A long-winded one...

Oh man. I haven't posted in over a month! Sorry about that. Things have just been kindof crazy with holidays, new buildings, and remodeling. Here's an update on things:

#1) I'm doing great at almost 35 weeks in my pregnancy. Only 2 weeks until I'll be considered "full-term", but still another 5 weeks until my due date of 2/4. I'm getting more and more tired as the days go on. In fact, I'll be starting reduced hours at work as of January 2. I'll only work 6 hours a day instead of 8. I'll be using those extra 2 hours to get in extra rest and sleep. Also, not sure if everyone knows this yet or not, but I won't be returning to work after the baby arrives. I'll be making a career change to full-time mommy. Padg and I are very, very excited about that. Here's a picture of the little one at 34 weeks and 4 days...

#2) Padg and I are debt-free!! We started our debt payoff last December and have managed to pay off two credit cards, two vehicles, a school loan, and a few other smaller debts since then. We worked really hard at it all year. Our goal was to be debt-free before the birth of our first child. And we did it with a few weeks to spare. It's because of this accomplishment that I'm going to be able to make the above-mentioned career change. ;)

#3) The tool shed is done! And it's beautiful. Well, it's done enough for now anyway. All that's left is a little painting and a window installment, but that's it. Here are some pictures of the masterpiece. Special thanks to all of our helpers: Bruce & Shari, Jon, Rob, Scott, Chandra, and Eric. We could not have done it without you all.

#4) Nursery renovations have begun. Bruce & Shari came back to Dallas for Christmas and are here through New Years to help. Jon has been a big help as well. Turns out there's a whole lot more to do than we anticipated. So we're hoping and praying that we'll get it done before Baby arrives. Here are some pictures of the progress so far...

Before...

In progress (I'm so excited at how beautiful the floors are)...

#5) I've had two more baby showers since my family one in Houston in November. My friends Chandra, Karen, & Laura threw one for me in Dallas on 12/2. It was beautiful and so much fun. And my co-workers threw me another one at work on 12/13. I had such a great time. Thanks to Sarah, Stephanie, Ruth, Viki & Tamara for the very special day. I'll post pictures from these two showers as soon as I receive them.

Let's see...what else. Have I left anything out? I don't think so. I guess that's enough, isn't it? ;) I promise not to wait so long before my next post. Hope everyone is doing well and that you all had a nice holiday. Love to all!

Baby Shower #1: Houston with Family

Our first baby shower was absolutely wonderful. Of course the best part was getting to see my family and spend some time with them. I'm so thankful that so many were able to make it. A special thanks to my sisters, Teri and Maggie, for hosting such a great party. And thanks to everyone for all the beautiful gifts.

GO WILDCATS!!!

What a game! It was the greatest, most exciting game I have ever been to. In case you live in a cave and haven't heard yet, the unranked KSU Wildcates upset #4 Texas Longhorns (or t.u. as we Aggie fans like to call them). And Padg and I were there!! It was AWESOME. I think it took us about a week to come down from the high we got. Here are some pictures of the mayhem after the game...

Progress...

Let's see, where should I start? I guess I'd better start with an update on Baby. All is still going great. Baby is a little over 2 pounds now and about 14 inches long. He/she is growing like a beautiful little weed. Movement is pretty much non-stop and I'm loving every second of it. News from my midwife visit earlier this week...the heart rate is at 156 and sounds healthy and strong. She drew blood for the diabetes test and a complete blood count to make sure I have no infections or anemia or any other complications. She said she'd be really surprised if any of the tests came back positive. They'll only call me with the results if there's something wrong.

Update on me...I'll be 7 months along this Sunday, 11/12. And other than my huge feet and non-existant ankles, I'm doing really well. ;)

Update on Padg...He's more than half-way there on his way to becoming a Licensed LA. He passed all three licensing exams he took at the beginning of October. He'll take the other two exams next summer and then he'll be all done. It's not very common to pass these tests on the 1st try, but he did it and I am so proud of him. ;)

Update on tool shed (see pictures below)...We've gotten as much done as possible to prepare for the "Big Build" scheduled over the Thanksgiving holidays. So far, Padg and Rob have broken up and removed the existing concrete slab (which at some point in the past served some sort of purpose). Then they dug a deep trench and installed a drainage system. Our backyard used to get inundated with rain water flowing in from the property behind ours, but now it flows right down the drainage system and into the street. Works like a charm. This past weekend was the fun part. A concrete truck barely squeezed through our very narrow driveway and poured the concrete for the new slab. Padg and Rob certainly outdid themselves shoveling that heavy cement into place. I tried picking up half a shovel full just to see how heavy it was, and well, it was pretty heavy. I couldn't lift it two inches off the ground. So they definitely got a good work out that day. They made it look so easy. Rob, we simply can not thank you enough for all your help. We'll sure try to, though.

