ONE MONTH!

ONE MONTH!!
I’m sure every post will start like this… but, I just absolutely can not believe my sweet baby boy is already one month old! He was a month old on Friday! He is growing like a weed though! I’ve already had to box up some clothes he can’t fit into any more! He’s so long he’s already in 3 month sleepers! I can really tell his face is filling out and he’s finally starting to get some meat on his bones! His legs aren’t so skinny anymore.. they still don’t have any of those cute baby fat rolls on them… but they aren’t skin and bone anymore either!

We had his one month check up on Friday. My big boy weighed in at 10 pounds 12 ounces and 23 ½ inches long! That’s almost a pound a week and 2 inches in 4 weeks! He’s a growing boy!





He’s very alert and checks everything out! He’s been smiling a lot lately too! He has a floor mat/activity gym that I try to let him play with twice a day. He has learned that he can grab and kick things. He LOVES to kick! Which, I knew that… I felt that for 9 months! Haha  But on his activity gym there is a little elephant with a rattle ball attached to it that hangs down, he’ll find it with his feet and just go to town kicking at it! Its so funny watching him just kick up a storm! I saw a little kick and play piano I think I may get him for Christmas… I think he’d like that!
He’s still sleeping pretty good and over all is a very happy baby! He really loves his bath time and he loves reading time with Daddy in the evenings! He also loves when Granna comes over, she kinda spoils him!














Last saturday we had a big day! We went to my dad's work Christmas party. Kasen got to meet Santa for the 1st time! Then... one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE THINGS... we went to get our Christmas tree! At my parents house me and my dad always get the Christmas tree. Some years I take HOURS to find the perfect tree! Then dad gets out his most loved thing ever, his chainsaw, and chops it down! The year before last, Dallas went with us to pick out a tree, but last year, since Dallas and I had our own home we decided to get a tree that we could replant after Christmas. So we spent money on a perfect little pine tree. After Christmas we planted it and the sucker died. On top of the wasted money, We decided its much more fun to spend the afternoon searching through the woods to find the perfect Cedar tree to chop down! Well this year my dad and I decided we'd share our outting with Dallas, my Mom, and Kasen. I wore Kasen in my moby wrap! And boy, we had a perfect day :)

3 Weeks Old!

I seriously can not believe our sweet baby boy was THREE WEEKS old yesterday!

Its seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital! He is growing so much already! He had a doctor appointment yesterday just for a weight check to see how he's progressing. Which they had already been impressed with his weight gain. When he was born he weighed 7.6, that was on a Wednesday, we took him home on a friday and he weighed 7.2, they told us it usually takes about two weeks to get back up to their birthweight especially in breastfed babies. Well we had to take him to the hospital on that Sunday to be checked for jaundice, and he was already back at his birthweight!! He's a good eater!

Yesterday they weighed him and were very impressed he weighed in at a whopping 9.4 pounds! Kasen is a growing boy!!! He's changing everyday. I swear every morning I wake up to a little guy thats more handsome than he was the day before. And I wake up to a pretty handsome husband too :)

Now that we have this amazing little boy, I couldn't have imagined having a girl. Kasen is just perfect for us! And he is such a good baby! He sleeps pretty good at night and he loves his bath time! He usually gets a bath around 9:45 every night, then I rub him down with lotion real good, he gets so relaxed, its so cute! Then he gets fed and is in bed asleep by 10:30 and usually sleeps until 2:30, wakes up to eat, then sleeps again until about 5:30. He eats again then, and usually stays awake until about 11.And of course he eats in between there too. but he stays awake a lot in the mornings. He's definately a morning baby! He's so cute first thing in the morning too. He makes all kinds of faces and has started making different noises too! Its amazing to watch him grow and do more things! He looks around and is very alert. He already has pretty good neck strength. He lifts his head a lot and looks around. We are very proud of him!

We had company all last week! Dallas's dad came to stay with us during thanksgiving, and Dallas's Grandma was also able to come for a few days! It was nice to get to see them! And I think they enjoyed meeting Kasen! I'm sure I wasn't the best host... I am just now starting to feel like a human again! I've been pretty exhausted! Everyone says "Oh sleep when he sleeps!" Well... when hes asleep thats when I get things done! I have yet to take a nap! I'm not a napper anyways, but I think I'm going to have to learn to be. I could definately use a nap here and there! Being exhausted all the time is no fun for me, and I'm sure its no fun for Dallas either. When he gets home in the evenings im pretty well pooped! So, I'm going to try to do better and catch a nap or two here and there so I'm not a zombie any more!

