Merry Christmas!

Sweet Stocking Christmas Card

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Blog all about it!

I'm a sucker for freebies, so if a freebie makes me blog after a long hiatus then so be it! Shutterfly.com is giving away 50 free Christmas Cards to anyone who blogs about this giveaway! I have used them before to do photo cards and they have always come out great. Sarah Beth's birth announcements were from Shutterfly, in fact!

Now to figure out what kind of card. Do I do a family picture or a single picture of SB? If I do a family picture, what will we wear? Why do I stress so much about these things?! I'll probably do a fun photo shoot with SB wearing her Christmas PJ's and her Santa hat. Stay tuned, I know you are just losing sleep over this like I am! :o)

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Sarah Beth is 4 months old!!!

As you all know, I'm no longer pregnant. It took me 4 months to update my blog. Needless to say, motherhood is great but demanding! Sarah Beth was born on April 27, 2010. She's a sweet and sassy little thing and Adam and I love her so much. Rather than going back and posting from birth to now, I'm just going to start with now. Maybe one day I'll be able to go back and catch up (yeah right!).

We just had her 4 month check up today. SB is 16 lbs 14 oz and 26 inches long! She's 95th percentile across the board. She got a few shots which did not make her very happy, but as soon as I picked her up the tears stopped. She is rolling over from her back to her tummy and has done tummy to back once. She has great hand/eye coordination and loves putting all of her toys into her mouth! She is a drooling machine - by the end of the day her shirt is usually soaked. She has slept through the night since about 6 weeks old. She's up to about 10-12 hours at a time. She's not really into napping a lot - she'll do one long nap a day if we are home plus a few cat naps. She's easy to take out. She loves being in the car and going to run errands with us.

I love being a stay at home mom. At first I was wondering what I had gotten myself into, but we have started a routine and are doing great. I've gotten involved with Moms Club and MOPS so that usually keeps us busy. We also go to Gymboree Gym every Wednesday for her class which is a lot of fun! The weeks are just flying by and she's growing up so fast. I want her to stay tiny forever, but at the same time I love watching her grow and discover new things. She's just like a little sponge soaking everything in.

Dr. Hutchins gave us the go ahead for solids, so I'm going to make her some brown rice cereal. I'm trying to do all organic homemade food for her. So far I've frozen some pureed SC peaches (yumm) and green beans. I can't wait to see her reaction to food - stay tuned for pictures!

Yes, I am still pregnant

40 weeks and 5 days pregnant. Apparently Sarah Beth did not get the memo that pregnancy is a 40 week deal! I've had just about as much unsolicited advice that I can handle on how to start labor. My friends, I hate to tell you, but none of it works in my situation. The deal is, I have a narrow pelvis and she's just not fitting. I've pretty much mentally prepared myself for a c-section even though the doctors say a regular birth IS still possible. I go in tomorrow, April 26, for a non-stress test and ultrasound to check on Sarah Beth. Hopefully then they will give me an induction date. I'm growing more and more impatient. Oh yeah, and I'm sick. Horrible allergies and head cold. I can't taste or smell anymore, I can't breathe, and I have developed a smoker's cough.

The Nursery

Well what can I say, the nursery is just about the cutest thing I think I've ever done. Actually Adam did all the work, so I must give him credit! I just provided all of the creative details. We finally finished around my 38th week of pregnancy. I probably drove him crazy with my sudden panic of "it'll never get done" moments! But alas, it got done and it is great. Here are some pictures in no particular order - blogger gives me a headache with photo uploading!

3D Ultrasound and Baby Showers!

I hang my head in shame as I begin this blog post. Many of you have probably given up on me. For this is not the first time I’ve abandoned my blog. I just got behind and more behind, and then the thought of trying to update just seemed like such a task. I got overwhelmed and just threw in the towel. BUT I decided I must get back on the horse. Do it for your friends and family, I say to myself! I think I left off somewhere during the glorious second trimester of pregnancy. I will not bore you with a ton of details. Honestly there hasn’t been much going on. It’s been a very uneventful and healthy pregnancy. And yes, as I sit here and type I am FIVE days overdue! So yep, I’m still pregnant – but more on that later. There are a few highlights I’d like to touch on.

