A Very Happy Holidays and It's Raining Baby Stuff

It occurred to me that I haven't blogged for quite awhile, so I need to catch up on the bean adventures... Justin and I got to go home for Christmas this year and I was so glad that I did. I had a really great time with my family and I can tell that everyone, including us, is getting really excited about our upcoming arrival. Before we left, Justin spent 2 days painting our baby room green. It looks really great and now we're just waiting to see what other kinda goodies we get from our next showers. We've decided on a monkey theme, instead of the jungle theme I blogged about before. We like the monkeys! After finishing school, we flew up to Chicago to spend time with the family. I got to: -bake cookies at my aunt's (a Christmas tradition) -have breakfast with an old friend I hadn't seen in almost 5 years (Miss you Lorelli) -hang with my mom and go shopping (mostly for baby stuff) -go to the outlet mall and fulfill my obsession of all things Coach (I just bought a wallet this time...another purse seems silly b/c in a few months I won't be carrying one!) -spend Christmas with my mom and dad and then the extended family (only 2 things I regretted doing there, but can't take 'em back now, so why worry!) -see snow (I may hate to be in snow and be cold, but I can't imagine having a Christmas without a little snow...fortunately there was a lot of snow) -go to Cinci for a baby shower for me, friend's birthday party, engagement party, and got to spend time with the niece (see my facebook account for pictures of the 2nd two) -see my bestest friend and my son's future bestest friend -hang out and party with my friends from high school (so glad we're still a clan!) -AND we got stuck at the airport for like 18 hours (what a nightmare!) So, needless to say...our bean had a very eventful trip. Got to do a lot and see a lot! We kinda made out like bandits at Christmas time. All we were expecting was a camcorder from my parents and we wanted nothing more, but my mom went Christmas crazy this year and got us a Wii (which we love and have wanted for awhile) and got me a ton of maternity clothes (which I needed b/c I can't fit in much anymore :0) Out our baby shower in Cinci that my 2 very very good friends, Dorothy and Erica, threw us we got a lot of stuff we needed (shopping cart carriers, clothes, washclothes, blankets, baby bath stuff, and A WHOLE LOT MORE!). We feel so very blessed to have such a great set of family and friends. They went above and beyond for us and I'm very grateful for each and every one of them. The trip was amazing and I didn't want our time there to end, but we made it home last weekend, which was good b/c I needed a few days to rest before I got back to work.

As for baby news, I need to post the newest ultrasound pictures, which I hope to do this weekend. Our little man is kicking and moving around like crazy. It's an amazing feeling! Unfortunately for Justin, he's only been able to see the movements and never been able to feel them. Every time he puts his hand on my tummy, the bean stops! I guess he likes his mommy just a little more :0) I'm finally feeling normal (kinda), but I'm still taking my medicine. Some days are better than others, but I've been sick once in the last 3 weeks...YAY! I'm getting bigger by the second I feel like and I'll post pictures of my expanding tummy. I got a little sad the other day when I realized my belly button is starting to disappear...I like my belly button and I'm going to miss it! My belly is getting bigger, which means my back has been experiencing some pain. It makes sleep a little uncomfortable, so I'm just not sleeping as much anymore. Uncomfortability combined with having to pee every few hours at night is just frustrating. It's manageable, but it's not fun and I'm not even that far along...that worries me! Also, at 5 1/2 months, my wedding rings are starting not to fit as well. My feet are also getting a little water weight...it's a little scary to be honest. I think it'll make me sad when I won't be able to fit in my little shoes anymore or wear my rings. And then there's my chest...I was hoping to not have to buy a bigger sized bra, but I don't think my girls are going to tolerate being squished into my old ones much longer. Pregnancy really is a weird change!

To get your mind off the above comments, check out these pictures from my shower...it was a lot fun!: