Christmas Pictures 2009


Pictures of Mommy and Daddy Christmas of 2009.

We were 18w1d pregnant with you!









Uncle John, Aunt Nicole, Daddy, Mommy, Uncle Scooter,
Aunt Leslie, and cousins Jaxon and Tanner.



Misletoe!!!!



xoxoxoxo

Lotsa Pics - Part 3

Sweet Baby Mason's Nursery!!!!

Mason's crib with some of his new outfits. The first outfit Nate and I
bought at Babies R Us. It's so sweet. Hopefully it will be his going home
outfit if it's not too big. The Camo overalls we bought in Canton. The 5
John Deere outfits are from his cousin Jessica. And the overalls we ordered
from Children's Place. Too fun!!!



Right hand side of Mason's room.



New dresser from Mason's Papa Stowell!! He got it at our
favorite anitque store in Hachie. LOVE it! Dad is going to
stain it a little darker to match the "Expresso" color of our crib.
He's in the process of moving right now, so it will be after the move.
I couldn't wait and already stored stuff in it. :) Aww, nesting!



Top of Mason's dresser...for now. I am going to paint the
Train letters to match his bedding. The boot bank and musical box
on the right hand side were Nate's when he was a baby! I am so happy
to get to display them in Mason's room!



Mason's "Big Brother" Diesel hanging out in his room!



Mason's rocking chair we found at Canton!!! It was perfect and we
couldn't pass it up. Nate and I bought the monkey on the right
hand side and Papa Jacky bought him the sock monkey!



Mason's new diaper bag from Canton!



Mason's TV from Papa John, and rockin' bull from Papa Jacky!



Bucket of toys and boys!



Temporary bedding until our new set comes in the mail. We
bought this set at Canton, but weren't completely happy with it
once we got it home. We ordered a more "babyish" theme from
Babies R Us. It's a "Barn Dance" theme and sooooooo cute! Can't
wait to get it.



Just an extra blanket monogramed!



That's it for now. I am sure it will change again...hey I am pregnant and
reserve that right! Plus, we want it to be absolutely perfect for our baby boy!


Lotsa Pictures - Part 2


19w3days

The angle on this one makes me look HUGE!!



I like this one better!!




And of course...Daddy at 19w3d




Lotsa Pictures - Part One

Here are the pics from our first "gender determination" sonogram - December 19th at Stork Vision. We were so blessed to get to see our little Mason in 3d.

Didn't take her long to find his "boy parts" at all!!



Here Mason is facing the camera! They call this the "Alien" shot. Aww...




Mason is still facing the camera in this one, but here he has
his hands up by his face!



Awesome picture of his spine!



And then the awesome 3d images of our SWEET BABY BOY!!!

Mason Lane Hall






Never Say Never...

Okay - so I remember early in my pregnancy someone was talking about belly buttons being innies or outies. I made the comment "Yeah, I don't think my belly button will ever be an outie because it's so deep in my stomach. It's almost touching my backbone!!". And I totally believed that to be true. But let me tell you, pregnancy is FULL of surprises. You never know what to expect when it comes to a pregnant woman's body!! Soooo...Tuesday I was reclining on the couch watching Deliver Me (of course!) one of my favorite baby shows on DHC...looked down and saw my stomach that seems to be growing by the minute. I lifted my shirt and what did I find?!?!? Low and behold - my belly button is just minutes from being an outie!!!!!!! OMG - well, maybe not quite...but it's definitely almost even with my belly. I freaked out and texted Nate right then. Later did I found out he read it in front of his Mason buddies at the lodge and laughed out loud!!! Anyhow, before I could stick half of my finger in my belly button, but not anymore....just my finger tip! So crazy.

Now I spend so much time laying down and staring at my belly just waiting for Mason to move!!! Can't wait for that.

xoxo
Crystal

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

BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are having a SON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yay!!!

Wow, so much to catch up on! It's been crazy with the holidays...I don't even know where to begin!

Well, about a month ago we scheduled a sonogram at Stork Vision in Mansfield for December 19th. We wanted to surprise our family with the news of the gender of the baby (hopefully) for Christmas. Also, Stork Vision offers a dvd of your session and my doctor does not. This is a keepsake/memory that we wanted to capture during this special time in our lives. On the way there I was so nervous. I forced down my bottle of orange juice, even though my stomach was in knots. I heard from many people that the orange juice will wake the baby and WOW that worked for us. We got to Stork Vision about 45 minutes early. BIG mistake on our parts! I was dancing around the whole time, trying not to pee on myself. Being pregnant and drinking 1 bottle of water and 1 bottle of orange juice is not an easy thing to do, if you can't go to the restroom. The sonogram technician likes for you to have a full bladder...makes things easier to see. By the time we were called back I was over the nervousness and just READY!!! The room was so nice, warm and cozy. There were couches and a flat screen monitor to view the sono. It only took her about 5 seconds to find the baby's "parts". I saw it really quick and leaned over to her and said, "IT'S A BOY ISN'T IT"??? She said, it sure is a boy...and then she pointed out the parts!! Nate was completely shocked/surprised. He thought for sure Baby H was a girl!! I had a "feeling" from the day I found out that I was pregnant that I was having a baby boy. I never strayed for that and for 18 weeks I told Nate it was a boy! So, it was mostly just a confirmation to me!!! She let me go to the restroom before continuing with the rest of the sono. She knew I had been waiting a while! RELIEF!!!! I came back and we finished the sonogram. Our baby boy was so active and moved so much. It was amazing to see so much movement from our little guy. Words just can't even express. He was moving his arms, his legs, toes and fingers. She counted his toes and fingers for us. That was pretty neat. At one point in the sonogram we were watching the 3d version and he grabbed his foot and just held it. That was our favorite part!! It was just too cute. He flipped, twisted and moved the entire time. So great!!! We just couldn't believe what we were seeing. The sono technician printed 6 pictures for us, gave us a cd of the images and the dvd of the whole session! It was such a great experience. In the beginning I did not care for the 4d sonograms at all...but after the experience we had and how amazing it was to see our SON on the big screen, I think they have a returning client!! I will take any chance I get to see him!!!

We had a second sonogram on the 23rd with our normal doctor's office. We wanted 2 chances to find out before Christmas. Our 2nd sonogram confirmed that he was "still a BOY". This sonogram was neat, and different though. Since it was with a doctors office they could discuss the medical terminology with us. She measured every little part of his body, pointed out everything to us and confirmed his gender. She said that his kidneys were working, he was swallowing, and that he had 4 chambers to his heart. Yay!! Everything looked great and he was right on schedule with growth. He was 6.5 inches long and weighed 8 ounces. We go back the 20th of January for another sonogram. They want to check the blood vessels around his heart. The doctor said that it's not because he suspects anything is wrong, but it was too early to see details of his heart. We are praying everything is okay with his little heart!!!

Telling the family was great! We had so many plans and great ideas!!! We made our baby boy a jersey/onesie with his name and the number 10 on the back. 10 was his daddy's baseball number for 20+ years and also the year he will be born. It turned out SO cute!!! For Christmas with my family we made a shirt that was baby blue and said, "It's a boy". My mom motioned for me to go put in on once most of the people were in the same place at the same time...and that's hard when you have a family of about 75. My sister did a great job by telling everyone to come in for pictures. Nate and I were SO nervous for some reason. We were shaking and our hearts were beating hard and fast. I am not sure why, hello it's our family. But I guess it was just the thought of having about 75 faces looking at you!! So someone says, who wants to go first and I said, I guess Nate and I will...and then we stepped out with our shirt on!! I am not sure who caught on or read it first...I thought it was Donia and Nate thought it was Tira. =] It was pretty fun!

We are naming him MASON LANE. It wasn't one of our names from the beginning, but Nate mentioned Mason one day and I said, Mason Lane, that's it...that's our name!! We both fell in love with it and love it more and more everytime we say it. It's amazing that our baby boy now has an identity and a name!!! It's no longer "It" or "The baby"...it's "He" and "Mason".

We are so in love with him already and want nothing but the best for him!! It's truly amazing how much you can love someone that you have never met! That's the miracle of God!!!

Mason got so much stuff for Christmas!! It just made Nate and I so happy to open stuff for him! He is our world now and that's all we are focused on! His Papa & Mimi Stowell got him a 32 inch flat screen LCD tv, $100 bucks and a digital picture frame!!! Plus lots of goodies in his stocking that will definitely come handy!! Aunt Leslie, Uncle Scooter and cousin Tanner got him a diaper bag with a teddy bear and blanket, Aunt Leslie made him an awesome blanket and his first scrapbook page!! Uncle John, Aunt Nicole and cousin Jaxon got baby mason 3 outfits from Carters. They are cute. And FINALLY something that says "Mommy" on it! Everything always says Daddy! But that's okay too. I find it adorable. Papa and Granny Hall got Mason his crib and a Sealy Posture-pedic mattress!! They also got him a padded mattress cover and sheets. They too filled his stocking with goodies. Papa Hall got Mason a rockin' Bull. It's like a rockin' horse, but only it's a bull. It's awesome and I can't wait to take pictures of Mason on it. NeNaw also gave Mason $100 bucks. We are going to set him up a savings account very soon! Cousin Jessica bought Mason 5 John Deere outfits and 3 pairs of socks. They are all SO cute!! I can't wait to see Mason in them. THANKS EVERYONE!!! What a wonderful Christmas. Mason is already so blessed and will be welcomed into this world with amazing people!!!

