Leawood Baby Shower

Right before spring break my sweet teammates hosted our first baby shower. It was so darling! They had yummy snacks and super cute decorations. Everything was blue for baby Cormac! Dana even decorated the cookies with a "C" for him. We got so many presents for the little guy...it was such a blessing.

 All the teachers enjoying the delicious food.

 Maria planned a really fun Baby Trivia game. She had questions about celebrities babies and famous babies from TV shows...it was so funny.

 Our counselor, Diane, knitted this blanket herself! She also knitted a sweet little cap for Cormac. I was super impressed.

 The first grade team got us our diaper bag! It is awesome!! I told everyone how Chris wanted one that was "daddy friendly" so that's why we went with the olive green one.

One cool thing we got was the monthly onesie stickers. Annabelle saw these on Etsy and snatched them up...the funny thing was that I had my eye on these exact ones! I thought somehow she knew but she said these just looked like me haha : )

When I got home that day Chris and I spent lots of time just looking at all the sweet gifts. We both were in awe of how generous everyone was and how blessed we are to have our Leawood family.

Bumpdate

How far along: 30 Weeks! Cormac is about 16 inches long and weighs about 3lbs.
Sleep: Sleeping has been ok lately. I have been getting up a TON in the night. I'm trying to have a good attitude and just know that it is preparing me for the days to come!
Missing anything: Turkey sandwiches! I could really care less about these before I was pregnant but now it just sounds so good. I know I could always heat up the meat but that just sounds gross : )
Food Cravings: Still feeling really thirsty all the time. I am torn in the middle of the night because I am so thirsty I need to drink something but I know it will only cause me to get up a few hours later. I am still loving my Simply Orange Juice with Pineapple. I realized I must be craving it because it has been on my grocery list every week!
Food Aversions: Chicken isn't sounding so good these days...unless of course it's Chick Fil A which ALWAYS sounds good.
Symptoms: Still having some major swollen ankles at the end of the day. It really doesn't bother me...just doesn't look all that attractive.
Have you started to show yet: Funny story. Chris and I went out to run errands about a week ago. We were in Hobby Lobby getting some fabric and the lady cutting it for us asked when I was due. I told her mid-may and her response was "Oh honey! You definitely aren't going to make it until then!" We both just laughed and walked away. I told Chris that I was going to add that to my book titled Idiotic Things People say to Pregnant Women. 
Happy or Moody: Mostly happy! I can tell that my hormones take over sometimes...but mostly happy!
Highlights: Feeling Cormac move in my tummy is one of the best feelings ever. Especially when Chris can feel him too or see him jumping around in there. It is one of those moments where I want to stop time and burn it in my memory so I will always have with me.
Looking forward to: We have two baby showers coming up this week! I am super excited to celebrate our little man with my coworkers and our families. When we go home to Arlington we are also doing a 3d sonogram which we both are looking forward to! I am so anxious to get a peek at Cormac and I think it will be really special to have our families be able to see him too.

Bumpdate

*I took this picture last week and then never got around to posting! Oops!! 

How far along: 27 Weeks! Baby weighs 2 lbs and is about 14 1/2 inches long.
Sleep: So far so good! Still loving my snoogle pillow : )
Missing anything: Today I have my glucose test so I haven't had any sweets and it's all I can think about! I'm sure it wouldn't matter but I didn't want to chance it.
Food Cravings: I think my lime craving has tapered off somewhat. However, I am so THIRSTY all the time...so mostly craving ice water.
Food Aversions: I still don't want any fish...blech and any sort of balsamic salad dressing.
Symptoms: Within the past week or so I have started having swollen ankles at the end of the day. It's actually pretty funny. I came home one day and showed Chris and he just said, "whoa..." haha
Have you started to show yet: Definitely workin' the baby bump.
Happy or Moody: I would say happy!
Highlights: I have been feeling Cormac move a TON! I love laying in bed in the morning for a few minutes after my alarm goes off and just feeling him squirm all around. He moves around a lot when I first get into bed in the evening too. The other night, Chris and I just layed there and literally watched my tummy jump and move. It is such a sweet feeling...and pretty funny too. We keep joking that there is an alien in there!
Looking forward to: Making more progress in the nursery! We made some good headway last weekend and I am hoping for a snow day tomorrow so that we can get a few more things done!

Life Lately

Well, it won't be long now before we are in full baby mode so we have been busy making preparations for Cormac to come! The other day we went to Buy Buy  Baby and registered. That was quite the experience! I have to say that Chris was awesome and didn't complain once. However...

On Valentine's Day, Chris made us a wonderful dinner. I had parent/teacher conferences at school that day so he emailed me our menu for the evening. The menu did contain a disclaimer though. It said, "A drooling dog may be present during this romantic dinner. Unfortunately, this is unavoidable as he is owned by the restaurant owners." I laughed until I cried. So, so, funny. Chris did a little Pinterest research and cooked up a really yummy Italian chicken with veggies, spinach salad, and asparagus. It was so delicious. He even got us some sparkling cider to enjoy. 

And then for dessert we had two amazing cupcakes from Cupcake A La Mode. Chris also found an online deal so we were able to get them for a steal! We had Strawberries and Champagne and then Better Than ? Cupcake. Both made this preggo super happy : ) 

Bumpdate

How far along: 23 Weeks! Baby is the length of an ear of corn...and a Subway Footlong : ) 
Sleep: Still going great due to my Snoogle Pillow!! I'm only waking up a few times to go to the little girls room. 
Missing anything: Not really this week : ) 
Food Cravings: Still loving LIME and Chocolate Milk. Just not together. 
Food Aversions: I still don't want any fish...blech and any sort of balsamic salad dressing. 
Symptoms: Still feeling really good. 
Have you started to show yet: Oh yea. In fact, I think everything sort of shifted up this week because I can feel the baby moving higher up in my tummy.
Happy or Moody: I would say happy!
Looking forward to: Chris actually felt the baby move last weekend! I was sitting on the couch after dinner and he was kicking really hard. Chris came over and put his hand on my belly and was able to feel him! It was a really cool moment that I will never forget. He was able to feel him a few other times since then too. I know it will just get better and better! Now I am looking forward to getting Cormac's room ready : ) 

Bumpdate

How far along: 20 Weeks! Baby is the length of a banana.
Sleep: Over Christmas I got the Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow...I think it has changed my life! It's a pretty massive pillow but it is helping me sleep on my side so much better. Chris told me that every time he sees the pillow under the covers he thinks that it is me still in bed!
Missing anything: I would love to have a gigantic Diet Dr. Pepper with a turkey sandwich.
Food Cravings: LIME! I cannot get enough sour citrus. I stopped in Target on my way home from work the other day and bought two things: a half dozen limes and heartburn medicine. Chris was laughing at me when I got home.
Food Aversions: I still don't want any fish...blech.
Symptoms: None here! Feeling pretty great!
Have you started to show yet: Umm...yea. One of my sweet students told me yesterday that her mom keeps asking her if Mrs. Branigan looks pregnant yet? I asked her what she thought and she said "uhh...yea!"
Happy or Moody: I would say happy!
Looking forward to: Chris being able to feel the baby. I have been feeling him move which is such a surreal feeling. I wasn't sure if that's what it was but then I noticed it in the same place and the same sort of feeling each time. It is mostly when I am sitting very still and when I lay down at night.

Christmas 2012

We had a great Christmas with our families! We kicked it all off with our gender reveal party and then had a nice time visiting with both families and lots of friends. Here are some of the highlights...

We went bike shopping with Jenny and Taylor. Taylor got an awesome road bike this year that he is loving!

 We built Gingerbread Houses with Dianna which was a blast! We went to Cathy Sabin's house and she had a whole assembly line of candy all set out for us to decorate our houses. There was every kind of candy imaginable. It was a really fun/funny night doing something that we "big kids" really enjoyed.

 Chris may have enjoyed it a little TOO much...

 This is my finished house...cute and sweet.

 This is Chris's finished house...his turned out hilarious. I never knew he could be so creative with Teddy Grahams and fondant!

 On Christmas Eve we were with my family and somehow managed not to get any pictures...boo. We had a nice dinner all together and then opened presents. I got some really cute moccasin slippers, corning ware and some other things. Chris got his favorite...cold, hard, cash : ) Even baby Cormac got some really nice gifts!

On Christmas morning we were with the Branigans. We woke up and ate breakfast and then dug into the presents! We both got some goodies and then two unexpected big gifts! Chris got a Kindle and I got a Dutch Oven. I can't wait to cook something in there!

 We also got a nice surprise snow on Christmas day! This picture doesn't really do it justice...

 On the 27th it was Bear's 3rd Birthday! We were sad that he was at the farm and not with us but Mr. Dick said they sang him Happy Birthday three times that day. We are so blessed that we have a place like that where he can go when we are out of town. We sure do love our Brudder!

All in all we ate too much and enjoyed each minute with our families and friends. We are very excited for all the things in store for us in 2013!