Caroline's First Christmas...

Since it has taken me this long to even get around to blogging, I am going to just write one big Christmas post instead of writing five separate Christmas celebration posts (my extended family, my immediate family, Greg's extended family, Greg's immediate family, and our little family of three). Please feel free to skim, as this is mainly just for me to remember things by. This holiday season has definitely been a whirlwind! We started out our Christmas celebration with a trip to North Carolina...Yes, two adults, two dogs, one one-month-old baby, and 7 hours of driving. And guess what? It was fantastic!! Caroline was a champ and only cried for about a total of 30 minutes each way and we still made it there in our usual 7ish hours! On Sunday we went to my aunt's house for an extended family get together. It was great getting to introduce Caroline to everyone! As usual, the food was fantastic and the company was even better! I had a great time catching up with the cousins and just hanging out with everyone. As is tradition, the adults participated in a Dirty Santa gift exchange and we ended up with a cake pop maker and a grilling set, both of which we were pumped about! After an few hours there, we headed over to my grandmother's house to meet Santa (which will be a separate post). After taking pictures with him, we packed back up and headed back to Raleigh to my parents' house. Monday we celebrated Christmas with my parents, brother and sister-in-law, our niece and nephew, and my grandmother. This year we decided to have the adults draw names and it was so nice!! It was fun getting to see who had who to buy for and what they picked out for us! My dad drew me and got me the drying rack I wanted and a new rotary cutter. My brother had Greg and got him extra caffeinated K-Cups for his new Keurig. Caroline got a some new toys, outfits, and cloth diapers. We loved watching the kids open their gifts, their ages are just SO fun this year! On Tuesday, we woke up bright and early and headed back home to Georgia. I was SO glad that we were able to make the trip and spend time with my family!

Our next celebration was the Friday before Christmas with Greg's extended family. Cindy and Thomas hosted this year and we had a great time! The food was so delicious and we had a BLAST playing all the Minute to Win It games Cindy had planned. The first game was to see how many cups you could stack with your dominate hand behind your back, the second game was seeing who could blow their cup across the table the fastest using a straw, the third was balancing pencils on the back of your hand and tossing them up and see how many you could catch, the last was a marshmallow tossing game, but I came in during the end of it so I'm not sure of the objective. It was so much fun seeing everyone's competitive side! After games, the kids all opened their gifts and then the adults played a fun Secret Santa game where each number has a little poem that went with it and told you what gift to get or who to steal from. We ended up with a decorative clock and a movie gift card. We had such a fun time!

Our next celebration was our own little family's! A couple of years ago we started the tradition of celebrating together on Christmas Eve, so we continued with that this year. This was such a special year for us because we've added our sweet baby girl to our family. We talked about how we couldn't get over how last year we were hoping and praying to get pregnant, and this year we were celebrating as a family of three! Caroline was pretty fussy all evening, so we waited to open our gifts to one another until after she was put to bed. Greg got me several new shirts, two pair of boots, pajamas, The Help dvd, and a night away at Lake Blackshear Lodge and Resort, which we will be going to in March! I got Greg a few shirts, wallet, 2 belts, k-cups, and 12 pre-planned/pre-paid dates- one for each month of the year! One Christmas morning, Greg got up with Caroline so I could sleep in a bit longer (so sweet) and then we took pictures of Caroline with her gifts from Santa! Santa got some great deals over the past several months so the gifts have been stored for a while =) She a got a musical table, tiny diner place mat, snack cups, sippy cups, shape sorts, stacking blocks/cups, and a few more goodies! We spent the day in our pajamas then got ready to go to Cindy and Thomas' for our last celebration.

Our last celebration at Cindy and Thomas' was a great way to end the Christmas season. We all enjoyed a delicious meal by Cindy before heading to the living room for our gift opening extravaganza! It was truly a sight to see the tons of gifts under the tree...blessed for sure!! SJ was SO cute this year opening his gifts! It made me excited for next year, since Caroline will be about 3 months younger than that. SJ and Caroline slept through most of the gift opening (although Caroline decided it would be a good idea to cry though a lot of it), but the adults ans KA had a great time going around one by one and opening our gifts. I always love seeing what everyone gets! We received SO many sweet gifts! Greg got several new accessories for his Big Green Egg, some new clothes, and more and I got some nice new sweaters, several gorgeous scarves, a new crockpot and dutch oven, and lots more! Caroline racked up as well with tons of new cloth diapers, outfits, a photo session, books, headbands and more! We had a fabulous time with everyone but had to hurry out after the gift opening to put a very tired girl to bed! She gave us her own Christmas present that night by sleeping 9 straight hours!!

As mentioned before, Christmas was a whirlwind this year, but despite all of the hustle and bustle, we always remember the reason for the season and thank the Lord for what this holiday truly means. We have been abundantly blessed and I hope to never take it for granted!

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One Month...

