Already One Month

My perfect daughter is already a month old! Where, oh where did that time go?!?! I just blinked and now she is smiling at me and learning to lift her head off of my shoulder. We went to the doctor on Monday this week and she has gained one pound, 6 ounces since our last visit. Anna is up to 9 pounds, 12 ounces and 22 inches long. Everyone says she still looks little but she seems huge to me. Way too big to be my newborn. I put her in a very cute onsie and pants yesterday to go shopping and the outfit was almost too small for her!! This is the same outfit that I put her in to go to the doctor for the first time just last month! She is starting to fill out some of the 3 month outfits that I have for her and leave behind her newborn stuff. While I am estatic that she is healthy and growing at a normal pace, I am sad that she will very soon want to pull away from me and start to explore things. I know I'm getting ahead of myself and she will need me for many more years to come, but how quickly are those years going to go by? I would swear to myself that it was just yesterday I was jumping up and down and hugging Matt so tight I think he thought I was trying to strangle him because we had just found out I was pregnant. And now I have this amazing little work of living art and she is sprouting up before my very eyes.
How on earth do mothers deal with this???

My Beautiful Anna

My newborn is all of 5 days old and is absolutely perfect. I had a wonderful pregnancy and probably complained way more than I should have.
We went to the hospital Monday night to check in and I was really thinking that they would induce me at that time. But no! They just hooked me up to five different machines just to monitor me and the baby and left me to try and sleep in a strange room. Poor Matt had to try to sleep on this little pull out couch with those awful hospital pillows. Then the doctor comes in at 4:30 a.m. and gives me the medicine to start my contractions. Then throughout the day I met more nurses than I could keep track of. They were all super great and I wish I could have gotten to know them all better.

Then at 3 p.m. Melissa (my nurse at the time) told me I was finally ready to push. My doctor barely got there in time to catch Anna on her way out! She was born at 3:32 p.m. and I don't think I have stopped smiling since. I love her so much and am super happy with my little family.

Anna's very first picture ever!! She's beautiful :-)

Daddy and Daughter in the hospital room.

I have the adoring new mother look on! I think it's funny.

I LOVE FALL!!

I was driving home from work today and I saw some trees that have already changed from green to gold. I LOVE it!!!! I think it is the most beautiful season and I look forward to it all summer long. Here is my top five reasons for why Fall is the best:

1. We have had our windows open and the a/c off for the last 4 days because I don't have allergies in the fall.

2. I can wear jeans without getting hot. This is on the list because I HATE shorts and almost refuse to wear them during the summer.

3. The colors are amazing and different on almost a daily basis.

4. Stores put out Halloween candy at the end of August. Bigger bags for less, there is nothing better!

5. September is the start of my decorating season. From Sep. to April I have decorations that I have been collecting for years and years that I love to put out.

Baby Projects

So I've gone a little crazy on the baby room projects. It's only because I am soooooooooo excited. I have come to realize that the baby is not going to care about all of this for a very long time, so really the nursery is for me. Oh well, I think it is super cute.

I should have done a better close up because there is no way to see the cute little honey bees that made me fall in love with this fabric. The yellow goes so well with the green walls and I added pink lace at the bottom to really give it a girly feel. Now I just need to finish the set for the South windows.

I wanted to find some really cute, classic pooh wall-hangings, but everything was either the modern pooh or way too expensive. So I bought some 8X10 painting canvas and traced these pictures onto them. By no means do they look professional but they turned out pretty good.

This is one of those things that Anna is not going to care about. I took the left-over lace from the bottom of the curtains and hot glued it to this plain white lamp shade.

I need to finish this project but I like the way it is turning out. It's the biggest item I've tried to knit and so far so good. It looks blue but the colors are actually purple, silver, yellow and blue. I might add pink if I get around to it. I've been working on this project the longest, since about the week after we found out we were having a baby.

This was a plain white bear cutout that I painted pink and stenciled on. If I could write straight it would really help!! The Anna turned out way crooked but Matt says it just adds charm. He's sweet:)

Maybe I should cool it after I get all of these done. I just love having something to do!

Our New Place

I'm so excited about our new house. It's been so long since we've had a place that felt like home. While we were staying out in Augusta all of our stuff was stored out in the garage so most of what we were using was borrowed stuff. It will be so super nice to have my kitchen ready when I want to cook, nothing in the bathroom but MY stuff (and Matt's I guess), and the nursery ready and waiting for the baby. Here are some pictures of the house that is now our home:

This is the stuff we've collected for the baby so far. The picture doesn't show it very well but the room is a very pretty green.

This is going to be our music and my craft room. It has these great built in shelves that will hold all my little craft items. The piano will be perfect in there.

This is the kitchen and little eat-in area. It's a really great yellow that's not too bright but still draws the light in.

Best Anniversary EVER!!

