I thought this was a baby shower . . . not a baby blizzard!

Last Saturday I had my first baby shower! I've been looking forward to this for so long! Not just because of the gifts (although I've never seen so many cute things for a baby girl in one place), but just because it means that it is getting very close! All week I was on spring break and the weather was so nice. I cleaned house on Friday with the windows up. There was sunshine and a nice breeze . . . temperatures in the mid 70s. However, the first picture below is what I woke up to at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. Now, we did know that these "blizzard-like conditions" were on their way, but I was hoping it would be like the last 3 storms the weathermen have predicted and miss us altogether. But, as luck would have it, it snowed all. day. long. Not only did it snow, but we had 50 mph winds and it was FREEZING. I stressed out and I cried and I whined, etc, etc. But, in the end my shower was perfect! I should have known it would be, but you know how crazy pregnant women can get! Desiree, Hayley, Sherri, and Adie hosted my shower. We had an awesome turnout for the weather, and Elliott is now stocked up on diapers, wipes, onesies, pacifiers, and lots of other cool things. I'm not exaggerating . . . this little girl has more clothes than her mommy (and I have A LOT of clothes!). Thank you to everyone that attended! We missed those of you that couldn't, but of course, we completely understand! Here are some pics from this memorable day!

The weather from my window on the morning

of the shower.

Me and My MomGrandma Rita, Cousin Sadie, and Aunt Des

My Hostesses

They did a wonderful job!

Chelsie, Kelly, Me, and Tiffany

"Born to be an OSU Fan"
Aunt Tammy set Elliott up for game day!

It seriously looks like I have a basketball under my shirt!

All of my girls that braved the blizzard!

Not Pictured: Kara and Jessica (We tried to do this

before they left, but try getting 14 girls

together for a picture!)

Kyle came to load up all our goodies!

It amazes me that a tiny little baby

requires this much. Where on earth is

all this going to go?

One Beautiful Baby

Yesterday I turned another year older and chose to celebrate my 29th birthday by having a 3D/4D ultrasound that my family could attend. We've already had one for medical reasons and have another scheduled for April 1st, but I just couldn't resist! We went to a place in Edmond called "A Miracle Within." It was very nice with a huge couch to fit everyone and an enormous screen on the wall so we could see Elliott up close and personal! My mom, dad, nini, aunt Tammy, cousins Jaiden and Jasmine, Kyle's mom, dad, sister, and 2 nieces Haven and Sadie came to see! We had a house full! Elliott showed off for us by sticking out her tongue, opening her mouth and eyes, and smiling a lot! She's becoming an ol' pro at these ultrasounds. Besides the prints that I got, I have a disc with 77, Yes! . . . 77, pictures. It was very hard to narrow it down, but here are some of my favorites:

Can't wait to kiss those chubby cheeks!

All snuggly with her momma!

A little smile

Sweet cheeks!

"This is my nose . . . "

Prayer pose

Sticking out her tongue

As I watched the slide show this morning, I did so well . . . until the very last picture. The one that says "See you soon" put me over the edge. I just cried and cried. I'm sure it is a combination of hormones, excitement, and fear! I'm so ready to meet this precious little girl. I love her so much already. (P.S. I'm now crying again . . . )

Elliott in 3D!

Well, we had our 3D high resolution ultrasound last Thursday. This was the one that we had in order to get a closer look at Elliott's kidneys. We did get some good news! While the amount of fluid is still measuring about the same, it's measuring at the very top of normal (which is 5 mm). Dr. Stanley (the doctor who did this ultrasound) said that she wasn't considered at significant risk until the fluid measured between 6 and 7 mm. So, we do have to return in 6 weeks to have another look just to be sure, but for the time being it looks as if everything will be okay!! In the meantime, I'm enjoying looking at these pictures of my sweet girl. We also have a DVD of the whole ultrasound that I've now watched . . . well, I've lost count of how many times! It's so unbelievable to see her right there on the big screen! She's beautiful of course! And besides her kidneys, Dr. Stanley said everything else looked great . . . her heart, her brain, the umbilical cord and blood flow to it, etc. The first ultrasound tech said that based on the measurements of her thigh bone and arm bone, she would put me about a week ahead of my due date (which I've been trying to tell Dr. Hager!). I originally calculated my due date for May 11th. Dr. Hager says May 17th. So, I guess we'll see! Lil' Miss Elliott weighs about 2 pounds 13 ounces right now!

