The countdown is on!

Well, I have definitely slacked for the last two months, but better late than never, right? A lot has definitely happened since I last wrote - and what a roller coaster it has been. Today I hit 36 weeks which means Charlotte is scheduled to be making her grand entrance in the next month! It is so hard to believe how quickly the last nine months have gone, and we are so incredibly excited to finally meet our little girl. Even though I'm way behind, I'm going to keep this entry pretty short - dr's orders as of today are to get as much bed rest as possible, so I'm going to take my "be lazy prescription" seriously since I will get to be everything but lazy once she gets here :) In fact, I think I can mostly summarize our going-ons in pictures. Scroll down for baby shower, maternity, and updated nursery pictures! I'll try to post more in the upcoming days/weeks as we get more news on my progress (will be getting weekly dr. updates now!)

Charlotte Christine Piercey

This post is definitely way overdue and since I couldn't think of a crafty subject, I chose the most important piece of news since last I wrote - we have decided on a name! Originally we weren't going to spread the name around in case we changed our minds, however, after 6 weeks of heavy consideration we know for certain that we are stuck on Charlotte. We love it and think it is perfect for our little girl :) It even comes with a fun story. Shortly after we had found out the sex, we were having lunch with a coworker/good friend of Brent's along with his wife and 3 year old daughter, Georgia. They asked if we had thought much about names and we shared our frustration with finding the perfect name. Georgia was then asked what we should name our baby, and as any 3-year-old would do, she named her best friends' names, Ethan and Charlotte. Seeing as Ethan was out of the question, we actually started to consider Charlotte....and it was pretty much a done deal from there!

Other fun news...lets see....I officially start my 3rd trimester this week which is absolutely unbelievable. Didn't I just pee on that first stick yesterday?? Also, the kicking continues to get stronger and stronger and I love it. Now, it is strong enough that I get to watch my belly pop. Weird and awesome all at the same time!

In a previous post I talked about how pregnancy is all about the checklists. We've been crossing off a lot recently and it feels good. Items officially taken care of include: Finding a day care, finishing our registry, finding a pediatrician, signing up for prenatal classes, making a will (still in progress and definitely our least favorite task so far), and getting the nursery together (definitely my favorite task so far). Here are some pictures of the transformation so far!

It started as a guest room....

 Then Brent, being the wonderful husband he is, installed wainscotting/chair rails just as I pictured it:

 Crib assembly!

Furniture all moved in!

 And this I finished just last night:

Big Milestone

Last night, Brent was able to feel the baby kick for the first time! It was such an incredible moment and daddy was so proud. When I told him she was kicking pretty hard, he laid his head and hand on my belly and felt her kick over and over. I've always heard stories of babies who will be kicking up a storm, but then stop as soon as daddy tries to feel, only to start back up as soon as he takes his hand away. Baby Girl Piercey was just the opposite - as soon as he tried to feel, she picked up the pace. Already a daddy's girl!

Dr. P-isms

Today we had another monthly appointment. Everything went well but it was a very standard appointment, so nothing really news-worthy.

However, I walked away from the appointment thinking I need to keep a log of all the goofy things my Dr. says. I knew from the start that I wanted to stick with my current ob/gyn for the pregnancy because even though I'd only see him once a year, his funny comments would always stick with me. I figured a good sense of humor would come in handy in moments of freak-out (mainly thinking of labor and delivery).

A few I remember from pre-pregnancy:

Dr. P: "So are thinking about children yet?"
Me: "No, not yet"
Dr. P: "Well I'm not going to be here forever!"

Dr. P. strolls into the appointment whistling/signing: "The singing is at no extra cost"
Me: "Good, I don't think my insurance would cover it"

So now for a list of my favorites so far:

Dr. P while looking at my chart at my first prenatal appt: "Last time you were here I recommended you switch to the Nuva Ring, looks like you didn't listen to me"

Me: "How do you feel about hair treatments?"
Dr. P: "Just don't drink it"

Dr. P explaining why he did an ultrasound at my first appointment even though it wasn't necessary: "Its like why a dog licks its genitals....because it can"

Dr. P after finding the heartbeat: "Thank you" - like it was a performance :)

Dr. P after determining gender: "Well at least that's my vote, but I didn't vote for Obama and look how much good that did."


I'll be adding more as they come to me and as we go to future appointments.

