Jingle Bells Jingle Bells!

Yay! The Holidays are here!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Grant had to work overnight last night, and therefore sleep all day to rest up, so we didn't get to visit our Skelton side of the family. He did wake me up when he got home Thurs. morning though and we had a Thanksgiving breakfast together at Cracker Barrell haha. I went to Grandad's, we had most of the crew there and had a great time hanging out and eating too much. Well...and watching the Cowboys win!I had my first experience of having my belly continuously rubbed throughout the day. At least family made the first move and not a stranger in line at the grocery store or something! My mom's lil' hometown of Cassville, MO is going to the State Football Championship again this year so spirits were high as everyone is packing up and heading towards the dome in St Louis for the big game this weekend.

Got up this morning at 3:30am and hit the Wal-Mart blitz. We found lots of great stuff for the neice and nephews and a few things for others. Also snagged a 1-2-3 Lights and Sounds ball for Baby Skelton! It's the first toy we've bought (insert "awww" here). Luckily I got off work early, so now I'm home doing some serious damage to the soon-to-be nursery. Wheew it's time to get busy!

Oh...here is the most recent belly pic. Somedays it seems bigger, somedays not so much. But baby is definitely growing!

17 Weeks

Well if you follow my facebook you've seen a countdown for the last few days. Our ultrasound is Dec. 7th so today we're down to 10 DAYS! We're sooo ready to see the baby! I can't wait to see Grant's face!! I think we're starting to feel pretty confident that it's a boy (especially Grant!). But at the same time, I dunno, we'll see! Still feeling great minus a couple days of awful pain, the nurse said they were 'round ligament' pains and are normal, mine were just more severe than some. Doing good now though :)

We went out to the farm a couple weekends ago and stayed with Mom & Dad Skelton. Jim & Grant worked on the crib while I stained some of the finished pieces. Wow! It's amazing. I can't wait to see it all finished! I'll post some pics soon now that it's coming together.

I took some pictures of our niece, Trynity, and our nephews, Tryston and James playing in a pile of leaves. They are just too cute!

James

Tryston & Trynity

Well back to working on the 'nursery' (I have to quit calling it the office!).

Time to start putting up Christmas decorations!

Go Hogs & Cassville Wilcats!

Love - G&B + 1

And the Dr. said....

We had our 3rd appt today with Dr. Hix (last time was with Gorman). We've liked both so far. It was suggested we meet with different doctors since which Dr. delivers really depends on who's on call. Today we got to hear the baby's heartbeat again! Last visit it was 160bpm, this time the heartbeat was 150bpm. We opted out of the amniocentesis (AFT) testing. Everything is going well and the Dr. doesn't have any concerns. Dr. Hix also said I might start to feel the baby's movements between now and then. We were very excited about today because they were supposed to schedule our first ultrasound...and...the big day is Monday, Dec. 7th at 3:30 pm with Dr. Bailey. So we're counting down the 4 weeks until we get to see our baby for the first time and hopefully tell if we're having a boy or girl!! On that note we have settled on first names...drum roll please....... If we have a girl we're naming her Reese. And if a boy, then Grahm/Graham. Middle names are still very much in the works :)

14 week 'baby bump'

We did some heavy duty cleaning this weekend. We started cleaning out the nursery to-be, which we previously used as an office, not realizing how much STUFF we have to find places for. So we first had to clean out other closets and areas to move stuff into. It's going to be a tight squeeze, I think some call that cozy right? lol.

We also went to the Hogs game with Trent and Naomi and then to Devil's Den with family. It was a fun weekend! Our baby is gonna know how to call the Hogs!!!

Oh and Mom Skelton...you were right...I ran into a door knob Saturday night. It's funny now because it doesn't hurt as bad. But I thought I broke my arm there for a bit (that wasn't so funny). I've gotta watch out for those walls and doors, they are starting to jump out there and bite me!

Well, before we sign off for tonight. Please enjoy a picture at our expense, haha. Again we have a sense of humor...here's a picture of Grant and I, I mean...Mario and Yoshi at Halloween.

Goodnight & Go Hogs!

Love,

G&B

November Already?!

The last couple of months disappeared! It's hard to believe it's already November. Not that we can tell by the weather...hot, cold, rain, shine...that's Arkansas!
Just a few updates on the Skelton family...
We have our next appointment on Monday Nov. 9th. Mainly just optional tests and our favorite part...we get to hear the heartbeat again! We're most excited about scheduling our ultra sound this visit. We should know Monday when we'll get to see our lil' "midgee" for the first time and also when we'll find out what we're having!!
We'll be 15 weeks this Sunday and I've still gone without any sickness! The only 'issue' I've had is sleeping comfortably without waking up a lot throughout the night. I have developed a craving and unfortunately a very unhealthy one...McD's french fries. Yep...of all things. I've always loved pickles, but now they sound even more delicious - Grant even brought me one to work on his way out to the farm today! He's so funny - love it. Salty stuff....yumm!
Grant has been out working on the crib with Jim. He's loving the time he gets to spend with his dad and work on such a special project. When it starts coming together we'll post some pictures of the progress. Jim really has a special talent for woodworking. I get to see some of the furniture pieces he and Wayne create and they are amazing!
We wanted to post a few more of the fall pictures we had taken in Oct. Shout out to Colter for a great job (his info below if you're needing pics done!).

Good night everyone! Woo Pig Sooie!

Colter Barron Photography - colterbarron@hotmail.com or (419).409.8393.

12 weeks!!

