Doctor Visit Update

As I promised, I am updating you on today's doctor visit.

Harper is as healthy as can be. Her heartbeat was good and everything looked "beautiful" (as Dr. Christy always says). She weighed 6 lbs. However, the doc said that she was in a weird position and this weight might not be perfectly accurate. So she said she's "6 lbs, give or take a few".

I, on the other hand, didn't get such a good report. My blood pressure was abnormally high. They took it twice and it was high both times. I tried to convince them that I was trying to blog from my phone in the waiting room and maybe that stressed me out. They didn't buy it. So I have to go back on Friday for a BP check AND I have to be on actual bed rest (not just Kevin enforced bed rest) until then. BOO!

I'm hoping and praying that it goes down and we can continue on as normal.


~

Crossing my fingers....

This is another test.
Sent from my U.S. Cellular BlackBerry® smartphone

Hooray! My test worked. Here's what this is all about: Kevin found out that I could use my phone to update the blog. This would be great once Harper is born, because I will obviously have a lot less time to sit at a computer. This picture was a test run, to see if I could quickly upload a picture from my phone.

Result=Successful!

The picture itself has a story of it's own. Kevin thought it would be a good idea to buy a skateboard. This was from his first day on the board. His first words at the skateapark were:

"Whoa, sketchy! This is going to be a lot of work."

~

Quote of the Week

This took place yesterday morning, as I was squirming in bed..

Kevin: Are you about ready for your audition?

Cara: What audition?

Kevin: For the wiggles.


He's a funny guy!

This is a test.

If I succeed, I will be very happy.

Visiting Dr. Christy

Tomorrow is our next doctor's appointment.

3:45....just as the snow moves in. Perfect!

I'm assuming that Harper is in the 5lb range. (She was 4lb 2oz last time)

I think that after this week, we will be visiting Dr. Christy every week from here on out. Oh boy! We're getting close!

Will update tomorrow

Still snowed in....

Tomorrow is our 6th day out of school, in a row. And we're gearing up for 5-10 more inches on Wednesday. I really thought we would be back at school today & tomorrow and I was very wrong. So I am going to quit guessing and just go with the flow. If I weren't pregnant, this time off would be driving me crazy. But I'm actually pretty laid back about the whole thing.

I have begun to be more productive also. My to-do list from a few days back, now looks like this:
grade about 180 5th grade essays
*didn't grade essays, but I did grade one set of papers....progress!
make Valentine's cards with my Cricut

*nope, but I did make 'thank you' cards....well, I am currently making them

about 7 more loads of laundry

*check

clean the house
*cleaned bathrooms & bedrooms
organize our closet
*did I ever!

So I don't have to be that ashamed of my laziness. As the snow melts, my slothfulness is also melting.

~

A major project that I conquered (well, pretty much conquered) was packing our bag for the hospital. I made a major organized list, broken down in to 6 categories:

Cara clothes

Kevin clothes

Cara toiletries

Kevin toiletries

Harper stuff

Other

I have almost everything ready to go. The 'other' category is the one I need to work on the most. That would be things like the cameras, pillows, etc. I hope we don't need that bag for another 5-6 weeks, but just in case, we're ready!

~

I've spent the past two days working on a major craft project. Here's how this went:

Dilemma: realized I needed 10 gifts...fast

Solution: make 10 super cute ______________ (can't say,
recipients might also be readers)

Time saver: recruit Kevin

He worked for about 2 hours (this included the 2 trips to Lowe's) and he had reached his limit! After about 6 more hours of the 'girly work', I had 10 super cute ___________!

Don't you wish you knew!!

Don't worry, I'll share pictures after gifts have been given.

~

Hopefully I will continue to be productive. But if I'm being honest, I will admit, the comfy couch, fuzzy blanket, and HD TV are more tempting that I would like to admit.

Snowed In

This snow is crazy! We received 20 inches in less than 24 hours. That doesn't even seem possible.

I would love to tell you all that I have used my time wisely and have been productive in these past two days. That would be a lie. I have not been productive. However, I am very rested and my feet are not near as swollen as they usually are at the end of the day.