I love this one. You can see her little chubby

cheeks and her foot and toes.

You can also see the umbilical cord.

Not sure if that is a smile or a grimace, but it's cute!

So sweet! We think she has my nose and Kyle's mouth. :)

So angelic.

Back in 2D . . . a look at her nose and mouth from below.

You can also see her belly and her right leg.

Her hand . . . only 4 fingers in the picture,

but Dr. Stanley assured me a thumb was hiding in there!

Another picture of her foot. (We seem to get

one of these every ultrasound. She doesn't get

that from me!)

Third Trimester

Well, today is officially the first day of my third trimester! It's hard to believe that we're in the home stretch. Fortunately, I've really enjoyed being pregnant. Other than just wanting to have Elliott here, I'm okay with the fact that I have 3 more months of pregnancy. I've definitely been having fun decorating her room! We were out of school for 4 days (6 including the weekend) due to the snow and Kyle was out of town for 3 of those days. So, I used the time to work on some projects for Elliott's room. There are still a few things I want to do and some things for her room that I registered for, so I'm going to wait a little while to finish, but it's very close!

I made the letters for her name

and added ribbon and flowers to the little

green lantern (it doesn't light up, but not sure

what else to call it). I also added ribbon to

the valance and the curtains.

I absolutely love her lamp and the bright flowers

on this wall. My mom had the sign made for her room.

It reads, "Someday my prince will come, but for

now I have my daddy."

Love it!

I've registered for a clock and a bookshelf that

I would like to eventually put on this wall.

The picture in the white frame is of her

perfect profile from our 20 week ultrasound.

This is my preggo picture at 26 weeks.

I had Kyle take another one the next morning

because I thought that the fact that I didn't

have on a maternity shirt made me look bigger here.

Seems that wasn't the case . . .

I think I'm just big here . . .

this is a maternity shirt. Not much difference!

The shirt is really cute, though! My friend, Erika,

at work had it made for me. It says "May" on

the little package the stork is carrying.

I have a doctor's appointment next Tuesday and

I'll start seeing Dr. Hager every two weeks after that!

I also have the high resolution ultrasound on February

18th. We're praying that everything will be fine with

our little girl's kidneys (and everything else).

Once again, if there is something wrong, it's not

slowing her down! She is very active! It probably doesn't

help that her mom has a HUGE sweet tooth. I think all

the sugar has her hyped up! Hey . . . you have so many

restrictions when you're pregnant that you find joy in small

things (like Braum's chocolate milkshakes and Hershey kisses with almonds)!

Looking forward to a better week

Well, it's been another crazy weather week here in Oklahoma. And if that's not enough, I've been sick for over a week! I'm so stopped up I can't breathe at all and I can't taste anything . . . and of course eating is what I look forward to right now, so that's a bummer! To top it all off, I received a call from Dr. Hager on Wednesday at school concerning our ultrasound from the day before. We had this second ultrasound because Dr. Hager noticed a little swelling in Elliott's kidney during our 20 week appointment. This time it looks as if that kidney is a little bigger and now the other kidney is a little swollen as well. To get a better look at it, I have to have a high resolution ultrasound in a few weeks. They will be looking to see if they can tell what's causing it . . . a blockage or something else. Dr. Hager said there is nothing I can do and nothing that can be done for Elliott until she is born. However, we will continually monitor her kidneys until she is born. Then she will probably need an ultrasound and some antibiotics when she arrives. Dr. Hager assured me that we will be able to take care of it better since we found it so early. Although, for a sick, emotional woman pregnant with her first child . . . this is not making things easier! Aside from her kidneys, everything else is looking good! Here are a few shots from Tuesday's ultrasound.

Here she is with her leg up over her head.

I showed this one to my 3rd graders.

They've predicted that she will be a gymnast. :)

This is the bottom of her little foot.

And a picture of her profile.

To keep myself busy on these snow days (and to keep

my mind busy, as well), I've been working on her room.

We have since hung these letters on her wall.

They are precious! I absolutely love them!

We painted her room pink last Sunday.

I've hung the curtains and gotten a few accessories.

I've got lots of ideas . . . now if only I could leave the

house to go shopping!

I am officially 26 weeks today! I can't wait to get

through February and on to warmer weather.

