Welcome, Elizabeth Kathryn!

7 lbs 12 oz and 20 1/4 inches

Yep, the moment of truth came at 4:59pm Tuesday, October 30th. She's a beautiful baby girl and she'll steal your heart!

It was a very long day starting at midnight on Monday. We had a few little unexpected bumps, but nothing too serious. Everyone is doing really well especially Mom and Dad who just can't believe we made this perfect little angel. We are in love!

Good Morning, Miss Ella Kate!

Go Hairy Dawgs!

All I gotta say is: GO DAWGS, SIC 'EM! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!

I was kinda hoping the baby would arrive on game day so as to bring us good luck. As it turns out you don't actually have to be in labor during the game to have your Baby Bulldog root for the team! Go Dawgs! Way to beat those "slimy little Gators!"

PS. Still no Baby!

Nope still nothing

It's Friday and still nothing. We went to the movies -- Dan in Real Life-- and it was great, but I cried through half of it! Darn pregnancy hormones! I probably would have cried through a horror flick. Chris didn't say a word, just patted my leg. We took the girls for a long walk, it was such a perfect fall day for it. Long walk and a full moon; still nothing. The fam will start filing in this weekend and by Tuesday night we should have a baby! I guess I'll get to use that "lil punkin" outfit after all! Oh yeah, I finally figured out how to turn the comments section on, so feel free to post any advice, or jokes, or ways to pass the day!

PS Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad. 31 years today!

Waiting, Waiting, Waiting....

Yep, still waiting. Tomorrow is a full moon, though, maybe that will encourage Baby to make an arrival! I'll keep you guys posted....

To the Due Date and Beyond!!!

For all of those wonderful and curious friends out there, yes, today was the due date and no, Baby is not here yet. I did have an appointment this morning where I begged Kim to get this baby moving!!! She said she'd do what she could, but unfortunately she's a doctor not a magician! So here's the status: I am 2 cm dilated and baby has dropped. Hopefully after some manipulation on the doc's part I will start having some symptoms to imply labor is pending!

Unfortunately, both of my docs, Nikki and Kim, will be out of town this weekend for a conference in Las Vegas, so unless I go into labor right now I will have someone else deliver this baby. I hate to say it, but at this point I wouldn't care if it was the UPS man! I'm just ready to get this show on the road! If, by chance, I haven't gone into labor naturally by next Monday, they will induce. I'm scheduled on their books for Monday at midnight. Thanks for all the calls, texts, and well wishes! Now, I'm off for another long walk!!

Drive me to distractions.....

At this point we're just playing the waiting game, obviously Baby hasn't made an appearance yet. To distract me from the uncomfort of sitting around and waiting, we took a drive up the Cherohala Skyway yesterday to look at the beautiful leaves changing. It was a perfect day, not too many people on the roads, the temp was getting a little cooler, and the air was very clear. I think sometimes we take for granted what a beautiful region we live in!

What a difference a year makes...

I got caught up reminiscing about how much our lives have changed in the last year, and how much more they're going to change in just the next few days. I started looking through some pictures, and decided to do some flash back blogging.

This one is of me on our 2 year wedding anniversary. We went back country hiking and camping in the Citico Wilderness with both the doggies. It was a wonderful experience and I would go back today if we could! (I do so hope to get that figure back ASAP!)

Even the girls wore packs! The funniest part was that we got their packs mixed up at first, Abbey looked hilarious and totally off balance with Lacey's pack on. She tried really hard to manage it, but finally just had to sit down. It was so funny we were almost delirious before we even started the hike!

Old House into New House

This was the basic plan: old house is the grey part on the left, new part is the Tyvec covered 2 story addition. Notice the port-a-potty positioned at the foot of the driveway. I almost cried when that thing was delivered. Chris threatened to hang a wreath on it at Christmas.

I should look at these pictures on a daily basis to remind me "that which doesn't kill you makes you stronger." These pictures are a brief and tiny reminder of our renovation journey last year. This time in '06 we were living in just a few square feet of open space. Everything we owned was boxed up and shoved, and I do mean shoved, into the living room, kitchen and dining room. It's amazing we're still alive and here to marvel at our beautiful "new" house. Lacey sleeping under the chair,
and Chris working on his computer. Since our office became the entrance to the "new" house we had to move his work space. He had to sit on the cedar chest at the foot of our bed and his comp was positioned on a TV tray just inside the bedroom door!
kitchen and living room

The living room as things got worse. You can kinda see the couch covered w/ the yellow sheet and the side of the entertainment center (front right). That was our "recreation" area. I usually did all my computer work from there or my bed (or Starbucks). That's the same ent. center that now has been painted white and is in the "play room" which used to be our bedroom!

