I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Our Christmas was very laid back this year. (I am sure it will be the last laid back year!!) Both of our immediate families are very flexible so that makes it much easier. We had our Earnest Christmas with everyone the weekend before and usually we would have dinner with the Burke family (Rileys moms side) but since she was in the hospital until the 23rd we did not do that this year. Christmas Eve Eve was with my immediate family. They came to our house for dinner so that we could look at Christmas lights afterwards. We were supposed to go to church on Christmas Eve but I didnt feel too great and plus the weather was not so great! Speaking of...did anyone see the big Christmas tree in front of the Courthouse (which is right by our church)? It blew down that night! Anyways we had Rileys immediate family Christmas on Christmas night. It was so wonderful to be able to spend Christmas with his mom at home! I had really missed the whole family being together and what better time for us to be together again than Christmas! I can't wait for next Christmas! :)
P.S. Sorry I was a slacker with pictures this year!

Coming Home for Christmas!!!

Riley's mom is FINALLY coming home tomorrow!!! Just in time for Christmas! We are just so excited...I know she is so ready to be at home! It will still be a while before she is able to get around, but being home with family will help so much. God has really answered some prayers. Thanks to all of you that prayed for her during this time!!

32 weeks

I went to the doctor on Thursday and everything was looking good. It was kind of sad because this was the first doctors appointment in a long time that I didnt get to see her. But I know I got way more ultrasounds than most. We talked a little about the her size right now. He said she is already pretty big but that would be a good thing. It just might mean coming earlier than the 13th. He said that we would talk as it got closer to time to see about taking her earlier if she still seemed big, but for now we would just leave the due date as the 13th.

I had a little bit of a scare yesterday. I had taken the day off to get some shopping done and also just for my sanity (yes I know I wont be back after Christmas but the kids are bouncing off the walls right now...if I can just make it until Tuesday!) Anyways, I had started doing a little shopping and was no where close to being finished with what I wanted to do that day when I started having a constant shooting pain on the right lower side of my stomach. I was in Barnes and Noble and could barely walk. So, I went and sat in my car for a little while and called Riley and I was in tears because it was really painful plus I was a little scared. He kept telling me to call the doc. but I hate to call them for every little pain so I said I would wait. So it seemed to be feeling better so I got out and walked in another store and had to walk right back out because I could barely walk. I had decided to go ahead and call the docs office but they were already closed and I didnt feel that I needed to call the emergency #. So I just went home. Finally, after a laying down for a while...the pain went away. I knew the whole time it wasnt like a contraction or anything but I also knew it was very painful and I had not had that kind of pain yet and of course with it being my first time with all of this I am going to worry. I came to the conclusion that I think she maybe had hit a nerve or was in a very strange position.

Nursery and Pregnancy update

I am 31 1/2 weeks right now and still feel pretty good. Sleeping is the only bad part right now. When I finally get comfortable...I have to get up and pee and then I cant go back to sleep. Some nights I sleep SO good and hard! (Riley says I have been snoring more these days! haha) I have been eating like crazy, but I dont know if that is to blame on the holidays or pregnancy! She kicks or should I say jabs me a lot these days. I can lay down and just watch my stomach do waves. Even though it is aggrivating sometimes when it feels like she is in my ribs or she keeps me up all night occasionally, I still love every minute of it! I think I will miss the kicks the most when I am not pregnant anymore! I am still having the problems with the Carpal Tunnel but it doesnt seem quite as bad. My arms just fall asleep at night and my right hand middle finger stays numb all the time. I am getting to the point where I just feel BIG...pregnancy is not "cute" anymore! haha Cant wait for February!

The nursery is coming along slowly. We do have the furniture put together and the bedding on. I have washed the newborn and 0-3 month clothes that I have now and I am in the process of organizing and putting them away. We have already put together the stroller/car seat that Mom got us and the high chair. We still have lots to do though. It will help to be off in January to get things done! I will post pics when it gets closer to being finished.

Things we still have to do in the nursery:
-Get the chair and night stand from Sugarfoots (the chair is in, we just have to pick it up)
-Find a chandelier and get it put up
-Finish organizing the closet
-A few things to hang on the wall (a friend is painting something to go over her bed) but I just need a few other things to go on the walls.
-And Im sure there is more, I just cant think of them right now.

