Bumpdate: Week 39

**I wanted to do a quick clarification on the Bumpdates, as I've received a few questions in the last few weeks. When I post a Bumpdate, it's a summary of the week of pregnancy that I just completed. So for example, this week (Week 39) is a summary of what happened while I was 39 weeks pregnant. The picture below is taken on the Thursday that moved me from week 39 to week 40 (i.e. the below image was taken on my official due date). Hope that clears everything up - I probably did it the most confusing way possible, oops!**

Picture taken as we literally walked out the door to head to the hospital!

How Far Along: Thirty-NINE weeks down!

Total Weight Gain: 36 pounds...

Maternity Clothes: My maternity clothes are starting to feel a little tight and I REFUSE to buy another big item of clothing. Little man better show up soon because momma is running out of things to wear!

Gender: BOY!

Movement: Still moving around quite a bit - he's got to be cramped in there.

Sleep: For the first time during this entire pregnancy I'm starting to need to get up about once a night to use the restroom - I really don't think I "need" to, I am just super paranoid that my water is about to break at any minute so I'm pretty quick to jump out of bed. Other than that, I sleep amazing! This weekend we went to swim at Brandon's mom's and with BK, Zac, Brandon's mom, brother, sister-in-law and nephew all around/in the pool I fell asleep in the floatie and had a very relaxing afternoon! If I get comfortable, I can be out like a light in no time!

What I Miss: Other than having a wide variety of clothes to choose from, not really anything! 

What I'm Looking Forward To: Cooper! I have had such a wonderful pregnancy - no serious scares, no aches or pains, no significant swelling and no problem with sleep! It also helped to have one of the coolest summers in Oklahoma history - thank you Jesus (literally). I feel so very fortunate! Even now, right at the very end, I don't feel the least bit miserable (which is why I'm still a firm believer that he'll be late)! This week I've helped Zac clean his new house and shop for things he needs to get settled in - unfortunately, this means I haven't made much progress on the "thank you" notes so please know that if I owe you one, it's coming! All that being said, I am excited for Cooper to join us, but I'm not rushing him either. He'll show up when he's ready and until then his daddy and I are just enjoying our last few days as a family of two!

Cravings: Nothing out of the norm - chocolate (preferably M&Ms), popcorn, fruit and chips & queso. But those have always been some of my favorite foods so... 

Aversions: Not a thing that I can think of!

Other Crazy Symptoms: I can't remember if I've given a belly button update lately - it's out. Thankfully, it was shallow to start with so it's not super noticeable because that most likely would have driven me crazy! I feel like my ankles are turning a bit cankle-ish but that would probably go down if I'd cool it with the wedges... something I'm not willing to do! The longer you look the better, always been my motto and it's not changing now!

Daddy Update: Daddy did his final "get ready" duty this week - assembly of all the need-to-be-assembled-things! We've got swings, strollers, and other items all put together and ready to go. He was supposed to start his PTO this week, but even he is convinced Cooper isn't coming anytime soon so he pushed it back a week and went in to work. Brandon also helped Zac get moved into his new house this weekend - thankfully not a lot of heavy lifting, but enough that they broke a pretty good sweat. It makes my heart soooooo happy to see my two favorite guys together. They are so good to each other and I am so thankful for their relationship. I've spent a lot of time in the last week just riding in the back seat smiling as I listen to them talk and joke with each other. Now if my other favorite little man was just sitting in the car seat beside me life would have been absolutely perfect!

Best Moment of the Week: There was not a specific moment that stood out - we are in a big happy blur! Happy to have a few days left together as a family of two. Happy to have brother officially be a Sooner and living close by. Happy to have the nursery complete and ready for Cooper's arrival. We are, as Phil Robertson of Duck Dynasty says so perfectly, "happy, happy, happy."

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.

So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.

1 Samuel 1:27-28

Showers of Blessings

Our precious friends and family went above and beyond to shower Cooper with love and lots of presents! We were truly overwhelmed by every one's kindness, generosity and excitement for our sweet baby. I get all teary just thinking about how much he is loved by so many already... He is one very blessed tiny little man.

Our first shower was hosted by a few of my sweet family members and friends - Suzanne, Callie, Lyndsey, Jana, Hayden, Ashley, Susan, Phyllis and Joan - in my hometown.

