The Nutt House

Dinner Out...

2011-11-07T21:06:00.001-06:00

I love having adult dinners with kids. There are many enjoyable venues in town that I like to frequent, irregularly :) , on a new "mommy-level" kind of frequency. Rylie does great as long as we can have her in the right places at the right times. We have her patterns down pretty good now, so she does well in restaurants. Beautiful little stinker, she is. LOVE her!!!! Oh...and she finally has a top tooth coming through. 16 months old and only two bottom teeth. geez.

Okay, so i've totally slacked off of blogging lately. For the last 5 months, to be exact. WOW! that was a long lazy bloggers block. However, I've been re-inspired. :) And I'll probably be posting backwards for while too so I can get some past stuff posted.

Back to my original post topic... Dinner Out... The other night at dinner with the DeBoers in the pics below.... Great food, awesome company, tasty margaritas and my sweet, sweet baby girl....... Made for a good little photo shoot too......... (Notice the dark locks I'm sporting?... let's remember this moment fondly, it probably wont last long....i'm ready to go back to blonde.)

Memorial Day Weekend...

2011-06-01T07:26:00.001-05:00

Happy Memorial Day to everyone! Although my first thought when I think of Memorial Day is that it's the kick off to Summertime, we must also remember that, in reality, Memorial Day is a celebration of our veterans and the men and women who have died, fought, struggled, and tirelessly championed for the freedom of our nation and people, and continue to do so. My father was a veteran. He fought in WWII. He was a Paratrooper. It will be 10 years ago this September that he went to be with the Lord. He died at the age of 75. I was 3 months shy of 30. Although he died too soon for me, he did leave me with a strong sense of family, a desire to show kindness and respect to others, and a love of backroad drives in the country. My only sadness now, is that Rylie will never get to meet her Papa Joe. But I know my father is up in heaven looking after her, as he is me and the rest of his family.

I dont visit his gravesite as much as I probably should, but not a day goes by that I dont think of him for some reason or another. He was such a strong figure in my life from the day I was born to the day that he died. I will always have fond memories of my dad and will always carry my love for him strong in my heart. The graveyard he is buried at has a wonderful Veteran memorial. They have their annual flag ceremony and the grounds always look amazing no matter what time of year it is. We failed to take a cool picture of all the flags waving, but you can get the idea from the background of some of these photos.

My dad, 1971, when my sister and I were born.

Me with my mom and dad, college graduation.

Showing Rylie where her Papa Joe is buried.

My sister showing off her continuing-to-grow pregnant belly!

Nana and Pops bought Rylie a sandbox crab as an early birthday gift. She loves the sand, but hasn't quite realized that she shouldn't put it in her eyes and mouth. She enjoys splashing in her pool too. The water was still a bit cold and she was uneasy about getting in, so daddy had to get in with her so she would know it's okay.

Notice the Nutt men in the background putting together our new swing. Which we LOVE. Thank you Nana and Pops!

Finally, after all these years, our yard finally looks GREAT!! Thank you True Green Lawn Service. You guys really DO know what you are doing with all that weed and feed stuff.

Later that weekend....How about a day on the lake boating it up?

Rylie went to town on her macaroni n cheese that i ordered for her at the restaurant on the lake. Is there anything cooler than pulling up to a restaurant in your boat? As for this summer, i'm struggling to think of anything cooler.

Rylie loves her kisses from Pops!

A day out on the water is enough to wear out even the best little boater. She napped on the bench seat this time, with direct supervision to make sure she ddidn't roll off. I've since made this easier by buying her a little bed for the boat. You'll see in an upcoming post.

Happy Memorial Day to all....and here's to Summer!!!!

"Gone Nutts"...

2011-05-16T16:22:00.003-05:00

We bought a boat! It has always been a desire of both Brian and I to buy a boat someday. We love the outdoors and have always enjoyed playing at the lake each summer on our Sea-doo. We always joked that we wouldn't be able to keep a baby in tow with us while on the Sea-doo and that once we start having kids our goal would be to find a good used boat. We kicked it around more seriously this year and ended up finding what we wanted for a price we could afford. It needs just a bit of cosmetic work, but it runs great and there's enough room to spread out and allow Rylie to play. It will make for awesome memories this summer and many summers to come. We already have 2 very cute and very pink life jackets for our baby girl. She will be a water baby by her first birthday!!

We named our boat "Gone Nutts"! Very appropriate, I'm sure you will agree. We took the boat out a few saturdays ago when it was still really too cold to be out there, but we wanted to get the name on the boat and familiarize ourselves with the surrounding coves and landmarks. We didnt stay out long because it was just too cold, but I think we poked around enough so that we dont feel too much like "new boaters" when lake season really kicks into gear this summer. :)

My First Mothers Day...

2011-05-08T16:56:00.155-05:00

And what a WONDERFUL first mothers day it was!!! I am so blessed to have such an amazing daughter! I thank God for her everyday and I hope someday she knows how deep my love for her is. She warms my heart with every little thing she does and every little thing she discovers. She is truly an amazing gift from God. I am so proud to be her mommy.

Nana and Pops came to Tulsa for the weekend and we had lots of fun. It was an activity filled weekend and the weather was beautiful. On Saturday we went to the Zoo with some family friends, the Pikers. They live in Arkansas close to Ken and Janet. Their kids and grandkids are about the same age as Brian, Rylie and I, which made it that much more fun for all of us to be together. I have a feeling we will be doing more family outings with the Pikers as time goes by.

At the Zoo...

I absolutely LOVE this photo below. Pops and Rylie were looking at the monkeys behind the glass and she was listening so intently at what Pop's was saying to her. It warmed my heart to watch them. I know that as Rylie gets older she and Pop's will share many many more moments like these.

Green bean anyone? Really, I'll share!

Amberly and her son Maddox. Maddox is just a bit older than Rylie and walking. He's such a cutie!! Rylie kept wanting to touch his hair and he didnt much want to have anything to do with her. Rylie is chasing boys already...run Maddox, run!

After a short break of going our seperate ways to freshen up, we all met back up at Los Cabos for dinner. Before I had a child of my own, I used to dread the thought of being out at a restaurant with a growing, curious, screaming, food-slinging infant. That all changed once Rylie came into my life as I cant really imagine doing anything without her, much less enjoying a meal at my favorite restaurant without her. I LOVE taking Rylie along with us whatever it is we are doing and I enjoy teaching her and guiding her in her experiences. SO, to all the parents out there, I do not feel sorry and embarrassed for you anymore, as you keep bending over to pick up the spoon your child in enjoying waving around and tossing back onto the floor. I do not roll my eyes as I watch and listen to your little one scream in excitement over seeing something new...or scream in frustration from being bored or overstimulated. I applaud you, I raise my head high to you, and I bend over with you, 50 times, to gladly pick up that entertaining spoon Rylie has just again dropped on the floor.

We ordered Rylie her own bean and cheese kids burrito with rice. She loved it! Which i'm not surprised, as I pretty much lived on mexican food during my pregnancy!

The proud grandparents and the little ones. A great picture to wrap up a great day!

THEN ONTO SUNDAY...MOTHERS DAY...

My sister had made reservations a while back for the annual Mothers Day Brunch at Philbrook Museum of Art. After church we headed that way and had time to take pictures in the back garden before our table was ready at the restaurant. This museum is the former home of an old Tulsa Oil tycoon. The property is amazing, inside and out. And the back garden is breathtaking in the spring!

Happy Mothers Day Moms!

Me, my mom, and Rylie. Three generations, each exactly 39 years apart in age!

My sister is 4 months pregnant and will be a mom soon herself. She has quite the growing belly and it is too cute!

Happy Easter...

2011-04-24T23:54:00.012-05:00

Rylie's first Easter. I didnt expect her to light up like she did when she saw her Easter baskets, but she did and it was adorable! She enjoyed pulling her new things out and examining...tasting...each one. Nana and Pops came to Tulsa to spend Easter with us and we had a very nice time, even though Rylie was feeling kind of puney and the weather was cloudy and rainy. It was a good weekend to stay in doors and play with the our little Easter angel.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

2011-03-17T11:59:00.011-05:00

Happy St. Patricks Day!

I Am SO Ready For Spring...

2011-01-26T13:00:00.001-06:00

Wow, what a long blog break I took...almost a month. How time flies! I must have some winter depression, I KNOW i have sun deprivation for sure! Now that I've changed my blog background to a fun springy looking thing and I'm back at the gym regularly, i think I'm out of my short winter funk.

I've never been much of a winter person. I enjoy digging out the jeans, the long sleeves and the warmer shoes for a short while, maybe a week (ha!), but when the calories I gain each winter, due to the big holiday meals I eat, start to catch up with me, those extra pounds start getting me anxious for the outdoor spring season.

I'm ready for the new life of spring to start growing, blooming and becoming known to all. I've got three plants that I've brought in-doors for the winter. I'm trying very hard to keep them alive. I've always been terrible keeping in-door plants living for long, but my mother has always had a knack for it so I'm sure it's in me somewhere. Instead of letting them die with the weather change, I brought them in with the full intent of paying enough attention to them that I will be able to keep them thriving through the winter and until I can plant them back outside next year. This will prove to be an interesting goal for me, we'll see how I do. I did talk myself out of thinking my Japanese Maple was dead. My mom pointed out that it will too lose it's leaves just as the ones outside and although my little twig in the pot looks dead, it may just be dormant for the winter. I just need to make sure it has the right amount of sun and water while it's living in my kitchen right now.

Brian and I planned our first vacation of the year. We are going on a 7 day cruise with Jeremy and Amy in early March. We cant wait. The theme of this cruise is "KAH!", Kids At Home. Yes, we are leaving Rylie for a week. I'm ignoring my feelings of anxiety about it, as it's going to happen, so why inflict the suffering caused by my thoughts of how much I'm going to miss her while we are gone. I'll probably miss some major milestone, like first steps or something. :( But, my mom is going to stay at our house and take care of her all week, so I know she'll be in good hands. And Lord knows Brian and I need a good adult vacation right about now. 6 weeks and counting....KAH!

Rylie is doing well as we go into 2011. She caught the flu a couple weeks ago, but got over it quickly and is back to her normal cute self. She had her 6 month appointment last week too. Her stats were:

Length - 28 inches (96th percentile)
Weight - 17.12 pounds (71st percentile)
Head size - 44.25 centimeters (85th percentile)

Rylie has started on Stage 2 baby foods and enjoys trying everything mommy and daddy are eating. We give her tastes of things all the time so she can try out new textures and tastes. She loves the vegetable baby foods and absolutely loves carrots. When she's done eating, she likes to hold and play with the spoon.

Here are some recent pictures. We had an amateur photo shoot in the living room one Sunday afternoon and I captured some really good "naked baby" shots. Thank you Photoshop for your help on removing the backgrounds and making my wrinkled white sheet look a bit better of a backdrop.

Rylie's Third First Christmas...Fort Smith

2010-12-28T19:49:00.033-06:00

What a great holiday season this has been. We spent Christmas weekend at our uncle Garry's in Fort Smith. Every year uncle Garry hosts either Thanksgiving or Christmas. The holidays rotate each year. This year is was Christmas at Uncle G's. It was such a cozy, relaxing and happy weekend. Rylie did great and we love that she got to meet the rest of the family. She met her Great Grandma and Great Grandpa for the first time. How cool is that?! It was so awesome watching them interact. She met uncles and cousins and friends and had a great time. My mom, sister and Allan came too. We were there 3 nights and she was off her routine slightly but I think she did really well all things considered. When we got home Sunday all three of us took an hour nap and then she was up the rest of the evening. Talking a lot. Boy was she telling us stories! I can only assume she was talking about all her new experiences from the weekend. It was.....so cute!

Thank you Uncle Garry for hosting another great holiday weekend! We always enjoy the family get-togethers at your house.

Merry Christmas!...

2010-12-25T07:22:00.000-06:00

Our 2010 Christmas card...

Rylie's Second First Christmas...Tulsa

2010-12-20T19:49:00.097-06:00

Rylie's second Christmas moments were here in Tulsa at our house. I had all the Christmas decorations strung throughout the house this year. The battery operated ones I even turned on and made them go. We also threw away much of the old Christmas stuff, I've held onto for too many years, and started some new Christmas memories and hopefully traditions.

This is my favorite ceramic Christmas decor purchase of the season. LOVE it! It's the platter we'll use for Santa's cookies and milk each year. This little guy will be in our family and Christmas photo's for many many years to come. :) I eyed it while we were in Springdale the weekend before. Thank you Nana!

Rylie enjoyed playing with the paper. She seems very amused right now by her ability to crinkle up paper.

Yes, this evening really did become The Rylie Show. (What episode are we on now anyway?) But isn't that what's so fun about Christmas...watching the little kids partake in the wonderment of it all?

Rylie trying lemon meringue pie for the first time...

Rylie's First First Christmas...Springdale

2010-12-13T19:48:00.011-06:00

We knew we'd be having a couple of Christmases this year so we did our Christmas celebration throughout the entire month of December. Christmas is a renewed and revamped holiday for me now that Rylie is in the picture. Although there have been moments...not long moments, but moments that I've thought i was pretty much Christmas'ed out. Thank goodness those moments didn't last long. When I've got Rylie looking at me, it's a reassuring moment that reminds me that Christmas is still truly about more than just presents under a tree. Rylie is our awesome little miracle of life. God's power and goodness just shines in her eyes. She is so precious.

Our first Christmas moments were at Nana and Pop's house in Springdale. We have made it a tradition over the past couple of years to go see the Christmas lights at the Square in Fayetteville. We eat dinner at Tim's Pizza and walk around the square. It's always so beautiful. And always so cold. But always so enjoyable!

November At The Nutts...

2010-12-10T23:01:00.000-06:00

We decided to make it a tradition to put up our Christmas Tree the weekend of Thanksgiving. I had originally thought about making the tradition that we do it ON Thanksgiving Day...but after further thought and the fact that I was pretty dog tired after cleaning the kitchen following lunch, I decided that "sometime during" the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend would be tradition enough. We did it on Saturday. Rylie was very entertained by the activity. She kept reaching for the ornaments, the lights, and the tree limbs.

I just love the above picture. Maybe because I enjoy spending time in Rylie's room. I'm showing signs that I just may become one of those moms who tries to relive her own childhood through her daughter. Oh please give me a talking to if you see that starting to happen. But I digress.

Tradition alert... I got Rylie her own little white Christmas tree for her room. I bought a few ornaments, mostly soft pink tones. Rylie helped me put it together and get it decorated. She was enjoying holding a book for a little while, then became more interested in the ornaments. Daddy took some very cute pictures. (Just to warn you now, I'm doing silly captions on this post. I'm just in the mood! :)

"Hey dad. what up?"

"A pink sequined ball? For moi?"

"Why thank you, I so fancy it!"

"I'll pull the tree closer so I can get a better look at it."

Later Rylie and I were playing with her book. She's getting better with her little hands. She is really starting to grab at things more and hold things for longer time periods.

"I'm down with this book, mom. This frog is wack."

"Oops, what happened? I seem to have dropped my book."

"umph. I want my book back. must...bend...forward..."

"Whoa. That was close. give me a minute. must...keep...balance."

"Night night, mommy. Nap time. This netting looks tasty."

Bundled up after being outside with mommy in the cold.

Talking to daddy about something very important it looks like. I think they were sharing an ESPN moment.

Rylie is so happy in the mornings. She likes to hang out in her crib for 15 to 20 minutes in the mornings after she wakes up. We turn her mobile on with the dim light and music and she will lay there, giggle, and talk to herself. I love listening to her.

Helping mommy in the kitchen one afternoon. She is still growing into those hair flowers and bows.

Worn out after an active morning with mommy. I'm so glad she'll nap in her swing. Look at Scripps walking by her. Scripps is so good with her. I'm very happy about how she has taken to Rylie. Our boxer is 10 years old and she's been our only child. Brian raised her from a puppy. I was prepared for maybe a tad bit of her acting out and her possibly being territorial. But darn it if she isn't the sweetest, calmest boxer baby ever! She really knows her place in the Nutt pack. And Rylie is starting to be more interested in her. She'll grab at her ears and try to touch her when near. It's cute.

Happy Thanksgiving...

2010-12-01T22:30:00.003-06:00

We did Thanksgiving at our house in Tulsa this year. I decided I wanted to cook a Thanksgiving meal with all the fixings. It was fun and everything turned out done at the same time... I really wasn't expecting that, to be honest. My mom came over and made her stuffing that I love, and have loved every year since birth! Tracie and Allan both came over too. Allan was supposed to go hunting, but decided to head out after our lunch so that he could join us. I really had a lot of fun cooking. We put Rylie in her highchair so she could hang out with us in the kitchen while we were making stuff, although this activity didn't hold her attention for very long. She was napping on Grammie in no time. She loves her 30 minute power naps. We fed her baby food peas for the first time, which she seemed to really like. She took to the spoon well and managed to get more in her tummy than on her face. Mommy and daddy are proud. :) She turned 5 months old on November 22nd. Time is going by fast.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. We are grateful for all of our friends and family. We are so blessed in so many ways and not a day goes by that we don't think about and appreciate how blessed we truly are!

Rylie is rolling over frequently now. Seems like every time we put her down on her back she starts pulling her little feet up toward her head and then rolls over on her little hips like a weeble wobble. Then, plop, on over to her belly. She looks amazed at herself every time. Then she realizes she doesn't know what to do while she's there. She gets frustrated and fussy sometimes quickly. My little angel is going to be a feisty one, I'm afraid. But the sweetest feisty one there is. I'll make sure of that. It's funny...watching and helping a baby grow. I'm really, really diggin it. :)

Tracie and I being goofy in the kitchen. My sister is a goober and I love it!

And just look at this cute little family of 3!...

Reading the paper with Uncle Allan. They were reading about the then upcoming Bedlam game.

I really like this picture of the cooking cranberry's. The red color is so pretty. And I didn't even alter the color in Photoshop, which is odd for me. I love playing in Photoshop. Click on the photo to make it screen size. Ka-pow! This pic just kicks ya in the face. Gotta love it.

And below, Grammie teaching Rylie how to cook the cranberry's. What you don't see here is the aftermath of me taking over keeping an eye on them... I didn't do a very good job of it. They boiled over...big time. I guess a sign of a good thanksgiving meal is the need to completely break down the stove burners for a round in the dishwasher. :) This, of course, was done after football games and naps.

Way to go Scripps!...oops, who left that wing in the trash so close to the edge? Silly dog snuck it out. We let her get away with chewing on it a minute or two. Happy Thanksgiving Scripps! You may not be so lucky next year.

Yummy peas, yummy peas! I gave her the spoon to play with after she was done eating. I've noticed over the past week that she is much more aware of things and she is reaching and grabbing more things. And hair...she really loves to grab mommy's hair.

We did the Thanksgiving Day shopping to one store only. We went to K-Mart because they had 700 thread count sheet sets on sale for $29.99. Which, for those of you who love high thread count sheets as much as I do, you know that price is unheard of. And Grammie found some reindeer antlers in the baby section that she thought Rylie couldn't live without. Too cute!

Do-Nothing Weekend With Nana & Pops...

2010-11-19T22:02:00.000-06:00

Sometimes it seems like we have been on-the-go a lot lately. Although it's fun to have an active lifestyle and to introduce Rylie to all the world has to offer, we were in much need of a relaxing, do nothing weekend. We recently headed off to Nana and Pops house in Springdale, AR, to have just that. It was great! It was a weekend filled with family, football, rag-mags, and laughs...and a whole bunch of Rylie.

Go Razorbacks, beat UTEP.

Chatting with daddy over breakfast. So adorable.

One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish...

2010-11-17T09:02:00.016-06:00

Yes, I enjoy reading the Dr. Suess books to Rylie. But on this day, we actually went to the Tulsa Aquarium to see some real fish. Rylie was so interested in looking at the fish swimming around in the tanks and took exceptional interest in the stingray pool. They have a petting pool, so I wish her little arms would have been long enough to reach in and touch one, but it didnt happen this trip. She did, however, get to touch a beaver fur at the live beaver exhibit.

At the shark exhibit...in the display tank...

She wore herself out pretty quick and took the best little power nap on my shoulder. I love it when she does that. She's such an awesome cuddler.

4 Month Stats...

2010-11-16T20:59:00.001-06:00

Rylie's 4 month appointment was actually at 4 and a half months. She's been growing like a weed. She weighs 14.8 lbs, which is at the 56th percentile, and she is 25.25 inches long, which is at the 75th percentile. Her pediatrician said to start introducing her to rice cereal with a spoon once a day for a week or so and then we could start on real baby food! Wow, real baby food already? Where has my newborn gone?

Rylie did great at the doctor and she didnt even cry when she got her shots. She grimmaced some and whined for a second, but she never actually started crying like she did at her 2 month shots. She made the cutest face as if to say, "momma, i'm a big girl and I'm not gonna cry". Now whether or not she was actually thinking that is a long shot, I know, but that is what was going through my head when i was watching her facial expressions. It was precious!

Here she is trying rice cereal for the first time.

To The Pumpkin Patch We Go...

2010-11-05T21:06:00.008-05:00

We had a very fun and busy Halloween weekend with Rylie's church dedication, ear piercing, and visit from Nana and Pops. We also fit in a trip to the pumpkin patch. The weather was beautiful, although a bit windy, to allow for some great photos. The big flower on her cap is priceless! Thank you Brenda for the awesome gift!

Rylie's Church Dedication...

2010-11-01T22:00:00.008-05:00

We attend Southern Hills Baptist Church in Tulsa and we absolutely love it. When Brian and I were dating and started getting serious about our relationship, we started visiting churches in the area that we could attend together to start a church life. It just so happened that the church that was closest to our neighborhood was also the one that we both felt the most connected to. We started attending SHBC in 2006, I was baptised there in 2007, Brian and I were married there October 13th, 2007, and now Rylie has been dedicated to God there on October 31st, 2010. It was very special to see Rylie in our pastor's arms and to have our family and friends with us to be a part of this special day. Not only was this dedication about us acknowledging God's sovereignty over Rylie, but it was also about Brian and I committing ourselves to teaching her about God's word and demonstrating on a daily basis how important it is for her to know and love the Lord. Brian and I are so blessed that God gave us our beautiful angel. We have vowed, as parents and as Christians, to raise her with a strong sense of faith and love for the Lord.

Pastor Hess gave a brief explanation of the meaning of Rylie's name and chose a bible verse for her.
Rylie is of Irish origin. It means "valiant". The spiritual meaning is "protected". Sophia is of Greek origin. It means "wisdom". It's spiritual meaning is "excellent virtue". Pastor Hess chose Proverbs 9:10 for Rylie. "Wisdom begins with respect for the Lord, and understanding begins with knowing the Holy One."

There was also a 9 month old little boy that was dedicated this day. Maybe they will grow up to be friends.

Ear Piercing At 4 Months Old...

