I haven’t had this feeling since my wedding: there is something about the approachment of one of life’s biggest moments that makes time seem to FLY by yet c r e e p by simultaneously.The combination of excitement and anxiety (only as I look at my to-do list) fills my nights, dreams, and especially my first thoughts in the morning which then makes me roll (literally) out of bed with a little more “umph” than before.I think that knowing I’m one day closer to holding my baby boy gets me going with a bit more enthusiasm (even when I am exhausted due to rolling back and forth all night and getting up to pee now 2-3 times a night). And I love it.I love my baby.I love that in 8 weeks I’ll be holding him (maybe sooner? But let’s hope not too soon and definitely not later!!)
My amazing, generous and creative mother planned a beautiful baby shower for me in Michigan on January 16.We had a lovely lunch at Brickstreet in Grand Blanc and some faithful friends and family were in attendance with precious and practical gifts of all sorts.I took it all in and enjoyed the moment.The highlight of the weekend was spending some quality time with my Aunt Pam, Aunt Susan and cousins Rae, Jammie , Jill and Olivia.We stayed up until 2a.m. playing games and laughing until we cried (and peed our pants....and I wasn’t the only one!But, I was the only one with a good excuse).The only lack was not having my mother-in-law there (and sisters-in-law: Simone, Anna-Maria, and Miriam).I love them dearly and know they would have been there if they could.
We started childbirth classes this week at our hospital.Session 1 was informative, helpful and comical (due to our great instructor).Even though I already know much of this information, it’s good to hear it again with David. At the end, we practiced a few breathing techniques and David learned how to lead me during labor and not just say “Good job baby, keep doing that breathing thing.”These techniques have been helpful the past few days as I frequently find myself standing up for just a few moments and suddenly out of breath, huffing and puffing (seriously?They say this is normal, but I feel like a 400lb out-of-breath whale from just standing or walking up 3 steps).Then, I’ll sit down and within minutes need to get back up due to the back pain or my ribs cramping down and feeling little feet pounding against my ribs.8 more weeks?Oh right, I just said “I love this.”(and I do...really!)
Time to practice our “Cleansing Breath”....
30 Weeks - January 16, 2010
30 Weeks
30 Weeks
Bug Quilt that my mom made: she literally cut out and sewed every little detail of these bugs: eyes, arms, feet, etc!)
Farm Quilt: Another work-of-art by my mother...a LABOR of LOVE putting this together!
Farm Animals :)
Me and Maim
Me and Mom (holding some of the bedding pieces she made!)
New robe mommy made me to match bedding and to wear at the hospital
Happy 2011! I have never really gotten excited about a new year, but not this year! 2010 had many challenges for me (and definitely MANY great things), but I gladly shut the door there and WELCOME 2011. I am so excited for the new season of life I am about to walk into and so excited to be a mom! God is preparing my heart more and more. My prayer the past few months has been for God to create more capacity in my heart to love Him...and also to love my son!
The Baby and Belly: I’m getting much larger and can distinctly feel every little movement of our little prince! Some of them are so strong that they make me feel like my stomach is turning...probably because with his movments, it literally is (haha)! I love it though! I have gained 20 lbs and have 12 more weeks to go! I feel good and am thankful. The cravings subsided during trimster 2, but are coming back. Last night in the airport, I wanted frozen yogurt so badly, but due to delays in flights we had to run off one plane and onto the next However, on our way home from Dallas to Waco we were both hungry and stopped at Denny’s at 1a.m. because I wanted french toast. Not only did I enjoy the tasty treat, but I laughed so hard at the company we had in the restaurant. I get a lot of experience in the ghetto culture while teaching at my school, but last night we had an experience in Hillbilly Texas land. Let me preface this with the fact that God loves these people and I am not trying to judge them...but sometimes observing humanity can be funny! At one table, was a family of like 6 kids and two dads...all overweight, except for one skinny girl about 7 years old with silver crowns on most of her teeth. I couldn’t help but wonder why they were all up at 1:30a.m. and drinking Coke? Scenes like that actually make me quite sad. Okay, now the funny part. In a booth across the room were two gentlemen and one lady, who were all apparently intoxicated. They proceeded to argue over how many states were in the U.S. and the woman was certain there were 52 because she “went to school and knows!” The children at the other table started discussing this too and one kid agreed with there being 52 and another started arguing that there are 51 because they just took one away (which one did they take away???) I’m deliriously tired and dying laughing at all this. The waiters and waitresses get invovled and no one knows for certain. Even when the girl looks over at me and says “There are 52, right?” and I say “Actually, I think there are only 50,” she turns back to the guys and says “See, even they think there are 52.” Finally, another guy brings his iPhone over to prove that there are only 50. Just when you think it’s over, she continues to say there are 51 because Cananda is a state. Oh my. We ate our food and overheard the teenage boys aruging whether or not I was someone famous....lol. I was flattered. It was just too funny that I had to share...and the TX accents made it all the better last night.
