These updates seem to come faster and faster each week, which I have no complaints about! :) This week baby is the size of a... 

Other highlights from this past week: 

Mason and I registered for all of our baby gear, which I will go into further detail about in another post.

Baby's crib mattress came in the mail today and so I quickly got it in her crib and added some of the bedding pieces that I have so far. Here is the current progress of her nursery... 

Still lots to be done! We better hurry and get on it! She will be here before we know it!

15 more weeks to go! :) 

Well, we've been back from paradise for a week now. My tan is fading, my skin is peeling, and I have long since settled back into the real world. But oh how glorious those four days of sunshine and living on island time were... 

I took a day off from work that Friday for the first time all school year, a reward all on it's own. We woke up long before the first rays of sunlight to head to the airport. Getting up that early when you don't have to go to work is  only acceptable if you are on your way to a fab destination! 

Once we arrived, Antigua did not disappoint. Our house was absolutely amazing! Way too big for just Mason and me (and Baby G), but no complaints here. 

Antigua has very little to do and is not really that touristy. It does, however, have 365 gorgeous beaches to explore and since we had no pre-set agenda to follow, we immersed ourselves into  island life and picked a different beach to post up at each day and a delicious restaurant to dine at each night. 

We got a lot of sun, read a lot of books and even learned how to drive on the opposite side of the road! It was a great adventure and the perfect last trip together before we fully commit ourselves to parenthood!

To our baby girl, next time we travel back to  Antigua we hope to bring you along with us! We can't wait to show you the world!  

To my fabulous husband, thank you for planning such an amazing Babymoon trip for us to enjoy! You are the very best! 

And now... let the final weeks of baby preparation begin, we are oh so ready for our sweet girl to make her arrival! And mommy is ready to enjoy something other than a bottle of water whilst sun bathing... :) 

We're back from paradise now and time marches on. Baby girl is now the size of a...

And my uterus is now the size of a soccer ball!!! Baby girl's getting BIG! 

What's Baby Up To? 

• Her see-through skin is gradually becoming more opaque. 
  
• It also has a PINK glow due to small capillaries that have recently formed. 
  
• She is starting to grow hair on her head! :)
  
• Sections of her lungs are expanding and developing and she is starting to produce lung surfactant which helps to keep the lungs from collapsing at birth. 
  
• Her brain cells have matured enough to develop conscious thought, and most likely memory! 
  
• Her auditory system is rapidly advancing, which means if she frequently hears a song now she is likely to recognize it and feel calmed by it after she is born (I better step up my music game)!
  

How's Mama? 
Symptoms: My upper back is KILLING ME this week, although I'm not sure if it is baby-related... I think I may have injured it. I'm hoping it heals on its own, but if it continues to keep hurting like this, I may go visit a chiropractor. Other than that everything else is going well. 

Also, my hormones maybe a little on the wild side at the moment - I cried twice last weekend for STUPID reasons  that I knew were stupid at the time, but I couldn't help myself! So annoying… 

Cravings: Nothing specific. Chocolate sometimes, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Weight Gain: Just got back from vacay, so I'll let my body settle down a little before I jump back on the scale! ;) 

24 Week Bump Pic: 

Right now is probably my favorite time,  thus far, of my pregnancy (aside from my back pain). My bump is proudly showing, but still looks cute in clothes. Also every evening, Baby gives Daddy and I plenty of kicks to enjoy before bed time as our little night time ritual. Daddy is often surprised by how hard she can kick! I'm not sure she sleeps very often, because I get lots of kicks sporadically throughout the day! She is even moving around as I type this! :) 

This is such a special time and I'm enjoying every second of it. We love you sweet girl and can not wait to hold you in our arms!!

16 more weeks to go!

Welcome back! This week our sweet girl is the size of a....

What's Baby Up To? 

• Her face is fully formed now - she just needs a little extra fat to fill it out! ( Wonder what she looks like!?!)
  
• Taste buds have formed, but she still won't taste anything for a couple more months.
  
• Most of her internal organs are now in place and are beginning to function well. 
  
• She weighs about 1 pound!
  

How's Mama? 
Symptoms: Not many. Today my back hurt... probably due to my gigantic boobs. I also still have round ligament pain when I get up suddenly or when I roll over in bed. But mainly I am just loving feeling baby girl's kicks growing stronger and more frequent! Always makes me smile. :)

Cravings: Chardonnay & Peanut MnM's - one of my very favorite meals. ;) Looking forward to getting back to those days!

Weight Gain: Up 11 pounds total. Mainly just in my bump (and boobs). I'm hoping that continues to be the case. ;)

23 Week Bump Pic: 

This week, my bump suddenly got WAY more noticeable in clothing! I even made a special trip to the mall for some maternity pants and a few tops. Definitely no hiding anything now! Makes me wonder just how big this growing belly of mine will get in the next 17 weeks! Yikes!

In other news, Daddy and I have been busy this week packing our suitcases! Daddy surprised this Mama-To-Be with a Babymoon trip to....

Can. Not. Wait. A sunny, balmy 82 degrees sounds like absolute heaven compared to these ice cold, sunless days we've been having in Dallas. I'm curled up by the fire at this very moment daydreaming of sand between my toes! I'm so very thankful for my most amazing and thoughtful husband for organizing such a special trip for us! One last hurrah for these almost-parents before our baby girl steals the show for a little while! Hoping I can come back with a little color on this pasty winter bod! :)

Will be sure to share lots of pics of baby girl's "first trip to the beach"  when we return from paradise! 