Plus, we'll get to see her in 3D in March.

Then my due date will be right around the corner.

Yay! I can't wait to meet you Elliott Rose Sevier.

Elliott's bedding is here!

Elliott's bedding arrived today! It's hot pink, brown, and white, and I love it! I'm also going to add in bright green as an accent color. I can't wait to start making stuff and getting everything in place. Even though it seems like a long time before she will be here, I know it's going to fly by! I'm 24 weeks now, so not much longer before I'll be too big to want to do much! We've scheduled our 3D/4D ultrasound for March 15th (my birthday). I'll be on spring break, and I thought, "What a better way to spend my 29th birthday?" It's exactly what I want! I can't wait to see her moving around in there! She has become quite active, and even Dr. Hager commented on how crazy she was at our last appointment. We actually get another look at her next Tuesday. During my first ultrasound, the doctor noticed that one of Elliott's kidneys was a little swollen. She said I shouldn't get worked up about it, but she did want to take another look and see if it was just a random occurance the day of the ultrasound or if it is still swollen. If there is still some swelling, I'll have to have a high resolution ultrasound soon after. We're crossing our fingers that we don't have to go there!

Another exciting thing we did recently was register. That is so fun! We spent hours walking up and down the aisles of Target and Babies R Us. When there was nothing left that I felt I couldn't live without I was so sad! I just wanted to keep scanning tiny pink onesies!! Kyle suggested that we register as soon as possible to help keep me from buying everything first! I just can't help myself . . . it's so much fun! Now working on her room will have to hold me over for a while. :)

So far this year . . .

For it to only be the 11th day of January, I feel like we've done a lot! We started out the new year by heading to Texas for the Cotton Bowl. We stopped in Frisco the night before to have dinner with our friends Danny, Toni, Jonathan, and Lauren. The next day we headed to Dallas Stadium (which is amazing)! Kyle has been to a Dallas game this season, but the was my first time to attend . . . I have to say it's pretty awesome! Even though our Cowboys lost, we had a great time!

Right before we left, our baby furniture came in! My mom and nini bought it for me for Christmas. I was so excited to get it all put together and set up in Elliott's room. By the way, we have officially decided on her name . . . Elliott Rose Sevier. Kyle (and Wylie) got it all put together and I love it!! It fits perfectly and will look great with the bedding I've picked out (but have yet to order . . . getting to that this weekend).

We've also already used up a "snow day" at school, which is in quotation marks because there was no snow! Our electricity was out for about 10 hours between last Wednesday night and Thursday morning. It was apparently out at school as well because I got a call at 5:30 a.m. to let me know that school was cancelled. I have to admit that it was nice to lay around and stay warm since wind chills reached -10 degrees (and -15 degrees on Friday)! However, I'm not happy about the three day weekend we've now lost! This has been one crazy winter so far, and it's really just started.

Another update: my belly is getting big (see pic below)!! Elliott is growing and getting stronger everyday! Kyle finally felt her move quite a bit this last weekend. This morning, little girl woke me up at 4:00 a.m. having a full out dance party in the womb! I laid there until 5:20 feeling her kick consistenly (and maybe hiccup . . . not sure, that was a first). I finally gave up and got up getting my workout done before school . . . if you can call it a workout. It was part of my new year's resolution to start walking on the treadmill. I have a doctor appt. tomorrow and I'm deathly afraid that Dr. Hager's going to yell at me! In my defense, it's hard being pregnant through the holidays! Everyone else gets to party during Christmas, New Year's Eve, Bowl Games, play-offs, etc. Since I can't do that, I choose to eat . . . a lot! But, it is the first time I haven't been on a diet in January since I was about 14, so that's nice. :)

All in all, it has been a great start to the year. I look forward to the year of 2010 when my baby girl will be here! I can't wait to meet her! It's so scary and exciting at the same time! Here's to a great year ahead!!

Walking into the game.

The Stadium

We had great seats 16 rows up on the 20 yard line.

Too bad we didn't get much action on our end!


A picture of the biggest HDTV on earth . . .
let me repeat . . .
a TV that's 60 yards long!
Kyle said that a lot while we were there. :)


Kyle and Wylie putting the crib together.

The crib, glider, and ottoman

The dresser


Belly at 22 weeks

(Please ignore my lovely pjs!)