Status Update: Advanced

Welp. Baby girl is nine months old now. Where is this year going? It felt so surreal putting up Christmas decorations. I can't believe its December tomorrow.

Anyways, miss A had her nine month appointment and she is growing & developing wonderfully.

Here's her nine month stats compared to her six month:

Six month appointment (8/29):
Weight: 16 lbs 12 oz (62%)
Height: 25 1/2 inches (37%)
Head circumference: 17.13 inches (76%)

Nine month appointment (11/30):
Weight: 19 lbs 10.3 oz (61%)
Height: 28 inches (61%)
Head circumference: 17.75 inches (78%)

As you see she has had a steady increase in weight & head circumference. Her height has thankfully caught up. She went through a big growth spurt after six months.

While we were at the appointment our doctor observed her and said she was advanced. Not sure what that means at this age, but its nice to.hear. He seemed impressed by her social & fine motor skills.

She can do the following:
Feed herself (Pincher grasp)
Pick up small items
Turn pages
Remember where we are in a book
Use a straw/cup
Wave bye
Blow a kiss (sometimes)
Understand "no"
Signs: all done, (sometimes: milk, more, up, eat.)
Says/parrots words:
Mama, Dadda, bye-bye, bath, ball, up, cat and some others that I haven't figured out. (Most of these are not completely articulated, but we are getting there.)

Gross motor skills:
Roll to get places
Sit like a boss
Go from sitting to hands and knees & back again
Army crawled (three times and hasn't since)
Pulling up on EVERYTHING!
Reaching and getting into anything close

I'm probably missing something, but I think I've gotten most of them.

We did have to sleep train and she did so well. It was rough at first, but once we figured out what worked.for her/us it was great.

She is such a fun kid and I count everyday as a blessing. I am so grateful that God chose me to be her momma. She is a beautiful soul. I am thoroughly enjoying watching her grow up. :)

Life with a baby

I can't believe we only have 4 more months left in her first year of life.

She is such a blessing. However this last month & 1/2 have been hard.

She has always been a fantastic sleeper. Something changed around six months. I can't remember the last time I was able to get 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Not complaining. It's just tough. I knew we had it easy in the beginning. Poor thing has had cold after cold that have morphed into sinus, ear, eye infections and croup.

My heart hurts seeing her so uncomfortable. Ready for her to be well again.

Then we will probably have to do some kind of sleep training. I know cry it out is not for us. Sure, a few tears and protest is expected. However, the quick & dirty method will not go well with our personalities.

Well, time to go sit in a steamy bathroom again. It's doing a number on my hair. :)

E-books

I love books. Really. It's an addiction. I love real book stores. The smell of a book and the way it feels to turn the page. I'm a reader. A bookworm. Love of literacy.

I was surprised when I discovered how much I love my Kindle. It is truly an amazing invention.

There is one thing I don't like. Buying E-book I already own. I like to re-read a good book. I prefer to read them on my Kindle. I don't want to pay twice for my book.

First world problem, right? Guess I shouldn't complain.
1.) I am fortunate enough to have had the freedom & opportunity to learn to read.
2.) I have the means to purchase books & experience the different worlds a novel can take you.
3.) I have a Kindle.

Yea. Guess I'm pretty lucky. I'll stop whining now. :)

Solids & other stuff

We officially started solids with Miss A after her six month appointment. Everything is going well. She really seems to enjoy eating "real" food.

So far she has had:
Rice & Oatmeal cereal
Bananas
Avocados
Sweet Potatoes
Squash
Peas
Green Beans
Apples/Apple sauce
Prunes
Carrots
Multi-grain Cheerios
Chicken
Potatoes
Cherries
Strawberries
Various tastes of rolls, biscuits, bread, etc.

She seems to really like the green veggies and all the fruits. We are trying peaches and spinach soon and will probably switch to table food as quickly as possible. I am trying to get through as many types of fruits and veggie first. She is not too keen on the liquid baby food. She prefers whatever I am eating.

She has become extremely busy lately. If she isn't sleeping she is moving somehow. (She even moves constantly in her sleep.) Even when she is eating she has her legs shaking or she is holding onto her feet and doing some type of contortionist move. We have had to move her feedings to her room where the lights are off and the curtains drawn or she is too distracted. (I really do miss the days when I could feed her and watch a TV show. I miss the days when she would sleep wherever and whenever, too. O well.) It has become a challenge during diaper changes. I have something new to hand her to keep her busy while I change her as quickly as possible. 

