A wonderful day of celebration!

I woke up this morning to this wonderful homemade cake made by the sweetest husband in the world! And yes that means we did eat birthday cake for breakfast too ha :)

I was so happy to NOT have to work on my bday for a change and instead spent the day hanging out with friends. Christina, Jen and Amy- thanks for making this birthday girl feel special!

After JR got off work we headed to TGI Fridays, compliments of Momma Isham's bday gift card to me. Thank you.. it was DELICIOUS!

I definitely wont ever forget this birthday of turning 26- not only was I 8 months pregnant, but I was showered with love from all around! Between cards in the mail, a special gift from the best friend who always makes me feel special on my big day, tons of texts and phone calls, and of course about 100 facebook wall HAPPY BDAYS.... this girl is blessed :) Thank you everyone!!

Girl's birthday weekend!

I have been looking forward to this day since about October when we planned our girl's weekend! My mom, my sister, my other mom Leann, Jessica and her mom Teresa, are all headed to stay in a cabin in Pigeon Forge this weekend! I LOVE me some girl time and so it is going to be so nice to just get away and relax with everyone for an entire uninterrupted weekend :)

On Sunday when we leave I will be heading back home with mom and Rachel for an entire week! That next weekend we will have 3 showers with our friends and families in Tennessee and I cant wait! It will be so nice, but so surreal... especially since the NEXT time I come back to TN after that.. I will be bringing my SON!!!! Wowzers :)

26 on the 26th!

Today is my official golden birthday... 26 on the 26th :) And oh what a year this will be for me: becoming a mom, first year as a stay at home mom, JR graduating seminary and us figuring out what next for our family.. it should be an exciting year!!!

As I think about the day that Griffin will arrive, I wanted to find out more about my actual 'birth' day. Here is what my mom had to share:

I was a week over my due date and she decided to walk as much as possible to try and get the labor going. She took many laps around my Mimi's subdivision and sure enough it worked! Suzanne Shelton, a neighbor friend, then took her to the hospital and once she got there she was at 2 cm dialation. She didnt have an epidural, because back then they thought it stopped or slowed down the labor. Several hours later she had finally progressed to a 3, however it wasnt moving past that. They decided to do an ultrasound to see what was going on inside and found out that my arm was up and around the back of my head and therefore I was not able to move down further in the birth canal. My mom's blood pressure began to rise and mine also dropped so the doctors called for an emergency c-section to get me out fast. My mom had to be knocked out for the procedure, and after about 36 hours of labor I was born at 2:00am. There were 20-25 people waiting in the waiting room who ALL got to see me before she even woke up... poor Mom! And to make matter worse, the whole time everyone thought I was a boy since ultrasounds were not accurage enough back then to tell for sure and my heartbeat had been in the "boy range." So once my dad brought me into her room when she was awake she could not believe that she had a baby girl! Of course she was happy and it was a wonderful surprise :)

So there ya have it and I have included the youngest picture I have been able to scan. Once I go back to Tennessee I hope to find my actual newborn picture so that we can compare them to Griffin's soon!

Happy 1st Birthday Isaac!

I had the best birthday present ever last year when Isaac was born! I cant believe it has already been a year.....

and I am sure his mommy and daddy think time has flown by too! Isnt he a cutie? :)

Dont be silly!

I have heard a lot recently from some of my sweet friends, "Man, Griffin is so hard to buy for because you can make him everything!"

HAHA! Well that is really sweet of you to think so BUT I promise you can still get/make him homemade or crafty things! #1--- I dont have all the time in the world it would take to make him everything there is out there and #2---- I love receiving crafty/personalized things just as much as I love giving them :)

So there.. dont be worried ha! By all means.. make him something!

Week 32

Oh how exciting that I can plan to gain a pound a week from here on out! I know you are jealous and personally I loved that part of the update the best ha! But the good news is that Griffin is gaining most of that weight and he will hopefully be nice and plump come April :)

Griffin is still a moving and a gro0ving inside. It has been neat to start to recognize his awake times even inside the womb. Right now he gets up between 6:30-7:00am, again when I eat lunch around 12:00 and then again at 5:00 when we eat dinner. Yes it is true that this will totally change later, however I do know that my baby loves it when mommy eats ha! We finished our birthing classes this past weekend and feel that we are as ready as we will ever be at this point. I am so excited about this upcoming weekend in Tennessee as we will get to celebrate his soon arrival with many of our family and friends at showers. I already feel tremendously blessed and we have only had one shower so far with 5 more to go!!!

