27 Week Bumpdate

27 Week- Bumpdate

Well, it's been a while since the last update.  We've been pretty busy around here, trying to get things done as we prepare for baby.

Pregnancy Highlights

How far along?  27 weeks (by some books, the 3rd trimester- how time flies!)

Baby's size: Baby is somewhere around 2 lbs (the size of a head of rutabaga)

Total weight gain:  Around 15 lbs

Maternity Clothes?  Yes- pants are mostly maternity, and I can still wear some with the bella band thankfully, lots of dresses (both maternity and not), and mixed on the tops.  If they are long enough, I can sometimes still swing the regular ones.

Best Moment this week:  Well, it's been a while since I've updated, and lots has gone on, but most recently, I would say passing the glucose test and Matt painting the nursery (it's still a work in progress, but we're getting there).  

Gender:  It's a surprise!

Movement:  LOTS!

Food Cravings:  Nothing new here.  Appetite increase in the last couple weeks.

Food Aversions:  Nothing major.. eating pretty much same as normal these days.

Sleep:  I'm sleeping okay, just having trouble sleeping in beyond like 7 am on the weekends... oh well, could be worse.

What I'm looking forward to:  A long memorial day weekend and my upcoming first baby shower in 2 weeks!  We also have a wedding weekend this weekend to look forward to!

-Jordan-

20 Week Bumpdate

20 Weeks {Bumpdate}

Week 19 was a fantastic week for us.  We started off the week getting a sneak peak at our little one with our ultrasound.  We've opted not to find out the gender, but it was still amazing to see the little guy or girl moving around in there.  Baby deFlon was definitely an active one.  We then headed out to North Carolina for a fantastic Easter with my family.  Here are some highlights this week!

 

Pregnancy Highlights

20 weeks

The proud daddy-to-be

How could I leave out this little darling, Miss Hadley

How Far Along:   20 weeks, 2 days

Baby's Size:   Baby is the size of a banana, about 10 oz.

Total Weight Gain:   I'd guess around 10-11 lbs (9 at my appt last week).

Maternity Clothes?  So far, mostly still in regular clothes (bella bands with regular pants), but I'm definitely loving my maternity jeans.  I have noticed a few shirts getting a little short, but full on maternity clothes are pretty big looking still.  I'm super excited to have gotten some new maternity clothes last weekend thanks to Mom and that my sister loaned me some of hers to wear, too! 

 

Best Moment This Week:  We've had a pretty fantastic week, so it's pretty hard to choose, but I'd have to say when we got to see our little bambino.  The last time we saw him/her it was at 6 weeks, so this was our first real look.  We're so in love already.

 

Gender:   It's a surprise!

Movement:  I think I started feeling the first flutters around 17-18 weeks, but movement now is now quite frequent.  Last weekend, Matt even got to feel it for the first time- pretty cool!

 

Food Cravings:  Most of my cravings have been for salty foods, pickles, and occasionally for sour candy.  I put a hurting on some Starburst Jelly Beans this weekend!

Food Aversions:   No major aversions this week.

What I Miss:  Comfortable sleep.  I tried out my sister's pregnancy pillow last week, and I've fallen in love.  I ordered mine as soon as I got back!

Sleep?   As I mentioned before, it's a little touch and go.  I'm just tossing and turning a lot, but I think the new pillow will help.

 

What I'm Looking Forward To:  Starting on the nursery in the next couple of weeks!

 

-Jordan-

The Start of Something New- Baby deFlon

After much debate about how to document our journey to baby, I decided to resurrect the old blog and use this space to document our pregnancy for family and friends (and for us).

As I started to think about what I wanted to record regarding our pregnancy journey, I debated on what to include, what to share with whoever would read this.  I felt that our feelings, fears, concerns, and joys would not be understandable without knowing the road to get here.  First, I have to say, becoming pregnant in less than a year is a huge blessing.  I know many people struggle for years trying to have a baby, and I am so thankful we were able to get pregnant without enduring that kind of difficulty.  After about 9 months of "we'll see what happens" to really wanting a baby, through a miscarriage that broke our hearts, and the wait that followed, we were thrilled but nervous to learn that we were pregnant on December 14, 2012.  I honestly didn't think we were going to be pregnant.  It was the first month following the miscarriage that we could "try" again, and I was expecting it might take a little while. I decided to take a test that morning for very logical reasons-- it was the last day of open enrollment, being pregnant would affect my benefits choices.  I had no idea such a logical decision would result in such an emotional response.  I took two tests that morning, and with each test got a little more excited.  I knew from before that I shouldn't get too excited so soon, but I couldn't contain my joy.  I jumped back into bed while Matt was still sleeping and woke him up to tell him the good news!  We were both so excited, but very cautious, trying to contain our excitement until we knew that things were going well. 

