Counting down & getting ready...

We are 36 weeks pregnant and feel like we're in the home stretch!!  Baby Courter's room is close to being finished and we are planning on getting the rest of the items we need by Saturday.  So, hopefully by next weekend we will be all set and ready for this little monkey to make his/her big debut!!  Scott got the car seat base installed so we are ready in case this little human grows too impatient and decides to come early. 

We are working on getting our furry kids ready for the new arrival.  They have thoroughly sniffed the bassinet and car seat and tonight we took our first walk with Fanny, George & the stroller.  Prior to his training at K9U Georgie would bite the tires on parked cars so we were wondering how he would do with the stroller.  He was awesome, almost protective.  He heeled well and stayed right next to the stroller as Scott walked him and pushed the stroller.  Fanny was less than thrilled that we took the stroller with us; she acted like her feelings were hurt.  Toward the end of the walk she was doing better so we are confident that by the time the baby comes she will be okay with the family walks.  As much as she loves kids we're sure after a period of adjustment she will do just fine....especially when she realizes that the tiny human drops lots of food!

Well, we did get some interesting news at our doctors appointment on Monday.  Our doctor said that it looks like baby will be a solid 8 pounder!  We were really expecting a 6 or low 7 pounder.  We don't have an appointment this week (unless something happens) and then start next week with weekly doctors appointments.  It's hard to believe that our monkey will be here in just a few weeks!!  

I am getting HUGE!  Others are being very nice saying things like "you're all belly" but I own mirrors so I know the truth.  The swelling in my legs and the soreness in my wrists are annoying but not huge issues.  I'm still very much on a milk binge, I went through 2 gallons this week....maybe the reason for the giant baby.  I'm finding it hard to eat without being miserable afterward and I can use a lengthy nap at any point during the day.  I'm finding it difficult to get up off the couch without grunting or help from Scott and sleeping for more than a few hours at a time has become a battle.  The most current pregnant irritation is waking up in the night and finding both my arms are numb.  Apparently this is very common during pregnancy but it's one of those things that no one tells you about.  Scott is finding it helpful to get all the small things around the house done.

 Scott putting the crib together!

35 weeks and getting bigger by the second

Well, the next post may be the one announcing the newest Courter.....so stay tuned!! 

32 Weeks & Loving It!

To be exact, we are 32 weeks and 3 days pregnant.  I could stay this pregnant forever, okay not really, but I am loving this part of pregnancy.  Yes, I have moments where I feel huge; those feelings mostly come when I am trying to get up from a laying position or trying to get comfortable in bed.  I feel most like a whale when trying to roll over.

We are working to get monkey's room ready and things are moving faster now that National Signing Day is almost here.  For those that don't know, National Signing Day is better than a National Holiday in the Courter home!  Fresh, VOC free paint is on the walls, that's it so far, but we're excited about how much we'll get done in the coming weeks.  We have our names picked out.....No, we're not telling.  We LOVE the names, and love that they are family names with history behind them.  We have found our daycare & our pediatrician and we really like both, which is a big relief.  To be honest, we are really enjoying this time together but always wondering what our life will be like once this tiny person arrives.  

Things I currently LOVE:
~ Feeling Baby Courter flip, kick, punch and roll
~Apple juice....I REALLY LOVE APPLE JUICE!!!!!
~Playing "what body part was that?" with Scott after the above mentioned movements
~Going back and forth on what gender we think the baby is (we are both on girl today)
~Milk, milk & more milk!!!  Not kidding I've gone through a gallon in 3 days, we should buy stock in Braum's
~Pizza
~Blackberry Cobbler with Vanilla Ice cream (cobbler is currently in the oven)

Things I currently do not love:
~Heartburn
~Not being able to get comfortable
~Random emotional outbursts (Scott is not a fan of these either, poor guy)
~End of the day cankles

We are just so thankful for this tiny human.  We know how blessed we are and we are so grateful to be given this amazing gift.  We are very much looking forward to meeting this tiny human.  We are also really looking forward to our baby shower this weekend & celebrating with friends and family.  Hope to see you there, let us know if you need directions/info!!!! 

