31 Weeks!!!

Wow, it has been forever since I last posted, hasn't it?! I hope everyone's Christmas was as joyous as ours was. Greg and I weren't really going to exchange gifts this year, so instead we each got each other a few small things for the house (my "big" gift from Greg was a curtain rod for Abby's room, and he got trash bags from me...but for the record, he was actually excited about them--they are really cool trash bags!). But Santa had other plans for us....

We drove up to Dallas on Tuesday night, and it was pretty much non-stop from there! On Christmas Eve Abby crushed the only pair of glasses that I brought, so I ended up getting a very nice new pair of glasses for Christmas. Greg also lost his cell phone on Christmas Eve, so now he is sporting the new iphone. He looks so cool and trendy, even if he doesn't know how to work half the buttons on that thing!! So in the end, we each ended up unexpectedly getting something big! Thanks Santa!!

Christmas was awesome! It was so great to be in the company of our families, and enjoy such amazing food. And while Abby didn't completely "get" Christmas this year, she had so much fun opening presents and playing with all of her cousins. I really wish that we lived closer!

While we were in town we also tried hard to make the rounds and see as many of our friends as we could, since we don't know how long it will be until we can make it back up to Dallas. Unfortunately we weren't able to make it around to see everyone, but it was really great catching up with those we saw. And good thing we took advantage of the opportunity to see as many people as possible because...

No more trips to Dallas for me!! I had my bi-weekly check up with my ob today and she decided to check my cervix for progress due to a small amount of bleeding that I had while we were in Dallas. It turns out that my cervix has been busy! I am already dilated 1 cm!!! She said that since I am progressing a little quicker than they would like to see, she is requesting that I take it easy for the next few weeks and that we not travel more than an hour away! She said the goal right now is to get me to 34 weeks, when she won't do anything to stop labor if it happens. If I do go into labor between now and then, all measures will be taken to stop labor and keep my boy cooking for a little longer. She wants to check me again in 2 weeks and if there has been any change, I'm on bedrest. :( In the meantime, our little boy continues to rock out my uterus! He is measuring 1 week ahead, and we are scheduling another ultrasound for 4 weeks from now, so that we have a better idea how big he is going to be!! I can't believe that in less than 9 weeks I am going to have a little boy!! And Abby is going to be a BIG SISTER!!! Wow!

She is already preparing for the big event. One of the things that she got for Christmas is a doll stroller, and she has spent so much time pushing her "babies" around the house in the stroller. It is so cute to watch. She is going to make such a great big sister! And now, for some pictures.....

There are so many other fun stories from our trip to Dallas, but I will have to spread them out over a few posts. In the meantime, I hope everyone has a Happy and safe New Year's!!

9 Days Until Christmas!!!

Every morning Abby and I change the countdown number on our little advent calendar, and today it says there are only 9 days left until Christmas!! Can you believe it?? We are ready around here. Abby knows who Santa is, and she is very excited about all the wrapped presents under the tree. And the house is all decorated and I have started my holiday baking. Here are some pictures of our house and tree:

Pirates and Gingerbread Houses...

Last weekend my friend (down here in Houston) Nikki threw an awesome pirate party for her son Jake's 4th birthday. The party was so much fun, and all the pirates looked adorable. Upon arrival, every pirate was given a hat, belt, sword, and eye patch. The kids participated in walking the plank and a cannonball fight. Abby did it all and had so much fun!! Happy 4th Birthday Jake!!! Here are a few pictures from that fun day (oh, and the back of Abby's pants said "Pirates Booty"--how cute is that!):

Last night we made a gingerbread house. Actually, Daddy made the gingerbread house while I took pictures and Abby sampled all of the candy decorations. Unfortunately, Abby had to go to bed before the house got decorated, but it was the first thing she spotted this morning when she woke up. It was a lot of fun! I just realized she is wearing the same outfit that she wore to the pirate party last weekend!

