of relying on the weight chart provided by the diaper company. Ah well.

Long weekend...

Oh man did we work hard this weekend...well, I worked hard and Kyle played hard! We arrived to help Anastasia and Shannon move on Friday evening. I plopped Kyle down on the floor to play and Cameron walks up and says "hello". LOL. It was too cute. They checked each other out and did a little playing together, but then Cameron went to spend the weekend with his grandparents!

I think Kyle may have been a little overwhelmed, as Cameron actually has an entire room devoted to playing. He played so hard he'd just conk out in the car as we headed back to my mom's to sleep each night. On Sunday he started talking and talking and truly hasn't stopped since! All these sounds, mamamama, babababa, dadadada, nanananana...it's great!

We got home Sunday night and Kevin says "I think he grew while you were gone"...well, turns out the little guy is just sleeping and eating today, so Kev may be right; feels like a growth spurt!

For the most part he's been eating about a tablespoon of cereal each morning and two teaspoons of sweet potatoes each night. Not much, but he's getting better at moving food to the back of his mouth each mealtime. His two bottom teeth are really showing through now and I'm anticipating those two top teeth coming in here soon. I hear they're even harder to cut than the bottom ones...

That's it for now...we've got pictures and our regular mom/baby activities this week!

Whew...

What a long week...Kyle got his second tooth, I got sick, Kyle got bloody noses...good grief. I can't believe it's Thursday already. I took Kyle to the doctor yesterday due to those bloody noses and they weighed him; 18 lbs 1 oz.. I knew he was getting heavy!

No worries about the bloody noses; we are now advised to wipe his nose instead of suctioning. Basically, whenever he teethes, his nose runs.

Add another notch to Kyle's belt of accomplishments; the little guy ate half a serving of cereal this morning with no allergic reaction. Now mind you, this is the organic stuff, not the Gerber brand which we tried originally. Of course, the organic stuff isn't covered by WIC, so looks like we'll be buying a lot of our own baby food until he can eat chunkier stuff; then I'll just throw what we're eating in to a food grinder. That blond hair and those blue eyes seem to come with a lot of "sensitivities".

This weekend we'll be in Phoenix helping my cousin and her husband unpack. They just moved in to a new house and she just found out she's pregnant again (yea!). Looks like Kyle is going to have quite a few cousins just a year apart from him. Sorry grandparents, no visits this weekend; we're going to have enough on our plate just traveling to Happy Valley Rd. and back.

Look for a full report on Monday...I'm curious to see how Kyle is going to interact with his 1 1/2 year old cousin, Cameron!

All I want for Christmas...

Our suspicions were confirmed this morning when Kyle woke up with bottom front tooth number two poking out of his gum...

Date night?

We watched an entire movie tonight without a peep from junior...I'm pretty sure that's a first!

"Hey Kyle, what do you say...

...We all want to know what you learned today!" (You'd sing the songs from cartoons too if you stayed home with a little one).

Today Kyle drank his entire afternoon bottle all by himself; held it up one handed, the little show off!

And the consensus is...

...that most children actually don't sleep through the night until well in to their toddler years.

However, there's a part of me that still doesn't mind those nighttime feedings...

I think it'll be all too soon that he'll sleep through the night and I'll miss holding this peaceful little guy in my arms in the dark. Kyle is so funny when he feeds during the day now; Mr. Distraction, that's what he is. If I talk to someone, the TV/radio is on, or if Kevin comes home during a feeding, it's all over! He pops off and swivels his head right around to the rest of the room, makes sure he's not missing anything, looks up at me, grins, and re-attaches himself. Sometimes he decides it's just not worth eating at the moment even if he was seemingly hungry just seconds ago and proceeds to lay on his back on my lap blowing raspberries up in to the air, checking to make sure I'm watching him do his new trick.

He is looking like such a little boy now...I can understand why parents have other children; you truly only remember the good stuff (which is why I look back on this pregnancy blog every so often to remember those months of nausea).

I hung out with a girlfriend who is expecting twins this summer, and truthfully, I'm so relieved it's her and not me. I had enough worries carrying one baby, but it sounds like those worries are compounded when you carry two! It's way too late to expound on that point...

Tomorrow we go to the library for baby storytime. Kyle was the youngest, yet tallest, of the babies last week...who knew we'd produce giants ;).

On a final note, I sang Kyle to sleep for his afternoon nap today. Kevin often sings him to sleep at bedtime, and my mom mentioned that he seemed to sing himself to sleep in her arms this past weekend while we were out shopping, so I tried it. He was super tired and fussy, so I sat in his room while he was in the swing and started singing a lullaby...he stopped fussing within seconds and his eyes started doing these really long blinks! Well, he was out in a couple minutes and I was a proud mom who had just put her baby to sleep by singing for the first time. (In reality, Kevin has the voice in this family and it's not surprising that Kyle prefers to hear him over me).

Two posts in one week...it must be a record!

Baby Kyle's growing up...

I know...it's been forever and a day since I posted, but in my defense, Kyle just began taking regular naps everyday, so I've just started being able to do a few of the things I used to do prior to the little guy's arrival!

First of all, Kyle is 4 1/2 months now and working towards weighing an impressive 18 lbs! His hair is still fairly blond and those blue eyes of his look like they're going to stay that way. He sits up pretty steadily now, rolls over, and just popped his first tooth through (bottom left) last week. He's been sleeping in his crib for most of the night (don't confuse this with sleeping through the night), but still prefers the swing for napping during the daytime. One of the coolest things he figured out last week was how to put his pacifier in his mouth all by himself...the correct way!