Caroline turned one month old on Tuesday! I just can't believe it! In some ways it seems like time has absolutely flown and in others it seems like she's been here a lot longer than a month. I know everything is a first with a newborn, but with it being the holiday season it seems like we have packed in a ton of firsts into the first month! Some of the big ones are first Thanksgiving, first time meeting Santa, first road trip to North Carolina(!), and of course all the others like first bath, first nap in her crib (and partial night), first doctor's appointment, first time out in public, etc. We have had so much fun getting to know her and figuring out this parenting thing =) She truly is such a sweet baby and we have been so blessed with how "easy" she is (pray this continues lol). She is a great sleeper at night (we're still working on days) and a great eater, which are such huge blessings! To have a one month old sleeping 5-6 consecutive hours, waking to eat and going right back to sleep for about 3-4 more hours is HUGE! Here are some one month facts about Caroline that I'd like to remember:

What she loves:

• Being held! She is definitely spoiled in this department. I'm pretty sure she didn't get put down AT ALL while we were in NC! And of course, she is asleep on me as I type this =)
• Bath time. She is so content in the tub and only cries when you wash her hair (and that's only sometimes) and when you take her out. But she stops when you lotion her up after her bath.
  
• Being swaddled...but only at night.
• Riding in the car- praise the Lord! Hope this on sticks!
• Being patted on the back...f.o.r.e.v.e.r.
• the Moby Wrap- only if she is in the mood.
  

What she is not a fan of:

• her pacifier...I'm working on this because she sucks on her hands and I don't want a thumb sucker
• naps...lame. Not everyday.
  
• Being swaddled during the day
• Wet diapers...if she is crying she is either tired, hungry, or wet... she doesn't mind poopy diapers which is lovely lol.
• Her carseat when it is not moving

One Month Stats:

• Weight: 9 lbs even (41%)
  
• Length: 21.75 in...which is still up in the air. At birth they say she was 21.5 inches, at her first appointment they said she was 20.75 inches...so either she shrunk lol, or the got it wrong in the hospital. either way (84%)
• Eating: every 3 hours, around 3-3.5 ounces
• Sleeping: Our routine is a bath around 8:45, eat around 9pm, put down for bed around 10pm. Wakes to eat around 3-3:30am, sleeps until 6ish and wakes to eat, sleeps until around 8:30 and eats at 9am to start our schedule for the day.

Milestones:

• First Real Smile- TODAY!!

Randoms:

• Baby acne came on STRONG this past week...booo!!
  

More pics from this month:

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2 weeks old...

Well, this post is a few days late, but oh well! I can't believe Caroline is already 2.5 weeks old! When people say time flies, they aren't lying! All of my days run together and I absolutely cannot believe how quickly December is going by. I feel like a recluse because I can't take her out yet, so we spend the days chillin inside which is only so much fun for a few days. I've taken her out a few times just in the car so I can grab lunch or something...and because she falls asleep immediately in the car (I promise not to make that a habit lol). The past 2 weeks have been exciting, exhausting, sweet, eye-opening, and so much more! I really enjoyed having my mom and dad here for a few extra days, because that was a HUGE help!! And a few afternoons this week Cindy has come to keep her while I take a nap, which is also a huge help because Caroline has decided it's a good idea to stay awake pretty much all day. However, she is awesome at night, so I figure it evens out! Last night I was d.o.n.e. after a full day of barely any napping and a lot of crying, so Greg took over around 8:30 for bath time and I went to bed until it was time for her to eat again and that was excellent! Then she slept most of the night...success! Other than her lack of wanting to nap during the day, Caroline is an excellent baby! She is so sweet and is generally content...especially if she is being held. I've tried really hard not to just sit around and hold her all day...buuut then I figure she's only this little for such a short time and I've held so many other babies all day, so why not hold my own?! I'll probably pay for it later when she won't sleep in her crib, but until then it's a price I'm willing to pay =) She is a great eater which has been such a blessing because I was nervous about not being able to breastfeed. Now I will say, this has to be one of the most selfless acts of all time because it hurts like hell most of the time, no one else can help out, takes forever, and there have been days where she cluster feeds and has literally nursed for almost 3 hours straight...and yes, we were both crying! BUT despite all that, I do enjoy it and I enjoy knowing I'm doing the best thing for her. On that note, Caroline successfully took a bottle from her daddy this week which made me SO happy! We had tried before with the Avent bottles and she nearly drowned herself, so I went and bought the Tommee Tippee bottles and she did great! Hooray for being able to share feedings with Greg and babysitters! She also started to take a pacifier much better this week. I was hesitant to introduce it, but she keeps her hands in her mouth otherwise, even at times when I know she isn't hungry, she's just trying to soothe herself. She hated the paci at first but the past 2 days she has taken it pretty well. That's about all the time I have for now...time to go feed a hungry girl!

Thanksgiving...

