Count down!!!

Only 6 more weeks until our little girl arrives!!! I'm not going to lie, part of me is super excited and can't wait and part of me is thinking, "holy crap only 6 weeks?". Some days I feel ready and some days not so much. So far this pregnancy has of course had it's ups and downs. I could have done just fine without the first 17 weeks of constant sickness and the last few weeks of constant dizziness and being so darn uncomfortable. Really, is being able to sleep that much to ask for. I want it now while I still have the chance! In the end it is all worth it and compared to what other people have had to deal with I am going to consider myself very lucky! Will we go for round 2... ask me that in a few years. Remember I have yet to deliver and begin this crazy journey of parenthood. My doctor thinks she will be arriving before the 6 week mark so stay tuned... it could only be 3 or 4!

My first shower is next weekend! I am so excited to head up to Des Moines and see friends and family. The following weekend Clint and I are planning on getting as much done as possible to prepare for Sadie's arrival. This mostly means buying last minute things and finishing her room. Really if she came today we have everything we have to have but there are somethings we don't have yet that I would like to have before she arrives.

Next weekend is also Jenna (my sis) & Andrew's (Clint's bro) show choir performances which is the original reason we planned the trip to Des Moines. They are both seniors and this will be the last performance we get to see. Bittersweet. Excited for them to be moving on to the next step of life but hard to realize they are old enough to do so.

PS updated bump pictures to come... and nursery pics once completed!

Merry Late Christmas and Happy Belated New Years!

(not the best picture but you get the idea!)

Clint and I made the trip to IA twice for Christmas this year... which will not be happening again! We were there for a weekend left for 4 days so I could work and came back for another long weekend. Although the travel stunk, it was so nice to be able to spend Christmas with our family and see some great friends. I was very worried when we first moved that we wouldn't be able to be "home" for Christmas. I have been praying since before we moved that we would be there so thank God he agreed with my idea! There is nothing better then family at Christmas time.

Well here it is... 32nd week! We are finally on the home stretch. I haven't decided yet if it's only 2 more months or 2 more long months. Depends on the day. This week has gone quickly and I am sure next week will to. I have been feeling pretty good. Very tired and uncomfortable and sleep is no longer in my vocabulary but nothing too crazy. I had a rough patch over Christmas. The ARNP exclaimed, "Oh honey you have cankles!" when I went in for my last appointment. That was an understatement! I was swollen from head to toe and barely able to walk. I attribute this to pushing too hard and not hydrating enough. Oh well, I survived and so did Sadie! She is quite the scheduled little lady which I of course love. She has her moments where I know for sure she is up and moving. Once in the morning and once a night for 2 hours each time then for much shorter and less painful amounts of time during the day! As much as I hate getting my butt kicked from the inside, I am thankful for it!

In other news... Clint and I celebrate our 2 year anniversary December 29th. We went for a wonderful dinner at a French restaurant downtown. It was delightful! I worked the night before and when I finally drug my rear end out of bed that day Clint had a beautiful bouquet of a dozen red roses and a card waiting for me on the counter... am I not the luckiest lady ever?!

We did absolutely nothing for New Years. In bed asleep when it changed to 2010... I'm not too worried about it. Someone would have let us know if we missed something extraordinary.

On January 5th I turned 27. The night before we went for Mediterranean tapas downtown... delicious!!! Clint had to go out of town that morning until Thursday so we just celebrated early. He got me a pair of those new Rebook shoes that are supposed to help tone and some Mizzou hair bows and socks for Sadie! I know, I know some people would be totally ticked at the shoes thing but I was so excited. Clint knows I am bound and determined to get back to my old self (close to I should say, I know things will never be exactly the same) after our lady gets here. So to some it may have been rude or insensitive to me it was thoughtful.

So that's our last few weeks summed up. We have our hospital visit tomorrow and are going to get some house stuff done today. I need to set up the pediatrician on Monday and my maternity leave and then things will be about ready for Sadie to arrive! In a few weeks of course. I'm not hoping she comes quite yet.

Only 11 weeks left!

It's a Sadie!

We had our ultrasound last Friday and found out we are expecting a girl! Clint of course knew this all along as he says but I was thankful for the confirmation. She was very cooperative this time and we even were able to capture the moment on DVD! We can't wait for our little lady to get hear. We are getting pretty darn excited! Now to get the girl some clothes, maybe some diapers, probably should finish her room. Sigh, so much to do.

Also, as of right now I will not have to have a c-section!!! I was really nervous I may have to since my placenta was pretty much right next to the cervix but thankfully it moved! I know, kind of gross but thank goodness it creeped it's way up. That would just mean more time recovering and a more painful recovery. I would rather just enjoy my time with my little girl!

Mom had her knee surgeries the last couple weeks. She got both knees done (on different days) but seems to be doing pretty well. I haven't been able to see her yet but will be home this weekend to see how it's really going! Everyone says she has been a real trooper and is doing great though! I'm sure it is a very painful surgery, especially to do twice! Thinking of you mom, hope you just keep getting better and stronger!

November...

November began as I started my new job at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. I will admit, the drive and working overnight absolutely stinks! The opportunity to work with children more then makes up for it though! I work with kiddos of all ages as part of the floor I am on is NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit) overflow. So we get the babies that are premature to the kids who are 17. The focus of the floor (other then NICU) is Infectious Disease but it seems like mostly altered oxygenation kids. I am excited to continue my career there and hope I can start dealing better with the drive and night shifts.

