100 years ago today...

A loaf of bread cost $0.05, The Boy Scouts of America was founded, Alice Wells became the first female police officer, and my Grandpa, Wilbur (Barney) Gracey Gillespie was born. Along with many others, I always thought Grandpa would live to see 100, and still can't believe he didn't. He's been gone for almost four years now, and is still thought of quite often.

I believe, the picture above is the last one we got of both Grandpa and Grandma together.

Some of the things I remember (and miss) best about Grandpa are:

• His weekly calls to check in on me. I would answer the phone, and he would say "Hey, Sis, how the hell are ya?" When he was done talking, he never said good bye, just hung up the phone!
• His bib overalls. That's all he wore in the last who knows how many years!
• How he would stick his one tooth out at you.
• "Warts on a dog's tail....(bow wow)"
• The way he would yawn REALLY loud.
• How he wouldn't just turn the tv down when he wanted to talk, but instead just hit the mute button. When he was done talking, he would hit the mute button again and you would get your ear drums blown out from the tv.
• The trip to Texas with Grandpa, Aunt Kay, and Dad. Me and Grandpa rode in the backseat together the entire way. Grandpa had the "straws", or tubes, sticking out of his head for drainage because he had fallen a week or so before, Dad had just had surgery on his face, and I had stitches going down my bottom lip and Aunt Kay was the only one without any injuries. When we got down to Texas, we had to find a hospital so we could get the tubes taken out of Grandpa's head. That was an experience, to say the least!
• Aunt Mid throwing a glass of Mountain Dew in Grandpa's face! Of course, it didn't phase him.
• The horses (and trail rides). There was always a horse at Grandpa's and he would always try to get me to ride them.
• Grandpa's flowers. After Joel and I bought our house in Chesterfield, he would walk me around his yard about every time I went over to tell me the different kinds of flowers and usually had to dig some up to send home with me.
• How he would push the floor lamp beside his recliner back and forth while talking to you. I would catch Joel doing the same thing in our old house after Grandpa had died.
• He loved babies, homemade ginger ale, solitaire, and reading.

He also loved his "girls". I think I called him about every day the week before my wedding trying to convince him to come to the our wedding. I told him he could come in his bib overalls, but that didn't work either. He told me too many times to count that he didn't go to weddings or funerals! Below are some pictures of me and Abby with Grandpa. I'm sure I could have found older ones, but these are the ones I came across this afternoon.

Wilbur (Barney) Gracey Gillespie Nov. 24, 1910-Jan. 9th, 2007

Random Thoughts

On our way home from Springfield this afternoon, I noticed something for the first time in my 26 years. Has anyone else noticed all the bird nests in the fall/winter after the leaves have fallen from the trees? I couldn't believe all of the nests that I noticed along the interstate. Of course, Joel thought I was crazy when I pointed it out to him, but what else is new? He's become accustomed to my random thoughts each day. I love days when I notice something for the first time, even if it is something as small and random as bird nests in trees. Joel had a good point, when he said there are a lot of birds, hence a lot of bird nests, and he wasn't kidding. I think I saw more nests than houses by the time we got home!

I'll apologize in advance for my next thought...but I noticed after my shower (before putting on my belly butter) that my toilet seat has a film on it. I've been applying so much belly butter to the back of my thighs and butt that it rubs off on my toilet seat and when you don't have the belly butter on, you kind of stick to the seat. If anyone comes over to our house and uses the upstairs bathroom over the next three months-I'm sorry if you stick to the toilet seat! If I had better genes (or maybe if I hadn't been eating Mexican once/twice a week) and didn't have stretch marks, this wouldn't be a problem.

Why do pregnant women have such crazy hormones? I cried yesterday during Oprah's Favorite Things show and I've been bawling like a baby all through The Biggest Loser tonight. The makeover show always gets me, but never as bad as tonight.

My last random thought/question for the day is: Why does my husband like to try to wake up the baby? If I meet him walking down the hallway, he has to grab my belly and shake it a little and just chuckles while shaking it. I can guaran-damn-tee you that he won't think it's so funny once she's out of my belly!

Baby Shower

Jennifer, Rita, Callie, and Alaina put on a wonderful baby shower for me yesterday at the Jacksonville Country Club. I can't believe all the nice things we got for Ainsley. We're so lucky to have wonderful family and friends. The food was all very good, especially the potato soup (which was my only recommendation!) The cake was adorable and very tasty. I brought some leftover cake home and Joel has been eating a piece here and there over the last day. I love how he's okay with gaining weight right along with me!

We received so many gifts yesterday that we filled up my car and Mom's. By the time we got everything in the house, the entire living room looked like a baby bomb had exploded! We got our travel system, exersaucer, travel swing, high chair, play gyms, diapers, onesies, towels, bath stuff, lots of cute outfits, and other things that will be all be very useful!!! Joel couldn't believe all the stuff we got and how much stuff a baby needs.

Ainsley's closet is really filling up, and her dresser is pretty full of socks, tights, onesies,blankets, etc.

Joel put together her stroller/car seat earlier this afternoon. Thanks again, Grandma Rita for her travel system!

