Getting my Craft On

I am not sure if it is some kind of hormonal imbalance, or my cheap nature, but I have felt the urge to craft lately. This is completely foreign to me since prior to pregnancy I had no desire or ability to create crafty smart looking things. There have been times where I have attempted "crafting" only to find myself completely frustrated and with a finished product looking quite inferior to my original vision or intent. I think these experiences made me timid to the craft world and I was OK with that.

However, times are tough in today's world and there are so many beautiful baby girl things out there I am just not willing to spend an arm and a leg on. What other choice to I have then but to make them myself? Hence my attempt to re-enter the world of arts and crafts.

My first project I shared...the wall art for Julianne's room. Pictures HERE Verdict: Success! With a new confidence I began to think of other things I could make instead of buy and my eyes were opened. First on the docket: Baby Legs (if you don't know what I am talking about see http://www.babylegs.com/)

These are the adorable leg warmers that are all over now allowing mommies everywhere to keep their baby's legs warm without having to pull pants on and off. The official Baby Legs brand wants $10-$15 per pair for these. To me that seems a bit steep for a glorified sock. Solution: make them myself. This really is no secret as there are tons of tutorials online. I used this one: Leggies Tutorial

Basically it entailed buying girls knee high socks (I got these for $2 each at Target) cutting off the heel and toe, then a little bit of sewing. I don't have a machine so I sewed them by hand...really even that was simple though.

Here is a different pair in the finished state. Verdict: Success! At least, I am pretty proud of them. It was so easy and I saved $13! I will have to take more pictures once our girl is in them. I am so excited to see these on her chubby legs.

My next craft venture: baby headbands. I will report back here with my results.

Nathalie

34 weeks and starting to feel pregnant

I am now 34 weeks pregnant and beginning to understand why pregnant woman complain. Truly I feel pretty good given the honeydew melon sized baby in my belly. I am still walking at least 3 times per week and sleeping well aside from the frequent bathroom trips. For this I am grateful, there are just some discomforts now that I feel the need to mention if only for my own documentation and reflection later.

The main issue I have been having is a sharp jabbing pain in my left rib. No one told me about this common ailment but I have to say it is terrible. Pretty much any time I attempt to bend over (which I try to avoid if possible), laugh, or sometimes for no reason at all, I feel as though I am being stabbed in the chest. My doctor told me that since I am on the petite side, it is common for the uterus to expand up under the rib cage and basically try to separate them! Nice....oh and that it should feel better once the baby drops. I then asked when to expect the baby to drop...she said it is different for everyone. So I am trying to cope and joyfully awaiting the day this little girl makes her journey southward.

Everything in respect to the stabbing rib pain is relatively minor and humorous. Up until now I have not been inhibited by my belly and have been able to carry on with life and my normal activities. Now however, I am finding daily tasks to be a bit more difficult to accomplish. For example, putting my socks and shoes on is something I have always taken for granted. Of recent it requires some major energy and contortionism to achieve. Shaving my legs and any type of toe care/maintenance I would also put in this category.

I will end this post with a story. On Sunday Andrew and I attended church and were asked to sit in a row that is partially blocked by a large column. I had to move the chair in front of the column a bit to get to my seat but didn't think a lot of it. At the end of the service it was time to take communion and leave reverently or stay and pray. Andrew and I elected the first option and attempted to exit the row. Unfortunately for me, there was now a man in the chair I have previously moved blocking the column who was spending some time with the Lord. Everyone else in our row was able to exit without a problem, but as you can see from the picture above, I have a little extra girth right now and was not able to fit through! I tried to get on my tip toes and turn but my belly just would not fit. My other growing problem was the 10 people behind me also trying to leave who were wondering who was holding up the line! I could feel my face flushing and that I was creating a scene by continuing to attempt to get my body through the opening. Finally, I resolved that I had no choice but to ask the man praying to please move so that I could get out! He was very understanding and as quickly as possible extracted myself from the row. By this time I was beginning to sweat and I could feel the redness in my cheeks growing as I tried to avoid eye contact with the onlookers. I am sure I got a fair amount of glances of pity combined with an effort not to laugh. Looking back it is pretty funny but in the moment I was totally mortified.

