Friday Fill-In

1. We need another nice, cool day here.
2. Tucker was snoring in his sleep the other night and it made me smile.
3. If you want to get, sometimes you have to give first.
4. I love my husband because he told me I looked hot in the dress I'm wearing to a wedding in a couple weeks :)
5. Massachusetts has proposed a 5% sales tax on elective cosmetic surgery; I think it might be a good way to raise revenue, but I'd like to know how they define "cosmetic" because I think sometimes certain surgeries are necessary but they are considered to be cosmetic.
6. Lots of food makes for a happy holiday.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to dinner at Carrabba's and a movie with Tim, tomorrow my plans include sleeping in with Tim, going to lunch with Jen, Alan, and C, and maybe doing some Christmas shopping, and Sunday, I want to go to church and enjoy the day!

Happy weekend, everyone!

Better Late Than Never

Once again, I'm blogging at the end of the week rather than the beginning. We had another busy week starting off but I think things should be slowing down now and the problem of blogging late will be eliminated :)

Last Friday, Tim's firm had a baby shower for us. It was so nice of them to do that and the shower was wonderful. Jason's Deli for lunch and a delicious cake from Central Market (picture below). We got lots of great gifts for Brendan! I really don't like this picture of us (Tim looks squinty and I just don't like the way I look) but I feel it is an obligation to put a picture of us from the shower.

P.S. Tim is growing a beard this month, in case you couldn't tell. I think it's scratchy and don't like it. I told him if he could find a trimmer to keep it the length of Brett Favre's (you know, the permanent look of not having shaved in about two days) that I would be okay with him keeping it, so I think he's going to try that.

Here's a picture of the adorable cake. It's hard to tell here but the little blue things all around "It's a boy" are little baby booties!

After that, we left for Waco for me to go to Michelle's baby shower (my friend who is also pregnant that I had a picture of us last week from my shower) and spend the night. Tim hung out with Michelle's husband, Pete, while the girls were "showering" (haha). It was a great time and nice to hang out with them. We hope they will move to the DFW area after Pete graduates from law school so we can hang out more often!

Saturday, we left Waco and went to Boerne. My Nanny also came into Boerne so she could come to my Swearing In ceremony on Monday in Austin. We had a nice weekend in Boerne, pretty relaxing. Saturday night, we went to my friend, Stephanie's, house - she was my Practice Court partner in law school and lives in San Antonio - and hung out with her and her family. We had a fun time with them, too!

Monday, we got up realllly early to go to Austin for the Swearing In. It lasted about an hour so it wasn't too bad. It was pretty difficult for Tim to get pictures in the Frank Erwin Center, so I just have one of the judges and two from when we went and ate afterwards. My dad was also there but I didn't realize it because he snuck in for the ceremony and then left for a meeting and THEN texted me to tell me he was there!

This is the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals judges. The Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court administered the oath to us.

My mom, Nanny, and I from after the ceremony at Kerby Lane Cafe for lunch (it was good!).

I don't really like this picture of me, but it's cute of everyone else. My stepdad (Sonny), mom, me, and Tim.

After lunch, we headed back to Fort Worth. We stopped in Waco along the way to get Tucker because we left him there since it would've been too difficult to coordinate what to do with him during the swearing in. Got back to Fort Worth in time to unpack, eat an early dinner, and go to birthing class. It was our last class and we got to tour the Labor & Delivery hospital. I was really glad we got to do that because I wanted to see what it looked like before the big day. It's super nice and has only been open about a year and a half. We got out of that class at 9:00 and headed home to crash.

Tuesday, it was back to work for Tim and I ran some errands. We had another class at 6:30 that night called "Baby Basics" class for after the baby is born. Tim originally didn't really want to take this class because he thought we knew enough about this already but I think it ended up being very helpful for both of us. I thought I knew how to bathe a baby but they showed us a totally different way than I would have thought to do it, showed us soothing techniques, and told us about the different little skin irritiations newborns will get that you don't have to worry about. I was glad that we went. That was another night of not getting home until after 9:00 and poor Tim had been at work since 8:00 AM.

Yesterday, I brought lunch from Chik-Fil-A and a red velvet cake up to Tim's work to thank them for the shower. I think it was a big hit and everyone seemed to like the red velvet cake I made a lot. We were finally at home last night and ate Pizza Inn for dinner. We LOVE Pizza Inn's thin crust pizza and they just opened a brand new one not far from our apartment.