Kyle is so observant and just wants to go, go, go! It seems that he learns something new everyday and totally amazes us with what he figures out! His favorite people are other babies and he's started to exhibit some of the "stranger danger" attitudes that babies his age go through (not wanting to go to other people as easily as he used to). However, in Kyle's defense, he has been a jewel of a baby in the nursery at church...we just started trying him out going to the nursery around Christmas time and he's often "the best baby in here" according to the workers!

We tried some rice cereal a week or two ago, but his body decided it wasn't quite time to work on solids by the looks of the projectile spit up he produced!

Ah well, he's up from his nap...I'll work on another update sooon...

P.S.-For all those grandparents who like to cruise through the baby section every time they're at the store, we're looking for size 18 month clothes now (for the summer/fall) and size 3 diapers!

He's napping...

...in his crib!!!! Through no effort of my own, Kyle is peacefully sleeping in his crib. Turns out the swing died right around his cranky/nap time today, so I took him in to his room and rocked him until he fell asleep. I couldn't hold him for the next couple hours (the boy is getting big!), so I swaddled him up and plopped him in the crib just to see what would happen. Well, he's still there sleeping...I'm so happy. No coughing or allergies yet, no spitting up, just sleeping.

This is the first time he's slept in his crib...so cool, but I'm not going to count on this happening on a regular basis...what he likes changes everyday!

*Yawn*

It'll be 4 weeks tomorrow...and we've just now figured out what calms Kyle down enough to sleep for longer periods of time and eat when he's hungry, not just needing to be comforted (thanks to this book/dvd).

Kyle has been a good eater since he was born, gaining 20 oz. in his first week! At WIC yesterday he was 10lbs 12 oz (which means those newborn clothes-up to 11 lbs-aren't going to fit for much longer). He has 2-3 wakeful times everyday that last about an hour and a half, otherwise he's eating and sleeping his days away.

He's a very sweet and cuddly baby; he'd prefer nothing more than to sleep on Kevin's or my chest all day, everyday. At night we have gotten him to sleep in a baby support pillow right by my head, swaddled up nice and tight. Understand, when I say "sleep" for Kyle, that means he's asleep for 1 1/2-2 hours. I have a feeling that sleeping in the crib is a few months away!

I wish I had a comparison picture for you of how big he is for 4 weeks compared to other 4 week old babies! He's very long, although he hasn't really gotten a lot of baby chub yet; still quite skinny.

He started wiggling last week, so we can no longer leave him on the couch or bed without watching him very carefully. Also, his neck is getting stronger everyday! He'll throw his head back and hold it up to look right at you when you're holding him, in addition to turning his head side to side when he's laying down/sleeping. It's truly amazing to see how he changes developmentally!

I'll try to post more often now that he's sleeping longer periods of time! Time for a shower...I've got 30 minutes before he wakes up ready to eat again! Still looking for pictures? Check out Kevin's blog.

The beginning of the story...

Giving birth was the most difficult and most rewarding experience I've had in my entire life.

Labor and delivery went really well. I was in good, consistent labor for 15-16 hours before Kyle was born. Our doula was amazing and I'm not sure I would've coped so well without her! I labored at home for the first half, then when we arrived at the birth center I was already 5-6 centimeters and 100% effaced. I hopped in the whirlpool tub and finished up to 10 centimeters in there, in addition to having my water broken while I was in the tub. After that I got out of the tub because Kyle needed some help from gravity to descend a little bit. I continued to labor using a birth ball, sitting backwards on a toilet propped up with pillows, on a birthing stool, and eventually gave birth in the bed laying on my side.

There were a few harrowing moments, that I was pretty much unaware of until after the birth. I did notice that as I was learning/starting to push that the midwife seemed to be having trouble getting a good reading on Kyle's heartbeat. Then I heard her tell another midwife that there was meconium in the toilet I had been laboring on, even though my waters had been clear when she initially broke them. As I moved to the bed to continue pushing, the midwives were telling me that I had to push him out NOW! Then there was a lot of commotion and all of a sudden there are like 3 midwives and 3 nurses in the room and I have an oxygen mask being put over my face. Now the midwives are pretty much yelling at me that he has to come out NOW! I remember pushing 3 times before Kyle was out. Kevin says it was definitely less than 6 pushes before he was out and that my tone of voice changed immediately after he was born, "There you are baby!".

Kevin watches them un-wrap the cord from Kyle's neck (it was wrapped around twice). Then Kyle was thrown up on my chest and I realize I'm waving an oxygen tube in front of his face. He's crying! The sweetest sound I've ever heard were those cries. He pinks right up from the crying and a few minutes later Kevin cuts the cord.

To be continued... (Time to feed baby :)

The arriving!!

Kyle was born on August 26th, 2005 at 6:40 pm. He weighted 8lb 2oz and was 21.5 inches long. We're both doing well, and I'll post the birth story in a couple of days.

For some pictures check out Kevin's blog.

If only....

we had gone in to labor and had Kyle today...check out Kevin's blog to see what really happened.

Happy 39 weeks!

You'd think that with my lack of posting this week, something must have happened...but alas we are still very much pregnant! I've been staying around the house and working on a few thank you notes here and there. Kirsten stopped by on Monday with Ellie and brought us lunch which was really wonderful! There aren't a lot of people around in the daytime, so to have some company was a real treat!

