Lil' Ticker Update

Today was our Level 2 ultrasound at the Perinatal Clinic of Iowa. If you remember last week I posted that during our normal ultrasound they saw that Keelyn had an irregular heartbeat so Dr. Johnson wanted a second opinion.

During the appointment, the ultrasound tech did a very thorough job of measuring our little girl, and in the process beat the crap out of me! Boy did she push hard on my belly!! Oh well, I know I have more of that to look forward to in a few months, huh?

I am 24 weeks 4 days along as of today, and Keelyn is measuring 24 weeks 5 days, so all is well there. They did an approximate weight and she is about 1 pound 9 ounces. My how she's growing!! Today's tech also agreed that we've got a girl growin' here... good thing since we're done with the nursery, huh?!??!!?!

I guess you want to know the big heart news though, huh? The tech AND the doctor found no sign of any irregularity in her heartbeat!! Woohoooo!!! Sean was extremely relieved, as was I. So all is well with lil' Miss Lynam. Thanks for your thoughts & prayers... they truly made a difference.

What would a post be without some funky ultrasound pics!

Her beautiful profile...
Her face (look carefully... the big black blob at the left is her skull, then 2 black holes are her eyes, and you can kind of make out her jaw)

The arrow is pointing to her lips & nose area. She has her arms up hiding her cheeks from us :)

The New Master Bedroom... aka Keelyn's Nursery

This weekend Grandpa Dale & Grandma Sally came down to help us get Keelyn's nursery ready.

*****************WARNING: PICTURE OVERLOAD!!********************

Let's start with the "befores", shall we???

Let's move onto the "in progress" pictures...

Let me just say this... Keelyn has a better closet than we do. Sooooo not fair!!! Picture overload continues....

And now... the long awaited "after's". Good job if you're made it through to this part!!!

Well there you have it... the nursery with its new closet organizer, paint, crib, dresser/changing table, valance, closet drape, crib bedding, shelves, baskets, floor vent and wall hangings.

Along with the new nursery comes a new baby/doggy gate :) We'd had a different one up for the past year or two for the dogs, but I hated it!!! This new one is SO much nicer... Sean and Dad did an awesome job putting it up.

We still have a few more things to put up in the room. I painted some wooden letters to match the room to spell out her name and we didn't have time to get them put up. I also am ordering some cordless blinds for the window, but that will have to wait for another paycheck!! I think we still have some time until July though :o).

I am in LOVE with this room!!! It's definitely a cozy room size wise, but I know that won't matter once she arrives.

A Late Not so Wordless Wednesday

Introducing Keelyn Avery Lynam! Yesterday was our 24 week checkup. I can't believe it's already that far into the pregnancy!! As you can tell by the picture, Keelyn is a happy baby as she's smiling... or at least that's what we say :) Her head is to the right of the picture and her leg is to the left up by her face.

They found during the ultrasound that Keelyn has a bit of an irregular heartbeat. Dr. Johnson, one of our OBs, said he is not concerned about it, but wants a second set of eyes to look at it. Soooo... I have an appointment on Tuesday, March 31st for a Level 2 ultrasound. I'm going into this thinking 'if my doctor isn't concerned, I shouldn't be concerned, either'. Just in case, please keep our little Keelyn in your prayers. We are confident that this is something that will be "fixed" by the time her of her arrival in July.

In other news, the nursery gets painted tomorrow so you KNOW I will be posting pictures of the entire process :).

Sticks & Stones

I'm sure we all remember those corny little sayings we used to use in elementary school when someone would pick on you for something.

Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.

OR the famous

I am rubber, you are glue. It bounces off me and sticks to you.

Those are the sayings I am keeping in my head as I announce the news that yes, the car God's were working in my favor the past few days and I am now the owner of a new car (well, not NEW new, but certainly new to me!).

Curious as to what it is?????? Scroll down to find out...

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Yep!! That would be my new ride... a 2006 Chrysler Town & Country.

I ABSOLUTELY love it!!! Granted, I've only had it in my possession for 3 hours now, but there are so many things I love about it.

1. I don't have to ask Sean to borrow his truck anymore for larger things.

2. Space, space, and more space!!

3. Automatic doors for those days when I feel lazy. Oh wait, that'll be nice when Keelyn arrives, too!

4. Sitting up higher is quite nice.

5. IT FITS IN THE GARAGE ALONG WITH SEAN'S TRUCK!!!!!!!!!!! We were both a little nervous about that one.

Say what you want, call me what you want... I am the proud owner of a Mom Bomb as it has been referred to around the Lynam household the past few days. It'll sure be nice to get the crib in it tomorrow!!

Big News!!!