She is sitting up completely unassisted and loves to stand. She has even started to do a full plank if she is put on her belly.

Like this! 

I will try to catch it on film. It is hilarious how strong she is. She has no interest in crawling yet, which is fine with me. She loves music and loves singing and for others to sing to her. She's a snuggle bug and smiles all the time. I am constantly stopped by people asking if she smiles all the time and how happy she looks. She is a very happy, smiley baby. We are extremely blessed. She is super easy and lets us know if something is wrong. She has started to make more consonants. Lots of galy, guly, uh, oh, mum, ma, ba, bu, hu, etc.

She is growing great and is doing something new each day. Love her to pieces.

Status Update: Perfect

Baby girl is six months old. Can you believe it? I can't. We are over halfway through her first year of life. It is crazy how fast things are going. I have been told the next six months will be even faster. Can we push the pause button?

We had her six month check up yesterday and she is growing beautifully. Here are her stats from her four month and six month check-ups:

Four month appointment (6/27):
Weight: 14 lbs 4.3 oz (62 %)
Height: 24 3/4 inches (66%)
Head circumference: 16 1/2 inches (73%)

Six month appointment (8/29):
Weight: 16 lbs 12 oz (62%)
Height: 25 1/2 inches (37%)
Head circumference: 17.13 inches (76%)

As you can see she has dropped in her height. She is going to be short. No surprise there. The pediatrician said it was not a cause for concern since she is still growing. He said most babies will fluctuate like that.

We are officially starting solids now and I think everyone is ready.

She is almost sitting unassisted. She will randomly fall over which is to be expected. She has started to move backwards when placed on her tummy. She still hates tummy time. If she can she will immediately flip over to her back. She loves to blow raspberries and is usually happy. She will let you know when she doesn't like something. We love her and can't imagine life without her. She has completed our family.

Case of the Mondays

I have never been a fan of Mondays. Whenever Aisley was born, I dreaded them. That meant a week without Chris home during the day. I couldn't wait until the weekend.

Now, fast forward to today. It's Friday. Besides disliking Fridays because I enviably get that ridiculous Rachel Black song stuck in my head, I look forward to the weekends, but secretly can't wait until the next week. Why you ask? I get more one-on-one time with Miss A. I'm greedy like that.

I only have a week until summer and then I will have/get to share our weeks with others. We will have fun. It will be nice, but not the same.

She is growing and changing so much. I want time to move at half speed. :/

Mobile blogging

I am trying out a new way to blog. Mobile blogging. With a newborn it is difficult sometimes to find the time to sit down at a computer. Especially if she has decided to fight naps.

I found an application for my phone that will allow you to post to your blog. Hopefully I can keep up with my postings. We shall see.

Anyways, very excited about the fact that tomorrow is Friday! That means only one more day until the weekend. ;)

Aisley's status: exceptional

I always told myself that I would not be one of those parents. You know the one. The parent that talks about their child non -stop about how talented and perfect their child is and how they excel at everything. It's ridiculous.

However, when you have a child it is a while before they can do much except eat, sleep and poop. So, parents talk non-stop about their stats/percentiles. I never really put much thought into those numbers. It didn't matter to me that my friends child was 80th percentile in height.

Now that I have a child, I do understand what the stats mean and I do take pride in them. So, if you care, you can continue reading about how little miss Aisley is growing. If you don't care, I am really not sure why you starting reading our blog in the first place. Maybe you are just bored. If so, then I guess you are welcome to continue reading.

At birth (2/24):
Weight: 6 lbs. 11 oz.
Height: 18 1/2 in.

First doctor's appointment (2/28):
Weight: 6 lbs. 3.1 oz. (10%)
Height: 18 1/2 in. (13%)
Head circumference: 13 1/2 in. (34%)

Two week appointment (3/10):
Weight: 6 lbs. 15.8 oz. (12%)
Height: 19 in. (6%)
Head circumference: 13 3/4 in. (22%)

One month appointment (3/24):
Weight: 8 lbs. 4.3 oz. (31%)
Height: 19 3/4 in. (16%)
Head circumference: 14 3/4 in. (63%)

Two month appointment (4/25):
Weight: 10 lbs. 14.3 oz. (53%)
Height: 22 in. (38%)
Head circumference: 15 1/4 in. (50%)

As you can see, she had a few major growth spurts. The doctor said she is doing perfectly. Also, she seems to be gaining about 1.5 oz. a day. That is amazing considering she is a breastfed baby. The doctor mentioned something about her eating "heavy cream" instead of low-fat milk. I chuckled. It made me even more committed to nursing seeing how she is responding so well to it.

