Camping with the Pregnant Momma!

I am going to start off by saying these are not the greatest shots of me, but I am doing this so you all can see how big (I think anyway) the belly looks since the last pictures (the ones of me in the geometric dress, taken just Thursday, where as these were taken on Saturday!) So please bear with me and realize that I had just been camping in the wilderness all weekend :)

We decided we needed a little break from everyday life this weekend and went up to the mountains for some relaxing and camping. It was really fun, just the two of us and the dogs. We ate lots of smores, went on a hike with the dogs, relaxed and looked at some baby names. We have both been feeling restless lately as it rained all last weekend and work has been really busy the last few weeks, so it was nice to get away. Camping is so easy here, we only had to drive an hour and this is what we found! We did decide though after this trip, we are going to need a mid-size tent to house me and the belly with Bj and the two dogs comfortably! We looked so funny in our little two person tent, the air mattress the size of the tent and the two dogs...we were nice and cozy and warm though!

We even had a little rainstorm with some thunder, which we always enjoy! It was just the perfect amount of rain, it only required running under the tent, and the fire managed to weather it very nicely!
Overall it was a very nice weekend and we were glad we were able to get away for an impromptu, cheap weekend!

Ruminations by Ellen and Bj

I think my "new" thing that I love between Bj and I is the random thoughts we have regarding the baby. I have noticed each of us on different occasions mention something we are excited or nervous about and it is so fun to laugh about them or agree on them.

We were talking about the dogs the other day and how we aren't worried and think they will be wonderful and very protective of their new baby. Bj asked if we would lose the dogs sleeping in our room after the baby gets a little older (ie: 5 or 6) and can ask for the pooches to sleep with him or her. We don't see that as a bad thing at all, but laughed and said we didn't think it would take that long before they stake their claim in the room or outside the door. We said Sedona would sit directly in front of the crib and Scout (as he always has to be touching you in some way) would try and sleep snuggled with the baby in the crib (don't worry mom's, we would NEVER let him do that :). We snapped this picture and thought it was cute...the two of them guarding the stairs.

Bj was also really cute the other day and said he still can't quite believe that someone who looks like us is going to arrive in the world in five months...I think I am with him, I still can't quite believe it either! I told Bj the other day that I hope the baby gets his eyes, but my perfect vision. I am also pushing for the baby (boy or girl) to inherit the Johnson long lean legs and not my short stumpy ones! :) We were joking about what we are going to do when the kid asks questions about homework that we can't answer! We said we would refer them to the teachers...Aunt Steph and Aunt Kris. I think my mom will agree with me, I will not be in charge of the teaching the child how to tell time...as I still struggle with a "regular" clock.

We are mostly just excited to meet the little one and see who he or she turns out to be. It will be fun to see if they have mom's hair color and love of reading or dad's eyes and love of sports. We are excited to teach them things and take them to Cards games and camping in the summer. We are also (fast forward 8 years) looking forward to dropping them off at Camp Taum Sauk for the summer and enjoying a nice little vacation just the two of us...even though I am sure we will miss the little stinker! It has been really nice thinking about all the things to come and all the memories we will be making in the future. I am sure I will be adding to this list...as I am already leaving out the "will we be good parents" and the how am I going to make it through dropping them off at school for the first time! But, we have plenty of months and years ahead to battle the rest of these decisions. For now, we have names to decide, a nursery to plan and getting the little here safely in January 2009!

Baby Goldfish?

At the beginning of my 16th week (August 11th), I was sitting quietly at work (as I do everyday) when I felt a little goldfish swim across my belly! I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but as the day (and now days and week) have gone on I do believe I am feeling my little one swim around in my big belly! My thoughts were confirmed at the four month check-up when the little one was found in the same spot I was feeling movement. It is amazing! I love it and I can't wait until it is more pronounced and Bj can feel it too! :) Now I feel swimming and little flutters and I can tell the baby is a mover...always on the go. We can't wait to see how much the baby is moving when we go in for the sonogram.

