36 Weeks :)

Can you believe we are already at 36 weeks in my pregnancy? It seems crazy to think that within the next month (give or take a week or two) we could FINALLY meet this little one and introduce you all to him/her instead of associating with the baby as Little Poppy!! How exciting!

Things have been going really well here in Rochester...we are officially ready for the arrival (well, at least now the nursery is ready...we probably will never be "officially" ready 'cause we don't know what to expect!). The dresser ended up matching the crib quite perfectly, considering it wasn't a "set". So I'm happy about that.

The crib & dresser :)

Aaron continues to work on the basement...he had put mudding on hold for a bit so we could focus on the baby's room, but now he is back to completing that project. It is coming along nicely, and I think Aaron is happy to see the light at the end of the tunnel...for now :)

One of our spare bedrooms downstairs that is complete :)

We've also done some other projects around the house (on top of the basement work, of course!). My mom came over the other night and helped us FINALLY paint our bedroom. We've been in our home for over 2 years and (not to my approval) never got to painting our bedroom until last weekend. It looks AWESOME!

We also finished our prenatal classes last week, and have pre-registered for our stay @ Mayo Clinic when the baby is born. It's nice to have that out of the way too. We both actually enjoyed the class & thought each session went really quick, but it is nice to not have that on our calendars each Wednesday anymore.

Prenatal Graduates :) Whoo Hoo!

I think we are finally getting our names figured out. Our girls name has been the same forever...actually it's been figured out since before I was pregnant. It's a name that I've had in my head for years, and am just happy/lucky that husband happens to like it too! Boys names on the other hand...has been a bit stressfull. But, I think we are finally at a point where we can stop stressing about it a little. According to Aaron, the boys names don't matter as much...because he's convinced he's having a little girl. He's had 3 dreams so far that it's a girl. I on the other hand, HAVE NO CLUE!

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We aren't keeping our names a secret, but for the sake of formerly introducing you all to our little one when he/she is born, I'm not going to share them on the blog. :) Sorry!!

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday (I go weekly now) and things are going well. The heartbeat is lower than it was for a while. It was in the 130s yesterday...but it had been hanging out right around 150. Sooo, to all of you "myth believers"...maybe its a boy???? I haven't felt any contractions that I am aware of yet, although based on the position of the baby, my dr thinks I probably have had some and just not felt them. Too bad I couldn't go through the entire delivery without feeling those contractions, huh?? :)

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36 week picture...do you think I'll make it to 40 weeks for my next picture update? Crazy to think that is the next time I'll be taking a pic. Gives me butterflies in my stomach :)

Family Shower and then some!

My aunts on the Supalla side put on a shower for me this past weekend. It was a very nice day and it was great to see all of my family. Although we are pretty much all near Rochester, we rarely get to see everyone. So I enjoyed the "girl" time w/ my fam!

I wish I had gotten more pictures with my camera, but I was a little preoccupied with my talking to everyone. I know others took lots of pictures, so maybe I'll have some more coming!! It was at my aunt Laurie's house (who is also my Godmother!) and everyone played a part in planning the day. My mom & aunt Sandy made the invites, Sandy also made the corsages for my mom & I (wouldn't you know, I didn't even get a pic with just me and my mom!!)...Nancy ordered the cake from the best bakery in town - Daube's, and my aunt Judy was in charge of the games. It was a very good day!!!

At the shower, we were talking and realizing that for great-grandchildren on the Supalla side, Little Poppy will be number 15! And then I realized that for the Anderson side, Little Poppy will either be number 14 or 15 also. Aaron's cousin is due the same day as me, so who knows who will go first! I'm banking on Brooke going first, she was a little early with her first - so Lil P will probably be number 15 for both sides! That's a lot of great-grandchildren running around...and bound not to be the last on either side. Crazy!

Thanks Laurie, Sandy, Nancy, & Judy for all the work you did for the shower. It was a great day and I am thankful for my wonderful family! Love you guys!

This cake was sooo good! Nancy had brought in the invitation that my mom & Sandy had made and had them replicate t on the cake...it looked the exact same. So clever!

Playing some games...

My 3 nieces were quite the helpers with the presents! Brynne's in the pink dress, Ella is the smiley one, and Brooklynn is next to her. They helped with EVERY present. Thanks girls!

