Pregnancy Brain has officially kicked in!

Okay...so maybe it kicked in weeks ago, but I haven't logged in over 4 weeks so I haven't talked about it. It is so hard to believe that my due date is in 38 days. The first 2 Trimesters came and went SO fast, but these final days can't go by soon enough! After weeks of preparation, I can say that Jason and I have almost everything we need for Grayson's arrival. We have a few more things to pick up this week, or that need to be delivered, and then we just need him to do his part and join us in this beautiful world! If I didn't want to, I don't think I would ever have to wash any of Grayson's clothes, and he would still have plenty to wear. He is already so blessed with all of the people that love and care about him, and definitely has more clothes, socks, and blankets than his Mommy or Daddy ever thought about having. Mommy still has him beat in the shoe department, though! :)

Everyone tells you that when you are pregnant the free advice will come rolling in, whether you ask for it or not. In all of that advice, I don't remember hearing "The 3rd Trimester is kind of like your 1st Trimester, except you look like a Hippopotamus." I don't remember anyone telling me that I would be shopping in Babies 'R Us, and decide to put my phone down and walk off and leave it. I don't remember anyone telling me I would be changing the channel and the remote would just fly out of my hand....repeatedly, because I can't seem to get a good grip on anything (my sanity included). I don't remember anyone telling me I would be typing on my computer and it would fall off of my lap (constantly) because I didn't even realize it was slipping or that I wasn't holding it. I do however remember my best friend Stefanie telling me that you would be so tired and overwhelmed with everything that you would just cry for no reason. I was in the kitchen deciding what to make for dinner, and when I opened the refrigerator, I saw all of the leftovers that we just SWORE we were going to eat when we put them in there. I immediately started crying at the thought of all of the dishes I would have to wash after throwing all of that away (as if there already wasn't enough to do).

The free advice I've received also said something to the extent of putting off work around the house if I didn't feel like doing it. This would be GREAT! But how can you put off laundry, if you are running out of clothes that are clean (or that fit you)! Or how can you cook that yummy dinner you've been craving if the dishes you like to cook with the most (because they are the inexpensive ones that don't have to be hand washed) are in the sink?? Sure, some lucky people (myself included) have husbands that would most likely do all of this for you if you asked...but if I did that, I wouldn't feel as entitled to the neck rub I am almost sure to receive later. :)

Well, that's pretty much what I've been thinking about lately. I have quite a few friends that are experiencing the ups and downs of pregnancy with me, and the ones that were due before me have all gotten to bring home their little girls or boys. Hopefully, I'm next! If not, I guess I know where I can go to vent. :)

30 weeks and counting!

Well, the nursery is finally complete! It has actually been updated since these pictures were taken, and I will post those pictures when I get them on the computer!

Since my last post, a few things have happened in Graysonland. I passed my glucose test with flying colors, so I won't be cutting bread, cookies or chocolate out of my diet in the near (or distant) future. That being said, I had my first break down at the Dr's office. I personally think I've had a very steady and healthy weight gain over the course of the last 30 weeks. At my 28 weeks appointment, I had only gained 18 pounds, primarily in 2 places, and I'm pretty sure you can guess what those are. The doctor who I was seeing that day came in and said that my weight gain was "okay" but that "I had gained 3 pounds in the last three weeks." I'm thinking, "And your point is...Have you seen my husbands head (or mine for that matter)? I don't think we are dealing with an itty bitty baby here." I tried to suck it up, but failed miserably when the next words out of her mouth were "Is there any area that you think you can cut back?" Umm, it's a little late for the Jenny Craig heart to heart. Tears start pouring down, and after convincing me that it was "just the hormones," (and not the fact that she basically called me a whale in front of my husband) I sucked it up and went about my way.

I returned a few weeks later for my 30 week appointment, and I had gained 2.9 pounds. The Dr. I saw this time didn't say a word. I guess that last .1 pound really makes a difference!! ANYWAY, the Dr. said I was doing great and everything continues to look good on paper. Prayers continue to be answered!

I finally got Jason to take a picture of Grayson which included my face to prove that I actually am his Mommy! Every belly pic that has been taken thus far has been exactly that...a BELLY pic.

