Ohhhhhhhhhh Baby!

Ohhhh Babyyyyy..I'm Back! 

I only took a 10 week reprieve :) where my life became crazy hectic with patients, research, moving into a new house, planning a gender reveal party, family/friend visits, and getting ready for my best friend's bachelorette/wedding. So I apologize about the long vacation from blogging~ but am ready to update on the latest happenings for baby miller. 

Poppyseed

Thumb sucking

Little foot

First of all, Clay and I DID find out the gender of the baby.....to give you a little background...all along I have felt that "poppy" was a girl. I dreamt she was a girl - and just had this feeling down to my little pinky toes that she was going to be a tutu-wearing, pigtail-sporting, giggly princess :). Clay even told me he thought it was a little girl - and had a dream too! When we went to the ultrasound appointment - we practiced self-control - and would not let her tell us. We were just thrilled the baby was a healthy beautiful baby with 10 fingers and 10 toes. The little one even had their thumb in their mouth and their legs crossed. Our plan was to wait until Saturday night (the ultrasound was on Thursday morning) to reveal the gender with a delectable dessert with either blue or pink cake filling. When Saturday rolled around, I just could not wait any longer. As the hours ticked by and it approached ten o'clock, I was at my wits end and insisted we cut the cake in front of friends and family. During the ultrasound I really had thought it was a boy on the images....but to my surprise, it was a little GIRL - pink cake all around!!! Clay  looked in disbelief when all his buddies yelled out "It's a GIRL!" I could not be happier... Everything flashed before my eyes....her as a little munchkin crawling around in diapers, her first day of school backpack and all, her learning to drive with her daddy's help, her getting married...the list goes on and on. I was absolutely speechless. As you can see from the ultrasound images above, baby miller is positively perfect! 

With my best friend - absolutely THRILLED!...and did I mention her wedding is roughly in 1 month!!

The cutest gender reveal cake - thank you Debra Miller!

Pure happiness :)

So that was the obvious excitement that I had to spill the beans about :). 

Other updates include:
1) MORE big news...Clay and I MOVED!! Now settled in to our new HOUSE (yess..HOUSE! no longer a 1 bedroom apartment) - we have 3 bedrooms, a FROG (finished room over the garage), 2.5 bathrooms, and best of all a screened in back porch with a large back yard for Hominy to frolic in! We really hit the jackpot on this one...and I have to give all the credit to my husband. When we initially saw the house, I was very distracted by the disarray the previous tenants had left it in - scuffs along the stairs, heinous colors on the walls (like hunter green and fire-engine red), cat hair everywhere, and no attempt at keeping the place remotely clean. However, with our wonderful realtor and a lot of hard work, we have a spotless house with new fresh paint :) - and I LOVE IT! 

My favorite spot :) Back porch watching Hominy run around like a maniac in the back yard!

This was taken right when we moved in - we have since added more artwork and done a little rearranging.

2) Additionally, on a side note, my best friend is getting married in a month - so it's MOH go-time! My biggest dilemma - finding a bridesmaid dress that I can zip up over my large rotund midsection. I have tried on 3 bridesmaid dresses - and now don't fit into any of them. Hooray for weddings when you are 6 months pregnant and look like Shamu. My new plan is to paint myself orange - and be introduced into the bridal party as the Pumpkin mascot...I think this could work - as the wedding is 1 week prior to Halloween, what do you think?? Even more entertaining will be attending a bachelorette in New Orleans next weekend as a large pregnant woman, stuffed into some tight dress with heels. Wish me luck!

3) Lastly, Clay and I finally are planning our nursery - the nesting phase has settled in. We are going with a color scheme of pale pink and light/dark browns. So far our walls are painted pale pink - luckily Clay did not go with my original choice of 'bubblegum pink'. We have a light brown glider, a metallic butterfly mobile (courtesy of my mother-in-law), a big brown bear (courtesy of my mom), and soon to receive our Baby's Dream white crib/dresser. We have registered for brown/pink bedding too. All in all, this is a super fun project - and I soon will have pics to come! 
4) Now for a photo update. As you have discovered above, my tummy is finally sporting a "bump". So here are some pictures - so you can see how things have progressed....Wider ...and Wider...

13 weeks                                   ~16 weeks                                                18 weeks

 

20 weeks                                                                           23 weeks           
                                      

 

                                                             24 weeks

 

And to conclude, the Pregnancy Survey:
How far along?  24 weeks  2 days
Total weight gain/loss? 13 lbs
Maternity clothes?  Finally in maternity wear - it's just so much more comfortable! I love the elastic bands on the pants, shorts, and skirts - and fully intend to wear these at future Thanksgiving dinners ;) (so much better than drawstring!)
Stretch marks? Nopers
Sleep?  My sleep schedule is finally normal - I go to bed around 10 - 10:30 PM and wake up roughly around 6:30 AM. The only time my sleep is interrupted is to pee (which unfortunately can be a couple times a night!) My bladder has to be a punching bag to this little peanut. 
Best moment last week? Clay feeling the little one kick...He was so shocked and speechless when it happened. I am so glad he can finally be apart of all the tummy goodness :) 
Movement? YES YES YES - all the time! She is a kicker and a puncher! 
Food cravings?  Mix fall + pregnancy hormones = PUMPKIN CRAVINGS GALORE. In the last two weeks, I have made 2 pumpkin breads and a pumpkin roll - and did I mention eaten a whole bag of pumpkin candy corn?! 
Gender? GIRL (now I can say it with 100% positivity!)
Labor signs? Roughly 3 more months
Belly button in/out? Innie
What I miss: Working out - and being able to easily tie my shoes. Clay and I go on a walk every evening and have started swimming on the weekends - but I wish I could go for a good run, especially in this crisp fall weather.
What I am looking forward to: Upcoming baby showers :) The month of November is flooded with showers in Virginia Beach, Florida, and South Carolina. I can't thank my friends and family enough for all the support.
Milestones: Clay and I chose a name :) I will reveal this soon~ but we LOVE it! I cannot wait for this sweet little girl to join us early next year! January is right around the corner...