24 Week Update

So here is the 24 Week Update, a week late... :)
Last Tues was our doctor's appt. I have been rotating through the doctors at my practice so you aren't meeting a new doc for the first time on your delivery day, if your doctor happens not to be the one on call. Anyway, so I met with Dr. Bradford(Sue), who I know personally, as I worked with her husband, and it was a great visit.

MG made it difficult for Sue to get her heartbeat, making her chase her from the bottom left corner of my belly, over to the right side, to up above my belly button, before she settled down enough for us to hear that heartbeat clear. She was quite the show-off and Sue kept saying we were in "trouble"! She is constantly on the move these days, often times I wonder just how she is positioned to be kicking me in the spots I'm feeling her(like in my bum!).

I started feeling her kick right around 20 weeks, and Jeff really felt her the first time around 22-23 weeks. The other day he laid on my belly for a bit in the morning, when she is really pretty active and he felt some really good movements for the first time. It was exciting!

I have the "burps" a lot, and have had a couple more spells of "getting sick" the past couple weeks, but for the most part feeling pretty good in that department. It is getting harder to breathe and my appetite is starting to pick up. Yesterday I finished my big slice of pizza and then started on the end of Jeff's he couldn't finish! HA! Maybe that's why I gained 5 lbs this visit!! HA! I blamed it on the turkey and mashed potatoes that I ate!

I have also been experiencing a decent amount of back pain. This is said to be attributed to my anterior placenta as she is sitting on my spine instead of the placenta being a cushion between baby and my spine, therefore she has direct access to kick me there! And boy do I feel it!

I also was experiencing some sharp pains that I knew weren't quite right. I talked to the doctor about them, and turns out.....I have a small Hernia! Urrghh! I joked around saying I felt like my stomach was going to bust through my skin, well I guess it just about did! She said it can happen in pregnancy as your muscles relax and it makes it easier for your organs to push through those walls. Hopefully it will repair itself in a matter of time, if not, then they will do surgery after MG is born. It just makes for a little more discomfort and I'm now restricted to lifting no more than 5-10lbs! In the middle of packing and moving, I find that rather difficult, but I'd prefer for it to heal itself and so I am trying to refrain from lifting too much.

24 week Stats:
Bust - + 1/2"
Waist - +4" - the Belly is definitely growing
Hips - no change
Weight Gain - +5lbs, total to date 8lbs - gotta love the Holidays!

Madelyn Grace is over 1 1/2lbs now, and about 9 inches in length! She has outgrown all the "fruit" references regarding size now, and is about to be compared to a 2lb chuck roast regarding size now! HA! She is in a growth spurt in these next couple weeks gaining 1/2lb a week! Her little face is almost fully formed now, complete with eyelashes and eyebrows and some hair starting to grow on her head!
It truly is a miracle! We are soo blessed and continue to pray for her growth and health!

***I hope to be back this week to upload pics and with an update regarding our weekend; Jeff surprised me with a room downtown overlooking the Marion Square Christmas tree, and we went to his Christmas party. BUT disclaimer, I might not find the time bc my parents arrive this week and we close on our new house. We will be painting an entire house this weekend if you are bored and want to come help!! ;)

Happy Holidays!!

WAR EAGLE, a Baby Shower, and Thanksgiving!

Can I start with a WAR EAGLE!! Undefeated, 12-0!!!

I am Soo proud of my Tigers this year! They look great, never give up, play with heart, stand beside each other, regardless of all the mud that has been slung their way around this Cam Newton situation! I've never been more proud to be an Auburn Grad and part of the Auburn Family. I Believe in AUBURN and LOVE it!! I can't wait for the day I can take this little girl to a game and she can see and witness the true Auburn Spirit and LOVE for the "Loveliest Village on the Plains" !

I say this not just as a fan, but as a Graduate and a 4th generation Grad at that! My Great-Grandfather played for Auburn and helped on the field after! My Grandfather graduated from Auburn, my Aunts, my Uncles, both my parents! My sister and I! We are ALL GRADS!! I LOVE IT!! On my graduation day, I stood next to the Auburn Stadium in my cap and gown and my Great Grandfather stood on my shoulder! His picture from his days of playing was on the side of the stadium in a huge mural! He is in the Sports Hall of Fame! He has a "star" in the Auburn Walk of Fame! I could not be more proud! How many people our age can say they are a 4th generation Graduate all from the same lovely University! I LOVE AUBURN!

