And in the past 4 weeks....(Weeks 24-28)

Wow, we are now officially in the third trimester. It is amazing how fast this has gone. We can't believe that she will be here in just three months! We keep joking that we want to meet her right now and then i get scared and have to tell her at least 9 more weeks until she can join her family.

In the past four weeks....

My OB went on maternity leave to have her own little girl (last time i asked she was going to name her Isabelle). So i have seen her partner who was almost as good as my doctor). I had a glucose test and passed with flying colors. Anyone who knows me is well aware of the anixety i had before taking a test that i could not study or prepare for in any way. Yep, i think i just put the fact that i am a complete dork on a public website! There is a good chance that KC was more relieved than i was with a good result. He didn't think the next three months and me with no carbs - especially french fries - would be fun.

I am not eating as much as i was a few weeks ago and everything i put in my mouth gives me heartburn. As a reslt i finally caved and asked hte doctor for some prescription heartburn meds. THANK GOD!! The only thing that was not giving me heartburn was milk. Cheerios even did it. I keep asking KC if she is giving me this much heartburn before her arrival does that mean she'll be a hell raiser when she gets here?

As I mentioned earlier KC's brother, Kirk, got engaged in July. We threw them an engagement party along with the other siblings and spouses. It also meant we were lucky enough to have out of town family come in for the big party. We ended up with about 45 people this Saturday night at our house. People kept telling me i was crazy at 28 weeks but it was the ultimate motivator. My house is cleaner and more organized than before the party. I think the thought of random people finding my house dirty or disorganized scared me into action. Plus that whole nesting thing didn't hurt....The family in town was KC's Dad (a surprise for his brother) and my 2 sisters. And Peanut cooperated by putting on a nice show of making my stomach move or at least giving a good kick every now and then to get the people excited.

The Ongoing Nursery Saga...

Labor Day weekend we came up with a plan for the nursery and it has been only slightly altered until this week. This week the bottom fell out of the plan. We can't find fabric that we like and the plan for the paint is not gelling for KC. The deadline (our trip to Philly next week) is fast approaching. We'll have to think of something.... We were lucky enough to recieve the first piece of furniture for our nursery - a glider/rocker from George and Di! It is possibly the most comfortable piece of furniture i have ever sat in. I'm already looking forward to reading to Peanut. I think i might have to start now. According to our weekly updates Peanut can hear and recognize voices and blink her little eyes (with her eyelashes, which if they are like KC's are extremely long) I'll have to add that to the list of things i want her to inherit from KC. Just a few things already on the list, his hand eye coordination - only one klutz needed in this house, his toes - mine are pretty square, and I'll save the rest for a later post...

We are anxiously awaiting Chase's arrival (Peanut future husband). He was due to show up last Friday. I think there are some people in PA a little more excited for his arrival, his mother included. If KC is this jittery waiting for Chase December will be quite an interesting month.

I also wanted to make an addition to my earlier list of what not to say to a pregnant woman:

"You can't get any bigger!" Really? wanna bet? I can pretty much guarantee that i will be bigger 12 weeks from now. You think that the thought doesn't cross my mind on a regular basis (getting ready in the morning, trying to find a shirt that is long enough,...) I have three months left, show some love for the big pregnant!

And just because I have to have the last word (something I hope Peanut does NOT get from me) I would like for Eric to rescind his comment in July about the Phillie's making the playoffs. Last time I checked they were tied for the wild card and have a legitimate shot making it to the postseason for the first time since 1993.

A long, long time..... (20-24 weeks)

Well, I have been very neglectful of Peanut's blog - Sorry guys! In the four weeks since we found out we were having a girl a lot has happened. She started moving around all the time. Her favorite time seems to be when I sit down at my desk in the morning. Maybe she's a morning person like her mom? KC also felt her movements for the first time. And last night she gave him a good hard kick. We have narrowed the name game down to a final four. I think we will probably go into delivery undecided..we'll see. I also said we weren't going to find out what we were having, you see how well that worked.

We have started the process of finding bedding that I love and in turn decorating a nursery. When we got married 3 years ago the search for bridesmaid dresses almost sent me over the edge. Bedding for Peanuts room is slowing moving in the same direction. At this point we are looking at fabrics so my mom can make the bedding because so far I haven't found anything that I am in love with yet. I didn't think it would be this hard to find something I liked. It seems like there is a lot of pink or blue out there but not too much in between.

We did get the registered for all kinds of fun baby things. Thankfully my mom was here to help me. Baby stores can be quite overwhelming, especially if you are not sure what you need beyond diapers and a stroller. And this is where my new favorite book comes in. At some point in the past 4 weeks it dawned on me that while I love being pregnant, in about 16 weeks this will be coming to an end and I will be responsible for a baby, a real life human being depending on me for everything. And then what happens? So far we are at the part where it is telling you how to hold the baby. It doesn't hurt to learn the basics.

What else has happened.....

Well, KC became an old man of 28 and we took a weekend trip to San Antonio. KC had to spend the week down there and I flew in on Friday night. Peanut was trying to punch her way out on the landing. Our trip in a few weeks, once she is quite a it bigger, will be interesting. I hope she doesn't fight quite as hard on that landing. Since you haven't had a belly picture in a few weeks here is a picture of KC and I from our weekend trip.

San Antonio Weekend, August 25th

Here is a list I am working on becuase it is better to laugh at people's insensetivity than to cry:

Things not to say to a pregnant woman:

1.) "Are you sure you're not having twins?" What do they expect you to say at this point? Gee, have i gotten bigger? And I thought I was having a skinny day.