Here are the things I actually have done this week:

Two loads of laundry
Ordered photos from our Disney vacation, in order to scrapbook (a year and a half late)
Made chicken salad, french toast, stroganoff, chocolate chip cookies
Did the dishes from those meals
Watched Kevin get his truck out of the driveway (a bit unsuccessfully)
Discovered a show called 'Raising Sextuplets' and watched an entire marathon
Read a parenting magazine
Watched my belly squirm

Here are the things I hope to do this week:

grade about 180 5th grade essays
make Valentine's cards with my Cricut
about 7 more loads of laundry
clean the house
organize our closet


You can see why I chose the first list instead of the second. But like I said, my feet sure do feel good. =)




~

Bedrest

Kevin has placed me on bed rest.

Well, maybe I am being dramatic.

Here's the real story: By the time I get home from work each day my legs, hips, and back all ache. My ankles look like cream puffs. My heartburn has sky-rocketed to maximum level. And needless to say, I am exhausted.

So he has decided that I am not allowed to do anything once I get home. On one hand, I am so tired (and really don't feel good) that I can't argue with him. However, on the other hand, my body feels bad, but my mind feels fine. I don't want to do "nothing". I want to feel better and be productive. But the minute I stand up, I remember why he put me here in the first place.

So here I sit, bored with TV, bored with the Internet, bored with reading. And does Kevin feel sorry for me? No! He won't even let me get my own drinks. At least that would give me something to do! ;) I think I might start knitting.

I really do feel like an incubator now; just waiting patiently for my little bun to fully cook.




Oh, by the way, today is the first day of his enforcement and I have only been home for less than three hours. I guess I am being pretty dramatic.

~

Kevin's Blog

http://www.diaryofazombiebeliever.blogspot.com/

My husband created his own blog recently. He would like you to check it out.

I will not be held accountable for ANYTHING that you see there.

Nursery Update

Here are a few more recent photos of Harper's room:

I finally decided to remove the polka dots from the curtains. It was just too busy. Although I loved the idea, it just didn't turn out the way I imagined it. I breathed a sigh of relief when I removed them; they are much more peaceful now.

It's amazing how much I will over analyze something as simple as curtains.

Another of Kevin's contributions. If you aren't a fan, these are storm trooper helmets from Star Wars. And no, in the movie they do not have bows and they aren't pink.

The changing table will go here. Not sure what all will go on the shelves, probably some more changing necessities eventually. We just kind of threw some stuff up there. Including her pink, sparkly deer and her 'Daddy's Girl' frame from her Aunt Lindsay, also her firetruck is a piggy bank and Kevin would like everyone to know that they are more than welcome to put money in her bank every time they come over.

Some of her artwork awaiting it's frame. Although this was Kevin's idea, I really think it's cute. We know we are nerds, and we know this is proof, but it's ok, we can can embrace it.

Again, not sure what all will go on her book shelf. Hopefully it will soon be full of 100's of books. That would please me. Kevin probably would like it to be cram packed with stuffed animals (mostly moose, deer, and lions)

I have a feeling that this chair and I will have a very close relationship in a few weeks.

Her animal collage

And her buddies, Sherpa and Chipper, can keep a protective eye on her from the roof of their dog house =)

it keeps growing....and growing...and growing

Here's a more recent picture of the baby belly. As you can see, it is getting quite large. But once again, the doctor said that both her and I are an average, normal size for 32 weeks.

Did you hear that? 32 WEEKS! That means she will be here in 8 WEEKS! Whoa, that is not long.

But back to the doctor, she is 4 pounds, 2 ounces. We saw her moving her mouth this time. (And yes, it was very cute)

~

By the way, the nursery is pretty much complete. We are waiting for the changing table to come in the mail, and we have two more things to frame. And then we are done decorating for now. So I think my goal of completing the nursery during January will actually be reached. Hooray for us! And I do mean us, Kevin has been a huge help with completing the nursery, even adding his own touch. Below is an example of one of his contributions.

Her very first mount.

I know what you are thinking, but hey, she's his baby too! =)

~

Nursery

As I've said before, January is 'Nursery Month' and we are off to a great start!

