The home stretch...mark

OK baby girl...we're almost there. 5 more weeks and both of our worlds are going to be turned upside down (yours will literally be turned upside down as you are chillin' head down right now!!!). Here are some things that have been going on for the last few weeks:

1. We had 3 baby showers for you!!! Yes 3!!! You got so many great things and we think we have most of what you are going to need for your big arrival. You are so blessed to have such generous friends and family already.

2. I think you doubled in size over night!!! You are getting so big and making your presence know at all times. You are a very active little girl and are kicking me constantly with a lot of vigor!!! You also move around a lot and Daddy thinks it is so funny to watch you move around in my stomach (yes you can see all of your wiggling from the outside). Daddy loves to put his hand on my stomach throughout the night and feel you move...you amaze him on a regular basis.

3. You weigh about 5 - 5.5 lbs. Mommy thinks you are going to be about an 8 lb. baby when you are born. The Dr. says you are in the 60th percentile which is good. Not to little and not to big. Mommy is still hoping that you will be born on or around the 18th as Dr. Livingston said he will induce my labor up to a week before if I am dilated at least 1 cm. Mommy DOES NOT want to be in the hospital on Thanksgiving as Grandma will be here cooking up a storm and trust me baby girl...we DO NOT want to miss out on those yummies!!! But nothing is more important than you so whenever it is safe for you to come out and meet us...then that is when it will happen. We are just so excited for you to get here!!!

4. Daddy is leaving tomorrow for his big celebration in Las Vegas with 2 of his friends. Daddy is turning 30 on Friday and he is ringing in this milestone in a big way. I think he is going to have a lot of fun...but Daddy is a little bit worried about leaving "his girls" for 4 days. I keep trying to assure him that we are going to be OK...but I anticipate a lot of phone calls and texts while he is gone. We love that though don't we? He is such a good husband and Daddy to us.

Mommy can't even express how excited she is for you to get here. My heart is SO FULL of love for you and I can't wait to see your little face, and your little toes, and find out if you have a full head of hair (Mommy was bald) and just look at how precious and beautiful you are. You are the miracle of our lives baby girl and we are just so proud to be your parents.

See you soon Little Miss,

Mommy

Isn't she lovely...isn't she wonderful???

Dear Sayler Jaye-

Mommy just wanted to show you what you have been up to the last few weeks. You have been growing and growing!!! Even though you still can't really tell from looking at Mommy's belly...lot's of people still say they can't tell I am pregnant and I am 7 months along. I wouldn't go that far, but I do have to say that I am not nearly as big as I always thought I would be. We still have 2+ months to go so maybe I will be eating my words in this last trimester. We went to the Dr. last Tuesday and got to see you with a 4D scan. Baby girl can I just tell you again how in love we are with you??? You are so beautiful and precious to us and seeing your sweet face and your little foot and toes and fingers was just the most miraculous and amazing gift. Here are some of the pictures we took of you that day:

I think you were irritated at this point hence the finger gesture :)

Here is your little foot. Mommy was just enamored with that little pig!!!

Here is your sweet face. You were sucking and showing off the whole time :)

We can't decide who you look like yet...but you sure are cute!!!

Here's Mommy and you at 26+ weeks...not sure how people can't tell you're a stowaway in there.

Mommy and Daddy have been very busy getting your room ready for you too. Here are some pictures of all that has been going on at our house getting ready to bring you home:

Here is your dresser with both your Husker and Hog onesies ready for you to wear on game day!

Mommy is very proud of your dresser as I hand painted the flowers on it. The pink pitcher and basin on top were your Great Grandma Marion's and Mommy kept those hoping that someday she would have a little girl and I would get to put them in her nursery...and now I do...you!!!

We had your name monogrammed on your crib bumper and I LOVE IT!!!

We had your bedding custom made and Daddy and I think it is perfect for you.

Here is where you will be sleeping (hopefully through the night) very soon!!!

We have a very busy couple of weeks ahead of us. We are going to Little Rock to visit this weekend and your Aunts are having a baby shower for you on Sunday the 13th. Then the following week we are going to meet your pediatrician to ask him all of the questions we have about how to take care of you and make sure you are healthy. Then we leave for Kansas City for a baby shower Mommy's friend Shelly is having for you. Then the next day we are going to ANOTHER baby shower for you in Lincoln that Mommy's Aunt Vonnie and cousins Jenny and Chris are throwing for you. Whew!!! You are a popular little girl my love...there are just so many people that are so excited for you to get here so they can love on you and spoil you rotten. Daddy and I are the most excited of everyone though...we talk to you and sing to you and Daddy kisses Mommy's belly every single day. We can't wait to be able to kiss your sweet face!!!

