19 weeks.... & 4 more days!

From BabyCenter--

Your baby's sensory development is exploding!  His/her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch.  Some research suggests that s/he may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.  Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato.  The hair on his/her scalp is sprouting.

You'll start growing even faster in the weeks to come.  As a result, you may notice some achiness in your lower abdomen or even an occasional brief, stabbing pain on one or both sides — especially when you shift position or at the end of an active day.

I definitely feel bigger.  My stomach is uncomfortable and starting to get in my way already!  But I do love sportin' the baby belly and showing it off.  ;-)  And guess what?  Only FOUR more days until our anatomy scan!  Hopefully baby cooperates so we can find out the gender.  I can't believe we'll find out so soon!

This weekend we're working on setting up the furniture in the nursery (crib, changing table, and rocking chair).  Although first I need to CLEAN out all the junk!  It has been used as a 'random storage area' up until now.  I can't wait to see everything put together.. and then be able to register for things and start decorating once we find out if the little one is a boy or girl!  I'm going to stick with my guess... girl.  Of course my husband thinks boy.  Either way, we will be just ecstatic!

 We might get a new dresser, or we might be adventurous and re-finish this old one.  We'll see how daring we get.  ;-)

 As you can see we have a lot of work ahead of us!  But I'm excited to get started on it.

AND I received my baby journals in the mail today.  Today is a GOOD day!  I've been soo anxious for this to arrive.  Thank you, Amazon, for shipping so quickly!  I bought the Anne Geddes New Life Gift Set.  I love them so much.  The pictures are beautiful, they have enough space to write important things, and the books are hard cover and very good quality.  I think this will make a beautiful gift to our baby later on in life.  I can't wait to write in it later tonight!  I would definitely recommend this gift set to anybody.

 Also, we're in the process of redecorating our bedroom - nothing major, but definitely a change!  So watch out for some pretty cool ideas I've got in my noggin!  I just ordered our new bedding set from Macy's last night.  It's beautiful... and I hope it arrives just as fast as these baby journals have!

18 weeks.

From BabyCenter--

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and weighs almost 7 ounces. He/she is busy flexing their little arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. The blood vessels are visible through their thin skin, and ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from the head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around the nerves, a process that will continue for a year after birth. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

 Still feeling the flutters... sometimes they feel like a finger poking me from the inside.  Or fish swimming around in my stomach (lol).  Not every day, but at least every other day I'm feeling our baby!  Sometimes one side of my stomach will get really hard, almost like the baby is curled up in a ball just on that one side.  It's super weird.  And I feel like I could constantly be eating.  All I could think about yesterday at work was coming home for dinner (french dip sandwiches, anyone?  mmm!).

ONE WEEK AND FOUR DAYS until our anatomy scan.  :o)

DIY Pretty Dry Erase Board

I have seen this idea on quite a few different websites (here, here, here, and here).  It's fairly inexpensive and it can also double as wall art when you're not using it as a dry erase board.  Bonus!  This took me all of about 10 minutes to do.

Materials
1.  Glass picture frame.  You can find one at a thrift store for next to nothing, or find something you really like at the store.  I bought mine for $2.50 at the BX here on base.  If you don't like the color of the frame, always remember you can spray paint it and fix it up.  :)
2.  Fabric of your choice.  This is the fun part... so many options.  Be sure to wash, dry, and iron your fabric before you use it.  You don't want a wrinkled dry erase board!
3.  Duct tape.  Or any heavy duty tape.
4.  Dry erase markers.  I've found black to be the best choice of color.

How-To
1. Remove the backing from the frame.  
2. Cut a piece of fabric slightly larger than your frame, leave about an inch or so all the way around.
3. Place cut fabric over frame backing and then flip over.  
4. Fold over excess fabric and use the heavy duty tape to attach the fabric to your backing. 
5. Place the now fabric-covered frame backing into the frame... done!  You can now write all over your beautiful, new dry erase board.  The markers wipe off of the glass easier than on store bought dry erase boards, imo.

As of right now, our bedroom is greens, teals, & browns.  So I chose this beautiful green fabric.  I have a few more DIY projects for our bedroom that I'd like to do..

You can use it as a to-do list.

Leave a message on it for your hunny.. :)

Hang it on the wall and write your favorite Bible verse, quote, or saying..