Also, she is a flirt. Dr. Chad Smith, at Raintree Pediatrics (Who is amazing, by the way! Thank you, Shelby for the recommendation. We loved him!) was examining her and she kept flashing him her adorable big-toothless grin. She even giggled for him. She is a charmer! Watch out boys. :)

Anyways, we are just smitten with her. She is sleeping around 8 hours straight most nights and will usually wake to eat and go back to sleep with some help. :)

She is happy for the most part and only cries if she needs something. We really lucked out. We couldn't imagine our lives without her and are so happy that God blessed us with her.

Our birth story

The fun began on Wednesday, February 23, 2011. I was 38 weeks and 2 days.

I was scheduled for my weekly OB appointment and sonogram that day. I was being monitored for oligohydramnios, AKA low amniotic fluid, for a few weeks. (Anything between 10-20 cm is considered normal.) For two weeks I was measuring at a nine. Something my doctor didn't like, but didn't feel it warranted an induction since the baby was doing good. She wanted to keep a close eye on it which I appreciated.

My sister came to get me that morning and took me to get a pedicure and we had lunch before the appointment. I grabbed my "labor" bag just in case, but was sure I was being sent home that day. I wasn't expecting any different.

After a delicious lunch at Red, Hot and Blue with my sis we went to the sonogram appointment first at 2:00 p.m. I had been feeling "off" all day. The sonographer starting measuring and let my sister see how big Aisley had gotten since my sonogram at 18 weeks. We could see her chubby little cheeks. So cute! Then the sonographer said, "What were you measuring at last time?" I replied with nine. She goes, "Hmm..." I knew "hmm" wasn't good. I asked what it was today and she said, "You are measuring at a 5." Well, I knew then that I was having a baby that day. We walked to my doctor's office down the hall while the sonographer transfered the information to her electronically.

My doctor walked in and said, "Well, you are having a baby today!" My sister immediately whips out her phone and starts contacting my husband and our mom. After a quick exam and learning I hadn't made much progress since my last visit I knew pitocin was in my future. This made me sad seeing how Chris and I were preparing for a natural delivery (without medication or intervention if possible). However, the safety of my baby was way more important than some birth plan.

I began waddling down to labor and delivery with my sister. We contacted the remaining people that I wanted to be there.

After I was admitted I was given the beautiful hospital gown that shows all your goodies to the world. I didn't really care since all of my goodies were going to be out in the open for the whole world to see in a little while.

I managed to beach myself onto the hospital bed and got poked and prodded. They needed to take blood, insert an IV, give me fluids and then they started the pitocin around 4:00 p.m. My doctor came to check on me and I was only at a 3 and almost completely effaced. Not a lot of progress. During the exam my water broke. Hopefully after that my body would get the picture and start working with the pitocin. I decided to try and handle the contraction with pitocin without the aid of an epidural. I lasted until 10:30 p.m. I am glad I tried, but honestly after having an epidural, I will probably opt for one if I am ever crazy enough to get pregnant again. It was the first time in months that I wasn't in pain. It felt like a warm bath. Once they placed the epidural they need to place a foley. For this they lay you flat on your back. Well, wouldn't you know that I had my vasovagal syncope and started passing out. My heart beat dropped and so did Aisley's. When I came to, the nurse was shifting me from side to side and I heard the heart monitor alarm going off. (Also, it is still just the nurse and I at this point. Chris, my mom and sister were all outside waiting until the epidural and catheter were placed.) I saw a horde of nurses coming in and asking if my nurse needed any help. She calmly said no and that she was going to do a quick scalp stimulation. I knew what this meant. Aisley wasn't responding to her moving me. Her heart beat wasn't picking back up. I was scared to death. I couldn't lose her. The nurse then reached up inside and tickled Aisley's head. Thank God that her heart beat jumped back up and stayed constant the rest of the labor. She is one tough cookie! Also, at some point during all of this I spiked a fever. They immediately had me on antibiotics. It made labor and delivery even tougher.

My doctor, bless her, came back up around 3:00 a.m. to check on me again and I was still only at a 3. My uterus was not contracting like it should. It was not responding to the pitocin like normal uterus does. Well, of course not. I can't do anything without some level of drama. Why would my uterus be any different? She said she would give me a few more hours and check on me at 7:00 a.m. If I hadn't made significant progress by then, she would need to do a C-section.

