Completed Nursery

Today I finished the changing pad cover which was the only thing left to do in the nursery.  Here you can see the completed product without the elastic in:

 This was after cutting out 8x8" squares:

 Finished product:

 I was very proud of these changing table covers...crawling around on the floor to cut fabric at 35 weeks is not very easy!  Much more difficult than when I was 19 weeks!

The last three months...

Hmmm...no idea how the time got away from me so fast, but it has officially been three months since I made a post on our blog.  We have done so many things that I don't even know where to begin.  I really need to be better about updating.  Since September we have taken two road trips.  One was a last hurrah camping trip for the next couple of years.  It rained almost the whole time we were gone and air mattresses were definitely not made for women who are 20 something weeks pregnant.  It was really nice to get out of Wilson and to enjoy the time together.  I'm kind of an attention hog and love getting Craig's undivided attention so weekends like this are perfect.  We also took a trip to meet my parents in Asheville, NC and drove up and down the Blue Ridge Parkway.  It was the perfect break before the chaos of homecoming.

In November we had three baby showers.  Our wonderful friends Dana and Denise kicked things off with our first shower over Veteran's Day weekend.  The shower was perfect and I couldn't have asked for better friends/family.  We then traveled to Kentucky and Ohio for Thanksgiving.  Our friends/family there threw a shower the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  Again it was perfect and I was so glad that Craig could attend and it was so nice to see our friends and family.  I'm so glad that we chose to have a co-ed shower.  Our last shower was November 30th at work.  So many of my coworkers chipped in and planned such an adorable shower and so many people were so thoughtful.  We really appreciated their generosity.

We've spent the last month trying to organize, wash, and arrange the baby's nursery.  We have so many things for our son and we are so blessed.  The last project to complete is a changing pad cover.  We tried to find one that matched at Target or Babies R Us, but found nothing.  Now I am going to just sew a simple cover from a tutorial I found online.  Once that is done I will take some pictures of the finished product.

 Can't believe we are so close to meeting our son!  We went on a dinner date last night at a fancy local restaurant.  The food was amazing, but of course the company was better.  I just kept trying to take everything in from the way that Craig looked to the beautiful miracle moving around inside of me.  To say that we are floating on cloud 9 right now is probably an understatement.  We cannot believe how much life has changed in the last year.  To go from such a low point to such a high in such a short time has been more than we could have ever imagined.

Nursery

We started working on the nursery last weekend.  We still need a lot of essentials (like a mattress for example!), but I feel so much better with some of the painting and wall art done.  We bought fabric after the ultrasound and so far I've sewn the blanket, bed skirt, teething guard, and curtains.  I have enough fabric to make another blanket, but I haven't been motivated to do that yet.  

My work space on the bedroom floor:

 Fabric we bought for baby boy:

 Our a/c went out this week too so I was sewing in the dining room in 85+ degrees!  It was so hot!

 Completed teething guard & Bed Skirt:

 Completed curtains:

 Finished blanket (I'm really hoping he cherishes this for a long time!):

 Oh ya...super hot!  Protecting baby boy from the fumes though.

 Furniture pushed to the middle of the room to prime:

 Ended up painting the entire room even though I thought I'd just prime...

 Daddy hard at work helping:

 All finished (for now):

Eighteen, Nineteen, & Twenty Weeks

This picture was taken the day before we found out we were having a son.  18 weeks, 3 days

This was after work at 19 weeks.  Baby bump looks bigger for sure!  

This is at 20 weeks!  Wearing blue for my baby boy!  

We are having...a son!

We went for our ultrasound on September 6th and found out we are having a boy.  We are very excited to welcome our son into our family.  Can't believe we are over halfway to due date!

Face and arms:

Profiles:

He looks so much like hubby!

CF Testing Negative!

Craig finally received his results from the CF testing.  He is negative for the gene so our baby could be a carrier, but cannot have CF.  I don't think I realized how worried I was until he said negative!  I was so happy.  Also went to the pulmonary specialist.  She was excited to see a patient that actually takes their medication...haha.  She ordered a pulmonary function test so I will schedule that in the next four weeks.  School starts with students tomorrow!  Where did the summer go?