My aunt's home (which is always beyond beautiful) was decked out in an adorable "Little Man" and mustache motif...

My super talented cousins made this de-licious cake! Strawberry on top, chocolate on bottom - all my favorite things!!

My sweet friend, Ki, drove all the way from Arkansas and made me the most thoughtful present... A BUMPDATE BOOK! It is the cutest thing and is filled with each of my weekly updates! 

Each guest was asked to write "Friendly" parenting advice for Brandon and me. I loved reading their sweet words - some were encouraging, some were thoughtful and others were hilarious. Each uniquely perfect, just like the people who wrote them!

My adorable little niece, Blake! She's going to keep Mr. Cooper in line...

Cooper's first jersey! The future little Wolverine needed some purple and gold in his wardrobe!

These girls are my precious cousins and very best friends! Life is about to get super exciting as we are approximately (from left to right): 15 weeks pregnant, 35 weeks pregnant, 9 weeks pregnant and Miss Blake is a little over a year and a half old! Can you imagine all the fun we are going to have together in the next few years?! Life is good!

My sweet girlfriends hosted a ridiculously fun shower for me in Norman. It was so good to have my college friends, sorority sisters and work friends all in one place! In the past year so many of these girls have either become Mommas or will be soon and it has been so exciting to read one "We're having a baby" text after another! Cooper is going to have a good little group of friends... Ironically, all boys so far!

My friend Jessica's mom made these adorable cookies - and they tasted awesome!! I've requested a lesson...

My sweet bestie, Sheridan, made the trip home from St. Louis! Oh how I miss this girl...

So it's kind of hard to explain, but long story short I kind of claim to be from two tiny towns. I grew up and went to school in one, but go to church in the other. It's been such a blessing to get to be a part of two wonderful communities! My church group and friends hosted a precious baby shower for Mr. Cooper! Unfortunately, my mother kind of slacked on the pictures so this is one of the few good ones... I am so thankful to call these awesome ladies my dear friends!

Sadly, I failed to get pictures of the office shower my sweet OU Law girls threw for me - it was an adorable "Stock the Library" shower where everyone brought books for Cooper's little library. I LOOOOOVE books and thought this was the most precious idea ever! Cooper and I have lots of great reading material to keep us busy!

I also somehow managed to not take a single picture of the shower with Brandon's family. Brandon's aunt is the shower extraordinaire and between all the weddings and babies in Brandon's family lately, she has been incredibly busy! Brandon's family is so kind to always take such great care of us and I'm so sorry I didn't get any pictures with the crew!

Cooper was truly showered with loved in the last month and Brandon and I are so incredibly humbled and grateful for the generosity of so many. While the gifts were lovely and kind and thoughtful, it is the friendship of the people who attended these celebrations of our son that we are most thankful for. Our little Cooper is already loved by so many and he couldn't be a more blessed boy!

Be Blessed!
Raegan

The Late Night Musings of a Soon-To-Be Momma

I can't sleep. 

If you've been keeping up with my Bumpdates you know that this is rare for me. Momma is a really, really good sleeper... but not tonight... and it's even raining outside - perfect sleep weather!

I'm wide awake. 

Bowl of grapes - empty. I've now moved on to the family sized bag of M&Ms I keep by my bed... When your morning starts off with a handful of M&Ms you know it's going to be a good day people. You should try it.

Eyes wide open. 

The only person other than me posting "new pins" on Pinterest right now is my friend who is a local morning newscaster... this is a bad sign.

Sleep is not coming.

And you know what? I'm kind of fine with that. 

My head has been spinning the last few nights trying to get a grasp on what's about to go down at the King house. I'm making last minute to-do list like it's my job. "Show Zac how to get his electric, water, cable/internet switched into his name... Write thank you cards... Buy more diapers... Finish any random craft project that have been put off in the last two years... Re-sweep all floors... Wrap your head around the fact that you are about to be a mom..." You know, just little stuff. 

Realistically, my to-do lists aren't always super do-able. How do you even begin to grasp becoming a parent? 

I can't, I've tried... like a million times, trust me.