And that my friends is 34 weeks....

Nathalie

Christmas at the McClish House

Amongst all of the baby preparations we are doing around the house, Andrew and I somehow made some time to decorate for Christmas. I love this part of the year. We are partial to real Christmas trees and enjoy the process of going to the tree lot, picking out just the right one after much consideration and debate, then taking it home to trim. I think many find this a hassle but to us it is one of the best parts about the season.

Fortunately we also agree on how a tree should be decorated. I am not sure I could have married a guy who insisted we have colored lights on our tree. No offense if you do colored lights at your house, I think those trees are pretty too. However, Andrew and I both grew up with simple white lights and it just feels right to us. We love the simplicity and I am so glad we agree! Andrew does the lights and I do the ribbons then we hang the ornaments together. Perfect....

This picture did not come out as well as I like...but I think you get the idea. The other thing that is great about real trees is all of the extra bows left over after trimming the bottom. I use these on the mantle and they look pretty (IMO) and smell wonderful. Also, after Christmas I can throw them out and don't have to find a place to store yards of garland. Next year we will  have 3 stockings....just can't believe that still!

Since I am now officially on restricted travel (my OB doesn't like her patients leaving town after 32 weeks), Andrew's parents came to see us this weekend. Pat has been sewing some special things for the nursery that she brought and we worked on. They turned out beautiful and I love that Julianne's room is full of things specially made for her. I will have more pics on this soon, but here are some from our time with the McClishs.

While they were here they treated us to tickets to the ICE exhibit at the Gaylord Texan. Every year they have tons of ice brought in and these Chinese sculptures come to create beautiful works of art out of ice. This year the theme was Peanuts or Charlie Brown's Christmas. Here we are waiting in one of the lines to get in to see the ice.

Once we got through the lines they gave us parkas to wear since they must keep the ice at 9 degrees. Fortunately they one that fit over my belly.

It was very neat and I was impressed with the artistry as well as the emphasis that was kept on Christ throughout the exhibit.

My favorite sculpture of all was the final room we walked in....an incredible ice nativity. This picture does not do it justice. It was truly breathtaking and surprising since I didn't expect the exhibit to be Christ focused at all.


More on pregnancy and how the nursery is coming together soon. I am really enjoying getting things set up in there for our baby girl!

Nathalie

Babymoon and other updates

Dear Blog-

I am sorry for the neglect...things have been busy and frankly I just haven't felt like updating you lately. Please forgive me...I still love you.

Nathalie

OK now that that is out of the way.....Andrew and I have been keeping busy lately. I really should start with telling you all about the beautiful baby shower we had at the beginning of November. I don't have any pics with me today from the event though so I will have to postpone my remarks from the evening to a later post.

For now, please enjoy some recent shots from our latest adventures and projects.

Adventure #1: A&M vs. Baylor football game. Location: Waco Texas

This is always a fun event for us since Andrew attended Texas A&M and I attended Baylor University. It was an exciting match up...well the first half was anyway. A&M came back in the 2nd half and ended up with the win. I was sad but it made for a more pleasant ride home with my Aggie.

Adventure #2: Colorado Babymoon and Thanksgiving  Location: Colorado

The week of Thanksgiving was spent in the lovely mountains of Colorado where I grew up and my family still lives. We saw deer, snow, and ate like kings (I am dreading my OB appointment tomorrow for fear I gained 12 pounds)! During our visit with my family Andrew and I took a couple of days for an official "babymoon". If you are not familiar with this term, it means one last hoorah before a couple becomes parents thus ending time alone forever. We got countless advice that one last trip "just the two of us" would not be regretted and cherished for years to come. We chose to visit the little town of Buena Vista Colorado and spent our time exploring and enjoying the mountains and time together. It was awesome.

Lovely river we walked along....

30 weeks on this day! It snowed while we were there which sadly covered the mountain views, but it was still really pretty!

I imagine this will be one of our last "just the two of us" photos....crazy!