OK better wrap it up now baby girl. I will post more pictures of all of your presents after we get back from Baby Shower-palooza!!!

Love you to the moon,
Mommy

Swing Low...Sweet Baby Girl

Sayler Jaye-

You are 23 weeks today...growing and changing every day. They say you are the size of a papaya and that your beautiful little face has fully formed except for all of the chub that will inevitably round out your cheeks!!! Mommy and Daddy went to see Dr. Livingston this morning to check and see how you are growing in there. The medical student working alongside Dr. Livingston put the hand held doppler on mommy's belly way up over my belly button...mommy started to giggle and said, "Oh no...she is not up there...she likes to hang out way down here." Then mommy showed her where you like to snuggle in about 2-3 inches below my belly button and sure enough there was your heartbeat ticking away!!! Mommy is carrying you SO LOW that when I sit down you are sitting right where my body bends...and you do not like it one bit. You just kick and squirm until I move my position.

Speaking of the kicking Daddy and I had quite an experience with you last night. You were kicking and kicking me...nothing would settle you down. So Daddy suggested we take a short walk to see if you would settle down a little. It was about 8:45 pm and dark already...but we decided to go on a short walk around the neighborhood. Mommy just had flip flops on and we were about 10 minutes away from our house when it started POURING down rain!!! Baby girl we were drenched from head to toe. Mommy and Daddy were laughing so hard as we were trying to get back to the house...mommy had to take off her flip flops so she didn't slip and fall, and her mascara was running down here face and she looked like a raccoon running down the street in the rain!!! Daddy and I said we would remember that night forever and laugh about it for years and years. You are already giving us so many memories sweet girl.

Your room is coming together and is so cute. Mommy is almost finished painting the flowers on your dresser and your crib set should be delivered soon. We can't wait for it to be already for you in November. Dr. Livingston said today that if Mommy is progressing he would not be opposed to inducing me up to a week before your due date (November 25th). So that would make Mommy very happy...as we would not be stuck in the hospital for Thanksgiving!!! And I could bring my own little turkey home to her house!!!

Well that is it for this week Little Miss...we love you to the moon!!!

Love,

Mommy

I am a sucky blogger!!!

OK I am just gonna admit it...I SUCK!!! I really thought I would be better at this but I have not lived up to that expectation at all!!! So I am turning over a new leaf and am going to update my blog weekly. If nothing more than to keep a record of my pregnancy so I can look back and see what that little jumping bean was doing in her own personal bounce house my womb!!!

So here I am at 18 weeks (about 3 weeks ago):

So here is what you have been doing for the last few weeks Miss Priss:

• On June 30th we went to our ultrasound and the radiologist told us you were a GIRL!!! Mommy was so shocked and got tears in her eyes. I could not believe God had blessed me with a little girl of my own. I am still on cloud nine thinking about all of the fun we will have together. Daddy was SO happy and he thought you were a girl from the start...we both hugged and cried once the Dr. left the room. From that moment we knew our lives would never be the same...and your Daddy knew he was outnumbered!!!
• We gave you a name. At first we were going to keep your name a secret...but Aunt Michelle had already figured it out as we had told her last summer the names we liked for a girl and a boy...and wouldn't you know she remembered. So we decided to share your name with special family and friends. Your name is: Sayler Jaye Doss. I have liked the name Sayler since I read somewhere that Christy Brinkley's daughter was named Sailor. I just wasn't thrilled with the spelling so I switched it up a bit...both Daddy and I LOVE your name. Jaye is your middle name and it is precious to me. Mommy has a best friend that has been my best friend since I was a little girl. Her name is Johna Jaye...and God took her to heaven nearly 3 years ago. Mommy misses her SO much and wanted to give you a little piece of her...and hopefully some of her spunk (I may regret that statement in a few years :) I told Johna's Mom and sister Jess about your special middle name and they were thrilled. Everyone is just SO excited to meet you and see your sweet face.
• Kicking, kicking, kicking!!! I think you are going to be the next Shawn Johnson and bring home gold in gymnastics!!! Either that or a Rockette... Ha!!! Ever since about 16 weeks or so I have been feeling you kick...but I really didn't know in the beginning if it was you or just my wishful thinking. It would happen every few days and wasn't really very consistent. But ever since the Dr. told us you were a girl you have been kicking up a storm!!! Some days I swear you are trying to kick yourself out of there. You are the most active between noon and 4, and then in the evenings until about 9pm. Last Friday, I was laying on the couch and had my hand on my belly. You kicked so hard that I felt it from the inside and the outside. I sent Daddy a text and he was SO excited. Now he tries to feel your kicks too...but you decide not to perform whenever he puts his hand on Mommy's belly (this causes Mommy some concern as well...hoping these protests will not become regular occurrences when "you're on the outside" which is what Daddy says. I tell him that is what you say about prisoners that are released...but you can't tell him anything).

