A Perfect Weather Weekend

After such a long hot stretch, we couldn't have asked for better weather this weekend! A "cool" front came through and brought us a very welcome relief from the high temps along with some lower humidity! With the weather we've had, I can't believe it's the middle of August, it's almost starting to feel like fall out there.

Thanks to some free tickets, Hubby & I spent Friday night with some of our friends' from small group at the annual athletic's auction for one of the local university. We only stayed for the silent bidding portion but came really close to walking away with a Baby Jogger City Mini stroller for Elyse. It was exactly what we're planning to buy anyway, just a different color...and while the winner still got a great deal, it wasn't as good of a deal as it could have been. Our first bid, with only 15 min left in the auction, was for $116, for something with a retail value of $240! I guess it just wasn't meant to be...We spent the rest of the evening back at our house playing cards & just hanging out, it was a great relaxing evening.

Saturday I headed to work before the big event of the weekend...The Back-to-Small Group Pool Party! We all took advantage of my parents' pool and gathered there for the afternoon. We finished off with a cookout and we seriously couldn't have asked for better weather! It was warm enough to be in the water (which has cooled off significantly from last week), but not so hot that you HAD to be in the water. I just love all these people & I'm so glad God has blessed me with such fabulous friends!

Picture taking wasn't high on the priority list as this preggo wasn't too excited about being in any swimsuit photos! So enjoy some photos of the rest of the group!

This little darling was jumping off the board without her floaties before the afternoon was over!

Quite the crowd, 15 adults & 11 kiddos...but what a fun afternoon!

Think she needs a puppy!?!?

The kiddos...it's going to be so fun to watch them all grow up together...and of course we've still got more on the way!

After the crowd left and everything was cleaned up, Hubby & I went with my parents up to the pond just to relax. I think that's one of my favorite places to be, just sitting on the dock, watching the dogs play fetch, and feeding the fish. It's so incredibly peaceful & I'm so thankful for such a wonderful place to get away!

This morning we headed to church and then ran a few errands before coming home to veg out! The weather is beautiful again & we've already got the grill all lined up for dinner. What a perfect way to end a wonderful weekend...grilling out and taking Bogey for a walk on a beautiful evening!

Elyse Love ~ 21 Weeks

21w3d

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Still no stepping on the scales for me, although I do feel like my appetite has leveled out! Thank goodness, or I think I would be quickly surpassing that 1 pound a week average!

Gender: We're having a precious little baby girl...Elyse Ann. It has been so fun shopping for her and picking out the fun, frilly clothes and toys! I've already got a little stash going in her closet, and of course several things coming from Zulily & Totsy! I can't wait to get them...

Movement: YES!!! A ton of it! Each day there seems to be more and more and I've even felt her from the outside once or twice. Of course Hubby is never around when that happens and isn't patient enough yet to wait for her to move...hopefully he'll feel her very, very soon!

Sleep: It's been ok, I'm definitely waking up more with a little bit of lower back pain but it seems as long as I roll over I feel better and fall right back to asleep. I still manage to somehow end up on my back a few times during the night, but I really think I wake up quite quickly and just roll back over.

What I miss: Cold turkey sandwiches, caesar salad, raw cookie dough..this definitely hasn't changed. We've been eating out at some nice restaurants this month because it's Restaurant Month in our area, meaning some great deals at fancy restaurants...so I'm definitely missing out on my caesar salad and some fish options!

Cravings: Still nothing absurd, which I'm very thankful for. Fresh fruit still tops my list as far as snacks go and that seems to help my in-between meal stomach growling! ha! I've also started eating a few animal crackers with peanut butter...the protein in the peanut butter really seems to help get me by between meals.

Symptoms: Definitely just my growing belly. Baby Girl is very apparent and I'm getting to the point of being obviously pregnant when I wear almost anything. As far as actual symptoms, things honestly couldn't be better. I feel great and can only hope that continues!

