34 Weeks...Only 6 more weeks!

How Peyton's growing:
Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

*I went to the doctor on Monday and everything looked great. I am doing great and Peyton is doing wonderful. It was nice because I was only in there for a total of 8 minutes. That will be my last short visit because starting March 10th I start going in every week for weekly checks and start planning everything out with the doctor.

*I am not trying to read into this, but while I was getting checked out by the nurse we were talking about how I was feeling. I told her that I am just really starting to get big, so I am not very comfortable anymore. While we were talking I mentioned that everything is okay because I only have a little over a month left and then she said "Yeah, we'll be lucky if you make it." I guess she thinks that I am going to have this baby early. All that I hope for is that this little girl does not decide to show up in March. Please just let us make it to April!

Here are some new updated belly pictures. I took them this morning and you can tell in the first one that I am still waking up for the day. Oh, the day that I can drink coffee again will be a great day.



Look out for the big belly! Brandon is so funny because he just can not get over how big me belly is getting. I think that we have to go through the same reaction everyday of total shock.

Peyton has great Grandparents that love her...

Brandon and I feel very lucky that we have great parents that would do anything for us and that are so nice to get Peyton lots of gifts that she will need. We got our travel system in the mail on Friday, so when Brandon got back in town on Monday we had to put it together. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Reiff! I took some pictures so you could see what it looks like. Also thank you again for the swing. I love looking at it everyday and it gets me so excited that soon she will be in it! Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Yoder for Peyton's crib. I can't wait to get the painting done in the nursery so we can put it together. Peyton is already so spoiled with all these wonderful gifts.

Thank you so much and we love you both!

We've got blue on the walls!

Brandon worked hard last night to get the blue up on the walls and I was very happy to see it. When he gets back from Texas next Wednesday with the baseball team he will be able to get everything touched up and we will be done with the painting. Here are updated pictures of the nursery so you can see what it is starting to look like.

Weekend in Mount Ayr, IA

Brandon was out of town this weekend in California with the Baseball team, so I decided to tag along with Drew and Kate and go up to Mount Ayr. It was great to get out of Manhattan for a little while, since that will be the longest trip that I am allowed to take in the next month. I called my doctor before I left and they didn't think that it would be a problem for me to go out of town, but they did print out my records just in case something happened. Everything was great and the 3 1/2 hour car ride was not that bad. It was a very relaxing weekend filled with playing the Wii and waiting around to see if there was going to be any baby calves born. No baby claves! We were very shocked that we were there for 2 nights and nothing happened. I have already seen one before, but Kate has not and was hoping to while we were up there. I love that Kate is a city girl just like me and it is fun to watch her go through learning about the farm.
The weekend always goes by way to fast and we never seem to be up there long enough. It was nice to see Brett since he is really busy this time of the year and is not able to get away from the farm. I was very excited to hear that he sold some of his cows, so he will not have anything going on in April and will be able to be there when Peyton is born. Peyton will be very happy to know that her Grandpa Yoder made this happen so he could be there with her.


Wrigley hanging out with Brett. Wrigley loves to sit with Brett in this chair and she really loves how he smells after he has been out working on the farm. She would like his jeans clean if she could.


Drew, Wrigley and Brett just hanging out.


Drew playing the Wii, while Kate and Wrigley try to get an afternoon nap in.


Drew and Debbie playing the Wii. They are playing baseball with Drew pitching and Debbie batting.


Wrigley and Jake having a great time playing together this weekend. They would play so hard for 15 minutes and then they both would be so tired that they would lay down until the other would get up and start running again.


After I would let Wrigley play outside with Jake this is what she did the rest of the time...SLEEP! She was so tired that all she would do was cuddle up with someone on the couch and fall asleep.



It was a great weekend! Thanks for everything Brett and Debbie and for letting me bring Wrigley along.

Preview of the Nursery!

Brandon and I have been working hard on the nursery the last couple of nights. We have almost all of the purple done. I think that Brandon was trying to be funny last night and said while he is gone this weekend that I could work and get almost all of the blue done. I laughed at him! I have been telling Brandon for awhile now that time is not on our side anymore and that this nursery needs to get done. To get him moving faster I have started to help out even though this is his project and he was going to do it. Really I just can't wait to see how it is all going to come together and I want to put the crib up!

Here are a few shots of how things are coming along. Looking at the walls last night Brandon asked if we can just leave the rest of it white...too bad we have already purchased the other paint!

33 Weeks...7 More weeks to go!

How Peyton's growing:
This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening. The bones in her skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for her to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as her brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

*I am feeling well, but things are starting to become very uncomfortable. By the end of the day I am worn out and most of the time I feel like all I want to do is lay on the couch with my feet up. Do I get to do that...NO! There is always something going on and things to do, so when it is time for bed I am ready. Something that has been really nice is that Brandon and I are giving each other foot messages at the end of the day. Brandon has been working long hours and is very tired when he gets home so it is my treat, and I am just getting really big so it feels nice on my tired feet.

*Peyton is kicking me a lot in the evenings just as I am starting to settle down for the night. The other night in bed I was laying up against Brandon's back in bed and Peyton was kicking and then ended up getting the hiccups. It didn't take long before Brandon noticed and he was getting a kick out of it. Brandon loves to feel her movements at night right before we go to bed, so this was great even though they weren't kicks.

Aunt Kelly and Uncle Tom in Town & First Visit with Miss Addison Kay

My Aunt Kelly and Uncle Tom came into town this weekend for the Kansas State vs. Missouri basketball game. Either one of them had been to Manhattan before and it was so nice of them to make the trip out to see where Brandon and I live. Since Brandon is in season they had baseball practice Saturday all the way up til game time. Brandon was sorry that he was unable to spend more time with them, and was very sorry to hear that we ended up eating at Willie's before the game. We love to go eat at Willie's when ever we can because it is a great Sports Bar here in Manhattan. Normally it is very hard to get in to eat during a game weekend and we were very lucky that a table opened up right as we were walking in.
Thanks Uncle Tom and Aunt Kelly for making the trip out to Manhattan to visit us and I am glad that I was able to get you tickets to the game even though you are both MU fans! Also Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa for watching Sydney so they were able to come out for the game.

Here I am with my Aunt Kelly and Uncle Tom during the KSU vs. MU game. K-State put it on MU 100-63.


Our friends Lock and Gina, Welcomed their little girl Addison Kay, Friday February 15th around 9:20pm. We had been waiting for the good news all day Friday because they went into the hospital at 7am. After the basketball game on Saturday we made the short walk across the parking lot to go have our first visit with Addison and to see how Lock and Gina were doing. Everyone is doing great and Addison could not have been more perfect during our short visit. She opened her eyes for a little bit, but mostly was asleep the whole time while we held her.
Gina and I have the same doctor so it has been really nice to talk to her about some of the same things that we are going through and what to expect.

Brandon getting to hold Addison for the first time. I loved the little hat that she was wearing and I found out the women at the hospital make those for all the newborns.


Brandon and I with Addison. She was born with a head full of hair. I loved it! While I was holding her I was getting lots of kicks from Peyton. I am sure that she was letting me know that it will only be a short while before she is here. I had to tell Addison sorry one time because Peyton kicked so hard that I know that Addison had to have felt it, but it didn't seem to bother her.


It was a great weekend and last night Brandon and I were working hard on Peyton's Nursery, so I will have to give updated pictures of how it is coming along. Brandon leaves for California on Thursday, so baseball has officially started!