• You are already being spoiled. Mommy and Daddy bought your crib and nursery furniture last weekend and have put two pieces together. Hopefully the dresser will get put together without Mommy and Daddy wringing each others' necks...we did GREAT on the changing table and crib. We have also bought you so many cute outfits for next summer. All of the "summa clothes" are on sale right now and we are scooping them up. Grandma also bought you a diaper Genie and some sweet outfits. Aunt Vonnie had 2 outfits waiting for you too...one was a cute duckie outfit that I can't wait to get you in. Grandma's good friend Jody Dworak made you the sweetest baby sling and diaper bag. The diaper bag had all of the pockets embroidered with their own label (diapers, wipes, ointments, extra outfits, etc.). It is the cutest thing ever!!! I just LOVE it!!! I also got to bring home some precious keepsakes that I asked for after your Great Grandma Marion passed away over 12 years ago. I knew someday I would have a baby girl...and I wanted to put these things in her nursery. I spent many hours of my childhood staring at the picture and basin set that my Grandma had in her home...and I wanted you to spend your childhood looking at them too.
  Here are some pictures to show you how we are preparing for your arrival:

So the bottom line baby girl is that we are counting down the days until we get to see your sweet face. Your Daddy and I are SO in love with you!!!

What a difference a trimester makes!!!

Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty...I am free at last!!! It has been a long 9 weeks my friends...and I can't believe I have been able to keep my big fat mouth shut for this long but now I am shouting it from the roof tops...

"I'M KNOCKED UP!!!"

I'm such a dainty, proper little lady aren't I? Let's see how else could I put it...:

"In the family way"
"With child"
"Expecting"
"Have a bun in the oven"
"Preggo"
"The rabbit died" (which by the way I don't get...and I'm not sure I want to). Anywhoooo....

But yes...I am pregnant and I am over the moon. We did not share the news with anyone until I was 12 weeks along as we wanted to make sure that things were progressing normally...so conveniently the 12 week mark hit right around Mother's Day and we were able to give my Mom a pretty big surprise. I had been avoiding talking to my Mom for a little over a week as it had become very difficult to talk with her and not mention the elephant in my uterus the room.

So needless to say my Mama was glad that the prolonged silence was not me going all Tori Spelling on her, but rather that it is difficult for me to lie to her face (it was quite a bit easier at 17...but now the guilt is not worth it...so I just avoid her :)

Another funny tid bit is that after all of my preparation and planning, research and reading...we never even needed to use the fertility plan Dr. Le was putting into place for us. In fact when we went to the appointment to meet with Dr. Le...I was already pregnant...I just didn't know yet. I know Channing is really disappointed that I can't write ad nauseum about the sperm meets egg plan on my blog now. He really wanted to kill me enjoyed me sharing all of those details in this public forum. Sorry honey...maybe you can start your own blog where you can keep people updated on your sperm...YAY!!!

So I just wanted to update you all on why I have been MIA for a while...it's because I am nauseous, exhausted, bloated, gassy, constipated, acne faced just soaking in all the joys of pregnancy...but I'm back now and will keep you all updated over the next 28 weeks on this little miracle growing inside of me!!!

Pruned

My parents are "garden nerds" ...I use this term with affection and they know it. Here are some pictures of their garden in their back yard:


It really is a magical place from about May through September. You know in the Wizard of Oz where Dorothy walks out of the house after the cyclone has dropped it in Oz and she opens the door and the whole world turns from black and white to technicolor in an instant? That is what it feels like to walk onto my parents back patio... the Oz of Omaha!!!

