How Harper was born...

March 20 we had scheduled a "Version" which is a procedure to attempt to turn a breech baby. Harper was a complete breech - meaning her butt was down and her head was up by my ribs. Obviously, you want a baby head down for birth! I had tried every homeopathic method possible to get Harper to turn on her own. (See previous post regarding acupuncture and flashlights, etc.) This little munchkin would not turn.

We had packed for the hospital weeks prior and I am glad we did. We got up and left the house at 6:45 a.m. Friday morning on the 20th. We took our bags just in case. Dr. Larson had said there was a very low risk this procedure would lead to a birth. It was eery as we left the house that morning. Brad and I both had a sinking feeling that something big was going to happen that day. I think we both knew we would not be coming home empty handed. Secretly, I hoped we weren't coming home empty handed.

At the appointment our amazing Dr. Larson attempted to turn Harper three times. This process involves an IV and being admitted to the hospital. So there I was in a hospital bed and gown, hooked up to fetal monitors and Dr. Larson was literally pushing and moving on my uterus, trying to get Harper to turn. It was quite uncomfortable so I kept talking to distract myself. I gave Dr. Larson a play by play of the Celine Dion concert we had attended back in February. I had played through the first two episodes of Dancing with the Stars when Dr. Larson interrupted to say: "Well, this isn't working, you are having contractions 6 minutes apart, you are dilated to 2 and totally effaced and frankly, I can feel toes. We need to go ahead and get her out otherwise you will go into labor and you are going to have a foot poking out instead of her head."

Okay.

"So, how about noon?" she asks.

Brad and I were in shock. We couldn't believe that in few short hours we were going to hold our sweet girl. I was finally going to see her face. I still tear up thinking about the moment that our eyes met and Brad and I realized our dream was finally coming true. We were going to meet Harper.

So we were given a three hour window, then Dr. Larson was getting our little Harper out via C-section.

I was not excited about a C-section. I was very nervous and sad I wouldn't have the badge of a natural (with drugs) child birth, but this surgery far exceeded my expectations. I had an epidural block and was paralyzed from the waist down, but I was awake and could "feel" them working on me like you can when you are having dental work done with Novocaine - "you will feel some pressure..."

I could feel them take Harper out of me. It was incredible. I wish I were eloquent enough to describe it for you, but it is beyond words how amazing it was. When they took her out and I heard her cry for the first time, it was the greatest moment of my life. I have never felt such joy, relief, excitement and love all in a single moment. I'll never forget it.

Brad took pictures of the entire C-section. He has frame by frame images of the entire thing! You can flip the pictures and you would think you were watching a video. You can see first a little foot, then a leg, etc. The photos are graphic (I mean there I am cut open on a table), but if you can stomach a little blood and guts (I wonder if Dr. Larson had to put the belly flab back in or if she did me a favor and scrapped a little out while she was in there.), the photos are absolutely beautiful. I don't know how Brad was able to stand and take them without passing out. He was amazing. He got to help cut the cord and he was there for every second of her birth. He let me be the first one to hold Harper.

Now for fun, here are some of our favorite pics from the first few days.

Here is Harper on her changing table at home. She loves the mirror that is eye level. She will stare into it and even though her eyes are still maturing, I swear she can see herself!

Look at that cute little mouth!

Daddy bringing Harper home from the hospital.

This pic is of the very first moment I laid eyes on Harper. The happiest moment of my life.

Here is the pic of me holding her just a few hours after the surgery.

The first week home was a little tough - Harper had jaundice and we had to do some in-home light therapy, then the poor thing was too tired to eat, we had to wake her to feed her every two hours and we were all exhausted! We are on a more regular schedule now, she is gaining weight and we kicked that jaundice in the booty overnight. She is thriving and she really is fun. She is so alert and strong! She can already pick her head up and move it around - still a bit wobbly but advanced for a baby if you ask me. She will stick her legs up straight in the air when we are changing her - makes it difficult to get her in a diaper, but it is so cute. She has her Daddy's eyes and toes (sorry about the toes little one), and Mommy's nose and ears. We just love her and can't wait for everyone to meet her!

