33 weeks

On Monday I will be 33 weeks pregnant which means there are only 7 weeks left until I reach my due date. In some ways it seems so close, and yet I can't believe I have 7 more weeks of growing to do! I feel our little guy moving quite often, and I'm starting to feel aches and pains and also feeling my energy levels drop a bit. Overall, I can't complain though. My doctors appointments have all gone well, and I am measuring right on track! The little guy is head down as of right now, so we hope he stays that way until he gets here!

We have been taking childbrith classes at the hospital and are feeling more and more prepared for his arrival... it will be here before we know it! Here is a picture of me at 32 weeks and 5 days... I am continually amazed that my body can continue to grow as it does. The miracle of life is pretty awesome.

Thanksgiving & Decorating for Christmas

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving here at our house with the Critsers. The day was rainy, but warm inside with lots of cooking and a fire going in the fireplace. It was so nice to have some time with just the six of us to celebrate the Holiday.

Cooks in the kitchen

Beth and Rebecca hard at work

The feast is on the table!

And everyone (especially Paul is excited to eat!)

The weekend after Thanksgiving Paul and I spent some time putting up some Christmas decorations. With the baby on the way in January we decided to keep the Christmas stuff simple this year and are just doing the tree and stockings. Needless to say, my energy levels are lower than usual and we don't want to chance having Christmas decorations up until Valentine's Day!! :-)

Paul putting the finishing touch on the tree

The stockings are hung by the fireside with care

And our cats have found their new favorite spot...

Under the tree chasing the lights





I just love this time of year...

Do you believe?

Thankful

I thought this would be the right time to reflect on all that I am thankful for. God has blessed me with so many wonderful things in my life, and Thanskgiving is a time that I try to reflect on what those things are. I have a wonderful job, a lot of good friends, a fun and close knit family, an amazing and supportive husband, and am expecting my first child! Life is pretty dang good.

These are some of the things I am most grateful for!

Tiny Critser (TC) - due Jan 24th

My husband, Paul

My family - we are truly lucky. We miss you, Lynn & Mike!

Nursery in Progress

I have had so much fun working on our little guy's nursery! I've really let my little creative side come out and go to work. I've been learning how to use my sewing machine a lot better, and while most of the pieces I've done aren't very complex and have the occasional blemish, they have been made with love! Here's a sneak peek of what we've done so far...

The tree on the wall is actually a vinyl "wall slick" we found at www.wallslicks.com - no painting necessary and it is removable if you don't want it down the road!

I found three fabrics that I really like together and made the window valance

This changing table was given to us by one of Paul's co-workers who was getting rid of it (score!) and I made the little curtain to go on the front to match the window valance

This dresser came from Paul's parents - it was actually in his nursery as a baby and we painted it to match the room (I should say that Paul painted it!!) I love the way the blue turned out and think it really ties the room together and gives it that extra pop!

And then this is me last weekend - 29 weeks.

He is definitely growing bigger, and I just love feeling him move in there. I already feel such a bond with our little guy and can't wait for him to get here so I can cuddle with him! :-) I will post more as we put the finishing touches on the nursery...

Monumental Marathon

Last weekend was the Monumental Marathon here in Indy. I was on PR (pregnant reserve) and didn't run, but Paul trained hard and went out for the race. His family and I planned out our route and drove to different spots along the course to cheer him on. My brother-in-law, Kevin, ran and my sisters, Laura and Katie, ran the half marathon. It was a cold, crisp morning, but we had a great time cheering for them and are so proud of their accomplishments!

Laura & Katie at mile 3 - still feeling good with lots of energy!

Kevin at mile 3 - looking good!

Paul at mile 10 - all smiles now!

Paul at mile 26 - only .2 left and he is ready to be done!

After the race he was so chilled we had to find him whatever warm, dry clothes we could!

I am so proud of Paul! He trained so hard this year - he was up at 5 AM several mornings to go and meet his running partner and stuck to his training schedule so diligently. He finished in under 4 hours which means he shaved of a solid 45 minutes from our race time last year. That is quite an accomplishment! Congratulations, P!!

Hello Blogging World!

Many of my family members and friends have created their own blogs. I've found that it's a great way to stay updated on their lives whether it's their children, hobbies, travels, etc. It's been a really nice way to catch up on what they've had going on.

So, I decided to take the plunge and create a blog for our growing little family. I'm hoping it will be a good place for you to check in on what we've been up to and hopefully see some pictures! If nothing else I think it will be a great outlet for me to do a little journaling and a place where we can look back at some memories. I am very much an amateur when it comes to blogging, so bear with me. I'm hoping this will be a fun experience for all of us!

First I'll start with some intros...

I'm Julie. I am a CPA by day, but also so much more than that! (And to most people's surprise, I do not prepare taxes - so I apologize if I can only answer your tax questiosn with limited knowledge!) I am a wife to my best friend, Paul, and have been married for 4 1/2 wonderful years. I'm a wannabe photographer, crafter and cook. I'm also a sister, sister-in-law, daughter, friend, and soon-to-be mother!

Paul is my husband... he's currently pursuing is MD/PhD at Indiana University and Purdue University. I am biased, but I think what he does is pretty freaking awesome! He will graduate with his PhD in May 2011 and then have the last 2 years of medical school to finish before he graduates from the whole program in the spring of 2013! He is very passionate about Notre Dame football, anything outdoors, loves to run and is a very strong and loyal husband, son, brother and friend. Oh yea, and obviously also a soon-to-be father!

That's us and our soon-to-be little guy. We call him Tiny Critser.

Last but not least are our 2 cats, Doc & Beanie. We derived their names form our professions - Paul is training to be a doctor and I am a bean counter. They are beautiful and it's a good thing, because they are also very mischievous. Doc loves to find trouble wherever he can, and is often found smack dab in the middle of whatever we're doing. Beanie is a little more aloof, and often likes to snuggle on the couch, espicially when we use our fleece blankets.

Beanie is on the left and Doc on the right

So, that's us in a nutshell - the inhabitants of our little corner of the world - what we refer to as Cirtserville. I am so excited about this blog and to start documenting some of our memories!