to give thanks for 24 weeks

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Aaron and I cannot thank God enough for our sweet little miracle that's growing inside of me. 

Today, Graeme and I began the 24th week of pregnancy. I remember at the beginning when "the 20s" seemed sooo far away. I can't believe that I'm already at 24 weeks and starting the sixth month. Only four more months to go!

This week has been another great week. I feel awesome and I really hope these energy-filled, good-feeling days last as long as possible.

I feel Graeme's kicks a lot more often now as I go about my day. He is especially active between 9:30-11:00 at night which is usually when Aaron can feel some kicks.

We started our baby registry on Monday. After three hours at Babies-R-Us, we had a pretty great start and all of the big ticket items picked out. Aaron had fun (minus the breast-feeding section), but we were both too tired to think about continuing on to Target per our original plan.

We hit Target on Tuesday to register for a more stuff plus get started on some nursery decor.

With Christmas coming, there won't be a lot of time in December. By January, I'll be in the third trimester (and probably not quite as spry). March will be just around the corner. So, I am in a "let's get stuff done while I feel good and it's not very busy" mode (poor Aaron).

Here's a sneak peak at the nursery, keeping in mind it's got a lot of work to be done on it still (my awesome mom is going to paint it for us soon)!

If you think this is cute, just wait until you see the other side...and the cute paint we picked out.

in pictures (Graeme at 23 weeks, 2 days)

"Children are a gift from the Lord. They are a reward from him."

Psalm 127:3

Our little Graeme Grayson is looking great. We could have watched him squirming around all day today if they would have let us. I can't help but thank God for what a miracle our baby boy is!

Handsome just like his daddy.

Kicking feet.

He weighs just over a pound now.

Additional confirmation.

Healthy, strong heart beating 141 beats per minute.

"You created the deepest parts of my being. You put me together inside my mother's body. How you made me is amazing and wonderful. I praise you for that. What you have done is wonderful. I know that very well. None of my bones were hidden from you when you made me inside my mother's body. That place was as dark as the deepest parts of the earth. When you were putting me together there, your eyes saw my body even before it was formed. You planned how many days I would live. You wrote down the number of them in your book before I had lived through even one of them. God, your thoughts about me are priceless. No one can possibly add them all up. If I could count them, they would be more than the grains of sand. If I were to fall asleep counting and then wake up, you would still be there with me."

Psalm 139: 13-18

a pregnancy catch-up post (weeks 22-23)

Last week, we ended up on vacation, and had little time or desire for Facebook, Twitter, e-mail, Instagram, blogging, or any other thing that required a smart phone or computer. It's nice to take a break from all of that every once in awhile.

Needless to say, I did miss my weekly pregnancy/Graeme update last week. I'm a little bummed too because I was excited to incorporate Taylor Swift's 22 in there somewhere. Another time then...

So, now we have two weeks to catch up on. Here goes...


Week 21-22 is kind of a blur because of our whirlwind trip. Nothing "new" happened that I could feel or notice (even though he was growing like crazy I'm sure), and thankfully my energy level is the highest it's been in a long time. Also, all food is back on the table minus eggs. I still have no desire for eggs at all.

We knew that I wouldn't be able to do a crazy, fast-paced Disney trip per usual, but we still went pretty hard all day for two days. I skipped out on the rides that said "Expectant mothers should not ride," as well as a few others that seemed like a bad idea (I get queasy on spinning rides anyway). Thankfully a lot of rides at Disney World are the equivalent of a car ride. 

I drank so much water and sat down pretty frequently. But at the end of both days, my feet hurt so very bad. I know I brought that on myself, but it was still awful. That, however, was my only complaint. Graeme and I did great at Disney.

I was moving and distracted a lot during that week, so I wasn't focusing too much on kicks from my little guy in there. Which brings us to this past week...


Because now I am feeling his kicks like crazy! Not necessarily all day, but when he starts kicking, it goes for quite awhile and the kicks are getting harder. I was just sure that Aaron would be able to feel them any day, so a couple nights ago I told him to put his hand there while we were laying on the couch.

I laid very still and tried to make sure my breathing wasn't too distracting. Aaron was about to give up, but I told him to just wait. Finally, he gasped. "Was that him?!"

"Did you feel him?!"

"I felt a little poke on my hand!"

"That's him!"

So, that was pretty amazing. It's fun to be able to share that with him finally. He's felt him a few more times since then.


That brings us to today, the start of week 23! Only 17ish more to go!

We have an appointment with the ultrasound technician Friday morning to check-up on Graeme and see a few of the things she couldn't see last time since he was so squirmy. After that, we are ready to start registering and getting the nursery decorated.

It's going by fast now. We can't wait to bring this little guy into our life.

about last week

Well, hello.

It's been a couple of weeks, I know. Last week, we ended up on a spur of the moment vacation. It was just what we needed.

We never get tired of this place.

It's hard to believe that next time we go will be as a family of three. We can't wait to take Graeme for the first time even though he won't remember it. It will still be a fun memory for us! (Plus, we have to go as much as we can while he can still go for FREE!)


We arrived back home on Saturday but continued to take advantage of vacation. We spent Saturday and Sunday decorating for Christmas and cleaning.

