Showered with Love

Over the past few months, 2 things have been very evident to me: 1) Pregnancy and the miracle of birth and how God created a woman's body to bear life in general all continue to absolutely AMAZE me, and 2) I have been blessed with some seriously awesome family and friends. Baby girl (BG) Bowen (who honestly remains nameless at this point) has had some pretty stellar celebrations in her honor recently. Each of these outlined below have brought so much joy and happiness to my heart. Relationships with these people - our closest friends and family - are what fulfill me as a person, and words cannot express how much I appreciate all of their love and generosity!

Celebration #1: Dallas shower for mostly Bowen family relatives and Bible study girls hosted by these beautiful ladies - Aunt Susan, Debbie, Aunt Kathy, Gan (holding Eli), Liz and Mary:


The shower began at 11:30 and we had a sit-down lunch - sour cream chicken enchiladas, salad, and rice followed by Lake Highlands Rock Cake from Sweet Temptations (to DIE for!!!). The tables were decorated with adorable centerpieces made of items from my registry: sippy cups, receiving blankets, cute toys, etc. all arranged in baskets decorated with animals corresponding to our safari-themed nursery decor. The hostesses also hand made these bows and headbands for baby Bowen to wear when she gets here - so stylish!!


Baby got lots of great gifts, including her bedding, a precious lamb rocker, and "vintage clothing" - 2 dresses and my baptism gown that my Mom saved from when I was a baby. Oh how I love such sentimental things!!!




There were also baby pictures of both K and I donning the coffee table. I wonder who she will look like and what her little personality is going to be. Such curiosity and many unknowns yet to come!

Celebration #2: Houston shower for mostly my family relatives and H-town girlfriends thrown by these beautiful ladies - Erin, Susan, Meg and Cath:


The shower began at noon on a Sunday, and we had brunch consisting of quiches, fruit, veggies, salad, muffins, etc. followed by Erin's version of Sprinkles cupcakes (also to die for, ESPECIALLY the icing!! - can you tell BG Bowen likes sweets?). These girls are way creative and the decor was perfect - from the handwritten messages on diapers for BG, to the clothesline of onesies, to the diaper cake with hand painted animals that exactly match our bedding, I was in awe!!


Unfortunately I was rather delinquent about taking pictures, but thankfully Erin was wonderful about capturing the moments and posted more about the shower, along with the delicious cupcake recipe, on her blog here. Another fave of mine - Meg asked K 21 questions about the baby over the phone earlier in the week (i.e. how did you know S was pregnant, how many kids will you have in the future, what has been K's favorite part about the pregnancy so far, etc.), and after she read the question I had to guess his response. I have to say I did pretty well overall and got 17 out of the 21 right. Go team!

Celebration #3: Dallas shower for "the group" in addition to other friends of mine that live in the Big D hosted by these beautiful ladies - Katie, Jen and Leah:


The shower started at 2, and we ate tasty afternoon h'ordeauvres including stuffed mushrooms, my favorite corn dip, spinach dip, orzo salad, fruit, and cupcakes (mmmmmmm - again, lovin' the sweets). The hostesses also arranged a basket of books from each guest to start BG's library along with a cute frame displaying maternity pics from the beach, a clothesline of dresses and outfits, and a beautiful diaper wreath that we'll take to the hospital with us to put on the door of our room once BG is born.

There were 3 sweet babies there, Davis, Nolan and Grace, all 3 of which provided great entertainment. Davis and Grace hit it off and have the potential to one day date in my opinion. He was absolutely mesmerized with her and she was flirting away like crazy!


As far as gifts go, baby Bowen stocked up on LOTS of cute outfits (she's going to be a little miss fashionista), fun toys, and this WONDERFUL quilt. I have to brag on my friend Mandy - she MADE it!!! Talk about some serious talent - I told her she should quit her day job and sell on etsy. I wish I were this crafty!


Unfortunately I was also somewhat negligent at taking photos at this shower as well; however, Leah was on camera duty and took a lot of great pictures. More to come...

To make an already long post even longer, I have to keep it real and admit that in spite of all of these celebrations and excitement revolving around baby, I still have fears about being a mom. I was reading through a friend's blog - one of my closest friends - who has always been a few steps ahead of me in life. I always say that she's my guardian angel and God placed her in my path to help guide me with her wisdom - i.e. she goes through college heartbreak, I follow 3 months later; she meets amazing new man and gets engaged, I get engaged 6 months later; she gets pregnant and her baby is born on my EXACT due date 1 year earlier. The parallels in our friendship are so strong that she often seems to take what I'm feeling right out of my heart and put it into words. Specifically this, which I found on her blog a little over a year ago:

"i go to the doctor monday for my first of my final 4-5 prenatal appointments every two weeks. kind of crazy. scratch that - it is crazy. the days are flying and although i'm so excited to begin this new chapter, i won't lie and say that i haven't had a few moments of either freak-out, sadness, or denial. freaking out because of the insane amount of unknowns heading my way, sadness over the loss of "just the two of us", and denial over how much my life is really going to change. sometimes i actually think i make the "life is about to change part" too big of a deal and [my hubby] has to remind me to think positive, remember it will be an adventure and a JOY. i recently heard a woman talk about how sleepless nights are draining, yes, but when it's your kid you don't have any regrets about doing it - it's just natural. it's comforting to remember that this won't be just anyone, but OUR little one."

OUR little one indeed...

Sometimes...

...I like to eat standing up in the kitchen. Like tonight. I had a PB&J sandwich, blackberries, Greek yogurt, a tall glass of skim milk, and brussel sprouts. I made myself eat the brussel sprouts. They were pretty gross, but I'm attempting to eat 1 vegetable per week minimum given baby. You'd think I could hold myself to higher standards seeing as how our unborn child's health is at stake, but I'm banking on the fact that my prenatal vitamins (which I take religiously) contain sufficient nutrients.

Sometimes I iron my clothes with my Chi when I'm in a hurry in the morning. Not like a full-on iron, but just if I see a wrinkle or 2. It's hot, easily accessible, and way more efficient than whipping out the ironing board and iron when I'm already running late. Is that bad?

And sometimes I am still in disbelief that I'm about to become a mom!!!!!!!! I'm around 31 weeks (gasp!!) and am now going to the doctor every 2 weeks. Baby's head has been down the past 2 visits, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she stays that way. Instead of sharp jabs, her movement is now more like an entire arm or leg scraping against the wall of my stomach as she twists and turns. She's gotten the hiccups a few times which is the most amazing thing ever. I still can't begin to imagine what it will be like once she's here, and in the meantime am making the most of each precious moment that K and I have together with each other, family, and friends before this monumental change occurs.

Below is the most recent belly shot. Thanks to my insanely short torso, she has nowhere to go but out. Contrary to popular belief, my doctor specifically said at my last appointment that baby is "not huge," rather she is average size and measuring right on track. Breathing is becoming somewhat of a challenge at night when I lay down and I'm on the verge of adopting a full-out waddle, but otherwise all remains well...