Blessed

At the first church where Luke served on staff, we used to end every Sunday morning service with the congregation reaching across the aisles, joining hands, and singing "The Family of God". The first line of the song proclaims, "I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God...". It was such a sweet moment at the end of each service, and a reminder as to how blessed we are to be able to do life together with fellow believers. Since I have been on bed rest, I have not been able to go to church. Sunday mornings have been particularly lonely as I lay in bed watching Green Acres church service on TV. While I have been so thankful that I have the ability to "join in" via TV with another local congregation (and have found myself laughing out loud at their pastor's jokes), there is nothing like being in the presence of fellow believers.

All of that to say...Today was so refreshing. Our church family had a diaper pounding for us! It was great to fellowship with some amazing ladies. I was reminded once again how blessed we are to be surrounded by so many who are as anxious as we are to meet our little girl. She sure is loved! My mom came with us and took lots of great pictures...so here it goes...
We had to get a picture with all the yummy food!!
Isn't this cake awesome? We have had the cutest cakes at all of our showers (if I do say so myself)!Mom and I before everybody started to dig in.This quilt was made by the quilting group at our church for little Maddie...super special! There is a little pillow that matches it and a framed quilt square to hang on her wall. I will have to take another picture later so you can see it up close!Both this quilt and the one above are such labors of love!! I can't wait to lay this out for her to play on! Luke and I both still have our baby quilts, so I know these will be treasured for a long time!The next 2 pictures are diaper cakes that some talented ladies made for us!! I don't want to take them apart because they are too cute! (Some day I will have to tell you about my diaper cake failure...but we will save that for another day!)Now do you see why I don't want to take them apart??We are so thankful. Madelyn is one blessed little girl!

Speaking of Maddie...she is doing great! She moves all the time, seems to be growing (daily), and prefers the right side of my tummy over the left (or maybe she just likes to make her mommy look lopsided?). My heart rate has been steady in the low 120's but feels better when I stand up and move around. My blood pressure went back down to normal yesterday and has stayed that way! I am so thankful for that because it was making me feel tired. Can you believe that Madelyn will be home with us exactly 2 weeks from today? Only 12 days until the "big day"! AWESOME!

*Kathryn

it's official

Our doctor's office called this morning and said there had been some cancellations and that we could come in at 1:30 instead of 3:40 if we'd like. Awesome, right? We did not leave until well after 4! She was super busy today! So we found ways to entertain ourselves while I was hooked up for the weekly NST and we waited. Luke read up on good parenting skills...

and then enjoyed a nice paper ice cream cone...
The doctor officially decided today that we will be having a cesarean section in exactly 2 weeks! Madelyn is still breech and because of the way she has positioned herself, the doctor finds it highly unlikely that she will be able to make the turn. She did another ultrasound today and thankfully she was facing out so we were able to see her sweet face. She has chubby cheeks and a cute little nose! We were not able to get any good pictures of her because she was moving all over the place. She does not seem to like to have her picture taken! We will work on that soon enough! The doctor was not at all concerned about my heart rate or blood pressure and said that it is normal in late pregnancy to see a "rising trend" as long as it stays within certain limits. That was a relief. She also told me that getting up and around a little more would help, because if I am collecting fluids in my legs from the bed rest it would cause both of those to rise. We scheduled what is quite possibly our last prenatal doctor's visit for next Friday! If all goes well on Friday, we won't see the doctor until surgery time.

On our way to the office today I zoned out for a minute. Luke asked me what was wrong and all I could do was smile. I am truly in awe that God is giving us this little life to look after and enjoy. She has taught us so much already. Psalm 126:3 has come to mind a lot lately..."The Lord has done great things with us and we are filled with joy".

My husband makes me laugh constantly. He refers to Madelyn as "our little gift from God". Whenever we talk about doctor's bills or baby items that we need to buy, he starts talking to Madelyn in the classic "baby talk voice" and tickles at my belly..."You little precious gift from God. You're an expensive little thing. You're the most expensive gift I have ever been given." I know that it is MUCH funnier to hear it in person, but you will have to take my word for it...it's funny!

