So many goals, so little time!

Since our whole life is about to change in 3-5 weeks, we've been talking a lot about our goals for the coming year. I know that a lot of people are thinking "hello, you're having a baby?!?!". Yes, we are. We also are smart enough to know that we still have to keep doing things for ourselves.

*Get back to running. John and I are both good runners when we put our minds to it. I have to work a lot harder at it to keep up with him, but I can do it! I would love to run a half next October. This progress will be something else to blog about!

*Keep our house clean. We love the idea of a clean house, but not the work that goes into it.

*Eat healthier. With the potential health problems of Levi, we know that we need to start eating healthier now, to help him avoid things later.

*Go hunting. This is John's goal. The deal is that if he, by himself gets an 8-10pt buck in the next year, he can have it mounted, in the house. He may even start on completing this goal on Sunday. Don't worry, I'll update you if he does!

*Travel more. Two reasons, visit family and friends, and for races. The deal is that whomever is running at least a half-marathon gets to pick one out of state race a year to go to (within reason). OKC doesn't count, since I think we'll always go to that one. If John picks one in AZ, then we all go, and I have to watch baby. If I pick one in IL, we all go, John watches baby. Seems fair!

*Focus. We've let our walks with God slip lately. Don't get me wrong, we're still in awe of everything he does, and how he's protected Levi and I. We also realize that we could benefit from spending A LOT more alone time with Him.

*Bake healthier. I love the idea of being a whole foods junkie. Here in a town with no whole foods stores, that can get rough. I know that if we stick with it, it will be better for everybody. The trick is going to be getting it all on a budget!

We had a really good doctor's appointment yesterday. Baby will be here within 3-5 weeks. I can't believe that! I get to start working out again, build up mileage slowly. She thinks that if I start walking now (maybe jog a little), I can be walking with the intent to run right after birth. This is exciting. In two weeks I can start working more hours again too. We did find out that she's not going to let him go past 39 weeks, because his risks of his kidney failing increase. His body will overwork itself, and we could face problems. Go back on Friday for an NST, think positive thoughts!

34 Weeks

WE DID IT!!!!! Sorry for all the exclamation points, I hate it when people (me) do that! We've made it 34 weeks, as of tomorrow. This is huge. This means that if we go into preterm labor again, we can have Levi here in town! I'm having to resist the urge to get up and do a happy dance. Forget it, happy dance done!

We had our first real fall and cold days this week! The fall days were great, the day it didn't get above 35* until after noon was even better!

This week I feel like I got quite a bit of housekeeping items done. The nesting phase is here for sure. It's odd how it's happening though. First, I had to get Levi's room completely ready to go. It's cleaned and organized, except for carpets being shampooed and vacuumed. That's something that John will have to do because it requires odd angles of stomach bending that I just can't do anymore! Then I got my car cleaned out. If you've seen my car in the past two months, you know this in itself was a huge accomplishment. The only part of that left to do is to vacuum it all and wash the windows. Part of which, once again, John will have to help me with. I also (finally) got a diaper bag this week! If you have ever had to shop for a diaper bag then you know that there's a lot that goes into it. You have to have something big enough to hold everything, but small enough to take places. You have to decide if this will also be your purse for the next 2 years, or if this is strictly the diaper bag. Does dad need to like it enough to carry it too? How much are you willing to spend? This was the biggest deciding factor for me. I found tons of bags that I loved, but they ranged from $55-300. No matter how cute the bag was, I wasn't willing to spend that kind of money on something that risked getting poop on it. I also knew that I didn't want to get a cheapo-depot one from WalMart because of how quickly they fall apart. I ended up finding this SkipHop one online and fell in love with it!

One of the most appealing factors about it was you can remove the shoulder strap and it clips right onto your stroller handle. This is great because then you're not having to get under the stroller every time you need something from it. I'm planning on using this as my purse when I'm out with Levi, so having the option of having my stuff within reach was great! The best part of this bag was the price. I found it online for about $60. More than I wanted to spend. Then, I was in Target and they had it on sale for $35! I was stoked! This was much more budget friendly. To make things even better, I had gift cards that paid for the majority of it. Now the bag is in my nursery with stuff in it. Only thing left to do there is to cut the tags off. If you know me, my buyers remorse usually gets the best of me, so I'm waiting until that passes before I cut the tags off. Or, John will cut them off for me so I can't return things. My next goal is to get my living room purged of everything that I don't need. I mean everything. Extra dishes, books, fabric. Everything. Then to get the living room carpets vacuumed and shampooed (thank you, John, for volunteering to do that).

