Big News Gets Two Posts!

We had our "big ultrasound" today to see the baby and find out the gender. See the Baby Blog for details!

It's a....

BOY!

We were pretty convinced HE was a SHE until today. The odds in our group of friends were leaning toward girl and I'd been the only one with any kind of Morning Sickness so we had convinced ourselves that it was a girl. Much to our surprise, the ultrasound showed clear evidence of a boy. So, here we are, on TEAM BLUE! Ryan can't stop smiling! He's so happy. He and Brandon are now officially planning the boys YMCA League basketball teams! Let the competitions begin!

He was super active during the ultrasound which was fun for us to see. Lots of moving his feet and arms, he even rolled over to his belly! He also had the hiccups so you'd see his little heart beating away and then his belly jump. So amazing! Here are the pictures.

Perfect profile picture.
Perfect little foot.
Either sucking his thumb or scratching his nose.



And now, for the R rated material. In case you want to see the proof for yourself... He's DEFINITELY a boy!


My doctor's office had just gotten a new ultrasound machine and the tech was teaching herself all the new buttons so she flipped over to the 4D mode. Normally you have to pay extra for this (though I've heard this tech likes to do free sneak peaks anyway). So we got to watch the little guy move around in a little more detail. He kept putting his hands up to his face and then he yawned and stuck his tongue out. I was afraid the 4D would look a little scary this early since there isn't much fat on the baby yet (if you pay for it, they tell you to come at 28-32 weeks), but I think he looked pretty darn cute!




So, we are almost to the halfway point. My first two ultrasounds (at 6 and 7 weeks), he measured a couple of days behind what the calender said my due date should be. Today, I'm 19weeks, 2days but measured right at 20 weeks. We'll see if this continues. I fully expect to have a big baby! Everything else is looking good. I'm feeling good except the once or twice a week morning sickness but I'll survive that.

Merry Christmas!

19 Weeks -- First Bump Picture

I'm entering the 19th week and finally starting to "show" but in normal clothes probably not enough for people to know for sure that I'm pregnant and not just fat. :)

I figure I better start taking the belly shots to document my progress. So here I am... 19 weeks.

I weighed myself at home earlier this week and weighed in at my pre-pregnancy weight. This is a good sign since I'd been losing weight slowly during much of the first trimester. I'm definitely eating more but probably still not enough. The mornings can still be hard and though I'm hungry, nothing sounds good until about 10:30 or 11:00am. It's not as easy to force yourself to eat as you might think.

Our "big ultrasound" is Tuesday morning. Please think good thoughts for the baby's cooperation in showing "the goods" then look for an update with gender news sometime Tuesday late morning/early afternoon!

Christmas Tree Additions

The tree is up and pretty much decorated. I might add a few more filler ornaments but I'm in no rush. I was finally able to get some pictures last weekend. Of course it was during the day so it doesn't really sparkle like at night. Oh well.


In my Christmas post last year, I reflected on how I decorate the tree. Again this year, I had a pretty easy time with the lights and was excited to use all 4 sections, though I made the EXACT SAME mistake when putting it up! (I missed a section and had to take it apart and start over). I enjoyed hanging all the meaningful ornaments and the memories they hold. The boat ornaments made me sad but happy at the same time (we'll get another one one day!).

Here are the new ornaments from this year: New Home 2009 (from my parents)
Mom To Be (from my aunts)
Snowmen making Sugar Cookies -- I got this one last year since cookies are my favorite thing to bake!

Hot Wheels aka "As Close to Darda as I Could Find" that I got for Ryan, Kevin and Eric after Christmas last year.

First Purchase

Today I made my first purchase for the little one. My first moment of parenting weakness I guess. One day I'm threatening to ground him or her (which the sentence should be increased by a couple of years but I won't go into that tonight) and two days later I'm buying him/her something frivilous.

Anyway, I was at Target buying some Angel Tree Gifts when I saw these cute Paul Frank onesies in the baby section. I haven't been buying anything since we don't know the sex yet so I was just looking at how cute the selections were since I love the little monkey.

And then, to my surprise and delight, I noticed a small little detail that made the outfit IRRESISTIBLE.

Do you see it? There is no way I could leave without one of these. I picked the most unisex one I could find, in the biggest size for next year use. I hope it fits!

And with that, I think we officially have a nickname for the nameless little guy (or girl)!

I'M IN LOVE WITH...

MY OVEN!

It's so pretty and big and roomy and has all kinds of fancy features and I don't have to bend over to use it and there are TWO of them!!!

And tonight, it made me so pathetically happy when I fit all 24 cupcakes on the middle rack. I'm talking so happy that I got my camera and took a picture! Ahhh, I'm in love.

Swing

I've always wanted a front porch with a swing, and now I have one! My parents bought us the swing as a housewarming gift and it was delivered Monday. Ryan managed to hang it all by himself and it looks fantastic!!!

Now all we need is some neighbors so I can be the nosey lady that sits on her front porch and spies on everyone!

Grounded!

I'm using this post as reference material for later in this baby's life.

Dear Nameless Kid Growing Inside of Me,
As of yesterday, 12/7/2009, you are officially grounded until you are 16. If you continue to make me spend any more time with my head in the toilet, you will get more years added to your sentence.
Love,
Your Mother

:)

Sigh... its been over 2 weeks and I thought I was in the clear. I guess I'll be one of those that has it happen off and on for the duration so I should just get used to it already and stop complaining!

In other news... I'm trying to eat more (I just had a WHOLE potato from Jason's Deli) and eat better and get the extra nutrients like protein, calcium, etc. I just I'm still not into eating lots of meat (which is a weird lifestyle for me) so I've tried to eat protein bars as snacks. Yuck, why do people CHOOSE to eat those things. Bleck. I think the eating "more" part is going to be fun but the eating "better" part is going to be hard.

First Christmas in Woodforest!

This year I've had a lot of trouble figuring out where all my Christmas decorations should go. And even after putting up the tree, decorating the mantle, draping garland on the stair handrails and putting Christmas colored place mats and napkins on the table, the house just doesn't feel as "Christmasy" as the old house did. I guess this is another one of the fun parts of having more space... gradually getting things to fill it all up.

We ran into the same problem outside. We have all these lights... icicles and nets... and no place to put them. Okay, we COULD line our whole house but just the peaks on our one story freaked us out in prior years. There is NO WAY either one of us are attempting the peaks on this house! None of our plants are big enough for net lights. But, we made it work and it turned out nice.

A few icicles on the porch and some lights up the columns (I've always wanted to do that). Frosty and the lighted trees are in the yard and this year they have snow around them (net lights!). The lights that normally string together the candy canes were on their last leg last year and we were too lazy and cheap to redo them this year so its just candy canes for now.

Another challenge was the front door. Our doors are tall and we have the wrought iron over the top glass panel. How do you hang a wreath without putting a nail in the door? I got creative and used some fishing wire to hang it from the wrought iron.

I opted for a more "natural" look to the wreath this year and left the bow off. I think I like it this way best.

I'm happy with the finished product of the outside decor. And to be honest... I think we have a great shot of winning "Best House" on our street! Ha! :)

16 weeks

We saw the doctor again today. No ultrasound :( so this baby's gender is still a mystery. We did ask if we could come back sooner than 4 weeks to find out the gender before Christmas and the doctor complied. We go back in 3 weeks, December 22 for the "Big Ultrasound".

Heartbeat was strong. I weighed in a couple of pounds LIGHTER than last time, with my tall boots on. I guess I should be happy about this but its weird to think a I have another life inside of me and I'm LOSING weight. The doctor assured me this was fine, the baby is taking everything it can from me (signs of the future???) and that as long as I'm eating better now (which I am) that I will start gaining weight soon.

Doggie Cousins

Admiral has been a part of our family for over 3 years now and had definitely been our baby boy no matter how big he is. For the first two and half years of his life, he was the only granddog on Ryan's side of the family. He is the spoiled rotten first grandchild who got lots of one-on-one attention from his grandparents!! :)

Now that Ryan's brothers are both married and in their own homes, the doggie family has been growing. When Kevin and Stephanie got married, we added Steph's dog Maya to the family and then we met Clive in June.