So now we're ready for the "Big Build" and we're really looking forward to having the Padgham's here to help us. In the meantime, we'll be in Kansas this weekend for the K-State/t.u. game and then we're off to Houston the following weekend for my first baby shower. Can't wait!!

Well, that's all for now. Hope you're all doing great. Until next time...GO WILDCATS!!

WOW!!

Now this is cool. Bryan and I were sitting on the sofa last night watching tv. I was rubbing my belly like I usually do because I can't seem to keep my hands off of it. Bryan asked if it was kicking alot and I told him yes. Then I said, "You know, it won't be long now before we'll be able to actually see it moving around in there." I swear to you, it wasn't 5 minutes later when we did see it. My belly was making little pop-up movements all over the place. We looked at eachother in amazement. We couldn't believe that it happened right after I made that statement. We just sat and watched it forever it seemed. It was hard to take our eyes off my belly. Now that was awesome. So awesome I just had to share it with you all. :)

SIX MONTHS!!!

I can't believe it. I finally made it to six months. I've only got 3 1/2 months to go. And I know that time is going to start flying by now. We've got our plans & budgets together for building our tool shed and we've also got our plans laid out for furniture placement in the nursery. I'm so excited to get started. There's still lots to do, but I have no doubt we'll be able to get it all done in time. Just gotta hope the little one doesn't decide to make an early entrance. ;)

The baby's movements are getting so strong and I've started feeling them in different areas of my belly at once, so I know this little one is getting bigger. I'm told that it's about 8 1/4 inches in length and about 1 1/2 pounds now. It's amazing how fast he/she is growing.

Still no real problems to report. I am such a lucky lady. The only uncomfortable thing I'm experiencing lately is a bit of lower back pain. Guess that's understandable considering my big ol' belly. But, that's ok. I'm loving being pregnant. I'm just so thankful to be fortunate enough to experience this miracle.

My midwife appointment last week went really well. Apparently, everything is "perfect". On my next visit, I'll have a glucose test to make sure I'm not developing gestational diabetes and they'll also do blood work to make sure I have no infections or any other problems. That appointment is on November 6th. So once again, we ask for your prayers that everything turns out well.

Here are some pictures that Bryan took recently. In fact, the first one was taken tonight. The second one was taken last week. I think Sugar (the little dog) is telling me that I should take it easy on the chocolate milk. ;)

Miracles...

Our friend, Stephanie, gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on September 29th. She and her new family are so blessed and happy. It is wonderful to see pictures that are so full of joy and love. Padg and I are incredibly happy for them. I have to admit, though, that I am just the slightest bit jealous. I have to wait four whole months before experiencing those same joys. I want so desperately to hold my precious little gift from God. But I know that these next few months are going to fly by and I'll be doing just that before I know it. And it's not as if I'm not experiencing joy already. Every single time I feel those little legs kick or those already strong arms push, I feel the same joy and excitement that I felt the first time it happened. It's like every time is the first time. And it's awesome. It happens alot now, especially about 30-45 minutes after I eat, right before I go to bed, and sometimes in the middle of the night. There's no other feeling like it in the world. I know I'm going to miss that part of pregnancy once it's over.