As of yesterday, we are officially 12 weeks along! We read that the baby is about the size of a lime and is developing reflexes this week. It also says that if we push on my abdomen the baby will move in response (although I wouldn't feel it) but how cool! I'm starting to get some energy back which is great, there for a while I was feeling a bit comatose. That energy will be much needed as I finish up the masters program this winter. Two nights a week, 6-10pm - yuck! But hey, after 6 1/2 straight years of college, 2 more months is nothing to complain about!
Grant is going to start moving furniture out of the 'office' tomorrow and we'll slowly start to convert from office to nursery. He's awesome...just sayin'. Finding places for everything currently in the office is going to be interesting. No one told us that one of the symptoms of pregnancy is a shrinking house. We'll figure it out :)
Ok well we're posting the first 'baby bump' picture for 12 weeks. It just popped out of no where in the last week! (You can see Bella pawing at me to pick her up lol). If Grant develops a sympathy bump, I'll make sure and post that too. Ha!

Well...Look closely - he/she is saying hello!

Grant and I spent some time at UofA campus yesterday and decided to finally go find my name in the Senior Walk. We snapped these photos with Grant's phone - not too shabby!

Old Main at UofA Campus
Brittney Ann Skelton on 2008 Graduating Class Senior Walk
2008 Senior Walk

We also had some Fall pictures taken yesterday at campus. It was a gorgeous day for pictures and Colter did a great job! Here are a few of the un-edited pictures we he gave us today (a bit more professional than our camera phone!)

A quick picture of our little growing 'plus one'

Had to get a picture with Jax and Bella

Trivia:

What does a wife do when she asks her husband for toilet paper because there are only 2 squares left on the roll and his response is "fold it"?
Answer: Wait a few minutes later when he's in the shower getting ready for work and steal the towels. Try folding that.

Hehe...ok well it was funny at the time :)

Go Hogs...gave a good fight against Florida. Let's beat Ole Miss!

Lub-dub...lub-dub...

We just got back from our second appointment. We got a little nervous when the Dr. said the heartbeat can only be heard 1 out of 3 times. But we immediately heard the heartbeat!! He just looked at us for a few seconds waiting for a reaction...we didn't know what we were hearing haha. Once he confirmed it was the baby's heartbeat he got the reaction he was looking for. So exciting! OH! And he said the heartbeat was about 160 beats/minute. The old wives tale says anything over 140 beats/min is a girl - we'll see! For those who know about my surgery when I was little, the Dr. said the scar on my stomach shouldn't cause any complications. Everything went well and we will go back on Nov. 9th. We'll be 12 weeks this Sunday. Wheew - exciting!
Grant and Jim started on the crib this week. They are using red oak with red mahagony stain, it's going to be so beautiful!

Ok well we're off to our cell groups! More updates soon.

Psalm 139:13-18
"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!"

This kind..or these...or those?!

Grant and I got our halloween costumes today at Spirit Express. We saw the perfect teal and brown stroller as I was going into the dressing room to try on my kids large Yoshi jumpsuit and dino hat (you see I'm a midget of sorts, or 'midgee' as my co-workers call me). Ok, what's funny here is you think I'm kiding. Yes, the stroller was perfect. And you bet I'm going to be Yoshi for halloween, and Grant Mario. Don't laugh. No really, please do. Could two people without a sense of humor honestly dress up as Mario characters?
We've been hearing some great advice and stories from parents (or aunts, grandmas, etc...) with children from newborns up to college students. One of the most common things we hear is "start stocking up on diapers now!". We can look at diapers all day, read the packages, etc...but let's be honest, we don't have a clue! We'd like to get a head start on diaper buying and would love to hear what brand/s are prefered by our friends and family. Check out the poll at the bottom of the page and vote for your favorite brand.

Thankful for the Hogs finally stepping up their defense and whooping Auburn. Go Hogs!

Wheew...Finally!

With the help of a couple experienced bloggers we finally got this set up and ready to go (thanks Emily & Alicia)! We're excited to have a place to keep everyone updated on the big events in our lives. As most know by now, we found out a few days before Labor Day that we're expecting our first baby! We had our first appointment on September 15th...set up finances (oh yes, fun indeed), did blood work (more fun!), filled out paperwork, and asked lots of questions. We will be 11 weeks this Sunday and have our second appointment on Wednesday, Oct. 14th. We've yet to hear, see, or feel (other than my increasing waistline) the baby so this is going to be a big day when we finally get to hear the heartbeat! It's hard to believe that the first trimester is almost over already. The due date we've been given at this point is May 3rd! We've starting picking names, colors, furniture and even names for the grandparents (although G.G., Papa Lew, GDad, and MeeMaw Skelton are good to go already from our niece and nephews!). Grant and Gdad (Grant's dad, Jim) have talked about building the furniture themselves as Jim has become quite the woodworker and what an amazing keepsake that would be from Daddy and Gdad. (Ok...ok...I'm having a moment, that's the first time I've actually typed 'Daddy' in reference to Grant). Hmm..what else do people want to know. Oh! Nope...no morning sickness! There are probably a few mom's growling at me right now, but I've been very blessed to feel great so far. The only big issues have been fatigue and my new superhuman ability to be excessively clumbsy. Especially with food. Assuming the food actually makes it to a table without me dropping it, my hand seems to have miraculously forgotten how to get it into my mouth as it generally ends up on cheek, chin, lap or floor.
Well that's it for now! More updates to come. Thanks everyone for all the prayers, congratulations, and support.

Goodnight and Go Hogs! Beat Auburn!