31w+5d

pete and i visited our doctor, dr. le, on thursday for our almost 32-week check-up. we can't believe how fast time is flying by -- with the holidays and baby preparations, i feel like it was yesterday we were celebrating our 1st wedding anniversary. not the case, as that was over 2 months ago! our doctor measured my belly, right on track, and informed us that our baby is about 3.5 pounds at this point. and he said get ready for the weight gain as the growth from here on out is substantial in comparison to the first 30 weeks! we listened to the heartbeat, steady and strong, and can't believe that is our little baby moving around :)

a big thanks to grandma & grandpa steward

on black friday, pete and i met his parents and sister, sara, in dublin to visit babies 'r' us. the crowds weren't bad at all and we were able to get our stroller, car seat, crib, and a few other items! we had a nice time picking out the goodies and are so thankful for their generosity. i haven't had a nightmare about having to leave the baby at the hospital due to lack of proper restraints for the ride home since!

gulf coast blog referencing

so, just wanted to explain the gulf coast gram blog reference:

1. not only does this blogger have the recipe for paula deen's pumpkin cheesecake, she also had a picture (however, this wasn't even the cake we had, though was my intention. the cake we had also came from katrina rozelle's like the tart. i didn't find it very truthful to blog about a cake i didn't make, but def. wanted to share the recipe because it looked amazing and, it was my thanksgiving intention to serve this cake)

2. my mom is from the gulf coast, mobile, ala. specifically, and i thought it was interesting to google this cake and end up here.

3. check out the comment regarding the cake. notice the name? ring any bells? thought that was too ironic (and potentially a sign)...

thanksgiving

we had a ton of yummy turkey and family time this year for thanksgiving! on wednesday night, pete and i had a wonderful evening with his parents and enjoyed a delicious turkey casserole, tons of veggies, a cranberry tart, and pumpkin cheesecake! we made plans to go baby shopping on black friday and headed home for some tryptophan-induced snoozing.

on thanksgiving, pete and i got up super early for brown thursday, shopping at big lots and kmart at the crack of dawn. we were on the search for a recliner for our bedroom and ended up with only a fishing pole from kmart. then we ventured to the dog park for some doggie exercise and headed off to my parents' house to play wii and eat turkey, welsh stuffing, green beans, yams, bread, and pumpkin & pecan pie! we walked off the dinner down by the pond, where my dad, brother, and pete fished for some bluegill and trout. mom and i got too cold, so we went back to the wii to bowl. unfortunately, my ribs have been hurting, so i had to be a spectator - nice that video games can actually be active now-a-days! some dog park pics:

black friday consisted of some leftovers and a trip to dublin (see post).

saturday took us to brentwood where we celebrated the holiday with eric, kaye, patrick, alicia, and fam. this dinner consisted of a bbq'd turkey, as well as a baked one, two stuffings (one of which I believe had clams in it!), mashed potatoes, and an amazing caramel-apple cake. i brought corn muffins (to steve and lucy's, too, they are quite the hit), sausage-stuffed mushrooms, and a black olive/cream cheese dip with Ritz.

thanksgiving sunday included a trip to breakfast with andy (in from hawaii), wilson, and kristin (jason was dirt-bike riding) at nation's in pleasant hill - yum!

i don't know how many calories were consumed this long weekend, or how many cubes of butter were sacrificed, but it was an astronomical amount and i have no desire to ever know. the baby kicked & squirmed around and i do believe enjoyed the scrumptious food!

pond visits!

pepper loves to swim, so we like to take her to my parents' house (and site of our wedding!) to jump off the dock in search of sticks/frisbees/balls/etc. since we got bailey, we've attempted to make her a water dog, too, which she handles well, but she is so independent she runs away when not on a leash. here are a few pics of our adventures:

happy halloween!

here we are carving our pumpkins and setting them up for the big night. pete and i really enjoy handing out candy to all the cute kids. we started our traditional dinner of fat-free crescent dogs (the costanzo's always had hot dogs as a quick dinner before trick-or-treating) and they sounded great to this preggo!