Amazing Grace

Today the family turns to each other for love and support as we say good-bye to our beloved Grandmother. We all have our favorite memories of the time we had spent with her. One of my favorite memories was from one of our recent visits with her at the Highland House.

Jamie and I stopped by to say hello to Grandma. She was dealing with the shakes that day. As we visited with her she remembered that we were expecting our first child. She was very happy for us. We jokingly asked her if she knew what we were having. She responded in a very certain tone "Yes I do. It's a Girl". We were very surprised to hear her say that. We asked if she was sure and she seemed very certain of her statement. We decided that if she knows what we are having maybe she can help us with letting us know what we will name her. So we asked Grandma what the name was. She said she knows what the name is... BUT she wasn't going to tell us. Very typical smart remark from Grandma. She was always on her toes even when you didn't expect her to be. We love her very much and are happy that she is now at peace and back together with my Grandpa Milo. Below are some pictures of Grandma. One is of a Froh Christmas party where she loved to sing Christmas carols and the other is of Grandpa and Grandma Froh.

Grandma - We will miss you and we love you!

The Nursery. . .in Jamie's Eyes

Pat was so eager to upload the pictures of the 95% finished nursery (we have to add pictures and the baby name) yesterday that I didn’t even have the chance to collect my thoughts from the weekend.

Friday –
Pat was working quickly to try and finish the baseboard trim so that we could be ready for the furniture to arrive the next morning. Unfortunately, there were a few pieces that were not what we needed and he had to call it a night until Menards opened the next morning!

Saturday –
Menards opens early, like 6:30am, and what time was Pat there exchanging out what he needed – about 6:45am!!!! He is nuts. . . . .anyway, due to the lovely Wisconsin weather, he was forced to shovel the driveway instead of install the last pieces of trim because we didn’t want anyone slipping on the driveway while carrying the furniture in the house! We got the furniture in and assembled while Pat finished the trim and got the room cleaned up. The room was finally looking like the picture we had in our minds! Kari and I decided to run a few last minute errands and Ryan and Pat were left at home with a small “Honey-Do” List! When we came home, we helped the boys hang a few items on the wall, and then took a step back. . . . .the finish line was in sight! While dinner was cooking, I got the opportunity to wash my first (OF MANY) loads of baby clothes; it was so fun hanging them up in the closet.

Sunday –
Pat and I were on a mission to find one last thing for the nursery . . .and we were successful! We got home as fast as we could to get it assembled and put it place. Next on our list of things to do. . . .take a nap!!

I look back at the past 2 weeks and reflect on a few major highlights and realizations.
1) I have never seen my husband put so much blood, sweat, and tears into a project before. He has worked on a lot of things while we have been together, but his emotions got the best of him a few times during this particular project because he wanted everything to be perfect. Pat – hold your head up high, you did a fantastic job on the nursery! Tootsie is proud of you . . . .and so am I!

2) It is ok to sit back and watch everything take place. I like to be in the middle of the action, but for this particular project, I had to watch from the sidelines for most of it. I can’t handle power tools, sniff paint, or lift anything heavy. . . .so that leaves my role to a minimum. BUT. . . .Pat keeps telling me that I will be adding the most important part of the room – the baby!!!!! I agree!

3) Thank you to all of our family and friends for the help! We had more offers for help than we knew what to do with. That is an incredible problem to have!

This has been a long two weeks, but it was well worth it. I would be willing to do it all over again!!!

Love,
Jamie

The Nursery Is Finished!!!

The nursery has come together just like we pictured it. The crib and other furniture are just perfect! We put the final touches on the room this morning. We have both taken turns sitting and rocking in the chair picturing what it is going to be like once Tootsie arrives. The rug is even comfortable to lay on. I have already tried that out too! We have a few more items that need to be placed into the room like a mattress, bedding and OH YEAH A BABY! I posted some pictures of how the room looks... soon enough there will be a baby in these pictures. Thanks to all of our helpers. We appreciate it very much.

~Until next time~

Pat

33 Week Dr. Appt

We had a Dr. Appt last night before our final birthing class. Dr. Duffy said that the baby and I are measuring great! When she was evaluating my belly, she was able to tell us that the baby is head down with a very small chance of that position changing before I give birth. The baby was also very active during the appointment and the Dr. got to see a foot or hand jab out of my side! She giggled and gave it a little tug. I told her not to be scared if our baby is born with 5 sets of arms and legs because that is how my belly is feeling right now! Over the course of the past 2 weeks I have been jabbed, kicked, and punched in multiple spots at multiple times! But, I am not complaining one bit, I would prefer tons of movement instead of none! We have one active little baby on our hands! (Heartbeat was 135bpm)

The Dr also informed Pat and I that we would have to wait a little longer to get our official induction date. We have an appointment to see our blood specialist on February 9th at Children’s and then our OB on February 11th. Our Dr.’s plan to talk before we arrive at the OB office on the 11th and set a date!! It is still looking to be around February 20th, give or take a few days. I wish we could know sooner, but I understand that they need to take another ultrasound to double check everything as well as examine me to see how my body is progressing.