Also, yesterday was 10 years since the Bonfire fell at A&M. I think a lot (if not most) Aggies remember exactly where they were when they heard the Bonfire fell. I was in the bathroom at my house getting ready for school and listening to the radio. I was a freshman in high school but I already knew I wanted to go to A&M for college. It actually fell at 2:42 AM on November 18, 1999 but I didn't hear about it until I woke up for school. Twelve Aggies died in the collapse. It was an eerily significant number since A&M has the tradition of the 12th man and that's what the people who attend the games are known as. The 12th Aggie to die was alive in the collapsed stack for the entire rescue process, but everytime they tried to remove him from the rubble, he pointed them to other people that needed to be rescued and said he was okay. He was only 17 years old. I think that is the epitome of selflessness and the true spirit of being an Aggie. I went to the A&M/Texas game the week after it fell and it was extremely emotional. There was a memorial where people were putting flowers, notes, and other A&M memorabilia for the fallen Aggies. I remember seeing several Aggie rings that people put there. It was overwhelming almost to see those there as everyone who goes to A&M and even a lot of people who don't go there, know how important and significant the Aggie ring is to people who graduated from there. The cover story on Texas Montly magazine this month is about Bonfire and they talk to a lot of people who were there at the time as well as people who were part of it in the past and people who were injured in the collapse. It's still emotional to read about it to think of those who lost their lives. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, I encourage you to try to google about it or look up Texas Monthly's website and see if you can read about it on there. But, I have to warn those of you that didn't go to A&M, there's a quote that Aggies use "From the outside looking in, you can't understand it. From the inside looking out, you can't explain it." Basically, it might be difficult to understand the significance and, especially, the tradition behind it if you didn't go to A&M or have family that did.

Here's the belly picture for the week. I'm 31 weeks this week (well, almost 32 now since I'm posting late this week). To me and Tim, it looks like my belly has already dropped some. It's not quite as full on the top as it was and seems to look lower. I don't know if it will be too difficult to scroll all the way down to last week's picture to compare, but you can let me know what you think! I've started to get more tired and sore lately. Brendan kicks and moves around A LOT, which I love. It's more like rolls now and sometimes little tappings with his foot. I really enjoy watching my belly roll around but it seems like he can sense when I pull my shirt up to look and he stops doing it sometimes then! He also gets the hiccups quite frequently. I may have mentioned it before, but I don't like it when he gets these. Some people think it's cute but the rythmic tapping that it feels like in my belly is uncomfortable to me.

And here's what's going on with Brendan this week:

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long (again, this is different than most other websites and books, which say about 18 inches). He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

Michelle had an ultrasound this week and her little boy was weighing 4 pounds, and that's what other books/websites have said, so he may be closer to 4 pounds than 3.3.

Whew, that was a long post! We are sticking around here this weekend and might go to a movie. Tim's mom also sent me a Carrabba's giftcard for a congratulations on passing the bar, so I think we'll be hitting up my favorite restaurant for some Italian food! Hope everyone had a great week and has a wonderful weekend!

Nursery

We finished the nursery last night by hanging the last of the pictures and his name letters! Now it's just waiting for a little baby to arrive to use it!

View from the door looking into the room:

Crib with Peter Rabbit bedding from Pottery Barn Kids. You can't really see him except for his ears, but there is also an adorable Peter Rabbit stuffed animal in the crib. The blanket hanging on the right side of the crib (another view of it in one of the later pictures) was made from part of my wedding dress. Baskets underneath hold toys and stuffed animals

I painted and decorated these letters. The ones online would have been $15/each and I was able to make these for about $5/each!

Changing table/dresser and cute window coverings. The basket hanging on the left side holds changing supplies and the little bunny sitting on the changing table has cotton balls and baby q-tips.

Closet view. The sign above the door says "Always kiss me goodnight!"

Peter Rabbit cup and bowl are on the left side of the shelf, then the hand and footprint frame, and Duck piggy bank. The picture next to the shelf is a "First Year Frame" with slots for each month of the first year and a newborn picture. Some of his adorable clothes hanging on the shelf and a rabbit lamp on the bookshelf.

Little closer view of the bookshelf with his books and some stuff animals. Can't forget the baby A&M football with the froggy!

Glider with pillow made from part of my wedding dress, Peter Rabbit picture, and super-soft stuffed bunny with "Brendan" embroidered on the ear.

Another Peter Rabbit picture and the vibrating chair we were so excited to get (Thanks, Ann!). I'm also planning on getting a baby chair that is shaped like a big frog from Pottery Barn Kids.

Big Bear next to changing table. There is another view of the blanket made from my wedding dress.
This is the "Baby Sleeping" pillow I was talking about that I was cross-stitching for Brendan's room. It hangs on the door. I'm so happy with the way it turned out - especially for my first project!

Shower

Here are pictures from my fabulous shower this past weekend. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures from the shower in Beaumont yet because my mom now can't find her memory card for her camera, which the pictures are on. Hopefully we'll find it soon and I can post them!