Just a few weeks ago, Eric and Whitney drove to Dallas to bring home their baby, Fievel.


Thanksgiving was the first time we got all the dogs together and it was a blast watching the "kids" play. The boys did a lot of wrestling, fetching and swimming while Maya did her best to stay out of the action (which is why I never got her in these pics--I'll do better next time!!! )

Clive and Fievel became fast friends. Fievel would nip and paw and jump all over Clive and Clive seemed to love it.


Admiral seemed to be pretty smitten with Fievel but he can be a bit intimidating to a little guy. Fievel did lots of hiding in small places that Admiral cannot fit! I think that when Fievel gets a little bigger he'll probably be bossing Admiral and Clive around on a regular basis! He's feisty

Kevin started playing fetch with Clive and Admiral joined in. Of course, Admiral thinks the only way to play fetch at the grandparents house is in the pool. Kevin would throw the ball in the grass, Clive would run after it and Admiral would run the opposite direction to the pool wondering where the ball was. Eventually Admiral got a clue. We finally gave in and started throwing the ball in the pool (had to be freezing). Clive followed Admiral right in.

Clive really only likes to get in if someone else (human or dog) is in the pool. He really wanted that ball but was just not so sure about jumping in until Admiral went first.

And you can tell when Admiral gets tired... He starts getting lazy and tries to wait for the ball to drift back toward the edge of the pool instead of jumping in to get it.

Fievel was very curious of what the big boys were doing, but this is about as close as he got to the pool. Only time will tell if he likes to swim!

Cousins... it doesn't get any better! And you know, as I wrote this post, I couldn't help but laugh that sometime in the next few years I could return to this post and replace all the references to dogs and puppies to kids and babies. As I think about how our family is about to grow again and how much my cousins have meant in my life, I think about the fun times our little one will have with his/her older cousin Helmi. And, I look forward to the day (whenever it may be... no pressure) that we add more people cousins to both families!!

A few additions

Yesterday was "Black Friday" and we contributed, but we did not really do real deal hunting. We didn't even leave the house until almost 12. Our main goal was looking for a swing for the front porch. We didn't realize how hard this would be. I guess the city is not the place for a country porch swing. We reverted to the Internet and got this swing which is being stained a dark walnut color.

Thanks Mom and Dad!!!! Hopefully its here by Christmas and you can see it!

While we were out looking, we made a couple of stops to look for side tables and other things we might need. We went to Old Town Spring (to check the Amish furniture store for a swing) and then went into a few of the antique shops looking for tables.

There is a great home decor place, Metals, Petals and More that I've heard about but never been to. It's not a bargain place but its not over the top expensive either. I was really looking for more florals/greenery for my kitchen cabinets but after getting a good deal at the Holiday Market I'm being cheap! But we did find these awesome planters for our entertainment center (and one was priced wrong so we saved $20... ha).
We previously bought something else that we only sort of liked so those are going back to the store today. We are VERY happy with these planters as they add a little color and totally fill the space.

Then, we hit up Pier One to look at some things I'd seen in their Black Friday ad and to look for little side tables. We found this cute little side table with two basket drawers. We didn't know if the drawers would actually be able to function but Ryan said "If they do, it be great to put toys and things in." Definitely not a conversation we'd have had 16 weeks ago unless it was about doggie toys! Luckily there is plenty of room for the drawers to open so it looks like we have some toy storage for the family room! :) And of course, a place for the lamp and nice place for someone to rest their glass.



The biggest thing we are lacking in the Family Room is a rug. We've started that search and have finally seemed to come to a good meeting point on style. I'm more modern and he's more traditional but we seem to be agreeing on several "transitional" style rugs. I guess they are named appropriately. I'm about to head out and try to see if I can see a couple we've found online in person... and to meet Suz, Luke and Hudson for lunch while Brandon and Ryan play golf.

I'm Officially Ready for Christmas

And it's not because...