These photos are all from the first couple days of Harper's life. She is two weeks now. She is now 6 lbs 15 oz and has grown an inch! I have lots more photos and now that I am in the swing of things I will post more often. We are tired, but we are having so much fun. Thanks everyone for not harassing me when I fail to return phone calls and emails. We are still adjusting. :)

What's new? Me? Oh, thanks for asking...well had a baby, no sleep, lots of diapers and feedings, that sort of thing.

hi! Well I am attempting to rejoin the living. I am so sorry I haven't posted this yet, but HARPER HAS ARRIVED! Here is a quick pic. I promise to post more details later, but I spent the only break time I had this morning trying to sort out 600+ junk emails from 50 legit emails. I'll write more later.

We are all doing well and we can't wait for the rest of the world to meet Harper! This pic is of Harper just after she was born. Look at those cheeks!

If you read all of this, give youself a cookie.

I have our Version appointment tomorrow and I was trying to avoid it. Not because of the pain involved (okay maybe a little) but mostly because I am afraid it isn’t going to work. Since Monday I have been trying anything to get this baby to turn. I read about a bunch “natural” methods of turning a breech baby. So here is my list and my experiences with those methods.

1) Playing music – I read that if you play music really low on your tummy, the baby will adjust to hear the music. Okay, that sounds easy enough. I hooked up some portable computer speakers to my iPod, got comfy on the couch and started playing music “down there.” I started with Latin beats. We went to see Dancing with the Stars the touring show and also Celine Dion recently. At both events whenever they played upbeat Latin style music, Harper would go nuts dancing around in my belly. I assume it is because she loves this kind of stuff. So I started with Selena and then Shakira – My Hips Don’t Lie seemed awfully appropriate. Harper seemed to move around and enjoy this, but she didn’t turn. Betsy suggested classical music because the volume and rhythm would be lower and Harper would be forced to turn to hear it. So I switch to Debussy. Again, some movement but no turning. Last ditch effort (because I had been at this for over an hour) I tried Billie Holiday (“I love him.” Can anyone name that movie quote?). Again, Harper liked the music, but no turning.

2) Shining a light on your tummy – I also read somewhere that if you shine a flashlight on your abdomen, the baby can actually see the light. So I tried shining a light as low on my abdomen as possible, to where I thought she could see it and would be tempted to turn towards it. “Go into the light, Harper” I kept thinking of the movie Poltergeist. Harper seemed to be unimpressed by the flashlight. She didn’t move at all.

3) Yoga – Throughout the past 5 months or so I have occasionally attended a prenatal yoga class. If you haven’t seen an 8 month pregnant woman doing the downward dog, you really need to strap on a prosthetic belly and go to one of these classes. It is hard to keep a straight face. However, I am glad I have been going because there are certain yoga poses that can help the uterus relax which could help the baby move around. I’ve been doing these every night and all it manages to do is make my muscles sore. In addition to being way too pregnant for this kind of stuff, I weigh a ton and my belly weighs a ton. It is like trying to lift your body from the floor with a 20 lbs dumbbell attached to your gut.

4) Inversion – I checked out http://www.spinningbabies.com/ for other ideas on how to turn the baby and tried “inverting” my body. I needed Brad’s assistance with this one. I had him hold my legs while I inverted off the side of the bed. If you have any kinky ideas about this one let me just lay those ideas to rest (was going to say “put those ideas to bed,” but was avoiding the obvious pun). This was perhaps the most ungraceful moment in my life, ever. That includes the time I got my crown stuck in the bottom of a hanging plant while walking down a hallway when I was making an appearance as Miss Missouri (I grow very tall when wearing 4 inches heels and a 3 inch crown). The inversion technique is very difficult to do and I could only hold the position as long as my arms would not give out. So this lasted maybe 10 seconds. Then I had to ask Brad if he could please slowly let me slide on the floor which I had to do without landing on my belly. It wasn’t pretty and it also did not work.

