Tour of the Midwest Part 1

Two weeks ago I headed to Louisville, Xenia and Indianapolis for an extended trip to the Midwest. This was my last opportunity to fly anywhere before I hit that blessed 32 week marker and am officially stuck in Arizona for the heat of summer. I spent a total of 12 days visiting with my family, seeing my friends and attending baby showers. My mom's friends were kind enough to throw me a baby shower in Louisville over my first weekend and then the following weekend the Hurleys had a Xenia shower and Lauren and Leah threw me an Indy shower. Needless to say, I was exhausted by the time I got home.

I spent the first 8 days of my trip home in Louisville. Kevin couldn't join me until the following week, but since I had three showers to attend I had no choice (heehee) but to be in the Midwest over the course of two weekends. It was so nice to be home with my parents, just relaxing, getting pedicures, going shopping with mom, watching Lost and resting when I needed to. However, while I was home it occurred to me that this would be my last trip home by myself. Now I am not trying to be dramatic, but I feel like there are certain milestones in my life that have been marked by visits home; The night before my wedding when I slept in the house I had grown up in for the last time as a Bratcher or the first time Kevin and I came to Louisville for a visit and stayed in my childhood bedroom. It occurred to me that the next time I came to my parents' house, I would be a parent myself. I am not saying that this is going to be bad, but it did strike me as yet another sign that I am growing up, becoming even more of an adult, and that my life is going to drastically change soon. It was definitely bittersweet.

On Saturday my mom's friends, Sue Smith, Becca Collins, Terie Blankenbaker, Diane Steinrock and Carol Ann Anderson hosted a baby shower for all of my Louisville friends and family. We had a large group of people, consisting of old friends, close neighbors and supportive family. It was so great to be surrounded by so many people that I love so much and to be able to celebrate this exciting occasion with them. I was overwhelmed by everyone's incredible generosity and encouraging words they had to share with me. The baby shower was perfect and wonderful and a celebration I will always remember. I was exhausted afterwards, but it was totally worth it!

Getting ready to open gifts.

Some of the gorgeous food (that was all delicious!!)

My amazing friend Emma who had just had Baby Vera four weeks earlier (doesn't she look great?!). I was so happy she was able to be there to help me celebrate. She is one of my oldest and dearest friends and it made the day that much more special. Plus I got to meet Baby Vera later on that evening and she is just as gorgeous as her momma!

Laughing at the "Young Buck" onesie I got, with the card addressed to Baby Hurley and Grandpa Don. Priceless!

There are so many other wonderful things that happened while I was in Louisville. I got to visit with one of my mentors, Amy (Renfro) Henson. We met at Panera and had an opportunity to catch up and talk about things ahead. Amy had some really great wisdom to pass on about parenting, childbirth, boundaries and trusting God. I am so blessed to have this woman in my life and just wish we had more time to see each other. Her prayer at the end of our breakfast brought me to tears as I silently thanked God for her many many years of mentoring and friendship.

Other highlights of my time in Louisville included lunch with Dad, taking naps, my awesome pregnancy massage at Z's, special time with Abby and her two daughters, and going shopping at the Gap Outlet with my mom, Terie Blankenbaker, her daughter-in-law Margaret, her granddaughter Ruby and my close friend Lesley Liesman. It was so great to be surrounded by such a wonderful company of women, and while I felt like my time with Lesley was WAY too short (five hours...sniff sniff), it was such a relaxing day and also a very successful shopping trip. I also enjoyed getting to know Margaret better as well as her daughter Ruby. After spending the day with these two, and seeing how well behaved Ruby is, I now have all new parenting goals to aspire to.

Tour of the Midwest part two will be about my time in Xenia and Indianapolis and the baby shower celebrations we had there. Stay tuned...

Making Room for Baby

This past weekend Kevin painted the nursery so we could move the furniture into Baby Hurley's room. He worked so hard, even though he has so much on his plate right now. I am very thankful for Kevin and how he makes my priorities his priorities. He is truly selfless and wonderful. Here are some pictures from start to finish of the painting project. We still have some decorating to do, so I will post updated pictures as the decorating continues.

The Blank Canvas

Kevin getting started

Being a good sport and smiling for the camera

Enjoying the rocking chair in our newly finished nursery (SO EXCITED!)

Changing Table and Chair

Another view

Crib and Dresser

Updated House Pics

I have had several people (cough, cough, Ellie) ask me for some updated pictures of the house now that we have the furniture in, some of the walls painted and even some pictures hung. The house is still a work in progress, but we are happy with the changes we have made so far.

