week 38: boomer sooner, little lady.

we won!  boy, it was ugly but we won.  & i didn't go into labor from all of the anxiety of the game.  wins all around.  nora belle & i had a little chat on friday discussing that most of our family was in dallas for the game, so it sure would be nice if she'd wait to make her appearance until after the game.  i am very grateful she listened.

blake & i cheered on our sooners at rachel & nate's.  we started the day with an amazing gameday breakfast of egg casserole, hashbrowns, & pumpkin coffee cake.  & of course my ou/tx favorite had to be enjoyed - corndogs!

our new kc friends, molly & nate, dropped by with their new little baby girl, poppy.  the sweet 4-day old is absolutely adorable.  so happy nora belle's first friend is already here!  

boomer sooner!  8 days until your due date, little lady.

love love,

kjp.

week 37: it's her birth month!!

happy october!!  it's nora belle's birth month!!  she made it.  we made it.  i cannot believe it's here.

october is one of my favorite months - the trees are beginning to change colors, the weather is beginning to get cooler, mums are on everyone's porches, pumpkin is an appropriate ingredient in everything, & our little girl's birthday is this month.

"i'm so glad i live in a world where there are octobers."

love love,
kjp.

week 34: boomer sooner from norman!

blakey & i took our last trip to oklahoma before baby!!  last time in norman before we are officially parents.  crazy!  & so exciting.  we headed to our great state for the big ou vs tennessee game & my dear friend, cari's, baby shower.  the game was absolutely fantastic - we got to tailgate with so many wonderful friends, see this year's intro video, laugh at me getting super nervous for each play, & cheer on the boys to a big victory.  well done, fellas, well done.  it should be a great football year.

{tailgating with christy, cari, & the baby bumps}

{more on cari's baby shower soon!}

{my original football game partner - my dad}

{my two loves - blake & nora belle!}

boom soon from norman!  next time we see you, oklahoma, miss nora belle will be in hand.

love love,

kjp.

week 28: hello third trimester!

third trimester is here!  & that means nora belle is going to be here soon!  we cannot believe it but are incredibly excited.  little one is showing her personality more & more.  anytime something pushes against my belly - be it my purse, tank, or the ultrasound device - nora belle kicks back it.  this little girl does not want anything all up in her space.  that or she wants to say "hello!" back.

we got to see her beautiful little face again this week!  i cannot believe how much she's grown since we saw her 10 weeks ago!  the sonographer estimated her weight at 2 lb 13 oz, right around the 50th percentile.  she is doing great & all of her measurements checked out normally.  keep growing strong & healthy, little one!

second trimester certainly left with as much gusto as it came in.  i'm relearning all about this exhaustion from nothing thing & the random immediate need to eat every once in awhile. i am truly thankful for this time to rest & take care of myself & nora belle & get the things accomplished we need to.  & thankful for a wonderful husband who understands & appreciates it all.

love love,
kjp.

week 16: it's a girl!!

oh my goodness gracious, we are having a girl!!!  a beautiful little baby girl.  & her name will be Nora Belle Porter.  i'm going to call her nora belle.  blakey is most definitely going to call her nb.  you are welcome to call her what you like.  well, within reason here.  but we are going to have a precious little baby girl.

the little miss was once again having a party inside my belly while we did the ultrasound.  she was waving her arms & flipping all over the place.  if this little girl has half as much energy out of the womb as she has in the womb, we are in trouble.  this awesome ultrasound captured above is her upside down with an awesome view of her spine up top.  her little head is to the right, her legs to the left, & her little bitty hand below her tummy.  hello, sweet girl!

