Dear Jackson

A few weeks ago, Brent showed me a video that Google made. Of course it made me cry because it was about a new father creating an email address for his new child. This email address became a journal of sorts for him to share with her when she was older.

So Brent, already being the good daddy that he is, created one for Jackson.  The address is dear.jackson.haywood@gmail.com, and anybody can send him an email.  We'll keep up with them and put them together in a book for him one day when he's grown.  I've been trying to think about what I want to say to him in that first letter, and I guess I need to get it together soon.  One thing I keep going to is the song "Words I Would Say" by Sidewalk Prophets.  They sing:

Be strong in the Lord and,
Never give up hope,
You're going to do great things,
I already know,
God's got His hand on you so,
Don't live life in fear,
Forgive and forget,
But don't forget why you're here,
Take your time and pray,
These are the words I would say,

He could be here in 3-4 weeks, and I'm so ready to see his little face and love on him.  And I know the Lord has great things planned for his life.  I can't wait to get it started!

Showers of Blessings!

Last week, we had a cluster of showers to welcome Jackson into our family.  I couldn't help feeling a bit overwhelmed at all of the effort our friends made for us, and I'm so thankful for it! 

On Thursday, my lovely work friends put together a lovely shower for us.  They did a great job with the food and set-up, and we laughed that it was odd that I wasn't there to help set up (since I am the SPP party planner). 

The gift table.

My long-time friend Lisa Wiley made this cute diaper cake in the same colors that matches Jackson's room. 

Here's one of the hostess gifts - the bouncy seat!  I really felt funny because I am not used to being the center of attention, especially at work!

Brent came to this shower because I had invited some other guys that I'm friends with, but they couldn't come.  So guess what - he was the only male there!  He did like he always does and kept everyone around him in stitches.  He even modeled the cute diaper bag we got.  But the funniest thing was that there were several items that he said "What's that" when I opened them.  Oh boy do we have a reality check coming!

(He was modeling holding the baby and the diaper bag at the same time!)

Here are the hostesses for the party:  Lamona Lawrence, Wendy Reynolds, Dawn-Marie Coggins, Lisa Wiley, Tara Bittle, and Elizabeth Solano.  They are each good friends and I'm so lucky to get to have these friendships at work!

So on Saturday afternoon, my parents came to my house and we hung out around the house.  On Sunday morning, we got up and went to church.  Here I am at my 34 week picture. 

After church, we had a BBQ lunch for me and the two other ladies who are due in June, Ashley McDonald and Nicarah Wooten.  We are all having boys within a few weeks of each other!  There are two more ladies who are due later in the summer, and one who is due in the fall.  We are a fertile bunch that's for sure!  Calvin and Ginger provided the meal, and it was so good! Grandpa's BBQ may be my favorite in town.

Here's all the loot - split between three couples of course. 

One of my favorite people ever:  Ginger Aldridge

Here's all the preggo's:  Ashley, me, and Nicarah.  Soon we'll be welcoming Joshua, Jackson, and Nathan!

After lunch, we headed back home where Sarah and Josh were waiting for us.  They had come to town that day just so Sarah could go to my next shower.  I had a "friend" shower at Lindsey Gray's house from 3-5 that same Sunday afternoon, and it was so fun seeing some of my college and post-college friends. 

The hostesses:  Janery Barnes, Lindsey Gray, Terri Cross, Monkey Williams, and Mandy Yates.

The super cute diaper cake!  I hate to take all of these apart because they are too precious. 

These cupcakes were the hit of the party!  My secretly crafty friend Monkey made them.  They're vanilla cupcakes, and the tops are cut marshmallows dipped in colored sugar.  She said they are very time consuming, so I am very honored that she made some for the party.  They are also tasty too! 

Aunt Sarah, Mimi, and me.  I should have taken a picture of it, but my sister got me a silver necklace with Jackson's name on it.  I haven't decided if I'm going to start wearing it yet, or wait until after he arrives. 

Brent will probably not approve, but he doesn't have a choice in this!  This is too precious! Whoever said boy clothes are not fun hasn't ever shopped for a little boy.

Brent's mom (aka Gamma) crocheted this beautiful afghan in his room colors.  It will be the perfect blanket for him to grow with.  (It's also Razorback, Panther, and Owl colors!)

All of the goodies that I got.  The only things that are left to get is the car seat\stroller ("travel system"), a mattress pad and some more sheets, and a changing pad. 

Mom and Aunt Connie chatting.

Melissa was able to come, so I had to get a picture with her and Sarah.  All we needed was Kendall, and she would have been there if she hadn't been in Chicago with her husband that weekend.  Someone asked me about a shower in McGehee, and there just wasn't time, so we're going to have a Sip and See after he's born.  This way all of our dear friends there can see and love on him! 

We were very grateful for all of the wonderful things we got to welcome Jackson.  Surprisingly, everything has seemed to fit in the room.  I need to start doing some laundry and buy some baby hangers, and we should be good to go. 

