WEEKEND IN ATLANTA!

This past weekend we loaded up early Friday morning and drove over to Atlanta so that we could take Elle to the Georgia Aquarium.  Kenny and I went right when it opened when we were dating but I wasn't feeling well when we went and it was really crowded.  We were excited to revisit and take Elle. It is not overwhelmingly big and if you go on a weekend it only takes a few hours to do everything.  What I like most about this aquarium is that it is a a lot of really huge fish tanks and then they give you seating areas to just sit and watch all the different fish swim by.  They also have beluga whales along with a fantastic (but cheesy) dolphin show.

Elle and Kenny getting up close with the penguins.

This was one of those concave glass areas and Elle was having a good time climbing around in it.  Kenny and I were enjoying watching all the big fish swim by her! I mean look at those sting rays and that fish on the right really was that big.

Taking a break and hanging out in one of the viewing areas.  Had to take a selfie!

These tanks are truly majestic at times.

One of the large tropical fish tanks.  We loved this one for all the colors.

At the end of the fun Kenny and I took Elle into the gift shop and Kenny told Elle she could picky anything out that she would like.  She decided she wanted a satchel of rocks for $5.  Sweet thing.  She picked out lots of purple ones.

After the aquarium we headed to my Aunt and Uncles where we were staying for the weekend.  We were so happy to see them. Friday night we were able to go over to my cousin Lindsay's house for dinner and meet their new baby girl Lawson! 

 Getting some Lawson snuggles!

Elle playing teacher for Lindsay and Lawson and showing them the pictures.

On Saturday, Kenny headed out early to go to the PGA Tournament.  He saw 30 of the top golfers in the world.  He was in heaven!

Elle and I spent time with Uncle Mike and Aunt Pam just running some errands and going into a few shops and then enjoying some lunch. We then returned to their house to watch some of the State game and then the GAvs.SC game.

Reading some of my cousins old books before we went out to do some shopping.

My Aunt Pam bought Elle this sweet little angel doll at this adorable baby store we went into and Elle just absolutely loved/loves it! She was squeezing it and saying thank you!

Lunch break!

Love this picture of Elle and my Uncle.

Worn out from all the errands.  We got a car nap!

I watched and watched the golf tournament coverage looking for Kenny and finally spotted him in like in the quickest shot ever.  That is my finger pointing him out.

My aunt wanted a family shot before we left.  

It was a great weekend that was fun filled for everyone and we so enjoyed getting to see my aunt and uncle and cousins and second cousins. Elle pretty much invited herself back soon so I foresee more trips in our near future.  It is so nice that it is a short drive to family and fun family activities!

28 WEEK UPDATE-THIRD TRIMESTER WOOOHOO!

How far along 28 weeks.  My What to Expect App says Walker is the size of a head of cauliflower. He is 16 inches and weights 2.5lbs. Woohoo! I am so so so excited to be in my third trimester.  The home stretch! I feel like 12 weeks is still a long time but as long as he is healthy I am hoping maybe he surprises us by coming a little early like Elle did!

Total weight gain/loss? I am not sure how much weight I have gained as of this week.  We know the numbers are getting up there.  When I wash my face I can feel the difference.  But don't know the exact amount as of today.

Maternity Clothes? Yes.  We have a photo session scheduled for this weekend and I am a little nervous about what I am wearing.  I had a friend bring over some accessories to help me put together a look.  I plan to have most of the pictures be of Elle but also want a few family shots too.  Definitely not a maternity photo shoot though.

Stretch Marks- No. No stretch marks.

Sleep?Sleep is terrible.  I am tired.  Elle is trotting down to our room 1-2 times a night and that combined with my very early workouts that I started back this week I am so tired! We are implementing a new sticker chart tonight with "surprises" as incentives and I am really hoping this motivates Elle to stay in bed. 

Best Moment Last Week? We drove over to Atlanta last week (post to come) to take Elle to the aquarium, let Kenny go to a golf tournament and spend time with my family.  I was able to meet my new baby second cousin and hang out with my Aunt and Uncle which was great.  It was  fun trip! I also passed my glucose test which I was happy about.

Movement? Yes lots and lots of movement. He is constantly.  I love it.

Food cravings? No real cravings this week.  We did get this new Mennonite bakery here in Starkville and Kenny brought home this plate sized sticky bun the other day and it was absolutely amazing!

Gender? It's a boy! Kenneth Walker.

