Baby girl, as much as your dad and I were elated to welcome you into our world, we were also aware that our lives were about to drastically change. No more "just the two of us" which meant a lot less dates, a lot less eating out, a lot less spur of the moment plans....but so much more love was on its way though. We decided it would be in our best interest to take advantage of the time we had before you arrived so I did some research and found the perfect place for us to both relax and do things that we both love to do. Our mini vacation took us to Southeastern Oklahoma to the little town of Broken Bow. We left on a Friday and drove the 4.5 hour drive to our quiet cabin in the woods. Your friends Emmi and Lucy came along with us and had a blast I am certain. The ride down didn't involved as many stops as I'd imagined....in fact, if you want to know the truth, your dad had to stop more times to pee that this pregnant lady did. Ha! We were getting closer and closer and my restless legs were ready to get out and stretch. We followed the windy road to our little slice of heaven......
The moment we stepped foot in the door we knew this was exactly the right place for us. We spent the first night grilling out and just checking out the area. Oh yeah, and your daddy hopped in the hot tub on the deck. I refrained since I didn't want to boil you. Oh boy, it was tempting to jump in though. The OKC Thunder were in a big series so we came inside to relax and cuddle on the couch and take in some basketball. Ironic since we hadn't watched but one game all season. We stayed up later than usual and looked forward to sleeping in the next morning and waking up to the sound of nature. Instead I woke up to the sound of a dog scratching on her cage and a full bladder. This would characterize all three mornings we spent there. Naps were a must during our trip and we took plenty of these. Pregnant women need to nap whenever they possibly can....write that down, girl. In between naps (hehehe) we took hikes each morning and evening with the doggies. The scenery was gorgeous and the weather was perfect in the mid-70s. We explored along the dirt roads and checked out all of the other cabins in the area and made future plans for where we will bring our family someday. You did give me one scare our first morning hike we took. My stomach started cramping horribly and I thought for a moment that I might be having contractions. We hurried back to the cabin and I got some water and kicked my feet up. I think it was the sun that got to "us." All was well in the womb after a little rest. Here are a few pictures from our nature adventures.....
One morning I woke up to the sound of the dog scratching on the cage again and of course a full bladder...except this morning was the yummy smell of rain. I grabbed a cup of juice, a blanket and a book and curled up on the deck to watch the rain. Awwwwww. Absolute pure relaxation. The saying "not a care in the world" was totally understood by me that morning. Your daddy also completely let go and left work behind and everything else on his mind. We relaxed to the fullest extent...I can't stress that enough! Thank you for being kind to me on our trip.....
The 3 of us
Your daddy has a habit of buying things that he will never use, wear or even see again. This trip's purchase....a skunk hat. Here he is showing it off......
And no, we have no idea where this hat is now :)
Our second day of the trip it rained almost all day so we spent some time in the town of Broken Bow going out to lunch, watching a movie and checking out the local shops.
Soon after our trip we took you to your first concert. I hope you liked Bon Jovi because I sure did!
Set oven at 350 degrees and bake....for a long time. As the weeks passed by we became more anxious and I found myself saying "it feels like time is standing still!" Finally we experienced something that seemed to jump start the third trimester and get me out of my "waiting" funk. Around week 30 of baking we got a chance to get a close up of our precious growing girl. We had the pleasure of watching you move around and make funny faces for thirty minutes while the ultrasound tech took photos and printed them for us. We got to take home a dvd of our session and although we have only watched it one time I am sure we will show you someday. I felt so silly while lying on the table with tears streaming down my face...you were so peaceful and beautiful already...perfectly content in my tummy. You had absolutely no idea how much we loved you yet....seeing you smile and stick your tongue out just melted my heart. Your dad , on the other hand, thought you looked like an alien with a really big nose. Ok, here is my confession. When I got home I googled "big noses on 4D ultrasounds." Turns out the fluid make a baby's nose looked squashed. See what I mean?
There you are!
I left the ultrasound visit with confirmation that you were in fact a girl and I was on a high about getting a glimpse at your pretty face. My love for you grew exponentially that day!