What I forget sometimes though is it takes a lot of "black and white" time to get to that Oz like state. For half of the year...it's pretty bleak back there:

(and this pic was taken in March...just imagine what January looks like!!!).

I can't say for sure, because I have never asked him directly, but I have to imagine it is painful for my step-dad to cut down his gardens in the Fall. Each flower, each stem was nurtured by him for months while it grew. Some plants he even grows in pots indoors during the winter so that they are strong and hearty when Spring arrives and are up to the challenge of existing out in the soil for all to admire. He prepares them for the cruel world and the challenges Mother Nature has in store as best he can. But though he knows it is necessary for a hearty healthy harvest next season...I am sure it is painful to prune them all down to nothing.

I have been thinking about those gardens a lot lately. I read a passage today that made me think that the love and care that my dad gives to his gardens, and the pain he feels when it comes time to cut them away, to prune them, in preparation for the coming year, are how God feels as he tends to us...His children...His garden. Here is the passage:

"Pruning means cutting, reshaping, removing what diminishes vitality. When we look at a pruned vineyard, we can hardly believe it will bear fruit. But when the harvest comes, we realize that the pruning allowed the vines to concentrate their energy and produce more grapes. Grateful people learn to celebrate even amid life's hard and harrowing memories because they know that pruning is no mere punishment, but preparation.

When our gratitude for the past is only partial, our hope for the future can likewise never be full. But our submitting to God's pruning work will not ultimately leave us sad, but hopeful for what can happen in us and through us. Harvest time will bring its own blessings..."
Turn My Mourning Into Dancing by Henri Nouwen

How many times in my life has something been taken from me where I felt as if God was punishing me? Many times...maybe "every" time.

God...it's not fair...

Why?

It doesn't make any sense

What good can possibly come from taking _________________ from me?

Y'all (yes it's happening...I'm becoming one of those people who get transplanted into Texas and start saying y'all...deal with it)... we're being pruned. He is not punishing us...but rather preparing us. Isn't that an incredibly amazing and painful way that God shows us His love? Now don't get me wrong...most times I would prefer God to show me how much He loves me by giving me a big ole bag of cotton candy and a new pair of shoes...good thing I don't make those kinds of eternal decisions, as I would be an overgrown thistle patch by now!!!

But y'all (again...deal) I have been pruned...and it has hurt...it has been some of the most unendurable pain I could have never imagined...on that cold December day when I watched as they lowered my best friend's body into the cold hard ground and I fell to my knees in grief and sobbed in my mother's arms...God was pruning me...preparing me...loving me.

And you know what...I am grateful. How crazy does that sound? It sounds crazy to me and I am typing this...but I AM GRATEFUL. He chose me to love her, He chose me to be her best friend, He chose me to share things with her that no one else got to share, He chose me to make her smile when she was suffering, He chose me to speak at her memorial, He chose me to mourn her...and He chose to prepare ME for a life lived without her. He loves me this much...to prepare me...to prune me...and I am grateful.

I am pruned and prepared and am ready for the harvest....

Holy inappropriateness Batman!!!

Dear Mattel -

Let me start by saying I am a long time fan of the Barbie product line. I had the Barbie townhouse, Barbie hot tub, Barbie Corvette, Barbie McDonald's, and an entire sorority of Barbie dolls. My best friend Johna and I played with Barbie's far past the appropriate age threshold...I think we were wearing bras and playing with Barbies. So please do not mistake this as me being a Hater...as I am a true fan of Miss B.

However, your newly marketed "Little Red Riding Hood" (LRRH) Barbie has caused me a bit of confusion and I would appreciate some clarification on the following issues:

1. What age group is this Fairy Tale trollop being marketed too? Instead of Target or Toys R' Us perhaps Dr. John's or Pricilla's would be a better vendor for this particular doll.

2. Was it the toy designers intent to have the wolf ogling LRRH's bosom? If so, has this particular designer had the appropriate sex offender background screening?

3. At what point did thigh high fishnets, booty skirts and stilettos become appropriate attire for a visit to grandma's house?

4. Lastly, speaking of grandma, after seeing your "vision" for LRRH is there a possibility that in the actual story "grandma" was code for "Heidi Fleiss?"

I know you are probably extremely busy configuring the stripper pole to be packaged in with Little "HO" Beep...but any response to the aforementioned questions would be greatly appreciated.

Kindest Regards,
Steph Doss