The Register and Ked

The Des Moines Register called Kedron to get his expert opinion recently! Click here to read the article!

Indianola is cool

Here was the view from our deck and front yard tonight. This is one of my favorite parts of living in Indianola.

Anniversary

Kedron and I have been married for 4 years today! We celebrated with a very romantic dinner at the Godfathers Pizza family buffet. Hey, the baby likes pizza!

My Lament

Don't get me wrong; we are THRILLED to be having a baby in a month (my due date is exactly a month from today!). However, I am realizing that part of preparing for parenthood is to mourn some things about couplehood that will be ending. Here are some of the things I will miss:

• Deciding, "Let's go to Walmart/Restaurant/etc.," and being out the door in under 5 minutes.
• Being able to sleep in until 8:30 or 9:00am on weekends.
• Carrying a small purse.
• Going to friends' houses and staying out as late as we want, without arranging childcare or being home before someone's bedtime.
• Having (for the most part) an uncluttered home, without toys and baby gear everywhere.
  
• Watching TV and movies without caring about the content and its effect on kids.
• Having nice, breakable decor on low end tables.
• Being able to take long showers EVERY day with time to do my hair.
• Lots and lots of time spent as a couple, just the two of us.
  

Now I know that the things we'll be gaining will outweigh these things, but I think it's OK to grieve the passing of this stage in our lives. For you parents out there, is there anything in particular that you miss about life before kids?

one word: CANKLES

This is totally what I get for having an August baby. You really have to see these things in person to truly appreciate how unattractive my feet are right now. I am sure that Isaiah 52:7 is in no way referring to any pregnant women :)

That's what I get for buying those Swiss Cake Rolls

Weight gain update: I had my 34 week check up yesterday. During weeks 27-32 (5 week span), I had put on only 2 lbs total. I wasn't feeling particularly heavy yesterday, and didn't think I had put on much between weeks 32-34. So I was a bit shocked when the scale read that I gained FOUR POUNDS IN A MEAGER TWO WEEKS! Well, it will all average out. . . I hope!

Baby Shower!

My college friends and I got together this weekend for a much-needed retreat. It was so good to see them all! We did lots of shopping and eating, and gave ourselves pampering pedicures! Believe it or not, we have known each other now for 14 years! And not to sound conceited but I think we look better than ever :) They also threw me my first-ever baby shower! I got quite a variety of wonderful gifts!



All my friends are moms already, so it was fun to hear them share stories of the trials and tribulations of parenting. Thanks ladies for a great weekend!

Press, Push, Stretch, Repeat.

It appears that some days, the baby thinks, "If I just push hard enough on mommy's stomach, maybe I can kick my way out of here!" Today is one of those days.

How to post a comment

The inspiration for this post comes from Laura's blog. Laura, you rock. I know that many of you reading this are new to blogging. Here are instructions for how to post a comment:

1. Click on "Comments" under the blog entry you want to leave a comment about.

2. If you are really scared to leave a comment, you can just read what other people have written and then close the comment box.

3. Type what you want to say in the big empty box that says "Leave Your Comment." This is located either on the right hand side or under the other comments.

4. Type in the random string of letters in the "word verification" box.

5. For "Choose an Identity," you can click "Other" and then type in your name as you want it to appear. You don't need to type in your web page. If you are ultra-scared by this point, you can click "anonymous" and I won't know who you are :)

6. Click on "Publish Comment." If you don't like the way your comment looks, you will still be able to remove it by clicking on the trash can after the comment.

Now, readers, you have no excuse (family especially). Feel free to comment away!!

What's up, women?

One of the most disappointing things about my first pregnancy is all the negative advice I've gotten from other moms (whom, I acknowledge, probably do mean well). I am really surprised at how much I've been told I CAN'T or WON'T be able to do as a mom.

For instance, it is a goal of mine to have the baby sleep in his/her own room right away. We don't want the baby in our room. It is OUR room. The nursery is right across the hall. My husband will not sleep well with the baby in the room. He will be crabby for work, and he will be the only one in the home making money at that time (I could go on; you get the idea). However, I have been told by several moms that this plan will NEVER work. Certainly, I will have to give up because it can't be done to have the baby in his/her own room right away.

You know, maybe these people are right. Maybe it won't work. But is there any harm in letting me try to do it this way?

Or take my friend Jill. She would really like to go through labor naturally, without an epidural. Of course she has been told by other women that this goal is completely unrealistic. And she admits, she may not be able to do it. But again, what is the harm in letting her try?

Now, considering we are supposed to be the more nurturing, empathetic gender, I would expect that we would be more supportive of one another. So women, why do we do this to each other?

Nursery progress

We've worked very hard to get the nursery in shape. This used to be my scrapbook room, and as you can see, the former homeowners chose some very bright colors on the walls. Here is the room at Thanksgiving, with our nieces and nephew (Natalie, Kaleb, and Jessie).


Ked had to sand down that pink stripe (which was very thicky painted with high gloss paint), then prime and paint (2 coats) the walls. This isn't the best picture, but you can see the difference of that same corner now; with the light green paint and crib.

We aren't doing a "theme" in the nursery. The colors will be green and dark brown. If we have a girl, we'll just add some pink into the mix :) I'll post pictures as we add more furniture and decor (which I'm realizing I only have 6 1/2 weeks to do!).

Lauren

I just had to post these cute pic's of our niece, Lauren. Apparently she wanted to put on her pink cowboy boots and hat this morning. She is 18 months old and looking way too much like a big girl, I think!

This is the air I (can't) breathe

The biggest surprise symptom of pregnancy for me is my inability to breathe. Most of my symptoms so far have been mildly annoying, but this one is rather alarming at times. Yeah, yeah, the pregnancy books say "Your lungs are indeed getting enough oxygen for you and the baby," but this is little consolation when I am trying to lie down to relax and have to sit up suddenly and gasp for air. "Lie down on your side, not your back," the pregnancy books say, but I am not a natural side sleeper, and it hurts my hip too. So I end up choosing between a tender hip joint or oxygen. . . AAAAHHHHHH (I have to now type out my screams, as I don't have the breath support to actually scream them)!!

32 Weeks

Here I am. . . getting bigger by the day. Only 8 more weeks to go!

A Night with Mike

Now, Kedron and I don't agree on much politically. And we don't debate on issues too much, since he knows so much more than me which doesn't make it a fair fight :) But, we both agree that we like Mike Huckabee! We saw him speak in Indianola last night and were both impressed. He was very personable and sincere, and spoke with the two of us for probably 15-20 minutes. If you are a Republican and trying to decide on a candidate, you can visit his website here. Also, if you live in Iowa, click here for a website that tells where in Iowa each candidate has upcoming campaign stops (for both parties). Wow, Ked is really starting to rub off on me after almost 4 years of marriage, huh? However I still suspect our votes in 2008 will likely cancel each other out. . .