Baby Shower Part 1 - Decorations

I had the most amazing, pink, beautiful, pink, lovely, and more pink baby shower ever.  I can never express how thankful and blessed I feel to my three friends who threw this most wonderful shower for me to welcome Addison.  Thank you Stephanie Kisgen, Jennifer Bauman, and Elizabeth Fulcher for all your hard work, time away from your family, personal/beautiful touches, and extraordinary length you went to making it the best baby shower ever.  Thank you to my mom and mother in law who are over the moon about having a granddaughter.  I could just feel the love pouring from you both!  Thank you everyone that came and celebrated with me.  I love you all and for all the times I cried that day I think you knew how appreciative I was.  I will never forget walking into the room where the shower was (St. Marlow's Country Club -thanks Deb Kisgen) and just crying at the sight of all the pink.  I am just going to post the pictures - so many were taken that I won't need to comment much as you will know what was going on!  It was a beautiful day, one I will never forget. 

 The pink chandelier above - I couldn't believe Steph and Jen bought it for me!

Below are the cake pops made by Elizabeth and chocolate covered pretzels made by Jen and the invite made by Steph (the damask on the invite is actually taken from a picture of Addison's bedding and look a chandelier on the invite!)

 Diaper wreath made by Stephanie look at the MudPie boots!

 Jen made the cute box below

 Yummy food from my parent's catering business

 PINK TUTU

 Sweet decorations and the diaper cake is made by Elizabeth

 

 Frames made by Jen (I have talented friends) 

 Cake I had to have LOVE!

  The room 

 I love the small details of labeling the food:) 

 The entrance to the room where I cried (one of a few times)

 

 Some of these are doubles we had two cameras going but I HAD to post them:) 

 

 

 A picture of the thank you notes Stephanie made for me to send out to my guests (I am behind with grad school, they are coming soon!) 

 A close up of the diaper cake

 Yummo punch that Elizabeth made



Pre-Baby Shower Fun

Before my baby shower on March 12, 2011 I met my friend Emily for mani and pedis at 9:30 that morning.  Emily and I have the same due date!  I actually went to school with her sister Whitney, who I think the world of also.  Through facebook and through our pregnancies Emily and I have become close.  Emily is having her first baby and I am on #3!  We are "due date buddies" not because our due dates are close but because we actually share the same due date, May 30, 2011!  We are also both having girls.  Olivia is a blessed little girl because she has a great mommy who I am proud to now call a friend.  I look forward to our girls being born and hope they will be sweet friends for life! 

Here is a picture of Emily and I after our nails were dry. 

Before Baby Shower gifts:)

We have so many wonderful people in our lives that care so much about our little family.  We are truely blessed and grateful for each one of you.  I just want to take a "post" and thank a few special people from the bottom of my heart for the gifts that were sent prior to Addison's baby shower.

Thank you Grandpa Mullen for all the CUTE CUTE pink clothes you picked out and sent on your own!  You did good:)  We love you!

Thank you Aunt Tracey and Grandma Mullen for the box of beautiful baby girl clothes you sent!  Love them all!

Logan and Austin got some sweet gifts from Aunt Tracey and Grandma when they sent Addison's gift



Thank you Aunt Cheryl for the cute bloomers!

Thank you Holly for the PINK bouncy seat that Addison will spend lots of time in (if we aren't holding her)! 

Thank you Aunt Michelle, Daniele, Nicole, Aunt Rose, and Kristen for the great Bright Starts Activity Bouncer!

Thank you Aunt Pam, Uncle Tim, & Bryce for the Babies R Us Gift card!  Already bought stuff we needed:)
Thank you Linda and Dad for the gift card to buy baby stuff! 
Thank you to my sweet friend Natalie (who is due in early June with a baby girl) for the cute Polo dress!

LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!

28 Weeks

On Monday I entered the 3rd trimester!  So excited to share some wonderful, blessed news that we were given at our 28 week appt this week.  But first here is the 28 week highlights.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 28 Weeks

Size of baby: Addison is now the size of an eggplant!  Her lungs are mature enough that, if born right now, she has a pretty good chance of surviving (with help from medical technology). Her skin is still pretty wrinkly (one byproduct of living in amniotic fluid) but will smoothen as fat continues to deposit. (the bump.com)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Total weight gain 25lbs. Starting weight 105 current weight 130 lbs. A LOT I know.  Everyone says its all baby, but last time I checked, women don't carry babies in their butts & thighs - ha!

