Day 204 or 29 weeks 1 day

Eeek!  It's so real.  Ethan is making a presence in our house and he isn't even here yet.  We are getting clothes from family and friends.  I washed a load of Ethan's laundry and get so giddy every time I pick up a newborn outfit.  It is so hard to believe he will fit in these outfits.  So cute!

Best day ever.  I check my registry pretty regularly waiting for the first item to be bought.  Lo and behold, the first purchase!  Ethan is going to have the cutest room ever!  Thanks Cindy! 

29 weeks went by fast!

I had my glucose test this morning.  I was dreading it so much.  I chugged it down in two minutes though so it wasn't that bad.  Ethan was a little wound up from it but no biggie.  We'll find out the results in a week. 

This morning Jason went with me to our appointment.  I really love the staff.  The receptionist that filled in was someone I went to middle school with.  Blast from the way past.  My gyno was very happy with my weight gain.  I hadn't done too well in the past.  Only a half a pound a week.  This time it was over a lb a week.  My doctor was doing all her regular checks and she picked up the doppler to find the heart beat.  She couldn't find it and seemed a little anxious.  Me, not so much.  I knew Ethan was playing hard to get.  Finally, after trying for so long the doctor let me have an ultra sound to get the heart beat.  I was so excited to see him happy healthy and strong.  He has gotten so big! 

All is well in the Brents home.  We are blessed!

78 days remaining

I'm getting bigger and bigger.

24

25

26

27

28

Countdown 11 weeks 2 days

How far along: 28 weeks 5 days

Growth: Baby is the size of a cabbage.

Symptoms:  This week I experienced many but they weren't long lasting.  I had nausea, headaches, bloody nose, and shortness of breath.  Oh and restless legs and numbness in arms.

Total weight gain:  17 lbs

Maternity clothes: I'm scared that they are going to get too small.  I fit them perfectly right now.  I just got a new batch from sissy that are cute!

Stretch marks: No praise the Lord.  And I pray it stays that way.

Sleep: Not being in my own bed this week was rough.  However, last night was fabulous.  I slept til 6 to pee.  Then slept two more hours.  It was great!

Best moment this week: Spending time with my awesome family and friends.  And buying Ethan this adorable outfit from Babies R Us that is sooo precious!

Movement: Like crazy.  He was wild in Colorado and on the plane.  Today I've only felt minimal movement.  I think he is catching up on lost sleep.  :)

Nickname:  Baby Ethan.  Not very original.  At least it is better than what Jason was saying.  "The Kid."

Food cravings: Lots of chocolate.  Yum.

What I miss:  Freedom.  So many don't in pregnancy.  Don't drink caffeine, don't drink egg nog, don't eat unpasteurized cheeses, avoid too much seafood, etc. 

What I am looking forward to:  Monday's appt. 

Milestones: Baby can cry in the belly.  But I hope he has no reason to.

Pregnant 200 days and counting

Strangers come up and talk to me all the time.  They ask me lots of questions and then go in to a diatribe.  The first thing people always talk about when discussing babies, is always negative. 

*Better get sleep while you can.
*You won't be able to go on fun trips when the babies come.
*Let me tell you my horrible birthing story.
*You'll never be on time when the baby comes.
*You'll be broke once the baby gets here.
Etc etc.  This list is so long but I don't want to dwell on them.

I know all these things, but why bring up the negative people?  Why not tell me the good?  Let your first instinct be to talk about the wonderful and positive experiences of being a parent.  Let's be Optimistic Olivias!  Not negative Nancy. 

Let me hear
*Being a mother is the greatest joy ever.
*There is nothing like your babies for first smile.
*A babies laugh is so fulfilling.
*It is so wonderful to be in love with something that has done nothing but be born.
*What a wonderful feeling to see God's creation. 
Etc. 
That's what I want to hear! And what every first time mother should hear. 

And yes I will try to make the most of my time as a married couple with no responsibilities.   Jason and I love our sleep.  We also enjoy some quality time together.

Popcorn and board games on a Friday night.

