Countdown...

1 week, 4 days and counting.

The doctor says that "nothing's happening" and I should not worry about the fact that he is on vacation for the upcoming week; I'm not likely to have her.  (I wouldn't be too terribly upset if that jinxes the whole thing and I go into labor immediately!)  The doctor ALSO says our sweet little girl may not be so little after all.  As of this past Wednesday, she was measuring 8lbs 1oz, gaining about an oz a day!  Now, they do say that the measurements are typically about 6oz heavy, but nonetheless, he is predicting 8.5 - 9lbs by delivery!

I'm also getting bigger by the day - literally.  The swelling is in full force, so my feet, hands and face are puffier every single day.  (The doctor is also not concerned about this since I've had absolutely no blood pressure issues and continue to remain normal.)  It just makes for some good laughs by the end of each day...my anklebones and kneecaps are nowhere to be found!!  I'm up a lot at night, trying to get comfortable and/or back and forth from the restroom, but I still feel like I'm sleeping pretty well compared to other pregnant women at this phase.  (I guess it's good that I sleep so heavily and don't have problems falling asleep!)  It's pretty funny the way God designed pregnancy - a few months ago, I would say I had a bit of nervousness about labor and delivery.  But to cure that, He just makes you so uncomfortable that you just want them to hurry up and come, no matter what!!!  Who says He doesn't have a sense of humor?

We've been doing a lot to get ready for Miss Addison.  Her Uncle Mark came and spent the weekend with us a few weeks ago and helped me paint her nightstand, since that's not Scott's favorite thing.

He was a good sport and helped me with the parts I couldn't reach!

Then mom came last weekend to "babysit" me while Scott went fishing with Bryan.  Even though they stayed in Austin, Scott was worried I'd go into labor while they were in the middle of the lake and therefore felt I needed supervision.  So mom and I used the time to wash clothes, fix the nursery, and do all the little decorative things.  Then Shana came yesterday to help me put the finishing touches on...so we are done!!!  Scott is installing the car seat as we speak (type) and he made me pack my suitcase and has had it in his car since last weekend.  Always prepared.  My boss is begging me to make it thru this week, and then she's given me the "green light" to go into labor.  So I am playing nice for now.  But next weekend...game on - I will be eating large amounts of Mexican food and walking all over town!

Here are some pictures of her nursery:

 The crib was Neisha's that she used with both of her kiddos.  

This dresser was my grandfather's that I painted and used all thru college.

There was a Struby standoff regarding hanging a shelf on the wall, but the result was Scott agreeing to move this bookcase that used to be in his office...I think it was a win-win move!  Mom and I also stumbled across some cute little decals, so Addison has patches of tulips around her room. :)

She's already her Daddy's girl.

A beautiful blankie made by her Aunt Meg!

The finished nightstand, and a patch of tulips 

Her quilt and a teddy bear that was her Daddy's favorite as a little boy! (apparently he liked the "fingernails")

Her first pair of ballet shoes!  They are from Ashley - we met in ballet class when we were 3.

I hope you are all well!  Probably, by the time I see most of you again, it will be to introduce our little one!  Our doors are always open - we can't wait to have visitors and for all of you to meet Addison Marie!  

So....

You know how I know we are getting close to having a baby?  

By the time my turkey bacon expires, little miss will be here!  Talk about random reality checks...

Misc Updates

Well, I promised some updates, so in no particular order (which seems to be the way my brain works these days) here they are!

I had my first shower in Dallas several weeks ago, and we had a blast.  Kristin had us all to her beautiful home and everything was perfect!

 (As a side note, Scott got me an awesome new camera for Christmas so we could capture all of our upcoming excitement...doesn't it take great pics??)

IF there was a "cute" part of my pregnancy, it happened somewhere between Christmas and these pictures (6-7 mos).  I had enough of a bump that people were sure I was pregnant, and I got a lot of sweet smiles from perfect strangers.  However, in the last few weeks, I've moved into the puffy, "about to pop" phase.  My mother tells me it's all in my head (what does she know...she lives in Dallas and can't see me), and Scott refuses to comment (other than to tell me I'm beautiful), but there's a lot more pity in the smiles of strangers these days!   Although, who can blame them...I've acquired a very definite waddle, and my belly IS getting uncomfortably large.