We're going to get the mattress for her crib this week and then I'll post some pictures of her bedroom. We also have to take back the chest of drawers and exchange it with a new one. Thanks to Jim and Mark for coming over earlier today, the chest of drawers that needs to go back got moved out to the garage, so Joel doesn't have any excuse this week not to exchange it!

It's hard to believe Thanksgiving is this week. Where has this year gone? January is going to come quickly with the holidays and our trip to Dallas over the next month.

Thanks again Jennifer, Rita, Callie, and Alaina for the shower. Joel and I both appreciate everything you guys have done.

Welcome to the world, Baby Augustus!

Josh and Kathleen, or more formally put, Uncle Josh and Aunt Kathleen have a new addition to their family! Augustus Charles Clark was born Wednesday at a whopping 9 pounds 8 ounces. He's going to be a big boy, just like his big brother. We visited the Clark's tonight for a few hours and it seems so surreal that we will have a little "Gus" of our own in a short few months. While holding the baby, I wondered if I would really know what to do with Ainsley after she arrives. Will we know what to do when she cries? How will she know if she's hungry? Josh and Kathleen sure seemed to know what to do when the baby started crying, and I really think we'll be just fine.

Late last week I noticed that my belly button has popped out like a turkey timer. Except, the turkey in my oven isn't quite ready to come out yet! I think it will pop out a little more during the next few months, but you can definately see it now through my shirt. Joel has been able to feel her more and more when she is kicking as she gets stronger. It seems like every time someone tries to put their hand on my belly to feel her, she stops kicking though. We still think she's being shy like her Mommy. Below is a couple belly pictures at 27 weeks.


Last weekend I was able to get the basement Christmas tree put up and most of our Christmas decorations out. Ainsley's room even has a small tree, even though I said I would never do it!

Vegetable Soup Did The Trick!

I passed the three hour test!!! I'm convinced it was all because of the vegetable soup we had last night. Even if it wasn't that, I'm going to keep telling myself that so maybe I'll start eating a little better. That thinking will probably only last a few days, I'm sure! I got to St. John's around 5:40 this morning and had my iv in and the nasty lemon-lime crap down by 6. Before my test yesterday, I had to drink an orange flavored mixture and I told Joel that it really wasn't that bad. This morning, however, I didn't know if I would be able to keep the lemon-lime mixture down. It was a lot worse than the orange. The lady that watched me drink it told me that if I threw up, then I wouldn't be able to do the test today and would have to come back. I was determined to keep it down and get the test over with.

I was home a little before 10 and the nurse called me around 2 and told me I passed. I was so happy when she told me, and she just laughed at me! I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm nuts.

I'm taking off tomorrow and going shopping. A lamp, frames, and anything else I can find that's cute for the nursery is on my shopping list. I'll post pictures this weekend/early next week of the baby's room. We got the furniture over the weekend and I'm hoping to get it a little more "put together" this weekend. We have to take the chest of drawers back to Babies R Us because the top three drawers are screwed up. They have a new one ordered and when it gets to Springfield we have to take the other one back and pick up the new one. I was so proud of my husband/soon to be daddy....he only complained a little about the extra work!

Hello, Third Trimester!

Sunday was the first day of my third trimester. I'm wondering where the last two went. It seems like just a few weeks ago Joel was giving me daily shots and we were hoping that everything would work out this time. We're both so glad all of that is past us and we only have a few short months until we meet our little girl!

I had my monthly appointment this morning and didn't get the best news. I failed my glucose test and now have to go for the three hour test. The nurse informed me that I failed it by quite a bit, which I probably could have gone without knowing! I'm planning on being at St. John's tomorrow morning bright and early (well, not so bright...but definitely too early for me) at 5:30 to start my test. I called the lab today and they told me that is the best time to get there and I shouldn't have a wait. The doctor told me that almost all women who fail the initial test end up passing the three hour test, and that is because they have to set the bar low on the initial test because approximately 15% of pregnant women have gestational diabetes and they don't catch it. I'm hoping I pass this one and everything will be fine. I don't know what I'll do it if I have go on a "diet"!!!

Dr. Huston said I'm measuring good and the heartbeat sounded great. I asked him about my last sonogram and he said that I'm measuring good on the outside, but I do have another sonogram around the first part of December to check the growth. I gained 7 pounds last month, which I'm blaming on all the neighborhood kids. If more would have trick-or-treated, I wouldn't have had to eat all the leftover candy! Or, maybe it was the brownie/ice cream kick I was on for awhile...but I don't think my weekly/biweekly trip to the Mexican restaurant had anything to do with it at all!!! So, what does a rational pregnant woman do when she finds out she failed her glucose test? I know what I'm doing, hoping that one night of healthy eating will somehow affect my test results in the morning, and that is making vegetable soup for supper. I'm sure there are a lot of people thinking-Trista, eating vegetable soup????? I've discovered that it really isn't that bad, even if I do still have to pick some of the vegetables out of it!

I'm meeting with a few women that do in-home day cares over the next week, and I'm hoping to figure out the daycare situation by the end of the month. These next few months are seriously going to fly by. We have something to do for the next ten or so weekends, and I've got to get the rest of my Christmas shopping in sometime. At least the basement Christmas tree should be up by early next week if I can talk Joel into helping me with it! It seems kind of weird putting a Christmas tree up 1. Before Thanksgiving and 2. When it's 70 degrees outside, but that's how this pregnant lady rolls!

Unexpected Surprise

Tonight I had an unexpected surprise. I'm not talking about finding a $5 bill or two band aid wrappers in the dryer after washing Joel's work clothes. Nor, am I talking about Mom's unexpected visit before she went into work tonight so she could see the painted baby's room and clothes that are filling up her closet.

My surprise that could have never come around, period, is a stretch mark. Well, it's not exactly ONE stretch mark, but an entire clump of stretch marks on the back of one of my thighs. I'm talking about 5-10 dark purple/red little stretch marks, people! I've been watching my belly closely for stretch marks for the last month or so and have been happy not to find any. I never thought to look on my legs, and boy was I surprised. I hollered at Joel to ask him to look at them, and when he replied "Oh My God!", I knew then my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. So I marched directly into our bedroom and smothered some belly butter on the back of my thighs and will continue to do that every chance I get.

What does any rational pregnant woman do after finding her first "set" of stretch marks? Well, I can't exactly answer that question, because I don't think I fit into the "rational" group. I know what I did. I went into the kitchen, heated up a brownie and then put three scoops of cookies and cream ice cream on the top of my warm brownie and plopped myself on the couch and enjoyed it!

Halloween

The baby furniture is in! It hasn't actually arrived to our house yet, but it is sitting at Babies R Us in Springfield waiting for us to pick it up. Hopefully Joel will find time this week to run to Springfield and pick up the furniture. I painted the bedroom in the basement last Sunday and Joel and Tim moved the furniture from the baby's room to the basement yesterday afternoon. This morning I helped Joel prime the baby's room and decided to wait until tomorrow or Tuesday to start painting it.

Last night we walked State Street in Jacksonville with the Dyche family. Drake was a monkey, Ryder a werewolf, and Ashton dressed up as....well, who knows what exactly it was! She wore a tutu, afro, big eyelashes, and a grill. Poor Ashton didn't get very much candy because everyone thought she was too old. Drake was very excited and would take off running to the next house and jump in his car when he needed a break! Ryder thought he was pretty cool this year because he wasn't scared, for the first year ever, until I pointed out the guy with the chainsaw across the street and the night was over for him. He just wanted to be done after that! My back started killing me and Joel and I were home by 8 or so. The picture is right before we went home, and by this time almost everyone was "done". Ashton took off half of her outfit because no one gave her candy anyway, and Ryder couldn't see out of his mask so he wore it on top of his head. For some reason, Joel was wearing Ryder's hands and Drake was the only one still going strong!

I'm pretty disappointed with the Trick or Treaters tonight in Chapin. We've only had 3 kids. Last year we had quite a few kids, so I bought a big bowl full of candy and I have a feeling I'll have almost all of it left by the end of the night.

Things I have started to miss/enjoy since becoming pregnant...

Things I have started to miss since becoming pregnant:

1. Sleeping on my stomach. With the size of my belly now, this is pretty much impossible.
2. Sleeping all through the night and waking up without my hips hurting. (See #1). I have always been a stomach/side sleeper and now that I can't sleep on my stomach, I pretty much sleep on my sides throughout the night. I bought a pregnancy body pillow, which has helped a lot, but I still wake up every morning because my hips hurt from the extra weight placed on them. (Thomas and Tanner, I know if you're reading this you'll get a laugh out of the "extra weight" comment. Just so everyone knows, my two lovely brothers replaced my name on Dad's phone. When I call Dad's house it now says "Big-un" instead of "Most Beautiful" that I had programmed in.)
3. The nights when I didn't have to get up one, two....five times to pee in the middle of the night.
4. The nights when I didn't have acid reflux when trying to fall asleep. I didn't even know what heartburn or acid reflux felt like before getting pregnant.
5. When I could wear a "normal" sized bra and could find one that actually fit.
6. Being able to clean the house, paint, or any other manual task for more than an hour at a time without my back killing me.
7. The days when I could go on an all day shopping trip and walk/shop all day without my back and feet hurting and being completely wore out.
8. The times when we would go out to eat and I would leave extra on my plate to take home for leftovers the next day. (That comment was for Jennifer and Jim who both think it's funny how much I eat now!) Joel made the comment the other night on our way home from eating Mexican how we both clean our plates now instead of taking food home with us!
9. CAFFEINE!
10. The days when my belly didn't look like a "man's" as Joel says. I think I'm catching up to Joel on belly hair....well, maybe not quite that bad!

