Missouri Baby Shower/Pictures

The baby shower was spectacular! Sarah, Janet and Debbie could not have created a more incredible shower. Janet sadly acquired a case of the shingles a couple of weeks before the shower and was advised by her doctor to keep her distance from pregos like me; so she couldn't even come to the shower she helped plan! Such a tragedy. That, although a considerable downer, was the only sad part about the shower. The theme was "tea party," and Sarah made a ton of scrumptious little delights and placed everything on real china. She had varieties of hot tea, coffee, and lemonade for drink, and she made scones, finger sandwiches, several varieties of cookies, and petit fors. Everything was delicious, and the set-up was killer. Pink roses everywhere (that Debbie scoured all of Springfield for)...it just couldn't have been prettier. On top of the decor and food, Janet planned several innovative activities that Amanda Livingston volunteered to carry out in her absense. Debbie and Sarah each had enough on their plates, so it was sweet of Amanda to step up. I practically begged the girls not to plan any games that had anything to do with measuring my circumference, and thankfully they heeded my request. I mean really...don't pregnant women feel large enough without people trying to wrap them in a mile of toilet paper? Anyway, one of the activities involved everyone making either a onsie or a toddler shirt for the little guy. Some of them are hilarious. My favorite game was "While You Were Out." They asked me questions that they had already asked Matt, and I had to give the same answer he gave in order to win a gift. This is where they presented me with some wow-factor gifts. Some of Matt's extended family pulled together and bought us a diaper bag, a pack n' play, and the sports stroller we registered for. The stroller made me cry. Our immediate families had already purchased all of our baby furniture, so I absolutely did not expect any other large gifts. In general, we received a lot of needed items at this shower. Wipes, pacifiers, wash cloths, blankets...etc. Thanks to the girls that came: Sarah, Debbie, Amanda, Erin, Kristin, Sarah G., Carrie, Brittany, Jillian, Emily, and Claudia. I had a great time.

After the shower, Debbie, Sarah G., Erin, Kristin, and I headed down to the lake. The guys had been on the water all day and were crispy red and worn out by the time we saw them. The girls were able to spend some time on the boat. It was a fabulous day, and we ended it with a cook out. I was as swollen as I've ever been after being in the sun for a few hours, but whatever...worth it.
This past Saturday our friend and photographer Erica Rankin (http://www.ericarankin.com/) took some pictures of us. I was hesitant to ask her because I knew I'd see my largeness in all it's glory, but then I convinced myself that I'd be disappointed if I didn't have any prego pics after the fact. So if you check out her site, don't be too shocked at my poundage! It can throw you back for sure. But she really did a jam-up job. Great pics.