There is nothing we can do but wait patiently!

Love,
Jamie

Nursery Weekend 1

Well, our first dedicated weekend to the nursery is behind us. We were able to get quite a bit accomplished, but we definitely had some interesting bumps getting to that point.

Friday –
After work, Pat was determined to get our new door installed! Mark came over to help with this endeavor, however, it wasn’t as easy as Pat had hoped! After Mark left, Pat stood there and stared at the door. . . .he wasn’t happy with it and pulled it out!!!!! Needless to say, Mark came back over that night and helped Pat get it installed again! (Jess and I watched this process and got a good laugh out of it!) I don’t think anyone anticipated this to last until about 11:30pm!

Saturday –
Painting Day!! My parents came down to lend a helping hand. Mom and I had important shopping duties to attend to, and we left Pat and dad to do the hard labor! Saturday proved to be a very productive day as the room got a coat of primer, trimmed out, closet doors stained, and the baseboard trim worked on! All of the work left us all very tired and in bed early!

Sunday –
Dad jumped right into rolling the paint on the walls! Pat had to run yet another trip to Menards to get a few things. . . .those trips never seem to be quick! But, by the end of the day, we had a fully painted room and closet doors hung!

This week is busy for us as we are wrapping up our childbirth classes, meeting with friends, and having our Dr Appt. I know that I can speak for both of us by saying that we are excited for the weekend to be here! It will be another weekend dedicated to the nursery! Ryan and Kari will be making the trip down to Milwaukee to lend a helping hand! If all goes well. . . . .Sunday we will have a finished nursery!!!!!!!! I will be sure to have pictures posted next week. . . and if for some reason there aren’t any – you know something didn’t go as planned!

THANK YOU to Mark and my parents for your assistance last weekend, it is greatly appreciated!

Stay tuned. . . .

Love,
Jamie

Happy New Year!

Here is an ornament we got for Christmas, very fitting for the new year!

It is hard to belive that 2009 is upon us already! The month of January is usually a long and slow month for us, but not this year. Last weekend Kari and I did some damage at the store to purchase all of our decorating supplies for the nursery! While we did that, Pat worked very hard on gutting the nursery to get ready for painting and new wood work.

Pat staining the woodwork

The nursery is the main project for this upcoming weekend. I am so anxious to get everything finished and unpacked in that room. I am a rather organized person, and the mess around my house is starting to bug me. I am in the process of trying to organize and clean and it is never ending. BUT. . .I dont have a chocie but to be patient and wait for it all to be completed.

31 Week Belly

Besides the nursery project, we are keeping busy with our birthing classes and Dr Appointments. Before we know it, January is going to be over and done with! With all the activity going on, I have to continue to remind myself to sit down and relax a bit. I have been feeling great lately, but my body continues to remind me to slow down.

We will contine to keep everyone posted with pictures of Tootsie's growth, the changing nursey, and everything else on this exciting journey!!!

Thank you for all of your love and support!!!

Jamie

31.5 Weeks Check Up

Well what a week so far this has been. Our little baby is getting bigger. This morning I lost one of many bets with my wife. We bet on how big the baby is already. I guessed that the baby was about 3lbs and 2oz. Jamie guessed 3lbs and 12oz. Tootsie is tipping the scales at 3lbs and 14oz. It is hard to believe the baby is almost 4lbs already.

I realized two things today. The first thing is that time is flying and we have roughly 6weeks before the baby is here! HOLY COW! The other thing I realized today is that Tootsie is already on Mom's side of things with weighing in closer to her guess rather than mine.

We started our Birthing Classes. It was good to go over some of the things to watch for and when to get to the hospital etc. I am very excited to go on Wednesday this week as we get a tour of the birthing suites and the nursery at the hospital. The rooms sound very nice but I need to keep telling myself its not a hotel stay :)

Below you can see the latest and greatest pictures of our little Tootsie. Thank you all for your votes on the blog. We will see who is right and who is wrong in a few short weeks.

Love,
Patrick


Here is a picture of the baby's foot, toes to heel!



This is a little hard to make out since the baby is getting so big, but it is the head looking up. Under the word profile are "bumps" which are the nose, lips, etc.