Small Milestone

It really is the little things in life. This is one small thing I have anticipating more than I would have expected. I had my first stranger ask about the pregnancy. It can be scary to ask a woman you don't know whether she's pregnant....because what if she's not? Oops! Anyways, this happened to me for the first time today. However, instead of the expected "Are you pregnant?" or "When are you due?", she skipped right to "Ma'am, are you having a girl?" People are so funny, but it definitely made my day....or at least my lunch hour :)

U/S Pics

I just remembered what was missing in yesterday's post - ultrasound pictures, here you go! The best 3 of 7.

The shot that told the dr. we're having a girl. Anyone else see it?? I guess we're going with a lack of?



Overdue

Not me, the blog that is :)

Has it really been over a month since I've updated?? A lot has happened since then.

1) First and most important - and all who are reading this most likely know by now - we are having a GIRL!! I'm so happy I can't even put it into words. I can not wait to meet my baby girl. The "Reveal the Gender" party was amazing. I could not imagine finding out any other way than with close friends and family in the same room. Here are a few pics to summarize :)

Board full of old wives's tales and my guests' prediction on the gender

Testing out the "Wedding Ring Test". It said girl :)

Friends and Family

Moments before the big reveal!

Pink or blue, pink or blue??

Its pink!!!

 Two families come together

2) Yesterday marked the half way point. That's right - 20 weeks down, 20 more to go. I can not believe this. Now is the time to start really appreciating sleeping through the night and making last minute dinner plans....all while wanting it to go by quicker so I can finally meet my baby girl.

3) Not baby related - we just returned from a wonderful trip to Lake Tahoe with the Desjardins and the Browns. I am not exaggerating when I say this had to be the most beautiful place I've ever been to (see pictures below). While I couldn't enjoy the skiing with everyone else, I kept myself busy with finding good photo ops, visiting the spa, and reading a good book.

King of the world

I don't know why, but I love this one. That's B in the background.

Clearest lake water I've ever seen.

This view would render anyone speechless.

 The city of South Lake Tahoe. The state line between California and Nevada runs along the start of the high rises AKA the casinos.

The Crew!

The girls!

Snowmobile time!!

Dinner with friends.

4) Kicking. Everyone's favorite part of pregnancy, and its "kicking" into full force for me. For several weeks I've felt the faintest sense of a flutter every couple of days. The books say it might feel like gas. I say it feels like a muscle spasm. Well, right around the time we left for the Tahoe trip (a little over a week ago), I started to feel it daily and it has become much stronger. I absolutely love this! Finally I don't have to go 4 weeks without any evidence of my baby doing well (the every 4 weeks being when the dr. finds the heart beat). Now I get a daily confirmation of her lively presence!

5) I thought there was more, but the pregnant brain is telling me it can't think beyond #4. So I shall update later as it comes back to me.

The countdown begins!!

It has become apparent that pregnant life is all about the countdowns and check lists.

Current countdown: "Anatomical" Ultrasound

Most recent item crossed off our check list: Purchasing nursery furniture

All very exciting things! We get to find out the gender of our baby in a little over 2 weeks!! I'm so very excited to be able to call Baby P "He" or "She" instead of "It". I'm also ready to get serious about names. We started a list for both boy and girl names several months back but decided to put it down until we only have to focus on one. Providing your child with the name they will go by for the rest of their life is such a big deal, and I need all the time I can get to make such a monumental decision.

Brent and I will be learning the gender of our baby in a very special way. Our good friends, Ryan and Audrey, will be throwing us a "Reveal the Gender" party just a couple days after our ultrasound. As long as Baby P doesn't decide to be bashful on the 27th and hide his/her stuff (**fingers crossed**), we will have our Dr. put the gender in an envelope and will give it to Audrey. She will be the first to know :) At this party, the gender will be revealed to us in front of friends and family using clever means such as cutting into a blue or pink cake or opening a gender specific gift. I'm so excited to share this moment with the people we are closest to versus finding out in a doctor's office. (I realize it would also be very special to find out when baby P enters the world, but come on, I can't wait another 5 months!!!) A big thanks to the Desjardins for offering to do this for us!

In other news, as mentioned above, we have purchased our nursery furniture! A little early in the game, but we had to start somewhere. We were also told to be prepared for it to take 8 - 12 weeks for delivery. However, 2 out of our 3 pieces were in stock and we are picking them up today! I guess the crib will stay in the box for a while, but at least it will be in our house. Also in nursery news, Brent spent the last two weekends testing his carpentry skills by installing a chair rail and wainscoting in our current guestroom/future nursery. May I say that it looks amazing and 100% spot on with how I pictured it. Pictures to come!

That's about it for now! The next post may very well be a big announcement!