Two Months Old!

One day I will start posting for reasons other than age milestones. One day. But TODAY my baby girl is two months old! And that deserves an update!

- She continues to become more and more alert. She will sometimes smile at you when you talk to her, which is the best feeling ever! She has also found her tongue, which is really cute.

- She is sleeping well at night. We are definitely not on a regular schedule yet but she will usually give me a 5-7 hour stretch from 11:00 - 4:00, 5:00 or 6:00. I kiss all over her on the 6:00 days. ;-) When we get back to Nashville we are going to start a bedtime routine at about 9:00. I know I'm going to be TERRIBLE at letting her cry so we'll see how that goes. Stay tuned...

- She has learned to love being held. We have been in Little Rock for the past three weeks and the girl has hardly ever been put down. I am in big trouble when we get home. Again, I'm not good at the crying it out thing. Eek. I'm going to get very good at doing everything one-handed.

- Carolyn and I unofficially weighed her yesterday (I weighed myself and then reweighed while holding Greer) and she was 13.5 lbs!! I know other moms understand... Weight gain is so reassuring.

- There is still a great debate about who she looks like. I think the take away is that she is a good mixture and really looks like me sometimes and Will sometimes. She has one expression where she furrows her eyebrows and IS Will Peeples.

The first two months of Greer's life have been a whirlwind. We had such great help from our moms for the first month in Nashville, we had Will's family to our house for Thanksgiving, Will had finals, we've been in Little Rock for three weeks, Christmas was spent bouncing around AR visiting family, we spent two nights without power in Hot Springs, and now we have started a new year! We are headed home to Nashville on Thursday and I am really looking forward to starting our new normal.

Greer, you have already brought us so much joy. You are the greatest blessing we could ever imagine and I cannot wait to get to know you better each day. Your parents love you to the moon and back.
Love, Mommy

Six Weeks Old

I can't believe we have been parents for six weeks! But I honestly can't decide if that seems long or short compared to how I feel. I can't believe she's six weeks old already but I also don't remember sleeping through the night. ;-) She is doing so great and I continue to love her more every day. I still look at her little face and cannot fathom how blessed we are. She is happy and healthy... And she's ours!

Here are some updates:

- She weighed 11 lbs. 12 oz. at her appointment today. She is growing, which makes me happy and relieved! I knew she was bigger but having the weight confirmation was encouraging since I'm solely breast feeding. Feeding has been going well but every time she eats I will wonder if she's gotten too much or not enough... So it's just so great to know that's she's a growing girl!

- She has started smiling and cooing! I love hearing her little voice and when she looks at me and smiles... I absolutely melt. Funnily enough she smiles the most when I'm changing her diaper. That usually means that changes are prolonged so that I can talk and smile with her. And also that I get peed on a lot. Worth it.

- She's still eating every three hours during the day. Then in the evening she is usually hungry closer to every two hours or even less. But "power feeding" before bed does help us get a longer stretch at night. The other night she ate at 11:00 and then didn't wake up until 6:30!!! I almost fell out of bed when I looked at the clock. Now, that was a fluke. But I can consistently get a 4-6 hour stretch from her at night.

- Will took his last exam for this semester yesterday! He has been really good about spending some time each day with her but I am really looking forward to him having more free time. And I'm excited for Greer to be a little more interactive... I want lots of Daddy daughter bonding time for them!

- She has had some tummy aches in the last few days. We've started giving her mylecon (sp?) drops and I think that has helped. She is such a sweet girl that she fusses only in the moments when it hurts but she spent a few days awake way more than she should have been because she was uncomfortable. I'm hoping we're moving on from the tummy aches.

- She got her vaccinations today. It was hard to watch her scream when she felt the first one. Ugh. But the other two were finished so quickly and she had seriously quit crying before I could even get her paci in her mouth. Such a tough girl.