2010-11-01T21:30:00.001-05:00

It's not like she'll remember the pain. Right? Okay, I must say that I do feel a bit bad about laughing at her in these pictures. After all, she is my sweet little angel and it hurts me to the core to know she is hurting. But I just couldn't help but look at the funny side of this outing. Brian and Pops excused themselves from the infliction of pain that i was about to put our little angel through. That made me giggle. However, the way Rylie quickly and loudly let out a scream, I'm sure the guys heard her from down the mall anyway. I had debated for a couple of weeks about getting her ears pierced. I wanted to pierce them early before she has the coordination to tug at her ears and possibly pull them out. I went with the very smallest earring we could get so her little ears will still look dainty.

Grammie and Nana and Pops went with us...it was a fun family day. Rylie didn't even cry for long, and by an hour or so her ears didnt seem to bother her at all. She got passed around and loved on a lot this weekend, so I'm sure that helped some.

Fun with hair pieces.

Before the trauma. Little does she know.

During the trauma. Reality has set in.

After the trauma. I think I lost some points with her on this one.

She was so brave to let mommy put her through that. I just love her so much!! She didn't cry for long as you can see in the picture below. Check her out in her little chordoroy dress with those booties. TOO CUTE! Yes, i'm soooo bragging on the gorgeousness of my daughter. I thank the Lord for her everyday. She is the absolute best thing that has ever happened to me and I know Brian would say the same ten fold. She has made our family complete and it's a beautiful thing. It amazes us to watch her interact with the world around her and to help her find her way. We are loving every minute of raising our daughter.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T09:27:00.001-05:00

Happy Halloween from our little blooming flower!

Weekend of Football and Zoo...

2010-10-12T19:00:00.000-05:00

This weekend was beautiful. The weather is getting so fall like. I love the need for a light jacket in the morning and the ability to shed it in the afternoon. Brian and his dad went with the Cathcart men to Dallas to go to the Arkansas vs Texas A&M game at Dallas Stadium. I've only seen the stadium in pictures, but Brian said it is absolutely amazing. I cant wait to get to a game myself. Arkansas won their game, barely, but a win is a win, so WOO PIG SOUIE!

Nana came to Tulsa to spend the weekend with Rylie and I. We had a ball and Rylie loved seeing her Nana. Saturday we woke up and started our day early by going to the Tulsa Zoo. She seemed to really enjoy all the new sights she was exposed to. Now's the time to buy that Zoo Friends membership and start taking her regularly. My mom used to take my sister and I all the time when we were kids. Great memories! My mom and aunt Tracie went with us too. It was a girls weekend!!

My absolute FAVORITE picture of the day, and probably my favorite of all time at this point, is this one below. Look at that little face. She is just amazing! Does it get any better than this?? I just don't think so!

Rylie was pretty worn out after the zoo, as were all of us. We all went home and took naps. Sunday we woke up early again to start our day together. I just cherish the weekends when I get to spend an entire 2 full days with my daughter. We got up early and read a book and played, then she took a very short cat nap before church. Rylie loves to be read to. She'll sit on my lap and engage in "reading time" at almost anytime. I love it!

Her feet don't touch the floor yet, but she seems to lover her bouncy car.

Trying to pick up her teething ring and not doing very well.

Napping before church...

Rylie's little church dress is SO cute! "Look everyone, I'm a big girl", she says!

2010 Tulsa State Fair...

2010-10-05T19:17:00.000-05:00

It's funny, before we had Rylie I didn't understand why parents would take their newborns and infants to the fair. I honestly thought it was ridiculous to take an infant out in such surroundings when they wont even remember it anyway. WELL...bite your tongue mommy...I just couldn't wait to take Rylie to the Tulsa State Fair this year! (Having this child has really made me re-think a lot of things I used to believe when I was kid-less.) We had such a great time. She wont remember her first year to go to the fair, but I sure will. It was a lot of fun. We even went twice. First with Nana and Pops and then with Grammie and Aunt Tay Tay.

We seem to time Rylie's feeding just right for our outings, either that or she is just a really good baby. Friday night Rylie enjoyed walking around the animal barns on Pop's shoulder and wasn't scared at all by the many animals and people that were there. She got in some good teething time on Pop's shoulder as well. He had a nice big slobber stain on his t-shirt. Pop's said it was worth it!

Daddy decided that he was going to win Rylie her first carnival game toy. And it only took him a couple of bucks worth of shots for him to make the basket! Way to go daddy!!! Of course mommy picked out the big PINK stuffed dog for her.

Nothin' but net! Yay daddy!!

Then on Sunday afternoon, Grammie, Aunt Tay Tay and I took Rylie to the Fair Ice Capades to see Disney On Ice. Again...not something I ever thought I would take a 15 week old baby to, but I just couldn't wait to get there with her. She did SO good too. Of course she isn't nearly old enough to recognize what it was she was seeing, but the show definitely kept her attention and she seem to be very entertained by it. And of course we were very entertained by her.

We all took turns holding her up high enough so she could see what was going on. The show really kept her attention without scaring her. It was great!

Rylie did very good through act 1 (an entire hour)...and she hung in there for about 15 minutes of act 2. But when the lights went out, the lights definitely went out!! She was in dream land, hopefully dreaming of all the skating princesses she got to see today.

Until next year Mickey and Minnie...

Cutest Razorback Fan...

2010-10-04T07:07:00.017-05:00

Yes, Rylie will be growing up Razorback. We've already decided where she is going to college, I just hope her aspirations as she gets older jives with her parents wishes! I guess we'll see in a quick 18 years!

Oops....must work on balance and strengthening those back muscles! Can't be a razorback cheerleader if I fall over so easy she says.

More Rylie Cuteness...Cant Get Enough...

2010-09-15T23:15:00.009-05:00

Until very recently, Rylie's head has been too small for big headbands and flowers to look cute on her. So I haven't been heavy on the bow and flower thing. But now that she is growing, she's growing into the look. So cute! She's no longer a new born...she's a growing baby. So awesome.

She is getting much stronger with holding her head up too. Monday evening she was really doing well, so it was perfect to snap some great pics. I love capturing her facial expressions to look back at how they change so quickly. (If I could capture every moment of her day I would.) She is processing this enormous and awesome world around her at sometimes very high speeds. I'm moved by the way she takes on her days. She's a little trooper! But boy is she pooped after each of her 2 days at Ms. Deeta's house. She sleeps like a rock those nights.

She has outgrown a great deal of her newborn clothes and can sometimes wear a six month outfits. But for the most part she is in the 3-6 month stuff. It has amazed me how different baby clothing brands differ so much in their sizes. I cant wait to dress her in some very cute 6-9 month clothes that both Nana and Grammie have bought for her. And when she starts wearing shoes???.... I think I will faint with excitement!! The idea of her finding her feet and using them, whether correctly or learning from her mistakes...... sigh .......I just cant wait to guide her through life.

Sunday night we watched the Cowboys game. They sucked...but I wont stay in disappointment-land for more than that brief moment I just shared. We dressed Rylie in her Dallas onsie and read her her football book. That's now our Sunday night routine before her bath, bottle and bed... we dress Rylie in a sports outfit, pick the team we are going to root for, then Brian reads the football book with Rylie, and we practice the "touchdown" signal. Then she gets to watch a little bit of the game with us before we get going on her bedtime routine.

I think she started to get a little spooked by all the new things we were exposing her to. Her little face below looks so confused. But she finally started to feel more relaxed once daddy held her tight and started reading her book to her.

Mommy's Back To Work...

2010-09-14T12:30:00.015-05:00

I'm back to work. Full time.

It was harder than I thought it was going to be. But I stayed focused and my first week back last week went by pleasingly fast! It's funny. At 5:00 pm each day I get so excited that I get to come home to my baby girl and spend the next 3 hours hanging on her every smile! I make the most of every minute. It's quite a difference from the "joined at the hip" love affair I've had with my child the last 11 weeks. Now I only get three meaningful hours with her each week day evening. So yay for weekends!

Those 11 weeks I was off work were great! There were a few days that my mom would watch her for brief periods while I would run to the gym for an hour. And I had to go to the office a couple of mornings. So there was some separation. But I pretty much spent every waking hour (and many napping hours) of my days with this beautiful little person for the last 11 weeks. Taking her places, grocery shopping, teaching her things, parks and the museum, getting to know her, letting her nap on my chest. What an awesome gift that was. Thank you so much Nana and Pops and Grammie for your love and support with our little angel. Your support and love during these last 11 weeks made it much less of a struggle on us while I wasn't working. And I was able to bond that much more with Rylie. There is no doubt in her mind who her mama is, that's for sure, and I'm feeling darn good myself about thinking I know what makes that baby girl tick. Family is so special and we couldn't be more grateful.

Grammie spent a lot of time with Rylie and me too while I was off work. So I got a double blessing out of the deal. During these last 11 weeks I probably got to spend time with my mom at least every other day, some weeks every day. It was great. Whether we just stayed around the house, or went on one of our many outings, I feel much closer to my mom now. I guess that happens a lot when a child becomes a parent of their own. It's been awesome to be able to rely on both grandmothers for advice and support going into this chapter of new motherhood/parenthood.

Speaking of grandparents. Brian and I made a holiday faus pax this week. Sunday was National Grand Parents Day. We didn't know!!!! Poor Rylie, she felt so bad when we told her. So, to the new grand parents in our family, happy belated Grand Parents Day. We love you and cherish you so much!

Nana, Pops and Rylie

Grammie, Me and Rylie

RYLIE'S DAYCARE ARRANGEMENTS...

I don't know what we did to be so fortunate to have the daycare arrangement we do, but it's wonderful.

On Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays my mom (Grammie) comes over to our house and watches Rylie. But when I say "watches" her, what I really mean is that she spends the day teaching her all about things. Grammie has already started ABC flash cards with her and bought the My Baby Can Read program to start with her. So far so good with the flashcards. They seem to keep her attention for a short while, which is all you can expect from an 12 week old baby. We also have a routine of singing the Head Shoulders Knees and Toes song every time she is on her changing table for a diaper change. It makes her smile when I touch her little body parts while I'm singing to her. One of these days she'll start singing it with me!

On Wednesdays and Fridays, we take Rylie down the street to a lady who has done in-home daycare her entire adult life. She is a career nanny, so to speak. She has anywhere from the same 3 to 5 small kiddo's in her home on any given day. Rylie is the youngest, there is also a little boy she keeps a couple of days a week who is 4 months old, and a couple of other kids who are between 2 and 4 years old. It will be good for Rylie to be exposed to other kids and people those 2 days. It's also great that she'll be in the security of her own home and surroundings during the other days of the week. I think it strikes a good balance between keeping her safe and sound in the protection of her own home for the majority of the time, but then also getting her somewhat socialized and comfortable being around others. Also, since she is the youngest of the group of kids, I'm hoping that she'll learn and develop quicker by watching what the older kids are doing.

We are so blessed and so thankful. Life is great!

I Am In Love...

2010-09-10T22:09:00.002-05:00

I never thought I had it in me to love something so much. It's so incredibly indescribable how happy and fulfilled it makes me feel to be that beautiful baby's mommy. It's amazing to me that God entrusted raising one of his beautiful angels to Brian and I. Our miracle baby. What an honor and responsibility we've been given. And oh how we love it!!!!

Below are some gorgeous moments from Monday night after Nana and Pops headed back to Springdale. Rylie was having a good ole time flirting with her daddy...

Now comes a big stretch! For those of you who know our baby girl, you know that stretching is her favorite activity of all time right now. She loooooooves to stretch! Which is very pleasing, since I enjoy so much to watch her stretch. It is the cutest thing on the planet!

About an hour later we put Rylie in the bouncy chair while we ate dinner. Daddy was making cute noises and sticking his tongue out at her. She was so fascinated by what he was doing she couldnt take her eyes off him.

Look at that face! She is so amazing. And yes, I'm SO one of those moms! I think my little sweetie is absolutely the most beautiful and the most perfect thing God has ever put on this planet. I could stare at the gorgeous face all day long and never get tired of it. I love that little stinker so much!

And the best picture of the evening is this one. After a fun night playing with daddy, what better way to end the night than by sucking down a big warm bottle and then being rocked to sleep on daddy's shoulder. It really doesn't get much better than this. Brian, sweetie, these moments are so special to me. I love you. Stacie

Labor Day Weekend...

2010-09-06T21:16:00.105-05:00

Labor Day weekend was awesome at the Nutt house this year. Nana and Pops came to town from Arkansas and got to stay the entire weekend. We got to make lots of memories with Rylie and she had several "firsts" to remember. For starters, Friday night we went to the Tulsa Drillers Baseball game, which was Rylie's very first (and definitely not her last) baseball game to attend. I think Nana and I were watching more of HER than we were of the game though! She was such a good little girl throughout the game.

Saturday we all woke up and made sure Rylie knew it was the Arkansas Razorbacks first football game of the season. She was all decked out in her Razorback onsie and booties. She might just be shouting Woo Pig Sooie before she says anything else.

Saturday night Brian and I went to a couples wedding shower. It was a great time and we got to let our hair down a bit while Nana and Pops spent some quality time alone with Rylie. (Here's to a good party! We love you Beth and Hunt.)

Sunday was an exciting day for Rylie. It was her very first day to attend church. She did so great. She only got a bit fussy once, so I took her out and started her on a bottle. It was getting close to her normal feeding time, so once her focus shifted from hungry and fussy to eating and content I was able to sneak back inside. She fell asleep on Nana's shoulder and was fine the entire rest of the service.

No Labor Day weekend would be complete without a swim in the pool. So after church that morning and then cooking out on the grill that afternoon, we waited until the sun started going down and we put on Rylie's swimsuit, filled up the kiddy pool Nana bought her, and let her enjoy her very first Labor Day swim. Brian and I are both outdoorsy people, so it's inevitable that Rylie too will become an outdoor adventurer. I cant wait until next summer when she'll be old enough to put on a life jacket and go to the lake with us. That is, of course, after I take her to a water babies swim class.

More Social Outings...

2010-09-01T23:28:00.031-05:00

Rylie's social schedule has been busier than mine! Good thing she needs a driver, right? I really enjoy taking her places, not only because I think she's the most beautiful thing God ever put on this planet, but because I enjoy teaching her about everyday activities as well as special occasions. Some parents seem to parent with the "hanging out with my kid" parenting style. I want to take more of a "i'm going to teach you all about everything" approach to parenting. Oh, the places we will go and the things you will learn, my sweetheart!

I recently went to a friends bridal shower. It was held at the Dillards Home Department, an idea I thought was really cool. The shower was kid friendly, so I was glad I got to take Rylie with me. She did great. Being able to predict when Rylie is going to get hungry is the best skill I've developed over the 11 weeks I've been blessed to be home with her all day. Planning for feedings around activities makes for such enjoyable experiences. I just love her!

She did so good while being passed around to the ladies.

That night we decided it would be fun to go to the Boat/RV show. It was the smaller one of the year and they didn't have too many outdoor travel toys to really explore. But it was fun to get her out for a little while anyway.

On this day, our outing was to go to my office one last time before I returned to work. I dressed her up extra cute for the trip. I probably was able to take her by my office at least once every two weeks while I was off work. It was fun to expose her to the career side of me too. This was the darling little pants outfit I dressed her in. She's starting to get such a personality and the cutest little facial expressions.

Hanging Out At The House...

2010-08-31T01:12:00.000-05:00

Sometimes just lounging around the house is fun. A few of our special moments together...

Teaching Rylie about doing laundry.

She wasn't too impressed! That's okay, it's not my favorite chore either.

Having an in-depth conversation with daddy one morning.

Love the t-shirt?..."Daddy does my hair!". And he does. Brian loves to brush Rylie's hair every night after her bath.

Spooning with mommy.

Watching sports with daddy.

Rylie's First Picnic...

2010-08-25T22:51:00.007-05:00

We had a couple of great days of decent weather. So I wanted to take Rylie on her very first picnic before I went back to work. We went thru the Arby's drive thru to pick up lunch for myself and my mom. I already made a bottle for Rylie. We loaded up the car and away we went. We laid out the blanket and kicked it old fashioned picnic style for a while. What a great day!

Shades are required for a picnic.

Chillin on the blanket in the Bumbo chair. I just love that chair. It's perfect since she hasnt got complete control of her neck yet. Our pretty little bobble head.

Things quickly turned turbulent when cuteness decided she was hungry. She doesn't give much warning!

The picnic ended with a walk thru the Tulsa Garden Centers teaching gardens located adjacent to the park. Rylie needed her nap to recharge and was asleep most of our walk thru the garden center.

It was now time to go home. :)

Shots and Stats...

2010-08-23T21:53:00.000-05:00

9 weeks old came quick! We took baby girl to the pediatrician today for her 2 month appointment which included her first round of immunization shots. Ouch!!! She did great overall even though it broke mommy's heart to see those HUGE needles being stuck into her tiny little thigh.

She weighed in at 11 lbs 9 oz, and she is 22 inches long. Her development is perfectly normal, so we are pretty happy that we've been doing things right.

Here is a cute little picture of her waiting patiently in the exam room BEFORE the needles arrived!

Trip to Nana and Pops...

2010-08-22T22:37:00.027-05:00

I just love day trips and little weekend outings on the road. It's easy to drive up the highway to Springdale, AR. So we try and get over there as often as we can to visit with Nana and Pops. Rylie is a pretty good traveler. She's been very active during the first 10 weeks of her life. I think it was good that we started getting her out and exposing her to things very early. She adapts pretty well. (Please don't tell my i'm going to eat those words as she gets older.)

Pops and Candy helping Rylie to hold onto the rattle.

Rylie loved riding Pop's knee-horse. I have a feeling Pop's knee-horse will be a favorite spot of Rylies for a long time.

Sighhh....naps with Nana are so good!

Taking In The Arts...

2010-08-18T21:51:00.000-05:00

I think 8 weeks old is old enough to have your first trip to the local museum, don't you? :) I loaded up my little princess and took her to the Philbrook Museum of Art this week. It's a beautiful museum that used to be the home of Tulsa oilman Waite Phillips, built in 1926. The gardens in the back of the property are gorgeous. So beautiful and peaceful. It's enjoyable to visit. I can remember many times as a child that mom would take Tracie and I to Phillbrook Museum. We always had fun going on outings like that with mom. Sometimes our grandma would come too. I have very fond memories of my childhood in Tulsa.

Grammie came to Philbrook with us. We three had a fun outing. The weather was much nicer that morning than it had been lately, (these hot Oklahoma summers!) we got to the Museum early to take advantage of the nice morning outside. She was such an alert little traveler on this day and stayed awake most of the time, until we hit the last exhibit for the day, the Egyptian artifacts...notice that the Baby Bjorn came out for use. She was a limp little sack of tired potatoes! So cute.

Touching fountain water for the first time.

Grammie teaching her about flowers.

Rylie met her very first cat. I assume the cat was a resident of the property. She was very tame and quite confident in her approach to see what Rylie and I were up to sitting on her rock. We said hi to Ms. Cat and then moved on.

Introducing her to the garden fish. She, of course had no clue what was going on, but it was enjoyable explaining it all to her.

She hasnt quite grabbed for the rattle on her own yet. But I'm hoping that if I keep giving it to her to play with she'll get the idea.

What a face! :)

She was a trooper for a while, but finally gave in to her need to nap. I just love those Baby Bjorns. It feels so good to have her napping so close to me.

Family Pictures

2010-08-06T10:07:00.000-05:00

Rylie is almost 6 weeks old and we hadn't had her official "new born" pictures taken yet. We set up a photo session and decided it would be much more enjoyable if we turned it into a family photo shoot. It was a lot of fun and we got some absolutely fabulous pictures from the session. They turned out so good, just priceless! Nana and Pops came over from Arkansas and Gramma and aunt Tay Tay also joined in the fun. Rylie was such a trooper, even though it became past her feeding time as we were wrapping up the photos. It was actually past all of our feeding times as the photographer was finishing up, so it was a good thing there was a close by restaurant we were able to catch a late lunch at while the studio was printing the photos. It made for such a fun day. Enjoy!

Looking up at daddy!

Our sweet sweet angel!

Our family is so awesome. We love you all so much!!

One Month Old

2010-07-25T22:09:00.008-05:00

Time flies by so fast! This becomes more apparent as we get older, but it has really become much more apparent now that Rylie is here. Her first month of life has flown by and she seems to grow a little bit every day. I've had such an awesome time being home with her and getting to know her patterns and personality. She is such a happy baby. Brian and I are so blessed to have such an easy going girl. I hope we are lucky enough to get to enjoy this for a long time. We've done a lot this past month, I try to take her on outings at least once a day to get her out and about and acclimated to the world around her. My mom (gramma) and I enjoy taking her window shopping and to lunch. It's fun to take her out in her stroller. We've also taken her to Springdale AR several times already to see Nana and Pops. I cant wait until the weather cools off some so we can spend more time with her outside introducing her to the great outdoors. I cant wait to have picnics in the park with her. I can only imagine how my heart will melt when we see her little face light up at the first time she gets to put her little feet in the cool grass below them. Or this winter when it snows, she'll be about 6 months old, just the perfect age to start experiencing the wonders of Christmas. I can't wait for us to be able to teach her all about the meaning of the holidays. And watch her beautiful little eyes blink when she stands in the falling snow for the first time. .... happy sigh....

Brian and I have already been out on 2 dates since Rylie was born. My sister is always more than willing to babysit. It was nice to get out of the house without a baby (plus gear) in tow, but we sure did miss her when we were away from her. We are falling in love with being parents!

In July we also got to spend some quality time with our West Virginia best'ies, Jeremy and Amy. I hate saying that because they aren't true WV'ians. They are just living there now... and will more appropriately be our Texas/Oklahoma best'ies once again in the future.) ;) J and A came to Tulsa to visit for a few days and to meet Rylie. Their son, Noah, is growing up so fast. It was really neat to watch him and imagine what Rylie will be like when she is his age. He just turned a year old in April, and is becoming such an awesome little man.

Here are some of our great memories from this last month... having our baby girl home.

Gramma already reading to her. So sweet!

Taking a nap on mommy.

Ahhhh, sunbathing takes it out of ya!

Cuddling with Nana.

Rylie's first 4th of July.

Bath time.

Pops talkin' baseball to his girl!

Snuggling with Uncle Garry.

Smiling while snuggling with Uncle Garry. Too cute!!

Enjoying the backyard with aunt Tay Tay.

Jeremy and Brian with their very own kids. ;)

Amy and Jeremy getting some bonding time with Rylie.

They even found time to tile our back splash that has needed it for years! THIS was awesome. I love it, love it, every time I walk into my kitchen! Jeremy, we thank you, you rock!

Enjoying dinner at Ted's Mexican.

Noah having fun in the backyard.

Rylie was not diggin' the cold water on her feet.

My favorite time of the evening, every evening. Cuddling with her after we've finished her bath, bottle, bed routine. She's quite the cuddler before bedtime. It's so relaxing to lazily rock in the rocker while snuggling with my baby girl. She's amazing! And she's also a great sleeper. She's sleeping anywhere between 6 and 9 hours straight at night. It's so great right now. I hope her sleep habits stay like this. It's awesome for daddy and I.

Fun with baseball jerseys!

Here we are trying on the Baby Borjn carrier that was loaned to me. Thank you! This has been so great to have. I can get things done around the house during the day and it has also been fun carrying her around in stores. She loves it and usually will fall right to sleep while I've got her in it. I really feel like I'm sporting some mom coolness with this thing on.

Week 38...Rylie's Birth Story

2010-06-22T21:23:00.018-05:00

On the way home from work Monday night (6-21-2010), two weeks before my due date, I stopped by the store to pick up a few things. I was feeling a little bad, which wasn't unusual at this point, but it was more noticeably bad, so I decided to take my blood pressure at the pharmacy. It was 143 over 106. Of course I thought that couldn't be right. So I took it again. Sure enough, similar reading. I called Brian and told him I was going to call my OB's office and talk to the on call doctor, just to be safe. With my scheduled appointment the next day, I didn't want to be a pest, but I wanted to be safe and not worry about it all night long.

The doctor said I should go ahead and go up to the hospital labor and delivery department just to be hooked up to the monitors to have myself and Rylie monitored for a little while so we could make sure everything was okay. Once we got there my blood pressure was still just as high so they took some blood and watched me for a while. Soon the nurse came back in and said she talked to the doctor and they were going to go ahead and admit me so they could induce me the next morning. Wow. What a rush of feelings that came over me all of a sudden, excitement, nerves, joy. We were going to have a baby!

They put me on a slow petocin drip to help soften my cervix that night, and the plan was to up the petocin the next morning to start labor. What sucked about the ordeal is that they also had to give me a magnesium drip. Due to some preeclampsia symptoms, my platelet count was low. The magnesium is the only way to increase my platelet count, which was a must since that is what causes your blood to clot correctly. Two horrible things about magnesium intravenously...it causes flu like symptoms and it also works against the petocin. So in addition to the labor pains, I was also puking and felt really bad.

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010. My mom, sister, and Brian's parents all show up at the hospital about 7:00am. They were just as excited as we were to finally meet Ms. Rylie. At 8:00am my doctor broke my water and upped my petocin. Contractions really started getting more frequent and harder throughout the day and by that evening I was only dilated to a 6. At 5:00pm I decided to get an epidural. That was nice! However, by 8:00pm that evening, I still wasn't dilated past a 6 and Rylie hadn't moved down into the birth canal like the doctor was wanting. And since the magnesium was working against the petocin, she wasn't sure how long it would take for me to have her vaginally. She recommended a c-section.

So, at 9:23pm on June 22, 2010, at 8 lbs 2 oz and 20 inches long, the most beautiful girl in the world was born! Welcome home Rylie Sophia Nutt.

Holding daddy's hand already!

Gramma Moss

Pops and Nana Nutt

Aunt Tay Tay (Tracie)

Our new little family....

Week 37...Dilated to a 2!

2010-06-16T22:49:00.000-05:00

I had my weekly appointment this afternoon and was excited to find out that I have started to dilate. I am already at a 2. I know this is low on the scale, but at least my cervix is getting ready to deliver. I couldn't be happier. What I'm not as happy about is the fact that my doctor is a bit worried about my swelling and blood pressure that keeps creeping higher with every appointment. Additionally, she said there was a slight bit of protein in my urine this time. Uh-oh. Not good signs. She said I'm not to the point where she is "worried", but she doesn't want to get to that point either. I asked her if she thought I was going to go all the way to my due date. She said no. Music to my ears!! She said that even if my body was wanting to go all the way to July 4th, she wasn't going to let me go that long. Yippee!

She wanted to put me on bed rest for the next 4 days. I ended up talking her out of tomorrow and Friday, as I still have much to show my assistant before I go out on maternity leave. So since I pretty much sit behind a desk all day, she said i could go to work if I try to keep my feet up and my butt down. I agreed. She insisted that I definitely stay as horizontal and relaxed as possible on Saturday and Sunday. Then she wants to see me on Tuesday to do an ultrasound and check Rylie's size and see how much fluid she's swimming around in. She said she will most likely make her decision on Tuesday as to when she wants me to have this child. So this means that I could pretty much have her at anytime. Between me starting to dilate (which I know could creep along slowly for a while) and go into labor naturally, and the fact that my doctor wants me to deliver early, I literally could have this child next week. It could be any time. Any time!

My bag is packed. Rylie's bag is packed. We are ready to go when it's time. And I will leave you with that, as the smile on my face right now couldn't get any larger! We'll see you soon, baby girl!

Week 36... Checking Cervix and Shopping Meltdowns

2010-06-09T19:01:00.077-05:00

My doctor is starting to see me weekly now and I love it. Just makes me more aware that we are getting closer to delivery. She checked my cervix, which was a very uncomfortable experience....okay, it was downright painful. I don't know why I was expecting it not to be, for some reason I thought it would equate to the uncomfortableness of a normal annual exam. I was wrong. Too much stuff going on down there I guess, and just add a physicians prodding and walla...owwwwwwwwe!

The message was clear from the doctor, Rylie isn't ready yet. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed. I know I'm 4 weeks from my due date and all, but I'm just so anxious to meet her, I hope she comes early.

She said she'd check me again in another week and we'll see how I look then. I'm up to 203 pounds. I've gained a total of 48 pounds so far. Yes, I passed the 200 mark. I told myself I wasn't going to do that. And if I would have laid off the Taco Bueno and the Ben & Jerry's a few times I probably would have met my goal. But there is NO better excuse in the book for eating whatever you want, whenever you want, than pregnancy. Why not enjoy it all I want, right? I know once I have Rylie, I'll start running again and the weight will come off. (Note to self...make sure you start running again after Rylie is born!)

I had a shopping meltdown this week. It wasn't pretty! I've been purposely avoiding any types of department stores or clothing stores that I enjoy shopping at because I WILL and HAVE self inflicted some pain by actually trying on non-maternity clothes while pregnant. Self inflicted emotional mutilation is pretty pathetic, and I know this, so I've been trying to avoid putting myself in the environment all together. Unfortunately, AND fortunately, I have a twin sister who likes to shop as much as I do. SHE, however, is not packing on an additional 48 lb's, with a massive amount of swelling in her legs and feet. She bought a new pair of shoes. SHE BOUGHT A NEW PAIR OF SHOES!!!! And she showed them to me. Mistake. These aren't your basic boring shoes, they were a hot pair of high heeled wedge sandals with braided straps that cross the foot and wrap the ankle. Do you think they'd still be available after I deliver and lose this swelling?...absolutely not. Hello. So off I go to Macy's. Alone, vulnerable, and 8 months pregnant. Mistake. These spiral cut hams that I'm calling feet right now aren't in any position to try on shoes and I've been hearing story after story from women who say their feet grew and entire half size following the birth of their baby. A permanent half size. WHAT??? You mean ALL my current shoes are now going to be too small? WHAT??? You mean I may have to consider buying these new shoes in a half size larger as opposed to my wonderfully true size 8? WHAT??? And I couldn't try them on. I probably couldn't shove these hams into Micheal Jordans sneakers right now. Poor little piggy's. So what's a girl to do? If I buy them too big and my feet don't change size, I'm stuck with hot shoes that don't fit right. but if I buy them normal size and my feet do grow, I'm stuck with shoes that are too small. I'm telling you, it's true what they say, you DO lose some ability for normal, rational brain function when you are pregnant. I agonized over this half size shoe decision. Seriously, it was painful. So I did the only thing i thought to do. I texted all my girlfriends who have had kids within the last couple of years and took a poll. Thank goodness for modern technology. Right there in Macy's as I was agonizing over my decision, the results came in immediately. Thank you girls!!! My decision was made so much easier. The majority ruled and I ended up buying............................. size 8. :) And I cant wait to wear them!

Week 35...Swelling and Pressure

2010-06-03T10:49:00.022-05:00

Okay....I think I'm caught up on blogging now. (next I just need to get caught up on sending out thank you cards for all our wonderful shower gifts we've received!) I know I just posted the last three weeks worth of posts at one time. But the good thing is I kept up with the writing part each week, it was mostly the pictures that I was waiting to upload before I posted. I just need to keep up weekly on all of it so I wont be so behind. Especially now that it's getting so much closer to my due date, I want to make sure I stay current. I cant believe there is less than 5 weeks left. And less if she comes early, which is my hope. Selfish reasons of course, I really want to meet her as I just love her so darn much already. And, then there's just the plain comfort issue of carrying a baby. I've gained 45 pounds so far! ouch!! With less than 5 weeks to go, I'm sure I'm going to pass the "50 pound weight gain" that I DIDN'T want to happen. Oh well, I'm pretty much all belly and boobs so hopefully I'll be able to lose it quickly.

The swelling, or edema as my doctor calls it, in my legs and feet is becoming funny to me. I can make little shapes in my legs when I press down with different shaped objects, and the shape just stays indented for a little while. Freak Show Stacie is the name of my swelling game. Might as well get a laugh out of it, right? The good thing is that my doctor says its a perfectly normal amount of swelling and I'm absolutely fine. So really I don't have too much to complain about. That is, unless I want to start complaining about the pressure in my lower abdomen. Rylie is running out of room, I'm afraid, and it's starting to hurt. I feel like I have to pee ALL the time. She'll stretch out and I can feel her both in my ribs and my pelvis at the same time. Okay, enough complaining!! It's actually really cool and I just love it when she moves around. She's been moving around so much lately that sometimes I think she's going to just bust out my belly button and say "HI!", or something to that affect.

We've done our pre-registration at the hospital, and we have decided on a pediatrician that came highly recommended by friends. We actually have a pre-natal appointment with the baby doctor tomorrow morning, just to meet with him and tour the office. I'm really looking forward to it. I'm hoping we'll like him as much as others do.

One thing we haven't done, which we need to, is pack the hospital bag. Since the delivery isn't going to be "scheduled", who knows when my water will break and I'll start having contractions. Again, I'm hoping she'll come early, so it could be any week! WOW!!!!!!! IT COULD BE ANY WEEK!! YIPEE!

Week 34...A Great Time With Family In Fort Smith

2010-05-25T07:07:00.036-05:00

I love my in-laws! Not everyone in the world can say that, but I definitely can. I don't even think about them like "in-laws", they are family...our family. And they've totally adopted my sister and my mother into the family, which is great since mom and sis are about the only family I have left in contact existence. We had a family shower this weekend, thrown by cousins Jennifer and Sarah, which was a lot of fun! We had it at Uncle Garry's house in Fort Smith, AR. We played games, cooked out burgers, and played with kiddos. What more can an expectant mother ask for? The weather was great and the family getting together was even better. Although my sister made it, my mom sat this one out, as she has been very busy "showering" with us the last couple of weekends. Her foot is still trying to heal (a year later) and too much activity makes it painful on her. Grandma and Grandpa Cathcart were very much missed too, but we're keeping Grandpa in our prayers that he will make a speedy recovery and have his strength back to get some good play time with with Rylie once she is born. We love you Grandma and Grandpa!

Awesome Diaper Cake...Thank you Brenda!

What a cool cake. I just cant get enough of those pink circles!

Cousin Jennifer....You rock girl! Thank you for an awesome shower!!

Ray, Trey, and Uncle Garry. Thank you Ray for taking pictures. You've got skills!

Mikayla, you are growing up so fast, you are a beautiful little lady!

Pops and Nana....

Cousin Sarah...you rock too sweetie!...Thank you for an awesome shower and yummy cake! (it's all about the sweets right now) Trey, you are gorgeous!

It also happened to be Sarah's birthday this week, so we snuck in a surprise birthday celebration for Sarah too.

After the shower, the boys all went to the baseball game in Springdale, which topped off their day...a baby shower in the morning and a baseball game at night, what every man looks forward to on a Saturday!!

Week 33...Baby Shower's and Sleepless Nights

2010-05-18T07:15:00.003-05:00

We had another wonderful baby shower this weekend in Springdale, Arkansas. The ladies that Brian's mom goes to church with threw it for us. It was awesome!! We recieved so much personalized Rylie stuff, it was so beautiful. Thank you ladies for an amazing day!

The cutest baby swimsuit ever!!!....

Brian sporting a super cool baby bow!...

Brian and I with our amazing mothers!

Brian holding Faith, one of the cute little girls at the shower. LOVE the bow!

Thank you ladies...what a great time we all had!

Sleep is getting harder to come by. I'm not sure if i'm just not using my pregnancy pillow correctly or if I'm just beyond it's help, whatever the case, it's not helping me find the "right position" to sleep. I move from our wonderfully comfy king size bed, to our queen size guest bed, to our couch, then I just walk around the house staring at things. I've not tried the recliner yet, but that is next on my list. Will keep you posted on this challenge. It's hard to believe that I can be so exhausted, yet not be able to fall asleep. Between the shortness of breath and just the overall uncomfortableness of it all, I dont know how preggo's maintain their sanity. This is all preparing me for being up all night with the baby, I'm sure!

Week 32...My First Baby Shower

2010-05-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

My sister Tracie, along with two of my friends, Kristy and Beth, threw me my first baby shower on Saturday. It was wonderful!

Kristy, me, Tracie, and Beth...

Tracie pretending to be the Asian nail lady, painting my nails before the shower.... I cant reach my feet and the toes needed touching up...

We had the shower at my sisters house next door, so it was easy to go back and forth and show everyone Rylie's nursery. It was a beautiful day filled with gifts of love and everything baby! Even Brian and a few of the husbands made it back from their afternoon at the "sports bar" before it was all over. Baby Daddy appearances are always good at baby showers! I just love the dress I found for the shower, it's got light and dark pink and brown dots all over it. I cant believe I found a dress to match Rylie's dot's and nursery theme. Too cool!

The cake was awesome! My favorite, lemon and white cake, decorated with Rylie's circles! Too cool!!

Brians mom and my mom... The proud grandma's to be...

Thank you all ladies, it was an amazing day!

Week 31...More Spring Projects

2010-05-05T20:00:00.042-05:00

I love the outdoors, and I'm hoping to pass that along to Rylie as my mother passed that along to me. When I was young it used to confuse me how my mother could look at a tree changing colors in the fall and get SO moved and excited about it. She would gasp at the beauty of a multi colored tree. At the time I would think "come one mom, it's just a tree". As I've grown older, however, my love of the outdoors and all of God's creatures has grown by leaps and bounds. I, too, get so excited when the tree's change in the fall and will point out all the prettier ones to anyone who's riding in the car with me. It's a beautiful thing, the changing seasons.

So to get ready for this years time in the great outdoors of our backyard, we had a few projects to complete. Since we had to have some plumbing redone earlier this year, we still had the dirt filled trench going down our yard to the fence line. With the help of my sister and her boyfriend, we covered that with sod. AND, the men were able to pull out the old 1950's clothes line that has been in the yard ever since the house was built. Ah, the nostalgia of it.....and good riddance to it!

The before look of dirt and mud following trenching.

And the after. Gotta love sod!

Digging up the old laundry line poles...

And me, trimming the bushes. The only thing I was allowed to do that day besides take pictures.

Here I am that night cooking dinner. Brian thinks its cute that I sit in a chair at the stove. If he only knew how bad my feet hurt after standing in one place for only minutes at at time! That high bistro table chair comes in very handy!

Week 30...I Love Spring!

2010-05-01T07:28:00.001-05:00

Spring has sprung and I love it! Here is my week 30 picture. I'm getting bigger everyday it seems, and I love it because that means Rylie is cooking up great. Only 10 weeks (or a little less if I'm lucky) at this point. It's going by fast.

What is one of my favorite things of spring? Besides being able to plant in my flower beds, watch my grass turn from a depressing brown to a beautiful green, and spending more time outdoors, it's the perks you get from Blue Bell Ice Cream! They only produce Southern Blackberry Cobbler ice cream in the spring and summer. Shame on them for taking it away during the fall and winter! Lucky for THEM, the timing was right this year to meet my ice cream needs during this last trimester of pregnancy. Yummy!

Week 29...Swelling, Sleeping, Snoring and PreNatal Yoga

2010-04-21T13:00:00.003-05:00

I dont have ankle bones any longer. At least not that you can see. I'm not complaining, as I'd give up visibility of all my bones if that's what I had to do to bring Rylie into this world. But it does kind of suck, nonetheless. Swelling causes tightness, which I have never experienced quite like this before. It's hard for me to make a fist due to the swelling in my hands. This doesn't limit my ability to do my normal daily activities by any means, it's just more of a noticeable pain in the butt! I never realized how much I liked my feet before they got all puffy. I should have complimented them more, and showed them off in pretty sandals more often. Now I just want to cover them up and not look at them for 2 more months. It's a good thing my belly is sticking out enough that I cannot see my little fat feet when I'm standing. Poor little piggys!

Sleeping is becoming a nightly challenge. Not only because it's getting difficult to find a comfortable position, but I guess "gestational snoring" has kicked in. I'm not sure if that's really a true medical term, but it sounds much better than just "snoring". Adding the gestational to it just makes it sound temporary and tolerable. This statement is more for Brian's benefit than mine, as he is the one affected by it. I dont know i'm doing it since i'm asleep at the time. But he says it's pretty bad. He even recorded me on his phone the other night to make sure he has the evidence to back up his claims. :) We did buy me a super big and comfy back and belly pillow which is helping. I love it so much I'm not sure I will be able to give it up after Rylie is born. We'll have to see. It takes up half the bed, so my guess is that Brian will find a way to get rid of it sooner or later. :) Look at this darn thing though. Who wouldnt fall in love with such an awesome pillow! So cuddly!

I started my weekly prenatal yoga class a couple Tuesdays ago. I go every Tuesday night from 6-7pm. What I thought was going to be a relaxing evening of mild stretching is actually a hard core sweat shop led by a yoga-nazi. It was NOT easy. The "downward dog" is for the birds! The instructors name is Courtney and she is my age, 38. She just had her 3rd child 5 weeks ago and she looks AMAZING! Okay, she's not a yoga-nazi, she's actually a really nice gal. So I'm pretty motivated to keep going weekly, if only for the reminder that, yes, even at 38 there is hope to get my prebaby body back quickly if I try hard enough!

Some poses that you would think wouldnt necessarily be that good for prego's...but apparently are! Modified a tad to make room for the extended prego belly, but pretty much unchanged. The hardest part is holding the darn poses for as long as we are supposed to...with the unbalance of being pregnant and all.

Downward Dog

Childs Pose

Bridge Pose

Tree Pose

Dancer Pose

some sort of Angle Pose

and some sort of Sitting Pose

Sun Salutations (this set of continuous moves is HARD!!!)

Now that i've mentioned some of the worst parts of my pregnancy thus far, I want to end on the BEST part of my pregnancy thus far....I'm starting to feel Rylie move around a lot more frequently. Every time I feel her move, or when I think about how Brian and I have created this beautiful little girl that we are going to get the joy of meeting in a little over 2 months, it makes all the un-desireable symptoms of pregnancy just go away. They dont matter at all. I'd endure 10 times the discomfort for this little miracle. I absolutely love being pregnant and I love the thoughts I have of our future raising this beautiful baby. Brian and I are so anxious to meet her! We love you, Rylie!

Week 27...Happy Easter!

2010-04-06T22:58:00.001-05:00

What a beautiful Easter weekend we had. Brian and I did a lot of yard work on Saturday and we even got to clean out the shed in the backyard, it was great. We love outdoor spring projects. I don't think Rylie knew what to do, as mommy was up and down pulling weeds, planting in the dirt, helping daddy move stuff around in and out of the shed. She probably just sat back and enjoyed the ride. I did too, until my feet and lower back hurt so bad I could barely walk. Good thing my adrenaline for outdoor projects keeps me going until the end. It's only when I really know the project is over that my body lets me give into pain and suffering. But once I did, it was on!

Sunday we went to church and then out to lunch with my sister and my mom. I was able to squeeze into a nice spring pair of capri pants of mine (non maternity) with the help of a belly band. Thank goodness for those, since all my maternity clothes are darker wintery colors and patters. I don't think my dark corduroy winter maternity pants will translate well into an Easter outfit. And I refuse to buy more maternity outfits. So belly bands it is. Thank goodness my butt isnt getting bigger!! :) I'll take a pregnancy swollen face over a swollen butt any day!

HAPPY EASTER to ALL!

Hi Rylie....It's Daddy

2010-04-04T19:53:00.001-05:00

91 days and counting.....91 days until I get to see you, hold you, hug you, kiss you....91 days until mommy and daddy get to meet you......91 days until you come into our lives and change us forever......You are such a special part of my life and you are not even here yet. There is not a day that goes by that I do not think about you. I wonder what you are doing in mommy's uterus. What you are seeing...what you are hearing...when you are sleeping...when you are awake...even though mommy usually lets me know when you are active and when you are asleep.....speaking of you being active...I have been feeling your little baby punches...you pack a mean little punch....we might have a boxer on our hands :)

There are so many people that love you.....your mommy and daddy...aunt tracie....your grandma dorothy (she has not picked an official name yet)....nana and pops.....I could go on and on....you are such a blessing in all our lives.....we can not wait to meet you...and I will tell you before you even come into this world, you are going to be somewhat spoiled! Especially by your grandparents! There is not much they won't do for you....

As your mom and I wait these next three months with great anticipation, I want you to know that I already love you with all of my heart and that love grows each day...The day that I get to hold you in my arms for the first time can not get here soon enough....but until that day, know that your daddy loves you very much and I can not wait to see you!!

I LOVE YOU RYLIE,
DADDY

4D Ultrasound

2010-03-31T07:27:00.000-05:00

Like I was saying, we had our 4D ultrasound on Monday. We've been looking forward to this for the past month. Brian's mom and Brenda came over from Arkansas to be with us and so did my mom. My sister had a test, so she couldn't make it. I don't know why I was nervous all day about it, but I was. I guess just the anticipation of something unknown, the small thoughts that enter my mind about maybe something we'll see that might be wrong with her. But as soon as she put that wand thingy to my belly and we saw her heart beat and her little body move, all my nerves went away. She's just beautiful! Here are a few of the better shots we received. She had one arm and hand up over her head the entire time, so there wasn't enough of her face to build a clear full facial 4D, but this one below is of half her face and she is just gorgeous. She looks like a little porcelain doll, I just love it!

Her cute little legs, crossed at the ankles. too cute!

The back of her hand.

This one is kind of creepy looking, she looks more like a ghost baby than anything, but she started sticking her tongue out during the ultrasound and this one shows her mouth open and her tongue out. Again, with that precious little arm in the way!

Week 26...Baby Books and Baby Kicks

2010-03-30T11:00:00.002-05:00

I've started on Rylies first keepsake baby book. Appropriately named Welcome Home Rylie. I've picked out the paper pack that I want to use as the theme for her book. I've downloaded so many free digital scrapbooking pages and embellishments over the last few years, but none of them jumped out at me in a good combination, so I bought a brand new digital paper pack and kit. I just love the combination of papers, flowers and buttons. And I cant wait to get started on her book.