**Dont forget to scroll done...there are more posts! :)

Happy Birthday Riley

I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband! He really is more than I could have ever dreamed in a husband and I thank God for him everyday!! I know he will also be a great father to Anna Riley and our future children! I love you Riley and thank you for everything you do!

Update on MIL

Thanks to all of you that have been praying for Riley's Mom! It has been a rough few months for her but she is finally recovering and working on physical therapy! They moved her to the Spain Rehab part of UAB to continue her PT. She took her first steps with a walker a couple of weeks ago and is now walking with the walker a little everyday. The doctors said it is just taking a while for her to regain strength due to being cut open so many times over the course of a couple of months. We were hoping she would be able to come home for Christmas and finish her PT at home but we dont know if that will happen yet or not. We plan to go to the hospital on Christmas and spend the day there if she is still there. We are hoping that if not Christmas, sometime in January! However, she will still have a lot of physical therapy to do when she gets home but at least she would not be in a hospital room any longer!!

Please continue to pray for her...as hard as it is for us to not have her around here for the holidays, its even harder for her to be stuck in a hospital and not with her family at this time of year!

Baby Shower at Boley Naz.

Mom and Dad's church gave me a baby shower Sunday. The ladies always do so great with all the food. I got lots of cute dresses and sleepers, diapers, blankets, a swing, and gift cards and more! It was so great to see everyone!! Thanks to everyone who came or helped!

School Book Shower

Last Monday the teachers at school gave me a Children's book shower. I thought the idea was so cute! I got so many good books. I got lots of touch and feel books and even one book that is a hand puppet! I also got a set of Eric Carle board books (love Eric Carle!) and some other great titles that are good read alouds.

Thanksgiving weekend & 4D Ultrasound

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend and ate lots and lots of good food! If not...I am sure I ate enough for everyone!! That is one advantage of being prego during the holdiays...no guilt when I eat too much! :) We went to Riley's Aunts for a short visit and meal #1 and then headed to my Grannys for meal #2. Mom, Dad, Riley and myself headed down to Fairhope Thanksgiving night for the rest of the weekend. We got in a little shopping (not on Black Friday...wasnt up for that!), some football (Roll Tide!), more eating and lots of relaxation.

Today I went for the 4D Ultrasound. We got lots of pictures of Anna Riley. She had her arms crossed most of the time and seemed to be sitting "Indian Style." She is still head down and her heartrate was 143. She weighs 4 lbs. 4oz and the nurse said I was measuring 31 weeks rather than 29. I think most babies at this time usually weigh about 2 1/2 -3lbs. So I am guessing she will be a bigger baby or be a little early. As long as she is healthy and fully developed, I dont care!

arms crossed

sticking out her tongue

Baby update

I went to the doctor today and it was actually quite eventful. They strongly recommended that I get the H1N1 vaccine so of course I did even though I was a little unsure about it at first. I also had the gestational diabetes test which was really not that bad and I passed it! I have always heard how awful the stuff was you had to drink but to me it taste similar to a Sunkist with a little more sugar...it was not bad at all! I am just glad I passed because I really wouldnt want to spend 3 hours at the doctor! They also drew blood and I had another ultrasound and we finally confirmed that she was a she! But she still wouldnt open her legs very much. But I had two ultrasound techs looking this time and they both said it had to be a girl. And especially since this was the 3rd time to look and they still didnt see any "sign" of a boy. I had held off about ordering the bedding until we got a definite yes so I am ordering it tomorrow! I feel like we are waiting so late to get things done but that is just how I am and its been really hard to get started when it still wasnt confirmed. I know it will all get done in plenty of time with the husbands help! haha.

I cant believe that I am entering the 3rd trimester!! It feels like just last month I found out I was pregnant. I still feel pretty good but I can tell I dont have as much energy as I did. I do pretty well though after being with Kindergartners all day that are just so excited about the holidays and it is getting harder and harder to keep them calm! I have someone everyday come up almost everyday and tell me they dont know how I do it and especially pregnant! Lets just say...I am looking forward to the week off! haha

Side note: One of my best friends, Becca just had an adorable baby girl..miss Zoe Jane! She is precious. I cant wait to meet her!! It makes me sooo ready for February so we can meet our little Anna Riley!