- Weeks 1 through 6 have been great! Now we will spend weeks 7 through 9 in the great state of Arkansas. It will be great for family and friends to get to see/meet her. And it will be a crash course in traveling and running around with a baby for her mommy and daddy! I'm nervous and excited! Any and all prayers are much appreciated.

Here are some previously unposted pictures of our precious girl!

One Month!

I can't believe our little girl is one month old! She continues to be the greatest blessing I could ever imagine. Here are some notes about her first month of life:

- She is a growing girl! 8 lbs 7 oz, 20 inches at birth. 9 lbs 6 oz, 22 inches at her three week appointment. And I think she MIGHT weigh over 10 lbs now... I feel like she's grown a ton in the last week.

- She continues to have a super laid back disposition. As she's awake more and more during the day I get nervous that she'll fuss and cry more. But in actuality she is just as content as she can be. We're continuing to keep our fingers crossed, hold our breath and say our prayers about it!

- In most pictures her eyes look brown but they are actually dark blue. They could obviously still change to brown or green but right now they're blue!

- She is starting to focus on things. I can tell when she's looking right at me and I love it. She's also starting to lay on her play mat and watch the mobile.

- She's still eating well and is down to six minutes on each side. Efficiency makes mommy happy because feedings are pretty quick!

- She is SUCH a good nighttime sleeper. Last night she fell asleep at midnight and I woke her up at 5:00 to eat. I know I am crazy to wake a baby but when you breast feed and it has been seven plus hours (she had gotten an 11:00 bottle so I could sleep) then we'll talk.

- We are getting out of the house together more and more. Yesterday I even fed her in the mommy room at Nordstrom. She was great for our entire day of lunch and mall shopping. I, however, was totally worn out by the time we left.

- She's been spitting up lately. Spitting up is my least favorite thing. I know that babies spit up - it comes with the territory. But every time I think it's because I've done something wrong. But there are fifteen different things that can make her spit up and some of them just can't be helped. And she never cries when it happens so I THINK she still loves me. ;-)

- She has grown out of most newborn things other than sleep sack/dresses. Mostly she's in 0-3 month clothes now.

- Each day her life is documented on Instagram and Facebook by her overly proud mother. Sue me. I do wonder how many people have removed me from their timelines, though. I know they're out there. Ha.

Here are some of my favorite pictures that I haven't posted on Facebook. You'd think I wouldn't have any left... But you would be oh-so wrong!

So Thankful

It is not hard to guess what I am thankful for this year. Growing up I never babysat and never wanted to hold babies. I loved my cousins but even they made me a little uncomfortable when they were really little. Then I got married and something inside me shifted. I was baby crazy. I knew that we would benefit from being married for a few years pre-kids but the dynamic with Will and me has always been me negotiating to start our family earlier than later. I say all of that just to point out that this girl is the answer to prayers that I've been praying for a long time. And I am beyond grateful for her precious life.

These first three weeks with her have both flown and creeped by... I feel like she just got here and has been here forever. It has been a major adjustment to have another human depend on you for everything. There is no copping out of parent duties because you're tired or not in the mood. Particularly when you are the food source. But Will and I have amazingly supportive and selfless families. My mom stayed for a week and Will's mom has been here for the past week. It is so much easier for me to tend to Greer when I have a sweet mamma here tending to me. My water cup has not been empty since she was born, my house is as clean as it's ever been, I have slept well and often, I haven't done a load of laundry myself since I was pregnant, life is good.

So, true to form here is a list of the specific things I am thankful for today:

- Greer is a happy girl. She has such a laid back disposition. She's only awake for several hours a day but during those hours she is just as content as she can be. If she's crying then she is hungry, cold or you are messing with her too much. If she is full and clothed, she is happy.

- She is a growing girl. Breast feeding is going well. But it is an art... not a science. So I am so thrilled that she weighed 9 lbs. 6 oz. at her appointment yesterday! She has gained almost a pound since birth. Which makes mommy happy and much more relaxed that she is getting what she needs.