Broken hearted & 30 Weeks Pregnant

We said goodbye to our sweet Emipre today.  He was a part of my life for 11 years and was my first baby.  Empire taught us both so much and we will be better parents to Baby Courter because we had him in our lives. We wish he could have met Baby Courter but it was not to be. While we miss him terribly, we are comforted in the knowledge that he is in a better place and does not hurt anymore.  We made sure to get some pics of our 2 babies together....Empire was not excited but we will cherish these pictures!
 

He was such a cutie and always looked so peaceful when he slept

Please excuse my appearance, I had been crying A LOT

Bubba & Baby Courter

Even with all the sadness and tears (there have been LOTS of those) we have been trying to get ready for our little monkey to join us.  We worked on the nursery and it should finally be painted next weekend.  We also took our first childbirth class and we found that very informative. 

We'll have a better update soon.  

Best. Christmas. Ever.

Last Christmas we couldn't leave Durant due to snow, ice and road closures.  This Christmas we couldn't leave Durant because Beth was on call.  Last Christmas we were newly engaged and dreaming of a bright and promising future.  This Christmas we are newlyweds, expecting our first child and dreaming of a bright and promising future.  Last Christmas we thought we were blessed beyond measure.  This Christmas we are sure of it.


Beth's mom was able to come and stay overnight Christmas Eve.  We had a wonderful time with her and we truly cherish these moments because with dementia you never know what changes tomorrow will bring.  She had a great time cuddling with the dogs on the loveseat & we enjoyed hearing all her random giggling.  Chip came over after work and we all watched our traditional (and aptly named) Christmas Eve movie, "It's A Wonderful Life" 

Christmas Day Scott made stuffed pancakes for the Dilling women and then we opened all the presents Grammy & PaPa Courter sent to Baby Courter....who is already getting spoiled, and we love it! We pretended to be Mr. & Mrs. Crocker and cooked a big dinner.

Fanny was VERY excited about the ham.....

Happy was excited because Fanny was excited.

Too bad life doesn't have a pause button.....this was a great one, and over all too soon.

We really cherished this Christmas.....our last as a family of two, and wonder what next Christmas will be like with another little person around.

We hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas & wish you a 2011 full of blessings!

Giving Thanks.

It has been a while since we posted anything, and since then, life has been crazy busy.  All extra time has been spent just enjoying our little family at home, or sleeping (that last one is all Beth). We had a wonderful Thanksgiving as we traveled to Maryville, Missouri, to spend time with almost everyone on Scott's side of the family. It was great to have everyone there & just get to hang out. Our little monkey had never been more active as on the trip up and we enjoyed knowing that our little one was safe. The weekend was really a great one, the kiddos were playing, Nick was home safe, and great food was everywhere! It was also Fanny's first trip up north and she really enjoyed herself and made a new friend.

Riley was teaching Kendal the ropes

Pierson with a jowl death grip but the ever patient Fanny didn't care one bit

Fanny & her new best friend!

It really was a great trip & we can't wait to get everyone together again very soon.  The trip back was a long one and I was starting to get worried, but didn't tell Scott.  Baby had been VERY active all weekend and then Sunday on the way home there was just no noticeable movement.  Sunday night we talked about it and decided it was probably not a big deal, but by Monday morning, when our normally active little one was still not moving, we called the doctor.  We were told to go into the hospital to labor & delivery so we both left work immediately and headed south.  We were put into a room and Beth was hooked up to the monitor where we stayed for the next 3 hours.  

There were some nervous moments when the nurse couldn't find the heartbeat but in the end we were told that Monkey is fine and we were sent home tired but very relieved, apparently the long trip just tuckered our little one out. We also found out that day that Rod & Dannie (aka Pop & DanDan) got Baby Courter the carseat/stroller we were wanting so the next time we leave the hospital we'll be ready!

