14 Weeks and 15 Weeks

14 Weeks

How far along? 14 weeks

Total weight gain: maybe a pound or so
Maternity clothes? Nope! Still fitting in all my normal jeans!
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Pretty good… just waking up once to use the restroom mostly
Best moment this week: Getting to see all my college friends and roommates and celebrate Melinda’s wedding and our little one on the way!

Miss Anything? Not being hungry all the time. Haha! I know that is strange but when I get hungry now,  it hits me like a ton of bricks and I have to eat right then.
Movement: No
Food cravings: Nothing really weird yet…
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not this week at least.
Gender prediction: Boy
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Having to use the restroom way more often and feeling a little bump poke out! :)
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy
Looking forward to: Spending most of next week in Mobile celebrating Christmas with the Shore side of the family!! :)

15 Weeks

Leslie- 24 weeks // Me- 15 weeks

How far along? 15 weeks
Total weight gain: About 1-2 pounds 

Maternity clothes? No
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: I have had a very strange sleep schedule in Mobile… I have been super tired (going to bed at about 9) and waking up super early (about 5 every morning). I used to love staying up late but now it is a struggle to keep my eyes open past 9 PM.
Best moment this week: Getting to be home in Mobile for Christmas!! It was also so fun to be there with my sis-in-law, Leslie, who is also pregnant. We got to swap pregnancy stories so it has been so fun!
Miss Anything? Having a normal sleep schedule… I think I will be missing this for a long time.
Movement: No
Food cravings: Mostly salty things. We made lots of sweets for Christmas and I mainly just wanted the chips and dip instead of sugar cookies and chocolate stuff.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope… feeling pretty good this week!
Gender prediction: Boy
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: I have been having some round ligament pain, but nothing too serious or painful. Just a reminder that this little one is expanding and going to be taking up a lot of room soon!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! :)
Looking forward to: Going to the Dr. this week and spending next weekend in Huntsville with all the Thaxton’s!

13 Weeks

13 Weeks

It looks like less than a bump this week than last... guess I need to go eat! :)

 How far along: 13 weeks (and 3 days… looks like I am going to be a few days behind my whole pregnancy. Haha!)

Total weight gain: Nothing really on my scale at home. We’ll see at the doctor in a few weeks.
Maternity clothes: Just using a hair rubberband to make my jeans last longer. That trick works pretty well!
Stretch marks: No
Sleep: Pretty good… Blake was out of town this weekend so it is always a little harder to sleep when he is gone
Best moment this week: Finally finding the heartbeat with the doppler at work! And I got to record it!! I love going back and listening to it… what a perfect sound!
Miss Anything: No
Movement: No
Food cravings: Chinese… so I finally got some Panda this weekend! YUM!!
Anything making you queasy or sick: If I get too hungry, I start to feel a little sick… so I’m just trying to eat snacks and keep something in my stomach.
Gender prediction: Boy
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Still just tired and that crazy eczema
Belly Button in or out: In
Wedding rings on or off: On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! :)
Looking forward to: My college roommate, Melinda, is getting married this weekend!!! I am really looking forward to seeing all my old roommates and friends and catching up on life!! It is so fun getting back together after everyone moved away from Auburn! Woo hoo!

Baby Thaxton!

Blake and I have some big news to announce… We have a baby on the way!!! We could not be more excited to finally share this news with everyone! I am 12 weeks (and 3 days now) and my due date is June 16. So here is the full story. I have been off of birth control since the summer in preparation for trying to get pregnant when Blake found a job. Well… the baby decided to come a little sooner than we thought!! I was a little late, so I took one pregnancy test and it was negative. A week and a half later... the pregnancy test was positive! I took that second test on my birthday… who could ask for a better birthday present than that!! I was thrilled, and Blake was shocked! When Blake first saw the test, he said- “What?!” He really couldn’t believe it!! He couldn’t believe it so much that I had to take 3 tests at home. Haha! So then we set up our first appointment with the OB Dr. He confirmed that we were definitely pregnant, which somehow made it more real just for someone else to say it to you. We also had an appointment last week (November 28… Blake’s birthday). We got to hear the heartbeat for the first time!! It was incredible! I kind of laughed with nervous excitement when they first found the heartbeat! It was such an incredible feeling knowing and hearing the baby inside of me. Wow! Those words still sounds so crazy to me! I have wanted to be a mom ever since I can remember, so it is a very surreal feeling to me that it is actually happening right now. I could not be more excited to carry this child and finally become a Mommy in June! :)

Let me back up a little. After we initially found out we were expecting, we wanted to tell our families immediately. We found out on a Wednesday, and went down to Mobile that next weekend to tell my parents. For my birthday, I got a new camera (Canon Rebel XS). So when we got to my parents’ house, I told them I took some pictures with my new camera and wanted them to see. This is the picture that I showed them:

They both looked at it for a second and then realized what the sign said. Then they both said- WHAT?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! Mom said she was quitting her job... haha! I think they were both pretty shocked, but also very very excited!! Then we screamed and hugged and just had a great night with them. We got it on video, thanks to Blake! My parents couldn't figure out why he was holding my camera up and not taking pictures. haha! They figured it out soon...