The first highlight is our 3D ultrasound we had done at Baby’s First Images in Alpharetta. We had the whole family with us and it was just the coolest thing ever! The ultrasound tech said that Sarah Beth’s ultrasound was one for the walls – she cooperated so well and we got some awesome images. One of my favorites is her kicking herself in the chin – that’s my girl! LOL She must be cramped in there!

Here are a few of my favorites:



The chin kick:



The second highlight is my first baby shower that was held in Kennesaw, GA. My college roommate Stacey and her mom Jan were my gracious hostesses and the shower was at Jan’s beautiful home. This was also the weekend that several of my “internet friends” came to visit! It was so fantastic having family, friends, and “internet friends” all meet each other. I put internet friends in quotes because we have known each other so long and been through so much together but we all met on the internet. Our friendship goes way beyond the worldwide web though! We all had a blast! We kept having to laugh at how everyone was always so fascinated by my internet pals, hehe. We were showered with gifts and it was a fantastic day!

Just a few gifts :o)


Jan and Stacey the hostesses

Lots of delicious food

Here’s all the internet girls!

This picture cracks me up – Casey and I in a very deep and serious conversation, lol


My mom and grandmother!

Sister-in-law and mother-in-law!

The cakes matched the invites!


Ok so that was the Georgia shower! Next shower was in Greenville, SC and was hosted by various friends and family. I am such a lucky girl. It was another fantastic day and Sarah Beth was spoiled once again! Two of my favorite things about the SC shower were the diaper raffle and the center pieces. Each guest brought a pack (or two) of diapers and got a raffle ticket for each pack they brought. At the end there was a raffle giveaway which was a Target gift card. Wouldn’t you know my mom won and turned around and gave the gift card to me! Aww! The center pieces were all sorts of baby and children’s books. The ladies sitting at the tables signed the inside covers of the books and wrote notes to Sarah Beth. That is something we will cherish forever!

The shower was in the Mad Hatter room at the Brick Street Café. This is a glimpse of part of the room and my silly SIL climbing the staircase to nowhere!

One of the tables with the book centerpieces

Two of my childhood best friends – Carly and Brooks

Some of the lovely Brannon ladies and Spartanburg friends

The lovely hostesses

All of the ladies (minus a few)!

Cousins, aunt and grandmother!

I love this picture of my mom and grandmother – you can tell how excited they are!

The cake was so cute and yummy!


Adam and I were also given showers by our coworkers! Unfortunately I don't really have pictures of those, but they were both great. We have been so touched by how generous and loving everyone has been. It's great to have so many friends and family share in the joy of such an exciting time!! Thanks to all of you for being there for us during such a special and exciting time of our lives!!!

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27 Week "Bump" Pictures!

People keep asking me how things are going. Lately I feel fine, but Sarah Beth is growing and consequently I am growing! I am feeling quite large and in charge these days. Oh well, all part of pregnancy, right!? Here "we" are at 27 weeks. Also you can see a sneak peak of our new pale pink bathroom! It's going to be Sarah Beth's bathroom. I have a fun plan in my head for a hand made shower curtain and some cute embellished towels. Stay tuned...

Ignore my silly faces :o)

Little Tiger "Must Have"

Baby clothes....they sure are cute! I have tried to restrain myself from buying too much. I know clothes are the most fun thing to buy for babies so I'll probably get a good bit at my showers. However, it is still pretty irresistible! I found these shoes a few months ago and just about died. They are called Squeak Me Shoes. You've probably encountered these in a mall or somewhere out in public. You hear a little "squeak squeak squeak" and wonder who on earth has Fido's dog toy. But wait, it appears to be squeaking in a pattern! What on earth - it's a shoe! If you are easily annoyed by this type of thing, the squeaker CAN be removed so have no fear. I think these would come in handy with a little toddler out in public - just go ahead an put on the squeaker shoes and the kiddy harness and call it a day, lol.

Sarah Beth will look so stylish at Clemson games!


And perhaps her cousin Reese will have a pair of these!

