Christmas is almost here

The tree is up, the stockings are hung, now all we're missing are the gifts under the tree. We have had a pretty busy month. Ellie is enjoying the Christmas decorations and loves playing with the ornaments. I had a cookie exchange this past Monday and invited all of my mommy friends that are stay at home moms (bc it was in the middle of the day). We all had a lot of fun. Ellie has been a little sick, as have I, so she was pretty much stuck to me like glue :-) She is such a momma's girl and I LOVE IT!! She is getting so big, although she is still a very petite girl like her momma. I guess that's the only thing she got from me because she got her blue eyes from her daddy and she looks just like my mom.

Ellie has been waving bye bye, clapping, playing patty cake, and making the "number one" sign. It's funny because I have always held up my index finger and told her to "wait" and then out of the blue she started doing it. It is sooooo cute!! She's also saying "mama", "dada", "grr", "baba", and all the other two letter sounds. She is very vocal. She isn't actually crawling yet. I think she may skip it all together. She will go a couple of crawls forward but that's it. She mainly goes backwards and then rolls to get where she wants to be. Every time I turn around she is under a piece of furniture :-)

Ellie and I joined a Mommy and Me playgroup and have been enjoying that. We went to gymboree with the group last week for the first time and it was pretty fun. I think I'll wait until she is crawling or walking before I take her back because she pretty much just played with a ball and I have balls at home. I don't necessarily feel like paying $10 for her to play with a ball :-) There is a little girl in the group that is a week younger than Ellie and Ellie seems to like her. Oh, I have noticed, now that we are around other children, that Ellie is quite aggressive. If she wants something or someone, she goes for it. There is no holding her back. Her personality is in full swing and I love it. She always wants kisses from mommy, lets you know what she feels, loves her daddy and grandmomma, and is very sweet. Even when she is exhausted she is quite sweet. Yesterday we were at a Christmas party/meeting with my mom and Ellie was so well behaved the entire time. All the women kept saying how good she was and how cute she is :-) She is so sociable, I love it!

Well, I better go so I can put up a couple of pics. We are supposed to be at a Christmas party this very minute but Ellie has decided that today is the day she is going to take a long nap and I am not going to wake her up.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

November

Sorry it has been so long since I have blogged. We have been super busy around here. Mom and Bubba came home at the beginning of October. Ellie took to mom immediately and warmed up to Bubba within the week. I threw a surprise 50th birthday party for mom in the middle of the month and it turned out so good. I worked so hard on it and the work paid off :-) She said it was the best birthday she has ever had.

Last month lots happened:

~Ellie went somewhere without me for the first time (McWayne center with grandmomma)

~ Ellie started sleeping through the night

~ I stopped nursing Ellie at 6 months and 1 week

~Trunk or Treat with Breanna and Jaida. Ellie dressed up as a pony (SO CUTE)

~ Grandmomma and Grandaddy took Ellie to her first Football game while Stephen and I went to an Auburn game

~Ellie got 2 bottom teeth

~First time on the carousel ( with daddy at the mall)

~We went to visit my nephew Haven and spent the last half of the day with him at school. That was a lot of fun. I got to eat lunch with him, sit with him in class, and then go to recess. All the kids loved Ellie and they all wanted to hold her.

~Stephen and I went out alone for the first time in three months (and lots since; grandmomma and grandaddy are taking good care of Ellie for us :-)

~ Started back at the gym

~Ellie started sitting up alone

I am sure there is much more but that is just a quick rundown. Ellie had no problem going from boob to bottle but lately she has been having some problems with her poopsies :-) Sorry if that is TMI. I am working on getting her on the right formula so we'll see how that goes. I feel a little guilty for taking her off breast milk now that she has a red tush but I was just so tired of nursing. If you've ever nursed you know that it is very demanding and it gets tiring.

It has been a circus at our house for the last few weeks. We had the entire back exterior wall torn out and it is being put back up so the house has been a wreck and very loud. On top of that I came home from out of town to find out that the water heaters busted and there was water all on the bottom floor. So, that was no fun.

