37 weeks!!

Today marks 37 weeks pregnant with Mr. Reed! I cannot believe we are getting so close to meeting him! Here we are (a couple of days before 37 weeks) in all our glory!

 

Ava wanted her picture taken too! 

Friday my boss hosted a baby shower for me at work! It was at a local restaurant and several of my sweet co-workers came to shower Reed and me! It was a wonderful time and I’m SO thankful and blessed to work with people who truly care about one another. Everyone is just as excited as we are to meet Reed and have been so great and I’m grateful to work with such wonderful friends!

The YUMMY cake!

We got so many sweet things – our diaper bag, a bouncy seat, blankets, clothes, and other things we needed! I cannot wait to see my two babies together in these! 

Ava LOVED going through all of the goodies we received for Reed and was so excited to see them and put them away! She liked the toys and one gift she had to try out for herself was this adorable blanket! 

I went to the doctor on Thursday and have made some slight progression. I was thankful it wasn’t more as I still want to go just a bit longer. Besides swelling in my feet, I have really felt pretty great and am shocked I have felt this good this far. I’m very thankful. My doctor said that at my appointment this week, we can discuss an induction date if we so desire for sometime after 39 weeks. So, I guess we’ll see what report we get on Thursday and then make our decision before we leave his office. It’s crazy to think that we could be meeting this little boy in two weeks!!!!!!! Or sooner, I guess if he decides he’s ready! I’m so excited and also a little nervous. I know it will all be just fine but I’ve been feeling a lot overwhelmed and majorly underprepared. I feel better after this weekend and need to take care of just a few more things and then hopefully we’ll have all done that we need to! I’m amazed at how quickly this pregnancy has gone. We have a little quieter week this week and I’m looking forward to getting some rest after work! Hope you all have a great week!

Leslie and Stephen’s Rehearsal

I don’t have many photos from my rehearsal so I wanted to take some for Stephen and Leslie so they’d be able to have some memories from the night before their wedding! Here’s a few photos from the rehearsal!!!

Aunt Stephanie with her babies 

Bride’s family

Groom’s family

Flower girl and ring bearer cuteness!

Here comes the bride!!!  

And a preview of the cuteness to come in the wedding post! :)

How Ava spent her birthday!

We had a lot of fun celebrating Ava’s birthday on Monday! She woke up and I asked her how old she was and she said “I three!!!” After hearing “I be three on my birthday” we weren’t sure how she’d answer it! :)

Since she was born on a Friday, we’ve gotten to spend her first two birthdays with her all day. This was the first year we had to go to work and school and I was a little bummed but I think she had a good day!

I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast and since she was all about candles this year, we stuck one in it! She enjoyed that! Birthday girl and mommy!

Sassy birthday girl!!!!!!    

I work literally less than a minute from Ava’s school so I took a break and took treats to her class at snack time. Those little kids were all so cute saying thank you for their cookies before they even got them! Ava was sweet and yelled out “thank you for the cookies mommy!” while I was passing them out. So cute.

Excited when mommy got to her school!!! Her daddy picked her up for school and took her to get a Sonic drink! He had a school function that night that he couldn’t miss so they spent some time together before it. I picked her up from him and we had dinner with my mom.

After her daddy got home, we had a few presents from friends for her to open as well as some cupcakes. She has been so excited about everything birthday this year and it was fun to watch her enthusiasm!!! Opening up a gift from our sweet friends Kristy, Keira, and Kinley! Thanks girls!!! Can’t wait for her to wear it!!! :) Birthday girl and daddy!!!

I would say this girl had a great 3rd birthday!!! :) This is it for the birthday posts!!!!

Lots of things to update about soon. Of course there is the wedding which will be coming soon. I want to give the bride a chance to post some pictures herself first and she’s on her honeymoon! I will share some photos of the rehearsal and dinner soon, though! I also need to do some updates on Reed. I go to the dr tomorrow and expect to be checked for progress. I’m curious to see if my body is getting us ready. Friday is my baby shower at work so I’m sure there will be pictures from that too! I am hopeful for a very restful weekend after the crazy ones we have had. Hopefully there will be no baby arrival just yet! Hope you are all having a good week!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Ava!!!!!

“Now you're my whole life,now you're my whole world
I just can't believe the way I feel about you, girl. 
Like a river meets the sea,
stronger than it's ever been. We've come so far since that day
And I thought I loved you then.”

(Then – Brad Paisley)

Dear sweet Ava,

Three years ago I thought that my heart could never hold any more love than it did the day you were born. I could not have been more wrong! Each day I find something about you that makes me love you even more. Some days I feel like my heart could burst because it’s so full of love for you, sweet girl!It has made your mommy’s heart hurt thinking about how quickly these 3 years have gone and how quickly you are growing up. You have made the last 3 years so memorable. We are SO lucky to be your parents. I could not be a more proud mommy. You are learning so many new things every day and I sometimes can’t believe all that your little mind can say and do.To this day, you are still very strong-willed and stubborn. You know exactly what you want, how you want it, and how you want to do it. You have never been an easy child, and some days I wondered (and still wonder) how we would ever survive! But I believe those traits that make you that way are traits that will be to your benefit as you grow older and I pray that you will use them to be a strong woman. You mean the world to us, Ava. Every day with you is an adventure and you are loved more than you will ever know. We pray that you have a life full of love and happiness. Trials and hurdles will be inevitable but we pray that you will always turn to Jesus and to us in those times. We know your future is bright and full of unlimited possibilities and we can’t wait to see what the next year, and the years after that bring for you. Thank you for making us so happy and for being a bright light in our lives. Even on my worst days, they seem a little better when you want to give me a “big kiss” or you ask if mommy is ok. Your sweet heart is one of the things I love the most about you. We love you so much and are so proud of the little girl you are! I could never have imagined I would have such a sassy and spunky daughter and I love you just the way you are! Happy 3rd birthday, precious girl! Love, Mommy

Ava's 3rd Birthday party!!

I don’t think I can convey in words how excited Ava was about her birthday party! I took a little video of her before her party and thought she was pretty cute!

We always have family birthday celebrations! A few weeks before her birthday, Ava asked me if my cousin Caroline (4 weeks older than Ava) could come to her party. Then this week, she asked if the other kids (my other younger girl cousins) could come so it ended up being quite the party!

Zach’s mom, sister, and grandma came down for the party and we got to spend some time with them before the party. They came with gifts for Ava and it wasn’t long before she was going through it all. She got lots of treasures and was a happy kiddo!

Since we had a large crowd, we had the party at my parents’ house. Ava had a wonderful time. She was a little social butterfly and after we had lunch, she came to ask me several times if it was time to do presents! She was happy when I finally said it was time!    

Over the past few months, she has changed her mind many times about what kind of party and cake she wanted. I think she had about 5 different types at one point. We settled on Tinkerbell!

Not so sure about everyone singing to her!!

But definitely into blowing out the candles!!! :)

I would say she had a wonderful birthday, and her birthday hasn’t even come yet! Her actual birthday is Monday!

On Friday, we are off to my brother’s wedding! I could not be more excited for Stephen to marry Leslie! When I posted about Stephen a little over a year ago, I never imagined he would meet his wife through it! There is no one more suited for him than Leslie and I can’t wait to be there to celebrate them becoming husband and wife!

So, until then….