- I feel great. I was so worried about post-partum issues before she was born. But my body and mind are both holding up great! Being her mom comes with a lot of pressure and unsure moments but I am thankful that I feel nothing but love and joy. I know that's not the case for everyone and I'm grateful it is for me. Also, I have my follow up appointment with my doctor next week and I'm hopeful that I'll get the go ahead to start taking Greer on walks and get back to normal physical activities. I feel great so hopefully the doc will give the green light!

- I am thankful for a God who has poured out so many blessings on us through this child. I told Will this week that I am trying to accept these gifts for what they are and just be grateful... instead of guilty. I have to admit that I have moments where I just feel bad for how well everything is going. I keep thinking, "This is supposed to be a lot harder!" But I am doing better every day. I have an angel baby - and I'll keep her!

I hope everyone had a great Turkey Day and that you are also able to count your blessings today. Here are some pictures of our happy girl!

And then the world shifted...

Well, Greer Allan Peeples decided it was time to meet her mom and dad on November 1! She is here and doing so well. I always thought this post would be hard to write... And I was right, because SO much has happened in the last week. I cannot begin to describe how much love I have felt - not only FOR Greer and Will but FROM so many wonderful family and friends. So, how did we get here? Let's start with last Wednesday...

Wednesday was my last day at work. It ended up being a pretty busy work day (not really just a day wandering the halls saying goodbye) and the only thing I can really say is that I felt weird. I had some painful (but still irregular) contractions and just felt sort of odd all day. I attributed all of that to the majorness of my last day (and the brownie dessert I shamelessly ate at lunch). BUT I did tell a group of coworkers before I left that I'd probably have her tomorrow because my body will somehow know that now I'm finished at the office. My water broke about eight hours later.

I woke up at 12:30 a.m. for one of my midnight bathroom breaks. As soon as I laid back down in the bed my water broke. Will was watching TV after taking a practice test for a standardized test he had (and still took because he's a rockstar) on Saturday. Poor guy never went to bed. I walked into the living room and told him I was pretty sure my water had broken. We called the doc, Will threw together a bag and we headed to the hospital. I was pretty confident that my water had broken and this was it but I think a mixture of denial and being gun shy kept us from calling most family until we were at the hospital. I knew that as soon as we sounded the alarms everyone would on the interstate pretty quickly. In the middle of the night. So we wanted to be sure. By the time we were checking into the hospital reality set it and we called everyone. They were all on the road within the hour. They are AMAZING!!

So, after checking in, confirming I was in labor and a move up to the labor and delivery floor we were officially in business. I'm not going to go into every detail of the night here so here are the highlights:

- Epidurals are awesome. I was nervous to get one, it did hurt to get it but not nearly as much as I expected, I had a hiccup with mine and they had to switch the actual medicine I got, but I was very affirmed that it was the right decision for me. As scary as labor was... That part was superb. ;-)

- IV's are not awesome. My veins rolled twice. Third attempt was a charm. And that charm left me with a bruise covering the entire back of my left hand that STILL has not gone away.

- Once you've had a baby no "private" part of your body will feel "private" ever again. It took an hour at the hospital before I forgot that it should be embarrassing to show 15 different people your nether-region. Just saying.

- My husband is my favorite adult on this planet (and I love this baby but it's still a tie for favorite person overall). He brought just the right amount of sweetness, support, humor and faithfulness to the entire experience. AND he did bring half of Greer's DNA to the table so I will be eternally grateful for that fact alone.

- I went from less than half-way there to pushing in an hour and a half. Greer was not messing around. It. Was. Time. 35 minutes later, she was here. I am so thankful for a healthy girl but I am also thankful for a quick and relatively painless labor. It's not lost on me how fortunate I was there. And I'm grateful.

- The early morning of November 1 affirmed my faith in our Almighty God like no other experience in my life. Over and over I saw how perfect His timing is and I felt so cared for by Him. We have a happy, healthy baby. I have been a happy, healthy mamma. Watching Will be a daddy has made me fall in love with him all over again. I just can't say enough how the Lord has had his hands all over us this past week. I will praise and worship Him forever for this precious girl's life.