• Thanksgiving is over
• I put the tree up last night
• It's cold out (well, Houston's version of cold)
• December is just a couple of days away

No, it's not because of any of those things.

It is because of this...

The Way the Cookie Crumbles' "Slice and Bake Brown Sugar Cookies"

If these don't scream "Christmas", I don't know what else does.

Stay tuned for the follow up on these cookies.

I ate my words...

And they came right back up... TMI?

In my last post, I was on day 5 of no sickness. I had switched to a new method of medication... one pill each night instead of half in the morning, half at night. This seems to be the key. Then, I ran out of drugs the day after my last post and made it a few more days without getting sick. I was on time/early for work the whole week. Miracle!

Then Sunday hit and it started all over again. I thought... 3 days of no meds, maybe it won't happen again or as often. Nope, Monday started the same way and Monday evening I bee-bopped my way to CVS for a refill. I've been good ever since but run out of meds again this weekend. To refill or not to refill... that is the question. Surely it has stopped by now, right?

In other, more positive news, I'm officially in the second trimester. I've gained a lot of my energy back. I am no where NEAR as tired and exhausted as I had been the first trimester. I'm starting to eat more and be a little less picky, but I'm not stuffing my face by any means. I've still not gained any weight and my clothes are still fitting just fine. I'm sure those days are numbered.

Next week we see the doctor. Maybe I'll have gender news to share....I really hope so!

Pecan Pie = Thanksgiving

My favorite PIE is pecan pie. I love pecans. I don't want them in my chocolate chip cookies, but I like them in lots of other things. Unfortunately, I married a man who doesn't like pecans, doesn't like pecan pie. Even worse, neither does his Dad or either brother. At least his mom is saving the family name... she likes pecans and pecan pie! Whew. I might have had to rethink things had they all been anti-pecan! I haven't polled my new sister in laws to see which team they are on, maybe this will be a boys vs girls issue. I'll find out tomorrow.

Anyway, I've been wanting pecan pie and wanting to make it myself. I've never made one, this is always Mom's job on the holidays. She makes a "mighty fine" Pecan Pie as my Pop would have said. I'd already committed myself to a side dish for Thanksgiving dinner and didn't want to over-extend myself. So, what do I do when I want to bake something, know my husband won't help me eat it and can't justify eating the whole thing myself??? I bake it, eat one piece, take the rest to work. My coworkers eat anything!

And last night, that's just what I did.
Pecan Pie
from Southern Sideboards, Junior League of Jackson

1 (9inch) pie shell, partially baked
1/2 cup butter (or margarine)
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 cups pecans

Bake pie crust 3-4 minutes.

Cook sugar, butter and corn syrup over low heat until the butter melts. Do not let mixture boil.

Cool slightly. Stir in eggs and mix well. Add vanilla and pecans.

Pour filling into pie crust. Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes. Pie should still be soft in the middle.

Overall it was a success. It tasted "different" than my mom's but we've nailed that down to me using real butter, she uses margarine. It was definitely "buttery". My crust also stuck to my pie plate, not sure about that part, maybe because I didn't let it thaw out, who knows. I'll try again one day.

Starting to feel like "Home"

In the last 5+ years, I've lived in a lot of places. 3 apartments in College Station during graduate school; an apartment in Houston; Ryan's house in The Woodlands. None of these places were "Home". And now, I'm finally in OUR first house together. Yes, you could consider the house we lived in for our first 3 years married as "our first house" but it was always "Ryan's house" to me. He bought it. It was his bachelor pad complete with dart board, foosball table and roommates. Even though I slowly made it feel like home, and it was OUR HOME, it was always "Ryan's House".

When we first moved in the new house... OUR HOUSE... it was so empty feeling that it didn't feel like "home". We are still working on filling it up (in more ways than one) but it's finally started to feel like more than "our house"... it's HOME. I even stored our home phone number in my cell as "Home" and changed my parents number to "Mom and Dad". For some reason, this was a big step for me. I will always feel like "going home" when I go to my parents house in Jackson but our new house together is my new home. This is where I'll start my family... where the good times and bad times will happen... where the rest of our lives begins.

