May

Miss Emma Lou is 7 weeks tomorrow--although I swear it feels more like 7 years. She's sleeping a lot better at night now, so I'm generally able to stay sane. It helps that she's just so darn cute (but I'm completely unbiased on that matter). She's awake and alert a lot more now during the day and looooves it when we talk to her; she's starting to coo and talk back (ADORABLE). She's also finally starting to fit into her 3 month clothes. Which is excellent because I purchased some pretty cute things that I've been dying to put her in. She's my little doll.

 

 When she's not swaddled her arms are always up. She napped like this for quite a while. She probably just wanted to showcase the rolls that are starting to appear on her arms.

 My favorite thing is getting her dressed up for church. There's nothing cuter than a girl in dresses. This was a dress worn by Andrew's sisters when they were babies. I'm a sucker for sentimental things. Note those large clown feet--in my 17 week ultrasound I was convinced her feet were ginormous and asked the OB/GYN if she also felt like they were large. She seemed puzzled by my question. Strange.

 Struggling to get free of her swaddle.

 Emma started smiling at 4 weeks and I kept trying to get a pic. She was not cooperative. I have no idea where she would get that trait from.....

But eventually we were successful. Melts my heart.

At five weeks we flew last minute to Denver to see Andrew's sister. She needed some help around the house trying to get it ready to sell and we had some free time, so it worked out great. Michelle had a baby girl in January (Annie); I'm so excited for Emma to have cousins so close to her in age. Otherwise getting together at family gatherings would not be as fun for her. Cousins make the best friends. Annie and Emma agree with me, as illustrated by the above pic.

I do not get to see these kids enough. Period.

 For Memorial Day we went to the Chesapeake Bay with the Harrisons and had a lot of fun playing on the water.

 Our ride on the waverunner was slightly terrifying due to my lack of swimwear. I was real scared Andrew would tip it and I would be freezing with wet underwear. Seriously, is there anything worse than wet underwear?

Emma Louise

Since about 24 weeks in this pregnancy I've had the pleasure of going to the doctor's office every week or two due to some placenta issues. I had an ultrasound every two weeks and visited my regular doctor just as often. Soooooo much fun. Starting at 32 weeks I went in and had a non stress test done weekly and still had my biweekly ultrasounds to make sure Baby Girl was still growing. At week 36 my amniotic fluid was pretty low, so I was told to drink a bunch of water and come back in a few days to check again. If it was still low they were going to induce me. Thankfully my levels were back up to normal, but Andrew and I made sure all the important things were taken care of in case we had to suddenly go to the hospital. At 38 weeks my levels were low AGAIN so my doctor told us to go home, get our things, and head to the hospital.

 Like I would go to the hospital before eating. I'm no fool. Taco Bell seemed like the best choice (isn't it always?). 

 

 We got to the hospital....and waited. And waited and waited and waited. They wanted to start me on Cervidil, which doesn't necessarily induce labor, it just prepares your body for it, before getting the pitocin going. But the nurses couldn't insert it, the doctor had to, and the doctor was busy with other emergencies for like 5 hours after we got there. So we were just chillin in the hospital room.

 After a certain amount of time on Cervidil I was allowed to eat. (This may be the most flattering pic of me EVER.) I still wasn't in labor, so I was a happy camper. I slept all night with the Cervidil in, then they removed it, I showered and got pretty again (there's no reason to start out looking haggard when that's most definitely how it was going to end), and then they got the pitocin going. Andrew and I played games, watched some movies, and chatted to friends and family on the phone. Everyone kept telling me to get the epidural ASAP because the anesthesiologist always took forever to get down there and administer it. So once the contractions started hurting I called him down there. The epidural RULES. Sure, my legs were tingly, I couldn't get out of bed, I had no control over my right leg and had to ask people around me to move it, but I sure couldn't feel the pain. And that was worth it. 

The labor was real slow going and I didn't fully dilate until 2 in the morning. Mind you, labor started 7 am the previous morning. Best part about pushing: Andrew almost passed out. SO funny. Although I wasn't into him trying to steal my thunder. Since I wasn't really in pain, and I was slightly delirious due to lack of sleep (it's impossible to sleep in the hospital), I just kept talking and saying nonsense to all the nurses. Thankfully they were amused and thought I was funny.

 At 4:23 AM on April 13th, this little thing was born! And isn't it a lovely picture? I'll admit, after she was out and they laid her on me, I thought oh thank goodness she's out! And then thought, please take this thing off me she's real dirty. I was much more willing to hold her once she'd been cleaned up a bit. She weighed 7 lbs 5 oz and was 19.5 in long.

After trying out a few names on her, we decided she was an Emma Louise. Both of us went to the hospital thinking she would have a different name, but it didn't feel right. Both of our great grandmothers' names were Emma, so I love that it's a family name. Louise is my mother's middle name.

The best part about being induced early was that my dad happened to be in town that week! He wasn't planning on coming out when Emma was born, just my mom was, so it was incredible that he was able to stay an extra day and see his granddaughter. My mom flew out the morning I was induced. I can't believe it's been a month already (more like how on earth has it ONLY been a month?!)!

Baby Shower

 

Last weekend was my baby shower! It was mostly just a family event, but quite a few people came from out of town to be there (because I'm just that popular). My mother in law and sisters in law did an excellent job planning it, setting it up, and making delish food for the shower.

 

 

My seat of honor next to the gifts. The picture on the mantle was one that hung in my nursery above my crib when I was a baby...until I pulled it off the wall and broke the frame. But now it's going to hang in my baby girl's nursery! 

