The Growing Caldwell Family

We drove back from Shreveport yesterday.  We had a great time and they gave us a fabulous shower.  I will post about the shower later with pictures.  After being away from Lucy for a week we were excited to pick up our fur baby!  Lucy stayed at Mom and Pops' house, the equivalent of Disneyland for a doggie!  She had a fabulous time taking walks, supervising Christmas decorating, and being the center of attention.  I'm glad she had some time away because she has recently had a run in with the law.  Yes, animal control has notified us that a neighbor complained about Lucy's barking.  Last week I contacted Angie, a fabulous dog trainer who has helped us in the past to understand Lucy's behavior and make her an enjoyable member of our family.  Angie's interpretation was that Lucy has a lot of nervous energy that may be due to her sensing the baby coming and is likely due to us being more busy than usual and me not getting out to walk her as much as usual, and this ner...

We made it to Shreveport and have been enjoying our time to visit with Aaron's family.  Aaron and I are very thankful this year to be expecting our first baby and that we have had a healthy pregnancy.  That's a lot to be thankful for on top of all the other good things we have in life.  I hope everyone is having a Thanksgiving surrounded by people they care for and realizing how much there is to be thankful for.

Aaron and I have been busy getting ready for our trip to Shreveport for the holiday.  When we are there for Thanksgiving, we celebrate what we refer to as Merry Thanksmas.  In other words, we combine the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.  The good thing about this is that it has forced me to finish a lot of my Christmas shopping and the bigger task, getting the gifts wrapped!  I ran out of time this morning to do a belly shot, but will try to get a picture soon and may double up next week.  We have been so diligent about it that I hate to miss a week! Regardless of the picture, here is the update on sweet pea.   This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!). At 32 weeks pregnant , you're likely feeling tapping and squirming instead of your baby's signature rocking and rolling. That's becaus...

On Saturday a close friend from my childhood and her husband came to stay with me and Aaron.  Kristi and I know each other from when our families lived on the same street in Houston.  Our families were good friends and stayed in touch after we both moved away.  Then, Kristi and I were roommates for a time at TCU.  Since college we have both been busy with grad school and haven't seen each other in several years, so this was a great chance to catch up!  We had a lot of fun visiting with them and hope that Kristi's husband, Ben, likes the program he is going to visit at UNC so they might be a little closer to us! 

Yesterday we went for our 3-D/4-D ultrasound and it was quite amazing. Mom, Dad, and Jeanne' joined us for our first real glimpse of Sarah Graves.  We think she's quite the cutie already! We were able to see that sweet little face! She likes to keep her hands up over her face and seems to grab onto the umbilical cord a lot, but we managed to get her to cooperate some! I love the fat cheeks and those sweet little lips.  I have been in love with her for some time, but having a face to think about just makes me more in love!  I can't wait until we can kiss those sweet cheeks!  They might be chapped for some time! That's the umbilical cord coming down the side of her face, not a long ringlet!

Yesterday we met with another pediatric group.  This one is a little closer to our house.  I was hoping that we would be overwhelmingly pleased by one of the practices and it would make an easy choice, but they both have their pros and cons. Our start with this practice was a bit rocky as we had an early appointment and when we arrived the door was locked.  We proceeded to wait and other patients showed up and we kept waiting.  I knocked on the door, tried to call them, and kept looking for someone to flag down, but had no luck.  Finally, after waiting nearly 20 minutes, one guy had the idea to go to the practice next door to see if they had a way into the office and sure enough there was a connecting door that allowed us to get their attention.  They apologized for the oversight, but I see that as a potential flag for how they operate. We met with one of the pediatricians in the practice and she seemed nice, but not someone that I immediately fell in love with.  She was patient in...

This song is all that I can think of now that I realize my belly has grown to new proportions.  I was ironing my shirt this morning when suddenly I felt a burning on my belly and realized that my belly hangs out so far I had accidentally burned it with the iron.  Don't get worried!  It's just a small burn where the iron got a little too close.  Baby girl is completely fine and probably only noticed the feeling of me jumping when I realized what happened.  I have noticed a similar type thing while cooking because I have to back away from the stove in order to keep my belly away from the burner. Maybe I just need a burn resistant wrap for my belly!