Good news!

I've been meaning to update since last week, but didn't have time, but I wanted to share a couple of things: 

1. Caleb won an award! I am so proud of him. It's called the Navy Comm award and he earned it from all his hard work from his deployments to Afghanistan. Go Captain Gowan!  

2. I got the results of my gestational diabetes test last week and it was negative! Super happy and thankful and super thankful that I got through the test without throwing up the drink. Like everyone warned me, it was indeed, pretty awful. 

3. I am now in my third trimester! 13 more weeks to go.  Feeling pretty good these past couple of weeks. Still have my bouts of nausea here and there, but overall it's been better and the best thing is the end is in sight!  Here is my 27 week pregnancy shot: 

And lastly, I wanted to share pics from our trip up north. We had a great time at Brandon and Melody's wedding in Sacramento and had a wonderful time hanging out with family. Even though the trip was short, we had such a fun and memorable time with everyone.  

HOWEVER, we did have a little hiccup driving up to Sacramento. We left early Friday morning, planning on stopping at Aunt Joan's house to change and get ready for the wedding, then we would make our way to the venue. About 2 hours before we were supposed to arrive, we made a quick bathroom stop, and I just happened to ask Caleb, "Did you grab our wedding clothes from the closet?" and he said, "No. I thought you did." 

*GASP* 

The night before, he laid out our clothes (his suit and my dress) on the floor so it wouldn't get wrinkled in the luggage. I told him to put the clothes in the closet instead so it wouldn't get dirty on the floor. Well, out of sight, out of mind because we both forgot about our clothes the next morning! We had our wedding shoes in the car, but had nothing to wear for the wedding! So after my "minor" meltdown (do you know how hard it is to find a dress for a pregnant woman?!), we rushed to a mall in Sacramento about 15 minutes away from the venue and had about 1 1/2 hours to shop and get ready. I ran into a maternity store and he ran into Express. We both took pictures of our selection for approval. Here's our dressing room photo shoot: 

He text me this picture and I said "Looks good babe!"

I text him this picture and he said "That dress looks great!" 

We both got ready in the Nordstrom's bathroom and got to the wedding right on time! It was hectic and crazy, but hey, the silver lining is that I got a new dress! Woo hoo! =) 

At the wedding with my love. 

Love him. 

The beautiful bride and groom (although you can't see the groom's face because of the waiter!)

Caleb with Ezra! 

The next day, Caleb and I went to Starbucks (of course!) with Grandma and Grandpa Hillis. Here's Grandma and I reading the paper together while waiting for our drinks =) 

Caleb and Grandpa Hillis

Group picture! 

That night, we drove down to Merced and had a great time hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa Gowan. Here's a picture of us the next morning at breakfast before we headed back down to Oceanside. 

It was a great trip and Caleb and I have decided to make it point to try and visit more often! 

Hope everyone is having a great week so far. Tonight, Caleb and I have to go to a pre-deployment brief at his unit. Can't believe that he'll be deploying so soon! Please keep him in your prayers and also keep praying as we are still looking to find a home church here in Oceanside. 

Love to you all, 

Nancy

25 week update

Well, so much for updating more frequently. I completely skipped the month of July! I have some time right now, so I'm going to update on how my pregnancy has been progressing thus far:

How far along:  Currently 25 weeks (and 2 days) pregnant 

Symptoms: I'm still feeling nauseous some days. Last Sunday at church, I felt horrible. I had to leave the sanctuary and stand in the back so I could have a clear path to the bathroom. But, these last couple of days, I've been feeling pretty good, so I'm cherishing these moments of normalcy! 

Weight gain: So far, I've gained 20 lbs! I had a doctor's appointment on July 22nd and the doctor was really surprised that I gained 8 lbs in 4 weeks! He thinks that it's water retention since my feet are swollen (I am no longer a size 5, but a size 6), so he has advised me to drink lots more water. Drinking more water will flush out the salt water that's being retained in my body. These past 2 weeks I haven't gained a single pound, so I guess drinking more water does the trick! My next appointment with him is August 19th.

Sleep: I haven't had any problems sleeping. I heard that you are "supposed" to sleep on your left side once you reach your 2nd trimester, but I talked to the doctor and he said that it doesn't matter what position I sleep, as long as I'm comfortable. I've been sleeping in til 10 in the morning! I'm soaking up all the sleep I can get before baby girl gets here! (I still wake up and make Caleb breakfast though! After he leaves, I wobble back to bed!) 

Wedding Rings: OFF. Maybe it's the water retention, or maybe my fingers just got fat, but my wedding ring is so snug on my finger that I have to take it off now. =( I'll wear it around my neck on a chain as a necklace though, but I'd like to buy a cheap ring that I can wear on my ring finger. 

Cravings: Salads! Especially for lunch. Nothing else sounds good to me but a nice hearty salad =) 

Movement: She is a mover! I feel her pretty much throughout the day, but she definitely likes to move in the morning and at night. A couple nights ago, Caleb had his hand on my stomach and she kicked it so hard his hand moved! I always feel her moving on my right side and down near my right pelvic area. 

