She's Here

Nancy Hope

April 24, 2015 | 7:53 PM | 7 lbs 6 oz | 21 inches

Our world is forever changed. One week ago today was the happiest day of our lives. We welcomed our daughter into the world. These past days have easily been the most fulfilling of my life. I look forward to sharing more with y'all next week! More importantly, I wanted to write a quick post to thank you so dearly for sharing in our joy. We have been overwhelmed with love. The calls, texts, comments, emails, gifts...goodness gracious. (And thank you for bearing with me as I flood your Instagrams with pictures this new little life.) So from the bottom of my heart...thank you, thank you, thank you.

Images by Cameron Faye Photography (Nancy was about 15 hours old) :)
Headband c/o Willow Crowns

Pregnancy | 40 Weeks

How Far Along: 40 weeks! Due date was 4/21. I made it.

Size of Baby: A watermelon/pumpkin/FULL GROWN BABY!...anywhere from 6-9lbs and 19-22"

Gender: Our little girl, Nancy Hope Houston

Movement: Still moving just not as much. She's crowded in there. When she sticks that booty out on my right side for a long period of time, it hurts.

Weight Gain: Much to my surprise (and delight, honestly), I lost a pound this week bringing me in at +38. 

Sleep: Snoring less (woohoo!) with the washing away of much of the pollen. Hubby is very thankful. I am up all the time at night for the tinkle breaks though. Still have zero trouble falling back asleep. (But my mama will tell you, I've always been her child that loves sleep the most.)

We woke up like this one morning. Not unusual, but love when Tina uses the pillow like a human. And the paw on her dad...we could not handle her cuteness. And today (4/21 as I'm writing this), my due date, is her birthday! Happy 6th birthday to our tiny little tina pup!!!!!! 

Workouts: Hilliard Studio Method x 7. I wanted to go out with a bang. (So come on, Nancy!)

I also went on a 3.5 mile walk yesterday and a shorter walk after dinner the night before that. Trying to "walk the baby out." (It's not working.)

#Superstar #HSM #MamasToBe! From left to right: Grandmother-to-be Beth Davis who is Mama to @cheersyall_elise, due tomorrow, and @tlhackney, second time mama due in the next two weeks! These #PowerfulWomen are amazing! #love #family #fitfam #health #wellness #healthypregnancy #HilliardStudioMethod #HSMPowerfulPregnancy #core #cardio #pilates #prenatalworkout #barre #workout #workoutvideo #inspiration #healthybaby #SeeThatShake?!

A video posted by Hilliard Studio Method (@hilliardstudiomethod) on Apr 20, 2015 at 5:50pm PDT

HSM Instagram 
39w6d at HSM -- so thankful to be able to work out through my whole pregnancy. It seriously makes me feel sane. The endorphin release is real.

Maternity Clothes: Continued mixing and matching for spring. Trying to give my maternity clothes one last rendezvous though before I pack them away for a couple years! :)

Symptoms: Same things: The grunting when flipping from one side to the other at night. The urge to not want to pick up something off of the ground. Pressure on my pubic bone. And especially SO MANY bathroom breaks day and night. Oh, and I finally experienced my first Braxton Hicks. 

As of my last doctor's appointment on Friday, I was 1.5cm and 80-90% effaced.

Cravings/Aversions: No. I enjoyed an indulgent afternoon snack with my Mimi the other day though. We spent much of the day together just one-on-one. So special to soak up time with that precious woman!

Sunflour Baking Company - if you're in CLT, go here!

My blondie cupcake and dirty (1/2 dark choc 1/2 white choc syrup) half calf coffee were out of this world.

Also I had this for lunch and dinner yesterday.

Missing Most: ?! I'm ready to meet this girl!!! I know I'll miss our first baby when I'm in the hospital. We celebrated her 6th birthday yesterday with a trip to the toy store (AKA Pets Mart). Mark and I are anticipating the dynamic of the Tina/Nancy relationship...

