Staycation?

I'm officially on maternity leave from work although there is no baby yet! Because the grant that funds my position expires June 30th, I am taking leave a bit early. I have 22 days left until my due date so have some time to fill. I guess this is what you call a staycation? Instead of taking a trip with my time off, I find myself at home anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first child. I just might go crazy! I'm not one who can handle too much time away from the office without anything else to fill my time. I know, soon enough I'll have plenty to do, but in the meantime... We do have a weekend getaway planned for the 4th of July. We are taking a short trip to Council Grove to enjoy some time at the lake with our close friends. I also have a few days set aside just for pampering. I will treat myself to a massage, new haircut, and pedicure in the next week or two. I'm also scheduled to see my OB/GYN every week now, so have something to look forward to each week. So far, we have not checked for any cervical changes or progress but anticipate that we will this Thursday. Of course, as things progress, I'll keep everyone posted!

Final Shower

On Saturday, two of my best friends hosted one last celebratory shower for our little guy! My co-workers, colleagues, and friends attended and blessed us with wonderful gifts and warm wishes. During the shower, we played a game where the attendees and I tried to guess the price of ten different baby items. Of course, I didn't get any of them right. In fact, I don't think I even got within a dollar of any of the items. I overbid on most items, so it was nice to hear that they were actually cheaper than I had anticipated them being! With four weeks to go, we really have nearly everything we need to welcome our son in to this world. Not only do we have the tangible items, we are also very fortunate to have the love and support of many. I would be remiss if I didn't mention just how great Bryan has been. He's dealt with my mood swings, complaints of aches, pains, and swollen feet and is almost always willing to comply with my requests no matter how ridiculous they may seem to him! I owe him a lot and cannot thank him enough for his constant love and support!

Counting Down the Days

I have several days to go...33 days to be exact, but I'm already counting down! I've began packing my bag for the hospital and just finished the first load of the baby's laundry. I'm anxious yet very excited for his arrival. I am growing more uncomfortable as the days go by. Between the heat and my ever-growing belly, I am ready to have him in my arms! I have a week of work left, which is great! I will have some time to relax and make final preparations before his arrival. The picture above is a graphic from a maternity t-shirt that Bryan bought me a few months ago. I wear it frequently! The picture below is of me at 35 weeks. This is the first photo I've posted, but I wanted to show off my big belly! Somehow, one of the dogs always manages to get into the picture!

My Hero Did Come...

This weekend, Bryan and I traveled to SW Kansas for a baby shower held in our hometown. Many of our family and friends attended and once again, we received some great gifts for the baby! It was nice to catch up with everyone as we had not seen most since December. Our nursery is complete, except for the fact that we don't have a nursery! We have all the items we need to complete it as we received our crib bedding set and accessories this weekend and found out a few weeks ago that the nursery furniture is in. We also received many of the essentials we will need to bring Braylon home, including some wonderful handmade items that are really special. The more we receive, the more it really sinks in that we are nearing the end of this exciting journey of pregnancy! With the love and support that has been shown to us so far, we know that our son will be loved by many when he arrives!

We also celebrated 4 June birthdays and Father's Day with our family over the weekend. I had been working on a project to give to Bryan for Father's Day and after a few failures (I'm not crafty at all), I finally completed it and gave it to Bryan on Saturday. I first saw the wall plaque at a store in KC and it brought tears to my eyes. Instead of purchasing a professionally made plaque, I ventured to make one myself. It isn't perfect, but it was made with love and definitely reflects the way I believe my son will view his father in the years to come.

Co-ed Baby Shower

On Saturday, our closest friends and family gathered to help us celebrate the upcoming arrival of Braylon Arthur Ramsay, better known as Baby Ramsay. Bryan's sister and husband graciously hosted the event at their home. We also celebrated the arrival of Cooper Ian Smith, Katie and Kelly Smith's new baby boy who arrived four days over due, but in good health! Uncle Brian Abbott received the news during our shower and shared the joy with us all! Congrats Katie and Kelly!!! We kicked the evening off with an exciting wager on the Belmont Stakes. Part of the money wagered went to the winners and the remainder went to establish a college fund for Braylon. After the winners were declared and money divied up, we opened our gifts. We received some fantastic gifts and were overjoyed with the sentiments shared in the "vault" Braylon received to open on his 18th birthday. The vault contained items from friends and family that signified a particular event or memorable moment that Bryan and I shared with each couple or individual. We wrapped up part one of the evening with some great barbeque, drinks and cake. Part two of the evening featured one of our favorite solo blues/jazz artists, Paul Sanchez. He made the trip from New Orleans just to play for our group. Everyone had a great time and really enjoyed Paul's music. I stayed out for the long haul and crashed when we finally arrived home at 1:45am. Bryan and I are so thankful for everything we have received so far for this little guy! He will arrive to a world filled with love and support all around him. We are truly blessed!

Preparing for Baby

Things are getting pretty busy as we prepare for the final weeks. First, we are trying to sell our house and get into another before the baby arrives. This is a long story that I won't get in to, but the short story is that we will be cutting it close if we get moved to another home before the baby. This also means that my nesting compulsion cannot begin, although I've done some small craft projects to include in the nursery. Our crib is in, yet we have nowhere to put it! Ugh :( Next, we finished up our childbirth classes on Wednesday, so we are officially ready to give birth. Yeah right! We begin a two-day Baby Care workshop today and will wrap that up next Sunday. Next weekend will mark the first of three consecutive weekends of baby showers. We will make a trip home to Johnson in a few weeks for a shower in addition to celebrating Father's Day and 4 June birthdays! On June 25th my maternity leave at work begins, so I'll have some down time before baby comes. Hopefully, we are in a new home by then and I can focus on getting the nursery ready! Cross your fingers!