It'll be Christmas soon... I'm so excited for Christmas this year. My neice Piper is 15 months old.. I can't wait to watch her tear into presents! She's so much fun right now! I'm sure I'll be doing mostly online shopping this year.. I don't want to get little man out in the cold more than I have to!!

I'll try to keep this updated with pictures and posts... just bear with us!


Playtime!!


Turkey Day!


He loves his playmat!


Kasen getting his first bottle!!

11~7~12 What a Perfect Day!

Our bundle of joy is finally here!!
I dont even know where to begin this blog.. Its going to be crazy long so I'll just start from Wednesday morning.. November the 7th!
We woke up at 4am Wednesday morning, we needed to leave the house by 5 to get to the hospital by 6. I only slept a few hours that night, I was so anxious and nervous! Our dogs were staying with my parents while we were at the hospital, so we dropped them off at my parents on the way to the hospital. We spent a little more time there visiting with them then we had planned so we were running late! I wasn't that worried about it, I didnt figure they would send me home! lol! We got to the hospital at about 630, got in our room and got settled in! I don't think it actually had hit me yet, we were about to meet our sweet baby!! My doctor came in a little after 9 to break my water. I was still just 3cm at that time so she figured once the pitocin kicked in we'd have a baby by supper time! I was still feeling great at that point! About an hour later my contractions were terrible! I told my mom at one point "this is for the birds!!" My nurse came in and said the anesthesiologist
was on the floor now and had a few people in front of me so it would be about an hour before I could get an epidural if I wanted one. I decided to go on and get it. She told me since I was pretty uncomfortable she'd check me again after I got the epidural. I toughed out that hour but my contractions were pretty bad. The anesthesiologist came in a little after 11 and was finished by about 1145. I told the nurse I felt alot of pressure when they gave me my epidural, she thought that was weird. She checked me again and said "Either I can't find your cervix or your at like 8! Im going to get another nurse to check you!" So another nurse came in and sure enough I was at 8. She said well that explains the pressure you felt during your epidural! I had a massive headache so she laid me flat and said she'd be back in a little while. I asked her how everything was going to go, she said, "Well, we'll wait til you get to 10, let the baby drop more on its own, do some practice pushes, then call the doctor for the real pushes!" That sounded fine to me. So she left, well a few min later I felt a lot of pressure so we called the nurse, a different nurse came in and said my nurse would be back in 15 min, that she had just checked me so she'd let my nurse check me when she got back. My nurse comes back in a litle bit later to check me, I asked if I could set up now cause my headache wasnt bad anymore. She said I could after she checked me again. As soon as she checked me she said "Don't move! Its time to call the doctor the head is right there!" I asked if I could set up she said "NO! Its litterally right there!" I then asked about those practice pushes she told me about she said "We're long past that!" Within no time there were several nurses in there and my doctor and it was show time! I didn;t even have a chance to really get nervous or anything! I pushed about 6 times and at 1:44pm we welcomed Kasen Stone Shepherd into the world! Dallas announced that it was a boy and he got to cut the cord! I was absolutely overjoyed! He was perfect in every way! He weighed 7 pounds and 6.8 ounces, and was 21.5 inches long!!! I couldn't believe I carried a baby that big! It was love at first sight! He was healthy and the delivery couldn't have gone smoother! It was a perfect day :)

We're home now and he's changing every day! We are so in love with our sweet boy! He's been a really good baby so far! He might kinda be on my night shift schedule, but we're working on it! Any loss sleep is completely worth it! I have never been happier! Dallas has been a huge help around the house and is the best dad! Kasen has a good man to look up to! Dallas was already talking about buying him saddles and ropin dummys and his Dallas's dad already bought him a pair of handmade boots! He's not spoiled already or anything :)

I'll try my best to keep yal updated on how hes doing and how he's changing! Thank you everyone for your love and support. We are so blessed :)

The Countdown is ON!

