Pregnancy update

Here's whats been going on with the belly and the nursery lately:

The belly at 23 weeks 2 days

Last night Christopher and I put the crib together! Well, Chris did most of it, I just handed him screw or two and took pictures. :) It took 30... maybe 45 minutes to assemble and let me tell ya-- it's beautiful!

It's finally out of the box!

Bailey was lying somewhere near the crib the entire time Chris was assembling it. Seriously, it was so precious.... it's like she knows that she will be protecting that area in the future! :)

The finished product!! Isn't it beautiful? (my hubby and pup sure do look proud of their work!)

Told you she loved to be next to the crib...

We don't have a mattress yet but Chris couldn't wait to get the bedding out-- so here is the crib with the bedskirt.

Currently, the crib is sitting caddy cornered in the room. I like it there, but not sure how it will look once we get the rest of the furniture in there. I am just so excited to finally have the crib out of the box and put together. It's all coming together!! :)

This morning we took another belly picture... here I am at 26 weeks and 2 days.

I have really been feeling great these past few weeks. I am still able to run (on a treadmill considering it's in the upper 90's now) but some days it's pretty uncomfortable because baby A will get real low and put a lot of pressure on my lower abdomen- so on those days I will get on the elliptical. Though I have been exercising throughout my pregnancy one thing I did quit doing was abdominal strengthening. Literally, I haven't done a sit-up or crunches since I was about 12 weeks pregnant. I didn't think it was ok to do those and I feared I was squishing the baby. Silly, I know. So, when my personal physical therapist (AKA: my sweet husband) found out that I was not strengthening the muscles that will be used MOST during labor and delivery he quickly put me on a strict muscle strengthening regime. I hate it, but I know he is right- it will benefit me in the long run.

Like I said before, I have been feeling really great lately. However, week 26 seems to have brought on a new level of exhaustion with it. I can't figure out why, but I have been so incredibly tired this week. I'm afraid it will only get worse the closer I get to the end of the pregnancy. Speaking of which, I'm almost in my third trimester! I cannot believe it!!! We are so excited to meet our little girl in just 14 weeks, give or take a few!

Other things happening with the pregnancy?

1. My face has been in a constant state of "break outs" since day one.

2. My belly button is getting flatter and flatter by the day.

3. I'm definitely starting to get the dark line down the middle of my lower abdomen. (It's technical term is "Linea Nigra")

4. I am LOVING the snoogle Chris got me for mother's day. The added belly support it gives me during the night is much needed.

Next OB appointment is Friday July 30... it's a big one. I'll be getting tested for gestational diabetes and receiving a shot due to my negative blood time. Please pray that all tests come back negative for gestational diabetes!

The past few weeks

Life has been pretty busy these past few weeks between work, the nursery and visiting with friends and family that I haven't posted much lately. SO- this post is a compilation of all that has gone on. Let's go back to June 22-23rd. (Yes, I know that was a month ago- I'm sorry for the delay!) Our friends Luke and Ali were in the area on a business trip and we were able to meet them at AJ's for dinner one night. We had such a great time catching up and eating seafood. This was the first time we have seen them since November when their second daughter, Savannah, was born. They are such great friends and even though we live 4 hours apart we are all able to keep our friendship strong.

July 10th began the Muchnick's vacation down in Navarre. On there way down they stopped by to visit and see our house and the nursery. The next day, Chris and I went out to Navarre and spent the day with all of the Muchnick's (minus Mr. Dan) on the beach or in the pool. We had such a great time catching up with everyone and finally getting to meet baby Grace. The Muchnick's and the Ireland's go WAY back... in fact, Chris and Paul have been best friends since the 4th grade. Most of you know that Chris, Paul and I went to Landmark and then on to Samford where I met Natalie. Fast forward to the spring of our Freshman year of college and Chris and I set Paul and Natalie up on a group date. After several years of dating Paul and Natalie got engaged just a few short weeks after Chris and me. They got married in August of 2007 and Chris and I were married in December 2007. We all wound up in Augusta, GA where Chris and Paul went through PT school. Chris graduated from MCG in 2009 and began working for Premier Rehab, a part of PT Solutions.... and Paul just recently graduated from MCG in May 2010 and is now working for PT Solutions also. These boys do everything together. ANYWAYS- now that I've told you our history, here we are on the balcony overlooking the beach on July 11 in Navarre.