I'm not scared. I'm not nervous. I'm not anxious or jittery. I'm just kind of in limbo on where my head stands about the whole situation. Don't get me wrong - obviously, I'm excited! I've been counting down the days for nine, almost ten, months now! Okay, realistically, I've been counting down the days for this my whole life - being a mom is what I've always wanted to be more than anything. But now that the time is almost here...

I'm just a touch overwhelmed. 

Not by the thought of late night feedings or diaper duty or even the painful process of giving birth. I'm overwhelmed by having the head knowledge that I'm about to love this little tiny baby boy more than life itself... 

Let me explain:

Since the minute my baby brother was born, I loved him more than any other person in the world. I would do anything for him without thinking twice or hesitating. I've always felt that it was my responsibility to take care of him, protect him. He has always been my very best friend. 

Then came Brandon... 

My brother's closing line during his speech at our wedding was a precious, but painful one: 

"Today is the day my best friend gets a new best friend." 

It was such a statement of heartbreaking truth. Zac and I both knew this was supposed to happen, your spouse is supposed to be your partner, your best friend, your other half - nevertheless it hurt my heart to hear him acknowledge the fact that it was exactly what was taking place. I didn't want him to notice. I didn't want him to feel it. I kind of felt like I was cheating on him...

For the last two years, Brandon and I have fallen more and more head over heels for each other every single day. Our marriage has been richly blessed with more joy and happiness and love than I knew was possible. Our life together couldn't get much better. We are happy... not kind of happy or happy some days... really, truly, genuinely happy. I love the sweet man sleeping down the hall more than I could have ever imagined. I would do anything in the world for him. I pray over him daily. My heart yearns to please him. He is the very best thing that has ever happened to me. 

And now Cooper is coming... CHANGE is coming...

I have the heart knowledge that tells me very simply that just because I love Brandon doesn't mean that I love Zac any less... it's just a different type of love... and just because I will love Cooper, doesn't mean that I will love Brandon any less... it will be a different type of love as well. My love will simply grow, it will multiply, it will change. 

My heart believes that, but my head hasn't quite got there yet. My head is just a tad bit scared of change. 

My head says life with Brandon is already too good to be true, how could it possibly be any better? My heart says, relax and have faith that it will. 

"Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?" ~Matthew 8:26 

My head says be careful not to mess up a good thing. My heart says God gave you this precious gift in His timing. God doesn't make mistakes. In Max Lucado's book, Fearless, he reminds us, "Fear corrodes our confidence in God's goodness."

"Why are you frightened?" he asked. "Why is your heart filled with doubt?" ~Luke 24:38 

My head says you better figure all of this out quick, Cooper could show up any day and you won't be ready. You'll still be processing and it's going to put some serious ripples in your calm water. My heart says you don't have to have it all figured out... You CAN'T grasp it yet... Just be patient, God's got this.

"I am leaving you with a gift - peace of mind and heart.

And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give.

So don't be troubled or afraid."

~John 14:27

So, tonight I am done with my worrying, my attempting to process, my fear and my desire to have all my ducks in a row. I am focusing on one thing and one thing only:

"When everything else changes, 

God's presence never does."

                                                             ~Max Lucado, Fearless

I am so very thankful to have a God who is bigger than all my anxieties. A God who I know has it all figured out, so I don't have to. A God that gave us hearts that are designed for really, really big love - love that is bigger than our little tiny brains can fathom. He's got this, so I don't have to... 

The sun is rising. 

Morning is here.

The cutest, sleepy face I've ever seen just peeked around the corner to the office where I'm sitting and asked that I come back to bed... so I will. I want to cherish every last minute of this stage of happy. It could change at any time - but I am confident it will only get better. 

Be Blessed,

Raegan

Bumpdate: Week 38

How Far Along: Just knocked out week thirty-EIGHT!

Total Weight Gain: 35 lbs

Maternity Clothes: Same old stuff, but I must admit since I'm just staying home and getting things done around the house right now I'm wearing much more casual clothes... Unfortunately my work out shorts that I typically wear with t-shirts around the house are more than a little tight so I've stooped to a new "walk of shame" style and wear Brandon's shorts and tees. Lookin' good... (Note the obvious sarcasm)

Gender: He's a boy, although last night I dreamed that they handed him to me and he was a girl! Pretty sure that's not the case...