Belly Button: Still an Inny! It's a funny looking one though because it's almost completely flat! 

Excited for: Registering for gifts for my baby shower! We are planning on making a trip to Target to start our registry. The nursery is still empty, so I'm still on the lookout for good deals on cribs, dressers, and a nice rocking chair! 

Missing: Being able to wear my old clothes! Especially my shorts! Getting dressed is so depressing, but last Sunday, my awesome husband took me to the outlet to go shopping and I was able to find several maternity outfits that fit me great. AND it boosted my self-esteem as I was an extra small in the store! Woo-hoo! I still can't find a good pair of maternity shorts though. 

Exercise: Zumba, Zumba, and Zumba! I go to Zumba 2-3 times a week and absolutely love it! I'm so happy that the teacher is great and the class is so much fun. The doctor said there's no reason that I can't continue to Zumba, I just have to watch how tired I am during the class and if my heartbeat is over 120 beats per minute. I'm also walking Angel almost every day for about 30 minutes and fitting in some prenatal yoga when I can. 

Stretch Marks: None so far! Still using my cocoa butter all over my body to try to keep those marks away! 

How big is baby girl: She is the size of a rutabaga! At our last ultrasound (this past Monday), the specialist estimated baby girl to be around 1 lb and 9 oz. She is right where she is supposed to be! 

Feeling: Blessed. The new house is coming along, I have a wonderful husband, a great dog, and I can't wait to meet our baby girl. Almost in my 3rd trimester and feeling anxious and eager all at the same time. I get sad when I think about Caleb leaving before the baby comes, but my hope is that he'll be able to fly back to see her when she's born. 

This weekend we are heading up north to Caleb's cousin's wedding. We'll be on the road early tomorrow morning (leaving at 7am!). We're excited to see family and to spend some quality time with them. My parents will be watching Angel for us while we're gone, so we are so thankful for that! She no longer has to go to doggy day-care! 

That's all for now. Going to make some dinner for my husband before he gets home! 

XOXO,

Nancy

June Update!

Sorry I haven't blogged in such a long time. It's been a very VERY busy month and things are finally starting to settle down and I'm starting to get into a routine once again (I love routines!).

A LOT has happened this month, including my sister's Bachelorette party in Beverly Hills, her bridal shower, and her WEDDING! Some pics to recap:

The ladies on Night #2

We saw a celebrity! Lisa Vanderpump from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills! =)

AND got a pic with her husband Ken and their dog Giggy!

Denise and mom at her bridal shower. Mom just got done giving her some great marital advice! 

Me and my beautiful sister on her beautiful wedding day! 

Our two very handsome men! 

We also hired professional painters to paint our house (it looks brand new now, definitely worth it), movers came a couple days later and moved our furniture in the house, and a week later we settled in! We've been very busy unpacking the 100+ boxes we had, but the house is coming along great and although there still needs to be some improvements, it's becoming home to us. Caleb also bought me a brand new car (he says it's my 2 year anniversary present!), and I absolutely LOVE it! It's a 2013 Hyundai Sonata, and it has everything I could ever want in a car, including remote start, heated seats, blue-tooth, 34 mpg, and we drove it away at a great price with only 28 miles on the odometer! They also offered us free window tinting and free car washes at the dealership for the rest of our lives. =)

As for Baby Gowan, we went to the doctor last week and found out the gender! We are having a gender reveal party at our new home on July 4th to share the exciting news with our family and friends (finally!). I will definitely post pictures up as soon as the party is over! But, we want to share that Baby Gowan is doing great. Heartbeat was 150 at the last appointment, it's about 10 oz, and all the tests came out negative, including spina bifida occulta, which Caleb has. They still want to do a level 2 ultrasound to make sure the baby doesn't have it, but when the ultrasound specialist looked at the baby's brain and spine at our last appointment, it showed no signs of it. So we are happy parents! This is one of the many pics from our last ultrasound: (see that thing over the baby's head? That's the baby's legs! Caleb said that he/she is going to be a gymnast!)

ALSO, the baby kicked me for the first time yesterday! I've been feeling nauseous this week (sigh), threw up 4 times yesterday and lost 2 pounds at my last doctor's appointment this past Monday, but, while I was laying down in the afternoon, I felt the kicks on the right side of my stomach! And I knew it was the baby! It made me smile and happy and is making the nausea worth it!

I am officially halfway through the pregnancy! I am so excited and can't wait to meet Baby G! Here's my 20 week progression:

As for Caleb's work, it's definitely different now that I can't see him in the middle of the day and have lunch with him. North Carolina and living on base sure did spoil me. It takes him about 40-45 minutes to get to work, and we were not expecting that. We knew it took 10 minutes to get onto the base, but from the base to his unit's location takes him another 30 minutes. Camp Pendleton sure is HUGE! He leaves to work about 6:15 am and doesn't get home til around 7 pm (and YES, I am making him breakfast in the mornings again!) It's definitely a huge change for me, as he usually got home around 4:30-5 pm in North Carolina AND also came home for lunch for an hour and a half! We definitely treasure each minute we have together and being in the military always keeps us aware of that.