My Due Date!!!

When I opened my date book to see what I had going on for the week ahead, the only entry for yesterday, December 8, 2008 was "My Due Date!!!" I guess even though the pregnancy lasted only 6 1/2 weeks, I still managed to record my due date in my calendar. Today I should be holding a brand new baby, but instead I only have 3 small scars on my belly to remember him/her by.

Yesterday was a bit of a strange day, with the reminder of that pregnancy that went oh so wrong looming in my head all day. But it was hard to be sad about it all day, when I have so much right in front of me to be SO thankful for. Abby and I did some shopping at Michaels, and a woman stopped to tell me how beautiful Abby is, and how much she envied me! (yesterday of all days!) Apparently she has 12 grandsons and no granddaughters!! I am very lucky to have my beautiful little ray of sunshine who sings to me and showers me with hugs and kisses every day. And I am 28 1/2 weeks pregnant with a VERY active little boy who also reminds me how lucky I am. Poor kid still doesn't have a name yet, but we are so excited to meet him!!

Right after Christmas it will be time to focus on this little guy. Picking out a name, and bedding, and getting his room ready for his arrival! There is a lot to do and very little time to do it!

Merry Christmas!!!!

What a difference a year makes!!

Abby with Santa last Christmas: Abby with Santa this Christmas:

Our Santa experience this year was awesome! I was so nervous about long lines, getting to the mall before 1:00 (that's when Santa eats lunch), and how Abby might react to him this year. The experience could not have gone better. We got to the mall around 12:55 on Friday afternoon, and walked right up to Santa! There was no one in front or behind us, so we weren't rushed at all. At first Abby didn't know quite what to think, but after Santa took his gloves off and asked for a couple "high fives" Abby knew this was clearly a man to be trusted. She sat in his lap and just checked him out for awhile. No tears!!! And I even got a few smiles. And the best part is when they asked me if I wanted them to take the picture there, or if I wanted to take my own pictures....FOR FREE!!!! So I got lots of great candid shots of Abby and Santa, and then a few of her and Greg in Santa's chair:

We also had Christmas/Abby's 18-month pictures taken a couple weeks ago. Those didn't go nearly as smoothly. She didn't really want to sit still or pose, and every time the photographer raised her camera up, Abby would wail. But we survived and even got a few good shots. So, here are a few of the best from that adventure:

What a week!!!

Our Thanksgiving was wonderful!! We ate so much great food, and it is really, really great seeing all of our family. Seeing everyone just makes me miss them even more when we come home. Our trip was short, but we managed to pack a lot into the two days we were there. Hopefully we will be in town longer for Christmas and we'll have a chance to see all of our friends!!

We came home late Thursday night and on Friday morning, Abby and I decided to brave the crowds and head to Kohl's around 10 a.m. It wasn't too bad and we got some great deals! Greg met us at home around lunchtime. After lunch Greg fell asleep in the big over sized chair in the living room while Abby and I played with her see 'n say on the floor. And then one of those melt-my-heart moments happened. I told Abby that she could play for another 15 min. before nap time, and then I left her in the living room while I got online for a few minutes. The house was really quiet so I went to see what trouble Abby had gotten into, and I walked into the living room to find this:

I had a Dr. appt. on Tuesday to check on my little man, and all is well. His heart rate was 144 bpm, and according to the sonogram, he weighs 2 lbs. 12 oz!!!! He is head down and really low, and my cervix is very soft, but luckily I'm not dilated yet. And I passed my glucose test (yay!), but I am anemic, so I get to add an iron pill to my daily total of 4 pills a day (yuck)! But it will all be worth it in a couple months when we are holding our sweet baby boy. Here are a few pictures from the sonogram:
This is a picture of his face, with his mouth open.

This is a picture designed to answer any questions about our son's gender...

His hands and feet were all up by his face, so this is supposed to be a split screen picture of both of his feet by his face: