baby's name...

so we've gotten a lot of questions about the name of this little girl. and we've kept it on the DL (that's "down low" for those of you not in the know...) and plan to keep it that way until she makes her grand entrance. however, i realized recently that she has acquired more nicknames in the 8 months since conception than most people do in their lifetime! it is quite monumental, and something that she should be extremely proud of. just wanted to share...

baby: this "nickname" is the most common. it is how her daddy and i refer to her and most likely will continue to refer to her even after she's born. to us, she really is just "baby".

twinkles: this was probably her first nickname. i was out in michigan right after i went off birth control, and told a dear friend that we had done so. she asked if there was anything that she could pray about, and all i could think of was the little "twinkle" in my eye that i hadn't even met yet. thus, "twinkles" was born!

winkie: less of a serious nickname, this is the spin off of "twinkles" that my sister has come up with. apparently she is not amused by "twinkles".

taniqua: before we knew if we were having a boy or a girl, i joked that if we found out that the baby was a boy, his name would be lebron and if it was a girl, taniqua. i have since had a terribly fun time telling people (with the most serious face i can muster) that her name is taniqua. because, come on...that is quite a name for the daughter of a white girl from the suburbs of shoreline, washington!

sunflower: this sweet name has been given to our little one by one of my best friends, lauren. i love it actually. i hope it sticks after she's born. :)

these are all i can think of right now...there are probably a few other that are floating out there. will post with any new updates! 7 more weeks to go til we get to meet baby-twinkles-winkie-taniqua-sunflower!

30 weeks!

so it's been nearly 2 months since i posted last and so much has changed since then! the most obvious is of course the belly! i will try to post a picture later, but until then...the update!

i spent a glorious 2 1/2 weeks in the great northwest with my husband, my wonderful friends, and my family. we stayed one night in leavenworth, washington at my parents condo. we enjoyed shopping in downtown leavenworth, and some of the gang went river rafting, but alas, the little on prohibits me from anything too "exciting"! we made our way back to the suburbs of seattle and spent the night at my parents house in shoreline. the next day, tim played "tour guide" in downtown seattle while i was able to sing with seattle children's chorus in benaroya hall as a part of the 20th anniversary concert. i was proud to be a blossoming mama and joining with such talented young people to make some incredible music- definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity and a memory to tell the little one about when she gets bigger! the 7 of us then headed north to spend some time relaxing on camano island with tim's family. we took a beautiful ferry ride and visited friday harbor, relaxed at the beach on the island, and had a wonderful end to our vacation.
after saying goodbye to our friends, it was time for me to get into "matron of honor mode". keeping my sister sane and happy in the weeks before her wedding was no small task, but i am proud to say...together, we had success! the wedding was beautiful and went off without a hitch. again, another wonderful memory to tell to the little girlie after she gets here.
since being home, we have realized that we have SO much to do before this little girl gets here. we have the crib set up, but the nursery is no where near ready. i have begun my (overwhelming) search for a pediatrician or family doctor. but that is the tip of the iceberg. i've been feeling more overwhelmed than i have before, feeling unprepared and nervous as for what is to come. i know that every new parent probably feels this way. so i just try to take comfort in the fact that i am not alone, and ultimately...God is still in control....

taken between 7-8 weeks










12-13 weeks










16 weeks











20 weeks

bump-a-licious!

so....i know that i've been really bad about posting pictures of the infamous "bump". well folks, today is your lucky day. i have finally decided to take the time and effort to upload the pictures for all of you lovely followers! this is no simple task mind you. before you start wondering what era i'm living in wlhere i dread uploading pictures from my camera to my computer and my computer to various websites, i do NOT use windows or apple operating systems! no. my husband has installed linux on my lenovo pc. yeah. you figure out how to do it....

now without further ado, the bump!

THINKING PINK!

that's right, folks: it's a girl! our ultrasound was one of the most magical days of my life. daddy just sat there in awe of this little life growing inside of me. i am amazed every time i feel her move. we are just so happy. the past 3 weeks have flown by. in fact, the past 20 weeks have flown by! halfway through the pregnancy and i couldn't feel better and more proud of everything that my body and my baby have accomplished.

there's so much to think about when faced with the fact that in just 5 short months we will have a little girl gracing us with her presence. i feel that my parents did a great job raising me and my sister. but the questions have already started popping into my head. when can she wear a 2-piece? when can she get her ears pierced? when can she start wearing make-up? dating? i know that we still have a *little* bit of time til we really have to make some serious decions about this stuff, but it's difficult not to think about the questions. i've also begun to think about the world that this little girl is entering. and while i must admit, its not the same world that i grew up in or that my mom grew up in- there are so many more opportunites for girls and young women these days- this world is not always the friendliest to or the easiest on girls. i just pray that she will grow up feeling confident and strong and beautiful just because she IS. not because of anything she does.

its a lot to think about. but i sure do love this kid. i love her a lot...

pink or blue

this thursday, the great mysteries of the world will be revealed! okay, so maybe not mysteries, just one mystery. and its not so much the great mystery of the world, but it is the great mystery of my world. thursday, we find out if we're having a boy or a girl! ultrasound! "excited" doesn't even begin to describe how i'm feeling these days (and nights!).

17 weeks today and feeling perfectly pregnant. been feeling little flutters now and then which is so exciting. we heard baby's heartbeat last week and our midwife had to keep adjusting the doppler to find it- apparently we have a squirmy little baby on our hands!

i feel so blessed. this little baby is already a part of a huge family that loves him or her SO much!

show and tell

saturday: i wake up and before i even eat something, i think to myself, "hmm i feel like i might actually look like i'm pregnant today...maybe i'm just bloated..." a novel idea for a woman who actually is pregnant and nearly 14 weeks along. turns out- not just bloated! so i am finally starting to show. *pregnant glow* coincidentally, "feeling pregnant" isn't always as fun as it sounds. turns out, nothing fits! this is no more distracting than when i am at work. not only am i lifting, bending, and reaching most of the time, but when i do i feel like i could be flashing the whole cafe! i think it just might be time to invest in some maternity clothes...

anyone know a 5'10" formerly pregnant woman who has maternity clothes she doesn't need anymore???