Maternity Clothes: Still nothing new here...thankfully the trend right now includes blousy tops and empire waist lines so almost every one of my tops still works great! I just throw on a long camisole and/or Bella Band and almost all of my clothes still work. I realize I'll have to purchase a few things in the coming months, but I'm hoping to keep that to a minimum. Right now anything I've bought I'll still be able to wear afterwards as well...

Best Moment this week: It was another big week as far as Baby Girl happenings....the movement of course, followed closely by ordering every single big piece of furniture (I'll share what we decided on sometime soon), and then of course sharing the name with everyone. It's been so fun as we share our baby girls' identity with our close family & friends. And I'm very thankful that everyone seems to love the name we chose! We also met with a pediatrician and really liked her...enough that we really don't see the need to meet with any others! Just another thing to check off the list...

Baby Gear: I think I'll have to come up with a new topic or change it all together...as I've run out of big items to ask about. Maybe I'll come up with something next week...

And of course, here's the belly photo...I'm so thankful that long shirts & leggings are still in style!

What's in a Name?

Well...A LOT!!!! Of course Hubby & I had the perfect boys' name picked out, only to discover that Baby Layman was in fact a precious baby girl! I thought that a girls' name might be easier to come up with, but it was so hard! Did we want her to have a sporty name, or a classic name, or a family name, or a name that can easily have a nickname? Basically, we wanted almost all of those things, we wanted a name that Baby Girl could grow into and one that would fit her no matter what she chose to do in life!

We had discussed one girls' name in particular, but it was a new thing and we hadn't let it roll of our tongues enough to truly make it official. After a week or so of calling Baby Girl by the possible name, and Hubby calling out her name in the house to make sure it was an easy name to yell, we've came to a decision...

Baby Girl's name will be Elyse Ann!

We chose a little bit of a different spelling so when reading her name, it would be confused with Elsie, and we chose Ann in honor of my mom's middle name & also Hubby's sister's middle name. We think it rolls off the tongue wonderfully & can't wait for sweet precious Elyse to be here in December!

Elyse is a form of Elise, which is a form of Elizabeth, meaning...My God is a vow.

We've already discussed several nickname options for Elyse Ann. Elly or Lysey (pronounced Lee-see) seem to be at the top of the list for her childhood nickname. Of course I'm sure there will be lots of other variations as well.

We've received some great reactions, mainly from close family & friends who respond with..."Aww...it's unique, but beautiful!" I love it, and I know that it'll be perfect for our precious baby girl.

First Weekend of August

I seriously can't believe that the first weekend of August is already in the record books...good grief, Baby Girl Layman is going to be here before we know it!

Hubby & I had a pretty great weekend filled with friends, family, and lots of fun activities. We started off Friday evening with dinner & a movie with some great friends. We had dinner at our favorite local Mexican joint and while I hate to even admit it, we finished off the evening with a viewing of The Change-Up. What can I say, yes it was crude, and the language was certainly excessive...but if you like this type of movie you will definitely laugh!

Saturday morning we had absolutely nothing going on so we laid around and just relaxed before gearing up for the rest of the day. Hubby had his annual alumni golf tourney & I spent the afternoon in the a/c picking up the house and taking care of a few random things on my to-do list.

Saturday evening we joined together with my dad's side of the family to celebrate my grandma's 75th birthday along with my grandma & grandpa's 58th wedding anniversary. I failed to take very many photos, but we had a great dinner out with most all of the extended family. I'm seriously so blessed to have such a fabulous group of people to call my fam!

Nope, they didn't plan this...but Hubby and my Uncle Al sure did dress alike! ha!

Myself, my grandma, my cousin Virginia & my grandpa...the only two granddaughters, both expecting babies! Virginia is due on October with a precious baby boy!