All of these exciting things were happening to prepare for you and it was easy to get caught up in all the happiness and forget about the actual "popping a baby out of you" part of it. That part was what we needed to learn about. So we did just that. We learned how to have a baby. Lol. Lakeside offered birthing classes for patients so I signed us up when I was around 30 weeks along. Your daddy was excited a bit apprehensive about these classes. I assured him that he would learn plenty and gently reminded him that he wasn't the one "popping" the baby out and I did need some guidance. Our first class was on a Monday night after longs days at work for both of us and our 4D ultrasound appointment. An evening full of baby stuff and I was thrilled! It was rather humorous watching all of the pregnant couples waddle in to the building because most were either arguing or walking far apart looking like they weren't too happy with each other. We even heard one hormonal preggo yelling snide comments at her husband as she walked in and he trailed behind dragging pillows with him. It was just as I'd pictured it would be...lol! We were given a tour of the facility and the birthing suites followed by our first session of the child birth class. Your daddy ended up being the star of the class that he didn't even want to go to. I think he enjoyed it more than I did....answering questions left and right, volunteering to demonstrate positions and making friends with the teacher. Sucking up was more like it. Your daddy is one of a kind Hal! I did feel pretty awesome being with the only man who spoke a word during the class. Although this did embarrass me at one point in the class when he asked a question about how to measure dilation of the cervix. Um yeah, I turned bright red and nudged him with all my might. We had two more of these sessions on Monday nights where we practiced breathing, comfortable birthing positions and pain control. My absolute favorite moment from these classes was the night we separated into mom/dad groups. Both groups were asked to write down our biggest fears/concerns on a white board and then present our top 3. The girl's were as follows: complications with the birth, bleeding too much and getting an epidural. The dads lists looked something like this: no access to food, a mad mother giving birth and something being wrong with the baby (ok, I'll give them credit for one of those). Needless to say the moms on one side of the room were a little bit slow to go join their husbands again. Food? Seriously? Your daddy tells me he did NOT say that one. Hahahaha! We finished off our learning at a breastfeeding and child care class later that month. We practiced bathing and diaper changing on a baby doll. The breastfeeding class was surprisingly full of husbands (your daddy thought he may be the only one). Thinking back now it probably was a waste of money and time to take some of those classes, besides the child birth course, but it was an experience for sure! On our final night of birthing class we had a "parent party" and brought our favorite snacks. With a group of hungry husbands and pregnant women the table of food didn't last long!
It won't be surprising to you that one of the most important things on my list was to buy a nice camera before you arrived. I retired my little digital that rode with me in my purse for years and traded her in for a new SLR Canon. Oh my goodness I have no idea why I hadn't bought one sooner. I practiced my photography skills once I got my new favorite toy. Here is the very first picture I took with it....
Recognize this guy?
It was hot that summer, but not too hot. I took every opportunity to get off work early and come lay out in the backyard. I thought "hey, if I'm going to be fat all summer I need to at least be tan and fat." Your daddy bought me a hammock to relax in while I got some sun. He also set up a swimming pool for us to cool off in for the summer. I would lay out and cool off on hot days and jump in the pool after our evening walks. Some other little girl also liked jumping in the pool before it was full.....
I followed the rules of pregnancy and "took it easy" despite wanting to lift, move, push and pull objects as I was busy nesting. Sssssh, don't tell your dad but there were many occasions that I pushed, pulled and lifted to my heart's content when he wasn't home. You ended up okay didn't you? :) Now work is a little different story though. Ya see, that is basically the essencse of my job...pulling, lifting and walking. I did cut back a lot and relied on the help of others to help but still continued to do most of my daily tasks without hinderance. I do have to admit though...it was nice to be able to say "but I'm pregnant" when a situation arose where I didn't want to do a certain task with a certain troublesome patient. Hehehe. My patients loved talking about your upcoming arrival and several of them made/bought you gifts. I felt so very loved and supported by all of these people. I might add that all of these people were bound to the facility so they either had to make something inside or they had a family shop for them. One patient made you a beautiful baby floor play quilt. I learned a lot of my parenting advice from my coworkers who have plenty of practice in that area.
