Happy Birthday, Dad!

Today is my dad's 64th birthday! Happy Birthday, Dad! You're the greatest. Hope you're day is everything you want it to be (which probably means time on the beach this morning, time on the beach this afternoon, fishing, and a night out with mom.) Love you!

I love my mom

Last night when I got home from work there was a package on my front steps. Yay! I love getting packages in the mail.
The package was from my mom and it was FULL of new maternity tops. This was VERY exciting considering I am getting sick of wearing the same things over and over. I have on one of the tops today! She did a great job of picking out things that I would pick out myself. Thank you, Mom! Love you!

Classes: Rough start...happy ending

So last night DJ and I went to our first child birth education class - a.k.a lamaze. It was quite an interesting experience to say the least.
The evening started out with DJ getting home from work at 6:30 - did I mention the class STARTS at 6:30!!??!! So needless to say, we had the embarrassing experience of walking into a room full of people late. I hate being late.
So the class was in full swing and the teacher seemed nice enough and very passionate about teaching child birth education. For some reason, DJ and I were like a couple of sixth graders - we were very shy and did NOT feel comfortable talking about pregnancy, our baby, and all that comes with those things in a room full of total strangers. That's coming from me - someone who speaks in front of a hundred people for presentations at work. I don't know - there's just something different about having a small room full of people and talking openly about being pregnant, having a baby, etc... that was totally not my cup of tea. It's so personal!

I wanted to leave.

DJ had to speak in front of the group first. (Phew...I could stall for a few more minutes.) The question was "why are you here?" I can't even remember what he said, but all I can tell you is that my face was bright red when he was done talking. Something about "I guess I'm here to support Heather...". Seriously don't know what he said, but I was next. Crap. My turn.

I think I said that I was there mostly because I am apprehensive of doctors/hospitals. Seriously ... the answers just poured out of our mouths - not even sure we were conscious of what we were saying! Thinking back now, I would have given a much more thoughtful/accurate answer like "Because I want to be as prepared for being mom as I can, and because this is our first baby and I know that we don't have all the answers, and that because you read/hear all of these horror stories about labor and delivery andI want to seperate what's true from what's not." Nope...just "I'm scared of doctors." Sheesh.
But ... thankfully... the evening turned around.
I ended up learning SO much in the first night alone (five more sessions to go). The most exciting things I learned about:
- how to sleep so that it doesn't feel like my stomach is coming apart from my body when I wake up in the morning
- the fact that DJ pulling me up off of the couch or floor is actually really bad for my back
- babies born sunny-side-up cause back labor.
- the importance of knowing my effacement, dilation and station numbers prior to delivery
All news to me!

On the way home, DJ said he was so glad he went because it made him feel closer to me and the baby (aww). I started the night out being angry with him for being late, but then loving him even more at the end of the night for being so supportive. I can't imagine going through this alone. Thanks babe. Love you.

Two Showers - One Invitation

My first baby shower is this Saturday. My MIL and my cousin Sara are throwing it for me. I can't wait! Should be so much fun!

My second baby shower is on Apirl 18th - thrown by my mom and Kara. Can't wait for that one either!

The funny thing is ... of all the baby shower invitations in the world, Sara and my mom picked the SAME invitation! What are the odds?

Dan

I have been struggling lately with the idea of selling Dan before the baby comes. I haven't ridden in a couple months now and I know that my riding time will be limited once the baby comes.

I don't know what to do.

My aunt found someone that might be interested in buying him and this man is going out to the barn to look at him today. The thought of selling Dan makes me want to cry, but at the same time, it's not fair to him to be out in the pasture and not ridden. Ann uses him some for lessons, but he's not getting the attention that he needs from me. Plus, boarding him is an added monthly expense.

Another issue is that the market isn't what it was when I bought him two years ago - and now he's 16 years old - both are factors that will continue to bring down my price the longer I wait.

DJ thinks that I should keep him because he knows I'll miss him as soon as he's gone. He's right - I know that for sure - but this may not be the best time in my life for owning a horse.

I'm going to leave it up in the air for now. If the man who goes to look at him today likes him, I guess we'll take it from there. I'd have to go check out his place in North Liberty to make sure that Dan would have a safe home. Hopefully I'll know more after this weekend.

