Is it Spring?

Here in Lubbock the trees (some of them) are in full bloom. The grass is still mostly brownish-yellow, but the trees look lovely. The weather has been mostly in the 70's and even 80's for near two weeks and it has faked out the trees. It is too bad because now in April and May they won't bloom.

I do like Spring- even though it is not really here yet, and I am so excited to have a Spring baby! Her name will be Hadley, and we love her so much already! Chris took some great pictures last week. We are due in 6 weeks, and even though it doesn't really feel super close, I know it is right around the corner.

We have some things set- her cradle, some of her clothes, sheets, blankets, etc. I am excited to have a baby shower here in the next few weeks, and do even more organizing. Hadley wont really have a nursery, so her furniture is not the top quality, and there wont be everything coordinating. So much for apartment life. But you know what? I don't really care. She is coming and she will just need us. The rest will come in time, but we didn't want to wait until all of that was available.
Here are some things I look forward to this week and in the next few weeks...

-Going to California this Thursday to attend my sister's wedding in San Diego. I haven't seen my family since I have been pregnant, so I am really excited for that too!

-Birthing classes every Monday! These at times are a little slow, but I do like it, and they have the husbands sometimes massage the wives.

-Coaching soccer is almost over (March 16th) and while I love it- it will be nice not to stay after school and have late evenings.

-Dr.'s appointments- I like to go to them and hear her heartbeat and have the doctor tell me that she is healthy.

-My birthday (March 19th). It is over our Spring Break so Chris and I are going to go to the Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico! I have wanted to go to these since we moved here.

-My baby shower!

-Seeing my family at Erin's wedding! I also am excited to see my niece, Keiya!

Here are the newest projects of mine...little beaded socks. I haven't sewn as many things lately for our baby, but I went to this botique and saw these crocheted beaded socks like the ones my mom used to make for us. The sell for ten dollars a pair. So I asked my mother to make me some, but I also decided to try and figure out how to do it myself. I took a picture of what mine look like. I wish I could sell mine- so if you want to buy a pair I won't charge ten dollars! Now all I need to do is learn how to make those cute baby bows! I have the ribbons, I just need the time and energy. My mom can also help me with this when she comes out. She used to make bows for us too!

An Eventful Last Week

Last week was somewhat eventful for us! It started on Sunday of last week when I tried to rush and cut my left index finger open using my fabric rotary cutter. I knew without looking that I would need to go to the hospital. Chris got me a rag to wrap around it and we rushed off in the worst weather we have had in a while. It was pouring and there was lightning with water pooling up in the streets. I had to tell Chris to not worry about me so much and just drive normal. I wasn't bleeding bad since I had the finger wrapped and had been holding pressure to it. But Chris was the sweetest, asking me if it hurt and so concerned about me. I will spare you the ordeal, but about 4 hours later we left the hospital with a bandaged finger and eight stitches. I felt like such a dope because I have used a rotary cutter now since college. I just wasn't paying enough attention, and I was trying to hurry.

The week went by with nothing else too strange. Lately the baby has been kicking some more, and I can often see my whole stomach move like there is an acrobat in there. Sometimes my tummy is lopsided, too, where she is sticking out some part of her little body. On Friday almost the whole morning a foot (I assume) was sticking out below my right rib and I could feel this little bump sticking out there. I tried to push it back in and out popped another one on the other side! Silly little girl! We feel like we are maybe learning a little bit about her personality through this. Chris says that she has a little fiesty attitude because when I lay on my side at night, or he cuddles me she is a little smashed and she kicks at the bed or at him. If I move to the other side she kicks that side, too.

This weekend was a busy one for us, too, as my Saturday was full of coaching and attending soccer games for the high school, and Chris was at an all day class for getting his Concealed Handgun Permit. He recently got a little Rueger LCP handgun and is excited for the next time we get to go to Dallas/Fort Worth so he can shoot it with our friends there. Because our Saturday evening was so full, we celebrated Valentine's on Friday. I allowed him to combine it with our anniversary (Feb. 17th) since the kids also have soccer games that evening. The condition was that he take me to this nice steak restaurant here in town. Afterwards we went to see "Confessions of a Shopaholic," which was enjoyable. We got a key lime pie afterwards and had dessert at home. The best part...a whole evening with my husband and sleeping in the next morning!

As for the pregnancy update, I am going to be 8 months on Tuesday (Feb. 17th). It is getting a bit harder to bend down and move as fast, but I am still pretty active. I like feeling the baby more, and the rash hasn't been too bad the last few nights. I told Chris that I still feel like I enjoy being pregnant, but he says he is excited for me to be done with it and have the baby here!

Winter came to Lubbock, and it left! I wish I had taken a picture, but we had some cold and icy days last week here. It was so cold that the birds came out of the trees and sat on the hood of my car in my parking spot at work. For three days I had frozen bird turds covering the hood of my car. I was so glad when it thawed enough that I could scrape them off. Really, Lubbock has been having a mild winter. Last week it was in the 70's. It has made it very bearable to coach soccer outdoors.

The last few weeks have been pretty normal for us, but here are a few new developments in our lives...

*The Varsity Soccer team where I work and coach won a tournament and then just beat the number one team in their district.

*I felt the baby have hiccups today and I think I felt her have them yesterday, too.

*Chris has started his externship at the D.A.'s office here in town and he enjoys that.

*I have developed this terrible pregnancy rash over almost all of my body and can't find any relief!

*I bought my plane ticket to go home in the beginning of March for my sister, Erin's wedding!

