Closer And Closer We Get!

Our shower was this past Sunday at the Spencer Country Inn, where we also got married almost 3 1/2 years ago.

It was so nice! It was great to see all of our friends and family (well ok, the ladies anyway) in one place and to eat yummy brunch! Everyone was so generous to us - we got so many nice things!!

Eric took lots of pictures, but we haven't uploaded them yet. Once we do, I'll do my best to get them on here.

The baby's room is still coming along with help from family member's when they can. It should be ready before the end of November (crossing my fingers) and I'll be sure to post pictures of that too.

Megan's moving a ton these days. She's moving so hard that she often makes my belly move on the outside! It's so weird to see my stomach just start jumping at random times!

I'm feeling pretty darn good these days for having only 8 weeks left. My belly gets bigger each week and I don't really feel any more tired than before. My hips are aching a little but more if I sit for too long, but for the most part that's it. Even though I don't love being pregnant, I consider myself very lucky to have had the super easy pregnancy that I've had. I hope number 2 is just as smooth!!

I keep trying to get Eric to post more as I think it's nice to hear from his side of things - a different perspective. But for whatever reason, he hasn't posted in quite some time. Maybe if you guys email him, he'll get on it!

On a sadder note, Eric's Uncle Bob passed away this week. He was suffering from Alsheimer's and had been getting worse over the past few months. It's sad to see him gone, but we know it's for the better.

PS - as I am writing this, Eric is in the living room and sneezed. I didn't say "Bless you" so he said it to himself and continued to have a 2 sided conversation - with himself mind you - about how it's tough when no one sayd bless you and how his wife says she loves him, but it's obvious she doesn't. Geez - this is what my baby has to look up to??? ;-)

WHAT'S BABY HOLM UP TO?

32 weeks - 55 days to go

total weight gained: 9 lbs

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

Catching Up On Some Things

Lots to catch up on...

New Kids on the Block Concert
TONS OF FUN!!
It wasn't like seeing Billy Joel or someone you love as an adult. It was like being 13 again for a few hours. A stadium full of screaming 20-to-30-something women, bubble gum music and 5 grown men dancing like they did 15+ years ago. It was wonderful!

They sang all of the old hits and some of their new ones. My friend Jan was among the group that I went with and she wore one of her old Donnie t-shirts - hysterical! She's going to their concert at Mohegan Sun next month as well. For me, I can wait another 20 years!

Here's a couple of quick videos she took on Sept 26th at the Garden in Boston. If you listen carefully, you might be able to hear me screaming ;-)
Please Don't Go Girl
The Right Stuff
Didn't I Blow Your Mind
Donnie talking to the screaming women!

Baby Class
We finished our Natural Birth class this past Sunday. It was pretty informative, both in techniques and reminding us that for the most part we're in charge at the hospital - not them. We have a Newborn Class at the same place this coming Monday night and I think it will be pretty helpful for both of us. It'll be a refresher for me and new stuff for Eric.

Car Accident
As I mentioned before, Eric was in a car accident last week. He's ok, but his car.... not so much. It was totaled as you can see. We found out a few days ago he's getting a little over $5,800 from the insurance company - which rocks! Last Saturday (after I got home from a night in Boston with the girls to see the New Kids), we went car shopping with my dad and found a great car! A 2005 Subaru Outback with $79,000 miles for $12,400. Between the $500 we put down for a deposit and the $5,800 from the insurance company, we'll only need to finance about $7,000!! We're psyched!

We're waiting to hear from our Credit Union on what the rate they can offer us is, but we're expecting to had the "new" car by the end of next week. Eric gets to drive it until the baby comes and then it becomes my car and we sell my Escort and buy Eric another car.

So I think that's it for now. We've got 13 more weeks till the Munchkin comes. How did time go by so damn fast?!?!?

WHAT'S BABY HOLM UP TO ?
Week 27

This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.

It's Here... It's Finally Here!

I've been waiting for it all summer and it's finally here.... The New Kids on the Block concert! I saw them 20 years ago this coming December at the age of 12 (it was my very first concert ya know!).

Above: Then & Now

I'm going with my friends Amber and Jan and Jan's friend Jodi. We're going to have a blast!! I've been listening to their old and new cds all day in preperation.

Now I know... it's kinda dorky! But I still giggle when I see them on tv and their music is fun.
It's my last big neight before Megan comes. Better make the most of it!

In other news...
Eric got in to a car accident late Wednesday night. He's fine - just a few burns from the air bag, but his car is toast. We're going car shopping tomorrow with my dad. The hope is to find a baby-friendly car that he can drive for now. Then when the baby comes, we get rid of my car and find a different car for him and I get the car we're buying now. We'll see how that works.

In baby news...
We had our 26 week apponitment yesterday. Everything looks great. We had an unexpected ultrasound since my midwife thought I was measuring a little big (well duh, I'm overweight!). Eric was thrilled to see her again. I'll try to scan and post the pictures when I can.

Wonderful Heartburn

Man - this heartburn's been kicking the last week or so! I was having mild heartburn before, but this past week it's been bad. I've had to take a pill every night this week before bed so I could sleep, and now it's starting to kick in during the day too.

I think I need to start carrying Tums with me all the time now - blah. Let's hope it doesn't get much worse!

I was talking t a doctor-friend the other (eh hem - Miranda) and she asked me how far along I was. I told her I was 24 1/2 weeks and she said "That means you're viable Linds! You could have this baby now and she'd be ok! But let's hope she stays put a while longer!"

That freaked me out.

I get my weekly updates from BabyCenter.com and it has a little line of dots that represent each week. There are now 16 dots left... 16 weeks of dots. How did this happen??

I'm excited to meet our little one, but I'm also terrified (which I've been told is normal)! I thought I'd have no problems being a mom. I did, after all, babysit for a while back in the day and from age 13 to 21, I was a counselor at a summer camp and rocked! I thought "I had no problem with that, mom-hood will be the same." God - what was I thinking??

Since they've told their family, I wanted to send a big WOO HOO out to our good friends Shawn and Jan who are expecting their 2nd munchkin in May! Jan's about a month and a half along and so far so good! I'm so excited for them!

They have a daughter, Cassidy, who is cute as a button! She's a year and a half and is already a handful!

I'm excited that Megan will have a buddy close in age to play with! YEA!!

Shawn and I have been buds since the 7th grade - 20 years!! Shaw, Amber, Julie and I were inseperable when we were teens and I love that 3 of us are still close (Julie seemed to have dropped off the face of the Earth a while back).

Shawn and Jan got married in June of 2004 and Eric and I had a blast at their wedding.

I absolutely adore Jan and I think she's a wonderful addition to our "Old Gang" family!

Here's to a happy and healthy 9 months Jan!!

WHAT'S BABY HOLM UP TO?

25 Weeks

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.