Where are you Baby K?

The poll is officially closed and I can't believe it, but a BOY won by ONE vote!! Such a close call...we'll have to see if it is correct! Thank you so much to all that voted :)

Today is the day that Baby K is due to arrive in our arms and I just don't know that it's going to happen. All day yesterday I kept waiting for some kind of hint of this one making their arrival, however, nothing! I sat outside for most of the afternoon and watched Keith do some yard work. He planted 3 new beautiful rose bushes on the side of the house...this was his idea too, I didn't even have to nag for it to get done!! We went out to dinner last night too, so we had our official LAST DINNER without a baby. Crazy to think about!

If I could just vent for a second about sleeping...goodness gracious!!!! If anyone has any suggestions on what I need to do to get a little bit better of a night sleep I would be more than happy to hear. I have adjusted pillows and adjusted pillows without too much luck.

I am feeling pretty confident that I will make it to my 3:00 doctors appointment tomorrow...so we'll see what the results of that are! Stay tuned :) Looks like we're having a June baby!

Friday Update!

Yesterday was the 39 week and 5 day checkup...I was SURE that Dr. H was going to send me right on to the hospital. :) I took my hospital bag, the baby bag, my pump, and the laptop in the car with me, which is why I didn't have the baby yesterday!

I was SURE that I was dialated atleast 4 cm. this week, totally positive. Turns out, I am exactly the same as last week! Nothing new, which was actually quite sad to hear. I have had a wonderful pregnancy, can't complain, I have felt great the whole time. However, getting to this 38/39 week mark is not the most comfortable I have ever been. It is currently 6:44am on Saturday and I have been tossing and turning for the last 45 min, so I finally decided to just get up! Not being able to get comfy in bed does not thrill me!

The good news is that I could still start contractions at anytime, but if not this weekend, I have an appointment on Monday at 3:00 for an ultrasound and non-stress test. According to BabyCenter.com the NST (non-stress test) is to monitor the baby's heartbeat while resting and moving. Basically because I will be past my due date it's just to make sure everything is okay in there...I'm not worried since I feel this baby moving plenty. On Monday, if I haven't had the baby yet, we'll schedule an induction for that week. Baby K is coming ready or not!!!

I kept saying to Keith last night, this is our last weekend without a baby (atleast we think it is!). It's pretty crazy that next Saturday at this time I could be home with a baby, about to come home from the hospital with a baby, or having this baby! Everything hit me yesterday while we were waiting for the doctor. I started to tear up just thinking about how excited/nervous/anxious I am. It's so emotional...oh plus I'm very pregnant and I think I could cry over anything at this point. :)

Stay tuned!! Updates will be coming soon :)

Maternity Leave??

Last Friday was my last day of school for the year and I was soooo excited to have some time to just relax before the baby came. I kept thinking how good our "timing" was for having this baby at the end of the school year rather than in the middle. WELL...I am starting to think I was wrong. Granted knowing that the summer is just around the corner, did make it very nice to only make 2 1/2 weeks of lesson plans, as opposed to 6 weeks, but all of the end of year paperwork that needs to be done might be the death of me!!!!

I went to school on Monday for a half day to get everything situated with EOG scores and sending letters home to parents, worked on report cards...that fun stuff. Yesterday I spent ALL AFTERNOON, from 1 until 8, working on profile cards and assessment stuff! What on earth?? Then today I have to go in to get a whole list of other stuff finished. I really am not complaining (kinda?!) because atleast I am not teaching AND doing all of this paperwork stuff, but goodness...a teacher's work is never just finished. I wonder what it would be like to have a job that all you have to do is send out an email saying, "I will be out of the office from ____ to _____. Please contact _______ if you need personal assistance." How nice would that be??

Enough of that! Doctor's appointment is at 2:30 today, so we'll see what news we get from that! Baby K feels like he or she is about to POP out of my stomach!! :)

Votes Keep Coming In!

