Here's one!

Well, it seems like I can get one to load so here's a photo of Helayna just after her first bath! She LOVED having her hair washed!!!!

Little update!

I was hoping to post some photos but of course I'm not able to - blogger isn't cooperating so I'll just do an update for now instead.
We're doing well. It's been an overwhelming and exhausting week but we're adjusting to having this sweet girl in our life. It's hard to believe she'll be a week old already tomorrow.
She's such a blessing, has a very sweet disposition and is eating like a champ.
I'm trying to sleep as much as I can when she sleeps so I've been neglecting so many things. If you've emailed me and I haven't gotten back to you, my apologies. Once things get into more of a routine and I start to feel somewhat human again, I promise to respond. I'm trying to enjoy every moment with Helayna because already it's going to fast.
It's amazing how much your life changes in that instant when your child is born. It's a beautiful, amazing, crazy, difficult thing. I keep on reminding myself that I'm not alone. So many have done this before and go on to do it again (although I must say, right now, I'm SO at the stage where we're only having one!!!!). And it's true, they really are SO worth it!

Some photos!

Less than an hour old!


With mommy and daddy!


2 days old!

She's here!!!!

Helayna Lorraine was born October 25th at 8:33am. She weighs 6lbs. 6oz. and is 19 inches long. She came early and quickly (my water broke at 11pm, contractions started at midnight, we got to the hospital at 6:30am and she was born at 8:33am). We are all doing really well and couldn't have asked for a better experience. The staff at the hospital was amazing. Our doula was priceless. Jonathan was so encouraging and helpful (as usual) and he is one VERY proud daddy. She is absolutely beautiful and we are so thrilled she is here!
And of course I can't get photos to load! :( :( :( I promise I will try again later today though!

So here are a couple of the 38 layouts I've been working on.

Just having fun scrapping! TFL!!!

Still here!

Enjoying my first 'official' day off! Got to sleep in and thoroughly enjoyed that! I've been busy burning photos to CD and I am *almost* finished! YAY!!!!!
Spent the weekend with my family and it was so good. Meadow was baptized on Sunday and it was such a precious and special time.
Took a few photos but am working on editing them right now.
Here's one I took on Saturday of the happy little girl! Isn't that smile gorgeous?! And I LOVE that dimple!
I taught my last class for a while at the LSS on Saturday. It went well, I think. I'm going to miss teaching. I've really been enjoying it lately! But I'll be back at it soon, I'm sure.
Other than that, just working on crossing things off my list!

And the winner is...

SmileyCarrie!!!!! So far I've done 38 layouts. I was cruising along until I hit 25 and then I just wasn't into it. Plus I've been making TONNES of thank-you cards lately and doing classes for the store so I just haven't had time. I'm hoping with some time off now though, that I'll get some more done!
Thanks for playing along!
Carrie - send me an email (it's under my profile) and I'll send the stamps off to you shortly!

Another Little Update

Wow, I am just loving all the guesses you guys are giving me! Too fun! Some of them are just crackin' me up! I love it! And I'm so glad so many of you are playing along! YAY!

Well, tomorrow is my last day of work. It's hard to believe it's that time already. I've been trying to finish up all that last minute stuff at work and get things organized for when I leave but in all honesty, things are gonna be just fine without me. The girl taking over for me is awesome and I'm completely confident that she will do very well. That's been a big relief for me.

I've been doing fairly well. Monday was a rough day. I was not feeling well at all - no appetite, upset stomach, nausea, headache, difficulty breathing - stuff like that. I was concerned. You know, first time doing all this so I was wondering what in the world was happening. However, when I woke up on Tuesday I felt much, much better.

I'm getting quite uncomfortable. Sitting is the absolute worst for me, especially in the car. It's crazy. It feels like the baby is going to push right through my ribs and it's so hard to breathe. Last night, I couldn't decide whether to stand, sit, walk, or lie down. Nothing was feeling comfortable. So I did a bit of all those things and felt a bit better. I was trying to scrapbook but was getting rather uncomfortable so I didn't get as much done as I would have liked but I guess that's just par for the course.

Seriously though, I can't complain. I really do feel great besides these minor things. I'm still swimming and it feels SO good. I love being in the water, taking the weight off and I'm so happy that I'm still able to go and enjoy doing that.