Maternity Clothes: All tops regular for now - I would stay in my regular tops but I don't want them to become stretched out too much. LOVE LOVE LOVE my GAP Maternity Jeans. I wear those when I go out and sweatpants when I am home - which is often - HA! I also love my Gilligan & O'Malley cozy pants. I have two Rubbermaid containers of maternity clothes I kept from being pregnant before. However, I am not too into them. I think from working and wearing them so often I just can't do it. Right now at least!
Gender: It's a girl!!! Addison Kathleen Harris

Movement: Addison is a mover. She MOVES all the time. She is very busy.

Sleep: I am sleeping soooo much better. I am just so tired at this point that I get in bed and fall asleep. When I wake up four or five times to pee I just go and get back in bed and fall right back to sleep! THANK GOODNESS!

What I miss: Not much but sleeping on my stomach

Cravings: Sweets - the boys and I made chocolate iced brownies this week.  Logan stated "I don't like chocolate anymore," Brian said he doesn't like chocolate (as he eats peanut m&ms), so that left a 9x13 pan of chocoloate iced brownies for me and my sweet loving baby Austin!  Oh and I had my first milkshake from Chic Fli A.  CHOCOLATE of course and it was to die for.  Didn't share a drop with anyone and loved every minute and every calorie of that delicious drink:)

Symptoms: Mostly heartburn!  She has hair:)

Best Moment this week: So many this week - Addison's room being completed, entering the 3rd trimester, 28 week ultrasound, scheduling Addison's birthday, shopping for a shower dress with my mom, my mom buying new pjs, robes, slippers, nursing bras, and prego panties for me so I can starting packing for the hospital (she knows I love to be prepared)!

28 Week OB Appt Update:

On Wednesday we woke up early and headed to my OBGYN's office for an ultrasound followed by an appt with my doctor.  Addison weighs 2 lbs 8 oz and is doing great.  We saw all of her body parts and she was moving a lot.  We were told that there is no concern for placenta accreta - a true blessing.  From this point on we will proceed as it is a normal pregnancy!  What a huge relief.  After talkign with my doctor we were able to schedule Addison's birthdate!  On May 23rd Brian and I will head to Northside Forsyth Hospital at 4am to check in by 4:30am.  At 6:45am I will be in surgery to deliver Addison via c-section.  Such exciting news!  The countdown is on.  Who thinks I'll make it to the 23rd?  I had both boys at or around 38 weeks.  we will see how it goes and how cozy baby girl is.  We are going to tour the hospital with the boys later this month.  Both boys were born at Northside Atlanta, so this is new to all of us.  However Forsyth is like 20 minutes from our house and is very new and very nice.  So excited to welcome Addison into the world at this hospital. 

Baby girl 28 weeks - she has hair

Me pregnant at 28 weeks

What's Been Happening

I feel like I haven't blogged about much other than my pregnancy.  So I am going to bullet point what has been going on in the last month or so.

• The boys keep us in stitches with all the things that come out of their mouths. 
• When Austin does something Logan will say "that's my son!" 
• They both say "hi bro" - not sure why.
• When my belly is out Austin will cover it up with my shirt and say "bye baby."
• Austin walks into Addison's room and says "that's my bed not Addison's." As you can see he isn't head over heels for his baby sister yet. 

• Recently Logan was in our room watching a video and I was in the living room with Austin.  A few minutes went by and Logan comes out with a stack of paper in his hands.  I asked what he had and he said "I have been busy copying my hands, my feet, my face, and my butt!"  Sure enough in his hands were copied pictures of all those body parts:)  I didn't even know he knew how to turn on the small wireless copier/printer we have in our room!  Just goes to show they watch everything we do, meaning turning on the printer/copier not copying our body parts.  When I asked Logan how he learned to do that he said "My Uncle Kevin, he's my uncle, he teaches me everything." 
• Logan explains to us that he does what he does and says what he says because of his Uncle Kevin - see above.
• Austin does EVERYTHING and says EVERYTHING Logan does.  He even does what Logan tells him to do.  Example - we will be in the car and Logan wants to go somewhere like Toys R'Us.  Logan will say "Bits say you want to go to Toys R'Us and say it loud." Austin will say it and Logan will say "Now say it louder."  Austin will say it louder and this goes on and on and voices get louder and louder.  Its funny again Brian and I are in the front seat laughing our heads off.  Our babies bring lots of laughter and love into our lives. 
• Playing Dress-up in their Halloween costumes -  a love for Spiderman, making webs and having big muscles:)



• Planting flowers with my sweet mother in law that came over with flowers while my father in law was busy putting up beadboard in Addison's room!