My pregnancy books had mentioned nesting as something that happens towards the end of pregnancy. I thought to myself "there is no way on God's green earth that I, Ashley Fanning, am going to become obsessed with cleaning." Well it turns out nesting is a serious thing...it really does happen. In a serious, no messing around kinda way. I woke up one weekend morning early (around 6:30) and had an immediate urge to clean out the refrigerator from top to bottom. This desire just kept growing and eventually I had waved my magic nesting wand in the hallway cabinets, the pantry and our closet. Your daddy thought I had gone crazy, and for a moment I thought I actually had. I couldn't stop myself. I ran out to Target for all of the organization tools I could get my hands on to aid in my new hobby. Nesting came and went but one thing was for sure....every inch of that house was touched by my nesting hands at one point during the pregnancy. :) This didn't just pertain to the inside of the our house...it stretched outside too. This must've been a male form of nesting too because your daddy also had an overwhelming urge to landscape the front yard. I think we made a pretty good team and he actually let me do some bending and digging to help make the front yard exactly what we'd dreamed of....
Just like any other big event in life I had a checklist handy to keep track of my "to do" items. One of the most intimidating items on that list was registering....dun dun dun. Eeeeeeeeeeeek! I think my blood pressure would shoot up everytime I thought about it. I had no idea what I needed for your arrival. Well, that's not totally true. I knew the basics and plenty of stuff that I probably didn't need, but when you have twenty different types of nipple flow and a thousand different bottles it gets a tad bit confusing. So many colors, so many designs.....finally, finally, finally...Grammy said "we're going to BabiesR' Us and finishing your registry. Thank goodness for her and the practical guidance she gave her crazed daughter. Aunt B and Grammy witnessed my Diaper Genie crisis that day in the store: "Do I get the Diaper Genie II or the Diaper Genie II Elite?!?!" You can see why I needed help. Once mama picked out everything you needed it was time to shower you with gifts I'd so carefully (and neurotically) picked out.
SHOWER TIME!!!!
My coworkers Dawn and Mindi planned a couple's shower/cookout for our therapy crew at Dawn's house in Moore. This was my first of three beautiful showers and I was beyond excited about it! Dawn had made some yummy pink cupcakes that spelled out something special.....
YUM!
35 weeks
My therapy girls
They made sure to surprise me with some gag gifts...one that involved an adult diaper and a picture of a certain creepy patient that they planned for me to hang on the wall in your nursery. I love these guys!!
All smiles!
The whole work crew
That same weekend I was honored to spend Sunday with all of my therapy school comrads at my best friend Laura's house in Edmond. Grammy and Aunt B came with me to this shower!
My girls!
You must've been as excited as I was about this shower because you were moving around like crazy that afternoon.....
Just you and I
Best friend and hostess Laura
Check out that diaper cake!
Sue and Sally, the other two wonderful hostesses
Food.
Was.
Delicious.
Grammy was my photog for the afternoon
I love getting together with these girls. Not only do we have a lot in common (e.g. crazy patients, clinic horror stories) but we just have a great time when we can all find time to get together. Aren't they gorgeous?
The Rauh women are spectacular!
In true Laura style we played a rather off the wall (literally) game in which we flung different baby foods at a target hung on the wall. It turned out to be a hit!
The winners!
At 36 weeks pregnant I traveled to Enid to celebrate your upcoming arrival at the Hampton where Aunt Lisa, Auntie Heather, Auntie DoDo and Aunt B hosted a shower full of family and fun. I walked in to find a table full of gorgeous cupcakes and a cake designed by Auntie Heather....and I was ecstatic to find out that the cake was all mine (and yours too Hallie)....oh and trust me, we made sure it got eaten!
Ya see that top cake? Yeah, you and I ate the entire thing within a week!
Aunt Katie, Aunt Kylie and Nanny came to celebrate!
My blessings and lovely hostesses
Great grandma Detrixhe
Whit was there!
9 months
I seriously could not have asked for more amazing generous friends and family who took time out of their lives to plan, throw and attend baby showers for us. After the last shower was over in Enid and my car was loaded down with all of those beautiful baby goodies I drove home not knowing that in one short week I would be meeting you my sweet babe......
To be continued.........
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