Thursday, August 25, 2011

showering annabelle.

Two weeks ago we made the drive to Texas so that we could attend a baby shower for sweet Annabelle. The shower was at my parents house and was hosted by my mom, my sister and two of my very best girlfriends.  We had an amazing turnout of friends and family. I am still completely overwhelmed that so many people were able to celebrate with us and am so thankful for the love and support from each of them. 

Every detail of the shower was perfect and unbelievably thoughtful, starting with the cute welcome banner!


My sister had the vintage flash cards (hanging on the glass doors) specially made with all sorts of 'baby' words. We used a book of children's poems for the sign-in. I thought it would be sweet to have all of the guests sign their names in a book that we could read to Annabelle each night.

The birthday cards in the bottom right corner of this collage are probably my favorite detail from the shower. Jennifer made cards for each of Annabelle's birthdays from 1-30 and each guest chose one to fill out. The notes on these cards are priceless! Many of my high school and college friends chose ages that coincided with when we met and shared memories that we have together. Some people shared special birthday wishes and prayers for Annabelle as she celebrates each age. My best friends both offered to take her out for margaritas in about 25 years! I think these will be so special to give to hear on each birthday. Such a thoughtful, amazing gift!

Across from the sign-in table were party favors and our one shower game. The ladies had to guess the size of my baby belly in order to try and win a prize. The guests had lots of time to do this while everyone arrived and while we ate so it was the perfect activity. The favors that Jennifer found were amazing! Each guest received a bottle of OPI nail polish in 'It's a Girl!' and they were wrapped up with the cutest tags. What girl wouldn't get excited over a free bottle of sweet pink polish?


The invitations were adorable and the cake coordinated perfectly! The cake was made by Edible Designs by Jessie. Jessie made mine and Jennifer's wedding cakes and also made Jennifer's bridal shower cake. Jennifer also covered the dining room light fixture with the cutest assortment of poms and paper lanterns. 


The food was incredible! We dined on chicken salad croissants (thanks Sara and Ms. Susan!), salad, fresh fruit and other tasty treats. Meredith made the darling diaper cake which is now on display in Annabelle's room.


Candy coated popcorn was given out to each winner of the game. The shower was on August 14th which happens to be my mom's birthday and Sara's grandma's birthday. There were two extra bags of popcorn for the birthday girls. {I told you that every detail was filled with thoughtfulness!}


The hostesses of the lovely shower. 
{Sara, Meredith and Jennifer}

 I have been friends with these girls since middle school. I am so thankful that we can all still catch up and celebrate each other after all these years!
{Jessie, Nicole, moi, Sara and Heidi}


My two favorite ladies in the whole world. Annabelle is a very lucky lady to have these women in her life!

And the best shot of the day! My dad had to take this picture from our staircase just to get everyone in it. I love this picture so much and think it will need a very special place on Annabelle's bookshelf. She is such a blessed little girl to already be so loved by such a wonderful group of people. 


Thank you again to everyone who took the time to celebrate with us! We received the sweetest, most wonderful gifts for this little girl and are very thankful for the generosity of our loved ones. 

And a very big thank you to my mom and the girls for putting so much time and effort into creating such a perfect shower for Annabelle!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

one year.

One year ago today we were celebrating the marriage of my big sister, Jennifer, and her wonderful groom, Jason. It was a beautiful day filled with wonderful people and an amazing couple. 

{photo courtesy of the fabulous Ashley K Photography}

Happy first anniversary, Jennifer and Jason! Cheers to year number two and all of the crazy adventures that it is sure to bring! Big hugs and lots of love to you both!


Saturday, August 20, 2011

weeks 27, 28, 29, 30.

Once again I got a wee bit behind on the old updates. I wanted to go ahead and include the 'best moment' info for each week as well as the pictures (except for the one week I missed). I just want to be sure that I don't forget the fun things that stood out for each week in baby-world. 


Week 27
Best Moment this week: The highlight of week 27 was getting to spend time with my sister in DC. As usual, we had the best time together. We added a few new stores to our usual shopping rotation since we now have a little lady to spoil. It was so fun to browse baby clothes and (very stylish!) diaper bags with Annabelle's Aunt Jenn. 


Week 28
Best Moment this week: One of the most fun parts of week 28 was a trip that Kyle and I took to do some Annabelle shopping. We stopped by a huge sale at Carter's and picked up a few precious little sleepers for Annabelle. Want to see the cutest thing in the world? Watch a 25 year old guy pick out pink onesies for his baby girl. I think Kyle picked out most of the the outfits we ended up buying. I never knew it, but he has really great taste when it comes to baby girl clothes. 


Week 29
Best Moment this week: I don't have a picture from week 29 so imagine a bump a little bigger than week 28 and a little smaller than week 30. We had a doctor's appointment this week and were thrilled to hear that Annabelle is doing well! I had my glucose test at this appointment and as my amazing nurse Patrice told me, I passed with flying colors. We also drove to Texas this week. Our time in Texas was fantastic. The drive to Texas was, in a word, rough. 29 weeks pregnant + 12.5 hours in the car is just not a recipe for a good time.

And finally, week 30! That's right, 30 weeks. Meaning we only have 10 weeks left. Holy smokes!

Size of baby: Annabelle is the size of a cabbage! She weighs around 3 pounds and is between 15 and 16 inches long. I am just amazed at how big she is growing!
Maternity Clothes: I am pretty much wearing 100% maternity. I have a few non-maternity tops that I can still wear and one or two non-maternity tops that I bought in larger sizes. Other than that, it's pretty much all maternity, all the time. 
Gender: It's a girl! Annabelle Rae Krueger
Movement: She is moving a lot! In the last few weeks I've started feeling her wiggle around a lot more, before I had mostly just been feeling her kicks. It is so amazing to feel her wiggle and switch positions. I feel like her kicks are so dainty which makes me smile. She has also started positioning herself in ways that are less than comfortable for her momma. I've started feeling little limbs jab me in the ribs, sweet girl just doesn't know that it isn't the greatest feeling.
Sleep: Oh my, sleep is just a tricky thing these days. Last night I slept wonderfully but the night before last was brutal. I was awake from 3:00-5:00 in the morning and was uncomfortable all night. I made the mistake of falling asleep without my pregnancy pillow a few nights ago and felt awful the next day. My stomach muscles were sore, my back was aching and I just felt terrible. I haven't made that mistake again and now sleep with an extra pillow for some additional support.
What I miss: At my last appointment, my doctor told me that I would feel uncomfortable from here on out. She was not lying and I am definitely started to feel big and uncomfortable. I miss being able to roll over easily in bed and sit comfortably on the couch. 
Cravings: I haven't had any lately, at least not that I can remember. I am still drinking lots of water every day. 
Symptoms: I get exhausted really easily these days. Kyle and I went shopping at the outlet mall yesterday and it completely wore me out. I woke up today and was having some round ligament pains (at least that's what I think they are). Lately I have started getting them on the day following a busy day of being on my feet. 
Best Moment this week: My first baby shower was last Sunday and it was an absolutely perfect day! We had a wonderful group of friends and family get together to celebrate our baby girl and shower her with the most thoughtful, generous gifts. My sister, mom and two of my best friends put so much thought and love into the day. I have loads of pictures to share and will post those this week. 

And here I am, in all my 30 week glory...


{I am wearing a J. Crew top in this picture. I have loved it during this whole pregnancy but have a feeling this photo documents my last time to wear it for quite a while. I barely squeezed that belly in there!}