Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Oh boy!

Well, we can't help but laugh when we open up our baby boy's closet and it's half full already! You see...I'm a bargain shopper and over the last couple of years, if I have seen cute baby clothes (girl and boy) for a super cheap price, I have picked them up. I figured we would eventually use them or it's nice to always have gifts on hand. I have found some steals at TJ Maxx paying only a dollar for a few outfits! So, once we learned about our baby boy, I did inventory of my baby stash and surprisingly, most of it should fit our lil' guy! Also, we have received some clothing and other items as gifts already, too which has been super fun!


This past weekend we completed our baby registry which was really fun (a bit overwhelming, but fun)! During the process, Nate and I decided we would pick out a few outfits as it was our first time shopping together for our precious baby. I think you'll be able to tell what outfits Daddy picked out! :)

Daddy's picks! Of course, all 3 things have guitars on them!

GO BUCKS!!!

Mommy's picks!

We truly feel blessed this season. We have so much to be thankful for and most of all, we praise God for blessing us with this precious baby boy! Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Much love!

Joy, Nate, and Baby BOY

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

It's.....

Definitely a BOY!!! 3D Picture of Baby Boy Anderson
(I, personally think he already looks like Daddy!) Praying?
Oooo...I'm a sleepy boy!
Baby Boy's SpineProud Mom and Dad at the Dr. office

At home after appt.
My co-worker/friend, Nikki and I at work...
Nikki was so excited to find out about Baby Anderson...she painted her fingernails pink and blue! HALF-BAKED @ 20 WEEKS!!!

Well, today was a fun day we've long waited for! We had our 20 week ultrasound and found out we are having a precious lil' baby BOY! :) There was no doubt about what we saw! I had a gut feeling about a boy, but Nate was determined it was a girl. This means I get to pick out where we go for dinner tonight...that's always good for a pregnant woman! :) We are so thrilled and excited. He looks healthy and beautiful! Baby BOY Anderson is now half-baked and weighing in at 11 ounces!

After leaving the doctor office, we made some phone calls and sent out some text messages to let everyone know of our exciting news. I pulled into the driveway at work to find Nikki, my co-worker (who has also become one of my closest friends) waiting for me at the door. I told everyone in the office I would wear pink or blue today, so she was anxiously awaiting. What was so cute was, she had painted her fingernails pink and blue, as you can see in the pictures above. It's so fun to know others are so excited right along with Nate and I!

That's our day in a nutshell! It's dinner time now, so I'm signing off! Enjoy the pictures and stay tuned for more!

We love you all!

Blessings,
Joy, Nate, and Baby BOY Anderson!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Aawww...the sound of a beating heart

Well, I sure have grown a new love for the sound of a beating heart. Today we had another OB appointment. The most exciting part is just hearing the baby's heartbeat. It's so real and reassuring. Today it was at 154 beats per minute which is exactly what it was on October 20th.

We're down to one week of finding out if Baby Anderson is a boy or a girl! Of course, we've looked into all the silly, fun things that "predict" the gender. The old wives tale about the heart rate (anything 140 and below=boy and anything over 140=girl, which would imply a girl), the Chinese Baby Gender Chart (different websites have said a boy and a girl), and tonight we're going to experiment with the ring on the string (if my wedding ring moves in circles it's suppose to mean a boy and side to side, a girl). Yeah...nothing very accurate but something fun to play around with. I think now that time is dwindling down to our 20 week ultrasound, I'm getting more and more anxious to find out the gender! So, now I'm back on the bandwagon of doing all of these silly things.

Well, it's past dinnertime and we've yet to have eaten. Nate and I ended up chatting for quite awhile after work and never got around to dinner. So, of course we opted for something quick and easy which means processed chicken patties. Sadly, it doesn't sound too bad to a pregnant lady who hasn't eaten since lunch! :) At least we'll throw in some fresh veggies and fruit to balance out the processed part!

