35 Weeks And Counting!

I am really starting to feel it now! Our little guy has dropped a little lower and feels like he is about to eat my pelvis. I am glad that he is face down and in a good position to come naturally though. The weight gain has been a little hard for me, but as long as he is healthy I am happy!

Here are a few pictures of us a day after week 35!

You can see Neil's reflection in the glass of the photo on our wall! Oh...and see the stripes that I worked on for our living room? I love love love them!

This is in celebration of week 35. We are so grateful to have him growing more and more each week. We have been so blessed during this pregnancy!Go Preston!

So, if you haven't heard we are thinking about naming him Preston Neil Spencer. I am a little hesitant to say that it is for sure until we actually meet him and see if he even looks like a Preston. We do have a few names on back-up just in case he comes out and has no "Preston-like" features. (I'm not really sure what those are, but I assume we will know when we see it, haha).

City-Wide Garage Sales!

So, on specific dates in our little town of Dodgeville the city holds a big huge garage sale. People are allowed to put their own adds in the paper and then they make a map of every house that is holding a garage sale. Since we had a few things we were looking for we decided to check a few out. We actually found some good stuff. We did attempt to hold our own garage sale to get rid of some of our old college things, however...it didn't go so well. Michelle Mosley came over to keep me company on Friday and I actually sold three things! After work Neil came home, along with Michelle's husband Matt and let us go check out a few places. I found most of the great finds that evening, but found a few more today too!

Here are a few pictures of my great finds!

Some blocks that are just classic for little kids to play with, and then some great books! I want to be able to read to him at night and possibly during the day, whenever we can! There were some really cool fairy tale puzzle books. The pictures were actual puzzles that you could do as you read the story on the other side. Neil thought that these were especially neat.

 

Then, I also found some great clothes! Most of them were .50 or so...and then a fun muscial piano toy that also plays pick-a-boo and sings songs. You can't go wrong with a $4 toy like that!

 Cute!

There were lots of great things, but I didn't want to add to the stuff we were already trying to sell. However, we did find a piano for $60 that we couldn't pass up. Pictures of that will come later!

Easter Festivities

Easter always brings back great memories and traditions with the family. When I was talking to my Dad about this he said that I liked it so much because I started dying Easter eggs when I was only a few weeks old.(It was really mostly his doing at that age, but I am sure grateful!) As much fun as traditions are, the real reason we are able to have this holiday is because of Jesus Christ. Church was so amazing and really helped the focus remain on the Savior. It is amaing how it has changed my life to know and understand that He lives!

We had a great Easter day. It all started that morning with my husband hiding my Easter basket and me hiding his. He definitely won this game...since I couldn't find my Easter basket at all. He had to give me so many different hints! It was fun though. I guess I need to get better at hiding his basket from now on. After seeing what was in there and eating breakfast we had to hurry and get ready for church so that we wouldn't be late. We both love the music or hymns that we get to sing around Easter, so we didn't want to miss those! And once again, church was amazing. Then, we came home and got ready for Easter dinner with the Mosely's! They made a ham and rolls while we made scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole, and a strawberry torte like thing.

Dinner was absolutely amazing! It was fun to have another family to have a real Easter dinner with. Everything was so tasty too. Here is a picture of the dessert I made. It was made with real heavy whipping cream and some super ripe strawberries! Michelle also made a dessert that was so good. You might have to go check out what she made here. (It's her blog) Looks delicious!

After dinner and before dessert we actually were able to die Easter eggs. I don't know why, but I absolutely LOVE dying Easter eggs. I enjoy the fun designs, but also enjoy the boiled egg rewards afterwards...deviled eggs and egg salad sandwiches....all good things! Anyways, here are some photos of us dying Easter eggs:
We were at the Mosley's for this Easter Extravaganza! It was so fun to hang out with them.

 Look at Neil with his cute polka dot egg in the process of getting some great color! I think he thought that I was a little crazy because to was having so much fun.

And look at mine! I copied Neil with the polka dots, but added my own twist. The colors wer really vibrant for some reason, which was great!

 And here are the ultimate results of the evening!

It was a really fun evening. We were excited for the holiday and it was so fun to be able to get the know the Mosley's better. We are so happy they have come to work at Lands' End! Go Dodgeville!

I am really grateful that we celebrate Christ this time of year. He has done so many things for us so taht we can be given the opportunity to return to our Heavenly Father and have an Eternal Family. He makes everything possible for us, and it is because of his example and sacrifice. I'm so grateful!