As of today we are 19w3d pregnant. Almost half way there!!! Baby Mason is now the size of

A mango. Mason's legs have now approached their final relative proportions. Mason is packing on the "Brown fat" to keep him warm. Vernix, a milky white coating that protects your Mason's skin, appears all over your his body to keep his skin from getting pickled in the amniotic fluid. Under the vernix, a fuzzy layer of hair called lanugo now covers his body. Mason's sensory development is exploding! His brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that he may be able to hear your voice now.

Stay tuned...many many pictures to post. Just have to gather them off all of our cameras!!!

xoxoxoxoxo,

A very happy mommy and daddy!

December, already?

Sorry that is has been so long since I have updated this blog. It's been a whirlwind lately. Extremely busy and crazy...Thanksgiving...black Friday shopping...etc. Baby H even got to go to his/her very first concert! Saturday we went to the House of Blues to see our cousin Selena Gomez perform. It was really neat!

Anyhow, we are 15w3d now. Baby H is now is the size of:



So far I really love the 2nd trimester. My sickness has gotten so much lighter and I'm not as extremely tired as I used to be. That's a plus. For Nate too, I am sure. I was able to wake up at 4:15am Friday morning to brave the shopping crowd! Continuing the march towards normal proportions, Baby H's legs now outmeasure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Baby H is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though I haven't felt the movements yet. Can't wait for that!!!

We are putting up/decorating our Christmas tree tonight. I am excited to hang our "Peanut" ornament that the Halls got us that represents Baby H. It's so cute. It's a Peanut with a baby face!

And I know, I know, we are slacking on the pictures. We will get some soon, I promise.

xoxoxo

A Poem to Baby H

I found this online and thought I'd post it here!!

Beginnings



A baby to hold and to love,

a creature so tiny, so fresh and so new.

There's nothing more important or special

that two loving people could ever do.



Who will the baby look like

will it be a he or a she.

Part of him, part of her,

a creation that is meant to be.



All we could ever want for our baby

is very simple and very plain

It's to be happy and content in life

and know our love will never wane.



(c) 1998 Nicol Campise All Rights Reserved

Dear Baby H

Mommy and Daddy love you sooooo much already!! Our lives have already changed because of you. Thank you for bringing so much joy and happiness in our lives. Can't wait to meet you!

I think you had a growth spurt this week because Mommy's tummy got a lot bigger!!!

xoxoxoxo
Mommy

12 Wonderful Weeks



Our baby is growing!!! And it's evident in Mommy's tummy! This past Saturday I noticed my belly protruding out a little more than it has been. Sooo exciting! Nate noticed too! I know it's just my growing uterus, but exciting all the same!!

The biggest development with Baby H this week is reflexes!

How far along? 12w4d
Total Weight Gain/Loss - +4lbs
Maternity Clothes - Almost! Some shirts a friend lent me
Stretch Marks - not yet! Coco Butter!!!
Sleep - yes, yes, yes with a side of yes, please!
Best Moment this week - noticing my growing belly, dream last
night of the baby moving. So real and cool!
Movement - only in my dream!
Food cravings - cinnammon sugar toast
Food aversions - raw meats (when cooking), anything else I have smell first!
Gender - I'm still thinking boy
Belly button in or out - in, deep too.
What I miss - not much! Maybe a Diet DP from Whataburger
What I am looking forward to - Dr appt the 24th, 2nd trimester, Thanksgiving
Weekly Wisdom - soak in all the things daddy says!!! It's amazing

12 week pictures to follow! Of both mom and dad...stay tuned.

November....already?

I can't believe November is already here. Today marks 13 amazing years that Nathan and I have been together. What a blessing!!! And it just gets better with each passing day. Happy Anniversary to us!!


Nathan and Uncle Jordan started painting the baby's nursery yesterday. We are painting it a color called "Squirrel" which is a neutral color that would work for a boy or a girl. It will accent our decor/colors really well. We have step ceilings in our house, so they did a really neat combination with that. I really love the results. Below are before/after pictures.


















Pictures from my Grandma's Gender test



Getting the test ready...





Anxiously waiting..