Calling all Prayer Warriors...

Our family really needs your prayers! If you read my blog, you know that my mother-in-law has been in the hospital since August after her 2nd liver transplant. She had so many setbacks and had to go back to the SICU 5 different times. She finally got all of her organs working again but has lots of PT to do because her body was so weak from laying in the hospital bed that long. She still hasnt been able to stand by herself or walk. She had gotten where she could eat some the past couple of weeks and only had the feeding tube at night. They were getting ready to move to the Spain Rehab Center to finish her recovery. However, last night they noticed something that makes them think that she might have a whole in her intestine. They did a CT but it didnt really show up in that. They plan to run a few more tests tomorrow. They said that sometimes wholes in the intestine will heal on its on in a few weeks to a months time but if not another surgery will have to be done! I know she is such a positive person but it is hard to stay positive right now. She is so ready to get home and be with her family and we are ready to have her back!! We were really hoping she might be out of the hospital by Christmas and I know it can happen but if she has another surgery, her recovery will be pushed back even more! Please, please say a prayer for her that whatever is wrong will heal without surgery!

LS Who?

We had so much fun Saturday tailgating and going to the game. LSU always brings a big party with them but it is always much better when we win!! So excited about Bama going to the SEC championship again...maybe we can beat Florida this year!!

Ashley, me, Cyndee & Bethany

26 1/2 weeks

I am really bad about remembering to take pictures! I am so sorry Kimberly! :) I havent had really any new symptoms. She is kicking a lot more now and really hard and I love it! It gives me the reassurance that she is ok. The only thing that is driving me crazy right now is the Carpal Tunnel because I have to pretty much just sleep on my left side and I am one that likes to change positions often! I have had the 2nd trimester boost of energy but as that is coming to an end, so is my energy. I am noticing myself being more tired in the afternoons when I get home. I also just feel like I have a lot to do but I am a procrastinator! I said I would start early but with everything that has been going on since I have been pregnant, I really havent had a lot of free time to do it. It will get done soon though! The main thing we are working on in the next few weeks is opening up another closet in our master bedroom for my clothes. That is one thing I dislike about our house...not enough closets! But do you really ever have enough?? I plan to purchase the bedding and chair for the nursery after the appointment on the 19th. Hopefully we will get a for sure yes on it being a girl!

Its official

Its official...I will be a stay at home Mom! I told my principal Friday that I would not be coming back after the Christmas holidays. I will really miss the faculty and my sweet little class this year but I know when February gets here I will be happy to be at home with my baby! This was kind of a big decision (more for me than Riley) because I am not tenured in Tusc. Co. so therefore I am having to resign rather than take a leave. I know without a doubt that I want to be at home but it was the fact of letting go of something I was so close to and would have if I had not transferred systems (my tenure). If the pregnancy would have been planned (which really how many times are they perfectly planned, anyways?!) I would have loved to finish out the year and get my tenure. But, after talking with my principal, she made me feel much better about it and come to find out she did the exact same thing.

Thankful to a 5 year old

I have loved reading all of your posts about what you are thankful for. I am a bit of a slacker with the blog sometimes, but have been thinking of what I am thankful for daily. Today I ask my Kindergartners to think about what they were thankful for and we would share one thing each day until Thanksgiving break. I first told them how I was so thankful for the little baby growing inside me. We went around the circle and I got a lot of "my mom, "my cat," "my sister" and then I got to this little girl and she said "MY LIFE." Wow! That is pretty deep for a 5 year old. Sometimes we forget to be thankful for just being alive!

Kids say the darndest things!

A couple of weeks ago I had to be out a lot due to a training that I only had for 1st grade and not K. Workshops and trainings are usually somewhat boring but the one thing I love about them is hearing other peoples stories. One of the ladies shared a story that I thought was just too cute!

One of the ladies, a K teacher from Shelby Co., said she was doing her beginning of the year assessments and ask this certain child to tell her what the letter A said. She said the child looked at the letter and then looked at her kind of funny and stood up beside her chair, holding her hands down to form an 'A' she said in a high pitched voice "hello how are you today?" The teacher just stopped the assessment right there! But think about it...you are asking kids that some dont know what a letter is to tell you what it "says." haha! It is just amazing what goes on in their little heads!!