17 more weeks to go!! 

I spent the majority of the holidays obsessively purchasing and planning for our darling girl's nursery. It has been quite a time consuming and occasionally  frustrating process.  I've definitely never before felt such pressure to make something so perfect. I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of putting together a room fit for a princess. 

Gigi & Pops very generously purchased a precious Jenny Lind style crib for us. It came in the mail last Tuesday and since then we have been patiently waiting until the weekend to clear out and clean our previous guest room so that we could assemble it. 

I had always thought that crib construction would be a tricky process. It was actually, however,  a piece of cake! Mommy was the direction reader/engineer and daddy held together the pieces. Teamwork! ;) 

We love the finished product and are now even more eager to get everything finished so that we can see my Kate Spade inspired vision come to life. I know it is going to be absolutely amazing and worthy of a very fabulous little girl! 

To be continued...

Getting back in the swing of things now that the holidays are over, which means back to work. Blah... But on the bright side, we're another week down! :) This week baby is the size of a.....

What's Baby Up To? 

• She has more developed eyes, lips, and eyebrows and is looking more like a newborn.
  
• She is sleeping in cycles - about 12 to 14 hours per day! (She seems like she's been more sleepy now that I'm back at school... I don't blame her! Listening to me teach algebra 4 times a day can't be too exciting! ) 
  
• Her brain is growing and starting to develop more complex neurological connections. Maybe she's retaining a little of the algebra! ;) 
  
• She can now hear my heartbeat and the sound of mommy and daddy's voices! 
  
• Her fingernails have grown and now cover her fingertips.
  

How's Mama? 
Finally looking pregnant! My bump is pretty visible in clothing now and tonight before getting in the shower I was pretty much in awe of my belly! Being pregnant suddenly feels crazy real once your baby bump starts to take shape! And since I feel like I finally have something to show, I even snapped a bump pic for you guys this morning!

It looks bigger in person I think, but just to give you an idea! ;)

We have our next doctor's appointment on Friday! Should be a pretty low key one this time, but it's always nice to check up on baby girl and hear her heartbeat! Looking forward to it! 

18 more weeks to go! :) 

Happy New Year! This week baby is the size of a....

How festive! :)

What's Baby Up To? 

• To stay warm she has begun to develop body fat.
  
• She often hiccups as a means to practice breathing. ( However, I have yet to feel any.)
  
• As her digestive system preps for the outside world, she's manufacturing meconium that will be found in her first dirty diaper! (Um, ew.)
  
• Her reproductive system has already formed and she has a lifetime supply of eggs in her womb (about 6 million of them) - you won't be needing those for at least 30 years! ;) 
  

Baby girl is also kicking up a storm! Mommy can feel her moving around all the time and it is the absolute best feeling in the world! We love you so much! 

How's Mama? 
Symptoms: I often have heartburn after eating, but nothing that a Tums won't solve. Other than that everything is still going great!

Weight Gain: Baby girl's bump is definitely visible now, but Mama mostly wears flowy tops so most people probably still would not be able to tell that baby's hiding in there just by looking at me. However, I now have to use elastic hair bands and sometimes the belly band to be able to wear my non-pregnancy pants. They will still button, but would be pretty uncomfortable to wear like that.  I finally purchased some maternity yoga pants and they are amazing! They will definitely be my go-to workout/lounge pants for the remainder of my pregnancy! I'm not sure how much weight I have gained overall. I'm a little scared to get on the scale after the holidays! I don't think it's that much though... *fingers crossed* Daddy got Mommy a gym membership though so I can start going for walks/jogs on the treadmill during the cold months of the year!

Cravings: None, really. My appetite is pretty much normal right now. I could really go for some champagne this morning though! ;) 
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I was determined to stay up until Midnight to see the year 2015 arrive! Baby Girl was very active all day long and stayed up right along with us and gave Mommy & Daddy some kicks to enjoy to help celebrate! Our little party girl! We are so glad that the year of your birth is finally here and we are counting down the next few months with great anticipation! Happy New Year everyone!!! XOXO!

19 weeks to go! 

We had a very special Christmas Season this year. We were blessed to be able to see all of our families and spend some fun quality time with them! 

First up, Nana and G-Daddy made a special trip up from San Antonio the weekend before Christmas to drop off some yummy treats and presents! They even brought a few presents for Baby Girl!

A few days later, we loaded up our "sleigh" and headed to Tyler to spend time with Lissie, Uncle Connor, Aunt Claire and other aunts, uncles and cousins! We had a great time celebrating Christmas Eve with an evening service at Marvin Methodist Church, followed by a party at Lissie's!

On Christmas morning we went to Aunt Laura and Uncle Martin's house for breakfast and a present opening extravaganza where Baby Girl got a few more things to add to her collection!

Later that day we journeyed to Houston to see Gigi & Pops to conclude our Christmas travels! Gigi had a surprise waiting for Baby Girl! A stocking of her very own! 

After dinner, we opened presents and received even more gifts for our sweet girl. I must say that this Christmas I enjoyed opening up presents for Baby even more than ones for myself. It makes us even more excited for her arrival! 

It was a wonderful Christmas! But as we loaded up our car to head back to Dallas with presents filled to the roof, we wondered....

How on Earth will we fit all of the stuff in the car next year when our new addition arrives?! :)