Tonight Luke went out to the church to work on the new student ministry building! I have not seen it since it was just a frame, so I am anxious to get out there and see all of the progress. He dropped me off at my parent's house on his way out to the church so that I could hang out with my family and this little cutie...She walked around for a little while, so that was super fun to see. She is so precious and seems to love all things musical. She danced and laughed and played until she was too tired to play anymore. I look forward to the day that Madelyn and her cousins have girls nights at Grandma's house! That was one of my favorite memories from summertime at my Grandma's house...all the grandkids packed in for sleepovers! So fun!

*Kathryn

the countdown begins...

So I guess I have been counting down for quite a while now...but today (which marks the 35th week of our pregnancy with this little miracle girl) we are just 2 weeks from the "big day"! I am ecstatic, nervous, excited, and scared all at the same time. I know it looks like my emotions are a bit bipolar, but that's because they are. I cannot wait to: hold her in my arms, see the look on Luke's face the first time he sees her (do you think they will let me hold my camera so I can capture that moment-because I treasure this picture from the exact moment Luke found out we were expecting)...watch as her Grandparents and Aunts and Uncle dote on her and her cousins give her sweet kisses. There are so many things that I am looking forward to. Then there are those things that I am unsure about. Will the whole breastfeeding thing work out? Will I be able to overcome my fear of cotton balls (yes I said fear...they make me want to puke and just the mention of them makes me cringe...go ahead...make fun of me...it wouldn't be the first time). Will I know what to do when it's just us...at home...alone? I know this sounds silly and plenty of women manage to succeed at all of these things every day...but these are just a few of the things that keep creeping in to my head. Ha!

So here I am. Anticipating September 24 in a way that I have only anticipated one other day my whole life, my wedding day. Although throughout my pregnancy (from the very moment I found out I was pregnant) I have been somewhat bombarded with unsolicited advice (some incredibly helpful...some not so much) I am now asking you for your advice!! If you are a mom, or plan to be a mom, or have witnessed something great from someone who is a mom (everyone has one right?)...let me know what you think this new mom needs to know before the big day. I am open to anything from what we need to take to the hospital all the way up to when we are home with our little bundle of joy! What helped you? What were the best things you did to prepare for bringing baby home? What do you wish someone had told you? I am open...lay it on me. My only request...please don't start off your bit of advice with "of course". I have had so many people tell me that, "of course I am sure you will breastfeed", or "of course I know you will want to use organic products and baby food", and my favorite (which I actually looked in to for about 15 minutes) "of course you will do what's best for baby and the environment and use cloth diapers". While I know that all of these things are great and have worked WONDERFULLY for many women, adding "of course" to the front is what has made me nervous that I may not be that great of a mom if I don't do it! So like I said...lay it on me! Please...tell me what you think. Leave a comment. Give me some good ol' advice!

*Kathryn

**To answer a question that a few have just asked...you don't have to be a blogger to leave a comment...just make sure to leave your name so I know who the helpful info is coming from**

just another Tuesday

And people say that baby's don't come with instruction manuals... On one of our early trips to Babies-R-Us, Luke stumbled upon this baby owner's manual and for the last several months it has provided us with lots of laughs and some good info mixed in. Luke has done most of the reading from this book...and has often read parts out loud, but today I decided I would give it a read for myself.I was laughing...even as I read the first page...The book covers topics such as: Preparation and Home Installation, General Care, Feeding, Programming Sleep Mode (one of my favorites), General Maintenance and so on. The diagrams are hilarious. It's super entertaining and would make a really cute gift if you know someone who is expecting.

When I wasn't reading the baby owner's manual today, I was sleeping. I was completely unproductive today (luckily my mom was off work and covered the productive part for me-have I ever told you how awesome my mom is?)! I know that there is only so much you can do from your bed, but I at least like to get a few things done...pay bills, write thank yous, make some bows...anything to make me feel like I am not a total bum. So this afternoon I decided I would list a bow I made on Etsy (this awesome site where anyone can sell their handmade and vintage goods-you should check it out). I decided...what could it hurt? The worst that could happen is that it doesn't sell, right? In 15 minutes I sold the bow!! How awesome is that? I couldn't believe it. Maybe after Madelyn comes along I will post some more bows and such to sell on Etsy. Until then...I will celebrate that I sold a bow!

