Picture Round-Up
05 Oct 2011 4 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: 3rd trimester, baby shower, Family Fun, Me, pregnancy
It really feels like everyone was just here a minute ago, but really – it’s already been a week since the last of the family left after the Great Baby Shower Weekend. It was a great visit, and while chaotic at times, it makes me even more aware of how fantastic my family is, and how truly excited and happy everyone is about this baby. The family time was fun, the baby shower was great and my feet only barely swelled up one time during it all!
My mom is a picture taking machine, which comes in really handy for a time like this – even though we all grumble while she’s snapping shots, I’m always glad we have them later on.
Lisa and Ada got into town first (Lisa and I may have both cried when we saw each other at the airport. We’re calling it pregnancy hormones for me and postpartum hormones for her. Ada, the BABY, was the only one who managed to hold it together emotionally). Mom and Dad arrived a couple hours later. Ada wowed everyone with her ability to sit up totally unassisted at only 4.5 months! And she’s been doing it for weeks now. But she still needed the pillow fortress for the occasional topple-over, which was, really, so hilarious every time it happened.
Reading with Gram. Look at those rubber-band wrists!
This trip was extra special since Dad came – it was a good opportunity to see all three girls, one son-in-law, 3 granddaughters and one great-grandson all at one time, so he couldn’t pass it up. He was a hit!
On Saturday morning Ali, Grace, Meredith and Tripp arrived and we had some good visiting time around the house. With Tripp being quite mobile this visit, it was a good chance to get a baby’s-eye-view of what things drew his attention that Scott and I will eventually need to relocate out of reach once our little one reaches the investigating stage. It was sort of like a baby-proofing home inspector!
Tripp and Ada's first meeting
The Oklahoma bunch
Later that afternoon though, I had a friend’s baby shower to go to for a bit, and it actually worked out perfectly, since my mom and sisters and nieces wanted to do a little shopping without me present, so we left Dad in Scott and ESPN’s capable hands, and the girls headed out to spend money and I headed out to drink punch and watch someone else open tons of baby presents.
At this time, I would like to state for the record, that apparently I excel at baby shower games. Maybe it’s my one true calling in life. (If that’s the case, though, I need to find a lot more friends that are having babies and baby showers, because a true talent is a terrible thing to waste.) Anyhow, I won the game at the Saturday shower (and at my own shower the next day!), and if I can manage at some point to get a copy of the story I wrote that won the game, I will post it here for you all to enjoy. The game was a take on the old standby of writing down some advice tidbits for the new parents-to-be, and you had to use as many candy bar/candy names in your advice as you could. They provided the list of candy names to choose from, and I think I used about 23 or 25…something like that. Enough to make me the winner – and enough to prompt them to tell me to read my advice out loud in front of the whole shower, which made me start to sweat and made my throat close up a little bit, so that I had to keep swallowing in order to finish, and I KNOW without even looking, that my cheeks were probably bright pink by the time I was done. I’m such a dork. Not a fan of speaking in front of groups, that’s for sure.
After the shower on Saturday - am I indicating how wide I am? I don't know.
A friend of mine that was supposed to come to the shower on Sunday ended up not being able to make it due to a really bad sickness, and sadly that also meant no baby shower cake, since she had offered to bring it. I was sad to not have her there, and I know she was so upset to miss the shower and to not be able to give me the cake, but thankfully I have a professional baker for a sister and she took control of the situation on Saturday and whipped up the cutest baby shower cake in no time at all! Both Scott and I just stared at her icing job and couldn’t believe that she got it so smooth so quickly – we’re used to my cakes, where I ice and ice forever and it NEVER comes out like that. We were impressed, to say the least.
The finished product - Welcome Baby Boy!
Not my most flattering angle, but it was a mid-cake decorating sisters moment. You can see the piping bag in Lisa's hands!
On Sunday it was baby shower time!! Scott’s parents drove up and we left Jim and Dad and Scott at home and all the girls (and Tripp) headed out to the shower. I can’t say thank you enough to Kristi and Elizabeth for hosting and to Martha for welcoming us all into her home. It was a great shower and we had a blast!
(Sorry – a lot of the shower pics are blurry, but they are the only one we’ve got!)
My lovely hostesses!
Ali, (Ada), Mom, Me, Lilly, and Elizabeth.
Look at all that loot! Thanks everyone!
There was lime sherbet punch (YUM) and I do believe that Kristi said that every single food item they served was vegan, expect for one, which was so great – Lisa was so excited! We ate and had cake and opened presents, and played a word scramble game (winner winner chicken dinner!) and just sat around and chatted. A good time was most definitely had.