For those of you who were able to see the book I made for Noah, I'm using the same type of story flow, using a bunch of picture to tell the story about Rylies mommy and daddy, how we grew up, how we met, and our life together that brought us to this point. I'm hoping to get the majority of this book done soon, so all that is left to do when she is born is to add the hospital and baby pictures. I'm finding it harder and harder to stay comfortable sitting too long in one place, and unfortunately, these books take hours and hours of sitting at the computer...so i'd better hurry on this project.

This past weekend was spent taking lots of naps. My energy level is starting to peter out quicker now that my uterus is taking up even more space in my abdomen. Brian and I went shopping at Target on Saturday and we were in a hurry going from one end of the store to the other. To his surprise, I was out of breath huffing and puffing like an elderly lady. We laughed about it, it was awful and awful-funny at the same time! He thinks it's cute that I softly grunt everytime I get in and out of the car.

Brian recieved a huge treat on Saturday, when he got to feel Rylie for the first time. Up until now, she hasn't been kicking hard enough for anyone to feel on the outside. However, she must have enjoyed that cereal I ate for breakfast, because she was karate choppin' all over the place on Saturday. Brian was giddy with joy when he laid his hand on my belly and actually felt a good solid kick...several times. Ahhhhh, the simple things in life that make us smile the biggest! You just cant beat those moments.

We went for our 4D ultrasound appointment yesterday. Both grandma's came with us, (well, really you could say all 3 grandma's came with us....yes, you Brenda!) so it was extra exciting! The disk they gave us of all the pictures screwed up and there ended up being only one photo on it, so as soon as I swing by and pick up another copy I'll create another blog post about that.

Week 25...Fun With Belly Photos

2010-03-24T22:12:00.004-05:00

This is my week 25 belly shot. I'm just lovin' the belly! I'm not lovin' the swollen face, feet and hands, but the belly, I'm truly digging.

And Brian's 25 week belly shot. It's funny, I've gained 25 lb's so far, and he has actually LOST 16 lb's since I got pregnant. How fair is that!?

Eventually I want to get some professional photo's taken of Brian and I pregnant, but I want to be further along and bigger before I pay someone else to take them. For these fun photo's I went to a fabric store and bought a few yards of white vinyl that I hung from the wall to use as a backdrop, then had my sister play around with the camera. We had a great time and I think they came out pretty good once I cropped them down. I could have played more with the black and white color options within Photoshop to soften the tones and edges a bit more, but these look fine for now.

When we were finished playing around on the vinyl, Brian proceeded to help me up off the floor. Never underestimate the slipperiness of vinyl on hardwood floors. If you do "Mrs. Fatty McButter Pants", as Brian is so affectionately calling me right now, can end up falling back onto the floor. And, of course, my sister kept the camera flashing the entire time. Which, I'm actually glad she did because i almost wet my pants laughing at these pictures when I saw them. Too funny!

And, of course, Scripps had to be in the middle of it. She's such a sweetie!

Week 24...Tums at 2 AM...Really?

2010-03-18T07:18:00.001-05:00

Yes really! The heartburn chapter of my pregnancy has begun, hence the munching on Tums at 2 oclock in the morning last night. That mexican food dinner that I begged Brian to take me for was SO good going down. (fajita this, heartburn!) But when I was waddling back to the car, I kind of knew it was probably a mistake. Darn these cravings. Brian was so awesome to drive 15 miles to take me to a specific mexican food restaurant that I hadn't been to in 4 years, just because i was craving it. Many other close mexican resturants would have been sufficient, now that I think about it, but last night it was Ted's and only Ted's that could satisfy my craving. Was the heartburn worth it? Ya, this time it definitely was!

Soooooo, a good night's sleep is becoming harder and harder to come by. I'm not supposed to sleep on my back anymore, so I end up flipping from side to side like a fish out of water, lying on a shore line trying desperately to survive. LOL, okay that was a little dramatic, but you get the "flipping" visual at least. I end up waking up many times throughout the night in an attempt to catch myself sleeping on my back, and if I don't catch myself, Brian does anytime he awakens and looks over at me. Oh, and my hands fall asleep and get numb at night now. Who knew that was a condition of pregnancy? I almost always sleep with my arms and hands curled up around my chest or head or wrapped around my pillow. Not anymore, they turn dead numb when I do that so I have to sometimes sit up, let the blood drain back into my pathetic little fingers and then lay back down with them down by my side. This happens when I blow dry my hair in the mornings too. Very strange!

Pregnancy is wonderful, I wouldn't trade any of this for anything. I'm starting to feel Rylie kick more and more and I just LOVE it. I cant believe how much I love this little girl already and I haven't even met her yet. Just a little over 3 months to go and she'll be here. We love you Rylie!

Week 23...Major Progress On Nursery

2010-03-11T13:30:00.001-06:00

One of the many things I love about Brian is that when we set our minds to do something, regardless if we've never done it before, we end up doing it. And boy did we "get it done!" this past weekend. Rylie's furniture was delivered last week so we decided that this past weekend we would get Rylie's room put together. We had several other things on our weekend agenda, and if you saw our list you would probably think that adding to it a project of getting an entire room's worth of baby furniture put together and a room cleaned up and organized probably wouldn't be able to happen. That is, unless, you do things "Nutt-Style". Again, it doesn't matter what project it is, when Brian and I decide we want to get something accomplished, we work together and encourage each other to the point where all of a sudden we look at each other and say WOW, we got it done! There are no slackers in this family, I can assure you!

Brian took the reigns on the baby furniture, which is probably best since he is a read-the-instructions-first type of guy. I, on the other hand, usually go by the rule of, "if all else fails, read the instructions". We seem to compliment each other well by differing in this area. The key is to know your limitations and appreciate each other's strengths and weaknesses, which we both do. Oh, and another key to great project accomplishments Nutt-Style is always remembering "it's not a competition".

While Brian started putting together Rylie's furniture, I finished up trimming and cleaning up her pink circle mural and putting a fresh coat of glossy white paint on the baseboards in her room. The baseboards were a bit challenging as my growing belly prevented me from leaning down in the right way to angle my brush correctly. Therefore I had to completely lay on the floor, on my side, arms above my head, to get the angle of the paint brush the right way for me to cut in the baseboard paint. I had to take many short breaks as my arms got tired very quickly. They are done and they look great!

Brian got on a roll with his furniture project. He was finished with the dresser before I knew it and half way finished with the changing table as I finished up with the painting. We finished the changing table together and took a break for dinner. We intended to start and finish the crib the next day after church, but who can sleep when there's a cute little baby crib to be put together? We couldn't leave the crib out in the garage while the two other pieces of the set were sitting pretty in her room already! So we decided to bring the crib in and put it together as well.

The Master Furniture Assembler at work...

We ordered a very beautiful piece of art for the wall above Rylies crib and the glider/rocker chair that will go in her room too. The piece of art is from Pottery Barn Kids and it's 4 feet by 3 feet. I think it will look perfect over her crib because it will compliment the pink, brown, and cream tones of her circle colors, but also add some soft blues to the room. It will hang on the all beige colored wall above the cream colored crib, so I think it will look fantastic!

I've been looking for a glider/rocking chair for a while, and although I found several that were exactly the style I was looking for, they definitely were NOT in the price range I was looking for. I wanted something modern style with a matching ottoman. I also wanted a chair that had a covered base. The popular glider/rockers right now seem to be the ones where the wooden glider base is exposed. I dont know why, but those, although comfortable, dont appeal to me. So I had this wonderful vision of what I wanted to be sitting in when I rock our little miracle baby to sleep and when I wake up in the middle of the night to comfort her crying, and when I'm just sitting in her room staring at her in her crib. Once I pictured what I wanted in my head, there was no such thing as settling. I decided I wanted dark brown, again to compliment the dark brown trim that I trimmed her pink circles in and to add some darker contrast to the rest of the room. Well, I searched and searched and searched every online furniture store, specialty store, and baby nursery store I could find. I found many chairs that I loved, but nothing we could afford. Let's put that a bit differently....not so much that we couldn't afford, more so that I wouldn't spend THAT much money on a chair that was going to get spit up and pooped on eventually. (I might be a picky mom-to-be, but I am realistic.)

In my desperation to find the right chair, I checked a particular stores website on a whim just for the heck of it, thinking that I could pass the time while I come up with another option. And wouldn't you know it, THIS store HAD THE CHAIR and ottoman I was envisioning. And at a price we were very, very pleased with. Dare I tell you where I found my dream glider and ottoman ......................... Wal-Mart! Of all places, Wal-Mart. Yes, retail God's you can strike me down as I speak, I found and ordered my nursery glider at Wal-Mart. I'm sure this is what I get for making the "anti-Christ of American retail" comment in a previous post, since now I have to brag that I found my dream glider there. Regardless, below is a picture of the set. It's absolutely exactly what I was wanting. I recieved an email this morning that it shipped today, so we'll see once it get's here if I'm still as excited about it. But one thing I have to say for now is, Wal-Mart, You Rock! Or rather, You Glide!

Week 22...More DIY and Some Baby Flutters!

2010-03-01T18:00:00.001-06:00

Call it nesting, call it saving money, but Brian and I are really getting into the DIY (Do It Yourself) projects. We replaced the quarter round moulding along our baseboards in our hallway this weekend, and we even mitered the edges and made it look really professional. Wood puddy works wonders where the corners didnt exactly line up, and after Brian painted them, they absolutely look great! Rylie decided that she didnt like the up and down, up and down, up and down, I was doing all day by being on the floor measuring, going to the garage to cut a piece, and then getting back down on the floor to hammer the moulding in. But I seemed to have a gentler touch with the hammer which made the nails go in straighter. Once that was complete, however, daddy Brian did all the painting. It looks great and we did it all ourselves.

The finished moulding, before paint. Look how beautifully that corner lines up!!!

I'm completely finished with the colored circles in Rylies room, except for the dark brown trim. I'm embarrassed to say that free handing a brown rim around each circle is going to be much harder than I thought. I tried on a small circle and the brush I chose was too wide once it had paint in it, that it turned out completely aweful! Once the dark brown dried, I covered it up with white primer, recoated the colors and now it's as if it never happened. I'm going to get a smaller paint brush and try to be more delicate with the brown trim. We'll see how that works out for me. When that is done, I'm going to put a fresh coat of glossy white on the baseboards and crown molding. Then the painting in Rylies room should be complete.

We ordered her baby furniture this past weekend and it's so cute. It's funny, i wasnt too peticular about what i wanted her furniture to look like at first. We just felt so happy and blessed that we are even able to have this child, the furniture really didnt seem to matter. That is, of course, until I found a perfect little pink rug with cream colored flowers at Pottery Barn Kids. Once I bought that darling little rug and imagined our baby girl in her room, all of a sudden it DID matter what everything looked like. I got this whole new idea of how I wanted to decorate and have everything match. So I searched and searched for the perfect crib and changing table set. I wanted it to be a cream color...not white, not light brown, but cream. A very difficult color to find in our price range. But alas, Stacie does not give up! We found a great baby furniture website that had exactly what I was looking for, within our budget! So we bought that. (more pictures to come when it arrives and Brian will have to put it together!) But here is the picture of what it will look like, minus the bedding. This is just the website pic.