At 7:00 a.m. she came to check on me. My sweet nurse had been working her tail off trying to get my body to respond to the pitocin during that time. She was backing off the medicine and then slowly increase it. This went on for those precious hours between 3:00-7:00 a.m. I saw my doctor looking at the monitors and shaking her head. My uterus was still not responding correctly. I knew I hadn't made any progress and that I was destined to have a C-section. Something I really didn't want. However, if it was what was best for the baby, I would do it. She checked me and goes, "Oh my. You are at 8 cm." This was music to my ears. That meant there will still a small chance of being able to deliver vaginally. She let me try to sleep a little while longer and said by 10:00 she was going to check on me again.

At the next check I was fully dilated and ready to push. My nurse was amazing. God provided me at each shift with exactly who I need to get through this labor. I remember being told that it was time to push. I felt the urge, but I just didn't have it in me. I was exhausted. I was done. I told Chris I couldn't do it. I was achy from the fever and just plan tired.

I somehow found the strength to push. And boy did I push. Her head did not want to come out. There was a lot of molding, but that is what their heads are made to do. For a solid hour and half I did nothing but push. And demand ice chips. No breaks. Each contraction. Three pushes each contraction. Full body work out. They don't call it labor for nothing. I was also on oxygen since I continued to try and pass out after each round of pushing. At about 12:15 p.m. I was told to stop pushing and wait. The nurse was calling my doctor. She came in and suited up and told me to give her three really big pushes. I started to push and she told me to stop. I was tearing and I was tearing bad. I did all the "prepping" before. They applied counter pressure. It didn't help. She had to do an episiotomy. I didn't care. I wanted this baby out. I figured I would have either stitches down there or in my belly.

After that it was just mere seconds and a few good pushes and my healthy, screaming baby girl was in my arms. Words can't express the feeling that comes over you. I knew the minute she was laid on my chest that she was my baby. I looked at Chris and he had huge tears in his eyes. Our sweet little family of two just transformed in a matter of seconds to a family of three.

I expected to feel an overwhelming connection to her. I expected to fall completely head over heels in love with her. I didn't expect to fall even more in love with my husband. It was like my heart grew to unmeasurable proportions. Seeing the man I have loved for almost 12 years hold our brand new baby girl that we created out of love is like nothing else in this world. He continues to melt my heart each day.

Freedom! [Cue George Michael, please]

Freedom. The sweet taste of freedom. Last night was the first night I was sans baby for ten months. It was also the first time I drove in over two months.

After feeding the little one the best husband in the world took her for her "wake time" and said he would put her down and gave me a few "errands" to run so I could get out of the house.

It was exhilarating. It felt like the first time I ever drove on my own. I can just hop in my car now and go wherever I please! No more ride arrangements, waiting for someone to pick me up, or waiting on the hubby to take me somewhere. (However, thank you to each of you who did those things or offered to. It was amazing. I have such good friends and acquaintances.)

I was only gone about thirty minutes and it was just around the neighborhood, but man do I feel like a new woman.

Not only do I have my driving privileges back, but I have my body back. (Well, not my pre-pregnancy body. That will take some time.) However, I can breath. I am NOT throwing up anymore. I am NOT nauseous. I am NOT passing out. I don't have to pee every three minutes. I am recovering from delivery faster than I thought I would and feeling better each day.

Basically, I love not being pregnant. Don't get me wrong. I love my little girl. She is wonderful. Yes, I would do it all over again for her. However, I don't think I will do it all over again.

Anyways, a lot of people say I will change my mind. To them I just smile and nod. We shall see. We aren't making any irreversible decisions right now, but it is a decision that is solely up to Chris and me. No one else.

[Side note: We are adjusting to our new life. Each day gets easier. Chris and the baby has just eased into their roles beautifully. We seriously have been blessed with a well-tempered child. Takes after her father on that one. It has/will take(n) me some time to adjust, but as my husband reminds me, I am the one that pushed a baby out and dealing with all the waves of "horror"mones.]

Thank you for all the love, support, prayers, well wishes, kind words, encouragement and meals. We love each of you!

Aisley Yvonne

She is here! Aisley Yvonne was born on February 24, 2011 at 12:25 p.m. weighing 6 lbs. 11 oz. and is 18 1/2 inches long. 

We are completely in love and are adjusting to our new life with her beautifully. Thank you for all the love and support! We are truly blessed. 

Living with Amelia Bedelia

I married the male version of Amelia Bedelia. Well, the only difference is that he knows what people are meaning, but he likes to take things literally.

