It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

We have been busy lately, with the usual things that keep us busy this time of year...plus some colds.

Avery had her first dance recital at the mall. I would put the video here, but Blogger is being stupid again and doesn't like it, for some reason. Sum up: Avery freaked out because of all the people and shut down, spent most of the performance at the side of the stage, crying with me, and I got her to go back out, but her teacher pretty much carried her around and then she finally danced the last 10 seconds, maybe. It was still really cute, though!

This girl got her hair cut. Before: 

 After:

For the first few days after her hair cut, she was constantly running her hands through her hair and commenting on how much she loved it.

We had Thanksgiving at my parents' house. My Grandpa John and Grandma Nancy made the trip up to see us, so it was fun to be with them, too.

Avery turned 3! I can't believe I have a three year old, but it's true. I do. We asked her what she'd like to eat for her birthday dinner and she said, "A cheeseburger." So, we headed to Red Robin.

The day after her birthday, we had a small birthday gathering with all her grandparents that were in attendance: Bompa, Gramma, Grammie, PawPaw, and Great-Grandpa John and Great-Grandma Nancy. She was in heaven all night, as all the attention was focused on her!

 She LOOOOOOOVES to open presents.

 Evelyn made sure some attention was focused on her.

Then, this week, I've been slowly getting Christmas decorations put up, Christmas cookies made, and lots of Christmas music listening done. Today, we had a great quiet family day at home. During Evelyn's almost 3 hour nap (I KNOW!!!), we decorated a gingerbread house with Avery. That was a huge hit!

It's only going to get busier these next few weeks! I'm trying to take the time to remember what we are really celebrating, and just enjoy my time with my sweet ones.

33 Weeks...

I know I am posting 4 days late, but the last 4 days have been so busy!

First, I'll talk about Baby Bruce. I went to my doctor's appointment on Friday and found out that the little monkey is head-down, so that is great news! Dr. P says that at this point, babies rarely flip back up, so hopefully Baby will stay in position.

I also spoke with Dr. P about vaccinations. I have been reading a lot about the normal flu vaccine and the infamous swine flu vaccine lately and was on the fence. I don't overreact to sickness and illnesses, but just try to eat right and gets lots of sleep during cold and flu season. But Dr. P said that she's never seen an illness like swine flu in her 16 years of having her practice and she's strongly recommending all OB patients to get the vaccine.

Because I trust her, I decided to follow her advice. And Huzz and I need to go get our normal flu vaccines soon. Again, the only time I've ever actually had the flu is two months after I got the flu shot when I was living in Maryland. But again, I could react differently since I'm pregnant. Sigh... This is just the beginning of making decisions like this for our family!

As you can see, I continue to get larger.

Baby is now the size of a large melon and should be over 4 pounds now!

"Baby's gaining weight almost as fast as you are these days (averaging out to about half a pound a week), which puts the grand total so far at more than 4 1/2 pounds. Still, your baby has plenty of growing up (and out) to do. He or she may grow a full inch this week alone and may come close to doubling in weight by D-day. And with that much baby inside your uterus now, your amniotic fluid level has maxed out (there's no room for more fluid now). Which explains why those pokes and kicks are sometimes extremely uncomfortable: There's less fluid to cushion the blows. Antibodies are also being passed from you to your baby as your little one continues to develop his or her own immune system. These antibodies will definitely come in handy on the outside and will protect your baby-to-be from many of those playground germs."

~ What to Expect When You're Expecting, 4th Edition

I have been getting lots of sharp pain from Baby's legs stretching up under my ribs. That hurts!

Last Thursday, Bro-in-law "E", flew in from the northwest for the weekend and his wife, Julie came on Friday night. On Thursday evening before we headed to the airport to pick up "E" (that's what we call him, seriously), we headed to the baby superstore to pick up the crib that had come in. Then, we headed to Triple B to buy the raised air mattress that was on sale and we had a 20% off coupon for. We got a $300 bed for about $180. Not bad, eh? We picked up "E" and got home kind of late.

Friday was spent getting ready for Saturday: cleaning, straightening, brushing Riley, fixing the kegerator, all the things you do to get ready for about 30 people to come to your house. Huzz turns 30 this coming Wednesday, so we celebrated that on Saturday night with a BBQ get together with friends. By the time the party started at 5:00, my feet were already throbbing with pain, but I pushed on until 1:00 am!

I made and decorated this cake and a sheet cake ~ do you like?

That cake was on FIRE!!! Haha.

Then, we had to get up by 8:30 on Sunday morning (we didn't make it to church) and drive down to the Springs so Julie could help host my baby shower at my mother-in-law's house. I hung out with my mom until it was time for the shower and that started at 2:00. It was so fun! I love seeing people who I don't get to see on a regular basis, but I have known since I was little. I have felt so blessed, loved, and cared for these past couple of weekends with these showers!

After the shower, we headed back to D-Town to take E and Julie to the airport, stopping at Noodles for dinner along the way. By the time Huzz and I got home, my feet were the most swollen they have ever been! I soaked them in cold water and then propped them up the rest of the night. They look a lot better now, but are still swollen, so they're up on the ottoman.

Today is a lazy day. I have a lot to do, but I've decided that today is my recovery day and I'll get busy tomorrow!

Quick update: my friends, the Stroups, have brought home their little Livia Joy home from the NICU! It sounds like she is doing awesome. Thank you for any prayers you lifted up for this family during the last couple of difficult and joyful months.

I May Be 28...

But I still get carded!
On my birthday, we went to lunch with my mom to Chili's. Since it was my birthday, I decided to spoil myself and get a Presidente margarita. It was delicious!

The Huzz and me. May I remind you that he turned 29 a few months ago?

My beautiful mama.

Thank you for a great birthday lunch, guys!