5) Acupuncture – this is the latest technique that didn’t seem to work. I went to a place today called “Peace of Mind.” It is an herb shop and book store and is very new age. It is not the sort of place I frequent but I consider myself to be rather open minded and I didn’t mind at all that when I walked in I could swear someone somewhere in the shop was taking a reefer break. I have never done acupuncture before and I admit I was a little nervous about someone jabbing needles into my body. But at this point, I am really desperate to get this baby to move so I will try almost anything. I go upstairs with the gal who has been doing this for 30+ years, telling myself that I am sure it is just incense and not marijuana that I smell.

We go in the room and get started. Everything is going to be centered on my feet because that is where all the pressure points are that help my uterus relax. There is a technique also called moxibustion – where you burn a Chinese herb near your pinky toe. (I spent a lot of time on google yesterday). So she rolls up my pants and jabs in the first needle. Ow. That did not feel good. Ow, ow, ow! She pushed it in even further. In. My. Foot. Each foot got three needles jammed in them. I had to ask her to turn the fan on because I started to get really warm and clammy. Needle part was soon over and I thought I was in the clear. But….no. Now comes the part where she attaches the herb to the needle. She twists a little cork sized amount of incense to the end of each needle. Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. All six. Phew, finally done, surely that is the all the pain I will feel.

No. Then she lights the incense on FIRE. This heats up the needles which are jammed into my swollen feet (I swear they are feet that belong on a 600 lbs man). It looked like I had 3 mini tiki torches stuck in each foot. I tried to tell myself that this was relaxing and felt good. I admit, once the sting from the needle jabbing wore off it did feel good. I started to relax until I noticed a very distinct smell. Now, I don’t wish to give anyone the wrong impression, but I was pretty sure what I smelled was pot. The acupuncturist assured me that it was not pot burning on my feet, but the mugwort which smells similar to pot. Apparently most of her clients make the same mistake. She said “Oh yeah, I get the fire marshall called on me all the time. But if I’m going to smoke pot I would go do it in the car, not in here.” Um, did I mention I am a lawyer?

To make a long story short (too late) I didn’t really notice much from Harper. She moved a little but did not turn. The nice acupuncturist plucked the needles out of my feet (only then did I wonder if she had sterilized them before the procedure began. I asked later -- the needles are disposable and only used once - phew!). She asked me if I wanted to try more on my back. Noooooo thank you. Since I had paid for a half hour and we had time left she offered a foot massage instead. Oh yeah, now THAT sounded good. She rubbed my huge puffy feet for a good ten minutes and I swear it was worth every penny I spent on the failed acupuncture experiment.

I left from there to go get my legs waxed and I personally feel that leg waxing is less painful than acupuncture. Just my opinion.

Oh and P.S. I had to come back to the office following that appointment and my co-worker tells me I do indeed smell like pot. Hope none of the partners ask for a meeting today...

Baby is upside down, darn it!

Okay, this little one is becoming high maintenance! We had our ultrasound on Monday and she is a little over 6lbs right now. She looked so cute. Brad and I could see her little mouth moving, her cute little chin, her little round cheeks. I can't wait to kiss that face. But she is breech! Our doctor thought for the past five weeks she was head down.

We've scheduled an External Version procedure for Friday morning. From those who have done this I am told it is less than pleasant. Actually one woman said "It hurts like blankety blank." I may have paraphrased that. Basically they will give me a drug to relax the uterus, then the doctor will try to manipulate my belly to get the baby to turn. If she turns...great! We go back to waiting for labor to begin. If she doesn't turn, we'll schedule a c-section for late next week probably.

