23 Weeks & some Change

It seems that as a general rule we are wishing time away. Months back it was seeing the baby bump, hearing the heartbeat, seeing his tiny little self during the ultrasound, feeling the first flutters to right now.....the day we meet our little boy, his first tooth, his first words, his first attempts at walking and so forth. Present day, all 3 of us are doing pretty good....yes I still have my weepy spells, my days of exhaustion from, well I really don't know from what considering I take it pretty easy these days, and planning for P'nut's room. According to babycenter.com, our little P'nut is weighing in at a pound and measures 11inches! We can't believe how fast our little boy is growing, this pregnancy is flying by! I always said that if we were blessed with the miracle of one baby I would be happy with that. Now that we have experienced this beautiful time in our my lives, I can't help but hope for P'nut to have a sibling!!!! I know what you all are thinking....wooooow pump the breaks lady, we will see what you think after delivering this baby! Honestly though, I have never felt more like a woman, a beautiful woman than I do right now..minus the sickness at the beginning this has been such a wonderful experience for me. (& for my Trav) I know in my heart that we will be great parents. I know we have lots of new experiences ahead, lots of mistakes when it comes to parenting but if we can be half the parents our parents are I think P'nut will be just fine. This little guy is going to be loved unconditionally, he will have a few obstacles as far as the culture differences between my family & Travis's family but hopefully this will shape him into a wonderful person! As I sit here typing our little boy is moving around in my belly (he knows I am talking about him), every time he moves he brings a smile to my face. My mom always told me I would never truly understand the love of a parent until I had my own and you know...surprise surprise she was right! It simply amazes me just how much I LOVE him already!

Belly Touching

Guilty as Charged! I was one of those belly touchers (always asking first though), there is something fascinating about a pregnant belly. I remember thinking that I might take offense to this.....for the simple fact that I like my personal space but turns out I am okay with it. Considering most people take the time to ask anyway. I do have a problem with those who just reach out, momma cub instincts take over and I am ready to pounce. That said, I enjoy seeing the delight in people's faces when they feel my belly but please ask first. It's just common courtesy.

This morning I had to stop to buy some milk for mine & p'nuts cereal. I noticed the perpetrator down the milk isle but what I wasn't expecting was for this lady to approach me and touch my belly. I am pretty sure I jump back, she quickly apologized and said that she didn't mean to startle me but my belly is so cute she just couldn't help herself. How could I be mad at that right? The lady was nice enough so I quickly recovered. FYI, people it's okay to want to touch my belly but please ask me first. Different story all together with my chums, I am comfortable around you but if you are not my friend I can't promise I won't throat punch you.

After Trav & I found out we were expecting, I found this prayer........

O Lord Jesus Christ, through the intercession of Your tender Mother, Our Lady of La Leche, who bore You close to her heart during those long months before Your birth, I place my baby and myself entirely in Your Hands. Free me, I beseech You, from useless and consuming worry. Accept the sacrifice of my aches and pains, which I unite to Your sufferings on the Cross. Above all, most merciful and loving Jesus, protect this child You have given to me from all harm, bestowing the health and vigor every baby needs. Implant in my heart and on my lips the words and prayers of Your Mother and mine, our Lovely Lady of La Leche. All this I ask that my child and I may live to praise forever Your Holy Name.
Amen.

Week 22

We had a prenatal appointment this morning, everything checked out great! My uterus is measuring just right, my blood pressure was great, my weight..well I gained 6 pounds (It feels more like 2o pounds), and the heartbeat was 150 beats per minute. Hearing the little heartbeat makes my world light up! It's so reassuring to hear that sound, let's me know that little p'nut is doing well, even though I feel him swimming around in there now. We go back in 4 weeks and our 3D ultrasound is scheduled for February 28th. Right now little p'nut is 11 inches long (the size of a spaghetti squash) and weighs approx. 1 pound!! He is starting to look like a miniature newborn according to http://www.babycenter.com/. Despite the wretched weather, I am walking on sunshine today :)