We obviously had a LOT to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, but top of the list would have to be our sweet baby girl who was born just four days before Thanksgiving day. This year was, of course, MUCH more low key than previous years and we celebrated turkey day by my grandmother cooking our traditional Thanksgiving meal at our house and eating it with her and my parents. We had to skip out on Greg's family's celebration this year since it included the extended family and we couldn't take her around that many people yet. Plus, with just two days of being home, I'm not sure I would've been able to make it out myself! However, we still got a sweet visit from GiGi, Granddad, Aunt Katie, Uncle Saunders, and Katie Anne and SJ. This was Caroline's first time getting to meet her cousins so I was excited about that! SJ is SO cute with her and kept smiling so big every time he looked at her. Katie Anne was adorable as well and I know that Caroline will look up to her so much and have so much fun following her around! It was a relaxed day of eating and football watching and baby holding...the perfect Thanksgiving! Unfortunately, we didn't have the flash on the camera so all of the pictures are very yellow. Oh well! At least I remembered to take a picture lol.

(They're not uploading...I'll try again later- someone tiny has to eat)

Our Hospital Stay...

We made it to our recovery room around 9ish and had nurses with us until around midnight. At that point we had been awake almost 40 straight hours and were e.x.h.a.u.s.t.e.d! Caroline's temperature was low, so they had to keep coming to check her and finally take her to put her under a warming lamp, so that postponed nursing a bit which I was really worried about, but luckily she's a great eater so the delay didn't seem to impact her. The first night was great! We stayed up for a little bit longer just looking at her and talking about how perfect we think she is...typical new parent stuff. She barely made a peep and we were both so tired that we both actually fell asleep. I was so paranoid though that she would stop breathing for some reason so I kept waking up to look at her and make sure she was breathing haha. Monday we enjoyed visits from our family and a few friends. We really appreciated our parents bringing food because the hospital food was pretty bad and that way Greg could have something other than McDonald's. Monday night was a little bit more difficult than the previous night, as Caroline decided that would be a good time to party, but considering she only cried on and off for a couple of hours and the baby next door screamed all.night.long...I'd say we still had it pretty easy! Tuesday morning our nurse came in to tell us that we would be getting to go home as soon as Caroline's jaundice results were back. We were so excited to be getting to go home! Even though she did have jaundice, it wasn't bad enough to keep her, so around 2pm we packed up and headed home! The nurses at Northside were AMAZING and we really appreciated all there help, but we were so glad to be getting things started "for real."

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Caroline's Birth Story...

Saturday we woke up to another morning of no baby! Since we already had our induction set for Sunday, I didn't have my hopes set too high on going into labor on my own, even though I really, really wanted to. Throughout the day I was pretty crampy, but I had been having Braxton Hicks and cramps for about 2 months, so it didn't really bother me. Greg and I spent the day relaxing and running a few errands (one being taking back a few newborn clothes since we had been told she would probably weigh around 9lb 2 oz), then we went to Henry's for dessert that evening. We went to bed around 10:00 and watched a movie. Around 11:15pm I had a few pretty strong contractions, but decided to just go to sleep and see if they passed. By 12am they were too strong to stay in bed, so I went and got on the computer and started timing. They were already consistently 6-7 minutes apart and I timed for over an hour before going to tell Greg that this may be the real deal. Around 1:30 they moved to around 4-5 minutes apart and were VERY strong. I called my midwife, Judy, and told her what was going on and she said, "well, do you wanna have a baby today? If so, come on over and I will meet you in labor and delivery!" I woke up Greg and told him we were going to be going to the hospital so I was going to take a shower. We both got ready very quickly and were out the door by around 2:15am. The contractions were painful but bearable at this point and I remember thinking "I'm already 4 minutes apart, I must at least be getting close to 5 or 6 cm, I can do this natural thing after all"...how little did I know =) Once we got to the hospital and checked in, my midwife- who I am SOO thankful was on call she is my favorite in the practice and I've seen her the most- came in to check me. Well guess what? I had barely changed from Friday! I was still sitting at barely 3 cm! This was very discouraging because the contractions were already pretty painful and I knew we had quite a ways to go. We decided to walk the halls for a while to see if that would move things along. I spent the early morning walking, sitting on my yoga ball, using all kinds of Bradley stretches and relaxation techniques, and by around 9:30 am I was in PAIN! Greg was AMAZING and the absolute perfect couch, but the contractions were coming so close together that there didn't seem to be a break in between. I started getting very nauseous and eventually got sick in between contractions. I had the midwife come back and check me around 10am, and guess what?! STILL only around 3 cm!! After almost 11 hours of active labor, I'd barely progressed a full cm! I was SO upset because I knew I couldn't take it anymore and if I didn't have some kind of relief I was going to be too exhausted when it came time for pushing. So, I finally had to throw my "plan" out the window and go for the epidural. I cried about it and felt disappointed that I couldn't go unmedicated the way I had wanted and planned, but I knew it was right for me at the time. So around 10:45 I got the epidural and then guess what...I was in heaven! I finally felt like I could breathe and I was able to enjoy the whole process. Around 3 pm, Judy came in to check me and to break my water. FINALLY some progress! I was already 7 cm, which was music to my ears! She told me that after my water broke, things would probably go even faster so she was going to be back in little bit to start pushing! I was so excited! She came back around 6pm, checked me and said, "well, are you ready to start pushing?" Greg and I just looked at each other and grinned, we were PUMPED! After the first couple of pushes Judy said that she didn't think I'd be pushing long so she recruited some nurses and told them to get ready because this baby was going to come fast. I ended up asking for the mirror so I could see everything and I was so glad I did because, I could see the progress the pushes were making and it encouraged me to push harder. After 40 minutes of pushing, our sweet baby girl was placed on my chest! It was SO emotional and Greg and I were were both crying and trying to look at her. After a few minutes, they took her to the table to clean her up and to let Judy stitch me up. Greg went and stood with Caroline to take pictures and watch her get weighed. After a few minutes she was brought back over to me. It was so surreal finally getting to hold my baby girl who I had been carrying around for 9.5 months! Greg was AWESOME and was so encouraging through the whole labor and my midwife was amazing! After a few minutes of just the three of us, Greg went to tell the family that Caroline was here! We had everyone come back to see her before we headed up to our recovery room, but it was a quick visit because they were trying to get us upstairs quickly. I'll stop here for now and write about our stay next...

