28 Weeks

So, here I am now 25 lbs heavier than when I first found out I was pregnant. I feel like it's more weight than that sometimes, but Will keeps reminding me that I'm supposed to gain the weight and that it's ok. I'm guessing I'll gain about 35-40lbs before it's all over with.

I had my glucola test today and I can thankfully say that I passed! I was shocked after all the sweets that I've not only been eating this entire pregnancy, but especially after Christmas. I checked out ok with everything else today, as well, and our little boy seems to be doing just fine, too. We heard the heartbeat today and also the movements he was making, which was almost funny because he was moving around so much a couple of times that you couldn't really hear his heart. Oh, and the orange drink I had to have before the test wasn't that bad either - I was really worried about how bad the taste was going to be so, it was a nice surprise when I took the first sip.

Well, we enjoyed our Christmas break and we were able to get out of town for a week! Our plans did get a little screwed up due to the big snow storm that came through, but we still got to see most everyone. We started the vacation by going to one of my grandmother's house first in North Carolina (my mom's mom) and stayed there until Wednesday. My parents and brother came to meet us on Monday, which we were thankful for because we didn't know if they were going to be able to come at all. We left Wed. and headed up to Maryland to see Will's family. We stayed with them until Monday and we were able to have a white Christmas! They originally got about 20 in. of snow so, as you can imagine, they still had some by the time we got up there. It was all gone by the time we left due to rain so Will never got to sled with Brienna, but we still enjoyed seeing it.

We did get a few baby items including the stroller/infant carrier I wanted and a nice video camera, which was a surprise. We were supposed to have a baby shower while in North Carolina, but it was cancelled due to the weather and other family members being snowed in. I am going to go back in the next couple of weeks for it, though, so, it will be nice to see everyone again and see the others we missed.

While we were away, we had a delivery of the furniture for the nursery come to the house. It was supposed to be delivered this week after we got back, but it wasn't. We've been putting it together tonight and last night and figuring out how we're going to set up the room - it's been fun, but also a BIG eye opener of what's to come!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year to come!

Here are some cakes we made before we left: We loved the grill!

26 Weeks

As my belly gets bigger, my face now gets bigger! Diana, one of the ladies from the alteration shop next to our shop, even said earlier this week when she saw me: "Your face is showing it now!" She is an older, Italian woman who will just tell you how it is, but she's hilarious. You have to appreciate the honesty from people.

This week has been busy for us...we've been getting ready for our trip, which means making sure we have everyone's gifts ready to go, working (of course), and we've completed a couple of things for the nursery. Will has really been the one working on the nursery with cleaning it up and putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls. We also had Stanley Steamer come and clean the carpet in that room so, we're ready for the furniture now! And speaking of furniture, I did order that earlier this week and it's scheduled to be here on the 30th. We got the crib, a larger dresser, a stand-up chest, and a nightstand and we can't wait to see it all! Once we get everything set up, I'll post some pictures.

Our little boy has continued to make his presence known by moving around so much, it seems like he never sleeps. I love it, though, and Will can feel him a lot more now, too! I'm continuing to do great with the pregnancy and am so thankful. Everyone pray that it stays on this path to the end!

Here is a picture of a groom's cake we did last week: It's a stack of law books, which were all half-sheet sized cakes (extremely heavy!) and fed 150 for the rehearsal dinner... who knows how big the wedding was! This week we have a Dr. Seuss book and a grill to make.

We look forward to seeing everyone at Christmas and hope everyone is doing well! Love to all!

25 Weeks

I have officially gained 20 pounds! We went to a dr.'s appointment on Monday and when I stepped on the scale the bottom of my mouth fell. I think I am starting to show it in my face now, which I'm not happy about. Despite this, the doc. said that I and our little boy are doing great and that my belly looks good. We got to hear the heartbeat and his movements are getting stronger and stronger - it feels like he's going to push through my stomach sometimes.

Also at our visit, we got our doc. back after her maternity leave, which we were very happy about. We told her we missed her and that the other doc. we saw was VERY different. She laughed and said that he had a totally different personality than she does.

It really makes a difference on who you see and how comfortable you feel so, we're hoping that when we actually go to the hospital to deliver we get either our doc. or someone like her. It will be the luck of the draw, though, because they all rotate who takes call.

