The Merry, Merry Month of May

Wow, is it just me or does time move exponentially faster when you are pregnant?  Of course I didn't feel that way the first half when I was bargaining with all food intake to stay put!  But, really, here we are at the end of the month with 5 1/2 weeks left to go.  It has been a pretty great month all in all.  After my lovely visit to IL I came home and was accompanied by my Mom who spent another glorious 2 weeks with me.  She was really a God-send, and helped reign in my pregnancy brain and got things situated in our house so, if our little one decides to make an early entrance, we are ready with the essentials!  First things first though. 

At the beginning of the month I hit the big 3-0.  If you would have asked me a couple years ago I would have admitted that I was dreading this milestone, but now, I had not a single problem with it.  I realized that I definitely wouldn't want to go be 20 again and that my life is pretty great.  I am more confident in who I am, I have a career that I love, an amazing husband and life partner, and an expanding waistline that is actually not from too much pizza and beer!  I really couldn't ask for anything more!  We celebrated the event with a Mexican-themed dinner with a few friends.

Make your own Quesadilla or Fajitas!

Nothing like having your Mom in your kitchen to make you feel like all is right with the world

 We, funnily enough, all ended up watching the Movie Titanic through to the end for some odd reason, but it was kind of fun to see again.  Then of course, there was dessert.  I'm drooling just remembering!  Mom made a cheesecake and a friend of mine is a cupcake connoisseur and always brings delicious treats!

 I have the greatest friends, since we usually get each other nice bottles of wine or specialty beers and that was obviously off the table, they found  a creative replacement in pints of all different chocolate varieties from the best local ice cream shop.  Best gift for a pregnant person EVER!

 It really was a special birthday, even if I didn't get the crazy 30th birthday bash, priorities they are a-changin'. 

The best thing my Mom did for me during her visit was to help rearrange some things and get our spare bedroom ready to double as nursery.  She painted two of the walls a lovely lavender to cover the aweful blue sponge painting that was there before and made adorable curtains for the windows and the closet to replace doors that were less than functional.  Now I really like the room!

Of course pictures don't do the color justice, but this gives an idea.  We also kept Eric busy during this visit putting together furniture and baby accessories.  He is getting to be quite the pro, good practice for the many years of "some assembly required" ahead of us

Although we have had to keep all baby things shut away in her room since the cat thinks they are all very special beds for her!

We wrapped up Mom's time here with a special Mother's Day painting class.  Guided painting and wine studios are popping up all over the place here and they are a really good time (same principle as the owl paintings we did  a few months ago) and suitable for all abilities.  Since my Mom is kind of awesome when it comes to art projects she did her own thing as I followed the directions.

But she also helped me out along the way, which is why mine turned out so good!  Here are the finished masterpieces!

It was a special day indeed!  We were sad to see Mom leave, but I'm sure she was ready to get back home to retired life so she could relax after all the hard work she did for us, we love and appreciate you!!

The rest of the month we have just been truckin' along.  I am getting more and more uncomfortable and am actually going to see a PT for some back pain next week.  Work is busy and getting more difficult but I am determined to work as long as possible so I can save my leave for when the baby is actually on the outside.  My doctor gave me the "well we'll see how that goes for you" response, but I have a tendency towards stubbornness so we will just have to see!  Everything is progressing without complications at this point and, really, 5 1/2 weeks is not long at all!  It is also reassuring that if she does decide to make an early appearance she will, most likely, be perfectly fine.  I would prefer her to stay put though until  she is properly "cooked", even though she is making daily activities like standing up from a seated position more a more difficult!  Take your time, little one, we've got a lifetime of loving you ahead of us! 

Showered with Love

Whew!  What a whirlwind the last few weeks have been.  So very many wonderful things have happened it will take me a few posts to update for sure!  To start the festivities my family, spread coast to coast, was able to convene in the same place, at the same time, for a miraculous "perfect storm" of family love.  It was wonderful to be all together and not missing anyone, well, except my poor husband who has limited vacation.  During our reunion I was blessed to have not one, but two baby showers!  The first took place in my hometown and hosted by a dear, dear friend.

It was so wonderful to share this event with many other friends who have been a part of my life for a long, long time

I received many wonderful and thoughtful baby gifts, including some very fancy sparkle shoes, which are a necesity for any girl.

And, of course, the most important part of any baby shower, the cake!

Oh boy (or girl, rather!) this cake was both delicious AND beautiful!!

During the rest of the time we spent in our hometown we enjoyed visiting family,

4 generations

and eating at all my local favorites that I have been craving during the past 7 months!  No worrying about not gaining enough weight during this week! Oh, it was glorious.  After a too short visit we headed north to complete our "reunion" with the rest of the family.  I had another beautiful shower hosted by my Tantie (aunt) and her daughter.  This was wonderful because almost all of Eric's family were able to attend along with my family.  Again, the food was the highlight for me!

I mean, "Come on!"

Made by my talented cousin, Kaylee

No baby shower would be complete without some games.  The most creative of the weekend was entitled "Kim, Kate, Or Cath"  (referring to Kim Kardashian and Kate Middleton, who also happen to be expecting in July)  A statement was read and the game was to decide who it applied to, very funny and creative!

And, of course many other wonderful and generous gifts

Including her first Packers attire!

I'm so lucky to be part of such a great family, both blood and aquired through marriage!

It is such a rare opportuntity to spend more than a few hours or night with this side of the family, we really enjoyed ourselves.  Discovering that genetics is often humorous,

how wonderful Tanties are to play with,

And that no matter how long it has been since you've seen your cousins (or even that you have no recollection of meeting them before!) it's a special relationship that can be picked up where you left off

Most importantly, my belief that my life and lap is happiest when filled with nephews, was reinforced

There's plenty of room to add their cousin!