Dear Baby

November 25, 2013

Dear Baby Claire,

I am now 32 weeks along!  I went to the doctor today and found out you are 4 pounds already.  I don't know why but that was so strange for me to hear.  You are almost the size of an actual baby!  Things are moving right along and you are healthy as can be.  You are still in the same position with your head down and your feet up by my ribs.  You like to kick my ribs and remind me whenever I have bad posture and am squishing you a little.  

I had my (our) first baby shower a couple of weeks ago with the Leishman side of the family.  It was so much fun!  Everyone helped make pages for a quiet book for you.  I still have lots of work to do on it but your Grandma Leishman and I thought it would be a great craft for me to work on during all of your nap times.  You got lots of fun gifts that you are going to love including blankets, clothes, books, and all kinds of fun baby things.  

Another exciting event was that I finally finished your nursery!  I think it turned out really cute.  I hope you like it.  One thing that I think is pretty special is you will be sleeping in the crib that your mama slept in.  Your Grandma Julie & Grandpa Matt have saved it all of these years and gave it to your dad and I when we found out we were pregnant with you.  Everything is pretty much ready for your arrival.  I know I still have a while till you are here, but you will learn that your mama is a planner and likes to be prepared well in advance for everything.  

Your dad and I are still trying to decide on a middle name for you.  I have one that I really like, but your dad can't seem to commit to one.  He keeps saying how important your name is and I think it makes him nervous to finalize it.  Hopefully we'll agree on one soon.  

Keep growing and being a healthy little girl.  Only 8 more weeks until we meet!  

Love, 

Mom

Winter Wonderland

I think it's safe to say winter has hit with full force now.  It looks so pretty, but the roads are a horrible mess.  Luckily, we have nowhere to be so we are tucked safely inside doing nothing but drinking hot chocolate & watching Christmas movies until we're sick of them!

Pregnancy Update: 35 Weeks

How far along? 35 Weeks...well technically I'm not 35 weeks until Sunday, so I'm 34 weeks and 5 days, but it's easier just to round up ;)

How big is baby? At my doctor's appointment today on the ultrasound she was 5 3/4 lb.  It's looking like she may be closer to 8 pounds if I go until my due date!

Stretch marks? Still none.  My fingers are still crossed I'll be lucky.

Sleep: I don't know if my sleep is getting any better or if I'm just getting used to the new normal.  I sleep an average of 4-6 hours a night depending on how bad my back & hips are hurting.

Best moment of the week?  Having my 2nd baby shower and getting everything unpacked into the nursery.

Food cravings?  Peppermint Ice Cream!  

Symptoms? My symptoms are still pretty much the same: heartburn, lower back pain and aching hips.  Although my back doesn't seem to have hurt as bad the past week.     

Movement: She has been having some pretty big movements.  She pushes her feet into my right side and sticks her bum and back out so my bell looks way lopsided.  

Gender? girl!

Belly button in or out? Halfway out.

Wedding rings on or off? on.

Anything making you queasy or sick?  Nope.

Happy or moody most of the time:  Mostly happy but I've definitely had a few mood swings.  Overall though I feel like my emotions have been pretty in check through my whole pregnancy.  

Miss Anything?  Being able to put on socks and boots easily.  It's getting a little  ridiculous.  I never thought about how much having a round belly limits your movement until I started experiencing it!
Labor Signs? Nothing yet.
Looking Forward to? All of the holidays and parties coming up.  They will be such a good distraction and I think they will help make the time pass by really quickly!  And of course I'm looking forward to getting closer and closer to meeting my little girl.  Goodness, I already love her so much.  I can't even imagine how I will feel when she is finally here!

Super Heroes & Princesses

This week is Finals Week for Bryce...which basically means I'm a widow until Friday.  I surprised Bryce with a little package to help him stay motivated and get through the week.  I gave him a "Batman Movie Marathon Kit" for us to celebrate with once he's finished his last test.  He was so excited about it you would've thought I bought him a new car.  That boy loves anything and everything to do with Super Heroes.  I'm sure he'll constantly be trying to convince Claire that Super Heroes are much cooler than Princesses.  
Speaking of princesses, I finally finished my collection of Disney Princess movies, so I told Claire she's allowed to come anytime now :).  I just need to add Frozen to the collection once it comes out on DVD.  Rory and I are watching Beauty and the Beast right now and it is making me so excited to be able to share all of these favorite movies of mine with my daughter.  There are only 5 1/2 weeks left until Claire's due date so I don't have to wait too much longer!

Watch Me Grow: 40 & 41 Weeks

40 Weeks:

 41 Weeks:

Rory is 41 weeks now.  I don't think I've ever seen a dog that loves snow as much as she does.  She would stay outside and play in it all day if I let her.  She never wants to come in even when I know she has to be freezing with snow and ice stuck to every inch of her.  I'm really glad though!  It will be helpful when I'm taking care of a newborn in another month and I need to put her outside for a while so I can get some things done!  I've been taking her in the nursery a lot and doing things with a doll to try and prepare her a little.  I'll rock it or put in the swing and just kind of watch what she does. She usually just licks the doll like crazy but that's about it.  We'll have to work on teaching her to reign in her "kisses" with the new baby.  Other than that I think she will do fine....at least that's what I keep telling myself in hopes it will come true ;)

Weekend Recap

Bryce and I went on a little date and saw Frozen on Friday night and we LOVED it.  Okay, I probably loved it a little more, but Bryce still really liked it.  I didn't get any pictures from the date so I thought I would at least include the movie poster :).  Frozen is easily my favorite Disney movie since Beauty and the Beast.  And if you know me, you know how much I love Beauty and the Beast, so that is saying something.  I downloaded the soundtrack and we have been listening to it all weekend long too.  I can't wait until it comes out on DVD.  It is definitely a must-have for my collection. 

Saturday I had Baby Shower #2 with the Mecham (my) side of the family.  I can't even believe how much baby stuff we have now.  I am so lucky to have such kind and generous family members who already love Claire so much.  She is really loved (and really spoiled) already.  Some of the gifts included a quilt from each of Claire's Great-Grandmas, a receiving blanket & matching burp rag from my mother-in-law, a rock and play sleeper from my sister, lots of cute little clothes, diapers, wipes, hooded animal towels, a car seat from my aunt Hali, and a darling swing from my mom.

 

(Now that I have a carseat you can get a better idea of what the carseat cover looks like that I made a few weeks ago.)  

After I got home from my shower Saturday night I unpacked everything in the nursery and then rearranged it half a dozen times.  I took a few things out of the nursery to free up some space, flipped the crib around, and found a spot for the swing.  I liked the way the nursery was before, but I think it looks even better now and it finally feels finished.  If I tell that to Bryce he just rolls his eyes at me..haha.

I'm sure most of you know we had the first big snow storm over the weekend.  After church Bryce and I put on our snow clothes and took Rory outside to play.  I guess I should clarify, I took pictures, while Bryce and Rory played.  

I don't know who had more fun, Rory or Bryce.  Those two are quite the pair.  They were both completely covered in snow by the end and Rory looked like a furry little snow ball.  We have plans to finish our weekend with a Sunday nap, some studying for Bryce, and the annual First Presidency Christmas Devotional. 

Christmas Time is Here...

 

We've had the first snow, our decorations are up, and our stockings are hung! (Except Claire's) She won't quite be here in time for Christmas, but I will still probably make it anyway.  I can use it as an excuse to leave up Christmas the whole month of January :)  

The only thing we are still missing is a tree.  We haven't really decided what to do about a tree, since we have a nine month old puppy who is extremely curious living in the house.  I don't know if it's worth the headache of keeping her from pulling it over on top of herself.  We've joked that we're just going to count the chalkboard print.  Truthfully though, I would be sad if we skipped out on a tree.  I think we are going to try and find a small one that we can put on the table out of Rory's reach.  It won't be quite as festive, but it is better than no tree at all.  If anyone knows where to buy two or three foot trees let us know!