the test

I'm getting anxious. Yes, I can't wait to find out what Baby K is! Boy or girl! I keep going back and forth on my prediction, although Garrett is convinced we're having a little girl. so, since the anxiety will not go away and the birth of baby K is closer than ever before, I've been looking at the gender prediction tests just for fun. Which tests work, which tests don't, or do any of them? A friend of ours recently found out they were having a girl after their sonogram, but both Intelligender tests said the baby would be a boy. Intelligender - FAIL.

Intelligender at Walgreens

Funny story - I found a gender prediction test online that has you answer several (10 i think) questions about your pregnancy. Of course, I really don't look into these much and think they actually know what I'm having, but it's fun, right? So, I answer the questions truthfully as ever, and my answer reads: "We're sorry, we can't predict whether you are having a boy or girl. Your answers are too close to call!" Awesome.

Chinese Calendar - although I'm not sure of the exact date Baby K was made, I've tried a few different dates and all lead to baby K being a girl.

Last night, we had a few friends over for dinner and the gender of Baby K was a top subject, so we got out the string and pencil and decided to put the test to test, I guess you could say. To make sure the test was legit,  we tested Stacey (who is having a boy... any day now!!) and it predicted correctly, Boy it was.

So, my turn. .......drum roll... It said GIRL.

So, we shall wait, and see. Boy or Girl? Which test works the best?

september: hello & goodbye

wow. the month of september flew by. it was here and gone in no time and most of all it felt like this because Garrett and I were extremely busy. The first week of September we spent the week preparing the house for the new carpet. Everything, yes, everything was out of the house when I returned to the house Saturday night after being gone for a day preparing for the Oehm wedding. So, for 3 days, Garrett and I slept on a mattress setting directly on the floor. I didn't leave the house very prepared for everything being thrown around, so the next work was a crazy mess. I found my pants downstairs in the storage room, a shirt in the garage, underwear in the tub and socks in the dryer. Let's just say it was a task getting ready, or at least finding things to wear in the morning. But, after a week of craziness, the new carpet was installed and it looks AWESOME. What a difference brand new carpet makes! Love it!

A few days later our furniture was delivered from NFM (the furniture we had picked out in July when we made a weekend trip to KC). The house is really starting to come together and we're getting so excited to bring Baby K into our 'new' home!

before carpet!

still not a good picture of Baby K's room, but it's a glimpse - before carpet

my life for one week. mattress on floor, no carpet. fun stuff.

new dining area wood floors thanks go G baby and Steve O

Uncle Dennan and Hadley enjoying the new carpet!

dresser i bought at an antique store - this weekend I'm going to paint it for Baby K's room!

downstairs with carpet!

new carpet & furniture downstairs

bar cabinets and tile

downstairs

ignore the bedding... downstairs bedroom

upstairs with new furniture

On September 17 we celebrated Amber and Pat's wedding. What a beautiful wedding it was! After a scare of rain (and an outdoor ceremony) the weather turned out to be perfect and the night went on without a hitch! Amber did a great job planning her Day and the night couldn't have been more perfect without the help of Ashley Moore with Events by Ashley. If you are planning an event and need creative and professional help, be sure to give Ashley a call! She's fabulous! It was my honor to be a bridesmaid in the Oehm wedding and I even had the opportunity to design the save the date, wedding invitations and other print materials used at the wedding! So fun!

Mr. & Mrs. Oehm

the wedding party

the girls getting ready for the wedding

On the 22nd, Dad turned 54! I cannot thank him enough for being such a great teacher, dad and coach to me. Lately, he's helped us so much on the house - painting the entire inside and outside and helping Garrett with whatever he can. Love him. Happy Birthday, Dad!!

Then, on the 24th, my cousin Christy and Aunt Lynette threw a great baby shower in McPherson! We are so blessed to have such great family and friends to help us welcome Baby K! We now just have a few items to buy to complete Baby K's nursery!

At our last doctor appt. Baby K measured one week big (hoping this means maybe one week before the due date - I can dream, right?) and had a heartbeat of 166. Let's just say this baby LOVES to dance and kick and roll and go crazy 24/7. I think I can say that I'm officially uncomfortable. We are going on week 7 of our birth class, and learning a lot. I was a bit nervous for the last class as I sat in a room with 8 other guys and watched a birth video. Needless to say, G said it wasn't nearly as bad as he was expecting (YES!!! This is good news to me!). So, I'm feeling a little more confident we can do this! We're almost 32 weeks, and 58 days away from the due date! Go us!!! We even made a run to Carter's this week and purchased everything neutral we could find, and even snuck in a few boy this and girl that things :)

So, September was good to the Konen's, it just all went too fast. October we welcome you. This month we plan on finishing the details on the house, especially the nursery, packing THE bag for the hospital, taking part in another great friend's wedding (Miss Alli Klein) and just living our simple life which we love so much. One reason I love this blog - it keeps me grounded. I'm constantly reminded that there is nothing crazy, out of the ordinary about our life. It's simple. And I LOVE it. We have great friends and great family. We are so blessed.

