Celebrating 6 Months!!!

What a busy, busy time! Lots to catch up on for so much has been happening. To start today is our 6 month wedding anniversary!! We are celebrating this special occasion in our very own home! To fill in the gaps. On Wednesday we ventured over to the title company and with pen in hand slayed a good sized forest worth of paper in order to close on our very first HOME! By the following evening the monies had been transferred and it was officially ours! Thursday not only brought us the knowledge that the deal had gone through without a hitch and after months of waiting and watching the house go up it was ours no questions asked but we also got news regarding Miss Bumpkin. Officially feeling GROWN UP. :) Thursday morning hopeful for some good news from the doctor we marched over for an ultrasound to check on Miss Bumpkins size. First thing we see were her round pinchable cheeks- wonder where they came from! Her hands nestled near her head and low and behold she was sucking her thumb! Super cute. After measuring her head the tech moves to her belly for a quick measurement and then to her femur. Evan requested to check to make sure there was still need for all the pink that has been purchased. :) And yes we are still expecting a girl! Turns out this little girl is bigger than the doctors are liking, with one little round belly. From the measurements, keeping in mind there is machine error +/- close to a pound, she is looking to be about 8 lb 12 oz!!! Yikes. After the ultrasound it was time to meet up with the doctor to see about the past weeks progress. Sadly there is done to be spoken of. Still 1 cm dilated and the little stinker is not engaging in the pelvis. The moment the words pass the doctors lips I was immediately struck with the image of her sucking her thumb being oh so comfortable right where she is! We are meeting with the doctor Monday morning to see if anythings changed and then get our strategy. Looks like a cesarean is in our future next week. We will know more tomorrow and get answers to questions we have regarding the surgery while exploring all of our options. Then we will be able to make the best decision for baby & mommy. Pictures to come of the house, ultrasound and events of the past week. A huge THANK YOU to Steve & DelRae for giving up their Friday & Saturday to help us move. THANK YOU to Jack & Andy for proving added man power on Saturday for the hauling of the large items. And THANK YOU to my mom for making the long haul from Bellingham early Saturday to help over the coming days!!

6 Days Until D-day!!! (39 weeks)

Happy Father's Day and in Evan's case "Daddy-to-be Day"!!

Another week has come and gone. Since the doctor's appointment on Thursday I've been experiencing contractions daily although they haven't been consistent nor grown in intensity. With each one I feel us getting that much closer to meeting our little girl, so I'm not minding the slight discomfort they bring. Knowing the night before our doctors appointment was the first time I really noticed having contractions and turned out we were 1 cm dilated. Now with days of multiple contractions that are stronger than those first ones I imagine I'm 5 cm dilated- wishing thinking I know! It's okay to be delusional at times especially if it gets you through moments of not feeling so hot. I thought for sure after our trip to Lowe's yesterday that we would be heading to the hospital last night or early today. A couple of hours standing around picking out blinds for the house produced LOTS of contractions and the most intense back pain to date. I may be making daily Lowe's trips this week. :) Here's hoping our little watermelon will make her appearance before D-day! Here's to starting a plethora of urban myths to jump start labor!

Contract and Release

Well, I think we had our first contractions last night! One tight belly and slight discomfort in my back came and went throughout the night. It was actually hard to determine when they would start and stop since the only way to really tell if I was having a contraction was feeling my belly. So we didn't worry about whipping out the stop watch, aka our iPhones! With these first contractions came some progress that I have been hoping for. Today at the doctors I was 1 cm dilated (nothing major BUT at least a little something), 75% effaced (or thinned), she is still head down but still sitting somewhat high. Also got the word that we should have another ultrasound just to check Miss Bumpkin's size, since I am carrying the bulk of her in my back making it hard to guess how much she might weigh. Next doctors appointment is scheduled for next Thursday in the AM and now we also have an ultrasound scheduled for the wee hours before meeting up with the doctor. So excited to see her although I would be lying if I said that I'm hoping she will come before our next appointment. :)

Still Walking (38 wks)

Still walking, still pregnant. We are two weeks out from our due date of June 26th and it's not looking like she wants to come early! To my delight and shock a girl I went to high school had her daughter on Saturday! Our daughters due dates were back-to-back, their due on June 25th and ours the 26th, but with the heat and humidity of an Indiana summer it hasn't been a pleasant final stretch for her. With her being so uncomfortable I was sending hopeful thoughts her direction that her daughter would come SOON! And soon she came! I am hoping Miss Bumpkin gets the memo that early is okay. :) Highly doubtful since I've not felt any contractions, I'm not dilated even a smidge, and she is still pretty high even though she is in the head down position. I know things can change overnight, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Eventually she will come on her own time. I think she will come, I'm starting to feel like I will be pregnant forever.