Labor Signs? I did have some contractions this past weekend while in Atlanta that gave me a little scare.  I never had any contractions with Elle and I wasn't even sure that I knew what contractions felt like because I got my epidural really quickly with Elle. But Saturday morning I was feeling really terrible and having sharp pains in my back and abdomen.  I talked with my friend Courtney (an OBGYN nurse) and my friend Susan (a nurse prac) and I started timing them and also started drinking a lot of water. I was kind of freaking out but soon they stopped.  I am pretty sure I was dehydrated and that is what caused them and now I am trying to be more mindful of my fluids!

Belly button in/out? Not in.  Not out.  Elle thinks it is hilarious!

What I miss? Being able to breath. Kenny looked at me the other day while we were driving home from Atlanta and said "Why are you breathing so hard?" And so it begins.  I lose my breath when I am eating or going up the stairs or talking.  So pitiful.  And Kenny thinks it is so funny and mildly annoying I think.

What I am looking forward to?I am hopefully going to get my birthday massage and pedicure this Friday.  I was supposed to get it a few weekends ago and the massage therapist had to cancel.  I was sad. But my back is killing me and I cannot wait to have someone make it feel better. Also looking forward to a low key weekend at home.  We plant to watch the State game against LSU and maybe get a date night in.

Funny things Elle has said this week about Walker:  While we were in Atlanta, Kenny and I were putting Elle to bed and she started telling us about the baby in her tummy.  Yes Elle has a baby in her tummy too.  She loves to let us feel it kick.  It makes Kenny a little uneasy but I know for Elle to pretend that she is pregnant like mom is completely normal.  So we are laying next to Elle and she says "Feel the baby kick!" And we put our hands on her belly. I ask her if the baby is a boy or a girl.  She says it is a little baby girl.  So I ask what her little girls name and she says, "ummmmm Alletooda." And I just started to crack up.  Little baby girl Alletooda.  She starts cracking up because she realizes how silly of a name it is too.  We were all in fits.  So now it is kind of our first inside joke.  We have talked a lot about baby Alletooda.  Sometimes she is out of Elle's tummy and gets left at home. We have had the best time with it.  

WHERE A KID CAN BE A KID

There was a morning a few weeks ago that we had planned a whole day out and then everything went to poop and we ended up with no plans.  We were all dressed and had nowhere to go.  So we decided to drive over to Tupelo.  It was a weekday and my friend Sarah always tells me how much her kids love Chuck E. Cheese.  We thought Elle might be old enough at this point. I think I only went to Chuck E. Cheese maybe once as a child and had some opinions on the place.  A lot of them still held true BUT we had the place to ourselves.  Like not another child the entire time we were there and we had sooooo much fun! Small town living I tell you.  If we were still living in Memphis we would of enjoyed a morning at the Children's Museum or the Botanical Garden.  So funny!

There really was a lot she enjoyed doing for her age.  She loved the skeet ball and the little rides that they have in the mall. She also played like four games of air hockey with Kenny.  She loved it!  Kenny turned into a crazed competitive ticket fiend.  Elle had no idea that you even used the tickets for anything.  To her getting the ticket after the game spit it out was the reward which was pretty cute! We were there for a very long time.  But since it was just us in there we didn't mind.  We did have lunch and the pizza was still pretty good.  Kenny and I both remembered it being awesome!

All in all it was great morning spent as a family.  Elle was so tired when we left and has asked to go back several times.  It doesn't help that there are a lot of Chuck E. Cheese commercials on PBS.  We will definitely take her again but always on a weekday morning.

Learning the proper form for skeet ball from Daddy.

I loathe this picture of me! Large and in charge! But our entire family loved some skeet ball!

Kenny playing this gambling game.  This is a token suck! You never win anything! Still remember from my own childhood! So funny!

Elle loved this fun ride! Can't you tell by her face?

Waiting on our pizza and playing with her second round of tokens.  Kenny and I spoil her and we can't help it!

Loving the Chuck E Cheese puppet.

Counting all the tickets.  Kenny was on pins and needles.

One last game of air hockey!

27 WEEK UPDATE

How far along 27 weeks.  My What to Expect App says Walker is the size of a cucumber/  He is 15 inches and weights 2.2lbs.

Total weight gain/loss? I think I am at 25 lbs gained.  I am okay with this number.  Does gaining weight stink? Yes, yes it does but it is just part of it and I am hopeful that I can get it off fast after the baby comes.  I have started to swell pretty bad and I know that will help once I deliver because that will go away. I officially had to stop wearing my wedding rings which makes me sad.

Maternity Clothes? Yes to maternity clothes.  Nothing really to say on this topic this week.  

Stretch Marks- No. No stretch marks.