Yep, the countdown is on!!
We have an official countdown unless Baby Shep decides to make its own agenda! lol!
I went to the doctor again last thursday and she was surprised I hadn't already had the baby! I had been 80% effaced for two weeks! But thursday she said I was basically 100% thinned and about 3cm dilated. She thinks I may not dilate completely on my own because of where the tumor is but she was pretty certain that inducing me would get things going pretty quick. So... we are scheduled for an induction wednesday morning! Ahhhh!!! Thats TOMORROW!!!
This whole pregnancy I haven't really thought much about labor and the whole idea of actually having the baby.. lol, i know, who would think about that?! I'm not nervous about the labor process, no, I've never had a child before but I have had a few major surgeries and am fairly certain I will be ok. I know its going to hurt like the dickens and I could be in labor for hours on end... that doesn't worry me. The idea of actually being a parent scares me to death!!
I am very excited about becoming a mother, don't get me wrong. Its just now setting in that we WILL become parents. There is no going back!! I know Dallas is going to be an excellent father. I love watching him with my niece, it just melts my heart! And I think we'll make a good team as parents. I'm just starting to get nervous about it... I mean surely thats normal to be a little nervous right?!
And I think not knowing if its a girl or a boy makes me a little more nervous. Like I just haven't prepared myself for either I guess. Not that it matters. We'll love it to the moon and back either way. I can't wait to hear Dallas tell me whether we've got a little boy or a little girl. That is just so exciting! And maybe I'm just mixing all the excitment with the nerves... who knows! Its just a feeling I can't hardly describe and now I'm just rambling! So enough of that!
Baby Sheps room is basically complete :) And, we've got a bag basically packed... so, we're making progress! We have waited til the last minute but thats okay!!! Today I'll get the carseat in the car and finish doing a few things on my "to do" list!





Sunday night was my last night to work! I'm sure going to miss my coworkers while I'm off work! But I am very excited to get to spend some time at home with the baby, especially during the holidays :)

16 Days!!

Ok so my blogging skills are terrible! I've been majorly slacking on keeping up with this thing! But I have been busy trying to get ready for this baby! So thats a good excuse right?!

Ready or not Baby Shep will be here soon! We have the nursery almost complete. Were just waiting on the changing table/dresser to be finished. And it should be done next week! Hopefully Baby Shep wont decide to come until after the nursery is completed! But we'd be happy to welcome this sweet baby into the world whenever its ready to come! I'm starting to get kind of anxious about knowing whether I've been carrying a boy or a girl. I'm definately super excited about finding out!

Now for the real issue... names! Baby Shep still doesn't have a name. We've pretty much agreed on a girl name, but the boy name is a different story. We just can't decide on anything! So hopefully by the time baby shep decided to make its debut we'll have decided on something!!!!

How Far Along: 2 days shy of 38 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 24 Pounds

Doctors Appointment: At my appointment last tuesday I was 2cm dilated and 80% effaced. I've been feeling lots of pressure lately and been having random contractions. She told me it could be any day now! Baby Shep was weighing in at about 6 pounds. She said everything looked really good and how everything was last week with the tumor she thought I'd probably be ok to deliver naturally instead of having a C-section! So I was definately happy about that! I go back tomorrow for another check to see how things are progressing.

How We're Changing: A week or so ago I felt like there was no way I could possible get any bigger... Well.. I have. My belly just keeps growing! I havent found any stretch marks yet thank goodness... but I'm still growing so we'll see. I have no belly button anymore. In the beginning it poked out, and now its just flat. I don't know how it will ever look normal again! Baby Shep is still wild and moves a ton. I don't know when this kid sleeps... I think it must just take little power naps because day and night it it very active! I am definately excited to meet our sweet baby :)

40 Days...

Baby Shep is due in 40 days! Oh My! This pregnancy is absolutely flying by! People keep asking if I'm ready for this baby to be born... well, yes, I can't wait to meet our sweet baby and find out if this little miracle I've been carrying is a boy or a girl, but... I'm absolutely okay with it staying in there til November the 10th!! We have plenty to do between now and then! haha! However... I have been busy working on the nursey lately! That makes it feel so much more real. When I get up in the mornings and pass the nursery I peek in there and smile. It makes my heart happy to think in just a few short weeks we'll have a bundle of joy to put in there!! Dallas keeps saying he's just so ready to find out whether its a boy or a girl. And honestly, we are totally fine with either! Its just going to be so exciting to finally meet this little baby! We had a baby shower at our church Saturday and boy where we blessed with lots of goodies! Baby Shep got lots of things we needed! This baby is already so loved! We are so thankful for the kindness everyone showed us on Saturday. It is amazing to see the love and support from our church family and friends! Hopefully this next week I'll get to go through all the goodies and start to get things organized! I think I'm definately starting the nesting mode!!