Tuesday, Riley and I went to our 2nd 'baby' class. This one was on Breastfeeding. This is probably what I have the most questions about so I was looking forward to it. The class was very informative but I can tell you this...I have never seen so many breasts in my life! We watched a lengthy video and of course that is what you are going to see if the topic is breastfeeding! The person teaching the class was so funny (and without meaning to) that is just made you feel almost like you were in 6th grade again snickering everytime someone said the word "boob!" But all laughter aside it was a good class and I am glad we went. I always knew there were pros to breastfeeding but was not aware that there were so many! I really hope that I will be able to do this!

1st Award

Thanks for the award Candace @ The Strickland Family! Maybe one day I will be as good of a blogger as you! :)

Here are the rules for the award:

1)You must thank the person who gave the award and list their blog and link it.

2) You must share "10 Honest Things" about yourself.

3) You have to present this award to 7 others whose blogs you find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged you.

4) Last, you must tell those 7 people they've been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving the award.

10 Honest Things About Me
1. I love cooking but it just really isnt as much fun when you try to make it healthy!!
2. I talk to my Mom at least once a day but usually more.
3. I really have enjoyed pregnancy thus far (well the morning/all day sickness wasnt too fun) but I am so ready to see my sweet girl!
4. I love teaching children (especially those that are underprivelaged) but its not an easy job! If you think so, come teach for a day!
5. I am so happy I will be able to stay at home with my baby and witness all her "firsts"
6. I spend WAY too much time on Facebook doing nothing!
7. I am addicted to online shopping.
8. I HATE Walmart and probably only go in there about 3-4 times a year!
9. Sometimes I still can't believe that I am married to Riley! Seeing that I crushed on him for about 5 years while working at the Rec! haha
10. I do not do much laundry...I hate it! My husband usually takes care of that department! :)

You've been awarded!
Krisha @HouseDivided
Mrs.Joy @Things Remembered
JoAnna @TheFitzgeralds
Kim@lawsonparty of five
Margaret@The Worrell's
Amanda @ McCrory Moments
Angie @ Frog, Snails & Puppydog tails

Baby furniture

We finally ordered the baby furniture this past weekend. I am glad we didnt wait any longer because it might not have been here in time! We were trying to wait a little bit in hopes that his mom would be out of the hospital because the furniture was a gift from them and I would have loved for her to go with me. But she warned us that it takes a while to get in and we needed to go pick out what we wanted pretty soon and she was right. We knew kind of what we wanted so the decision wasnt too hard. We went with the 3 in 1 convertible crib set. Cant wait to get it and put it together!

A great weekend

College reunion!

The two preggos!! :)

Addison--so cute!

Audrey (one of the triplets)
Lunch at Chucks
Carson--I didnt get a good picture

This weekend was such a great weekend! Lots of my college friends were all in town for the Bama/Tenn. game. Friday night Cyndee, Dan, Amy Beth, Gabe, Becca, Zach, Riley and myself went to dinner at Melina's. It was so good once again! We got to do lots of reminiscing which is always fun. Saturday was of course Alabama football! We sat up a tent and tailgated before the game. Lots of my college friends stopped by and it was so nice getting to see everyone! Wow...I hate sooo much food! But...I probably walked it all off as much as I had to walk! I just love when we get tickets and the row is 62! Not to mention, I lost Riley so I walked up and down a couple of times wondering if I was in the right seat! But it was all worth it during those last few seconds of the game...all I can say is WOW! I was really worried for a little while but I knew somehow those boys would come through! Anyways....Sunday, I got to meet Kimberly & Cory for lunch and meet little Carson! Oh he is just adorable!! I have to say being around all of the babies this weekend definitely made me have the "fever" even worse!

Stubborn!

I had another appointment today and we were hoping to confirm the sex of the baby. Well...she was still being stubborn and wouldn't open her thighs so she could get a good picture. However, the lady doing the ultrasound said she was still going with girl but wanted to do another one next time just to see! The funny thing is she had been kicking and moving around a lot more today than normal UNTIL we went in for the ultrasound!! The one advantage to it is we are getting to see "her" more! We will have ultrasounds the next 2 visits as well...one to recheck and the next is the 4D. Maybe with all of that we will have confirmation!! Everything looked good though. Her heart rate was 155 which is about what is usually is (155-160). I have to take the wonderful sugar test next month...so that should be fun!