Sleep?Sleep is okay this past week.  I am tired from the weekend but we have had a few nights where Elle has stayed in her room all night.  I am wearing earplugs too which help drown out noise.  So a little bit better.  I am feeling pretty achy and sore so it has been hard to get comfortable but still trying to make the best of it.

Best Moment Last Week?  Spending the weekend with wonderful friends and celebrating Walker with a little Sprinkle.

Movement? Yes lots of movement. A few kicks have started to be a little painful.  He is getting stronger.

Food cravings? No cravings.  A cold drink would of been nice at the tailgate.  But other than that nothing really to speak of.

Gender? It's a boy! Kenneth Walker.

Labor Signs? No labor signs.  I have started being more careful about overdoing it though because I notice my braxton hicks pick up if I am on trying to do too much.  I know Braxton Hicks aren't necessarily anything to be worried about but because I had them so much with Elle and then she came early that I just try to be careful. 

Belly button in/out? In but getting shallower and shallower.

What I miss? I am missing normalcy these days. Breathing normal, walking normal, sleeping normal, moving and getting around normally.  I still have my third trimester to go and I am trying to be conscious of my whining.  It is going to get worse before it gets better.

What I am looking forward to?I am looking forward to a low key week and then a trip out of town with Kenny and Elle over the weekend.  Should be fun. I also have my monthly check up this week so I will get to hear Walker's heartbeat.  I am taking my glucose test.  Fingers crossed I pass!

Funny things Elle has said this week about Walker: 

A HOT WEEKEND OF FOOTBALL

This was such a big weekend.  We had so many friends come into town, many who stayed at our house for the football game.  I should have so many pictures of all the fun times we had.  And we did have many a fun time! BUT, YALL! IT.WAS.HOT.

Mississippi State played UAB at 1PM.  So we all managed to get out of the house, lug all of our stuff to the tailgate all to realize that it was just so miserably hot.  The kids were even lethargic,whiny and miserable.  Elle pretty much sat in a chair the entire time before she insisted we go into the game for a little bit.  I made the biggest mistake of all and wore jeans and barely spoke to anyone the entire time we were at the tents because I really just wanted to go home.  We did go into the game for parts of the first and second quarter hoping that we would have a breeze where our seats are but there wasn't a breeze so we left.

After we packed up the tailgate we took the party on the road to our house and things got much better.  All of our friends were in town with their kids and we ate leftover food from the tailgate and a someone brought a bunch of pizzas.  The kids ran around outside and we watched football and just relaxed in air conditioning. It was a late night for the adults and the kids but we had so much fun!

Elle asked me to take a picture in her Bulldog dress that she wore for Maroon Friday.  She has school on Friday and it is so fun to see all the kids in their maroon!

When she got home from school I had her try on a new rain jacket and rain boots to see how they fit and I couldn't get over how cute she looked.  After it monsooned for the last game I wanted her to have some gear since the forecast was calling for rain. No rain so we didn't get to wear any of it.  

The one picture we managed to get with all the friends that were in town.  We were excited to get a picture with us and the kids.  We were all exhausted but it was a fun night.

Sunday morning my friends were so sweet to prepare a wonderful breakfast for me and give me a little Sprinkle for Walker.  All the guys took the kids to City Bagel for breakfast and then to the park to play so we had a great morning of girl talk and sweet baby gifts.  I was so grateful.

The rest of Sunday was spent resting and cleaning. We have a couple away games in the next two weeks so we will enjoy the break and hopefully it will be much much cooler the next time we tailgate.

26 WEEK UPDATE

So I am quickly realizing how fast these next 14 weeks are going to fly by with the start of football season. You barely recover from one game weekend and house guests only to start all over for the next weekend. It doesn't help that I could very well go into labor early (hopefully not) so I might not even get those 14 weeks!  I am trying to check some major things off the nursery. It is time to get that all in order!

For some giggles and since I just did the first football game post.  I was texting a friend what I was wearing for the game this past weekend.  It was a white out and my Mississippi State maternity wardrobe is only so vast so I was throwing some things together. Here was the finished look which I was pretty okay with.

Then my friend and I noticed that that mirror was doing me ALL SORTS of favors! I didn't even look pregnant! I even looked kind of skinny! She commented so I had to send her a more accurate depiction of what would be arriving at the tailgate.

There we go.  That is more like it! Fat face and all!

How far along 26 weeks.  My What to Expect App says Walker is the size of a eggplant. He is 9.2 inches and weights 2lbs. 

Total weight gain/loss? Scale is still going up.  It really stinks that I have to go stand on the scale once a week for my progesterone shot.  Kind of disheartening.  