This past weekend Chris, Bailey and I went up to Birmingham to visit family and friends. We stayed with Chris' brother Justin and his wife Adriane- who are expecting a boy in November!!- and had a wonderful time just hanging out and catching up. I absolutely love that Adriane and I are pregnant at the same time. It's so great going through this exciting time together and I cannot wait for our little one's to play! Bailey and their dog, Piper had a blast playing together and I do believe that Bailey was depressed when we left Piper to come back home last night. While in Birmingham we were able to visit with Luke and Ali and their sweet little girls. It was so fun watching their oldest, Mae, play with Bailey. Bailey did so great with the girls and it was very encouraging for us to know that when our daughter arrives that Bailey will be gentle with her! Savannah, 8 months old, loved Bailey, too.

On Sunday, we went to visit Samantha and Steven in there new house. Samantha was in Chris' PT class in Augusta and she and her husband now live in the Birmingham area while he completes his residency. It was fun seeing them and catching up. I'm glad we are able to keep in touch with friends from PT school. Chris' class was like one big happy family and the fact that we all stay in touch is fun.

Didn't mean for this post to be so long, but wanted to catch you all up on our lives lately. We are getting close to putting the crib together. Hopefully by the end of this week we will have it out of the box and put together. I will keep you posted! OH! and I'm 26 weeks today!!!

Under Construction

The nursery is under construction!! I absolutely love it so far! Chris has really been working hard this week and has done a terrific job. I know it's hard working all day then coming home to work on the nursery, but he has shown a lot of excitement and I think he's really enjoyed seeing his handiwork come together. I am so thankful for my husband and have been proud of him for trying new things and accomplishing them (you'll see in the following pictures).

Just a reminder of what the room looked like when we bought the house...

We've sold the furniture and are ready to decorate!

We spent a lot of time at Home Depot our first weekend working on the nursery... a trip on Saturday and a trip on Sunday, in fact. Here, Chris is cutting the chair rail and wainscoting- not an easy job when you don't have an electric saw!

SAFETY FIRST!!! Didn't want Baby "A" to inhale too many fumes, but I absolutely LOVE to paint so the solution was a face mask!

We didn't want the room to be too pink (or pepto bismol pink) so we chose a very pale pink for the top half of the room.

The wood is all cut and painted! Ready to be put on the walls!

The top and bottom of the room is all painted... now on to the wood work!

and the chair rail is up on one wall!! Bailey was wishing she could help. :)

Chris did the wainscoting by himself... it was a very tedious job and he did FABULOUS! It looks so good and it's amazing the difference it makes to the room.

As of today all of the wainscoting is up and all that needs to be done now is the caulking and touch up of the paint-- which Chris is working on as I type. SO, I better go help!! More to come soon!

4th of July

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend... and after reading some of your blogs it sounds like you did! Chris and I had a great weekend working on the nursery (pictures to come) and celebrating the freedom of our country with friends and family. We started the 4th out by waking up somewhat early to finish the painting of the nursery and then headed to meet my parents and sister for a yummy breakfast at "Another Broken Egg" in Sandestin. It is by far our favorite breakfast place. After breakfast we went back to my mom and dad's and spent the afternoon on the beach. Our friends, Kim and Jordan, came over and spent the afternoon with us on the beach. We played "redneck golf" (as we like to call it) and I am proud to say that the two pregnant girls kicked some booty! Yep, Chris and Jordan lost to the pregnant girls.... sorry guys! We actually got to spend more time on the beach than I thought the rain would allow. Around 4:30-5:00 we saw the rain in the distance and decided we should head in... good thing, because weren't quite inside before the bottom fell out. Mom and Dad grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, Kim brought a delicious squash casserole, I made banana pudding and taffy apple pizza (thanks, Nat!!) and Amanda made guacamole. We ate like Kings and Queens. The night ended with a great fireworks show on the beach... which we actually missed the finale due to our own sparklers! The day was a blast and I am so thankful that I got to spend it with my family and friends. Also, these count as my belly pics for 23 weeks 6 days.

Kim is 27 weeks preggers!

Chris and Jordan trying so hard to light the sparklers... They ended up walking over to a bonfire on the beach and lit them that way!

aIn

We have a name!!! However, all that you are going to get are her initials for now. We are thinking about waiting until she is born to tell her name, but I'm just not sure I can wait that long!! I would love to hear all of your guesses about her name-- maybe I will come up with a prize for the first one to guess it! Her first initial is A, her middle name begins with an N and of course her last is an I. ;)


aIn will be her monogram!! Just like her momma.... and no, she is NOT a junior! I have had people ask!!