• Last week Meaghan signed a contract at the preschool (Sugar Hill Family Church) where Logan will be going in the fall.  I will be the lead pre-k teacher for the 4's 5 days a week.  The hours are GREAT 9-1.  I have to be there at 8:30 but the church is less than 3 miles from our house.  Logan will be in a different 4 yr old class and will only go 4 days each week.  I am excited to be at school with my first baby.  My two other babies will be home with their amazing daddy, who will work around the preschool schedule.  If anyone can do it, Brian can:)  School for preschool doesn't start until after Labor day so I will have all summer with the kids.  I was really sold on the idea of only having to be gone a few hours each day, a discount on tuition for Logan, and some extra money.  I should be working on class 9 of my masters during that time so it will be a busy fall. 
• We redid the boy's room with cute pottery barn kids bedding and dino accents.  Logan loves it, Austin is coming around.  This week he has napped in there each day and slept until 4 am before wandering into our room.  He is doing a lot better, but still calls it Logan's room:(  I feel bad that he sees his room transformed into a girl's room and he refers to his room as Logan's room.  We have been really giving him a lot more attention and making it fun to sleep in his room.  Not pictured is their flat screen tv and dvd player that Logan was given when he turned 3 from his grandparents:)  As a teacher I was not loving the tv in the room, but it is only used for dvds for a little each day.  Cable isn't hooked up, but does add some more fun to their "big boy room."


Austin (below) telling me he wasn't sleeping in his big boy bed.

Austin putting his blankets back into the crib before Addison's room was done.

Last night in his crib :(

Though it was a hard trasisition, both boys sleep peacefully in their beds at naptime (see below) and through the night.

• Addison's room was completed last night as my wonderful father in law came over at 8pm to hang her curtains on a rod my mother in law found earlier in the day.  They are awesome, I am blessed to have great in laws.  They worked for two straight weekends painting and putting up the bead board and in between my mother in law was outside planting flowers with the boys!  Brian has been crazy busy with work but was able to work on putting up bead board and painted Addison's ceiling at my request.  He's great.  We are just waiting on the Addison's initial decal for above her crib.  The room is pink and perfect just waiting on baby girl:)







• Logan drew his first stick person/family with chalk.  I was very impressed, both boys amaze me each day with all they do and say. 




• Sweet baby boy Austin (above) drawing with chalk also. His eye has a big cut near it becuase he fell off a shopping cart at Publix. It was awful. Lots of blood, lots of crying, lots of mommy feeling awful for him wondering how she will ever go anywhere with 3!
• We looked at a minivan last week and didn't buy it.  We were not happy with it at all.  The room was nice but driving that around for the next several years was not ideal.  Brian jokingly said if he had to drive that he would just give up on life.  I know a lot of people drive minivans, but if we can wait and try in the fall to get a bigger SUV when I am working that is the best situation for us.  SOOOO we spent the money to buy the boys new car seats that fit along with Addison's snug ride infant car seat (all 3 in a row).  Now we are just waiting for them to come in and see how they actually fit in my jeep and Brian's explorer.  If we travel this summer to see family in NC (Mullen family that is a hint that we want to get together) or to Savannah to see friends, or up north, we will have to rent a bigger vehicle.  Hopefully the car seats fit safely and we can get through the summer this way. 
• Saturday is my PINK baby shower!  So excited and so blessed to have so many people that love me and want to "shower" me with pink stuff for our baby girl.  Can't wait to post pictures about the wonderful day.  Prior to the shower I am getting a mani/pedi with Emily Stroud (she graduated with my brother or the year after him).  We are both due on the same day - May 30th so its only fitting as our showers are on the same weekend that we kick off the parties getting our nails and toes done together.  Can't wait to see her and her sweet belly (she is also having a girl - Olivia)!