So if you don't mind, we'd appreciate good thoughts and prayers that this baby wants to turn on Friday! I have tried all other methods - playing music low on my tummy, shining a light low on my tummy, yoga. I am looking around for a good acupuncturist. I read that acupuncture can make a baby turn. Anyone know one in Tulsa?

Top Ten you know you're pregnant when...

1) The thought of getting up and moving is more exhausting than physically doing it.
2) You drop something on the floor and hope and pray that someone, anyone, will pass by to pick it up for you. If not then it just stays put, even if it is your wallet.
3) Everyone tells you to enjoy your sleep now - but you haven't slept in months.
4) You seriously wonder if wearing depends to bed at night so that you don't have to get up 8 times to pee is a bad idea.
5) You've developed the skills to pee in a cup without being able to see the cup, and you don't splash. This makes you proud.
6) You only wear shoes that do not require you to bend over, i.e. forget about laces.
7) You cannot sit down, stand up, lay down, roll over or bend over without grunting, groaning, huffing and puffing.
8) You sound like you are running a marathon if you walk and talk at the same time.
9) You google things like "inducing labor early" and "ways to make the baby get out."
10) You would rather take a five minute foot rub than a $1000 giftcard to Saks.

37 Weeks! and counting....

We are now officially full term! This little girl can definitely make it on her own in the outside world and at this point, she can come anytime as far as I am concerned. Brad says he needs a little more time to get organized at work. Sorry buddy. I am eating spicy foods and doing jumping jacks from here on out. This pic is me at 36 weeks. I took it a little late in the week, and I'm not kidding I get bigger every day. We have an ultrasound tomorrow to see how big she really is. My doctor thus far has been very impressed with my uterus (jealous?) and thinks she will be at least 7 lbs. I can't wait to see if she is right! Considering I haven't had any trouble gaining the required (and then some) pregnancy weight, I hope she is big...but not too big.

Full Moon didn't work, perhaps Friday the 13th?

Harper was violent again last night. I swear she is trying to escape. I think she wants out and I wish she would either calm down, or let labor take it's natural (with drugs) course. Brad was awake for the episode last night. This morning while we were getting ready for work he said "Do you think we could avoid another night like last night? I'm tired." Yeah. Let me just have a little chat with your unborn child and ask her nicely to please not keep Daddy up by clawing around inside Mommy's tummy. I'm thinking of doing some jumping jacks tonight and eating spicy food all weekend. We are 37 weeks now and I am ready for her to get here whenever!

Have you seen the movie Alien?

Because that is the only way I can describe what happened to me last night. No, I did not give birth or go into labor, but I swear, my baby was trying to claw her way out of me last night. I was still up reading, Brad was out like a light. All of a sudden Harper was VIOLENTLY moving inside of me. She was all over the place and I swear on my epidural she was trying to get out. It was a full moon last night and I am full term as of tomorrow so as far as I was concerned I was hoping the gravitational pull of the full moon would move things along. Maybe it did have an effect on her, I don't know. All I know is I was begging my unborn to please stop hurting mommy. I was yelping in pain and Brad slept through the whole thing. Guess I will need to invest in a gong so he'll wake up when I go into labor.

The Nursery is ready!

It's been a while since I posted photos of the nursery. We added all the cute little details that really make the room fun! We hung the chandelier my KC family gave us, we've added lamps and little decorative pieces. Note the real sheep skin rug on the floor. I have already planned a black and white photo shoot of bare baby butt on that rug. Too cute!
Her changing table is all set.
Her closet is full of clothes, ready for her arrival! Is it too early to have her Halloween costume picked out? I found the cutest little costume that should fit her and it was 75% off! Even if she doesn't wear it I could not pass up that "shopportunity. "
Check out the huge selection of children's books! Harper's library and music corner is all set for her to explore.
I had custom crib bedding made. I picked gender neutral colors so I could use it again if we have a boy next. It looks great with pink!