 See what I mean about the food? Check out the plate full of crispy bacon! I was pleased. And seeing as my appetite is only increasing as I progress in this pregnancy (which is doing wonderful things to my weight), I was very happy with the food spread.

 So we got to the shower, and I was talking to people and I turn around and there is Paige! I had been so sad because she couldn't make it to the shower, which was understandable seeing as she lives in Atlanta, and she drove up anyway! She came up in time for the Saturday morning shower, went to lunch with her cousin, and then left to go back home. I may have cried from being so happy when I saw her. I blame pregnancy hormones on that one. This is why we are BFFs. 

 Poking and prodding Baby Girl.

 Chatting after the shower. Jan (on the right) drove up from Charlottesville to come to the shower. She's due a week before me, and our girls are going to be BFFS (they really don't have much of a choice). All my favorites were at the shower, I was so happy! Like I said, I'm real popular.

 My sister, SIL, and mom flew out from Oregon and Utah for the weekend. It was an awesome, but too short, couple of days to hang out with just the girls. And I was in heaven spending all that time with baby Annie. 

 Harrison girls. So photogenic.

Andrew also had fun spending time with Annie. It was our mini-preview for our baby girl. He got some quality time with her in front of the tv. Sidenote: Annie loves the tv. It was pretty funny to see her head crane to see it from wherever she was, even in the room across the hall. Just like her favorite aunt!

 Andrew carried Annie around while we went sight seeing at the national mall. All ready for baby girl!

 Sometimes you're just so hungry you have to get food from the cart in front of the museums.

 That face! How can you not love it?

 Ash had never been to DC before, so we saw a few of the standard sights, like the Lincoln Monument (one of my personal favs).

 White House.

Besides sight-seeing, Annie got some good quality time in with her cousin. If you can't tell, she's giving her a nice big lick.

2012

So I'm not so good at blogging regularly, especially since I've gotten into Instagram the last few months. It's just so hard to keep all these different things updated. And because I have nothing else to blog about (but I feel like I should write something), here's a quick recap of 2012.

 

JANUARY

I don't remember exactly when this happened, but I remember it was REALLY COLD when we did it, so I'm going to say it was January. We got a free china cabinet off Freecycle and Andrew and I painted it white. I would show you the finished project, but I can't find a picture of it....just imagine it.

 

FEBRUARY

Amelia came to DC for part of her internship and I got to see her! It was magical and like we'd never been apart. Come back, Amelia!

 MARCH

I went to Oregon to see my family and go to my childhood friend's wedding. I love any excuse to go home, so it was a win-win situation.

 I think this was in March, too. We went to an awesome carnival in Alexandria with Meg and Layne and I almost threw up after riding a few of the rides. Totally worth it.

 Nate and Jan came to check out the UVA campus and stayed with us while they were here. 

 APRIL

We went to Paris! This was my first time going to Europe and it ruled. We went with some of Andrew's family. 

 Eiffel Tower at night: best thing ever. 

We also went on the Garden Tour at the White House. The weather wasn't awesome for this outdoor excursion, but it was fun to do something so close to the White House.

MAY

There was a BYU rugby game in Georgia, so of course we went (I just really wanted to see Paige). As always, Paige showed us a good time. Most of these good times involved various restaurants, but that is exactly what I look for in a good vacation.

 JUNE

We started out June with a segway tour of DC! I love segway tours, and will look for any excuse to go on one.

For our anniversary and my birthday, Andrew and I went to Rome. It was the hottest week like ever, and I may have gotten sick due to dehydration, but Rome was worth all the sweating.

JULY

Went home again to see my family. I couldn't love our travel benefits due to Andrew's job more. 

Went to the midnight premiere of the new Batman movie.

 Went to the beach with Andrew's family. We swam, got tan(ish), kayaked, ate lots of good food, and enjoyed each others' company.

I love beach week.

AUGUST

Went to Shasta Lake with my whole extended family. This is the only pic we got of my immediate family. For shame! We were just too busy doing other things I suppose.

 

 Went to Charlottesville to visit Nate and Jan while suspecting I was pregnant.

SEPTEMBER

Took a test and found out I was pregnant. Yikes! Is it just me, or is this baby already incredibly photogenic at 9 weeks? 

Whilst incapacitated due to pregnancy awesomeness, Andrew and I got a buffet off Freecycle and then Andrew proceeded to take over the reigns and finish the project. It's blue and I love it. Not much else happened in September because I was a permanent resident of the couch.

OCTOBER

I started to feel better about life and we managed to visit the Great Falls with Nate and Jan when they visited over General Conference weekend.

For part of Layne's birthday week we went on a ghost tour in Alexandria. I love ghost tours! They're not really spooky but they are really informative and interesting.

NOVEMBER

The Harrisons went on a girls' trip to Savannah. Sadly I don't have any pictures from the trip that include people. But take my word for it that it was very fun and included lots of good food. Savannah was a beautiful place!

My momma came to visit! We went baby shopping, antiquing, and even made it to Mt. Vernon. I love that George Washington.

DECEMBER

Andrew and I flew to the Dominican Republic for an excellent winter beach vacation. Why why why have I never done this before? The beach in December rules and I might have to make it a tradition.

After Christmas (which was spent with the Harrisons), Andrew and I flew to Oregon for a few days. I went to a wedding reception and got to see these girls that I grew up with. Three out of the four of us are pregnant, which is kind of awesome. 

This technically happened in January, but it was confirmed that our baby is a GIRL. Before this ultrasound the doctor kept saying that they were "80% sure" it was a girl. So I hesitantly bought a few girly things. Now we're 100% sure and I'm real glad I don't have to return any purchases.

 

And for your viewing pleasure, here is a current belly pic. I'm at 26 weeks and excited for April 25th to get here.