Things I have started to enjoy since becoming pregnant:

1. The unconditional love and bond that is forming with the baby. I wish everyone had the opportunity to experience this.
2. The kicks/punches/somersaults that I feel every couple hours, even if they do freak me out and keep me awake at night.
3. SHOPPING for all the adorable things they have out there for babies.
4. When Joel gets worried if he can't get in touch with me. If I don't answer the phone, he'll continue to call and if I don't answer the phone after 5-10 calls, he'll start calling his sister to find out if she knows where I am. I love the fact that he cares so much for me and the baby and is worried about us!
5. Borrowing a tshirt from Alaina and having her ask me if I need/want a bigger one because I guess she thought my belly was really popping out of the one she gave me!
6. Joel trying to feel the baby kick and when she does seeing the biggest grin on Joel's face.
7. Reading my day-by-day pregnancy book every night before bed. I get to see what the baby is doing on that day and how much she is growing, etc. Joel really likes it too!
8. Going to my doctor's appointments every few weeks and hearing the heartbeat.

Even though there are things I miss now that I'm pregnant, I wouldn't change it for anything. Last night I was showing Joel pictures out of my pregnancy book of how the baby looks at 10, 13, 18, and 24 weeks and how much they change. She is really looking like an actual little baby now according to the pictures in the book.

I woke up with my first leg cramps a couple nights ago. It was in my calf and I was able to get it to go away pretty fast. I'm not looking forward to having any more of those for a while!

I started painting the bedroom in the basement Sunday and finished it yesterday. I'm hoping Joel will get the bedroom furniture moved out of Ainsley's bedroom and into the bedroom in the basement in the next few days. I have talked Joel into priming Ainsley's bedroom for me and then hopefully I can get it painted this weekend.

Last night around 4 (or early this morning, however you want to look at it) I heard a siren going off and it just kept going. I didn't really think twice about it until it started to get annoying and I couldn't fall back asleep. I finally rolled over and asked Joel if it was the tornado siren and he said he didn't think so, but it had been going off FOREVER! It shut off a little while after that. The wind was really blowing and I couldn't fall back asleep so I decided to come into my office and check the weather. Sure enough, it had been the tornado siren and we were under a tornado warning! I yelled into Joel and he came in to look at said that we would have been dead because we both ignored the siren and just wanted it to go off. The warning was only for another 10-15 minutes because we had laid in bed for the first 20 or so minutes of the warning listening to the siren and not worrying about it. Joel didn't want to go to the basement then, so we ended up staying in our bed. At least now we know what the tornado siren sounds like and we both agreed that next time we need to get up and go to the basement, especially when the baby gets here!

23 Weeks and Jamie's Bridal Shower

It's hard to believe that I'm 23 weeks already. I showed Joel my belly picture from 19 weeks and told him that I didn't think I had grown that much and he said I look much different.

I've started to notice a schedule with the baby. She is usually most active at night right before bed. She's kicking or punching me pretty good as I type this. The times I notice her the most are at night and from 9-11 in the mornings. She is occasionally active in the afternoons, but I've noticed that is usually when I talk on the phone and I think she hears my voice.

Jamie's bridal shower was this morning and turned out really well. A lot of people made it out and she got a lot of nice things. Hopefully she can find somewhere to put it all! I forgot my camera at home, so I don't have any pictures.

I'm hoping to start painting the bedroom in the basement this week and moving the spare bedroom furniture down after it's painted. Next will be getting Ainsley's bedroom painted. Her furniture should be here in the next week or so! I stopped by Mom's this afternoon and she showed me her closet, which was getting full of stuff for Ainsley. I have a feeling she is going to be spoiled rotten and not want for anything!

We're still talking about middle names and haven't come up with anything yet. Hopefully we'll figure something out in the next month or so.

We have a kicker!

While laying in bed last night reading, I looked over at Joel and told him that the baby was really kicking and had been for a while. I've said this to him many times over the last month or so and he just kind of looks at me in awe, wondering if I'm really feeling her kick. About three weeks ago he put his hand on my belly after I told him she was kicking and I just kind of laughed and said there's no way you can feel her yet, and no matter how much he pushed on my belly (which wasn't much because he's scared he'll hurt her) he couldn't feel her. Last night was different.

I looked over at Joel (who didn't want to be bothered while reading some book about war) and said, "I wonder when we'll be able to feel her from the outside kicking". I then leisurely put my hand on my belly to see and sure enough within a few seconds, I felt it on my hand at the same time I felt it in my belly. It REALLY weirded me out. I started crying because I was so freaked out, yet excited at the same time. At this point, Joel really thought I was nuts (I've been very emotional this week for some reason). I made him put his hand there and it didn't take her long to give him a good kick either. As soon as she kicked he pulled his hand away from my belly as if he'd been shocked. I just looked over at him and he had a smirk on his face. He didn't know what to say. I was so excited that I couldn't fall asleep at that point, and it didn't help that she was wide awake and kicking like crazy until after 11. It took me forever to fall asleep last night and this morning she is wide awake with me kicking like crazy again. I'm not for sure if I'll ever get used to these kicks, punches, or whatever they are, and even if I am a little weirded out by them I still love them and can't wait for the next!

IT'S A GIRL!!!