I have gotten Ellie on a schedule for everything; naps, food, bedtime. She is taking short naps but at least they are naps. If I'm tired and lay with her then the short naps sometimes turn into LONG naps and that is always nice.

Stephen is doing good. He is about to start playing flag football on Sunday so that will be fun to watch. Also, I think he is going to try and start caddying on Saturday mornings; that will be a lot of fun for him. He loves being on the golf course and it's also good exercise.

As for me, I am taking the Alabama Prospective Teachers Test next month and need to start studying...I joined a bible study on Wednesday mornings and have been teaching Mission Friends on Wednesday nights to preschoolers. Also, I am getting involved in a mommy and me play group and am very excited about that! I LOVE staying home with our precious baby girl and am so thankful for my husband. He goes to work everyday so that I can stay home and take care of our daughter.

Well, I'm going to go to bed so I'll blog again soon

September

Where has the time gone? We have already been in B'ham for 3 months and our baby is already 5 months old!!! Lots has been going on around here. Mom and Bubba are going to be back in less than a month and I am so excited. It's actually kind of late but I just wanted to post a few pics and say a few quick things....Ellie is still waking up once or twice at night to eat. I am still nursing and pumping. I have been making baby food like crazy and it is so easy, nutritious, and CHEAP! Ellie's favorite foods are avocado's and green beans :-) That's my healthy girl...I've been looking into Mothers Day Out programs for Ellie. Looks like I will be sending her one day a week starting NEXT September; unless a spot comes open before then. It's just one day, four hours. It would be nice to actually be able to get some things done around the house without having to stop every few seconds but who knows, maybe by next year she will be taking long naps by herself and I won't need to take her anywhere. On that note, she still only naps good if I nap with her. So, she either doesn't get good naps and I get things done or we both get a good nap or two and don't get much of anything done. She has discovered her feet and loves to put them in her mouth. It is so cute to watch her try to get her feet in her mouth. It takes her a little while at first but once she gets the hang of it she is on it! What else....I am about to fall asleep so let me post a couple pics and I promise I will write more soon. Good night

"Solids"

August 15 - Beautiful girl

There have been quite a few "firsts" here in the Fike household. Yesterday, Ellie laughed for the first time. An actual, real laugh. We were swinging on the porch swing and I was being silly with her and she laughed, twice. It was so cute! I can't believe my baby girl is laughing. She has been squealing with delight for a couple of months now but never actually laughed.

Last Monday we started her on solids. The first thing she had was rice cereal. She was not really a fan and kept making a face but I gave it to her once a day for 4 days anyways. After that we moved on to Avocado. She LOVED the avocado. No yuck faces at all. The last thing we have tried is Bananas. Again with the "yuck" face. This morning I mixed it with some rice cereal and she seemed to like it a little better. I think the Avocado is still her favorite though. She actually opens her mouth wide for the Avocado where as the others I kind of have to coax her into eating it. I also have been giving her a couple of sips of water after her solids. She is still confused by this and makes a face whenever she drinks it. I think it is funny because water doesn't have a taste :-)

First bite of food- look at what she is doing to her toes :-)
"hmmm, what is this?"

"o.k, I get it mommy..."

At her last doctor's appointment ( on August 14th) she was 24" long and 12.5 pounds. 50th percentile in height and 25th percentile in weight and head circumference. She's a little girl-just how I like it.

My sweet baby girl still is not sleeping through the night and mommy is tired. She normally wakes up twice to eat and goes right back to sleep. I am thankful that she goes back to sleep and I don't have to stay up for more than 15 minutes most of the time but it sure would be nice to sleep an entire 8 or 9 hours without waking up :-) I guess the time will come; until then I am actually embracing the middle of the night feedings and enjoying the extra time I get to spend with her. I told mom Ellie was mad at me and that's why she wakes me up but mom said, "no, she is mad ABOUT you". LOL, I guess that is true :-) My sweet baby girl.

Taking a Nap on the sofa

Ellie and I went to Haven's 8th birthday party a couple of weekends ago. I cannot believe that my little nephew is already 8 years old. It seems like just yesterday that I was giving him a bottle and tickling him "good morning". He is such a sweet boy.