This morning I woke up and it felt like all kinds of movement going on...I think the little one was squished up in the upper right of my belly and them moving diagonal across to the bottom of my belly. It is wild and I don't know that I am doing it any justice as I try and explain the feeling. I just know that I love it and it is making both of us even more excited to meet this little person we created!

Thank You's!

We just wanted to post a special thank you to Aunt Jen, Aunt Steph and Uncle Adam for their sweet gifts for baby Johnson! The little one isn't even here yet and already spoiled rotten! :)

Aunt Jen gave us this super cute onesie (momma didn't do a great job taking the picture, it says "after hours party at my crib, 2am, BYOB--bring your own bottle!" We thought that was pretty cute and will most likely be awfully fitting when the little one arrives! The first onesie, we love it! Thanks Aunt Jen, you are the best! :)

Aunt Steph remembered that mamma's favorite book is
"Love you Forever" and purchased one WITH a handwritten note to the little one...their first book!!!
It a good think mamma already has the bookshelf ready to
be stained to match the crib furniture...and ready to fill for the future genius! :) She also had her monogram man stitch a little bib for "Baby Johnson" in the perfect gender neutral mint green! We can't quite believe someone with a tiny little neck will be wearing that here soon! Thanks so much Aunt Steph, we love it! We can't wait to read the little one books and I am sure this will be a huge favorite, just like it was when we were little!

The last little gift we have received came from Uncle Adam, the baby's first Yonder Mountain String Band onesie! He purchased it at one of nuggets first Yonder Mountain shows (attending via momma's tummy that is!) and we are so excited to have this special reminder! We have already been thinking of the bluegrass tunes

we are planning on putting on the lullaby cd for the little one to fall peacefully asleep too! :) Ha, I can almost here a few of you laughing out loud now...maybe when the little one is old enough (and lucky enough) I will teach him or her some of my super dance moves! Thank you again Uncle Adam, that was so nice of you! :)

Rumor has it too that the Grandma's have been out and about shopping for the little one too, it looks like there will be more thank yous in order! It is so nice to know that this little one will have been loved from the very beginning by all the wonderful family and friends we have! I even had a little bird tell me about one Grandma in particular going crazy at the Carter's outlet in Michigan! We are going to need those skills in helping up pick out a pink or a blue outfit for the nugget to come home in! Something snuggly and warm for our little winter baby! :)

Hello, Second Trimester!

Ah, the beauty of the 2nd Trimester! Needless to say I feel wonderful these days :) I am just enjoying watching the belly get big and itchy, and happy that the morning sickness has gone away. By twelve weeks I started to feel better and by thirteen weeks I felt totally normal again. I have also been much less tired and able to do a few more things around the house...only a few though :) We took a camping trip at the end of July and had a wonderful time hanging out and relaxing. The weather was perfect for this pregnant lady which is always a bonus! I must be giving off pregnant pheromones, as even the mosquitoes decided to leave me alone. So far (as of August 22nd, 2008) I would describe this trimester as happy...I pretty much feel round and happy! I can see both of us getting more and more excited as the weeks go on, we still can't quite believe we will meet the little one in only five months!
We have started to plan out the little one's nursery! The only concrete thing we have picked out is the furniture! Woo-hoo, the youngin will have a crib and changing table. Now we just have to figure out if we can afford the furniture :). We have also started compiling a HUGE list of potential names. It is kind of fun looking through the book to see what we like. I can tell we are both analyzing names we hear like we never have before. It is fun too, we have both been really in sync with what we like and don't like! Our plan is to put every name we like even a little on the list and narrow down from there. We will hopefully decide on two girl and two boy names so when the nugget arrives we can decide who he or she looks like!

