meet Ryann Elizabeth

Ryann Elizabeth was born March 29th at 6:22 pm. She weighed 6 pounds 4 ounces, and was 18.5 inches long at birth. It was an excellent delivery and she is doing great!







The blood pressure hasn't quite resolved itself, but I am feeling great. As unexpected and slightly scary as it was, I couldn't have asked for a better birth experience. I'll be back with more later!

thundercats are go!

I seriously love Juno. :o)

Well, I didn't quite make it to April, like I had hoped. Some more blood pressure issues (headaches, nausea, and a couple readings of 150/100) led me to call the doctor today. She had me go into the hospital to get checked out. Some labs and high BP readings later, I have officially been admitted to the hospital.

My labs didn't look too bad, but they decided because of the high blood pressure readings, and the fact that I am less than two weeks from my due date, they would rather induce me than risk pre-elcampsia. So come 6am tomorrow morning, they will start my induction with pitocin.

Here is a lovely iPhone photo for you, just so you know how hot I look in the hospital right now :o).


Wish me luck! Hopefully little miss Ryann will be here sooner rather than later.

bump check: 38 weeks

Two weeks and counting until my due date! I still have yet to grasp the concept that there is actually a baby in my belly. The fact that I am going to be a mother and we are going to have a baby to care for still seems far fetched. Not that I'm 'not ready', I just don't think it will hit me until it actually happens.


Ryann is still just working on growing and putting on weight. She could be close to 7 pounds now, and about 19.5 inches long. Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

I guess you could say my doctors appointment went well this week. When I first got their, my blood pressure was around 145/90. The nurse waited a couple minutes, tried it again and it was still 142/90. So she had me lay on my left side and took it again a few minutes later, 118/70. My doctor decided that because I had no protein in my urine, combined with the fact that my blood pressure did go down, that she wasn't worried yet. Just going to keep an eye on it, as usual. I also found out I'm 1 whole centimeter dilated. Wohoo! Ha, ok that really means nothing, and is no indication I'll go into labor anytime soon, but I figure it is better than nothing. We also decided that if Ryann decides she wants to come late, my doctor is going to induce me by the 15th. So at most there are only 18 days left until she is here!! I really can't believe that.

Work is definitely getting more difficult. Friday I only made it half a day, and actually barely made it in. My feet were already swollen when I woke up, and the morning also started off with some horrible pain in my right hip. I'm not sure if it is a nerve Ryann is pressing on, or I pulled a ligament or something, but OUCH! It was painful enough that I could barely move my foot from the gas to the break. I've been trying to take it easy this weekend so I can make it through my last nine days at work.

How far along: 38 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +20 pounds
Maternity clothes: yep
Stretch marks?: I have a few, they aren't horrible, but I hope they don't get worse!
Sleep: not too bad this week
Best moment this week: wedding dress shopping with my bestie :o)
Movement: Thursday night she was crazy!
Food cravings: sweets
Gender: girl
What I miss: bending over... as opposed to awkwardly squatting
Milestones: 2 weeks to go!

its bittersweet becoming 3

WARNING: extremely sappy post full of photos to follow.
Continue at your own risk!

Laying in bed a few nights ago, Chris and I of course were reflecting on what we thought it was going to be like to be parents, have a baby, etc. etc. Chris said something about how it was weird that there was going to be three of us. And don't get me wrong, I am thrilled beyond anything I have ever imagined to be having a baby, but it is bittersweet knowing that it won't just be Chris and I anymore.

As of March 23rd, Chris and I have been a couple for eight years. We've grown up together. I don't really remember any bit of my life without him. So we've only been married for a little less than two years, but he has been a part of my life for a long time. Our relationship is so easy, we know each other so well.

So I thought a little photo montage of the two of us would be nice before this blog is a never ending roll of baby Ryann photos :o).

The very first pic cracks me up... vintage us. I'm pretty sure we were celebrating my 16th birthday. Good times, good times :o).

This one is more appropriate than the one where he is pretending to stab me with a knife!

(Christopher this next series of photos makes me think you maybe wore that blue and yellow striped polo too much :o)

Sorry, I know that was a lot of photos, but can you believe I just narrowed eight years (and please remember they were high school and college years!) into that?

I love you hubby, and even though I can wait for us to be a family of three, I will never forget just being you and me.

help my mantel

(disclaimer... please excuse my lackluster photos... thanks!)

So although I'm not 100% proud of the way our mantel has looked since we've moved in, I definitely feel like it has at least been a bit more interesting.

Here is our mantel in all its glory from this fall:


And a shot of the mantel from the holiday season:


But now this is all I've got:


I don't want to do anything too crazy, I do feel like less is more. But I'm not sure where to start. Do you have any suggestions for decor items for my spring mantel? No, don't think eggs and bunnies, just something with a little springtime appeal.

If you have any great inspiration photos pass them my way. PLEASE!

Thanks for your help!

lucious slush punch

As promised I am back with the punch recipe that Jackie used at my baby shower. I'm not usually a punch girl, but I really enjoyed this one!


Jackie found the recipe here, from my usual source, allrecipes.com. Enjoy!

endless to-do's

Please excuse my lack of blogging throughout the next couple of weeks. My time is currently spent babysitting my printer, designing invitations and posters, completing my to-do list that just seems to keep growing, and laying on the couch with my feet up so I can occasionally put on shoes.