At our next appointment, I will have the glucose test that will tell me if I have gestational diabetes. This will be right after Christmas so, hopefully, with all the sweets I'm sure I'll be eating, I won't test positive! I've continued to feel fine - I just get tired and my feet hurt at the end of the day. I've also been feeling pressure below my belly, which I think is due to all my standing (and growing). We mentioned it to the doc. and she said it was normal. I usually come home and sit for a while and I feel better.

In other news, we've been getting our Christmas shopping done. We are going to North Carolina this year so we will see everyone in my family, including both of my parents' sides of the family - and then we'll be heading up to Maryland to see Will's family. While we're in North Carolina, we will have our first baby shower, which we're sooo excited about!

This past weekend we went and registered at Target and Babies R'Us. While it was a lot of fun being able to "shoot" everything with the label gun, it was also very overwhelming trying to figure out what all we are going to need. Who knew that there were so many varieties of pasifiers (not sure if I spelled that right) and bottles and diaper bags and bath stuff and.....the list goes on. We did the best we could and the only two things we didn't put on the registry were diapers and clothes. We figured we're going to need those no matter what so, if anyone wants to get that, feel free to pick out whatever you'd like.

Well, it's almost time for bed so, I hope everyone is well! Can't wait to see everyone in a couple of weeks!

Oh, here is the fire truck cake we did last weekend:

24 Weeks

As you can see, we have our Christmas tree up! Will started everything and I just finished putting the ornaments on it earlier tonight. Next year, we'll be adding "baby's 1st Christmas" ornaments to it and I'm already excited!

We had a great Thanksgiving at my parents house in Tennessee - lots of food and baby goodies! And now that they know what the sex is, I can finally announce it on the blog: IT'S A BOY!!!!!

We can also finally stop referring to him as "the baby" or "it." I tried to upload the video that I took when my mom was cutting into the cake, but I'm not too good with computer technology so, I couldn't figure it out. The minute we got to my parent's house, my mom was asking for the cake - there was no waiting for dessert later that night. We asked them to guess what they thought it was before they cut into the cake and my mom and brother actually guessed a boy. My dad didn't guess because he said he really didn't care as long as we were both healthy.

Since it is a boy, though, we got all the hand-me-downs from my brother's son. We came home with a car seat, rocking chair, so many clothes, and a high chair. The high chair was a surprise gift my parents got us and it's not a typical high chair...all of our chairs at our house are the higher "bar" height chairs so, my mom found a high chair that doesn't have legs and you can use it on any chair you already have. Not sure if I made sense, but it will be nice to use and take with us on vacations if we need to. Thanks for everything mom and dad!

Also, now that everyone knows we're having a boy, we will going to register this weekend. We will be going to Babies R' Us and Target, most likely. It's getting to be crunch time and we are also trying to get the nursery started. As I mentioned last week, we got the bedding for the crib so we will be ordering the bed and bedroom furniture within the next week or so, hopefully.

It's all so overwhelming and exciting at the same time! AHHH! :)

I've been feeling great now that I'm over the horrible cold I had. I still get tired, but that's to be expected. And my mom actually told me I look smaller in person than I do in my pictures so that was good to hear! Other people that have seen me, as well, can't believe how far along I am because they thing I still look so small - I certainly don't feel like it, though! It's almost time to go shopping again!

Well, that's it for now. Hope everyone else had a good Thanksgiving!

Here are a couple of pics of cakes we've done. The cake with the anchor was done before we left and the turquoise cake was done today for a big 'event planners luncheon' we went to.

