Long Time No Blog...

I admit, I'm a horrible blogger. I know I've said this a million times, but I'll try to be better... promise!

Picture updates:

31 weeks

32 weeks

33 weeks

34 weeks

35 weeks

36 weeks

37 weeks

38 weeks

39 weeks



Baby Shower Gift!

Hand Painted Tree - Thank You Dana!



Block Letters & New Bookcase

Crib is ready to go!

Diaper Station

Stocked Closet!

I've made it to my last week and I'm not going to lie, it's been tough lately. My hips and feet are killing me and I'm hardly sleeping at all (still). Luckily I'm able to get a foot rub just about every night these days. I'm due this Sat, Oct 1st, but so far this little man is showing no sign of wanting to enter the world any time soon. I'm seeing my doctor weekly, and for the last two weeks I've been dilated to 1cm. Parker still hasn't "dropped" and my doctor said he was no where near my pelvis last week. *sigh* I didn't think he'd be early, but I'm a bit nervous he'll be super late since my doctor will be out of the office Oct 5th-10th. If nothing has changed, we're looking at an induction when she comes back. I don't want to force him out, I just want him to be ready to come out on his own in a timely fashion, and preferably at a time when my doctor is here. I'm trying not to stress about it because it isn't something I can control so we'll just have to wait and see what happens! For the last two weekends, Justin and I have been cooking away like crazy in the kitchen trying to get some meals in the freezer for after Parker is born. We really should spend one Saturday or Sunday a month cooking for the freezer to help out on those evenings where we're just too dang tired to cook anything. It doesn't take that much time if you plan the meals out and shop accordingly. So far in the freezer we've got: black bean & chicken soup, beer cheese soup, bbq pulled pork, citrus marinated pork chops, chicken & broccoli casserole, chicken pot pie, peanut chicken, oriental chicken, a cheesy pasta dish, chili, and spaghetti sauce. We finished up our childbirth preparation classes, the nursery is ready to roll, the car seat is in the car, and our hospital bag is packed... and now we wait!

COME ON OUT PARKER, WE WANT TO MEET YOU!

Two Hand Countdown!

We're officially on the two hand countdown! Only 10 weeks to go until we meet our little man! (Update: It's now, it's less than 9 weeks - I started this post a week ago and never finished it!) We're so excited but as our due date gets closer, I'm beginning to get more and more nervous about childbirth, and quite frankly a little scared in general because the life of this tiny, innocent, precious little human growing inside me will be entirely dependent upon Justin and I once he arrives. Though I believe we're up for the challenge and will be great parents, I still can't help but to doubt myself sometimes. Do I really know what I'm doing? Can we really afford a child? Did we really think this through? Can we really handle this responsibility? I get so stressed out thinking about all the "what if" scenarios, sometimes even to tears (thank you pregnancy hormones...). It drives Justin totally nuts but having control is partly what keeps me sane. He always tells me everything will be fine and deep down I believe him, but until I am actually in the situation where everything is ok and I have a firm sense of what life will be like post delivery, I still have fears about the future. I think it's only natural, right? I can't be the only woman who has felt this way at some point during pregnancy. If I didn't feel this way, it would mean I didn't care about what's best for Parker, which is completely opposite of reality. We love this little man more than words can describe and will always put him first no matter what. I'm so caught up with trying to prepare, and make everything perfect, in place, and timed just right, when it really already is. My husband is a loving, kind, hardworking, genuine man, I have an amazing family, fabulous friends, two stable household incomes, a lovely home to make memories in, a couple of ridiculously cute pups, and I'm about to recieve the biggest blessing in my life with Parker. Life really is pretty darn good.

All of my doctors appointments have been going very well. Parker is growing right on track! Right now he probably weighs about 3-1/2 pounds and is about 16 inches long, according to the weekly updates I get via email. He will be gaining 1/2 pound per week from now on! I've been feeling pretty good (still tired due to lack of sleep) but I've only gained 20 pounds so far so I feel pretty positive about being able to lose it post delivery. I've been trying really hard to eat healthy with lots of salads, fruits, and veggies as sides with meals but a new frozen yogurt place opened up in Newberg and it is so good! I went in for my glucose test at 28 weeks which came back negative for gestastional diabetes, and I also recieved a Rhogam injection at that time. The Rhogam has to do with my blood type and Justin's blood type. One of us is - and one of us is + and if the baby has Justin's blood type, and our blood mixes for any reason, my body could start to reject the baby now, and it could very likely cause miscarriages in the future. Once Parker is born and they know what blood type he is, I may have to have another Rhogam injection at the hostpital. Let's hope not... it stung a little!! I'm going to the doctor every two weeks now, until week 36 when I start going once a week. My due date is coming up so quickly. Some days I can still hardly believe I'm pregnant, it's crazy!

