Preparing for Baby Sage

We're kind of down to the last few weeks of preparing for Sage and we've been busy! We've been busy interviewing pediatricians and planning maternity leave. We've hired a doula and are about half way through childbirth classes to prepare for our hospital experience. We're almost done arranging the nursery (I'll post pics soon!) so I've been washing clothes and finishing up last minute organizational stuff. I think I need to borrow someone's baby for a day to give everything a test run and see what still needs to be done. We're currently making our list for our final trip to Baby's R Us to pick up the rest of the items we need. I feel confident that we have plenty of baby socks! I had to post this picture of this basket full of socks I'm washing today. They're all so cute! I think she already has over 75 pair. Her feet won't get cold! Now I've got to figure out how to fold these tiny things. I can't believe we're already to this point in preparing for Baby Sage. Before I know it, I'll be putting socks on her feet rather than playing with them when she pushes them out of the side of my tummy. I love playing with her and really would love to just keep her with me, but imagining her in her little socks helps! What pair to put on her first...

Sage in the Pink Bubble

Dustin and I spent the first part of this week in the Pink Bubble of Mary Kay Seminar! The scheduling worked out perfectly because we're right at 5 weeks from due date and could sneak in one last getaway. I did discover that it's about time to start slowing down and resting some. We did great, but I discovered I'm not as great with taking the stairs and walking long distances as I use to be! I'll catch back up when I'm chasing a little one around next year!
Seminar is a do-not-miss annual event for Mary Kay Beauty Consultants. We had a great time and had a blast watching Sage react to all the excitement! She loved the live music performances and when all the ladies clapped and cheered. We're pictured here on the Red Carpet on Awards Night. I received Unit Queen of Sales this year and was SO excited! Dustin had a great time himself! He went to MK Spouse Classes and attended a Spouse Event while I was in classes one day. It's a big deal when spouses are supportive of your MK business and are willing to attend Seminar with their wives. All the ladies just ate him up! He was awarded our MK Husband of the Year (for the 2nd year in a row!) and we were treated to dinner at the Spaghetti Warehouse. It's been a great Mary Kay year and we look forward to bringing Baby Sage along with us next year!

Waco Baby Shower

I had a blast this weekend visiting with family and friends in Waco! We were blessed with a beautiful baby shower on Saturday and received so many beautiful things for Sage. Everything was pink pink pink and SO much fun! My sister-in-law, Kristy, was great. She pointed out all kinds of useful tidbits about many of the items we received. I'm so blessed to have lots of family members with recent baby experience! Our college friends Billy Bob and Jennifer brought their youngest son, Liam, (8 months old) down. Just yesterday he was a tiny newborn and now he's HUGE! They grow so fast. We also got to meet Sage's 2nd cousin, Ben, who is now 2.5 months old. Of course, I snuck in some snuggle time with my precious nephew Price. I can't believe he'll be a year old in just a month. Sage has had the way paved for her by lots of little boys! We can't wait for her to meet them!
Here's a picture of us at the Shower with Sage's Grandmothers-to-Be!

Baby Rylan

I finally got to meet Rylan, my new nephew, this weekend! He's such a big boy! He has long arms and legs and long feet. It's amazing to see how big he is all stretched out and handsome. He was so sweet. It was nice to meet him in person and snuggle him for a little bit. He has a beautiful head full of long black hair. I teased Elizabeth, my sister-in-law, that if Sage is born bald, I'm going to come over to her house and put bows in his hair! (I have headbands for Sage just in case! She can come bald if she wants to!) I'm very excited that Adam, Liz and Rylan are moving to Woodville this weekend and we'll be able to spend time with them. It's going to be neat for Sage and Rylan to grow up with a cousin so close to their age.

34 Week Belly Picture

Here's Baby Sage at 34 weeks with me attached! I say it that way because that's how it feels! She's right out front and having a ball. We've grown and I'm constantly reminded of how big she's getting by the little feet that push out of my tummy every day. She's working on what's left of my belly button. I'm thinking it will pop to an outtie any day now! I'm in a pair of Dustin's shorts because that's about all that will fit me. I've outgrown most of my maternity pants and have started raiding his closet.