Movement: Still moving quite a bit, just that same slow movement with his feet or knees or whatever drags down my right side... and the hiccups, he's still blowing me up with those.

Sleep: Still sleeping like a champ. I, thankfully, feel really good and I give a lot of credit for that to my ability to sleep. I wake up feeling ready for the day bright and early and haven't felt any need to slow down and take a nap or anything. I have been so very blessed to be able to rest and I know that is definitely not the case for most pregnancies!

What I Miss: Not one single thing!

What I'm Looking Forward To: I'm finally at the point where I feel like if he comes today, I'm well enough prepared... so I'm looking forward to meeting Cooper!! I'm not trying to rush him, he can stay in there as long as he would like, but I'm just getting really excited to see that little face.

Cravings: Fruit and chocolate - some things never change.

Aversions: Nothing that isn't normal for me.

Other Crazy Symptoms: I've started having a teeny-tiny touch of round ligament pain. Thankfully it's not too bad - It feels like that soreness you have after working out about three days earlier. Thankfully that is only very minor discomfort so I'm not complaining one bit!

Daddy Update: Daddy is ready! If I call him while he's at work he answers on the first ring with this adorable little excited/anxious voice, "Everything okay?" and then I remember I just freaked him out and assure him all is well I was just calling to see if he could do lunch. Ha! Poor guy, I get him all stirred up way too often on accident. I think it's adorable that he is so excited! He can't wait to meet our little man. 

Best Moment of the Week: We've had an eventful week around the King house! My little brother, Zac, and his five month old lab puppy, Scout, have temporarily moved in with us! Zac spent his entire summer chasing Graduate Assistant jobs with college basketball programs across the state and nothing had seemed to fit correctly. Last Friday he accepted a position with the Oklahoma State Men's Basketball Program (OSU doesn't have a GA program so this was a little different, but a great opportunity none the less). Within thirty minutes after he walked out of the office, I got an email from a friend in the OU Athletic Department explaining that the OU Men's Basketball Program unexpectedly had a GA position open and was curious if Zac would still be interested. Ummm, yes! I called Zac and filled him in and he hopped in his truck and drove directly from Stillwater to Norman to meet the coaching staff, take a tour and view a practice. And this was just a start to the whirlwind... They asked him to come back Saturday for another practice and to meet a few more people. He was told to see if he could still get into the Masters Program so close to the start of school and then they would meet again on Monday. So after practice wrapped up, Zac jumped back in his truck and made a quick trip to Bartlesville (that's sarcasm too as Bville is easily over 3 hours from Norman) to pick up his official transcripts. Monday morning rolled around and Zac and his 38 week pregnant sister booked it all over campus trying to get his applications turned in and making sure we had done everything necessary for getting him into grad school. Talk about stressing a sister out! After all the paper work had been turned in and he'd met with everyone he needed to meet with, back to practice he went. When practice wrapped up he met with Coach Kruger and was told that the coaching staff would talk it over and give him a call that evening. Longest afternoon of his life, poor guy! Finally, we decided to go run some errands and get out of the house - and then the phone call came while we were wandering aimlessly through Target. Pending he is accepted into the Master's Program, Zac is officially a graduate assistant for OU Men's Basketball! Celebration in Target immediately followed!! 

I cannot tell you how completely thrilled Brandon and I are to have Zac moving so close to us!! We have so enjoyed this chaotic week with him. Zac and I have been on opposite ends of the state (and for one year a whole state away) since I left for college ten years ago, so it brings my heart soooooo much joy at the thought of having him just a few minutes away! So excited to deck Cooper out in some crimson and cream and go cheer on "Uncle Awesome" and the Sooners!  Yayyyyyyy!

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.

So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.

1 Samuel 1:27-28

Maternity Pictures by Callie Prier Photography

I am one lucky girl!!  My bestest friend and cousin, Callie, just happens to be a seriously talented photographer and is so very kind to share her incredible gift with us. A few weeks ago, Brandon and I made a quick trip to our hometown to let her work her magic on my big ol' belly! Let me tell you, Callie is gooooooood! We are so thankful to her for sharing her gifts with us! Thank you Callie Prier Photography!! 

You can see more of Callie's amazing work by clicking here and liking her on Facebook! I hope you all enjoy her pictures half as much as we have! 