On the Sunday after we told my parents, we headed back to Auburn to catch Blake's parents and tell them before they left town. We went to lunch with them and then went over to Grandmother and Grandaddy's house. I bought the AU baby shirt with an arrow pointing down at my belly the day I found out I was pregnant. So I wore that shirt with a sweatshirt over it. We were the first one's in the house and when everyone got in, I told them I wanted to tell them something. I took off my sweatshirt and showed them my shirt! Angela, my mother-in-law, ran across the room and gave me a big hug!! I was so excited to get to tell them and for them to share in our excitement! Here is the video of them finding out:

I have seen a lot of cute blogs with a weekly post during pregnancy... so I am going to try to start doing that. I can't promise I will post it every week, but I really want to so that I can keep up with all the memories along the way. So here is the Week 12 post!!

12 Weeks

How far along? 12 weeks (and 3 days... but who is counting! Haha!)
Total weight gain: Maybe a few pounds... not much yet
Maternity clothes? Still in all my normal jeans, although they are getting tighter and tighter around the waist!
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: I usually just wake up one time to use the restroom, so I am still sleeping pretty well!
Best moment this week: Getting to hear the heartbeat for the first time... it was such an amazing moment!! And we got to hear it on Blake’s birthday!
Miss Anything? Nothing I can think of.
Movement: No… that usually comes about 18-20 weeks
Food cravings: I did buy pickles at the store yesterday… haha! I can usually tell you what food doesn’t sound good, but not too many cravings yet.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Smells really seem to bother me, but they just make me queasy. I haven’t thrown up at all… thank goodness!!
Gender prediction: I am thinking a boy right now… We will find out at the end of January!! Can’t wait for that day!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Fatigue- hope that goes away soon! I am also hungry… a lot! And when I get hungry, I have to have food RIGHT then! The problem is that a lot of food doesn’t sound good, so it is a challenge to find something good to eat and quickly. My eczema is also my worst enemy these days… Crazy hormones make it so much worse! Haha!
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!! It is so incredible knowing there is a new life and my baby’s heart beating inside of me… how could that not make me happy?
Looking forward to: Not having to keep any more secrets!!! It has been so hard keeping this secret in for this long so I can’t wait to be able to talk about it openly now!

I'm still alive...

It was recently brought to my attention by my sister-in-law Summer that I have not blogged in forever. I couldn't even remember the last time I blogged, so I went and looked today. Wow!! It was over 2 months ago... oops! I don't really know an excuse other than I have been working and out of town a TON! Blake and I have been all over the place... We went to north Mississippi and Tampa for 2 job interviews and to Dallas for a friend's wedding! Here are a few pictures from those adventures.

This picture sums up the town in North Mississippi where Blake interviewed... Yes, that is a suspended 4 way stop sign. There was not even a stop light in the whole town!!

We went to Universal Studios in Orlando... it was SOOO fun!! Blake and I had never gone to any amusement park together before this trip, and we both love roller coasters. We realized after riding the Hulk (in the background) a few times that we aren't as young as we used to be. We were both so dizzy after our first time on it. It was still so fun... haha!!

We had a great time with Justin and Bayleigh in Dallas... can't wait for their wedding in December!!

Here we are with the beautiful bride, Amanda, and the handsome groom, Judd!! Judd and Blake were roommates through college and was around during all of our dating years. It was so great to be able to be there for this special day in their life. After you are married, weddings seem to mean to much more (at least they do to me)... I think it may be the fact that I now know what a huge commitment, blessing, challenge, and joy  marriage truly is! By the way, Amanda, I am in need of a blog update from you too!! :)

My family came in town for the Auburn vs. Mississippi State game, and we had a great time with them!

It was a "True Blue" game so we all were dressed for the occasion!! War Eagle!

Well... that catches you up to this past weekend. This weekend, we went to Huntsville to visit the in-laws and we went to the Birmingham Zoo with the Thaxton/Watford crew! We had lots of fun with everyone... especially Tatum Tot! :)

Playing Peek-a-Boo with Uncle Blake! She LOVED it!

Pretty girl playing in her little house

Playing some more peek-a-boo with Aunt Katherine! She also tried to climb out of this window... it didn't work too well. haha!

