Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!

This year of course, Kent and I received the best gift of all (besides, Christ's birth), our new baby boy, Nolen! We are so blessed to have him. It is so weird how quickly your life changes....of course for the better!

Here is a picture of our christmas present this year!

Nolen at home

Holding dad's hand

Dressed for work

Chillin with mom

Healthy Nolen

Grandma with Nolen at 3:20 AM

Great-Grandparents with Nolen

Healthy Nolen - temperature is stable now

First pic of Nolen

Here is Nolen and mom at 3:00 AM after almost 2 hours of pushing. It was rough on both of them but so far both are doing ok.

Baby Day

Today is the day - we came to the hospital at 5:30 this morning to jump start this thing - think Nolen is a little too comfy so were going to have to yank him out - time to meet the world. We will tweet progress at http://twitter.com/kentkristina if you want to follow.

False Alarm

Yesterday afternoon, Kent and I ventured to Fayetteville in search of dining room chairs to go with our new dining room table. While walking through Peir 1, I started to have contractions. They never hurt, but they were pretty consistent, so Kent and I decided to time them. Once we left Pier 1 we were headed to Bentonville to attend a meeting for Gateway. Before getting on the bypass we decided we better go home and put our hospital bag in the car just in case. When we arrived at our meeting destination, my contractions were very regular, in fact they were happening every 3-5 minutes. Our good friend Allen showed up for the meeting and eventually told us we should go to the hospital. Now, let me tell you, these contractions did not hurt at all, they were just a little uncomfortable that's all. I told Allen this and he said that his wife's never hurt in the beginning, but eventually did. So, with that being said Kent and I left the meeting a little early and headed to the hospital.

Kent and I have been attending prepared childbirth classes every Monday for the past 4 weeks and every week our instructor would remind us as to when we would indeed need to go to the hospital. She said that if your contractions were 3-5 minutes apart for an hour that you needed to go to the hospital. That is exactly what Kent and I did, except we waited 2-3 hours before going to the hospital. Anyway, when we got to the hospital, we checked in and were then brought into a labor and delivery room so they could monitor me. My blood pressure was a little high, so the nurse wanted to check it every 15 minutes for an hour. She also conducted a physical exam to see if I was dilating. Let me just tell you that 4 weeks ago, my dr. had informed me that I was starting to dilate. Well folks, I have not changed at all since then!!! So anyway, I was hooked up to monitor where we could hear my heartbeat and the baby's heartbeat for an hour. During that time I continued having contractions every 3-5 minutes but never once dilated any further. Needless to say, the nurse just said that I was having braxton hicks and needed to go home and drink more water. She said that this could be the start of labor or it could still be days before I actually go into labor for real.

I was so disappointed by this whole event. My wonderful husband tried to encourage me by saying nice things like, the baby will come when he is ready and so on. I know he was trying to help, but I couldn't contain my tears. We decided to go to the movies to get my mind off of the evenings event.

Here I am today, still pregnant and still no signs that labor is near. My official due date isn't until Monday, but I would love for him to arrive before then. I'm trying not to dwell on this situation, but it seems to penetrate my mind all the time!!

Hopefully the next time I blog it will be about me at the hospital having the baby instead of being sent home from the hospital empty handed.

Apple Shower

Last Friday that Apple family threw Kent and I a baby shower! We had a great time. Linda caught some great pics. Enjoy!

The first pic is of course of me holding up the wonderful gifts from my sister! Thanks!

The second pic is of me LOVING the tiny hand made pumpkin hat and pants from Bea.

The third pic is of me and my hunny kissing, and the third one is of me at 38 weeks!

Waiting and blankets

We had another dr. appt. today. Our dr. said that he was thinking about us because it's been almost 3 weeks since our last appt. I was very quick to remind him that he said that he didn't feel it necessary to see us weekly because I was very healthy and the baby was healthy. Of course he mentioned that if at any time we felt we needed to be seen to give him a call. I love that about him! :) I decided that I wanted to be checked to see if I have made any progress. The only difference from our last visit is that I'm still continuing to thin out, but not dilate. I have a little over 2 weeks left of this pregnancy and I'm feeling very ready to have this baby. Dr. said that the baby is at about 7 pounds now and he anticipates him being just at 8 pounds when he is born! HOLY COW, that is a big and healthy baby! So, we are still in our waiting game. I keep having contractions, but I guess they aren't really doing anything to speed up the process. Our next appt. is next Friday, we'll see if we make it. Maybe we'll have a little baby boy in our arms!

On a side note, I have fallen completely in love with this little guy. I have this little blanket that I got at one of my showers, it's satin on one side and a really soft material on the other. I fell asleep with it last night because I was thinking about the baby and how he might love this particular blanket. I don't know, I think somehow I'm trying to bond and connect with him. I just can't wait to meet him!!!!

The LONG Wait......

Here I am 2 weeks after my last Dr.'s appt. and we've got nothing except for serval Braxton-Hicks contractions. My next appt. has been moved to this Thursday. Maybe the Dr. will give me some good news like, "hey you're dilated to 4 cm, we need to admit you." Boy, wouldn't that be awesome! I had contractions Saturday night and for several hours Sunday, which made me believe it might be time, but no, it was all just a false alarm!

My dear friend Christa keeps it real with me and has helped me step out of my fantasy world and back into reality. Afterall, I still have 3 weeks till Nolen's official due date. On the bright side of things, I guess it's alright that Nolen hasn't been born just yet because I still have bedding to finish up, homework and a house to make final preparations to. Honestly, I'm not miserable, in fact this pregnancy has been really great.

I keep thinking about how much I want to hold him and can't wait to see what he looks like, but then I look at my HUGE belly and think about how much I'm going to miss seeing him kick the crap out of me. Oh, how I can't wait to meet the little guy!

