4D Ultrasound and Christmas Happenings

We had our 4D ultrasound last Friday, and it was amazing! Patton is absolutely adorable! He had both legs and both arms in front of his face. His left foot was literally sitting on top of his head! He smiled for us, yawned, and even flexed his biceps for us! Our ultrasound tech wanted him to move so she could get a better picture of his face, so she started tapping my belly and made my lie on my side. This just made Patton mad. We got a very prominent grimace from him after that. :)

He was so expressive. I guess that was what surprised me most. I can feel him kick and move, but I've never looked down at my belly and wondered if he was smiling or yawning or frowning. Now I know that he can make all of those faces and feel different emotions along with them.

He's a pretty active baby. He usually wakes me up by 6am kicking and turning. Sometimes he wakes me up as early as 4am and will keep me up for hours...other times he doesn't start kicking until after 7am. Right now I am sitting Indian-style on our couch with the computer on a pillow on top of my legs and Charlie asleep between the pillow and my belly. Patton is kicking her repeatedly, but I guess she is too tired to care...or maybe she knows that this is only the beginning.

Josh and I are so excited and cannot wait for Patton's arrival. I'm now 30 weeks, and we are just so close. We can't wait to hold him and feed him and just be a family. Luckily, we have the holidays to distract us a bit from our anticipation. Today is my day of shopping, but my husband hasn't made it very easy for me. He has only asked for a pair of slippers, and then told me to buy him stuff for the baby. I know he doesn't mean to be difficult...there really isn't anything he needs or wants. I guess I better get my creative juices flowing and get a game plan together. Josh got to shop for me on Thursday while I was at work, and I'm pretty sure he's done. It was his only day before Christmas to shop without me since he is working today and tomorrow, off Monday (when we have our next doctor's appointment), and then works 12 hours on Tuesday and 48 hours Wednesday-Thursday. He will get off at 7am Christmas morning, and I can't wait. We are so excited about spending our first married Christmas together, and it is sure to be wonderful no matter what is under the tree.

December is here, and so is the Third Trimester

Well, I just realized that the last time I posted was back in November when we put the crib together. A lot of things have happened since then...well not a ton, but it has been almost a month.

Thanksgiving has come and gone. I spent it with my family while Josh stayed at the base since he had to work. Next year, Patton and I will have Thanksgiving with Josh no matter what. I didn't like leaving him for the holiday.

Josh and I finally finished registering at Babies R Us, which means we traveled to Jackson, registered, and also had some P.F. Chang's. Yum!

I am working pretty hard this month...children's Christmas program, Advent children's sermons, and plenty more.

Josh and I decorated for Christmas. We have the tree and decorations up...our first Christmas as a married couple and our first Christmas in our home. We love it...if only Charlie would stop pulling the light bulbs off the tree. Silly pup!

Patton is growing and becoming more and more active. I've finally passed my pre-pregnancy weight. I'm over it by 4 lbs, but that number is sure to grow in the coming months.

I am officially in the third trimester now, and I can slowly feel my energy fading. I've fallen asleep on the couch for the past 4 nights...all before 9pm. Tonight I plan to keep myself away from the couch at all costs...I have to get the house cleaned up before Mom gets into town tomorrow.

My mom and dad are both coming into town for our 4D ultrasound, which is Friday morning. Mom is coming in tomorrow afternoon, and will hopefully help me out with a few projects. Dad is coming in Friday morning. Josh and I are so excited about the ultrasound! We can't wait to see Patton's face!

This coming Sunday, Josh and I are lighting the Advent candle during the worship service and leading the congregation in the Call to Worship. Then on Monday, I am hosting the Presbyterian Women's Evening Circle Bible Study at our house, and I have so much to do before then. Our weekend will be full of cooking, cleaning, and trying not to let me fall asleep early.

Well I better end this post and get back to work, today is my busy day of the week: Wednesday. We have Christmas program practice tonight, and I hope it goes well. They sure know how to wear me out.

Patton's Room

Well, Josh and I got the baby bedding in on Saturday, and I got the crib Tuesday night. We couldn't wait long to put it all together, so last night after we both got home from work, we got it done!

We are so excited about it! We love the crib, which is a gift from my dad and my stepmom, and the bedding is just perfect! My next project is to paint the letters of Patton's name to go above the crib. If you couldn't tell, my "nesting" has definitely set in...I woke up at 5am this morning and wanted to work in the baby's room. :)

Better Mood...But Definitely Sore

Well, this post is written in a much more cheerful attitude than my last one. Josh and I accomplished so many things this past weekend, that we are both beaming with pride...and very sore! On Friday, we had our doctor's appointment, took a tour of the hospital, registered at Target, bought letters to spell out Patton's name above his crib, ordered our wedding pictures and album, and just enjoyed being with each other. Saturday, we paid bills, bought frames for our wedding pictures, bought pansies for our flowerbed, and planted the pansies (which also included weeding, digging, and mulching). Sunday, we went to church (Josh even taught Sunday School for the kids) and then spent the rest of the day revamping our front walkway and hanging pictures in the hall. We got so much done! We have had these things on a to-do list for forever, so to actually get them not only started but completely finished just thrilled us! We are so excited about how the flowerbed and walkway turned out, and we are so glad that we finally ordered our wedding pictures and decided on items to register for. Needless to say, I feel so much better when I get to check something off my to-do lists, and this weekend definitely lifted my spirits.

