a few days after father’s day.

Yes, we’re two days late over here, but it’s too special of a day to miss. So... a little late it is.

These two days celebrating parents have had a whole new meaning this year as the two of us are getting ready to be thrown into that category ourselves.

It has been wonderful seeing Jordan prep for his new role. Putting together a crib, going to doctor’s appointments, patiently sitting through an entire baby shower (there were other guys there as well). I can’t wait to see him in that backward gown and booties, holding that brand new baby. What a great father he will be.

And what great fathers we both have.

To my father, thank you for always treating my mother with love and respect. Thank you for teaching me that it’s easier to draw a portrait upside down, and for staying up late to help me with school projects. Thank you always working hard to provide for our family and for all of the things you sacrificed along the way.

To my father-in-law, thank you for teaching your son what it means to be a husband and father. Thank you for teaching him how to work with his hands and how to work hard. Thank you for your generosity, love and example.

I’m thankful for fathers. I’m thankful for the strong examples of love and faith I’ve been blessed with throughout my life and that I was able to find such an example in a husband. Jordan, you are an amazing husband (the best in fact) and because of that, I know you will be a wonderful father.

Happy (two days after) Father’s Day!


P.S. I can imagine the delivery room looking a lot like this when the day comes. Minus me telling Jordan to shut up. And telling everyone that his parents were never married. 

sixty-four is a good number.

All I can think about lately is staying caught up on school. So that just in case this little girl decides to come five weeks early like her dad did, I'll be prepared.

That's left little time for things such as blogging. And lately, sleep.

But I found a few minutes to squeeze in a post because a lot has been going on lately. We've now reached the 30th week of the pregnancy. Only sixty-four days to go.

64!

A few weeks ago at our monthly doctor's visit, we had an unplanned ultrasound to make sure Baby Girl was safe and healthy (don't worry, she is). And while it wasn't done under the best of circumstances and while I was a little (ok, a lot) worried the entire time, it was a nice little first Mother's Day gift to get to see her. She has grown so much these past ten weeks and I can't wait to see her again in July.

And did I mention that people can finally tell I’m pregnant? Yes, that baby bump has officially shown up. Here’s the proof. 

In other news, our little giveaway from Love, Kelsie Rae (yes, it's long overdue, I know) finally has a winner:

Just shoot Kelsie an email (kelsieraec@gmail.com) with your address, she'll get this cute little headband sent off to you!

a little vacation.

Jordan and I've been vacationing in rainy Seattle this past week, hence the quietness over here on the blog. It's our last big hoorah before this little girl comes and we're enjoying this relaxing time with family.

While the week has been full of lazy mornings and lots of movie watching, we've got quite a bit done. A crib has been purchased, the baby registry finalized, and 7 baby cloths + 1 baby blanket have been made. And thanks to that blanket, we've finalized the color choices for the nursery (otherwise known as one wall of the one bedroom in the house—ours).

Who would've guessed that burp cloths would be so exciting? We'll be in a bit of trouble if this baby proves the ultrasound tech wrong and turns out to be a boy: all our burp cloths are pink-ish. And because of their girly coloration, Jordan's decided that he'll only use the green and yellow sides when he's tending the baby. Keeping everything gender neutral is harder than it seems.

Tonight will be filled with pizza eating and... more movie watching: a Harry Potter movie night was in order to celebrate the release of the 7th on DVD. Have you seen it yet? We were fans.

What are your plans for the weekend? Oh, and have you checked out the Love, Kelsie Rae giveaway yet? You've got until next week to enter; don't miss out!

preview of the wardrobe.

Have you ever purchased (almost) an entire wardrobe for someone all at once? A wardrobe that's meant to last them an entire year? A year when they will need a new size about every three months?

That's what our weekend consisted of. Tons of tiny clothes.

Baby Girl's little side of the closet is officially filling up with dresses, onesies and itty bitty pairs of jeans.

And the stripe obsession is still going strong. My mom bought a pair of striped shoes even though my dad told her he didn't think I'd like them (I did like them, though). "They're striped," she replied. "Of course she'll like them."

