One month from today...

...is Riley's due date! :) I can't believe it's getting so close! The nursery is just about done, and Daniel and I are getting very excited about meeting our little man! Our next Dr.'s appointment is this Wednesday morning at 9:00, so I will post an update after that. Hope you all have a great week!

Maternity Pictures

Well, Diana is amazingly quick with editing, and she emailed yesterday saying the pictures were ready! Daniel and I went to their house last night to pick them up and enjoy some quality hangout time with the Bondurant's. Such fun! Here are some of my favorites...

My wedding rings no longer fit, so Diana got creative!

The ball cap was Daniel's when he was a little tike, and I have always loved giraffes!

One of my all-time favorite children's books

Daniel wanted in on the belly action :)

There are many more pictures that I've posted on facebook, so you're welcome to look at them there, and if you don't have facebook let me know and I'll send you a link to the album. Also, don't forget to check out Diana's website (www.dianabondurant.com). She's not only a very gifted photographer, but she's very personable and fun to work with! Thanks, again, Diana! We will always treasure these pictures!

Father's Day Weekend

First of all, let me say how thankful I am for my father and Daniel's father! We have both been blessed with wonderful, self-sacrificing, gracious fathers. I wish we could have celebrated with both of them in person yesterday, but for this season of our lives, it's just not possible. I was able to skype with my dad yesterday, though, so it was nice to see him...even if it was through the computer!

We had a great weekend celebrating Daniel and his new role as "father"! I can't help but allow my imagination to run wild as I think about next year and what it will be like celebrating with an almost one year old! So much fun!! Riley moved a lot this weekend, especially when he heard his daddy's voice, but how special it will be to see the two of them playing together in the very near future! :) Anyway, our Saturday began by taking maternity pictures. Not exactly on Daniel's list of priorities, but he was very gracious to agree to them because he knew it would make his wife happy! My old co-worker and friend, Diana, offered early on in the pregnancy to take the pictures for us, and when we talked last week and she realized how far along I was, we decided it was best to go ahead and do them this past weekend. After all, you never know when the little man may decide to show up! :) We had a lot of fun taking the pictures, and as soon as I get them from Diana, I'll be sure to share them with all of you! If you want to check out some of her other work (she is an incredible photographer!), you can look at her website.

After the photo shoot, I told Daniel the rest of the day was his...we would do whatever he wanted. I, of course, had some ideas, but the plan was ultimately up to him. We began by doing one of his favorite things...yard sales! Since it was already late in the morning, we didn't find any amazing items, but we had fun looking. We then went to a store that he's been begging me to go to...the Salvation Army thrift store. Yes, I am aware my husband is unique! :) I asked him where he would like to go for lunch. Guess what he picked?! Piccadilly! Yes, that's right, the young, in-love, about-to-be-parents (living in the land of AMAZING food, I might add) ate lunch at Piccadilly! He had never been to one, and he's a fan of cafeteria style restaurants (I am convinced he was born in the WRONG decade!), so that's where we went! After lunch we headed to Wal-Mart and got some groceries and then headed home for afternoon naps. I am laughing as I type this because we sound SO OLD!!!! Oh, the life of being married to Daniel Bramlett!

Daniel's big Father's Day gift was a new carborator for his truck. I know, exciting, right?! But, it's what he really wanted! I couldn't just give him a carborator, though, so I put on my creative cap (the very small one I was given!) and wrote him a poem about fatherhood and the prayers I pray regarding he and Riley. I framed it in a double 8x10 frame and told him the other side was reserved for a picture of he and his firstborn son. Daniel loves home-made gifts, so this was definitely a bonus to the carborator! I also picked up a couple of 3D puzzles from Michael's...which he loves! They are made out of wood, and so far, he's completed four of them. He chose to spend Sunday afternoon (about 4 hours of it, to be exact!) putting together this puzzle...

When he first looked at this he said, "The next one I do I want to be a complicated one that will really take me some time!" Little did he know, his wish was about to come true! :)

The pieces are all punched out and ready to be assembled

Reading the directions

He's getting there!

The finished product! After lots of talking to himself and getting a little frustrated (but not enough to quit, of course!), he completed the task!

We finished the day off by playing cards with some friends. If you haven't already heard of it, I suggest you check out "Hit the Deck." We recently bought it and tried it out last night for the first time. Lots of fun and laughter took place at our kitchen table!

I hope you all have a great week, and be looking out for those maternity pictures! Can't wait to share them with you!

If you love chocolate...

You need to go here! If you sign up at this website, they'll send you a coupon in the mail for free chocolate! Now that gets this pregnant, lover-of-chocolate's heart pumping! :) Make sure you register within 5 minutes of opening the site, though, or you may lose your coupon privileges!

Happy Friday, everyone!!!

33 down, 7 to go!

I can't believe I've allowed so much time to pass since my last post! Sorry about that! I've been out of the blogging "mood" for some reason. Maybe it's because I'm just plain lazy, or maybe it's because life's been a bit ordinary lately. Besides the pineapple in my belly (can you believe we're up to a pineapple?! it seems like just yesterday that he was the size of an avocado!) there hasn't been a whole lot going on. I reached the 33-week mark this past Wednesday! Less than 7 weeks to go...hopefully!

Daniel and I began our baby classes at Ochsner (the hospital where we'll deliver) two weeks ago. We go every Tuesday night for 4 weeks. The first two sessions were entitled "Delivery I" and "Delivery II." We both have learned so much! It lasts 2 hours each time, and I told Daniel after this past week that I am so interested in what the nurse is saying that my mind never wanders during class! I'm trying to soak up every single word that comes out of her mouth. My husband's a bit ADD (for instance, last night I had to give him instructions for cooking something 3 times within about a 2 minute time period), and he even agreed that he was tuned in during the classes. I just pray all of this information sticks with us when the time finally comes for Riley to make his appearance! :)

My parents bought their plane tickets for the big event yesterday! It's so difficult with them living so far away (Maryland) ... we have no clue when the Lord will decide it's time for Riley to leave the womb, so all we can do is wait and give them a call as soon as labor begins! Hopefully they'll make it before he's born, but if they don't, at least they'll be here shortly after! I can't wait to see them and introduce them to their newest grandson!

Speaking of Riley, he seems to be doing very well. I feel him moving all throughout the day, and the last few days, the poor boy has had the hiccups multiple times! In fact, he has them right now! I read somewhere that babies don't mind the hiccups as much as we do...hope that's true because he is following in his mama's footsteps in that department! Our next appointment is Monday morning, so I'm looking forward to hearing his heartbeat...definitely a highlight of each appointment!

33 weeks! I know, I know..."my belly is so small!" I hear that all the time! My mom found some old pics of when she was pregnant with my brother and then me, and she said she never got very large either. So, I guess I'm my mother's daughter! I am totally fine with not carrying around a watermelon as long as the doctor says he's healthy and growing! :) Can't wait to hold and kiss that pineapple (or whatever fruit he may be when he's born)!