Right now my little baby is sleeping peacefully in her crib. I just wanted to do a quick update and now I am off to catch some zzzz's before she wakes up again.

I've changed my mind

At Brennan's party with Daddy

Happy baby after Church

Good news, I am still nursing and pumping. Since I last posted everything has gone much smoother. Not one to give up, I just kept pumping and finally, NO MORE ENGORGEMENT!!! YAY!!! Ellie has been successfully nursing a lot more than before and I am not pumping as much.

For a while I was mainly pumping because Ellie would fall asleep every time she started nursing but she is much more alert now and has no problem eating a full meal before nodding off :-) She is playing with toys now and looking at books. I can't believe how much she is changing. The red that was once in her hair is now gone and has been replaced with a light brown color. I guess she won't be a red head after all. She weighs about 12 pounds and is just so beautiful.

My mom and I have finally figured out how to use the web cam so Ellie has been able to see her Grandmomma and Grandaddy :-) I'm trying to make sure she doesn't forget their faces since they are gone for such a long period at a time. Also, I bought Ellie a "look book" so that she can see her family all the time. It is just a baby photo album that holds about 8 pictures. She likes to look at it and chew on it.

Other than that, Stephen and I have been getting things done around the house. We had two ceiling fans put in last week, stained the front porch and side deck, and are having two new doors installed in about a week! Very exciting stuff around here. I laid some little tiles in my bathroom and the next project is hanging our window treatments in the bedroom and in the other living room. We are going to get that done before Saturday night hopefully. As soon as I get off this computer and get showered Ellie and I are going shopping for hardware so we can hang the curtains :-) Oh, and, Ellie has become much more mellow while in the car. Now she plays with her toys instead of screaming bloody murder (most of the time). Good times, Good times.

Leaving Brennan's birthday party

She has figured it out

Ellie has completely figured out the toy that I lay her under. We finally put batteries in it so now I think she has some incentive to hit the hanging toys. She hits them with a vengeance too buddy, she is not playing around :-) She also kicks them with her feet a lot. It is so cute to watch. She just smiles away and squeals as she is playing.

She slept through the night last Wednesday; 9pm-5am!!! Wooohooo!! Since then she has only woken up once and then last night she slept 7 straight hours but it was 3:30am when she woke up to eat so I guess that doesn't technically count as sleeping through the night.

On another note, I am pretty much at my wits end with nursing and pumping. I am getting engorged EVERY SINGLE DAY and I just can't take it anymore. I really wanted to make it through six months but it looks like I am only going to make it to four months. The pain is just unbearable, not to mention when I am engorged I don't get much milk out, which means it's a waste. I am disappointed and actually feel guilty but what is a mom to do?

Well, I will keep everyone updated. As soon as I figure out what is wrong with my camera I will post some new pictures.

Family Photos

We went to have our first family pictures made this past SAturday. They turned out cute and I am quite pleased. Click on my "photos" link to see them.

Pictures

I took Ellie to have her pictures taken a few weeks ago. Click on my photo link to see them all :-)

My baby girl is three months old

3 month birthday

Look at those pretty blue eyes

This is an old picture but here is the toy I was referring to

How time is flying. Ellie turned three months old yesterday. She is getting so big and she is so alert. She has started somewhat playing with her toys. She has this thing that she lays under and it has a sun, moon, and star hanging from it. She has started to hit them with her hands and it is the funniest thing because she makes this face like "what in the world was that?". Other than that she pretty much just hangs out with me (and when I say with me I mean me carrying her around). She is babbling up a storm. I think she is going to talk early because she gives it her all as it is. She just squeals and opens her mouth really wide like she is trying to talk. She also likes to smile a lot and has even made the laughing face without actually laughing. If that makes any sense. Ellie and I have been enjoying each other at home every day while Stephen is at work. We sure do wish he was home more but someone has to make some money :-) Everything is good here. We took Ellie to the beach for the fourth of July and she did not like it. I think it was too hot and too bright out there for her. I guess we will try again some time next year; definitely not the fourth though, it was very crowded.

