Big Purple Whale

I am in a wedding on July 12th and today I went to get my dress fitted. The seamstress had me wait until this week considering how fast my belly will be growing this month, which was a VERY good idea! I ordered the dress three sizes too big (yes three) and it actually fits snug everywhere except the chest. It is a two piece and my belly holds up the skirt and rounds out the top. Standing in the mirror while she pinned me, I felt like a big purple whale. Maybe it was one of those mean, mean mirrors that makes you look wider than you are, but I was mortified. Dustin has to constantly remind me that I am SUPPOSED to be growing, but I can't help but feel larger than life. I recently picked up a pregnancy aerobics video to help make getting back in shape easier, and I am also stocking up on watermelon for that natural diuretic!

Spring Cleaning (a bit late)

This weekend Dustin and I will be doing some spring cleaning and reorganizing. Our landlords are having another family look at the house on Tuesday so we need to get it spruced up, plus it is WAY overdue! I am interested to see how well this goes because even though the second trimester of pregnancy is considered to be the "best", I still find myself getting tired and sore very easily. Dustin is somewhat understanding but the "I'm Pregnant" excuse runs out after the first half of pregnancy! I was hoping to get a longer life out of it, he is just too smart for me.



I haven't put any pictures of Dustin on here yet, and it has proven difficult to actually TAKE a picture of him. Here is a picture I snapped of him putting shelves together for our nursery furniture. To the right is our first child, Jake. He is a spunky miniature dachshund going through his "terrible-twos" at 8 months. During the building process I had to pry several pieces of cardboard/styrofoam from his mouth, along with a couple screws.

Blooming

There will be more to report on this weekend, but I thought I would take a moment to update with a baby bump picture. This is me at 20 weeks and 4 days, still buttoning my pants! I'm waiting for that belly to POP but enjoying the time I have left in my normal clothes!

Nesting

Crazy as it sounds, Dustin and I have started setting up the nursery and reorganizing our home! We have three bedrooms, so plenty of space, but we decided to switch the guest room (future nursery) and office around. It was a pain taking his desk apart and moving the book shelves but we accomplished what we needed to and it is mostly organized. Friday we went to Babies R' Us with some summer coupons and bought a changing table, a crib mattress, and a very comfortable glider. We got home and built them right away, not wanting work to pile up. The crib and dresser are coming sometime late next week so we are having a very exciting June!

You may be wondering, "Jess... you are only 20 weeks along, why are you doing this already!?" Well, my parents are helping us out with our nursery furniture and July 4th is the last weekend they will be here before the arrival of our little girl. We really want it all set up before they get here so they have a peek at what the nursery will be! I figure I'll spend the normal nesting period crocheting a blanket or something.

The Weekend

Dustin and I had a great weekend! Following the news about our healthy little girl, we had some celebrating to do. Friday afternoon I went in to get my hair cut. I loved my long hair but I knew that once the baby is born, I will not have the mandatory two hours to style it. It is shorter than I have ever had it before, but I really like it. Friday night Dustin surprised me with dinner at one of those Asian restaurants where they cook the food in front of you. His parents, sister, and brother-in-law came along as well.

Saturday morning Dustin and I hit the mall for some lunch and a little stroll. We ended up in Elder Beerman and of course I figured out there was a 50% sale on all baby clothes. I understand that we will get a lot of clothes from people for showers and all, but I wanted to have some fun. Also, we had a gift card that we received for a wedding gift and we could not find anything else worth buying. 6 outfits later, I left the mall a happy woman! Even Dustin was a bit happy after buying a Skillet CD from the Christian bookstore. That afternoon we headed to a wedding. There were 500 people there and the setting was the Bride's gorgeous country home. The flowers alone had to cost a fortune and it was just BEAUTIFUL.

Sunday was Happy Daddy's Day so we headed over to Dustin's parents house for the lunch BBQ. We don't have much storage in our house at the moment so his parents have allowed us to store baby stuff in their basement. I brought over the recent outfits I brought and got to see more gifts people dropped off. One lady gave us a $300 breast pump for free, and we even got a Baby Bjorn! We are very blessed by the giving people in our lives!

Ultrasound

Not only was today my 22nd birthday, but I also had my routine ultrasound. I am technically 19 weeks along but I wanted this as a birthday present to myself! The experience was very different than I expected. I loved watching the tech show us each body part and then measure them. It was also fun to watch our baby bounce around my uterus as I have not felt movement yet. At one point the baby started bouncing on my bladder (full at the time), I started laughing, and the baby was bouncing with my laugh. The tech was able to catch it on video and put it on a CD for us. We also decided that we wanted to know the sex, because I am really bad with surprises, and she was able to get a good prediction.

