My little lady is talking...

Wow does time fly when you're having fun. Well, Elizabeth is officially 5 months old as of yesterday! I can't believe it...let me type it again...I have a 5 month old...nope still can't believe it! Life just gets more amazing everyday. At only 4 1/2 months old, Elizabeth said her first word: mama. I cannot even begin to describe how amazing it was to hear her call out for me. I know that textbooks say that babies are not associating words with people yet, but screw those books! She was calling out to me because she wanted her mama. She's eating cereal like a champ! Oh and did I forget to mention that she sleeps from about 9 at night to 8:00 in the morning?! We are so blessed in so many ways. She's sleeping well at night and she is as happy as can be. Lately, her favorite things are holding her feet and gumming her toes, hearing mommy sing anything (I mean literally anything...even the occasional made up song), putting everything within her reach straight into her mouth, and making her mommy and daddy inexplicably happy. There are no words for the joy, the love, and the fulfillment that Elizabeth Rose has brought to our lives. Before she was born, I couldn't imagine what life would be like having a baby. Now, I cannot imagine my life without her. When she looks up at me and gives me that certain smile, my heart melts...I completely turn to mush. And it's a certain smile that she gives only her mommy and her daddy. She smiles as if to say I love you no matter what and, at the same time, her eyes are saying that we make her just as happy as she makes us. Anything crummy that may have happened during the day...just doesn't exist anymore the second I see her. I'm a completely different person when I'm with her. I don't care about little things, they're a waste of time and energy. And the big things...well the big things can wait a minute or two because playing with her and seeing her smile is what matters most. God has blessed us in so many ways, but it doesn't get any better than having Elizabeth in our lives. 
Below is a video clip of her saying mama. It was just her and I in the house. I was in our bathroom, putting on my makeup, when she called out mama for the first time. After I calmed down from excitement, I grabbed my phone to try to record her (because no one would believe if I told them she was talking and didn't show them some proof). And after the video, I picked her up, held her close and sobbed like a baby myself. I was so moved and so touched to hear "mama" come out of her adorable mouth. She really wanted her mama to pick her up and love on her...as you can tell by watching the video below. I love you my gummy bear, my strawberry, my Elizabeth Rose!

I have a 2 Month Old!

Well, it's crazy to think, but this week Elizabeth is going to be 10 weeks old. Time has flown by so quickly. She and I have had so much fun together over these last two months. She is my favorite girl in the whole world. I have been blessed with such a happy, healthy little ladybug. She has completely changed my world forever and it's the most amazing feeling to be a mother. Our days have been filled with laughter, tears of joy, sleep deprivation, and lots of hugs and kisses. I am madly in love with her. She loves her mommy very much. When someone is holding her, she constantly looks around for me, as if to say, "Mommy shouldn't YOU be holding me? YOU'RE my favorite!" I simply cannot stop kissing her and giving her big big hugs. She coos, kicks, and laughs all the time. She loves to talk to her mommy. Right now, her favorite things to do are go for strolls outside, have me pick her up in my arms and dance around with her, and she LOVES for me to read to her. She really enjoys music. She loves the sound of a piano. She enjoys the instrumental stuff. ;) Wow! I'm getting super emotional just typing this. Whew! Blurry keyboard...anyway! Words simply cannot describe how amazing it is to hold her, look into her eyes and know that we love each other unconditionally. It doesn't matter how tired I am or how stressful the day has been, when I see her...all of the crummy stuff just melts away and it hits me that those things are just transitory...not at all vital to my happiness. Nothing else is the whole world matters when I'm with her. I have never imagined that I could love someone so much. Please don't misunderstand me, I absolutely adore/love/am crazy about Jason (my husband)! But this love...it's so different from anything I have ever experienced. When Elizabeth looks into my eyes, it's like she can see into my soul and she just smiles because she knows just how crazy I am about her. When she has a tummy ache or gets a little fussy, I sing "You Are My Sunshine" and it always seems to make her feel better. It's so bizarre to think that not so long ago, I was sitting in her room in my rocking chair just admiring the room that we had set up for her. I kept imagining what she would look like, be like when she finally made her arrival. While she was in my tummy, I would become overwhelmed with love, so much so, that I would cry while rocking in her room. I'd sing "You Are My Sunshine" to her while she was in my tummy. I would play her mobile in her room while I rocked and I'd cry because I could not wait to meet the beautiful little girl that was growing in my tummy. I could never have imagined how beautiful she would be. I can remember being so upset when my due date came and went. I was frustrated because I couldn't wait to hold her and love her. It felt like I was going to be pregnant forever. I had all of this wonderful baby stuff and a beautiful room set up, but her crib was empty. She was definitely worth the wait and the weight ;) Being a mother...well to me, is the greatest gift that God has ever given me. It doesn't get any better than the smile on her face, the love in her eyes, and the fact that she's mine...my own little personal piece of heaven. Elizabeth Rose, you have changed me forever and I will always be grateful for that. You have made mommy the happiest/luckiest/most fulfilled woman in the whole world. Mommy loves you more, so much more than you've ever known -xoxo 