Week 34: Hooray!

Yes it is true, we are 34 weeks today! Many times we didn't think we would be able to get this far, but we are actually doing very well! I laugh about it most of the time, how we are doing so much better now than ever. Sometimes I think that we are going to actually make it full term and then some, and have to be induced. How crazy would that be?!

We have been truly blessed! Here are some pictures of what we are looking like today. I have been gaining about 1 pound a week or so, which is good. He is gaining .5 pounds per week, and will hopefully be 5 pounds at our next appointment.

This little guy does tend to lay a little low, which is kind of nice.

 So, I am sporting a new maternity shirt I found at Burlington Coat Factory that was only $6! I found it at the same time I found the baby blessing outfit for him. I can't resist a sale like that, even if I weren't pregnant!

Funny story: well, it was funny to me, but lately I will laugh at almost anything. I have been having this problem with spilling. I have ruined two maternity shirts because of stains from food, usually dinner, that I just can't get out. I have learned that I need to lean in when I eat, or else the same fate will come to all of my shirts and then will be completely shirtless for the rest of the month and a half we have left to go. After the third or fourth time it happened I had to just laugh. It is always in the same spot of my belly and usually dribbles down my shirt from there. I have come to realize that it must be my signature mark I am putting on everything. Oh the joys of a changing body! Hahaha...

Crafty and Creative

After looking for a nursing cover online and not finding what I really wanted I decided that it really couldn't be that hard to make my own. I didn't want to pay $40 for one with a pattern that I didn't really like and so I "googled" nursing cover patterns. So many different hits came up! I found lots of women that felt the same way and put their own twist on different patterns and things like that. I have decided to make two nursing covers, so after goin to JoAnn's and finding some simple fabric I made my first one by following a tutorial found here. It's a blog called Prudent Baby that I have come to really love! This one I made only took me about an hour or so and with only one layer of fabric was really easy. I have found another tutorial that I want to try for my second one to make it reversable and add a pocket on it. I made this first one for about $10! So, I saved so much money and also got to use my new sewing machine that I got for my birthday! (Thanks Mom and Dad!)

Here are a couple of pictures of what it looks like:
I even used some boning to make the "Hooter Hider" look come to life. This fabric was nice on both sides, so I wasn't so worried about doubling it up. What do you think of the result?! I love it!

 Here is a closer look at what the fabric looks like, along with the amazing top. I have to say that I was so impressed with how easy the tutorial was to follow too! The only thing I would do differently is make the second strap a little shorter. There was way too much excess for me, but maybe others like it long. Who really knows! The fabric doesn't look as vibrant in these pictures as it is in real life too, but I still like it!

For my next one I am going to try to do buttons instead of the hooks that I did for this one. The hooks aren't hard to use, and a little cheaper, but I think it might be a little easier to use if I could just bring the strap around my head and button it up really easily. I will make sure to post the other one as I get around to finishing it.

I have really spent lots of time sewing this week. I was able to hem up a shower curtain that I cut for an art project in our bathroom that we are remodeling, sew two receiving blankets for humanitarian aid, and a few other small must-do's that I had lying around.

I have been feeling a little overwhelmed latley with all that needs to get done before little Preston joins us. I have lots of small projects everywhere that I need to finish, get things done at work, clean the house, wash all his clothes-make sure he has enough clothes-and random other daily chores, like making dinner and doing our normal laundry, etc. Is this a normal feeling? And with all of this going on all I want to do is keep sewing! I would love to make some pillows for our living room, a teething bumper for the crib, frames, a new headboard...and so many other things. It might be a small obsession right now, but I am learning how to control it all! I have come to learn that I need to remind myself that he is going to decide when he wants to come and all I can do is stay calm and pretend like I am ready.

All in White

Yesterday I went to Madison with two other women from the branch. We were on a mission to go to the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store and get a few things for home improvement projects or things like that. I was on the search for a door that I want to turn into a headboard for our bedroom. Since we moved I bought a new bed set and have been really into white furniture. Anyways, we got there (a 60+ minute drive) and saw that it was closed. The store is only open Tuesday through Saturday and we had decided to go on a Monday. We will definitely not forget their hours from now on. After sitting there in the car for a minute realizing that we couldn't accomplish our original mission we decided to go shopping to a few other stores that we really don't have anywhere close to Dodgeville. We went to JoAnn's first...which I was excited about (details on what I purchased will come soon!) then we went to Burlington Coat Factory, and then finally Target. I have found that Burlington Coat Factory actually has very reasonably priced baby stuff. This made it a little hard for me. I went through the baby section almost buying nothing, but then I got to the end of one of the isles and saw white baby clothing! Oh my goodness! I found white suits and baby baptism clothes or blessing outfits that were very reasonably priced! I couldn't resist and bought our little Preston the cutest little outfit.