I was not oblivious to the situation with Cam Newton, but I stood behind Auburn and an innocent kid and believed we didn't do anything wrong! And turns out, I was right! I was appalled by the actions and words of many people, even friends and family, that wanted to think this 20 yr old kid was Guilty until proven Innocent. Don't we live in America?? Where a man is INNOCENT until proven Guilty??!! He is just a kid, who looked to his father for guidance and evidently his father was wrong. That's not HIS fault. The fact is, he is one of the most talented players in SEC history and not just because I'm an Auburn fan, but bc all his stats prove it! His father let him down! Shame on him! But shame on you, if you were one of those people that spoke so badly of him, he's just a kid doing what he loves, and you were slandering him without knowing the facts! Shame on you!

But I am proud of Cam for continuing to play hard and not let the negative thoughts and words of the rest of the world harm him! I'm proud of the Auburn family for being soo supportive of this young man. And I'm extremely proud of Coach Chizik for sticking up for his "son" and defending him against the negative media, even though his own father brought this on him.
I am Proud to be AN AUBURN TIGER!! :)

OK - now that my love affair with Auburn rant is over....I'll move on to a Baby Shower and Thanksgiving! :)
My sweet friends threw me a shower while I was home, since we won't be back in AL until after MG's arrival. Yes, we have a name! :) MGC!!
The shower was wonderful, thoughtful, and I'm soo thankful for these women in my life. Friends that have been there for everything, and I can't wait to introduce my little girl to these women!
We received some wonderful gifts and some true treasures that we'll hold dear to our hearts forever. She got her first bracelet from Jeff's Grandmother, she was given her Daddy's baby ring from Sally, and Mimi(my mom) knitted her a blanket and passed down my first hair brush to my little girl. We are thankfully for everyone and their generosity!

AU Diaper Cake!

The Wonderful Carriage Cake made by Sweet Magnolias(Nicole's mom and sister's business)

My Sis, Me, and Momma

The ladies of MG's Life(Jeff's Grandmother, Sally, Me, and Mimi)

My Beautiful Girlfriends!

3 Preggos! All a Month apart, in order....HA! We have been friends since Elementary School! Erin is having her 4th, my 1st, and Kim's 1st. I can't wait to find out what the other 2 are having! Erin isn't finding out, but Kim does in a couple weeks! I'm guessing Girl for Erin and Boy for Kim!

Thanksgiving was spent in Bham with my extended family! There was about 27 of us, all at my mom's house. It is always fun to get together and see everyone, as that's about the only time of year we see everyone now, bc of living so far away, and everyone having to fit in time with in-laws too. We are a little more split these days. Next year 2 more little ones will be present! Kerri is due about 5 weeks before me. :)

My SIL, Sis, and Me

Parker on Uncle Ronnie's motorcycle!

Mollie and Uncle Jeff! I think they could pass as father daughter in this pic for some reason....makes me smile thinking about him with his own little girl soon! :)

If you are still reading.....THANKS! I've been MIA and then upload all at once! HA!
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving with your family and are getting into the Christmas Spirit!

It's A............

GIRL!!!
YAY! Looks like ribbons and pearls are in our future! Both Jeff and I had guessed it was a Boy so we were pretty shocked to see that it was a girl. I have a video of when we found out. I wish we had gotten our faces but you can hear our reactions.

It was a fun day! I don't think I stopped smiling and was THAT mom to be that wanted to tell EVERYONE!! :)
Of course I went shopping right after our visit and had to buy her something!
I got her this little comfy sweet gown and her first book. "Good Night Charleston"

Dare I say it again, but I'm hoping I'm on the upswing of this sickness stuff. It's almost been a WEEK since I got sick and I've been off the Zofran for a little over a week! Prayers that it's OVER!!

We have had a name we have liked and talked about since even before we were married, but aren't 100% sure we are going to use it, so are holding off on telling that. Her middle name, which I contemplated actually calling her, I hear ALL the time now. It made me sad when I started hearing it so much, but Jeff says that I worry too much and not to worry about it bc it's pretty and we liked it! She would be named after my Grandma too, so that would be really special!

