Time Is Flying...

...suddenly we're already 6 months pregnant! As we approach 25 weeks in a couple of days, changes are continuing to take place. My belly is noticeably getting larger (people we don't know can actually tell I'm pregnant now). Clinton's performances are becoming grander in scale. Rodney and I often like to sit and watch the waves across my belly as Clinton moves around. He tends to move the most at night, and I keep having dreams he's trying to get out. The other night I dreamed he crawled out of my belly button, was actually a girl, and was so small I lost him trying to get him to the hospital. I spent the rest of the dream looking for him.

WE HAVE GOOD NEWS IN OUR HOUSE!! Rodney finally took his GMAT (after a 6-week crash course study session) and got the needed score to start grad school. Originally, he was going to start in January, but has decided he would like to be able to focus on me and the baby...so grad school will start next fall. I think that schedule will accommodate us all a little better! Clinton and I are so proud of Rodney and this commitment he has made to benefit our family...Gracie Mae is just sad when anything takes her daddy away from play time!

Speaking of Gracie Mae, we FINALLY got our new fence put in last week and our little spoiled princess is in doggie heaven. She goes outside in the morning and stays out until the sun goes down. She spends her days napping in the sun, monitoring the fence line and greeting every person who gets within 1000 feet of our yard. We opted for a semi-private fence so Gracie could see out, and it seems to have been a great idea...which I must give Rodney credit for (I wanted a 6 foot privacy).

Rodney is currently in Pennsylvania for 2 weeks, so I have been looking for things to pass the time. Yesterday I went and set up our baby registry at my favorite store...Target. Today I made lots of goodies for the trick or treaters who live on our street. I made Texas Cowboy Cookies, Chewy Cocoa Brownies and Rice Krispies Treats. I made really cute bags with each of the kids names on them. I also made some glitter pumpkins I saw on Martha. I just took those little baby pumpkins and smothered them in gold glitter. With the pumpkins, some red leaves off of my tree from outside and a cute runner I got at Target, I have a very wonderful center piece on my dining room table. I would take a picture...but I still don't have a camera! I was going to carve some really cool pumpkins for the front porch, too, but everyone is sold out of pumpkins...boo. I have also already started making plans for Christmas. My family is coming up here for the holidays and I am looking forward to hosting my very first Christmas! So I do spend a lot of time in my cookbooks and on Martha's website working on decor and menus. I'm sure I will continue to find a number of other things to pass the time until my husband returns to me...otherwise, my hormones and I will just have to sit and cry about being all alone!

...and oh, the hormones. They are making me do things that are completely out of character for me. I have been crying...about nothing. I have been craving all that mushy romance stuff that usually strikes me as corny. AND, I put in all caps because this a big one,...AND I have been cleaning house...like crazy. Anyone who knows me knows that a spotless house is not, and never has been, a priority for me. I think a house should look lived in and be comfortable for those who visit, not so clean it becomes too sterile for people to relax--or require every ounce of my energy to impress people. In the past, I have asked my husband several times for a maid...and have been denied. I have driven him crazy with my lack of concern about that load of laundry that's been in the dryer for a week, or the dishes that are piling up because I won't unload the cleans dishes from dishwasher, or the 15 pairs of shoes by the door. NOW...I do laundry every other day. I have a spotless kitchen at all times. I sweep the floors everyday. I've been vacuuming very often. And I even cleaned the bathrooms the other day...which Rodney is usually gracious enough to do for me because I truly hate it. Maybe Rodney will get lucky and this will become habit....or, honey, maybe you should enjoy it while it lasts. We'll just have to see! :-) Last Saturday I went on a cleaning frenzy! When Rodney came home, he just walked around with wide eyes...and actually said to me, "Wow. Our house smells so good...it's never smelled like this before."

Anyway--that's a week in the life of us (and by us I mean me and my hormones). We will continue to keep you updated. Hopefully with pictures, soon. We would love to hear from you all. Lots of love...Courtney

Baby Belly Update Week 21...

Okay, okay...so it's been a while. A month, perhaps. I've been busy traveling for work and actually working. I have been in Florida and Indiana and will be in Michigan next week. We have also not yet replaced our camera, and I didn't want to make a post without giving you something to look at. Today we went in for another ultrasound and got to see Clinton again. He is something else....definitely a mover and a shaker. He spent a lot of time with his fist in his mouth, so it's apparent one gene has passed from both of us....a big mouth.
I'm continuing to get bigger. I'm a little over 5 months and have put on 12 pounds since prepregnancy. I'm handling it a little more gracefully than the last time I put on 12 pounds! :-) I'm actually not even back up to my college weight yet--so that tells you something about how healthy I was then. I have been craving lots of cheeseburgers. I think it's the texture of the ground beef. There is something about whole pieces of meat that is difficult for me right now. I also love fudge pops (the healthy kind made with Splenda) and Snickers (but those don't come in a diet version). I work very hard to give Clinton all the whole grains and vegetables we both need.
Clinton has been doing lots of moving. I feel him dancing around in there every time I lay down to rest or sit down to my computer. He presses his little feet pretty hard on my stomach to stretch out his little legs, so you can actually see it from the outside now. Rodney has started reading him books at night, because his hearing is now developed. His favorite is The Three Little Javelinas, a very Southwest version of the The Three Little Pigs. If anyone sees any great cowboy children's books, please let us know....we want lots of books for Clinton's room!
Our nursery is coming together. We've got the twin bed put together with new mattresses and bedding. We're just waiting on mother to finish the crib stuff and then we have to paint the room. I have picked out a shade of green called Pacific Pines that I think will just look really good and flow with the rest of the house. We'll post pictures AS SOON AS WE HAVE A CAMERA!
In the posted picture you'll see Clinton upside down in the first one, his head in the second one and him sucking his fist in the third one.
Hope everyone is doing well! We miss you all. Much love--Courtney