It's A...

Well, the majority rules this time! It's a BOY! We are proud to announce that Grayson Earl Mays looks healthy and is doing well!

Grayson's first picture!

We are super excited! Now I have to get used to thinking about boy stuff instead of girl stuff! Ha!

Earl or a Girl?

Today we went to the new Carters Osh Kosh store that opened nearby. Can I just say that that store is baby shopping heaven and I wanted to buy everything in sight?! I have always been a big Carters fan and was sooo thrilled when Charlie came home this week and said he saw an ad in the paper that said one was open near our house. I think I might have screamed with happiness. I probably shouldn't have admitted that. Anyway, we ventured into the store and I found two outfits that I thought would be perfect for the new addition to the family. The girl outfit was ruffly and pink with an elephant and the boy outfit was stripey with dinosaur feet. Both were so cute! So, I'm asking you to place your vote before Friday (the long awaited ultrasound day!) on my poll...which outfit do you think I will be buying next weekend when we find out? Make your choice and check back to see if you are right!
Oh, by the way, Charlie has called the baby "Earl" since the moment we found out we were expecting. He has long awaited a boy to be named Earl in honor of his granddaddy. It will be the boy's middle name if that is what we are having. So...our running joke is that the baby is either Earl or a Girl! Ha!

18 Weeks

Is there a belly coming?

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: I'm 18 Weeks!
Size of Baby: The baby is the size of a bell pepper!
Total Weight Gain/Loss: As of last week...I have gained two pounds!
Maternity Clothes: Happily moved into my maternity jeans and maternity sweaters I had from last time.
Gender: We will find out February 25th.....next Friday! I can't wait!
Movement: I have been feeling the baby a lot more. It definitely feels like a kick now!
Cravings: Brownies, cheeseburgers, yogurt, oatmeal cream pies...obviously most anything that is not good for me!
Symptoms: Sleeping much better, but have had some CRAZY dreams!
Best moment this week: Feeling the baby kick! Charlie even got to feel it once, he was so happy!

Valentine's Day at Build-A-Bear

I hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day. We really had a nice time celebrating together as a family. When Charlie got home we took off to the mall to eat at the Old Spaghetti Factory...yum! Claire ate a ton too, which is always a gamble...you never know how that girl is going to eat at restaurants! We told Claire that we would let her get an animal after we ate. She decided (hmmm...with the help of Daddy who liked the cat the best) to get...a cat!

so proud of her "Valetine's hair"

So after an exciting hand-washing experience in the bathroom (those hand dryers are always hard to pull Claire away from) we walked to Build-A-Bear. I was excited to have a $5 off coupon!

Claire enjoyed taking the hangers of dresses and dancing with them...I think she had to find the perfect twirl before she knew what to put on her cat. Needless to say, we got a few snickers over her dancing in the middle of the store with a hanger! But, she chose the perfect pink ballet dress. It came with a matching bow and pink ballet shoes.

Daddy helped dress the cat.

I tied the shoes...those were out of Daddy's expertise.

Claire then danced with her cat...

And danced some more...
We did eventually have to stop her from knocking people over. Man, she is in her own world while twirling!

She held the "house" for her cat the whole way to the car. They gave her free candy too. The conversation in the car went like this...
Claire: Cat sleeping in house. Shoes on. Dress on. Bow on. Eat candy!
Me: Do you love your cat, Claire?
Claire: Pink dress. Pink Shoes. Cat sleeping. Eat candy!

Ahh...so fun!

17 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: I'm 17 Weeks!
Size of Baby: The baby is the size of a turnip!
Total Weight Gain/Loss: I go to the doctor tomorrow and am going to find out!
Maternity Clothes: I am happily wearing my new jeans...and the sweater is maternity too. Most every shirt looks okay still.
Gender: We will find out February 25th! I can't wait!
Movement: I feel that little bump more and more.
Cravings: Root beer, yogurt. Charlie says I have eaten really well this week (that means no complaints...ha!)
Symptoms: Sleeping much, much better. No other symptoms to report!
Best moment this week: I am sure my best moment will be hearing that little heartbeat tomorrow!

Also, just so you know this is what has started happening every time Charlie takes my picture. A little voice starts yelling, "I want to show my belly too! CHEESE!"

I think she might look more pregnant than me!

Skating with Daddy!

Today we ventured out to take advantage of the free public skate at a nearby rec. centre. Claire was super excited to put her skates on!

Back in the summer, we bought used skates for Charlie and me. We bought skates that attach onto Claire's shoes and they work pretty well. Claire just mostly "walks." Unfortunately we lost one of the straps for Claire's skate awhile ago, but Charlie fixed it with a dog collar..ha!

A minor skate adjustment

Claire got tired, so poor Charlie was stuck having to carry her while skating. He was proud to report that she is getting more confident, though. Lookout Canada, here comes Claire!

It was a fun 45 minutes. And the rink was packed! I am happy to say that we were not the only ones who were one step up from hanging onto the rail for dear life! Good thing I wasn't out there, because I would have definitely made our family look bad! :)

16 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: I'm 16 Weeks!
Size of Baby: The baby is the size of an avocado!
Total Weight Gain/Loss: Probably...I go to the doctor Friday, so all of you who are dying to know...I'll let you know then! Ha!
Maternity Clothes: I have happily moved into my new maternity jeans! I got them from Thyme Maternity which is only here in Canada. It was fun trying all the different styles on!
Movement: I have felt the baby move a few times. It is has upgraded to more of a bump than a wiggle!
Cravings: Oatmeal Cream Pies, KFC Chicken Fries, Yogurt, and thanks to Charlie...Valentine's candy!
Symptoms: I'm still sleeping better...I just keep thinking that I will never go back to the sleep I was having before with the continuous growing bigger and then the feedings with the baby...yikes!
Best moment this week: Acquiring maternity jeans...I can BREATHE! :)