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.

Happy Birthday Vancerelli!

Vancerelli, fancy pants, Jessie V, Mrs. Tuten, or Vance- After 14 years of friendship we have a lot of nicknames for each other :) Love you sister!

Griffin gets more Phi Mu love!

Okay so the boppy is really for the mom I know.. and I am SO thankful for this wonderful gift from Amy and Meg! You girls are so sweet and there is no doubt Griffin and I will be using this EVERY single day :)


He also got the CUTEST pacifiers from Natalie!!! I had given her a hint that I loved these when I saw her little girl with hers... and now I am so excited that they can now match :)

Here is sweet Addie modeling hers. So precious!

Ever thought about the big picture?

Often times I forget how big God is and so I was thankful to be reminded again in Sunday School this past week. JR took our group to this great video of Louie Giglio's explanation of "How great is our God." I had seen it once before at a friend's house, however it still amazed me even the same to hear it again. I really encourage you to find about 45 minutes of your time to sit and watch these videos. They will drastically change your view of the big picture.... what life is truly about.. when you can begin to see truly how big God is. I really dont even get into science and astronomy all that much.. but this makes me want to learn more for sure!

link to part 1
link to part 2
link to part 3
link to part 4
link to part 5

As I have been going through this whole pregnancy process, I have began seeing God in a new light as the Creator. It amazes me every second that He is growing another human being INSIDE OF ME!!! And when I get caught up in the small mundane things that trouble me so much or seem SO big... I am reminded to stop and think about how small I am in comparison to the God who loves me. He is not only in control of every thing that happens to me, but He is able to see the bigger picture, that He created for His own glory.

This makes me stop stressing about all the small stuff :)

Happy Anniversary Julie and Jordan!

Lots of Birthdays to Celebrate today!

February Birthday girls- Elena and Missy today, and me and Jessica in just days! This was the crew (plus Katie Stooksbury) that I celebrated EVERY birthday with through school. We had a blast!

it is also my cutie little cousin Alec's birthday too!

More thank yous!

Well I know someone who reads my blog and understood all to well how much we needed diapers.... Thank you Katie and Linda! You are so sweet to send us these diapers and yes you are right we will DEFINITELY be using them :)

JR also ordered Griffin this wonderful storybook Bible. We read him his first story yesterday and I think he likes it! He was moving around a ton I know that... but that honestly could have been from the syrup I had just eaten with my waffles :) But either way, he will know this book all to well and we cant wait to share all of these wonderful stories with him. Thanks Daddy!

Labor of love

You may have noticed in my post about our new glider this pillow that I made. I found this really fun polka dot fabric with all of the colors we have been using and so I decided that it was perfect for a pillow for Griffin.

Well it turned out that the pillow was not enough for me, but that I just had to do more. I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into though when I came up with this wonderful idea that I would make him a blanket and put his name on it. Well I have done blankets in the past with the many different squares on one side and then a solid on the back (this time I used a red minky (extra soft) fabric). Anyways this time I had to cut out each fabric, then do the applique letters for his name.. yea that took about 20-30 minutes a letter, and then sew it all together, which took at least 30 minutes for each row.... Wowzers! 20+ hours later... this is what ya get

Of course there are some imperfections here and there, and not until I had it all sewn together did I realize it looked like a circus sheet with ALL of the colors going on... but I hope he likes it :)

There is no doubt that my son will know his colors and how to spell his name haha!

This week of making the blanket has really taught me a lot. If you would have asked me a month ago if I would consider taking a whole week to sit at a sewing machine just to make one blanket, I would have laughed! But of course I am slowly starting to realize that as a mom, there is no amount of time that is ever enough to give to your children. And what would seem like a sacrifice for anyone else... is only small for your precious child.

