Happy B-Day!

Happy Birthday Kel! My younger sister, Kelly, turned 21 yesterday (I'm a day late on posting!). We celebrated at Stephanie and Scott's on Sunday night for a fun Hawaiian fiesta!

Childbirth Class- Billy Belly

Last week, Bill and I started our first childbirth classes at the hospital that Avery will be born. We wanted to sign up for a quick little class lasting a couple hours one day. When we went to look up their classes, all that they offer is either a full weekend (Saturday-9-5 and Sunday 12-5) or a four week version. We chose the four week class so we go every Thursday from 6:30-9 until the beginning of May. If we aren't experts by the end then we never will be!

Our first class was pretty eventful. Luckily, we have some friends, Lindsay and Daniel, who are due in late June also. We signed up for the class together so we can endure the embarrassments of the class together! Upon arriving to the class, Billy was asked if he would mind wearing the empathy belly as a demonstration for the whole class. He said yes and had to fill out a health waiver just in case he were injured during the demonstration. He lied and said that he did NOT have asthma just so that he could participate!

First, our instructor strapped a chest compressor to his ribcage to simulate not being able to breathe complete breaths. Next, she strapped on the FORTY pound belly (and chest!). Here is a picture of Bill in the belly.

Next, they put a cute (I'm using this term loosely) maternity top over the belly so that he would be clothed.

He then had to drop a piece of paper on the ground and pick it up. He made it to the ground okay but when he tried to come up he had some problems. By this point tears were coming to my eyes because I was laughing so hard. It was definitely the highlight of the first class. I'm looking forward to seeing what the upcoming weeks have in store for us!

My First Shower

On Saturday, some of Billy's family, Dee and Melissa, threw me a wonderful shower at Hilltop Lakes. The guests were mainly from Billy's dad's side of the family- some of which I hadn't seen since our wedding! It was great to spend time with them, and it made me feel very special that people drove long distances to make it to the shower! This is a picture of me with Melissa and Dee.

They made all the little details special- including the cute corsages! Melissa came up with the great idea of making them using things from my registry. My corsage was made using a rattle and ribbon. The grandmas' and great grandmas' crosages were made with little socks and ribbon. They were really cute and creative! Here are some more pictures from the shower. The Grandmas to be and me Grandmas and Great Grandmas (the lighting isn't the greatest

but this is the only one that we took)

The delicious cake

Opening all of the presents!

I had a great time, and it really made Avery's upcoming arrival start feeling real!

Progress

Thanks to Spring Break and Easter Break, we have slowly made some progress in the nursery. We decided on a light green color. I have major issues picking paint colors so here were our three options. Usually I pick a color, get it painted, and then hate it for a few days until I get used to it. I always end up liking it in the end but it just takes me a little while!

Here's the painted room- I actually liked it right away this time! It matches the little polka dots in the bedding perfectly.
Our crib and dresser came in so we got them put together. Here is a picture of Bill putting together the crib.

Billy also put in the crown molding this past weekend. Do you notice a trend? Billy does the work while I observe. I leave the assembling and construction to him! I did help a little with the crown molding. I had to hold the other end of the piece of wood while he nailed it in. I couldn't reach the ceiling even on a chair so he got me this makeshift stick to hold it up there. Somehow we managed to get it done!

And finally...

Grace likes to sneak into the pictures and hang out in Avery's room. I wonder if that will continue when there is a crying baby in there! The room is still pretty bare now but it will eventually come together!

Glucose Screening Test

Over Spring Break, I had my Glucose Test done at my doctor's office. I had to drink this incredibly sweet orange drink and then get my blood drawn an hour later to test for Gestational Diabetes. If my blood sugar was too high then I would have to come back for a longer screen. I have been dreading this because I knew that if I did have Gestational Diabetes, my love for Freshberry frozen yogurt and everything sweet would be compromised! The nurse called me this past week to tell me the results. She started off by saying, "Well, your results came back abnormal." Of course, I started getting worried. This is definitely not the way that she should have started the conversation. She then said that my blood sugar was actually low. It was 46 mg/dL. Hypoglycemia is when your blood sugar is lower than 70 mg/dL. She basically told me to eat more snacks throughout the day. I definitely can handle that. It's not often that you are told to eat more frequently! She also said that I am anemic which is pretty common at this point in the pregnancy. I just have to take an iron supplement. All in all, I was pretty relieved. It could have been much worse!

On another note, I feel like time has been flying by lately. In the beginning, I felt like time was crawling by but not anymore. I can't believe that it is almost April, and Avery's arrival is just a couple months away!

Baby Luke

Baby Luke is here! On Wednesday (St. Patrick's Day), Ashley started having contractions and her water broke. She went to the hospital that afternoon and had Luke around 9 that night. I was amazed at how easy she made it look! Luke is so cute and big- 8 pounds, 7.5 ounces! We were surprised that he also has dark hair! For years, Ash and I have seen red headed children and talked about how that was going to be how her future child would look. We are so excited that he's here and can't wait for Avery to get here to meet her new BFF!

Spring Break '10

I know that it's been a while since I've blogged but there hasn't been a whole lot going on- just anxiously awaiting for Spring Break to finally be here. During the first few days off from school, I relaxed and enjoyed the amazing sunshine that I've been missing for so long. There was some excitement on Wednesday... Ash had Baby Luke that night (see the later post for more info!). On Thursday we headed to Austin with my family for one last little vacation. We stayed at a condo in the Hollows which is right on Lake Travis. It was beautiful, and the weather held out until Saturday when it got cold. We were able to hike, play games, and lay by the pool. Here is a picture of all of us at dinner the first night.

It was so nice to be able to relax and forget about work for a little while. Here is the view from our condo.

It's weird to think that Avery will most likely be attending our next trip with us (whenever that should be!). We had a lot of fun, and I'm sad to be leaving my life of leisure to head back to school. At least the school year is winding down, and I have a lot to look forward to over the coming months!