Starting the test...




And.........



Circles...It's a GIRL!!!!

We shall see in about 8-9 more weeks!!!

God is GREAT!!!

What an awesome weekend!!!! Friday and Saturday were busy, but nice. We shopped and looked at tons of baby stuff. We bought some more neutral things and bought our first box of diapers. We figured we'd start stacking up on them now!!

Sunday = amazing!! Church was wonderful as always, but very special this Sunday. We had an announcement from the Children's Church teacher that a child from our church was diagnosed by doctors that he would never walk again. Well, he walked (by himself) into children's church this Sunday!!! Praise the Lord!!!! How amazing is that?!?! And then we had this awesome member get up and give some devotionals and sing some awesome Gospel music. The whole congregation was on their feet before the end of her 3 soungs!!! Then, after an awesome God delivered message by Gary Morgan...that kid walked into the sanctuary and onto the stage!! It was such an amazing experience to see first hand God's work and one of his miracles. I will never forget this service!!! God is great and to him be all the praise and glory!!!!

After church we went to my Aunt Donia's for my Grandma's birthday party. It was loads of fun, but I sure was tired!!! I usually take a nap after church. =] Anyhow, Granny did her famous string/gender test on me. Pictures and results to follow in another post.

Until then - xoxoxoxo

Crystal

Intelligender says...

We finally took the test this morning!! You have to take the test in the morning and I wanted to do it on a Saturday when Nate and I are both home. Anyhow, the results - I know that's all yall care about!! =]


And it says, it's a .................................................................................................................................


BOY!!!!






Now we are off to Hachie to shoot some photos!!!!!!!!!!!

xoxoxoxo

9 Weeks

Wow, I have never been so tired in my life. All I want to do is rest/sleep. It's crazy. I have never been one to take naps...but now I will take them any chance that I get. Also, the last few days I have been feeling really crappy. Nausea 24/7. For a couple of the days my body was achy, like I was getting/fighting off the flu. No fun! But I am better now, just the normal nausea. It's all worth it though, for our precious baby!!

I thank God for giving me such an awesome husband. Nathan has been so great ever since we learned that we are pregnant. He is so thoughtful and considerate of how I am feeling all the time, it's amazing. I am so happy that I have him by my side. It's a very exciting time in our lives and I can't wait to experience parenthood with the most amazing man in the world!!! I am confident that we are going to be great parents. We've always dreamed of having a baby, and we are so blessed to have our dream come true!!!! I am excited to watch my wonderful husband become a daddy. It's going to be great!!!

And needless to say, our baby sure is going to be spoiled!!! Between us, grandparents and friends - better watch out!! Saturday Nathan, LeeAnn and I went to the Martin HS craft fair. There was baby stuff EVERYWHERE! It was fun to look at, but frustrating at the same time. We wanted to buy so much stuff, but couldn't because we don't know if Baby Hall is a boy or a girl. =] That's okay, though. We will find out all in God's perfect timing. LeeAnn bought a really cute blanket for Baby Hall. It has the prettiest colors and has monkeys on it. So cute! And then she bought me a "Pregnancy" scrapbook. Can't wait to fill it in with pictures. I bought a new charm for my charm bracelet. The only thing I could find that was baby related was a high chair. It's adorable, though. I also found my cousin's baby a really cute onesie and headband!! Score! After a couple hours at the craft fair we headed on to our next adventure. BABIES R US!! Wow, awesome but overwhelming. We spent 3 hours just looking around. That place is amazing. So much stuff!!! We picked out a few things that we'll definitely be going back for. Nathan and I bought a stuffed monkey (adorable), a neutral colored pajama set,  some socks and a few other things. LeeAnn bought some bibs, an ornament and I can't remember what else. It was a blast!!!  Come January/Feb - Canton better watch out. We will be on a mission!!!!!!!!!

Sunday we spent most of the day transforming the Guest room into our nursery. We cleaned out the dresser and put those clothes in the attic. Nate moved his gun safe out. I organized our closet and packed some stuff for the attic. Nate moved out an old tv and some other things. We made some progress, but still have a long road ahead of us.

Today I had lunch with Holly. She bought Baby Hall his/her first Ranger shirt and socks. They are so cute!! Picture below. Since Mommy and Daddy are big Rangers fans, Baby Hall will probably attend his/her first Ranger game at just a few months old I am sure. Go Rangers!!


That's what we have been up to lately. We have a busy weekend ahead of us. Friday (not sure yet), Saturday - 2 photo shoots, Texas Country Reporter Festival, baby shower...Sunday - Church and my Grandma's birthday party gathering. Lord give me strength!!!!