 We got through a couple rounds of blood work and were elated to hear that things looked good, different this time.  On Christmas Eve night, after church, Matt's parents, his brother, and his brother's friend went to church and came over afterward to celebrate Christmas.  We had planned for a long time to tell his parents with a baby life jacket, since they have a condo at the lake now.  We decided to wrap it as one of Glenda's Christmas gifts and were overjoyed as we watched them open it.  She knew immediately what the gift meant and the whole family excitedly celebrated the good news! 

Matt's mom, Glenda, opening her Christmas gift- the baby life jacket!

Christmas was the next day, and the holiday had so much extra joy for us, knowing the Christmas gift we had been blessed with this year.  The day after Christmas, my family arrived in Kansas City, and we decided to keep our secret until after our doctor's appointment the following day.  We were lucky enough to get to do a sonogram, which showed the precious beating heart we had so longed for.  It was incredible!  After the appointment, I was dying to tell my family!  We had planned a special way to announce the news to them too.  This time, the surprise involved a gift for my niece, Hadley.  We wrapped the gifts, and I went downstairs to tell the family it was time to open gifts.  No one was in a huge hurry, so finally we decided to just let Hadley open hers- perfect!  Olivia helped Hadley open her gifts, and soon she saw the sweet little shirt we had made.  It read, "My aunt has a cousin tin the oven."  It took a second, but she finally realized what was going on, and we shared the news with everyone.  Again, they were so excited for us, and hugs were shared by everyone.

My sister, Olivia, and her daughter, Hadley opening Hadley's gift... 

Later, Liv posed Hadley in her outfit, so we could share the news with everyone.

In the days and weeks that followed, there was so much excitement and lots of nervousness.  We were very apprehensive about the pregnancy, knowing that things could so easily go wrong.  Thankfully, through our journey to become pregnant, God had strengthened our faith and our marriage.  We had learned that God would be faithful and that no matter how things turned out, God would use this for our good and his will, even if it hurt.  We prayed that this child would be healthy and strong, and day by day, week by week, we grew more confident that this would be the case.  It's not to say that we weren't still scared and didn't have doubts to overcome, but our faith was what got us through.  In addition to our faith, we were also so grateful to have our family by our sides.  Their encouragement and support was unwavering, and when we were hesitant to get excited, they reminded us to enjoy the joy of the moment.  Finally, as we reached 10 weeks, we were able to return to the doctor for another appointment.  We were so excited, but again, we were nervous, knowing that this time period was the most critical.  Our 10 week appointment brought nothing but good news!  Everything looked great, and the heartbeat was nice and strong!

9 Weeks

10 Weeks

 

11 Weeks

12 Weeks- I love Cayne in the background of this one.  Poor guy doesn't know what's coming!

From this point forward, we felt much more confident about our little one, and we slowly started to share the news among our extended family and close friends.  By the end of the first trimester, our news was pretty much public.  So far, the pregnancy has been going well.  After passing the "functionally nauseous" first trimester, I've felt pretty great.  Thankfully my energy has returned, and I'm happy to report I'm not falling asleep on the couch at 8 p.m. anymore (most nights).  We have decided not to find out baby D's gender, but we're having fun guessing.  Originally, I craved lots of salty foods, so I was thinking it must be a boy, but since about the end of the first trimester, I've had a strong girl feeling.  I can't wait until delivery day to find out!  Matt has been such a great help to me, especially on the days when I feel rotten and tired.  I think he's glad to have actual meals for dinner again instead of just frozen pizza and breakfast every night.  And because no good pregnancy post would be complete without a few good bump pictures, here is the bump progression.

13 Weeks

14 Weeks

15 Weeks

16 Weeks

 17 Weeks

18 Weeks (thought the bump was looking especially "bumpish" this day)

I do plan to try and update weekly or at least every other week, so I have a record of our journey to parenthood.  Thank you for those of you who have supported us along the way, prayed for us, and who have celebrated with us in our joy.  We could not be more grateful for all of your and for our precious little bun in the oven.

-Jordan-

About Me

One of my good friends, Alissa, in Memphis tagged me in this, and I haven't done anything like this in a while, so I thought it might be fun! 

The Rules:

1.  You must post the rules and link up who tagged you.

2.  Post eleven fun facts about yourself.

3.  Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.

4.  Tag eleven as many people as you want and link them on your post.

5.  Let them know you've tagged them!

Eleven facts about me:

1. I've lived in both K States (Kansas and Kentucky) as well as all but 1 BBQ areas of the US (NC, Kansas City, Memphis.. I've yet to live in TX).