We also had our first weekly NST this week, and it went great! Levi let them find his heartbeat, he kicked a ton, and made me sick with all the movement. I couldn't have asked for better results! Next week we have our first BPP and we're praying that goes just as well.

I think this is the last bit of news for this week, I got to go back to work part-time! Woo-hoo! I can't sit still long enough to not be doing something, so work was a really great way to break up the monotony of the days. I'm back at the YMCA now, and I can't believe that I ever left! I love seeing all of the members, staff and my friends again. For November I get to actually be on the schedule again, I feel like a real staff member! I'm also excited to start working out again once Levi gets here. Fingers crossed that on Tuesday doctor will tell me that things look good enough that I can start walking a mile or so each day, now. I hope so!

Okay, I think that's everything for this week. I'll try to get another post out after the doctor on Tuesday. We'll have a lot more information on stuff then. Oh, also, pictures of my Halloween fun-fetti cake coming soon! I love cake time!

Picture Post

So... I believe that the nursery is now DONE! The only thing that we will still be putting in is a rocking chair, but it's still being finished. I was also very excited because today at Target I found a crib sheet that has trains, planes, and cars on it! Here are the pictures from today.

Changing table that my wonderful mother-in-law and sisters-in-law gave to us. Also, got enough diapers to last about the first week or so :)

He's going to be one well dressed little baby!

32 Weeks

We've made it to 32 weeks! This is such a huge accomplishment considering Levi's been trying to escape since 27 weeks. I feel so lucky to still feel him moving and kicking inside of me. The doctor's next goal is 34 weeks, I'm shooting for 36 weeks. Since we'll make it to 34 weeks, we can have him here in town! This is huge. We had another doctor's appointment yesterday, and Levi was actually pretty good. He let them get almost all of the views that they needed to. Then they went to get a picture of his heart. They've been trying to get a good picture of his heart since 17 weeks. The doctor had it lined up perfectly, then he got the hiccups. We couldn't help but laugh. Another piece of good news, he's still measuring small, but he's up to the 25 percentile! This is a huge improvement from the 15th that he was at. He's estimated weight is at 3lbs 5oz. The average weight at this point is about 3.75lbs. This means that he's only about half a pound behind, which is great! Starting at 34 weeks we'll go in twice a week for tests and appointments, just to make sure he's still doing good. We'll have NST (non-stress tests) every Friday, starting next Friday. Then every Tuesday we'll have BPP tests. I wish that I could explain how happy I am that we've come this far, but words don't seem to do it justice.

We had a shower at church this weekend and it was so wonderful. We are truly blessed by these people and this place. I was surprised at how many people were there! It was one of the first co-ed showers at the church and it went so well. Here is my favorite picture, John modeling the baby gear!

I think that John had more fun than I did. He hammed it up completely. Tried on most of the hats, tried to give some of the other guys the burp rags, etc. I am so blessed to have him!

Back to normal

I know that my idea of 'normal' pre-pregnancy will not be the same 'normal' once Levi is born and home. There are a few things though that I am looking forward to doing (or not doing) once again.

-Running. I so badly miss the early mornings when I would roll out of bed, meet my running partner and we'd walk the first half a mile while complaining about how much we hated running and early mornings. Once we were both at work later that day, there was nothing better than getting to brag about how much further we'd run this time than last, or how much quicker we were getting. Feeling better about ourselves and spending time with God in those early mornings made it all worthwhile!

-Sleeping. On my stomach. Every night.

-Jeans. I cannot wait until I'm back in my regular jeans. I can hear them calling my name, they want me, and I want them. They fit like a glove and I know how they're going to fit. I know what shirts go best, and what's not so flattering with them.

-Baby. Sometimes, it still feels like Levi is just an idea. I cannot wait until he's here and the idea is a reality.

-Wine. I miss having a glass of good wine or a drink with my family and friends. Not getting slammed or anything, but just being able to enjoy a drink over a meal.

-Eating. I get the oddest cravings and I'm ready to not have them anymore. I'm ready to be able to talk myself out of a sandwich or an extra snack, knowing that I'll be okay without it. At this point, I'm not always sure that Levi's okay without it.

-Friends. When I'm not on bed rest I'm going to LBK to see my friends, like I used to get to every week. Best part, Levi gets to come too!

I have really enjoyed this pregnancy for the most part. I am so excited to have the tiny blessing of Levi in my arms soon. I am still in awe that God has given me the opportunity to be his mama. I cannot wait.

Side note- verse of the day today really made me stop and think. "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as it fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear" Ephesians 4:29