Saturday, November 19, 2011

"Nothing last forever even the cold November rain"

I worked out for the first time since I found out I was expecting. Yes, I know, that's pretty pathetic. It is just so hard to work out when you are tired and nauseous, but I've decided I have been a bum long enough. Tomorrow I'll be 12 weeks and I am determined to continue exercising through out this pregnancy, morning sickness or not!

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The other reason I haven't been exercising is because of travel. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind. We are greatly looking forward to the quieter half of November. Then December comes and brings with it a bit of chaos, but also lots of holiday cheer :)

We did have a lovely time on our extended visit to Covington. It was bliss to have my parents help with Charlotte in the morning and to be "looked after." It was nice to spend days playing with Charlotte instead of worrying about my typically long to-do list. The days were crisp and full of fall color.

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We spent a fair amount of time outdoors enjoying the leaves and chill of November.

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Charlotte enjoys being outside, and I have to admit I am not quite ready for the days when going outside means a frozen face. So, we will try to soak up the nice days while they last.

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While we were in my hometown we celebrated Meghan's baby shower. I had a blast decorating my mom's house and arranging flowers. We decided on the colors pink and orange and threw in Jellybean accents because Meghan called the baby Jellybean before she found out she was having a girl.

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I made cake pops again and even gave Charlotte a taste; she loved them!

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The house was full of women enjoying the celebration of a new life that Meghan and Tom will soon be holding.

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I had to sneak up stairs and put Charlotte to bed before Meghan opened all her presents, but I did get to see quite a few lovely things that had been specially picked out for Josey.

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I am hoping Meghan had a good time. I definitely did. It was wonderful to celebrate Josey and the joy she will bring as well as catch up with old friends.

Saturday we celebrated my niece Lia's 1st Birthday. I took tons of pictures, but I'm going to let my brother Henry use them for his own post. I will say that it was a blast. The food was awesome, and by awesome I mean when Charlotte finished the cupcake I gave her she started SCREAMING for more. Lia was the perfect party girl. She looked adorable, was happy to see all her guests, greatly enjoyed her cupcake, and was thrilled by her presents. I can't believe she is already one. I can't believe she and Charlotte no longer look like babies. I can't believe I'm expecting number 2!

After a wonderful visit in Covington, my mom and I headed to Childrens' again for Charlotte to have a CT scan. I had been nervous about the possibility of another shunt malfunction, but her ventricle sizes had come down. It was a bit scary to see change. They showed us what her brain looked like after a normal CT and the CT before surgery. The swelling was huge. They even warned us that her ventricles may never go down to the size they were. I am just continuing to pray that if she has another malfunction, the signs will be obvious.

In all other ways Charlotte seems to be thriving. She is army crawling rapidly these days, has mastered transitioning from laying to sitting, and tries to get up on her knees. She has tried to pull up to reach toys. This week she was fitted for braces, and I can't wait to see the improvements she will make with them. Once again, thank you for all the prayers and support!!

Oh, and if I don't manage a post before Thursday (which is likely) Have A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING!!!

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6 comments:

Denise said...

Beautiful pictures.....your baby girl is so stinkin cute. I hope you are feeling better and have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Love you all!

Meghan said...

Esther, I had a WONDERFUL time at my baby shower! I would love to get some of your beautiful pictures of the decorations and some of me opening presents and the sweet ladies who came to the party. I don't have any! I have been meaning to ask you for some so I could do a post on it! I'm still working on writing my thank you notes, but I hope to get them out soon. It was overwhelming how many sweet gifts everyone showered on me for little Josey. And the decorations were the FIRST thing I commented on when I saw the dining room! They were gorgeous. I'm so grateful for you and everyone who was a part of that shower!

I'm glad Charlotte's swelling has gone down. She's so cute in all the pictures! Looks like she's recovering well and feeling great. Can't wait to see Lia's party pictures too! =)

And I love that you think you've been "bad" by not exercising through nausea. lol I took SO much time off working out. I've only really been back to walking every day for a month or so...which would explain why I'm a huge preggo lady and you are a tiny one. haha

Dana said...

It was so good to see y'all for such an extended visit! The decorations for Meghan's shower turned out so well! And thanks SO much for taking photos of Lia's party. I didn't get a single shot! Haha! Can't wait to see them! We will miss you guys this Thanksgiving and Christmas, but completely understand the need to chill out at home sometimes! Have a wonderful time this week!

Susan B. said...

Hey Ess, Ben, and Char!

I hope you had a wonderful TG! We missed seeing you here in the 'Boro!

The pictures are beautiful! You're so smart and creative with those party treats! Way to go!

I'm excited about Charlotte getting her braces. She will go to town when she starts walking! FUN!!! She is growing up so fast.

Thanks again for sharing with us! I look forward to more pictures and videos!

Love y'all!!!

Pamela Williams said...

Esther,
Charlotte is so beautiful! Your blog is such an inspiration to me. You are truly a person that trusts God with all your heart. I hope this pregnancy goes well for you!

Vicky said...

Just now getting to read your blog post. The baby shower you,Francie, Lynn, Claire and Anne gave for Meghan and Josey was so fun--everything was beautiful! Thanks so much for helping to make it such a great memory!