Lazy...

...well, kinda.  We've actually been extremely busy, but now that June has arrived, time has slowed down a bit and the J-man and I have actually been able to just "be" which is delightful.  Some may deem us lazy, some may color us utterly sloth-like, but hey...we're loud, we're proud, and we're allowed.  Because you know what?  IT'S SUMMMMMMMMMMER!!!!!!  This past week has been nothing short of amazing and thus, Toots McGoots and I have been hittin' up the Banker Beach daily.  It's been GREAT!  It is incredibly different from last year where Jack would do this all day while at the pool...

This year?  Not so much.  Not even close, actually.  Like his father, Jackbaby is a creature of habit and thus, he awakes each morning at the same time he did during the schoolyear...7a.m.  It stinks because it's so early, but it's nice because we get to see Daddy off to work each morning and I get to watch the Today show which I love.  Then, around 10:30, we head over the pool and by the time we get there, it's Toots's naptime.  He sleeps, I lay out...he wakes up, has lunch, and then splishes and splashes in his little pool or the big pool or under the shade of one of the umbrellas in his pack n' play.  This kid is so "go with the flow" it's unbelievable!  He is my little sidekick and I am absolutely LOVING. EVERY. MINUTE. of this time off with him!  I know many a mothers who try and claim this, but I know it to be 100% true when I state that my kid is the bomb dot com.  

Who needs sunshine at the pool when I have it in the flesh with my little sidekick here?!?

Here's our daily getaway...

para, para, paradise

Jackie's little oasis.  He LOVES it in there because it is just his size :)

Jackie's other little play palace when he's "pooled out".  He LOVES watching all the action - whether it be Shawn, Shawn and his friends, Cathryn, or Cathryn and her friends, he is completely content in his little fortress of solitude there...well, as long as he has some Reese's cereal to much on :)

Morning photoshoots to Daddy and Mamaw!  Guess who is now the proud owner of 5 (working on his 6th) teeth?!?  Oh yes folks, our fella is growing up :)

Jackie Zoolander

Other activities we've encountered this week...

Reflecting...

My last day of being pregnant.  Wait, let me say that again...THIS IS MY LAST DAY BEING PREGNANT.  Wowza...those words, no matter how many times I utter them, just aren't completely sinking in!  It just seems so surreal.  Matter of fact, as this time tomorrow, we will be holding our sweet baby boy...after 9 months of waiting and waiting!  Holy cow!  I know I am not the first woman to give birth and I most definitely am not the last so I certainly do not feel like no one understands what this day feels like...BUT, I just wanted to take some time to reflect on the top ten BEST things about the past 9 months of pregnancy for me...

10) the surprise of it all - I seriously thought this would NEVER happen.  B and I had been trying for quite some time and I had almost given up hope.  It was such an unexpected thing to walk up to 2 lines on a pregnancy test sitting on our bathroom counter. I in NO way anticipated that result!

9) telling friends and family.  We had fun trying to come up with different and cute ways to tell those around us that we were expecting!  I think the cutest was my father...we told my parents on their anniversary and my mom understood the card before him, and the minute he realized what it said, he had tears in his eyes.  It was truly special.  Cathryn's reaction was pretty cute as well.  I loved waking her up with a note and her face when the realization hit.  We were so excited!

8) eating, eating, eating...Duh!  While I have NOT enjoyed the weight gain, I HAVE enjoyed having an excuse to eat more and give into cravings.  Albeit 40 gained pounds later (yes, I have come to terms with it), I'm probably rethinking several choices along the way now, but I wouldn't change it for anything in the world because it helped pregnancy all that much more special for me.

7) the excitement of my students.  As soon as I told them, they all instantaneously became my little guardians, constantly making sure I was okay.  They even manned a countdown on our whiteboard and asked about how we wee feeling every other minute.  Kids really are so much fun and their excitement was contagious towards an already overly exuberant mommy-to-be :)

6) watching my tummy grow and grow.  While I did not want to wish away my pregnancy, I WAS dying to have a little baby bump.  It is something I had imagined for years and years, and then couldn't wait for it to happen.  Suddenly, around 12-13, out he popped and I finally had proof that Little Boo was in there!  Now, he is out and about and making his presence known for sure!

5) the ultrasounds.  Every single ultrasound was the best moment of my life.  There was nothing more special than seeing my precious son come to life on a screen.  It has been so exciting watching how the scans change from time to time and thus Jack getting bigger and bigger.

4)  the consideration of others.  Sounds silly, but people really are more considerate of you when you are pregnant.  It always about what's best for the baby and I love that people want to take such good care of our sweet son.

3) decorating Jack's nursery and focusing most purchases on little man!  I have loved painting things for his room and piecing together things for his nursery.  I have also loved devoting so much of my shopping to him.  It's NO secret to anyone that I LOVE clothes and have more than my fair share, so it's been nice knowing that I am in NO shape to buy things for myself, nor have I wanted to...it's been all about sweet Jackbaby!

2) the rich bond with others - especially my husband.  B and I have been together for a long, long time and thus, we've been through so, so, sooooo much and we've survived it.  Being pregnant has been something else to go through together and it has brought us all that much closer.  We know that Jack has to have a strong foundation for a relationship in his parents and I feel all that much closer to B now that we have created life together.  I see him differently and our bond has deepened and become more rich.  We are a team.  I have an ally in raising a child and I could not feel more blessed.

