super duper christmas

We have been so blessed this year and sometimes its easy to take it for granted. Today, looking around my living room at a tree with presents overflowing, boxes of already opened gifts to be put away, and a tummy with a healthy baby bouncing around inside, I feel very overwhelmed. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas celebrating the real reason for the season.

Christmas day is a birthday party

It doesn't matter if you where nice or naughty

He came to save the world from shame

Forever and forever yeah yeah

~"Christmas Day" by Rob Watson

stockings hung by the chimney

Christmas time is one of my favorite seasons of the year. So much fun time with friends and family, lots of cookies and holiday parties, and fun presents to open! This year has felt a little different since I cannot go to all the fun parties. And sadly, no one has felt like relocating their Christmas party to my living room. Funny how that works.

This weekend we drove down to Gastonia to do Christmas with Brian's family. On Friday, we left about 4pm, hoping to miss the snow storm that was covering most of NC. No such luck. We drove straight into the storm! I have never been in such scary driving conditions before, with a sheet of ice and snow on the road, all you could do was try to follow in the tire tracks of the car in front of you as one long line of cars snaked down the highway going 15mph. Luckily we made it there safe and sound.

We had an awesome time celebrating with Brian's family, with lots of family time around the house, yummy food, and fabulous presents. The most fabulous of all...our crib!! It was actually delivered to our house last week but there is nothing like getting to open a 90lb box and see lots of adorable white pieces inside. We also got tons of cute clothes for Lila and the most magical Christmas present of all. Yes that is a princess potty. That sings magical songs for a "royal reward" when you go to the bathroom. I do not think toys get any better than this! Then today, our doorbell rang and lo and behold, our car seat was on the front porch as a gift from a family friend. I am telling you what, this has been a rocking all around week.

From Coney Island to the Sunset Strip
Somebody's gonna make a happy trip
Tonight, while the moon is bright

He's gonna have a bag of crazy toys
To give the groanies of the boys and girls
So dig, Santa comes on big

He'll come a flying from a higher place
And fill the stockings by the fireplace
So you'll, have a yule that's cool
~"Cool Yule" by Louis Armstrong

on tour in a city near you

Last week we headed over to UNC for our maternity floor tour. Which is slightly ironic since we have already been to Labor & Delivery several times this pregnancy. But you know us, we can never be patient and wait to do things like everyone else. Always have to jump the gun! We still thought we should take the official tour and see everything the proper way.

First of all, you would think that other pregnant women would not stare so openly at a pregnant woman being pushed in a wheelchair. I honestly think they were just jealous I got to sit down and they didn't. We got to hear all of the check-in procedures for both us and our family. We also got to visit a delivery room, hear about the different options for laboring they provide for pregnant women which was impressive. Next, we headed up to the recovery floor where I will stay from about an hour after Lila's birth until we go home 2-3 days later.

It was so awesome to start thinking about her coming into this world. And now that we are finally 28 weeks (which is a huge development milestone for Lila) we are feeling less scared about her coming too early and more secure in the fact that she will survive, no matter when she's born. And she is getting so strong! Nothing like a swift kick to the stomach and lungs to remind you that you have a healthy little baby growing in there! I have kindly told her that she has no more room to grown vertically (as you can clearly see by the picture above) and should please start busting out horizontally.

I get no kick from champagne
Mere alcohol doesn't thrill me at all
So tell me why should it be true
That I get a kick out of you?
~"I Get A Kick Out Of You" by Frank Sinatra

oh christmas tree

Look at our pretty tree! With all the pretty ornaments! And shiny lights! Isn't it hilarious how Christmas time turns everyone into a toddler with a 10 second attention span? Oooh, shiny pretty things! I thought I would share some of our Christmas traditions with all my fabulous blog readers out there. And since I haven't heard from most of you in a while, I thought I would ask you to comment and tell me your favorite Christmas tradition. (Hint hint. Please leave a comment. I sit on a couch all day people. I have nothing else to get me through the week).

Every year we get our Christmas tree at this gas station in Raleigh by the NC Fair Grounds. I mean, for serious this place is straight ghetto. Like with the oddest collection of stuff inside ever. And random boxes of weird knick knacks lying around (ace bandages anyone? or perhaps some stained glass windows?) But they have the cheapest trees, so we count it all as part of the journey. This year, Brian got to pick out the tree by himself. Which of course means he had to pack me up in the car, drive me around the lot (slowly so I could make sure to peruse every tree), carry the selected tree over to the sketchy old man with a slightly less than full set of teeth for wrapping, rope it to the top of the car, take it off the car at home, and put it up in the house. All by himself. So strong and manly!

One of our other Christmas traditions is that we get the Christmas presents wrapped as soon as we can so we can have them sitting in all their gifty splendor under the tree to look at. This year was an online Christmas. I usually love going through the stores, shopping with friends, picking out the perfect gifts. But since they have yet to build a TJ Maxx in my dining room, I had to resort to a digital shopping cart this year. Thank you Cyber Monday!

Once again we find ourselves
enmeshed in the holiday season,
that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones
in sharing centuries-old traditions
such as trying to find a parking space at the mall.
We traditionally do this in my family
by driving around the parking lot
until we see a shopper emerge from the mall,
then we follow her, in very much the same spirit
as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago
followed a star, week after week,
until it led them to a parking space.
~Dave Berry

showered with love

So no, I did not forget about the baby shower update. You know, since thats that fun part with bows and boxes and cute cute baby stuff. Last Saturday we had our Cary baby shower. We had been so glad that the doctor told me I could go as long as I sat the entire time. I was so glad that I got to attend this one since Brian's mom had hosted a shower the weekend before that I had to miss.

We got so many wonderful gifts at our shower, our high chair, lots of cute clothes, decorations for Lila's room, and many fun supplies for the nursery. It was so nice just to have a normal, pregnancy moment and focus on the excitment of Lila's arrival. Many thanks to my sister Katelyn for planning such a fabulous party!
The other awesome part of the weekend was having Patti, Brian's mom, come up from Gastonia to join us for the shower. She also brought all of the wonderful gifts from the Gastonia shower! Needless to say, opening over 60 gifts in two days was exhausting and overwhelming. Now we just have to finish up the nursery so we have somewhere to put all of these adorable pink things.

I love giving gifts and I love receiving them.

If it's a really good gift, I love receiving it,

like jewels or small islands.

~Gina Gershon

negative test = good news

We have had a lot going on so I apologize for the lack of posts. I promise to be better! We have had an eventful last week with a lot of God moments. One of the most exciting things was our baby shower last Saturday and lots of fun baby gifts! But I will get to that after the more important things...you know like medical updates on the baby herself.

Last Tuesday we went to the doctor and thank God he says it looks like I am finally stabilized! He thinks the rest is getting my body to go back to a more normal state...apparently it does remember how to do its job and just be pregnant. He also repeated the fetal fibronectin test (that was the test I had 2 weeks prior that came back positive and was an indicator that I could possibly go into labor in the next 2 weeks) and this time it came back negative! So no risk of me delivering in the next 2 weeks! We could not be happier that the rest appears to be working.

On that note, they have decided that I will be on bed rest or limited activity for the rest of the pregnancy to assure that I don't go into preterm labor again. So that means the next 10+ weeks on the couch most of the day. Have I mentioned that I love my couch? We have a special bond, my red couch and I...

Everything grows rounder,

and wider and weirder,

and I sit here in the middle of it all

and wonder who in the world

you will turn out to be.

~Carrie Fisher