I had my first baby shower on Saturday. It was held at our church fellowship hall and my wonderful friends, Michelle, Jennifer, Tammy and Christen went all out! They <93>showered me with love<94> at an afternoon tea party style shower, very elegant and very fun! We 20 guests and tons and tons of goodies to open up! The food was yummy and the decorations were so pretty. We got a wonderful variety of gifts, clothes, diapers, bibs, towels, bath time items, toys, stroller, gift certificates, and more. And, even some special treats just for pampering the new mom! We had such a fun group, friends from Roanoke, friends from church and friends from far away in Richmond and DC! We got everything back home and then it was like having a second shower with Dean as he went through all the bags and boxes and re-opened everything! It was so neat!

I have organized all the treats to get them packed and moved here in about two weeks. The house is JUST ABOUT done! Carpet goes down on Wednesday and Thursday and then just finishing touches and closing out the loan with the bank and we will be all set to move! So, hard to believe moving day is almost here, next thing you know Graham will be here!

We finished our six week childbirth series on Thursday night and had the hospital tour on Monday night, that has all been a wonderful experience! We have a baby care basics class this Wednesday evening. So, that should be educational. I go back to the doctor on August 14th and then after that will be going every week. That will really start to get interesting as we close in on the final weeks of pregnancy.

To see pictures from the shower, click Shelly

We went in to the doctor offices first thing this morning. Our ultrasound was scheduled for 9am and we got called back about that time. It took about 15 minutes and the technician was wonderful. We got six new pics, two of them in 4D of his little face! You kinda have to stare at them for a couple minutes for it to all make sense. He weighed approximately 3 pounds and 13 ounces!!!!! And, so they "project" that by 40 weeks, he will be around 8 pounds!!!!! Everything was as normal as could be and Dr. Keene was very pleased with how everything was looking, measuring, etc. And, she said he has a little fuzz on the top of his head!!!!! I go back in two weeks!

30 weeks, wow! Only 10 more to go! I am feeling better this weekend. I tried my best to take it easy most of the week and the pain in my back and leg finally started to ease up. By Thursday, I felt pretty much back to normal (well, pregnancy normal). I don’t know if the resting did the trick, not walking in the evenings or if Graham just shifted somehow. But, anyway, I went ahead and walked Friday evening, we modified it some and shortened it a little and I felt fine afterwards and on Saturday morning. So, that is good! I really think the walking is good for me to help with my weight and stamina for labor, so I would really like to keep it up. And, it is very stress relieving too!

We have a very busy week this coming week. On Monday night, we go to the hospital for our tour, so we are very excited about that. On Wednesday evening, I have a little pampering with a manicure and pedicure (thanks to a birthday gift certificate). Then, on Thursday morning, we have a walk through at the house with Clarke, the superintendent, and at that point, everything should be done except for the carpet! Then, Thursday night, we have our sixth and final childbirth class. On Friday morning, the doctor’s appointment with the ultrasound and then on Saturday, the first baby shower! So, yes, a busy and fun week!

We have started to get a few baby gifts so that has been a lot of fun and we can’t wait start putting them all in the nursery. As of right now, the move is scheduled for the week of August 14th, but we will probably be able to start taking some boxes and things down there that week before. And, I know just where all the boxes for the nursery are, I am sure they will be the first ones that make it to the house! The furniture will be delivered that Monday the 14th and by then we will have had both showers, so we should be ready to get it all set up! And, of course, many pictures will follow!!!

Graham continues to kick and roll and move and be so very active! I hope he stays like this until the end. On the ultrasound on Friday, he should be somewhere between 3 and 4 pounds. The first pictures were so good, we just can’t wait to see what he looks like now! So, of course, be sure and check back next Friday. The doctor’s appointment is first thing that morning and I will get the pics loaded here as soon as possible!

And, in case you haven’t seen Graham’s room on the house page, here it is! High Seas BLUE!!!!