I love checking the "Will will" poll everyday about what Baby K is going to be! :) (That still really bothers me and I can't wait to change that!!) Little girl is still in the lead, but not by as much as she was earlier in the pregnancy. Keep the votes coming in, there are just TWO, yes TWO more days to vote until the due date!!!

As lots of you know today is the day Keith and I were secretly hoping Baby K would make their appearance. We were both born on the 28th (me in January, Keith in July) and we were married on the 28th of October. How cool would it be to have your baby born on the 28th? Keith would NEVER have an excuse to forget any important dates, if it's the 28th of a month, it's gotta be something! :) I will easily forgive this little one if they decide to come later, but there is still time today! Come on Baby K!!!!

Happy Memorial Day!

We had such a fun Memorial Day weekend! So much to do and so little time :)

Sunday was spent at the Mills' house all day! I parked it in the shade most of the time. They had a big kiddie pool and a baby pool set up in their backyard and all the kiddos were having so much fun in them. I put my feet in the baby pool for a little while and it felt soooo good! So I pulled a chair over and just kind of let me feet soak, while watching the kids. They were jumping around and starting jumping from the kiddie pool to the baby pool. At first the splashes felt really good, but them a rather large splash soaked me! I stood up and said to Keith, who was playing cornhole, "Keith, my water broke!" I thought I was pretty funny, but Keith and Darin just froze! The color slightly drained from Keith's face, but quickly realized I was kidding. :) I just crack myself up! Of course an evening at the Mill's would not be complete without a little Taylor Swift/Def Leppard...so that is how we wrapped up the night. It was a great day!

Monday, Keith and I ran a few errands and then headed to Hill's for a cookout. The weather was iffy, but we still had a good time. Hill and Starks kept saying, "the next time we see you you'll be a Mommy!" So true! It's pretty hard to believe. We took a couple pics and I realize I look HUGE, especially next to the two of them, but what can you do!?!

We wrapped up the weekend with the Mills' coming over for dinner and oreo pie! Needless to say this momma was exhausted yesterday and fell asleep even before the end of the Bachelorette! I'll have to catch up tonight. :)

The Waiting Game...

So the big question is, when will Baby K arrive? What is Baby K?? My sweet little man or girl? Keith is "on call" all the time, which is pretty cute. He had called me today and I didn't get to my phone, so I called back a little later and he didn't say "hello" it was "did your water break?" haha! I think it is just so strange to think that at any minute this baby could be wanting to make their entrance into the world. I could be typing this now and tomorrow go into labor, who knows! It is getting very exciting though!


Yesterday we went shopping for the little one and I bought a boy collection of outfits and a girl collection of outfits. It was pretty fun! We are sooo curious what this peanut is...I just can't wait to hear "it's a boy!" or "it's a girl!" I can already picture myself balling my eyes out...that's just what I do. I think Keith will be a little emotional too!

We're excited! Keep checking back for updates...you could see a picture of a baby any day now, atleast I hope it's sooner rather than later! :)

39 Week Tummy!

On Sunday I turned 39 weeks, which means that as of today I am just FIVE DAYS away from my due date!! I don't know how it is just about here already!?! I mean, I am HUGE!!!

I am still feeling pretty good...I just kind of don't look forward to going to bed at night because I can't get comfortable. I am literally awake every hour or two switching positions and/or going to the bathroom. Heartburn has been bothering me a little too lately, but popping a couple tums seems to do me just fine! :) Other than that, I feel good, but am ready for this baby to arrive!

Nesting Saturday

Keith left this morning to go play golf and I felt like I had about a million things to do! I started with laundry, totally stripping our bed and washing EVERYTHING, then working my way into the nursery. I worked in the closet for about an hour and a half, just trying to organize all of the stuff, getting as ready as possible for this little one to arrive!

