bedding

Well, as soon as I hit publish on my last post, declaring that I had found bedding for baby boy's room, I instantly started second-guessing myself. I got on Pinterest and reviewed my Baby board and realized there were others on there that I liked better. Keeping with the in-expensive and registry available filters, I think I have made my final decision!

This bedding is from BabySuperMall.com which also provides and online registry option. It is actually less expensive than the previous choice and can be bought in separate pieces. The pale blue and green match some blankets we've already received and I like that it is more geometric than theme-y. I'm hoping to use the gray that is in the bumper for the walls and get some other fun patterned sheets. So, in reality, his room won't actually look anything like this, with the exception of the bedding.

Well, that's it....hopefully. As long as I don't get sucked into Pinterest again!

school's out for the summer....school's out for good!

April and May have been crazy months. As I was gearing up for finals, I was also becoming more and more convinced that the Lord wants me to stay at home with our baby boy this fall! This conversation has been going on since late February/early March and it took me quite a while to finally come to the decision that I wasn't going to be returning to seminary this fall...or ever. I am very confident this is the way the Lord is leading and feel so much peace and excitement in this decision! I never really viewed myself as a stay-at-home-mom, but now I can't wait! Needless to say, the last 6 weeks of school were especially draining knowing that I wouldn't be returning and wanting to get this season of "mom" started as soon as possible! I had my last class last Thursday and now am totally ready to take on this new identity! And considering everyone I know in Denver is from seminary, I'm sure I'll be finding my way down there quite often this fall with baby boy!

Another aspect of this decision came when Aaron was offered the Principal position at Redeemer Lutheran School for next year!! PTY! Becoming a Principal has been Aaron's dream since starting undergrad and we are so pumped that he gets this opportunity at such a young age! So next year he'll actually move up to the 7th/8th grade classroom, teaching in the morning and doing Principal duties in the afternoon (they'll hire a part-time teacher for 7th/8th afternoons). He has lots of plans and we spend many nights brainstorming for the coming years at Redeemer.

Another exciting thing that happened just a few days ago was that Aaron's little brother, Alex, has moved in to our 2nd bedroom! Crazy, I know, since we kind of need that bedroom for baby boy. Alex doesn't mind that his room is crowded with baby things and there is no place for him to put clothes in the closet though! Alex is starting his MBA at DU in the fall and has come out to start working beforehand. We're hoping that the 3 of us, plus baby boy, will be able to find a rental house in the area that we can all share. Good thing we have 2 months of living together and house hunting before we have to make a final decision!

Alright, enough of the word-y update. Here are some updates in pics!

Here I am at 24 weeks. I had an appointment yesterday and everything looks good! 

I think I have finally found bedding that I like. This has just enough orange in it for me, and enough blue and green for Aaron. I'm thinking I'll flip the bumper so the blue shows on the outside and maybe get a different crib skirt. I like the pattern, but the matchy-matchy kind of overwhelms me. I've been searching Pinterest and was really liking designer, expensive, not-available-on-a-registry bedding, so finding this at Target online has made me feel a lot better!

 

My mom very graciously bought us this rocker at a consignment sale while she was out here in April. I'm hoping to recover it with a brighter, cleaner, fabric, but its super comfortable and we got it at a great price! 

Baby boy also got a pack n' play from my wonderful Bible Study girls in Boulder a few weeks ago, so at this point at least we know we'll have a place to put him if he happens to come before we get a crib (which depends on where we live...its going to be a fun 3 months!) We also got another swing and a bunch of clothes from a school parent last week which was also great! I am so ready to start getting everything together!!!!

Happy Summer!

how we found out we're having a BOY! (words, pictures and video)

I am so excited about this baby! From the beginning I knew I wanted to do something big to "reveal" the gender and I started seeing/hearing about these "Gender Reveal Parties"! My friend Susan so graciously offered to throw us one and it was amazing! I am so grateful for all our friends that made it out and for the memories that we made last night! Here is the run-down of how it all happened!

Aaron and I had my 20 week appointment Tuesday morning. We told them we did NOT want to know during the appointment. The doctor handed us a sealed envelope before we left with the gender written on the inside.