It's been great being back in California, but we are still on the hunt for our home church. The church we tried out last week didn't quite sit well with either of us, so we are going to try another one this Sunday. We are praying that God will provide us a great church family, to keep us accountable, and for us to grow and be involved in. Please keep our church hunt in your prayers!

Love and treasure you all.

XOXO,
Nancy, and baby G.

Last week...

I wanted to update last week, but never got a chance to, so I'm recapping the events of what happened last week:

Caleb and I never took down our Christmas wreath, so it became the perfect place for a bird to build its nest! 

Hatched! 

The birds are growin'! 

This shot took us 25 minutes to capture. The nest is right on our front door, so if we come near it, the mom and dad don't want to feed their babes. So, Caleb hid in the closet right by the door for 25 minutes to capture this special moment. The daddy bird, a red robin, feeding his babies! 

Nat Geo in action.

The mom came and joined the festivities...what an awesome shot! 

Family picture! 

We had a potluck at my bible study (our last one!), so I decided to try a new recipe I found on Pinterest called Banana Pudding Poke Cake. 

Ta-Da! It was delicious, but Caleb suggested that I add real bananas to one of the layers next time I make it! 

We went to the potluck and they surprised me with a baby shower! My small group is the best =)

One of my friends made me a diaper cake! 

Opening presents...the best part of the party! 

Caleb got a special present from our friends. It's called the daddy tool belt which has all the essentials he needs for a baby...

...including goggles and a surgeon's mask for when he changes the diaper! haha!

Soon to be mom and dad! 

My lovely ladies who I will miss so much.

Me and the boys! 

We are excited to announce....

We are OFFICIAL HOME OWNERS! We closed last Friday and we are super excited to move in. The movers come THIS Thursday and Friday to pack and move our stuff. I'll be heading to CA on the 27th...can't believe it's so soon! 

And finally... my 14 week progression. Baby Gowan is the size of a lemon in this picture and  mom's bump is getting bigger! This last Friday was my last doctor's appointment here in North Carolina. I heard the baby's heartbeat, which was 144 beats per minute. The doctor had trouble getting the baby to stay still to hear the heartbeat, so that was pretty cool to hear how active the baby is inside my tummy. Baby Gowan kept moving around! I've gained 2 pounds since my last doctor's appointment and have gained 5 pounds overall. I'm feeling pretty good for the most part, but still get waves of nauseous at night. It's been quite the journey so far, but I'm glad that I'm finally able to eat and cook again without feeling so sick. Thanks again for all your continued prayers for me and our baby! 

Love you all! 

XOXO

It's been awhile...

Wow! I can't believe how long it's been since I have updated. I can't believe how much has happened since the last time I posted!

To get things started, I want to post some pictures of Josh and Abi's wedding that we went to this past weekend. It was great meeting their families and it was a wonderful wedding celebration. The only thing that was disappointing was the weather. They had planned for an outdoor wedding overlooking the river, but the winds were too gusty and it started raining the day of, so they had to move the wedding ceremony indoors.

I was honored to be one of her bridesmaids! 

Abi's sister and her daughter, the adorable flower girl! 

The blushing bride with her niece 

Me and the stunning bride! 

My love

Caleb and Joshua 

Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Woods

They had a choreographed salsa dance as their first dance. It was awesome =) 

Me with Haley, another bridesmaid

Joshua having fun getting the garter! 

This month is going to be a crazy month for us. I will be moving back to San Diego on May 27th and Caleb will be driving across country with Angel on June 3rd. We have decided to find Titus a home with a family here in North Carolina because it has been very hard for me to take care of two dogs, especially dealing with this pregnancy and the morning sickness. Because Caleb will be deploying right before the baby comes, we agreed that it is best for us to find him a home where he can get the attention and exercise he needs. Please pray that a family will adopt him! Caleb has grown so attached to him, so it is very hard for him to let him go so he wants to make sure that we give him to a good family. We are waiting for an answer from one of our friends from church, so we are crossing our fingers they will take him! 

As for this mama, I am officially in my SECOND TRIMESTER! I am 13 weeks, and baby Gowan is as big as a medium shrimp! Caleb and I went to a class today called Belly Basics (from 8:30-3:30!), and they gave us a lot of helpful information about the pregnancy. We're going to try to go to a couple more classes before we move. Here is my 13 week progression! 

The bump is a growin'! It's crazy to see how my body is changing and responding to this pregnancy. I am feeling better this week, still a little nauseous at night, but not as bad as I was during the weeks 7-12! Thank you all for your prayers and love and support. It means so much to me to know that both me and the little babe are covered with prayer. 

We are so close to closing on our house in Oceanside. Just waiting on the termite clearance from the sellers, which should be cleared by the end of this week! SO many changes, and feeling so blessed. 

Love you all.