And even though I complained to JR every night this week when he got home about how my butt was soar from sitting in my sewing chair all day and how my back hurt because I couldnt take my hands off for one second or it would mess up or that I seriously just could not believe what I thought would take about a day had taken ALL week to do......

it was totally worth it in the end. During those hours of time that my machine was doing all the work and I was simply laying my hands to guide here and there... I was able to pray for Griffin. I was able to thank God for the gift that He has given us and think of all of the times yet to come with our son, both good and bad. It truly was symbolic as I had my hands of love on this blanket for that entire time and could feel Griffin kicking up a storm as he heard the machine go.. and just think "Wow, I am really having a son, and I am making this blanket for him!" I know I always seem to be in awe at this and it hits me differently as different things happen, but it is SO true.. I am truly in awe.

I love you sweet Griffin and cannot wait until you get to see your blanket that your mommy made for you. I know you wont even realize what it is for a really long time, however one day I do hope you look at it and see how much I love you.

Happy Birthday Brandi!

Happy Birthday Linly and Landon!

Happy Birthday to my Aunt Linly

and sweet little cousin Landon!

Thank you Big Sis!

Griffin got two of the cutest outfits in the mail!!! My big sister in Phi Mu, Brooke Greene, sent them :) I am thankful to get to stay in touch with her through facebook and email and she has two precious kids, Everett and Emery.

Brooke you are the sweetest for thinking of Griffin! He is going to be a stud in these for sure :)

Week 31

63 days and counting! Griffin and I are still doing great and from the update from baby center it appears he is "active and healthy" because of all the kicks and somersaults I get each day! There is nothing like getting his first kick in the morning, usually around 7am when he wakes up. "Good morning buddy," I always say with a smile :) It is definitely going to be weird not being able to feel him inside me one day, but of course I would rather have him out than in!!

I am still feeling good, besides the occasional heartburn. And continue to have great energy which I am so thankful for! My "to do before Griffin" list is getting some things checked off each day and all I can say is that I am SO GRATEFUL for this time home. This weekend I realized that instead of relaxing on the weekends with my sweetie, that I would be running around like a mad woman... especially since there are only 9 more Saturdays left and 5 of those I already have plans for ha!!!

Thank you for all of the wonderful comments on my last post about diapers. After my showers in a few weeks, we will definitely be stocking up :)

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

Diapers

As I cleaned out Griffin's room yet again this weekend, it first of all dawned on me that I keep his room WAY cleaner than ours, a secondly that once he gets here I am sure it will NEVER look this good ha!

But as I was in the process, it hit me that we have no diapers yet! Everyone keeps asking me if we are all ready for him and I say that yes the nursery is done, but we still need the basics. Should I be buying a pack of diapers each time I go to the store? Is it normal that I dont have any 9 weeks out? And is it realistic to expect to get some at the showers?? I know every time I got to a shower the last thing I think to get are diapers... but maybe I am just not practical and most people are :)

Come on mom's out there.. help a sista out! Speak to me!

Week 31 checkup

Though we are 2 days shy of 31 weeks, we had another check-up today! AND it was the last one we will do on the every 4 week rotation... now it becomes every 2!! Griffin measured right at 30 weeks this time (he was 1 week ahead last time they checked). My glucose tests came back great and my iron measured well too, so I am very thankful. Griffin's heartbeat was 136 bpm and my blood pressure was on target as well. I have now gained a total of 17 pounds.. and man let me tell you something- to see numbers on the scales that I have never seen before is SCAREY!!! But its all part of it and I know it will be well worth it come April :)

We continue to be thankful for our healthy baby boy and a wonderful pregnancy!

Fireproof

For Valentine's Day, JR and I finally were able to watch the movie "Fireproof" and it was EXCELLENT! For those who dont already know, it is a movie about a couple who are contemplating divorce but through God's grace, learn how to fireproof their marriage instead. It was filmed by amateurs and yes it is cheesy in some ways, however the message it gives to all married couples is truly amazing. If you are married, engaged, or ever plan to get married, I think you should definitely give it a try... and believe me there is no marriage that cant use the biblical principles that it shows you and the encouragement of how to built a strong marriage. If you care anything at all about your marriage... learn how to make it fireproof :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing everyone a wonderful day filled with LOTS of LOVE! I am so thankful for all of the love I am continuously shown by my amazing husband and best friend. He means the world to me, not only today but EVERY day :)

I also have such great family and friends who love me beyond measure and soon I will have a little boy calling me "mommy" and loving me in a way I never knew was possible.