Tiny tina the birthday beana!

Nursery: Nonexistent :)

Hubby: Installed the car seat bases. Treated me to a gorgeous push present. And for the past few days has left the house for work telling me to try to go into labor. (Ha!) He talks to her and says, "Come on, Nancy! We're all ready to meet you!!!"  I am enjoying the many texts throughout the day asking if anything is happening. All of the family is excited and ready to meet our Nancy, but no one is as pumped and ready as her daddy. 

Best Part of the Week: Our (Maybe?) Last Weekend Pre-Nancy

[Link to Post]

Can't Wait For: My doctor's appointment tomorrow. Meeting our baby girl. Cannot wait to kiss that face!!!! So soon. Come on, baby!

Our Announcement | Weeks 4-12  | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Weeks 19 and 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23 | Week 24 and 25 | Week 26 | Week 27 | Week 28 | Week 29 | Week 30 | Week 31 | Week 32 | Week 33 | Nancy's Fancy Tea Party | Week 34 | Week 35 | Moved + Nested |  Week 36 | Week 37 | Week 38 | Week 39 | Week 40

(Maybe?) Our Last Weekend Pre-Nancy

Only the good Lord knows if this truly was our last weekend pre-Nancy or not. I very well could go 41+ weeks. Who knows! But just in case...we treated it as our last "just us" weekend. Regardless, I'm so glad we did because it sure was lovely!

FRIDAY

Marky got off work a little early, and I met him at Diamonds Direct to pick out a push present (and take advantage of their twice a year 20% off sale). Perfect timing, right?! The store was jam packed...straight up bumpin' before 5pm with catered food, drinks, decorations everywhere, and a 45 minute wait list. We wound up waiting over 45 minutes to be seen, but we just sat on the couch and happily chatted. Our patience paid off (literally) because we got an extra 5% off for it! Cheers to that!

I knew I wanted another band that looked completely different from my wedding band, as this one is for a different occasion. I wound up picking the same band Mark had chosen for me during his lunch break. I like that we both decided on the same thing without even meaning to do so -- that made it even more special. Also - diamonds are Nancy's birthstone, sooo... ;) Fancy Nancy indeed.

39 weeks 3 Days 

My sista snapped this family picture for us before we headed out on the town. I wore an old Susana Monaco dress of my mama's...Susana Monaco is great for pregnancy. Mark looked so handsome. Loved his outfit that he picked out by himself. Well done, hubby! Yow! :) Tina, per usual, looked quite pupalicous.

For dinner we headed to one of our most favorite Charlotte restaurants (that was also the venue of our rehearsal dinner!), Dressler's. We opted to sit outside and enjoy the band, crisp, cool air, and skyline view of our home. [CLT folks - There is an awesome Living Social deal going on there right now! Snag it!]

Jam band + Dressler's patio view

Home sweet home, Charlotte, North Carolina

The living social deal allowed us to order 2 apps, 1 shared salad, 2 entrees, and 1 dessert. We had every intention of eating all of the food, but we both made it home with to go boxes. There was just too much goodness. :) We ordered thai peanut calamari, crab dip, the "wedgie" salad, NY strip with fries, duck (random, but I went for it!) with the best mac & cheese I've ever tasted, and key lime pie. Man, oh man. 

Cheers to this hot Daddy-to-be!

SATURDAY

We didn't sleep most of that night. Mom's AC was out upstairs, and I was up almost every hour with a tiny puppy crying and scratching her ear (and prepping me for baby, I know). Our baby girl pup got her first ear infection. I took her to the vet as soon as it opened on Saturday morning. I was so thankful that this happened before Nancy's arrival so I could give our first baby all of the mama loving and snuggles she deserved. Apparently pups can grow into allergies? Amelia has never had them before, and now she has some medicine for hear ear and steroids. Bless her tinypup heart!

Sick puppy in the kitchen. Broke my heart!