*I have been working on a baby quilt for the baby and I made a cute pair of overall's for her out of Chris' worn out jeans. It made me feel so resourceful!

I am now 7.5 months along and we are getting somewhat ready for her. I have been putting aside clothes in various sizes as we have gotten them and have been thinking about what we still need. I find myself imagining what she looks like. I hope she has Chris' beautiful eyes! Chris wants a bald baby but I want her to have hair. We both hope that she has chubby cheeks. We are soooo excited to hold her!

My Adorable Niece!

I just had to put up this picture of Keiya, my adorable niece. Here she is in her Christmas jammies and matching doll outfit that I made her. Every Christmas she gets the jammies from me. Keiya is going to get her first cousin in April! Keiya looks calm in this picture, but don't be fooled! She has pleanty of energy!

Baby Update!

Here is a recent picture of me and the belly. I am just over 6 1/2 months now, and the doctor said that my measurements and weight are right on target. I feel pretty smashed on the inside, just below the ribs. I know this will only get worse, but I am still enjoying being pregnant. Even though I haven't been sleeping well at night, I still like nighttime. I like to put my hand on my stomach and feel where she is and just relax.

After we got back from Colorado for Christmas I decided to do some sewing. Since we have quite a few newborn outfits from my sister, Erin, Chris suggested I make things in larger sizes. I have a lot of fabric that needs to be used sewn, and Chris says that I can't buy ANY more fabric until I have used up what I have. So I firgured that I had some time- I may as well get some of it used. I made a cute dress and then decided to make a matching cap. Then I had enough fabric that I could make some little bloomers. I followed the pattern, but Chris says they are huge. I tried to explain that they have to fit over a diaper. So, lets hope they fit the baby when the rest of the outfit does. I will have to be patient since the dress is for a baby close to a year old.

I know it is nerdy, but I get such a kick out of putting a little tag in the outfits I make that says "Made by Mom." I am going to be a mom...I feel like I'll have it all- the greatest husband I could imagine and a little baby! With that I can be patient and wait for a house and space for baby and other things that come with a husband done with law school.

Christmas Break!

We had a very nice Christmas break in Colorado. We spent the holidays with Chris' side of the family and it was so nice that all his siblings could make it. It really was a peaceful time, and the food the entire time was fabulous! Chris' mom really went to town on the meals, and I felt really spoiled. It was fun to play Settlers of Catan, my favorite game that no one here plays me. I still didn't get my fill though, because Chris' siblings aren't quite the fanatics that I am. That is one thing I do love about Christmas time, though. I love going over to the Hofer's house (home of my friend, Ashley) and playing Settlers until late. My siblings play with me, too, but sometimes they all make a pact and gang up against me. Some other things that I loved about Christmas this year were...drinking a glass of egg nog (Chris let me since it was pasteurized), turkey and ham dinners, sleeping in pretty much every day, singing Christmas songs around the piano on Christmas Eve, and watching the home video of a Christmas Eve program in the Elmore home from many years ago. It was also the first Christmas I ever had that there was snow on the ground. But there wasn't much snow. It really didn't snow while we were there. But it was still different and more wintery to me than Lubbock or San Diego. Although it is fun to go and play outside with your new toys as a kid outdoors in San Diego.

It is fun to think that next Christmas we will have our little girl. I am sure the sleeping in will be but a dream at that time, and other changes will surprise us, but we are so excited! It was fun at Christmas to get a few things for the baby...Shelly (Chris' sister) gave us a little tiny red outfit for the baby and I got a boppy pillow from Mom Lisonbee. My mother also gave me some cute blouses so expand my shrinking wardrobe.

Chris' sister, Shelly, is due with a little girl on January 27th. I was so grateful for the oppurtunity to make her a blessing gown, and it really turned out better than anticipated. I actually just lengthened a dress pattern, even though I have some blessing gown patterns, but I was going for fast since it was spur of the moment. But I was so glad I got to do this. Most people already have one, so I haven't done this before. Now I get to plan on making one for our baby!

Chris Shows Texas to his Brothers!

Before we left to Colorado where we spent Christmas, two of Chris' brothers, Nick and Jordan, came out to visit. Chris had finished with his finals and I still had about 2 weeks left of work. The boys flew in and began their trip right away. They visited Austin, San Antonio and Houston. Along the way they made many stops at famous "Texas sites" like the Dr. Pepper factory that still makes the origional recipe of Dr. Pepper and a famous BBQ restaurant that is apparently one of the top 5 in the U.S.

In Austin they visited the state history museum, which is huge and really quite entertaining. Chris and I went two summers ago. But the boys all agreed that their favorite stop was San Antonio, where they stayed in the Mariott at the Riverwalk. The Riverwalk is this amazingly beautiful area with shops, hotesl, restaurants and music all along this really pretty river. There are a lot of trees and the river has these little boats that people can eat a meal on, or just float up and down on. Chris said there were Chrismas singers on the boats this time and that the whole area was lit with Christmas lights. I am sure that the pictures just don't do it justice- they never do.

One other thing the boys liked about San Antonio was the mirror maze and lazer game. They were put in a room with lazers that they had to try to get to a certain spot without setting off the lazers. Nick had the best time, and proudly sacrificed his body to get it (He got rug burns from diving and avoiding the lazers). All the brothers agreed that they would love to do this again!

The boys were glad to get back to Lubbock for a little relaxation from driving...until the next morning when we left for Colorado. Chris loved the time with his brothers, and he was thrilled for the chance to get to spend some quality time with them.