Madelyn and I have been doing absolutely nothing...it has been completely exhausting to have such a high heart rate. It has been steadily in the 120's today with lows around 105 and highs up to 132. Yuck. I understand that the doctor says that it's not uncommon for people to have heart rates in the low 100's while pregnant...but for someone whose pre-prego heart rate was in the low 60's and prego highs have been in the low 80's...120 while laying in bed is rough and tiring. We go to the doctor Thursday afternoon, so we will talk with her more about that then if it continues. Madelyn has the hiccups right now. So cute!

Oh...If you are going to be in the Waco area this weekend (or in driving distance) you should check out A Magnolia Weekend (click here). I wish that I was able to travel because I would be there. It looks like a fun time to get together with some girlfriends or a mother-daughter outing and shop for some one of a kind treasures...

*Kathryn

Labor Day

It was so nice to wake up and be lazy with Luke this morning! It was even better when my brother stopped by with some yummy donuts and this cute girl...Every time I see her lately she looks a little more grown up. While we ate our donuts, she watched videos of herself on my computer and we all laughed at her sweet little voice when she was just learning to talk and I told her that the video where she was picking her nose will come in handy when she is 17! Thanks for brightening my morning...and indulging my donut craving!

The rest of the day Luke and I just hung out. Laughing at each other. Watching a movie. Taking a ridiculously long nap. Enjoying 1 of 3 Mondays we have left where we can be complete bums (except that Luke usually works on Mondays and it sounds like a bad thing when I put it that way...but you know what I am trying to say)!

Check out our afternoon attire...You may be wondering why we are sporting our Sooner gear...no it is not because we are in mourning over their recent loss to BYU (although I think most OU fans are)...it was all in the name of free Chick-fil-A of course! Chick-fil-A was giving away free chicken sandwiches if you wore your team's logo. The only thing better than Chick-fil-A is free Chick-fil-A. We stopped by and got our sandwiches to go (and felt like total dorks for matching). It was super yummy! Then we picked up a couple of redbox movies on the way home so we could go continue to have an uneventful evening.

We thought it was going to be uneventful...but what is Labor Day without a trip to Labor and Delivery? My heart had felt like it was racing this afternoon from about 4pm on, but seemed to get progressively worse. Finally I checked my blood pressure and heart rate around 7:30pm after an hour + of having a hard time breathing. It ranged from 100-129 even though I hadn't moved in like 2 hours. Apparently the low 100's is normal for pregnancy but mine has been around 80 the entire time I have been pregnant so it concerned me some. Then we checked Maddie's heart rate and it was between 189-193. We decided to call the doctor just to make sure everything was Ok and get her thoughts on the situation. She sent us to Labor and Delivery to check on Madelyn. Once we were there the doctor explained that it is not totally abnormal for the baby to have spikes in her heart rate up to 190 but it's cause for concern when it stays that high for long periods of time. Hers was just spiking! Praise the Lord! Within 45 minutes my heart rate was down to about 95-115 and Madelyn's was just doing the "healthy spikes". I did have a few big contractions while I was there but the doc attributed those to irritation in my uterus because of the increased blood flow! After about an hour we were allowed to head home!! Woo-hoo!

Now we are back at the house finishing up our movie. I am glad that everything was good. I felt like I may have over reacted by calling the doctor...but I am really just not used to my heart rate being that high or her heart rate being that high! Like I said before, what's Labor Day without a trip to Labor and Delivery??

*Kathryn

just the usual

For the last hour I have been feeling and watching as Madelyn hangs out horizontally again in my belly. I am confident she is horizontal because on the left side I feel her head and on the right side there are 2 little indentions that keep poking out and occasionally giving a swift kick! Tonight it is not as painful as it was the night before but it is still not exactly prime comfort for sleeping. The doctor told us and I have read in the baby books that most babies to first time moms turn in preparation for delivery and "drop" between weeks 30 and 33. Ever since I found this out I have been thinking that Madelyn is just one smart cookie for staying breech...I mean how many of you would want to hang out all day every day for 8-10 weeks upside down??
Not ME! Madelyn is probably just taking her precious time considering she knows that it doesn't take that long to do a little flip. Of course, let's just hope she doesn't get too big to make the turn...but I doubt she has taken that in to account during her rebellious breech days.

