Elliott's Last Baby Shower . . . I think!

Well, I have to say that Elliott is one spoiled, lucky baby . . . and she isn't even here yet! My homeroom moms and students had a shower for me last Friday, April 23rd. It was so precious! They had cake, cookies, and pink soda pop. The cookies were shaped like princess crowns and even spelled out ELLIOTT. The kids all worked on a gift for me. It was a pink piggy bank which they covered with their fingerprints. Then, my homeroom mom had a lady turn the fingerprints into flowers before they fired it. On the day of the shower my kids brought baggies of change to put in the piggy bank. They explained to me that they were "starting Elliott's college fund." So cute! Many of them had emptied out their own piggy banks to fill hers up! I got lots of other cute things, as well: dresses with tutus, embroidered bags and bloomers, OSU dress and booties, OSU wipe holder, zebra slippers, diapers and many other cute and practical items! My class has completely spoiled me this year! Here are some pics from the shower:

PINK, PINK, AND MORE PINK!

Diaper Cake

Yummy!!

How cute is that? I didn't want to eat them!

Filling up the piggy bank.

Afterwards, they had to pass it around to

see how heavy it was. :)

The whole gang

(Well, almost the whole gang . . . We

lost a few kids before we were able to

take the picture.)

Thank you so much to all these sweet kids and their parents!

I truly appreciate everything you've done for me this year.

Man Shower

On Saturday night we had a "Man Shower" for Kyle and two guys that he works with that also have baby girls coming in May. The theme was "Dads, Diapers, and Divas." Everyone brought diapers, we had pizza and beer (O'Doul's for me, of course), and pool, shuffleboard, and washers. It was a lot of fun! I think that dads often get the shaft when it comes to showers. I think everyone had a ton of fun, and the three ladies that put it together (Thank you Candace, Melissa, and Meredith!) did an awesome job!

We had a surprise visit from the stork! Not only did he bring diapers for the babies, but he also brought diapers for the dads! They had to wear them while they competed in a variety of contests. They had a diaper changing contest . . . Kyle won this by a landslide! He won Elliott a very cute bow holder! Next was a baby food tasting contest. The dads had to taste 5 different baby foods and guess the flavor. Kyle got 4 out of 5 and won this contest, too! Last, they had a beer chugging contest. I knew Kyle had this one in the bag! So, he was 3 for 3, but since we didn't need 3 bow holders he shared with Brett and John.

We ended up getting a TON of diapers and some other cute baby things. I think everyone had a great time! Thanks Grandma Rita and Papa Randy for letting us use the barn for our Man Shower!

The Moms

Carly- Due May 29th

Jenny- Due May 17th

Natasha- Due May 14th

We're all having little girls!

The Dads with their babies

Brett, Kyle, and John

Kyle is holding his prize!

The Stork

We had no idea who this was! It ended up being another

Edward Jones advisor who took it upon himself

to rent a stork costume. He did a great job!

I think the wives were supposed to diaper the dads,

but if I got down in the floor at this point,

I may never get back up!

I figured Kyle would be embarrassed,

but he wore his adult diaper proudly (as did the

other dads)!

Group Picture

There were way too many pictures

being taken at the same time to get

everyone to look at one camera!Diaper Changing Contest

Baby Food Taste Test

Kyle was the only dad who didn't

make a face after every bite!

Beer Chugging Contest

Dad and Mom with Elliott's cute diaper

cake in the background.

Me and Kyle with my parents

Me and Kyle with his parents


Elliott's Grandmas

I realize they say babies go through diapers

like crazy, but we're definitely off to a good start!

We've got diapers ranging from size Newborn - 4.

Thanks again to everyone who helped to put this shower together! We had a great time and are so appreciative of all the diapers! We'll see these 3 baby girls together at the Edward Jones Summer Regional Meeting in June! Can't wait!