I had my 21 week sonogram Monday afternoon. Joel took the day off to go, and we both were so excited! The sonogram technician said she was going to check everything with the baby, and she wasn't kidding. I told her we definately wanted to know the sex, but it was the very last thing she got to. She measured all the bones, head, stomach, heart and everything else that you could possibly think of. The baby was laying with her butt up and head face down, so we were able to get a good view between the legs. There was no mistaking that it's a girl. I couldn't believe it when she told me. I've been waiting so long for a baby and then to find out what it is. It feels so different knowing that it's a girl instead of just a baby growing in my belly. We can now say "she" when referring to the baby instead of "the baby" or "that kid" (Joel said that was the one I said all the time). Below is the picture showing it's a girl!

The sonogram went pretty good except that she wouldn't show us her face. She was laying flat on her face and wouldn't move. The sonogram tech tried for a good 10-15 minutes to try to get her to move to no avail. She even tried an internal sonogram and that didn't work either. We got her to roll just a little bit at one point, which was long enough for the tech to get the readings on the face, etc. Joel said that she's already shy like me and was embarrassed because she knew people wanted to take her picture and were looking at her. I still laugh about that comment. When I was little, I would hide behind Mom and Dad's legs and under the table at my birthday parties. I was so shy!!! Below is a good picture of her spine and then one of her face. You can really see her eye sockets in the second picture and her arms and legs.

The sonogram tech said that a doctor (not my regular doctor) would be in to check things out. The doctor came in and looked at the baby's measurements and told us that she is only in the 12th percentile. They want her to be at least in the 50th percentile. She measured 20 weeks 4 days and I was 21 weeks 1 day. The doctor said that they aren't too worried about it right now, but they want me to have another sonogram around 28 weeks to make sure that she is following the same growth pattern. I'm glad we get another sonogram since we didn't get any good pictures of her face on Monday. I'm not for sure when we got the picture below. It may have been with the internal sonogram and it's upside down.

I get to do my glucose test at my next appointment. Everyone says how awful it is, but I don't think it will be too bad. I just have to drink this bottle of stuff they gave me an hour before my appointment and they'll draw blood. I'm sure the stuff tastes awful, but I'll be glad to have that test past me.

After our appointment on Monday we went to Babies R Us and registered. It took a couple hours and we both were overwhelmed and didn't really know what we needed and the differences between everything. We ordered the baby furniture that afternoon and it should be here within the next month. I'm going to order the bedding in the next few days and once it comes in, I'll be able to pick the paint color and start painting! I can't wait to actually get started on her room.

Her name is going to be Ainsley, and we haven't decided on the middle name. I can't believe we're over halfway there already. These next four months are going to go by so fast between getting her room ready, the holidays, baby showers, travel, bridal shower, and getting ready for Thomas and Jamie's wedding. I know she is going to be here before I know it and can't wait!

Half way there

I can't believe I'm 20 weeks already. The excitement for the upcoming Monday is almost too much to bear. We have four days left until we find out what the baby is. I have noticed in the last few weeks how Joel is really getting worried and protective of me and the baby. I knew all along that he would be a great dad, but I never dreamed it would be this early!

People are starting to notice my belly more and more. While I was waiting for our Chinese food to get done last night, I went into Fashion Bug. The sales lady started telling me about the jeans that were on special this week and she was half way through it when she saw my belly. It was pretty funny. She almost stopped, but decided to go on and explain how they are $19.99 this week. At the end, I just laughed and said I didn't think I would be needing them right now. She agreed and walked away. I didn't hear another word from her.

Last weekend Alaina and I went to Chicago for a few days (I want to point out that Joel didn't want me to go...refer to the above paragrah how he is getting protective of me and the baby) to shop and just have some girl time away. It was so nice! I think I gave her some insight on quite a few things, but one that really sticks out (because of my Fashion Bug incident last night) was the salespeople in the stores up there. In some stores, we would have three or four seperate people asking us what we were looking for, how we were, etc. Alaina would respond to each one while I would ignore them and keep walking. She finally said after the second or third store, "You just ignore them, don't you." I laughed and said, of course. I hope she learned that it's ok (in my mind, anyway) to ignore them and keep on walking. It will save her so much time while shopping!

I don't really have anything new to report on the baby. Some days I will feel it moving quite a bit and others not at all. I haven't felt it for a couple days now. We're planning on ordering the baby furniture and bedding next week after we find out the sex. Hopefully we can start on the baby's room in November and get the spare bedroom moved down to the basement. I'll be sure to let everyone know how much Joel complains throughout that process. I know he won't be thinking of the baby then, only the fact that it is making him work and spend time away from the tv.

19 Weeks and Drake's 2nd Birthday Party

Today is the beginning of my 19th week. There really isn't anything new to update since my last blog on the baby. It is the size of a mango this week! Joel said today that he has a feeling it's a girl. I'm still unsure. We'll love it either way! Below is a new belly picture.

We went to Drake's 2nd birthday party this afternoon. It was a Mickey Mouse party. He's been in love with Mickey for the last few months, and he was much more in to the party this year than last. He got a lot of cool toys, clothes, and the cutest gift was the pair of cowboy boots his Gma and Gpa Dyche got him.