This weekend mom came down for a visit! Wayne was so excited that Grandma was standing at the back door that he busted through the screen door! Don't worry the door didn't break but just came off its track and he was left without injury. Summer decided to finally make its presence known with some spectacular weather! Saturday the temperature climbed until the high 70's. Enough to give us all a kiss of color. It was also a productive visit with time devoted to packing up portions of the apartment for our upcoming move to the NEW HOUSE! Speaking of the new house we have our walk through on Friday in the early AM. So excited to be that much closer to our first home! It was just great to have my mom around to laugh with and talk over the past, the present and what the future holds.








Bumpkin Update:

This past week at the doctors appointment everything was fine: belly is measuring right on track, weight hasn't changed in 3 months, her heart rate was strong, her head is still down, my blood pressure was great, BUT nothing is happening. Of course this isn't a big deal to the doctor, but I wanted some progress, something to show for the discomfort and pains I have been experiencing. Nothing at all. I've told Miss Bumpkin she has to hold up her end of the deal since I've been caring for her, eating well, getting exercise and loving her to pieces and all she has to do is start moving down and working on getting dilated. :) It will come in her time and we will continue to be patient although we want to meet her desperately! This week we are having our already installed car seat checked to make sure its properly installed and another doctors appointment is scheduled for this Wednesday.

CONGRATULATIONS SHANDEL

who graduated from Western Washington University on Saturday!!!

Oregon Mini-Moon

We brought in the 9th month of pregnancy in OREGON! I am so happy we were able to make it down there before Miss Bumpkin's arrival. I really didn't want my first time in Oregon to also be Bumpkin's first time. Still can't believe it's taken me 3 years to make the trip to our neighboring state! It was well worth the wait as we enjoyed every ounce of together time walking the beach, exploring coastal towns and enjoying great food!

Seaside, OR

Cannon Beach, OR




Exploring Tide Pools- Cannon Beach, OR

My boys- Cannon Beach, OR

Love.

Seaside - 36 wks

36 wks

Love this new prego shirt!

Getting Bigger- 36 wks

36 wks

Wayne Reflects.

This dog LOVES the beach!

Bumpkin Updates:

She has grown into another piece of produce! As we've entered into the 9th month she continues to grow, however the rate of growth has slowed as she is just adding brown fat to her tiny body. She is now measuring around 18.6 inches in length and could weigh anywhere between 4 lbs. 13 oz and 7 lbs. 4 oz making her roughly the size of a watermelon!! I am starting to feel her added weight and my shift in weight on my body. Next doctors appointment is tomorrow afternoon and with that will come more updates.

Before the Holiday...

We are enjoying yet another "just the two of us" weekend being that we have 4 straight days OFF together! Yes, that's right folks the time off Gods have shone down upon Evan's schedule having his "every other Friday off" land on a holiday weekend when he gets Monday off. So we are outta here!! Last night we decided on a whim to take off down to Oregon this weekend for a much needed out of town, overnight adventure! We luckily found a hotel in Seaside, OR that is pet friendly and had last minute rooms available for a decent price. Why not splurge just a little before Miss Bumpkin arrives and finally get my butt down to Oregon- which I have yet to explore?! We'll post on our get-away upon our return with updated belly shots.