Wednesday was my birthday, so Kevin took me to breakfast before he headed off to work, then we met for dessert later that afternoon. At Bible study, we had lemon cake and ice cream to celebrate, which was just what I had been craving! Kevin scheduled me a pregnancy massage for the following day, a present I could not have used (or enjoyed) more than now!

Other than that, I can assure you that Kyle is growing! It's becoming harder and harder to find any position to sit/stand/lay down in that's even remotely comfortable. Thankfully, he has dropped which means I haven't had heartburn for a week or so!

That's about it...I'll keep you posted!

FYI

Blood pressure was normal last night and all my screening tests came back normal, so no more worries about high blood pressure or being induced!

Over half of the couples in our class have had their babies, so we just listened to their labor/delivery stories last night. Only four of us are left still waiting to have our babies.

I meet with a pediatrician this afternoon to see if she'll take Kyle on as a patient after he's born.

That's all for now; sitting at the computer is becoming more and more difficult.

I always wondered...

...why I would see these very pregnant woman out shopping when it looked like they were about to give birth right there at the store. Well, it so happens, that you get a little restless those last couple weeks. The days and hours seem to drag by as you wait for any sign at all that you could possibly be in labor, so cruising around the mall or a store (especially in the summer) is a pretty good way to kill time. Of course, we still have baby stuff to set up, but I feel the need to get out of the house about once a day.

Yesterday was nice; my family came to town for an early birthday celebration. I'll be 26 on Wednesday. I kept getting calls asking "what do you want" and it's really hard to think about anything but baby related stuff at this point. Truthfully, all I want is a healthy baby born ASAP! Despite the fact I know it will be more work once he's arrived, somehow it just seems like it will be easier.

Kyle's due date is still about 2 weeks away, but I've stocked the house with food and finished every last bit of laundry "just in case". Also, our house is pretty clean, though still in the throes of unpacking. It's the little knick knack stuff here and there that we can't seem to find places for! One thing I'm still looking for are room dividers because our office and living area share the same space.

My feet are starting to ache, so time to go put them up. Our next appt. is tomorrow evening, pray for low blood pressure and no complications! I'll do my best to remember to update afterwards.

Appt. Notes

So, we had an appt. today to talk about our birth plan and get a strep b culture. Of course they do other things like weigh me, listen to Kyle's heartbeat, measure him, and take my blood pressure....

That's where the red flags went up I guess. Usually at our other appts. my blood pressure will be high right when we arrive and then about 5 minutes later I take it again and it has dropped down to normal. Today however, it stayed up for like 3 trys. So what does this mean?

Well, combined with swelling (yes I do swell), protein in your urine, and a few other symptoms it can mean preeclampsia. They decided some blood work would be a good precaution in case my blood pressure is high again on Monday (our next appt.). Also, the blood work could tell them if it's necessary to induce me prior to going in to labor naturally.

They said we would have heard by tonight if there was anything wrong, and we didn't hear from them; so far so good! I'm just supposed to take it easy for now.

Despite the good news, it was a pretty stressful day for me as I'm not a big fan of needles and to hear that the next step would be induction can be pretty scary to consider.

Prior to the appt. I did make some progress on baby stuff by packing our labor/delivery bag and putting a sticky note on the door with a few things to remember as we head out when the time comes. Tonight we did a short walk and I'm feeling pretty good.

Keep us in your prayers! I'll keep you posted on any developments.

Finally time to prepare...

Kevin put the playard/bassinet up in our bedroom last night; found the perfect spot! We stuck a few diapers and wipes in the side holders. Today I attached the little teddy bear we received at the shower that makes womb sounds to the corner post! We're hoping that Kyle will sleep in the bassinet early on while he's still doing night feedings and that all three of us will be able to sleep in the same room with our different nighttime noises! Almost looks like we have a baby around here...

Additionally, I have finished sorting through Kyle's expansive wardrobe and am currently drying his newborn clothes. The rest are folded up and on a shelf in his closet for now. The only pieces of furniture we have are a 3 shelf bookcase, a rocker/recliner, and a bedside table; so a lot of things that need to be "put away" are getting put in the closet! We do have a dresser for the room, but it's still in Phoenix.

I've discovered that, despite the fact we're planning on breastfeeding, Kyle already needs a shelf of his own in the kitchen for a couple of sippy cups, some baby spoons, and a couple bottles. Who knew he'd invade every room of the house?!?!?

Zoe, our cat, has continued to be very curious about Kyle's room and all of his stuff. She sniffs his clothes and lays down next to them, in addition to playing in the boxes and bags all of his stuff came in. Thankfully, she seems uninterested in the bassinet, so hopefully that means she won't try to join Kyle in there when he's sleeping!

Time for a snack and maybe a nap!

Long weekend...

It's so good to be home! In addition to the shower this weekend, we also had our car worked on and it looks like they finally found the root of our air conditioning problem (cross your fingers). However, this meant we were in Phoenix until late Monday evening.

The shower was such a blessing and I really enjoyed seeing so many people who had heard about the pregnancy, but I hadn't seen since finding out we were pregnant. We received just about everything we need!

Our next appointment is Thursday morning, then we have another pregnancy class/appointment on Monday. I'm interested to hear who in our class has had their babies!

So far, it looks like the weather is going to be good for the next week or so with rain and under 100 temperatures, which will be so wonderful! After July practically cooked me alive, I was sure August would be just as bad, if not worse, but the monsoons are here!

There seem to be a few lists going around as to when Kyle will be born...what do you think? Our due date is August 27th and my mom had both my brother and myself 3 days early.