On a side note, the plumber came and solved our leaky pipe issue last night. The poor guy didn't get done until 11 pm, but I am very thankful! Apparently there are roots growing into a gap in our drainage pipe/sewer line that caused a clog, which then caused the drainage pipe in our house to not properly drain. Last night wasn't a permanent fix, but it should help for a while!

bump check: 37 weeks

Good news? I am 37 weeks pregnant today. As in full term. HOORAY! Bad news? Today is just not my day. Woke up to several inches of snow (on the first day of Spring), have been fighting with my printer, my ankles are huge, KU lost, and we are currently waiting on a plumber to come take a look at the main drain pipe in our basement because it is leaking. So until it is fixed I can't flush the toilet. At 9 months pregnant, I really can't have toilet restrictions. Please keep your fingers crossed that this guy can fix the pipe!


Like I mentioned, Ryann is considered a full term baby now, even though my due date is still three weeks away. If I were to go in labor now, her lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. She should weigh just under 6.5 pounds, and measure a bit over 19 inches. Ryann could have a full head of hair right now, but we will have to wait and see whether she will be sporting blond or brunette locks!

Had my first weekly doctors appointment this week, and from the doc's point of view everything is still going just fine! My Group B Strep test came back negative (hooray!), my iron levels are fine, and even though I thought Ryann hadn't been moving enough, she passed an NST (non-stress test). Even though I've been having a few contractions here and there, I declined an internal for this week. Knowing how dilated I am at this point doesn't really mean much, so I figured I could wait another week.

I seriously can't believe how close we are to meeting our daughter. She literally could come any time now, be it 4 days, or 4 weeks! I hope we don't have to wait 4 more weeks, but I am still hoping to make it to April. For some reason I just really want an April baby :o).

How far along: 37 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +20 pounds
Maternity clothes: even maternity shirts are too short, crazy belly...
Stretch marks?: starting to find a few :o(
Sleep: thanks to my need to pee, not the best
Best moment this week: thanks to my bitter mood right now I've got nothing.
Movement: she is definitely slowing down... she's out of room!
Food cravings: not a whole lot
Gender: girl
What I miss: being comfortable
Milestones: full term baby!

my esty love affair

So in my Saturday post I mentioned that I am slightly addicted to etsy. If you haven't browsed on etsy, I'm not sure whether I should tell you to run the other way to avoid wanting to buy too much stuff, or to sprint on over there because the items are awesome. Whichever you do, I decided to show off some of the things that I have purchased so far.

I grabbed up some of these fun little PickySticky decals. They can be attached to a white onesie, and then photographed for fun documentation of your little one throughout the 1st year of their life.

I also purchased this adorable nursing cover from Lillie and Bean. Although I have yet to use it, it seems very well made, and the fabric is so pretty.

The booties and hat that I showed a peek of recently, came from Crochet TLC. I seriously can not wait to try them on Ryann. Especially the hat. I have a thing for knit hats for some reason :o).


If you are unaware, I am a member of Chi Omega, and our 'mascot' is an owl. Therefore, this adorable owl onesie from Stoopher & Boots was a must.


And even though I don't have a Bumbo yet, I went ahead and purchased this adorable cover from Boutique Sweet Cheeks. I'd been having a hard time deciding which Bumbo color to get, because I didn't want to get a girly color, in case a little boy comes along some day, but I also don't really like most of the colors. This seemed like the perfect solution!


So there you have it, my etsy purchases thus far. The list of things I want however, is miles long! Mostly I've been browsing the baby stuff, but there are items for everyone of all ages. My wish list includes a camera strap and throw pillows. I'll let you know if I purchase anything else :o)

a great day

Yesterday was a lovely day. Granted I am exhausted, but hey. Good times come at a price right? :o)

First of all, I was laying in bed with Chris and my phone rang... the number read 000123456. Um no thanks, I'll pass on picking that one up. But a couple of minutes later it called again, Chris said "well its not like your phone is going to get a virus" so I answered, after a few "hellos?" back and forth I found it was Christin!! My long lost friend who is spending a year teaching in China! I haven't heard her voice in a long time, so it was great to finally hear from her. She is coming home the end of June and I can't wait!

Then I spent the morning at the Perfect Wedding Guide Bridal Fair with my bestie Meaghan. I am so excited to help her plan her wedding, and of course even more excited that she is getting married! It was fun to walk around and check out the different vendors. The photographers were all about handing me business cards, because of course I must need a photographer for that little one on the way. Thanks but no thanks, the only photographers I'll be hanging out with are Adrienne or Annie! :o)

When I arrived back at my house, some girls from work were there to have a baby shower! Jenn and I are due 12 days apart (I'm due first but I swear she is going to have her baby before me :o) so it was a party for the both of us.

For Jackie's 15 minutes of fame (love you Jackie!), here she is pouring some delicious punch that she made. I'll get back to you with the recipe on that one, it was really good!


The girls used toilet paper to try and guess how big around Jenn and I's bellies were. It was rather funny, and most people over estimated. I'm not sure if I should be happy about that or not... either way, in case you're interested, my belly is currently nine toilet paper squares around. Try that on for size. Pregnancy obsessed Jackie guessed the closest for both Jenn and I, being off only one square for each of us.


The delicious cake... it was marble cake on the inside with some chocolate filling, and probably some other stuff that I am unsure of. All I know is that it tasted great!


Stephanie made me an adorable little diaper cake. Aren't those shoes just precious?


And the group of girls who were there... no, Jenn and I did not both plan to wear green. Funny how things work out though, right? :o) Thanks girls for a great time!