An attitude of gratitude

There us so much to be thankful for but I think my favorite is the life growing inside of me. I love feeling him move and kick. I love the ever growing belly and I love that all my pregnancy side effects only last a day. I couldn't imagine daily constipation or Braxton hicks or some if the unmentionable unflattering things.
This life I have been giving is the best gift and for that I will always be thankful and know that I am a very lucky girl. I pray I never take any of this for granted.

28 weeks 2 days

Sweet Ethan had a great day today.  We went to Focus on the Family and got to see what size Ethan is right now.  He is the second from the right.

 In the bottom of the place they had a place for all of us to show our heads.  Unfortunately, Ethan missed out on this picture. 

 Ethan really liked his lunch at New Panda.  Beef and Broccoli.  Yum.

My bestie from college and her hubby.  We had fun hanging out all day.  We got to go to lots of fun places.  And dinner was yummy. 

 Ethan also got to see the North Pole AND the Garden of Gods.  He is quite the world traveler.

The perfect end to a great day.  Mr. Biggs amusement park.  Aren't we a great looking crew?!

Baby Ethan in Colorado

He is having a blast.  I went to lay down and he would not let me take a nap.  Jason put his hand on my belly and Ethan kicked it off.  It was hilarious.  We could see my belly moving all over the place.  He was taking turns kicking my left and right ribs too. 

I'm surprised he didn't kick Addi.  She liked my story telling.  Her favorite was David and Goliath.  I made Goliath sound like Arnold Schwarzenegger. 

These are my big brothers.  They were trying to hurt each other behind my back.  Can we say goofy?  Ethan, if you have a brother, I hope you are more mature than these two.  

My prayer for Ethan

I pray that he will walk with integrity.  May he stay pure until marriage.  May he have a heart for the Lord.  May he live to his potential.  I pray he will be healthy, happy, and strong.  May his heart be guarded.  I pray he respects women and all authority figures.  My prayer is he lives his life to the fullest and always stays connected to the vine.  May his outer beauty only be surpassed by his inner. 

27 weeks 6 days

Pregnancy Revealed

What is your favorite thing about being pregnant?
I love the closeness I feel with little Ethan.   I love the kicks and movements.  I love talking to my belly.  
What is your least favorite? 
That is easy.  Right now I am cringing in pain because he is right where my ribs are.  Slightly uncomfortable.
How far along? 27 weeks
Weight gain/loss: 142.  Gained 16 lbs
Maternity clothes? They fit perfect.  I just got a new stash from my sissy!
Stretch marks? No
Sleep? Is my best friend.
Belly button in or out? Still in, but not for long.
Movement? Lots of rolls and kicking. 
Milestones:I had my first braxton hicks.  I thought they were growth spurts til I blogged about it and found it out what they were.  Luckily it only lasted one day. 

Baby Showers

I am super pumped about tonight.  I went to a formal baby shower.  Cocktail dresses was the dress code.  I had never heard of such a thing and was a little nervous when I thought about dresses that fit.  I wore one Monday for our awards ceremony in Austin, but it was dirty.  Here is a pic.

 After much stress and looking, I found two that potentially could work.  A brown and black.  I really loved the black one and tried it on and lo and behold it fit!  If you look close, you can see it is holding on for dear life. 

 My friend Kristi's shower was awesome.  She looked super cute in her pretty dress.  Here we are showing off our baby bumps.  Inside is Leah and Ethan who are going to be buds. 

 The shower had these games I had never played before that were a lot of fun.  This is a picture of what we thought Leah would look like.  We got magazines and scissors to cut out parts of the baby.  Our picture we thought was brilliant but unfortunately our group didn't win. 

 We still had fun though and didn't let it bring us down. 

Kristi was a beautiful mommy.  It was fun seeing all the adorable presents for her little one. 

It definitely made me excited about mine in January.  I can't wait!  Ethan is gonna be one styling dude!

Only 12 weeks and 3 days to go

It's coming so quickly!  Ethan is going to meet the world.  Will the world be ready for a mini Jason and Christina?  Back in the day Jason and I did a program that tells you what your kid will look like.  I wonder how close they be to accurate. 