Back to the purpose of the blog: pregnancy. I am 7 months pregnant (28.5 weeks). It seems weird to say I’m 7 months pregnant....I always imagined large pregnant women at 7 months...and I guess that’s me now! See pics below! We had originally intended to spend Christmas in South Africa with David’s family, but due to London, Heathrow shutting down after a snow storm our trip was delayed and then sadly cancelled. We could not find an alternate route out of NYC, so we had to rent a car and we drove to Michigan. We (David, Sara and I) tried to enjoy our time in NYC by taking a bus/boat tour and actually had some great quality time together for those 4 days. Our time in MI was restful...but our hearts ached to not be with the family in Joburg. We arrived back in Waco this morning around 3a.m. For the first time since we moved here, I feel “at home!” I feel like this is the beginning of some of God’s promises He made me for 2011! Okay, I’ll update more frequently (but not so lengthy) these last 3 months! Thanks for your prayers!
28 Weeks or 7 Months
side view at 28 weeks pregnant
Making the most of our COLD stop in NYC! (We had only summer clothes packed in our suitcases, with the exception of light jackets, hats and gloves because we thought we might be spending 1 day in London!)
Whew! Time sure is flying by! We had a lovely week in Michigan for Thanksgiving with my family. I registered for all sorts of baby goodies (and a bff came with me, Lauren Maiman). I loved every second of it! I ate lots of food and enjoyed every second of that too :) The past two weeks back in Waco have been crazy-busy with work and our Hispanic Ministry. We leave in a week and half for South Africa to spend Christmas with David's family. We are so looking forward to this visit. We haven't been with all of David's siblings and parents (and now all our nieces and nephew) since our wedding 4.5 years ago! What a blessing this trip will be.
Pregnancy is going very well - I'm rounding out nicely and enjoying the dance parties that baby boy has in my tummy. Here are a few pictures to update y'all!
Our little guy is growing quickly....and I can tell he gets bigger each day because I can feel him more and more! It truly is amazing! Starting at 19 week,s I could feel him each night. Around this time (7-10p.m.) he wakes up and wiggles around. I am sitting here and can even see my belly pop up when he kicks or punches. It's so crazy! I am in love :) I will always try to grab David's hand and put it on my belly...but so often Kbabe stops right then! My next doctor appointment is tomorrow, so I'm hopeful for more good news. I feel great (in terms of pregnancy..but I have been sick with a cold, cough, sore throat for nearly 5 weeks now!) I am READY to be well again...please pray for me.
This past weekend we went to Chicago to celebrate my cousin Rae's wedding. She was stunning and it was a wonderful time with my mom's family. It was fun for my parents and brother, Bruce, to actually SEE the belly! I'll update more next week when I'm off for Thanksgiving...but here are a few pictures at 21 weeks. I feel like I've grown a lot since the last pictures taken during week 18!
On Monday, Oct. 25th we went to our ultrasound! With a full bladder, I endured a 30 minute prodding session. David got to watch it all and at the end, she turned the screen and gave us both a guided tour of our little prince. We saw his heart beat, his eyes (well, the “spots” where they are), his fingers, toes, kidneys, nose, chin, profile, bones, umbilical cord and the “man-proof!” When she announced that it was a boy, my heart fluttered with joy (as did David’s)! We would have been thrilled either way, but how fun to have a baby boy…and as David says “Well, at least there will be someone in the family to carry on the Karnes name.”
Speaking of fluttering…I felt our baby boy move for the first time during the ultrasound! She had to prod him to get him to move so she could measure his spine and I think he had one of his biggest movements because I most definitely felt him! How fun! I have felt him move a couple times since…and love it!
