Couple's Shower

While back in Kansas Serena hosted a couple's baby shower for us with the help of Theresa and Brandy. It was great getting to see family and friends that we don't get to see very often.

Back: Michelle, Pat, and Kevin. Front:Laura

 Serena, Theresa, and Brandy did a great job and had several fun games for us to play. In one, everyone filled out cards with "wishes for baby". There was a wide range of responses from sincere and sweet to funny and silly. Several people have hopes that Baby K ignores stupid people and also grows up. Some other wishes include learning to talk, laughing loud, and getting a drum set (thanks Mom).

Another game that I enjoyed was blindfolding Kevin and having him try to guess the flavor of baby food. He did pretty well overall but I did not want to be in his position when the beef one came around...boy did it stink!

The "chug beer out of a bottle" game was also very entertaining to watch. Apparently drinking out of a bottle is not that easy!

James was disqualified immediately after removing the nipple and drinking straight out of the bottle.I believe it came down to Kevin and my Dad for the win but Kevin pulled out the victory. I don't think he'll be using a bottle at home anytime soon :) 

Hailie was our gift opening assistant and I think she really enjoyed the whole process. She loves babies and is in heaven now that we're having a cousin for her.

It had been years since we'd seen Laura and we were so happy that she was able to make it!

We have a fantastic start to our baby room now and I'm just sad we have to wait to use everything! It is definitely getting me to work a little more on clearing out the room we are planning on using as a nursery. Thank you so much ladies for this wonderful shower! We had an amazing time and we feel so  lucky to have such incredible people in our life.

Adell, Serena, Brandy, Cara, Theresa

 During our time in Kansas we also bought a second vehicle. One car was perfect during our time in California but a second one before Baby K arrives is a must. We bought a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe and we're excited to have a vehicle with a little more room. Kevin and Patti will be driving the car up for us sometime in August/September when they come to visit. I can't wait!!!  'Eagle-Eye' Kevin (my husband's Dad) spotted a crack in the windshield after we left and took it back to the dealership to get it fixed.

Although I'm going to be back in Kansas in October this is the last time both Kevin and I will be there before our little girl arrives. I feel we made the most of our trip and it was fabulous. I can't wait to go back with all three of us!

 

Baby Update: 19 weeks and....

We had our anatomy scan yesterday and not only did everything look great but the tech told us it looks like a girl! We're beyond excited to know the gender of this little thing growing inside of me! Baby K had a heartbeat of 157 bpm and she is in the 66th percentile. I wish I knew how to describe how incredible it was to see our little girl. Her little hands and feet...it was the most amazing thing. This is probably the best still shot that the tech gave us. Seeing it live is way better but I wanted to at least include one sonogram photo.

 We would have been just as elated if it had been a boy but I'm just glad that we now know. I like being able to refer to Baby K as a she/her (or as Grandma Patti prefers...Princess Baby K) rather than simply "baby" or "it".

We had a doctors appointment today to go over the ultrasound results and Kevin called it a useless appointment. I had to remind him that it felt that way because everything is going well and that he should be happy. (I have to admit that after seeing the baby yesterday today was a little anti-climactic). I did see on the sheet that I have an anterior placenta which is fine except that I might not be able to feel movement for a bit longer. Grrrr.

Everything else also looked great. I'm up a total of 6 pounds from my first appointment and I'm happy with the pace I'm gaining at. I'm definitely eating better so I just have to make sure I'm making good choices. Most of the time I do but I did make a red velvet cake last night (with pink frosting of course) to celebrate since I can't have champagne. I wash it down with a glass of milk so it can't be that bad right?

Up to this point we hadn't bought anything for Baby K but that changed right after our ultrasound yesterday. We stopped at the store and bought a couple of sleepers. I love the one that Kevin picked out. In case you can't read it, it says "Daddy loves me". So sweet. Not going to lie...melted my heart. 

4th of July!

After our wonderful weekend in Wisconsin we were Kansas bound for the 4th of July! As usual it was great to get to spend some more time with family. Patti, Serena, and I even had time to sneak away from the boys for a movie and dinner. As most of you know it was still extremely hot but we didn't let it get in the way of our fun.

Adell and Grandma Patti

The boys helped get the tables and volleyball net set up outside while us ladies finished getting food ready for the party. I may have spent a little too much time decorating these cupcakes but I can hardly resist a good theme. 

I had a blast at the Kent party. This is the first year I've been able to make it since they started having this annual party at their new house. Being on the lake and having a prime seat for the fireworks was AMAZING. It had been way too long since I'd seen a decent fireworks show.

Happy 4th!

 Luckily it worked out for me and Kevin to make it out to the farm to visit Grandmom and Grandad. Grandad had only been out of the hospital from his surgery and heart scare for less than a week. He was looking really good and I'm so glad he's on the road to recovery!