Anyways, during dinner tonight I said to him, " I would like to see you do all that I have done today while contracting." (Lovingly of course). He just smirked.

As I was walking over to take dessert out of the oven he shouts out with a mouth full of food, "Can't, won't, don't..."

I looked at him very confused. (Thinking is really hard to do when you are full term and having serious contractions off and on for a week.)

Then I see his ridiculously cute smirk again and it hits me. He said, "See, not hard at all. I can eat while contracting too."

Ugh. Good thing he is so cute. :)

A Feast Fit For a King

Tonight I made some of Chris' favorite meal items: broccoli and rice casserole, ham and delicious rolls. I used his mother's recipe for the broccoli and rice casserole.

What does he say whenever we finish the meal? Thank you honey for slaving over a meal while you are due to have my baby in six weeks. It must have been so hard to cook this meal and have your feet swell to the point where your toes looks like sausages. Yea...no...but I am sure he was thinking it because he is awesome like that.

This is what he said:
"It tastes good, but it tastes different from when my mom makes it. Is it a different recipe?"
Translation: "I like my mom's better." However, he is way too sweet to ever say that out loud.

I then inform him that it is the exact same recipe that his mom uses and I even used the same brand of items. He retorts with, "Well, maybe it is the lack of mushrooms."

What? Excuse me. Did my husband just imply that he would rather the casserole have more mushrooms? This is the same person who spends five minutes picking out the mushrooms from the better casserole and piling them on the side of his plate because he refuses to eat fungus, right?

Just when I think I have him figured out. You would think after being together for eleven years I would know everything about him. Nope. Surprises me everyday. 

What a turkey. :) 

However, I completely understand that his mom's will taste better to him because, well, it is his mom who was the one making it. It is something about your mom's cooking and their germs that make things taste better. I don't know how that works. It just is a fact. Same thing for grandma's cooking. *However, the same cannot be said about my great-grandma Fern. Love her dearly, God rest her soul, but she was a horrible cook.*

Hopefully, Aisley will be saying the same about me one day. It will make my heart smile. :)

Nephewism 2

Oh my sweet nephew. He is the cutest. Just the other day my sister told me the funniest story about him. I just had to share.

They were backing out of their driveway and he shouts out, "Mom! Stop the car. Stop the car!"

She immediately thinks something is wrong and looks around at all of her side mirrors. She sees nothing so she decides to continue backing out.

Again he goes, "Mom, stop the car!"
She ask, "What is it (insert his name here)?"
"Mom, I don't have my seatbelt on! Are you trying to send me to juvy?"

Yea, he is only five. She asked him if he even knew what that was and he responded back with, "Yea, it's jail for kids!"

She wanted to know where he heard that from and he said she didn't know. He just heard it.

Oh, she has her hands full with him.

No More Driving Miss Aisley

That's right. My driving privileges have been officially revoked. As of Tuesday this week my doctor said to hand over my keys for the remainder of my pregnancy.

Why you ask? Well, it is for a very good reason. I had been having fainting and dizzy spells for about two weeks. Most of the time I was able to lay down, drink water and I soon felt well enough to go on about my business. After a few episodes, I contacting my OB and she instructed me to get my asthma checked. I went to my primary care physician and my OT stats were horrible. Both of the doctors attributed my dizziness and fainting to not getting enough oxygen. Also, I managed to have an upper respiratory & sinus infection on top of having my airways blocked 30%. I left the appointment with a prescription for antibiotics and a steroid inhaler hoping the dizziness and fainting were a thing of the past. Wishful thinking.

Three days later I was on my way out the door. I hoped in my lovely car and started the drive to my destination. I managed to get about a mile from my house when I felt my hands and feet going numb. I started getting tunnel vision and my ears started to ring. I quickly told my mom, who I was on the phone with at the time that I needed to pull over because I was feeling faint. Thankfully I was able to pull into a parking lot and park my car before I blacked out completely. When I came to I promptly called Chris to come pick me up. He was extremely worried. I was scared.

We contacted the doctor and waited for a call back while I laid down. The on-call doctor instructed me to not drive and to take it easy. (To which I laughed inside. My sister-in-law was getting married in a week and I am her matron of honor. I was on my way that day to her bridal luncheon and that night was her bachelorette party that I was hosting. I couldn't take it easy. I had things to do.)

After laying down for a while I begged Chris to take me to the luncheon. We made arrangements for someone else to drive that day and to take me home later.