Adventure #3: Nursery Art Project. Location: Julianne's room 

I have been slowly working on a few things for our girl's room. I found a tutorial online for this and thought it was such a great idea. My inspiration came from the quilt I had made for her and loving the fabrics that were used.

I love that it is unusual and custom made

Another view...I decided to order 3 of the fabrics in the quilt online and use it as artwork on the wall.

First I went to Hobby Lobby and chose some plain wooden frames in the size I desired. These cost me a total of $10 (made 3 frames)

Next I cut the fabric slightly larger than the frame

Then I ironed the cut piece..

gathered my supplies....not pictured here, but a husband is also nice to have around to operate the stapler while the wife holds the fabric tight

I started on one side pulling the fabric tight as I went and then did the same on the opposite end. Saved the corners for last....again...Andrew was very helpful for this part. Thanks babe!

For the corners I tried to wrap it like a gift. Seemed to work well....

 And Done! I am going to be changing the way they are hung...going for something more A-symmetrical I think. I didn't want to not show the finished product though. I am very pleased with how they turned out! Total cost: $25

I also now have some extra fabric to use for other things in the room as well. I don't really consider myself a crafty person, but this was so easy I would totally do it again or recommend others trying it.

Thus concludes this ridiculously long and random post. Thank you for reading....assuming you still are.

Nathalie

My Momma

I thought I would take this opportunity to write a post about my Mom. She lives in Colorado but surprised us this week with a visit! We literally came home Tuesday night after our childbirth class and she was in our living room with my sister (Maria was dog sitting for us). It is such a treat because I don't get to see her as much as I would like. We have been having fun this week hanging out.

Some fun facts about my mother:

1. She is petite and cute and always put together.

2. Both of her parents were born in Mexico but immigrated (legally I might add) to the states before she was born. I wrote an essay on my grandmother's challenging and inspirational journey to the US once and won a scholarship. It is an amazing story...and kind of off topic...I apologize

3. She speaks fluent Spanish, is very creative, makes excellent tamales, is a gifted Real Estate Agent.

4. She has decided Julianne will call her "Mamacita" "Cita" for short. I think it's perfect.

 This was her reaction to the news that she would be a grandmother. I wrote her a card from the baby and stuck a piece of rice on it to represent the baby's current size. She was excited to say the least....

5: My mother is not a fan of having her picture taken as you can see from the above image. I am not sure why this is as I have always thought she is such a pretty lady.

6. She is generous and has the gift of hospitality. She is constantly throwing parties and events in her home for her many friends.

I would have always told you that I love and appreciate my mom. However, as I go through this pregnancy I am beginning to realize that maybe I never understood how much she loves me. I love Julianne, but I am told I will love her unlike anything I have ever known once she is here. I cannot begin to understand that but am eager to experience it. I suspect how I relate to and love my mom will change as well. I think I may even feel bad I didn't appreciated her more. I suppose this is part of the joy a woman experiences when she becomes a grandmother, but the whole thing blows my mind. With that I will end this post.

Nathalie

2 years

This weekend marks mine and Andrew's second anniversary. He he has asked me out for a date tonight to celebrate and I am getting really excited! I cannot believe it has been 2 years since I walked down the isle to become Mrs. Andrew McClish. I found some old shots in facebook today to commemorate the occasion. We were married on November 1st at an outdoor ceremony in Colorado. People thought I was nuts to plan a wedding that late in the year in Colorado's unpredictable climate. The fact I wanted the event to take place out of doors on a mountain was even more ridiculous (it usually snows this time of year). You know what happened though? God gave us the most beautiful day! The weather men were astounded and kept talking about how it hadn't been as warm in over 35 years. It really couldn't have been more perfect for our nuptials.

 I wanted to carry orange flowers and I thought these were so pretty.

 Ceremony location and set up. My entire extended family helped decorate and I am still trying to thank them for all of the hard work they did.

 

Getting ready to marry Andrew! I was so excited and eager to get the show on the road

I asked my brother to give me away in absence of our Dad. I loved that he walked me down the isle. When we got to the end of the isle I took part of my bouquet and set it in an empty chair next to my mom we reserved for my Dad. It was a special moment.