More fun was had for dinner at On the Border with the Kent side.

I gave up trying to get any of the Kent brothers to give me normal faces for pictures some time ago. I have just become grateful on the rare occasion that I get one. I also realize how short I look next to Joe.

We did manage to get a group photo (although it was not easy in a crowded restaurant) I think it turned out pretty well. We decided to cut Adell some slack for not looking at the camera.

A great week!

Wisconsin Wedding

My cousin Molly was married several weekends ago and I was very excited that it worked out that we could make it to the wedding. The ceremony and reception were in Lake Geneva, WI. I flew there the day before Kevin (he is saving his time off of work so he left after work on Friday). I met up with my parents and the kiddos at the hotel right off of the Lake in Lake Geneva on Thursday afternoon. It was ridiculously hot but still very beautiful. We enjoyed some relaxing time by the pool before a wonderful dinner.

We had all day Friday to relax as well so after breakfast we thought we'd take a boat ride around Geneva Lake and check out the incredible houses along the shoreline. It was fun getting some of the history of the Wrigley family and other wealthy Chicago business people who have set up residences there.

I think that Hailie and Seth really enjoyed being on the big boat and getting out on the water.

Kevin was flying into Chicago that evening so Hailie came with me to pick him up from the airport. After that was more fun in the indoor pool at the hotel. We had the pool to ourselves most of the time and we had a blast doing relay races and watching Kevin throw the kids around in the pool.

Saturday was the day of the wedding but we had plenty of time to check out the beach before needing to get beautiful for the ceremony. The water was a little cold for my taste but Kevin and the kids didn't seem to notice. I mostly stuck to taking pictures and trying to get everyone to drink water.

I love how entertaining the beach is to kids. Hailie enjoyed picking up seaweed and shells and Seth liked just digging around in the sand. 

 I feel like they could have done this for hours.

 

Another highlight was burying Seth in the sand. He LOVED it! Hailie and Kevin each had a turn and a bunch of other little kids nearby joined in on the action. We did have to closely supervise those other kids because they wanted to really pack the sand on the chest. I was constantly checking to make sure they could breathe alright..and of course taking pictures.

Finally it was wedding time! It was held on a golf course and they had everything decorated beautifully. It was a painfully hot day for an outdoor wedding even though I loved the birds chirping with the harp playing. 

I thought I was being sneaky when Kevin brought me ice water until I looked around and saw lots of other people with the same idea.

Luckily dinner was inside and then I was kind of cold because we were sitting underneath an air vent. I wish I would have appreciated it more at the time because the dance was outside.

Molly looked gorgeous and took the time to rock out with Hailie and Seth. 

The next day we made the drive to my Uncle Kent an Aunt Deb's in Waukesha. Still hot out but luckily they had a pool that felt amazing and we spent quite a bit of time in there.

It was great getting some time with family and having a real chance to catch up.

Cousin Nate and me chillin' on the noodles

 It was great seeing the siblings together for a happy occasion rather than a funeral!

Uncle Kent, Mom, and Uncle Marion.

I'm so happy for Molly and her husband Mike and we had a fantastic time getting to know him and just enjoying quality time with the Koch side of the family. We are so spread out and it isn't very often we are able to get together! 

Baby Update: 17 and 18 weeks

I have several posts from our Wisconsin/Kansas vacation that I need to get up but I thought I'd update the bump watch first. Another two weeks down! I have been feeling so much better over the last couple of weeks. There is still the occasional "mucus vomit" I described in a previous post but it is not longer every single day. There have been a couple of random vomit moments out of nowhere but compared to my state two months ago it is quite the improvement.

The heat wave that passed through the Midwest was not particularly pleasant. Not that it was for anyone but I feel like it drained me even faster than normal. It was my daily mission to stay hydrated and I feel like I did a pretty good job for the most part. I missed my yoga class several times and I didn't get much walking in due to the heat so I have sort of paid for that in my lower back. I'm back to yoga this week and I bought a body pillow as well. Hopefully the combination will help ease a little bit of the discomfort. I'm thinking I'll start swimming soon too. 

Baby K is about the size of a mango this week (6 in., 0.5lbs). I used my fetal doppler the other day and the heartbeat averaged at about 150 bpm. I still haven't felt any movement but I know it could happen any day and I can't wait!

 Next week is my anatomy ultrasound and hopefully we'll be able to find out the sex of Baby K! According to a few Old Wives Tales I have about a 50% chance of having a boy or a girl....go figure :) Here are the tests I've done to try and predict it and what they have said:

1. Chinese Gender Chart = Girl

2. Baking Soda Test = Boy

3. Heart Rate = Girl

4. Carrying slightly high = Boy

Obviously these are just for fun and I only did those that didn't cost any money. Cast your vote and see if you are right...only one more week!