Ride 2 Recovery

Thursday, December 17th, Chet participated in the fourth annual Ride 2 Recovery, a bicycle ride designed to raise money for wounded veterans. There were about 325 riders total, but Chet and many others, including the CNO (Chief of Naval Operations) only participated in the last leg of the ride, which was 50-miles long ("only" I say!). In case you were wondering, Chet WAS sore the next day. Here is a link to an online article covering the event: http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-12-17/story/cyclists_complete_ride_mayport_finale_for_injured_vets.

In addition to participating in the ride, Chet was also responsible for part of the planning, specifically coordinating the ride's on-base finish (imagine 325 bicyclists flying through the base's front gates past armed gate guards...not a normal day). To top it all off, Chet has also been working on a several-month-long project: planning, managing, and overseeing the construction of the base's first handicapped beach access ramp. The ride concluded with the CNO cutting the beautifully handcrafted red, white, and blue ribbon at a traditional ribbon-cutting ceremony, deeming the ramp "open". (By the way, Chet and I were the makers of the "beautifully handcrafted red, white, and blue ribbon".) Here is a picture of Chet in his Ride 2 Recovery outfit!

33 Weeks

Not much news to report! My 32-week doctor appointment went well, and I'll post a picture in my maternity uniform soon (that's for you, Case!). Chet and I have been busy getting ready for Christmas, and although we won't be traveling to Texas this year, we'll spend the big day in West Palm Beach with Chet's family. Here is my 33-week picture compared to 32 weeks, as well as the car seat and Pack 'n' Play we recently received in the mail! Merry Christmas to all!

32 Weeks

33 Weeks

Car Seat

Pack 'n' Play

31 and 32 Weeks

Sorry for not posting last week, but here are my 31- and 32-week pictures (compared to 30 weeks)! Please excuse the 32-week picture (I have a cold and am feeling/looking pretty rough), and I took two pictures the 31st week because I think I look more pregnant in the red dress picture (this was taken right before Chet and I went to his work Christmas party) than in the bare belly picture. In other news, I switched to the maternity uniform at work this week, and I have my 32-week doctor appointment tomorrow.

30 Weeks

31 Weeks

31 Weeks

32 Weeks

3D/4D Ultrasound

Hi, everyone! Last Wednesday Chet and I went to a 3D/4D Ultrasound clinic and got to see our little princess again. I was especially interested in having the technician check...just to make sure...that we're definitely having a little girl. We are (thank goodness; I wasn't looking forward to re-painting the room or returning all of those adorable bows and pink clothes), and it was so much fun to see her moving around and looking like a little human! We got to take home a CD with all of the pictures from the session, but they weren't the best because we were only able to see her right side, and her little feet and some umbilical cord were covering her face part of the time. In case you can't make out what you're looking at, her face is on the left side of the pictures, looking right. And she's smiling in the second one!

30 Weeks, Baby's Name, and Nursery Preview

Hi, everyone! This morning, after I stood up from hunching over while putting on my shoes, I felt a sharp pain in my left side. I'm pretty sure there was a little foot sticking out of the left side of my belly, and I had to gently push it back in to make the pain go away (it didn't feel so painful once I realized what it was!). I thought it was pretty cute, but hopefully she doesn't make a habit of it! Here is my 30-week picture, compared to my 29-week picture.

29 Weeks

30 Weeks

For those of you who don't know and are wondering, we've decided to keep the baby's name a surprise until she's born. We're 99% sure we know what we're going to name her, but since we still have some time, we're not frantic yet (sorry if the title of this entry was misleading!). Also, Chet and I have been working on the nursery, and here is a sneak peak. It's definitely not finished, but I thought you'd like to see where we're going with the decorating and such (more pictures to follow!).

We hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Texas Baby Shower

I flew to Texas the weekend of November 13th for an amazing baby shower hosted by my mom, P-ma (maternal grandmother, for those of you who don't know), and good friend Gwen. Gwen was the decorator and caterer, and everything turned out perfectly! It was so nice to spend time with friends and family, and to receive so many wonderful gifts (especially all of the adorable clothes and accessories that a baby girl can wear)! Thanks everyone!

Ashley, P-ma, Gwen, and Mama

Kitchen Table (with Ginny the Giraffe sitting guard)

Cupcakes (the top tier is actually 4 onesies made to look like cupcakes!)

Punch Bowl

Dining Room Table (too bad the food wasn't set out yet)

Shoe and Bow Tree

Ashley and Cousin Starla

Bathroom Decorations

Diaper Cake

Aunt Sheila, Ashley, and Aunt Ellen

28 and 29 Weeks

Hi, everyone! Sorry for taking a week off from blogging...we've been busy lately! Here are my 28- and 29-week pictures (as always, compared to the previous week).

27 Weeks

28 Weeks

29 Weeks (please excuse the weird hairdo)

Last entry I mentioned having my glucose test, which I failed. Not a big deal; I had to take a more accurate 3-hour test the following week (which was last week). It wasn't much fun, because I had to fast for 12-hours beforehand, then sit in the waiting room of the clinic for nearly four hours, getting my blood drawn each hour. I was pretty hungry by the end. I'm pretty sure I passed this test, because I haven't received a phone call from my doctor (I should have heard from her Monday had I failed again). So thank goodness for no gestational diabetes!

Last weekend I flew to Texas for a wonderful baby shower hosted by my mom, but I'll devote an entire entry to that in the next couple of days. While I was in Texas, Chet and his dad painted the baby's room, and it looks amazing! Pictures to follow!

27 Weeks and Crib

Hi, everyone! Here is my 27-week picture, compared again to my picture from last week. I don't think I grew as much this week as I did last week...which may mean I grow twice as much next week!

