5 on Friday

Linking up with the lovely ladies above for 5 on Friday today! 

Exactly one month from today, we'll be meeting our sweet Avery Rose!! I seriously can't wait to hold her and kiss her sweet cheeks!

I'm also excited because my husband is having a Poker and Pampers Party tomorrow evening. He has around 20 guys coming to play and to get in, you have to bring a package of diapers! I saw this idea a while back and thought it sounded so fun, so I ran it past Jake and he loved it. He loves playing poker and thought it would be a fun night for he and his friends. They're getting pizza, snacks, soda and beer and will play a couple rounds of Texas Hold Em. It should be a fun evening and I'm looking forward to all the diapers we'll get. :-)

The invitation I made for the party.

 With my mom and my sister's help, I'm hoping to get the nursery completely done this weekend. We just have a few decorations and frames to hang up and it will officially be done. :-)

 Lately, my sister has been cutting Jackson's hair and she does a great job, but for whatever reason, Jackson throws a big fit and cries the entire time. So when it was past time for him to get another haircut, I thought maybe I would take him to someone that he didn't know to get it cut and maybe he wouldn't act crazy. I found a fun children's salon here in St. Louis called the Hairy Elephant. So I made an appointment for him for last Saturday and he did great. He was a little apprehensive about it, but he didn't cry at all. The kids sit in cars and he got to sit in the one that looked like Lightening McQueen! They also get to pick a movie to watch while they're getting their hair cut, which was a nice distraction. After he was done, he got a sucker and actually didn't want to leave. Ha. Needless to say, I scheduled another appointment for him for after the baby is born. :-)

 I'm also hoping to get a few Maternity photos this weekend and then a few more after getting my hair done in 2 weeks. My sister is going to take a few for me tomorrow, as long as the weather is decent. Here is one of my favorites that I really want to try of me and Jackson.

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I hope you all have a super fabulous weekend!!!

34 Week Bumpdate

How Far Along: 34 Weeks (5 more weeks to go!)

(You can check out my 34 week post from when I was pregnant with Jackson here.)

 Size of Baby: (According to babycenter.com) 34 week: Your baby is about the size of cantaloupe. Your melon-sized munchkin now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long from head to heel.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 29 pounds total. 

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity clothes and growing out of some of them. :-( I am so ready to be back in normal clothes again.

Gender: Its a GIRL!! Our sweet Avery Rose.

Movement: Yes, she's moving around quite a bit. Her movements are quite strong and actually hurt a little sometimes.

Food Cravings: No real cravings this week, just really thirsty as I've been this entire pregnancy.

What I miss: Just being able to do normal things without feeling tired or out of breath. I also miss being able to wear my wedding rings, which I haven't been able to wear for quite some time now. :-(

Sleep: Not great. I'm having to get up several times a night to use the restroom and just can't seem to get comfortable sometimes.

Symptoms: Just feeling very tired and huge. :-( I'm also having a few Braxton Hicks contractions, heartburn and some swelling in my legs, feet and hands. I also think the pregnancy rash I had with Jackson may be back again this time around. :-( I will check with my Dr. next visit to be sure, but I'm thinking that's what it is. I just have a few itchy red bumps on my belly and it's just really annoying.

Best Moment this week: Getting together with friends over the weekend.

What I am looking forward to: Getting the last few decorations hung to complete the nursery and of course, meeting her on (or before) April 28th!! :-)

5 on Friday: All About Jackson

Happy Friday!

I'm linking up today with the ladies above for 5 on Friday!!

For this edition of 5 on Friday, I thought I'd share 5 things about Jackson lately (and a few random bathtime pictures thrown in). He's at such a fun age right now and doing and saying new things each day that I don't want to forget!

 

First, he finally went pee on the potty for the first time this past Wed. evening! We aren't necessarily potty training yet, but he's shown an interest in it, so we sit him on the potty occasionally to get him used to it, but he never actually does anything. Well, Wed. evening I was home with him and before he got in the bath, I asked if he wanted to sit on the potty. Normally, he says no, but this time he said he did. And sure enough, he had to go. :-) He and I were both so proud! Here's to hoping for more successful potty trips!

We've taught Jackson that Red means Stop, Green means Go and Yellow means Slow! Its so cute to hear him say them, so I posted a video on Instagram of it. You can find the video at the link below. (The video is a little dark as we were watching a little t.v. before bed and we had the lights off in the living room.)

http://instagram.com/p/lvy-RxuKJ0/

 

Jackson is in the "huh" stage as I like to call it. He says "huh" all the time, for every little thing. I'm guessing it helps him learn, but it can be a little annoying when I have to repeat myself 10 times for everything I say. I know a majority of kids go through it, but I'm hoping it's short lived. Ha.

Last night we went to an Art Fair at Jackson's Pre-school! It was so cute. They had several pieces of art work displayed for each child. They were all so proud of their work! They also had several "art making" stations for the kids and they had an ice cream social as well. It was a really fun night!

Jackson standing under one of his pieces of art! He was so proud. :-)

He's really interested in letters, numbers and shapes right now. I'm guessing these are things he's working on in school. He's got circle, triangle, square, star and heart down pretty well for his shapes and can make hand motions for circle and triangle. Letters and numbers are a little more tricky for him. He did point out an O the other night in one of his books and called it an O and also said it was a circle. He's also pointed out an E and a C before. When it comes to numbers, everything above 1 is a 9. He has several blankies and when I say he can only bring one, sometimes he will put all but one down, but then sometimes he says "no 9 blankies" even if he only has 3 in his hand. Ha. If you ask him how many of anything he wants, its always 9. He's really fixed on the number 9 for some reason. :-)

So those are just a few things I want to remember about Jackson right now. He's growing and learning so much these days and each day brings something new.

Pretty in Pink Baby Shower

My sweet Mom, Sister and Mother-in-Law all pitched in and gave Avery and I the sweetest, most adorable baby shower! My mom and sister did all the decorations, my sister made the cake and centerpieces and my Mother-in Law made the food. It was such a wonderful shower and a beautiful day to celebrate our sweet girl.

Here are a few pictures from the shower. 

The centerpieces were made out of mini cupcakes!

The cake was beautiful both outside...

and inside!

As a favor, they had a candy bar!

The pretty poms over the candy bar.

The amazing gifts.

A diaper cake my mom made. The tutu around it will be for some of Avery's newborn photos.

Myself with all the gifts.

A beautiful afghan my mom made to match Avery's nursery.

A sweet little crocheted crown that a friend made for some of Avery's newborn photos.

My sister made this adorable hair bow/accessories board which is now hanging above Avery's changing table in her nursery.

Myself with my Mother-in-Law and Sisters-in Law.

Myself with my Mom and Sister.

Myself and 3 of my beautiful nieces.

Myself and my wonderful sister!

I feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family who went above and beyond to make my shower so special! Avery is one lucky little girl to have so many people who adore her already! I can't wait for her to get to know each and every one of them.