Sage gets the hiccups several times a day and it's so funny to see my tummy "hiccup" right along with her. My sister Jenny (Aunt Jen-Jen) got to play with her as she hiccuped last night. Just over 14 years ago I did the same thing when Jenny was the one hiccuping! It's so neat to share this with her. I've been swamped with work and this baby girl has been so patient as I've stressed and rushed to send kids off on the last big mission trip of the year. Whew! Now it's all about the Sage! We've been busy interviewing pediatricians and arranging furniture in preparation for her arrival on top of doctor appointments and childbirth classes. I can't believe her arrival is only 6 weeks away. I'm going to do the best I can to relish every moment we have left together!

Dr's Appointment and Childbirth Classes

Dustin and I made the trip to Nacogdoches yesterday to go to the doctor for a check-up and attend our first Childbirth Class. The doctor's appointment went great! We're right on schedule as far as growth. Baby Sage's heartbeat was nice and strong! I can't get over how clear it is. I gained 3 lbs in 2 weeks! Yikes! I feel it though. My friend Jimmy told me that he swears I grow every day! Too funny! I've put on 10 lbs total so far. I have about 10 lbs more to gain by due date and the doctor says he predicts I'll be back at my "fighting weight" about 2 weeks after the baby comes. I'm a little nervous about growing so fast right here at the end. I'm doing everything I can to prevent stretch marks! Maybe I'll be lucky!
Our childbirth class was interesting! There were about 15 other couples there and Dustin and I think we're the furthest along. (Just by a couple of weeks though.) It was kinda of a "hit the ground running" thing. A L&D nurse gave us a basic outline of hospital policies (where to sign in, etc.) and talked with us about pain management options. I did learn something new! I didn't know the baby turned sideways to get in position for birth and then turned again during labor to position themselves for delivery. Very interesting! Then we watched a birthing video. During the contractions, I started thinking, OK this doesn't look like fun, but then once we got to the actual delivery, it was SO exciting! After the video we went to tour the L&D area and see a room. It's amazing to think that in about 7 weeks we'll get to meet Baby Sage in one of those rooms!

Baby Rylan is Here

Sage's cousin, Rylan James, was born yesterday around 5pm. He is 9 lbs, 2 oz and is 21 inches long. The pic is a little fuzzy because it's from my Mom's cell phone. He's a big boy! I hope to be able to meet him soon!

32 Week Belly

We're 32 weeks along and Baby Sage is growing! She stretches and takes up every bit of space there is across my tummy! When she pushes hard enough, you can clearly see and feel the bottom of her foot, toes and all. Dustin loves to "tickle" the bottom of her feet and she kicks back at him and punches. She gets the hiccups several times a day and sometimes keeps me awake at night with them. She's very sweet and sleeps at night until Dustin or I talk in the morning. Then she jumps up and starts wiggling. It's SO funny! We spend time with her each evening playing with her and talking to her. She really likes warm water and to swim. Her favorite thing to do is kick and wiggle while Dustin reads to her while I'm in the bathtub. (I think the water amplifies the sound of his voice.) I'm not too sure I'll be able to get out of the bathtub much longer though! She's growing and therefore, so am I!

Diapers

A lot of people think we're nuts when we tell them we're going to use cloth diapers. I personally think it's because they just haven't checked them out in the last 20 years! I've become a cloth diapering research expert (which I've discovered, when you're expecting, you end up an expert on some really random stuff!) and can speak the language now! Just to note, did you know that there is no such thing as a biodegradable paper diaper? It is estimated that 18 billion diapers are placed in landfills each year. Paper diapers are full of chemicals including chlorine and dyes. Some even contain formaldehyde! We're doing everything we can to reduce the chances of Baby Sage inheriting Dustin's asthma, so what she breathes is very important to us. Not to mention we want to keep that bottom as pure as possible! Cloth makes sense both environmentally and economically, so the decision was simple for us!

I ordered a couple of diapers online to check out my options and get my hands on them before making a decision on what type and brand to get. They're SO cute and so much fun! The brand we decided on was by bumGenius, so we're down to picking what style we want. The little green one on the left is for newborns up to 10 lbs. I figure she'll probably be smaller, so it's a good idea to invest in a few tiny ones. The one on the right is what's called a One-Size diaper. It has the ability to expand and fit babies from 8-35 lbs. (I was skeptical at first, so that's why I wanted to see them before I ordered any.) They're definitely too big for a newborn, but will be great for when she gets a little bigger! We've decided on the bumGenius Organics. We'll get the newborn size for when she first gets here and then move her into the One-Size once she gets big enough. You're welcome to check out the company I order from www.jilliansdrawers.com and the manufacturer's website at www.bumgenius.com Lots to plan and prepare for when there's a baby on the way!!!