CRAZYTOWN

So, the Nowlins have a lot going on these days. It has been an eventful week and things are only going to get crazier as the spring and early summer progress...

1. We sold our house...or at least we have an official and accepted contract on it. So, fingers crossed that the inspection goes smoothly next week and we close as planned on June 2.

This means that we now have to find a house to buy and move into, so the quest has begun... We will be looking at seven properties between now and Sunday and hope that one of them is "the one." We would love to be under contract on the new house before I go into labor. Which brings me to the next point.

2. I went to the doc yesterday and have officially made some progress toward delivery. Not much, but some. I am dilated one cm and Emery is low and "in position." Doc says that if I haven't gone into labor by my appointment next Tuesday that she will schedule me for an induction.

I have a feeling some strenuous activity is on the horizon for the weekend, as well as some spicy foods.

Stay tuned...

Just for Lunch with Good Friends

My dear Memphis friends held a luncheon in Miss Emery's honor on Saturday. It was so lovely. I had never eaten at Just for Lunch before and it was delicious and it was topped off with some incredible strawberry cake and lots of super cute girly gifts! I am so blessed with such great friends!

Forgive the small pic...I'm trying to minimize my double chin and shiny skin...

My especially talented friend, Leslie, made these beautiful flower arrangements for the table that I just adored. Tulips just so happen to be my favorite of all flowers and these were some of the prettiest I've seen. I brought one arrangement home with me to warm up my dining room table for a few days. I love having fresh flowers in the house. Just makes me happy...

33 Weeks

I attended the wedding of a friend of mine from work this past weekend, so while I was all gussied up, I thought I'd have James snap a few pics of my baby bump, which is now more like a mountain than a bump. I can't imagine it getting any bigger, although I know it will....

One More Joy of Pregnancy, Not!

You see these? These are normal feet and ankles. Not mine, but similar to mine. You know that hard to shave area on the outside and inside of the ankle? The area you always nick when shaving because it is so bony and difficult to navigate around with a razor blade? Well, you see, I don't have that problem anymore. My little bony ankle has disappeared. When I shaved last night, the razor just glazed right over that spot, smooth as silk because my ankles are swollen. I guess I could look at it as a positive, but I'm really not sure. I think I'm ready to have my bony ankles back, even if it means a little cut now and then. At least I'm still able to wear my wedding ring...at least for now.

The Home Stretch

So here I am with my rapidly expanding belly at just over 30 weeks. I'm now two weeks into my third trimester already. Time has flown by. I'm starting to get really excited about meeting baby Emery!

Transitioning the Nursery

With Case into his new room, I'm trying to focus my efforts on getting Emery's room ready. I made some progress over the long weekend and wanted to share a few bits and pieces in progress.

Since our house is on the market, I didn't want to go to a whole lot of trouble in the event that it sells soon before or soon after she arrives, but also wanted to have it well-established in the event that the house doesn't sell for a while. We are prepared to stay but would be thrilled to pack up and go! :) So, the walls, rug, crib, dresser and rocking chair all say the same. All are neutrals and I found bedding that would go great with all the existing stuff...

This wooden "e" I ordered on Etsy and was so thrilled with how it turned out! I love Etsy!

And then my extremely talented mother-in-law painted these birds in colors that matched the crib bedding. Thank you, Maw Maw! They are precious and look so cute in the room. I look forward to finishing it all up and posting pics of the final product!

Pregnancy...the good and the bad

This is me, one day last week, at 26 weeks and 3 days preggo. Pregnancy is a fascinating nine month journey and this time around has been different in many ways than the first time around, but also similar in a lot of ways as well. I think I preferred it the first time around when I really didn't know what was ahead. Ignorance is bliss, so they say...

Here are a couple of lists of some of my favorite and some of my least favorite things about this temporary state of being.

Things that are well, unpleasant:
1. The all-day sickness that lasted until 16 weeks.
2. The ordeal that is, every time I roll over at night.
3. The horrible teenage-like skin that has emerged all over my face and body.

Things that make the unpleasant worth it:
1. Feeling kicks, punches and somersaults inside from little "E"
2. Back rubs every night from the hubby.
3. The anticipation and excitement of meeting and seeing her for the first time in a few months

I mean, there is a real live person growing inside of me...so so crazy...

20 Weeks 3 Days

20 weeks and 3 days along. The belly is growing to say the least. Officially over half-way to the finish line!

It's a Girl!

We found out on Thursday that baby Nowlin is a girl! We are so excited and just can't wait to meet baby Emery in person. I've already bought a few girl clothes over the weekend and picked out some precious new crib bedding. I just couldn't help myself! Everything looked good on the ultrasound. She's healthy and growing at just the right pace. We feel so thankful and so blessed coming up on this Thanksgiving holiday and can't wait to spend time with family and have a break from work this week!

First Belly Pic

First belly pic for those who have requested. Clearly I'm not at home. I'm in DC for a work trip and took this pic in my hotel room with my phone. I'm officially 14 weeks and 2 days along. The nausea is finally starting to subside a bit, thank goodness! Last week was rough, but these past three days have been good ones, so I'm hoping I'm over the hump!