So, at 10:37 on November 1 Greer cried her first cry, announcing the arrival of a special, beautiful woman. She has her daddy's dark hair and her mommy's hands and feet. Other than that you'll have to ask the grandmothers who she looks like. ;-) As far as I'm concerned she looks like Greer and my heart really did grow when I looked into her eyes. She has been such an angel and I can't begin to tell you how fortunate we are. I'll update more with how things are going but I will say that we are doing great! Our first pediatrician appointment is tomorrow so we'll also know more then!

Until I post again, much love from the very Happy Peeples!

To Mom

I have been spewing love all over the place on this blog lately. I guess I'm just overflowing with happy hormones! I started to write my mom a post and then remembered... I actually did that over a year ago!! I re-read it today and it really does sum up my feelings for her. The only thing I will add is how wonderful she has been over the past nine months and how INCREDIBLY excited I am for her to be Greer's grandmother (grandmother name still TBD - in true Mary Neal form this is a very important decision). 

I love you so much, mom! I am feeling especially connected to you in these last days of waiting to become a mother myself. Also, I cannot wait for you to get to town and clean my house. Haha. Moms are the best!

Mom Post - July 15, 2011

To Will

I realized after my letter to Greer that I have mostly talked about the pregnancy part of Greer being on her way and, in doing so, have left Will out more than I meant to. Anyone who knows him will not be shocked at all that Will has been the most amazing husband throughout this pregnancy. So, I wanted to (very publicly) thank him for some of the things I have appreciated most over the past months...

Will,

• Thank you for getting so excited and saying all the right things the morning we found out I was pregnant. I know you were a little shocked and scared at the weight of it all but you were so sweet and SO funny and that helped me tremendously. Your prayer that morning - that included thanking God for this amazing gift AND asking God that maybe my mom wouldn't move to Nashville RIGHT away - is my most precious memory from that morning.
• Thank you for taking me off of the ski slope and not totally freaking out yourself when I had a COMPLETE hormonal meltdown 100 yards into our second run. And for letting me bow out of skiing for the rest of the trip with absolutely no guilt trip. You were already a professionally supportive dad-to-be just days after we found out we were expecting.
• Thank you for waking me up for dinner during my first trimester when I would go to sleep after work. And then letting me go right back to sleep after we ate. You never made me feel bad for taking care of myself and that was so appreciated.
• Thank you for being excited that Greer was a girl. I was (secretly) DYING for her to be a girl but I was so nervous because I really thought you felt the same way about us having a boy. But as soon as the ultrasound tech said she was a girl you were beaming. And that meant everything to me.
• Thank you for letting me off the hook every time I've apologized for "complaining." Pregnancy has been great for me but it has come (as it does for everyone) with lots of physical discomfort. Every time I've said my back hurt or it was hard to walk or I was tired or I was just generally uncomfortable you have been nothing but supportive and NOT ONCE did you tell me to suck it up. Major husband points for that one. 
• Thank you for going to see Hope Springs with me on our babymoon because I wanted to see Meryl's new movie. I'll never stop feeling guilty for that one. Anyone who has seen that movie totally understands. Anyone who hasn't seen it... keep it that way.
• Thank you, first of all, for supporting (in every sense of the word) me staying at home with Greer. That decision will affect so many facets of our lives and I love you for your willingness to be the sole bread winner. And thank you for also standing behind my decision to give my notice at work so early. That was a sacrificial decision but I can't tell you how much it has put my mind and heart at ease these past months.
• Thank you for cleaning the house before our families were here a few weekends ago. You have helped around the house all along (even pre-pregnancy) but the big cleaning job before visitors meant a lot to me. Our house has not been as clean as I want it throughout this entire pregnancy (and thank you for never saying one negative word about that!) so having it cleaned before we had guests really made me relax. And my mom commented on how clean the kitchen was - official seal of approval.
• Thank you for taking on some of the big "getting ready" responsibilities like picking the car seat, setting up our pediatrician appointment, our tour at the hospital, etc. And thank you for going to every single one of my doctors appointments. Every one of them. And asking questions at all of them, too. ;-)
• I could go on forever... so thank you for being the man that I married. The man that I look up to, that makes me laugh literally every day, that makes me feel special and loved at all times and the man who is going to be all of that and more for our little girl. You are going to be the ultimate dad and I am so excited that I am about to watch and support you through that journey.