Today we headed to church where it was awesome to see all the backpacks lined up in front of the stage. We had a time of dedication and prayer for the foster families and the precious children receiving the bags. Hubby & I had a quick lunch before he headed back to the golf course and I headed down to my parents' with Bogey for some pool time! Bogey just loves going to visit grandma & grandpa's house!

It's been a pretty fabulous weekend and is ending incredibly well as the rain is falling in buckets & the thunder is rolling across the sky...thank you God for the rain!

Backpacks for Foster Kids

Well it's that time of year again, the time of year for school supplies. The time of year when store shelves are lined with products gleaming of all the primary colors, the time of year when it seems that over half the people I know are preparing their classroom for another year of teaching and the other half are helping their own kiddos check pencils, crayons, and notebooks off their teacher specific supply lists.

But this year I've realized something else...it's also the time of year when many parents are stressing, when many parents are wondering if they can afford everything on that list, and many precious children are nervous not about whether they'll have the cool school supplies that the popular kids have brought to class but if they'll even have new crayons or glue sticks or markers.

And this year, our church is doing something amazing. We are sponsoring the same group of children we sponsored at Christmastime, but instead of fun toys and games and dolls...we're filling backpacks to the brim with every. single. thing. on their class-specific list. Through a lot of coordination with Missouri Baptist Children's Home we are hoping to provide complete backpacks to over 100 foster kids.

So earlier this week, Nick & I headed to Walmart and filled our cart. We ended up "adopting" four children, 2 elementary children and also 2 high schoolers (because you know, high school kids need school supplies too!) We filled our cart with... ....binders, and calculators, and backpacks...

...post-it notes and crayons and pens and composition books...

...with markers and #2 pencils and scissors and Expo markers and glue...
...loose leaf paper and colored pencils and highlighters and mechanical pencils...

...with notebooks and paper towels, and Clorox wipes and trapper keepers.

We honestly spent a little more than we had originally budgeted, but we've got some spare from other places and once we got started it just felt so good to mark every. single. thing. off those kids lists!

And here they are...the full backpacks...so heavy that I'm sure the little kiddos won't even be able to carry them on their own...

One for Nathan, a fourth grader...

And one for Kylie, a second grader...

And one for Ramond, a sophomore in high school...

And finally, one for Reme, another sophomore in high school....

We're delivering these backpacks to our church on Sunday where they will then be collected and distributed to the foster parents. We'll never see these kids, or their families, but I know that Nick & I poured our love into these backpacks and I hope that in some small way they'll feel God's arms wrap around them as they head off to their first day of school.

Lucy Love ~ 20 Weeks

I can't believe we're halfway there! Wow! There are times when I feel like the days, weeks, and months have flown by, but then I look back at all the things we've done or accomplished since we found out precious Baby Layman was on the way! It's been such a fabulous pregnancy so far, I couldn't ask for more!

And of course...on to the bump!

20w4d

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I refuse to weigh myself other than at dr's appointments, so I really have no idea. We were at the 9 lb mark last week, and if I continue on as an "average" pregnant women (really, does that even exist???), I'm supposed to gain approximately one pound per week from here on out. I guess only time will tell!

Gender: We're having a precious little baby girl! We have a name and have even pretty much decided on it, but we're still letting it roll off our tongue for a few more days before sharing it with the world. Hubby & I are both pretty set on it and we've even come up with a few cutesy nicknames already! Maybe next week it won't be Lucy Love anymore...

Movement: YES!!! A ton of it! It seems that Baby Girl may already have her nights and days confused as she's moving like crazy in the evenings...and not so much first thing in the morning. I hate to even say this, but I've almost gotten used to the small little flutters..and it's the strong kicks that I wait for now. They certainly come, and are becoming more consistent. Now I'm just waiting until the movement is strong enough for Nick to feel it as well!

Sleep: I've transitiond to sleeping with my Snoogle and I don't think that thing will be leaving my side until after this pregnancy is all over...or heck, maybe ever! ha! I still manage to somehow end up on my back a few times during the night, but I really think I wake up quite quickly and just roll back over.