23 Weeks

Well, I have no picture this week - I guess I'm just being lazy, but I also don't look very good right now so I'd prefer not to put myself out there.
The baby is continuing to be active, which is always a very cool feeling, and I've been able to see the movements just looking down at my belly. It looks like there's some alien inside trying to get out sometimes. It seems to be really active when I first lay down to go to bed at night and then usually in the morning. On Sunday morning, I was fast asleep and Will had turned over and put his arm around me so he could hold my belly and he said that the baby was going so crazy that he didn't know how I didn't wake up! That was the most he's been able to feel it at once.
I've been feeling fine....I had a pretty bad cold that started last week, but I'm finally getting over it. I now just have the runny nose and occasional cough. Other than that, I've been good and continuing to grow.
We bought the baby's bedding for the crib earlier this week and it came today! I absolutely love it and we decided to go 'different' with it. Instead of doing a themed nursery, we decided to go geometric with cool colors, almost retro looking. Next, we'll have to get the crib and furniture and we will be getting a little more prepared with the room.
I signed up for all of our pregnancy classes today and those will start after the beginning of next year. They want you to wait until you're in your eighth month so that everything is fresh on your mind, which I am definitely a fan of. Will and I have a horrible time as it is trying to remember day-to-day stuff sometimes.
Tomorrow we're off to Tennessee to see my parents and brother for Thanksgiving. We are excited about the trip and my mom has been waiting 1 long month for this visit - she will get to cut into the cake we made and find out what we're having! Will has been saying that she's just going to bring a knife out to the car with her when we pull up in the driveway! We're taking the ultrasound pics for the proof so I'll post those next week and reveal to everyone else what we're having, if you don't already know. And I'll finally be able to say he/she and can stop saying 'the baby' or 'it' when I'm talking.
On that note, I hope everyone else has a wonder Thanksgiving! We have a lot to be thankful this year! Love to all!

22 Weeks

So, I am becoming all belly these days. Feeling the baby move around more and more and Will has been able to feel it more, as well. I've been feeling fine all except for the cold I've seemed to have picked up in the last couple of days.

We've been shopping around online getting ideas for the baby's room and have been productive in actually picking things out. We've decided on the bedding and what we're doing for the furniture. I'm not sure if anyone knows about the convertible cribs, but they're awesome - it's like getting 3 beds in 1 so, we're definitely doing that.

In other news, this past weekend we were able to relax and not work too hard. We were done with wedding deliveries by 2pm on Saturday and Sunday we went to church then took Zoe for an outing downtown, which she enjoyed, but was completely pooped afterwards. We also went out to the beach and you would've thought it was summer - the temp. was about 75 degrees and everyone was out in their bathing suits (except for us). Monday we did have to make our trip to Sam's club, but we took time to check out the new waterfront park in Mt. Pleasant on the way there, as well as, going to visit Babies R'US. We didn't purchase anything, but we made a "list" of the things we want to register for after we tell my parents, which it's only one more week that my mom has to wait!

That's it for now! Hope all is well with everyone!

Here are a couple of cakes we made last week: Feeling wild? Shall we tell your fortune?

21 Weeks

So these are a pair of my new preggy jeans that are sooooooo comfortable! You can wear them either way, but I usually wear them with the tummy band up. (Will's mom bought me these last weekend)

And here I am fully dressed- who knew those were preggy!

I was able to go shopping today for the first time by myself and talk about having to make choices...it was hard! I bought 2 more pairs jeans, a few shirts, and another pair of capris to wear to work. I'll have to get more, but I figured I had done enough damage in one day.

In other exciting news, we had our doctor's appointment this morning and got to see our baby again! We had the full anatomy scan done by ultrasound, which we're happy to report that everything with the baby and myself are as they should be - completely normal and developing on schedule! This was the ultrasound I've been worried and praying about the most since we never had any of the other tests done (down's syndrome, quad screen, etc.) so you can imagine how happy and thankful we were when the tech was going through everything and saying it looked good. She took about 50 pictures for the doctor and about 10 for us, which was cool. The whole process took about 45 min. so, it was almost like watching a short movie of what's going on inside of you, which is absolutely crazy and amazing at the same time.

The baby weighs a little less than a pound right now and I am up 15 lbs total for weight gain. We are both where we should be in weight and they said I was carrying very well. We're just continuing to pray that the remaining length of the pregnancy goes this smooth - we're less than halfway there now!

Our next appointment will be at the beginning of Dec., in about 4 wks, and we get to see our original doctor we started with, which we are so looking forward to! She's been out on maternity leave and we've had to see this other guy who we've not been to crazy about - he's just a little strange for our tastes.