26 Weeks

27 Weeks

I had a doctor appointment Thursday, and the baby's heart is still beating at a strong 150 beats per minute. I've gained just about 10 lbs, and the doctor said that my tummy measurement is right where it should be (this is the first time she pulled out the tape measure). The appointment was also a little unnerving, just because the doctor had to explain that at this point in the pregnancy I need to go straight to labor and delivery if anything seems wrong. Hopefully this baby continues to cook for as long as possible! I also received my H1N1 vaccine, and was supposed to do my glucose test Thursday, but I did it Friday morning at the clinic in Mayport (closer to home) instead. I should have those results next week.

In other news, we're starting to put the nursery together! In the last three weeks we've gone through and taken out all of the boxes that were stacked in the nursery from our move, and Chet put together the crib, armoir, and dresser/changing table that we ordered. I also picked out the paint color (pink, of course!), so we'll do a test swatch to see if what I picked is the color we'll actually go with. (By the way...there are WAY too many shades of pink available at Lowe's and Home Depot. It's just not right.) Thankfully, Chet's dad is visiting next weekend while I'm in Texas, and they will do all of the painting while I'm gone. I'll post more pictures of the room after it's painted (right now it's way too white).

Chet (just starting to put the crib together)

Ashley (posing next to the crib as if she put it together by herself)

26 Weeks

Hi, everyone! It seems that I'm getting better at posting my belly picture on a weekly basis (we'll see how I do next week before I get too full of myself). I think there is an obvious weekly progression at this point, which is good because it makes being pregnant seem more real to me! I've also posted my 25-week picture for comparison, since the two posts are so far apart.

25 Weeks

26 Weeks

Also, today I got a pedicure, and all of the ladies in the nail salon kept patting me and asking me how I was feeling. I thought it was pretty funny. My next appointment is a week from today (November 6th). I'll let you know how it goes!

House Pictures

Hi, everyone! I'm finally getting around to posting some house pictures, even though I didn't actually take these pictures myself (Chet's dad took them when they visited last month). They're a little outdated because we've made some changes since then, but I think they do a good job of portraying how the main part of the house is laid out. I'll take some closer shots of the rest of the house and post those soon.

Front of House

Part of Kitchen

Dining Room (I guess you can call this the dining room...it's really just a big open space that leads out to the back porch)

Living Room (the view if you're standing in the kitchen; if you were to pan the camera to the left you would see the "dining room" picture from above)

Back Porch (we love the view!)

Texas Visit

(WARNING: I didn't snap a single picture during this visit!) Two weeks ago (Thursday, October 8th), Chet and I flew to Houston for Columbus Day weekend. My dad picked us up from the airport that night and took us to dinner at Moe's Barbeque (Chet's first taste of REAL Texas barbeque...he loved it!). Friday morning my mom, Dave, Chet, and I drove to New Braunfels, and then to Austin to visit Grant at the University of Texas. Chet and I got to see his dorm room, and we walked around campus and shopped at the Co-Op. Here is a picture of some adorable purchases...

After our UT visit, Mama, Chet, and I visited the LBJ Presidential Library; Chet nor I had ever been to one (Grant couldn't go because he was attending a study group). It was really ineresting, but we didn't get to spend a lot of time there since they were about to close. After leaving the Library we stopped by the San Marcos outlet mall on our way back to New Braunfels and did a little bit of shopping. This is where we bought our baby girl's first pair of boots (they're little crib shoes with soft bottoms)!

We left New Braunfels Sunday to head back to Houston, and Chet and I flew back to Jacksonville Monday. We had such a great weekend, and I can't wait to make another trip to Texas in the middle of November!

23, 24, and 25 Weeks

Sorry again for taking three weeks to post these pictures! We had a doctor appointment October 6th, and everything looked great. We got the results of our long ultrasound (all perfectly normal) and listened to the baby's heartbeat (a strong, steady 150 bpm). Next visit (November 6th) I will have another round of routine bloodwork done, as well as undergo the glucose test to determine whether or not I have gestational diabetes. I'll keep you posted!

23 Weeks (exact same outfit as 20 weeks!)

24 Weeks

25 Weeks (not a very flattering picture - I just woke up from a nap)

Old Post: Jon and Jill Visit and Alan Jackson Concert

This is a delayed entry, but I still wanted to post these pictures. The last weekend in September, our friends Jon and Jill and their two adorable kids spent the night with us on their way down to Disney World. It was really good to catch up with them, and Andy and Madeleine are precious! It definitely gave me baby fever...

Ashley, Madeleine, Jill, and Andy

Madeleine and Chet (I don't think he's as scared as he looks!)

Andy (all ready for bed!)

Madeleine (all swaddled in for the night!)

The next weekend, Chet and I went to an Alan Jackson concert in St. Augustine at the St. Augustine Amphitheater. It was a really nice venue, and Alan Jackson was great! I, of course, couldn't resist buying an over-priced tacky tour t-shirt, but it was worth it.

Ashley and Chet (nosebleed section)

Alan Jackson on Stage

20, 21, and 22 Weeks

Sorry I haven't posted belly pictues in so long! Even if I don't post them, you can rest assured that Chet is still taking a pictures of me each week...they just might take a while to appear on the blog.

20 Weeks

21 Weeks

22 Weeks

As you can see, I'm definitely showing! However, I think it's less of a pregnant belly and more of a my-ribcage-looks-way-too-big-for-my-body belly. The baby is moving like crazy, and Chet felt her move for the first time last Sunday, so he's thrilled! My next appointment is Tuesday, so I'll udpate you on how that goes next week. Hope everyone had a great weekend!