Carpal Tunnel??

For the past week or so I have been waking up in the middle of the night and my right arm is tingling and feels as if it is going numb. In the mornings when I wake up, my right wrist hurts and its hard to grasp things for about the first 30 minutes. This is when it usually hurts the most...mornings and during the night, but occasionally it does throughout the day. I googled my symptom as I often do and it said it was carpal tunnell and its very common during the 2nd half of your pregnancy. So didnt know that was another one of the lovely symptoms you get! I am going to the doc tuesday and will probably ask about it but according to everything I read, its kind of like everything else...it will stop after the baby is born!

Pictures

Here are a few pictures from the past couple of weeks.

Riley and I before going to eat for my Bday

22 weeks

23 weeks

The next two pictures are from Friday. Glen Coffee (former UA football player...now plays for the 49ers) He came to visit while he was in town for UAs homecoming.

This is most of my Kindergarten class with Coffee

Warning: very long post!

Ok...I am trying to catch up a little.
Baby Update: I am 22 1/2 weeks and I feel like I have grown so much in the past couple of weeks. I finally started feeling her kick from the outside of my stomach last week. I felt her for the first time last Tuesday. It was funny because for 3 days in a row, everytime I would assess a student on his/her letters, she would start kicking like crazy! Maybe that means she will love to learn! :) Riley finally got to feel her Friday afternoon. He was starting to get very frustrated because he couldn't feel her. It is such an amazing feeling...I just light up every time she moves! I have also had CRAZY dreams...I mean some are very disturbing! haha. I am definitely getting up more to pee which is just so delightful! :) And the appetite...well it has finally picked up! haha

I had a birthday on Sunday. I have a wonderful husband that always makes each birthday very special. I actually kept forgetting my bday was coming up which is unusual at my age...usually I have lots of plans! I am sure because the best present will not arrive until Feb so I have my mind on that! :) But I did enjoy three great meals over the weekend which is wonderful for someone that is pregnant! We got to try out the new restaurant in town, Melinas (where the Globe used to be) and it was great!! I also spent Saturday shopping with my Mom.

We have had so much going on for the past couple of months. Rileys mom is still in the hospital at UAB. She has been in the ICU 4 times since the end of August. They have had to open her up 3 different times to "fix" things. So we have been busy going back and forth to Bham. She had another surgery last night because of 2 spots on her liver and is having a chest tube put in tomorrow to drain fluid off her lungs. We are hoping this will be the end of surgeries! Please keep her and the family in your thoughts and prayers...this had been a battle she has been fighting for 11 years (when she was diagnosed with cancer in her colon and ovaries) and she is still such a fighter!

Last night we also had our first Childbirth class. Unfortunately Riley was unable to attend because he was at the hospital. It was very informative (Most things I already knew, but I did learn a few things too!) The next one is on Breastfeeding and that is the one I am ready to go to because thats what I have more questions about than anything.

I have a couple of pics to post...I will post them later.

Happy Birthday Mama!!!

Yesterday was my Mom's birthday and I didnt get a chance to post. Happy Birthday to a wonderful Mom and a best friend!! I love you!

Morph Thing

So I saw this on another blog and thought it would be fun to try. I took a picture of Riley and myself and they give you a picture of what you child would look like! haha...I guess we will see!
Baby Update: I am 20 weeks now so halfway! YAY! I can now tell that my appetite is much larger and the peeing never stops! But I know I might as well get used to it because it I still have 20 more weeks of it! haha. I have felt her move inside but I havent been able to feel on the outside yet. Riley is being very impaitient because he hasnt felt anything yet. Maybe soon!

We are having a....

Well lets just say I am hoping the baby was just being shy and not already showing signs of stubbornness!! haha It took a while but on the 2nd attempt we finally got a good enough picture. We are 95% sure we are having a GIRL! It will be confirmed my next appointment. Everything looked good. Her heart rate was 156...about what it has been. She was weighing 12 0z. We got a cute picture of her feet and they measured 1 inch!