Let's see, other than that; Stephen has been working during the week and hanging out with us on the weekends. I really like that he has a normal schedule now. He does like his job, which will surprise a lot of people. I've been trying to be a good stay at home mom/wife and have been making him a good dinner every night for the past couple of weeks. I plan to keep this up because I love to cook and it is usually the only decent meal I get all day. Ellie does not seem to like it when I try to eat :-)

Well, speaking of dinner, it is time for me to get dinner ready. I'll try to blog again soon.

New Email

pool fun

lake fun

city fest fun

home fun

My new email address is: Sfike2006@aol.com

My earthlink email got deleted before I had a chance to get all my address (because I didn't listen to my mother :-0

A Quick update

Hi everyone. We have had a busy last couple of weeks. My mom came into town on the 3rd and we have been doing lots. We got our nails done, went to the beach, went shopping (lots) and have been going for walks every evening. Ellie is getting big, she already weighs almost 8 pounds and as of a couple of weeks ago she had grown an inch! She is soooo cute and such a good baby. She is still sleeping pretty much all day but now she stays awake for a couple of hours in the morning and a couple of hours at night (sometimes). She is actually sleeping right next to me right now :-)

On mothers day we (Ellie, mom, and me) went to the beach with my aunt Rachel and her girls. Ellie slept pretty much the whole time we were there. She only woke up twice to be fed and then it was back to sleep. The weather was so perfect, we could have stayed all day. That night Stephen and I went to the Orlando Magic vs Boston Celtics game. It was a good game, very close. It was the first time we both left Ellie at the same time, and the first time I had been away from her for more than two hours. She stayed with mom and did very good. I was a little nervous because it was going to be the first time that she'd have a bottle. A lot of the books I read say that a lot of times breast fed babies won't take a bottle so I was afraid that she would cry the whole time because she would be hungry; but I was wrong. I pumped before I went and left her with two bottles. (Sorry if this is too much information :-) )Ellie took both of the bottles no problem; she is so good!!

Mom has been such a big help. She takes Ellie every morning after her feeding( between 6:30 and 7) and lets me go back to sleep for another two or three hours, however long Ellie will hold off. It's so nice :-) I wake up with Ellie two times in the middle of the night so it really isn't that bad. Sometimes I do fall asleep while I'm feeding her because the lights are down really low and I am sleepy :-) So anyways...

Ellie rolled over from her belly to her back again today!! She did it once when she was 7 days old and I thought it was a fluke. Evidently she is just very athletic and isn't wasting any time. When I put her down to do "tummy time" she starts kicking her legs around as if she is trying to crawl. I think she will start crawling earlier than most babies! She also works on holding her head up a lot, she is very determined to figure it out. I can't believe that she is already a month old. This month has gone by really fast!!

Well, I'm off to get some rest until she wants to be fed again. I'll post pics soon.

Ellie lost her Umbiblical Cord today

Ellie at 12 days old

Just thought I would share the news with everyone. She is 12 days old today! It feels like we have always had her, I just love her so much!

I posted more pictures

1 week old exactly

sleeping beauty, Monday, April 20

There are new pictures in the album. We took Ellie for a walk around the block last night. She seemed to enjoy it; she stayed awake most of the time. Stephen walked next to the stroller and held her little hand, so sweet. She has been more alert the last couple of days. She stays awake for about an hour at different times during the day. She is just so good. The only time she cries is when we are changing her diaper/cleaning her belly button or when she gets hungry. However, the hungry cry isn't really a cry, it's more like she is whining and I get right on it. I try to keep her from getting too upset.

We have had a very busy house since Ellie was born. My dad, step mom and brother came down for a couple of days, then Stephen's mom came down and has been here all week and she is leaving tomorrow. Sunday, Stephen's sister is coming to stay through Saturday, and then mom will be here on Sunday. Very, very busy...Well, I'm off to go hang out with our baby.

Added new pictures

Between feeding Ellie and taking naps I have had a few minutes to post pictures. I hope y'all are enjoying them. I am so happy at home with my husband and our sweet baby girl. Stephen is such a wonderful daddy. He helps with EVERYTHING and I don't even have to ask :-)

My dad, brother, and step mom came down for a quick visit this weekend and it was nice to have them here. I'm still too tired to write too much but maybe next week. I'm going to take a nap now.