 Sadpup snuggles with Daddy. She was pitiful. Our sweet first baby!

We spent much of the day with our sick little pup. Marky and I installed the car seat bases in our cars, so we are ready to bring Nancy home from the hospital. (Crazy! That was a very "this is real" feeling moment.) I also managed to make a mani-pedi date with my mommy and sissy happen. I'm not one to splurge on my nails--I'm the gal who prefers to save the bucks and paint them myself--but I decided that this was a pretty darn special occasion. :) Us three Davis girls had a grand time together. I chose neon pink for Nancy's arrival.

SUNDAY

Since we made it to church on Saturday night, Sunday was perfectly lazy. I did manage to squeeze in a 9:30 workout at Hilliard because it's my favorite class -- bands & gams. I just love it. And then the rain led me to Starbucks afterwards...

Cheers to a rainy, rainy, rainy day of rest and relaxation! Just what the Sabbath is for!!

And now, we wait. Tomorrow is my due date, but homegirl has consistently measured about 4 days behind through my entire pregnancy. Maybe she'll come sometime this week. Maybe next weekend. Maybe on Hopey's bday! And, goodness knows, maybe I'll hit 41 weeks. Time will tell. Stay tuned! Until then...we're bursting at the seams knowing we get to meet our baby girl face to face SO STINKIN' SOON!!! Mark keeps saying, "Hurry up, Nancy. We're all ready to meet you!" There is wonderful joy ahead indeed...God is good. He is so, so good!

Pregnancy | Week 39

How Far Along: 39 weeks -- I have an inkling that I'll be writing one next week as well at 40 weeks. No Braxton Hicks, no contractions...just a satisfied Nancy that appears to want to stay put. :)

Size of Baby: Oh, ya know, just a WATERMELON!!!! 7-8 lbs and 19-21" long
 

Gender: Our little girl, Nancy Hope Houston

Movement: Did you SEE the video I put on Instagram? Phew! Yes. Movement. Lots. I love it, and I know I will miss it SO much SO soon.

Weight Gain: 39lbs in 39 weeks. Owning it. I've done it as healthily as I know how, so I'm just letting it be!

Sleep: Bless my sweet hubby. This morning he told me encouragingly, "You only woke me up 3x last night!" Eeek. The snoring, y'all. Never have I ever snored pre-pregnancy. But with CLT pollen + a watermelon baby on my organs, it's out of control. So hubby waking me up 3x a night minimally plus at least 3x a night bathroom breaks...which means a lot of broken up sleep. Good practice. And despite all that, I still am sleeping like a baby. Falling back asleep is no problem. Aaaand I might be finding myself taking a power nap in the afternoon hours. People keep saying to me, "Sleep! Because you never will again!" I'm like...okay! Twist my arm! Sign me up for that afternoon 30 min nap!

Workouts: Hilliard Studio Method x 6. Boom. 

Maternity Clothes: Same...still mixing and matching with flowy spring things! Favorite thing I wore this week? This dress of my mom's...before she gets it altered and I won't be able to wear it anymore without lookin' like a fool...#tallestdaughterprobs.

Speaking of #tallestdaughterprobs, I wore an old "dress" of my sister's as a shirt for our maternity shoot paired with the Hue jeggings I wrote about last week!

Maternity Pics

Symptoms: Still the need to have my feet up. Just feels so much better. The snoring. The grunting when flipping from one side to the other at night. The urge to not want to pick up something off of the ground. Pressure on my pubic bone. And tinkling Lord knows how many times a day/night.

Also I am still 1cm but now 60% effaced. The doc checks for progress again at my appointment on Friday!

Cravings/Aversions: Nope. Into my rhythm/routine here at mom's of lemon water + a banana before working out every morning. Then my green smoothie and a protein bar afterwards. My favorite lunch (as you might've read about on Friday's post!) is this:

Steve Sandwich (add cukes this time) from Laurel Market. 