It rained last night, so Joel and Jim were able to go to the party today and didn't get in the fields. I rode with Joel yesterday for 2-3 hours while he ran the grain cart. After watching Jim run the combine, I've come to the conclusion that Joel and his Dad are just alike. They think they can get through anything in the farm equipment. I witnessed the combine "mudding" and getting stuck in a huge hole. About once a week or so I'll notice Joel saying something, doing, or just looking at something the same way his Dad does. The more they're together the more alike they become. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing!

Doctor's appointment

I had my monthly appointment this morning. Everything is looking good. The heartbeat was right at 150, and I gained 6 pounds over the last month. Again, the doctor wasn't worried about my weight gain, which surprised me, but I'm glad he's not one of those doctors that tells you that you need to cut back. I'm beginning to really like Dr. Huston! He's going to be out of the office for two week in October, so my sonogram got moved up to Oct. 11th. I'm so excited...that's four days sooner to find out the sex of the baby!!!

I have to say that hearing the heartbeat at each appointment is absolutely wonderful. I never dreamed that I would be listening to the heartbeat of a baby that's growing inside me. It didn't seem possible for the longest time. Joel and I both are so grateful and excited that we can finally experience it.

I've been able to feel the baby move for about three weeks now. At first, I only felt it late at night while laying flat on my back in bed. Last week I was sitting at Jack's football practice reading a book and felt it for about 30 seconds straight. That was the first time I felt it while sitting up and it really caught me off guard. I know the parents around me at the practice had to wonder what I was reading, because I know I had the biggest smile on my face! I felt it again while sitting up while coming home from eating last Friday. Alaina was driving and talking about something and I had to cut her off for a minute to tell her that the baby was moving because it scared me a little and was totally unexpected. During the past week I've been feeling it more regularly throughout the day and then especially at night while laying in bed.

While laying in bed last night watching Ma's Roadhouse on Tru TV, I started laughing and my stomach contorts in this really awkward way. It's like one side is more raised than the other. I'm thinking that the baby must be laying toward that side of my stomach, because there is a huge bump over there when I laugh. I raised up my shirt to show Joel how weird it looked and of course, he's grossed out by it and told me to put my shirt back down! I do have to mention that Joel said that "Ma" off of Ma's Roadhouse could be Grandma Mary working at Westside. He said she wouldn't say the "F" word as much and wouldn't drink, but if she was still smoking she could definitely be "Ma". It's really funny because "Ma" says and does exactly what she wants and doesn't listen to anyone else, which is exactly what Grandma does. I had to laugh about that because they do have some similarities! If anyone gets a chance, and doesn't mind the foul language or watching a reality tv show about a biker bar, I would recommend you watch the show. If you can catch the one where the health inspector shows up, I think you'll be able to see why we think Grandma reminds us of "Ma".

Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays

September appears to be the month for birthdays. Dad's was a couple weeks ago and then JD's 1st birthday was the 9th. He had a great birthday party and got lots of cool (and noisy) toys! He loved his cake and dug right in after someone put his hands in it.

We celebrated Mimi's birthday last Sunday night at the Approach with all the family. Drake's 2nd birthday was Saturday and I met him and Jennifer at McDonald's for pancakes. He loves playing in the play land, and gets right in there with all the big kids. I didn't like the bigger kids pushing Drake around and about yelled at them a couple of times, but Jennifer just laughed at me. His birthday party is this weekend, and I can't wait to watch him open all his presents.

There really isn't anything new with the baby. I have a doctor's appointment on Thursday and then we find out the sex Oct. 15th. I'm hoping he'll want to move my sonogram up when I go in Thursday.

Joel has been working non stop, but did take yesterday off after it stormed pretty bad last night. It was nice to see him for more than an hour. He got the yard mowed yesterday. It was getting pretty bad. I'm sure Wilma (our neighbor) would have been out there mowing it this week if he didn't. I painted the living room yesterday to get ready for our tv stand to get here. It's so nice to have a tv in the living upstairs again. It's suppose to be in the 90's tomorrow. Where is the fall weather???

16 Weeks/Dad's Birthday

Today is the beginning of my 16th week. The baby is now the size of an avacado! Below is a belly picture.

We had everyone come over for lunch to celebrate Dad's birthday and it was nice to see everyone. We'll be doing it again next weekend for JD's 1st birthday! JD liked chewing on a limb from the tree.

Family picture time, and everyone was looking at the camera!!!

I hope everyone has a good week. I'm looking forward to the short four day work week after Labor Day, tomorrow!

Harvest is here

They started getting corn out earlier this week. They started at the river farm and got a couple hundred acres out. They are going to be in full swing next week. So, I won't be seeing my husband for a few months.

Below are a couple of pictures from last weekend that Kathleen sent me this morning. The first is Nathan pushing Drake (which was hilarious!) and the second is Drake showing Kathleen how he pulled the handle off of our window. Both Drake and Nathan are going to be handfuls in a couple years (they already are, but I think it's only begun)!

Great Weekend

We had another busy but great weekend. We babysat Drake Saturday and took him to the park. He loved it! I don't know which he liked more, the play equipment or watching the people.

His favorite thing was the tunnel. He probably walked through it 15 times. Every time he would have to yell (just like he does in the entrance of Walmart) to hear the echo. The things that entertain kids is amazing!