Speaking of Jason, it looks like I ran him off again! Last week he spent 5 days in Arizona, and came home just in time to leave again for California. I knew I was eating a lot, but I didn't think I was starving the poor guy, and literally eating him out of THE HOUSE. Must have been, because all I've heard since he has been gone is "In and Out Burger," this and that. I'm 80% happy for him, and only 20% jealous. The hubby comes back tomorrow though, and he promised this is the last time he will leave town without me having someone to keep me company (Grayson). :)

Well, that's all that mattered to me on this Wednesday, (did you like that Jason)? I hope everyone is having a great week, and all my fellow Mommy's to Be are getting the rest and loving that they deserve!

Updated Nursery Pics!

Nursery Pics

Catching up...

Well, I've been getting in trouble because I haven't updated this thing in over a month! We have had a crazy past couple of weeks around here. Thanks to Easter and Baby Showers, I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my family in Texas! This past Easter was the best one ever because it was mine and Jason's first one being married, and almost all of my family was in town (minus Kristyn and Laci). Watching all of the kiddos scurry around hunting those eggs just made my anticipation for Grayson's arrival grow even more. Speaking of the little guy, he is kicking and kicking away. I told Jason earlier that either Grayson has gotten even bigger in the last few days, or he has starting moving around twice as much. I'm loving every minute though!

After Jason's meetings, we met up in Houston so that we could spend a few days with Stefanie and her family. I can't believe how much her daughter, Adalyn, has grown. She is such a cutie and has the best personality. By going to visit them, we got to take a different route back to Atlanta, and made a pit-stop in Biloxi. Definitely more to see this trip than the straight I-20 shots we've grown so accustomed to.

After Easter, we came back to Atlanta for a few days. Jason found out he was going to have to travel again, and I decided that I definitely did not want to stay in Atlanta by myself (again!). Sooo, I drove the 700(ish) miles to Texas BY MYSELF. It wasn't all that bad...and it was Grayson's and my first road trip together. He was very well behaved. :)

At the Showers, we pretty much got everything we could possibly need for Grayson's arrival. High Chair, Blankets, Carriers, Bouncers, Diapers, and clothers GALORE! The best part was definitely getting to spend time with my friends and family that I love so much!

Once we arrived back in Atlanta, it was time to get Grayson's Nursery together, which I am happy to say is ALMOST COMPLETE! I have to paint and put up a few shelves and wall decals, and we are DONE! Here are a few pictures of what we have managed to do so far. Enjoy!

Picture Perfect.

I am so excited that we finally got a chance to see all of our wedding pictures! The photographer (www.orpheusandaphrodite.com) did an AMAZING job. She definitely worked hard to make our special day perfect, and it was! I can't believe that it has already been a month since the best day (soon to be SECOND best day) of our lives! Thank you to everyone who shared in our special day, and A BIG thank you again to everyone who helped make that special day possible. We would not be where we are today without the love and support of our wonderful parents, family, and friends. For those of you who weren't able to be there, here are a few pictures, and you can view the rest via this link:

http://hcl.digitaleventpics.com/OrpheusandAphroditeMusicandPhotography478_HollyJason146952.htm

We're still here!

Wow! It has been a month since our last post! With wedding festivities, honeymoon, and Dr.'s appointments, things have gotten a little crazy around here! Grayson is officially 22 weeks and is growing every day! It's crazy how much can change in just one day.

Here are a few recent photos of Grayson and Mommy. For those of you who don't know, we found out REALLY early (12 weeks) that our little monkey was going to be a boy. This was confirmed again at 16 weeks, and at 19 weeks we got our "official proof." Which is definitely a good thing since Mom, Dad, and Mimi Hugghins have already gotten his wardrobe started. Not to mention all the cute things he is going to inherit from his cousin, Hudson.

Now that things have finally started to settle down a little, it is time to get that nursery going. We decided when we first found out we were expecting that if "it" was a "he" we would decorate the nursery with a jungle theme (with a strong emphasis on monkeys at Jason's request). We actually purchased the first three inhabitants of Grayson's jungle at FAO Schwarz when we were in NYC a few weeks ago. He now has a little monkey, lion, and elephant to hang out with in there.

Talk to you all soon!

Love,

Holly, Jason, and Grayson :)

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day! My last one as a bachelorette! :) This week is going to be crazy busy! Thank goodness my awesome parents will be here on Tuesday to make sure I get things DONE!

Today started off amazing since I woke up to a dozen roses....and breakfast shortly after. :) I'm a lucky girl! Not that he didn't get paid back with Banana Pudding from scratch, and a yummy dinner. We decided to play it lazy today, and watch TV\Movies from early afternoon until bedtime. I was not very high maintenance this Valentine's Day...but he probably shouldn't get accustomed to that!