She's here

and I am exhausted. She was born at 7:37am, April 14, 2009. She was 19" long and weighed 6lbs. 4 ounces. Labor was really fast and I only had to push for an hour. Everyone is doing great and I will be more specific when I am not so exhausted. For now, Daddy has baby and I am going to sleep.

End of Spring Break

36 weeks and 5 days

The end has come and I must say it has felt incredibly long. I didn't do much in the past nine days. I spent I day at the beach, got a pedicure, did a little bit of shopping, and the rest of the time I've been bored during the day. Friday night Stephen and I went to the movies and saw "I love you Man". It was very funny, everyone should go see it. Then last night we went bowling with Kyle, Alison, Chris, and Maria. I bowled two games and must say I did not do a good job. We stayed for a few hours and enjoyed hanging out with our friends.

I did go walking four times this week and I think my body is done with that for now. The sides of my lower legs hurt so bad that it feels like they are going to break. I guess that's my body's way of telling me to stop. So, until Ellie is born I am finished exercising :-( I'm only 3.5 weeks away from my due date and I am ready to have her. I am quite uncomfortable at this point and have been feeling icky lately. I am HUGE but I have only gained 23 pounds so I think I'm doing pretty good. My legs, feet, ankles, and hands are still pretty swollen and I guess they will stay that way until delivery. It's quite uncomfortable feeling.

Well, that's it for now. My mom will be here in less than a month and so will our baby. May is going to be a perfect month :-)

Happy Easter Everyone

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter Sunday. Stephen and I are actually not doing anything but I hope the rest of you are enjoying this beautiful day with your friends and family.

1 CM Dilated!

April 6th, 35 weeks and 5 days
I went to the doctor today. She said that I am 1 centimeter dilated and that Ellie is "way down low" :-) This means she is going to be here before we know it. I can't believe it!!! Everything is good with the exception of the pregnancy rash I have on my belly. Dr. Logan said it can spread to my arms and legs but hopefully it will just stay on my belly. It itches so bad but I'm trying not to scratch it. Well, I'll keep you all updated as we progress :-)

Spring Break is here

Today Stephen and I went to the beach for a couple of hours. The weather was really nice, not too hot, not too breezy. I have no idea what I am going to do all week during break. All I know is that Tuesday I have a doctors appointment and Wednesday Katie and I are going to go back to the beach. Other than that I think I'm probably going to be somewhat bored. There's not a whole lot to do when I can't shop and the house is clean :-) We have everything all set up and ready for Ellie to get here so now I'm just waiting. I cannot wait to drink a sugar free red bull once she is born. Although I was thinking about it and if I am breast feeding does that mean I still can't have one? I'm going to go crazy!! Well, I just wanted to give y'all a quick update.

new pictures

I posted the new pictures

She is hurting me

34 weeks and 3 days

Ellie has been kicking me pretty hard lately and it hurts. It seems to come out of nowhere and I don't like it. I hope she doesn't injure anything inside of me. Oh, and last night I had dream that I gave birth to a little BOY!! I was so upset because I had already bought a bunch of clothes and her car seat and everything else was girly. Not to mention I was expecting a girl so I felt a little put off that it was a boy. I'm sure that she is a girl; I've had a couple of ultrasounds since the 20 week mark and they said she is definitely a girl. I guess it is just my subconscious worrying. In the dream I gave birth a month early, of course, because it seems that the entire time I've been pregnant I have dreamed that I give birth a month early. In reality I don't feel as if I will deliver that early and hopefully I won't deliver early at all because if I do my mom won't be here. She is coming in on my birthday, I think, which is two days before my due date. Now I don't want to go over my due date, I just want her to come right on time. Is that too much to ask? Haha, I know babies don't have a calender and they don't tell time, I'm just saying.