I even have her Easter basket ready to go.
So everything is washed and ready for her arrival. We have diapers and wipes and a ton of stuff. We just need the baby. Today my doctor made the prediction that Harper could be arriving early - famous last words. I told Brad that means she will probably wait an extra month to arrive. That would be so mommy of her. Next week we have an ultrasound to check and see how big she is! I think she feels huge. She has totally run out of room in my belly and her movements are so weird sometimes! I know I'll miss it when she is out, but I am ready to meet her!

not that I need it but...

There is a small shop in our building that sells lunch, snacks n' stuff. I have been down twice this week to get my weekly chocolate long john (I have limited myself to one a week as a treat because I would eat them every day if I could. also have the same limitation on chocolate milkshakes - my Sunday treat). Anyway, twice this week I was there too late to get a long john. This morning I was late again and they were all gone...or so I thought! The cute gal at the register had saved one for me! She had it hidden for me because she knew I would be back. This big baby belly will take you places people. It will take you far...

"Nesting" will ruin your manicure...

I'm not sure if everyone has heard about the "nesting" stage of a pregnancy. This is the time when the mommy-to-be gets a little nuts about cleaning and preparing to welcome the baby. Brad swears I have been nesting since the stick showed a double line...that may be. The nursery was essentially finished before we knew whether this baby was a girl or a boy. I have also gone through every drawer and closet getting rid of things (I still feel the need to do this periodically). I've already washed all her newborn sized clothes, sheets, etc. I've packed for the hospital, we've taken classes. We are ready.

But I have recently become even more obsessed with getting things around the house clean. A few nights ago I decided that all my water glasses looked dirty. They had spots or stuff stuck to them. They were gross. I pulled every single water glass out of the cabinet and got some white vinegar and began scrubbing them with the vinegar, I then washed them with hot soapy water, then ran them through the dishwasher...twice. (The first cycle I forgot to add Jet Dry)

Last night I decided that a certain baking pan we often use looked terrible and needed to be properly scrubbed. I took out some steel wool and began scrubbing off old caked-on crap - you know the kind. The stuff that makes your baking sheets look like they are a 100 years old. When I had finished my fingers were gray and it looked like I had tried to file my nails on asphalt. Note to others: wear gloves when using steel wool. Other note: my baking pan no longer has that handy "non-stick" coating.

Now I have big plans for the weekend. I want to get some major spring cleaning out of the way before she gets here. Brad is thrilled with "our plans" for the weekend including: power washing off the lawn furniture and back/front porches, yard work and leaf removal, cleaning light fixtures, mopping the tile underneath the washer and dryer....things like that. He can't wait.

People love pregnant women...

People do stuff for you when you are pregnant. I have to admit, this has been easy to get used to. I swear everyone loves the sight of a pregnant woman! When I walk in to a store, if someone is coming out at the same time I am going in, they will literally back up, hold the door and let me pass! I've had people walk back inside of stores to hold the door open. I always pat my belly, smile and say thank you. I think they deserve at least that much from me.
Yesterday I had to fly somewhere and people let me cut in line, one man insisted on carrying my briefcase down the ramp for me to the gate check area. The briefcase is on rollers....he would not let me even roll it down the ramp.
I was at Target a couple weeks ago and had just unloaded my cart into my car when I turned and saw a lady taking off with my cart. "I'll put this back for you!" she said in a sing-song voice.
Have I mentioned the free stuff? Whenever I go in to order lunch or take out, they almost always offer a free cookie. It could just be that the places I go regularly are being nice because I am a good customer, but I have been going to the same place for lunch over ten years and the free cookie thing is NEW.
I am afraid I am in for a rude awakening after Harper gets here!

More Baby Showers!