Down it with a local Lenny Boy?! HEEEAAAVVEEENNNN.

Missing Most: Still going on walks. It's just not fun/worth it with all the downward pressure from baby and a softening and widening pubic bone (cute, right?! ;)). But I suppose with the current pollen and cankerworm downpours here in Charlotte (if you know CLT, you know these troubles...), it's actually a good time to miss out. Hello, silver lining.

Nursery: Is this precisely:

Our little family in Hope's room at mom's house. :)

I snapped this pic because we were hoping Tina was practicing watching over the baby.

Hubby: Has been making me laugh so much this week that there was a close call of me not making it to the bathroom. He bought a selfie stick for himself off of Amazon Prime. Why? He says it's for the delivery room...that he'll stay up by my head, and the selfie stick can capture everything else. He kills me. Oh, and the moment that almost caused an accident involved his selfie stick recreation of this vine video. (Also - great song. I love a good Mariah throwback.)

Practicing his selfie stick skillz...

Dress from Forever 21

Best Part of the Week: See hilarious hubby moments above. And, in general, the insane amount of family time is just a part of life now. We are so, so fortunate to be back here.

I also really enjoyed and appreciated meeting Nancy's pediatrician this week. Nancy will go to the same practice that my brother, sister, and I all grew up attending. It was a full circle moment when I walked in. My family has been going there for so long that one of the nurses recognized me and remembered exactly who I was! How cool and amazing is that?! (I was super impressed.) Feels so, so good to be back in my hometown.

Can't Wait For: Going on walks with Nancy in her stroller. Watching Mark and Nancy meet and interact.

Our Announcement | Weeks 4-12  | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Weeks 19 and 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23 | Week 24 and 25 | Week 26 | Week 27 | Week 28 | Week 29 | Week 30 | Week 31 | Week 32 | Week 33 | Nancy's Fancy Tea Party | Week 34 | Week 35 | Moved + Nested |  Week 36 | Week 37 | Week 38 | Week 39

Maternity Photos

I knew I wanted to capture these last moments of Marky and me as just...Marky and me...before we're "mommy" and "daddy" forever. But I knew I didn't want anything fancy either. (We'll save that for the newborn photos with Nancy. ;)) So I recruited my sister as photog, grabbed the camera Mark bought me for Christmas, and together we spent about twenty minutes snapping some pictures at one of our family's most treasured locations--my grandparents' farm in Waxhaw, NC. Easy peasy. We were headed out there for a dinner date with them anyhow! Amidst the quality time, homemade crab cakes, and Mimi's famous banana pudding that I so adore, this little "photo shoot" in the mix of that evening shall forever capture our final days as just us. 

Nancy Hope Houston, Mommy and Daddy cannot wait to meet you!April 11, 201538 weeks 4 days pregnant

Pregnancy | 38 Weeks

How Far Along: 38 weeks

Size of Baby: A "Swiss chard" -- Aproximately 19-22" and 6.5lbs ... but we found out at her ultrasound last Thursday that she is 6.6 lbs. Considering the growth rate is about .5lb a week now, she's probably 7 pounds. Holy moly!

 Instagram

 

Gender: Our little girl, Nancy Hope Houston

Movement: Definitely is not comfortable these days. Her little bottom is still on my right ribs and has been for weeks. No love for the left side. Except that her feet are dangling that way so sometimes I get a poke or two. But she loves to bump that rump against my right ribs. Truthfully, I'm counting it all as joy and cherishing these last moments of her in my belly. I love the special bond that only I have with her, and I know I'll miss being pregnant.

Sleep: Minus the potty breaks multiple times a night, I'm still sleeping like a baby. Easter weekend even included power naps on both Saturday and Sunday. Glorious!

My napping buddy and her built in pillow

Workouts: Hilliard Studio Method x 6. I've gotten back some (definitely not all) of the tone I'd lost lost due to pregnancy weight by stepping up my workout game at HSM these past few weeks. Glad I get these workouts done in the morning, because after walking around a bunch throughout the day, my feet ache and I cannot wait to put them up in line with the rest of my body.