On to 20 Week Stats......
We shall see how much longer I actually share these, depending on how bad they get...ha!
Chest - + 1"
Waist - no change from 16 weeks
Hips - no change from 16 weeks
Weight Gain - 0lbs, this appt

Visitors and a Wedding!

Sally and Amanda(MIL and SIL) came for a visit! We had a great long weekend with them, even though they were pulling for LSU against Auburn. I almost told Amanda she could sleep in her car! ;) We did a lot of shopping, football watching, and Eating!! Boy did we eat! Sally had a list of restaurants she wanted to try and we did our best to hit some of them. Dinner at Blossoms, coconut cake and after dinner drinks(don't worry, I didn't partake in the drinks, although if I had, I would have loved a Bailey's on the rocks!) at Peninsula Grille, lunch at Glass Onion, and Brunch at Poogan's Porch! I was Stuffed! We also did a surprise early birthday celebration for Sally. Her birthday was Nov 1st, you can see her surprise when she walked in to see her birthday cake and us singing.... :) Great Visit!

Then last weekend we headed up to Greenville to celebrate the wedding of these two!! Nick Brown and Ashley Inabinet. Now Mr. and Mrs. Brown!! :)

The fall colors in Greenville were so pretty! Our Bridesmaid dresses were Eggplant and Spice, you got to pick your color, and from 4 different styles. I Loved my dress!! We had a spa day on Friday and I pampered myself with a massage, mani and pedi.

Jeff and I after the wedding, heading into the reception. (don't worry, I wore heels in the wedding and just changed into my flats for the walk to the reception)

Nicole, me, Jeff, and Jessica. You can see the "spice" dress on Jessica. It was like a pumpkin! The colors looked beautiful!

Me and the Beautiful Bride!!

Belly Pics.....Me and Baby C!! 18 1/2 weeks
We had our hair and make-up done, which was soo nice not to have to do myself

I really liked my hair. She put these braids in it and I thought they were cute! :)

A little sneak peak of something else exciting that is going on in our lives..... ;)

Love you all!!
PS- we find out the sex of Baby C, next week!! We are soo excited!! Get your predictions in.... :)

What's Your Guess??

Boy or Girl???

It's that time to take the poll?? We find out in 2 weeks!!
I can't wait to know which is growing in my belly and will be joining our family!!
I'm so anxious!
Nov is going to be a BIG month for the Coleman's!!
Stay tuned for more exciting news!! :)
Let us know what your guess is?
Hope you're having a great Monday!
ps-I spoke to soon, only off the meds 2 days and it started back. So Back ON them!! I think I have decided to embrace it and come to terms with the fact the sickness is here for the long haul. Lately it's an every other day occurrence...better than every day, I guess. :)

Baby Update

I just got back from the doctor for my 16 week appt! Things are looking great! Heartbeat was still strong, my uterus is making its way up, just under my belly button, I have finally gained back some weight, 3 lbs, and I'm happy to report I haven't gotten sick in a WEEK!! I'm still 7lbs down from the start of my pregnancy but she said she's starting my weight gain from when I started gaining! So my pre-preg weight just comes down. I'm on day 2 of weening off the Zofran and hope that it's over, and I'll be able to stay off of it this time. Say some prayers. Baby C's heartbeat today ranged from 149-152! My belly has also officially popped out!! Wow, has it! I literally woke up one day and there it was! So weird isn't it! I have attached a pic! I feel like it looks pretty big in this picture, but doesn't seem THAT big in real life, but I might be kidding myself. B/C I have been taking my measurements to see where my weight gain goes, so I can focus on getting it off after baby.

16 week Stats
3lbs gained
Hips - no change
Waist - +7 inches
Bust - +2 inches
No longer can wear my pants, buttoned at least. I wear the bella band and it works for now. Got a great pair of Maternity Sevens online and they are working great also. I'm also loving my leggings and dresses. Thankfully the boobs haven't grown too much, much to Jeff's dismay, but I'm very thankful, as that was my biggest concern.
I developed a pregnancy rash on my chest that drives me crazy and went to the dermatologist. He says it might likely be there until I have this baby! Boo! But gave me some stuff that should help with the itch in the meantime.