Saturday night Josh, Kathleen, and Nathan came over to visit and play. I don't think Drake knew what to think of Nathan!

Sunday we went down to the boat. We picked up Grandma Mary and Dad and spent the afternoon at the boat and then ate on our way home. We had a great time! I think Joel finally believes that Grandma really does say what's on her mind an doesn't leave anything to the imagination. Her and Joel think way too much alike!!

After the busy weekend, Joel and I are looking forward to relaxing this week. Joel is going to start harvesting next week, so he'll keep busy with that. Last weekend Lani did my hair and makeup. You can't really tell in the picture, but I had white, blue, and pink lipgloss all over my face. I don't know who taught her how to put on makeup, but she has a lot to learn!

Doctor's appointment

I had a doctor's appointment this morning. It was much easier than the last one. I was in and out in under 10 minutes! He said everything looks good and the heartbeat was in the 140 range this morning. I gained 5 pounds since my last appointment, but he wasn't concerned at all. The fatigue has really subsided and I feel much better than I have the last few months. The only thing I have to complain about is my back (which I really did a number on after cleaning all day Sunday) and the headaches I get 2-3 times a week.

It's been pretty boring around here lately. I was in Dallas last week and this week has consisted of eye appointments, doctor appointments, and a hair appointment. I did read a couple of good books while I was in Dallas: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and The Castaways by Elin Hildebrand. I was disappointed with the ending of the Castaway's, even though I couldn't wait to get to the end to find out what happened.

We have a couple of names picked out for the baby, but I'm letting Joel decide on the boy's name. We have three names we are throwing around for a boy, but the girl's name has already been decided (the first name, anyway). The girl's name will be: Ainsley. I haven't decided if that is how I'll spell it yet, but it will be close to that. We have the names for the boy narrowed down to: Wendell, Calvin (Cal), or Clark. I'm sure that name won't be decided for quite a while.

I hope everyone is enjoying the nice weather! We have our windows open and it is so nice listening to our fountain outside while sitting in my office.

State Fair

We took Jack to the State fair yesterday. He really enjoyed it, except for all the walking. He got to milk a cow, see baby pigs being born, pet all kinds of animals, see antique and new tractors, ride a few rides, and see lots of different looking people. I think we picked the hottest day of the year to go. I had to take numerous stops to sit and rest, and was drenched in sweat. I didn't even think about wearing sunscreen, so my shoulders and chest are as red as a lobster.


I think I was as excited as Jack to go to the fair. I had only been one other time, and that was when Aunt Kim took me and Jessica Gibbs when we were about Jack's age. I only remembered the rides and nothing else. There was a lot more to it than the rides! I loved watching all the people. Joel and Jack both missed the guy with a "bowl" mullet with the "Team Jacob" shirt on. I only saw two mullets, but that was enough for me!


Jack milked the cow but didn't do it very long, because the tail kept whipping him in the face!

Jack standing in front of the butter cow.

12 1/2 Weeks

Another belly picture!

Baby Bedding

I know some of you may be thinking I'm completely crazy, but I want to get as much done as early as possible for the baby. Yes, I'm only 3 months along and, yes, I don't even know the sex of the baby yet but it's still fun to shop and get things picked out ahead of time. I have picked out a couple of different bedding sets for both a boy and a girl. Joel doesn't like the farm bedding for the boy, so I'm sure we'll end up with the sports theme. I love the Migi Blossom for the girl, but Joel liked the farm theme for the girl. The links are below.

Baby Boy:

Animal Acres by Kidsline:

http://www.babysupermall.com/main/products/kli/kli260beds.html

My Little MVP by Nojo:

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2841327

Baby Girl:

Abby's Farm by CoCaLo Baby:

http://www.babysupermall.com/main/products/coc/coc7033-874.html

Migi Blossom by Migi:

http://www.target.com/MiGi-Blossom-Bedding-Collection/dp/B001P8OPGG

Last week was very busy, but great! We were able to spend some long overdue time with great friends and family. It was so hot early in the week and I tried to stay in as much as possible. Joel came home a couple of days with his shirt drenched in sweat. Hopefully that was the last heat wave of the summer.

We babysat Drake one afternoon/evening and it was too hot to go to the park, so we had to stay inside. He loves to look at the tower, elevator, and baseball field and will run from one side of the house to the other to check them all out. We have a "GE" emblem on our oven and Drake thinks it's funny to push on the emblem and yell out "BEEP" like it is an actual button. He really thinks it's great when Uncle Joel or Aunt Trista does it.

We had garlic-cheese bread for supper and he couldn't wait for his "pizza" to get done.

Friday night we went to Lonzerotti's with the Bangert's. I forgot how it was when Nolan and Joel get together...most of the time I have no clue what they're talking about!