What I miss: Cold turkey sandwiches, caesar salad, raw cookie dough..this definitely hasn't changed. However, I did manage to work out a way to enjoy a club sandwich from Mr. Goodcents last Sunday. I just had them zap the meat in the microwave for about 20+ seconds (enough to heat the meat to steaming) and it was delicious. Now if only Jimmy John's had a microwave in their stores!

Cravings: Still fresh fruit...and honestly anything! My appetite has seemed to level off so I'm not eating like a crazy person anymore. I'm still cleaning my plate at most meals, but at least I feel full once I'm finished eating. I think my increased water intake & snacking has helped to curb my outrageous appetite!

Symptoms: My expanding waist line is certainly the most noticeable symptom, I've still got some back pain in the evenings after laying on the couch in the same position. I just try to move around and keep a pillow between my legs if I'm laying down and that seems to help some. Otherwise I'm still feeling great!!!

Maternity Clothes: This hasn't really changed much. I did take advantage of a big Old Navy sale a few weeks ago and I stocked up on some "maternity" tanks to use as layering pieces along with some "regular" longer t-shirts to layer as well. And as you can see in the photo...my regular pants or shorts are no longer working without a Bella Band. I'm thinking I'll have to invest in a few more of these soon...

Best Moment this week: Well the movement still ranks right up there, but so does the prenatal massage, and also our first official shopping trip for baby girl. It's so fun to finally be able to give her an identity as a little girl...and yes, the shopping was certainly a ton of fun!

Baby Gear Advice: Hmm...I'm not sure this week. We'll be registering soon, but I'ev at least narrowed things down for most of the big items. So...this week, how about just overall parenting advice...I know that every pregnancy is different and every baby is unique, but what's some general advice you'd give from your own personal experience or even some advice from other mom's around you!

And of course, here's the belly photo...Praise God for those Bella Bands!

Hottest Day of My Life

No, I'm not being dramatic or exaggerating...the temperature forecasted today for our area will literally be the hottest day I've experienced here at home in my entire lifetime! Yikes!

I know that so many of you have been dealing with extreme heat just like we have and I'm completely sick of it...

I'm sick of the noise in my house with the air conditioner running all the time.

I'm sick of menu planning and trying to determine which meals will create the least amount of heat in my house.

I'm sick of running in and out of the garage door as fast as I can so the scorching heat in the garage doesn't make it's way into our house!

I'm sick of worrying about Bogey being outside and whether he's drinking enough to stay hydrated. Thankfully we have a deck he can lay under, his kiddie swimming pool, another huge tub of water, and his regular water bowl. I think tonight once the sun goes down we'll break out the water hose for some cool down.

I'm sick of sweating on my entire drive home from work because the a/c just can't overcome the ridiculous heat from sitting out in the sun all day.

I'm sick of not being able to work outside until the end of the day.

I'm sick of eating dinner, watching tv, and spending time in our house with all the lights turned off just to try and prevent more heat from being trapped in our house!

Ok, ok, enough with the complaining & whining. I know that things could be so much worse...

I'm thankful to have an air conditioner that as of now has been incredibly good to us (fingers crossed!)

I'm thankful to have enough money to put good meals on our table...even if it means heating up the house just a little bit.

I'm thankful to have a wonderful house to come home to where Hubby & I can escape the heat.

I'm thankful for the resources to take care of our precious furry son, Bogey. While I'm certain he's hot, I'm thankful for the joy he brings us each day.

I'm thankful for a reliable, working car that takes me to and from work each day...with an air conditioner that tries all it can to keep me cool!

I'm thankful for the few short moments at the end of the day when Hubby & I can water plants or play with Bogey.

And most of all, I'm thankful that our resources will be more than enough to cover those extra large electricity & water bills that will start rolling in in a few months.

Things could certainly be so much worse...but I certainly don't have to enjoy it!