Anxiously awaiting daddy!

Before the epidural

Caroline Gray makes her appearance at 7:09pm!

Weighed in at 8lb even and 21 and 1/2 in long
Me and Judy- my midwife

Getting to hold my baby girl for the first time =) Heaven!!

Out with the old...

Day 19:

Ever since we moved into the house we made a checklist of things we wanted to change or update, and a few of those things were our kitchen appliances. We got the dishwasher first, then did so many other things around the house we kept putting off the stove and refrigerator. Well, for the past couple of weeks we've been deciding on what new stove to get and then decided we really wanted a new refrigerator first, SO we did lots of shopping around and then just happened to browse Craigslist and happened to find one of the ones we were looking at! It is only a year old, and a fraction of the cost! Brand new it cost around $2,000 and we got it for less than $500...DEAL ALERT! They were selling it so cheap because they had actually won it in a Lowes' survey a year ago, and now they were moving and their new house already had a new refrigerator. Score! So, Thursday night Cindy and Thomas came over to help us go pick it up and then Thomas came back last night to help Greg switch it out with our old one. Unfortunately, our measurements were slightly off, and it wouldn't fit under our cabinets, but luckily Greg and Thomas are two of the handiest men I know, so they simply sawed and sanded the trim of the cabinet and it was able to fit perfectly. I'm SO glad to have a side-by-side instead of our old one and this one has so much more room which is nice. Next up is our stove, which we will get in a few weeks, we figure we'll wait until things calm down a bit considering we'll be having a baby in the next few days =)

I forgot to take a picture of the old one, but I did find a picture of the kitchen...

In with the new...

Just an update...

Day 18:

Well...I missed a day. Oops. Oh well, I will continue on in the challenge as long as I can =)

First a picture since I forgot to post one with my 40 week survey...
....looking a little bit like Barney.

Our day started bright and early (well, mine started around 4am...seems to be a good time to wake up for no good reason) and headed to the doctor for our ultrasound. They wanted to check and make sure everything looks healthy and that there is still plenty of amniotic fluid and such for Caroline and to measure her. Everything looks great and they say she looks super healthy which is music to my hears, but what was not so exciting was after the technician plugged in all the measurements she said "hmm...let me check these again, because maybe these are wrong" and then said "nope, they're all right! Looks like you're going to have a big baby! She's measuring in the 92 percentile and estimated to weigh around 9 pounds 2 ounces!"...yikes! They told us on Wednesday that thought she was a big girl, but hearing a more precise measurement certainly made me nervous about pushing this baby out unmedicated...however, I'm still going to give it a shot! After the ultrasound, we headed over to see our midwife. She suggested since Caroline is so big already and since I'll be 41 weeks on Sunday, that we go ahead and try to induce. Fortunately, she has been awesome in working with what we want and trying to stick to our "plan" that she is going to try and help us avoid pitocin so I can have the best chance of not having an epidural. However, I've come to terms with the fact that my "plan" may not work out just the way I want it to, and I'm ok with that. I just want to have my girl here! It is so crazy to think that wait is almost over and by Monday we should be holding our daughter! The midwife checked me again today and said there is a VERY good chance I will go into labor on my own before Sunday because I am 2 cm and 100% effaced and Caroline is very low, so I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that happens! We will see soon enough =)

After a morning of appointments and a long afternoon nap, Greg and I went on one last date to see Breaking Dawn and then to dinner at La Bamba. I was SO glad I got to see the movie in the theater, because I was so bummed whenever the trailer was released and I saw it came out the 18th...maybe Caroline just wanted me to be able to see it haha! After dinner we came home and had Thomas come over to move in our new refrigerator! It is so much better than our old one, and I'll post about that tomorrow!