I have been feeling some "cramping" today, not often, not really uncomfortable, but a little something. Everytime I feel something I feel like I am going into labor. I even looked up online today how to know if I REALLY am in labor!! I have a feeling I will know :)

Here are some updated pictures of the nursery, still not finished AT ALL, but just a couple more pics. I spent way too long in that room today, but it felt good! I did some more laundry too, so this baby has a couple things to wear! :) (I am SOOO itching to go shopping for this baby! It's killing me!)

Dinner at the Davis'

Momma Davis and Parker

Bailey checking out Parker!

Last night we took Steph and Jeff dinner and they were kind enough to let us eat with them too! It was great to see them and let me just say I hope I look just like Stephanie Davis ONE WEEK after giving birth! She looks awesome :)

Conversation at dinner was hilarious. Rather than talk about work, what's going on with life, what bar to go to...it was talk about giving birth, having a baby, and all that come with it. We were laughing at how different everything was once a little baby comes along, how great it is for them, just different. Of course I had to get some hold time with Parker man too...he is just such a little peanut!

Bailey went with us, to play with Jackson, and we were excited to see how he would act with Parker. Let me just say, it was PRECIOUS! Bailey would just sniff at him while he was in his bouncy seat, while I was holding Parker, he would just lay at my feet, then when Steph picked him up and showed him to Bailey, he gave Parker kisses on his hands. It was so sweet. I tried to capture, but my camera was not cooperating, so I had to get a different shot. Oh well, still cute!

Seeing Parker gets us more and more excited to meet this little one...any day now! :)

2 Down, 8 to Go!

I had a doctor's appointment today, which I was feeling really anxious about to know if I was dialated at all. I had a feeling I might be, but I've never had a baby before, I don't have a clue!! THANK GOODNESS we were called back pretty much right away, unlike last week when we had to wait an hour and a half!! Anyway, blood pressure, weight, all that stuff was good. The heartbeat of the baby today was in the 130's...so today the baby was "beating like a boy." This has totally stumped us as to what this little one is! :) It's exciting though because LITERALLY before we know it, this little one is a-comin'!

The doctor said she didn't have to check me, but since I didn't last time, I figured I might as well this time. As unpleasant as that is, she told me that I was TWO CENTIMETERS dialated!! I'm about 70% effaced as well. Now I know this doesn't mean I'm going to have the baby tomorrow, but it will be soon! I was so excited to hear this news, but then the more I thought about, the more nervous I got!

Oh...I also asked, "so about how big do you think this baby is?" The doctor predicted about 7 1/2 to 8 pounds RIGHT NOW! In my mind, I'm thinking I need to lay off the brownies or I will be pushing out a 10 pound baby!! :)

It is very exciting and I was glad to have Keith there again. He is very excited that I am dialated...this is really happening, and it will be soon!!

Mommy Mobile!

No, no, and no...we did NOT get a mini-van! (Not yet anyway!!) However, last night a Rolesville Police Officer came to our house to install the carseat base for us and certify it. It felt very strange getting in my car this morning and seeing that little car seat back there, knowing that before we know it a little peanut is going to be sitting pretty or handsome in it!! I can't wait for that car ride home from the hospital, I know I will just be staring at that little peacefully sleeping baby. (He or she will be peacefully sleeping right?!?! Not screaming at Mommy and Daddy already!??!)

We are just so excited! Doctor's appointment this afternoon, so we'll see if there is any progress! Another thing to be excited about...tomorrow is my last day of school! It will be very strange not coming to school every day, but it will be VERY nice to SIT and relax before this peanut arrives!!

The Countdown...

I CAN NOT BELIEVE we are just 2 weeks away from my due date!!! Where has this time gone? I was looking back to an earlier post, when I thought I had a baby bump...haha! That was NOTHING! I think people look at me like I am going to pop any second now and sometimes I kind of feel that way too!

Today was a big day! Daddy Keith got the car seat and base out and ready to take to the fire department this week to get inspected...he put together the pack n' play, bouncy seat, and swing! It is baby central :) I have a couple things to go pick up at Babies R Us this week and then I think we are good to go, for now atleast! I have been adding things to my "hospital bag," which is just about as ready as it can be for now. It is crazy to think that before long we will be tossing that bag in the car and heading to the hospital.

