It's A Girl!!!

Well, the big news of the day is that we're having a girl!!! The emotions are a little overwhelming. At the beginning of my pregnancy, I had no feeling whatsoever about what I was having. As a little time passed, I started thinking that maybe I was having a girl, but I didn't say that to too many people because I didn't want to be wrong. I had two dreams, both of which I had a girl. Then, all of the old wivestales about the girl applied (getting sick a lot, wanting more sweets and less meat, etc.). I told Josh this but no one else. Then, when I had my ultrasound at the Women's Care Clinic, they did not say what it was, but they thought it was a boy. That really threw me for a loop because I had really started thinking that it was a girl. I had to readjust all of my thinking. I wasn't disappointed-I think I was just caught off guard a little. So, for the last six weeks, I have been telling myself, "there's a good chance it's a boy." Even this morning, on my way to work, I was thinking that I was still completely torn about what I wanted. I thought, maybe they'll tell me I'm having twins-one boy and one girl. Crazy thought I know, but that's the only way to get what I want because I really wanted both!! I was still preparing for it to be a boy though... so when the nurse said today that it's a girl, I was like, "really???" I was caught off guard all over again. I felt really overwhelmed with emotion-maybe I would have felt that way either way-I don't know. I asked Josh if he was happy. He said of course he's happy-why wouldn't he be-we're having a baby!! He said having a girl does make him a little more nervous though because he feels like he has more pressure to protect her and raise her right. Before we even left the ultrasound room, he said to me, "what kind of guys is she going to date?!?!" Funny... he's already worried and protective of her. He said, "she will be so beautiful, like her mom, but she will NOT be a cheerleader!" She and I will probably laugh at this together someday... I think she will be a daddy's girl. I am so happy to finally know so I can call her "she" instead of "it" and can envision things that I will do with her as opposed to a boy. I already love her so much and can't wait to hold her in my arms. I want to pick out pink things for her although Josh REALLY doesn't want to paint the nursery pink because we might eventually have a boy (and as he said today "it's not like we're only going to have two kids!"-I had to make record of that-we'll see if he still thinks that in a few years...). It's been a fun day telling people, but lots of people are surprised-for some reason everyone thought we were having a boy.... Also, I told Josh I would be really happy if he would let me name her Hannah... he's thinking about it :) He left for Nashville for work right after the appointment, so we will have to discuss when he gets back :) He is still for Kayla... I like Katelyn too though... maybe Hannah Katelyn Downing?!? Just a thought.... (Kay is Jody's middle name and Lynn is my mom's middle name). I will stop rambling for now... my writing is flowing like my thoughts... all over the place... How did you girls feel when you found out? Am I crazy????

Betsy's Graduation

Betsy graduated from high school this weekend. It was kind of weird for my mom especially, as she is the baby of the family. She was the valedictorian of her class and she gave a GREAT speech. She is going to the University of Illinois in the fall to major in Math and Secondary Education. She has won so many scholarships that I have lost count (almost $25K!). I am so proud of everything she has accomplished, but like I told her in her card, I am most proud of who she is. She has been a great Christian leader and role model in her class and I'm sure she will continue that at the U of I. She is beautiful on the inside and outside!

22 Week Belly

This week is the start of my 6th month already-this is really flying by-especially right now because this is the easy part. Everyone said that my belly "popped" this week. It did seem all of a sudden. One day I could hide it, the next day I could not. It's kind of fun though because people are starting to recognize that I'm pregnant. I have been around lots of people this weekend so I have gotten lots of comments. Most people say that I don't look that big for being as far long as I am (they are probably just being nice) to which I reply, yeah, it's because I'm tall (which does help). But, my favorite comment of the weekend was, "You still have four months to go?!?! You're going to be HUGE!!!! You must have a really big baby in there!" At least I have a sense of humor... I wasn't really offended but I was a little taken back... I'm sure that's just the start of many interesting comments....