I got really behind on this, so here is one long post to update you on other baby showers. We have been sooooooo spoiled! I think we now have almost everything we need to welcome little Harper. Our friends and family are so wonderful and we could not be more excited. Aside from having all the cute stuff, the bottles and diapers, etc, we have been deeply touched that so many of our friends want to celebrate with us the birth of our first child! It is 2am right now and I just can't sleep. I can't stop thinking about how cool it will be to see Harper for the first time. I can't wait. I am over 34 weeks now and the weeks have now slowed down to a crawl. The second trimester was a blur. Enjoy the pics!

First up:

My Tri Delta sisters threw me a shower! (go ahead and say it...Delta Delta Delta may I help ya help ya help ya. feel better?)

Me with my gracious hostess Anne Lisko!


And my dear friend Erin Collins threw me a baby shower in her stunning new home! I was amazed by this girl. She just had her first baby at the end of November and I can't believe: A) how skinny she already is (hate her) and B) how "with it" she is that she could throw such a beautiful shower with a new baby!

Here I am with my super model friend Erin.

A group shot - it was a great turn out! watch out, there are a lot of lawyers in this group...

And last but not least, my Fab Five Shower! Ann (Brad's mom) and some of her girlfriends threw a gorgeous shower this weekend! Every detail was beautiful and the food was amazing. I loved all the little monogrammed things we received. Seeing Harper's name on things makes me even more excited for her to get here!

Here is a quick pic of Brad and me this weekend. My mom hasn't seen me in about 6 weeks and she was amazed by my belly!

Here is Brad and our dear friend Jan. I love this pic because she had just rushed in saying she thought the shower was at 2pm! (It was at 11am). I was so glad she made it.

Me with my tiny Mom. Isn't she glamorous?!

Me (yes again) with my hostesses minus Beverly who had to sneak out a few minutes early. This is the Fab Five! Cathy, Peggy, Ann, Me, Debby and Becky.

My adorable niece Emily who will turn 5 this summer! Harper will be her first cousin. :)

One of the many outfits that just about makes me cry! It has a little H on it with rhinestones. So cute!
A preggo pic! Okay, the gal standing next to me (Lindsay) is due only 4 days after me and she looks tiny! I guess it helps if you run marathons like she does. My yoga class probably doesn't burn nearly the same amount of calories. The chocolate milkshakes probably dont help either. Here is Liz (June), Christy (May) and Lindsay.
The table was so gorgeous!!! The peach bellinis were a big hit. Everyone said they were delicious. They had champagne in them, so I did not partake. But don't think for a second I didn't consider it!Here is me and one of my best friends Liz. She is due in late May or early June!
I better quit. Brad just came out and asked me what in the world I am doing on the computer at 3:00am.

Baby Shower updates!

We've had a few more baby showers and I have been really behind in posting about them. Here is one to start! Last Friday my office threw a joint baby shower for me and my co-worker (and friend) Antonio. Antonio's wife is expecting March 6. They are also having a girl and it has been so much fun sharing in this experience with them. There were not many photos from the shower. Our office photographer was taking a personal day. ;) The entire office gave gifts! We were really spoiled.

Here is Angel and me posing with our bellies!

Top Ten: you know you're hormonal when...

1. your husband orders you a new broiler pan without asking and you think it is so sweet you start to cry. 2. you try to tell your husband that IF you need a C-section, you would like them to drop the sheet when they take the baby out...but you can't get the sentence out without crying. 3. you must, I repeat MUST have a chocolate milkshake from Brahm's or you think you may die. 4. you hear the Bush twins reading their letter to the Obama daughters and you have to completly re-do your makeup before going to work because you sobbed and slobbered it all off 5. you have a "row" with the lady at Hobby Lobby because she refuses to return your items without a phone number but you refuse to give it to her and you reach a stand-off. Never mind the people waiting in line behind you, it's about the principle. You cave and give her the number to Big Al's where you normally get lunch. Ha. that showed her. 6. you can not watch a single moment of television that is even slightly sentimental, sad or depressing, because you will cry...even if you just turned to the channel the second before Ty yells "move that bus!" you know what I'm talking about. 7. diaper cakes make you cry. 8. someone else crying makes you cry. 9. the girl next to you in the bowling alley doesn't wait for you to bowl (bowling etiquette dictates you always wait on the bowler to your left) and instead of throwing your ball down the lane you really want to roll it into her ankle. 10. you drop a little rice down the front of your shirt and you start bawling because you think your thighs have gotten bigger. (I know there is no correlation, but this is how it works).