We have purchased everything we need, I think. I'm so happy and relieved about that. Diapers, wipes, nursing stuff, baby clothes, etc. My plan next week is to get our room organized and ready for baby. We're picking up the cradle from my sister this weekend and then we'll rearrange our room as baby will be sleeping in our room - that's what happens when you have a 1 bedroom place. We haven't been able to decorate a nursery but that's okay. I know there will be lots of years to decorate rooms for our kids when they get older.

I have another dr's appointment tomorrow. Everything is just trucking along. Last week she told me that the baby has dropped and the head is engaged. Yep, can definitey tell that the baby has dropped. That would explain the 3-4 bathroom trips per night! All preparation for the sleepless nights to come!

We're taking our prenatal childbirth class at the end of this month so I'm sure we'll get more information then. We have our big meeting with our doula tomorrow night to go over our birth plan and stuff like that. I'm trying to be flexible as I have no idea what will happen so I don't want to be too rigid.

I still have to pack my bag. I have a list of what to bring but would love any tips on what to bring, what not to bring, what you wish you had or what was a waste? Any tips would be awesome!

Now, just playing the waiting game! When will this little one arrive?!

It's time!

For another RAK!
These unused Making Memories Philadelphia lowercase foam stamps are up for grabs!
This time, I'm going to pick the person who guesses how many layouts (or closest to) I've completed in my 100 layout challenge. Back in September, I challenged myself to complete 100 layouts before buying anything new, aside from my allowance for Scrapfest. So far, I'm doing not too bad. I'll leave it open until Thursday at midnight (MST) and post the name on Friday morning.
So, how many do you think I've done?!

I was just

folding some baby clothes, trying to decide what to take to the hospital and was suddenly overcome with emotion. I'm going to be a mom. My little babe is going to be wearing these clothes. I am going to have a child to love and hold and my husband is going to be a dad. It almost took my breath away. There were tears in my eyes. I can't wait. I am so excited. This moment caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting it. It was a gentle reminder from God that everything will be okay. This is such a good thing. He will and is taking care of all my worries and anxieties.
I can't wait to meet you little one. You are loved more than you will ever know already.

Finally

starting on burning those photos to CD. Man, I love photos. I love looking at them and remembering and just savoring.
Here's another one Jonathan's sister took this weekend. I used the urban acid action from this site and I love it!!!
I had another doctor's appointment today and it went well. The baby is head down (YAY!) and has dropped now so that is very good news. Everything else is fine. I was very happy with my weight today. I thought for sure it would be way higher after Thanksgiving weekend but I was pleasantly surprised! Other than that, every thing is going well - heartrates, blood pressure, measurements are all good and that makes me so happy.
Just a quick post to share some good news and a photo! TFL!

One More Month

until my due date. Wow. So hard to believe. I do realize it could be more or less than a month but still, it probably won't be more than six weeks. That is crazy. I'll be holding my little one in about one month. I'll be a mom and Jonathan will be a dad. Wow.
Things are going well. I'm still swimming 3x per week and am thoroughly enjoying that. It feels so good to be in the water and not have any weight on my feet or back. I'm so glad I've had such a healthy pregnancy. It really is a blessing to me.
The baby is still moving lots which is so cool and this little one now gets the hiccups all the time. It's pretty funny but I kinda feel bad because I hate getting the hiccups, they hurt, so I wish I could make them go away for babe because they seem so strong when they come.
Five more days of work left. That is so hard to believe. I'm looking forward to the break though. So much to do before baby comes.
Other than that we are busy, busy, busy. Lots of people to visit with before baby comes, some courses to take, Meadow's baptism, another photo shoot, a cousin coming to town, ya know, stuff like that. It's all good though.
It means we have a full and good life.

So many things to be grateful for...

1. warm, sunny fall days
2. spending time with family
3. amazingly delicious food
4. this precious little girl and her sweet laughter
5. my health
6. a wonderfully supportive group of friends
7. sleeping in on a day off
8. moments like this

A little baby gift!