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Today marks 35 weeks for me...I just noticed on the counter above that it also marks only 35 days to go. Crazy...it has gone so fast! Yesterday I had a doctor's appt. and had a mini-ultrasound to see if the baby was in the right position. Lil P is cooperating nicely and is head down...so that's good. Hopefully he/she stays that day for the next 35 days and we have a smooth delivery :)

If you haven't seen it yet, check out the post below that shows the progress of the baby's room. It turned out great!

Getting the Room Ready

I'll let pictures do most of the talking this post!! The only thing left to do in the baby's room is put up the dresser - which is supposed to arrive on Wednesday! I'll post that when that is finished...but here's where we are to date!

Let the Painting Begin!

On to the crib...

My husband DOES read directions :)

Relaxing on his finished project

I'm so in love with how this turned out...it is an Upper Case Living saying (you rub it on the wall)!!

The baby's crib is ready...with friends waiting to help him/her sleep :)

I had pictures of the other things on the walls down on here...but they accidentally got deleted as I was formatting the post...so I'll add them later in the week/on the weekend when I have the dresser up & the baby's room is OFFICIALLy ready for Lil Poppy's arrival!

I could just sit in the baby's room now, I am so happy with the way it is turning out!!

Let the Decorating Begin!!

I'm so excited because we are finally getting to be able to work on Lil P's bedroom :) We painted the room on Sunday evening and have begun to assemble furniture. Sorry, I'm keeping it a suspense and will post pictures once everything is complete! (That's only 'cause I haven't had time to download my photos yet...I'm sure I won't be able to keep it suspenseful for very long!!)

We also have two rooms basically finalized downstairs. Aaron's mom & stepdad were here a few weekends ago and painted the two spare bedrooms & the bathroom. Aaron trimmed the bedrooms this past weekend and we had carpet laid on Monday in them! I already have one room ready to be slept in. The timing is perfect because we are having Aaron's cousin Tyler and his wife Amber staying over this Friday night. They are passing through on their way to a wedding on Saturday. Can't wait for the visitors. They've only been here for our wedding in July of '07 so it'll be nice!

We are waiting for the vanity we ordered to come in, and then Aaron will be able to tile the bathroom & trim that...then the bathroom will be complete too. Those are the rooms we were hoping to have complete before our baby's arrival, so I'm starting to feel a little less stressed about it...and I know Aaron is too.

Have I mentioned he works so hard on this basement? I made a statement on Sunday morning that the Easter bunny didn't come to our house this year, he nicely reminded me that the Easter bunny has been working on the basement in our house since January. Okay...you got me there!!

We had a little minor panic last night as we started assembling furniture in the baby's room. The crib went up very smoothly (and looks FANTASTIC). We decided to move on to the dresser...opened the package & the wood finish was NOT the same color that we ordered -- or -- that matched the crib. In fact, couldn't be more of the opposite - we ordered it in coffee (dark finish) and it was in "natural". AAAAH! So I called the store immediately, to find out that the dresser is no longer availabe in coffee. You're joking, right? That is what I said to the lady on the line. Nope - but she told me there is good news because there will be a different company making the same dresser and it will be available to order the 2nd week in May. She told me that I could get it at the end of May - ummmmm - NOT good news 'cause I'm due at the end of May!!! I was pretty bummed.

But - today Aaron went to the store, they gave him an in-store credit for the dresser & we found one that is very similar and were able to use the credit to purchase it. It is not the same company, so the finish might be slightly different (espresso, not coffeee...I have to think it is just the way the companies name their wood finish...both are dark woods...so should be basically the same).

There is always something here at the Anderson household!!

Hopefully I'll get some pictures up before the end of the week with the basement progress & such!

Baby Shower #2

I have wonderful friends!! I had my second baby shower this weekend, put on by 4 of my closest friends: Becky & Brandi - very dear friends from high school, Rachel whom I've known since I was a baby because of our parents...and we were also roommates during college, & Jill - another roommate/friend from college :)

They thought of everything - great food, a CHOCOLATE FOUNTAIN (chocolate is my weakness), non-alcoholic mamosas, and Jill brought a beautiful corsage for me from her hometown! I had a great time and feel so lucky to have such great people in my life. The day was perfect - I got to see friends that I had not seen in a long time. Thanks to all my awesome friends! You guys are great! Thank you so much Jill, Rachel, Becks & Brands --- I LOVE ALL OF YOU!!

Me with the wonderful hostesses/planners: Becky, Brandi, Rachel & Jill :)

The beautiful Corsage! Check out my non-wedding ring on my left hand...I miss my ring!

A chocolate fountain...they had strawberries, pretzels, and marshmallows to dip in there - DELICIOUS!

Just sipping on a non-alcoholic mamosa!