32 weeks!

I'm sorry I am a little behind. I promise I have lots of new pics to post! In the meantime, here we are at 32 weeks! Harper moves around like crazy. Two nights ago she actually kicked me so hard I yelped out loud and woke both myself and Brad. She is going to be a soccer player or a kick boxer or something. She also seems to have her days and nights confused. She is up all night moving and a little less active during the day. That soooooo will not work for me. ;)

Harper Merdese White

We finally chose a middle name!!! It is a family name on Brad's side. It is his mother's middle name and his grandmother's first name. We called her Mia for short. I loved this name and we both agreed it was definitely unique! It isn't even in the baby name books we bought. The best I can tell from internet searching is that Merdese could be a derivative of Mercedes which is Spanish origin and means "mercy."

Here is another ultrasound of her. We went back today to try to get a 3D image of her face. She just would not let us see! She kept her cute little arms and hands in the way like she was playing peek-a-boo. This 2D shot is of her face and you can kind of see her cute little cheeks filling out. The tech thought she was a beautiful baby. :)

Mara and Reaghan turned three!

My nieces had a birthday this week. I can't believe they are three years old already! Here are some cute snapshots of their Ariel/Fancy Nancy party. Laura did a great job with the decorations and entertaining all the rugrats. It was really fun and the girls were too cute! Mara kept changing her clothes. Each time she got a new outfit she wanted to model it. Reaghan kept adding jewelry to her outfit. Every new necklace or trinket HAD to be tried on. It was fun.



Wardrobe change!

and another...
yet another outfit...
Reaghan stayed in tinkerbell the whole day, but she was bedazzled throughout!

Springfield Baby Shower!

The Springfield Baby shower!!!!

My Mom and sisters (and soon to be sister-in-law) threw me the most beautiful baby shower! They really went above and beyond. They even rented linens to decorate the tables in the colors of Harper's nursery. My sister Sarah made these glorious diaper cakes. one of them took her two hours to make! Everything was so beautiful. The best part of all was having my family there. My Aunt and grandma and Uncle on my Dad's side drove down from Kansas City for the day, my Aunt and Grandma on my mom's side were there, plus lots of old friends from our neighborhood. Some had not met Brad yet and that was really fun. We then kicked out the guys and had the best time! Here are some snapshots from the party. It was such a wonderful way to celebrate Harper's impending arrival.


Here is a shot of me with my hostesses. from left to right: Lindsay (soon to be sister-in-law) Rachel, Mom, Me, Sarah and Laura.

Here is a shot of me right before the shower that Brad took. Baby bump proudly on display!

The beautiful table in the dining room with yet another masterful diaper cake by Sarah.

All the gifts! I was so spoiled.


My best friend from home Betsy. I have known Betsy for 25 years!

My Kansas City contingency! From left to right: Pam (Rachel's mum-in-law) Grandma Hover, Aunt Candy, and Pam's friend Louise.


No, Stacy is not huffing. She is sniffing a diaper that has melted chocolate in it. My sister Sarah arranged a really cute game where you had to guess the type of candy bar that was melted into a diaper. It was gross, but fun. I got 5 out of 7 correct.

It was such a great day! I got a TON of books. Rachel encouraged everyone to bring a book instead of a card. I'll have a separate post for that. Thank you everyone for such a fun memory!

Meet Harper!

Well, the 3D didn't turn out. Every time we tried to get an image of her face the umbilical cord or her arms were in the way. It was like she was hiding from us. That was disappointing, but we got a great 2D profile shot! Here she is! (These are always distorted so you have to use your imagination, but I think she has my nose.) Her camera-shyness during the 3D must come from Brad. She sure doesn't get that from me!

