Brandson/ Silver Dollar City

This past weekend we went to Brandson to celebrate Chris's parents 50th wedding anniversary. It is amazing to know that they have been married for 50 years. It is such a blessing to see people that are so happy and have been together for so long.

We got condo's down there and there were about 25 of us that went down for the celebration. Many of them went down early Friday and spent the day doing touristy things. Since we have a baby on the way and I just started my business we knew that we couldn't take the day off. So we left after work and got down late Friday night.

On Saturday everyone went to Silver Dollar City. This was a hard day for our small family since a lot of the loud noises scared Alyssa, and she did not feel well. We had fun walking around and looking at the different craftsmen and seeing all the people. It was really crowded and about 2 o clock we left. That night we all went to one of the condo's and partied to celebrate the anniversary. Alyssa feel asleep soon after the party started and took a short nap then was crabby the rest of the night.

On Sunday we all went out to breakfast together. Then Chris and I were going to do the touristy stuff. It took us 20 minutes to go a mile and at the point we turned around and headed home.

All in all it was a good weekend to see everyone and celebrate such an amazing event but hopefully next time everyone can be happier in our small family.

Grants Farm/ Godfrey Maze

Two weekends ago we went to Grants Farm and the Godfrey Maze to get in the fall spirit. Both were fun events with grandparents involved as well.

Grants Farm is in the evening and she got to wear her Halloween Costume. When we got there we put her in her cow costume and she loved to wear it but she refused to wear the hood. We( Grandma and Grandpa Knight, Nana and Grandpa McK, Chris and I) wait in line for the train and she is having fun playing with the people around her and giving smiles to all. We got on the train, the air brakes go off she starts screaming and crying and buries her head in my shoulder. Chris and I look at each other and think that it would be a long tram ride. But she calmed down very quickly and loved looking at all the animals. She had fun seeing the horses and other animals, though she called everything a cow and mooed at it all.

Two days later we went to the Godfrey Maze. This time we only took my dad(Grandpa McK). We were able to navigate the maze and didn't have to put up our flag for help. We then took a tram ride around the park and let her play in a big box filled with corn kernels. She loved to play in the corn and would have stayed there a long time but we had to pull her out because the kids got too rowdy.

Pumpkin Patch

Today we went to the pumpkin patch. We did that last year and you can read about it here. This year was so different than last year. She wouldn't look at the camera, but loved looking at and picking the pumpkins. When we got out to the patch she went from pumpkin to pumpkin trying to pick them up. She finally found one that she could pick up and she carried that one around for awhile. We did not let her buy it because it was half green and not hard.

When we got back to where we had to buy the pumpkins we let her try some apple cider. She loved the apple cider and would have drank the whole glass if we would have let her.

It was hard to get her back to the car because we had bought 4 pumpkins and so Chris was carrying two and I had two. This left no hands for Alyssa and so we had to keep calling her name and encouraging her to walk. If we were not talking to her she would just stop and look around. Finally I sent Chris to the car and then asked him to come back and help with her. This worked the best and we were most of the way to the car by the time he came back.

Alyssa had a great time and it was fun watching her take it all in. She had a very serious face every time the camera came out, but when it was put away we had a lot of smiles.

32 Weeks

32 weeks with Alyssa 32 weeks with Colin

How far along? 32 weeks

Total weight gain: About 20 pounds. It depends on the day and what I ate the day before.

Maternity clothes? Yep there is no way to fit into any bottoms that aren't maternity anymore and tops don't cover my big belly..

Sleep: I am actually sleeping okay but I do wake up a few times a night to roll over which is now a process and my hip hurts from whatever side I'm sleeping on.

Best moment this week: Going to the doctor and hearing the heartbeat again. That never gets old.

Movement: I feel the baby every night now he is getting stronger by the day. He likes to stretch with his head in my left hip and his feet in my right rib.

Gender: Boy! Colin for a name

Labor Signs: none but if I over do it during the day I get a lot of cramps and don't feel good.

Belly Button in or out? Still in, but getting more shallow.

What I miss: Being able to bend over and not think about how I'm going to breathe. My lap is also shrinking so it is getting harder to hold Alyssa for long periods in my lap.

What I am looking forward to: Starting to wash clothes and put the finishing touches on the nursery.

Weekly Wisdom: Slow down and take it easy.

Milestones: By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.