I'll keep you posted!

Happy Halloween!

Kent and I had a little gathering of friends over for a Halloween party! We had a great time!

Dr. Appt.

I had my first "physical exam" this morning. Looks like I'm 1 cm. dialated and 70% effaced!!!! At this point the dr. said that I could go into labor anyday or it might take weeks. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. I'm 5 weeks away from my due date, but the dr. is totally ok with me going into labor at any point. My next appt. is in 2 1/2 weeks, unless something happens between now and then. I'd be happy if Nolen decides to enter this world a little early. I'm ready!

Baby Shower # 1

My dear friend Christa and my wonderful sister in-law, Kara threw me a beautiful baby shower this weekend! I was blessed to be in the presence of my incredible family and friends! Thank you to everyone who attended and their very generous gifts as well as to the lovely hostesses who gave their time, energy, creativity and money to throw me such a wonderful party! Here are some pictures of the event!

My sister in-law Kara and daughter Aubrey (Hostess)My dear friend Christa and I (Hostess)

Cloth diapers!

Adorable sweater!

Beautiful table with yummy food!

Cave Cabin

Here are a few pictures of the Cave Cabin that Kent and I stayed in last weekend. We really enjoyed ourselves! The cave was very clean for a cave that is. The only thing that kinda weirded us out was the shower. It was tiny and just overall an experience! Don't worry, I wore flipflops in the shower! Enjoy the pics!

Just an update...

I have just about 7 weeks left till D-Day! I'm feeling much more uncomfortable these days. I haven't been sleeping very well and I moan and groan everytime I get off the couch or roll over in bed. Kent even took the box spring off our bed to help me get into bed easier (we have a high bed people!). I'm feeling much more tired these days in fact, I don't recall feeling this tired during my first trimester. The little man is sucking all my energy from me. I'm getting anxious to meet him. His room is just about done. Kent did a fantastic job staining the dresser and painting the walls.

Kent and I are getting away for the weekend, so I'll post pictures later.

Love to all!

Willie in Concert

Kent and I went to see Willie Nelson in concert. It was an enjoyable time. Sorry for video quality, it didn't turn out too well, although the sound is good. :)

Pregnancy pictures....week 30

As I mentioned in the last blog, Kent and I had some pictures taken. I think they turned out pretty dang cute if you ask me. So here are a couple to view.

10 weeks to go!

That's right folks, only 10 more weeks to blast off. Pretty soon our sweet baby will make his grand entrance into the world! I can't believe how time has flown by. Kent and I had pregnancy pictures taken of us (thanks, bobshull.com), and they turned out great! I'll have to post a couple soon.

As for the to-do list, well, we have a ton to do. For starters, here is what our list consists of:
1. clean out the office (99.9% done)
2. prep room for painting
3. paint the room
4. put together crib
5. finish baby bedding (I'll be lucky if I actually get it done before D-Day)
6. paint dresser
7. move in furniture
8. wash all baby clothes
9. organize room

Of course, this list just came off the top of my head, so I'm sure there are some more that I'm forgetting.

I keep telling Kent that we really only have 8 more weeks to go because I want everything done before he arrives. Although, if he comes early then I'm going to have to adjust my time table.

I'll update with pictures soon.

Just Because

I thought I'd post a picture of my wonderful hubby, just because. :)

Sorry for the delay...

I know I have been delinquent on postings, but we have been busy!!! School started back up, so my mind has been totally wrapped around school and of course baby. Can you believe it, we have only 11 more weeks to go? Seriously, this pregnancy has flown by. I'm so thankful that I have had such a healthy and really, easy pregnancy. I just got back from the doc's and he said that everything looks really good. I received the results from my glucose test and he said that I was around 63. He said that they like to see the glucose levels below 130, so 63 was wonderful! Also, I'm not anemic, which is also very good. He also said that my blood levels were really good too! Oh, and I was pretty shocked by this news, Nolen's head is already down. I told the doctor that that would explain some discomfort in a particular region if you catch my drift. :) Nolen weights a little over 3 lbs now and he said that we can expect Nolen to gain about 4 more lbs before D-day. The only other discomfort that I have been experiencing is some joint pain and numbness in my fingers. The doctor said that it's due to fluid retention and circulation. Not a whole lot I can do about that until the baby is born. Here is the long awaited picture of my growing belly. :)

Back From Vacation...to the BAHAMAS

Kent and I just got back from our vacation to the Bahamas! We had a wonderful time! Kent and I cruised with our friends Kevin and Christa and had a great time with them! We actually felt well rested after this get-a-way, which is not typical for us. We disembarked from Miami and cruised to Nassau, Coco Cay (Royal Caribbean's private island) and then to Key West. We had the pleasure of meeting tropical storm Fay for about 1 1/2 days.

While in Nassau we were greeted with squalls (short, heavy rain storms) which made touring a bit difficult. Our excursion was canceled because of weather, so Kent and I walked around Nassau for a little while and then headed back to the ship.


Kent and I in soggy Nassau, Bahamas


Our day in Coco Cay was probably the most enjoyable for us. We snorkeled, but the water was too murky to see anything, so we found a hammock and snuggled up together and enjoyed the warm weather.


Pictures of us in Coco Cay


Key West was very hot and expensive! We toured the island, sweated through our clothes, sat on a bench on a beach and people watched and went back to the ship.


Southernmost Point Continental USA, and a picture of the only interesting thing to see at the Key West Aquarium.


Kent and I enjoyed the swimming pool, food and refreshing yet very expensive drinks.


Kent and I at dinner on the ship and Christa and I sitting on the edge of the pool.

Christa and I on the airboat tour in the Everglades, and a pic of Kevin and Christa.

Alligator in the Everglades