We're hitched! Too bad Andrew was looking down for this moment

posing for the photographer...she liked when Andrew dipped and kissed me...we have a lot of these kind of shots

It was a great day. Looking back I realize how much I have learned and grown in the last 2 years. I am so thankful God called me to be Andrew's wife. I can't imagine anyone else loving me as patiently and selflessly as he does. Happy Anniversary babe....I love being your wife and can't wait to see what this year brings as we become parents! 

26 weeks and nursery paint project

This week marks the last of the second trimester...wow that is hard to believe. Here is what I look like as of this morning. Somehow I am just not a graceful, elegant, pregnant woman. These pictures seem to be difficult and awkward for me to pose for. Maybe because shots from the side are something I have been trying to avoid most of my life. I personally feel prettier from the front. Anyway..here is our attempt. Also...where the heck am I supposed to put my hands for these? This is not the solution I know...it looks like my hand is in my crotch. I assure you it is not!

Feeling great, still have lots of energy, and getting really excited about meeting our little girl. She is moving all the time and I constantly wonder what she will look and be like. It is fun to be anxiously giddy about her arrival, when up until now I have honestly felt more overwhelmed over the concept of becoming a mother. Don't get me wrong, the weight and responsibility Andrew and I feel as we prepare to become parents has not gone away. However, I feel more confident to take it on the closer we get to our due date.

It has also helped that we are getting a lot of stuff done in preparation for Julianne. We have taken a class on breastfeeding, start our Lamaze classes next week, registered (this is no easy task), and painted the nursery! Well I say we, Andrew painted the nursery on his own last weekend while I attended Baylor Homecoming with my dear friends Katy and Sarah.

Since Andrew is an Aggie not a Bear, he could care less about Baylor Homecoming and elected to stay home and paint the room. He also didn't want me to be around the fumes...what a great guy! Here are some before pics....we went through a lot of samples.

Above is looking in the room from the doorway

Wall of samples...for some reason the color on the paper never seemed to match the color on the wall. Later we found out that Lowes' paint color mixing software was messed up. Would have been nice to know before we made 9 trips, but finally we mixed our own color using 2 of our samples and had Home Depot match it. Result: finally got a color we liked!

We decided after the paint was up that we needed to sell this bed. It would have been great to have, but with the baby furniture there was just no room. So I took some pictures of it for Craig's list

It sold in less than 12 hours

Unfortunately I didn't take any other pictures of the room with the paint so you are stuck with my Craig's list sales pics. I think you can see though how nice the paint looks!

I will take more as we pull it all together, but had to brag on Andrew and his paint job today. I am so ready to get in there and set it all up for our baby girl!

Nathalie 

24 weeks

So turns out I am just terrible at documenting this pregnancy week by week. The last belly pick was taken back at week 15 or something. Oh well...Andrew took this pic this morning as I was putting on makeup which is why it does not include my face. It is shocking to look at this....it is like, is that really me? I have a similar reaction when I pass a window or mirror and catch a glimpse of myself. Although the growth has been substantial lately, I am still feeling pretty good. I have some ligament pain I am dealing with that is completely normal but still have energy and lots of stamina. My belly makes it a little harder to wash dishes I've noticed, but life is pretty normal otherwise. Well...except for the fact that we will become 3 in 3.5 months!

Julianne is moving a ton now! It is so fun to feel her squirming and punching throughout the day and night. Andrew can feel her too and each time she kicks him he lights up in amazement. I can't wait to see him with our daughter. I know he will be so tender and sweet to her and I am so excited to witness it! She is a lucky girl to have Andrew as her daddy.  

The nesting phase is here in full force and I have loved cleaning out the closets and purging our life of all the stuff we no longer need. A couple of Saturdays ago I went through every drawer, cupboard, and box in our house and kept just the essentials. It was a long day but now we have room for Jules and all her gear. Her room is still a work in progress and the pic below pretty much sums up how I am feeling about how the nursery is coming together.

