Love Potion #31

Let me just tell you how happy those words make me. Every year Baskin Robbins comes out with a Valentine's Day ice cream called Love Potion #31.  Here's the description "white chocolate & raspberry ice creams swirled with a raspberry ribbon & loaded with raspberry-filled chocolate cups and chocolate chips". Lord Almighty it is SO good! It is heaven when I'm not pregnant, but I can't even begin to describe how heavenly it is when I am with child!  Thank you Jesus for giving the world ice cream!!

So cute!

We are slowly acquiring baby boy clothes. Here are a few of the adorable things we have so far... don't you just love them?!!

This is Ryan's favorite!

I LOVE this outfit!

I can't wait to get more cute clothes and baby boy stuff!

23 Weeks

Yep, it's already that time again. These weeks just seem to fly by, which is not something that I am complaining about! I'm so ready for May. Well, I'm ready in my head but boy oh boy do we need more time because NOTHING in our house is ready. We are waiting until after the baby shower to set things up and figure out where everything goes, etc. We just got our first gift!! Doug and Jen bought us our travel system (matching stroller and car seat)!!! Very exciting. I can't wait to play with it. 

So anyway, this week has been pretty good. I had a stranger say something about my tummy for the first time. Which was fun except that she asked how many babies are in there?! What the heck, I'm not that big. She kept saying "Wow 4 more months, that baby is gonna be huge". She was a little dramatic. Overall, it was still fun to have someone actually notice my tummy because I've been noticing it for so long now. I had a doctor appointment on Wednesday, which was all messed up because of the snow. Long story short, I got in and my doctor says everything looks good! I heard his heartbeat, which always sounds like heaven to me. She measured my tummy and says I'm measuring fine. As of this week, Jax is about 1 pound and is 11 1/2 inches. In a few weeks he will be big enough to survive outside the womb. Crazy! I'm definitely feeling him getting bigger because there are days that I just feel like I'm walking around with weights strapped to my body. Besides that, everything is good and I'm continuing to just enjoy feeling him moving. I can't wait for Ryan to be able to see/feel him!

UPDATE---> Ryan felt Jax move this afternoon! Jax was kicking pretty hard in the same spot so I had Ryan come over and put his hand there. He felt him a few times and just kept saying "That is so cool!". I totally agree :)

One of those days...

It started out good. Breakfast with my hubby, then off to Mommies Group, then lunch. I ran some errands with Jen, Taylor and Brecken. Spent money that I probably shouldn't have. Came home to a package... the book "Expecting"! Thanks mom! It really doesn't sound like it's been such a bad day, but for some reason I'm just tired, moody and all the little problems are feeling compounded into big, giant problems. I suppose I do actually know the reason... I'M PREGNANT. Duh. It's always the explanation when I'm moody or having a bad day. But I still feel like there's a weight on my shoulders. So much to deal with. Ryan getting screwed by Troy University, filing our taxes, the Army forcing us to spend money we don't have on a nice suit, Ryan being in the field when he is supposed to drive me to the airport next month, trying to be a good wife and mommy (and grown-up), blah blah blah. I know God doesn't give us things we can't handle and I'm sure there is some lesson on patience and trust in all of this mess. But right now, I just wanna curl up and cry. Thanks preggo hormones.

4 inches of SNOW!

Taylor and Buddy playing in the snow

Brrrrrrrrr......

Mojo playing in the snow

Mojo and daddy making snow angels

Our front yard

Our backyard

Expecting

Ok... I really, really, really want this book. I read about it on VVPG's blog (Very Very Pregnant Girl). I actually want all of this author's books, but this one especially. I wish it had come out at the beginning of my pregnancy, but I want it for the last 18 weeks. Plus we will have more babies (God willing) and it'll be awesome for them too! 

22 weeks

Holy cow... I can't believe I'm already at 22 weeks. I know I still have 18 weeks left, but I just feel like 22 is so far along. My THIRD trimester is only a few weeks away. WOW! I definitely feel like I haven't been pregnant for that long. At the same time, I am definitely starting to feel very pregnant. I'm going to steal a phrase from Amanda Jones (Beth Moore's daughter) and start calling myself Pregnant Girl. Now let me tell you, she is 35 weeks and now calls herself Very Very Pregnant Girl. I'm not there yet, but I think I will be graduating to Very Pregnant Girl soon. I am starting to just feel heavy and big. Which is crazy, because I'm not big! My tummy is growing but it is in no way considered "big". But I do have a harder time moving around. It is harder for me to get off the couch, or get out of bed (so I just stay put most of the time!!). I can barely reach my feet to put on socks, tie my shoes or paint my toes. Praise Jesus for whoever invented pedicures! I just keep thinking "If I feel this big already, I'm going to be MISERABLE in the next few months". The good news is, it will end and there is a fantastic "prize" in the end :) 

So, I sound like I'm complaining, but I truly am enjoying being pregnant. It's something that I will only get to do a few times in my life (3 or 4...or 5, God willing) and it truly is a miracle to think about everything that goes on. A little tiny human is growing inside of me. Crazy! Jax is almost a pound now and he is about 11 inches long. I know that's still very small, but it seems so big when I think about the fact that we used to think about him as a poppy seed. Each week seems to fly by and I know the next few weeks will go even faster. Then it's home to California for my baby shower. WooHoo! 