Check out what baby got the other day!
Good friends of ours, Scott and Alanna, surprised us with these little Edmonton Eskimos shoes the other day. Scott and Alanna headed to Sri Lanka yesterday for a year with Samaritan's Purse to do some relief work so they gave us a baby gift a little bit early. So incredibly sweet! Jonathan is a huge Edmonton Eskimos fan and Scott's a big Saskatchewan Roughriders fan so they've spent many, many hours watching games together, bugging each other, and just talking about football. Scott really wanted to buy us a Roughriders pair but he knew the baby would never wear them! So, boy or girl, this baby is definitely gonna be raised watching the Esks play! And I'm sure this isn't the last piece of Eskimos gear that this babe will be wearing!

I've been listening to Paul Brandt's "I Still Do" on repeat for weeks now. I just LOVE this song - so romantic and so honest. I love it.
Here are the lyrics:

It's in the way you move me
The way you look right through me
Still brings me down to my knees
Every time you smile
And after all this time love
It's still hard to get enough
From the very first time I thought you were the one
Who'd make all of my dreams come true

I still do
I'm still amazed every time that we kiss
I still do
I'm never gonna stop feeling like this
Like the first time that I fell for you
I still do

They all might say we're crazy
Sometimes I think we may be
When I think about the way we
Live like life's a dare
I'd lay my life down for you
I'd do anything to prove it's true
I'd lay my life down for you

I'd do anything to prove it's true

So I decided that my last day of work will be October 19th. Wow, that is coming up quick. I was originally going to make it October 26th but I am finding it harder and harder to be at work. I find sitting one of the most uncomfortable positions for me right now. My legs ache, my belly pushes so hard on my diaphragm that it's hard to breathe, my back gets sore, my butt hurts and I feel rather unproductive so I'm going to take off a week earlier than planned. Plus I sat down on Saturday and made a list of all the things I want to do before baby arrives. YIKES!!!! It's a long one. Hopefully I'll be able to focus and get it all done. And the new girl I'm training to take over for me is just awesome. I think she's gonna do a better job than I do (not that I want to sound like I'm tooting my own horn). She's caught on really quickly, has a great personality and fits in great so that's taken a big load off my shoulders. So that means only 10 1/2 days of work left. I only work Monday - Thursday and next Monday is a holiday. WOW! That is just crazy to me.

I've been having lots of mixed emotions lately. I think it comes with the whole pregnancy thing. Part of me is filled with sheer excitement at the thought of our little one arriving, part of me is filled with sheer panic. I'm worried about labour, worried about what to actually do when the baby comes, worried about bfeeding, worried that I won't be able to handle the sleepless nights and crying. But then excited to meet the babe that has been growing inside of me, excited to add to our family and see Jonathan become a daddy, excited to be a mom, excited to experience this new love. So many emotions right now.

This past weekend was good. I had a great lunch with Mary and Rhonda on Friday - such good company and good food and so inspiring. I'm so thankful I have met so many amazing people because of scrapbooking.

Friday night I finished up my next class sample and prepped for a class on Saturday. The class on Saturday went well. The ladies were great and their layouts turned out so well. I always leave classes feeling inspired. It's funny - I wasn't expecting that when I first started teaching but it's happened. I love the way people interpret things and the little things they teach me and seeing their photos and hearing the stories behind those photos. It's so cool.

Saturday night we had some friends over that we went backpacking with in August and looked through photos. It was great to see them again. However, I realized that I'm missing 1/2 of our photos from that trip. I have no idea where they are. Um, yah, a little panic set in there. I need to find them. I've printed some of them so I know they are there, I'm just not sure where. I also realized that I have (please don't egg me) over 2000 photos on our computer and I've only burned about 250 of those to CD. So one of those projects to do before baby comes is organizing and burning ALL of those photos onto CD because I have this feeling that the number might just quadruple when baby arrives. ;)

Sunday, after church, I spent the afternoon making cards. I've been wanting to get a bunch of thank-you cards made before the baby comes so that's what I worked on. I got 15 done and it felt so good - used up some 'older' supplies and was so happy to clean up my stash a little.

So that's what's been up with me. We have lots of plans again this week - lots of friends who want to hang out before baby comes, another class on Friday night, and then we'll be heading up to see both of our families for Thanksgiving this weekend.

So please forgive me if I'm not updating the blog as much as I should be. It doesn't mean I've gone into labour and had the baby! I'm just SO crazy busy right now.