Sitting, Wating, Wishing...

Day 16:

Well, here we are...stilllll pregnant. I know that the due date is "just an estimate" but you do create this mental finish line, so when it comes and goes, it's a bit disappointing. I'm still only around 2 cm dilated and my midwife stripped my membranes yesterday-that was pleasant. So, IF that is going to help speed things along any, we should see some movement within 48 hours of that happening. Tomorrow we have an ultrasound scheduled to measure Caroline. They are guessing she is around 8lb 8 oz...big girl already! We considered being induced, even though it's been against our "plan" from the beginning, but since they couldn't do it Friday and the earliest was Sunday we chose to just wait it out as planned. So, still waiting and hoping she gets here soon! Greg has worked from home since last Thursday and will continue to do so until she is born, so we're hoping she comes over the weekend so he has the most time home with us. We are certainly on pins and needles as we wait for our baby girl! This is not working well for my type 'A' planning personality =)

Tasty Tuesday...

Day 15:

(This picture is from Pinterest)

This soup as become one of our favorites! It is SO easy and SO delicious. I add a bit of cayenne to add some heat, and it hits the spot every time! Enjoy!

Crock Pot Chicken Corn Chowder

can of rotel
can of corn
can of black beans (drained & rinsed)
2-3 frozen chicken breasts,
8 oz cream cheese
1 packet dry ranch dressing (I use spicy ranch)
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
Put all ingredients in crock pot and cook 6-8 hours. Shred chicken, and enjoy!

Musical Monday...

Day 14:

I am pretty much a sucker for any musical talent show- American Idol, The Sing-Off, The Voice, and now The X-Factor. I told myself I wasn't going to watch the X-Factor because I thought it was just a stupid play off of American Idol...but who was I kidding? I've watched from day one and love it! There are several similarities between it and AI but several difference as well. There are a few contestants that I really like so here they are with my favorite performance so far...

This girl, Rachel Crow, is SO stinking cute! Her personality is just adorable AND to top it off...she is only 13-years-old! Just think of how incredible her voice will be after a little training (even though it is already pretty awesome)!


This is Melanie Amaro, probably my favorite girl and the most talented in the whole show. Beautiful voice...


This is Josh Krajick. I. Love. His. Voice! May be tied for first in my opinion with Melanie, but definitely the best guy!



Anyway, if you like these type of shows, check this one out =)

Due Date...

Day 13:
I was hoping I'd get to skip this survey and instead have a picture of a sweet baby! Oh well, I guess she's just going to make keep us on our toes even longer...

How Far Along:40 weeks

Size of baby: a watermelon=)


Total Weight Gain/Loss: a whole bunch...but I've only gained a pound in the past 2 weeks and based on how I've eaten, I'm pleased with that!

Maternity Clothes: Are a bit more like circus tents these days

Gender: Sweet baby girl!!!!!

Movement: Every day! She like to cram herself in to my right side...quite pleasant.

What I miss: Energy, being able to breath normally, and sleep

Sleep: I've accepted the fact that it will probably be a LONG time before I get a good night's sleep again.

Symptoms: LOTS of Braxton Hicks, which is always fun because that just gets us excited.

Cravings: Oranges and Bananas. I've eaten a bag of oranges and probably 2-3 bunches of bananas in a WEEK!

Best Moment this week: Greg had Friday off, and we had a false alarm on Thursday so he was here all day with me then too, so I've enjoyed our nice long weekend together! I also enjoyed Jill coming over to watch a movie with me and hang out.

What we are looking forward to: FINALLY getting to meet Caroline!

40 Week Picture:

I'm not in the picture mood(aka still in pjs)...so I will try to remember to post one later =)

Simple Saturday...

Day 12:

This is basically just a post to say I've written in today. We started our morning with breakfast and then taking the dogs to the dog park to enjoy the beautiful weather, let them get some energy out, and to walk the track to try and walk this baby out! We only succeeded in two out three of those goals...bummer. We enjoyed walking and talking together though and watching Jackson and Chance run around like two crazies. A lady at the park asked when we were due and was quite shocked when I told her tomorrow and said "Oh my gosh! I thought you were going to say some time around Christmas!" Everyone was surprised and this one guy said, "Please tell me you two have cell phones with you in case you need to call 911" haha. After a nice walk, we came home for some lunch then waited for Jill to get to the house for a movie day. It was nice getting to spend some time with her and just hang around catching up. After she left, Greg and I watched the last Harry Potter and now we are off to bed!! Simple Saturdays are fine by me!! How quickly our time to just sit around and watch movies all day will be gone, so we better enjoy it now =)

PS- Tomorrow is the due date!! Considering both Greg and I are always on time for things, if not early, I would like to think she'll follow in our footsteps =) Who knows...she may start off rebelling from the beginning!