And lastly, I've been asked what else we still need, so here's the short list:

Crib mattress
Crib mattress pad
Crib sheets
CD player/boombox
Breast pump (Medela brand preferred)
Co-sleeper (to go in our bed, not beside it)
High chair (not a full size one)

An option for all of these items is available online via our registry through www.target.com.

3 more weeks???

...And that's assuming he's on time...

Today was our last day of swim aerobics class...I'm so bummed! We do have a make up class on Wednesday, but I have a feeling I'll forget to go with the schedule being all screwy. Julie, the other pregnant mom in our class, gave me a sweet baby book for Kyle today. I'm going to take it with us and read it to him this weekend!

Kevin and I are traveling to Phoenix tonight. I need to run some errands and do laundry, but I'm just exhausted today! My legs have been really restless at night, until about the time the sun comes up, then it's like all the blood has finally gotten back to my heart or something and they feel normal again so I can sleep. Kevin and I are walking again at night, in addition to massaging my feet and calves, to try and help me sleep.

It's funny how long 3 weeks can seem when you're waiting on a baby.

Yesterday I went shopping for an outfit to wear to the shower this weekend. I have completely out grown all of the maternity clothes in my closet, but going to try on clothes at this point in pregnancy was not a good idea. The clothes are so cute on the hangar, but once my body fills them out they lose all semblance of their former cuteness. I figure this shower is going to be like the main place where pictures of me being pregnant are going to be taken, so I really wanted to look as good as possible; ah well.

Kyle is doing well, as far as I can tell! No new changes except that he's definitely getting bigger! Yea for 37 weeks tomorrow!

Appt. Notes

Our appointment went well this week. Kyle's heartbeat is good and strong, he's measuring at 37 weeks (still a week ahead), and my blood pressure is just fine (I was a little worried it might be high with the swelling I'd been experiencing).

We had a wonderful anniversary and I think I enjoyed it all the more knowing it was our last one without kids!

Tonight I put a framed black/white picture of Kev and me in Kyle's room. I'm so excited for the shower this weekend, but not looking forward to the trip to Phoenix. I did make my first purchase for our little guy: a Harley Davidson clothing set, since his daddy drives a motorcycle. I think we'll take the little hat to the birth center to hopefully bring him home in.

Kyle's "grandpa" (my dad) has picked out a great swing that we need to go pick up! I'm so excited to have Kevin put it together and see it in the house...it almost feels like we have a baby ;o).

That's about it! I'll keep you posted!

Welcome to 36 weeks...

...and counting! This week has been super busy with moving out of our old apartment and in to the new one. We turned in the keys on Friday and it feels so good to be completely out of there! Kevin has been great about not only doing most of the moving/cleaning of the old place, but unpacking and settling our new place too. A couple boxes a day unpacked should have us settled in before Kyle is born.

Speaking of Kyle, he is getting soooo BIG. I can hardly believe how he moves and contorts both of our bodies to get himself comfortable nowadays. I tire a lot quicker than I used to early on in this pregnancy, which can be frustrating. I keep thinking I can accomplish this huge to do list everyday, but I barely cross off the top two items before I'm exhausted!

My favorite place to be is definitely in the water, whether it be swim class or our community pool. This week a lot more people have been saying "Looks like you're gonna have that baby anytime!", which I assume means my belly is getting bigger, in addition to the rest of my body as I continue to swell. Despite the fact that swelling is annoying, perhaps it means I will lose my pregnancy weight faster because a good part of it is water weight!

Our next appt. is on Monday (which is also our anniversary!), so I'll try to get an update to you after that!

What is THAT in the toilet?

And one last note for this week:

I've been losing my mucus plug; little bit each day, but nothing bloody yet. If you don't know what that means, well, I'm not going to explain it because it's kind of gross. You can look it up here if you like. However, it is a good sign that my body is starting to gear up/get ready for Kyle's arrival!

Yea! for 35 weeks tomorrow and 36 days to Kyle's due date!

A few notes

So an appt. update first: Kyle is measuring at 35 weeks (a week ahead of where we are) and he's in the perfect position for labor and delivery! Pray that he stays that way! We found out that one couple in our class gave birth to their little girl about 2 weeks ago, after our last pregnancy class. She was a preemie, but is home now and doing well. It's amazing to think that they have their baby already! She was due around August 9th I think it was.

One of the most amusing things that has happened lately is when older men ask me how far along I am. They'll say "Oh, six months along?" and when I answer "Nope! 8 months!", all of a sudden they are very nice "Put your feet up, take it easy", LOL. This happened once at church and once after my swimming class.

Remember how I said Kyle was doing a morning exercise routine? Well, it hasn't stopped for almost 72 hours! He has been so active lately, it is just wearing me out! The one thing that I have been able to count on is our afternoon nap; Kyle will settle down for that one.

We got to see Kevin's dad (a.k.a. "grandad") last night, since he's in Tucson for work this week. I am so thankful for all of the family support we have and how close everyone lives. It is such a blessing!

The last two days I've been feeling kind of yucky; just lethargic and slightly nauseas. I know my eating habits have been a little off since we've been moving, so I'm hoping with that getting back to normal, the way I feel will get back to normal too.

This weekend we should finish up moving from the old apartment to the new one, which will feel like an accomplishment. I can't believe the month of July is almost over. We'll be celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary in less than 2 weeks! That's all for now!