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Hillary's Baby Shower and Bailey's Expedition

Hello everyone! Just wanted to share some pictures from today. My friend, Hillary had a baby shower today. We met in college through a mutual friend, then worked together at a coffee shop, and also were roommates for awhile. She now lives in Florida, but came for a COLD (sorry, Hillary!) Ohio visit. It's been so fun communicating via email and our blogs, sharing all of our pregnancy ups and downs with each other. I certainly feel blessed to be sharing this with her.

Due April 7th and January 12th
Baby Anderson and Baby Magnolia (Maggie for short) Hillary's gift to me...a cute duck toy and a soft blanket Also, when I got home from the shower, Nate informed me that Bailey had an incident. She chewed up one of my books which happens to be a favorite book of mine right now. I'm guessing maybe she's learned to read and is now figuring out there is another baby in the future next to her?! Though I'm disappointed and thankfully I have another copy of this book, I couldn't help but laugh at these pictures. What a treat this dog is!

Look closely, she has her eyes shut and her tongue out...just like a little kid!
(You can click on the picture to enlarge it to get the full effect)

Being ornery as we're trying to get her picture with the evidence...

Out of control Beagle!

OK! I did it! (Again, click on the picture to enlarge it and you can see her eyes bugging out)

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Exciting!

I'm thrilled to be sharing that two nights ago (Monday, November 3rd) Nathan (aka Daddy) got to feel Baby Anderson move for the first time (17 weeks and 7 days pregnant)! :) Over the last few days I've felt the baby move more. It's caught me off guard a few times as I've only felt the baby move as I've layed down to rest/sleep at nighttime. Now, as the baby is growing, I've felt it move while sitting and standing, too. So, Monday night once we crawled into bed, I told Nathan I was waiting to feel the it (I'll be so glad when it 2 weeks I can say baby girl or baby boy instead of "it") move. It wasn't but a short time after I said that, I felt it. So, Nate layed his hands on my belly and YAY! HE FELT OUR BABY MOVE FOR THE FIRST TIME! I've been waiting to share this with him for a few weeks now and we were both excited it came sooner than we thought. After a busy, draining few days with the passing of my grandmother, it was a perfect way to end those few days.


It's hard to believe we are 4 1/2 months along! According to my pregnancy email updates, our baby is approximately 6 inches long and weighs around 5 to 8 ounces. I have also learned this week our baby is mastering the art of yawning. Other skills the baby is showing off are swallowing, sucking, hiccuping, making faces, and of course, kicking, twisting, rolling, and punching.


I also wanted to include a few pictures from our weekend at my parents home. Though under the circumstance of my grandmother passing away, it was nice to be with my whole family and get some new snapshots of us all together. We certainly had some fun, memorable times, didn't we Mandy and Kara?! :)


Daddy and Mommy Anderson
Mom, Me, Kara, Mandy, and Dad

Me (the youngest), Kara (the middle), and Mandy (the oldest)

Manny, Alex, and Mandy

Alex and Mandy

Scott and Kara with Estella, Landon, and Emma

Estella, Landon, Alex, and Emma

Our nieces and nephews, again (I just had to include this because Alex is priceless in this picture!)

Much love!

Joy & Baby




Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Pumpkin Belly

I have several things to share, but am running low on time right now. However, I wanted to share my pumpkin belly that my nephew, Landon (age 8) and niece, Emma (age 6) created! :) We have been at my parents home the last few days due to the passing of my grandmother and after a long day, I couldn't think of a better way to end my day than this!





Tuesday, October 28, 2008

What's so "fun" about fun size candy? The way a pregnant mind works...

*Before you read, this really doesn't have any pertinent information unless you are candy lover!*

So, I was sitting at work yesterday afternoon...and had some "fun sized" Milkduds sitting on my desk. I had bought them for Trick-or-Treat, but busted in them before Trick-or-Treat has had a chance to get here. Anyway, when I was packing my lunch for work, I grabbed 4 fun sized boxes to bring to work (thinking I'd ration them out over a couple of days). It turned out...I ate them all within a matter of minutes. Now...looking into my trashcan, I started to feel guilty because there are all these Milkdud boxes in there. Then I was trying to reason with myself..."Really, Joy...there are only 4 Milkduds, 3 if you're unlucky in each box." Besides, I had already eaten them, so why feel guilty now?