Anyway, here are a couple of pictures from today's visit of the baby. Don't worry (mom), we made sure to get some where you couldn't tell what the sex was. These pics were taken just at the right spot where you can't tell what it is:

In the first pic, it looks like the baby is almost waving.

In the second, it looks like the baby is sucking it's thumb.

20 Weeks

I'm at the half-way mark of the pregnancy! It seems like it's gone by really fast and as you can see, my belly is growing! I also look really bad in this picture because we've just worked a 10 hour day. The baby is moving around constantly and Will has actually been able to feel it a few times. The movements, whether they're kicks,punches, or head-butts, have to be pretty strong for him to be able to feel them. And I figured out that it must get pretty annoying when my bladder gets full, because this baby will definitely knock it around and just about make me pee on myself. At any rate, I like being able to feel it move around and it just gives me re-assurance that it's doing well.

We returned home from our trip to Maryland on Monday. It was back to reality right away with catching up to emails and figuring out our schedule for the week. We had a great time, though, with the family and really enjoyed being able to spend time with all of them. Halloween was a lot of fun with Brienna - she dressed up as Elmo and got to walk with Zoe, who I dressed up as a bumble bee, while trick or treating around their neighborhood. And as I mentioned in last week's update, I got to go shopping with Will's mom and sisters for the baby and for myself - I still haven't made it shopping, but I'm going to soon! We saw Julia and Charlotte's new house and realized how nice it would be to have a basement. They had the perfect spot for the pool table, fooseball table and weight machine.

We have another appointment this coming Monday where we get to see the baby again! We will have the anatomy scan done so keep us in your prayers that everything is ok!

Here are some cakes we did before we left:

19 Weeks

I am late getting this post up, but we are out of town this week. We came up to Maryland to visit Will's family and see his sisters' new house.
Even though I don't have a picture up, it seems as though my belly has all of a sudden grown out so much! Janet took me shopping yesterday and I bought my first pair of maternity jeans, which after I tried them on, I could not believe how comfortable they were! I am sooooo going shopping after I get home!
We had a doctor's appointment before we left and everything is going well. I got my two flu shots while we were there AND we found out what we're having!!!! I would tell it here on the blog, but we are being mean to my parents and making them wait until Thanksgiving to tell them. We wanted to tell our family's in person and make it more special since this is our first one. We baked a cake to bring with us to see Will's family and we colored the batter the color of the sex - they had to cut into the cake to find out what it was. It was a really fun way to tell everyone.
I will post pictures when we get back!

18 Weeks

My "bump" is slowly growing! I officially cannot button any of my pants and can't wear some of my jeans at all. My weight gain has stayed at 8-10 lbs. for the past couple of weeks, but it feels like I've gained twice that when I try to fit into another pair of pants.

I can also say that I feel the baby move around ALOT! At first, it was just when I was laying down and would concentrate on feeling it; but, now I feel it almost all the time - even when I'm up and doing things. It still catches me off-gaurd sometimes when it's a strong movement and I try to catch Will when it's happening, but he hasn't been able to feel anything yet.

I'm continuing to feel fine and have no complaints. My dreams are a little strange sometimes and very vivid, but I've read that it's a common thing to happen. I've also been continuing to read my baby books and get the "update" each week on the baby's growth. As of right now, the baby is about 5 1/2" long and weights 5-6oz. We only have one week until we get to see it again and find out what the sex is! I'm continuing to pray that everything is good and that the baby is healthy!

We are approaching our last busy weekend for October (thank goodness!) and will be heading up north to Maryland to see Will's family next week. It's going to be a nice, much-needed break! This past weekend we just worked, but we were able to take Sun. and Mon. off away from the shop, which was nice. The one good thing about our busy month is all the different cakes we've been able to make - here's a few from this past weekend:

Forgot to mention....

Another surprise that we got over the weekend was from our other neighbors, Rycki and Lamar. They went on vacation and brought us back a few gifts for taking them to the airport. They gave Will a keychain digital picture frame so that he can put pics of the baby on it when he/she arrives. They brought me a Christmas ornament of a pregnant woman that has a space you can write in for your due date. And they brought the baby a blanket with a stuffed duck attached (very cute!). We are so lucky to have such thoughtful neighbors that treat us so nicely!

