The Furniture

This post is dedicated to Jen Burch, who vehemently got on my case (just kidding, Jen) for not posting pictures of our beautiful nursery furniture the moment it arrived. As you can see, the dresser doesn't have its hardware on the front yet which is due to Shelly and I not being crazy about the color it came in. As a result we're either going to paint the hardware white or buy some that matches the knobs on the closet.

Also, you may have noticed the two different paint colors behind the furniture. That's because we initially thought we wanted a soft-yellow nursery, but since finding a beautiful theme in Pottery Barn Kids we've decided to go a different route. The paint color behind the crib is the color we decided on, and you'll see why in our next post....coming very soon!

25 Weeks...and counting!

Well, there's no mistaking that I'm pregnant. My basketball belly is a clear indicator that our little one is growing more rapidly - and that's only going to continue. I've been feeling the baby kick more often and this morning I swear it was doing somersaults and back flips in my tummy. John got to feel the baby kick again tonight and I just love watching his eyes light up every time he feels something. It's usually followed by the question, "Was that the baby?". I have to remember that he doesn't have the opportunity to feel these movements inside of me and so the kicks may not seem so prevalent to him.

As we mentioned in an earlier post, we attended a "Breastfeeding 101" course and a "Baby U" course last week. Both were great and very informative. The breastfeeding course was at the Babies 'R Us and there was only one other woman in attendance. The course focused more on the different types of breast pumps and all of its accessories, but John and I felt more knowledgeable about the device since we picked the "teacher's" brain for about 45 minutes after the actual class wrapped up.

"Baby U" was held at Bellin hospital in Green Bay where we plan to deliver the baby. It was a popular event as many couples were in attendance. We learned about car seat safety (and grew a little anxious over the matter at the same time), received a tour of the maternity ward, had the opportunity to speak to two Bellin physicians and had a mommy/daddy session as well. All parts of the evening were great, but I must say that touring the maternity ward and seeing an actual room was my favorite part - not to mention the little cutie pie that was just born that was in the nursery. :)

Because we know that May will be here before we know it, John and I have also started to look into baby education classes. The typical class runs 4 weeks, but there is also a more in-depth class that is 8 weeks long. The main focus of these courses is the labor and delivery process. In addition to this class, we will also be registering for another breastfeeding course and an infant CPR course. Needless to say, we have a lot to look forward to!

Happy Early Birthday to the Daddy-To-Be

Although his actual birthday isn't until Sunday, I wanted to take this time to wish my wonderful husband a happy birthday. We have friends coming from out of town this weekend and a fun-filled day with the Weiland family on Sunday so I wanted to make sure that this post made the blog before his big day.

I can't thank him enough for how patient, supportive and positive he has been throughout my pregnancy and in our overall relationship of almost 9 years. Within the past 5 months he has sacrificed sleep to stay up with me when I wasn't feeling well, drove across town to pick up the one food that sounded appealing to me and has picked up my slack around the house even though I'm home during the day. Needless to say, he has been so understanding and I can't even begin to describe how grateful I am to have him as a husband.

As wonderful of a husband he is, I also know that he will be the best father. I can say from experience that kids absolutely love him and there is no doubt in my mind that our child/children will look up to him with great respect and admiration. I'm anxious to see him in action because I know that he will be great!

Happy early birthday, Love! Baby Weiland and I love you very much!

Feel Those Kicks, He's Gonna be a Soccer Player!

Just a quick note, when Shelly and I got home from the seminar last night we watched the heart-breaker of a Wings game. Obviously, the baby was very upset about the loss because he/she was "tossing and turning" inside Shelly. The wonderful news though, *I* was able to feel the baby kick for the very first time last night!

It was yet another moment I'll never forget!

Bob & Jillian Would Not Be Pleased

I can officially say I am 24 weeks along and my belly can certainly prove it. John and I had our monthly doctors appointment on the 5th and our doctor was pleased to see I had gained 4 pounds since my last visit. This was the first time she measured my uterus and reiterated that I need to eat, eat, eat as the size of my uterus was two weeks behind where it should be. She also confirmed that I'm anemic so I now need to add another iron supplement to my prenatal cocktail!

Unfortunately, I saw her a week later as I experienced some sharp pains in my right side, lower right abdomen and lower back. Given I have a history of kidney stones and to ensure the baby was alright, I called the doctor to make sure it was round ligament pains and nothing else. Everything checked out fine, but I was shocked to see I had gained an additional three pounds in that one week! Of course, my doctor was elated and she absolutely loves John as he makes sure I meet my caloric count each day. I don't think I've ever had so much chinese, Dairy Queen and pizza in my life!

John and I had such a wonderful weekend together as it was spent registering and picking out a paint color for our nursery. While registering was completely overwhelming, it was an exciting experience and we are very fortunate to have great moms among our family and friends that offered us some advice.

We have a busy, yet very exciting week ahead of us. Tomorrow we are completing our registry and attending a "Breastfeeding 101" course. I might be looking forward to this class more than John, but I am thankful he's attending this with me so we can both learn together. Wednesday evening we will be attending a "Baby U" course for first-time parents offered by Bellin hospital. This course features a car seat safety class, a separate class for moms and dads and then we get a tour of the maternity ward. The tour will be helpful as we are still deciding where to deliver. Needless to say, John and I are very excited about these educational classes and everything they have to offer.

I would also like to take this time to wish my biggest bro, Scott, a happy belated birthday. I won't unveil his age, but I will say that Scott and his wife, Jen, will be the godparents for our little bundle of joy. They have two boys and have been very helpful and instrumental as John and I go through this new adventure. Happy belated birthday, Scooter! :)

With everything that's going on this week, we'll have plenty to report in the near future so check back soon!

Ultrasound Pictures

Well, its hard to believe but the holidays have officially come and gone. That being said, we're thrilled by the thought that our new addition will be here this year!

As promised, here are the first pictures of Baby Weiland. When Shelly and I went in for the ultrasound, the Technician asked if we wanted to know the sex, to which we replied "no." They say when you want to find out what the sex is, the baby tends to not show what its going to be. Since we didn't want to know (and according to our UT) our bundle-of-joy was "trying to flaunt it" to us. The UT must have asked us 5-6 times to look away since Baby Weiland was beyond active the moment the ultrasound started. In fact, within a couple seconds of the beginning of the ultrasound Shelly and I got to see our baby actually wave at us. Not only that, the baby's hand was wide open so we could see all the little fingers. It was beyond amazing and something the two of us will never forget and cherish forever.

As for the pictures, the top one is obviously a full view of our baby. This was actually the last picture the UT took, since he was trying to get the baby to roll over on its back. However, at that point Baby Weiland must have decided it was time to take a nap after the earlier performance. You'll notice the baby's head peacefully resting on Mommy's bladder catching up on some "Zzzz's."

The next picture shows the baby's head, body and his or her right arm, elbow and hand.

The last one was actually our first-ever baby picture. Shelly and I, along with the UT got a nice chuckle out of this one. Apparently, our baby is going to be a future rocker and as a result the UT decided to entitle this picture "Ozzy." If you look at the center you'll notice the baby's hand with its pinkie and index fingers sticking up while the middle and ring fingers are tucked down. Apparently, our baby was jamming that morning. Needless to say, it was yet another wonderful moment that only made us happier.

Well, that's it for now. We hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and coming soon will be pics of the nursery furniture!