life lately: holiday edition

It seems like as soon as the holiday season is upon us, life explodes with busyness. From Thanksgiving on we haven't had a spare weekend, let alone minute that wasn't accounted for. But, don't let the busyness come across as burden, it is all very welcomed and very much enjoyed.

We have gotten to go to the Fox to see Cirque du Soleil Holidaze, hang out with our high school students, celebrate an early Christmas with friends and of course shop, bake and decorate. I am proud to say that I have completed all of our shopping, including Moose's gift- he knew I got him something because when I sat the bag down he wouldn't leave it alone, so now his new antler is in my closet...I really hope I don't forget about it.

This weekend will kick off our first family Christmas celebration at Alex's grandparents. Then we'll celebrate Christmas Eve with our church family and Alex's immediate family and then we'll head to my parents to spend time with my side of the family. All in all it seems busy when it's written down, but I wouldn't want to celebrate any other way.

Alex and I have been doing an advent devotional every night and it has really helped us to focus on what is important about this season and why we're celebrating in the first place. We are following along with the She Reads Truth (or He Reads Truth if you're a fella) advent and I highly recommend it. It's so easy to get caught up in finding the right gift or baking the perfect sugar cookie, but Christ's birth is so much more important and needs to be the central focus.

bumpdate: 25 weeks

This week, according to the "Bump" app, this babe is the size of head of cauliflower! I walked through the grocery store yesterday and those suckers are big! It seems like every week that goes by I'm surprised that she's getting so big and she/we still have a long way to go.

I still feel great and full of energy, but Alex has to remind me that I'm pregnant a lot so I'll stop climbing around to reach things in the kitchen. When we were decorating our Christmas tree he had to take my stool away so I wouldn't precariously balance on it to reach the top- this year he had a much more active role in tree decorating.

We have started on her room and are at a bit of a standstill due to lack of time. This time of year is always busy, but I feel like life is moving at warp speed. Once we get her room finished, I promise there will be pictures.

She has started to get more power behind her kicks and for our evening entertainment we watch my stomach bounce up and down, it's pretty entertaining. At our last appointment, she was measuring right on track and continues to have a nice strong heart beat. I know that everyone says it, but all I want is a healthy baby and so far she's doing great. I have scheduled appointments for us to tour both of our local hospitals and once we decide on one, we'll start taking the recommended classes.

I have also scheduled my glucose test and our appointments with the midwife through February. Then I'll start going for weekly checks. It seems like it will be here before we know it, but I am so excited to meet this little girl!

happy thanksgiving

This year we have so much to be thankful for. God has richly blessed us and we are so grateful for everything He has provided. We are looking forward to spending time with family and friends and of course eating as much homemade goodness as possible. Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the Earth!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. 

bumpdate: 22 weeks

 

I feel like time is flying by and going in slow motion at the same time. I am so excited for this little lady to arrive, but there is so much to be done before she makes her debut!

 

I think have started nesting. I have started sewing things for her, creating our registry and I have been organizing and getting rid of stuff we don't need or have any use for. I am by no means a pack rat, so I may or may not be searching for things to get rid of...don't leave anything you want to keep at our house. Otherwise you may be buying it back from Goodwill.

 

This weekend we plan to start getting her room ready. It has been in my mind for so long, I can't wait to see it come to life. We plan to touch up the paint, clean all the woodwork and go to everyone's favorite box store: Ikea, followed by Crate & Barrel, West Elm and Anthropologie (one of us may be more excited by this than the other). We already have her changing table, rug and most of the décor, so now it's time to find the finishing pieces. I'm sure pictures will come soon.

 

We had our final ultrasound and she is indeed a girl. The only way to confirm any further is for her to arrive and I think it would be quite the shock if she's not a she! Health wise, she is developing perfectly and has four heart chambers, two little thumbs, arms, legs, eyes and ears. The hygienist in me made sure her lips and palate were forming correctly and as far the ultrasound shows, there is no cause for concern.

 

 

I am still feeling well and full of energy. Cuties (little bitty oranges) are my favorite snack and bacon is still a no go...I've tried. My running (if you can call it that...I'm so slow) is good, but I've moved to the treadmill for fear of falling. I have also started feeling her move around and her kicks are getting strong enough that Alex can feel them too, which is quite exciting!

 

We are really looking forward to Thanksgiving next week and spending some time with family and friends. Thankfully this year I have my Thanksgiving pants ready to go.