2. I married my high school sweetheart on 6.7.08- the best decision I ever made.  We look forward to starting a family, but I love the time we have alone for now.

[6.7.8 Best day ever!]

3. I'm the oldest of 3 girls.  I'm so blessed to have a close relationship with my sisters, and the older we get, the closer we all are.  I look forward so much to the years ahead with kids and families of our own.

[Myself, Molly, and Olivia- can you tell we're sisters]

4.  I grew up in North Carolina, and no matter where I live (or how much I love where I live), I'm still a Southern girl at heart.

5. Even though I did not grow up a K-State fan, after going there, I'm now a die-hard fan! Love those Cats!

 [My college girlfriends at our K-State tailgate]

6. I'm a type-A planner, through and through, but I'm working on letting go a little and loosening up.

7. I love being an Auntie!  My niece, Hadley is a cutie patootie! I don't get to see her as often as I'd like, but I love her lots, and it's so much fun to watch her grow!

8.  I love to travel!  We haven't done much of it lately, except to see family or friends, but I hope, one day, we can do more.  Italy (and then Greece) are at the top of my dream vacation list!

9.  I love to craft and try new recipes, but I don't take the time to do it as much as I'd like (this is part of the reason for limiting my online time during lent- because there is so much else to do with my time).  I really wish I had invented Pinterest.

10.  Our dog, Cayne, is definitely our baby!  Matt got him (and I went with him) when we were freshmen in college.  He has grown with us, and I don't think I could love an animal (whiny and annoying as he sometimes is) more!  This boy is going to have huge issues when little ones come along.. although at least we'll save money on pony rides with this big boy around!

11.  I'm a little bit of a bad TV junkie.  I love Lifetime and TLC.. I can't say I have great taste, but I find their shows and movies quite addictive.

Alissa's questions:

1.  What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

Mint Chocolate Chip or Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

2.  How many children do you have/plan on having?

I've always thought 4, but all things considered, I'm thinking we'll have 3- I really want them to have siblings!

3.  What do you do for a living?

I'm a HR Administrator- I do a little bit of everything when it comes to working with our employees in the manufacturing company I work for.  I wasn't sure if I'd love it, but I truly do, and I'm learning so much!

4.  Are you a coke or diet coke person?

I'm a bit of a diet coke addict!

5.  Where did you go to college and what was your major?

Kansas State and Management (HR emphasis and Spanish Minor.. although I'm not fluent)

6.  What is your biggest fear?

My biggest fear is having something truly tragic happen in my life- losing someone I love before their time.  I wouldn't say I worry about it all the time, but it scares me to death.

7.  What is the last book that you read?

Probably 'Something Blue'.  I started 'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo', but I haven't finished it.. I've been slacking!

8.  If you could leave for a trip tomorrow, where would you want to go?

Italy!

9.  Why did you start your blog?

I started my blog after getting hooked on a few others.  I thought it would be a great way to connect with new people (especially when we were in Memphis, and I didn't know a ton of people), and I wanted my family and friends far away to be able to keep up with our lives.

10.  Did you go to prom?  If so - describe your dress!

I did!  I went for three years.  My dress senior year was kind of a white mermaid dress- I LOVED it!

[My dad and me before senior prom.. don't have a full length shot on the computer]

11.  What is your favorite holiday?

Christmas is my favorite! I love spending time with family and giving (okay, getting too) gifts!

My questions:

1.  What's your favorite blog to read?

2.  What has been your favorite vacation?

3.  Where would you love to live other than where you currently live?

4.  What is the best thing about your life right now?

5.  What is your favorite pinterest (if you're not on it, blogger/web) find?

6.  Do you do a girls' weekend with your friends?  If so, where?

7.  Lake person vs beach person?

8.  What's your favorite drink to order at a bar?

9.  What's you go-to recipe?

10. What's your favorite thing about your family?

11. What do you wear when you want to feel most beautiful?

Since I'm not even sure 11 people still read my blog, if you still read, you've been tagged!

-Jordan-

The Money Sermon

The infamous Money Sermon.. usually a week most people honestly want to avoid at church.  This week, however, was quite the exception to that.  This week I visited a church we've been to a few times that is a little closer to our house than the church we've previously attended.  We've had good experiences when we've gone, but today was far and away the best yet!  I don't feel quite capable of recapping the sermon, but let me just say that it's not your typical "Money Sermon", although it IS incredibly thought provoking and convicting.  If you have some time, I would encourage you to check out this sermon.

http://vimeo.com/37472029

I hope it will bless you today, as it did me.