My sweet husband washed both of our cars and our neighbor's van. He's the best.

We wanted to get our Christmas stuff up now since once Thanksgiving is over, there's hardly any time before Christmas day. It was a lot of fun, but it wore me out! I told Aaron I'm not sure I'll be much help to him in a month and a half when we have to take it down.

Can't you tell how much he loves helping me with the lights?

The only part of decorating that made me sad was when I remembered how I ruined Aaron's stocking last year. I loved our stockings. I think I had blocked out the memory. So, when I pulled out the charred stocking, it was a sad moment.

It was for the best I suppose, because we would need another stocking next year anyway. I was glad they had almost the exact same kind. We went ahead and bought Graeme a stocking too, but we don't have a way to hang it up yet. That's what the day after Christmas clearance things are for, hopefully.

That about sums up what we've been up to. It was a nice break from social media and everything else routine. And it was a perfect week with my best friend. We feel energized and ready for the next few months. 

Then Graeme comes. Woah.

in week 21

We are past the halfway point, friends. I can't believe we will meet our sweet Graeme in just over four months! There is still so much to do, but it's all fun, so I don't mind.

This past week has been another great week. We had an appointment on Monday that went really well; finger prick, needles, and all. My iron passed again. Yay. My thyroid levels are normal for now. Yay. The doctor said I looked great and commented on how he was glad I was smiling and not crying. 

I should have told him that there's plenty of crying but it's usually over MasterChef Jr. (Ok, they're so smart that it makes me cry and I hate when they have to eliminate them), a puppy on television (I made the mistake of watching the live-action 101 Dalmations yesterday. I've seen it many times, but I wasn't thinking about the puppies being stolen, the puppies being found, or that nice brown dog that rescues Lucky. Good grief. So. Many. Tears. And Aaron wasn't even home to console me.), or a Pixar short (Anyone see The Blue Umbrella? It's about animated umbrellas that fall in love, so of course that equals me sobbing through the entire five minutes. Literally.).

As you can see, pregnancy makes me insanely sensitive.

In other news this week...

• Graeme is kicking around in there quite a bit. It usually comes in spurts when I'm sitting still enough to notice it. The doctor on Monday said that his kicks and punches should be pretty consistent by week 24. Aaron is dying to feel them, so I hope it's soon!
• My dreams/nightmares have been crazy this week! 

1. I've dreamed that I overrode Mission Control on my private space pod headed to the moon. They warned me not to take off, but I went anyway. All I had to do was press the blinking red button that said "Switch to Manual Control." Not sure how that one turned out...
2. I also dreamed that I was running through the forest and got decapitated by a tree limb. No worries though, I was still alive and there wasn't even any blood. I just picked up my head and went to the Urgent Care. They assured me that I didn't need stitches; it would heal on its own. Of course it would.
3. The worst one was last night when I dreamed that I was Aaron's girlfriend, and he dumped me to travel the church circuit as a family-friendly comedian. I was, of course, heartbroken. After just a week, I called him and begged him to reconsider. I could travel with him. I didn't mind. I just wanted to be his girlfriend again. I actually woke up very upset from that dream!

• I finally broke down and bought some maternity jeans today. I am pretty determined to buy as few maternity things as I can, and I was proud of myself for making it this far without buying anything. Well, after my first trimester, I did buy a "belly band" that allowed me to wear my normal jeans unbuttoned. That still works, but I am down to only two pairs of jeans that are actually comfortable with it. I am hoping to get by without having to buy much else. We shall see.

I think that's all I have for this week.

Happy 21 weeks, Graeme Grayson! 

Happy November!

My favorite month of the year may be over, but the two months at the end of the year bring a lot of fun with them. Here we are in November. And here's what this month brings...

1. Engagement dinner (postponed).    I mentioned last month that we were celebrating Tyler and Sarah's engagement. It didn't work out in October, but we are having dinner tomorrow. I am pretty excited about some Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.
2. Graeme check-up.    Monday afternoon we have an appointment to check on Graeme (and me). I love hearing that little heartbeat.
3. Renee and Derrick.   It's been a couple months since we've spent time with my best pal and her awesome husband. We are looking forward to our double date with them next week.
4. Vacation.    Aaron and I last-minutely decided to skip out of town for a few days this month. It will be so nice to take a little break.
5. Christmas season starts.    Some time in the middle of November I declare it time for Christmas. We like to decorate before Thanksgiving and begin the Christmas music listening, Christmas movie watching, present shopping fun.
6. Another ultrasound.    We are going back for a second ultrasound this month since our doctor was unable to see everything she needed to last time. Graeme was WAY too wiggly. I'm so excited to look at his cuteness again.
7. Journey Kids Movie Night.    We are having a movie night this month for our UPTOWN kids so parents have a chance to go out for a couple hours of dinner or shopping. I'm not sure what movie we're watching. But there will be never-ending popcorn, so it's my kind of event.
8. Thanksgiving.    Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. We will celebrate with Aaron's family the weekend before. On Thanksgiving Day, we watch the Macy's parade, eat way too much food and pie, and take a nap (at least I do!).
9. Frozen.    The new Disney animated film, Frozen, comes out this month. Of course it was going to make my list.

That's it for now. Lots to look forward to this month. Happy November!