one more week!

We are SO excited to finally be able to call baby by his/her name starting next week! Please comment with "Team Blue" or "Team Pink" so we can keep a tally and see who is right next week! The appointment is at 9 AM (their earliest, of course) so we will know by 9:30 if baby cooperates and then we will tell the world by noon.. promise!

They say that the fathers struggle more with believing the baby is real, and I have to say that is/was true for Austin - hopefully, having a name will help. I don't think he believed I really was pregnant until he saw the baby on the first ultrasound. For a while, he kept asking when I was going to have a baby belly, and it's now getting to look more like a bump (at 18 weeks!).

My parents bought us the crib (thanks y'all!) and mom made me some maternity jeans this weekend, too. It's crazy how much more comfortable they are than my regular jeans! And belly bands are nice, but this is WAY better. She's going to work on a second pair this week that I can wear to work. Most of the other clothes I've bought are dresses, since I think that will be the most comfortable as the bump grows.

I have an awesome reveal planned (well, I hope it's awesome), so make sure you check back in next Monday to see what the gender of the baby is! We're bringing cupcakes with a pink or blue surprise in them to our Small Group next Tuesday, too, which will be really fun! I'll just have to block them from seeing that post ;) In case it isn't posted on Facebook, you can click the link on the right side of the page to subscribe by email.

We've also added a few new info/reference tabs at the top, so check those out!

How far along? 18 weeks! Almost halfway!
Total weight gain/loss: Oh shoot. I really don't want to know.
Maternity clothes? Made some this weekend! I now have jeans and pants for work, and a big shipment coming from Old Navy that I got a steal on!
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: I'm managing to survive on less, definitely waking up often, and feeling tired around 1/2 PM
Miss anything? I don't "miss" it, but I do wish I could go to a theme park this summer. I've wanted to go for a few years now and haven't gotten around to it.
Movement: None yet!
Food cravings: Mexican, all the time, which is really terrible when you have heartburn.
Anything making you queasy or sick: No, just heartburn - even after I eat mild cheese!
Have you started to show yet: A good friend asked how far along I was this last weekend and guessed two months. I'm in my fifth month!
Gender: We find out in a week!!!!
Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? In.. but definitely shallower than it was.
Wedding rings on or off? On, but it was a little harder getting Grandma's ring on my right hand this morning .
Happy or Moody most of the time: Stress at work made me really sad last week, but I have an awesome husband who worked hard Friday and Saturday to cheer me up. It made for a GREAT weekend!
Looking forward to: Calling the baby by it's name, and going to Canton this weekend to look for a dresser/changing table/media cabinet!

(We've had a rough case of the Mondays this morning... so check back later for a bump picture!)

Love, 

________________________________________________________________________

Dear Baby Haynes,

I was told to have some sugar (a cold, sugary drink) before we go in to see if you're a boy or a girl, so you'll be wiggling. I have no problem with  treating myself  to donut holes and Starbucks on a special morning, so thank you for that. I hope the sugar will affect you, and that you'll show us if you're a boy or a girl. Your mom convinced your dad to ask his boss to move a big work trip back a day for this, so it's kind of a big deal... but no pressure!

Can't wait to call you by name. We love you!

Mom & Dad

was it a surprise?

I've been getting this question from more than a few people... and especially from people who aren't particularly close with Austin or myself (co-workers, friends of friends, you name it). I'm sure rudeness isn't their intent, but you know they're asking because they weren't expecting us to get pregnant yet, or because we didn't announce that we were trying to beforehand (FYI, that would be awkward!).

The decision to have a baby (it was planned! What?! We are so young!) stemmed largely from convictions in my heart, and Austin getting to see his nephew Jackson all the time. We know they're a lot of work, and thought it'd be best to work hard when we have the energy - in our twenties. But really, the Lord had been working this out in my heart since we got married. It was really awesome to see it all work together, though.

We were looking to buy a house, and wanting to have a baby, and I came home from work one day and told Austin maybe we should postpone it a bit, since buying a house was going to be crazy enough (and it has been! Hello, we remodeled a bathroom!). I think God laughed at my plans that day! We found out shortly thereafter that we were pregnant (more on that story here).

So now it's "out there" and everyone knows it - we wanted to expand our family! The sweetest part: both my mom and Austin's mom were 24 when they had their first baby. It must be good age to start. Being a mom is the only thing I've always known I wanted to do. My career path of choice changed from teacher to lawyer to accountant to event planning, and somewhere in there I felt the call to be a missionary (still waiting to see in what capacity) but throughout all those plans, I knew I was meant to have kids.

We're so thankful for the love and support of our families and friends. While we can wait for September to come (thank God it takes 9 months! We are not ready!), we are very excited to meet our little pea.

If you would, pray over the three of us in these ways:
-That God would make work/financial deicisons clear
-That God would mold us to be parents who seek to glorify Him in every decision and circumstance
-That we would realize that this child is a gift on loan to us from God, and that we are stewards of his/her life
-For peace in the heart of a mom who likes to worry and plan way too far in advance :)
-For our child to know and love the Lord

"I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him."
- 1 Samuel 1:27

"For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.
My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be."
-Psalm 139:13-16

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
-Philippians 4:6

xo,

week seventeen

I have to say, I love how short I look in all
these pictures. I blame Austin!

How far along? 17 weeks!

Total weight gain/loss: 7 lbs.

Maternity clothes? Not yet, but I feel like I'm on the brink. Waiting to tell my employers before I start wearing obvious maternity clothes.

Stretch marks? Nope!