"These are for...blah blah blah..." I'm such an expert on children's toys. Ha ha!

I got a little emotional opening this gift...the baby book I registered for. I have no idea why, but I started reading about the stuff that I could fill out now, like "The day we found out we were pregnant we...." & "We decided to tell the news by..." and all of a sudden I was crying!!

Brandi's mom made the quilt for the Little Poppy's crib which I am completely in love with! But she didn't just make that, she went CRAZY with accessories!!! I'm soooo in love with everything she made! Here's a list:

2 baskets (one is on my lap), a bag (by my leg), a book holder (to put a photo album in), a wall hanging that says "We made a wish & you came True", a diaper holder, a changing mat, and...drumroll...a pacifier holder!! I wasn't sure what this was when I opened it (I'm opening it in this picture). Aaron says if we have a girl, it can also be her little baby purse!

Brandi's mom is absolutely soooo talented. I am not even sure how to thank her for everything she made! Thanks Brenda! You're the best :)

Here is the beautiful quilt for the crib - it is so perfect for the room. I can't wait to get the room started (which will be within the next week or two - whooo hoooo!)

Here is the wall hanging I mentioned - I had to give it back to her so she can add the baby's name & stats once they are born!

Two of my friends that were at the shower - Kristin & Sara (and baby Nick). Kristin surprised me - she actually lives down south & I did not know she was in town. It just happened to work out for her to be around during the shower. I'm so happy she came!

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"A hug is worth a thousand words...a friend is worth more"

My New Ride!

Here it is...my new vehicle. 2006 Pontiac Torrent. I love it! I got some good use out of it on Friday when I went for a shopping trip with my sisters ---- I loved the room we had in the back for all of our bags. Ha ha! Then on Saturday I got to load it up with presents from my second baby shower! It is PERFECT!

32 Weeks & Counting!

Crazy to think we are at 32 weeks - just 2 months to go!!! I am now going to the doctor every 2 weeks. Last time Lil P's heart beat was 158 - a little higher than the other times, but not by much. :) Things are going pretty well. I'm definitely starting to get very uncomfortable by the end of the day. I can no longer wear my wedding ring...it is a struggle to get it off! I decided last night that I really wanted to wear it, but within a few hours, it was "stuck" so I had to use soap & water to get it off. Oh the joys of pregnancy! Tonight when I changed out of my work clothes I had quite the 'indent' from my socks. Aaron was a little concerned!!

We are half-way through our prenatal classes. They are actually not bad at all and going pretty fast. I think Aaron and I are both enjoying them as it helps us prepare for the delivery. Which, I will admit, until the classes began I really just sorta blocked from my mind. Obviously, there's no avoiding the labor/delivery when you are pregnant, so the classes are really helping!!

Soooo - after my "downer" blog on Monday about my automobile blues - I had a MUCH better Tuesday and got a new car!! It is a 2006 Pontiac Torrent with only 34,500 miles on it. I'm super super super excited about it! I started doing some research on line and came across this car so I test drove it & decided it was the one! I was SO excited about my new car, that I couldn't sleep Tuesday night - I'm such a little kid sometimes. I should have taken a picture tonight ---- I will definitely do that this weekend so you guys can see my new ride!

You know how you sometimes read you can learn stuff about your baby's personality while they are in the womb? Well, I don't know if there's any truth to that, but if there is, here's what I've learned so far:

LITTLE POPPY'S PERSONALITY :)

1. He/she LOOVES chocolate like their mama! Not that I indulge a lot, but when I DO have it, like for example, a chocolate shake from Culver's --- Little P seems to show his/her approval by some kicks not long after I finish eating the delicious treat!

2. Lil P is a night owl like Grandma Bonnie (my mom) - and Little Poppy's mom & dad DO NOT APPROVE! This better stop because even though my mother is quite the night owl, I inherited my dad's trait of wanting to go to bed by like 10:00 - so Little Poppy is going to get themselves in trouble at bedtime as they grow up if he/she doesn't kick this habit!

3. We love to play tricks on daddy! Little Poppy will be kicking me a lot, or my stomach will be moving a ton & as soon as I try and get Aaron's attention or have him touch my tummy - Little P decides to stop! Little Poppy is pretty silly :)

4. I'm not so sure how Little Poppy feels about bath time. Either he/she LOVES it, or is not so happy about it. When I take baths, it sure does cause Little P to wake up, that's for sure...but I'm not so sure he/she's happy about the bath.

32 weeks - getting quite the bump :)