Let me not overlook the fact that Sean and John came for a visit over MLK weekend. Bryan was ecstatic to have his boys in for the weekend. (I was, of course, too). They both arrived Thursday night. We went out for a quick bite to eat and then the boys took off for the evening. They had bigger and better things to do than hang out with boring preggo.
So I dropped them off to see Cowboy Troy. For those of you who don't know ... he's a pretty big deal. (Actually, no, he's not.)
I went home to bed.
2am strikes and the 'boys' come tearing into the house laughing and ranting about whatever trouble they got into that night.
I laid patiently in bed for them to quiet down.
Then, my bedroom door flies open, the cats scatter off of the bed in fear, lights turn on - I throw back my covers about to give Bryan hell for waking me up - and there stands poor John like a deer in headlights. He was looking for a bathroom. He apologizes profusely ... I try to assure him it's okay that he woke me up.
Then he gets a shit-eating grin and says, "Well, since you're up - let me show you what I got."
Anyone notice what's out of place in this picture? Let's start by the massive, tacky, belt buckle ol' city boy is wearing. Yes - that IS the Cowboy Troy's belt buckle. John should be ashamed.
He wore it the rest of the weekend with Bryan's camo Agri Supply hat. John looked like he was at home down here in Statesboro ... other than his city boy shoes with Matthew immediately made him trade in on Saturday for some Georgia Boots. There. All set.
We had a great rest of the weekend. Friday the Bryan, Sean, John, and the belt buckle went skeet shooting (pictures to come) and we headed off for a steak dinner in Savannah. We spent the day working in the yard and on the cars Saturday morning and headed to Matthew and Robbie's for our shower. Sunday we all stayed in comfy clothes and watched movies, football and ate El Sombrero.
Monday morning, Sean headed off for his long drive home. John and Bryan went golfing and then we took John to the airport.
He was still wearing his Cowboy Troy belt buckle...
LBN doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (really 5lbs 11 oz). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.
Robbie, Lauren and Whitney threw Bryan and I a Guys & Gals shower over the weekend - it was also part going away party for Bryan. It was a great time - good to see everyone as always and we received many generous gifts - so thanks to all - we had a GREAT time!
Bryan with his new bib ... I mean LBN's new bib.
Some jammies.
A gift-basket full of goodies definitely needed for a new baby.
The gals ... Jess, Jen, Robbie, Whitney, Lauren, Jess, Caitlin, me, Lindsay and Michelle
The guys ... Mike, Tom, Bryan, Russell, John, Nick, Sean, Matt, Josh, Jeb, and Matthew
And then Nick and I compared bellies :)
LBN now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making her rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. LBN's central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well.
This week LBN weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.
Bryan and I after opening up presents at mom & dad Arends.
Bryan and I spent the holidays in Minneapolis with my family. We spent Christmas Eve at Grandma Alyce's house. I would have to say it was one of my favorites so far. We ALL sat in the same room, munched on food and played cards until 2am. Kent, Boni, and Mike were in town from Missouri as well - it was so great to see them ... they haven't been able to come to MN for Christmas for 27 years? Something like that.
We followed up Christmas Eve with a Christmas lunch at Beci and Chucks. Delicious, as always. Brandon, Nia, Gracen, Bev and Dale were able to swing through and say hello as well. We spent the evening at Derich's house playing Dark Blue (Trivia Persuit) until the wee hours of the morning. Brandon and Nia joined us along with Gerad, Danny, Joni and Erik. Fabulous seeing all of them ... and of course, the R came out. Let's not forget - Team Arends/Neal/Lighter won!
Bryan, Derich, R, and Brandon.
Me, LBN wearing the R, Danny, and Gerad.
Dark Blue wearing the R.
Bryan. He is having a good time.
Bryan, Me, Nia, R, and Brandon.
The 26th was low key; we were able to catch up with Laura and Aaron and play a few board games. But before that, I spent a lovely afternoon with Melissa, Laura, and Courtney for lunch a bit of shopping.
I turned 29 (holy cow - FYI: I will be 29 from here on out - I don't care what anyone says.) on the 27th. It was a g-rated day for the prego. It consisted of bowling and pasta. Can't get any crazier than that. But thanks to all of you who came out to celebrate with me. As always, I am so thankful all of you are in my life.
Bryan and I made it safely back to Georgia where we left the 12˚ weather behind for 75˚. Love the South :) I went back to work on Monday and Bryan took down Christmas decorations. We rung in the New Year at Robbie and Matthew's house with a group of fabulous friends ... Robbie, Matthew, Tom, Brandi, Lauren, Russell, Josh, Matt, Jessica, Lindsay and Jeb.
So here we are on the first day of 2009. Bryan and I spent it lying on the couch, fireplace cranked with a buffet of food. It's 10:45pm and I am still in my pajama's. We know it's pathetic; but we also know we won't have many days like this in 2009. (And Brenda - thanks again for the blanket ... we're all fighting over it - including the cats!)
Looking ahead this year - just this winter/spring, we will be adding a family member to our family of 4 (if you include our current children, Peanut and Mac) and Bryan will be deploying to unfamiliar territory. We are nervous, scared, and excited all at the same time. We'd like to thank all of our family and friends for their ongoing support. We wouldn't be where we are today if it wasn't for you.
Stay tuned for 2009 - it will definitely be a wild yet bumpy ride :)
(A jicama? yeah, because we ALL know what one of those are...)
By now, LBN weighs 3.75 pounds and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in my uterus. I'm *hopefully* gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to LBN. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.
*Jícama (hee-kah-mah), also Mexican Potato and Mexican Turnip, is the name of a native Mexican vine, although the name most commonly refers to the plant's edible tuberous root.