Tatum Tot and Mommy... love the sun behind them!

 

The beginning of our zoo day!

Looking at some animals with Aunt Katherine! I love how tight she is holding on... melts my heart!

There is the big catch up... congrats if you made it to the end! In other news, Blake is still applying and interviewing for jobs all over the southeast. Please pray for us during this time as we wait to see what and where the Lord wants us to be to serve Him best. Pray He will open doors to make it clear to us where he wants us to be. We are eagerly awaiting His answer in His timing. This time of waiting is definitely not always easy, but the Lord is teaching me so much through this situation. So please join me in prayer, and hopefully I will have news about a JOB to blog about soon! :) I am still working as a labor and delivery nurse (which I LOVE!) with some amazing co-workers God has blessed me with. I will try to not let it be so long before my next blog post. Who knows... maybe I will blog again this week!! :)

2 Years...

Blake and I celebrated 2 years of marriage today by re-living our engagement date to Connor's Restaurant in Huntsville. The first time we went, Blake just had a bowl of lobster bisque (I guess he was too nervous to eat)... and I had a strawberry salad. Today, Blake had the lobster bisque and a prime rib sandwich (better appetite than last time)... and I had a wonderful shrimp and couscous dish! We had a great date, and I am just so blessed to be married to the love of my life. Blake truly is my best friend, and I am so excited about all the Lord has planned for our future together. I love you, Blake! 

Master of Science

Here is a recap from the Thaxton's... sorry I have been slacking so much on my blogging recently.

Blake graduated with his Master of Science degree from Auburn University! I am so proud of him and can't wait to see all the Lord has prepared for him in his career!

We are celebrating our 2 year anniversary tomorrow! I can't believe we have been married 2 years... time flies when you are having fun!

I also got a new laptop this summer. I am absolutely loving it!! It is so fast compared to my old dinosaur. My old computer was in such bad shape that it won't even close anymore... sad, I know. So I saved up money from monogramming and rewarded myself. I am LOVING it!

As for the future, Blake is applying, interviewing, and waiting for a job offer. We are learning a lot about the Lord's timing and being patient when things don't go quite like you thought or planned. I am learning more and more what it means to live day by day in God's grace. We are so blessed that our apartment complex is letting up rent month-to-month instead of signing a new lease and that his professor is keeping him on graduate assistance while he is waiting for a job. So that is the latest news here! Hopefully I will be back soon with some news!

"new every morning"

Lamentations 3:22- 25

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.

Praise the Lord!! I have been struggling lately with remembering these promises. I know the Lord has a plan and that he always keeps his promises, but sometimes it is just so hard to actually live day to day remembering that. It is so exciting to read verses like this and be reminded of a promise that deep down you already knew. I love when the Lord renews my faith through times like this. I pray that I always have an attitude and heart that the Lord can mold and make me into who He wants me to be. Just wanted to share this little truth that the Lord reminded me of today. I hope everyone is having a wonderful Tuesday!

In other news... The Thaxton's have been busy travelling the past few weeks. July 4th weekend, we headed up to Atlanta to spend time at Team Shore's house. Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

At the farmer's market

Dinner at Jalepeno Charlie's... yum!!

Brave's Game... Go Los Bravos!!

The whole (including Pollye and Sushi) family after church. We had a great time in ATL! We definitely have to do it again soon!

The weekend after the 4th, we went to Lake Logan Martin to stay with my sweet friend, Elizabeth. She is such a gracious hostess and loves to have visitors at the lake anytime. I am so grateful for her friendship and the time we got to spend with her.

Out on the pontoon boat with Rachel and Elizabeth!

Blake, aka our "Captain," on the pontoon boat!

This past weekend, we went to the beach with  the shore side of the family. This has been a family tradition since before I was born, and I am so glad everyone was able to be there for the weekend. Unfortunately, I was really slacking on taking pictures so this is one of the only pictures I took. It was rainy most of the time, so we played lots of games, watched movies, and of course, went shopping at the outlet mall. It was great to have so much family time with everyone there. Love my family soooo much!! :) 

I hope everyone else is having a wonderful wrap up to their summer. Blake graduates with his masters in less than 3 weeks! It is so crazy how fast this past year has flown by. I wasn't so sure about being his "sugar momma" (HA! This is his funny nickname for me...) when he first decided to go back to school, but it has been a wonderful experience for both of us this year. We are looking forward to this fall and all that the Lord has planned for us... can't wait to see His plans unfold!

