Friday, June 24, 2011

29 weeks



My little Facebook ticker reminded me this morning... happy 29 weeks! It's crazy to think our little Stella, once the size of a sweet pea, is now the size of a squash. (Only two more fruit sizes to compare her to until she's here - LOL) She's taking advantage of having a bit of extra room - her nudges and movement are certainly getting stronger. Her sleeping habits are also a bit more in sync than before which is encouraging - when they started, she was tumbling at 2am.

According to thebump.com, her five senses are fully functional and brain development is underway. Brad and I talk to her out loud on a regular basis and she really enjoys listening (and actively responds to) to the 'Adele' station on my Pandora account... girl has great taste already!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Showered with love

This past weekend was our first baby shower in Summerville, SC and we had such a great time! It's incredibly comforting to know this sweet girl has so many people that love her already. Here's a few pictures of the festivities:
"Welcome Baby Stella"
Hostessess with the mostesses! Aunt Lesia, me & mom

Guestbook!

Grandmommies-to-be! Mom, me & Kathy


BFF moment! Jeff & I

Thanks to all who made this celebration so memorable...
we are so blessed!

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

It's here!!!

Twilight's final installment, Breaking Dawn (Part I) trailer has been officially released!


November 18th cannot come soon enough...

Thursday, June 2, 2011

pink & green turtles? yes, please!

It's no secret that I love eBay & Etsy but now, they are my go-to places to check for pink/green/turtle stuff for Little Miss. This could be good or bad, depending on how you look at it:


 



See what I mean? :)

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

"Did you get that memo?"



This movie describes my today in more ways than I'd care to admit.

Monday, May 30, 2011

What a week!

Happy Memorial Day!


Some of us have today off (I'm not one of these lucky individuals but hey, it's alright) but I hope we'll pause today to remember all of our amazing soldiers who remind us every day that our freedom is far from free. It comes at the HIGHEST cost. Thank you to my mom, dad and family members that have served/continue to serve the greatest country on Earth. I love you all dearly!


This week is also very special because we are doing a LOT of celebrating:

Happy anniversary to Amanda & Lenny Mathis!
May 30


Happy birthday to a great friend and sister, Lorraine Saxon!
June 1


Happy birthday to one of my best friends, Jeff Rose!
June 2


Happy anniversary to Chris & Paige Morton!
June 2


Happy anniversary to Chris & Julie Paulson!
June 3

Friday, May 27, 2011

TGIF - coffee needed


Insurance exam this (late) morning = no coffee for Leslie.

(Happy Friday!)

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Happy Thursday

Happy 25 weeks!


 
 
  • Between 25-28 weeks, baby is about the size of an eggplant!
  • Baby is getting her immune system ready by soaking up mom's antibodies
  • Her eyes are forming and will be reayd to bat those new eyelashes


Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Crib bedding - help!

We've narrowed down our crib bedding to the final two designs - yay! Both are about the same price for what we'll need, both are SUPER cute for Stella's nursery and would be easy to accent with pictures or wall art... but of course, I can't decide!

Which do YOU like? :)

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Exciting delivery at 24 weeks!

No, no, no. Don't worry, it's not THAT delivery. We still have a couple months before Little Miss makes her debut. However, we are receiving a special delivery today - Stella's dresser and hutch is arriving after work!
This means that her crib, gliber and dresser/hutch will be here and assembled by this weekend... hooray for productivity! We're still looking at bedding but have found some awesome choices to consider:




All the while, today is 24 weeks!

  • Baby is as big as a papaya!
  • She can hear you from inside the womb
  • Baby's face is fully formed
  • Baby is also starting to settle into sleep cycles

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

It's a...


Yep, Brad and I are excited that we're expecting Stella Reese in early September! Many of you already know this exciting news by now (thank you, Facebook) but it's taken me a while to get the news here for a lot of personal reasons including an ER scare, car accident and work getting extremely hectic. God never gives us more than we can handle - this I'm very certain - and the best news of all is baby Stella is doing wonderful. I hope all of the craziness is behind us... fingers crossed!