Friday Confessions...

Day 11:
Here are a few confessions from the week and just in general...

• I am over being pregnant. Over. It. I want my baby, I want to be able to walk normally again without waddling or feeling like my hips are about to bust out of socket or without shooting pain that runs from the middle of my back to my ankles. And lots more. I suppose nature does this on purpose so you don't mind the pain of childbirth as much.
• I have eaten TERRIBLY this week. Wednesday particularly and even felt compelled to have a confession session with Greg that night about just how much sugar I had that day. Embarrassing.
• I am super paranoid about my water breaking in public, specifically at Publix because I am there pretty much every day so I feel like I know everyone and I would never be able to go back. I purposefully made my last trip to Publix (hopefully) earlier this week so I wouldn't have to chance anything.
• Nesting has somewhat set in this week and yesterday I got up at 6am to clean the toilets, vacuum the upstairs, dust the fans, wipe down kitchen counters and the sink, and laundry. However, I couldn't bring myself to sweep which I desperately need to, simply because I didn't want to bend down to use the dust pan to pick up the trash. Laziness.
• I've been ridiculously bored at home since I've quit working. It definitely makes me rethink any thoughts of being a stay-at-home-mom. (And I know what you're thinking...aren't you basically that as a nanny?...the answer is no)
• I'm sure I can think of plenty more things to "confess" but I'll save you. I really just needed a Friday post for NaBloPoMo =)

Thankful Thursday...

Day 10:

I am SO thankful that I've had such a healthy pregnancy! I'm thankful we were able to get pregnant in the first place and that it only took about 2 months. What a huge, huge blessing and such an answered prayer! We are completely overjoyed and so, so ready to meet out sweet girl!!

Wednesday Wisdom...

Day 9:
For the past couple of months I have been involved in a Wednesday morning women's Bible study at our church. The study we are doing is called Spiritual Parenting by Michele Anthony
It has been SO interesting and inspiring! Every Wednesday I leave with so many new thoughts and ideas about parenting, and things I look forward to incorporating into our family as Caroline gets older and our family continues to grow. It's so easy to forget who is really "first in charge" (God) and to constantly take matters into our own hands, when if we would just take time to stop and pray and truly seek God's counsel in raising children we could avoid so much frustration (not saying you'll never be frustrated of course). We're only about halfway through the book, but here are my favorite "ah-ha" moments from the book so far...

• Our goal is to create a transforming faith in our children by setting eternal goals for them, not just temporal ones.
• Considering chores as "acts of service" rather than chores, so that kids understand that they are part of a family and therefore will work together to serve each other for the good of the entire family. (This whole chapter was very interesting and one of my favorites).
• Teaching kids about the "Big God Story" and where they can find there role/identity in it.
• Creating an environment of service not only in your home, but in your child's heart. We are all called to be servants so as parents we should create opportunities for children to serve others and not just themselves.
• Creating an environment of responsibility

These are VERY broad key points that are discussed in better detail in the book, but they've each given me some great things to think about.

Anyway...lots of learning on Wednesdays =)

Tasty Tuesday...

Day 8:

Crock pot Chicken Taco Chili

I found this recipe on Pinterest, but it actually comes from this blog. We love it! It's so easy and so yummy, pretty healthy, and perfect for this cool Fall weather! I've made it super spicy lately so maybe it will help get Caroline moving haha! Anyway, try it out and enjoy =)

Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili
Servings:

1 onion, chopped
1 16-oz can black beans
1 16-oz can kidney beans
1 8-oz can tomato sauce (used a 16 oz can)
10 oz package frozen corn kernels (used 2 small cans of corn kernels)
2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies (used a 28 oz can of diced tomatoes)
1 packet taco seasoning
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp chili powder (used a bit more as I didn't have any chilies in my tomatoes)
24 0z. (3) boneless skinless chicken breasts
chili peppers, chopped (optional)
chopped fresh cilantro

Combine beans, onion, chili peppers, corn, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder and taco seasoning in a slow cooker. Place chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream.

Date Night...

Day 7:
Last night we decided it was now or never to go out to dinner just the two of us, because we may not get a chance to again for a little while. We had plans of this on Saturday, but we were both so tired we stayed in instead. Our original plans were to go to one of our favorite restaurants, Henry's, but we forgot about it being closed on Sundays so we went to another all time favorite, the Ok Cafe. So so unhealthy and so so delicious!!! It was definitely worth every fattening bite =) And of course we washed our dinner down with their very yummy banana bread pudding!! It was nice to go out and enjoy what time is left just the two of us! We talked about how excited we are for Caroline to get here, what things we're looking forward to most, what we think we'll miss the most, and how happy we are to be opening this new chapter together! There is absolutely no other person on this earth I'd rather share parenthood with than Greg. We had a fun time and I'm glad we made time for it before she gets here! I'm sure our next dinner out will be much different =)

