the countdown is on...

i just noticed that my little ticker at the top of this page says "80 days". wow. 80. that does NOT seem like very long to me!
how exciting!
we have class #4/5 in our prenatal classes tonight. "relaxation techniques". i'm all about that. especially since it will likely mean a massage or two from asah. nice!
i can no longer wear dress shoes. i tried to put on my black ones for work today and they would not go on at all. so it's tennis shoes or flip flops for me. hard to be fashionable in those, but i will make it work....
well, nothing terribly exciting or new.
we had small group at our house last night for the youth and i enjoyed it. things are going great w/ church and it's neat to be a part of something like this.
hope everyone's having a great week.

tara

nursery!

we put some major work into the nursery this weekend. i am so thrilled with the way it turned out. asah worked hard on the chest, we added a coat of paint and new knobs...i lined the drawers with denim fabric liners. Worked on organizing the closet and took inventory of what we have and what we need. I am truly "nesting" and it's great to have a room (almost) ready for mr. jordan. Now I just have to be patient for 11 weeks or so.

enjoy the pics! i tried to take them from every angle so that you could get an idea of the room. for all those decorators out there, any ideas for covering the ugly fuse box that happens to be located in a very prominent spot on the wall? i don't know why its not in the closet! anyway, we don't want it inaccessable but i want to cover it in some way (thats the area where the rocking chair will be).....ideas would be appreciated!

love to all!

i passed my blood test! (sort of)

to those who have been wondering.....no diabetes! great news!!!!
but they did find i'm anemic....which is fairly common in the 3rd trimester...so i have to go on iron pills....
i'm just thankful for no diabetes! that was a big fear of mine!
yay!

tara

as requested.....

pregnancy pic....28 weeks! i can tell a big difference....i look so tired in this pic...and this is the BEGINNING of a day...oh, well!

here is jordan's update for the week:

By this week, your baby weighs over 2 pounds and measures about 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can open his eyes — which now sport lashes — and he'll turn his head toward a continuous, bright light from the outside. His fat layers are beginning to form, too, as he gets ready for life outside the womb.

this could be fun....

if you dont have a blog you can leave your answers in the "comments" section...other wise you can say you've been tagged and post the answers on your blog.

FOUR JOBS I'VE HAD:
--I worked with ONIONS on a daily basis at the Vidalia Onion Research Lab in Tifton, GA
--Cashier at Burger King!
--Eddie Bauer Associate
--Accountant at the North American Mission Board

FOUR MOVIES I'D WATCH ON REPEAT:
--8 Seconds
--Romy and Micheles High School Reunion
--Remember the Titans
--Hope Floats

FOUR TV SHOWS I LOVE:
--Bringing Home Baby
--30 Minute Meals
--Birth Day
--The Office


FOUR VACATION LOCALES I'D LIKE TO HIT:
--Mountains of Tennessee
--Beach (anywhere)
--Hawaii
--U.K.


FOUR WEBSITES I VISIT DAILY:
--babycenter.com
--hammondstar.com
--msnbc.com
--bankone.com (call me anal, i reconcile our checking acct daily!!)


FOUR FOODS I LUST AFTER:
--cheese
--baked potatoes
--chick fil a sandwiches with honey bbq sauce (that little packet)
--ice cream, specifically pistachio or sherbert


FOUR CHANGES I'D MAKE TO THE HOUSE:
--a little larger space
--complete the nursery (almost there)
--bigger backyard
--landscaping


FOUR TAGS:
--Hollie
--Amy
--Jenny
--Liz

and anyone else out there who reads....i don't know who you are but i know you're out there!!!!

tnh

doc's visit

our appt went pretty good today. it was the yucky glucose test so i had to down a really sweet orange drink on an empty stomach and have blood drawn. i wouldn't recommend it...i feel pretty woozy...but it went ok and i'll have results soon hopefully.
the doc went over my echo results on my heart and there is slight "regurgitation" which is what I've known since high school, but she will administer lots of antibiotics during labor because of this. no big deal, just glad that she was proactive about that.
we will begin interviewing pediatricians this week because i have to have one to put on hospital paperwork. hopefully this will be a smooth process and we'll find one we're comfortable with!
so many decisions to make!
the best part of the visit was hearing little j's heart beating away. it was in the 140's. perfect.
oh, and one more thing! just by a quick feel from the outside she thinks he's no longer transverse (laying across my belly)....he's either head up or head down and we'll know when they do another ultrasound...just glad he flipped...hopefully the right way.
well, that's about all the updating i have for now.
much love to all!

tara

balmy!

last night we had to turn on the air because it was so hot in the house. it has been rainy and yucky for the past several days. weird weather!
anyway, this week asah starts his final semester of seminary! hopefully it won't be as difficult as the last one...
i have my glucose screening tomorrow a.m. so nothin to eat for me tonight after midnight. hopefully my results will be good!
still having swelling issues. my wedding rings are long gone but then i went to claires and bought a "fake" ring....size 9! i normally wear a 6.5 or 7. the fake one is now getting tight. yikes! i feel like i have marshmallow hands and feet. will ask the doc about this tomorrow as well.
as for the little man, he is doing well...squirming away and we love it!
went to sears and found a bouncy seat on clearance this weekend and some cute outfits. i was very excited!
thats about all....happy monday.
tnh

update....