From there, I picked up my mom from the airport and we headed to Susan's house to hand over that envelope! She had already been planning for this party all week, buying fun decorations and making cute signs! She said she wasn't going to open it, but later I found out she opened it the minute we left her house!! (Her excuse, she had to call the baker to tell her what color to put on the inside!)

Then, Friday night, we all headed to Susan's for the party. She had ordered bows & mustaches for everyone to choose what they thought it would be, had a place where people could write down name suggestions (I can't wait to really read those!) and a spot to predict the gender. She made ah-mazing food and right in the middle were the cupcakes that would reveal pink or blue filling once we bit into it! I had to keep moving myself away from the cupcakes, it was making me so anxious!

Finally, the time came when we took pictures of all the "bow" people and then the "mustache" people, and as a group! Then it was time to bit into our cupcake!!!

Though everyone had their own cupcake, they waited and let Aaron and I find out first! We were both shocked! We both had been thinking girl up until that point, but it didn't matter! We are thrilled to know we are having a boy!!! It was mustaches all around for the rest of the night!!

Here are the pics! And a video at the end!

These boys are both so happy it is a BOY!

The Mustache Group

The Bow Group (Thanks Isaac for choosing bow!)

EVERYONE!

Right when we found out, sharing with everyone watching!

YAY! BOY!

My Annex Bible Study girls....all the way down from Boulder, I was so happy to have them there!

Susan and Joy, thank you SO much for everything!

Susan & Chuck, the wonderful hosts!

Susan, Me and MoMo!!

Annnnd here is a video of when we found it! (Thanks Andrew!)

20 weeks!

This past Saturday marked 20 weeks of pregnancy DONE! Can't you hear it...."Ohhhhhh we're half way there whoa-oh, livin' on a prayer!" I'm feeling pretty good and even though I've gotten most of my energy back, there are still nights when I'm almost falling asleep in my dinner! I have 4 weeks of school left (YAY!) and then I can focus on growing this baby! We go for our anatomy ultrasound tomorrow when they should be able to tell if it is a girl or boy! We're having the doctor write it down and waiting until Friday night when my great friend Susan is hosting a "Gender Reveal" Party for us! I'm giving her the paper and she's getting a cake made that will reveal blue or pink when we cut into it. I can't wait! It is going to be a loooon few days between Tuesday morning and Friday night! Pictures of that will definitely be up Saturday!

In other news, our favorite San Francisco Giants came to Colorado to play the Rockies last week. We got tickets months ago and have been counting down to the beginning of baseball season!

Y'all know about my obsession with Brian Wilson from this post. We got there early enough to see both teams warm up, but a huge thunderstorm came through right as the Giants were getting started. Brian and one other pitcher stayed out on the field, so I got lots of great photos!

We also got our (almost) 20 week belly shot! 

And some of y'all will be excited to know that Tyler Colvin, a Clemson baseball alum, is playing for the Colorado Rockies. So even though I was cheering for the Giants, I was glad when #21 got some hits. He is actually doing really, really well, so go check him out! 

We also went out dinner last night to celebrate 20 weeks. We stumbled upon "Max's Gill and Grill" and I was a super happy girl. When I saw "North Carolina Style Pulled Pork" I was convinced. Start to finish, I indulged myself in good southern food. Steamed shrimp as an appetizer, pulled pork with cornbread and I ended the night with pecan pie! It was definitely the best meal I've had in Denver! If you are in Denver and reading this, I would definitely recommend it. (Aaron got the trout and the prime rib and loved both)

Stay tuned for pictures from our "Gender Reveal" party!! What do you think it'll be, boy or girl?

Happy Opening Day!

spring break

In typical fashion, I am majorly avoiding and procrastinating working on a paper I have due at the end of this week, so you get the benefit of a sneak peek of our spring break! Aaron and I left Thursday after school and drove to California to surprise his dad for his 60th birthday! His mom had been planning for all the kids to come in as a surprise and also managed to put together a huge party of around 125 people without him knowing! Here are just a few pictures...many more to come, hopefully after I finish my paper!