I made it through the day without another mishap. On Sunday however, I had another one. I was thankfully at home, but still annoying.

After my appointment I had with my OB this Tuesday and discussing what I was feeling she ordered that I not drive for my safety and everyone else. You can thank me later. She is not sure exactly what is causing the fainting. There could be many reasons. I have a few more doctors appointments with other doctors to see if they can figure out the cause and make sure nothing serious is going on.

Just when I almost got over the whole morning sickness thing too. (Which isn't completely gone, just a very mild case now. Probably more like what the majority of people go through in their first trimester.)

Aisley is doing great. I tease that she is made of steel because she has been so resilient through all of my drama this pregnancy. She seems completely unfazed by everything. She continues to grow and process normally. I, on the other hand, have continued to lose weight. My doctor jokingly asked if I was eating. Believe me. I am eating. All the time. I guess I will be on of the few pregnant women that doesn't have to worry about losing a bunch of weight after delivery.

So there you have it. No more driving miss Aisley until she is actually born. I am pretty sure I am going to be the happiest person in labor because I know I will immediately feel better and I will be on my way to driving again.

Baby Aisley's Nursery

Eccentric. Eclectic. Random. Classic. Modern. These are all words that describe my taste. You can take a look into my closet, around my house and see that there really isn't a theme, but made up of things I like. Since I have such a wide range of likes and dislikes when it comes to decorating, I knew that I wouldn't be able to buy a "bed-in-a-bag" nursery.

I looked. And looked. And looked some more. Either everything had flowers and bows and was drowning in pink or it had animals all over it. Don't get me wrong. I love animals. I just didn't want a zoo in my little one's room. Also, almost every bedding selection had pastels in it. Barf. I wanted this room to be cheery. A happy place. Not a place that reminded me of pink fluffy unicorns.

I love birds, especially owls. No, I will never own a bird. They are kind of gross as pets, but they are beautiful. My great grandmother had doves that she kept in the backyard in an big, elaborate cage. Duke and Duchess were awesome. When we lived with her, I would be in charge of helping her take care of them. I thought they were elegant. I love the sound of doves cooing.

Anyways, so I decided on an aviary theme for the nursery. However, I didn't want birds on the bedding, curtains, etc. Enough is too much. Also, now for safety reasons, you are not supposed to use a bumper *ever*, a comforter or a mobile. So you are pretty much spending $160+ on a crib sheet and a bed skirt. I decided to make my own bed skirt and curtains. The fabric cost me $50 at Fabric Factory. I am using crib sheets that are sold separately and the quilt was given to me. It is strictly for decoration purposes right now, but something she can enjoy later on.

My talented mother crocheted all of the items you see on the mobile hanging in the corner. Once everything was crocheted I was tasked with finding a way to put it all together. I used fishing line, twig wreath, sticks and some random decorative twigs and eyelash yarn.

Chris' aunt Debi painted the tree *in about an hour*.  My sister painted the bottom half of the room the beautiful blue. It was formerly maroon. Pretty, but too dark for a baby's room.

I chose a rocker recliner instead of a glider. Advantages in my opinion: no foot stool that permanently stays out and in the way. Extra cushion for those long feedings. Ability to recline and catch a few zzz's if the little one falls asleep after a feeding and has a tendency to wake up when moved.

We decided on Aisley for her name for many reasons. Paisley is over used and I didn't want her to have the initials P.P. (And I am not crazy about paisley print either. If you know me well, you know the reasoning behind this.) Chris liked Ainsley, but I think it is hard to say and it generally used for a man's name in the UK. Also, it sounds like a body part to me. (I will let you figure out which one.) That is how we decided on Aisley. It is a real name. Not common, but for the most part people can spell it and say it when they see it.

I picked up this tree stump in New Mexico during the summer along with the tree branch used for the curtains. I stacked miscellaneous books in order to make the lamp the perfect height. The lamp base was a wonderful $5 find at a local thrift store. I purchased the lamp shade at Target and Chris' Aunt Debi and her creative genius decorated it with the "Old Wise Owl" nursery rhyme.

A wise old owl lived in an oak 

The more he saw the less he spoke

The less he spoke the more he heard

Why can't we all be like that wise old bird?

So there you have it. The baby's room is almost complete. We are missing a few things like the changing table pad, a diaper pail and most importantly, Aisley. 

I have my baby showers in a few weeks and cannot wait. I am so excited to share this time with friends and family. I feel so blessed to have so many loving and caring people in our lives. There isn't enough time in the day for me to count our many blessings and name them one by one.