Happy... almost.. October!

it's (almost) fall.

 mid-september. hadley and i went on a walk tonight and i was so excited to see a few trees turning colors.. so i figured it was close enough to the official fall date, that I was ready to make some fall changes. other than the excitement of planting a few mums in the yard, i decided to get a new dark auburn, fall hair color along with new hue of painted nails. BIG changes, eh? well, the belly is also ever-changing as it grows and grows, and I'm forced to buy new clothes on a weekly basis. I can't help it, the clothes I wore last week just don't fit. Darn. Baby K is kicking like a crazy person, and I can definitely say it's to a point where the sleep schedule has been effected. Yep, no sleep for me. It's the craziest/BEST feeling ever. By the way, no guesses on the sex. Just when I think it's a boy, then i have a dream or a 'sign' that we're having a sweet little girl, and then, there's another sign it's a boy. Who knows. I'm definitely on my toes about finding out the gender of Baby K! The heart rate dropped from 161, four weeks ago to 145 just last week. The heart rate hasn't been less than 158 the entire pregnancy, so I'm guessing big changes are happening in the belly. Here's a few pictures of the new hair and growing belly.

hadley& i at 29 weeks

29 weeks and very round.

Fall, also comes with fall yummies - like the pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. Like me? And can't afford a $6 coffee on a daily basis - try this recipe at home!!

Ingredients

1/2 cup brewed espresso or3/4 cup strong coffee

 2 cups milk (preferably 1 percent)

2 tablespoons canned puréed pumpkin

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cloves

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

tiny pinch of ground ginger

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

whipped cream (optional)

Cooking Directions

Use a 2-quart slow cooker.

Add coffee/espresso and milk to the stoneware.

Whisk in pumpkin, spices, sugar, and vanilla.

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours.

Whisk again. Ladle into mugs, and garnish with whipped cream and additional cinnamon. Add a cinnamon stick for a fanciful effect.

* Courtesy of "Make It Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking."

I can't say I've tried it yet, but you better bet that I will! I've heard great things from friends! Another new obsession - fall fingernails. I ventured to Target - the greatest store on earth - and got an assortment of new fall colors! I'm in love.

quick sand (far left) and slate grey (3rd from left) are perfect for this fall!

Other than spoiling myself with some new hair and new nails, we're getting ready for a week of chaos. By next Monday, we will have all of the furniture out of the house and all of the carpet ripped up to prepare for the new carpet installation. exciting, yes. crazy, indeed. We have a full week, for sure. Garrett began tiling the bar, downstairs bathroom and is preparing the dining room for the wood floors. So, many changes coming this fall, even more than the usual fall changes. So, buck up, we're constantly changing things around here, until the biggest, BEST change of all comes in NOVEMBER!!! 11 weeks left.. the countdown is on! Happy fall, to all!

28 weeks. third trimester. lots of progress.

happy labor day to all. LABOR day. this word will have a whole new meaning come november - i'm sure of that. only 12 more weeks to get ready for THE DAY. we're 28 weeks yesterday. to prepare for THE DAY, i've been catching up on my bradley method readings and have been learning all sorts of things i didn't know before - some which i'm not sure i wanted to know, but better prepared, right?

this weekend, was like just about every other weekend - garrett and my parents working on the basement while i search for everything perfect for the baby. don't get me wrong - i'd love to help in the basement, but bending over, carrying heavy objects and painting walls are just out of my reach nowadays. oh, well, because i find looking for furniture, window treatments and decor to be all the more fun. hey, it's a challenge too!

in my last post, i was still loving the idea of chevron everywhere. well, FINALLY i found a chevron baby bumper!! at last!! so exciting. etsy and i have a love/hate relationship. i love everything on the website, but when i'm looking for something specific, i can NEVER seem to narrow down all of the 'options' to lead me to the right section of the online store. i came across a blog - http://www.neverhomemaker.com -  that led me to another blog - which, of course, now i cannot locate (something like 'mod mom chic') that led me to an etsy website that has CHEVRON baby bumpers! what a scavenger hunt. so, i've ordered the bumper and have asked her to make a matching rocking char cushion. my mom has so generously given us her old wooden rocking chair that will fit perfectly in baby k's room. i even managed to find the perfect stuffed owl for the crib. and a clock! 

LOVE IT.