We had our four month check-up on Monday August 18th and it went great! The little booger decided to hide on us therefore causing my heartbeat to race, but after a few minutes the booger was located to the right of my belly button in the middle of my tummy. As I (and most everyone) has noticed that "Hotel Ellen" has expanded quite a bit in the last few weeks, the little one must have been utilizing the space and roaming around. All was well though, another perfect little heartbeat. It is still awfully crazy to hear my heartbeat and then this other fast little one going! Too fun :) We go on September 19th at 2pm for the Sonogram! We are so excited to see what nugget is up to! I think it is really going to hit home for both of us, even more so than the heartbeat, when we see the features of the baby. I am hoping we get lots of good pictures to take home, we will just have to locate a scanner and post them on the site!

Good-Bye First Trimester!

July 21st, 2008 (I went ahead and ended it at 13 weeks) officially marked the end of my first trimester! Woo-hoo, I survived! I will speak for both of us and say that we have had a roller coaster of emotions the past three months, and I am sure we haven't seen the last of the emotions for the next six months.

I hope to all who have had to listen to me, I have taken the first couple months of cooking the youngin in stride! I have woken up each day not knowing what to expect, but thankful for all the wonderful things happening in my body (yes, even the terrible hangover feeling!). I didn't really start to feel sick until the morning of my sixth week. I noticed right away that I had to pee even more than usual and my boobs were HUGE and hurt something awful, I was also VERY tired. On the morning of my sixth week, I woke up and remember whispering to myself, this is what they were talking about...morning sickness. I am lucky and I never actually threw up, but most days I wished I could have. I describe it as feeling so hungover and sick to my stomach and wanting to throw up so I could just feel better, but no relief coming. I remember emailing my mom and saying "I am not complaining because this means the nugget is burrowing in for the long haul, but will I feel better before the baby comes?" She assured me that it would pass, but that I would be tired for the rest of my life :)

My cravings...my first craving was for BJ's (the restaurant) mashed potatoes. It came over me and I knew I had to have them. Luckily I have an "in" with the manager, called him up and had a curbside pickup in less than 15 minutes. That is what I call service and a good husband! :) Other than that, nothing tasted very good besides toast and macaroni and cheese. I couldn't eat very much, but once I figured out what tasted good and what didn't, I was good to go. The one thing I will never be able to eat again are the Asian Bowls we bought at Sam's. Even typing it now, makes my tummy cringe a little. I don't know what it was about them, it just didn't sit well at all! Other than that, granny smith green apples, lemonade, limeade, and sour patch kids, and applesauce. Funny, huh?

The tired...I feel as though I have to address this, because this surprised me the most. I never realized after so much sleep, one could STILL be so tired. It was all I could do somedays to make it home from work before I crawled right back into bed. I didn't cook or clean the house for a solid three months. I craved weekends so I could just lay around and do nothing. It just felt like my body had been taken over by the tired fairy. I started to have trouble sleeping towards the end of the three months, my mind just wouldn't stop racing. I was worried about my restless sleep, that is, until the arrival of THE SNOOGLE! That c-shaped pillow of dreams could quite possibly be (besides maternity pants) my favorite thing invented for pregnant women. I took it out of the box and immediately put it to good use, on the couch. It is the most comfortable sleep I have had in a long time. Bj just laughs when I curl up into the Snoogle, he is convinced I will never give it up. I just might not, I am looking forward to sleeping on my tummy again though, that could be enough to give up the snoogs!

I thought I held it together pretty well until my boss pointed out how bad I had looked for the last few weeks. She said there was no way someone who saw me everyday could not notice the change and realize something was going on :)

I have to say I am really looking forward to all that the second trimester will bring. I love reading weekly updates on the progress of the baby and how big he or she is (as I type this he/she is the size of an apple or a softball, whatever visual you prefer. Even though the eyes are shut still, the baby will shy away from light shone on my belly...how crazy is that?!). I can't wait to hear the heart-beat again and start to feel the little one swimming around. It may be tough at times, but I am so thankful I get to experience this little miracle we created.