Aunt Deina getting to meet Hellen for the first time!

 There was a good friend of the family's there to take professional family pictures. Here are 2 that were caught with my camera. Also, the shirt I am wearing makes me look waaaay more preggo than I actually am, but people wanted to see pregnant and you gotta give the people what they want!

Ashley, Hellen and Francis

preggo. for reals.

all the boys gathered on the deck for pipes and cigars....love it

Andy and Hellen, Happy 60th Grandpa!

There are lots more to come, along with an explanation of the fun things we did while there. Now, back to work!

16 weeks

Yesterday we went for my 16 week appointment! Everything is looking good. The nurse used a fetal Doppler to hear the baby's heartbeat, which is going strong at 150! I was amazed that she could just put this device on top of my belly and we could hear it so clearly! Aaron was able to come to this appointment and I think he is just amazed every time he hears it. I've been getting weekly updates via thebump.com and babycenter.com and they both say that baby is the size of an avocado this week! Most of the time they differ on what fruit baby is and sometimes I wonder if the baby is shrinking, ha!
I've felt a lot better these past 2 weeks than I did weeks 12 - 14. I'm finally getting over that extreme exhaustion stage and don't need to take a nap every afternoon! I had an unfortunate case of horrible heartburn and vomiting after a mixture of chicken enchiladas and McDonald's iced coffee...so needless to say I won't be stopping by the Golden Arches for coffee any time soon! And, speaking of coffee, this pregnancy has really helped to expand my choices at coffee shops...to decaf Americanos at least! I've run into a few places that don't do decaf regular coffee, so I've gotten to enjoy a new beverage! I've also been slowly expanding my wardrobe, thanks to birthday money last week, which has been super fun! I got a few tops from Motherhood last week, but have realized I'm not quite as pregnant as I think I am because they are all huge in the belly! So, I've hung them up in the closet and will probably have to wait a few more weeks before I can wear them. But at least I know I have some clothes that will last me through the summer!

And just to show that our lives have not yet completely been taken over by pregnancy, here is a short list of things that have been going on lately. Sorry for the lack of pictures!

* My 27th birthday was last Wednesday and it was great. I got to relax, read some books, do some shopping and Aaron took me out to a great french restaurant. Then, this past Saturday, we had a barbeque down at the park near our house for all our friends. Though it took 4 boys and about 1.5 hours to put the grill together, it was a success! I'm so grateful for the friends God has put in our lives this year and that they were all able to come out and celebrate!

* Aaron has started playing baseball for the Denver National Adult Baseball Association (NABA). A few weeks ago he had to go to tryouts and they picked guys like it were a real baseball draft! He was picked 2nd out of his age group in the first round! He is super excited and I'm very proud of him. He'll have games starting in April all the way to September and I can't wait to spend the afternoons getting a tan watching him play!

* I'm not sure I have officially blogged about this, but back in January I started a new job working for Denver K-Life. K-Life is a high school/middle school ministry that emphasizes small groups, discipleship and transformation in the name of Jesus. I am working as their Administrative Assistant, just 10 hours a week. I love it. Most of my job recently has been sending out weekly update e-mails, mailing out the calendar and formatting curriculum. It is really fun to be on this side of ministry, where I'm imputing Bible Study material instead of making it up, haha! The team is super fun, all under 30, and I'm really enjoying getting to know them as well!

* I've also been working with the Camp Carysbrook Alumnae Association. I'm planning on doing a whole post on what Carysbrook has meant to me, as soon as I can get the words right, but for those who have been there, or those who know me well, you know that this place has had a huge impact in my life. We're working on building up our Alumnae membership, so if you are one of those people I've been e-mailing and texting to get signed up, go do it! It is a great way to stay in touch with friends, be in the know about Alumnae weekends and reunions, and support the place that gave us such great memories. To become a member, just go to the Carysbrook website and click on Alumnae. And for those parents of girls our there who are reading...send your child to camp, when you find the right now, it is the best experience you can give them!


Well, that about sums it up. And I'm late for class! Hope y'all have a great day!