The main challenge is the wall paint color. We are trying to get a neutral green color in there that is not too dark for the tiny room. Seems simple enough but at this point we have been through 8 paint samples and made countless trips to Lowes to find the right color for the walls. We are close and I am excited for how it will come together, but at the same time a little beat down by the project at this point. Hopefully we can find the right color soon. I think it will be easier from there. I will have to write an entire post about the nursery and take a pic of the wall with all our samples.

So that is 24 weeks in a nutshell...

Nathalie

In a Pinch

What is one to do when traveling westbound just before sunset when even the car blinder shade thing will not block the intense rays of the setting sun? What option does one have to safely reach his destination in conditions such as these while attempting to merge and maneuver through traffic on one of Dallas' most treacherous freeways?

Why...borrow your wife's sunglasses of course!

Doesn't he look handsome in my knock off street vendor shades from NYC?



He pulled it off well and we made it safe and sound!

 You can bet next time he will remember to bring his pair. Also knock offs from the streets of New York. We are classy like that.

Nathalie 

Letters to Julianne: Grandpa Tom

Dear Julianne-

I wanted to take some time today and tell you about a man who lives in Heaven with Jesus who would have loved you very much. 11 years ago today this man met our Lord face to face after being very sick for a long time. While we are very happy that he got to go to Heaven to be with Jesus, mommy still misses him very much and wants you to know all about him. He is my Daddy, your Grandpa Tom. I am not sure where to begin in telling you about your grandfather. There are so many memories to choose from. In thinking about his life today though, I couldn't think of a more appropriate time to start sharing who he was with you.

Physically he was about the height of your daddy (Andrew) and had lighter hair and blue eyes. He also had a lot of hair for a man his age and always looked younger than he actually was. Grandpa Tom loved God, his family, the mountains, horses, saltines covered in apply jelly, and diluted red cool aid. He could fly planes and was very smart. He took me to school each morning precisely at 7AM. Once, I was not ready on time and he left without me. This event may be why your mommy is such a punctual person. He also picked me up from school from time to time. When I would jump into his red and tan Ford Bronco, he would tell me of all the girls leaving school, I was the prettiest one of all. He really meant it too...to him I was. Then we would go get a cherry lime aid together and he would ask me what I had learned new at school that day. Now, whenever I drink a cherry lime aid, I think of him and our afterschool discussions.

Your Grandpa Tom taught me how to ride a horse, snow ski, drive a car, and more easlily understand my Algebra homework. When he got sick, Grandpa Tom showed me what it means to suffer well. He was a very brave man. Although he didn't like being sick, or the thought of not getting to meet you, he trusted God's purpose for his life and his suffering. He knew that God would ultimately use it for good. Before he died, your grandfather shared that his one hope for his family was that we would be transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That our hearts might be forever changed by the saving grace of God. Just as he prayed that for me, it is my hope and prayer for you. That at an early age you might understand and be changed by the Gospel. I am glad that his story is a testiment for you and that he has a legacy in you. I will always miss him but am thankful for the memories and how God used his life to change mine. 

Love,
Your Mommy

Baby M’s Name

In the short time I have been pregnant; I get the following questions almost daily:

1. How are you feeling?

2. Do you know if the baby is a girl or a boy?

3. Do you have a name for her yet?

The 3rd question for me up to this point has been the one I cannot answer with certainty. Even when we were first married, Andrew and I would occasionally pass the time by thinking of names for our future children. Our future son’s name was easy to come up with for us since it is two family names, but we could never settle or agree on a girl’s name. Figures God would give us a girl so we would have to work through the challenge of coming to some consensus. When it came down to it though, the issue was Andrew and I simply had different tastes when it came to naming baby girls. In line with all previous girl name discussions, we could not agree. He loved modern, trendy names; I loved traditional old lady names (it seems these are making a comeback).

There were many long sessions that went something like this:

Andrew: What about (insert trendy name)?

Me: No…too many people are named that. What about (insert old lady name)?

Andrew: Is she going to be born in a nursing home?

The other challenge was trying to incorporate my middle name Beatriz; also my mom’s name and her mom's name. My mom and grandmother are Hispanic and it is the Spanish spelling of Beatrice. Growing up I always swore I would never pass on the name since it was an old lady name (go figure) and all I wanted was to be Nathalie Marie or Lynn or some such normal middle name. Fast forward 15 years and my husband turns out to love my middle name and insists we must keep the tradition going. I have to say I now agree with him and it is special and has grown on me a lot since I was 11 years old.