You are my best friend and you have my heart,
Caroline

To Greer

To my precious baby girl,

You are due to arrive in a month. These past nine months we have spent together, in one body, have been some of the most precious of my life. I keep fixating on how excited I am to see your sweet little face. I think I want to see your face because I feel like I know you so well otherwise. I feel you move and kick and roll, it's like we communicate already. I know that you're feisty and strong and sassy. I know that when you get the hiccups you get mad and kick around until they go away. I know that first thing in the morning you like to bump and nudge me... It's like you say good morning but you're a little groggy, too, so you don't kick as hard as usual. I know you'll be cuddly because you're very still if I rub your back when it's out against my tummy. I know that you hate when I climb stairs or walk too fast... Okay, that's probably me.

We have one month left sharing this body and I want to savor every minute of it. I truly can't wait to see your beautiful face but I also know what that day will bring... Lots of people to share you with. There are so many people who already love you beyond measure and cannot wait to meet you. So for now, while it's still just you and me, I want to tell you that this year has been wonderful and it only makes me more excited for all the years to come with you!

Love,
Mommy

Five Weeks Left!

Well, we are five weeks away from Greer's due date! Being able to travel has come and gone. Showers have come and gone. Visits from family before the "it's time" phone calls have come and gone. So now it feels like... we just wait. Don't get me wrong, there are definitely still things to do. AND we have two weddings for people we love dearly that I am so excited about in the next few weeks. But it does feel like we are now in the holding pattern stage. Just waiting on this sweet girl to decide it's time to meet her mom and dad.

So, just to ease some people's minds after my last post... We now have diapers! Haha. I know that made some folks nervous and so you can all rest assured that we now have 100+ newborn and 100+ size 1 diapers. Also, I am currently washing our (mine and Greer's) clothes for the hospital so we will be packed by tonight! I have charged our video camera and regular camera and they are in my bag. It's really starting to feel like she'll be here so soon!

This weekend was so special with mom, Gigi, Susan, Sug and Carolyn in town for my shower here. It meant a lot to me that my family got to meet some of my friends. Kathleen, Christin and Cameron seriously outdid themselves planning such a beautiful day for Greer and me. I have gotten SO many compliments on the food and specific recipe requests - the definite sign of a successful shower!

I just cannot get over how unbelievably blessed Will and I are as a family. As if having this baby isn't wonderful enough, this has been a time that we have been so overwhelmed by the love and generosity of our family and friends. And I don't just mean gifts (although the gifts have been amazing -please know that I'm not the fastest thank you note writer but I am truly thankful for all of the useful and beautiful things for Greer). What I'm really referring to is people's love they have covered us with and their generosity with time, prayers and acts. Sometimes I just can't process how fortunate we are. We are about to start a crazy adventure that will last the rest of our lives and I so appreciate that we are jumping off this cliff feeling so supported. Thank you all for your love. We feel it. Trust me.

I hope everyone is excited about fall's arrival and that you had a great first cool weekend! Next up on the blog will be pictures of the nursery! Yay!!

Cabs

These Are My Confessions...

Okay, I thought I'd come back strong and blog often. BUT it turns out my last two months of pregnancy are busy ones so far. So, just to record some randomness here are some of my preggo confessions...