Settling in

I swear Kyle has his own exercise routine every morning! He roams all around my belly pushing it out here and there while I eat breakfast, then settles down for what I assume is a nap. I think we both had trouble getting comfortable last night! He was more active than usual and neither of us slept much. We do seem to be able to take a good 1-2 hour nap every afternoon though. I've noticed I'm a lot more tired and lose my breath more easily the last couple days than I have earlier in this pregnancy. His due date is less than 6 weeks away, which seems like no time at all!

Kevin and I are still moving a few things and unpacking the new apartment. The most exciting event is that we are now able to do laundry, LOL. I never thought I'd be so pleased to do laundry, but we needed to do it before we moved and then had some hook up problems, so it's been almost 3 weeks since the laundry was done!

I also found out yesterday that Kyle's great Aunt Jewel and Uncle Denny would like to purchase his crib; what a blessing! We have received lots of little clothes, but just a stroller and car seat as far as major items go. Our shower is coming up, but of course I'm anxious about setting up his room knowing that his due date is so close!

We have an appointment tonight and I'm wondering how big he's going to measure today! Some of the ladies in our class are due as soon as Aug. 1st, which is really amazing to me. Some of these babies could be born by the time we have our next pregnancy class!

All in all, I'm feeling good. My swelling isn't near as bad as it was last week, I'm able to stay cool in the new apartment, and just as uncomfortable as any other pregnant woman who's 8 months along! That's about it! My next goal is to get some new pictures posted this week, so I'll let you know when that happens.

So much to do...

I'm sitting in our new apartment, feet up on a pillow, gallon of water by my side, watching a rerun of the Tour de France. A lot has happened in the last almost 2 weeks since I posted. We're in the process of moving to a new apartment, that I am so pleased with (can you say air conditioning?!). My feet are swelling everyday no matter what...I think I've been pushing it just a little too hard for 8 months along. I doubt the record heat here in Tucson is helping much either!

I get asked at least once a day when I'm due by perfect strangers when I'm out and about; Kyle has really popped out lately, but my belly usually doesn't resemble a round circle...more like a triangle or lopsided square. Instead of kicking me, Kyle simply pushes his limbs out and around my belly, which is more comfortable than the kicks. I have a feeling it's just so crowded in there that kicking has become a little difficult to accomplish.

At our last appt., Kyle was measuring a week ahead of where we're at. My weight gain has slowed down considerably, but the midwives aren't worried about it. We are 44 days away from his due date; it's so close yet so far! That's about it; we'll be 34 weeks on Saturday!

32 Weeks!

Yep, we're 32 weeks today! It's flying by and yet time is moving so slowly; hard to explain. Kevin and I officially celebrated living in Tucson for a year this week. So much has happened that we definitely weren't expecting this past year! It's like a dream that Kyle will be here in less than 2 months.

Kyle has been doing some exploring this week; of my uterus that is. I find him practically crawling around to my back via my right side and when he stretches his legs up in to my ribs, his little head pushes down excruciatingly on my cervix. It's quite the experience! If we do a little trip in the car during the day, he'll move around my stomach following the light from the sun shining on my belly. Sometimes I think he moves just to hear my voice; at times it feels almost like someone is tickling me so I'll laugh and he'll keep moving. So funny. I can't wait to know him, his personality; it's very exciting to think about who he is and will be.

We have an appt. on Tuesday, then I'm off to Phoenix for a dentist appt. on Wednesday.

Cravings?

So, just recently, there are times when I will want a certain food or combination of foods. Last week, I was so desperate for a peanut butter sandwich, that I went out to the store in the middle of the day to simply buy a loaf of bread (we had run out that morning). I had no idea if we needed anything else from the grocery store, but I knew I needed bread...NOW! Last night I was desperate for some Sprite, so Kev walked me down to the gas station for a soda. I won't be doing that again any time soon though, because I was up all night running to the bathroom!

Today I wanted one of those little Lipton pasta packets, the tomato basil one; so I went to the grocery store again, but they didn't have any in that flavor *sigh*. Avocados and tomatoes with salt would have done just as well, but there were no avocados in the produce department! I did have the piece of mind to pick up a few other things so we'd have dinners this week, in addition to strawberries which seemed to take care of any cravings I'd been having. I ate the entire pint by myself...they were so good!

Kyle had the hiccups for the longest time tonight! You could feel him hiccup real low on my abdomen with your hand and watch my belly right under my chest kick out every time he had one. Kevin sat by me and felt him have his hiccups for a little while.

We were in Phoenix briefly this weekend and received some more baby stuff! Kyle is really starting to accumulate quite a stash of gear in the corner of our bedroom. I'm excited to have a place to put it here in the near future!

That's about it! 61 days and counting!

All's well...

I'm starting to melt inside the house now, not just when I go run errands. Summer must be officially here!

Our appt. went well last night. I'm gaining weight (as usual), Kyle had a strong heartbeat at 130, and he measured at 31 cm for 30 weeks. Now, at first he measured like 26 cm and the midwife seemed slightly concerned, mumbling something about when we had our diagnostic ultrasound and I thought she might send us for another one thinking he wasn't growing fast enough. But, I did tell her he tends to hang out on the right side, so she found his little butt, measured me from his head to his butt, and he was 31 cm.. Our little boy, making me look all lopsided!

Swim class was heaven sent this morning! I could've stayed in the pool all day and just swam laps. I've considered running errands today, but at this point it's just not worth it to leave the house until desperation kicks in! That's about it! I posted some 30 week belly pictures on Kyle's website. They are a little grainy since I resized them, but you get the idea!

30 weeks and counting!