2.) They ask when I am due, when I say December, they grimace and say "oh, really?" Should my reply be - Nope the doctor was just kidding. I'm going to have her any day now. And did I mention that I'm having twins?

3.) "Wow, she's going to be a big baby, huh?" Um, hello do you think I am unaware that I have a child growing inside me? Do I need some idiot telling me that in 16 short weeks I will be trying to squeeze this, according to them, giant baby out? nope, I can worry about that all on my own.

Suggestions and Additions are welcomed.

A Peanut or A Peanutette?

We went to the doctor today and we are having a perfectly healthy.......



Little Girl!



Although KC has been saying since the day that we found out it was a girl I think we were both a little shocked when the doctor told us. It just started to sink in that we are going to have a daughter. A little girl who will play with dolls, pass notes in class, have her heart broken, go to the prom, and eventually have a wedding. When we got to the wedding is when I saw the fact that we were having a daughter really sink in for KC. She does have a good start on her father. She already has him wrapped around her little finger, all 14 oz. and 9 inches of her.



Onto the name game....we had a few boy names, all of which we would have both loved. The girl names are another story. We have about 5 that we both like but we are not in love with any of them. Tonight we will start back at the drawing board. Going back to all of the girl names we eliminated over the last few months because, of course, we were having a boy! Shows what we know!



Now that we know we are having a girl we have quite a bit of decisions to make - name, bedding, nursery, and so many things that I can't even think about right now because I am still so amazed at the fact that KC and I will have a daughter.



Here is the belly shot that I have neglected to post the last two weeks:

A busy, busy week....

Peanut's extended family has had a very, very exciting week. After 4 years together Kirk and Devon got ENGAGED!! I think they are going to have a destination wedding next summer so at at only 6 months or so Peanut will be a traveler. (Hopefully for our sake a very good traveler. )

Seriously, are they not so cute? And perfect for each other.....

In other Chewning/Devoto news Kara is gainfully employed! She accepted a position yesterday as a 6th grade English teacher in Houston. We are excited that she will still be so close. Now if we can just get those last few family members in PA down to Texas.....

And on to baby news.
I think that I have an acceptable amount of information in my head, some useful, some completely useless. Unfortunately for me, KC, and possibly Peanut very little of this information actually relates to caring for a child or all of the equipment he/she needs. KC and I have browsed at a few different places, taking a quick look at baby furniture, strollers, car seats, etc, etc, etc. At this point we are just basing what we like on the fabric or design used on the item. We do realize that this is probably not the best way to keep your child safe and sound. There has to be a book or how to guide for this, right?? At this point I will be relying on the expert knowledge of those friends with babies to steer me in the right direction. Or as it happened this week, Sex and the City. When Christina said she got a papasan chair at her shower i thought to myself, "Is this something I should get? Do I have any idea what that is? Do we have room for it?" After seeing her shower pictures the papasan chair was pictured in the box with big lettering on the front. I thought to myself "I know what that is. Miranda's neighbor brought it over to keep Brady quiet on that episode of Sex and the City". Note to my mother: Here is where you leave a comment saying you are coming to stay with me until I feel comfortable on my own or Peanut starts school. Whichever comes first.

If anyone knows of a good book about this stuff feel free to forward the information. (consider it a favor to Peanut)

A Texas Hail Storm and a 17 Week Belly Shot!

On the day before Peanut's seventeenth week is set to begin the Land of the Lobos was struck by torrential rains and what CBS 11 called "golf ball sized hail" for about twenty minutes around 3:30 this afternoon. Which is the last thing we need around here. The lakes are over flowing and some of the fields or pastures are completely under water. The pictures we have show the hail to be smaller but no less painful than that of golf ball size. I found out first hand while scrambling to cover the cars with cardboard boxes.

We also have some pictures of my round and growing yet beautiful wife. This kid is starting to get big and we shoud be able to find out what kind of leg peanut has for his/her future on the soccer field. The experts claim that the little peanut is over five inches long. Not bad considering we have 162 more days to go. I think you can see the difference from last week, but you be the judge.

Until next time,

KC

Peanuts First Phillies Game

We traveled to Houston this week for 3 reasons:

1.) To visit Kara who in serious training in the Teach for America Program (yea Bear!)

2.) To celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary somewhere other than Dallas

3.) To see KC's beloved Phillies play the Houston Astros

This was Peanut's first Phillies Game. Knowing KC's complete devotion to the Phillies, I am sure Peanut has a bright and long future of Phillies games. Peanut's favorite thing (other than the 8-2 route by the Phillies) was the fact that it was dollar hot dog day at the ballpark. As anyone who knows Kara also realizes that this was Brandon's favorite thing as well. On Wednesday we were both cheap dates!

Other than the constant rain and the being lost in downtown Houston for a good potion of Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon to was a fabulous anniversary. It had all of the requirements - family, friends, a win by our home team, lots of food, and we even made it home in time to see fireworks from a friends backyard. Best of all, Peanut didn't even push on my ribs too hard!

Happy Belated Fourth of July! Next year the three of us plan of heading to the Jersey shore to celebrate the fourth and our anniversary. We can't break tradition 2 years in a row.

We watch the Phillies win one for KC (and try and keep their playoff hopes alive)

Belly shot to come

Picture of Peanut

Here is a picture of Peanut when he/she was only 7 weeks and 3 days. We will have a new picture in a month (so far away!)