Visiting my Cousin

Since we had the day off for the Fourth of July, Tommy and I decided to visit Heather, Charley and Ava for the the day...little did we know that we would be visting most of southwestern Missouri on the way!

We started our trip in Lenexa after I went to the doctor for a quick check on a rash - ended up being nothing but I didn't want to be contagious. Turns out I am just hot and sweaty, big surprise.

So we went down US 69 for awhile and then cut over to US 71 on some backroads. As we got south of Butler, MO we were detoured because the Marais des Cynges river was flooding and there was water over the road. This was no easy detour - we went nearly 100 miles out of our way which made us arrive in Pea Ridge from the complete opposite direction as normal. Our easy 3 hour drive became a 6 hour epic journey!

It was really fun visiting them, though. Ava has grown so much and she fell asleep on my belly - I think she was bonding with her cousin already!

Our drive back was pretty uneventful, US 71 was open but as we got near the river crossing we were amazed at the quantity of water overflowing the river banks. Fields for miles were flooded. We are glad we live at the top of the hill!

Frustration!

Over the weekend we started painting the baby's room - velveteen green because I chickened out and couldn't go with my original color - orange.

So, last night we started pulling the blue tape off the trim (we are drippy painters) and half the paint got pulled up with the tape. I might have to lodge a complaint with my 3M connection (Ellen!). However, I actually think it is our dumb, non-standard house that is getting in the way. We found this sticky, plasticiky surface under the pulled up paint and have deduced that it is either wallpaper glue or there were cracks in the wall that someone sealed with caulk. So we caked on the Kilz last night and hopefully it will stick!

Other than that debacle ... we've only had one other serious setback in the baby room. Tommy tried to open one of the windows and the bottom piece of wood stuck to the bottom of the frame. So it looks like replacement windows are in order for that room.

So, this weekend we have windows on our mind! Replacement and Trimmings! Keep our sanity in your prayers!

It's moving!

This morning was pretty lazy. We laid in bed reading the newspaper and Tommy made french toast. While I was reading the paper, all of a sudden I noticed my belly jumping! It seems that the baby is now getting big enough to pack a good punch.

We also are working on the nursery. My parents brought the crib and dresser/changing table with them from Arizona and they are assembled and in the baby's room. They are great!

We've started our registry and are picking up essentials here and there. Boy these kids need all kinds of gadgets!

Kicks!

Friday night was the night for Tommy. Sitting on the couch he felt the baby for the first time! And over the weekend he's felt the baby several times - its great to see his face!

Slowing down

Had our 20 week appointment today and found out that I really need to cut back on the food intake or really ramp up the exercise. I didn't think that stepping on the scale and seeing the numbers I did would create the reaction in me that it has. I don't like big numbers. I'll be a lot more conscience in the next few weeks!

We also had lunch today with another pregnant couple. I met Stephanie and Robert through Centurions and it was really fun to talk to another couple experiencing the same things!

Tomorrow we leave for our Babymoon in Nashville. We can't wait for a few days of relaxation and country music fun!Check out the additions to the family album.

Sonogram

We had our first sonogram today at 18 weeks 6 days. It was awesome!

We got to see all four chambers of the heart, a great view of the spine, a full baby bladder (not just my bladder), and the baby tried to talk to us! Really the baby was just opening and closing its mouth but I like to think "hi, mom and dad" came out!

Our diagnosis was "WNL" or within normal limits for those of us not in the medical field. The measurements show that the baby weighs 11 ounces which calculates at the 89th %ile. Looks like we're on our way to a big baby! The heartbeat has slowed down to 146 beats per minute so the old wives tales have been thrown for a loop!

Our other great news is that the baby's cousin Ava was born on April 16! On Saturday we drove down to AR to meet her. She is very sweet and seems to be treating her mom and dad well.

16 weeks

I can't decide if I feel the baby or not. It seems like the little twinges I feel should be kicks but then again, I just don't for sure. Everyone thinks I am so "in tune" with my body but some days, I don't feel quite that connected! Hopefully I will soon be up to speed.

We got our first official baby gift this week from our friends Danny and Michelle and their baby girl Mia. They sent us a play gym that Tommy has already tried out. We'll post pictures soon. It is great and we can't wait for the baby to come and enjoy it.

Nothing too eventful has happened over the last few weeks. We went to the doctor on Tuesday and were in and out in record time! We are trying to decide what kind of birth classes to take so anyone with advice should share it!

Our sonogram is scheduled for April 23! Don't get your hopes up because there will be no reveal after the sonogram - we aren't finding out the sex of the baby!