17 weeks

My belly is slowly starting to come out - I've had a couple of neighbors and a friend at church actually notice, but I think it just depends on what I'm wearing. I've been feeling fine, just continue to be really tired (as I look in the picture) from us working so much. We have another busy week this week, but only two more big wedding weekends for October so it's good - we can see the end of the tunnel!
I got two surprises over the weekend. One was from our neighbor, Pam, who bought me my first "official" set of maternity clothes. I got a really pretty white shirt that could go dressy or casual and a pair of khaki capris. It won't be long before I have to start wearing them!
The other surprise was a visit from one of my cousins from North Carolina. Christy came and spent Sunday afternoon with us, just hanging out and catching up. It was nice.
We only have 2 weeks until we find out if we're having a boy or a girl! I think we're having a boy because that's what almost all of my dreams have been, but Will thinks we're having a girl because our family trends have been the girls being born before the boys. I am continuing to feel the baby move and some days it's more than others, but always comforting.
Well, that's it for now! Off to bed - yeah!

Oh, here are a few pics of cakes we've done recently. And my first "characters"!

16 Weeks

I have no pictures this week. We are just extremely busy with work and have barely been home to see our dog Zoe. My belly is continuing to grow and it seems like it just came out of nowhere. I weighed myself the other day and I'm still at 8lbs total for the amount of weight I've gained so far. I have begun to wear my Bella Band that I bought a few weeks ago- there are certain shorts I can only zip half-way! Yes, we are still wearing shorts here- it's been nice the past couple of days, but it's supposed to get up close to 90 degrees again by the weekend.
And extremely exciting news....I've been able to feel the baby move!! I first noticed it last Thursday when I laid down to go to bed and wasn't sure at first if that's what I was actually feeling, but it happened a couple of times. Since then, I've continued to feel that same movement (almost like a muscle twitch), but I have to be laying down and not move. I can't wait until the movements get strong enough for Will to feel them.
We have been soooo thankful that I haven't had any problems so far. We just pray that the pregnancy continues this way and we are counting down the days until our next appointment!
Nothing more to report- just a lot of work and really tired. Hope everyone is having a good week!

15 Weeks

Today was my appointment for just a check-up and it was nothing but good news! All of the blood work I had done after my first appt. came back normal and I am "on track" for progressing with the pregnancy. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat, which is always re-assuring, and we could even tell when the baby was kicking or throwing it's arms (it was almost like a quick break-up/static sound that came over the heartbeat sounds-it kind of caught me off-gaurd the first time I heard it, but then she told me what it was). The dr. said the baby sounds great and that it's heartbeat was nice and strong. I still think it's crazy how advanced technology is that you can do these things to check on the baby. I was so excited and amazed, I actually cried a little! Now, we just have to wait 4 weeks until our next appt., which is a BIG one because we get to find out what we're having! That's also when they do a full anatomy screen on the baby to make sure all the organs and brain are developing correctly. It's going to be so hard to wait!

The only symptom I've been having is being tired. By the end of the week of work, I am done. After church on Sunday, I did pretty much nothing and sat around all day- it was soooo nice. Will, on the other hand, just kept on trucking with the work he's been doing around the house. He's made a lot of progress and everything is looking great.

Here are a couple of cakes we had this past week:

This coming weekend we have 6 weddings so it will be another long week!

Hope everyone has a great week and love to all!

14 Weeks

I've been a slacker this week....it's Thursday and I'm just now doing my weekly post and I have no picture of my belly to add. (Maybe if I skip a week, we can tell a difference!) This week has been busy for us: between work and Will working on the house, it seems to never stop sometimes. There will be an end to the house work, though, because we're trying to have everything done by the time the baby comes.
I've been feeling fine this week. Not really any symptoms except being tired. My weight has jumped up by about 5-6 lbs now, but it's been a slow rise in numbers, which I think is good. It seems like I gain a lb. or 2 and stay that way for a couple of weeks. I think because we're on our feet so much during the day it's helping with the weight gain...I sure don't hold back on eating sometimes! Especially the ice cream- I had some Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Cheesecake earlier tonight and last night (it's sooooo good!).
Some of my clothes I can't wear anymore and I feel like I'm at that in-between stage where I just look like I've gained weight. Hopefully, in a couple of weeks, I'll actually look like I'm pregnant.
I have my second doctor's appointment this coming Monday- it's just a check up so we won't get to see the baby, unfortunately. I've been ready my book "What to Expect When You're Expecting," each week and it says that right now the baby is about the size of a lemon or the size of my fist. It's crazy how fast it grows each week! I can't wait until I can actually feel it for the first time!
Next month is when we can find out if it's a boy or girl that we're having. We don't care one way or the other just as long as it's healthy. Those are probably the two questions that everyone has been asking: "Are you going to find out what it is?" and "What do you want to have- a boy or a girl?" We'll be happy with whichever God chooses to give us!
Well, it's time for bed. I hope everyone is well and I'll post pictures next week!