The move is proving to be a good thing for the Meek family. Although we miss our home, family, friends, and jobs in Iowa, we are thankful we made the decision we did. Clint is able to be home more, I am able to work with kids, the dogs are very happy with the extra space they now have, and we are learning to rely on each other and communicate more clearly. I am still very nervous for life after the baby arrives since we have zero help/ support down here but I am sure we will adjust and learn the ropes of being parents quickly.

Speaking of the little munchkin... I finally found a doctor down here to take over my care. It was a bit ridiculous how hard it was to find someone but I did and I like her. Dr Ash is an OB in Independence. She is a newer doctor just off her residency which made me a bit hesitant at first but after talking with her, I decided I really liked her. She talks to me straight but is still nice and pleasant! Her office is attached to the hospital I will be delivering at so unless I go on a weekend when she is not on call, she will deliver us. I have another appointment next week and Clint will be able to go to this one with me so I am hoping he likes her as much as I do. He was not a fan of my last OB so fingers crossed here folks! We also will have another ultrasound at the appointment so lots of prayers the baby chooses to cooperate and we can find out if we are expecting Sadie or Nolan!

Clint and I were so thankful we were able to be home in Iowa for Thanksgiving. We were there for 5 days and they were wonderful days! We saw friends and family, ate wonderful food, and celebrated our niece, Grace's 1st bday, as well as my sister, Beka's bday! I will admit traveling with 2 large dogs is a challange but luckily we have family that is willing to have them along for the ride. Thank-you! Can't wait for next year with 2 large dogs and a baby... crazy!!!

The dogs taking their afternoon snooze...

Millie, Geordie and Payton. So impressed with how well they all got along!

Making friends... Miley & Gracie

Grace's 1st Bday Cake

The baby bump at 27 weeks... please forgive the PJs!

The whirlwind is starting to die down! This is my first full week in MO as well as my first full week working. I finished up in Des Moines last week. It was so hard to say goodbye to all my friends/ coworkers and as much as I complained about it, to North 5. I will miss everything/one so much.

Before work on my final day my car stopped in the middle of the road. Died, turned off, quit running... you get the point. I was able to pull it in to a parking lot and thankfully my mom came and picked me up and took me to work. I was lucky enough to have a car to borrow to get back to MO and over $2000 later returned the borrowed car and picked up my Escape. Looks like we are in the market for a new car. I just can't justify continuing to drive it with a baby on the way and driving through a not so great part of town to get to work.

Anyway, so here are a few pics of what has been going on...

The backyard... it's about 4 times the size of our old yard and the girls LOVE it!!!

The latest big fat belly pic... at 23 weeks.

Our first night in the new house. No furniture, just a fire and a pile of blankets and pillows!

Officially Missourians

Well we have made it. We are fairly settled, or as much as you can be in a week. I arrived last Thursday and Clint and his mom were already sanding and painting our bathroom cabinets. I got the dogs and my stuff inside and we started working... and didn't stop until Sunday afternoon when I finally collapsed for a quick nap before heading back to Iowa for 3 days to work.

We had a very successful weekend. Most of the boxes were unpacked and almost all of the projects got done that were on the to do list. We were so lucky to have our parents and my sister, Emily, come down to help. I am fairly certain Clint and I would have ended up getting frustrated and either fighting or tearfully hugging wondering what the heck we had done. There were a few tears as we said goodbye to our families... and a small melt down on my part when I couldn't figure out where the movers had packed my only other pair of maternity jeans, but all in all things went very smoothly. It was great to have the fam around to help us settle in a bit.

I headed back to Iowa Sunday evening and worked Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at Methodist and cleaned our old house on Monday (thankfully my mom and Jenna went over Tuesday to finish for me) Then I drove back Wednesday night in the rain and my car decided to act up about an hour out. Looking back it was too much in too short of time but I made it through. It was quite possibly the worst, most stressful week I have ever had at work to top it all off. I will say it was great getting "home" at night with home cooked food to eat and sisters that wanted to serve me dinner! I was able to put my feet up and visit with my mom and sisters which is always a good thing.

So to make us official Missouri residents we got our drivers lisences changed and our cars inspected so we can register them next week. I had 2 more interviews this week and received 3 more offers... I have decided to take the hospital position at Children's Mercy Hospital which was my goal since we found out we were moving to this area! I was thrilled when they offered me 2 jobs. One in a clinic (scheduled days) and the other in the hospital (nights). I was leaning toward the clinic job so we would be able to have childcare lined up but when I expressed my concerns of not being able to switch to days soon the nurse recruiter spoke with the nurse manager who said they will do everything they can to make it happen asap. That made it a no brainer to stay in the hospital to gain more experience... and get paid more! I am very excited to be able to make the switch to pediatric nursing!

Our fence finally was finished this week. The dogs are in heaven. I am pretty sure they had already decided they loved the new house but now it's a sealed deal. They both ran laps around the yard which is about 4 times the size of our old yard. Payton especially has been much more active since the move. I think she is happy to have more space. They both love to sit at the top of the stairs and look down on everything going on.

I will post pictures of the house and my ever growing stomach once I find the cable.