It has been forever since I've updated...I know. Thankfully, I am feeling better. Kyle got the hiccups for the first time last week! At least the first time I've felt them; he gets the hiccups about twice a day now.

If you see me in the next couple weeks, you'll notice I practically have a shelf where my belly sits! We are at 30 weeks now, which is terribly exciting. When we found out we were pregnant last December, I never thought this summer would arrive!

I'm a little more uncomfortable everyday and Kyle is definitely getting stronger. I think I stressed the little guy out at an action movie we went to with all the loud noises; I received the hardest jabs I've ever felt from him in the theater! He likes to wake up when Kevin's alarm goes off now. Kevin has decided to try to become a "morning person", so that means a 6 a.m. wake up call. So far, I can usually settle Kyle down for another hour or so of sleep, but he is definitely hearing everything that's going on around him!

We are in the process of cleaning out our second bedroom for Kyle and baby proofing the downstairs for a toddler I'm planning on watching during this upcoming school year. We're still looking to buy a house, but not expecting to be in anything by the end of August.

And finally, we have an appt. tonight! I love hearing his heartbeat; it really keeps me going when I'm feeling the worst!

Not again...

"I'm not sick, I'm not sick, I'm not sick..."

*sigh*

Just threw up dinner...I'm gonna die if I get morning sickness again this last trimester...

No sleep for the weary...

Poor Kyle...I think he's as uncomfortable as I am now. He was up ALL NIGHT LONG and well in to today, which means I was also up all night long and have yet to take a nap today. I thought truly sleepless nights happened after he was born...

Another week....

So, I know, it's been awhile. Since Kyle is getting bigger, it now hurts my back to sit at the computer for more than like 10 minutes at a time. Also, I'm progressively more tired during the day, which leads to a nap around 2:15, almost like clockwork!

At our appt. on Monday we found out that Kyle is head down and the midwife even showed us how to feel his little head! It was so cool; you can like move it back and forth. My belly measured at 27cm for 28 weeks (which, you usually measure as many cm as you are weeks). We had a girl join our class who is due Sept. 2nd, so I am no longer the latest due date in class, YEA!

Today at swim aerobics another pregnant woman showed up! I was too excited; found out she is due Aug. 23rd with a girl and will be attending class on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Other than that, things are just moving along. We saw Kirsten and Ellie Wed. night at the park, which was fun! Kirsten seems like an old pro at this baby thing already; I'm just wondering if I'm going to know what to do with Kyle once he arrives! Ellie is already 5 weeks old, which is amazing to me. She reminds me of baby pictures now, like the gerber baby because she's all filled out and has her own expressions/personality. It's really something!

And lastly, we are looking for a place to live, so send us your prayers in that respect. Kyle will be full term in less than 8 weeks (we found out full term is 36 1/2 weeks at our appt on Monday), which means I'd like to be moved by then or settled where we are if possible!

YEA for 29 weeks tomorrow!

Third Trimester

Welcome! to the third trimester! Yep, it's all downhill from here! Technically, I believe he's considered full term in 10 weeks (at 38 weeks gestation). Do you know how fast 10 weeks is going to fly by???? Especially with my swim aerobics three days a week...

Now let me tell you about these classes; they started on Tuesday. I showed up, dressed out in my bikini, sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, and a pair of Kevin's old board shorts. The entire class is retirees! I peeled off my swimsuit coverup (a little dress) and immediately this older women's mouth dropped right down to the water... I do believe she was appalled, LOL. I said "good morning" as I waddled over to the ladder to climb in and the ladies I ended up standing by were very sweet, asking all about the pregnancy (turns out one used to work with the mom's and baby's at a hospital in town and knows my midwife)! The other asked if I was having twins (guess I'm starting to show ;)).

Day two of class brought less looks and more ribbing about whether or not I'd go in to labor in the water. Just to note, everyday there are some different people in the classes because you sign up for them separately, but a few are doing all three days of classes like me.

And today, day three of class, the woman who asked me if I was having twins proceeded to let me know that if I wanted to quit the classes Tucson Parks & Rec would give me a full refund. I about died laughing inside. I think this lady is worried about me doing something to harm myself or the baby by taking the class. I just said thanks for the information. (I was given permission by my physician to take these classes).

Truthfully, I am so enjoying my water classes. They are vigorous, but I'm sleeping better at night and they really get me up and going since I have to be there by 9:00.

In other news, I'm heading to Phoenix this weekend and then Casa Grande to celebrate my dad's birthday! Tomorrow we are officially 28 weeks and Monday is our next appointment. That's it!

*YAWN*

Sleeping is a new adventure. I just discovered this comfortable way to sleep with one of my legs extended straight down and the other pulled up towards my chest (it kind of rests on my belly). Well, lately, Kyle goes nuts whenever I get in this position on either side. He makes my whole belly move out in all directions, which of course means, I don't fall asleep anymore. Kevin put his hand under where my leg rests on my belly while I tried this position and said it's like Kyle is holding up the weight of my leg when I sleep like that. Good grief! I feel guilty now! So, if you want to feel Kyle kick, I know a sure fire way to make it happen, but of course I'm searching for new positions to sleep in again...ah well. The things you do for your kids ;).

Changing everyday...

Kyle must have had a growth spurt last night! I was so sore on both sides of my belly this morning.

