Waiting for Benjamin

Well, it's Oct. 1st, and Benjamin is still comfy cozy on his due date! I really did not expect him to stay in this long, but it's just his due date, it's not like he is late, if his sister would not have been 9 days early, it wouldn't be such a surprising thing!

With the extra time on my hands, I wanted to take a moment and reflect back on this very special pregnancy, before it is over!

An official belly shot for the due date:

I never took a moment to blog about the shower my precious playgroup friends threw me back in August, but it was sooo special and I was truly touched that they wanted to take a moment to celebrate my baby boy and I. Since it was a surprise shower, I don't have any pics from it, but there are some elements from the shower that will pop up in the blog, such as the pretty roses with notes on them from my hubby! They emailed him and asked hm to write 5 things about me as a mom and it was a real blessing to me, to hear exactly how my loving hubby felt!

Here I am at 38 weeks, thinking this could be my last belly shot if I forgot to get one before heading to the hospital. By this time, our bags were packed, a list of emergency numbers was made, my friends here in the neighborhood were on call in case he came in the middle of the night, we were ready!

About a month before that, Labor Day in fact, my parents came down to help with the nursery! My mom and I washed all his clothes . . .

And Zack and my dad painted over the green in the guest bedroom, with cackie, giving it more of a "boyish" look! I love the idea of using cackie for the wall color, thanks again for the suggestion Ting! Thanks Grandpa and Zack for all your hard work!

Nesting mode was in full effect that weekend and we even moved around Bekah's toys to a cute nook in the study, rather than the living room. It looks much nicer now in our living room and I think Bekah likes this space of hers now too. She plays with her toys so much more now, which makes me feel better about how she will have to do just that much more when the baby comes!

One weekend this month, when we didn't have any visitors and daddy was not on call,  we made a big effort to give Bekah all our attention and really focus on her. It was sort of like her last weekend of being an only child! We had a lot of fun, starting off with going out for breakfast, something we never do!

We had an ultrasound scheduled for that Saturday too, and we loved having daddy attend the Benjamin movie! At that time, he was about 6.5 lbs, hmmm . . . who knows how much he must be now!

We took Bekah to her favorite park, Huffington . .

She was happy to be back in her old stomping ground! Let the park season begin, yay!

Just last weekend, my sweet girlfriends, Ting, Courtney and Val took me out for brunch, to celebrate Benjamin's approaching arrival! It was so nice to spend time with these amazing mommies that I have come to love and rely on here in Houston. Their encouragement and support has made this pregnancy so very special and much easier!

I didn't get a pic of the 4 of us that morning, but I did get pics of Ting's baby boy,

and Courtney's baby boy who attended the brunch!! I am learning alot from these ladies about being mommies of two!

And for the nursery! I have been waiting on my bedding to come in, to make a post, but goodness, it's the due date, I better just go ahead and post what I have!

Thanks to my parents, my playgroup, my friends, Zack and the rest of my family, I think we have created a pretty sweet room for our little boy! I find myself going in there for no reason, I just love to sit and look at everything, I am so happy to be happy with it!

Here is the sign that my playgroup made for me for my shower, I now have it hung on Benjamin's door:

And here is a plaque that Amy made for me, using the bible verse that Zack picked out for Benjamin! Amy made one of these for Bekah and I really do cherish these two works of art : ).

Here is the bookshelf and baskets I found. I like how you can write on the baskets with chalk to show what goes inside, cute little feature. Oh and since there is not much wall space in the room, his initials are down low, which may seem odd, but I think it works!

The room still is a guest bedroom/sewing room/nursery, so here is the sewing table that I tried to make look cuter and more organized . . . .

This is what you see when you walk in the room. Its not exactly baby boyish, it's a bit more mature looking than I thought it would be, but I actually am very happy with it : )!

Dresser and changing table . . .

( I'm very excited about my midnight diapers from the shower as well!)

Chair with nightstand and the one piece of bedding that has come in, his quilt. Funny, it's like the one piece you really don't use or need, but we've got it!

Here is the guest bed that we felt important to hold onto. My mom and I just went out and got a navy blue quilt, really helping the bed to look nice and not too "loud" for the nursery. The baseball pillow helps to keep it "thematic" but isn't too busy. . . Oh and my parents found the tin posters a long time ago, and they go well with the pillow actually.

The beddingless crib that Bekah has decided is an excellent place for jumping : ).

And the little touches that I especially like:

Nora found this book that is obviously appropriate for this room : ), and you see that trophy? It says, "Big Burk" on it, because it used to be Zack's dad's, when he played baseball at Rice! 

My dad made this plaque for us to hang on the door of the hospital room, whenever that will be! : )

I was touched that he went out and found the wood, painted it, found the letters and put them on, searched for decorations AND even got a mini baseball bat, bought a wood burner and etched Ben's name on it to make it look like the bat from The Natural! I wanted to cry when he gave it to me! That Ed sure is crafty!

Oh and talk about bats, this is the bat you may have seen above the window earlier, it's a real Louisville Slugger that my playgroup personalized for us! Isn't it amazing??? I was sooooooo surprised! Before we hung it up, I would find Zack every now and then, holding it and then, going for a "practice swing!" : )

My playgroup also gave me these authentic prints of some of Zack's favorite old timey players! They emailed him and asked him who he liked and they gave us 3 of the coolest pics! I love them!

As of now, I basically feel just fine, other than being tired. No contractions that I know of, and I am 2 cm, maybe more by now, but that is what I was on Monday. This past week, MayMay has been here and I have hardly had to lift a finger to do anything, plus I have my mommy by my side, so not only has it been easy, it's been fun and we have had alot of time to bond! Bekah is in hog heaven, having MayMay at her disposal each and every day and her name is the first one out of her mouth when she wakes up each morning, it's soo sweet! We are basically done with all that we can do to get ready for Ben, and now, I guess, God has just given us some extra time to spend together, some time for my body to really relax, for I take naps daily and sleep in, thanks to MayMay. Bekah has been extra super cute and lovey and though I would love my baby boy to be in my arms right now, I can't help but recognize the goodness in this unexpected week we have been given!

Monday, we go in to talk to the dr and see exactly what the pros and cons are of an induction, based on how Benjamin looks and how much he weighs. I am  on the books for an induction for Monday night, but I still do not feel completely comfortable having an induction without a medical reason, so we will see what we decide . . . I just keep praying for God's perfect timing and for a healthy Benjamin to come out when it's best for him!

In the meantime, naps, fun times with my girlie, extra time with friends and even a date night with my hubby has been a pleasant surprise this week!

Here Zack and I are at our favorite restarant, Prego this past Thursday night. And yes, we did not realize the irony in the name until we got home and my mom pointed out how we should have taken a pic in front of the sign! Oops!

Thanks also to everyone who has been calling and texting this week, gosh, everyone is so thoughtful to have remembered us and I feel so incredibly supported and prayed for. It really does mean the world to us!

We will keep you posted! Benjamin, we are ready when you are! : )