27 Weeks

Here are the 27 week pictures. I feel like this top I have on makes my belly look even bigger than usual. Oh well.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, we have concrete for the shop now! I realize this may not sound very exciting, but I assure you it is. Now, on with the building. Yay!

P.S. I think I've said before that at this point in my pregnancy, knowing how much time I (supposedly) have left hits me more than knowing how far along I am. So, today, I'm 27 weeks and four days pregnant, which also means I have 12 weeks and three days to go. 12 weeks!!!! Holy cow!

Mandy

Concrete Day!!!!!

Well, folks. It's concrete day. Yep. We are finally getting the concrete for Jason's shop. My dad and Jason have worked tirelessly to get the ground ready and after last week's rain, we were a little behind. But, today is concrete day!!!

Here are some pics of the progress.

This was demo day about a month ago. They literally pulled the old shop down with Jason's Jeep. Wish I had gotten that on video.

This is the footing (I think that's what it's called) that my dad and Jason (in top picture) prepared for the concrete. This was a MUCH more detailed process than I ever anticipated. My dad is amazing and knows all about construction stuff, so he has been (as always) an invaluable resource and help.
So, the next pictures you see will be of a concrete slab in my back yard. YAY!!! I know I need to post this week's belly pics, but to be honest. I forgot to take them on Saturday. I'll try to have Jason take them tonight and post them tomorrow.

Mandy

26 Weeks

26 weeks! So exciting. Some days it seems like the past 26 weeks have flown by, and other days, it seems like January will NEVER get here.

This week my "What to Expect.com" (WTE) app says that Lawson is about the size of a cucumber: 15 inches and 2.2 pounds. I don't know how truly accurate that is, but what I can tell you is that he is getting bigger and stronger! His movements are more frequent (or perhaps I'm just feeling them more as he grows...) and they are much stronger with each passing day. Just last night he and Jason were playing a little game: Jason (with his head laying on my stomach) would push on one side of my stomach and within about 10 seconds, Lawson would push against the other side of my stomach nudging Jason's resting head. Silly boys!! Jason also says that Lawson was wide awake again Saturday night/Sunday morning when he came to bed. Once again, I slept right through this, but I'm sure that won't last much longer. :-)

As for me, I'm still getting bigger (of course). I'm feeling more pregnant these days too: tired mostly with spurts of energy here and there, not able to wear much of anything that's not maternity, and that darn belly button is just about ready to be an outie (which, by the way, Jason thinks is hilarious). I'm slowly making progress on nursery stuff, so hopefully in the next month or so, I'll have some pics to show (hopefully).

Another interesting note, my WTE app also has a countdown feature. It now reads 13 weeks 5 days. To me, knowing how many weeks I have left (supposedly) has more impact than knowing how many weeks along I am. Just thought I would share.

Mandy

2:30 AM

At 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning, I woke up to Jason saying, "Do you feel that? He's moving around like crazy!!!" He had just come to bed and had his hand resting on my stomach. And, as he said, Lawson was going crazy! I'm actually surprised it wasn't keeping me awake.

In the past week, Jason has finally been able to feel Lawson moving. And, he even SAW Lawson moving (by way of my bouncing belly). It's just crazy to see it...to feel it. I'm so glad Jason is finally getting to experience it with me. This time (in the wee hours of Sunday morning) was the first time he felt movement almost constantly. Quick little jabs, rolls, moving from one side of my stomach to the other...you name it. And, it was like Lawson was responding to Jason talking and pushing back. A little father son bonding I guess.

Jason was amazed! He was thrilled! So excited to be feeling his son's movements. Then, I realized what time it was: 2:30 a.m. I said, "Uh, Jason, we don't actually want him to be wide awake at 2:30 a.m. do we?" We both got a laugh from this. I guess for now we'll let him be awake anytime he wants (since we don't actually have control of that anyway :-)). But, sweet Lawson, once you're out in the world, there will be no 2:30 a.m. play sessions. 2:30 a.m. is for sleeping. :-)

Mandy

25 Weeks

We've made it to 25 weeks! We are well on our way to having sweet little Lawson at home with us. I had a doctor's appointment this morning, and everything seems to be on-track. Lawson's heartbeat is strong, and I'm measuring right where I should be. I've gained a total of 17 pounds since we started this journey! Crazy!!! Here's your latest visual of that 17 pounds:

I have to admit, I catch glimpses of myself in windows or mirrors sometimes and have to do a double take to see why the heck I look so big. Then I remember I'm pregnant...duh. It's not like I actually forget. It's just weird to see my reflection. Sort of like when you get your hair colored (something very different from your natural color) and you're a little shocked to see yourself when you look in the mirror.

I would like to take this opportunity to brag on my sweet husband. He tells me on a regular basis that I look beautiful. He tells me I'm one of those pregnant women who just looks more and more beautiful with the baby belly. This weekend I was hot and tired (I had been grocery shopping and had cooked dinner...tough stuff you know...:-)). Jason walked in, smiled, leaned over and kissed me and said, "you look so pretty." I. LOVE. HIM. I'm so blessed!

Mandy

LJK

Well, here it is. The post you've all been waiting for. We have chosen a name for Baby Boy Keyes! After much debate and searching, we finally resorted to reading through the boy names in the baby name book I have at home. Jason read through them, and I wrote down the ones we liked. We added these to our existing list, and then started narrowing it down. Jason marked his favorites and then I marked mine. We eliminated any we didn't both like. Then we started playing around with middle names. This all happened Thursday night September 22. We thought it over of a day or so and are now happy to announce that Baby Boy Keyes has a name....

Lawson Jace Keyes

Lawson is one we found in the book and it just fits. For me, I put it at the top of the list as soon as Jason read it out loud. Jason came up with Jace, and I think it works great with Lawson! So, another milestone in the crazy process of bringing a child into the world. One more step toward meeting out sweet baby boy.

Lawson Jace Keyes, we cannot wait to meet you!!

Mandy

24 Weeks

This week marks the 24th week of my pregnancy. Essentially, 6 months! There are days when it seems like it has gone by so fast, but there are also days when I wonder if January will ever get here. Either way, time is passing and progress is being made. I'm getting bigger and bigger and so is Baby Boy Keyes. At this point, he weighs over a pound (maybe even two) and is about as big as an eggplant or ear of corn (depending on which site you look at). I have my next doctor's appointment in a week, so I'll give a weight gain update, etc. then. For now, here are this week's pictures.

Yay for making it through 24 weeks! Stay tuned for more exciting updates.

Mandy