If you decide to make one, leave a link in the comments to a picture of it.  I love to see how other people's turns out too.  :)

17 Weeks... Already?

It seriously feels like just yesterday when I was calling to schedule my first doctor appointment.  I mean, I have a long way to go yet... but it seems like it's going by so fast!  These next few weeks will drag, I'm sure... because in 3 weeks we have the anatomy scan and will be finding out the gender of our little babe!  I thought I had a hunch that we were having a girl for a while, but at our last appointment the doctor listened to the heartbeat and it was 153bpm and she said her guess is that we're having a boy.  Now I don't know what to think!  She threw me off.. I guess I'll just stick with girl.  I will be ecstatic either way, I just want our baby to be healthy and happy.  :)

We made our first baby purchase the other day!  It definitely is making things seems more real (as if my rapidly growing belly isn't).  I'm counting down... 2 weeks and 3 days.. until we find out the gender of our little babe.  I can't wait to start decorating the nursery - I have a lot of neat ideas for it! 

I'm 99.9% sure I've felt some baby flutters, which brings a smile to my face every time.  :)  I'm sure within a few weeks they'll start to be more constant and more noticeable.  Also, I'm always hungry.  Always.  At my last doctor appointment I gained 6 pounds so far... well, I lost 5 pounds at first.. so I'm actually right around my 'normal' weight, just with a bigger belly.  ;)

17 week picture!  I can definitely tell the difference since last week!  Don't mind my awesome pajamas.. :)

Made With Love For My Nephew...

My extremely handsome nephew was born in November and I have been working on this baby afghan since then, and I finally finished it and mailed it out almost a week ago.  I will admit, it was a tedious pattern and a little frustrating at times, but it turned out perfect and I'm proud of myself for keeping at it and getting it done!  I'm excited for them to receive it in the mail.  :)

The hardest thing about living in Korea is being so far away from family.  I miss my nieces and nephew like crazy.  But I thank God for skype.  :)

Made with love...

This blanket was inspired by the State Fair Blanket pattern on the Lion Brand Yarn website.  Although I altered the pattern to fit my needs and make the blanket a bit bigger with more colors.  :)  Crocheted using the half double crochet, worsted weight yarn, and a H8/5.00mm hook.

I have quite a few more projects that I'm working on.. so keep an eye out for those!  I'm planning on opening up an Etsy shop in the (hopefully near) future, so watch out for that update as well.  :)

Seoul, I'Park Mall, and 3D Movies

On Saturday my husband and I spent the whole day in Seoul with some great friends.  It was a much needed day to just get away from the base and see some new things here in Korea.  We took the subway to the I'Park Mall, which was just huge!  I definitely need to go back there at least a few times to check out the whole place.  They also have a 3D and 4D IMAX movie theater in the mall, so we went to see the movie Tron in 3D.  By the way.. it really helps to have a friend who speaks Korean come along.  Very thankful for that!  ;)

I'Park Mall

The lobby inside the IMAX theater.

Sweet glasses, ha ha!

After the movie, we went to Apujeong and ate at the most amazing American-style breakfast restaurant I have ever been to (well.. I don't know, I really like Cracker Barrel:).  But seriously, it was SO good.  Good thing it's an hour away, otherwise my husband and I would definitely have a problem!

I was so full after that I barely wanted to move.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  After a long day of subways, taxi's, food, movies, and good friends.. we headed back home to Songtan.  I slept like a baby that night.  :)

Also, keep an eye out:  There will be new crafts posted on here and new recipes on my other blog within the next few days!

16 Weeks

I am 16 weeks today, and very anxious for this weekend to be over with (very rarely do I say that!).  I have a doctor appointment on Monday and it's all I've been thinking about this past week.  I really hope they listen for the heartbeat because I would really love to hear that beautiful sound again!

According to my week-by-week pregnancy book and BabyCenter...

In the next few weeks, your baby will double their weight and add inches to their length.  Right now, your baby is about the size of an avocado:  4 1/2 inches long and 3 1/2 ounces.  It's possible to tell if your baby is a boy or girl at this point, but will be even more recognizable within the next couple of weeks.  The top of your uterus is an inch or two below your naval, and will continue to move up as your pregnancy progresses.  Soon you'll experience one of the most wonderful moments of pregnancy, feeling your baby move.  While some women notice "quickening" as early as 16 weeks, many don't feel their baby move until about 18 weeks or more. The earliest movements may feel like little flutters or gas bubbles. Over the following weeks they'll grow stronger and you'll be able to feel them much more frequently.