It's hard to believe but we're in our last week of the 2nd trimester - where does the time go??? I need to get Brad to take a new picture of the bump. It's certainly changed since 16 weeks! Thank you all for your continued prayers and thoughts... they are appreciated more than you know!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Less than 24 hours!

This time tomorrow, we will know the gender of baby Stoehr!

Will we be saying

or
?

Friday, April 15, 2011

Happy "HP7" Friday!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I was released today! Thanks goodness for a pre-ordered copy, a pizza and a night of total vegging. :)

Thursday, April 14, 2011

19 weeks!


Couple fun things about baby at 19 weeks:
  • baby is about the size of a mango!
  • a protective covering is developing over the baby, shielding it from the amniotic fluid
One of the really fun things going on right now is that our nursery furniture is on its way! We found it initially at a place in Greenville, SC called Baby Furniture Plus Kids and instantly fell in love. I think I was drawn to the Ravenna collection because it has a traditional look to it that will be great to use for years to come (and not always in a nursery necessarily) Since we're working a pretty limited room, space-wise, we decided just to go with the convertible crib, dresser/hutch combo and a glider/ottoman. Little did we know, my dad and stepmom actually had plans to surprise us with the dresser/hutch and my mom and stepdad did the same for the beautiful glider/ottoman - all during the same weekend! (thank you to them - we're so lucky to have incredible parents!) To complete the package, we went ahead and decided to buy the crib, only to find out it was on sale, too. Win, win, win. Can't wait to see how this all comes together!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Wordless Wednesday


(Okay, so it isn't completely wordless, but little Emerson's reactions are priceless!)

Little One update

Things have been rolling right along - so much, that I missed last week's update! 18 weeks check-in, here we go:

(baby is the size of a sweet potato!)

The biggest milestone with this particular update is that baby is moving and I can feel it! I felt our little one move for the first time when we landed in Frankfurt, Germany a couple weeks ago. It was SUCH a crazy feeling: a ball of butterflies doing somersaults, much different for me than the feeling you get riding in an elevator or landing in a plane. Since then, I've felt him/her move a few times... I'm sure that will progress the further along we go!

Speaking of him or her, we're counting down the days until we find out what baby Stoehr will be... I can hardly stand the suspense! We get the big news next Thursday and while I'm not sure how we're planning to celebrate yet, it will make this Easter weekend one to remember (talk about a Good Friday!)

OH, and how could I forget? I think Brad and I have nailed down our names: Miller Patrick if it's a boy and Stella Reese is if it's a girl! Miller is my maiden name and since I'm the only child between my parents, it's our way of carrying on my dad's name; Patrick is Brad's middle name. Stella Reese has no family connection to either name, we both just really like the combination. The more I hear them, the more I love them. What a wonderful thing to mark off your mom-to-be list!

Thursday, March 31, 2011

17 weeks!


Here we are at 17 weeks and moving along quite nicely! I've felt wonderful lately - no sickness, my energy is continuing to return and baby is getting bigger each day. We have a doctor's appointment after we return from Germany (I'm telling you, this baby is my traveling good luck charm!) and in a couple short weeks, we'll know if we're having a boy or girl - I can hardly stand it!

Some fun facts about baby at 17 weeks:
  • baby is about the size of an onion
  • the skeleton is hardening from cartilage to bone
  •  the umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger
  • baby's fingers now have fingerprints!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Blessings


If there was ever a day I didn't need to worry about drying my hair, it would be this morning. It began POURING rain around midnight and hasn't shown any signs of letting up. As I was rushing around this morning trying to take care of the dogs and get ready for work, I walked by the kitchen windown and did a double take: my hydrangea plant, which I've been trying to feed/water back to greener times, had sprouted not just one new stem... but THREE! It's almost as if it was just waiting for this big downpour to happen to it could finally blossom.

Seeing my sweet plant in its new stage made me stop and thank God for the blessings in my life, no matter how little.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Simply cute!


Sometimes, we just need the "awwwwww" factor.
(I miss my sweet Moxie being that teeny!)

Friday, March 25, 2011

Happy 5 months, MK!

Our precious niece, Molly Kathryn, is 5 months today!

(thanks for the picture, Molly!)

