My Baby is in dance class!

Kris and I can hardly believe that Emmalyn is already old enough to go to dance class! There is a studio in town that offers free dance for 2 year-olds, and I personally know the studio owner/teacher, so we thought....what the heck? She dances around the house any time any music is playing (she LOVES American Idol!), so we thought she would certainly love this! The class is from 5:00 to 5:45 on Wednesday nights, so I drop her off, go eat supper at church, and go back and pick her up. It is very convenient that it is just around the corner from church. I hate that I can't watch though...I can only imagine how cute she is! And it is kind of weird to me to drop my daughter off at an activity when she is still too young to even really tell me about it later! :) But, we knew she would love it, and Kris and I wanted to start her young in some sort of physical activity that she will enjoy. We know that she will probably follow in our footsteps and have a hard time with physical fitness and health.

Well, the first time (last Wednesday) she cried really hard when I left, but apparently stopped pretty quickly, and had a great time. In fact, told me about a new friend she made, Abby. (I was impressed that she remembered her name and told me about her.) And they apparently "bounce like frogs," because she told us "I bounce a frog!" all the way home.

So, today, when she woke up from her nap I asked her if she wanted to go to dance class again. She replied with "I bounce a frog....oooooh boy!!!!" When we walked into the room, she sat right down in the teacher's lap and looked up at me and said "Bye, Mommy!" (This is huge...she still cries every time I leave her in the church nursery...a VERY familiar environment, with VERY familiar people!) When I went to pick her up, all the little girls filed out of the room like little ducklings, except Emmalyn. She remained in the middle of the room dancing and bouncing around. Pretty cute! Until I tried to get her to come with me. She then screamed "NO! Again! Again! I bounce again!" As I picked her up to carry her out, she screamed "no home! bounce again!"...repeatedly, all through the lobby, and to the car. [***phew***this kid is wearing her 8 month pregnant mommy out!] It was not a fun drive back to the church while she cried, wanting to go back to the dance studio...but at least I know she likes it! :)

We have not bought the leotard and shoes yet because we wanted to make sure she would like it, and that we weren't wasting our money....I think we will go ahead an invest now! :) I will post pictures as soon as we put her in a cute little tutu! :)

btw...just as an aside...Emmalyn will be a big sister in 3 weeks and one day! Holy Cow!

Heritage Festival 2009

Well, our little town has put on a great festival again! This year was so much more fun than years past, since we had a little one who was old enough to ride the rides and really have fun! And boy, did she! I didn't know how she would react to the rides...but as long as they didn't go too high, she had a blast and declared "AGAIN" at the end. :) We went out there Tuesday and Wednesday nights, and she had a blast both times! In fact, all day Wednesday, she was telling me "I wanna ride! I wanna ride!" Kris and I were both exhausted yesterday evening, but had to take her out there. And it was a LOT less crowded, and a lot more fun. We were both glad we went. She even had her first cotton candy...and declared it was "tasty!" :) If it continues to rain this week, I guess we will have had our fun. But, I would certainly like to go back out there on Sat or Sun for the craft fair! :) And I could always take advantage of another opportunity to eat funnel cake! :) Here are a few of my favorite photos from the event!

My VERY favorite photo of the night(s):

She was having a LOT of fun, and getting really good at saying "CHEESE!"

Having fun with Daddy...

For some reason, her tongue was sticking out most of the time...pretty funny!

She was so anxious to get back on!

Again, getting really good at saying "CHEESE!" :)

And here is Emmalyn with her friend, Raylen. But Ray was not really in the mood to ride any rides. This is the closest we got to getting them on a ride together...and Jess had to take Ray off before it started. She was not happy. :( I hope you have more fun the rest of the week, Ray!
More photos HERE.

Just Sharing a Few Photos...

This is the product of an amaryllis bulb that my sweet nephew gave me for Christmas. It has produced a beautiful red amaryllis with 4 blooms. Isn't it gorgeous?!

Tada! Here is the finished quilt I made for Baby Jude. I am pleased with the way it came out. The back is solid soft, light blue, with the brown trim. I tried to share a picture, but for some reason my camera's software will not transfer the photo! ugh!

And a close up of the quilt:

And Emmalyn's hair was done differently this Sunday, and I just thought she looked cute! I'm allowed to shamelessly add pictures of my daughter, aren't I? :)

Isn't this Adorable?!?!?!

I love dogs, I love babies....this is too cute for me!!!!

Thanks, Jen, for sending me this video! :)

So Far, So Good...

Well, I have finally completed the first half of Baby Jude's quilt. :) I have sewn the quilt lines since I took this picture, but still have to complete the binding (the edge), but I am excited about how it is looking so far! :) They're kind of blurry, but aren't the fabrics adorable? The backing is just solid light blue... that really soft fabric with bumps all over it. :)

Baby Jude Update...32 Weeks

According to BabyCenter.com...
How your baby's growing: By now (at 32 Weeks), your baby weighs 3.75 pounds and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.

So, I am already 32 weeks....can you believe it?! Since my c-section is scheduled for 39 weeks, I have less than 7 weeks until I meet Baby Jude! Actually, he will arrive in 47 days! WOW! I better get busy. I still have to get Emmalyn a dresser to finish moving all of her clothes and things into her room, get a curtain for Jude, finish his quilt, get him a baby book, buy a few baby boy items...and I'm sure there is more that I am forgetting. Oh, and not to mention...we have to finish paying off the hospital and anesthesiologist pre-pay fees...ugh!

We had our 3D Ultrasound a few weeks ago. I posted them on Facebook, but forgot to post them here. So, here he is!

Jude:

And here's one of Emmalyn at roughly the same gestational age...just to compare. We think they look a LOT alike! :)

Emmalyn:

And I have had a few requests for a pic of what I look like right now. Let's just say....LARGE! I even had a few people at church last Wednesday say "Wow, you GREW all of a sudden!" Yep, it seems Jude had a growth spurt. But I am actually still losing a pound or 2 every visit. I can't understand why...I am surely eating! I wish I could bottle whatever is making me lose the weight, so I can take it after the baby is born!!! But they checked his size and fluid level, and all was fine! His size was right at the 60th percentile...so he seems to be growing well! :)
I am still feeling pretty good, but tired. I just feel like I have zero energy. Very frustrating. My back is starting to hurt pretty bad, but that is to be expected. Those 2 rods and 8 screws in my lower back have a lot more strain on them these days than they did 7 months ago! It is still managed by just Tylenol and taking it easy, so I am thankful. This has been a rather quick pregnancy so far...I can't wait to meet this little guy in 47 short days! :) :) :)