How Far Along: 34 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 18 Pounds. (That was a little over a week ago though..)

Doctors Appointment: My appointments are going good. I start going every starting next week. That ole ugly tumor hasnt disappeared yet... its still there. Depending on where it is when I go into labor will depend on if I have to have a C-section or not.. I'm really hoping to not have to have a C-section. But if thats whats best for baby and me, I will. I go to the Doctor again on thursday. Shes been checking my cervix for the last month and a half because it had already started to shorten. But she's keeping a close eye on it and we'll just take it one appointment at a time!

What I'm looking forward to: Finishing the nursery! It is coming along wonderfully! I can't wait to have it all done! I love it so far :) Pictures to come soon!

Cravings: None really. Havent had much cravings this whole time!

How we're changing: We're definately growing. I feel huge! The last two weeks my belly has grown so much!!! Baby Shep is still as active as ever. Sometimes it moves so much I have to stop what I'm doing, and sometimes it almost hurts when I get a good sucker punch. Our little peanut is definately strong and lively!!!

Pictures Coming Soon :)

Hello Third Trimester!

Third Trimester already!? Wow! This truly is flying by! I havent blogged in a while, I'm slacking I know! We've been realy busy around here. We've been making a few enhancements to our house and finally finishing up decorating! We finally are putting pictures in frames and getting them hung... We painted the backsplash in our kitchen red! I just love it! I painted an accent wall in our living room turquiose. Its a little brighter then we had planned but we both really like it! And we painted the last spare bedroom! Now we just need to get the furniture set up in there. Our next project is the nursery... yes, we will be getting on that soon :)

How Far Along: A little over 28 Weeks!

Total Weight Gain: 10 pounds!

Doctors Appointment: We have an appointment Thursday. I'll do the glucose test, meet with my doctor, and have another ultrasound. Can't wait to see sweet little shep :)

What I'm looking forward to: The Nursery! We're going to try to start on it in a week or two. Our bedding is being made, and its almost done! I can't wait to see it! And our furniture is being made.. it won't be ready til the end of september, but I am so excited about it too! We designed it ourselves so I can't wait to see how it turns out!!

Cravings: No real cravings... I've been eating a lot of tomatoes, chips and salsa, coconut popsicles and drinking lots of orange juice and milk!!

How we're changing: We're growing! My bump is not really a bump anymore- its a big baby belly! It grows everyday! Baby Shep is still so active! Sometimes it moves so much I have to stop what I'm doing! Its pretty crazy!

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks!

1 Pound, 10 Ounces

Baby Shep is weighing in at a whopping 1 pound, 10 ounces! Over the next 14 weeks Baby Shep will be growing like crazy! We had a doctors appointment and ultrasound friday. With everything going on its comforting to see our sweet baby more often. Baby Shep was moving like crazy but still didn't want to let the ultrasound tech see its face and head. The tech kept pushing on my belly to get that baby to move and finally it worked. She was able to see everything she needed to see of Baby Shep. Everything seems to be normal so far with the baby's growth and development. The tech made the comment that Baby Shep is going to have long legs and arms... Hmmm, wonder who that came from?! Aside from getting to see the baby we had to take a look at that ugly tumor, yep, its still there. It hasn't gotten any smaller but it doesn't seem to be growing like it was before. So thats good. Its just in a really bad spot. If it were at the top of my uterus they wouldn't worry too much about it, but since its in the lower part of my uterus it gets a little more complicated. Dr Shroeder is concered with Baby Shep's growth as the baby gets bigger. I guess the tumor can cause growth restrtiction and also get in the way of the placenta and cause Baby Shep not to get the oxygen and nutrients it needs to grow big and strong. So she is just going to keep monitoring it. From now on at every appointment they will do an ultrasound to see how things are going. It is exciting to get to see Baby Shep that often though. I just pray things contiue to look good and that ugly tumor just goes away! And closer to time she'll decide if its safe for me to go into labor or to schedule a c-section. I would love to be able to go into labor on my own and have the baby, but whatever is safest for us is what I'll do. I just have to stay open minded about all these unknowns!