Today I consider myself one BLESSED girl!

I made JR a little brag book of Griffin's 4D pictures as well as some maternity shots that my sweet friend Jordan took of me. It turned out pretty cute and I think he kindof liked it :)

After 10 Valentine's Days together, give or take a few ha, they just keep getting better and better. Today we will go to our birthing class again, then go out to dinner and watch a movie. Plan and boring to some people, but simple yet all the better to us.

I love you my sweet honey dumplin. (Ok I dont really call him that but the mushiness of Vday was getting to me!)

Enjoy the maternity shots below....

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Happy 1st Birthday Tristan!

It is amazing how much things change in just 1 year! Here is newborn Tristan- our sweet Valentine's baby!

and here he is at Christmas! What a big boy :)

Special Delivery!

Look what we got in the mail!!! I am so excited to finally get our last piece of furniture in and to have a place to sit in Griffin's nursery now! Thank you Mamaw and Frank for blessing us with this great gift... we love it!

We also got a very sweet package from the Stocstills. They are sweet friends of ours from college and they definitely picked out some super cute things! Thanks Sara and Rett :)

Happy Birthday Adrienne!

love you friend!

Week 30

Now its beginning to become VERY real! Already at 30 weeks? Man again I am in shock ha! Dont get me wrong, I am SO excited and even more so after our wonderful 4D pictures of our little man. He is definitely a "JR junior" and I love his little smile so much. JR and I honestly cant stop looking at those pictures and can only imagine what we will do when he is actually here and we can stare at him for real :)

We started our birthing classes this past Saturday and will have 2 more sessions the next 2 weeks. We learned a lot and it was definitely eye opening. I am very nervous about delivery as I have an extremely low pain tolerance. BUT... I have learned from the class and also just throughout the pregnancy, that God has already taught my body how to do it and it will be very natural. As we count down the next 10 weeks, I am sure my anxiety will be greater and greater. I will continue to rely on God's strength through it all and know that of course He is going to take care of me. I also will have a pretty good coach in there with me to support as well :)

Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep his eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means he can only make out objects a few inches from his face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

Happy Birthday Uncle Scott and Cain!

Aunt Patty and Uncle Scott (my mom's brother)

my cousin Melissa and her husband Cain

Happy Birthday Leigh!

Love you sister!

80's skatetown breakdown!

Haley and I are both February birthday girls, so a few months ago we decided that we needed to have a joint birthday party. The only way to have a great birthday is to have a theme... or at least we all thought so. Therefore JR and Micah planned us a totally awesome 80's birthday party!!! It was complete with dinner and cake at McDonald's and then a fun night of skating at the local roller skating rink! We had SOO much fun dressing up, as we always do... and all of the outfits were pretty amazing :)

the birthday girls at McDonald's blowing out the candles on their AWESOME care bear cake. Thanks Amy for a delicious and beautiful cake :)

80's girls

the 80's men

we are so excited to be 26 :)
Haley turned 26 on the 4th and I will be on the 26th

the Isham brothers had a great time bringing back the old days when they used to spend WAY too much time at the skating rink ha!

Make sure to check out the video montage for all of the pictures. As soon as I figure out how to work our new video camera, I also have some great videos as well. I had such a blast and I thank everyone who came to my awesome 80's birthday party :)

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

To view all pictures or download them if you would like.. you can go here.

Welcome Ella Claire

My sweet friends Jared and Beth Ownby welcomed their little girl Ella Claire into the world on Friday, February 6th! We were able to visit them on Saturday and saw for ourselves how precious she was.

Beth looked awesome too! She did amazing with a 15 hour labor process and then up, walking and showered only 12 hours later when we visited. You are a champ girl... and definitely inspire me :)

Congrats to you guys and your new family!