Oh, and one more thing... my belly button is starting to pop! I'll take some pictures once it actually pops out, but right now it is just looking a little deformed. Each day that goes by, it disappears more and more. It's kind of funny :)

XOXO

Moving and Shaking

Well... not so much shaking, but Jax was moving around a lot today. It's been really cool to feel him more and more. He's also getting stronger because his kicks are a lot harder than the taps I used to feel. I went to Mommies Group at church and I think he might have heard all the other kids playing. He wanted to join in! It felt like he was kicking both his feet, alternating one foot then the other. TAP! TAP! TAP! It was funny. He just wants to be here so badly, but I keep praying that he stays in as long as he needs to in order to come out strong and healthy. 

Mommies Group has been really fun so far. I just recently started going, but I have enjoyed each time I was there. It's nice to be able to talk to people who are at similar places in their lives. We pretty much just talk about baby and kid stuff. We have a brief lesson each week, which is more of a discussion than anything else. It's fun to hear other mommy's thoughts on God and raising children. It's also nice to get tips and advice about baby products, clothes and toys. There is something strange though... all the kids are BOYS! I'm not joking, there is only ONE girl. That girl is Jen Levy's 2-year-old Taylor. There are about 8 other kids, including Jax in my tummy, and they are all boys! How bizarre. They range in age from 2 weeks old to about 18-20 months. You would think that statistically there would have to be some girls, but nope. Not true. There are other mommies who come and go, and they have girls. But boys definitely rule Mommies Group. I guess it's good I'm having a boy :)

21 Weeks

I'm officially over the prego hump! I have more pregnancy behind me than in front of me... literally! Just kidding. Anyway, I'm more than halfway done, just don't remind me that I didn't even know I was pregnant until I was already 6 weeks along. My dearest husband tried to remind me of that last night and I almost punched him :) All that matters is that I am 21 weeks down, with only 19 to go. Maybe less if Jax decides to make his appearance a bit early! I'm okay with that, as long as it isn't before my mama gets here. Sometimes being 3000 miles away really sucks. 

To reflect on this past week- I feel him kick everyday. Some days more than others and boy, do I love those days. I know that I will soon get tired of being kicked all the time but for now, I am loving it! The only hard part is that I'm not quite to the point where I can keep track of his kicks, so my worry-inclined brain tends to freak out when I haven't felt him. I just try to remind myself that God has a plan and if he wants Jax to be healthy, happy and full-term, then there's nothing I can do to change it (or ruin it!). Not much else is new. I have my next OB appointment next week, so I am looking forward to hearing the results from our doctor's ultrasound... not to mention that I always love hearing his heartbeat. 

That's all that I will say for now. I promise to keep ya'll updated in the weeks to come!

XOXO

The Levy's

We have some very close friends who live just down the street from us. The husband/dad, Doug, is leaving for a 6-month deployment on Thursday. If that weren't hard enough on its own, they have a 2 1/2 year old AND a newborn. When I say newborn, I mean he'll be TEN DAYS OLD when Doug leaves. His wife, Jen, is going to have to be super-mom for the next 6 months. Keep these guys in your prayers.

Brecken, Jen and Taylor

                     

Brecken and Doug

                            

My belly and my baby

This is my most recent prego picture. 20 weeks. Friday, Jan 2, 2009

We got a 3D ultrasound on December 29. It was amazing and so completely worth every penny (thanks mom and dad!). Here is a fantastic profile picture of our baby boy.

This is my FAVORITE picture from our 3D ultrasound. I love that you can see his handsome little face. Hurry up May, I want this little boy to be here!

Blogging 101

Ok ok, I've joined the fad. I've put it off for who knows how many reasons. But things change. So here I am. I guess that the best way to start is to give a quick background of what's going on in my life. As of late, my life pretty much revolves around being a wife and being pregnant. I could go into gory details, but I think it's best to leave it at that. I intend to write mostly about those two facts. I have been married since Dec 31, 2007. Ryan is in the Army and we live in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Currently, I am 20 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Each Friday I hit a new week. I am due May 22 and we are having a little boy. His name is Jax Alan and we cannot wait to meet him! This whole pregnancy thing has been NOTHING like what I expected. I certainly can't turn to prego books because, for some reason, nothing applies to me. But I try not to worry (even thought i'm not very good at that) and I try to enjoy this alone time with my husband. In 19 more weeks, our lives will be changed forever!