I had to assure them that although I like stripes, my goal isn't to create an entire wardrobe of striped attire; other patterns are great and so is plain clothing. Apparently I'm giving people the wrong impression.

So, everyone, I love stripes, but I love other things, too. Just so we're clear.

I'd also like to point out that obsessions run in the family. And that my mother seems to be obsessed with polka dots.

And let's not forget my husband's argyle obsession. Which unlike the others, has yet to manifest itself in this little girl's wardrobe. It's currently confined to his sock drawer.

We took a brief inventory of Baby Girl's clothes after our shopping spree and counted 16 dresses (among other things). Yeah, that's a lot. Especially when her momma only has three. Apparently that needs to be added to the obsession list as well.

My mom hesitantly pulled that little gem on the right out of the shopping bag, saying that she wasn't sure if we would like it, but that we could return it if we didn't.

We're kind of in love with it (Jordan admitted that it's his favorite, too). Maybe I'd wear more dresses if I could find ones as great as that in my size.

letter to baby.

Dear Baby,

Your dad and I have been married for a year and a half and yesterday was the first time he saw me tie my shoes. He laughed at me. And told me I did it weird.

And I told him that he better get use to it because that's how you'll be tying your shoes; I'm going to teach you.

He insisted that he'll be doing the teaching, and that if I try to interfere, he'll just reteach you. We're going to have to settle this issue before you reach shoe tying age. That kind of inconsistency would not be good for you.

And then there's the whole issue of how you'll make your tacos. And your peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

I'll let you take after him with the tacos (because let's be honest, he does make them better), but take my advice on the PB&J: peanut butter on both sides, jelly in the middle. Trust me on this.

And please trust me when I say that you are heaven sent. And that your dad and I love you to pieces already.

We will always be here for you. Even in matters as trivial as how to make a good taco.

patience.

All I can think about lately is this little girl. And motherhood. And beginning this new stage of life with Jordan. And how great of a father he'll be.

I can't stop thinking about car seats and cribs and onesies and hospitals. Our neighbor showed us the quickest route to the delivery room yesterday. And the pregnancy checklist keeps on thebump.com keeps getting shorter and shorter.

Our neighbor had her baby last week. Seven weeks early. (That equals a lot of time at the hospital which equals knowing the fastest way there.) And that's made all this planning seem like it should be happening that much faster.

And yet, there's still not much of a baby bump around here, which makes that due date seem a long while off. She can take her time, though; I'll be patient.

For now, we'll go shopping for a car seat this weekend with my parents. And maybe decide on a crib. We'll keep going to our monthly doctor's visits and I'll keep wishing that every one included an ultrasound. I just love watching this little girl; feeling her move and grow is magical, but seeing it is a whole different kind of wonderful.

I can't wait to see what holding those wiggles will be like.

let's be honest.

I'm obsessed with stripes.

Jordan and I went on a little date Saturday night and did a some window shopping for baby. Five minutes and ten clothing picks later, Jordan pointed out that everything I had showed him was striped. Literally. He suggested we branch out a bit. And then went on to pick out every striped item in the baby section, going on and on about how cute it was. Yeah, he's sassy.

(Side note: Sassy people are great. You start acting sassy, and it's like we have an instant bond. Jokes are funny, but sass is even more entertaining.)

But really? An entire section full of baby clothes and the only pieces I'm attracted to are striped? There are only six pieces of striped anything in my entire closet, and yet I seem to be set on creating an entire wardrobe of stripes for this baby girl.

I'm pretty sure it's a phase, so I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts. Here are some pieces that have caught my eye lately. Stripe-loving proof.

1  2  3  4  5  6

it's a...

We're having a girl! It took the ultrasound tech quite a while to get a clear shot, and even though she could already tell what it was, she wanted to wait to tell us until we could see for ourselves. It was a rough couple of minutes waiting for this little girl to calm down enough to snap a picture.

By the time they were ready to take pictures of her face with the 3D sensor, she had worn herself out and was done. She curled herself up in a ball, hid her face behind her hands and started yawning. But really.