We've also been on the lookout for a dresser/changing table. i'm not a huge fan of changing tables. i think they are oddly shaped, don't fit in a designed room very well and serve, well not much of a purpose. after all, you can change a baby's diaper just about anywhere. so, a dresser, it is! a sturdy dresser that can accommodate for a changing table as well. 2 for 1. i like it. problem - dressers don't come cheap - or at least the dressers i would prefer do not come cheap. I found THE ONE. well, so i thought. the price was affordable and the look was exactly what i was going for.

ikea dresser - $179 and perfect, so i thought

After discovering that it wasn't real wood and it could, well fit it's price tag, by looking 'cheap', i decided to look just a little longer. My mom and i ventured down the block to the good ole' Park City antique store. i usually don't find much, but today i found just want I needed. one problem. the picture of the dresser is on my mom's camera - but, i will definitely post a picture soon. it's JUST like the picture above, except a blonde wood. So, we're going to paint it - i haven't decided what color yet - and make it brand new! all for $50. not bad, eh?

My dad got baby k's room all painted this weekend, too! three walls a very light seafoam green/teal color and one wall grey and white stripes - my favorite.  i think it'll be perfect for a boy or girl and the contemporary/ but retro feel i'm going for. here are a few of our painting pictures!

the green room goes

first step: paint three walls seafoam green/teal

second step: paint one wall grey, and apply guide lines with tape

roll on the white!

ta-da! i'm in love with the stripes!

So, I'm not sure if it's just coincidental that it happens to be Labor Day and i got so many things done for baby k, or not, but either way, i'm happy. fat and happy and so excited there are only 12 short weeks before we meet our beloved child! 

september

it's september! there are many reasons to celebrate september other than it being one month closer to november - like, cooler weather (thank goodness!), football season, pumkin spice lattes at starbucks, the possibility of getting out the Ugg boots, tights, weddings and just another great month to live. G and I have much to look forward to this month - our new furniture will be arriving september 22, which means that we have to get the carpet in before that day comes - which means that the basement, well, might actually be a place we can hang out and use by the end of september! HOW EXCITING! we are also going to be painting the beloved baby k's room and i think everything is really going to start coming together! some of our great friends are getting married this month, too! it's an overall awesome month, so cheers to september! enjoy it!

CIRCUS DE BEBE.

Thanks to our many wonderful friends and family, G and I experienced the BEST baby shower EVER. It was amazing. The hostesses - Stacey, Amber, Mel, Alli and Grandma Julie - did an amazing job organizing all of the games/food/drinks/decor to make one chic baby shower for us to invite our closest friends to. Complete with a circus theme, we played a celebrity baby name game, drink from straws that had circus quotes attached, ate animal crackers, cracker jacks, opened gifts and enjoyed the best company. Baby K is already spoiled and we love all of our new things and can't wait to share them with Baby K once he/she gets here! Here are a few pictures from last night - more to come!

front of invite

inside of invite

friends

kristen, courtney and cait

baby K already loves the jayhawks!

stacey, Grandma Julie and Amber

Grandma Julie and Grandpa Wayne

My 'other' mother. Love you, Char!

G diggin' the WSU gear!

mommy & daddy K

the BEST brother and uncle-to-be

26 weeks!

treats and wishes for baby station

twenty-four.

Our twenty-four week appointment (yes, I'm late on the blog update - this was a couple of weeks ago) went very well. The synopsis of of this appointment was - everything is getting BIGGER. awesome. Little, or I say BIG, baby K is measuring about 1.5 weeks ahead of the November 27 due date. I'm okay with this, well, mainly because I think it gives me hope that we may get to meet baby K sooner rather than later! I can only hope, right? The heartbeat was 160, so not changing a whole lot from the previous dr. appointments. Doctor said everything is going great. So, so far, so good.

Another exciting update - we started our Bradley Method Childbirth Classes! Yay for awkwardness and talking about things we never thought we would want to talk about :) We chose the class after deciding that we would like to try for an all-natural, drug-free delivery. Just when I thought I was done with homework we were given a workbook to complete every week for the next 12 weeks and 3 large, long, small-print books that look like anything I would not want to be a part of. Ahh.. studying natural childbirth. We shall see how this goes, but I'm definitely   we're definitely looking forward to learning all there is about our first experience as parents! So, cheers to twenty-four!

happy 27th g baby!

happy birthday to my fav person - my husband - my love - g baby.

we celebrated year #27 with an early birthday dinner last week with garrett's dad, kathy, sister kelsey, brother shelby and kathy's daughter sarah at red rock. yum! this weekend my family came down and we had brunch at granite city- yum, yum! - shopped, played golf and hung out with some drinks. year #27 will be a BIG one for g baby as he will be at Cessna for 5 years, become a father and finish a basement :)

happy birthday, babe. love you!

thumbs up for 27!

dennan delivering the cake!

before going out for g's bday

before g's birthday dinner

20 weeks - halfway there!