27 weeks and counting!

  Only 13 more weeks to go (at the most)! I just can't believe it. It seems so close, yet so far away. Today was Ashley's shower for Kiwi (Kinley). I must explain, just in case I ever forget. When Dylan says Kinley, it comes out "Kiwi" so that just totally stuck with me. She is my Kiwi :) Her room is ready and so cute. Can't wait for her to get here!!! I think it will pass the time before Jonah comes, too. We will have a sweet baby to take all our attention and love all over. Then, in no time at all, here comes Jonah! They are going to be so cute. I had Susanna make an owl hat for Kiwi, and she's also making one for Jonah. My plan is to have newborn pics made with both of them in there matching hats. We've also said we want them to have baby dedication together. Problem is, it's on Mother's day which is only a couple of weeks after JB should be here. I hope I'm up for it, because I would love for them to be dedicated together.

We have been working really hard in the nursery, trying to get it ready for Jonah's arrival. We are getting really close to being done. Just some minor fixes and decorating to go. I love the way it turned out. I can just imagine my sweet boy in his bed sleeping under the little turtles spinning above. And I can see him when he's older, sitting in the floor playing with toys and flipping through books.

 Oh, I also tried my hand at making a wreath for the hospital door. I saw one online and thought that I might be able to do that, so I did. It turned out pretty good, I think!

 I just want to meet him so bad! I feel him moving and kicking all the time. It just makes me feel closer to him, like we have an unspoken bond already. He always starts tap dancing when we're in church. He loves to hear Pastor Kevin speaking. He was just kicking like crazy this morning! It's like he was telling me to pay attention, giving me a little elbow every now and then. Another fun development...mom came down this weekend for Ashley's shower and yesterday we went to register! It was so much fun picking things out that my little boy needs. Nonny and mommy might have made a few purchases as well. We went to Babies r us and Target. We were gone for seriously 7 hours. I still needed to recover today. I was exhausted! Preparing for a baby is definitely tiring, but so worth it. He will be here in no time and our lives will never be the same. Derek is just as excited as I am. He says all the time that he wants Jonah to be here so we can play with him, take care of him, and show him off. He's going to be such a good daddy :) I can't wait to see him in action! That's all I've got for now!

24 WeEkS

Today makes 24 weeks for me and baby Jonah! I've started to feel pretty big and stuffed. Every time I eat, I feel like I've just spent 3 hours at an all you can eat buffet! Also, little JB has been tap dancing in my belly. I feel him move ALL the time, especially when I lay down. He also seems to like church. We were singing today and he was bouncing around to the beat. I think he was loving the bass. On Tuesday, I have my glucose tolerance test. I've heard it's no fun, but I gotta do it! We've also been doing a lot of work in JB's room. We've got the closet ready, put together the crib and chest, picked a paint color, and attempted to replace the bedroom door. Love my little boy!


On a different and sad note...Jonah, last week we lost your great grandfather (Pap). He was such a sweet man. Always caring and thinking about other people. He was sick for a long time, so it's hard to wish he was still here and having problems. We will miss him, and I'm sad you never got to meet him.

Merry Christmas!!!

This Christmas was such a great one, but we really wished Jonah was with us! We kept saying that we couldn't wait for next year when he would be here crawling around, getting into all the presents, and pulling on the ornaments! We had a great time, though. Christmas Eve we went for dinner, riding around to see Christmas lights, and open presents at Momma Fran's house. Dylan was adorable...as usual. He seemed to really like the camera me and Big D got him! It was really nice spending time with Derek's family. I always have so much fun around them. They really are my second family, and I am so very grateful for them.

After we finished at Momma Fran's we rode up to Huntsville for the night at Mom and Dad's. I wanted to spend this Christmas with them and wake up to have "Santa Clause" in the morning one last time before I become and mom and have to be a real grown up. We stayed up super late talking and visiting. Finally got to sleep about 1:00 in the morning! I woke up at 5:30 and laid in bed before getting up about 6:30. Everyone was so mad at me for waking them up so early, but I was excited and wanted to see what Santa brought! I got a lot of stuff for Jonah, like a rocker and ottoman, video monitor, diaper bag, a big bag of toys, and so much more. We are truly blessed to have such a great family that supports and spoils us a little :) !!!

 

 

 

22 weeks

Today we put Jonah's crib together. It makes me so happy to see his furniture in his room. I want to get it finished so badly! It's going to look so sweet when everything is done. All I can do is think about how things are going to change when he comes into our life. I love you Jonah Brandon!!!!

Halfway There!

Today was our 20 week checkup, which is a big deal considering they do an ultrasound that checks all the organs closely to make sure everything is forming and working properly. We were very anxious about today. We were so worried something would be wrong with our sweet angel. We had the ultrasound first and thankfully everything was great! The technician even used the word "perfect" a few times :) Jonah's heart, brain, spine, kidneys, stomach and bladder look good and all of his measurements are right on track. He weighs 13 oz right now (6oz up from our appointment 3 weeks ago!), and his heart rate was 150. He cooperated like a good little boy for all of the important stuff, but when we tried to get a good look at his profile to see his nose and lips, he had enough! He was turned around facing my back and would not turn over no matter how much poking and jiggling we did. When the technician could angle the probe enough to see his face a little bit, he had both arms up by his face! He was being stubborn. But, I guess that's ok. He's had his picture made quite a lot. This is our 4th ultrasound!
After the ultrasound was over, we saw Dr. Benton. She had been called away for a delivery so we had to anxiously await her arrival to confirm that all was well with our little Jonah. When she got there, she said that everything from the scan looked great and we are right on track. My BP is still looking good. I did gain another 8lbs (yikes!!!), which I had to ask her about. She said that I will have weeks where I don't gain anything and then I will have times that I gain a lot. It's all part of it. I just don't want to gain 8lbs every time. That would just make for a very hard diet after Jonah gets here! Anyways, I go back in 4 weeks and have my glucose tolerance test, which I hear wonderful things about (sarcasm). Not looking forward to that, but you've gotta do what you've gotta do!
I am so blessed that everything is going smoothly so far. We pray almost every night that God will continue to watch over us and little Jonah. I pray that he will grow and grow and take his time getting here. I want to see him so badly, but I also want him to stay safe in my belly for as long as possible. I feel like I have the most important job of my life...protecting my precious cargo. I pray that I will be a good mommy to him and help him grow into a perfect little boy and young man. I pray that he will know how much mommy and daddy love him by both our words and actions towards him and each other. I pray that I will make good decisions as a parent to keep him safe and teach him good values. It's crazy to think that I love this little boy so very much and I haven't actually seen him or held him yet. I can't imagine how I will feel that first time that I hold him in my arms. Right now it's just a dream that I'm waiting to come true. Well, I guess that's it until next time!

Pitter Patter

I have to make a note of this before I forget the details. This past Wednesday (Nov. 30) I am 99% sure that I felt my sweet angel squirming for the first time!!!!! I was driving home from work, singing away to the radio, when I felt this crazy sensation in my belly. The best way that I can describe it is that it was almost like a stomach growl but much lower. It was kinda like a bubbling feeling in my tummy below my belly button. I stopped the car, turned the radio off, and just sat still trying to feel it again. No luck. I've never felt this before, and I haven't felt it since. But, just in case that was a real kick, I want to get it in writing :) It got me really excited about everything, like I've hit some major milestone. I can't wait to feel him again and get to point where Derek can feel him too!
Changing subjects now, I saw this picture and couldn't help but think of our little family. I just love it!!!!

Mommy, Daddy, and Jonah baby!!!