Our lovely flowerbed full of pansies

Our walkway after spending hours weeding it and putting in new pebbles.

Patton and I at the end of the weekend...we were exhausted from all the work.

Patience

I've realized that as a pregnant lady, my patience has worn thin. Sometimes I have no patience at all. I get irritated easily, and I refuse to put up with any sort of drama. I have never been so prone to get angry before in my life. I've noticed that even little minute things that never bothered me before are driving me crazy, and the things that have always bugged me before seem to drive me over the edge now. I have my sane moments, but somedays I just seem to spend more of my hours in anger than in happiness.

Well, maybe I can use my silly pregnancy anger to make some of you laugh today. Here is a list of all the silly things that have annoyed me just this morning...enjoy:
1. The squeaking of our bedroom door
2. The fact that our bedroom door will not completely close
3. The hall closet door not sliding correctly when I opened it
4. The bathroom being dirty
5. My clothes not fitting "right"
6. My car not starting like it should
7. How loud the door handle is to the baby's room
8. How unorganized the whole house is (especially the pantry, it drove me crazy this morning)
9. The crazy spam newspaper in our driveway (that we never read and are not subscribed to)
10. Waking up with a sore throat

Wow, I guess I really hated doors this morning, and it didn't help that Charlie chewed one of my shoes this morning too. When I came in from church/work last night, I was so tired that I left my favorite pair of black heels in the den. I completely forgot to put them up since I was so ready to get them off my feet after a long day at work. They are the most comfortable shoes that I wear to work and to church, and the only black heels that I am still wearing since they aren't too high and are closed-toe. Looks like I might have to find a new pair.

Anyway, hope everyone has a great weekend. Hopefully mine won't be filled with animosity towards doors or newspapers.

November, already?

Well, it's been awhile. Lots of things have been going on since my last post, so I guess I should do a quick recap.

1. Josh and I traveled to Maryville Oct. 16-18th for Homecoming. We got to visit with Caroline, Jeremy, and Jasper on our way up there. We got to catch up with tons of our Maryville friends...oh how I love that place! On the way back to Laurel we stopped in Chattanooga to visit Vic, Charity, and Luke. We were glad we got to see everybody during our quick trip north.

2. Josh's brother Will and his fiancee Brittany got married on October 24th. She was such a beautiful bride, and we are so happy for the two of them!

3. I took the church kids to the Pumpkin Patch on October 25th. We all had a blast, and we really enjoyed carving our pumpkins together.

4. We had the church's Halloween Carnival on October 28th, and boy did it wear me out! It was a great event though, and the kids seemed to really have fun. I can't wait to dress Patton up and take him to it next year. This year we dressed up as a deviled egg...yes, I'm silly, I know.

5. We had new insulation put in the attic on October 22nd, and then we had to have someone patch our ceiling after one of the insulation guys stepped through the living room ceiling. The ceiling was finally finished on October 29th.

6. Josh and I are trying to get the house in order. Our guest rooms (especially the soon-to-be nursery) have become catch-all rooms, so we have some heavy duty cleaning, organizing, and rearranging ahead of us. I went through the nursery's closet this weekend, and I am well on my way to getting that room in some type of order soon.

Whew! The month of October wooped us good, but November promises to be just as hectic. Josh and I are babysitting 3 kids this week (ages 3, 6, and 11) from Tuesday night to Sunday night. They will be staying with us at our house, and I hope it goes well. Their inside dog is also joining us, but she will probably spend most of her time out in the yard (at least until we know her well enough to trust her in our house). My prepping the nursery will be put on hold this week while they visit since the 2 youngest (girls) will be sharing that room while they visit.

Besides our babysitting adventure, Josh and I have a huge to-do list in front of us. We still need to decide on baby bedding, we still need to register, and we have a lot of house projects that need to be done preferably before December gets here. We also have an astounding pile of stuff for a yard sale, but who knows when we will be able to have one. It's overwhelming, but we will make it through.

To end, here's some pictures from the month of October:

Me and Patton in the Smoky Mountains.

The kids' pumpkins at the Halloween Carnival.

Madison (6) and Lorelai (3) at the Pumpkin Patch. 2 of the 3 kids we will have at our house this week.

Tired of Drama

Warning: This is a pregnant/hormonal rant. I promise I'm a nicer person face-to-face. :)

You know, I'm not a big fan of drama. I like dramatic TV shows and such, but I hate the teenage-esque drama that some people surround themselves in. My dislike for drama has definitely increased now that I'm pregnant. I just don't have time for it. I don't have time for the drawn-out stories, for the ongoing updates, for the useless banter. And honestly, I don't have the patience for it either. I'm pregnant...I'm hormonal, achy, tired, frazzled, worried, and not to mention I'm growing another human being inside me. I don't have time for the "mean girl" crap or the high school angst. It's just too exhausting and stupid for my pregnant brain to comprehend.

I think I need a t-shirt today that reads: "I'm hormonal...back away slowly and save your drama for YOUR mama."