We've been working a lot on the nursery lately and it's coming together quite nicely. No question it's now my favorite room in the house! We've got the walls painted, crib set up, bedding put on, curtains hung, glider and ottoman in place, some clothes in the dresser, and we now have a gorgeous tree mural on the wall thanks to a friend of my moms. We never really used this room in our house for anything other than a storage unit (for lack of a better term). Yes we had a bed set up for guests, but really it was the room that held anything we didn't know where to put or have room for elsewhere, so it's been really fun to see the transformation. Without further delay... here are some nursery pics!

 

And some belly photos too!

28 weeks

30 weeks

My best friend Nicki took some pictutes last weekend. What turned into a couple pictures for invites for my baby shower with my girlfriends, turned into a mini photo session all around Newberg! It was fun!

A Quick Picture Update

24 weeks

26 weeks

Parker's nursery set! Yes, I'm indecisive by nature, but this is *the one* and it should be arriving next week so we can match paint colors and get to work!

Baby Update!

It's been awhile since my last post (ok, it's been a loonnnng while) but here are some photo updates of little baby Gabler.

14 weeks

16 weeks

18 weeks

20 weeks

At our 20 week appointment, we had our big ultrasound and we finally know what we're having! *Insert drum roll here* IT'S A BOY! We are so excited and happy to announce that he's healthy and developing right on track. We also decided on his name... Parker Allen Gabler. Here are the ultrasound photos.

Profile

Arrow pointing to the gender. He's definitely a boy!

Adorable little baby feet. I love this one!

Close up of the bottom of his right foot. It measured 1-1/4".

Our handome little man! We love you buddy!

Telling our parents was quite fun. After the initial pregnancy announcement, which I thought would be self explanatory for them with the fortune cookies, I decided we should make this one a bit more simple. I rushed home after our appointment and made funfetti cupcakes and decorated them with blue frosting and blue sprinkles, then hid the plate upstairs. It was so hard to still refer to Parker as "it" and "the baby" after finally knowing the sex, and not accidentally slip in a "he", 'him", "his", etc during dinner. We made it through the meal and I made everyone close their eyes as I brought the cupcakes downstairs and Justin and I stood in front of them with the plate and counted to three. Everyone was very excited to know they will soon have a grandson or a great grandson!

It's a boy!

Everyone always asks what foods I've been craving, really I think only to find out if it's anything weird because of the whole "pickles and ice cream" saying that's been around for years. For the record, I like both pickles (dill only) and ice cream, but the thought of them together is absolutely disgusting! My appetite and tastes haven't really changed that much since getting pregnant, but I do often find myself craving a Pomegranate Paradise fruit smoothie from Jamba Juice. Justin will confirm I can come up with some kind of errand to run next to a Jamba Juice any time we're out an about. At least it's healthy, right!

The pregnancy has basically been a breeze so far. I've been really lucky! My only complaint is the sleeplessness I've had for a couple months now. I wake up just about every night anytime between 12am-2am and can't go back to sleep. I've tried everything I can think of and it just doesn't seem to help. My doctor told me I could take an occasional Unisom, so occasionally I get a full nights sleep. Maybe this is just my bodys way of preparing me for a newborn? Either way, it leaves me pretty tired by the end of each day. A few people have told me their pregnancy body pillow saved them while they were pregnant, but they're fairly spendy and I'd rather not spend $50 or more on a pillow.

We've started to clean out our guest room which will become the nursery. I have always like the idea of a jungle/safari theme baby's room so I was thrilled when Justin liked it too! I can't wait to start decorating now that I've found bedding we both like! The problem with animal prints on baby bedding is that they often either don't look real at all, or they're so cartoon like they're not even cute. I think this bedding is the perfect combination, and best of all, it's from good old Target. Hello affordability! They also have some really cute accessories in this set that will help finish off the room. I would love to have a couple trees painted on the walls but since I am not artsy, I'll have to find someone to do it for us. I will be totally bummed if we either a) can't find anyone, or b) can't find anyone who won't charge us an arm and a leg to do it. We also have our crib on order from Segal's furniture for kids. It's beautiful, and the color matches the dresser set we already have which is just perfect. I can't wait for it to arrive! It's a convertible crib, so Parker will be able to use it as a toddler bed, as well as a full size bed when he grows up.

Tiddliwinks Safari Friends crib bedding. I love it!

I'd like some trees similar to these on the nursery walls.

Our crib!

Next up:
June 8th: 24 week checkup