Ethan?

Pregnant 192 days

Today is the first time I have truly felt pregnant.  My stomach is super tight and painful.  I've spent the evening crying.  To top it off, today is the day Ethan has decided to play kickball in my belly.  Jason is laughing it up because he can feel every kick, roll, and movement.  I'm crying because I can feel every kick roll and movement.  I think baby is going through a big growth spurt and my poor belly can't keep up. 

On a non whiny note, one of my students called me "mom" for the third time today.  She laughed when she realized she did it.  The other kids defended her saying she was just preparing me for Ethan. 

7 Months

I get asked a lot how many months I am.  I always have to stop and count from the beginning when that happens.  I can't believe it is 7 months!  That is insane! 

27 weeks 1 day

Ethan is so darn cute.  People want to touch him and he isn't even born yet.  Today I was standing in line to pay for my dinner and the waitress came up and announced she just had to touch my belly. 

Well, the other night we were at dinner and I felt Ethan rolling around like crazy.  It was so exciting I didn't want to keep it to myself.  I let people feel him and was ok with it. 

I am super excited now that it is the third trimester because he is getting bigger and stronger.  I can really feel him moving. 

27 weeks A.K.A. Third Trimester

 I'm in my third trimester.  It is very exciting but there are so many changes that it is crazy to not have any control.  This is a co-worker of mine that has given Baby Ethan a ton of hand me downs. 

 The oversized belly does come in handy as a shelf.

 The big booty is a tad annoying.

I almost look normal in this photo. 

Ethan loved his trip to Austin.  His mommy helped keep Austin weird.  These are my super sweet co-workers.  Ethan liked them a lot.

91 days

I remember when I first found out I was pregnant. I just found out and had already planned a trip to Six Flags with a coworker and two students. It was really hard to keep it a secret and skip all the big rides. I invited my four year old nurse for my cover. It worked. Baby Ethan was safe. Phew.

I tried to keep my secret until my eight week appointment and did good except when I got morning sickness or placed my hand on my bellie without knowing.

92 days remaining

I am very excited about feeling Ethan.  Tonight I felt him kick so I pushed back and he kicked again.  It made me smile and cry.  We were communicating through baby Morse code.  Ha ha. 

I feel him the most after I eat.  I think he really likes snow cones, popcorn, smoothies, and Reese's Peanut Butter cups.  He hates chocolate milk, and steak.  I don't actually know that he hates those, I just know they make me a little sick. 

93 days and it's going quick

So I registered for our registry.  I decided to do Babies R Us, Sears, and Amazon.com.  This was super fun.  We enjoyed going to Babies R Us together to do some shopping, but it was a tad overwhelming.  I was lent a book called Baby Bargains and it really helped me.  I feel confident.  I do hate how much controversy there is with certain items.  To Diaper Genie or not, this brand is good this brand isn't, etc.  Ethan is going to be one styling dude!

http://www.toysrus.com/registry/link/index.jsp?overrideStore=TRUS&registryNumber=46002790

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/grlist_10153_12605_900020860047010101

94 days left

The Grandkids...

Kenneth-The oldest

 Jeffery

  Shane

Tre'

Charla

Caleb

   Lauren                                              

   The Twins Tori and Allie

Baby J

Addie

Joshua

And debuting Valentine's Day

Ethan Andrew!  Number 13

95 days woo hoo

Jason would pray over me that Ethan would grow to be healthy and strong.  In the early weeks of pregnancy I got morning sickness a lot.  I read that morning sickness was a reflection to how healthy and strong the baby would be.  Guess Jason's prayer was why I was puking all the time.

Last night at home group, someone mentioned to Jason that Ethan was a strong name.  Two people prayed for Jason and I and prayed Ethan would be strong.  I remember wondering what Ethan meant and thought how funny it would be if his name meant "Strong."  This is a copy and paste from the internet.

Ethan means strong and optimistic, solid and enduring, or permanent.

has the meaning constancy, firmness, safe, strong or enduring.


Solid or enduring - from Hebrew

96 days

THE PREGNANCY QUESTIONNAIRE:

How far along? 26 weeks


Maternity clothes? Since I was at 14 weeks I think?  Maybe sooner.