So many wonderful things going on and to be excited for!  I absolutely can.not.wait for the day that I feel my baby moving inside me.  I keep trying to imagine what it's going to feel like, and I just have no idea!  I'm so afraid that I'm going to miss it, because I know the feeling is kind of faint at the beginning.  But I'll tell you one thing, it's so incredible to be able to feel my stomach and actually feel it as it gets firmer and being able to feel my uterus.. and now it's officially uncomfortable to sleep on my stomach!

It's an indescribable experience and I'm so blessed to be a woman and have this life growing inside me.  It never ceases to amaze me.  Soon I will be taking votes on whether people think it's a boy or a girl.. he he he.

I figure I should start taking belly shots every week now.. as I'm sure things will start to change rapidly!

16 week belly picture!  

Excuse my awesome sweat pants... ;o)

A Belated Christmas Over Skype

We had our 'Christmas' today over Skype with my family!  I love getting to see my niece and nephew (and of course everyone else - but they're just getting so big so fast!).  The gifts we shipped didn't get there until after Christmas, so we waited to open our gifts until we could all be 'together' on web cam.  Watching people open their gifts is one of my favorite things.  Especially seeing my niece open hers.. she's so cute.  Makes my heart melt every time I hear her say "I love loo!"  And it's so funny to hear her say Coleman's name... "Hi Toeman!"  Hahaha.  They really can't get any more cute.  :)

Picture quality may not be so good because they were taken by my web cam.  

Opening her BIG gift from Uncle Coleman & Aunt Haley!

A big Princess coloring book!

And some new crayons!  I think she loved it.  :)

One of the things my parents gave me was this cork board made from the corks I used for place card holders at our wedding.  It is amazing and I absolutely LOVE it.  It's so neat.  My mom is so crafty.. :)

And she gave me these super cute tacks to go with it.  I can't wait to get it hung up - I have the perfect place for it!  Thanks, Momma.. I love it. :)

Well it's time for me to go wind down for the night.  A bubble bath and a good book sounds like the perfect way to relax before bed!  Back to work tomorrow.. boo..

Happy New Year ( & 15 weeks!)

Hope everyone had a great (and safe) New Years Eve!  My husband and I took a little trip up to Seoul for the day, which happened to be one of the coldest days of winter so far.  Plus it was windy, which always makes the cold 10x worse.  Thankfully the seats on the subway were heated.  :)  I am also proud to say that we have mastered the Seoul Metro system fairly well!  We went to Itaewon, then headed to Yongsan Army Post because we wanted to check out their PX and see what kind of baby things they had.. you know, cribs & strollers & such.  I ended up being highly disappointed because they had absolutely nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  Even our base has those types of things, I couldn't believe they didn't have anything.  Unless it's a separate building somewhere that I don't know about.  So if someone happens to know where they keep all the baby loot on Yongsan, please let me know!

After our unsuccessful visit to the Army Post, we headed back home and met up with some friends at Chili's.  Then we all headed over to another friends house for the NYE festivities... and they made us breakfast at midnight!  Pancakes, biscuits, fruit, bacons, eggs, sausage.. the whole deal and it was amazing.  :)  We had a great time and my husband and I are so very thankful for the friends we've made here at Osan.

Walking outside of Yongsan in Seoul.  The snow is so pretty!

Hanging out at a friends house for NYE!

January 1st also began my 15th week of pregnancy!  The past couple weeks have flown by, and now just one more week until my 16 week check up.  I can't wait to know how our baby has been growing, and hopefully hear the heartbeat again.

I've began to notice my tummy getting harder, and my morning sickness is completely gone.  Food aversions are minimal right now.  The only thing that really doesn't sound the greatest anymore is anything containing ground beef, although I can eat it without getting nauseous.  I haven't had much heartburn at all lately, and it's definitely getting less and less comfortable for me to wear my jeans.  We went out to see Little Fockers at the base theater with some friends tonight, and I devoured a big bag of buttery popcorn.  And now my wonderful husband is out in the horribly cold weather getting me some pizza for dinner (hey, I'm allowed to indulge every now and again.. I also need to go grocery shopping, hehe) - he's so wonderful to me!

15 week belly picture!