13 Weeks

I did shower for this weeks picture! Now that I'm pretty much out of the first trimester, I am feeling a lot better- no more nausea at all- yeah!! I still get tired and my tastes change daily with what I want to eat, but that's pretty much it.

In other news, we worked over the weekend (surprise!), but we only had 2 weddings, which was nice. This coming weekend we only have 2 weddings again. This is the calm before the storm for October- we have about 5-6 every weekend except for Halloween. We'll be doing good if we can get through it! Gotta pay those bills and get ready for this baby, though! :)

Here are the two wedding cakes we did last weekend:

We also got a surprise visit from my mom, which was the best part of the weekend :) She had been in NC visiting her first grandchild and made the trip over to see us on Monday. We took her out to lunch at the Folly Beach Pier and then we went to Babies R Us- talk about baby overload! Who knew there was so much to get! I did find a few things to put on my list for later, though.

Will and I also had our 2nd year wedding anniversary Tuesday- as you can imagine, our conversation was a little different than last years! :) We went to California Dreaming for dinner, which is a restaurant that we went to on our first date and first anniversary- we thought we'd carry on with tradition this year, too. We also appreciate all the cards, gifts, and good wishes from everyone!

Well, that's it for now. Hope everyone is well and has a great week! Love to all!

BTW, here is a pickle cake we did today: Eat a pickle!

12 Weeks

Well, I wasn't sure about starting to take pictures of my belly yet, but Will told me I should. Don't look too hard...I've been working all day, haven't showered yet, and basically look like a grease monkey! I've gained about 3 lbs. total now and my pants continue to get tighter and tighter. My nausea is pretty much gone (yeah!) unless I eat too much during a meal and then I feel kind of quesy. And speaking of eating, it seems my appetite has suddenly grown and I'm hungry all the time! Will says he's definitely noticed that I eat more than I used to- ha!

The only other symptoms I seem to have now are being hot all the time and once last week I had a horrible spell of heartburn. The hot spells aren't really like hot flashes, which I used to get during my period, but it's more like I'm just constantly hot. Sitting in church on Sundays, I just fan myself with the bulletin- I know people have to wonder because Will says he's fine when I ask him if he's hot. The heartburn episode was not fun at all and I hope I don't get to the point of having it more often. I feel for anyone who has had it or deals with it often! (Amber, I now know how you felt because mine did happen at night and I still had it at 3:30 AM when I got up to use the bathroom!) Other than this, I feel pretty good now.

In the midst of our 6 wedding marathon this past weekend, I was able to go shopping and actually purchased a couple of baby items for the first time! Our church had a children's consignment sale so I went and scoped it out. I ended up getting a little overhwhelmed with everything and since we don't know yet what we're having, it made it a little more difficult. I did make it out with two items, though...one was a Winnie the Pooh baby carrier that you strap on and wear so that the baby is strapped in on the front of you (does this make sense?). I thought the Winnie the Pooh could be used for either a boy or a girl. The second item was a book called "What to Expect During the First Year." It's from the same writers who did "What to Expect While You're Expecting" and I actually got a nice surprise from Will's Aunt Joan, who sent me this book last week! In one night, I read it all the way through to where I am currently at 12 weeks. It's a great book that leads you through the different stages of pregnancy and goes into how your baby is developing each week, which is really cool since we can't see the baby as much as we'd like. I thought the book about the first year might be just as helpful, but we'll see!