-Jordan-

Lent

Lent- a season to focus on God leading up to Easter and the resurrection.  

I happen to love the lenten season.  By making the commitment to the Lord, I am able to do/sacrifice so much more than I am by my own abilities.  Even though sacrifice is hard, I feel so rejuvenated, focused, and at peace after going through the process.   For the past few years, I have given up soft drinks- huge, given that I don't drink coffee, so it's my sole source of caffeine.  After last year, I was able to give up one of my daily diet cokes.  I'm down to 2.. some days only 1.  I am continuing to give this up this year.  It will still be hard, especially on the super tired days or early mornings, but it's probably my biggest "food" addiction, so I think it's still important.  I'm also adding to it this year with a couple more Lent commitments.  I'm giving up chocolate... ugh.. I've been thinking for a while of a food sacrifice.  I've done sweets before, but it's been a while.  I don't eat tons of sweet stuff like I did back in college, but I've developed a habit of a piece of chocoalate after lunch, chocolate in my granola bars or snacks, and often chocolate (even if it's the 'diet' variety) in my desserts when I have them.  I'm hoping giving it up will help me get away from most of my sweets (even though I know I may end up subbing something in where chocolate is currently).  It will certainly be a challenge.  Finally, I'm limiting myself to 30 minutes of internet time at home.  I'm allowing myself 30 minutes for whatever I want, but I feel like it will be filled with mostly necessary stuff like paying bills and looking up my saved recipes, etc.  I am going to make every effort to keep most of that time before Matt gets home, so I spend more quality time with him.  I also hope it gives me more time to get things done at home and do other projects I've been meaning to do.  With all of my lent commitments I am going to have Sunday off.

Matt's participating in Lent this year, too, and I'm really proud of him for it!  He has committed to giving up his out to eat lunches at work.  This is HUGE for him, and something that I am always nagging him about.  I also asked if he would commit to reading a devotion book I gave him for Christmas over lent, to which he agreed.  I hope it will be something he grows to enjoy, but if not, at least it will be a good reminder of the reason for the commitment.

I'm also hoping we'll make it to church throughout Lent.  We thought we found our church last year around this church, but over the year, we've decided it's just not quite right for a few reasons.  We've been looking around a little bit, but I'm hoping and praying if we can try to get to a church each week then maybe we'll find a new church to call home.

Are you making a lent sacrifice/commitment?  If so, then best of luck with the start of Lent today!

-Jordan-

Quick Catch-up

Thought I'd take a second to play catch up real quick on what's happening around here.

Two weekends ago, we were lucky enough to have a very special visitor stay with us.  One of my lifelong friends, Emily, came to visit from North Carolina!  We have been friends since before we can remember (sometime around age 2), but we haven't lived in the same place since we were 16, so it's a rare gift when we get to spend more than a few hours together.  We had so much fun catching up, doing lots of talking, and quite a bit of eating (we were always good at that one).  We had happy hour with one of my KC friends, BBQ with Matt and some of his friends, and took in the (oh so exciting) local bar scene.  Most of all, it was great to have the time to really talk, hear more about each others' lives, and enjoy each others' company.  The reason for the trip was because Emily is spending some time working in somewhat nearby Omaha, and the good news is that she will be there for most of the summer, so more trips here and there are definitely going to be happening in a few more months!

We had a low key Valentine's day around here this year.  Prior to V-day, we decided instead of going out to celebrate, we were going to purchase a groupon for Zip-lining in Branson.  We have to wait a few months to actually go, but I can't wait!  We didn't forget about the holiday altogether, though.  We purchased a heart shaped pizza that was quite tasty (cooking it was quite the adventure.. who knew you were supposed to leave it on the sheet it comes on to bake).  We watched Water for Elephants on DVD and Matt bought me a bottle of wine and a super sweet card (I gave him ice cream).  It was also Cayne's 7th birthday on V-day.  I can't believe our little puppy is growing up so fast!  He got a bag of his favorite bones along with some denti-bones which he thoroughly enjoyed!

Last weekend Matt, Cayne, and I headed to the lake for some R & R.  We've had a crazy few weeks, and Matt felt like fishing, so I figured why not tag along for some time doing a bunch of nothing.  We enjoyed the break from the norm and discovered a pretty tasty BBQ/burger place close to Matt's parents' condo.

All in all, it's been a busy start to the year for us, but a good one.  We have no travel plans for at least the next month (although, you never know for sure).  I'm looking forward to catching up  on some things around here and maybe even starting some house projects.

Off to hang out with Matt before bed (oh and enjoy another K-State victory.. I sure hope our b-ball team is making a turn around from earlier in the season)!

-Jordan-