Tonight Dallas went to pick up a horse in Illinois so I got to go eat Mexican with two of my best friends! It was really nice to catch up with Katie and Brittany! Our lives are so busy now its good to be able to spend time with them when we can! I know once Baby Shep gets here it will be even more hectic trying to plan dinner dates! But that surely doesn't stop me from being super excited about Baby Shep's arrival!

6 Months Preggo :)

24 and a half weeks... where has the time gone? I'm sure I'll say that a million more times by the time Baby Shep gets here! This past weekend I kinda started freaking out. The last 24 weeks I havent worried about really anything. I haven't thought about childcare, I haven't worried about the nursery... anything. Well, saturday morning I woke up super early for some reason and the panic set in! I realized that Baby Shep is going to be here sooner than I realize! I need to start thinking about bedding, furniture, painting the nursery, childcare... All these things! Dallas and I had looked at some bedding a while ago that we just fell in love with.. well Saturday when I got online to look at it, its been discontinued. Just my luck! Since then I've found a lady that had a boutique on Etsy that makes baby bedding and I'm pretty sure we're going to go with that. I also talked to Paul, our Amish guy that's made most of our furniture, and he's going to make the nursery furniture too! Things are coming together :)

How Far Along: 24 weeks, 6 Months :)

Total Weight Gain: I think almost 10 pounds.. not really sure though!

Doctors Appointment: We have another ultrasound and an appointment with our Doctor on Friday. They will recheck the tumor then and check on our sweet baby!

What I'm looking forward to: I'm looking forward to preparing a place for Baby Shep! I'm so excited to start on the nursery and get the bedding ordered. Things are starting to feel really real :)

Cravings: I haven't really had any cravings. I still really enjoy chips and salsa though!!

How we're changing: I don't think theres any guessing anymore to whether I'm pregnant or not.. my bump is out there. My hips are starting to hurt more and more at night.. I guess due to all the growing we're doing. My busy baby is so active. Sometimes I'm even woken up by the movements. Baby Shep is constantly on the move.

Here are some pictures from 24 weeks :)

23 Weeks 2 Days!

23 Weeks down 17 to go!!! Dallas keeps saying he wishes the baby was here already and I just keep thinking how many things we have to do before the baby gets here! And time is flying by~ I'm actually really enjoying pregnancy more lately. I'm not sick anymore but I still have the pain from the tumor that I'l have until I deliver, but somehow I've been able to look past all that and enjoy this time being pregnant.

How Far Along: 23 weeks!!

Total Weight Gain: Around 7lbs I think. I had been up 5 and lost 3 but I'm pretty sure I've gained all that back plus a little more! My OB said I need to be gaining atleast a pound to 2 pounds every week from now until delivery day. Bring on the milkshakes!

Doctors Appointment: I have another appointment and ultrasound July 27th. They will recheck and remeasure the tumor then and check on Baby Shep to make sure theres still plenty of room for the baby to grow big and strong.

What I'm looking forward to: I'm looking forward to our doctors appointment. I will be excited to see baby shep again and I'm also anxious about checking on the tumor. I'm praying its shrinking or it just goes away...

Cravings: Hmm... well my appetite seems to be much bigger now. I feel like all I do is eat!! I've been craving Blue Bonnett Coconut Popsicles. YUM! Still have a craving for Chips and Salsa or Mexican food... but other than that, not to many specific cravings.

How I'm Feeling: I'm feeling pretty good. I have trouble getting comfortable, especially sleeping and I have the constant cramping pains from the tumor but I'm getting more used to that.

How we're changing: My belly is getting bigger by the day. You can definately tell I have a bump now. Baby Shep is moving like crazy. I read that at this point in pregnancy the baby should be sleeping 12-14 hours a day, well... Baby Shep is not on that schedule. Its doing acrobats all the time. Its funny cause you can see it moving through my clothes now. I love to just lay my hand over it and feel it move. The other day it was going nuts so I hollered at Dallas to come feel. Well when he put his hand on me it wasnt doing anything. So he pushed on my belly a little and WHAM! Baby Shep kicked his hand as hard as I'v ever felt the baby move! It was too funny. I'm enjoying all the movements though. It puts me at ease from worying about how much room Baby Shep has. I also read that now Baby Shep can hear everything I can hear. Thats sooo neat!!