Very occasionally I fall asleep on the couch and (gasp!) don't take my vitamins before getting in bed. Listen, it's all I can do to drag my pregnant belly the twelve steps to the bed. And we'll pretend I'm brushing my teeth in those twelve steps.

Sometimes I come back out to the couch to sleep the rest of the night ON MY BACK. I know it's a no-no. But our couch is really soft so I feel like I'm not putting as much pressure on my back when I sleep on it. I'm sure it's flawed logic but sometimes you gotta make-do. Rolling from side to side is (for some reason I can't quite figure out) one of the most painful things I do.

Greer will probably come out and immediately slap me in the face. She'll probably want payback for all the poking I do at her. Every time she rolls or kicks for some reason I feel like I need to respond by pushing back. It's automatic at this point. And I'm fairly certain that I noticed the shirt I wore yesterday was kind of dingy where she kicks a lot (and therefor I touch a lot). I'm admitting I have a problem. But on the flip side she may love it. And truly I'll never know. So let's just say she loves it. ;-)

We don't have one diaper yet and I haven't washed one piece of clothing or blanket. I am definitely not prepared for an early baby. Oh yeah, I need to pack for the hospital soon, don't I? Oh, and go see where the L & D floor is at the hospital. And pick a pediatrician. And take the car seat out of the box. Yeah, the to-do list is kind of long at this point.

I thought I was so smart and super cool for not needing to wear too many maternity clothes. And now I am QUICKLY running out of things to wear. With so little time left I will not be purchasing one more thing with a stretchy waist or rouched sides... So it is time to get creative. OR start stealing from Will's side of the closet. Hmm...

My house is dirty. I try to do something productive at home everyday but after work it is very difficult for me to resist the couch. Every time I decide to clean I end up organizing something instead. Trust me, these are not the same thing.

I have a days-left-at-work countdown. I tried to resist the urge to wish those days away but it happened. And I have 23 left! Eek!

I read that Greer's bones are hardening at this stage so I should be trying to bump up my calcium intake. I read this as: Eat more cookies so that I drink milk with them and eat more Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I'm sure that's just what the doctor ordered, though. It's fine.

Up until mid-week this past week I had started to become a pretty grumpy pregnant person. I had a hard time with the fact that all I want to do is lay around. I'm rapidly getting pretty uncomfortable and I was just generally sour about it. Then I had two epiphanies... (1) I realized that Greer and I are going to spend the next six weeks growing. A lot. So, unless I just enjoy the size I am now the last weeks of my pregnancy will all be spent being negative. Not cool. (2) I am so grateful and excited to be pregnant! It wasn't "hard" for me to get pregnant but it did require some patience and so WHY would I be a jerk about it now?! It's okay to have a bad day. It's okay to cry (hormones pretty exclusively give me that right at this point). However, it is NOT okay to spend my last months before Greer's arrival thinking of my life as hard or being negative. This baby is the most amazing gift Will and I have ever been given and I'm not going to pout about being UNCOMFORTABLE. As soon as that light bulb went off the rest of my week has been borderline blissful! Thank you Lord for a little perspective!

Okay, it is now 3:00 and time to peel myself off the couch. Happy (almost) October everyone! I cannot believe it is fall and Greer's due date is quickly approaching...

Photo Update

I haven't been great about posting photos throughout my pregnancy. So, here's an overview of the last few months in pictures!

The Big News Pt. 1

In order to use this blog as my memory keeper I thought it would be fun to record how we found out Greer was on her way and then how we shared that news with our families. Now... it's hard to talk about pregnancy without bringing up a certain "female calendar" or mention peeing on a very important stick. So, just bare with me. I promise to tread lightly and use soft language (I guess except "peeing" - oops).

So... back in March Will had his spring break and we had big plans to spend it in Aspen with friends. As fate would have it, the calendar lined up so that I would be waiting on a particular "aunt" to show up the day we left for our trip. Again, I'm trying to be delicate here. So anyway, Will and I hilariously discussed how to handle this because he was firm that I was not taking a test while we were on vacation. Did I mention in my last post that I'm impatient? Yeah... so you better believe I planned to take that test the day before we left. There was no way I'd be able "wait it out" on vacation. We were leaving for Colorado on Friday so Thursday morning it would be!