Here's a little peak of what it looks like:

I just love this little outfit! Neil and I didn't know what we were going to do for his blessing outfit, but now we do! It has the cutest tie and little vest! Don't you think so?

 Here is a close up of what it looks like. You can't really tell in these pictures very well, but the vest and tie have a small texture on them. Now I just need to make sure that we have some white socks and we are good to go!

I have to admit that I was more drawn to the white dresses that came in so many different styles and fabrics. I think that is my girly side coming out. I am excited to have a little boy to play with soon! I have loved going through little boy clothes and all the cute things that are made for them! We have been really blessed with so many wonderful people dropping clothes off at our house for him. He is going to be a really studly little man!

Stroller Time!

For my baby shower a bunch of women went in together for one big gift, which just so happened to be the jogging stroller that I had my eye on. Last night Neil put it all together, along with the car seat. I am so excited! It was rated really high and I can't wait to get walking and running again with my new little guy. I figured that if we had a stroller that could go anywhere and I could exercise with then I will have no excuse to lose the weight that I have gained during this pregnancy. Anyways, so after putting it together I am super anxious to use it! I almost took it outside today to see what it felt like on the "road", however...the snow that was falling prevented me from getting any further than just looking out the window. So, I just walked back and forth downstairs a little bit! So far I really love it!

Here are a few pictures of what it looks like:
We chose to go with a neutral color that we liked and green was the most available! After getting the stroller at my baby shower we went out and bought the infant car seat that goes with the stroller. The car seat actually goes from 5 lbs to 35 lbs. I was impressed with that range after looking at other car seats. Hopefully he won't be super fat and grow out of this one too fast!

 Here is a closer look at the car seat. I also got the insert at my baby shower. It helps infants fit in their car seat better and gives a little extra padding I guess. I can't believe that he is going to be fitting in their soon! How exciting!

Neil is going to install the base in the car soon so that we are prepared for anything to happen. I have discovered that often when we are prepared for the worst or with this baby...prepared in advance, then we actually are just fine. We have been pushing and often struggling to get to this point in the pregnancy, and now I am feeling better than ever! My bet is that I am going to now have to be induced because we make it all the way to 40 weeks. Life can sometimes be so ironic!

And We Are Here: Week 32!

I did have my doubts at times, however...the proof is in the puddin'. We have indeed made it to week 32 today! I had some major contractions last night that really freaked out my husband, but they stopped at 4 and hour and seemed to slow down. We hope to keep this little guy in there as long as possible, so we are trying to keep life low-key for now.

Here are some photos as an update to what we are looking like now:

Look at that! We are no larger than ever...which is fun at times, and can be quite uncomfortable at others. Overall...life is good!

Week 32 baby! oh yeah!

Last Friday we spent about 6 hours in the Dodgeville Hospital taking a 3 hour Glucose test to see whether or not I had Gestational Diabetes. My first 1 hour test came out positive, so we had to go on and do the second. The test started out just fine, and then at the 2nd hour test I passed out after she took my blood. I have to say she did try three different veins, which might have had an affect on my passing out problems. I also had to go in fasting, which doesn't seem to go well with me even when I'm not pregnant. When I passed out the nurse called in another nurse from the emergency room because I was pregnant. As I came to I found the two nurses kind of argueing a little bit about whether or not I should drink and eat something. One nurse said, "...but she needs the sugar and food to help her feel better, to bring her heart rate up." And then the other said, "...but then she will have to do the test all over again, and we don't want to do that." As I was coming to I said that I think I was okay, and probably just needed to lay down. So, I didn't eat anything but ended up sleeping for the last hour. After they did the last test and had bruised me up pretty good I ate a few things and drank some water before moving. Luckily Neil was there to help me walk to the car and get going again.

We did find out that I do not have gestational diabetes. I am so grateful for this! I was really worried that I might have diabetes because of how affected by sugar I have been. However, I have felt much better lately as I really watch what I eat and try not to eat too much sugar at one time. I am so grateful for modern medicine!