All this to say, and if you are even still reading this, we have finally found a name we both love that goes with Beatriz McClish! I have hesitated making it official, but we are calling her by her name already so it just seems wrong to name her anything else at this point.

Our daughter will be called:

Julianne Beatriz McClish

Her Mommy and Daddy and close family/friends will call her Jules occasionally for short. We love it because it is unusual without being too “out there”, to us it is lovely, and we can picture a little girl or grown up girl with this name. Finally, I can respond to question #3!


Nathalie and Baby J :)

21 weeks....

This was taken at dinner on Saturday night. I cannot believe how large I am getting. I know this is nothing compared to how large I will eventually become but the whole thing blows my mind. The doctor tells me I am gaining weight at the right rate, but each time I step on the scale it is a bit alarming. Oh well...when else in your life is it OK to gain 4 pounds in 1 month? Tomorrow we get to have a 3D sonogram and I am looking forward to it! We should have a good idea of what she is looking like as long as she cooperates with us and shows us her face.  I will post those pictures soon.

I am also still feeling great and have a ton of energy. I am told this is the "golden trimester" and to enjoy it since in the coming weeks I may not be as comfortable. I guess we will have to see how it all plays out. Really I have had an easy go of this whole pregnancy thing so far. I was never really sick, don't get heartburn (knock on wood since I am loving the spicy food these days!), and sleep pretty well aside from the vivid dreams and bathroom trips I inevitably take each night. I am very thankful for these blessings. I know for a lot of girls the road is not so smooth. I guess there is not much else to report for week 21. We are going to begin setting up the nursery soon and are pretty set on a name. More on all that later...

Nathalie and Baby M

She's Moving!

Or rather...now I can feel her moving!! Yesterday I had finished lunch and was working at my desk when all of a sudden I felt a little punch from the inside. It was unlike anything I have felt before, so I reasoned it must be the baby! Over the last several weeks I have thought perhaps each twinge or gurgle in my tummy was our girl, but couldn't say with certainty that it wasn't just gas or digestion. I was beginning to feel like a bad mommy since I had heard from others that they started feeling their babies way before 20 weeks. Was something wrong with my mothering abilities if I couldn't even feel my child? I realize this is silly and I honestly didn't fret too much over it, but boy am I glad I am on the other side! Pardon my enthusiasm, but this might been the coolest thing about being pregnant. I can't wait until the kicks are strong enough for Andrew to feel them!

On another note, our good friend Sherah Witt took some lovely photos of our family at the lake last weekend and I have been able to use them to update our pictures on the blog. You can see more of her work here: sherahwittphotography.blogspot.com. Our specific shoot here: HERE

p.s. I have definitely "popped"

Nathalie and Baby M

Andrew's reaction to Having a Daughter

As you know we decided to indeed discover if Baby M is a boy or a girl. I am so glad we did! I still think it is awesome when people have the discipline to wait, but for us it has helped us bond with our daughter and imagine life with a girl.  Andrew thought we were going to have a boy, along with 65% of our blog readers which I think is 9 people, and when he was told he would be a baby girl's daddy, he was a little surprised and shocked. His first reaction to me was, "We are going to have a baby!", like it wasn't until that moment it was real for him. Then as if accepting it he said, "we are going to have a daughter...wow...wait.... what if she doesn't get asked to the dance?" This comment caught be a bit off guard. This was his first reaction to the news? I tried to assure him that the dance was a long ways off. Then he said as if he hadn't heard me, "what if she DOES get asked to the dance!?" It seemed the reality of this scenario in his mind would be even worse than the first.

Even though we laughed about it, it became apparent to us how much we already love our girl and how much we want to protect her. I imagine these feelings will become even stronger once she is here. While I think it is good for us to love and protect our daughter, we are also asking the Lord to help us trust him with what he has for her life. We know that his path for her is perfectly planned and ultimately for His glory, but I suspect living this out will be difficult at times. We are praying about this.