After much debating and discussing, Sean and I have finally agreed on a name for our little girl. We are naming her....
*

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Keelyn Avery Lynam!!!

Keelyn is Irish, and with both of us being Irish, we couldn't have shared this news on a better day! Keelyn means lively and aggressive... sounds like us, doesn't it??

Spring Break so far...

Back in the days of college, I remember Spring Break as being the week when you do absolutely no work, go on vacation to somewhere warm, have a few beverages, and relax. Oh how time has changed...

So far this break, Sean and I have worked, not rested, stayed at home (although it has been warm), enjoyed lovely lemonade & pop, and not relaxed!! It started with the vehicle hunt on Saturday (more to come tomorrow...). On Sunday, Sean fixed our garage door and its loudness by putting on new rollers and new hinges. Of course, things don't always seem to go the way you hoped, so our neighbor had to come help re-attach the cables that got loose, then had to rewind the springs, but it got finished and it is SOOOO quiet!!

Today we went and registered at Babies 'R Us. I could stay in that store for HOURS!!! Sean, on the other hand, was definitely ready to go after our 1 1/2 hours there, but I could tell he definitely had a good time with it. When we got home from that, we put out the deck furniture and enjoyed the sunshine. With that finished, I decided I wanted more baby, so I went to Homemakers to look at more cribs, and, yes, that's right... I found the one I wanted!! Plus I really like the matching dresser. I went ahead and got the dresser today and need to talk to Grandma Sally & Grandpa Dale about the dresser. We will pick up the crib tomorrow when we have a bigger vehicle to put it in, then will wait to put it together until we have the nursery painted at the end of next week. Holy cow... it's coming faster and faster.

The rest of Spring Break, you say? It includes more work (part-time job never stops), cleaning out the closets in the nursery & guest room, more laundry, registering at Target, and perhaps one day I will get in that much-wanted rest portion of the week.

Bring on Spring Break!!!!

One of the BEST perks of being a teacher... spring break!!! Though we are not going anywhere warm & exciting, we're still super ready for it. Yesterday was our first official day and it was GREAT!!! Sean and I both slept in until 9:30 (absolutely unHEARD of for me lately), spent a great day shopping at babyGap and Old Navy, ate lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings, then off to work for me. Spring Break still means working the ol' part-time job for me, but I love it, so it's all good.

Today was another fun day spent together... at car dealerships. Sean has been very, how do I say it... firm in belief that I need to get a new car. He doesn't really know this, but I have been secretly wanting one for awhile, I just never thought I could afford it. Sooo, we went to look today at several places. There are two vehicles at two dealerships that I will be hearing from on Monday to tell me what the monthly payment will be. I'm sure that IF they are able to work with me, I will post a toast to my new ride. Be waiting and watching... it will be one heck of a post.

Tomorrow begins one of my favorite things... SPRING CLEANING!!! This year, obviously, I have more closets to clean. The nursery closet is no longer going to be my dumping ground, so I must get it cleaned out and ready for the ADORABLE baby girl clothes that are coming our way.

That's all for now... keep watching & waiting (a few prayers to the lender God's wouldn't hurt now either :o) ).

Sunday Funday!

With the lovely weather we are experiencing today, I needing something to lift my spirits. Then I remembered something... on Friday, Sean found this box by our front door.

Recognize the bullseye? Yep... that'd be a box full of goodies from Target.com. Wonder what's inside??? It would be the bedding for our baby girl!

It is a beautiful fireflies bedding set of plum, lavender, sage & mint green. A bit hard to see in the plastic, but very, very adorable.

A cute wallhanging. I couldn't resist!

Now comes the fun... we will be going to pick out paint to match, then the last weekend of March, Grandma Sally and Grandpa Dale will come down and paint the nursery while Sean and I are at work for the day. How lovely.

What a guy... Part 2

So today I finished working then went to lunch with some girlfriends. When I got home I was surprised with all the laundry... DONE!!! Yep, Sean did all the laundry for me. To top it off, he did all the laundry for me LAST weekend, too!! 2 weekends in a row... I'm telling ya... a girl could DEFINITELY get used to this. I love you honey!!! Thanks for letting me relax on a rainy Saturday afternoon. You are the best :)

What a guy...

So with this WONDERFUL weather we are experiencing here in Des Moines today (63 degrees and it's 7:05pm!!!)

comes the first day of breakin' out the grill!

I was super surprised to receive a phone call from Sean this afternoon to say he was grilling me supper!!! What a guy! He got the gas tank filled, stopped at the store to get some steaks, and they were almost done when I got home. I'll say it again... what a guy :) Oh, and the best part? Baby Girl Lynam likes steak :) WAHOOO!!!