Thursday, March 24, 2011

16 weeks!

Today is 16 weeks for baby Stoehr! It's hard to comprehend how fast time has gone by when you're waiting for your little one.



At 16 weeks:
  • baby is about the size of an avacado
  • baby can begin to hear sounds
  • gender can be established by this time (come on 4/21!)
  • eyebrows, eyelashes & hair are filling in

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Telling your fortune

Have you ever received a fortune cookie fortune that actually came true? Yeah, me neither. That is until a couple months ago. Brad and I were enjoying our traditional Christmas dinner with chinese food (funny/long story I'll explain later) and this was the fortune I had waiting for me:


I know how good God is to me and as silly as it sounds, this small piece of paper gave me peace in knowing our journey of growing our family was in good hands. Brad and I had been trying for over a year to have a baby and while we knew it would take some time due to some hurdles, it did get a bit discouraging at times. Little did we know that when I opened this fortune cookie, it would prove to be more of a confirmation more than a glimpse into our future.

I'm so excited to say that Brad and I are expecting our first baby this September and we couldn't be more over-the-moon to be parents. We're looking forward to this incredible journey and how it changes our lives for the better!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Pink & Green GIVEAWAY!

With spring right around the corner, who would love a splash of color in their life??? Better yet, a little pink and green to get you ready for the warm weather!


Becky at Sweet tea & Pearls is hosting a festive giveaway and it's super easy to enter: just check out her blog and ... don't forget to let her know you heard about this awesome opportunity from me! GOOD LUCK!


Birthdays galore!

It's the week of birthday celebrations!

Nate Paulson
Turned the big TWO on February 16!

Jackson Derry
Turning the big TWO on February 20!

And even though it's not her "birthday", Molly Kathryn will 4 months old next Friday... this cutie pie will be driving DRIVING before we know it!

Friday, February 11, 2011

TGI...T?


12/21/2012 = 30th birthday. LOL.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Super Bowl commercials, best & worst

Sad to say, but this year's Super Bowl ads got a big thumbs down from me. Nothing that had me rolling in the aisles like usual. However, there were a couple ones I thought stood out and have people all a buzz this morning:

BEST





WORST





Friday, February 4, 2011

Super Bowl XLV



Our Carolina Panthers couldn't be further from this year's Super Bowl *tear* but this is definitely one way to pick who I'd root for in this year's big game... she couldn't look happier with her decision!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Happy New Year! (I'm only a month late.)

Well, good-ness gracious. How is it already February 3rd and I'm just updating this??? Happy New Year, folks! I won't take up a lot of time jabbering about how busy I've been because pictures are a LOT more fun. Here's a recap from my last post:

We sure did. 29-7!


This year's trip to the Grove Park Inn with Horizon Investments was probably my favorite trip yet! Brad and I stayed an extra day and roamed around Asheville - what a beautiful city - and we establish friendships that I feel will last a lifetime. We're both so blessed to be a part of a great family like Horizon!


My friend Stacy's baby turned the big ONE so we went to Columbia to help celebrate! (Little did we know Stacy was secretly celebrating about something else, too - Emmie is going to be a big sister in July!)


Our neck of the woods saw a couple days of snow and we even had a couple snow days off work! It's been fun and all but we're ready for some warmer weather... let's hope Punxsutawney Phil is right!


Christmas was incredible as always (it IS my favorite holiday after all) and we really enjoyed some time off. We caught up with family, friends and Brad and I enjoyed a little unexpected time with each other. We typically travel on Christmas Eve but this year, we decided to stay home and travel Christmas day... it was so nice! We went to Christmas Eve service at church, drove around looking at neighborhood lights and kept up with our tradition of eating Chinese food for dinner. Call me silly but I think my fortune says a lot for the upcoming year:

Cheers!

Fundraising for this year's Relay For Life event has officially kicked off! I decided to up my goal this year to $1,500 since we did so well last year ($1,250). To say that support has been outstanding would be an understatement... a little over two weeks in and we're already at $1,280 (85%)! Any and all donations, no matter the amount, are always appreciated!



- - - - - - - -
 
I think that catches me up... for now.
 
Hope you are all enjoying the new year!