Quick Update

Here are a couple of quick snapshots of the nursery. It is almost finished! We are waiting on the crib bedding to be finished, and I still want to add some new lighting features (hopefully a chandelier instead of a ceiling fan) with a pink window treatment. Otherwise this is pretty close to what it will look like when we bring baby Harper home!


The artwork over the crib is a Christmas gift from Brad's parents Chris and Ann. I just love it! The artwork over the changing table is courtesy of Grandma Hover (it is a little egg that is hatching and the last frame is the newborn chick) and the table itself was from my mother - it is an old dining buffet she had and she let me refinish it. Last, the small frame in the corner by the chair is a shadow box that holds a pair of booties and a bib that was crocheted by by Great Grandmother Dorothy Pennebaker.

We have a 3D/4D ultrasound this morning so I'll post the ultrasound pics after the weekend. I can't wait to count her little fingers and toes!

for the other preggos out there

Things to buy now and save for when you need them:
Bella Bands - you can wear your jeans or slacks totally unzipped and they will stay up with a bella band. you can go several months without having to wear maternity pants until you are bigger.
Power Mama Spanx - I just discovered these and I can't believe I have gone this long without them. They are regular spanx with a higher waist and a built in special spot for your growing belly. But they lift suck and tuck everything else!
Gap Body yoga pants - these are the greatest. they are not maternity but I swear some woman designed these with pregnant women in mind. the waist band folds over so you can adjust as you get bigger. they look cute and they are super comfy.
Martinelli's Sparkling cran-apple - when everyone else has a glass of wine, you can pour this in a wine glass and not feel so left out. It's red, yummy and cheap. just how I like my wine. I know a guy who sells it by the case. Let me know, I'll hook you up.
Hane's 360degrees panties - you can get these at Target. these things stretch like nobody's business. don't waist your money on maternity underwear. trust me.
I hope this helps. If I can help even one pregnant woman make the transition into preggo belly-ville any easier, I will have done my job.

7 months!

Here we are at 7 months! We are 11 weeks away from this baby arriving! I know what you are thinking. If there are 11 weeks left then how can you be 7 months? I wondered the same thing. Apparently there are an average of 4.3 weeks in a month. I am told that is why pregnant women always go by weeks instead of months. Because if you count only 4 weeks in a month, then I am 7 months (I'm 29 weeks on Friday). If you count 4.3 weeks in a month then I am more like 6 and 3/4 months. You are pregnant for 40 weeks which is technically over 9 months no matter how you do the math. They don't tell you this fact until AFTER it's too late. Bottom line: I have been battling heart burn, acid reflux and back pain for a while now. I pee every 30 to 45 minutes, I have gained weight, I can't seem to bend over gracefully anymore and now I am getting these weird leg cramps. If you try to tell me that you think I am not really 7 months yet, I may slap you. So here is my 7 month shot!!! Oh yeah. I cut my hair. I don't recommend doing that while you are pregnant. Wait until the hormones subside. I cut 4 inches off and cried when I couldn't get my hair in hot curlers as easily as before. I'm better now that I am getting used to it and can style it again. Brad thinks my new bangs are cute. So that helps. :)

MY BROTHER IS ENGAGED!!!!

The biggest news of the holiday has to be that my baby brother is engaged!!!! He proposed during the ten second countdown at midnight new year's eve. This photo was taken right as he got down on his knee. We absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE his fiancee Lindsay. She is from Fayetteville, AR and they were set up by mutual friends. I actually threatened Alex at Thanksgiving that if he did not propose to Lindsay while the gettin' is good, I would do it for him! Lindsay and Alex make a great couple and we could not be more thrilled. Alex, as Dad said to me when I got engaged to Brad: "we could not be more pleased with your selection of a mate." Look for a wedding around September 2009.