Stretch marks? Not yet.  I put on my belly cream so here's hoping.


Sleep? Last week for the first time I slept through the night.


Food cravings: Not yet.  But I do have many diversions.  Oh wait, there was two...chips and dip and sour Skittles.

Gender: Boy.  I found out at 19 weeks.

Belly button in or out? In for maybe one more week.  It is near flat.


Movement? Lots.  I love it when I can feel him moving first thing in the morning.  It is the best start to my day.

What I miss? Walking without getting tired, Dr. Pepper, and hair dye.


Best moment of the week? Getting to see the In-laws.  They brought some adorable night gowns for Ethan. 
 

What I'm looking forward to: My 28 week appointment, when I get to see Ethan again. 


Milestones: Jason got to feel him kick HARD last night.  

26 Weeks Pregnant

97 days

The Grandparents!

Lito and Lita

I thought that my mom and dad wouldn't be that excited about having another grandbaby.  I mean they already had 12.  So on my 8 week appointment, I brought them the picture of the sonogram and they were very excited.  It made me feel really good.  If I could pick out traits that came from each of them, I would want Ethan to have my father's sense of humor and my mother's faith in the Lord.  They are such amazing people.

Poppa and Granna

I knew they would be excited.  Ethan will be their second grandbaby.  We were also excited to tell them because we knew they would be overjoyed.  We met them at a restaurant in Fort Worth, July 12.  I kept this a secret from them for a while because we wanted to tell them alone and in a special way.  We spent a weekend with them at their lake-house and it was really tough to keep that a secret when you are running to the bathroom every few seconds.  It turned out perfect though because we gave Cherri a cross that said "Grandma"  and Jason asked, "Can you afford another?"  We hugged, cried, and had a wonderful celebration. 

 If I could pick out traits that came from each of them, I would want Ethan to have Butch's wisdom and Cherri's servant's heart.  They too are an amazing couple.

Ethan is one lucky baby. 

98 days left

The most common asked questions answered

When are you due?  Valentine's Day!

Do you have a name?  Ethan Andrew

What is your nursery theme?  This is one where I get stuck.  I don't have one per se.  Unless you consider blue and brown polka dots and stripes a theme.  
Max 4pc Crib Set

And the meanest question.  Are you having twins?  No.  Just one.  Yes I still have 14 weeks left.  Yes I am huge.  Thank you for pointing that out.  It's all baby.  I have only gained 13 lbs. 

Countdown to Ethan 99 days!

I can't believe in 99 days I am going to be a mother.  I actually got called that today at church.  A little boy ran in front of me and his mom scolded him saying, "Son, you need to watch out for the mommies!"  I'm a mommy! 

I'll tell you what, being pregnant has a lot of special treatment.  I was walking in a restroom and went to hold the door open for an elderly woman and she told me, "no," as she held the door for me.  Cracks me up.  Strangers touch my belly, talk to me, and talk about me.  Last night a woman stopped her two little girls to point out the big pregnant lady.  She said, "look girls at the pregnant lady." 

My friend Kristi and I were eating lunch when a woman pointed out we are both pregnant.  Too funny.  I'll say though, Kristi made me feel like Shamu.  She is 29 weeks and I am 25.  One would never be able to tell.  Girlfriend is in great shape though.  She is running a half-marathon tomorrow.  I feel like I run a marathon whenever I go up stairs. 

Day 179 or 25 weeks 4 days

I only have 14 weeks and 3 days left.
Jason and I went on a babymoon in October so we could relax and have some much needed us time.

Ok, so originally it was a free cruise from our Realtor for buying a house.

It actually worked out perfect though.   I was highly stressed out and in need of a break.  I had been getting stomach cramps and had trouble walking without feeling horrific pain.  The cruise was just what the doctor ordered.  Great people...

  Great Food

 Great fun

 And a lot of much needed rest.  I recommend it for all pregnant ladies.  Sadly, I didn't enjoy much of the cruise because I slept 80% of the time.  Ahh sleep!