37 weeks - baby David will be here soon!

Hi everyone! I haven't posted in a really long time....wow have we been busy during this holiday season! Since my last post we hosted my baby shower AND the Villiger Family Christmas at our home. It was nice to finally show everyone our beautiful home that we have put lots of work into! Of course, we were a little stressed doing all of the cleaning and preparation, but both parties turned out great :)

We got SO MANY great gifts for baby David and I am REALLY enjoying these 2 weeks off work being able to set everything up in the nursery. We are all set for his arrival, besides the fact that we are awaiting the new handle for his carseat/carrier since it was recalled just a week ago. The handle has been known to break while carrying, so we called the recall number and are waiting for a repair kit to arrive in the next week or so. I hope it comes in time! There is nothing wrong with it as a car seat, but we are supposed to pick up the carrier by holding both ends instead of the handle until we get the kit. We are hoping to shop for the second car seat (for the van) some time this week.

I have had some "practice" (Braxton Hicks) contractions a couple times now in the middle of the night, where I feel my whole belly tighten. It isn't really painful, but I can feel my belly get REALLY hard and have had slight pain with a few of them. DR and I are getting very excited that baby David is almost here!! Of course DR is still rooting for a 2009 baby for a tax deduction! lol

We just had our 37 week appointment this afternoon, and are now going EVERY week for check ups. David still has a very strong heartbeat and is already head down. This is the first appointment that I have had an exam done, and surprisingly, I am already dialated 4 centimeters!! I couldn't believe it, and I think the doctor was very surprised as well! Zero percent effaced, but wow, almost halfway there! Maybe David will be here earlier than we expect....possibly a New Year's baby?!?! Only time will tell.....

My "hospital bag" is already packed and ready to go. I started putting it together last week knowing that David could be here any time within the next 3 weeks! We just have to get the camera and batteries PACKED so we don't forget them!

The doctor also gave us a couple recommendations for pediatricians since we haven't yet chosen one. The hospital gives couples a generic list of all the pediatricians in the area, but I don't know how we'd ever pick one at random. At least now we have some direction as to which doctors are good.

All 3 of our dogs seem to be more protective over me lately, and I think they know that there is about to be a BIG CHANGE at home :). We are looking forward to introducting them all to baby David very soon. I can't wait to see how he reacts to the wet doggie kisses!!

Unless we have to go in earlier, we will update you after our 38 week appointment next Monday! That is also the day I have to go back to work after the holiday break. I'm not really looking forward to going back for a couple weeks, but maybe I won't have to go back for that long after all.

Happy 2010 everyone!!! xoxoxo

About 2 more months to go!

My OWL pumpkin

Halloween Decorations


Me at 30 weeks :)

Taz and Buddy enjoying a beautiful day

Yukon watching for squirrels

Our only RED tree, on the parkway

Sorry I haven't added any updates in a LONG time. I've been very busy with work these past few weeks. I had to proctor/give accommodations to students for the 8th grade Explore exam last Saturday, we had parent/teacher conferences this week, and I've had my first 2 IEP meetings of the year. Things are always crazy around this time of year.

I am now in my 30th week and am still feeling pretty good! I am, of course, EXHAUSTED after work and haven't been sleeping that well either. I pretty much get home from work around 4/4:30, eat dinner, watch some tv, and fall asleep around 8:30/9:00! My usual workout schedule has really dwindled down also, to maybe once a week. I am just too tired to do much after a long day at school. We try to get a walk in with the dogs during the evening, but unfortunately it doesn't happen every day.

Baby is kicking & moving around a TON these days! It's so cool for DR and I to sit and watch my belly move :) Just in the last 2 days I have felt a shoulder/knee/foot pushing really hard on one side of my belly. I can't tell what it is, but it's a different feeling than the usual kicking/punching.

Dave and I have been busy setting up things in the nursery as well. We went to Target this week and finalized our registry list, and ended up buying some necessities for baby. DR also surprised me yesterday with a glider and ottoman! He even made a "baby cam" with his laptop so that family and friends can watch videos of our little one on Skype!!

