Happy Thanksgiving (a little late)

We celebrated Thanksgiving at my sister's house with my parents and grandpa.  Rob and I had spent the night over there on Wednesday to help Stacy get things ready, do some last minute baking, and set up the table.  It worked out well because Rob and I were able to wake up early Thursday morning to prepare the bird!  Since the turkey is pretty much the centerpiece of dinner, I always feel immense pressure to make sure it looks and tastes amazing.  (And my mom feels like she needs to send me no less than 10 emails with recipes, tips, and tricks on how to cook the bird). This is kind of funny to me because while I feel this pressure...it's actually Rob who does all the work.  :)  He takes out the giblets (so gross) and the neck, all the while I'm lording over him with commands like "what are you doing?" "is the neck out yet?" "put it all in the garbage and cover it up because I don't want to see"...haha!  He's a good sport though - and even tried a new little trick this year.  He put little butter packets underneath the skin to give it some flavor and we added a rub all over the skin and finished it off with carrots, celery, and onion.  Once the bird was in the oven - Rob went back to sleep on the couch and I turned on the Macy's day parade! 

My parents and grandpa arrived around 11:45 and then things really got busy in the kitchen!  Mashed potatoes in the crock pot, stuffing in the oven, rolls in the oven, and green beans on the stovetop...and we finally sat down to eat about 12:45.  The meal was perfect (could it be due to my last minute place cards???) and the turkey delicious!  Thank goodness I wore the maternity leggings...they gave me an advantage on everyone else...ELASTIC WAISTBAND!

 

 

 

 

We have so much to be thankful for this year....
-the baby growing in my belly
-family (both near and far) who are super supportive of us
-our cozy little house with a new furnace to boot
-two working cars
-jobs we like with good benefits for our growing family
-Miss Pecan Sandy
-Fringe (a new tv show that Rob and I are obsessed with)
-water with lemon slices (my new favorite)
-popsicles in the freezer (the baby's favorite)
-a never ending list of house projects with a Lowes down the street (daddy's favorite)

Really the list could go on and on...this baby is so lucky to have a dad that would do anything for us (including letting me sleep on the couch most of Sunday), aunties and uncles that are super excited to meet him/her and grandparents that are over the top generous!  A Happy Thanksgiving indeed!

Baby Bump Hits the Beach

We spent the last week on Captiva Island to celebrate my grandpa's (Poppy) 90th birthday. 

It was such a wonderful time to be together and the weather was just perfect!  I flew into Fort Myers from Atlanta and met up with the rest of the family in baggage claim on Saturday morning.  We hopped into our Dodge Caravan (even though mini vans aren't my favorite...I have to stay it was really comfortable and the only way we were fitting 6 suitcases plus carry ons) and away we went!  Our house was situated right on the beach side of Captiva, just a bike ride away from the Santiva General Store (my favorite for hot chocolate and snacks), and came with a huge pool (that was kept at 87 degrees!) and just yards from the beach.  The best part was that it had an elevator for Poppy! 

Some of my favorite memories from the beach...

• Daily morning walks with mom in search of shells and beach glass.  The big joke is that we are going to find the rare Junonia!  Sadly, this did not happen

• While I tried to avoid the swim suit (which I hate putting on even when I'm not pregant)...the urge to hit the super warm pool finally won out!  The pool was incredible and it was hilarious to watch every other member of my family attempt to get their bodies on the pool floats.  Oh baby, your dad still has not learned to take the float over to the steps for an easier time getting on board

• Lunches on our screened in porch overlooking the ocean!
• A bike ride with Rob to the Santiva General store for our families favorite snacks - including Combos, Chex Mix, and Honey BBQ Fritos (shout out to Rob and my dad)
• A delicious dip of ice cream from Pinocchio's - the Sanibel Crunch! (It had an adorable animal cracker on top too!)

• Our shelling trip with Captain John Houston to Cayo Costa...seeing dolphins...and watching Stacy and Rob try stand up paddle boarding.  I was skeptical at first about the SUP (stand up paddle board) but they made it look so easy!  A great core work out indeed :)

• Rob and I building the most beautiful sand castle.  We even used shells and seed weed as accessories.  Too bad we can't move in!

• Delicious dinners at a new favorites and old standbys... Cip's, Doc Fords, Cantina Captiva, The Bubble Room, and George and Wendy's Seafood Grille

• And of course - seeing Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2!!!  While Stacy and I were worried it might be sold out - we were practically the only ones in the theatre.

This baby is so lucky to have been on so many great adventures already! 

Weeks 14 &15

 

 

 

How far along? 15 Weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 5 lbs (Probably more by now, we'll find out next week!)
Maternity clothes? Bought maternity jeans and two dresses with Stacy at Destination Maternity.  My mom has also been buying me a few tops at Old Navy (why does everything have horizontal stripes?)  Stacy also brought over a maxi skirt and two sweaters on Halloween! 
Stretch marks? No and I'm trying to prevent that by rubbing lotion on everyday when I get out of the shower.
Sleep: Sleeping okay...minus waking up to pee every night at 3 am.
Best moment this week: Not throwing up and being at the beach with our baby bump!!
Miss Anything? Still miss lunch meat and diet coke...and this week I missed being able to get in a hot tub.  Our beach house had a nice hot tub...but not for this lady :)
Movement: Not yet...probably a few weeks out still.
Food cravings: Sour patch kids and everything bagels.

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Raw chicken
Have you started to show yet: yes, Stacy told me at the aiport that it looked like I popped. (Not sure if this is good or bad....)
Gender prediction: Boy??  Even thought of a cute boy name in church
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!
Looking forward to: Celebrating Thanksgiving with the Clouds...we will miss Rob's family for sure :)  We have so much to be thankful for. 

Week 13 Update

 

Since I'm a little late starting this blog - I thought I would post all the pictures that I have taken so far with the chalkboard.  Rob was so sweet to make me this chalkboard after I saw one on Pinterest that I liked.  He has also been really great about taking the photos for me.  The first week we probably took about 25 pictures before I deemed one acceptable enough to use. My friends would probably all say that I do this all the time no matter the occasion.  I'm usually the first to demand to see the picture and point out something awful about myself.  I also might have had a meltdown about how I looked and all the clothes I wouldn't be able to wear in my closet.  But anyway...This week though, it only took us about four pictures to get a keeper! That's progress!

 

 How far along? 14 weeks and 3 days (I'm a little late with the updates)
Total weight gain/loss: 3 lbs gained - was pleasantly surprised at my one pound weight gain at the doctor this week
Maternity clothes? At work I have been wearing my regular khakis but with a ponytail holder stretched between the button hole and the button.  While at home I've been wearing my yoga pants and leggins A LOT :)
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Sleeping pretty good - minus frequent (about two-three trips a night) to the bathroom
Best moment this week: Hearing Baby Hauck's heartbeat - 152 at the doctor's office and finally telling everyone at work and on Facebook!
Miss Anything? Mostly lunchmeat (and Subway) and diet coke.  Not going to lie...everytime we're at a restaurant I think about fountain diet coke.
Movement: None yet
Food cravings: Cold things - popsicles, icee's, frozen yogurt, and smoothies. Also sour candies and skittles.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Raw chicken and coffee
Have you started to show yet: Yes, though it's probably just me noticing.  Everyone else probably just thinks I'm getting fat!
Gender: We don't know yet
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! (especially since I didn't have any headaches this week)
Looking forward to: Our Sanibel Island, Florida family vacation!  We are taking the bump to the beach :)