Yesterday I made the crib skirt (which I love). Today my mom came over and helped me make the curtains (which are growing on me). And Kevin is working on some sort of 'star wars baby' decorations that he is going to contribute. hmm...

It's not anywhere near finished, but I am getting closer. It's actually starting to look babyish.

Update

Harper's appointment went well on Friday.

She weighs 3 lbs, 6 ounces. Which means she gained 1 pound in the past two weeks. Which also means she is to blame for half of her mama's weight gain. We are finally getting to the point where she is the one gaining most of the weight and not me. Thank goodness!

She had flipped positions, she is now head down, feet up. And the placement of her hands and feet totally matched where I have been feeling her dance party.

The doc said that her size is average for 30 weeks. So all of those "Oh she's going to be a HUGE baby"-people can take their comments somewhere else =)

Once again, mama and baby are healthy and happy!

Date Night

We have a date tomorrow with Harper (and Dr. Christy) at 2:45.

Crossing our fingers that the printer works this time. We hope to bring home some super cute 3-D pictures.

Overwhelmed

"I know that you can be overwhelmed and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?"

Last Saturday we were definitely OVERwhelmed. We went to register for baby items. We started in the feeding section. That was a BIG mistake. Do you realize how many types of bottles, pacifiers, nipples, breast pumps, and accessories there are out there? A lot!

I don't think either of us has said the word 'nipple' more in either of our lives combined, than we did that day.

Needless to say, we did get out of the stores alive. That's only because we just started scanning everything in sight. I then went home and edited our lists online after I had calmed down a bit.

We didn't know how little we knew until then.

But we're okay, we've recovered. We've done a lot of reading this week. I talked with a lot of new moms. And we feel like we have a better understanding of necessary 'baby gear'.

And in case I am wrong...I am keeping all receipts.

FYI We registered at Babies-R-Us and Target

(if you see anything missing from our registries, we are open to suggestions)

=)

Showing our Christmas Spirit

As I've written before, my family likes to compete in order to show our Christmas spirit. It started just a few years back with a cookie decorating contest, then came the ornament decorating contest, then a karaoke contest, then last year was the video contest. This year, we had dual contests: A Tacky Sweater contest and a Minute to Win It competition.

Words can't describe the tackiness, so I will show you:

They made their sweaters themselves. And 'tacky' was a new vocabulary word they learned; except when you ask Avery what tacky means, she'll tell you "really silly sweaters".

Hannah even added a "tacky scent" to her sweater.

Robo-Santa, or Christmas-Bot, I'm not sure what his name was...

Ashleigh incorporated her dog. Annie did not appreciate this.

Drumroll please......

(click to enlarge and experience the full effect)

And if you were wondering, Kevin won the contest. He had movable parts, you can't compete with that.

Checkin' in on Harper

Our most recent appointment was the Tuesday before Christmas. I had to drink the "goo" that tells if I have gestational diabetes and I had been warned about it. Well someone lied to me! It was about 2 tablespoons of orange soda like liquid and it took me, oh well, 3 seconds to drink it. What were my results? I don't know yet. So I am assuming that no news is good news.

Speaking of good news, Harper is still doing well. She weighed 2 lbs 6 ounces. She was still breech, which the doctor said was fine this early on. However (and I could be wrong) I think she moved up last night and out of that position. We didn't know this but our doctor does a 3-D ultrasound, which she did on Tuesday. We were looking at the black and white screen and then all of the sudden: Bam! a baby. The unfortunate news was that the printer wouldn't work, so Kevin had to take a picture of the computer screen with his phone.

The photo isn't the clearest, but if you lean back, squint one eye, and hold your breath, hopefully you can make out a baby face. She is pouting and no, she does not have a hole in her head, that is the ultrasound machine.

Our next appointment is a week from today, Friday the 7th.

Also, on the Harper news front, we have finally decided on a middle name.......

Harper Belle

We love her name, in all it's southern glory (say it in a Paula Deen accent and you'll know what I'm talking about).

Also, she has moved more in the last 8 hours than ever before in her little life. I think she is throwing a block party down there or something. Neither baby or mama slept much last night, and in turn, neither did daddy. Oops!