Time is really flying by, but I am getting more and more excited as we set up the nursery and everything comes together:)

Our next doctor appointment is on the 23rd, so we will update you all then. We are now going every two weeks, not every four. At our last appointment the doc said that I am measuring normal, but that I was "on the higher end of Normal." Not sure what that really means....everything looks great they said, so that's the important thing! When the doctor was listening to baby's heartbeat he was moving around so much that much of what we heard was just swishing sounds! lol She did hear a good heartbeat, but boy was he active!

I have gained 27 pounds so far, but everyone keeps saying that I'm "all baby." One of our other teacher's at Churchville who is pregnant found out she is also expecting a boy. There is one other teacher expecting also, but she isn't planning on finding out. The other day one of my students made me laugh so hard....I go to the bathroom so much at school that of course the kids take notice. Well one of my male students said, "Mrs. Lytle when you pee does the baby pee too?" I had to go into the whole thing about how the baby is in something called amniotic fluid and that it is partly made of the baby's "pee," but that baby's pee is really mostly water and isn't like our pee. haha It was a teachable moment, but a funny one at that!

I hope everyone is doing well, and I can't wait to see you all soon!! I'm looking forward to our shower in a few weeks :)

House Updates

We are getting new siding today! The workers came at 7am this morning and began pounding. The work was supposed to be done on Thursday and Friday, but with all of the rain we've been getting things were held up. The yard is a mess right now with junk thrown everywhere, but they are all through taking the old siding off and just started putting up the new "Silver Gray" color. It looks really nice, especially WITHOUT a window in our garage! We've already had a few glitches....Dave had to replace a small piece of wood in the corner where the bedroom meets the garage and seal a hole in the wood above our front door. Other than that, things are turning out beautifully!

I had no idea it was going to be so cold today....we had a frost last night and we started turning on our heat these past few days. Luckily we already decorated for Halloween a couple of weekends ago when it was nice and sunny. I still haven't finished decorating the inside, but I'll have to wait until the siding is all done. We had to take EVERYTHING off all the walls in case the pounding caused them to fall, so hopefully I'll finish decorating tomorrow or Monday.

I'm really excited to have a 3-day weekend; this has been the longest school week so far and things are starting to get really stressful at work. This break is much-needed! I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at Bradley's b-day party this afternoon too, since it's been a couple months since we've all gotten together.

Enjoy all the pictures!

Our new ride!

DR and I are now owners of a 2009 Jeep Commander!! We picked up our new SUV last Saturday and are really enjoying it! The color is stone white, it is a 7-passenger, and it has excellent safety ratings (which is a huge plus with a baby soon on board)! It was about time we looked into a 4-wheel drive vehicle, since the camaro does not handle very well in the winter. I am very excited to get to drive the Jeep to work everyday :) We just had the paint, undercarriage, and fabric protected on Friday, so we had to leave the car at the dealer all day. We've only taken it on the expressway a couple of times so far, but it will get broken in soon enough with the commuting to work each day and driving around town. It's definitely a nice vehicle to go shopping in, since the back seats fold down and leave TONS of space for bags and all my deals! :)

I am now in my 23rd week and still feeling great! Little David is kicking more and more each day and Grandma Villiger was able to feel a kick the other day! DR and I attended our 2nd all day birthing class yesterday, and we've been learning a lot. All of us "moms" even got a surprise foot wash and massage from our hubbies at the end of the class! We are signed up for a few more classes including breastfeeding, caring for your baby, and baby talk. They don't take place until October, November, and December though. Our first class was taught by a nurse who is also expecting (her second baby). I enjoyed hearing her stories because she was very honest about the pain of childbirth and all of the changes that we will go through. She added humor to her presentation which made things more interesting. We learned breathing techniques to help us relax and focus on something other than the pain, and she had us hold handfuls of ice cubes to "simulate the pain" of a contraction. I'm really hoping that I can use these coping techniques to have a truly natural birth instead of being pumped with pain meds. I also met three other women at class who are also teachers and teach in my school district in Elmhurst!