Andrew now refers to "us" as "his girls" and it is really cute how much he has embraced having a daughter. I know she will adore him just like all the other baby girls in our life (there are 5 other baby girls in our small group alone and they all love Andrew). He talks to her and constantly touches and kisses my belly for his daddy daughter time. It is adorable and I love Andrew more or differently somehow now that we are going to be parents together.

In addition to seeing her private parts, we also got to see her heart, spine, lungs, kidneys, bladder, and stomach. Although the ultrasound photos of these anatomies are not as interesting to look at, I found them beautiful to behold! It is a miracle that all of her spine is in tact and perfectly formed. Likewise that she has functioning kidneys and bladder etc.. I am just in awe of how all of this happens in such a short amount of time and how thankful we are to God to have made our baby (at least as far as we know) healthy.

I am still eager to feel her move inside me. So far nothing on that front, but I am told I should start to feel her any time. I cannot wait for that!!

Nathalie and Baby M

Baby m is..........

A........

Beautiful baby....



GIRL!!!!!!


We are thrilled and will share more soon!

Nathalie and baby M

Weekend at the Lake

I am about a week late in posting this, but last weekend we had the great privilege of visiting Possum Kingdom Lake! Andrew's brother's wife Amy spent her childhood weekends on this reservoir, and her parents recently bought a second lake home right on the water. They invited us to their lovely place for a weekend of fun and sun. We had a great time! Since I am with child I was unable to partake in the tubing/skiing/jet ski fun but very much enjoyed watching the others from the boat and taking quite a few dips in the lake! It was so refreshing to get away and some relief from the heat in the water. I have concluded riding on speed boats is one of my favorite activities in this world.

Humm...this is not our best together shot but the only one I have of both of us. Notice I wore my lap swimming suit. It did the job but was not the cutest thing on the lake for sure. I have a variety of lovely 2 piece swim wear options, however I personally feel totally uncomfortable wearing them at 17 weeks pregnant. Some girls can totally pull this off....I am just not one of them.

Oh well...me and Baby M had a great time totally covered up in our 1 piece lap suit. Very fun weekend indeed!

On the pregnancy front, I am just about 18 weeks along now and feeling awesome. I don't think I have ever felt this hungry in my whole life though! Food has also never tasted so good! For the first time I always know exactly what I want and feel completely satisfied when I get it. Our baby also apparently loves some spice. I have been craving all kinds of spicy food, the greater the kick the better. My current favorite are sandwiches from Potbelly with their famous hot peppers. If you don't know what I am talking about you are seriously missing out. Oh man that is a good sandwich! I also am cooking with a lot of jalapenos and Asian hot sauce...yumm! This Thursday we have our "big" ultrasound where they will measure and look at all of his/her parts and tell us with certainty if Baby M is a he or a she. We are super excited and anxious for Thursday to arrive!

Nathalie and Baby M

Belly Shots

The Belly Shot has been something I have been meaning to do weekly since we discovered Baby M. 16 weeks into it I have two pictures taken on the same day last week. This is even the first baby. You are supposed to be good about this kind of thing with the first. I think my hesitation to take these images are due to several factors. First of all, how pregnant I look over the course of a single day seems to very quite a bit. I wake up looking fairly normal, slightly poochy and my pants don't button but I can still wear them. However, by the time I get into bed you'd think I was about to give birth right then and there! It is a very strange phenomenon that I have read is normal, likely due to bloat, but not shared by most of the women I know who have been pregnant. The question this raises for me is when to take the belly shot on any given day? I mean at what point is my belly the most accurate so to speak?

These shots were taken before dinner so I was a little larger than that morning but not as big as I would be after eating my evening meal. The other issue is I still feel like I don't quite "look" pregnant. As you can see, there doesn't seem to be a distinguishing bump just yet so I am left with photographing my extra chub until I "pop". I have been promised this will happen soon! Let's hope so! So here they are. I am making a commitment to be better about taking and sharing these pictures. I know I will appreciate them once Baby M is here. Oh and thank you to Maria who took these and helped me find my best side angle if there is such a thing!

Nathalie and Baby M