But even still, it is such a blessing to feel a healthy, active little girl, no matter how much commotion she makes.

~

"Blame it on Harper"

That's what people keep telling me when I forget something or do something ridiculous. Well, if I start blaming her for all of my ridiculous-ness, that poor girl will have a self-esteem problem before she even comes out!

And when people have been nagging me lately to update the blog, they always tell me to blame it on her. Well in truth, it's not her fault, it's mine. But I will have you know, I am cooking up some pretty good blog topics for the upcoming weeks; I just have to wait until I have pictures to go with them. So here are a few picture-less things that have been going on lately:

I'm finally on Christmas break; and a much needed Christmas break. My kids this year are out to get me! I swear it. This year is known as "Take down Mrs. Lawson Year". Don't tell my fellow teachers this (and if you are a fellow teacher, skip a few lines), but this is a great year to have maternity leave to look forward to. So these upcoming two weeks are needed to restore my sanity and I am sure that Harper AND her father will be thankful for them also.

Christmas has arrived at the Lawson house! We are decorated, trimmed, lit, and smelling like sweets! Kevin put up lights on the outside of the house for the first year. And I do believe, a monster has been created. Our lights are simple this year, but I guarantee it's the last year they'll be simple. He is already planning how he'll beat the neighbors next year. Right now, his focus is getting a Storm Tropper (from Star Wars) dressed as Santa on the roof. I vetoed the Star Wars themed nativity though. Baby Jesus will NOT be portrayed by Yoda in my yard!

I've also discovered (or been reminded) that he has no patience for presents. He has asked me to open my gifts every day for about 2 weeks. Now that I am home everyday, it's only getting worse. I hear a lot of :

"Will you just open your presents, already?!"

He doesn't want his gifts, he just wants me to open mine. He's already made me open two! He's a very persuasive man!

We have a baby doctor's appointment tomorrow. I have to drink the goop that tells them if I have gestational diabetes. Blah! Not looking forward to it. Harper had better be photogenic in her picture tomorrow, because I will need something to cheer me up after consuming a gallon of goo!

As far as nursery progress goes, the holiday season has really put a halt on any progress. We do have a crib now. Kevin picked it out, purchased and assembled it, all in one day. He did a great job! I will upload some pictures of it soon. But January is baby room month, so I should make some major progress in a few weeks.

As far as Harper is concerned: She kicks all the time (also punches, wiggles, rolls, head-butts, etc). She wakes up every morning at approximately 2:00am. She weighed 1 pound, 6 ounces a month ago; I am expecting more like 2 or 3 pounds tomorrow. She's definitely growing. The seat in my car is gradually needing to be moved back, doors need to be opened a little wider, and t-shirts that used to be baggy come to about my belly-button and stop. She already thinks her daddy is silly; or at least she wiggles like a mad-man when he yells at my belly. (I keep telling him he doesn't need to yell, poor kid.) But as far as I can tell and by what the Doc says, she is a perfectly healthy little girl. And that's how we're praying she stays.

So that's a pretty decent update on our lives. Hopefully during these next two weeks, I will find time to post some more. But you know me, don't count on it.

~

23 weeks

Kevin felt her kick! Oh yes he did.

The pitter patter of little feet made his heart skip a beat.

Well, he might not describe it the same way, but he was absolutely content feeling her move.

And I can finally breathe a sigh of relief; I was starting to feel pretty selfish, being the only one who could feel her. =)

Mellow Yellow

Kevin has been doing a lot of work in Harper's room. He installed the bead board and painted the walls. Now all we need to do is make curtains, get the crib, hang decorations, find a changing table, move the rocker in.....OK, so we have the majority left to do! But hey, I'll take any progress I can get!

Trick or Treat

My favorite girls stopped by for some candy this weekend. Dorthy, Dorthy, & Pirate Avery.

I LOVE 'EM!

Baby Belly

You asked for it, here is the current belly status: small enough that I can see my feet, big enough that actually reaching my feet is quite a challenge.

Baby, Oh Baby!