Week 30 - Craziness & a Baby Shower

I have finally reached the 30th week of this amazing pregnancy! We are going to do another sneak peek ultrasound this weekend to see what our little ladybug looks like. My assumption: she's going to be adorable and FAT! lol While I feel like the Goodyear blimp with legs, everything has been going pretty well. I am not one of those mothers that has absolutely no complaints. I just choose not to dwell on the difficulties of pregnancy because I'm too busy enjoying carrying this tiny human being around with me. I hear so many women complaining about their pregnancies and it frustrates me. Yes, my hands and feet swell a bit, I've definitely put on some baby weight, and I've been having a little trouble sleeping at night due to mild heartburn. But...she's worth every swollen finger and toe, every uncomfortable extra pound, and every hour of lost sleep. Oh and I'd like to announce that, ladies and gentlemen, we have ourselves a busy body! Elizabeth is constantly moving around all day, but her favorite time of day? When I'm getting into bed to go to sleep...naturally. I randomly giggle throughout the work day because of her movements, so if you see me sitting in my office laughing at nothing...no I'm not crazy! The little lovebug I have in my tummy is making me laugh. I also had my baby shower this past weekend and it was amazing! Jason and I got so many adorable and special things for her. It was surreal to be surrounded by our friends and family that we love and care about. It means so much to us to share our happiness with them. I just hope that everyone present knew how genuinely grateful we are to have them in our lives and to be apart of Miss Elizabeth Rose's life as well. My quote for this week in response to someone asking if I was hungry: "I'm pregnant...I'm ALWAYS hungry!"

"I'm good for nothing and nothing's good for me" (Week 22)

Well, week 22 has come and gone already. This week was an eventful one. Shamefully, this post is about the rude mood I've been in for a short while now. My mood swings have been completely erratic. I felt certifiably insane this week. I lose my patience over anything and everything. I've felt horrible for being so cranky towards the people I care about...especially my wonderful, patient, loving, should-be-declared-into-sainthood husband. Two words: poor Jason. He has been put on my emotional rollercoaster and continues to support me no matter how stupid the complaint. I've lost my temper and ranted about being hungry, being aggravated about the way someone asked what I was doing, and, shamefully, the list could go on. I consider myself to be a pretty patient individual, but these hormones have turned me into a monster. I've felt so guilty because I'm grateful every day to be pregnant for our beautiful little baby girl. However, one thing in particular sent me to the most shameful level of ridiculousness ever. We set up Elizabeth's bedroom set this past weekend. Her comforter looks beautiful, the furniture is amazing, and we only had one finishing touch left...to set up her musical mobile. And that's when Mom-to-be Zilla struck...the mobile looked great. My hubby went to wind it up and what happens? Nothing! That's right! Nothing happens! No sweet lullaby music...no movement...just silence. I just started ranting and complaining about Babies 'R Us and the fact that we were shipped something that didn't work which led to me jumping from one complaint to another. I sat down on the floor in her bedroom to try to collect myself. As I sat on the floor, I looked up at her bed and the picture of her paw paw(my dad) on her dresser and that's when it struck me. In a few months, I'm going to be the mother of an amazing little girl. The bed sitting in front of me will be the place where I lay her down to rest her tiny little head. I could actually see it all in my mind. I'm going to be rocking her to sleep, singing to her, and telling her bedtime stories. And I lost all desire to complain about anything. I've prayed a lot since then for these hormonal mood swings to slack off and, so far, it's been successful. So, I end this week in a great mood with positivity in my words and on my mind.