Friday the 5th was my 5th Anniversary and it was absolutely wonderful! I took the day off from work and Matt and I got to spend the whole day together. We haven't gotten to just hang out for a while now and it was so super nice. The first thing on our list was my monthly doctors appointment. But this one was special because we got to do a sonogram. The baby was so active and I think she really liked the camera on her. That's right, we found out our baby is a girl!!! YAY! We went a little pink crazy once we got done at the doctors office. We bought little tiny onsies and little booties and a perfect little pink baby book. I can't wait to start entering in all the little bits of information I've been writing down on post-it notes into the baby book. Then we had a wonderful dinner at this great Italian resturant where we decided to stay with the name Anna Grace for our daughter. It's the only girls name that really sounded right to us and we really just love it. It's classic and beautiful and sounds great with our last name. I can't wait to see our daughter. That sounds strange and amazing all at the same time.

The second piece of good news is we got the house in Cheney that I wanted. We moved in some stuff yesterday and the rest of our stuff is going to be moved next weekend. I cannot wait to be in our home getting the nursery ready. I've really missed being able to do all the stupid little things that mean home to me. Such as, doing all of our laundry at the same time. Or, making a special dinner because I want to. I love doing that kind of stuff and in our new place I'll be able to do it all! I'll have my piano there and a little craft area and still plenty of room for our girl to get into trouble. I LOVE IT!!

Baby Stuff

I had NO idea how much stuff there is for a baby. Not all of it is practical or even reasonable but it is advertized as absolutely required. There are some things that I would love to have but I know that the baby really will not miss out if I don't have it. Still, that doesn't stop me from wishing!

There are several items that I've been looking around for and I still cannot seem to find a good deal. Maybe what I consider a good deal is just not out there. I don't feel it's necessary to spend a fortune on things the baby is not going to use for very long. Garage sales have been very good, but we've mainly found clothes and blankets so far. Now I need some of the bigger items like a dresser, maybe even a dresser/changing table. A classic crib that's in good shape would be nice too.

In other news, we have an appointment to see a house in Cheney on Tuesday. Hopefully it is in good shape because it would be so easy to have our home be in Cheney. It's about half way between Matt's job and mine so neither of us would have to drive forever. It's still close to Wichita so getting the shopping done won't be that hard but we won't have to live in Wichita. It really seemed like all of the good neighborhoods were out of range and the ones we could afford were in the worst places. Cheney is super cute and I already know that I want the house there. Positive thinking goes a long way here!

SUPER exciting morning!

This morning at work was awesome!! At 9:27 this morning the baby moved for the first time. It was the strangest feeling ever but super great! I was talking to a co-worker and stopped mid-sentence with a gasp. She asked what was wrong and I said I could have sworn I just felt something. She asked me what it felt like and I told her it was like a tickle coming from the inside. Then for the rest of the morning every few minutes that same little tickle came in the same spot. I couldn't help laughing and I'm sure my customers were really wondering what I was laughing at. I'm just glad I could tell what that feeling was. I was really afraid I would miss the baby moving because I didn't know what I was supposed to be on the "look-out" for.

I am a little worriied that if the baby is this active now what is it going to be like toward the end? The baby is going to kick me to death!! Bring it on little one:-)

Moving

So we've moved, AGAIN! It's very unsettling and slightly frustrating. We had to move to Augusta in October and that worked out all right but we knew it was always temporary. We made it through the winter without any major problems and I didn't have to call in to work once because of weather problems. But it was an hour each way to my work and we couldn't get internet at the house so that made job hunting for Matt a lot harder, so there were draw backs. Here we are six months later and all of our stuff is once again packed up and in storage and we are staying with Matt's wonderful parents while we start over in looking for our own place. But I forgot the good news that made us move. Matt got a full time job with a company in his home town of Norwich. It's a new home for troubled teen girls and Matt's job is third shift security/office worker/anything they need. There was just no way for Matt to drive from Augusta to Norwich every night and then drive back in the early morning. So I'm driving about half an hour to my work until we move (AGAIN!) to west Wichita and then Matt will drive the half hour. We decided on this plan because there is absolutely no way I am living in Norwich. I just don't think I would ever be able to adjust to it. It will be nice to be closer to the family. Augusta was just a little farther than I wanted. It was alright but I like being in Wichita.
Anyway, I'm just starting my second trimester and I think things are starting to stabilize a little bit. My sick days are coming farther apart and I'm not as tired as I was in the beginning. I have a tiny bump that looks more like I'm sticking my stomach out than anything else. But I know so that's all that matters to me. I can't wait to find out what we are having (a baby, I know Matt!) so I can start thinking of the perfect name and start getting the personalized things that I want for the baby. I can't wait to buy the first frilly dress or the tiny little suit! So many things to look forward to!!!!!

Our First Sonagram

So we went to the Doctor's yesterday for our very first sonagram. Matt got to go with me, thank goodness, because it was a very emotional experience. When the the baby came up on the screen I cried. Then all day long all I wanted to do was cry. Thankfully no one was mean to me at work or I would have! We saw the heartbeat and everything is looking normal. We get to find out what the baby is next month on the 4th. I'm so super excited about being able to think about my baby as a little girl or boy with a name and everything. I guess what I'm happiest about is that everything is going very well so far. I hope everyone will join me in a big loud Thank you Lord for this wonderful blessing!!