Your baby is really starting to fill up your uterus. This week he weighs almost 2 pounds and is about 14.4 inches long with his legs extended. He can now open and close his eyes, and he sleeps and wakes at regular intervals. He may suck his fingers, and although his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with assistance — if he were to be born prematurely. Chalk up any rhythmic movement you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and isn't bothersome to him, so enjoy the tickle. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. Wonder what he's thinking?

i do wonder what he's thinking, especially when he hauls off and kicks me in the side!!! hmmmmm. he's fiesty, thats for sure.

have a good day.

tara

one cartoon and i promise the subject will be dropped...

i had to turn off the news last night.

here is a taste of our wonderful, "non-divisive" mayor's speech yesterday:

Speaking to a fraction of the crowd typically drawn to a holiday parade honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin on Monday predicted that displaced African-American residents will return to the rebuilt city and it "will be chocolate at the end of the day."

"This city will be a majority African-American city. It's the way God wants it to be," Nagin said. "You can't have it no other way. It wouldn't be New Orleans."

"It's time for us to rebuild a New Orleans, the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans," he said. "And I don't care what people are saying in Uptown or wherever they are. This city will be chocolate at the end of the day."

here is a comment from his spokeswoman trying to make it all better:

The mayor's comments were in reference to the fact that . . . there has been talk that the diversity of New Orleans is not what it was," she said. "New Orleans has been a predominantly African-American city for quite some time now. His comments were not meant to exclude anyone. He was just saying that as we rebuild the new New Orleans, we will still retain our diverse culture and everything that has made New Orleans what it is, together, both black and white."

i'm not one to weigh in on subjects such at these, but i have never been more embarrased for a person! the way he acted during and after the storm and even now is appalling.

just wondered if anyone else had seen this little speech. i literally had to turn off the television!

did anybody else see this?

tara

notice the time of this post...

well, the insomnia is back! this time due to hunger i think?!?!?! i woke up at 2 and was starving! so here i am up eating cheese and crackers and drinking powerade. i figured i might as well go ahead and update the website while i'm at it.
asah is snoring away......

well, this weekend did not go as planned. we were supposed to keep cade while chip and sarah beth went on a much needed getaway, instead asah woke up very sick on friday a.m. really bad stomach something-or-another. so i was running around crazy with work stuff then i came home to lysol the entire house and wash everything....couldn't risk getting what he had. it's now sunday, well (monday a.m.) and we are both well! praise the Lord! i felt bad that we could not keep cade, but it worked out for the best....sunday worship was incredible with tons of guests and chip really needed to be there! asah and i came too even though he still felt a bit puny....but it was so good. a "homerun" sunday as asah calls em'.

i guess i need to try the whole sleeping thing again.

have a great week, to all our faithful readers!

tara and baby j

this weeks' update

wow. this one is rated pg-13. (see last line) :)

Your baby now weighs a little under 2 pounds and measures about 14 inches, from head to heel. The nerve pathways in his ears are developing, which means his response to sounds is growing more consistent. His lungs are developing now, too, as he continues to take small breaths of amniotic fluid — good practice for when he's born and takes that first breath of air. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.

growing, growing, growing (both of us!)

tara

parenting "pre-season"

well, we'll be getting some practice in this weekend...we're keeping Cade, our pastors son as they go for a weekend getaway. should be some great practice! we've also started "training" with some prenatal classes at the hospital. we'll be doing those for 6 weeks. i'm actually learning a lot and i'm glad they're offered! asah couldn't make it to the 1st one this week so i looked like a single mom. no big deal but i'm glad he'll be joining me next week.....

jordan is still kicking away. i know his schedule now so its pretty cool to be able to know when he'll be awake, etc. usually once i get up and eat a little breakfast i'll lay on the couch and just feel him kicking and squirming around for 30 min or so...then he has a burst of energy in the afternoons, then around 8 or 9 at night. i love it! this morning asah felt him several times during his morning kicking session. it was really cool just talking to him and telling him how we cant wait for him to be here.

well, that's the scoop from here. work has been very busy! it's hard when i'm the "one person" in the office and there is so much to do at year end! it will be over soon though. i find myself getting really tired really easily so i have to watch myself and make sure afternoon naps are included in my day.
asah is enjoying a small break from school. it's been nice and i can't believe that he'll be done in may. yipee!

tnh

the crib

before
how long will this take?????


the finished product!
only 2.5 hours to complete!


close up (notice UGA mobile that plays "Glory Glory to Old GA"-thanks MiMi--Asah's mom; and the bedding, thanks Gram--Tara's mom)

we still have lots to do, but getting the crib together was a great start. i love walking by the nursery now and imagining our little one in there! can't wait!

tnh

the jordan update

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. His weight — a pound and a half — doesn't sound like much, but he's beginning to exchange his long, lean look for some baby fat. As he does, his wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and he'll start to look more and more like a newborn. His hair is probably recognizable now (in color and texture), although both may change after he's born.

yeah, so our boy is a little bigger than what they say above...he's already around 2 lbs! wow.

tara

ultrasound II

we had a re-scan of the first ultrasound yesterday because of jordan's bladder not filling at the first one...great news....everything is fine! he's getting so big, weighing in at 2 lbs! wow! mommy is getting big too, but we won't say how much she gained between thanksgiving and christmas! yikes!

i go to the hospital tomorrow for an echo on my heart...routine because i have mitral valve prolapse and they want to make sure it hasn't progressed before i have jordan. because of this, i'll also need antibiotics during labor, etc. will keep everyone posted on how that goes.

well, that's about all for now. just rejoicing about getting to "see" him again yesterday and that he's doing so well.

i think this link will get you to the pic of the ultrasound....i couldn't get it to post the other way....

have a great day!
tara

Happy New Year!

wasn't much of a big deal this year, I was in bed and snoozing by 9 pm. Asah typed papers for his pre-work for the workshop. We did go see "Fun with Dick and Jane" last night and I loved it! Very good laughs. We had dinner at Brady's and it was yummy. That's about it.

Well, here we are at 24 weeks. I never can really tell how much I've grown until I compare it with previous pictures. WOW!