I went back to the doctor on Friday for a check-up. I am now going every two weeks. It was a quick and fast visit and so Dean didn’t go with me. All the routine stuff, and then a brief chat with Dr. Keene. My blood count is still showing my iron is low, so I do have to go ahead and start taking the iron pills every day now instead of every other day, that will actually be a little easier to remember! I go back in two weeks and get the ultrasound, so Dean will definitely go that day. I will be 31 weeks and it will be almost 12 weeks since we saw him last, so we should be in for quite the treat! We can’t wait!

We are trying to get everything finished up and ready for the big move coming up here in a few weeks, shopping, packing, lists and lists. And of course, I want to just go, go, go! But, the last few days I have started to get slowed down a bit. I have been walking A LOT in the evenings with my friend Missy. We walk in the new neighborhood and we have walked this walk for about 4 summers now and it is not flat! It normally takes us 45 minutes to an hour depending on how hot it is and if we cut it short any. My siatic nerve or pelvic bone or something is really starting to bother me. It starts in my lower back and shoots down my leg to about knee. I guess I am gonna have to start taking it a little easier whether I like it or not!!!!!

I am also so excited that we will be getting in to the house earlier than expected and that we will be able to get busy on the nursery right away! When we set the shower dates, I actually that they would be weeks before we moved in and that I would just have to put everything in boxes and wait to put it all in the nursery. But, now it looks like we will be moving right around the same time as the showers! They painted the nursery blue this week and it is so pretty! I can’t wait to get in there and get busy!

We continue to enjoy our classes each week and look forward to the hospital tour a week from this Monday. We have a total five evenings left to go. We have gotten so much good information and have enjoyed meeting and talking to other parents to be also! We even had dinner in the hospital cafeteria last Thursday evening before our class to scope it out. It was okay, kinda food court style!

Well, only 12 weeks to go, so hard to believe! And, a busy 12 weeks they will be, baby showers, the move, setting up the nursery, etc.! So much going on, but all exciting stuff.

We had our third childbirth class this past week. We are really enjoying the class. The instructor is a former labor and delivery nurse from the hospital and she is giving us lots of insight and tips. We have three more weeks of this class and we also have three other one-time classes, a hospital tour, infant CPR and baby care basics. The tour is supposed to be really good, so we are looking forward to that a lot!

I go back to the doctor this Friday, so that is good. And, then in three weeks, the ultrasound, so I am really looking forward to that to see how big Graham has gotten. He is still very active, kicking and rolling and turning and we are seeing my belly move on the outside more and more. It is so neat!

Good news on Friday, I passed my gestational diabetes test! So, that was a relief, 13 weeks of no chocolate would have been a challenge for me to say the least!!!! Everything else looked pretty good, my iron is still a little low, so I will have to keep taking iron pills. I go back in two weeks and Dr. Keene will go over the results with me in more detail.

The house continues to move right along and in case you didnt see the latest update this week on the house page, we are supposed to be in early August, no later than the 15th. So, I have gotten back into packing mode. I pack the boxes and stack them up and Dean carries them to the garage! There are tons and tons of boxes in the garage but still no much to pack it seems! We will just keep plugging away every day and hopefully, it will dwindle down.

The furniture store where we ordered the nursery furniture from called this week and it is in, ahead of schedule. So, they are just gonna hold it and we will have it delivered straight to the house. We should also be getting in to the house right around the time of the baby showers, so hopefully, those goodies can just go straight to the nursery too! I cant wait to start setting it up and decorating it! I know it will be the first room that I want to work on when we move in. But, it looks like I will have time to get the whole house settled before baby gets here, so that is great. Although I may be a tad slower on this move than my normal "Shelly" move and settle in pace, I am sure we will be all done before Graham makes his arrival!

The painters put the first coat of paint on the whole house on Friday, just a white primer. So, I thought it would be neat to have my picture made in the nursery for this week. So, that is where I am. Soon, it will be a bright blue color to go with all the pretty nautical decor that we have!!!!