16 weeks!  a little baby girl!  whoa.  

love love,

kjp.

from week 14 to week 15: i popped!

yes, friends, i popped.  my belly is out in full force announcing to the world, "i'm pregnant!"  which is certainly better than "i could be fat or pregnant!"  don't you think?!

for the first time, a complete stranger asked me about my being pregnant.  & in one day, two friends who have known we are pregnant for awhile said to me "oh my goodness!  you ARE pregnant!"  yes, i popped.

but my favorite conversation of them all {so far} was with my husband.  while attempting to find an outfit that simply fit, i looked over at blakey & exasperatedly said "oh. my. gosh.  i'm pretty sure i'm getting bigger every day!"  he looked back at me with an expression like i had just announced to the entire world that two plus two equals four.  "i'm 100% positive you are getting bigger every day." oh, this isn't news to an obgyn?  got it.

so happy gummy bear is growing & has a big ole environment in which to grow.  happy week 15, gummy bear!

love love,
kjp.

celebrating 13 weeks with the vandaveers in birmy!

13 weeks!  the second trimester has arrived & i've welcomed it with open arms.  i'm feeling much better, like i could conquer the world even!  my appetite has returned to a normal schedule, not eating every hour or two.  my biggest cravings are still orange juice & v8 juice.  so random, but i'll certainly take it.  & naps are still my most beloved afternoon activity.  but conquer the world after those naps i can!

to celebrate these 13 weeks, the vandaveers came to visit us in birmy!!  it was little man's first time to our neck of the woods out of the womb.  {julie byrd & little aveer were here when she was 7 months pregnant, almost 2 years ago.}  we ate some amazing food {moe's & saw's, of course}, played at parks & the museum & watched choo choos {malcolm's favorite}, & celebrated easter together!  it was a wonderful & so loved weekend.

 {a sunrise swing date}

 {all 4 fellas on a trip to the park}

little man celebrated his 2nd easter with us!  we made a huge feast with our favorite pioneer woman spicy dr pepper pulled pork, super cheesy potatoes, corn casserole {you know, for a "vegetable"}, spinach & kale wontons {julie's idea of easter food}, coconut cupcakes, & carrot cake cake bites!  little man got an easter basket full of eggs & bubbles & stickers & an easter book & an easter lamb.  he was pretty pumped about the bubbles.  & then he had his first easter egg hunt!  with stickers & bandaids abound.

 {cheers!}

{or boom! if you're blakey}

{a little frat guy in the making}

{love you, julie byrd!} 

happy 13 weeks & happy easter & happy weekend with the vandaveers!

love love,

kjp.

oh my goodness! we must tell you...

oh my goodness, we're pregnant!  13 weeks pregnant, in fact.  we lovingly refer to our little one as "gummy bear," as that is pretty much what it looked like at the first ultrasound.  an adorable little gummy bear blob.

we found out about our little miracle the day after valentine's day & told our families a few weeks later.  it was so fun to share our big news.  we {haha... i} sent each family member the book are you my mother with "mother" covered in washi tape & with their future name/relation written on top with a little note inside telling them congratulations!

of course, i'm taking bump date photos!  the family has been dying to see them, so, family, here you go:

7 weeks: we just got back from our baby moon vacation in puerto rico!  it was fun to get to talk out loud about being pregnant & our future baby, as no one there knew us anyway.  we got to relax & walk the beach & enjoy some rays in the happy bliss of being new soon-to-be parents!

8 weeks: our first ultrasound!  {well, our first ultrasound that showed a baby blob.}  we got to see the little heart beating so fast.  it had arm buds & leg buds & was the neatest thing i'd ever seen.

9 weeks: lisa & dave came to birmy for the last time before we move!  lisa bought me my first maternity clothes - an amazing pair of maternity jeans!  they don't fit quite yet, thankfully, but they are going to get so much good use very soon.

10 weeks: is that a little baby bump i see?!  yes, yes it is.  my sweet big sister was so kind to point that out while i visited her & my bro-in-law & my adorable nephew in philly!  playing with little man made me all the more excited about having a little one of our own.