Sunday Stroll

In lieu of Friday date night (thanks again Mr. Snow), we headed to Asheville Sunday after breakfast in hopes of finding Travis some work boots. After a successful trip at Dick's we headed to the Barnes & Noble located in the mall. Upon entering the mall the alluring smell of Starbucks hit our nostrils. I need to clarify that since little p'nut took my body over; the thought of coffee makes me sick, not to mention the smell. My morning coffee was a thing of the past, having forgone caffeine for the past 20+ weeks and with no intention of drinking it now even though everything I read states that one cup of joe is A-Ok! I completely surprised Trav when I asked if he wanted to get a coffee. He quickly agreed, we went in, ordered a Skinny Vanilla Latte for him & a Skinny Vanilla Decaf Latte for the pregnant lady. With Latte in hand I approach a Barnes & Noble employee for assistance, the layout of the B & N in the mall is so different from the regular one (I was confused). I asked the nice boy if he could point me to the Pregnancy Book section. The look on his face was priceless when he glanced at my baby bump then to my hand that was carrying my Latte. He must have been thinking, "Yes, you obviously need all the pregnancy reading material written and by the way, how dare you be drinking caffeine right now!" I just smiled and went on my way. Once at the Pregnancy section I began looking for a few books I had in mind. I kept noticing that the people heading to the bathroom (bathroom located right by the Pregnancy section) were giving me disapproving looks. I wanted to shove my Latte (which stated decaf on the side) in their holier-than-thou faces but I just kept on with the task at hand. Once we paid for our books & headed to the car, Trav confirmed that I was not imagining it, people were in fact judging me because I am pregnant and was drinking a coffee. People please mind your own business and don't judge me, I promise our babies health is my top priority. Geez!!!

~ Outward judgment often fails, inward judgment never. ~ Theodore Parker

The Best Lasagna I Ever Ate

Well for starters I forgot to take a picture of the finished masterpiece so I am currently a little peeved at myself! Maybe if I eat another piece I will get over it.
A little background information, I love pasta.... angel hair, fettuccini, farfalle, penne, ok you get the point. Thus why I usually pack a little extra flab around the waist line.
Our friends The Seymour's invited us over for dinner a few months ago, lasagna was on the menu that night. There isn't anything Katie Seymour whips up that I don't like. Her meatloaf made me start eating ground beef again if that tells you anything.
My family always requests lasagna, especially my Stepdad, it is not one of my specialities by any means but it is edible. I don't have a special recipe, it's kinda mediocre and I use ricotta.
I asked Katie for her recipe because it was oh so good. In good judgement I am not going to give her recipe away but I will tell you she uses cream cheese instead of ricotta. Cream cheese makes for a creamier lasagna. I gave her recipe a shot a couple nights ago since I was having my family over for dinner. I started to think that maybe I was hyping this lasagna up too much, maybe my pregnant taste buds were exaggerating! But when they all came short of licking their plates I knew we had a winner on our hands. I couldn't take credit for it though, Katie you are a culinary genius! Delicioso

30th Birthday

Well folks I turned 30 last week. I always thought I would be sad when this day came but I am actually quite happy & excited to see what is in store for me. Since we are having our first baby this year I know my life will forever change but it will be a good change! I am ready to be someone's mommy. I know my husband will be a great father and I am more than excited to start this new journey together....in our 30's! That's right I no longer belong to the 20 something club, I am now a 30 something!!! I had several birthday celebrations and all of them were so special. Here is a picture from Deerpark at Biltmore :)

We are having a baby boy!!

Sorry this isn't new news, we found out a few weeks ago but I haven't had time to update my blog!
We are so excited! My next appointment is January 12th & our 3D ultrasound is scheduled for February 28th! Can't wait to see my lil p'nuts face! I know some people are like, "can't you wait until he is born to see his face?". My answer is, "well yes but why wait if I don't have to!". This little guy is growing inside my belly and I already feel such an amazing bond with him. I lay awake at night (because I can't seem to sleep) rubbing my belly, as if I was rubbing his little back. Here is his second portrait.