The neatest thing that has been happening, I started to notice it when we were away for the wedding, is that Kyle responds to Kevin's voice. Kevin was at the bachelor party until after midnight, so Kyle and I had done our nighttime prayers and gone to bed. I was surprised because Kyle hadn't moved around the way he normally does when we go to bed. Well, as soon as Kevin came in and started talking Kyle was so active! This week, Kevin has been talking to Kyle through my belly and Kyle will kick back at him. It's the coolest thing! Not a very scientific approach to discovering Kyle knows his daddy's voice, but I'm convinced!

The other night I got to visit with Kirsten and Ellie! I can't believe Ellie is almost a month old...she is a lot bigger and so animated now! It's amazing to think that she'll be four months old when Kyle is born. I told her that she'll have to show him the ropes when he arrives!

And lastly, since we turned the cooler on during this recent heat wave, I have not wanted to turn it off! Even though it's getting cooler *sigh*.

My annoyances*

*Read at your own risk. This post is a little more graphic than my others.

So, I understand that there are some woman who just love being pregnant and embrace it with all it's challenges, but I am not one of them. Kyle and I have this little conversation every morning that, if he'd like to make an appearance closer to my birthday (Aug 17th), rather than on or past his due date (Aug 27th), that would be okay with me. Don't freak out, he's considered full term as of 38 weeks, so I'm not asking him to be a preemie or anything. Plus, the statistical odds of this actually happening are like zero, especially for a first time mom!

On to my annoyances. First, there are two things that happen during pregnancy, but only if you are genetically predisposed to them: stretch marks and varicose veins. Lovely. Oh yes, I am a member of both of these clubs, and have the opportunity to do body inspections everyday after my shower. See, as a pregnant woman, your skin gets really dry and itchy from all the stretching, so you slather it with lotion or oil all over after your shower. This is the perfect time to discover new skin atrocities. Technically speaking, I've been one of the lucky ones so far: my stretch marks are only places my husband will ever see them and I haven't found any varicose veins yet. Next, I have given up shaving, except for special events (say that wedding we just attended). Turns out my belly now presses against my thigh in the shower when I'm shaving in a most uncomfortable way and it's just not worth it. Not to mention the raised "waves" that run the length of our tub and make my feet hurt when I'm balancing to perform this womanly feat. And lastly (at least for today), I'm convinced that a baby's first toys are his mother's internal organs. Kyle has a couple days a week where I swear he is bored to pieces and just won't stop moving. This means every time he punches my bladder, I run to the bathroom and a timely kick to my lower rib cage leaves me breathless. The most interesting phenomenon, that never occurred to me, is what happens now that he is head down in my abdomen. See, the little guy uses his arms and hands a lot, and I believe they must be up in this little cheering position because whenever he gets excited it feels like I'm getting punched in the crotch...didn't see that one coming!

The worst thing that has happened this week though is that our community pool is closed for re surfacing. Tell me, why didn't they resurface the adult pool when they did the tot pool in March? They decided to wait until the hottest week of the year so far and the week that all the kids get out of school to shut the pool down. I swear, I think I cried last night when I found out it'll be closed until Saturday.

And yet, if that is the worst thing that is going on in my life right now...I am doing pretty darn good! Thank you for listening.

A few notes

The wedding was great, went better than I anticipated and I had a wonderful time. My favorite part was staying in the hotel and being out of the heat that was sweltering Phoenix and Tucson this weekend! I swam in the indoor pool everyday, went to a flea market, did some reading, and just relaxed. Kevin was super busy with groomsman duties, so we didn't see each other much, but I did get to hang out with my sister in law, Kristin, and give her current beau a hard time (it was the first time we'd met him).

As far as baby stuff goes, Kyle is definitely getting bigger. We are at 26 weeks now, which I think means third trimester is just around the corner, if you can believe that! His movements get harder everyday, but I do get an occasional slow night where he only wakes me up once, instead of having a party every time I get up to pee. Getting up and down (like off a sofa or in/out of a car) is becoming more laborious; I even had Kevin tie my tennis shoes for the first time this weekend because I just couldn't stand the pressure on my belly from leaning over!

We got more baby clothes! The cutest outfits ever from our good friend Laurel, who lives in Flagstaff. She brought two bags of tops, coveralls, socks, and washcloths that I so enjoyed opening; even a little sweatshirt from our alma mater (NAU)!

I know there is more to share, but I'm exhausted and waking up early to go look at a rental property for us to potentially live in; oh yes, we get to move this summer while I lumber through my 8th and 9th month! Wish me luck!

See you in a couple days!

Just a few notes before we head off to Prescott for the wedding:

This morning I took a couple hours and applied for WIC...turns out we qualify, so that'll help with groceries for now and later on solid foods for Kyle when he's about 6 months or so. Also, we had our waterbirth class tonight; I was expecting something different I guess. The nurse showed a video and then just kind of let us discuss. She did hand out some information that answered a lot of questions, but I guess I was thinking it'd be more structured, like a presentation on waterbirth, pros, cons, and some statistics. Tracy, our doula, attended and it was good to see her again. I got some tips on traveling to Prescott (which is at altitude), so that'll I'll be more comfortable!

And lastly, after we got home from the waterbirth class, Kevin and I were just relaxing and I noticed that half of my stomach was kind of punched up higher than the other side. I felt it and it was all hard; I think that means Kyle was jutting out a body part of some sort! He did it a couple of times, letting my stomach go back to normal than pushing his body up against it again...it was quite entertaining; much more so than the TV show we had on! Finally, he kicked a few times where he had been pushing my stomach up and then resorted to making his regular movements down lower in my abdomen.