I have a lot of joint pain these days, especially when going from sitting to standing, but the pain in my back has been very manageable.  Much better than I thought it would be...I've had none of my "usual" back pain while pregnant (thank you, Lord!), just the soreness and temporary sciatic-type pain that I think all pregnant women have.  There are no more sweet, fluttery movements.  Just hard jabs and kicks that keep my belly shifting and squirming all day long.  She's very active and very strong!!

I am 34 weeks - 6(ish?) weeks to go.  Can you believe it???  I really WANT to be nesting, but I've been so wiped out, I haven't done anything!! Hopefully we can get some things accomplished this weekend.  But I think my poor, sweet mother is going to have to come whip things into shape around here before Addison makes her debut.  Left to my own devices, I might just sleep until then.

And speaking of that...I think it's past my bedtime.  Love you all!

Baby Girl Struby

Well, it's official....

Baby Girl Struby has a name!!!   My Aunt Gwen and family had a baby shower for me this weekend in Killeen.  After we finished opening presents (and after catching quite a bit of grief over why we weren't revealing her name yet!), I gave my mom and Aunt Gwen a package to open that contained all of the white wooden letters in her name and told them that if they could work together with the rest of the family, we could talk about her name.  The pictures are a little blurry from all of the movement and excitement - I didn't give anyone a heads-up as to what was about to happen, and of course I forgot to video it as I had planned!!  I knew there would be excitement, but I did NOT envision the level of craziness that would happen in that room!  My mother frantically handed everyone a letter, and they dove from their nice, neat semi-circle into the middle of the room to put it all together.  I figured it would take them a while, but after one missed attempt (Adrian?), they had it!!!

Addison Marie Struby.  It was the perfect time and place to announce it.  I only wish Scott's family and our friends had been there!  But Marie is a family name on my side: my grandmother was Lawanna Marie, my aunt is Gwendolyn Marie, and my great aunt is Doris Marie.  Here are me and mom with Addison's namesakes: 

We had such a great time.  It was so wonderful of everyone to come, and Aunt Gwen is always the perfect hostess!  Here is everyone (with her name - look closely!) outside with the precious dress-lined walkway into Aunt Gwen's house:

I promise to update soon with some catch-up pictures from Christmas, my first shower, nursery progress, etc.!  

The Holidays are Here!

Sooo....I've been a blogging slacker.   Oops.  For any of you who are still following, I apologize!  Just to make up for by absence, here are two fun pictures.  Granted, they were taken at the beginning of the month, and not the most attractive...and I am much bigger now!

Aren't the boys so cute?  They had just put together the crib!  Deacon insisted on being a part of the event.  I am still obviously very awkward with the whole belly picture thing.  You should see the attempts Scott and I have made at taking a "family pic" with my new belly.  It's even worse.  We're trying though, and will post as decent pictures are available!

We had a sonogram today and got to see Baby Girl kicking and squirming around.  She's so cute!! (I think only a mother can say that about a black and white 2D fuzzy picture...)  They tried to switch to 3D to show us her face, but she was NOT interested!  Every time she turned away or put her hand up - the tech said that some babies don't like the 3D, maybe it gives off a different sound?  Everything is perfectly healthy and normal!

We spent Thanksgiving in Reno with Scott's brother Brian, his wife Meagan, and their three adorable kiddos.  We had a blast.  Every time we are with them, Scott and I leave saying how much we wish we all lived closer.  This time was even better than normal - I think, for me, it triggered more excitement than I've felt so far about our own baby getting here.  We love Jake, Avery and Chloe so much - we're such a proud Aunt and Uncle, and they are just so much fun to be around.  We played, caught up on Disney movies, went on The Polar Express and had an all around great time.  Avery introduced Scott to dolls and princesses and fairy dust and hair clips and all things girly.  She even asked him for help "swallowing" (swaddling) her baby doll, which provided a good learning opportunity for both of us!  We loved helping out with Chloe and how smiley and lovey she always is.  It was so much fun to watch him with the kids and trying to figure it all out...I can just see him doing the same things with our little one!  One of my favorite things was that, having a year-old sister, the older two completely understood and were excited about our baby!  They would talk about their cousin and at separate times during the trip, each one would come up and put their little hands on my belly and say "I can't wait for her to get here!" or "How much longer until she gets here???"  I loved it!  Scott and Brian even ventured out to do some Black Friday shopping and returned with a "Dad's diaper bag" - duck blind camo, of course, and proceeded to explain to me how perfect the pockets are for diapers, bottles, changes of clothes, and even hooks for pacifiers!  I think I managed to squeeze every little bit of parenting info I could out of Meagan.  She had so much great advice and I was so thankful for so much quality time with her...not to mention all the hard work she did to feed us all a great Thanksgiving dinner (since I am never much help in the kitchen)!!