Also, if you're interested here is a video from our 13 week appt/screening of the ultrasound. It's kind of long, but she changes to 4D toward the end which is cool.
We got all Negative test results from our screenings which was a relief! :) (video was taking FOREVER to download and wasn't even progressing. Any Help? I'll see what I can do to post it later.)

Here is a pic of Parker for fun! It's from his B'day and we gave him his football pants and his mom and dad got him a new jersey! He thought he was soo cool!!

A Smile....

A Grandparents smile that is....
Call it emotional, sentimental, whatever you want, but lately I've been thinking about my grandparents. Maybe it's because I think about our parents being grandparents to our little one, and I pray they can experience and remember things with them like I do with my grandparents.
You see, I don't have any of my grandparents with me here on earth anymore. I have relived in my mind lately everything about them. Memories, laughs, things that just remind me of them, and mostly their smiles!! :)
I will find pictures and scan them one day but in the meantime, just use your imagination.

Grandma and Grandpa (My mom's parents)

Grandma - she was so talented. Crafty. She could knit, crotchet, needlepoint, paint, make porcelain dolls, sew, you name it she could make it. She cooked. She played the piano and organ and had an amazing voice! Her laugh was contagious and loud. She gave lots of hugs. She taught me how to cross stitch, and always had a project we could work on together. She made clothes for all our dolls. She was an amazing gardener. She use to say it was bc she talked to her plants. You had to prune and talk to them! Doesn't work for me, but she was amazing! She had the prettiest gardens and rose bushes at all their homes.
Her smile.....Big! Mostly with an open mouth bc she was smiling so hard or laughing! With Bright Blue Eyes!

Grandpa - so talented and crafty as well. He was an engineer, so if you could dream it, he could build it! He built my sister and my first play house, my brother a HUGE skate board ramp. He always was on the boat on the lake. He taught me how to ski. He worked for GE and was on the team that invented the self cleaning oven! So when you clean your oven, think of him! :) He was actually pretty quiet. But VERY organized. He used to always tell us, "Don't monkey with it." meaning not to put our grimy hands on all his stuff in his workroom! HA! He'd rarely say he loved you. When I would tell him, "I Love you" he would smile, close his eyes, and shake his head yes. I knew he loved me too! Even though, he didn't say it much.
His smile....short, mostly closed mouthed kind of smirk. With the most beautiful blue/grey sparkly eyes. His eyes smiled for him. :) He was Very handsome.

Grandmother and Granddaddy (my dad's parents)

Grandmother - active! wow! that woman could run laps around me when I was 10, no joke. She was a PE teacher. She put on my rollerblades when she was 70. She used to play hockey with us, with a pin cushion as the hockey puck. Do handstands in the lake, go ice skating with us and teach us how to twirl. She and my Granddaddy were avid tennis players. She played up until the day she couldn't stand anymore. She taught me how to ballroom dance. And was BIG on our southern manners. She also had the Longest hair! You wouldn't know it, as she always had it rolled into a very tight low bun. But when we would stay with them, she would let me brush her hair. Her hair was all grey and was almost to her bum! Yes, that long!
Her Smile....perfectly straight, always with lipstick on(sometimes on her teeth :)). Very poised, southern, and proper.

Granddaddy - he was funny! Always telling a joke or pulling a prank. He had some of the craziest things, like a remote controlled robot with a serving tray we called Cousin It, that brought everyone drinks! He was a Business Man, a Treasurer. He used to do this trick that he was pulling off his thumb and when I was little it always looked real. He taught me how to hang a spoon on my nose. How to play pool. How to shoot a gun. He always had this coin "egg" that you squeezed and it opened. Every Sunday at church I'd run to find him to get my dime for a doughnut and my quarter for my coke from the old school coke machine. Our church had one of the old school machines that served the 8oz glass coke bottles and then you recycled the bottle next to the machine. I look just like him! :)
His smile....crooked. He smiled with a mischiveous crooked smile, like he was hiding his laugh out of the corner of his mouth.

I will never forget their smiles! I was close to all my grandparents and miss them! :( But I LOVE remembering the memories!
I hope you remember smiles!