The view from the living room, through the old dining room, and into the "new addition" dining room.

The view from the old dining room into the kitchen. Yes, there is an ugly brown chair and ottoman parked in front of the fridge. We had to move it every time we needed to get something to drink, and then move it back to get out of that room!

These are just a few pictures of the chaos we lived in for almost a year. It was worth it, though. I'm very glad we did it BEFORE we had a baby. It definitely has paid off, and we enjoy our dream creation more every day. But, as anyone who has ever built or renovated a home will tell you, there's always something more you want. So, although it's a dream house, it's not the dream house, so in the coming years, we'll end up doing this again. But the next time, it will be a new house on the lake!

Only One Week Left.... maybe?

We had another apt today. I have not progressed any further than last week. I'm still 1cm dilated and only 25% effaced. We've got a way to go here! They think I'll make it to the due date, if not beyond! Baby is very comfortable in there. As Dad says, why not? It's climate controlled, catered, and you get to float around weightless. We didn't do a thing last weekend, so I don't have any action shots, but here are some of our baby preparations.

The pack-n-play is set up in our bedroom, and the crib is in the nursery.

Notice all the outfits draped over the glider. They are potential girl/boy outfits to bring Baby home. I'm trusting Chris to pick one out, wash it, and bring it back to us at the hospital. I do have some gender neutral outfits I'm taking with us, but just in case we want to go for a pink or blue....

The bathroom is decorated, but I know it will be a while before we're going to be using this stuff. Still, it looks pretty cute, huh?


And finally, the play room. Chris found a great company who sells these floor mats through e-bay. The little table and chairs came from his house-- he used them as a little kid. The cabinet is our old entertainment center that we've painted white. This will be a great room for all the toys and if we can get Chris out of it, a great room for the baby to play in.

Just an update...

Well, as of today I have progressed to a whopping 1cm! That's progression, right? One down, nine to go! No contractions yet, hardly any Braxton-Hicks ones, either. I'm still moving around, but it's getting harder. It's tough to breathe when sitting straight up, so I tend to recline or stand up more. Our bags are pretty much packed, but I should get it completely ready. For any of you who know me well, you'll be reassured to know that my travel make up case was one of the first things I packed, as well as my hair brush and clips. Do you think they'd let me go into labor with sunglasses perched on my head? Donna says she imagines me giving birth to a mini-me, complete with blonde hair and little sunglasses!

On a side note, if you live here in town you've probably heard about Duck Duck Goose, if you haven't, you definitely need to check it out! Duck Duck Goose is a high-end children's consignment sale they hold twice a year. I went back in April before I knew what I might need, but this time, we were ready! As a first time mom we got to go to the preview sale tonight. Chris and I attempted to split up and take on the whole store, but that was just too much, so we attacked it as a team. The biggest deal we got was a bike trailer (like a jogger for your bike); they retail for $200-400 or more and we got it for $35! There are fantastic toys, clothes, strollers, furniture, decorations, sheets, towels, books, games, and so much more. We really got quite a haul. This baby is going to be so spoiled, I hope we remember to get the things we actually need! We're working on a play room, so I'll add some pictures of it soon, maybe by this weekend.

UGA vs UT weekend

Well, the Bulldogs had a really crappy weekend, but we still managed to have fun! Lauran and Shane came in for a quick visit; they went down to the stadium to tail gate, but came back to our fantastic media room to watch the game on the big screen w/ surround sound. Chris' friends Jay and Seth came over, too. Maybe the Bulldogs would've played better if we were at the game-- they have won every game I've been to here in Knoxville!

Me and my Baby Bulldog onesie, does it look like it will fit? Lauran's hugging on a Pooh Bear. She says she's practicing for the arrival of our baby girl, she's pretty adamant about her decision, wonder if she'll be right?!?!

Yes, it's a random shot of my hands, but there is a point here! These pregnancy nails are the best part of being pregnant (other than the obvious, the baby!). I have never had good nails in my entire life, unless they were acrylic, and these things are amazing! Don't let anyone say it's just the vitamins, it's actually a protein you produce when you're preg that makes your hair and nails so great. I will definitely miss them when they're gone!