I love being pregnant and finally being able to dream of our baby with more specifics – like what HE will look like, what HE will be like, if HE will play sports, etc. It feels more real now…and the belly is definitely a pregnant belly now…not just a few extra lbs. I love it! Although, the hips are rounding out almost as nicely as the belly (oh well!). My mom and I made an agreement back in the August that by my cousin Rae’s wedding on November 13, I would gain 10lbs and she would lose 10. Well, I went to the gym today and have hit the 10lb mile marker. I started this journey at 118 and am now 128.8 (okay, no woman will ever round up when it comes to her weight….even when she’s pregnant!) I feel and look like I’ve gained way more than 10! I do love these changes though and seeing my belly grow because it means that my BABY BOY is GROWING and with each week, he is that much closer to being in my arms!
I am 19 weeks ….almost half way done! WOW! I feel like it’s going pretty quickly, but David can just hardly stand it – it’s going so slowly for him. He wants his SON out and in his arms!
18 weeks
18 Weeks Ultrasound
1. Upper left = Kbabe's "manhood" (notice the arrow. He is sitting indian-style. You can also see his left femur bone pretty clearly!)
2. Upper right = precious profile
3. Lower left = hand (four fingers shown - the 5th is tucked in - she assured us there are five though)
The last week (or so) has been full of belly aches; lots of inner stretching and pulling going on. I was a little concerned about these, but then read that it’s normal because all the ligaments and muscles do lots of spreading and stretching this month. I feel like I’m finally starting to look pregnant these days. This was confirmed when a few students at school this week said “Miss, I don’t mean no disrespect, but are you pregnant?” I am officially wearing maternity pants (needing buy some more asap!). The nausea has past (well, mostly...it flares up once and awhile, especially if I stay up past my bed time). Although, I’m still waiting for the 2nd trimester energy boost I have heard so much about! I am so very tired these days, almost more so than the 1st trimester. The past week I went to bed at 8p.m. most nights and then around 1:30 at school I got sooo very sleepy. I’m just trying to listen to my body (and baby) and get the rest I need. It’s true, every woman’s pregnancy is different. Even with all the changes and challenges, I do love being pregnant. Only 8 more days until we find out if we’re having a boy or girl and we cannot wait!!!!!! Our appointment is at 1p.m. on October 25. I took the rest of the day off work so we can celebrate, make some phone calls, and go on a date. We haven’t really come up with names, so we can’t wait to start thinking of some. However, we are probably going to wait until we have the baby to share the name....we’ll see I have a check-up doctor appointment tomorrow and am looking forward to more good news. On that note, time to finish grading papers and off to SLEEP for me! Thanks for your prayers and love!
This has been a wonderful weekend!We have so much to be thankful for in life and are incredibly blessed!The past 6 weeks have been quite a whirlwind in which I’ve been busy with school (very busy!) and busy with Spanish ministry.This is the last week of the first marking period of school!Only 4 more to go for me (5 for the non-pregnant teachers...haha).So, David and I decided to have a babymoon, celebrate our 4 year anniversary and it just so happens that we also were blessed to celebrate being debt free (on Thursday we paid off all our business debt in under two years, instead of the planned 3 years!All PRAISE TO GOD!)
So, on Friday, David picked me up from school and took me on our surprise adventure.After nearly 2 hours we began driving down curving, country roads and I was thinking “where the heck are we going?”We pulled into a private drive (reminded me much of Black River, the horse camp I grew up attending in the summers because the long road into the ranch is barely marked and once you arrive it’s a beautiful landscape of fields and horses).I first saw this.....
And then we pulled into this......The Enchanted Cabin at:
The nearest people were at least a mile away.We were totally secluded for the weekend without TV and didn’t answers phones (well, they didn’t get reception anyways).It was glorious.We had great times of prayer, fun, walks, and amazing quality time together.It was just what the doctor ordered.We both returned to Waco today refreshed and rested!I posted more pics on facebook under my Fall 2010 album.My heart is FULL and I am so in love with my husband.He is a man of love, tenderness, strength, wisdom, fun, thoughtfulness, joy, integrity and passion.I am so proud of him and so proud to be his wife.I can honestly say that after 4 years of marriage I AM more in love and we are even better best friends (God has blessed us tremendously)!
Baby news = good news, but nothing too new.The nausea is starting to get better...I think.I dear friend who is about my size brought over some maternity clothes for me to borrow and trying on maternity pants was like heaven!My belly is bulged enough to not fit into my normal pants with them buttoned.I am 14 weeks and dying to get the phone call to set up our appointment to see WHO we are having....That should be possible at the end of October.Cravings still continue.Over the weekend, I was madly craving grilled BLTs.So, David bought all the goodies and I thoroughly enjoyed every bite.Stay tuned for more next week! Our little kitchenette :)
This was along the private drive to our cabin....so peaceful!