The Nursery

I think it's safe to say that the nursery is finished! There were a few things I was waiting for (the bookshelf, the frames to the left of the dresser, and my favorite . . . the chandelier!). It looks awesome! Now we just need a baby!

I had a doctor's appt. today. I now begin going every week! We're definitely in the home stretch. Our last childbirth class is tomorrow and we get to tour the maternity ward. Our childcare and breastfeeding class is next week. This Saturday, Kyle's work is throwing us a "Dads, Diapers, and Divas" baby shower. There are 3 Edward Jones guys whose wives are pregnant. We're all due within a few weeks of eachother, and we're all having girls! So, that should be fun! I've started packing my bag (and Elliott's, too). Since I'm not sure if she's going to be able to fit in the original "Coming Home Outfit" I'd picked out (it's quite small, and she could be quite large), I'm bringing some backups.

Dr. Hager measured me today and said I'm perfect . . . right on track. So, why is it that everyone must say, "Wow! You're getting really big!" everytime they see me? I'm certain that every pregnant woman experiences this, and I didn't mind at first, but now it's just kind of annoying. I know I'm big . . . I have to look at myself everyday. I waddle, get short of breath when I read aloud to my class, have a chair in front of my smart board, can't wear my wedding ring, have outgrown some of my maternity clothes, can't bend over, can't sleep through the night without going to the bathroom at least twice and switching sides with my body pillow at least 3 times . . . you get the point! I know I'm big! And I'm going to enjoy the last few weeks of food freedom because I'm starting Weight Watchers as soon as I can. Whew! That felt good.

Now, here are some pics of the nursery!

The chandelier

I'm very proud of this sign! It was an old, crappy

looking laundry room sign I bought at Ross. But, a little

wood putty, paint, and a quote I bought at Kohl's

was all it needed!

One last look . . .

I know most moms do not get to see their unborn babies 6 times before they are born, and for this I feel very lucky! On Thursday, April 1st, we had our 2nd high resolution ultrasound to look at Elliott's kidneys. The fluid measured about 6 mm this time, but she has gotten bigger so she is still in the high/normal range. Dr. Stanley recommended that her pediatrician do an ultrasound on her 24-48 hours after she is born to get a better look. I have a feeling everything will be perfectly fine, but of course we want to make sure! We also got some other news at this ultrasound . . . Miss Elliott is weighing in at 5 lbs. 14 oz.!!!! If I carry her till my due date she could weigh over 9 lbs.! Of course, I weighed 10 lbs. when I was born, so I guess this is just payback (although, the fact that I was a big baby was not my fault)!

As with all of her other ultrasounds Elliott decided to show off. She is definitely getting more squished in there, but she showed us how she can suck her thumb and gave us a wave. Less than six weeks to go . . . and am I ever ready! I'm starting to get uncomfortable, it's hard to sleep, it sucks to stand, and I can never get situatied in a comfortable seated position. I wish I could just float in a pool for the next 6 weeks. I am also looking forward to this warm, humid weather that is bound to make my feet swell. Ahhhhh, the joys of pregnancy! But, when I look at these pictures it makes it all worthwhile!

Trying to find her mouth with her thumb.

There we go!!

She totally has Kyle's mouth and my little nose,

big eyes, and chubby cheeks.

"Hi, Mom and Dad! Can't wait to meet you!"

Not much room to move.


She always has her hands up by her face.
I guess she doesn't have much of a choice!

Maternity Pics

Last weekend my sister-in-law, Des, took my maternity pictures. I wanted to have them done, but didn't want to pay alot, so we decided to try to do them ourselves. I got a new SLR digital camera for my birthday and thought we should try to take advantage of it. They actually turned out great! Of course, Des took approximately 380 pictures! So, rather than sharing all (or even most) of my favorites, I chose my 5 favorites. (They are coming up smaller for some reason . . . I think it has something to do with the fact that Des emailed them to me. I'm not really a tech-savvy person, so small will have to do!)