The Nursery Thus Far

We worked hard the past couple of days, and we got a lot done! I was even able to check a few things off of my "To Do" list.   !!!!   As far as decorating the Nursery goes, we only have a few more things to do and then we are done! I still have to wash all of Isaac's bedding and clothes. I wanted to wait til closer to my due date though, otherwise I will end up just washing them all again! No one in this house needs double work. :)
So here is our progress thus far!

We bought a little shelf for Isaac's toys and books! These little guys are so cute! They are soft so he can pull them off the shelf no problem. Or he can stick his little hands in their mouths and reach in and grab his toys! We finally were able to put up the decals since we have most of the nursery furniture in place now. We think the room as a whole is pretty stinkin cute.

The changing table/dresser with the changing pad finally!! Daddy hung the pictures up, and I did the decals. It is all starting to come together!

Our little monkey corner!

Some close ups.

The LONG awaited rocker/recliner! We bought this 3 weeks ago, and because of shipping, and employee error, we were just now able to pick it up. We are so glad it is here now! We love it. I walk into the nursery all the time and just sit in it and rock little Isaac. Can't wait til I can rock him in my arms! <3

Cute little birdies.

A little love note above his door. <3 We love this little guy so much!!

Baby Boy!

These images were captured at 30 5/7 weeks at our latest appointment with Dr. Reiter. Dan showed him our 3D pictures of Isaac, so when he did our ultrasound, he showed us Isaac in 3D  again!! Dr. Reiter is so great, we absolutely love him! Isaac looks exactly the same, except his nose and lips are BIGGER if that is even possible! Isaac looked great on ultrasound, no goiter. He is growing wonderfully, he is now 3 pounds 10 ounces!

Dr. Reiter said that we would have one more appointment with him to check on Isaac, and then he would be here, so no need for additional appointments! Dan and I still can't believe it! Our due date is creeping up on us! Isaac will be here so soon! YAY! <3

We are busy putting finishing touches on the nursery, I'm hoping to get a lot of work done this weekend. I am busy cleaning and organizing every square inch of the house. Which is exhausting, but I HAVE TO DO IT. I have a long "To Do" list on the fridge and I am busy checking things off. I am also busy trying to get Dan to check things off. :/

I am really not wanting to go to work at all right now. It is exhasuting and I am uncomfortable. I would much rather stay home and clean the house and get things organized, but work is a must. Sigh. Anyhow, we are moving right along! Praise the Lord!!  :D

Your Baby at 31 Weeks:

From this week on, your baby will continue to gain around ½ pound a week until shortly before birth (even though it may feel like a whole lot more with every step you take). Other highlights this week:

Due to increasing space constraints, your baby's arms and legs stay drawn up close to the body now, known as the fetal position (oh, so that's where that name came from!). Plus, your baby can now process information from all five senses—so he'll be all set to smell the pureed peas, taste them, feel them as he mashes them into his hair, hear you crack up and then see the flash as you grab the camera to snap picture after picture.

By now, your baby's lungs are the only system not fully mature. And by mature, we're not saying that the rest of your baby's systems are mature enough to be out past 10 PM with the neighborhood hooligan, just that his lungs need a little bit more time to bake before they can kick it in the outside world.

Your baby weighs about 3½ pounds and measures a little over 16 inches, about the same length as that miniskirt you used to wear (and will again someday!).

Baby Shower!!!

So Dan, Marcie and I traveled to Michigan this past weekend for our first shower. Dan and I were very thankful to have such a great momo to travel home with us!! We loved spending the time together! The shower was on Saturday, March 20th at Fillipas. It was beautiful. We all had a really wonderful time. It was great to see family! Dan and I both really loved showing off Isaac. We brought one of his 3d photos and had it displayed on the cake table. Much to my mothers dismay, I brought the photo back with me to Houston when we left this past Monday. Though the trip was short, it was perfect. We loved being able to spend quality time with family during this precious time in our lives. After all, your first time only happens but once!

Filling out some BINGO cards for baby shower game #1.

They look like they are thinking really hard, and they were! All of that thinking paid off big time, this table was our luckiest table of the day. I'm pretty sure everyone seated here won something during the course of the shower!!

Discussing how much string to cut to measure out the baby bump I'm sure...

More deep in thought over BINGO!

Cutest balloon ever.  Please note that he is checking in his diaper...

Grandma, Mom and Isaac!

Present time!!

Dan was a very good picture taker. I have a picture for every present and card opened I'm pretty sure. ;)

He took his job very seriously.

My Godmother Aunt Rose

All the ladies that helped throw this wonderful shower!!

Grandma, Aunt Cindy, Aunt Jane and Aunt Joyce!

Dan and I and his Godmother Nola!

My Godfather, Uncle Larry

Momo and Great-grandma Kearfott

Mom and Dad and Baby Boy!!

Just wanted to say thank you again to my mom and my Aunts who helped her to throw the shower! I know that these things are a lot of work and can become very overwhelming. I am very thankful that my mom has such great friends to lean on! Thank you so much! Dan and I really enjoyed ourselves and are so very thankful for everyone's generosity. Thank you to everyone who was able to attend and share this very special time with us. We love you all very much!!!