After all the parties, I didn't think I would be so exhausted, but I think it has taken me until Thursday morning to get back to "normal".  I'm still tired, making 1000 trips to the bathroom, but luckily I haven't had much swelling.  I am getting really anxious about his arrival, but I know that everything will be fine. 

The Officery

After several months of being in the box, we finally got all of the furniture put together and a few decorations up on the walls.  I am very pleased with the way it turned out, and I think Brent is too.  I had a few other wall art pieces, but they didn't make the cut.  Oh well.  I'll just put them under the bed and use them one day when he'll have his own room. 

The shelf above the changing table has some cars on it that are Brent's.  He had more that would have been cool to put out, but once again, not much space.  So I picked a few of the really cool ones to put out.  My goal was to make this look like a little boy, but not so baby-ish.  I wanted a color scheme and decor that would grow with him over the next several years. 

The reason that I call this the "officery" is because on the other side of the wall is our office with built-in desks and cabinets.  We are utilizing the space we have to the max, so hopefully this will do for a little while.  We didn't want to get rid of the queen bed (so Gamma, Mimi and Pops can come stay), so the office it is.  I'm a little anxious about where all the stuff will go, but I'm sure we'll figure it out. 

The print above his bed is made by a company in Memphis called Hal Jaffe Nameart.  Each letter is a photograph of something that looks like a letter, and you can pick from different pictures on the letters that you want.  It turned out really cute, especially the car wheel for the "O".  The teddy bear in the crib is his first one Gamma, who had it made at Build a Bear.   The bedding was custom made from a company in Alabama called Polka Tot Designs.  I knew I wanted red, white, and black, and there wasn't anything boyish at the department stores in those colors.  This company has so many cute fabrics and patterns that it was hard to choose from, but this was the one that I kept going back to. 

Tomorrow I have a shower at work, and then will have two more on Sunday. I am so thankful to all of our friends who love us and want to do special things for us and Jackson.  I really can't believe that in less than five weeks he could be here.  I am ready to see his little face (that I just know will look just like his daddy), and see what his little personality will be like (maybe more like his momma?).  We'll just have to wait and see!

33 Weeks

Size of Jackson: He's over 4 lbs and 17 inches long by now (according to Babycenter.com). Think about the size of a whole pineapple, and that's about how big he is now.  And I feel like there's a pineapple in there! 

Weight gain: At my last doctor appointment, I didn't gain any weight, so I think I'm right under the 20 lbs mark.  I try to watch the sugar and salt, drink plenty of water, and get to water aerobics when the weather and my schedule cooperates.  

Maternity clothes:  I'm running out of things to wear, especially shirts. I may have to buy a few more t-shirts to get me through the next 6 weeks, but I really don't want to.  Also, at this point, it's all flip flops.  I'm not having any feet swelling yet, but I just don't feel like squeezing my feet into heels.

 
Movement:  He's very active - especially at night - so I think that might be a sign of things to come.  Brent has finally gotten to feel him kick and move. I love looking down and seeing my stomach move in these weird ways, although when he slaps my bladder, it's not so fun. 

What I Miss:  I've definitely entered the "waddling" phase, and it gets really bad when I'm tired at the end of the day. I also being able to easily paint my toenails.  I do have a gift certificate for a pedicure that I plan on using next week. 

 
Cravings:  No cravings in the past few weeks. 

Symptoms:  My hips still hurt, but not as bad, so I'm thankful for that.  I've been having Braxton-Hicks contractions the past couple of weeks, but if I drink plenty of water, they're not as bad. I've been really tired and easy tasks make me feel like I'm running a marathon.  This week I had a big work event, and every time I walked from the auditorium to the dining hall, I was huffing and puffing.  It's really hard to have your body slow down when your brain wants it to speed up.  

Best moment since the last one:  Finally getting the changing table put together!  I've put some of his stuff in the drawers, and will have more stuff after the showers this week. 

And speaking of showers, last week, we had record rainfall that flooded 67\167 for about three days.  This made getting to and from work a nightmare, not to mention the poor people who had flood waters in their house.  Well, on Wednesday, we got word that the storage room we rent on the other side of town had flooded.  There was a foot of water that had stood within our unit, and we do have some damage, but we're very thankful that it's not much.  I had a bedroom suite that was in my apartment that's ruined, but fortunately my photo items and most of my Christmas stuff is OK.  We took off Friday to start the clean-up process, and we're also so thankful that my parents came up to help us out.  Let's face it, I really can't do much, so we needed a truck, trailor, and moving help.  


Here's what the damage looked like before we got started. 

So just add that to the list of things that have to get done before Mr. Jackson gets here.  In about 6 weeks.  YIKES!  There's something every weekend from now until the first of June, but I'm thankful for the activity.  We're having showers this week as well, and I am so thankful to my work, church, and college friends who want to welcome Jackson into the world.