Not only is the countdown on for little peanut to arrive, but the countdown is on until MY last day of work. Friday will be my last official day at school and I just can't believe it is here! We have the EOG's (End of Grade Tests) this week until Wednesday, then just Thursday and Friday! I can't believe it!! I went to school today for awhile to finish up all of my lesson plans for the 2 1/2 weeks I will not be at school and I feel sooo much better now that they are done. What a relief!! Still LOTS of paperwork to do, but the lesson plans were my top priority!

Tonight both Keith and I feel like this is our little girl in here, we'll see what tomorrow brings! It really is crazy that we don't know if this is our little boy or little girl...we have LOVED not knowing, but now we are really getting curious!! :)

Welcome Parker Chad!

The proud Mommy and Daddy!

Keith practicing with Parker!

Yesterday we went to the hospital go to visit Parker Chad Davis! He was born on Friday night at 6:48 and what a cutie he is :) His daddy, Jeff Davis, has been friends with Keith since they were about 10 years old. They grew up in the same neighborhood in NY and both moved down to NC around the same time. We lived in the same townhouse neighborhood, both boys started dating a Stephanie, both married a Stephanie (smart!), and now both boys are having babies at about the same time! It's pretty cute!

Parker is such a handsome little man and we can't wait for the kiddos to become best friends. If this little peanut is a boy, the competitions will begin probably at one week! Keith is ready to watch football this fall with our peanut, Jeff, and Parker...the boys think it will be a piece of cake! :)

Congrats Steph and Jeff! We are so excited for you! :)

The Foot Rub!

Keith is NOT a foot guy AT ALL!! My feet, or any feet, totally gross him out! Seriously! I don't think he has EVER rubbed my feet. He is never opposed to me getting a pedicure because it means he is off the hook :) Well my feet have really been bothering me lately and last night they were especially. I asked if Keith would rub my feet, expecting the "no way!" He got creative, put on his winter gloves, which made me laugh out loud, and rubbed my feet. Our neighbor, Darin, couldn't believe he was seriously going to wear gloves to rub my feet, but I said it didn't bother me at all. A foot rub is a foot rub! :) It felt fantastic and I was very proud of Keith...now he doesn't have any excuses, I'll just say, put the gloves on!

PS...About 10 minutes after Keith rubbed my feet, Margaret, Darin's wife, came over to REALLY rub my feet. Bless her heart! I felt bad, but at the same time I wasn't complaining at all! It felt great and she rubbed for ever!!! :)

Date Night!

Last night Keith and I went out on our "last" date night before we become a Mommy and Daddy. (well we think it was our last date night anyway! who knows when this little one will arrive!) It is Triangle Restaurant Week and Keith found a couple great restaurants. One that we wanted to try was booked solid with reservations until TUESDAY! Must be a pretty tasty place. We went to a restaurant downtown called Solas and it was delicious! We were able to sit outside, under a fan, and it was perfect! It was such a nice night!! I think for females to work at this restaurant you have to be a negative 6 in clothes size though...needless to say I was not feeling so slim last night! :) The food was great though and Keith and I had a great time! Keep in mind we were out of there by 7:30 and home by 8...just in time to watch Grey's! (I mean...what's up with Izzy and George?? I can't believe we have to wait until September to find out!)

It was a great night out and I feel so lucky! I have a great husband, a little baby on the way, a week left of school...things are looking great! :) We are so excited to meet this little one!