While hanging out in bed today I have been looking at all the different baby slings there are out there. I really think that I want to give one of these a shot...but I have no clue which one to try. I think the "Hotslings" baby sling looks the easiest to operate. Has anyone out there ever tried one of these? or know of someone who has? Let me know what you think of yours or what you have heard about others, please.

I cannot believe that in just 17 days we will get to meet our little girl! 17 days! We are just about to the 35 week mark now. A few weeks ago I was wondering if she would stay in there this long. I am confident that our pony bargain has been a major factor in her willingness to comply...and I guess we can thank the bed rest too! I meant to take pictures of her room today but did not make the trek upstairs. There is always tomorrow!

I have been working on a little project for my niece's birthday. She is going to turn 5 the day we have Madelyn...I can't believe how fast time goes by. I realized today that I have thousands of pictures of Emily and at least 100+ videos...but I am ashamed to say that I only have about 5 videos of Allison and she will be 1 year old in 2 weeks! YIKES! I have some major catching up to do!

I hope you all are enjoying the long weekend. Luke and I have just been taking it easy and will continue to do so tomorrow!! I love spending time doing nothing with my hubby...

*Kathryn

playpens...strollers...and car seats oh my!

The last couple of days have been pretty eventful (it's all relative I guess considering I think that a trip to the mailbox classifies the day as eventful). Thursday afternoon my sweet friend Jenna stopped by with her cuties! She is pretty much super mom...3 boys under 5 and she is always so calm. We always joke that Madelyn will have lots of options between her 3 when it comes time to date! They brought Madelyn this super cute bow:
I am definitely going to have to work on the layered look. I love it! Thanks Jenna!

Thursday night Luke and I went to the final child birth class to hear the pediatrician speak. We haven't been able to go to the last 4 classes because of the bed rest but got the Ok from the doctor to go to this one. It was mainly just basic safety info that most people already know :)

After class we headed over to Babies R Us to use Maddie's gift cards and make a few purchases. We bought her stroller and car seat combination! It was not the one we originally picked out, but after playing with them all and seeing which ones were the easiest to handle we finally settled on one (Luke would interject here that I finally settled on one and that he would have been settled in far less time).

Friday morning we took my cross pendant that I had when I was a little girl to James Avery to be put back on a chain. I had broken the actual chain somewhere down the line. It was going to take them about 30 minutes to solder it on so we went down to the Children's Place where our friend Leah showed us the cutest little shoes that we HAD to get for Madelyn.
Then Luke spent the afternoon putting together all of Madelyn's goodies! It was quite comical at times and really made me look forward to all the late nights we will put in on Christmas Eve and Birthdays trying to assemble bikes and all the other kid toys that you know you are too smart to read the directions for! Our house has suddenly been overtaken by all things baby...
Here is a pic of "baby Luke" (as he is so affectionately named) trying out Madelyn's car seat and stroller! He has the same hair cut Luke had when he was little...Luke spent most of the day helping build a wheel chair ramp for a church member while mom and I hung out! We had a great time looking at all the little baby things and talking! Tonight Kenda, Luke's little sister, came over for dinner! It is kind of fun to see her excitement for little Madelyn because it takes me back to when my oldest niece was on her way...such a fun time!

Now I am laying in bed with Luke as he plays his guitar and works on the song he is going to sing tomorrow morning at church. I wish I could be there. I can't wait until Madelyn gets to hear her Daddy lead worship...

Everything is great on the baby front...Luke and I think she was trying to flip last night because it felt like her body was completely horizontal inside of mine. It was painful and an unsuccessful attempt (I think). I am pretty sure she is still breech because I can still feel her head way up high! My contractions are a tad bit more noticeable now...but that is to be expected! I am looking forward to a week of laying low after a few days of escaping from the house...even if just for short times!