A bit of other good news. Matt found a job and will be starting in May. It is only part-time for now so Matt is still looking around for either another part-time or even a full-time job. The manager at his new job seems very nice and told Matt that if he does find something else they will work with him so he can do both. What can I say other than God truly is looking over us. There is no way we could do this without Him. Another loud chorus of Thank you Lord for your wonderful blessings!!!

Time To Update :)

Things have been very busy for us but not for the obvious reasons. I haven't started any new projects because I have been so wiped out. On February 20 we found out we are expecting our baby!!!! We could not be more excited and anxious for Oct. 22 to get here. We had been trying for about eight months and it finally happened. I never realized how awfully tired I would be though. I am sleeping about nine hours a night and still I get home from work and all I can do is sit in the chair. I had about two weeks of upset stomach and now it's not too bad. I really only feel sick if I let myself get too hungry. As long as I eat healthy meals and a few snacks during the day I've felt just fine. I'm about nine weeks along and to me they are crawling by. I know it's because I'm looking forward to this awesome thing but still, I could wish they would go by just a little faster. I've gotten some really great advice from the mothers around me which I greatly appreciate. We are planning to tell our families, probably as I start the next trimester. That seems appropriate I guess.
We've been going over names already and a couple that we like are; Anna Grace or Robert Loyd. Actually I really like the boy name but I might have to let it grow on Matt for a while.
I bought the baby its' first outfit and I think it is so cute. It's just a little onsie with green words and a picture of a puple stroller. I figure when we find out what the baby is we can buy either green or purple pants to go with it and a cute little jacket (since it will be Oct. in Kansas, so COLD).
Now on to all the shopping that comes with a baby. I'M SOOOOOO EXCITED!!

Keeping Busy

So I (somewhat foolishly) decided to take on some projects at our house. I know it's not really our place but I figure we have to live there for now so I should make it the best it can be. First up was the second bedroom that we use as a tv room. The reason for this is because the frontroom faces the north and it is the coldest room in the house. We try to stay out of it and keep it blocked off by a curtain partition to keep our heating bill down. Anyway, the second bedroom still had the terrible '70's wall-paper in it, you know, the weird green color that didn't really go with anything. So I decided to take one evening and see how hard it would be to tear it down. Well, all I had to do was pull on the corner of each section and the paper fell down on top of me. I didn't have to spray it or try to scrape it off or anything. it was AWESOME!! I found a really pretty color in the mis-tinted section at Wal-mart and got a gallon for under six dollars. Very exciting!! I have never worked so hard to make a room look good. I don't usually tape off the edges of doors and windows but I did this time. I also used primer for the first time and now I know why I should use it every time. It makes painting soooooooooooooooo much easier. I only had to put up one coat of paint and the room was done. It turned out super good and I am really proud of it.

The next project was not so easy. The next room to get done was the bathroom. It also had the '70's wall-paper but this time it was HUGE orange flowers with big sick green leaves. Thank goodness it was only on the top half of the walls. The bottom half is a very neutral cream tile. Well, the paper again came off very easily but after that it got tricky. Maybe there was still a glue residue or maybe the walls were in really bad condition but either way the paint I picked out did not go on very well. I primed the walls but it did no good. I put the first coat on and it looked very bad. I put the second coat on and it looked very odd. I put the third coat on and decided the color was now so messed up that I would never be able to fix it. The color I picked out was a beautiful golden glow, but with three coats it looked more like old mustard. So I decided a nice wall-paper would have to do. Matt and I went to Lowes to look at new tile for the floor and on the way out we went down a random ilse that just happened to have a clearance cart in it. The cart was full of all the last rolls of an order of wall-paper. I happened to pick up a really great roll but there was no way one roll would cover the entire bathroom. I glanced down and underneath several rools was a second roll of the one I wanted! I couldn't believe my luck. We got the two rolls for six dollars and the next saturday Matt's mom came and helped me fix my LARGE mistake. We pulled up the carpet and put in our tile and now the bathroom looks GREAT!!

NEXT: Our bedroom (As soon as Matt lifts the project ban!)

Our Rockin' New Years Eve

So our new years eve went like this:
-Ran to the video store at 6:30 p.m. to see if there were ANY good movies left. (We ended up with seven and cut down to six thinking we could get through them by midnight.)
-Stopped at Dillons to stock up on junk food to get us through the night.
-Stopped at Pizza Hut to pick up our large pizza for the two of us.
-Went home and got into our pajamas and got ready for bed so that we could fall in right at 12:10a.m.
-Made ourselves sick on really bad food and only made it through 4 of the 6 movies.
-Caught the last ten minutes of one of the New Year's Eve specials.
-Said Happy New Year to each other and then hit the hay.
Rockin' I know. That's what you do after a hard day of work! What more could I ask for?