Fourteen, Fifteen, & Sixteen Weeks

We've been busy the last few weeks.  I wanted to make sure I posted before heading back to work tomorrow.  I went to Kentucky for a few days to visit my family between 14 and 15 weeks.  When I got back I had to move my appointments around because I was not breathing very well.  I started to get a lot of congestion because of allergies.  Then my breathing was pretty bad for a while.  My doctor adjusted a few meds and I'm feeling a lot better, but for a while I was taking my rescue inhaler every 4 hours which definitely was not good.  I have an appointment with the pulmonary specialist on Wednesday.  Hoping that they can make a few more adjustments so that I am 100% for the first day of school on August 27th.


Here is a picture at fourteen weeks:

Another at sixteen weeks:

The bump is definitely growing which is exciting to me.  I am ready to feel the baby moving around in there.  Every now and then I wonder if I feel a flutter, but I can't really tell for sure yet.  Our anatomy ultrasound is scheduled for September 6th.  We are just so ready to see all the organs in the right location.  Craig is definitely ready to see whether we are having a boy or girl.  Once we know then we will get started painting and decorating the nursery.  We have an exciting few weeks ahead.

Birthing Classes Scheduled!

Our doctor's office recommends scheduling these classes by 14 weeks...well that will be us on Sunday!  I scheduled them all today.  I am so excited!  We are going to take labor & birth education, newborn basics, and breastfeeding I.  Hoping to learn a lot so we are even more prepared for birth!  Also baby bump is definitely growing!  Seems like it appeared over night.  Pictures coming soon.

CF Testing

The doctor's office called this morning to let me know that I (Amber) am a carrier for CF.  Now Craig is going to get tested to see if he is a carrier.  If he is not a carrier then our children could be carriers, but cannot have CF.  If Craig is a carrier then we have a 1 in 4 chance that our baby will have CF.  Keep us in your thoughts and prayers!  I know that we will love this baby no matter what, but the results put my nerves a little on edge.  Just trying to remember that God is in control and won't give us more than we can handle.

Twelve Weeks

This week we went to the beach with our friends Denise & Brett.  It was nice to be in the water and feel weightless.  There is just something about the ocean that makes me relax!  We also went to the Kids Exchange in Raleigh on Sunday with Jarrett and Tiffany.  Our first Kids Exchange experience was very overwhelming!  There was so much stuff, so many clothes, and so many PEOPLE!  We felt that we would be able to find more once we know whether we are having a boy/girl.  Most things were gender specific so we obviously don't want to stock up on the wrong stuff.  We had a great time and ate at P.F. Chang's for the first time.  Tried to go to the pool to enjoy the sun with Dana, but we got rained out.  Literally steps from the pool and it starts thundering!

Here is a picture of Denise and me headed out to the beach:

 Here is the "official" 12 week photo.  Definitely getting a little bump which makes me very excited!

Second Doctor's Appointment

Went in for my second appointment yesterday at 11w4d.  The doctor used the doppler in the office to check for a heartbeat.  She said at this point they just wanted to make sure there was a baby big enough to hear the heartbeat and that we passed.  The heartbeat was again in the 150s which she said was perfect.  Next appointment is in four weeks on August 16th.  At that appointment we will get to schedule the anatomy scan!  I keep having a hard time not buying clothes and other cute things for baby.  I know that I will want to pick out gender specific things too so I am really trying to hold off!  The Kids Exchange in Raleigh is this weekend.  Hoping to go and scope out some items that we need.  Trying not to go overboard.  The next one won't be until the end of January and I'll be full term pregnant so we are just trying to look while we have the chance.  Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Using the Doppler

We ordered a doppler (might sound a little crazy) for peace of mind.  I feel like it has been the best investment!  I have only used it a few times, but it has been  helpful to keep me sane and calm.  Heart rate is usually somewhere between 150 and 160.  Found it as high as 170 before, but not normally that high.

Link to video.

Nine, Ten, & Eleven Weeks

I took my first official belly picture at 9w5d:

Official 10 week belly pic:

We went to Tennessee with Craig's family this week.  Here are a few pictures from that trip:

Official Eleven Week Belly Pic: