60 Days and Countiing!

60 Days to go... WOW! I cannot believe that the jelly bean will be making her debut in 60 short days! 60 days left for us to decide on a middle name. Seems like just yesterday I was posting that we had 100 days to go. The time sure is flying!

So far, the third trimester has been filled with lots of exciting things. We've had 2 wonderful showers, and we have been generously showered with some really great gifts. Our house looks like a miniature Babies R Us (only less organized), and we LOVE it!

We've broken down and moved most of the furniture out of the room that is slowly being transformed into the nursery. My friend JC's parents were sweet enough to paint the nursery for us on Saturday, and we couldn't be more pleased with the finished product! We have most of the bedding and accessories for the nursery, but we are still waiting for the furniture to arrive. It should be here any day now... I'm ready to start putting things away.

We've attended Baby Basics 101 and learned all about what to expect before, during and after the birthing process. We also learned about Baby Safety (i.e. if you think they won't get into it, they will) and heard a local pediatrician answer some of the most common newborn baby questions. Although the series was only a 2 part class, it was super informative and well worth our time. Next on the agenda is the Baby Center tour at the hospital, which I think we will tour next Monday.

Molly dog has her bags packed and is ready to go. And I don't mean to the hospital. I can tell by the disturbed look in her eyes that she thinks we are moving again. Or at least she's thinking of moving again. Poor little dog. Nobody asked her if she was ready for a sister. She's been the baby for 9 years, and I am not sure how she is going to adjust to baby Addison. We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed for a smooth transition in that department.

Speaking of baby Addison, she has been pretty busy in there. I don't feel her "rolling" around as much as before, but I definitely feel her little jabs and kicks from time to time. I made vegetable soup over the weekend, and she must have enjoyed it because she was extremely active after I ate the soup. Or it could have been the cornbread...

That's what we've been up to the past few weeks. Here's to the next (and last) 60 days!

What's in a Name?

For those of you who don't know, baby girl Norris does have a name. A first and a last name at least.

What we do know is that her name is...

Addison (something) Norris

Craig and I were able to decide on Addison many months ago. Eventually, she might be an Addy, but for now, she is our little Addison. We decided we'll give her a little time to see what her personality is like before we decide to call her Addy.

We are having a little trouble with the middle name, but we do have it narrowed down to a few. Middle names are hard. Harder than they should be since they all but disappear over time anyway. We'll keep you updated.

The Third Trimester has Arrived

... and the belly is growing! It's so hard to believe that I am in week 29. Only 11 more weeks to go. Time seems to be FLYING by now. Our little girl will be here before we know it.

Weeks 27 and 28 passed with few changes to report (other than my growing belly). I can definitely feel her moving around in there. Some days, I feel jabs and kicks. Other days I feel tossing and turning. I still get excited each time I feel her moving around in there. I know that is something I am really going to miss after she arrives. I have also lost a little of the energy I had in the 2nd trimester. When I finally sit down long enough to rest, I am so tired. Too tired to get up off the couch sometimes. I've also noticed that my legs and back are starting to hurt more, especially if I have been walking around all day. It would probably help if I wore something other than flip flops, but I do love my flip flops. I really don't have any major complaints, though. Most days are a good day, and I know I am so fortunate for that.

At last week's appointment, I passed my 2nd (and hopefully final) glucose tolerance test. What a relief that was! Although I am not eating tons of sugar, I definitley have not been depriving myself of the sweet stuff. My blood pressure was great, my sugar was great, the baby's hearbeat was strong (in the 150s) and I had only gained 2 pounds since the last appointment a month ago. Not sure how I managed that one, but hey, I am not complaining!

I'll have appointments every two weeks now instead of four, and that is kind of exciting. It always makes me feel better to hear her little heart beating away in there. I think my next appointment is October 2nd.

As December 9th approaches, the excitement and anticipation continues to grow (along with my belly)!

100 Days and Counting!

I cannot BELIEVE that I only have 100 days left to go. 100 days might seem like an eternity to some (especially those of you who are teachers), but for this pregnant girl, I imagine the next 100 days will fly by. In no time at all, I'll be holding my little wiggle worm in my arms. And is she ever a wiggle worm these days! Her favorite play time is still early in the morning. Last week, it was 4 a.m. Today, it was 5 a.m. Hey, we're getting a little better, but I really don't mind at all. It is still such a neat feeling to feel her "jumping" around in there. Craig felt her move for the first time this morning. Of course, she only moved once for him, but he was pretty excited.

Recent Favorites: Really, there is only one... Outback's Chocolate Thunder from Down Under
Recent Cravings: Really, there is only one... Outback's Chocolate Thunder from Down Under
Recent Guilty Pleasure: Really, there is only one... Outback's Chocolate Thunder

If you have never tried the Thunder from Down Under, you should do so! But beware, it is definitely addictive!

My next appointment is September 20th, at which time, I get to take another lovely sugar test. Keep your fingers crossed for us because the baby and I sure are enjoying those Chocolate Thunders from Down Under!

Double digit days countdown, here we come!

25 Down, 15 To Go!

The past week has been filled with tons of excitement. We heard a strong heartbeat at our regular doctor's appointment on Tuesday, and then we saw the first glance of Baby Girl Norris via 3D ultrasound on Wednesday! As you can see from the picture, she is quite a ham. At one point, I started laughing, and she started smiling/laughing at the same time. Her little mouth did not stop moving during the entire ultrasound. I am assuming she has already inherited the gift of gab from her daddy!

Even more exciting than the first true photos of our little girl was the news that her heart appears to be healthy. For the most part, she was very cooperative this time, but in the very first image the ultrasound tech captured, she was sticking her little tongue out at us. She sat still long enough for Juli (the tech) to capture all of the photos she needed except for one, which evidently, was no big deal. We were all very pleased (and relieved) to see that everything appears to be normal.

I have felt her moving around a LOT this week, which is such a cool feeling. I can feel her little kicks from the outside when I put my hand on my belly, but I haven't been able to share this with Craig yet. Her movements are still fairly unpredictable, and I can't seem to figure out when she is going to kick next. She woke me up at 4 am twice this week. I assume she was ready to play... Oh boy, is this a sign of things to come or what?!

I have been fighting a nasty summer cold all week, and I hope I am finally on the mend. As per my doctor's instructions, I am now taking Tylenol Cold and sleeping with a humidifier beside the bed. Once I got up and started moving around today, I did feel much better.

My sweet husband spent the day in Savannah with me today. It took a lot of pouting and a little bribery, but he finally gave in. I wanted to go back and look at things for the nursery one more time. We ordered a cozy rocker/glider/recliner and finalized the bedding order. Before it's all over with, I am afraid that Craig and I will be fighting over the new chair. It is so comfortable.

I am super excited for all of the things we have ordered to come in so we can officially start working on the nursery.

So as you can see, we have been very busy this week. And to top off all of the excitement, we just found out that Baby Girl Norris is going to have a brand new cousin in April! Craig's little sister is expecting, which is such a wonderful surprise. Congratulations! We can't wait for these two little miracles to arrive!

24 Weeks!

It's hard to believe I am 24 weeks pregnant today. Some weeks creep by and others pass a little more quickly.

The past few weeks have gone by fairly quickly, but we have been busy getting ready for Baby Girl Norris. Below is a recap of what we've been working on.

1. We completed our registries. Craig has officially been initiated -- he spent 2 hours in Babies R Us with me last Sunday. He was a trooper, although he did get a little crabby toward the end. He was fine until the excitement of the scanner gun wore off.

2. I went to Savannah and ordered the crib and dresser/changing table yesterday. They should arrive sometime within the next 6-8 weeks.

3. I narrowed the bedding choices to a few.

4. I looked at paint colors for the nursery.

5. We have been working on names for Baby Girl Norris. We're getting closer, but we aren't quite there yet.

6. I have shopped, shopped and shopped some more. This is a great time of year for sales at the outlets in Bluffton. I think Baby Girl Norris has more clothes than I do. The good news is that I have been buying several different sizes. Hopefully, she'll be all set for the first year.

Might be a problem... Luckily, the nursery closet is much larger than this one!

So that's what we've been doing since the last post. I have a regular doctor's appointment on Tuesday and a follow up ultrasound at MUSC on Wednesday. Hopefully, Baby Girl Norris will cooperate for her big photo shoot this week... I'll post updated photos after the appointment on Wednesday. Any kind of luck and I'll have some 3-D images to post.

22 Weeks and Counting...

Above you can see three white lines beside the arrow that confirm the Jelly Bean is a little GIRL!

Picture of her arm and her hand

In the middle of the screen, you can see a picture of her little foot

We are officially 22 weeks and 1 day pregnant today. And we FINALLY have confirmation that the Jelly Bean is a GIRL! We also have confirmation that our little girl is S-T-U-B-B-O-R-N! We went to MUSC on Friday for our level 2 ultrasound.

If you recall, we were sent to MUSC because the baby was in a position that made it difficult for our local sonographer to capture a clear view of her heart and her nose and lips. Well...she was still in that position on Friday, and she has no interest whatsoever in changing positions.



The sonographer at MUSC was able to capture a picture of her little lips and nose, but neither she nor her supervisor were able to capture the 5 pictures they needed of her heart. The heart seemed to be just fine, and it appeared to be beating normally, but the girls couldn't get the pictures they needed. We were there for an hour and a half -- I drank juice, I ate ice, I walked around, I jumped around, I pushed on my belly, I rolled from one side to the other, but we could not get her to budge. She is obviously in a very cozy spot and does not care to move. So...we go back on August 22 for one more try.



I think I have been feeling her move a little since last Sunday, but the movements come and go. Mostly, I feel her moving just after I get in bed at night and just after I eat lunch each day. We know she likes to sleep, and she must like to eat as well! :)

Only 125 days to go!