17 weeks

Here are some current pics for your baby belly viewing pleasure. Tomorrow I'll be 18 weeks...almost halfway there. I had to take a deep breath after typing that.

(texas trip and pics below)

abilene

I got back Monday night from the place I call home. Although 2 of my 5 days off were spent driving, it was worth it to be able to spend some time with my family in a place that is more than familiar. When I was in college, I never knew what it was like to ache for my hometown, and I certainly didn't know why some people would say Abilene was a "small town"...now, of course, I understand both. I loved eating good Mexican food and seeing familiar street signs. I loved going to the Mall of Abilene with its updated look, but ever-lurking ghettoness. I loved the fact that we saw someone we knew at the mall and then a couple of hours later saw that same person across town at Sam's. I loved seeing and being with people who actually knew that I once had the last name Wallace.

Of course, I really do love being in Nashville. I love it more for the reason/person why I am here than anything else, but I don't think it will ever be "Abilene" for me. I could ask people around my age who have gotten out of Abilene, and it is likely that most of them would not share my feelings about the town...a lot of people with whom I went to high school would say they got out of there as quickly as they could. But since I inherited my sentimentality from my daddy, I am deeply attached to Abilene, Texas. (Aw, Texas...that could be the subject of another post. It's like a whole 'nother country, ya know.) So, although I miss it dearly, I actually really love that I now have a "hometown" to miss. It is a "small town", and Abilene definitely isn't for everybody...but for me, it's home.

(I did get to see my brother Paul, although not as much as I would have liked. The fact that I saw him is sadly not represented in the following pictures...I hate that. Love you, brother!)

the new house in abilene

the monarchs were migrating through and chose my parent's backyard as a stop

if you look closely, you can see them covering the tree behind us

hook 'em horns, cutie-style

the four of us :)

cousins

my daddio

and my mama

"Hometown weather is on TV / I imagine the lives of the people living there / And I'm curious if they imagine me / Cause they just wanna leave; I wish that I could stay..." ~Caedmon's Call

i am 16, going on 17...

I am now 16, almost 17, weeks into my pregnancy. I have started to feel the baby move...little taps from the inside. Yesterday I had my hand on my stomach during a meeting with the other 4th grade teachers and my principal and, for the first time, I felt the baby kick my hand. I tried to hide my smile, while also pretending to listen. Who knows what my principal was saying to us at that point...I sure don't. While on my way to work yesterday, I had asked the baby to move some for me during the day. I can already tell that he or she is going to be such a good little listener and always do what his or her Mama says.

Here is what is going on this week with the baby, according to babycenter.com. (I didn't feel like going through and changing all the "she's"...I still don't really have an intuition either way about whether it is a boy or a girl...it is usually a girl in my dreams.....anyway, I digress...)

"At 4 1/2 inches long (head to bottom) and 3 1/2 ounces, your baby is about the size of an avocado. In the next three weeks, she'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, though, doubling her weight and adding inches to her length. Her lower limbs are much more developed now. Her head is more erect than it has been, and her eyes have moved toward the front of her head. Your baby's ears are close to their final position, too. Some of her more advanced body systems are working, including her circulatory system and urinary tract. Her heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, circulating her total blood volume through her body many times. (By the end of your pregnancy, this will increase to about 190 quarts.) The patterning of her scalp has begun, though her hair isn't recognizable yet. Although closed, her eyes are moving (slowly), and she's even started growing toenails."

Amazing.

Also, some belly pics of the last couple of weeks...

15 Weeks

16 Weeks

I am headed to Texas this weekend for my Fall Break. I couldn't be more excited. Pics of my weekend when I return...

this may not be too interesting if you're not related to me

Weekend before last Kev and I got to go to Colorado to meet up with (most of) my family. Paul and Lori weren't able to come since Lori is so far along in her pregnancy, and we missed them terribly! BUT they did send one of the cutest members of their little family, Macy, with my parents, so we didn't miss out entirely. We ate some good food, spent a couple of nights in Aspen, and just hung out, which was just what I needed. It was fun seeing everyone for the first time as a pregnant person. A fun time was had by all.

sis-in-law Nikki

Mi Casa, Breckenridge, CO - We have been eating (mainly the salsa) at this place since I was probably 12 or so.

Mi Casa man look-alike contest

not so little anymore...

me, 14 week belly, and the maroon bells

some of the "original" Wallaces :)

Macy and her PaPa (Poppa? Poppy? She calls him several things...)

talking to her daddy...she is just so cute

I had been craving mashed potatoes-n-gravy for about 3 days...mmmmmm.

you know the deal...we cook, they clean


As usual, I feel like I didn't get enough pictures. I absolutely LOVED seeing my family, and was sad, sad, sad when the weekend was over. My parents are amazing for making trips such as this happen. I am so extremely blessed.