Until then however, lots to report on from one busy week. I spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at Cascadia working on gray whale matching which I've been plugging away at for the past couple of months. I'm still really enjoying those few hours every week to have time devoted to something I find very interesting. I can tell my attention to detail and recognizing patterns is improving vastly. Also it's nice to be around people with similar interests. Usually I go in Thursdays instead of Wednesdays, but this week our Thursday filled up fast with a doctors appointment in the AM for me. This kicked off our weekly visits! :) Met with a doctor in the practice which we hadn't seen yet. Really would have thought by now that we had made ALL the rounds. Still one more to meet. Just very happy that I've really like all of them so far. Dr. Sears, who I met with this past time, was by far one of my favorites thus far. She seemed concerned by my results from my previous glucose tests and coupled with my PCOS she recommended that I have a random glucose test right then since I had more sugar than she liked in my urine. So off I went to the lab for another blood draw. Again, really happy I love the ladies in the lab for I have spent more than my fair share of time in there over the past weeks. Three hours later the blood work came back well within a healthy range! Other news from the visit. My weight still hasn't changed in over 2 months! Very proud of myself if I do say so. Her heartbeat sounded great at 145 beats/minute. She is measuring right on track and still head down! Oh....and exciting news I'm 1/2 cm dialated! I know that doesn't mean anything as far as delivery in the near near future, but it makes me feel great that all this pressure and discomfort is going towards something although just barely inching our way!

Thursday night we attended a breastfeeding class. Yes, we attended. I thought it would be appropriate for Evan to come and learn a thing or two about what I am going to be going through over hopefully the next year. Don't fear he wasn't the only man in the room there were about 10 0r so other partners in attendance. Plus, the instructor spoke about pumping and bottle feeding with breast milk which is something we will be doing. Overall, most of the material was more of a refresher for me, but it was great for Evan to hear some of the facts from a nurse. I think he thought I was crazy when I told him a feeding could last 1/2 an hour to 45 minutes!

Although today's weather was crummy we managed to get some things accomplished. We bought our washer, dryer and refrigerator!! Done and done. Those items are now off our "to do list before baby arrives". We also met with the second and last pediatrician for an interview. I was hoping the decision would be an easier one, but honestly they are both great doctors. Both practices have pros and cons we just need to figure out which one to go with and best fits our family's needs.

Just the Two of Us

It was a weekend with nothing on the books. I really can't remember a weekend where we haven't had something going on. It's been a busy time, but we are hoping to keep a few upcoming weekends clear for just the two of us. Don't get the wrong impression we were productive, but those details come later.

Side View- 35 wks

Note the winter hat. We unfortunately aren't experiencing

the warm weather the rest of the country is basking in!

Bare Belly Squeeze- 35 wks

Bare Belly Side View- 35 wks

We are edging closer and closer to Miss Bumpkin's due date and things aren't slowing down although my body sure is! Another doctors appointment has come and gone. Things are looking great. I'm still measuring right on track, her heartbeat is strong and healthy, and she was in the head down position - here's to hoping that she stays that way! Now we have entered into the stage of weekly doctor visits, just reaffirming how close we are getting to her arrival! Our daily, or my attempts at daily walks are getting more difficult. Increased pressure on my pelvis coupled with decreased lung volume creates the need for more stops along the route for me to regroup, but we trek on. The discomfort is no surprise since Miss Bumpkin is measuring around 18.2 inches in length and somewhere between 4 lbs and 6 lbs. I am still waddle free and most days still trying to pack in as much as possible although my body fights me at times.

Adding to our list as of late has included PURCHASING A HOME!! That's right we have snuck it in right in time to take advantage of the tax credit!! What makes it really interesting, because we enjoy a challenge, is the fact that it's a new build and isn't scheduled to close until June 25th. Yes, that's right the day before Miss Bumpkin is due! Thankfully we have our apartment until the end of July and loads of volunteers to move us. Part of the deal when deciding on buying this house was that I wasn't going to be packing or moving whether I am still pregnant or caring for Miss Bumpkin. In conjunction with our upcoming move we spent Saturday appliance shopping. :) After a few hours we narrowed down our likes & dislikes when it came to washers, dryers, and refrigerators. Returning home we reviewed the various makes and will be ready to buy next weekend in hopes the holiday will produce even more sales! To celebrate our "just the two of us" weekend we went out for dinner to kick off our date night before seeing the new Robin Hood movie - which was amazing! Even when we are doing everyday things, I love our time spent together.