Anyway, Facebook is an internet tool I have used to stay in touch with many friends. You can update your status on there and I updated my status to, "Joy is sad all of the Milkduds are gone already...and even sadder I didn't share them with anyone! ;) Hey...I'm eating for two, right?!" Well, then my sister-in-law, Meghan commented how it cracked her up.

So, I then hopped back onto the Milkdud train to try to find logic in this. As soon as I got home from work I found reasoning that it's okay I ate as many as I did. I had 4 boxes of the "fun size" (which in my mind there is nothing fun about a tiny candy bar, is there?!) Milkduds which equaled out to be about 16 Milkduds. I looked on the plastic package that holds all of these "fun sized" candies in and it says the serving size is 3 "fun size" boxes...and I only had 4 "fun size boxes), so...am I right by saying in actuality, I still could have had 2 more boxes since I am eating for two? Yeah...see...this is what happens when food becomes your first love while being pregnant. :)

So today, I have re-lived yesterday as I brought 4 more "fun sized" boxes of Milkduds to work and ate them all again within a matter of minutes. The thing that stirs me is, why didn't I bring a total of 6 boxes today when I clearly read on the label a serving size is 3 boxes? I am determined I'm eating for 2 and it's okay to have 2 more boxes of the Milkduds to satisfy not only myself, but my precious baby. Let me remind you, too...I don't have a huge sweet tooth and I don't tend to eat a lot of sweets, but for some reason these Milkduds really hit the spot.

Now...did you ever know of someone who could have such a long story about Milkduds?

AND...if you find anything fun about "fun sized" candy, please help me understand? My thinking is, it's gone way too fast. As soon as you take one bite, you're starting to really enjoy it...another bite and it's gone already. Fun?! I'm stumped...

PS...my co-worker was up in my office chatting with me for a few minutes when I looked over into my trashcan and just had to laugh. So, I shared it with her and said I must take a picture. I think I'm more embarrassed than I am proud for all the "junk" in there, but...if you look really closely, you will see a little stem from a piece of broccoli. And...I did have a somewhat healthy lunch before I hit the candy...I had a BLT I made at home, raw veggies, and grapes. See...not so bad?

Here is an email update I received through email today as I get them weekly following my pregnancy...it justifies it all, doesn't it?! Well...until I hit the bolded, italic lettering...

Remember when you were so queasy you could barely stomach ginger ale and a cracker? Happily, your toilet-hugging days (and nights) are probably over. And happily (and hungrily) these days it's more likely that you can't get enough to eat. For most women, the second trimester not only brings relief from morning sickness, but also brings on a truck driver's appetite. Don't be surprised if you suddenly feel hungry enough to polish off a 24-ounce porterhouse, a three-pound lobster (with lots of butter), or a whole tray of baked ziti. And was that you who turned that extra large pizza into a personal pan?
What's turning you into a one-woman demolition derby at the buffet? What has you outeating your spouse (and often, eating food off his plate?) Simple — you're taking signals from your baby, who's getting bigger and hungrier. Just a few sensible words of advice, however, as you interpret those signals: Though it may be a relief to enjoy food again after three months of queasies (and aversions), you may want to proceed to the dinner table with caution. Keep in mind that no matter how big or hungry your baby is, eating for two should never be taken literally during pregnancy; if it is, you'll end up looking like two…of you. Now's a good time to play weight gain catch-up if you didn't gain enough (or even lost) weight during the first trimester. But if you find your weight gain is getting ahead of itself, you may want to reel your appetite in just a tad. Remember, too, as you're diving fork-first into that second plateful of pasta, that there's no better time than now to foster the optimal eating habits that will fuel the growth of your healthy baby.

Okay...signing off!
Joy (& Baby)