I came home from work on Wednesday night and told Will that I KNEW I was pregnant. The reasons I was so sure all qualify as TMI but you can call it intuition or blind optimism but I. Was. Sure. AND Will didn't admit it at the time but I convinced him that night, too. So we bought a test, I barely slept all night and then bright and early, at 6:00 a.m. Thursday morning I peed on that stick! I'm sorry, I just can't move past the fact that we get this amazingly huge news in our lives from a stick that you pee on... just can't get over it.

As you've gathered by now this test said that magical word - "Pregnant" - I mean, they should put ten exclamation points on that little screen, too. Whether you're excited or not about this major development I think that some exclamation points are appropriate. Just saying. A little punctuation is called for at this particular moment. There is a baby growing inside you INSERT TEN EXCLAMATION POINTS.

So, I waited all of zero seconds to wake Will from his peaceful, baby-free slumber by whisper-shouting, "Will! I'm pregnant!" We were both excited, stunned, nervous, happy,  terrified basically every emotion in the book. At one point Will just hollered, "What have we done?!" Haha. I thought it was an honest reaction to such an enormously permanent development. All in all it was a wonderful and hilarious morning at the Peeples' house. 

Now is where you might think I would start talking about our vacay. Except that before that can happen I obviously called my mom! I am not someone who could play this whole thing cool enough to wait and tell her in a fun, planned way. Nope. I called her on my way to work. She answered and told me she was about to call me to ask me something... to which I replied, "Oh, I was calling to tell you I'm pregnant!" We both cried. It was the best phone call ever. 

NOW we go to Aspen. Will and I were determined to keep our secret that week. It was difficult to keep something like that from a big group that we were staying in the same house with. Here are some highlights.

• Having a freakout moment in the security line at the airport thinking, "Can I go through those new scanners or am I supposed to opt out?! I can't opt out in front of Scott! I went through it... they're approved for preggos. Whew.
• Eating dinner with Robbie as soon as we got to Colorado and him asking out of nowhere if this would be our last vacation just the two of us. Will and I looked at each other dumfounded. Turns out Robbie just heard a kid crying in the restaurant and was trying to be funny. He about gave me a heart attack.
• I drank a LOT of virgin bloody marys that week. A lot.
• I told everyone that I was excited to be on vacation because I could just rest (I could already tell I was going to be exhausted most of the week). I was not there to go out or stay up late. Turned out I was there to sleep in, nap, go to bed early and lay around during the few hours I was awake. I was glad to finally tell all of them I was pregnant and not just super lame. 
• I did feel my first pangs of morning sickness on the trip but it's hilarious to look back now and think that I was sick at all. At that point it was really just feeling nauseated when I was hungry. I thought that would be the extent of it. Again, hilarious.
• I was a little terrified to believe the pregnancy was real. But I did buy our little baby an Aspen t-shirt to commemorate the trip. 

This post got crazy wordy and I am quite positive that you are all worn out by now. Here are a few pictures from our trip. I'll post about telling our families and friends soon. Until then...

Got to see Anna and Jennifer in Vail!

On my birthday before dinner. Definitely an amazing birthday!

At dinner one night.

Before the ski outing that went terribly wrong. More on that to come...

During said ski trip that went terribly wrong. Pregnant and afraid of heights... skiing wasn't the best idea.

I mean, he looks like a dad already RIGHT?!

Greer's T-shirt that I got her on the trip!

 
 

   

Yep. It's a Mommy Blog.