My First Mother’s Day (Kind of… )

Mother’s Day was a fun and busy day. After church, we went to my parents house and dad made lunch for everyone. Mom got me a quilt for my first mother’s day. It is the ABC’s of the faith. She liked it because it has lots of lessons that I can teach my baby. I think it is too nice to let the baby play on though! It matches my family room really well so I think I will keep it in there. After that, we went to Josh’s cousin's house in Champaign for a brief visit so he could tell his grandma happy mother’s day. Then, we went to Josh’s mom and step dad’s house for dinner. We had fun there too. Jody got me a maternity shirt that is really cute. I was excited about that-maternity clothes are a priceless commodity right now! Josh got me a card that he wrote "Mommy" on-it was cute. He took me on a date last night to celebrate my first mother's day. We went to dinner and a movie-we hardly ever do that and we figure this might be one of our last chances. (Just to give you an idea of how rarely we do that, we used gift certificates that we received in 2006. We always have something going on so if we have a chance to stay at home, that's usually what we choose.) We saw "What Happens in Vegas," which we both thought was pretty funny.

BobbleHead Day at Wrigley

A couple of weeks ago, Josh and I both took the day off of work and went up to Wrigley Field for BobbleHead Day. We had a great day. We figure days like those may not be as common soon so we better take advantage. We drove up early so we could be in line two hours before game time. We had lunch at the park and the weather was perfect. I have been to some miserably hot and cold baseball games, but we have lucked out the last couple of years-it makes it so much more enjoyable. After the game, we went to a restaurant called Smoke which was recently featured on one of Josh's favorite TV shows- Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. It was a great day. Who knows, maybe we'll take the baby next year?

A Gardening Attempt

Over the last couple of years, I have found that when talking to my husband, I should avoid making thoughtless, casual comments that begin with words like “We should get…” or “Wouldn’t it look nice if we….” unless I really mean it. These are dangerous comments-Once that seed is planted in his head, nothing else happens until it is accomplished. Don’t get me wrong, I also love this about him. I can always count on him to get the job done, but sometimes he takes me too seriously. Take this past weekend for example. I made the mistake of saying, “Wouldn’t it be nice if we had a tree in the backyard? Maybe we could plant one for each child we have and it could be their tree.” Most husbands would say “yeah” and go on with life. Not Josh. Ever since “the comment,” he has been to three tree nurseries and has been online researching trees, trying to figure out what kind will look best, what will be easiest to grow, and what will be the most cost friendly. His philosophy is “why plant one tree when we could plant 5 or 6?” I said, no, one is enough for now! But, in the end, you know I will let him do whatever he wants… While at the nurseries, he decided that we needed to add some landscaping. He came home with twelve new plants! I have to give him credit, he tried very hard, but I wish I would have been with him. First off, he wanted to buy a plant for our front porch. Great idea-it is kind of plain. However, he came home with a Hibiscus plant…. This was so sweet of him because he knows that I love those, but it definitely won’t work for the front porch because it is 100% shaded, and the Hibiscus is a tropical plant. Then, he had $60 worth of daylilies. They’re nice, but we already probably have $400 worth in our yard that just needed to be split and planted elsewhere. I made the mistake of reminding him of this, so this was also added to the project list… He did, however, choose two beautiful hanging plants for the front porch which I love! On Sunday, he convinced me that we should spend an “hour or two” in the yard together planting his new purchases and splitting all of the existing daylilies. I reluctantly agreed. Most of you probably know that I am not much of a gardener. It’s not that I don’t like to work in the yard-it’s just that I really don’t know anything about it. SIX HOURS later, this pregnant lady was covered in mud from head to toe (literally) and was exhausted. That is hard work! Since we really don’t know much about landscaping, I hope our plants survive… I am a little worried that they will die after all of that work! I wish I had a picture to post of me when that was done, but you would probably all be scared…

18 Weeks Belly

Ok, everyone keeps saying that they want to see my "belly." However, in a picture it is still hard to tell (trust me, it's bigger). This is me today at 18 weeks. I'm trying to stick my belly out-can you tell?? I'm sure I will be huge shortly. I know you girls have been there-it's that awkward "is she pregnant or just getting chubby" stage. I can put on some maternity clothes and look pregnant or I can put on my normal clothes and look chubby. Anway, this is me today-I will keep you posted!