So, it's feeling homier (is that a word? spell check didn't catch it...). We got the couches and the kitchen table.

Now, we've added a new coffee table and end table. They have iron bases and beautiful copper tops.






And we've started to add the little finishing touches. I got these florals and accessories at the Junior League Holiday Market. They help to soften up the kitchen. I still have more to do on the bigger wall of cabinets.



I love this teapot... I couldn't decide on buying it but they put it on sale the last day of the market. So, what did I do... I bought two of them. Ha! I'll find a spot for the other one!





And, we even got a new bedding set for the Guest Bedroom. Mom and Dad, I hope you like it. I've still got to get the square pillows for the solid brown shams that came with the set, and a curtain rod to hang the valance. But, we think its very pretty and much more grown up looking than my old apartment bedding.





We've also added finishing touches in the powder room, but I forgot to take pictures of that... later! Next on the list is drapes in the Master Bedroom and a rug and throw pillows in the family room. I've called an expert to help with these activities so we'll see how that goes.

Slightly Festive

Though we didn't do full Halloween decorations this year, I did pull out the general "Fall" decor. At the old house, I'd do the mantle and the dining room table and it really made the house feel festive. We don't have a dining room table and we didn't really have enough "stuff" to cover then new, huge kitchen table. So, I put it all on the mantle.


I think it looks really good, but I'll definitely be hitting up some sales to try to stock up on more things for next year. I'm starting to get worried about my Christmas decor and if I have enough. I'm pretty sure I DON'T.

Feeling Better???

I don't want to put the cart before the horse... But I'm on day 5 and counting of not getting sick.

Friday was miserable... I'm talking MISERABLE. I could only get off the couch to go to the restroom and/or attempt to throw up. Ugh, brutal. The only thing worse would have been actually throwing up all day.

But, since then, it's been 5 straight mornings of not getting sick. I even made it to work ON TIME (could even be considered "early") the past two days! Please let this be my new "normal", please.

I still can't eat Chik Fil A which is a sad, sad thing for me, but I do seem to be having more of an appetite. It's not showing on the scale yet (lost another couple of pounds this week) but I'm sure that is only a matter of time.

Explanation

For the past few months, whenever someone asks about the new house, the conversation always ends up getting some sort of comment along the lines of "Well, I guess you'll have to start filling the house with babies." Many of those comments have come in the past couple of months when we already knew we were pregnant and we just bite our tongues, smile and nod! :)

I've found that my blog is sometimes a little release for me. I don't know how many people read it and don't ever write anything profound that a stranger would enjoy. But, I like writing about the random stuff. When we found out we were pregnant and weren't telling anyone, I had to talk about it. I needed a place to say SOMETHING. I post on a local message board some, and that helped. But I also immediately wanted to chronicle the pregnancy.

So, I started this blog. I decided on a separate blog for a couple of reasons. First, I wanted it to be private for the time being. Also, I know that some people aren't going to want to read about my pregnancy and other baby posting as much as others. This way I can keep the baby stuff in one place and have all the house, travel, cooking stuff on the other blog.

When deciding on a name for the blog, it only seemed fitting to use "Filling the House" since we've heard that comment so often. So here we are... In the house for 1 month, almost 3 months pregnant and excited to know we are becoming a family of 4 (counting Admiral).

Halloween Fun...

Last night was the Hebert's 2nd Annual Halloween bash. We went dressed a Jim and Pam from The Office.
Pam is pregnant on the show (note the belly and ODouls in the picture) and Ryan is wearing Jim's "Facebook" costume from this year's Halloween Episode. If you are wondering about any subliminal meaning to me going as a pregnant woman... click HERE.

Going Public...

This blog has now gone public. All our friend and family found out the good news over the weekend.

We announced to our friends at the Heberts Halloween Party. We went dressed as Jim and Pam from the office. Pam is pregnant so at first, everyone just thought it was the costume. Then, someone said "Wait... are you trying to tell us something?" and the news was out. It was a good night and so fun to FINALLY tell our friends!