Her room is coming together so wonderfully. We will also have a cradle that we are borrowing from a friend of Brian's mom. Brenda used the cradle with both of her sons and I'm glad we can keep it alive in the extended family. We are also getting the wooden high chair that Brian used when he was a baby. Mom an Pops have had it in their attic, so we will get to pass that down to Rylie. So awesome! I just cant wait unitl she is here and we get to meet our baby girl. Only 4 more months to go!

I think I felt Rylie a couple of times this past week. It didnt feel like a definite kick or anything, more like some lightly popping popcorn in my uterus. It was a strange little flutter feeling, but it makes me smile everytime I feel it. I wish I felt it more often. She doesnt seem to be very active right now. From what I read, she should be around 11 inches long now and almost weigh one whole pound. Unbelievable! Truly an miracle! We love you, Rylie.

Week 20...Nesting...And Pink Circles!

2010-02-18T19:34:00.030-06:00

We've started on the nursery. We've decided on paint colors. And I'm not going with the traditional pink walls. I'm keeping the lamswool beige and I'm going to paint a mural of circles in different shades of pink and cream on one wall only. I think this decor will last for much longer than having all 4 walls painted pink. It'll be hip, modern, and more tolerable. I know me, and I know I'll get tired of an entirely pink room in no time. I cant wait to get the circles done. It's hard to describe without seeing a picture, so you'll have to stay tuned for the fine artwork that's coming! We've also been doing little projects like replacing interior doors. I think the doors in the house are all original, which means they are old and plain. We like the look of modern day doors, so we decided this was a necessity. Unfortunatley, the door frames in a house that was built in 1954 leave a little accuracy to be desired. We decided that we could save some coin and replace them outselves...and we did...but not without some very hard work involved. The existing door frames that the new standard sized doors were going into, weren't exactly standard sized themselves. Several of the doors requied some shaving and sanding in order to get them to fit right. Yes, there are many inperfections in our work, but at first glance, they look pretty darn good. And Brian can add some new skills to his do-it-yourself repertoire. I will say, though, we couldnt have done it without the help of my sister, Tracie. She really helped us with the door hanging. She's been amazingly helpful in every aspect of adjusting to pregnancy and getting ready for baby. She is so excited to become an aunt for the first time and this pregnancy has really brought us closer. She even brings me "cho-co-do-ho's" on Saturday mornings. That's twin talk for chocolate-covered-donut-holes! Although she recently informed me that she was starting to feel like those donuts were the equivalent of crack to me and she didn't want to contribute to my addiction any longer. I think she is just saying that to get on Brian's good side because she loves them just as much as I do! Brian is really starting to like the fact that he not only got a wife when he married me, he got a somewhat needy, yet awesome, sister too. And, as long as he's picking on sis, he's not picking on prego. (Love you babe!) Which works out beautifully for me and my overly sensitive hormones! I love you sis! Keep those cho-co-do-ho's comin'!!

Brian, getting the doors to fit right and painting them.

And me, drawing and painting the circles. Brian thought it was going to be a big mess of crazy pencil marks. But now that the paint color is going up, I think he see's my "pink circles" vision. The white is the base coat for the pastel pink shade. There will also be dark pink, cream, and brown colored circles.

For the first time in my life, I can actually say that I LOVE my big growing belly!

Scripps helping mommy...

A Blogger Award...For ME!!

2010-02-15T21:44:00.000-06:00

I was so graciously passed along this wonderful blogger award recently from my friend Amy! I'm very excited to say that I've got my blogger brain back again and am happy to ablige with the expectations of the award. :-)

I'm supposed to write 7 random things about myself. I'll try and make them things that you wouldn't necessarily know about me...just to make it a bit more interesting...

1. I love to cook and wish I had more time to cook new and exciting things. I enjoy watching Iron Chef and watching how quickly they come up with their off-the-cuff dishes. I am actually the "grill master" at our house. In the spring and summer I love to grill everything. I'd grill breakfast out in the backyard on that thing if I could. When I bought my husband a new grill two years ago it was too funny since, you know, I really bought it for me. (But it's still yours, honey!)

2. I dont make girl friends easily. It's not that I dont want to, it's that sometimes I dont think I know how to. I just find it very difficult to cultivate friendships with other women. Now, I dont have a problem socializing or cultivating acquaintences, it's not a social anxiety issue or anything. It's more of a boundaries issue I think, in that, I dont have boundaries with my best friend on the planet, my twin sister, Tracie, and that's the only "girlfriend-ship" I know how to have. Somewhere in my head I dont think that lack of boundaries would tranfer well to other women, so I overcompensate that fear by being extra cautious with my boundaries with other women. I totally blame this on the fact that Tracie and I shared a classroom (or rather, a life) from birth to kindergarten to highschool. During those important "social skills" forming years I didnt have to make other girlfriends, so I (we) didnt. I always had my sister by my side and we always played together. I can comfortably be myself with my twin sister, whether it's the somber, mild mannered Stacie, who might call Tracie for a conversation that goes something like this... "hi Tra", "hi Sta", "whats up?" "nothing, what's up with you?" "nothing." --long, comforting pause-- "okay, call me later", "ok bye", "bye". OR the total wack-a-doo Stacie that ONLY Tracie would understand and appreciate. I wont even try to give you an example of one of THOSE conversations, however I will say that much laughter, misuse of big words, and attempts at european accents usually occur! :-)

3. My dream job, since my teen years, has been Photojournalist for National Geographic. Not video, but stills. Although I absolutely love my career of choice, I did go with the safer, more stable option. If I ever come back in another life, I'll be snapping awesome photos on African Safari.

4. I want to learn to play piano someday. This is another one I've wanted to do since childhood. I just love watching the greats dance their fingers across the ivory! I love music and song, in general, but I've always looked at the piano differently, more personally. It's such a beautiful creature. I'd love to learn how to make one sing.

5. If I won mega-millions in the lottery, I'd start a foundation and give most of it away. I dont want for much. I have a wonderful life that includes a career I love, a husband I adore, and a baby on the way that will make my life even that much more complete. I was raised modestly, to aim for the stars, but to also appreciate the simple things in life. I've never been one to believe that the more you have the better off you are. Matter of fact, I think quite the opposite. The more you have, the more headaches that come along with it. Less is more when it comes to material things. I love to travel, to learn and to gain "experiences". And with my husband, family, and friends by my side to share those experiences with, that is all I need to be happy. Yes, of course I would spend some pretty penny's on myself and my family, but I would much more enjoy making the life of the less fortunate more complete. So, come on lotto, pick my numbers, The Nutt Foundation needs some coin!

6. Sometimes when I look at photos of myself, I don't see me, I see my sister. This has happened many times in stores while shopping with her. I'll look up and out of the corner of my eye or something I'll see Tracie standing there. Staring at me. Then I realize it's just my own reflection. I've even talked to her, or rather me, before. Kind of embarrassing if other people are around.

7. I knew my life would be complete when I met Brian. It's difficult, yet so many words come to mind, to try and explain how you can know that when someone comes into you life, they're always going to be there. Although we had some growing pains, we started growing together immediately after we started dating. And our determination to grow together, no matter what life brings us, continues to this day and forever. I've never been more sure...mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually...about two peoples existence belonging together than I am of me and Brian. I can go on and on with a long list of things that each of us has brought and continue to bring to the other life. But instead, I will just say this, God gave us each a blessing the day our paths crossed, and He continues to bless us each day with the gift of our life together and our combined families. He continues to show us his love and desire for us to be together by now blessing us with our growing baby. Brian, you are my Moon, you balance my inner tides and have created life in my soul. I love you, baby!

So there you have it. 7 random things. I hope you enjoy. Since I don't have too many friends who blog (that I know of yet) and I cant pass this back to the person who sent it to me (Amy), I'll pass this award onto anyone who happens to come across my blog and read this post. Take this opportunity to look inside yourself and share some things that you wouldn't normally share with people on any given day.

Week 19...Rylie, Are You In There?

2010-02-10T07:32:00.021-06:00

It's mommy calling! Are you there?
I keep reading that I should be able to feel Rylie anytime now. They say between 18 and 20 weeks is usually when the flutters should start. So far, i've not felt a thing. Gas bubble feelings result in gas. Hunger feelings result in hunger. My impatience is getting the best of me, I know that feeling my baby move is the next big milestone in pregnancy, so I'm so anxious to finally feel her. I've even been poking my belly lightly in hopes that she'll poke back. Nothin'. :( Come on Rylie, give mommy a good kick or two.

It's funny, I told myself I wasn't going to be one of those women who keep their hands on their belly all the time, rubbing it, touching it, resting my hands on it. Well, be careful what you say ladies, I've SO become one of those women. It's not an "it" anymore, it's Rylie's home. All I want to do is touch my belly, knowing that just a couple inches below my skin is a precious gift from God that Brian and I have prayed for for so long. How could I not want to touch it all the time. Brian likes to talk into my belly button to her. It's really cute.

So come on, Rylie, give mommy a good punch so we know you are liking it in there!

Week 18... It's a GIRL!

2010-02-04T19:31:00.006-06:00

Our 18 week ultrasound pictures. There is definitely no denying the three lines, it's a girl alright! Her name is Rylie Sophia Nutt. We cant wait to meet her! We love you so much already, Rylie!

Week 17...A little Snow Tubing Never Hurt Anyone!

2010-01-31T22:00:00.000-06:00

We had a great mini vacay recently that took us to see our great friends Jeremy, Amy and Noah. What started out as a day or so of beautiful West Virginia countryside ended up being an additional day or so of snow. The good thing was that we didnt get the snow storm until our last night there, the bad thing was that our flight got cancelled and postponed for a day. And here's a bit of information to keep in the back of your head for later travels...when it snows in Roanoke, West Virginia, the mall closes, the Target closes, and all the restaurants close, except for the Smokey Bones BBQ restaurant. Incase you are wondering, the anti-Christ of american retail, Wal-Mart, was open.

Chilling with the Barclay's is always enjoyable. They havent lived in West Viginia for too long, but when they were in Dallas, we could literally pop down there for a visit anytime we wanted. A trip to WV takes more planning. Some heated discussions about the possibility of snow-tubing while there came up a few times between B and I. And although I was ready to concede to his request of no tubing, once we got there and he beer-relaxed a bit with Jeremy, he realized that I wouldnt be risking too much safety by tubing. I will say, pregnancy sure does take your stamina down several notches. Throughout my life I've always been proud of the fact that I could somewhat "keep up with the boys", but not this trip. For every two times they made it up the ramp to tube, i may have crept up there once. And forget about staying up past 8:00pm. I think Noah and I had the same nap schedule and bed time pretty much each day we were there! :-)

Speaking of Noah.....what an absolute doll baby!!! He's now 9 months old and is literally smiling all the time. Everything makes him laugh and smile. I'd like to think he was just super excited to spend time with Aunt Awesome and Uncle Cool, so we'll just go with that. The great thing was, he took to us so easily. I think he remembered that he already met us before, even if it was on his day of birth. Time passing does not forget when it comes to the Bar-Nutts!!

One of the best evenings of the trip was when Amy had a friend of hers come to the house with her portable ultrasound machine. Brian and I were anticipating the sex of the baby, and we each had our money on the opposite sex. I would have bet the house I was carrying a boy. I dont know why, but I would have. Brian, on the other hand, was positive I was carrying a girl. I think more hopeful than anyting because he want a "daddy's little girl". Well, thanks to an awesome gal name Paula who has an amazingly cool laptop ultrasound machine, we found out...................... It's a girl!

I dont know why I look like i've gained 50 pounds in these pitures, but I do. Sadly, i've only actually gained 16 pounds so far. No time, or desire, to photoshop the puffiness away....it just is what it is!