11 weeks:  still feeling pretty great, as long as i ate every hour or two & took a little afternoon nap about every day.  not too shabby.  raw greens were finally starting to not repulse me.  my meals finally included a few things other than carbs & cheese {although that was pretty awesome}.  & i remembered the fine points of fruits & veggies & actually having energy to cook a meal for my sweet husband.  oh, 11 weeks, i appreciate you.

12 weeks: we got to hear gummy bear's sweet sweet heartbeat again!  it's an anxious little thing, just like it's mother.  155-165 bpm.  & then i got to experience another ultrasound!  gummy bear was waving its hands in the air & kicking its feet.  the doctor said it was a stubborn baby, when it wouldn't turn over for quite awhile.  of course it's stubborn, it's related to me!  this was the first time i realized i might actually have a human inside of me.  an incredible blessing.

love love,

kjp.  

o christmas tree, clam chowder, & war eagle.

our thanksgiving break was filled with so many wonderful things - resting a little, celebrating a lot, delicious treats, amazing friends, unbelievable football, & four days together.  it was truly incredible.

after the big thanksgiving day, we spent friday decorating for christmas!  our tree is up, lights are on, ornaments are hung, & all is lovely.  our advent calendar is hanging with the annual discussion of whether you count up or down. {down is obviously the answer.}  & we even got to open a christmas gift early from my amazing in-laws - a beautiful new tree skirt with "the porters" embroidered on it!

we had the mcgs over for football saturday!!  i made my dad's new england clam chowder in homemade {& by that, i mean my manager made at work} bread bowls.  all very delicious.  the pups played & played again, although much more tired this time.  we actually took a couple photos to commemorate.  & then we watched THE unbelievable iron bowl.  oh my gosh.  that was an ending for the ages.  & i am very happy to say - war damn eagle.

so many things to be thankful for this holiday season.

love love,

kjp.

thankful thursday - your birthday wishes.

oh my goodness, y'all know how to make a girl feel incredibly special.  from the phone calls & texts & facebook messages & instagram posts to the flowers & cards & gifts & banners...  i feel so loved!  seriously, you all are the best.

i woke up to my favorite picture of my sister & me as a birthday wish...

& then i arrived at work before "bright & early" to see amazing birthday decorations of "happy birthday" banners all over the kitchen & oven & refrigerators, bright orange flowers, & a beautiful note.  miss marygrace, you are truly the kindest person i know.  thank you for bringing so much joy to my birthday!

my super sweet husband stopped by urban to bring me a bouquet of beautiful & bright flowers!  he is so wonderful.

& then i received another bouquet of gorgeous pink & white flowers from the donatiellos!  THREE bouquets in one day!  that's incredible!  happiest girl in the world here, my friends.  happiest girl in the world.

after a fun afternoon with my husband, we decided it was time to open the cards & gifts i have been receiving over the past week or so!  lucky for me, my adorable nephew wanted to be in on the action, so we video chatted with malcolm & julie!

my super cute mother-in-law played a fun game of "how many ways can i tell kendall 'happy birthday!' this year??"  it.was.awesome.  phone call, voicemail, text, email, facebook, a note at work, a card, & the greatest of them all - she called ahead to the restaurant we went to that evening & ordered banana pudding for me!  she even convinced the fella to announce it to the whole restaurant.  priceless!

mrs holmes went all out this year for my birthday too!  in addition to the tanky + finley = love theme, she sent the most amazing fuchsia themed gifts.  hot pink pencils with "love, the porters" engraved on them!  hot pink & gold washi tape.  pink cardstock labels.  black & white twine.  & a fantastic "love, the porters" stamp!  & she even had little bags with ideas of how to use each item.

our birthday evening ended with a couple of beers, the best wings, & delicious nachos at moe's bbq with our church small group.  a fabulous fabulous birthday.  & we still have more celebrations to come!  i love birthdays.  especially because you all make them so darn special.

i hope you can think of something today for which you are thankful.

love love,

kjp.