38 Inches and Counting

On Thursday we made yet another trip to Chapel Hill for a doctor's appointment. Everything is still looking great and the little heartbeat was "beating like a girl" in the words of the doctor. This baby has had a heartbeat anywhere from the high 130's to the mid 150's. So who knows!! Thankfully the doctor suggested against checking my cervix this time, I think partially because it was just about 5:30 until she saw us and my appointment was at 4:00!!! ANNOYING!! I was okay with it though. She said the chances of me being dialated were pretty slim. When she measured my stomach I was a healthy 38 inches, just a little bigger than the 37 1/2 weeks pregnant that I was...I have a feeling this is not going to be a petite baby! So back again I go next Wednesday and we will see if I am progressing at all! :)

Taylor Swift :)

We are so lucky to have such wonderful neighbors, all of them are great! Darin, Margaret, and Morgan, across the street, are three people that are truly great friends of ours! Well once upon a time Darin happened to record a CMT Crossroads of Taylor Swift and Def Leopard...it is pretty great! Keith and Darin have spent many an evening on their 3rd floor BLARING Taylor and Def! :) It seems to get louder and louder with eash Crown Royal that hits their mouth as well! If I had to guess, I would say the boys have watched Taylor Swift about 100 times, if not more, SERIOUSLY! Not only do these boys love the songs, but they do love some Taylor too, saying she is a pretty hot 19 year old.

About a month or so ago I got an email about tickets to the Taylor Swift concert in Greensboro and asked Margaret if she thought the boys would like to go. We agreed they would LOVE to go, so as part of Keith's graduation present I was going to get he and Darin tickets to the show. It is on June 12, which means we could have a one or two week old baby, but no big deal! :)

Last night at the party, Morgan, Darin and Margaret's four year old, gave the gift bag to Mr. Keith. He had both Taylor Swift CD's and then an envelope to open. Keith looked in the envelope and saw it was Taylor tickets and needless to say the boys were VERY excited!!

Be on the look out for a post-concert post, but Margaret, Morgan, our peanut, Kristin (Keith's sister who will be in town), and I are going on a road trip with the boys to Greensboro on June 12th for the Taylor Swift concert!!! They will most likely be the oldest men, maybe only men, at the concert, but I'm sure they will have a great time!!

Mother's Day, Part 2

Mother's Day happens to fall on the day that I turn 37 weeks pregnant! I recieved my email today that said, "Congratulations, you have a full term baby!" I think when I read that, my heart skipped a beat. I am so thankful to be having this baby...it caught us off guard in the first place and for the little one to almost be here is just crazy to me! It is hard to believe that at this point I am to be looking for signs of labor!!! (Lord, please let it be easy!)

For Mother's Day Keith got me a magnolia tree, which I love! He was very sweet and said that they bloom May to June, which will remind me of the peanut being born each year. I was pretty excited :) By the way, do you love the outfit I'm sporting today? On Thursday we're going to go to Maggiano's, YUM, for dinner to celebrate a late Mother's Day. (Magg's is close to the doctor, so we're just going to kill two birds with one stone!)

I can't wait for next year, when I have an almost one year old to celebrate Mother's Day with! Swies (Aunt Stef) was so sweet to call me this morning to wish me a Happy Mother's Day...I cried, of course!

Happy Mother's Day again to all of you Mommas!! I hope you have a great day!! :)

Happy Mother's Day!

I have been thinking today about the job of a mother...I am so lucky to have so many wonderful women in my life that set such great examples of what it means to be a mom. I love the advice that I get from my sister-in-law, even though she is a little TOO blunt and too the point, the advice I get from Ellen...it just makes me feel like I can do it!

From the moment I found out we were having a baby I have just thought about the kind of mom I am going to be. I just want to be a good mom...I want my kids to know that I always love them, that if I get upset it's for their own good :), and that I want nothing but the best for them always. I want them to know that I love them unconditionally. I know things won't always be perfect, as nothing is, but I will say it again, I just want to be a good mom! I never want my kids to feel like they can't talk to me about something or that I am not there for them. I want for Keith and I to be able to create fun family traditions, go on fun vacations, work on projects together, I just have all of these ideas circulating around in my head. There are so many fun and exciting times to look forward to and from what I hear, the time just goes by so fast!! I don't want to miss a thing!!! :)

I know that when this little peanut arrives it is going to be wonderful!! I really can't wait and Keith is getting very excited too! I don't know what it's going to be like to be a mom, but I am ready for the challenge and ready to do the best that I can!