39 Weeks...

Day 6:
Hopefully this is my LAST survey for the pregnancy =) Not too much has changed in a week but for memory's sake I wanted to record SOMETHING the last week! however I'll switch this one up by recording what I loved about pregnancy and what I could've done without =)


How Far Along:39 weeks

Size of baby: a watermelon=)
Things that I loved:

• Feeling her move for the first time and then feeling her move everyday
• Watching her roll in my stomach
• Being fortunate enough to have not really experience morning sickness or really any major illness during the entire pregnancy
• Smiles from strangers just because I'm huge haha
• Maternity clothes...I'll miss the stretchy pants haha
  
• Hearing her heartbeat at each appointment
• The excitement of finding out whether we would be having a son or daughter
• Planning and decorating her nursery with Greg
• Buying cute clothes and day dreaming about dressing her up in them
  
• Seeing Greg SO excited about meeting her and waking up in the mornings to him saying "Anything yet?! I was hoping today was the day!"
• Lots more I'm sure, I'll add as I think of things...

Things that were not so pleasant:

• The backaches. I've had trouble with my back basically since the second month and now it is terrible.
• Having zero energy this past month
• The lack of sleep from the back and hip pain
• the Braxton Hicks- 1) because they are quite uncomfortable and 2) because they get my hopes up that it's the real thing, only to be sorely disappointed that it's not
• The stretchmarks...I'll get over it eventually. It could be WAY worse.

Overall, this pregnancy has been remarkably easy and I feel SO blessed that we were able to get pregnant so quickly and have everything go as smoothly as it has so far. I feel like a jerk complaining about anything, but with everything said, pregnancy is/was still harder than I expected, although I certainly realize it could be so much worse. I am SO beyond ready to meet our sweet girl and I am counting down the days, hours, and minutes until that happens =)

39 Week Picture:
(Sorry for the poor picture quality, it was dark and I didn't have the flash on and the ones with the flash were terrible)

Sing-a-long Saturday...

Day 5:

I thought I would share the musical stylings of two of my cuties! These are the twin 2-year-old girls I kept on Fridays...So cute!

Candy Stealers...

Day 4:



This video absolutely cracks.me.up! Basically just because of the two kids at the end..those boys are HILARIOUS! This totally something we would do as joke, just to see the reaction! Terrible, but oh so funny!

Thankful Thursday

Day 3:

Surprise, surprise...I'm SO thankful for this guy!!!

Greg is a phenomenal husband and I am SOOO very thankful that he is mine =) He is an incredible person and I feel so blessed that this is the role model of a man that our children will have!
I'm doubling up on this Thankful Thursday because I am also thankful for Greg's job! This week, Greg had his one year review with his new company and not only did he receive an awesome promotion,he also scored one of the highest evaluation scores anyone in the company has ever made. Needless to say, I am one proud wife =) Greg is fantastic at what he does and his "new" job has been such a blessing to us!

(Somewhat) Wordless Wednesday...

Day 2:
Someone is starting to pout about being replaced as the baby of the family....
...then again he could also be mad at us for letting his hair get so long, BUT he does have a hair cut scheduled so he's not totally neglected. I was just waiting as close to the due date as we could make it so we won't have to cut them again for a while. However, the outcome of the wait is two ewoks =)

November...

Day 1:
Well, we all know what this means right?...
What's that you say? I'm crazy for even attempting to do something as time consuming and silly as writing at least one post a day for the next 30 days?! Well, yes you are probably correct but this is a challenge I've completed (I believe) for the past 3 years, so why stop now? Granted, I'll probably have a lot of "theme" days (wordless wednesdays, thankful thursdays, etc) and nothing too inspirational or mind-blowing to write about...however, stay tuned because with November, also comes a sweet baby girl who I am sure I will have lots to say about =)

38 Weeks...

How Far Along:38 weeks

Size of baby: a watermelon=)


Total Weight Gain/Loss: I made a mistake by looking over my medical records which happened to have my weight on it...let's just say I'll worry about that later.

Maternity Clothes: Are a bit more like circus tents these days

Gender: Sweet baby girl!!!!!

Movement: Every day! Still love watching her move and roll!

What I miss: Energy, being able to breath normally, and sleep

Sleep: I've accepted the fact that it will probably be a LONG time before I get a good night's sleep again.

Symptoms: Nothing too new- lots of braxton hicks contractions and hip and back pain,

Cravings: Cold cereal still and Chick-fil-a

Best Moment this week: Spending a few quiet nights together just hanging out "unplugged." We're trying to cherish the time left just the two of us =)

What we are looking forward to: Her actually being here! We literally CANNOT WAIT and wake up every morning wishing she would come already!

38Week Picture:

Practice Makes Perfect...