Well, had to keep this short and sweet, but just wanted to jot down a few words for Valentines Day! Hope it was a great one!

Top 10 Foods Grayson Makes Me Want

This morning, I woke up a special treat. Jason made me breakfast, and it was delicious. Even things that didn't sound good when he mentioned them ended up tasting yummy. I decided I wanted to make a Top 10 list for foods I am craving, so that I will always remember what they were. It will also be fun to compare with my 16 friends that are pregnant, or the ones that have been pregnant before. :)

1. Hibachi

2. Pancakes

3. Chocolate

4. ANY Vegetables

5. Chocolate Milk

6. Biscuits & Gravy

7. Spaghetti

8. Pizza

9. Ranch Dressing

10. Fruit

Now, needless to say, I don't give in and eat these DAILY, maybe just a piece of chocolate or six. :) These are just the foods I want.

On a different note, I also thought it would be interesting to keep track of the foods I don't want.

1. Bacon (The sweet kind)

2. Ham

3. Sausage

4. Hamburger Meat

5. Chick-Fil-A

6. Sour Candy (Which is usually a FAVORITE)

7. Most Fast Food

8. Lunch Meat

9. Heavy Seasoning

10. Most Fish

But today, I was lucky enough to get breakfast cooked for me. We had Biscuits, Eggs, Strawberries, and Bananas. :)

Let it snow!

Thank you, Texas, for sending the beautiful snow our way! It has been snowing for about 6 hours now, and we have already gotten about 5 inches! It's beautiful!

I made a snowball earlier, by myself, and didn't have anyone to throw it at, haha. I can't wait to Grayson is old enough to go outside and play with. I need someone to motivate me to be active!

Grayson has been pretty mellow today, but of course he had to get his chocolate fix earlier. :)

We were resting up for a busy weekend, the last one before I am officially Mrs. Ballantine. I can't wait to see all my friends and family (the ones that can come) at our wedding next weekend! we are going to have so much fun! I just hope all of the cold has cleared up by then.

Never send a pregnant woman to the grocery store...

Well, I didn't want to jinx myself, but yesterday I officially broke my four year curse of car wrecks. Every four years on February 10th, I have been in some kind of wreck which resulted in broken bones, surgeries, and stitches. Not my idea of fun. Of course I'm extra careful these days because of the little one, but yesterday I was EXTRA, EXTRA careful by only driving (or riding) twice.

Today has been pretty mellow for Grayson and myself, although last night he was kicking and punching away. I didn't think I would ever get to sleep, although it was definitely worth staying up for. (That, and American Idol).

....continuing from earlier. Note to all the men out there....never send a pregnant woman to the grocery store alone. 1 hour and 4 different types of cookies later, I'm finally home. :) Time to get ready to go meet the preacher at Chick-Fil-A. There's something you don't do everyday!

Hello, Pancakes, and Chocolate.

Talk about a BABY BOOM! I just found out today that yet ANOTHER friend, the 16th one to be exact, is pregnant too! Many of my friends are already on Baby #2, but this marks the beginning of motherhood for me. I can't wait to meet OUR LITTLE MONKEY! :)

Today, Grayson and I are in our 17th week together, and for the past 17 weeks, he has been putting on a show! I'm still amazed that they were able to discover "he" was a "he" because of his constant flips, turns, and rolls! He is always on the MOVE, which should make shedding these pregnancy pounds easy with all of the running around I am likely to do! I guess I should have known all along HE was a HE, because what BOY doesn't drive a girl to eat loads and loads of CHOCOLATE??? I've always been the type to love the sour stuff, but not these days! Chocolate has been my weakness, along with pancakes and Hibachi. Poor, poor, pooooor Jason. If he never eats Japanese Food again it would be too soon for him, and it used to be a favorite. As for the pancakes, I'm getting high fives from pregnant women all around. Pancakes seem to be synonymous with pregnancy, and together we are doing our part to keep IHOP in business.

This past weekend we made the loooong trek back to Texas because some wonderful family and friends put on a shower for us. We got loads of goodies, and I am so thankful for the amazing and supportive people I am surrounded by! I couldn't ask for better family and friends, and I miss them daily. I am excited to say that I will see many of them again in less than a week as our wedding festivities begin! Then, it's off to NYC for a week. Yay!

Well, it's time for us to submit to reality TV once again, one of the few perks of Dad playing WOW upstairs all night.