I also went shopping for myself since, like I mentioned earlier that my pants are getting tight. I bought this accessory called a Bella Band- you can put on over the top of your regular pants or shorts that you can't button anymore and it covers it up so that you can still wear your clothes a little longer. Then, I hit up the clearance racks and bought some capris, shirts, and a pair of shorts that I can wear to work. I bought sizes that were too big for me now, but I should be fitting into them in no time!

Once conclusion that we've come to is that having a baby definitely gets you motivated to finish projects around the house. Will has been working his tale off: he's been re-doing the casing around the bedroom doorways to match the newer work he has done on other parts of the kitchen and dining room; he's been putting in new, larger baseboards around the entire house; and he's re-painting our guest bedroom as I'm writing this. Eventually, we will have the baby's room to do, which is going to involve everything from cleaning out to painting to decorating, etc. And speaking of cleaning out, we have a home for our pool table and fooseball table, but we also have a full weight machine and separate bench so, if anyone wants it or knows someone who might, please let us know!

I guess this is it until next week. I am going to start adding in a few cake pictures from our recent weddings/parties so here are some for your enjoyment.......

11 weeks

Ok, so I am publishing 2 posts in one night to get caught up with the weeks. This week I am actually 11 weeks, not 10 weeks. Hope I'm not confusing!
Anyway, this week I went and had blood drawn at the lab. I'll find out the results when I go to our next appointment later this month, if nothing is wrong. Cross your fingers!
Over the past couple of days, I have noticed that the nausea doesn't seem to be as bad or as frequent, which I'm very happy about. I still haven't gained any more poundage and will be glad if I can stay at this pace, but I doubt it. The doctor told me that I should gain about 25-30lbs throughout the pregnancy so we'll see if I can. I did buy two different kinds of ice cream today: moose tracks and turtle tracks because I couldn't decide which one. Ice cream has been one thing that I've let myself have once a week because I have been craving it pretty bad.
Oh, and Will has been such a good sport about all the food cravings, especially when it comes to dinner. He just says he's along for the ride and will eat whatever I want. He's not a very picky eater, which is good right now! He calls it the "craving rollercoaster" because I change my mind all the time.
To give an update on the other aspects of our lives, we are working our assess off, as usual. This weekend we have 6 weddings between Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We are thankful for all of the work we've had this year considering the economy. Weddings and birthdays are one area where people will still splurge.
This past weekend we just had 3 weddings, which was good because my brother and Diana were in town. They did have to do some things on their own while we worked, but we still got some hang out time in with them. They went on one of our deliveries to Magnolia Plantation and we took time to walk around and see some of it. We also went bowling, out to eat, and to the beach. It was a good time.
Hope everyone has a good week! Love to all!

10 weeks

So, by now almost everyone should know that Lauren is pregnant! Yeeaaahhh! We decided to start this blog so that all our of out-of-town family and friends can follow the progress and keep updated on everything. Will and I couldn't be happier and are so excited to be able to finally share the news! It's been really hard keeping it a secret for so long, too! And I will try to update at least once a week, but we'll see how that goes!
Well, now I am 10 weeks along and we just had our first doctor's appointment, which was really exciting. We had our first ultrasound and got to see our baby for the first time. We were literally speechless when we saw it! (and the nurse even made a comment about how quiet we were) I said it's one thing to know that you're pregnant, but it's completely another to actually see it. We also got to hear it's heartbeat, which was a strong 190 beats per minute. It was a relief to find out that everything was ok and that I was doing well.
Here are some pics that they put on a cd for us:

The baby is on it's head in 3 of the pics, but the nurse said that it was normal, it just happened to be the position it was in at the time. We were able to see it kick it's legs around a couple of times when she would go over a certain part of my belly- very cool to see, again!

As far as how I've been feeling up to this point....I've just had really bad nausea and been really tired. I haven't actually gotten sick, which I am thankful for. The food cravings change from day to day, but the one thing I can't stand at all is coffee. If anyone knows me, they know how I looooove coffee, too- not now, though! I can't even stand the smell of it! And so far, I've only gained 2lbs. and even though I'm not showing yet, some of my shorts are getting pretty tight.

I'll wait to post pictures of my belly until I actually start showing.

Well, that's the update for now- stay tuned!