I think we are going to play travel scrabble and then call it a night...yes I did just say that and it is only 8:30pm! We've got to soak up the sleep for the next 19 days right???

*Kathryn

flashback...

Here is one of the korker bows I made yesterday. These are super easy and super cute! They are definitely my new favorite bow to make! I have to keep up the bow making now that I know Madelyn has a head full of hair to clip them on to...Watching the news the last couple of days about hurricane Jimena as it headed towards the coast of the Baja California Peninsula brought back memories of our honeymoon 2 years ago to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The morning after our wedding, we flew out of Dallas to the beautiful resort town! Upon arrival we located our shuttle that would take us, along with a few other couples to our hotels. Everyone started asking where the others were staying, making small talk, and discussing their plans for their stay when one of the men said, "We planned our fishing trip for today so we could be sure to get it in before the hurricane makes landfall." Did he just say hurricane?? The entire van had apparently been following the latest weather updates and knew that at some point throughout our stay a hurricane was headed straight for us! Apparently Luke and I were busy getting married or something fun like that and checking Mexico's weather forecast was the furthest thing from our minds! Everyone seemed pretty calm about the whole situation, but Luke and I were pretty curious about this hurricane they were talking about.

We made it to our hotel and this was the view from our balcony...
It was sooo beautiful! And life seemed to be going on as normal around us! We ate a semi early dinner at the restaurant on the beach and were so exhausted we went back to our room and slept for the next 16 hours straight! We ordered room service, hung out in our awesome room and eventually decided that we would venture out along the beach and find somewhere to eat for dinner. We walked along the beach, enjoyed each other's company, and eventually realized that we were the only ones on the beach. We made it down to the marina, which was also very empty, and found a restaurant that looked yummy! Dinner was so good, but before we had time to finish it, the chandelier at the top of the stairs started swaying, the doors started opening on their own, and the workers began to shutter up all of the windows. Oh yeah, didn't they say something about a hurricane? We thought it might be a good idea to skip the 30 minute walk back down the beach and catch a cab back to the hotel. The hotel had posted a bulletin update in the lobby and sure enough, hurricane Henriette was expected to make landfall at some point throughout the night and into the next day! To the room with us! We put on comfy clothes and sought shelter with pillows and blankets in the bath tub...Ok, so we really didn't seek shelter in the bathtub...these pics were just for fun! But we did settle in for 2 days of spectacular storms and views of waves crashing onto our hotel's deck after swallowing at least 20 yards of beach that once stood between the water and our resort. Besides trying to keep the water out of our room...
and dealing with no power...it really just seemed like a bad storm. The day after the storm passed, the streets were flooded and the blue crisp waters were completely brown.
Luckily we were there for 3 more days so we had plenty of time to take in the sites and the water even cleared up enough to take a snorkeling trip!Although hurricane Jimena was headed straight for Cabo as a category 4, I think the latest news update said it missed our special honeymoon spot as it weakened and moved inland!

I cannot wait to visit Cabo again, as a family of 3, but this time we may just have to bypass hurricane season completely!

*Kathryn

oh Madelyn

All week long I have been talking about how I couldn't wait to see our little girl's face on the ultrasound today...I guess we will just have to wait 3 more weeks to see her face! Not only was Madelyn breech, she was facing my back and refused to cooperate for pictures! She is going to have to get over being camera shy, because this mommy has her camera ready at all time! The first words out of the ultrasound tech's mouth were, "Look at ALL that hair!!". That's right, it's so long you could see it sticking off the top of her head! The picture below is looking down at the top of her head. Where the little cursor is you can see like a little white line that seems to go around her head...that's all the hair hanging off!Ok, so I realize that you are looking at this next picture trying to make it out. Luckily it is labeled "fist" for all those who can't see that it is her arm and she has her hand curled up in to a fist. Before I go any further I have to tell you that at this point the tech kept prodding at Maddie so she would move in order to get the pictures she needed. That being said...if you have had kids and know how to look at these...pay close attention to her fist...especially a certain finger! I think she was a little irritated after being poked and jabbed. Uh-oh! Luke and I laughed soooo hard when we saw this!After getting all the measurements we found out that Madelyn is looking really good! She is measuring big in some areas and small in some areas but overall she is measuring at 35 weeks 4 days! Almost 2 weeks ahead! This would really probably scare me if we were not delivering early, but it calms my fears that she would be too small in a few weeks! She weighed 5 lbs 3 oz and was about 19 inches long! The doctor confirmed that we will deliver on Thursday September 24th...but she won't decide on what method until the few days before most likely. 3 more weeks! I cannot wait to hold her!