More pup on bump while I put my feet up. She is my little shadow for sure.

Maternity Clothes: Mixing and matching with flowy spring things! I actually wore nonmaternity all weekend which was fun and refreshing.

For Easter service (we attended on Saturday night), I wore some new white jeggings by Hue. I just situated them under my bump to make them work and paired with one of my mom's flowy sweaters.

And for Easter Sunday I wore this old dress that I scored from the clearance section of Old Navy 3ish years ago. Paired it with a flowy vest (that Hopey is wearing too!) from Target.

Symptoms: There are tons of symptoms that come along with these last weeks of pregnancy. :) My newest and most favorite one is the insane urge to get OFF of my feet after being on them for no more than an hour our two. Must get home and put feet up in line with my body. It just feels better. The getting up out of that position isn't too fun though. Horizontal to vertical doesn't happen without accompanied grunting.

Speaking of...I was sitting in a chair in my mom's den and got up to hug Mark. Well, I didn't give myself enough thrust/momentum to get out of the chair, and the hug turned into more of a grabbing for dear life onto the back of Mark's shoulders before I fell back down into the chair. Which would've been fine...because it was a comfy chair. It just made me laugh really hard because I'm not used to being this front/bump-heavy I guess. (My mom doesn't think this story is funny at all and likes to remind me of how I could really hurt myself. Whoops. Sorry, mommy. I'll work on the mental pep talks for momentum before standing/sitting up from now on. :))

And the other usual fun things...right hand lacking circulation and falling asleep at night and in workouts, linea nigra, general puffiness, bellybutton becoming less and less of an innie, snoring, and feeling a good bit of pressure/weight on my pubic bone.

Cravings/Aversions: No. I've been rocking (and really looking forward to) my green juice post workout everyday though.  I'm obsessed.

Ice, organic spinach, 1 orange, 1 scoop Catie's Organic Greens, 1 scoop Catie's Vitamin C, water
Blend in Vitamix, and voila! Green juice scrumptiousness! So good. After typing about it, I kinda want another.

Missing Most: I guess going on walks. It's spring, so walks are even more enticing now! But they just put too much pressure and discomfort on my pubic bone since homegirl is down so low. Not worth it. And I know I'll be able to enjoy miles of walking again in no time. It's the final countdown after all!

Nursery: Is my sister's room at my mom's house. That's shared with Mark and me. And Tina. Though the whole closet is dedicated to a tiny girl named Nancy...

The majority of these sweet little numbers were mine when I was little. I adore them and am so thankful that my mom saved them all!

Hubby: Our conversations as of late revolve constantly around Nancy and meeting her. When will it be, how we cannot wait, how we only have numbered days till our lives change forever and ever for the better... It's safe to say that we are both incomprehensibly excited. Of course listening to him talk about Nancy the way he does just makes me fall in love with him even more. And I know that love will only grow as I watch him become a daddy!

He also told me last night that I looked picturesque, which was sweet. I think he's amused by the fact that I can use the bump as a shelf of sorts lately.

Best Part of the Week: Easter weekend! And Nancy's ultrasound on Thursday with my mommy. Loved seeing her sweet face and little, puffy cheeks!

Can't Wait For: Meeting our little girl. I love the anticipation that comes with not knowing when that will happen. It could be tomorrow, it could be in 2 weeks, it could be in 3 weeks. The not knowing is so fun! Treasuring this time!!!

Our Announcement | Weeks 4-12  | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Weeks 19 and 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23 | Week 24 and 25 | Week 26 | Week 27 | Week 28 | Week 29 | Week 30 | Week 31 | Week 32 | Week 33 | Nancy's Fancy Tea Party | Week 34 | Week 35 | Moved + Nested |  Week 36 | Week 37 | Week 38