Busy Busy Summer

I have escaped from my hole of no blogging!! I cannot believe it has been over 2 months since I have updated everyone on life! Crazy... Sorry I am such a slacker. Since Blake and I don't have internet at our house, it makes it quite difficult to blog on a regular basis. So... tonight we are hanging with Blake's sister (Summer) and brother-in-law (Matthew) so I have internet!! =) I don't even know where to begin in updating, so I will try to just hit the high points over the last few months.

April 16-- My friend, Amy (Callaway) Adams got married!!! Amy and I work together and are riding buddies to Montgomery every day. I am so blessed to be such great friends with these girls (and all the others) that I work with. God has truly blessed me with my first nursing job!

End of April... Summer's bachelorette weekend at the lake!! We had so much fun hanging out, singing some karaoke, and getting excited about Sum's wedding!

May 7... The BIG day!!! Summer Thaxton became Summer Watford, I got another awesome brother-in-law, and I had an amazing weekend with family. Even though I have only known Summer for 4 years, I feel like we have always been sisters. It was such a beautiful, and emotional, wedding. I am so happy that Summer and Matt get to experience marriage. I feel like God has taught me so much through being married for almost 2 years, and I can't wait for them to experience that same spiritual growth through marriage. Love y'all!!!! =)

Rehearsal Dinner with my handsome hubby

The happy couple

With my parents... so glad they got to come!

Flashback... Same picture at my wedding and Sum's Wedding

 

May 13-15 -- Beach weeding with the Morgan's!! We had such a relaxing weekend filled with good seafood, lots of sun, and chilling with great friends!

May 21... Katie (Goode) Meek got married!!! Katie is a friend from nursing school and also works as a labor and delivery nurse. I love to hear and share work stories with her... only things that L&D nurses would want to talk about. haha! Love you, Katie!

June 4-- Meghan (Cox) Jones got married!!! Meghan is a college friend, roommate, study partner, partner in crime, and always such a joy to be around!! I was so blessed to be a part of her special day and to send her off as the last last of our group of nursing school friends to get married. The marriage circle is now complete! =) Haha!

Because it was Meghan's wedding weekend, lots of our college friends were in town. It was so fun to have everyone back together in Auburn!! We must do it again soon... everyone mark your calendars for a big tailgate/reunion for the AU/FL game this year. Be there or be square. Love and miss you girls!!

June 4-June 12... Week-long celebration of Blake's Grandmother and Grandaddy's 50th Wedding Anniversary. The week started off with a big party in Auburn with extended family and continued for the whole week at the beach down in Destin/ Miramar Beach, FL. Blake had school and I had to work... so we didn't get to go down to the beach until Thursday afternoon. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there relaxing and celebrating with his grandparents. It is such an amazing thing to see his grandparents still so in love after 50 years of marriage... what an example to see! Thank you, Grandmother and Grandaddy, just for who you both are and all you mean to me and Blake. Love y'all!

Well... I think that finally wraps things up!! Thanks for sticking with me if you made it all the way to the end! I know it was long, but like the title says... it is a busy busy summer for the Thaxton family! Hope everyone else is having a wonderful summer too!! Hopefully it won't be two more months before I update again!

Long time, no blog

Well... I am alive!! You wouldn't know according to my blogging life. I have been pretty non-existent on here for awhile due to the fact that we cut off our cable and internet to save money. So with no internet, it makes it a little more of a challenge to blog. We are in Mobile this weekend visiting my family so I have had unlimited access to internet... which is quite a luxury to us now. Haha! Well I will attempt to give a brief update on life with me and Blake over the past few months. At the end of February, I went to Ecuador with the Auburn Nursing School and had an amazing time!!! I took way too pictures to share all of them on here... but here is just a sample.

The view from the clinic

Our WONDERFUL nurse practitioners

Our translators... Dani and Pamela!

Some of the beautiful nursing students at dinner

My favorite little baby... Ruby!

Eating lunch in the rainforest after ziplining

A monkey we spotted in the rain forest!! It was HUGE!

Blake has been busy working on all his research with grad school. Here is a little sneak peak at some of his research project...

This is his main research with organic turf fertilizer

These are some little trees he is growing

Beautiful flowers!! These are soooo pretty and big now! I wish I had an updated picture for you!

I have also been busy with embroidering! Here are a few things I have done recently:

Onesie for a work friend's baby... can't wait to see Lily in it!

Towels for hostess gifts for one of Summer's showers

In most recent news... my best friend, Laura, is engaged!!!! I could not be happier for her and Brett! We absolutely love them and are so excited about them starting their life together on November 12!

Laura and I have been friends since 6th grade... I remember when we were just in middle school and high school dreaming about "that day" when we would get married. We found a common bond in being hopeless romantics together... haha! I am so blessed that she was a part of my wedding day almost 2 years ago and I can't wait to be a part of her special day later this year!