It's been too long since I last posted, and I am well aware of that. Trust me, if you haven't told me that I have been lazy, someone else has!

But I have good excuses; instead of boring you with all of them, I will just say 'We've been busy!'.

A lot of our busy has been "baby-busy" though, so I will catch you up to speed on my pregnancy status.

I am currently 20 weeks, which means we are half way there. I have a fourth ultrasound next week. It's been 3 weeks since my last appointment and all she's had to do since then is sit in there and get cuter, so I am sure she is adorable by now. We'll see her again in just a few days!

~

Two days ago, I felt her kick for the first time. She likes to kick when I lay down, and I can sometimes get her to kick more if I talk to her. How cute is that?!? It's the strangest feeling and I've had a hard time explaining it to Kevin. It isn't at all like how others described it to me. It's just awesome! And I can't wait for her to kick hard enough that he can feel it.

~

I definitely feel like I look pregnant, of course I've noticed every little change, so I've thought that for a long time. But strangers are starting to make comments and when I see people I know, they say "I didn't know you were pregnant!". So I guess that means I really do look pregnant. People are requesting pictures of the growing belly bump, but I need a husband who isn't at the station to take pictures; so those people will just have to wait.

~

We've decided on the first name Harper, and we have narrowed the middle name down to a few choices, but we aren't set on any middle names. We'll figure it out eventually. But with knowing she's girl, and having a name for her, it really makes all of this seem so much more real. We talk about her like we already know what she's like and we talk to her all the time. Here's an actual example of what I mean:

Kevin- "Harper's favorite animal is a moose."

Cara- "I thought you said she liked giraffes?."

Kevin- "Well she hasn't officially decided yet, but she really likes the moose."

~

Kevin and my mom are going garage sale crazy! This girl has more clothes than she'll know what to do with!

This is just part of the clothes they have bought for her. This doesn't include any of the new clothes she has.

Here are a few of my favorite garage sale finds! They really are doing a good job!

It just cracks me up how she is only 20 weeks old (in the womb) and probably has more outfits than either Kevin or myself. It's outta control!

~

Speaking of purchases for Harper, the teacher in me is constantly looking for good deals on children's books.

I may not be the garage sale extraordinaire that my mom or Kevin are, but I'm proud of my collection.

~

One of Kevin's many projects lately has been the bassinet. He has researched, compared prices, looked on Craig's list, eBay, garage sales and every baby store we've found. We both agreed that most bassinets have too much frill for us, and it was becoming quite hard to find one that we liked well enough. But this week, his searching paid off; he found a great bassinet with tons of gadgets. I expected us to buy it and leave it in the box for the next 5 months. I was wrong, it was assembled within an hour of returning home.

~

We've decided that Harper will be wearing only OSU clothing home from the hospital. You know, let the world know she a Cowboy right away; no room for misunderstandings. Here is what we have so far:

Not much, but newborn sized university apparel is surprising hard to find.

~

Many people have been asking if we have a theme for the nursery. The answer is: we do not. And we won't. We know what we want it to look like in our minds, but it's hard to translate into words. When I say 'we' know what we want, it's probably more 'me'. Kevin just buys what he likes, (or according to him, 'what Harper likes') and then it's up to me to make it work. Here is a sample of fabric that he wants me to incorporate:

I have a couple of ideas, we'll see. Tim Gunn will be proud, I'll 'make it work'.

~

*Correction

Last night, over dinner, we were discussing the latest doctor visit. Kevin very cautiously said "I didn't want to say anything but I thought the doctor said 130 beats/minute."

Most likely, this is correct. However, due to the fact that I may or may not be an emotional basket case right now, he chose to not correct me, but to let me go around telling the world 139 beats/minute.

So for the record, the baby's heart beat was either 139 or 130. (Most likely, the sane one of the two of us heard correctly and it truly was 130)

*Either that or he is grasping onto the statistic that boys heartbeats are less than 140 and girls are above. Wishful thinking maybe?

~

The Biggest News

See that little dot?

That little tiny one?

Well that's the newest addition to our family.

All .87 centimeters and 139 heartbeats/minute of him.

Our blessing is scheduled to arrive March 18th, 2011.