Congrats Keith!!

Yesterday was a big day for Keith Alexander Kepplinger...after 2 1/2 years of working hard at NC State, he has successfully graduated with his MBA! :) I am so proud of him and I have to admit that I cried when he walked across the stage to get his diploma. (Keith wasn't able to walk at his undergrad graduation at John Carroll, because his mom was so sick at the time.) Needless to say it was a very proud moment for Keith, his dad, my family, and I!

We had to be at the RBC Center by 10:45 for graduation to begin at 11:30. WELL, the graduation that was earlier that morning was running late, so we had to wait in the lobby for about an hour before we could go sit down. There was another family in front of us that kept looking over at me and offering their chair to me, they thought I was going to pop any second! :)

After graduation it was time to get home to get everything ready for the party. It went really well, except when the sky opened right as we were getting dinner out! It was fine though, it all worked out! The food was good, I had lots of great helpers, and by the end of the night I was exhausted!! :)

CONGRATULATIONS KEITH! I am so proud of you and Peanut already appreciates all of your hard work too :)

Every Week!

I am at the point now that I am going to start going to the doctor every week. Yahoo! Before my last appointment I was told that they would have to "check" me from now on to see if I was dialated or anything, plus I had to be re-tested for I don't even know what and strep B. Anytime they say they need to "check" you, that gets me all nervous. I decided that Keith should come along for moral support this time and boy am I thankful he did! :)

We were waiting for the doctor, I got weighed, and had the blood pressure checked, which was a little higher than my normal, but still good! When Dr. H came in he checked the heartbeat, which was steady at 140, and measured my 36 inch stomach. :) Then came the time for the "check!" Keith kind of saw what he was doing, but my favorite line, which I know several of you have heard already is, "I don't know what that metal thing was, but I am glad it was nowhere near my @$$!" LOVED IT! I literally couldn't stop laughing and ladies you know exactly what metal thing I'm talking about!!! :)

So now I get to go back on Thursday for the 37 1/2 week check up. As of last Wednesday I was still closed, not dialated at all. Fingers are crossed that it stays that way until the 22nd so that all of my lesson plans are done!!! :)

One HOT Momma...

Now I am NOT referring to myself as "hot" by any means, but I am HOT!! The air conditioner can not be kept low enough!! Keith is freezing half of the time, but I think it feels great. I can not imagine being big and pregnant in the summer...I am more thankful than ever that this baby is coming in May or June, not August!!

In my trailor at school I am lucky enough to control my own temperature as well, thankfully. The kids were shivering last week and I felt awful, but I literally was sweating! I told them that Baby K is making me very hot and if they are cold to bring a sweatshirt! I know I am terrible, but this momma does not want to be sweating all day! :)

CONGRATS AUNT SANDY!!

I am soooo excited to share the news that my good friend Sandy got engaged on Friday night! We are so excited for her and can't wait for all the wedding details to start taking place :)

It just so happenend that a cookout was planned at her house the next night, so we were able to see her AND the bling!!

Aunt Stef and I :)

We are so excited for you Sandy!! Love you :)

Happy May!

It is so hard to believe, but the month has come! It is MAY, the month our baby is due!! As I was getting a couple things together in the nursery tonight, I just kept thinking that there is going to be a baby settling themselves in this room VERY soon! On Sunday I will be 36 weeks, "full term."

I am feeling VERY overwhelmed with all that I need to have done at school before my last day, which will be May 22!! I know it will all get done, but it's so much paperwork! I just never feel ahead...I guess a lot of people feel that way though. :)

We have LOTS to do this weekend to get ready for next weekends BIG festivities! It's going to be so fun having so many family and friends here to celebrate Keith's graduation from MBA school!