This is a little late because I’m almost 38 weeks as I write this… but the past 2 weeks have been such a whirlwind.

For 36 weeks, I posed with thank-you notes because I had so many to write.  I had a family/close friends baby shower on the 6th of this month, then (as a surprise) our 100+ member choir showered us with gifts, and then on the 11th my school staff held a shower for me, which Rob was forced to attend attended with a smile.  All of the showers were fun, and the generosity by people we barely know was astounding.  But the thank-you notes… the thank-you notes might kill us.

Currently, I am about 60 thank-you’s away from finished, and for that I am proud.  But, I ask- why is it impossible to find thank-you’s at Costco?  You would think that people would have lots of thank-you notes to write this time of year, and they might need to buy them by the case.  Perhaps thank-you notes are a dying art?  All I could find were packs of 24 at Target for $5, which was not bad.  But I had to buy 5 of these little boxes, which annoyed me.

Last week (37 weeks) was the last week of school before winter break, and since the week was so busy we didn’t get to take a photo.  Week 38 coming in a few days!

Royal looks the way I feel right now… totally worn out!  Teaching for the past three days (after a wonderfully relaxing week off) has been so difficult!  I feel like my energy is waning and I have no way to bring it back.  Only two and a half more weeks until winter break… I can do this (or at least, that’s what I keep telling myself).  I keep trying to be cheerful and innovative, doing the best I can to make school fun for my 5th graders, but it I am not myself these days and it is harder and harder to be peppy!

Everything is going well with the baby.  She continues to move and kick and squirm throughout the day.  Sometimes she gets in a weird position and elbows me/kicks me, I’m not sure which it is, causing me to gasp.  Not painful really, just surprising to have a little appendage pounding me from the inside.

My friend Erin from my UCCS grad program hosted a baby shower/luncheon for me a week and a half ago.  It was SO nice to see all of the girls from UCCS- it’s amazing to realize it’s been 1.5 years since we had classes together!  Here are some photos from our get-together:

Yum… buttercream frosting!

Erin, Cristy, and Kerry

Me, Jen, Stephanie, and Addie

All the pregnant ladies… Steph (14 weeks), Me (34 weeks), and Erin (28 weeks)

I’m also looking forward to seeing a lot of friends this Sunday at a shower that two good friends are throwing for me.  Cami is my best friend from childhood (I’ve known her for 21 years!), and Allison is a friend I used to teach with at AEES.  My mom is even coming down for the shower… I can’t wait!

Two weeks ago, at our ultrasound, Rob and I found out we’re having a GIRL!  We are thrilled… Rob is excited because he “had a feeling all along”, and I’m happy because I get to buy pink things.  Yup, I’ve got the girly-gene that my mom claims skips a generation!  According to her, our baby girl will not be into clothes, hair, or makeup, instead preferring to be active and get dirty.  We’ll see!

Here is her profile:

Now we just need to start on a nursery…

This picture was taken today after church- officially 12 weeks and 4 days along.  Baby is expected on or around January 6th.

We’re off to Estes Park tomorrow for vacation and we’re so eager to kick back and relax!  We have dinner with my parents planned at my favorite Estes restaurant, The Dunraven Inn, and Rob is excited to tour the famous Stanley Hotel.  I also hear it’s a great time to see wildflowers.  Either way, we need to go pack now.

See you all next week!