On Monday, Mom and Dad and the Oklahoma crew all left to go home – but Lisa and Ada and I had one more day to pal around. We took advantage of the time and finally managed to satisfy the sno-cone shaped emptiness in our tummies (Tiger’s Blood for Lisa and Lemon-Lime for me, in case you were curious) and checked out a thrift store in town and took a nice long, leisurely stroll through the BabyEarth retail store.
On Tuesday afternoon, the house felt SO empty! But Scott and I both know that now it’s only a matter of weeks until the house never feels empty again, so we will enjoy it while we’ve got it!
35w5d
Houston Shower Recap (FYI…this will be very detailed becase that’s how my mom likes it.)
04 Sep 2011 7 Comments
in Uncategorized Tags: 3rd trimester, baby shower, Family Fun, Gearing Up!, pregnancy
A roaring success! Thanks to Aunt Frances and Aunt Marilyn for hosting and for Karen and Kim for helping out. (Well, and for Douglas and Jim and Scott for also chipping in, against their will, and assembling sandwiches and whatnot.) We had a great time, and I will always be glad for the reminder of how many good people there are in the world. In this instance, good people that have never met me before (although most knew, or had at least met, Scott before), but still came and wanted to shower us with gifts for this baby – they were just happy to be there and to ooh and ahh over all the baby stuff.
Now, seeing as I had never met ANYONE at this shower, except for the above mentioned family members that helped out with it, I will now wow everyone with all of the names that I can remember of the guests as they appear in the pictures. Bonus points for remembering how everyone is related to one another. (If I mix anyone up, I’m sorry, I did my best! I’ll be sure to get it right on your thank-you note.)
The theme of the shower was monkeys, and the ladies didn’t disappoint in the execution. (Lisa, I told them all you would be jealous!) There was an all-chocolate monkey cupcake-cake..it was very tasty! (oh look…guess I should have cropped out the tips of Scott’s feet from the bottom of the picture – oh well…keeping it real.)
And lots of monkey table decor to coordinate:
The punch in that bowl was called 'almond tea' and it was amazing!
We started off on the right foot with all the introductions….here is Marilyn giving me the run-down.
From left to right: Marilyn, (me-hidden behind her), Delaine, Carol, Jeanine, Geneva and Lucille (I think). Lucille is Jeanine’s Mom.
From left to right: After Lucille, Peggy Wise (she’s a cousin), Doris, Gina (?) and Yevette (mostly hidden – daughter of the lady sitting next to her, I think it’s Gina?)), and the back of Betty (Geneva’s Mom), and just the very edge of Peggy (daughter in law of Gina.)
After all the introductions were complete, we got down to the important stuff! Presents – and lots of good ones! By this time, my picture-taker had removed himself to the kitchen with his Dad and Uncle, so there is only 1 picture taken near the end of the presents, but that’s OK, because I can just tell you what we got!
Lots of stuff off the Babies R Us registry, which was so nice, plus some extra bonus items thrown in for fun! Lots of clothes, of course, and quite a few that were monkey-themed, to match the shower decor. 🙂 2 very soft and cuddly blankets, several crib sheets, the “womb-sound” teddy bear for the crib, sun-shades for the car windows, a tummy time playmat (with music!), a reclining bathtub, digital ear thermometer, and the Red Cross healthcare kit, several bibs, the breathable crib bumper, baby spoons, some diapers and wipes and my (much anticipated) stroller! And there were several cards with money and giftcards included, (even some from people who couldn’t make it it to the shower, but still wanted to give something!) Seriously, we were feeling the love.
Opening/fighting with the stroller in the background:
This picture also includes Karen (white shirt) and Frances (black headband), who are both leaning over to help me wrangle the stroller. Also, there’s Kim standing up behind the couch. She’s Douglas and Frances’ daughter. We wore the same dress, but hers was black and white striped, and might I say, definitely more flattering on her than mine was on me. Maybe horizontal stripes weren’t such a good idea.
Posing with one of the table-decoration monkeys.
The food was excellent, and plenty of it…chicken salad sandwiches, pimento cheese sandwiches, chips, olives (black and green!), fruit salad, cupcakes, a cheese-ball with crackers, punch, and some seriously delicious deviled eggs.
More monkeys!
The loot!
All in all, it was a great shower….thanks again to the ladies that put it all together for us. We are so appreciative of the thoughtfulness, and are so glad that this baby will be welcomed into a family that is so excited to meet him and be a part of his life.
31w2d