1) the bond with my son.  There are no words to adequately convey how much I love this child...already.  And I haven't even met him yet!  The most magical part of being pregnant has been feeling him inside me.  I have my partner-in-crime, my buddy, my companion, and my strength throughout this experience....and it's been even more special knowing we're in it together.  I am going to miss him in my stomach and feeling him jab, kick, roll, punch, and booty and head-butt me!  I have never...and I mean, absolutely NEVER not enjoyed his movements.  3-4a.m. or 4PM, I have loved every single movement, painful or not.  He's alive and he's inside me and I have gotten to feel the most mesmerizing and joy-inducing part of pregnancy!  Just thinking about it brings me to tears.

Oh boy, am I going to be an emotional mess tomorrow...I just cannot believe we FINALLY get to meet our son and can only imagine the sheer joy we are going to feel.  He is truly our blessing and a special gift from God that will enrich our lives FOREVER.

IF you are out and about tomorrow and have the time, we honestly would love for you to come and see us.  I promise you that you are not intruding or getting in the way.  B and I have discussed in depth about how Jackbaby is everybody's baby and we want him to meet everyone we can.  He's our little social butterfly :)  We also want everyone to share in our joy...so I mean it, come see us...we would LOVE to see you!  We will be at Central Baptist Hospital on Nicholasville Road.  The c-section is scheduled for 10:30a.m. tomorrow (Tues. 4/3) so come on by...we should be there until Thursday at the very least.

watch out world, here he comes!

Well, here we are...36 weeks, 3 days: a time I for sure knew was coming, but felt like would never get here!  We have a few updates about doctor's visits...we've had A TON over the past 2-3 weeks after my blood pressure issue came on, but we are so, so grateful to have been put in so many capable hands.  On Friday, B and I heard some of the most devastating news: that something was not "right" with our son.  We had an ultrasound and were soon told that our son may have a growth dysfunction...meaning, he wasn't growing any longer inside my womb. I shared those results last Friday here on the blog after it happened, but we went to a high-risk doctor for an ultrasound on Tuesday and to say we were surprised, is an understatement.  We went expecting to hear some more bad news (I even had mine and Jack's hospital bags and my pillows with me because we were certain I may be delivering THAT day!), but much to our excitement, we found that there is nothing wrong with our Little Boo at all!!!  The doctor and the ultrasound tech did their measurements and tests and it turns out that Jack is about 6 pounds!!!  They said that everything looks absolutely beautiful with our son...he is receiving adequate nutrition and blood supply from the umbilical cord and all his major organs are functioning flawlessly.  He could even see that Jack has a bunch of hair and that there was urine backed up in his kidneys...CRAZY!  The appointment could NOT have gone any better and we are so relieved and are feeling so, so blessed.

We went for another check-up today and all was well and wonderful for a bit...but with my gestational hypertension, I have to have an NST (non-stress test) with each and every visit which is where they hook up Jack and me to the fetal monitor.  During this, I got super hot and my anxiety started getting really high, so then Jack's heart rate went up, up, up which then made me even more anxious and my BP climbed higher yet again.  Thus, my doctor says that my BP will only get worse (not better) over the next couple of weeks and that could be incredibly detrimental to Jack and me, so we will still be having a c-section on Tuesday (April 3rd) at 10:30a.m. at Central Baptist Hospital.   We cannot wait to meet our sweet, sweet baby boy and if you're out and able, swing on by and meet him too...we'd love to have ya!  Watch out world, HERE. HE. COMES!

What's making me smile this week...

other than knowing I will meet my son in less than 7 days...

In the midst of the craziness that has become our life these days, B and I have found ourselves a bit stressed and a bit worrisome over the events that are soon to transpire.  Um, HELLO we are going to be parents at least 3 weeks sooner than we ever anticipated...ahhhhhhh!!!  Thus, I have to think, what am I REALLY stressed about?!?  Nothing.  And my worries?  They too should soon subside.  I know they most definitely will the moment I hold my sweet, sweet baby boy in my arms for the very first time.  Things are pretty serious and will be until we meet him...he IS the most important thing.

but in the meantime, we also have a few terrific things going on.  One, our son coming is terrific.  It's beyond terrific.  It's actually terrifically untoppable...BUT we also have a certain little game going on this Saturday.  The University of Kentucky has made it to the Final Four for the second year in a row and the Elite Eight for the 3rd year in a row...holy cow, we're back on top where we belong...where every UK fan has always known we stand...and where every UK fan has never given up hope to be.  It feels good and well, it feels right.  The only kink in this excitement is the fact that we have to play Louisville.  I have many a Louisville fan friends and this will undoubtedly anger them a bit, but I absolutely, wholeheartedly DETEST Louisville.  Seriously.  I cringe at the thought of playing against a team that many friends root for...I can just see it getting UGLY.  And heaven forbid if UK were to have an 'off' day and UofL pull off a surprise win, we'd probably have to move.  Louisville IS  a good team, and they are capable of great things...I'd just hate nothing more than to be the great thing they're capable of beating. I don't think I could stomach a loss to them.  So until the game happens, here are a few little things that have been making me smile...

And finally, here some pics of things at my school shower yesterday...

My teammates are so thoughtful and so are the other people that I'm blessed to work with.  Did you SEE my cake and did you SEE my cupcakes?!?  I love, love, loooooooove them!!!  So precious!  My teammate, Page, even arranged to have my preggo punch for me...ahhhhh!!!!  Remember me saying that's all I drank for weeks and weeks back at the beginning of my pregnancy?!?  It and Ale8 are the nectar of the gods.  Seriously.  I highly recommend trying it.  Tee-hee!

Now, off to the doctor we go...