This week will be a stressful one as we are dealing with some issues with Beth's mom and her health, Scott being on the road recruiting, & Beth trying to get a ton of cases closed. Even though Thanksgiving is over we are still giving thanks that our monkey is okay and we have such wonderful friends and family in our lives. 

Here's Baby Courter!

Here are some pictures of our little monkey!! The nether regions have been blurred out (probably blurred out way more than was necessary) for those of you that want to know/would be able to tell. Yes Char, Ashley and Iashah I'm talking to you! We honestly have no clue and we like it that way, it really is fun!! So.....here's Baby!!


I think monkey's profile looks A LOT like daddy's

Kung Fu baby says HIGH YA!!

And a personal favorite....cutest foot ever


We are pretty excited and can't believe how fast time is flying by. Only 19 weeks to go!!!!!

For all those who are wanting belly pics, this is the only one I'm comfortable posting, feeling flabby and LARGE these days!


Oh and we got the all clear from the perinatalogist!!

The little boy in the blog.

So a while ago our friends Lindsey & Le were in the process of adopting from Ethiopia and since Scott and I have talked about adoption for a long time, we followed the blog. Okay, Scott followed the blog, I stalked it. Well, a friend of theirs had recently flown across the world to get her daughter and bring her home. I'm nosy so I wanted to see more and there was a video of the day she went to go get her little girl.....otherwise known as "Gotcha Day". The video of Lucy Lane's Gotcha Day made me cry. Not the kind of cry where you gently wipe a few tears from your cheek and still look pretty, the kind of cry when you can't catch your breath, your face scrunches up and you wipe the snot away with whatever is within reach. Don't misunderstand, it's not a sad video it's just raw and real and how often do you get to witness the exact moment in time when God's plan comes together and you SEE lives changed. Anyway I showed it to Scott the second he walked in the door and we talked, like we had before about adoption and how we felt that's in our future except that day the talk was different, deeper, but still the same outcome. Now is not the time, God is still working.

Here is Lucy Lane's Gotcha Day Video



So Lindsey is inspiring with her love for orphans, she is truly passionate and it's infectious! She posts a link to this organization called Drawn From Water that I had never heard about. Did I mention I'm nosy? I go to the site and there's a video. Did I mention I love videos? I watch the video. I am changed. Literally, this video changed me. I do not go a day without thinking about this orphanage and these kids.



So just like the song says, now that I have seen, I am responsible. I can feel a sense of responsibility and guilt for not doing more but I have no clue what to do, so I stalk that blog too. For those that are counting, we're up to 3 at this point. Then we fast forward; I start a new job, Scott & I get married, football season starts and we find out we're having a baby. Awesomeness, all of it. Still I check the blog and feel this sense of responsibility and guilt.

Then one day I see this face
and I know that day that while I cannot do much in this world, maybe Scott & I can do something for this little boy. So I email Levi and beg him to tell me who kid #10 is and what we can do. I already know that the children at the Drawn From Water orphanage are not available for adoption at this point, maybe never. Levi tells me that they are starting a sponsorship program and we can be the first sponsors and we can get THIS boy! Well, we do!! So now this little boy is ours; maybe not in our house, but we send our sponsorship and we try to do the best we can to make sure he gets what he needs to feel loved by people he's never met. Who knows, maybe it's in God's plan that someday we could have our own Gotcha Day with Kulo aka kid #10, maybe it's not. Either way this sweet boy is ours,
even if it is in some small way. Seriously, look at that face! Can't wait to get him in an Sooners (or Hawkeyes) shirt!!!

So just pray for Kulo and all those other kiddos who have a new life but still no families. Pray for us as we get ready to welcome this baby but still wonder about other kids that may be ours out there somewhere.

Oh and Lucy Lane's Gotcha Day video didn't just inspire me, watch her 1 year later to see what God has done........it's astounding.