Maternity Clothes? Yes.  Of course.  Just got a few more fall things in and I should be pretty set for a little bit.  Have some cute maroon things to wear to games and already have a cute maternity coat from when I was pregnant with Elle for when and if it ever gets cold.

Stretch Marks- No. No stretch marks.

Sleep? I am still so tired from this weekend with the football game and all the late nights girl talking with Susan.  Not to mention Elle has been padding down to our room pretty early the last few mornings.  But I am wearing my earplugs more at night and that is helping with other noises (cough cough) that have been keeping me from sleeping.  I love you Kenny!

Best Moment Last Week?  Watching Elle cheer on the Bulldogs all on her own accord.  She loves the games and the Bulldogs and is so much fun to bring to games now.  Also enjoyed spending the weekend with a bestie!

Movement? You can officially see all of his kicks on the outside now.  I sent a video to Kenny yesterday because you could see him moving around under my shirt.  I can also tell we are both getting bigger because the movement is no longer in my lower abdomen but around my ribs.

Food cravings? No real cravings to speak of this week. Still have my sweet tooth.

Gender? It's a boy! Kenneth Walker.

Labor Signs? No labor signs. As the weeks tick by it is great to know viability is getting better.

Belly button in/out? In but getting shallower and shallower.

What I miss? As expected, football season makes me want a little drinky drink.  

What I am looking forward to?This weekend is going to be absolutely nuts.  We are going to have a house full of our closest friends and their kids.  Then a lot of other friends are coming into town too since we have appointed this our reunion weekend of sorts.  Trying to get it all planned is a little overwhelming but all part of the fun.  Then the same friends are throwing Walker and I a little Sprinkle which is so nice of them!

Funny things Elle has said this week about Walker: Earlier today we somehow got on the subject that babies are born without teeth.  This absolutely blew Elle's mind.  She had no idea.  The questions that were coming.  So just boy babies don't have teeth?  I have teeth.  I had teeth when I was born.  Did you have teeth when you were born?  It was hilarious. Then she she says "Walker is going to chew on my toys."  I told her yes he might but that we would get Walker his own toys to chew on.  "I'm going to put my toys in a drawer up high so he can't chew on my toys.  But I am going to share my toys too!"

FIRST FOOTBALL WEEKEND 2014!

Well football season is officially here! We just love living in Starkville as that first home game approaches. There is just so many things to do centered around Mississippi State and our football team.

Friday night we were so happy to have Kenny's parents and his aunt drive up for a night.  We grabbed an early dinner at the Grill and then walked over to the Downtown Block Party. It is a small event but fun for kids Elle's age.  The highlight was the jumpys and hanging out with Bully.  At one point Elle was in the jumpy with three other little girls and Bully got in with them.  He was hamming it up with them and they were pretty much ignoring him which was funny!

Later we ran into Bully in a store.  Elle talks about Bully nonstop but then refuses to give him a hug or a picture with him when he sees her.  Then after we leave she talks about how she is sad she didn't give him a hug.  When we saw him in the store he was giving her lots of one on one attention and she eventually warmed up enough to give him a high five.  A small victory.

He was copying her by putting his fingers in his mouth like her.

Here we go! A high five for Bully!

Another festival fave! Face painting!

We stopped in at Tutti Fruiti for some froyo before heading home to put a sleeping Elle into her bed.

Saturday morning I made a big breakfast before Kenny's family hit the road.

The plan for the rest of the day was to wait for my friend Susan come in town from Memphis and then tailgate in the afternoon and go to the game against USM at 6:30.  But the weather was just absolutely terrible.  Poured and poured and poured all day! Tailgating was just out of the question.  As much as we wanted to it was just going to be impossible with Elle and luckily for us we had not put our tailgate up this game since some of our friends were out of town.  So about an hour and a half before the game we walked onto campus and into the stadium.  We were pretty wet, hot and I was worn out from the trek but our seats are covered so once we got settled we were good to go. This was Susan's first time to a Mississippi State football game and we were excited to have her with us! Elle was so happy to be back cheering for the team too!  We had a great time and left at the end of the third quarter and completely shut out the Golden Eagles!

Walking into the stadium.  A little damp but still excited!

Watching the Bulldogs take the field with Daddy. Cowbell in hand of course!

Woohooing with her pom pom.

And I despise this picture so much.  I officially have preggo face and this selfie was doing me zero justice!  Oh well!

Sunday was spent resting, doing a little shopping at the Brunch and Browse downtown and Susan and I went to dinner and a movie Sunday night.  Susan left Monday morning and now it is time to gear up and do it all over again!  We have UAB this coming weekend and a completely full house of people with lots of children! Going to be fun!