<3 <3 <3

BROTHERS :)

It's not very often that all 3 of us get to spend time together. Thankfully we were able to spend a couple of hours together this past week! It was awesome being together, especially now that baby boy is so big! I'm glad that we were able to share this. I love you brothers!

30 Weeks!

Your Baby:

Big news for baby's brain this week: It's starting to wrinkle and fold and looks like something that grew in the back of your fridge. This is due to the rapid growth of your little genius's brain cells. Other highlights this week:

Fingernails and toenails are finally finished—causing his or her parents great fear and anguish the first time they try to cut those little daggers (it gets easier, we promise)! Plus, the bone marrow is completely in charge of red-blood-cell production now. Trust us, this is a good thing.

Baby is starting to shed his lanugo—the downy hair that was covering his skin. Now that he's chubbier and better able to regulate his body temp, he doesn't need to sport a fur coat 24/7.

"I spy an umbilical cord and the inside of my mom's uterus!" When your baby is awake, his eyes are now wide open and he's whittling away the hours looking around, checking out his rather dark, limited environs.

Your baby hasn't gained much weight or height this week, as most of his energy's been channeled to the brain. He weighs about 3 pounds and is approximately 15.5 inches long, about the size of London, not the city, Britney Spears' Yorkie terrier. Of course your baby is less hairy and way cuter!

No time to post much else but this! In Michigan for baby shower # 1!! Pictures soon to come!!!  <3

Daddy's Boy ALL THE WAY!

This little boy has been known to make some crazy moves in my belly, most are not intentional. One thing I have noticed that he does, is VERY intentional though. This little boy loves his daddy SO much, he goes nuts when he hears his voice. No matter where we are, driving in the car, sitting on the couch, if he hears daddy talking--he completely shifts his weight over to the side of my belly that Dan is on. It is the funniest and sweetest sight ever. We tried to capture it the other day.

See how I look lopsided? I was sitting on the couch with Dan here, and Dan was sitting on my right side. So baby boy made his way over there as much as he could. It's funny to feel because that side of my belly is rock hard with baby and the other side will be soft. :) He loves his daddy.

This is from my perspective. Kind of hard to see, but a noticeable difference none the less. He's all on the right side. <3

We had our 3D Ultrasound today, and it was amazing! I had to fight back tears when I first saw him. He is absolutely beautiful.  God is so amazingly good. I am overwhelmed. My cup is not only full, but overflowing. Dan and I are so blessed. Well, while I stop crying, without further adieu, our beautiful son,

 Isaac Alexander Payne.

His head is a tad distorted in this picture, but he gave us a thumbs up! 

Look at how perfect he is.

Trying to sleep with his little hands up by his head.

Mid-yawn. So sweet.

Look at those Smith lips!!! GIANT. Of course the boy gets big beautiful lips.

Hello Dan. I mean Isaac. IDENTICAL to his daddy.

HAIR!!! What in the world???

Sweet profile. :)

So just for comparison's sake. Here are pictures of mom and dad at 4 months old, next to baby boy.

Are you seeing this??? EXACTLY like Dan. This baby has half my DNA, but he looks like a little mini Dan! I love it, he's so precious! He has the same shaped eyes, which you can't see very well in this photo, but we could on others. He has his daddy's nose, his defined lip shape and size! To a T! We kept calling Isaac "Dan" during the ultrasound. It is insane! He has a lot of personality already. He definitely tried hiding from us in the beginning, just like his cousin Calum. But with some convincing, (i.e. position changing and belly poking) he moved his hands and his feet away from his face long enough to capture some really beautiful photos. It was amazing seeing him move and react in there, just amazing. We even caught him sucking his thumb! I am SO glad that we did this, I almost felt like it was ruining Christmas to see him this early. But I was wrong, I feel even more connected to him now that I can see his precious little face. We are so excited, and can't wait to meet this precious little baby. Our little love, Isaac.

29 Weeks

Your Baby:

Having a baby prematurely is frightening, no doubt. But here's a reason to relax: Due to the impressive advancements of medical technology, if your baby is born this week, he'd have a 9 out of 10 chance of survival, which is seriously great news. Other awesome developments:

Baby's brain can now control his breathing and body temperature. He can also cough, and his sucking abilities have been perfected. Look out, boobs!

Your Mini's skin is looking less wrinkled as he packs on the pounds. He's starting to look more like a Pampers model and less like a Depends model. He's now beefing up on the energizing and insulating white fat he'll be born with (unfortunately, white fat is not energizing and insulating for adults!).

And speaking of energy, your little Energizer Bunny is on fire these days. You're sure to feel your share of kicks, punches and elbows, especially when you're lying down. You might want to start keeping a kick chart to monitor your baby's movements, and also to later show your 13-year-old child what you endured for him or her. Ask your doctor how to count kicks and how often you should do it.

This week your baby is a little over 15 inches long—about the length of a loaf of bread—and weighs about 3 pounds, as much as a Macbook Air laptop.

Baby Belly at 29 weeks:

I love my baby belly. :)

I am so sleepy. Worked last night and had to go wait forever in the Dr.'s office to get my blood drawn this morning after my shift. Then I came home slept for 2 hours and got up to go with Dan to see our baby boy in 3D! Check out the next post for our beautiful baby boy pictures!!!!