We're back

And I am feeling much better. I ended up calling in sick to work on Friday because I felt so horrible. We went ahead and left for Birmingham at around 11am on Friday and I slept almost the whole way. I took some benadryl that morning and it pretty much knocked me out. We got to Birmingham at 7 and Stephen went out with Burton, Quana, Jackie, Patrick, William, Rodger, and a bunch of other people. I felt too horrible so I went to moms and went to sleep. My brother got in at around 10:30pm and I was sound asleep.
Saturday I was still feeling bad but went to eat breakfast with Christian before he went to Atlanta to see the King Tut exhibit then I went to get a pedicure with Breanna. Allison came to meet us for lunch and then it was off to the rehearsal dinner for me and Stephen. After that we all went bowling and had a great time. I only used a 6 lb. ball and was very careful. I actually bowled much better than normal because I had to be so cautious.
Sunday was the wedding and it was beautiful. I was feeling pretty bad by the end of it though because we had to stand up the whole time. It was outside by a river and there were no chairs. Then of course after the wedding I was standing around so that I wouldn't look unsociable, not to mention there was someone there I was trying to avoid....Jackie had a REALLY good wedding cake and I managed to only eat a little bit. After the wedding, 20 of us went to a Japanese steak house for dinner. It was good, but not as good as Kobe's. Stephen and I got back to moms around 9 and went straight to sleep.
Monday we drove back home. This time I did help drive; I actually drove for the first 4 1/2 hours then Stephen took over. You should have seen my legs and ankles by the time we got back home. You can't even see my ankle bone anymore! We brought home the stroller and car seat and quite a bit of other baby stuff so the car was jam packed. I'm glad Stephen decided to let his friend keep Diva because she wouldn't have fit in the car. Actually, Stephen had to leave his golf clubs at moms because they didn't fit. Guess that means he won't be playing golf for a while. So anyways, that's a summary of our last five days. They've been very busy and I am glad to be back home. We have our 2nd labor and delivery class tonight so it's going to be a long day :-) I'll post pictures from this past weekend this week sometime so be on the lookout.

I'm sick!

This is the view of my class room from my desk (with projects I need to be grading at this very moment)

I'm at work and I feel horrible. I have a stuffy, itchy nose and a headache. We're going to Birmingham tomorrow and I don't want to spend my weekend there being sick :-( Jackie is getting married on Sunday so we will be there until Monday morning. Driving back home Monday so that I can go to work on Tuesday. Christian and Haven are going to meet us at mom's house so we will get to see them. I am very excited about that.

I went to the doctor the other day and she said that my legs and ankles are a little swollen. She also said that I should expect to deliver about a week early because "petite women usually go early". I don't know how accurate that is but I guess we'll see. If I deliver early then I am going to have to come back to work for the first week and a half of June. Which wouldn't be so bad because all we do the last week is Final exams and then post planning (which means cleaning up).

Anyways, I'll keep everyone updated.

Watch it now!

So this is what a 32 week 5 days pregnant woman looks like in a bathing suit. Stephen and I layed out in the backyard for a little while today. It was such a nice morning. I should have gone to church but I was just so lazy. I didn't even take a shower until 3:30 this afternoon! Anyways, everything is good, just getting bigger by the day!

New Pants!!

My new capris and my 32 week belly :-)

I finally found a pair of maternity jeans that fit!! Not only did I find a pair of jeans but I also found a pair of jean capris!! This is very exciting news because as most of you know I have not been able to find pants that fit this whole time. I found them at Babies R Us of all places. I've been mainly wearing dresses and up until about 3 weeks ago was wearing regular size 2 pants from Old Navy and the Gap. However, due to recent growth, those pants no longer fit. Even when I leave them unbuttoned it feels like they are squeezing me to death when I have to sit down, which by the way is often.
Katie and I have been walking 3.8 miles 3 days a week and I love it. I get so excited knowing that I am going to go walking on those days. Her neighborhood is older so it has lots of beautiful trees and landscaping and actually is somewhat hilly. I've been addicted to working out for the past 5 years but had lost the urge for a while once I got pregnant. I am happy to say that I am back on the horse and am ready to work out all the time. This is good news because I was a little concerned about working out after Ellie is born. I think she and I will be spending lots of time outside walking when she gets here. Either that or I'll join a gym (which is more likely).
The weather in Florida has been absolutely beautiful for the past couple of weeks and it looks like it is going to continue for the next week. I love it!
Oh, one last thing; I am considering having my pictures taken by a place called "Paper Doll Photography" next week. They would be outdoor pictures and they are very unique. They aren't your traditional maternity pics. It's hard to explain and they only have information on myspace so if you have myspace you can check them out, otherwise your out of luck. The pictures are retro looking; they dress you up and do your hair and makeup. I'll see if I can copy one of my friends pics and put it on here so you can get the idea. Again, it's not for sure yet, I haven't talked to my hubby :-)
Y'all have a good day~