Sleep: You'd think I'd be great on sleep, coming off of a weekend, but really I just want to sleep all night AND all day.

Miss anything? I miss being able to drink several glasses of (caffeinated) tea per day. That would help fight off the urge to nap...

Movement: Not yet!

Food cravings: French fries. I am typically a really healthy eater (hello, vegetarian!) but all I want are some salty fries and some spicy ketchup.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not sick, but hello heartburn!

Have you started to show yet: Apparently! But it depends on what I wear.

Gender: Don't know!

Labor Signs: None

Belly Button in or out? In.. and still being pushed out

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Sad most of this week. I think that ties in to the sleepy thing. I'm sad because I'd rather be sleeping.

Looking forward to: Finding out baby's gender in two weeks!

Baby Haynes is the size of an onion and weighs about 5 ounces.  (Yeah, that's right... not even a half a pound! So glad I could add seven pounds of cushion for you, baby!)

xo,

PS - I'd love to get some registry advice from you mamas out there. Namely, what has been the best and worst things you've registered for? We're keeping toys to a minimum, and we want most of the "big" stuff to be gender-neutral, since we hope to have another baby down the road :)

mommy updates - week 16

How far along? 16 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain/loss: yuck, don't even ask. I should probably figure that out.

Maternity clothes? I wore one maternity dress (that really anyone could wear because it's hi-low) to church two Sundays ago. Otherwise, belly-bands are my bff.

Stretch marks? Not yet!

Sleep: I don't think I've slept through the night since I got pregnant.

Miss anything? You'd think I'd really miss wine but it's been remarkably easy not to drink it, despite the 30+ bottles in our house.

Movement: Not yet!

Food cravings: Sweets! Isn't that unfortunate? I've been eating a bowl of cereal after dinner to avoid packing on cupcake pounds.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope

Have you started to show yet: I think so, but it's still really easy to cover up!

Gender: Don't know!

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In.. but being pushed out

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Moody, unfortunately for Austin.

Looking forward to: Finding out baby's gender in 19 days!

xo,

bump picture: 16 weeks + two days

This is what it looks like when you
can't button your work pants
 and you have to wear a belly band!

So, I think this picture makes my bump look smaller (I felt enormous in that last one). We work all weekend on our house, so we don't eat as well as we should, and come Monday, it shows. I think I'll try to stick to Wednesdays for bump pictures, so they aren't misleading/any bloating can subside. I know I'm wearing black (unlike last week, which was a white shirt) but I think we'd all agree it looks smaller. It happens! I promise the baby isn't any smaller, and I am definitely not losing any weight. It's actually really cool to feel where the baby is when I lay on my back (yes, that is still allowed at this point). It's a hard pooch under my belly button. Baby Haynes is developing cartilage this week, so s/he can hear us! Daddy's started to talk to the baby, too.


19 days until we know if it's an Ethan or a Hannah! Of course I have a really cute way to post it on here... but you'll have to wait and see! We are also going to take cupcakes to our small group the day after so they'll know the gender of the baby.




xo,

bump - fifteen weeks

Without further ado, here's a picture of the bump!

Having a fixer-upper house (still lots more to be done!) and a new puppy means that Austin and I are really busy people! I hadn't been taking bump pictures because A) there wasn't much of a bump.. at all and B) we've been really busy!

I feel like I exploded over the weekend (yikes) but hey, I knew I had to start showing at some point! Why not at 4 months?

Also a cool thought: our mondo-baby (we all know s/he
will be enormous) is growing at his/her own rate now! For the first trimester-ish all babies are about the same. You can still track about how big the average baby is via the baby tracker, but I have a feeling ours is a little bigger :) and not just because I think the doctor has our due date off by about 5 days! Anytime in the next two to three weeks, I could start to feel baby move!


Getting excited about finding out if it is a Hannah or an Ethan (though apparently, everyone thinks baby is a Hannah!). Four more weeks!!

Love,

PS -  does anyone else think the shadow on this picture reminds them of the Shallow Hal movie cover?

meet Bear!

Bear is our new puppy, who we are obsessed with - partly by choice/force of cuteness, and partly because if we weren't, he'd poop and pee all over our house! He is twelve weeks old, and he is a mix of a Border Collie and (we think) and German Shepherd. He loves to play and have our attention. He is slowly learning to go potty outside, but he is also way too smart for that game.

Bear playing with his dad!

We read that we should just calmly pick him up when he starts to go inside (harder than it sounds when most of your house is carpeted) and take him outside. It's a long walk to go outside unless you're in the garage or our bedroom, which he almost never is. At some point, he learned that he gets to go outside if he "goes" inside, which ended up with countless trips outside (I think four times within 1 hour on Tuesday). So we started positive reinforcement (treats) when he "goes" outside. Works like a charm! Indoor messes have been significantly cut down. :)

Bear enjoying being outside... eating our grass (that's a no-no) sniffing EVERYTHING, playing, and going potty!

All this puppy sweetness just reminds me of the joys of babies. Bear got poop on the walls, and I read an article about babies doing the same the other day (I'm thrilled for that). I have little/no time to myself if Austin isn't around, I get ready within 15 minutes each day (I sacrifice the makeup) and spend all my time watching him. He isn't a baby but he sure is training me! All I have to say is... thank GOD that the baby will have diapers, and not have to run outside like with a puppy. The potty training will come later. And, thank God that babies aren't instantly mobile!

I'm excited for our baby to grow up with such a sweet and playful pup. S/he will have some awesome memories!


Love,