The Name Game

Picking out names for your children. It's something that most girls do at a very young age and it's one of those things you just envision being such a fun process. And maybe for some couples it is, but not for the Nowlins. It's a very long, laborious and exhausting process. It's hours upon hours of me saying "what about X" and James saying "No." Over and over again. It took us months to settle on a name for Case, so I knew going into this process for baby #2 was going to be long and difficult.

There's just so much to consider when picking out a name....Will it stand the test of time? Is it too trendy? Is it too common? Is it too weird? Will other kids be inclined to make fun of it? I mean, it will be with them the rest of their lives. It's a lot of pressure people!

We actually settled on a girl name early on, right after I found out I was preggers. But boy names...ugh, maddening! So, last night I came across a boy name that I liked. It wasn't a new name. It's quite a common name and probably one I've passed by in my 60,000 baby names book a hundred times, but this time it just jumped out at me, so I wrote it down to propose to James. I was prepared for the worst, but what do you know....James liked it and just like that we both said, "Well, that's it then. We have our names." Eureka!!

So boy or girl we are prepared either way with names. Ahhhh.....feels good to have that done.Well first names at least. Now the quest begins for the perfect accompanying middle names. Wish us luck. Oh, and if your interested in the names we have settled on, they are Emery and Isaac . Only five more weeks until we find out the sex and will be able to refer to him or her by name. We can hardly wait!!

Life

So, as I mentioned in my last post, life has been a little crazy lately and that is going to be to blame for my delinquent blogging. These past several weeks have been a whirlwind. On an exciting note, WE ARE HAVING ANOTHER BABY! Isn't he/she cute? Okay, so maybe you can't tell much from this pic, but we're already in love! I'll be 12 weeks along as of Saturday. That makes the due date April 16. I've nearly got the first trimester whipped. But man, has it been a long road. I have been extremely sick. All day. Every day. It's interfered with my life a great deal. I was not prepared for this as I didn't experience it the first go around with Case, so it's been a little difficult to accept, but the end of it is in sight...hopefully!


And with the beginning of a new life, came the sad loss of a loved one last week. James' grandfather passed away. Thanks to all for your thoughts and prayers. We will miss him a great deal but look forward to seeing him again one day. Below are a few pics of Case with his Great Grand "Paw Neal."

38 weeks & a Delivery Update...

I'm officially 38 weeks today and here is the latest picture of my baby bump! I feel like I'm about to pop! We went to the doctor today and set an induction date of one week from today, Thursday, August 14. However, my doctor doesn't think I'll make it that long...says he could come at any moment! James and I are hoping he at least waits until after this weekend to make his arrival, so we can get one more trip to the movies in and a nice dinner out, just the two of us!

Here are some final pics of the nursery. We finished it up last weekend when James' family was here.

Work Shower

I'm trying to catch up on my blogging. We just got a new computer, so I can now insert photos from home. Here are just a few pictures from my shower at work a few weeks ago. They really went all out with delicious food and extremely generous gifts. I even had some good help opening Case's presents from Tripp.

Still Waiting...

I'm two and a half weeks from my due date and still pregnant, but I wanted to update everyone on my latest doctor's appointment this past Thursday. Dr. says that she doesn't think that I'll make it to my due date. I'm apparently progressing right along. That was great news for me to hear! I do not want to go over my due date...I'm sick of being big pregnant in the 110 degree heat! I get out of the house and office as little as possible these days. Anyway, I go back to the doctor this Thursday morning and she said that we can set a date to induce if want to. I'd rather go into labor on my own and will be praying for that to happen, but we will go ahead and set an induction date for the week of my due date, just in case. I'll be sure and post again on Friday to update everyone on what she says and what we decide.

James' parents, sister and nephew Greyson came to Memphis to visit us yesterday for a little while and we had a great time seeing everyone (Greyson is such a cutie) and we were able to finally finish up the nursery. It looks great, but I left my camera at work, so I'll have to post pics later in the week.

Stay tuned...

Weekend with the In-Laws

So, the long holiday weekend was spent working hard on the nursery. James' parents came in to town and his mom, Debra, brought her frog masterpiece that she did for the nursery and it looks fantastic in the room! She is extremely talented!

We put his dad to work right away hanging new blinds and putting up a new ceiling fan which also turned out great. It's really starting to come together! We still have a few projects left before it's officially done...well, they are all Debra's projects! What would I do without her? She's making valences for the windows, she's working on another art project for the other wall and she's re-upholstering a rocking chair. I'll be sure and post new pics when it's all done.

Here are just a couple of pics from over the weekend of my growing belly...

Baby Bump at 26 weeks!

26 down, 14 to go! Okay, so here are some of the latest pics of my fast growing belly! I'm starting to bump it on things and I can no longer sit at my desk at my computer like I always have. I dread it getting any bigger!!!

Garden Party Baby Shower

I had my first shower and it was unbelievable. I have lots of great friends who really went above and beyond to throw the best shower ever. All the details were amazing and I received some precious and some very practical gifts for baby Case. It was a blast!

Yes, there was even a water fountain!!!

My Mom and Aunt