"Hurry Hurry Feel This" - Week 21

Well, I am almost into week 22 of my pregnancy and realized I needed to hurry and write in my experiences from Week 21. This week has been a wonderfully interesting one with little Elizabeth in my tummy. Jason and I were sitting on the couch in our living room watching T.V. when she decided to make her presence known. I had just finished sipping on a yummy strawberry banana smoothie and all was right with the world. My tummy was full and the house was so nice and quiet. And that's when it happened...Little Miss Elizabeth Rose decided that she would kick her Mommy right in the gut. Yup, that's right. She kicked me so hard that it downright scared the hell out of me. My entire body lifted off of the couch and I let out a yelp. Jason looked over at me so concerned as to what was going on. He said, "Babe, are you alright?" I said, "Yeah, she just kicked me so hard that it scared me." It felt like I had been kicked in the middle of the tummy, only this kick was from the inside. After the initial shock, came the uproar of laughter. She had scared me so much that I jumped 3 feet off of the couch. And, being pregnant and carrying extra weight, this was no easy feat. But, on a more serious note, ever since I felt Elizabeth's first movements (they felt like flutters), I have been obsessed with feeling her. And now, she's strong enough(obviously) for Jason to feel her too. Words cannot describe how magical it was for him to place his hand on my tummy and to be able to feel her. His face just completely lit up with excitement. I am completely in love with watching him touch my tummy and for that smile to shine across his face for every movement she makes. Now, neither of us can get our hands off of her(in my tummy). Yes, this probably means that we'll snuggle and cuddle her until she's old enough to squirm out of our arms. I must say, before pregnancy, I could only imagine what it would feel like to have a tiny person moving around in your ever growing belly. Now I know. And, to be honest, it feels exactly the way I had imagined it...only better. Her hiccups and kicks naturally happen at the most inconvenient times (waking me up during the night), but I always welcome them. So,  these days, I've had one hand in my husband's and the other holding our daughter in my tummy.

Drum Roll Please...

Well, I guess it's pretty obvious that I have already shirked my responsibilities on updating this blog. Shame on me! But with baby on the brain, there's not much room for anything else. Weeks 17-19 were absolutely great. We had our 4D ultrasound done during week 18. Luckily, we were able to plan ahead and invite our family: parents, siblings, grandparents, godparents, aunts, future cousins...we were about the size of a freaking Mardi Gras Crewe. As I laid in that oversized bed, my heart was pounding. It was pounding so loudly that I could hear it ringing in my ears. As the sonographer began trying to pull up a clear image, I was seeing spots. No, not "I'm about to faint" spots...spots of blue and pink. Which is it...which is it? And then...the announcement. Our beautiful baby is a beautiful baby girl. I was overwhelmed at the sight of her. She was the most beautiful thing that my husband and I had ever seen. And boy is she stubborn! She refused to move from her spot and loved hiding her face in her hands and, at times, hid her face with her feet. I actually had to stand up and jump around to get her to move from that spot. I was so relieved when the sonographer told us that everything looked great. Her heart rate was at a strong 153. The family had been guessing that we were having a girl all along and so this only confirmed what everyone thought. Visions of pink, our beautiful baby girl, and her running around in my clothes left me speechless. There she was...10 ounces and she had us wrapped around her finger already. My husband and I are set to decorate her room this weekend...a bedroom for our tiny darling, Elizabeth Rose.    

Week 16: "Put on your big girl panties and enjoy the ride"

This week our little one is about the size of an avocado. A yummy, creamy, delicious avocado…okay cravings aside! Jason and I have been going crazy with curiosity about the gender of our baby. I, like every other excited mother out there, would love to indulge in buying that cute outfit at Walmart or the baby blankets on sale at Babies “R” Us. But I must resist the urge to spend half of our paycheck on gender specific items that may or may not suit our bundle of joy. In not wanting to throw caution to the wind, I come to the realization that I CAN buy those solid white Gerber shirts with the beyond adorable mittens attached. I CAN and I SHALL! As I walk triumphantly to the cash register, with my goodies, a huge grin and my “mother of the year” feeling, that’s when it hits me. Blame it on the hormones or the fact that I can no longer breathe out of my right nostril (thanks pregnancy rhinitis!), I am overcome by emotions. Inside of my newly rounded tummy, there is a little human being…a little person…growing more and more everyday. And my eyes begin to fill with tears at one single thought: I can’t protect my little one forever. At some point, our baby will have to go out into the world. We can’t make the right choices for them, but we can love them and provide them with the skills and teachings that they will need for growing up. I wipe away the tears and put on my cheesy grin. For I know that time will fly by and our baby will be grown before we know it. But we’re going to take advantage of every second of every minute of everyday to fill these fleeting years with silliness, life lessons, and unconditional love.