Heidi's Shower

Heidi's first bridal shower was this past Sunday. It was a stock the bar shower and she got lots of great presents for her new bar! Here are a few photos from the day.

7 Months

Here are some pics of me at 7 months. Getting bigger by the minute.

Well tomorrow I will officially be 7 months pregnant. I'll be posting another pic of the bump soon. It won't be long now before our baby is here! I was sitting at my desk this morning, and he was kicking as usual, and I realized that I'm going to miss the feeling of him kicking me so much. I'm sure I'll have plenty of one-on-one time with him to make up for it, but all the same it was almost a sad moment. Being pregnant has been so great and I've been so lucky to have such a smooth pregnancy. I have felt so healthy during these past 7 months and it's been a great thing for DJ and I to have together.

The best parts of being pregnant:
- People are SO nice to you. At my aerobics class, people are always putting my mat away, asking me how I'm doing, etc. It's great! People at work are always telling me how cute I look, even if I don't feel like it on some days.
- Buying cute maternity clothes.
- Buying cute BABY clothes! (Did I mention I spent $50 on polo onesies for junior the other day?)
- Thinking of names for the baby
- Getting a little extra tlc from your hubby (back rubs, feet rubs, late night posickle runs)
- Listening to the baby's heart beat every time you go to the doctor
- Feeling the baby kick (it's like he's saying 'he you! pay attention to me! I'm still in here!')
- Thinking of all the great things we'll be able to do with our little boy (watch him grow up, take his first steps, say his first words, watch him play sports)
- having the WHOLE SUMMER OFF to learn how to become a mom
- starting a F-A-M-I-L-Y

Some of the not-so-great things about being pregnant:
- back aches
- trouble sleeping
- worries that the baby is healthy and will be okay
- worries that you'll never get your pre-baby body back
- no more margaritas

The list of good really does outweigh the bad...by far. I would highly recommend getting knocked up!

$$$

Today I wrote the most exciting check of my life - a check to pay off my car! I have never paid off a vehicle in my life so this was an exciting moment. (My grandpa gave me my first car, my parents bought me a truck when I was 18 and I've been buying and selling ever since.) It will be so nice to have this extra money each month, especially now with our baby on the way. Woo-hoo! I just had to share the good news.

Now if I could just resist buying a new car, we'll be in good shape. :)

Josh and Mom in Florida on Josh's last night.

Isn't this a great picture?

Countdown...

I just realized this morning that our baby is due THREE MONTHS FROM TODAY! Holy cow, I can't believe how fast this has gone. I still need to do so many things. Hopefully it will all come together so that when he arrives we can just relax and enjoy him.
I bought 4 packs of diapers last night because I had coupons. Those suckers are expensive!! I always thought people who did cloth diapers were insane, but now I'm starting to understand why they do it. Still, I think I'll stick with Pampers and spare myself MORE laundry.
So here are our latest names...
- Charlie
- Hunter
- James "Jamie"
- Jackson
- Logan
- Chase
- Ty

New Recipe

I tried a new recipe last night and it was really good! A nice substitute if you're sick of cooking with chicken or ground beef. Thought I'd share it with all of you:

Ham & Swiss Casserole

1 pkg. (8 oz.) egg noodles, cooked and drained
2 C. cubed ham (fully cooked)
2 C. shredded Swiss cheese
1 can cream of celery
1 C. sour cream
1/2 C. chopped green pepper
1/2 C. chopped onion

In a greased 9x13, layer half of noodles, ham, and cheese. In a large bowl, combine soup, sour cream, pepper and onion. Spread half over top. Repeat layers. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Bake uncovered for an additional 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Josh's Visit

Here are some pictures of our visit with Josh. Too bad Joe and David couldn't be there - we'd have all six of us! It was great to see you Josh. You look great and seem happy. Love you.

DJ and I were in Indianapolis last night visiting Bill, Marnie and the kids. They were soooo great and gave us great things for the baby - a crib, a beautiful antique bassinet, a mattress with a hole in it (so that I can sleep on my stomach), blankets, clothes, and this cute little rocking horse. Trace thought it would be fun to balance bread on his head while riding him. :) Thanks! Love you guys!