After wiggling for thirty minutes straight, I'd be ready for a nap, too. Jordan says she's gonna be an athlete; the technician said she'll make a good gymnast because she's so flexible. Who knows. Maybe she'll do parkour or be an interpretive dancer.

Here are the names we're thinking for our new little girl:

What do you think? Which one's your favorite?

letter to baby.

Dear Baby, 

Today while we were sitting in church, a man told a story about losing his son four days after he was born. The man talked about how badly he had wanted to keep that child with him, how much he had loved him. 

But what did that child do to merit that kind of love? That unconditional, all-encompassing love?

What have you done to make me love you so much? What has any unborn child done to make their mothers love them? Make them throw up? Kick 'em?

And yet, that almost always comes. And it's come in bunches with you, my dear. I've loved you from the beginning, the very very start. Each day I'm reminded of the love I already have for you, the love I've always had for you. 

We get to see you tomorrow, to hear your heartbeat, to see whether you're a little boy or girl and dear, we can't wait. Dad thinks you're a boy, and I'm betting on a girl. We'll see. 

You're great, you're active and we love you. A lot. 

shop opening: day 1.

It's finally open! That Pair of Crutches is now on Etsy!

For the next week, I'll be adding a couple of items to the shop every day, and will introduce them here on the blog. The week-long celebration will be full of other fun surprises as well!

Join in on this week's celebration by liking TPOC's new page on Facebook and you'll get a special shop discount. For every 100 subscribers we get we'll do a giveaway!

So, new in the TPOC shop today: the "Love is Like" print and card.

When I fell in love with my husband, my whole world changed. The feeling came so subtly and was so natural, and yet, after it was rooted in my heart, everything was different. From that moment on, I couldn't imagine life without him.

That same feeling came when I felt this little one kick for the first time. That was the moment it all became real: we're having a child. That tiny kick, that realization changed everything once more. I now have someone else to love, someone else to share my heart with. And even though I can't hold this little someone in my arms yet, they are here, they are real and they are mine... and I can't imagine life without them.

Love is like having a color television set. You never wanna go back to black and white. 


Head on over to the shop to check it out and stay tuned for more products to come!

there's gonna be a baby around here and it's starting to show.

No... not in the stomach area. But in these teeny outfits* that have been making their way into our laundry. And this guy that hides in our closet.

This whole baby business hit a lot closer to home when I washed a few baby pieces with Jordan and I's clothes. It was so weird folding those tiny pieces of fabric!

And although you can't quite tell from the picture, that elephant is about two feet tall... sitting down. Maybe we'll use it as a pillow or something til baby's old enough for it, or at least as tall as it is.

*yes they are all striped. what of it?

long time, no see. and what's been happening in the meantime.

For those of you who haven't heard... we're having a baby!

We had our first ultrasound in January and what an active little thing this baby is! It took the tech forever to get baby to sit still long enough to snap a few good shots. Let's just hope they'll stay still long enough for the doc to be able to tell us the gender at our next ultrasound!

Last Tuesday we felt our first undoubtably recognizable kick (I may or may not have cried a little), and this baby hasn't stopped since. It's so weird and beautiful and amazing to feel this tiny being growing... INSIDE me! Even if that means I get less sleep at night because I can now actually feel that growth.

I read this post today, and again, might have cried a little. Because I couldn't agree with her more: I knew this little person, I know this little person, inside me. And in a few short months, we'll get to have a happy reunion. It's so wonderful and so true.

Eighteen weeks in and I already feel so connected to this beautiful child, because I already am; we started our relationship a long time ago, and now we're just picking up where we left off.

And it's a little amazing to think about...

In other news... I'd like to apologize for stepping away from this blog for so long. Our little "month of thanks" posts were interrupted with the announcement of a baby (something we're really thankful for), two holidays, finals and the husband and I both starting our own businesses. It's been whirlwind ever since.

But everything has finally settled in and settled down and I'm back. Cross my heart.


Here are the first photos of Baby Bowman. The head and body might be a little out of proportion, but we're working on it.