I am just so excited about this next month; all of the festivities and family and decorations...I only wish I could go ahead and buy one of those adorable Christmas dresses for Baby Girl!!  That will just have to wait until next year!!

Assorted Thoughts and Updates...

Happy Halloween!  We were all stocked up on candy and ready to go, and we had all of about 5 trick-or-treaters.  I think there must have been a carnival or gathering we didn't know about, since we are just about the only couple in the neighborhood that doesn't have kids yet.  If we were to have dressed up, this pregnant skeleton was first on my list!  Especially with the coordinating husband's costume!

I feel more and more pregnant by the day!  Every weekend or every few days I talk to my mother, I think I've told her, "now I really feel/look pregnant!"  I'm surprised how many ways my body feels different...

I'm getting much bigger - I'm even outgrowing my t-shirts. I guess I was really in denial about how much/quickly I would grow.  I laugh at myself that a month ago, I bought a few pairs of maternity pants and thought that those, combined with tops I already had, would get me thru the next 6 months.  My wardrobe options are quickly shrinking!  Scott still just laughs and laughs.

I eat like a pregnant person.  My hunger patterns rival Scott's now.  I crave french fries every day at lunch, followed by something sweet, followed by fruit/veggies at dinner.  I love huge glasses of apple juice, lemon in my water, pickles and olives.  I have not been able to stomach even the thought of fish and have not eaten it since the day I found out I was pregnant.  I also can just barely handle BBQ.

I am pretty sure I've felt a few movements.  I only feel her at night when I lay down to go to sleep.  The first time, I was sure Deacon (who curls up closer to my stomach with every bit it grows...I thought he'd hate it, but I think he feels it's his responsibility to help incubate her) had a strange heartbeat/flutter going on, as he was laying nearly on top of me.  I made him move, and continued to feel "butterflies" for a while.  I said to Scott, "either my stomach is really upset, or I feel the baby!"  I'm pretty sure she's brushing up on a high-kick routine in there!

I have joined Pinterest, for those of you that are into that sort of thing...and I have a pinboard for my current thoughts on baby's nursery.  I'm sure it will be ever-changing, but it's lots of fun looking at all of the girly stuff!

Slight homesickness has started to set in, as I knew it would around this time.  The excitement of the move has died down, hunting season will be in full force as of this weekend, and the Rangers' World Series run may have had something to do with it too.   I miss you Dallas folk!

So on that note, we have lots of room, y'all come visit!  :)

Bittersweet

This weekend, we travelled to Kansas City to see the Struby clan.  Grandpa Struby passed away a few weeks ago, so we went for his funeral service.  I just love family.  I love that I love the Strubys as my own already.  It's so strange to me that a good time can be had and so many wonderful memories can be made, even when you're brought together by a sad reason.  It was the same when Poppy died a few years ago - for some odd reason, those are some of my favorite memories with my family are from that trying time.  Grandpa died on his wife Irene's birthday.  They were married 65 years, and I just don't believe that can be a coincidence.  There was surely a party in heaven when he got home.  Here is a picture of me and Scott and my belly in front of his grandparents' house, where they lived for almost 40 years.  (I have obviously not mastered the "I'm pregnant" photo poses yet...)

It was wonderful to see the Struby side and share some of this exciting time in our lives with them.  Shannon, Scott's sister, even brought us a TON of Teigan's clothes....we came home with a whole suitcase of 0-6 month clothes.  I had a blast going through all of them and giggling at how tiny and pink everything is!  Deacon is not so sure...

Baby has also received her very first gifts, which is so exciting.  Her room is starting to look like a baby room already!  We got some adorable, girly burp-cloths from Taylor and John in the mail last week, and Scott's parents couldn't resist buying baby's first book the very day we told them we were expecting!

I'm getting bigger every day, and Scott just looks at my belly and laughs constantly.

Go Rangers!!!!

Scott's Thoughts:  I don't think I can eat any more Oreos and milk in an effort to make my belly look like Lauren's.  I don't feel good about myself right now.  What's that, Lauren?  You just bought me another pack of Double Stuffs? ....ok....