IT'S A GIRL!





Dustin started asking her about accuracy and she went back to show us a second look. Even though she did not snap a picture of the second look, it was very clear. There were three stark white lines and nothing growing between the legs, so we feel very confident. We both also had a sense before hand about it being a girl. Also, the tech said in 7 years, doing 5-10 ultrasounds a day, she has only been wrong 5 times... and with equal opportunity between boys and girls!

We also got together with Dustin's family tonight because I share the same birthday with his little cousin, Conner. I quick headed to Babies R' Us between the appointment and the party and picked up an adorable little pink outfit. I proceeded to wrap it up and with his whole family around, we had his grandmother open the gift. It was a great way to see everyone's reactions!

One last thing, an update of my baby bump!



God Bless!

Maternity Clothes

Many people told me to wear my normal clothes while I still could because I would be so sick of maternity clothes by the end. I just bought my first batch of maternity clothes this weekend and I feel completely opposite. Why aren't they selling pants with bella bands in real stores!? I could have been wearing these for ages. Also, the shirts are pretty adorable, if you don't mind the large amount of fabric around the middle. Maybe I am just over zealous about the excitement of a baby bump so I'll report back in a couple of months on this subject.



I think I was getting ready to say something to Dustin, but you get the point. Baby bump at 18 weeks! I am going for my ultrasound on Thursday so I am sure I will have pictures and other news to post!


God Bless

Cleanliness

Anyone who is or was a) a newlywed; and b) NOT a compulsive cleaner, can probably testify to the truth of my next post... well, at least the beginning part...

After Dustin and I got married and moved into our new home, it spent at least two months looking like we were living in a hotel. Our wedding gifts were scattered amongst different rooms in the house and our clothes were still in suitcases. Considering the fact that I was jobless, you would have thought I would straighten up a bit, but TV seemed more appealing. Eventually gifts found their places; either on the wall, in a closet, in a cabinet, or back to the store, and then we become just plain messy. Our clothes would start out in drawers and slowly find their way around the room. I would do laundry but clean and folded clothes would not get put away for weeks. I would cook dinner and do dishes 5 days later. It was quite gross if you think about it, but this week (yes, just this week... over 5 months after our wedding) Dustin and I made a change. We put clothes away, put away piles of books and papers, and even did the dishes. While Dustin was at work I polished all the wood, vacuumed, and cleaned the bathrooms. It has been 3 days since our renewal and I am proud to say I have kept up with the cleaning. I make sure dishes are placed in the dishwasher if dirty and full loads are put away after a cleaning. I even made the bed this morning. Some of you may be thinking "Ok, what's so hard about all that?" BUT Dustin and I truly deserve a pat on the back. I figure these are good habits to have before the baby arrives.

Life Lately

Well, I have started this blog as an attempt to document life's crazy happenings. Whether people choose to read this or not, it will serve as somewhat of a journal to look back on in later days. I have been wanting to do this for awhile now, and unfortunately I procrastinated, so I have much to update on. I'll just high light the main points...

• I married Dustin Alan Miller (the man of my dreams) on December 29, 2007. The wedding was held in Philadelphia and a second reception followed a couple weeks later in Northern Indiana. We are renting a spacious home in Elkhart and loving married life.

• In January we bought a Long-haired Miniature Dachshund. His name is Jake Irish Miller and he has been such a great addition to our family. He is MUCH bigger than in the picture (If you count 8 pounds as big) and has the best personality.

• After a two week Senior Capstone class, I graduated from Taylor University with a BS degree in Elementary Education. The picture was taken more recently on May 17th when I walked to receive my diploma. The girl to the left of me is Amy Nelson, my roommate and college best friend.

• About a month after our wedding, Dustin and I left for our Honeymoon in Mexico. We had an awesome 7 day stay at El Dorado Seaside Suites, a couples only, all-inclusive resort about an hour south of Cancun.

• February started with Dustin's birthday and the beginning of putting wedding gifts away. (I think we still have a few in the closet) I began to think about my future as a teacher and made plans to start subbing in the local school district for the rest of the Spring. I also took up a weekly babysitting job to keep me busy. Towards the end of the month, Dustin and I were caught by surprise when I found out I was pregnant. It was not in our plans but God has His own plans for our lives. We are happy and trying to best figure out where to take our future.