Our black and white kitty, Chewy, was sick last week and we had to take him to the vet. He was having trouble going to the bathroom, so we had him x-rayed and examined for a possible kidney stone or bladder infection. Nothing was found on the x-ray, which was good. The doc prescribed antibiotics for the infection, which we had to give Chewy all week. Giving him 2 pills a day was a task for DR and I since he began spitting it out after a few days. This was a better option than the liquid form though. Chewy's feeling much better now, and we have our doggies back today :) Grandma and Grandpa Lytle kept Yukon and Tax all week so that Chewy could get better. I'm glad he's doing fine now.

20-week update

Well, I haven't been on to post any updates in a while, but a lot has happened in the past 2 weeks! The school year started for me on August 24th, and I'm really enjoying this bunch of 8th graders! It has been hard getting up early and working for 8 hours straight, but at least I can relax in the evenings! I can't complain about this 3-day weekend either :) I have a caseload of 19 kids this year, which is a lot, but I feel more comfortable with all of my responsibilities having been there for 2 years now. We have a new principal (again) this year and things seem to be much more organized and enjoyable for us staff :)

On Monday the 31st, Dave and I went to have my 20-week ultrasound done. It lasted about 30 minutes, and after the technician took all the pictures she needed, she turned the screen toward us so we could see Baby. The pictures were amazing! Baby's feet were crossed in a few of the pictures, which we laughed about because Dave sits like that ALL THE TIME! It was so neat to see the heart beating on the monitor. Everything looks great, and Dave and I did find out that Baby Lytle is a BOY!! This will be the SIXTH great-grandson on the Villiger side :) I am really enjoying my pregnancy so far, and baby is kicking a little more each day. I usually feel his kicks around 9am and 2pm and again when relaxing in front of the tv in the evening. It's the coolest feeling in the world to have seen him in the pictures and then to feel him kicking every day!

Mom and I went shopping yesterday at Babies R Us and I had so much fun picking out items for our registry :) I also bought some more maternity clothes for work with the giftcard DR got me for my b-day. I still don't think I have a clue how BIG my belly is actually going to get! Right now I can still fit into my regular size small shirts that are just longer on the bottom. At least I now have lots of comfortable outfits to wear to work!

Dave has completed his scuba diving course and passed his open water dive test today, so he is now officially a certified scuba diver! I may think about getting certified next year, but I haven't decided yet. It would be nice to take a trip somewhere and dive together, but it also seems a little scary to me to be at such great depths in the water.

Next weekend Dave and I start going to our birthing classes. They are on different days once or twice a month from now until December. I'm looking forward to learning everything we need to know before baby arrives!

I hope everyone is having a great Labor Day weekend! I'm going to enjoy sleeping in again tomorrow while I can!

Nursery

This summer a lot of painting was taking place in baby's room! First, Grandpa and Grandma V came over 2 days to paint the seafoam green color on all 4 walls. The green wasn't turning out as light as we wanted, so a lot of white paint had to be mixed in. We eventually got the color we were looking for and it turned out really nice :) Our friend Sarah painted a beautiful coral reef mural on the main wall of the nursery. Sarah only came over a total of 6 days and I still can't believe how much detail she got done in that short amount of time. The finished product is absolutely beautiful and I know the baby is going to love the colorful fishies!

18 weeks!

I am now 18 weeks along and still feeling pretty good! Really happy that my nausea and headaches have dissipated. I had a great birthday last week! DR and I went out to dinner and I'm sure the baby really enjoyed the brazilian food and ice cream cake that I ate too! DR, myself, Mom Lytle, and Sarah went to the Air & Water Show on Saturday, and it was a blast! That was our third time going, but each time it's a little different and more exciting. It was quite hot, but I packed enough snacks/meals for an army! I pretty much drank water and ate the entire time, LOL! It was a really long and exhausting day, but we had fun :)

It's now the weekend before I start the new school year, so I'm hoping to relax and enjoy my last couple days of being at home. DR and I were very excited to find some awesome deals today on a crib & mattress, stroller, and carseat! DR just spent part of the afternoon putting the crib together. It was surprisingly very easy to assemble! He was done in about 30 minutes. It's fun to see the nursery come together; I can't wait to find out in a week if we are having a boy or a girl!! My 20 week ultrasound is scheduled for Monday, August 31st, so hopefully baby cooperates and we are able to know the sex!