This is the family room which is the same open space as the kitchen and office. The big window will soon be overlooking our new pool.

The office (which I didn't clean up before taking this picture...oops)

The kitchen and eat-in area

The Great Room as you walk into the house. The lighting isn't that good, but you can see some of the "custom two tone painting" we did in this room, which is very popular in Phoenix. The left wall is a darker color then the right wall.

Here are the stairs that you see when you first walk into the house. You can see the two tone paint in this picture as well.

Well, that's all for now. Kevin is currently painting the nursery so those pictures will probably go up over the next couple of days.

On my mind

With the 29 week mark coming up on Saturday, I have to admit that I have been thinking about very little else then the baby. I keep thinking about decorating the nursery (which I haven't actually done yet, but hopefully soon), if I registered for the right things, what life will be like after he arrives...the list goes on and on. It probably doesn't help that baby Hurley is destined to be either a gymnist or a soccer player, based on the constant beating my stomach takes daily.

Of course, there are many other things happening in the Hurley household. For example, the pool project officially begian the beginning of last week. As of right now, the hole is dug and the plumbing, rebar and electric is in place. Kevin has gotten the plans in order and has bidded out all the different steps of the project, and after talking about this pool for quite some time, we are both very excited that it has started and will hopefully be finished in a couple weeks. Not to mention it was 98 degrees yesterday and I thought I was going to die...

The pool as it looks right now

Recently I took a trip to L.A. to visit Ellie and Noah. It was so nice to be able to spend time with one of my oldest friends. Not to mention, Ellie planned all kinds of fun stuff for us to do. We went walking on the beach, went to a farmer's market where they had some of the best donuts ever, got to visit Noah at his new recording studio and had some fun just hanging out and catching up on life. I was reminded how lucky I am to have such great people in my life, especially those I have known since I was a child. I hope that my children make quality friends like I have throughout my life.

A picture from my walk on the beach with Ellie.

This past Tuesday I had a checkup with the doctor and everything seems to be coming along very well. I was tested for gestational diabetes and tested negative, which was a huge relief. They tested my blood for a few other things that I can't even remember, but I don't have any of them so I guess I won't worry about it! He also measured my belly and said I am growing at the exact rate that I should be, which was also nice to hear. The funniest part of the appointment was when I was trying to figure out when the baby might be born. While I logically know that this cannot be predicted, my mom has been trying to figure out when her and dad should fly out so they don't miss the birth and is trying to plan it as close as possible. My doctor thought it was hilarious that I thought he might somehow be able to predict when my labor would start...not just a due date but the actual birth date. I guess this isn't something mom and I can write on the calendar, which is incredibly difficult for a couple of planners like us.

So, as I wrap this up, I wanted to post a couple cute pics I took of Oscar yesterday. I have noticed that once my friends have had kids, all pictures become about the babies. No pets, no husbands, not even pictures of themselves. So, I wanted to share some pictures of the two boys in my life right now since apparently I won't be doing this as much once baby Hurley comes along. Hopefully this weekend we are going to get the nursery painted and the furniture in place, so while it won't be finished, I will attempt to post some pics of the nursery as it is a work in progress.

Oscar is always so happy when Kevin gets home from work

San Diego

This past weekend Kevin and I had the opportunity to go to San Diego. My parents were there on a vacation and we decided to join them at my Aunt Marty's house for a nice long weekend. It was so great to get out of town and have a laidback weekend away from home. Kevin and I have really been trying to take advantage of the locations that are close to us since it may be a little while before we take vacations once Baby Hurley joins us.

One of the really great things about the weekend was getting to spend some time with my Aunt Marty and her husband Bill. Since they have lived in California for most of my life, I hadn't really had the opportunity to spend quality time with them since I was a kid. Being 27 now, it was a very different experience getting to know them as an adult. It was also nice to get to introduce that part of my family to Kevin. I forget that there are members of my family that don't know the wonderful man I am married too, and how he has made my life incredible.

While we were in San Diego we went to the beach a couple times, had dinner with Kevin's cousin Stefanie, toured the Hotel del Cornado (which is where Some Like it Hot was filmed), and went to a Padres game. The weather was in the 70s and was perfect. The beaches were beautiful and the Hotel del Cornado had a gorgeous patio where you could have lunch and look out over the beach. The whole trip was very relaxing and it was wonderful to see my family. I predict many more trips to San Diego in our future.

The Padres Stadium, where we watched kind of a boring game, but enjoyed the company as well as the atmosphere.

The Hotel del Cornado

Kevin and me enjoying the view from the Hotel del Cornado. One of the many beautiful beaches.

Baby Hurley's first trip to San Diego