Randomness

This has been a restful but productive (sort of) weekend! Adam and I finished cleaning out the guest bedroom upstairs so it is now clean and clutter free, yeah! I went to JoAnn's Fabrics yesterday and picked up some super cute fabrics for some sewing projects. One of the projects I did this weekend was a nursing cover! I love how it turned out. I have enough extra fabric left so I can do a burp cloth (or two) and perhaps a bib as well!





I also found some CUTE curtains at Land of Nod for Sarah Beth's room. I just hope the pinks match! Of course they are back ordered until late March but it's ok - the room can function without curtains! They were also 50% off which made the deal that much sweeter!

Pregnancy - Week 25

Here's a little look at how things are progressing! I feel great actually other than a little back pain here and there. I've had several bouts of insomnia but overall I'm sleeping ok - only waking a few times a night to either go to the bathroom or change positions because my arms, hands, or other extremities have fallen asleep. I have no idea how much weight I've gained but last time I asked at my 20 week appointment it was 11 lbs and my doctor said I have done a fantastic job...so I'll take that as good! Sarah Beth is moving a lot! She's pretty quiet during the day but she really gets going at night! I think she is doing flips because one minute I'll feel kicks high up and the next they are way down low. She also really gets moving when I lay down in bed, go figure! I guess she's preparing me for what's to come! Here's a couple of pics I snapped with my iPhone today and another of the view from up above :o)

Happy Birthday Callie-bear!

Our little Callie turns 3 tomorrow, January 7! She came to live with us in March of 2008 and has brought much joy and laughter to our house since the day we met her! She has so much love to give - she loves to give kisses and gets REALLY excited when we get home (as seen in one of the videos below). She adores her big brother Calhoun and wishes he would chase her a little more often because she loves to be chased! Callie has had her fair share of health problems, mainly all with her eyes. She was diagnosed with juvenile cataracts and glaucoma and had surgery shortly after we got her. She has no vision in her left eye but the glaucoma is gone and you would never know she had any vision problems! She zooms all over the house and yard. If she's outside and we tell her she will get a treat if she comes in, she runs full speed ahead straight to the house! We have no doubt Callie will be a great big sister to Sarah Beth - she is playful and VERY tolerant (you should see the way my parents' puppy hangs on her ears with his teeth).

So Happy Birthday sweet girl, we love you!

Here are some videos I just took for your enjoyment...

Here she is with some tissue paper that came in a pair of shoes I ordered. She is in heaven with her paper! The bagpipes in the background are from the news that was on TV :o)


Here we are singing a song. Calhoun loves to "sing" but I don't think Callie likes it too much - she gets all worked up whenever we sing!


Here's one of the dogs getting SO excited when Adam got home. I love how her whole back half wiggles when she gets excited! Sorry for the poor lighting!

Nursery furniture - check!

Our child officially has nicer furniture than we do, but that's how it's supposed to be right?! Adam and I took advantage of this long weekend and spent a good part of Friday and Saturday furniture shopping. Thanks to my trusty Baby Bargains book, I had a general idea of what brands to look for and which to stay away from. Friday we went to Georgia Baby and Kids - the grand mecca of all things baby furniture. They have everything from cribs, bedding, accessories, baby gear, and kids furniture. We didn't see any chairs we liked - mostly because none of them had a back tall enough for Adam to lay his head back on. Most of the chairs we saw stopped at his neck - not so comfy! We did find a crib we could both agree on! It's Essex by Munire in white. Since they had them in stock, Adam was ready to be done with the shopping and buy it...but I told him we needed to see at least one more store before we made a decision! So on Saturday we went to another baby mecca store closer to our house called New Baby Products. We didn't really see a crib we liked any better than the Essex but we did find an excellent nursery chair!! It's actually a recliner that glides and swivels! Several people had told me about this chair brand called Best Chair. The chair we picked is the Irvington. It is soooo comfy and cost about twice as much as the crib, but I know it'll be worth it because we can transition it into the rest of the house after we're done with it in the nursery. We picked a tan colored chenille fabric and got it pretreated for any stains, because we know those are bound to happen. After we purchased the chair, we drove back over to Georgia Baby and Kids and got the crib and conversion kit (it will convert to a full size bed).

Earlier this week I was beginning to panic that we hadn't gotten anything done for Sarah Beth's arrival yet, but after this weekend I'm feeling a lot better!