P.S.-I have come up with two potential outfits to wear to the wedding this weekend, thanks to Tammy for helping me shop yesterday! I'll let you know how it goes! And one more thing, Kyle has a homepage at http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/k/kharkins/ with my latest belly picture from this week posted there!

So I forget...

...little tid bits of information from our week that I want to tell you about. We now own a baby sling from here. It's blue and I even got Kevin to try it on! I'm thinking maybe we'll practice using it with our cat Zoe; look for future pictures...lol. Kirsten was looking for a light weight sling and knew we were too, so when she had connections with a distributor here in AZ we were all for ordering one!

That's all I can remember for now...look for additional mini updates before we leave town for a wedding this upcoming weekend!

Right on track...

I can't believe how much bigger Kyle and I have to get before he arrives...Everyday he gets heavier! From what I understand about his development, he's basically a miniature newborn and the next couple months will be spent maturing his organs and how they function, in addition to adding on weight!

A few notable experiences have happened this week: First, Kyle was so active on Tuesday he made me nauseas the entire day. I had this horrible thought that he was going to be this active for the rest of the pregnancy, but he's slowed back down to his normal rate of activity again; not to say his kicks aren't getting stronger! The midwife seemed to think he was head down at our Monday appt. and I think I can verify that from the swift kick to my lower left rib cage I received Wed. night after changing positions in my sleep! I've gained about 19 pounds at this point and am on track if I gain a pound a week from here on out (and don't get sick again). Also, the midwife measured my tummy and I'm 24 cm. at 24 weeks, which is just right.

Today we're actually 25 weeks officially and are going to start taking weekly tummy pictures. In other news, I traveled across town to the largest baby stuff store in Tucson and enjoyed looking around there. I was considering potential take home outfits when a grandmother came up to me and asked me which outfit I would take my baby home in if I didn't know the sex. It was so cool that someone wanted my opinion just because I'm pregnant! Also, I realized I wasn't drinking enough during the day so I bought a 1 gallon jug with a handy dandy handle to carry around all summer from the water store. My goal is 1 gallon/day in addition to milk and juice, but so far I'm only at about 1/2 to 3/4 of a gallon. I'm feeling better already!

I was browsing through the Harkins family calendar to see whose birthdays and anniversaries we had missed so far this year and noticed on the front page the cutest picture of Kevin, probably about 4 or so and I just thought "Is that what Kyle's going to look like? A miniature Kevin?". I'm so excited to find out!

And on a final note, we got to hang out with Kirsten and Jason Friday afternoon. Kirsten told me about her birth experience, which was really cool (and eye opening in many respects!). Kevin and I both had a chance to hold Ellie; I can't remember the last time I saw Kevin hold a baby, especially one so young. He had her kind of laying in his hands, supporting her head and he says "That can't be very comfortable" and Ellie kind of made some baby noises in reply, so he laid her on his thighs and she dozed with her hands up by her head like she was cheering; too sweet.

A brief overview...

So not a lot has happened lately...I'm definitely getting bigger because just this week clerks and cashiers wherever I go are asking when I'm due and if it's a boy or a girl. I can feel that Kyle's bigger and changing positions off and on due to where he's kicking me! Tonight is a prenatal appointment and we are at 24 weeks along (6 months if you use a 10 month scale). In the last couple days I have started experiencing what I assume is indigestion or heartburn, so the extra large size bottle of Tums is on my nightstand to ward off that "I'm ill and gonna puke again" feeling.

OH! I so forgot about yesterday; yes, I know it was Mother's Day, and I'll tell you about that in a minute. However, I got to tape Ellie's baby dedication and hold her! What a treat! She is so tiny and has changed so much in just one week...I can't believe we're going to have a baby in just a few short months! She was sleeping and making all of these cute baby noises; really precious. Now, in regards to Mother's Day, my poor husband has been so sick the last couple days, but still found the perfect card and took me out to eat, which I just LOVE to do. The card went something like "Us before kids...Us after kids...We're gonna make it!"; about how I feel most days!

I did end up in Phoenix for a couple days this past week and thank goodness for family! My cousin was in town and it was great to hear "You don't even look pregnant from the back" (haha). My face is definitely retaining water (a.k.a. getting fatter). I got a haircut on Thursday and resisted the urge to get a short cut due to my expanding face, despite the fact it's getting hotter. Also, and you may not have known this, but we now have A/C in the car again!!!! I'm hot all the time as it is, but to drive around Arizona without A/C is brutal.

We're in Tucson until May 18, then heading to Prescott for one of those weddings I wrote about a couple posts ago. No, I still don't have a dress, but Tammy is in town, so I need to touch base with her and see what we can do about this formal occasion! That's about it! Check out Kevin's blog for official name voting results!

IT'S A GIRL!

No silly, not for us...

I just got a call from our friends Jason and Kirsten and they had their baby girl, Elizabeth, last night! They were about 4 months ahead of us in this whole pregnancy adventure. Kirsten said it was hard and I know I can't even imagine; I'm anxious to hear about her experience. They had Elizabeth at the Birth and Women's Health Center here in Tucson, which is where we're planning on having our baby boy!

I think Kevin and I have been kind of relieved to have another couple a few months ahead of us in regards to pregnancy; they've provided invaluable information and tips so far! I'm sure with Elizabeth here, we'll learn a little more about the baby actually arriving!

The funny thing is that I was looking for Kirsten at church all day yesterday because she helped us order a baby sling and I had the check for her! We went to morning and evening services and I wondered if maybe Elizabeth was on her way :)!

That's it! I'll update a little later this week!