Be Blessed,
Raegan

Bumpdate: Week 37

How Far Along: Thirty-SEVEN weeks and counting!

Total Weight Gain: 34 pounds... just packing them on at the end. Yippee. (Note the obvious sarcasm... look at that belly!!)

Maternity Clothes: Yes, the same stuff I've been wearing all along... BUT I can see the end in sight and normal clothes are becoming so tempting to buy for later! This could be a problem...

Gender: BOY!

Movement: This little man is still squirming away. Looking down at my belly, his little back is on my left side and his legs are facing my right. Now, more than ever, I can see a foot shoot out and then he typically drags it down my belly before stomping it back to the top again! Thankfully, it isn't painful, just funny to watch. He also is quite the hiccup king lately. Brandon has the most insanely loud hiccups ever and I feel quite confident Cooper has inherited them - when he hiccups my belly shakes violently! Oh joy - two loud hiccuping men in the house!

Sleep: I am incredibly fortunate to still be sleeping like a little lamb. I sleep exactly the same as I did before becoming pregnant - never have to get up to use the restroom or anything! Lucky girl, I know!

What I Miss: I still stand firm by my "life is too good to think about the things I don't get to have" theory... but I'll be honest, I miss shopping in the cute clothes departments! Just a few more weeks until the belly starts deflating and regular clothes are an option again!!

What I'm Looking Forward To: I am DYING to post pictures of the nursery. Seriously, dying. BUT the bedding still isn't done and I refuse to post pictures of the crib without the prettiest part (or at least what I hope is the prettiest part - I picked the fabric and designed how I wanted it all done so I've got my fingers crossed it all turns out well!)... So, another week comes and goes and still no nursery debut. But I PROMISE, the minute that bumper (yes, I did a bumper) and blanket (yes, I did a blanket too, but only to go over the side of the crib, relax everybody) show up - pictures will be posted IMMEDIATELY!

Cravings: Chocolate. I think that post-delivery that will be my one request, a gigantic size bag of M&Ms... until then I'm just treating myself to the normal size bags. Ha!

Aversions: Nothing much.

Other Crazy Symptoms: I don't know of any new developments in the crazy symptoms category this week. So far, I haven't had any crazy crying or emotional roller coaster days (with the exception of when my clothes started getting too small - and that wasn't crazy crying, that was legit, serious, oh-my-goodness my clothes are too small hysteria. But I got over it) and that seems to be pretty par for the course even in these last few weeks of pregnancy. I guess I am technically "nesting" although I can't tell the difference between "nesting" and my normal OCD. I mean, yes, I put labels on all Cooper's baskets, but that's nothing I wouldn't do under normal circumstances! And yes, I'm cleaning things up, but it's more than likely there will be quite a few people at my house in the next few weeks so anybody in their right mind would be keeping things as tidy as possible. Bottom line: I think most people's crazy, is my normal. Go figure.

Daddy Update: Daddy treated me this week to a lovely cleaning lady! Sweet Connie and her crew came and did some serious deep cleaning so I didn't have to lift a finger (or smell those bad chemicals). She was so kind and they did a fabulous job, but now I'm a pretty serious stickler on keeping the house that way until Cooper gets here! 

Uncle Caleb taught Daddy how to install Cooper's carseat this week - it's really nice to have a firefighter in the fam that knows how to properly install those things! Car seats are surprisingly tricky, but I feel confident Mr. Cooper will be belted in so tight he won't have any problems staying put. Thanks Uncle Caleb for taking care of our sweet little man already!

Best Moment of the Week: This was my first official week of being a stay-at-home mom... which was weird in a good way. For starters, there was no baby to stay-at-home with, but Rylee sure enjoyed my company! I really didn't stay at home all that much because I had a million errands to mark off my list before Cooper arrives. I've got most of them wrapped up now, but there is always one more thing to do... 

We finished up our child birth class - which was kind of a relief because we weren't real sure that we'd make it through the whole class before he made his grand debut! But he cooperated and we completed the class. Now it's just a waiting game... thankfully, I have plenty to keep me busy in the mean time. I am not at all rushing him - I feel great so he can stay put as long as he'd like - but I am very excited to meet the little guy! This week's appointment, I was still dilated to a 1 so the wait continues!

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.

So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.

1 Samuel 1:27-28