So... in the interest of being ""Just Another Mommy Blog" here are things that I have learned and/or been surprised by during my first seven and a half months of being with child. I am definitely an optimist but I think that you will see a trend throughout this list that I am also a little bit delusional. I don't want to say (um, admit) that I thought pregnancy would be a piece of cake. HOWEVER, I will cop to the fact that every negative side effect of pregnancy was met with an "Oh, that won't happen to me" reaction. Well, all of them except I was totally prepared to gain 50+ pounds. For some reason I totally thought that would happen (and it hasn't... yet).

1. Morning Sickness. I was really surprised to have any form of morning sickness. I think I defaulted to the fact that my mom never had it and so I thought I would get to avoid it, too. I wasn't too sick but I was definitely not my best self for my first trimester. And I had the odd (once or twice weekly) sick "episode." My personal favorite morning sickness moment was when Mary Helen was in town and we got back from being out and about and I got sick in the backyard because I couldn't even make it inside. Greer let me know she was in charge pretty early on...
2. Baby Kicks. I first felt Greer rolling around at about 16 weeks. It was awesome. It really did feel like butterflies. And I guess I expected it to continue to feel like butterflies. Um... yeah, that is definitely not the case. Greer does not let me forget she's there - I swear I feel her moving around for about 75% of my waking hours. And she is strong. A couple of times I have told her out loud that she cannot actually push her way out into the world through my stomach. I LOVE feeling her move around but it does hurt at least once a day - I think that's when she just gets irritated and elbows me with all her strength.We'll just have to wait and see if there's a strong personality to go along with that strong little body.
3. I'm Not Superwoman. Yeah... it turns out I'm not Superwoman. I really went into pregnancy thinking I would be one of those women who didn't have to slow down just because I was pregnant. Yeah right. I'm sure everyone who has had a baby just laughed out loud at me. Two weekends ago I cleaned my house and this is how it worked - clean a room, sit on the couch for thirty minutes, clean the next room, another thirty minutes on the couch. Then I finished the house and took an hour and a half nap. Yesterday we drove back from Little Rock. Apparently sitting in the car wore me out - I napped from 2:00 - 5:15 and then went to bed at 9:00. I'm not exhausted all the time but I definitely get worn out a lot easier.
4. Impatience. I literally have to remind myself daily that it would not be best for Greer to be born today. I really like being pregnant but I am SO ready to see and hold this baby. Really I just want to see her. Maybe I'm really shallow and care too much about what she looks like. But more so I think it's that I'm just incredibly curious. Will she have dark hair and eyes and look just like Will? Will she look like me and make Will question her paternity with blonde hair? ;-) I just want to know! No kidding. I've literally daydreamed about being able to look at her and then putting her back inside my body. I am aware how embarrassing that is but I'm just being real.
5. Missing Work. I am incredibly blessed to be able to stay home full time when Greer is born. I let my office know a couple of months ago that the end of October would also be the end of my time there. Being a stay-at-home mom is something that I have always wanted to be. I have enjoyed the things that I have learned about business and about myself through my job in the last four years. But I am also so excited to start this next phase of my life... mostly. I have to admit I have been really surprised how nervous I am to exit the office working world. It's all that I've known since college and while I have not always loved the schedule or the stress, I do really like the sense of accomplishment and pride I get from my work. And it is scary to let go of that. But I just keep reminding myself that once I get to see this sweet girl's face my world will never be the same anyway. 

So, that's my list for now. I know that I will continue to learn lots about myself and about Greer over the next couple of months. 

From an update standpoint I had a doctor's appointment today and everything is going well! We had a slight blood pressure "scare" last week which caused some extra bloodwork, a small amount of stress, some added rest this past weekend and an extra appointment (today). BUT everything was right back to normal today. The only bummer news we did get today is that the Arkansas/Alabama game will officially occur without our presence. My doctor just doesn't want me to push it in the heat and with all the hills in Fayetteville. But I still have my Little Rock shower that weekend, which I am REALLY looking forward to! Also, I promise that some of my posts will include pictures. I'll post about the nursery and some other house updates and  I'll have pictures from the shower so... I know you're ALL looking forward those! Haha... until then!