So, yesterday afternoon we got to practice our leaving for the hospital routine =) Thursday evening I started up with my usual Braxton Hicks contractions that have been coming fairly regularly at night for past couple weeks. I knew this was nothing to worry about because they weren't getting stronger like real contractions would and they weren't developing any sort of pattern, however, what was concerning me was that they were lasting a lot longer than they ever had and I noticed I was "leaking" (I know you wanted to know lol). So, naturally I was a bit concerned that perhaps my water was breaking very slowly, and after 4.5 hours of the contractions I called the nurses station. They said to just take a warm bath and keep an eye on things because it did sound like the early stages of labor. After a long bath, things subsided and I went to bed. Throughout the weekend the Braxton Hicks and leaking continued, so yesterday I decided I'd give them another call JUST IN CASE, simply because I had heard that 1)it's more common for your water to leak rather than gush and 2) I didn't want to risk there not being enough amniotic fluid for Caroline and put her in any distress. Well, the midwife said yes, this was a bit of a concern and to meet her at the hospital in an hour and a half and be prepared to stay just in case I was low on fluid and they needed to go ahead and induce. Greg and I ran and took showers, finished packing our bags, straightened up the house, installed the car seat, packed up the dog's food, in record time! We were nervous but trying not to get too excited because we knew it was probably nothing. Plus, I REALLY REALLY do not want to be induced because I've heard with pitocin, it is much harder to make it through labor without an epidural which is my goal, so I was very anxious about this being a possibility. Fortunately, after a few hours at the hospital and 3-4 tests later, everything came back fine and we were able to go home. We were a little disappointed to be leaving without a baby, simply because at that point we had pumped ourselves up for it, but in end it is so much better for her to have a few more weeks to finish baking =) We are also totally ready for when the real time comes now and just left everything in the car! It's also nice that all of our paper work is finished so now we won't have to worry about that either next time around! It was also exciting because we know that we are only a few weeks away from meeting Caroline for real (hopefully sooner rather than later)!! Fun times ahead for sure =)

3 years and counting...

I told you I would get to my sappy anniversary post =)

Today we celebrated our anniversary by a homemade meal, gifts, and going to one of our favorite places for dessert, Henry's. We were lame and completely forgot to take pictures, but Greg gave me a beautiful new Brighton necklace and a super sweet card and I gave Greg a frame for his desk for Caroline (symbolic of our biggest milestone during year 3) and new dress shoes haha (you're suppose to give leather on the 3rd anniversary, plus he desperately needed new shoes)! Anyway, much more low key than the past years and we wouldn't have had it any other way =)

This anniversary was super special too because it's our last one just the two of us! Over the past few days we've been talking about our highlights of the past 3 years and what we love about our marriage, and I must say it is a true blessing to have SO many highlights to reflect on and SO many things that we love about our relationship! Greg never ceases to amaze me and he truly is an incredible husband, friend, provider, leader, soon-to-be daddy, and man in general. I consider it a blessing to still thank God for him daily and to be so over the hills in love with him every day.

Anyway, here are some pictures of us throughout year three of marriage =)

It's been an awesome year for sure =)

3 year Anniversary Celebration...

Tuesday will be our 3 year anniversary! We decided to celebrate this weekend, just in case there was any baby action next weekend =) This was definitely our most low-key anniversary but it was really nice to be able to just spend the day together enjoying the gorgeous weather and a delicious dinner! We started off our day with driving to Ellijay for the Apple Festival. Last year we attempted to go and sat in traffic for about 45 minutes, still 20+ miles outside of Ellijay, and ended up turning around and going home. So this year, we expected the same and left early, but were pleasantly surprised with NO traffic and a front row parking spot! We were even there just a little bit before everything got started. I LOVE crafts shows, and there were so many fun things to look at, but the beauty of being somewhat crafty yourself, is knowing you can go home and make the same things for a fraction of the cost instead of buying it =) Since we were there so early, we didn't get to truly enjoy the best part which was all the yummy food, but I still left with a caramel apple which I really wanted. Plus we were holding out for our fried apple pies from Panorama on the way home. After seeing everything, we headed home with a stop at Panorama for our tasty pies and some fresh apples for (hopefully) some baking this week! We spent the rest of the day lazing around the house (which was SO nice, especially after such a rough day on Friday...WAY overdid it and ended up spending 2.5 hours on the couch with contractions that night...fun fun)! After naps, we got ready to go to dinner at Benihana. Hibachi definitely hit the spot!! Everything was SO good but we were STUFFED when we left. The plan was to go see the Ides of March after dinner, but it was sold out once we made it to the theater. It was already close to 9pm and I didn't think I'd be able to make it through a 10:30 movie (lame I know), so we headed home and watched a movie there instead. We had an exceptional day together celebrating 3 years of a beautiful marriage! I'll write up our sappy ACTUAL 3 year anniversary post on Tuesday =)

Waiting for the festival to open

Enjoying his fried apple pie

Dinner at Benihana's