Have a great week!
xoxoxoxo
Crystal

Boy or Girl?

Okay, I am about 97% sure that we are having a boy. I've had several dreams about our baby being a boy and it's just a feeling I have. =] A few more months will tell us, though! I asked family to guess if we are having a boy or girl and below are the responses. It will be interesting to go back and read these later:

Me - Boy - 7lbs 8oz

Mom & Donia - Girl - 7lbs 12oz (yes they guessed the exact same)
Kira - Girl - 8lbs 9oz
Leslie - Girl - 6lbs 11oz
Laura - 8lbs 2oz (same as when I was born)

I will update this as I get more updates.

xoxoxo

First Sonogram Pics
















Muenster here we come!


Pictures!

Here are some pictures from last night, 8 weeks preggo







Baby H

Today was our first sonogram and our very first time to see Baby H (H for him or her, or Hall). It was the most amazing experience Nathan and I have ever been through. Just to see our little baby's heartbeat and body was breathtaking and lifechanging, for sure. We started with a belly sonogram, but after chatting with the technician about the amount of twins in our family she asked if I'd be okay with a vaginal sonogram as well. Of course, if it means more pictures and more time at looking at our precious angel!!! A vaginal sonogram gets you closer to the uterus and allows her to see more clearly the baby and number of babies and heartbeats. She took several pictures for us, showed us the size of the baby, the heartbeat, the blood flow, the yolk sac, etc. It was just indescribable. We were on a mission to find out how many babies there truly was, so that kept us quite focused. Otherwise I am sure I would have been balling my eyes out. Like I have done since leaving the doctor and looking at our baby's first pictures. By the measurements of the baby it showed that we were 7 weeks and 5 days. Which is only about 5 days off than we were originally told. But they are keeping our due date at May 21st. They only change the due date if the measurements appear to be 2 or more weeks off.

So far we have been really blessed with a great nurse and a great sono technician.

Oh and the baby's heartbeat was 158. Boy or girl?!?!?

Again, we just can't describe how excited we are. I think this sonogram really put things into perspective and made it more "real" to us. We can't wait to meet our little miracle.

xoxoxoxo

7 Weeks 2 days


We are 7 weeks and 2 days today!! Our baby is starting to develop hands and feet. Our baby has doubled in size and is now the size of a blueberry. =] So exciting.

I am still feeling pretty nauseous. I have it in the mornings, afternoons and evenings!! Not sure why they call it "morning" sickness. And I think yesterday I had my first hint of indigestion. I've never had it, so not sure what it feels like...but have a good feeling I am getting it. I think it was the sausage in the burrito at church yesterday. But, it's all okay and worth it to me.

We went to Canton this weekend. It was so fun to look at all the baby stuff and what we might like to buy when we find out what it is. Which, will not be until another 13 weeks. We can't wait!!! I am not sure how people go the whole 9 months without knowing. That's just insane to us!!!

Can't wait til our first sonogram the 12th and to hear our precious baby's heartbeat!!!!

xoxoxoxo

1st Appt

Nathan and I had our first prenatal appt today. It went really well. First I took the urine test, then filled out tons of paperwork, then we met with our nurse, Odessa. She's great. Nathan and I both loved her and even asked if we can request that she be in the delivery room with us!! She went over everything with us and gave us a welcome kit. Then it was off to the lab for a cazillion vials of blood!! Geez! Why do they need that many? 8 or 9 tubes, really? Ha! But, if it means a healthy baby I am all game! It wasnt that bad at all. I mean, I was already nauseous so it was nothing!! Our first sonogram is October 12th. Can't wait for that!!!

Tomorrow we are off to Canton!!! Very excited, but I know it's going to be hard because we'll want to buy everything. Boy or girl? Pink or blue?

xoxoxoxo

Getting nervous

...anxious...excited...scared...all at once! Tomorrow is our first appt. I think we are both just ready to hear the nurse/doctor confirm the great news. Well, I have been extremely tired lately. I went to sleep at 8:30 last night and slept until 6:15 this morning!! It felt great. I did have some cramping in the lower pelvic region again last night though. I am hoping it's just "stretching" or whatever like the websites say. I am definitely going to ask about it tomorrow though!

Nathan took the first pics of my belly last night. I came home from work and it was poofy and so he took a couple with his cell phone. =] It was kind of weird!! I would post them on here...but I was in a dress...which I lifted up when he took the pics. haha! Too revealing for this blog. I will get some decent pictures tomorrow though. Or sometime over the weekend.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's blog after our appt.


xoxo