Like I said in the last post, the shower was at my friend Kaitlin's house in Frisco. We had ice cream sundaes (yummmm), cookies, and cake as well as some really delicious punch. There were three games - one was Lauren's Pregnancy Trivia with questions about my pregnancy, one was guessing how much several baby toys cost all together, and one was to guess what Brendan will weigh when he is born. One of the hostesses took everyone's guess and address and whoever is the closest will get a prize mailed to them! Also, my hostesses all pitched in to get me my jogging stroller I had registered for! I was SUPER excited to have this to be able to get back in shape after having Brendan and so that I will be able to exercise with him. Tim was also really excited so we can use it to get back into running 5ks. I didn't get a good picture of me opening the jogging stroller, so here's a link you can click on to see it: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2980786&fromRegistryNumber=42487088&product_skn=2286

Here are me and my great hostesses, plus my friend Kathy (left to right): Jill, Kimberly, me (duh), Kathy, Kaitlin, and Stephanie. Lindsey also helped to hostess but, unfortunately, she couldn't make it because she had a meeting for work :( The things hanging in the window behind us spell "Baby" and have little baby things on them - so cute!
Stephanie got Tucker a little toy of his own so he wouldn't feel left out with all the presents Brendan is getting - haha! Ignore my goofy face :)

Take-Along Swing from my Nanny

Adorable sleeper from Michelle - it is soo soft

Brendan's first Aggie tee from Kathy. He also got an A&M onesie and t-shirt that has a little boy in a football uniform and says "Hold on Aggies, I'm coming!" from Jill. Also, he got an A&M blanket and two Aggie books from my Aunt and Uncle who weren't able to come. We want to start him out early!

Hand and footprint frame from my stepmom's friend Laura and her daughter, Rebecca. When Brendan is born, we will use the ink pad that came with it to put his hand and footprint in the frame.

Adorable cake! It has his initials on the onesie. Also, it was delicious!

Michelle and I. Michelle is who I was saying is due 3 days before me. She's also having a boy! I'm so excited for Brendan to have a friend so close to his age!

I also got our Pack 'n Play from my stepmom, Nancy; the Co-Sleeper that goes next to our bed from my mom; some really cute clothes from my sisters, including one that says "Auntie loves me THIS much" and has a little bear stretching his arms out; the bebe pod (just like a Bumbo) for Brendan to sit in; bottles, bottle liners, some diapers, toys, washing stuff, pacifiers, and a bunch of other stuff! Like I said, we had a great time and got lots of awesome stuff!

Without Further Delay

Sorry that I am so late posting this week! I think I will do three posts today. One with my normal weekly update, one with pictures from my shower last weekend, and one with pictures of the finished nursery.

As you know from my post last week, I found out on Thursday that I pass the Bar! It was such a relief to know that I am now done with everything. It wouldn't have been the end of the world if I didn't pass, but since Brendan is supposed to be born in January, there's no way I could've taken the bar again in February, so I would have had to put off taking it until next July and I'd just rather not do that. Plus, trying to study with a newborn probably wouldn't have been the easiest thing. Here's a picture of the beautiful tulips Tim brought home for me as a congratulations:

Friday, my mom came into town in the afternoon. We went downtown and ate at Mi Cocina for dinner - it was yummy. Saturday, we ran some errands and then got ready for the shower. It was in Frisco at my friend Kaitlin's house. Everything was wonderful and I got some great stuff for Brendan! I am lucky to have such great friends to throw a shower for me. My Nanny, aunt, and cousin spent the night on Saturday after the shower, so we went to Joe T. Garcia's for dinner - which was also really yummy. Sunday, we went and ate breakfast with everyone and then my mom decided to go ahead and stay again on Sunday, so we ran around all day to get stuff for the nursery and went to Jason's Deli for dinner.

My mom left on Monday and I spent most of the day finishing up everything for the nursery that I could get done. I was pretty exhausted from my busy weekend. We had our second Child Birth class on Monday night and also had an Infant CPR class on Tuesday night. The infant CPR class wasn't as helpful as we had hoped and I think we could've gotten the same information online without having to pay for it. We were glad to finally get to be home last night since we hadn't been getting home until 9:30 the two nights before. Things have just been pretty busy this week so that's why I haven't posted!

Here's my belly picture for this week. I couldn't tell much of a difference from last week. I don't go to the doctor again until November 30th, so I won't know if I am still growing normally or ahead or behind until then.

And here's an update on Brendan this week:

Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now (actually, most books and websites I've looked at have said that he is more like 17 inches this week), and she weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face.

He is moving around just as he was. I think he gets tired when I get tired because the days I am exhausted I don't feel him quite as much. I notice more "waves" in my stomach when he moves than just little jabs now.

Here's a picture:

This Friday, I have a final shower that Tim's work is throwing for me at noon. We are leaving after that for Waco to go to my friend Michelle's baby shower (she's due three days before me!) and spend the night in Waco. We're going to go to Boerne on Saturday and stay there Saturday night and Sunday night. Monday morning, we're driving to Austin for the swearing-in ceremony for newly licensed attorneys so then I will be a full-fledged attorney :) Hope everyone has had a wonderful week so far and has a great weekend!

Bad!

Sorry I haven't posted this week! Things have been pretty busy and I haven't had a chance to take my belly picture. Plus, I have shower and nursery pictures to put up, too. Promise I will post tonight or tomorrow!

Certified

I PASSED THE BAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Found out about 1:30 today - so I am now an attorney :) All that's left is to get sworn in.

Yippeee!!