The beautiful weekend is ending

I was talking to Diva trying to get her to look at the camera....Sox, just walking around

It was a GREAT weekend. I didn't end up going to the outlets yesterday because Stephen came home early from work. I did end up cleaning the house and then just went to the bookstore and bought a couple of books. We went to Universal last night with Kyle and Allison to go to Mardi Gras and to watch Barenaked ladies in concert. It was a lot of fun. We got to get up so close to the stage, like the 15th row. Of course all the noise made Ellie move around like crazy so Kyle and Allison both got to feel her move a couple of times. They were big moves too, they kinda hurt :-) So this morning Stephen and I went to eat breakfast then went to church and the grocery store. Around 3:30 this afternoon we met Kyle and Allison at the dog park and let the dogs run around for a while. It was such a nice day!! Oh, and we saw a BIG alligator at the park; it was in the springs...and we were thinking about letting the dogs in there! So, that's that, it was a beautiful, wonderful weekend. I'm all rested up and ready for a new week at work.

60 days left

March 4; 31 weeks exactly

Countdown time. Ellie's due date is in 60 days exactly :-) I can't believe how close that is. Today is a beautiful day in Florida and I don't have a thing to do. I think I'll go take a shower and go to the outlets just so I can walk around outside. I guess I'll hit up Coach and Dooney and Burke to see if they have anything good :-) I layed outside for about an hour this morning to get some sun. I'm just enjoying my last lazy days. I know once the baby comes I won't be allowed to be lazy anymore. I can't even get motivated to clean the house right now. I just want to relax.

My belly has gotten so big! She must be doing some serious growing right now because I sure am! I'll post a couple of new pics real quick then I'm off to get ready!

So Sleepy

I am so sleepy no matter how much sleep I get. I had a guest speaker in class today and almost fell asleep during the second presentation I had to sit through. I decided to try and nap during lunch but I can't lay my head on the desk because my belly is too big. So I was trying to sleep while resting my head in my hands. I had just dozed off when one of my old students came by to say "hi". FRUSTRATING, I mean who in the world let her in the building in the first place. There aren't supposed to be any students in bldg. 8 during second lunch!!! So that's it, I'm super sleepy and frustrated.
Oh, and I got Ellie's crib mattress today :-) Slowly but surely we are getting ready.

It's so close

Feb. 23; 29 weeks and some odd days

I just realized I only have 10 weeks left until Ellie gets here! Everything has gone by so fast thus far... Work is going well, I just get winded very quickly when I give notes. On one hand I wish I didn't have to work right now but on the other hand I realize that I would be bored stiff sitting at home. I'm still getting up 4 or 5 times a night so I am not getting much sleep. I did finally break down and buy a pregnancy wedge so that my stomach is supported when I sleep. It is such a rip off to pay $17 for a tiny wedge pillow but I guess they know that you need it. Oh, and I put together the pack and play that my aunt gave me last weekend. It took me this whole week to figure out where the "bassinet" part is. I went to Babies R Us today and looked at the ones that were already assembled and realized that the "mattress" that goes at the bottom of the pack and play is the same mattress that you use for the bassinet part. To use the bassinet you just have to attach the netting that holds it up. It's hard to explain but I am relieved because now I don't have to worry about bending over to pick up Ellie all through the night :-) I also bought a quilted mattress pad to make it a little softer for our sweet little baby :-) I have 2 diaper bags, both packed and ready to go. The car seat is in B'ham and we will pick it up in a couple of weeks when we go to Jackie's wedding. So, that's it I guess...Oh, and I had a dream the other night that I had Ellie a week early and she looked just like Stephen. She had big beautiful blue eyes. I guess in a couple of months we'll see if these pregnancy dreams are true or not.