There was an adult softball tournament going on behind our house all day Saturday. I was fixing lunch and looked out our kitchen window to see men walking in our back yard, right up beside the house. They were looking for one of the softballs. Even though they put a fence up around the edge of the field, we still get softballs in our backyard! Wilma (our neighbor) was outside helping them look for one of the balls that landed in the ditch behind the house. The guys gave up, but Wilma wasn't about to! She had a rake and stick and raked the grass down the entire ditch looking for that ball (which she never found). As always, she was full of information for me when I went out to talk to her. At the city meeting earlier in the week, someone brought up the idea of installing light poles along our street in the front of the houses. We all have small light poles in our yard, but the city wanted to put the big light poles up. Needless to say, Wilma isn't very happy about that. We're going to have to see who wins. I'm not betting on the city, that's for sure!

Saturday night we celebrated Alaina's birthday with the Hallock's and Jackson's at Osaka's. I'm ready to go back again! We didn't get seated right away, so we sat at the bar where the bartender gave us a couple samples of the different infused alcohol. They finally got to one without a label on it and Joel was the first to try it, and said it tasted as bad as it smelled. After he tasted it, we found out it was pineapple-bacon infused. I wish I could have tried it....I LOVE BACON! The bartender told us that bacon infused alcohol is really popular in the big cities. I don't know if I could drink something bacon flavored...I think I'll stick to eating it. The food was amazing, but of course, too much for everyone to eat at the restaurant (I think we need to take Nolan the next time we go to see if he can clean his plate there) and everyone had plenty to take home.

Sunday we went down to Dad's and stopped at Grandma Mary's on our way. She seemed to be doing good and was glad she didn't have to go to the baby shower with Aunt Roycelyn yesterday. She had been putting up apples all morning and seemed ready to sit down and relax for a while. I love how she will tell you exactly what's on her mind, even if you don't want to hear it! I told her before August is over, we're going to the boat again and she thought that sounded alright.

Dad and I canned tomato soup yesterday afternoon, and it didn't take as long as I thought it would. We (Dad, Tanner, me, and Joel) decided to go down to St. Louis to Maggiano's for supper. The food was great, as always. My biggest decision today is going to be what to eat for lunch. Will it be rigatoni-d from Maggiano's or leftover Osaka's??? I'm sure Dad doesn't have much of a choice today, because Tanner probably ate most of their leftovers as a mid-night snack last night. At least Thomas isn't there to devour it, and Dad might have a slight chance of getting some of the leftovers today!

Nothing is new on the baby front. I'm sure I've gained a few more pounds from the weekend, and we're now at week 12! I've had a few headaches in the last week and hope they don't continue. My back still bothers me if I lay flat on it and it sometimes takes me 5 minutes or so to get up. I've been having weird dreams, but I've read and heard that it normal also. One of them from the weekend, was that we were all at Aunt Do's for a holiday and Aunt Mary's ghost appeared, although it didn't look like a ghost. She looked as alive as ever. She was telling us something, but I don't remember what it was and everyone sat at the dining room table in shock and no one said anything. I told Dad about the dream yesterday and his response was: "I guess Abby wasn't there then, because she would have told Aunt Mary to go away!" I think he was probably right!!!

One of the biggest highlights of last week was getting both my belly band (Thanks again, Amanda) and books in the mail Saturday. I ordered some books from Amazon last week on pregnancy. One is a week by week book and the other is a day by day book. I'm excited to start reading them. I also got Belly Laughs by Jenny Mccarthy, but I'm sure that will be read in the next couple days. I'm still looking for a good book I can take to Dallas with me next week. Does anyone have any good books they've read lately? I guess the first place I should look is Aunt Peg's blog: http://agoodbookisawaiting.blogspot.com/ . Let me know if anyone has any suggestions.

Busy Weeks

We've had a busy last couple of weeks. Last weekend was Jack's 8th birthday party (and also Mom's 40....something birthday...I'll just say she is now closer to 50 than 40!) Jack got a puppy for his birthday that he absolutely loves. Everyone had a good time at the party. Jack had a hard time at first, when I got Lani in a dress before the party, and made Jack mad because everyone was paying attention to Lani and not him. He didn't understand why everyone was paying attention to Lani, when it was HIS birthday party! The day ended with a dance-off in the basement, and Jeremy ended up walking away as champion although Brianna and Ashton worked the hardest and walked away soaked in sweat!

Drake was pooped after Jack's party. He didn't have a nap and was completely wore out. Uncle Joel's lap was the perfect place to crash!

Tuesday I went to Six Flags with Aunt Di and the Ford kids. Of course, I couldn't ride any rides, but I did go on the old cars and the Scooby Doo ride. Jesse and his friend went on almost all of the rides in the park, and Joelle went on the mine train twice! She's much braver than I was at that age. I think I was a teenager before I rode the mine train! We had a few mishaps during the day, but we made it through. The lunch meat for lunch didn't make it into the cooler, but Aunt Di packed some peanut butter, so the kids didn't go completely hungry! The kids didn't get to enjoy the water park because there was thunder, so as soon as we got there they stopped all rides/pools for at least half an hour because of the weather. It ended up being a good day, and I was happy to get out of the house for a day!

Yesterday Joel's cousin was married. It ended up being a very long day. The wedding was at 2 and then we went to the nursing home to visit Joel's great aunt. We got to the reception around 5 and was home by 9:30. I had a headache and was very tired, and just wanted to come home. The wedding and reception were both very nice, and Joel enjoyed seeing all of his family.