I am in love with all things that are personalized! I LOVE seeing Madelyn's name on all her little things so I thought I would share some of the cute gifts that we have received for Miss Madelyn that bear her name!
These are the letters hanging on the wall in her room. My sister-in-law made these with wooden letters, scrapbook paper, and mod podge! Super crafty, huh?These are the bibs that my Aunt and Cousin had made! They are already packed in her diaper bag for our trip to the hospital...
This is the door hanger I made for Madelyn after seeing one for sale on someone's blog! Not quite as cute as theirs, but I think it turned out Ok.
Madelyn's "jersey" bearing her soccer nickname...Mad Kat! Love it!
Sweet little tag rubbies that can clip on to the car seat or stroller...such a good idea!
I found this at Lifeway while I was looking for one for my niece and HAD to buy it! It says her name throughout the songs. There are tons of CD's to choose from here.
Pacifiers from a friend from school! How cute are these? She got them from coolpacifiers.com!
These match the tag rubbies that are up ^ there!
Bloomers that some friends had made. They even gave her a bow with ladybugs on it to match!
I love all these bright colors!!
This tile is so neat and just my style :) It's already found it's home on Madelyn's hutch in her room!
I know what you are thinking...where did those come from?? An amazingly talented friend in Martin's Mill made these for our little girl! There are more but for the sake of being able to see them in the pic, I just picked out 5! I LOVE these and only wish I was that talented! So special!

I am trying out my hand at "korker bows" (you know the cute curly bows?)! You wrap the ribbon around dowel rods and bake it in the oven to get the curled effect! Mine are baking at the moment...but I will share pics whenever they are finished (good or bad)!

*Kathryn

It all started with a kiss...

6 years ago today I was a senior in high school. I had just gotten back in town from celebrating my Grandma's 80th Birthday with all of our relatives in Oklahoma City. I had tons of pictures that I wanted to share with Luke (I'll admit that I mainly just really wanted to see him-a weekend is a long time in teenager world). That night at his house, as we looked at all the pictures and laughed about how I got the "short gene" (the majority of my mom's side of the family is over 6ft. tall-ladies and all), we flirted and "bumped" our hands against each other's. Right before I was about to leave we shared something...a kiss. It was sweet and special. I think it surprised us both. We looked at each other and asked what it meant. That was the day we started dating...

4 years later to the day, we were married. That was the most fun day of my life. It was perfect. I married my very best friend. I love him more today than I did then and I know that with each passing day it will continue to grow. Happy 2nd Anniversary Mister, I love you always!

Today was a great day. It was not exactly how I would have pictured our last childless anniversary celebration (with the bed rest and all), but it was perfect none the less. I woke up to notes and gifts scattered around the house. This one was by far my favorite...Notice the stick guy holding his nose as he changes a diaper...it's a promise to at least change as many diapers as are in that pack...even if it kills him :) I laughed so hard when I asked him if he bought a size 2 because he didn't plan on changing any diapers until she was that big...he instantly said, "No way! They are supposed to be the ones for the new babies!" I guess we need a diaper buying lesson before Madelyn comes along!

Luke came home early to spend time with me! We took a nap, put some things together in Madelyn's room...
had an amazing take out dinner from Julians (the restaurant we went to the night Luke asked me to marry him)...and watched a movie together!

It was a wonderful day celebrating the day that God joined us as one! Just to think...it all started with a kiss.

Tomorrow morning we get to see our little girl on the ultrasound. I can't wait to see how big she has gotten! Yesterday was a yucky day-I caught the bug that has been going around but was so relieved that it was gone by the time I woke up this morning! I have not had any increased contractions so I know that everything will look great tomorrow!

*Kathryn