It's actually a really good thing that we've still got four months before baby comes. We've got tons of preparation to do. Bryan has been studying for his LA licensing exams over the past few months and he actually took those exams this week so now that that's over with, we can start concentrating on what needs to be done to the house. Our first big project will be constructing a new tool shed/work shop in our backyard...from scratch! I know, I know...bad idea to start a home improvement project in the last months of a pregnancy, but you see, we really have no choice. Our spare bedroom is currently being used as a tool shed/work shop. Yes, that's right. Our second bedroom, which will need to be a nursery in only 4 months, currently houses all of Bryan's saws, drills, saw horses, work table, rakes, shovels, lawn mower, weed eater, and even a wheelbarrow. So in order to make it into a nursery, we have to build a new house for all those things...hence, the shed/shop. And, since we live in a historical neighborhood, we have to build something that keeps with the style of the home. So we can't just go to Home Depot and buy one of their pre-made ones. But no worries. I have all the faith in the world that this project will go super smoothly. Bryan's parents will be here over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays so we'll be enlisting the help of my wonderful father-in-law, Bruce and my equally wonderful brother-in-law, Jon. And hopefully, we'll be able to sucker a few of our wonderful friends into helping as well...hi Rob, Eric, & Scott! ;) My wonderful mother-in-law, Shari and I will of course be supervising. And after that project is done, the fun of creating a beautiful nursery will begin. I am so excited about that and I can not wait to get started.

I want to take a minute to say a huge THANK YOU to my friend, Lauren, who let me borrow her beautiful maternity clothes. They are all so cute and so nice. So when you see me, you'll be seeing me in Lauren's good fashion taste, not mine. I dress better now than I ever did before I was pregnant. And another friend of mine, Laura, will be loaning me some of her clothes as well. I am so thankful to both of you for saving me a fortune. Thanks a million!!

Man...sorry I got so long-winded this time around. I really had alot to talk about. ;) Thanks so much for visiting and come back soon.

Update...

I just wanted to update everyone on Baby Padgham. He/She is doing great! Bryan and I just got back from the "screening" sonogram and there is absolutely nothing to worry about. There are 10 fingers, 10 toes, no cleft lip, the kidneys, brain, heart, and bladder are all looking good and according to bone measurements, it's right on track for my due date. I'm currently 20 weeks and 4 days. Just a little over 4 months to go. I doubt I'll have another sonogram until the 8th month or so. But I'll keep you posted.

Also, the most exciting news, Bryan and I were finally able to feel the baby kicking. It started last Friday night. It's so crazy. Feeling the movements from the inside is great, but being able to feel it from the outside and, most importantly, Bryan being able to feel it was just unbelievable. What a wonderful miracle.

Gettin' bigger...

Here I am at 19 weeks and 3 days. Had a midwife appointment yesterday and all is well. I think I must be the luckiest pregnant woman ever because I'm having such an easy pregnancy so far. I am so thankful for that. I go for a "screening" sonogram next Thursday (9/21). That's where they'll be able to determine if everything is developing and functioning well. We'd appreciate your prayers that all goes well with that. I'll be sure to post again after we get those results.

Sono pics ;)

I hope you all enjoy the first pics of our baby. I'm 16 1/2 weeks today. Bryan came with me to get this sonogram done. We heard the heart beat and saw it beating on the screen. When we first started, the baby was on it's back facing up, but a few minutes later, it turned all the way over onto it's belly. The picture of the spine is really cool. And if you look really close, you can see it's hand right by it's head (close to where it says "Face Down"). I also love the one showing its arm bent as if its hand is resting on its chin. The humerus, radius & ulna bones are so vivid. I think that's pretty cool. The face one is a little spooky looking, but I love it. It's so amazing to see. It's only a little over 4 inches in length (top of head to the bottom of its bottom) and almost 4 ounces.

Thanks for taking the time to visit our blog and get a glance at our pride and joy. A little more than 5 months to go before we get to meet him or her. Will it ever get here? ;)

Here comes the belly...

Well, I finally had to go out and buy some new clothes today since everything I own is getting pretty tight now. Here's a picture of my belly...15 weeks today...

We had a wonderful visit with Lynne, our midwife this morning. We got to hear the beautiful heartbeat on the doppler, which was Padg's first time to hear it. That was thrilling. All is going quite well and we seem to be right on the estimated due date schedule of February 4th. I'm at 14 weeks and 1 day today. I'm officially in my second trimester now. YEA!!! Hopefully, I'll have an ultrasound picture to send with my next post. Have a great week everyone.

We had a wonderful time on our Colorado camping trip. We were very happy to escape the Dallas heat for a while. The weather was great there and it even rained on us a little each day. We really welcomed that seeing as how we haven't seen rain in Dallas since who knows when. ;) During our vacation, we had alot of time to think about and discuss whether or not we wanted to find out the gender of our baby. Our decision ended up being no. We're actually going to wait and let it be a surprise. I can't think of anything I'm more excited about than having Bryan be the first to know the sex and to be the one to tell me what it is.