Wedding & Vacation!

Last weekend was my brothers wedding, and the beginning of our vacation! Things were a little hectic the week before our vacation because I had been on bedrest and wasn't sure if I'd even be able to go. I had a dr appointment thursday morning, my doctor okayed me to go on vacation as long as I would take it easy. No lifting anything, pushing pulling... and try to stay off my feet. My oldest brother Nathan, his wife Jasmine, and their two girls were going on vacation with us too and we had decided to all pile in my explorer to save on gas. So Friday morning we left for the wedding. The wedding was in Birmingham Alabama which is about halfway to Gulf Shores. We spent Friday and Saturday night in Birmingham for Caleb and Kristians wedding. The wedding was beautiful and HOT! It was an outside wedding and was 106 degrees at 7pm for the wedding!! The reception was insided though so it was a little cooler for that! Everything turned out really nice! Sunday morning we loaded the car to head to Gulf Shores! The ride to Gulf Shores was definately interesting. Peyton, my 6 yr old neice of course wanted to know about every 10 min if we were there yet. And Piper, my 10 month old neice hadn't been feeling the best, she had a complete diaper blowout in her carseat while we were driving down the interstate. So of course we stopped on the side of the road to clean up that mess. Then Nathan decides he going to drive the rest of the way. Well he got tired of the GPS so he muted it. I had looked at the GPS at one point and we had about an hour and a half left. Well, about an hour later I looked at it and we now had about 2 and a half hours left and who knew we were almost to Mississippi!!! We eneded up about 3 hours out of the way and had to take a Ferry across the Ocean to get to Gulf Shores!!! While it was super aggrivating, the Ferry ride was pretty cool!

feeding the seagulls FINALLY AT THE CONDO!!! Monday we spent the day on the beach. Nathan did a little fishing and Peyton and Dallas wore the boogie boards out riding waves! Tuesday night my cousins that live down there had a big Shrimp boil for us. Man, that was delicious! I think all of us ate our weight in Royal Red Shrimp!! Wednesday we ate at LuLu's. Which is Jimmy Buffetts sisters resturant. It was alot of fun. They had a big like Jungle Gym on steriods for kids. Peyton had a blast on it! Wednsday night was fourth of July. We got to watch fireworks with my cousins right on the water. It was really pretty!! The plan was to get up Thursday and leave Gulf Shores to head home around 11 or noon. We got up, got the car parked and checked out of the condo. Dallas and Nathan heard about "Captian Crunch" the worlds largest alligator which happened to be not to far from Gulf Shores so they wanted to go see that on the way home. I wanted to stop at the outlet mall because they had a motherhood maternity outlet store and it was right on our way out! We also all wanted to stop at a little local seafood market to bring home some fresh seafood. So by the time we did all those things if was after 5pm by the time we hit the raod to head home! We got home about 2:45 am! We had a really good time on vacation and plan on doing it again next year! Holding a baby alligator Captain Crunch

Hello from Gulf Shores!

This is just a quick post from my phone, so I won't be adding any pictures until we get back I've had a lot of people asking about whats been goin on so I just thought I'd give everyone a quick update! To make a long story short I was in the hospital last saturday in a lot of pain. They sent me home not knowing much but wanted me back in the office for tests throughout the week. After several ultrasounds and an mri they confirmed that I have a muscle tumor in my uterus. Right now it isn't harming the baby but since it has grown so rapid and wasn't there a few weeks ago on my last ultrasound they are really watching it's growth. It will most likely cause me discomfort through the rest of my pregnancy because they can't remove it, but if they can slow the growth hopefully baby shep will still have plenty of room to grow.big.and strong. I was started on some medicine to help slow the growth and I go back to the doctor next week to findout more. Rough now I'm supposed to take it easy and I can't lift or pull on anything or be on my feet for long. So what better place to be resting than the beach!! When we get home I'll keep you updated and add lots of pictures! Please keep us in your prayers as we try to pull through this and shrink this tumor so Baby Shep can keep growing! On another note, Dallas felt baby shep moving this morning really.for the first time. To be honest, it really freaked him out! He was totally amazed but still thought it was crazy weird!! Baby Shep is an early morning baby, always tossing and turning for several hours first thing in the morning! Feeling the baby mov gives me a little peace of mind though. I just love our little baby!!!

Half Way There!

20.5 weeks down, 19.5 to go!.... I'm over half way through with this pregnancy! It feels the first half flew so quick I can only imagine how fast the last 20 is going to fly by!! This past week was our county fair. I love the fair, I always have! So I was super excited to go to the fair and get certain foods that you can only get once a year! I don't know what it is about pregnancy and taste buds, but things that I love to eat and that normal taste good, now taste amazing. Its like my taste buds are on steriods or something! Dallas laughed at me every night we went to the fair, he wasnt sure where I was putting all that food. I truely ate for two or three every night!!! I didn't ride any rides other than the slide, I went down the big slide a few times with my neice but other than that I just watched..  Dallas and I had Peyton Friday night at the fair so Dallas and Peyton rode I think every ride out there. After hours of riding rides we decided to call it a night around 11pm. They wanted to ride one last ride so I said ok. It was a ride that had made Peyton sick earlier in the week and the same ride that had made Dallas sick at Holiday World. I'm not sure why they wanted to ride it, but they insisted so I set on the bench outside the ride and just watched. About a minute into the ride I noticed it was slowing down and came to a stop. Here came Dallas and Peyton... Dallas was white as a ghost and sweaty. He immediately set down and didnt say a word. Peyton let me know Dallas asked them to stop the ride!! She was starting to get sick too and had a bad headache. When we got in the car she told us she wasn't ever going to the fair ever again!! I think Dallas felt the same! Other than that we had a great week!! I'm already looking forward to more ribbon fries and funnel cakes next year :)

How Far Along: 20 1/2 Weeks!

Total Weight Gain: Well.... I'm not sure how this happened, other than I didn't feel very good over the weekend and didn't have much of an appetite, but as of yesterday at my doctors appointment I had lost 3 pounds. I don't know where all fair food went but I'm sure I'll make up for it this week! Dallas is already trying to stuff milkshakes down my throat!

Doctors Appointment: Well... I had an appointment yesterday- I've had some problems and they found something they are concerned about, we aren't really 100% sure what it is yet, but the baby seems to be okay right now... just keep us in your prayers, I should know more in a couple days! We have our anatomy scan thursday. I am so excited for that! We had an ultrasound saturday at the hospital, the tech asked us if we knew what we were having.. we told her no, we weren't finding out. She said "Oh, well, I could tell you if you wanted!!" As hard as it was to pass up, we did. We're totally okay with not knowing. We got to see our sweet baby and watched the whole ultrasound and didn't see anything. Its amazing how much our little peanut has changed in the last few weeks. I know every parent says this but we just think our baby is the cutest thing already!! It has such a cute little face! I can't wait to meet Baby Shep!!

What I Miss: Being pregnant in the summer has had some challenges for me... not the heat or anything like that... but I miss doing most of the things I love to do this time of year. I miss water skiing and tubing. I miss riding my horse!!!! I want to ride go karts and go to Holiday World and do those kind of things... but I'm okay with making up for it next summer!!! I wouldn't trade carrying this baby for anything in the world!

What I'm looking forward to: Thursday! Our Anatomy Scan! I can't wait to see our sweet baby again!! My mom is going to go with us to this ultrasound appointment... I always take home ultrasound pics to show her but nothing is quite like watching that cute little thing on the screen move around and rub its eyes or kick its feet! So I'm excited for her to see our little buddle of joy in action, because man, that thing is BUSY!

Cravings: Haven't really had any crazy cravings... I still really enjoy chips and salsa, but now that we have fresh veggies from the garden I have been eating those like crazy!!!

How I'm Feeling: Well... I haven't felt very good since the weekend. I was put on a modified bedrest until we find out exactly whats going on... I don't feel like doing much anyways, but not being able to do anything isn't much fun. Dallas has been a huge help though. I am so thankful to have such a wonderful husband!!

How I'm Changing: I don't think my belly has changed a whole whole lot since last week, but its definately grown a little bit...

19 weeks

20 weeks

our sweet little baby :) I just love this little thing already!
I think its the cutest thing ever!