I’m so thankful for this weekend. I was surrounded by friends and family who have known me for as long as I can remember. This past Saturday my Mom, best girlfriend, and future sister-in-law hosted the most perfect shower for Baby E!

I think my favourite part of the shower was that each guest had been asked to bring a book for Baby E with a sweet note written inside rather than a card! (Which may have caused a few tears!) I just love that one day we’ll get to show our little one how loved they were before they were even born! Saturday was wonderful, and I’m so grateful for everyone who helped make it happen and we are so beyond thankful for the sweet gifts!

If you’ve been following for a while now, you know that I love using my blog as a way to remember each season of our lives! And this is definitely a season I want to remember, but sometimes it’s hard to find time to document it all! So, today as I’m sharing photographs from our baby shower I also wanted to share some of the things I’ve learned and realized over the last 7 months!

– Pregnancy looks so so different for everyone. In the beginning I always thought there was something wrong because I wasn’t experiencing the constant “morning sickness”  that everyone warns you about but I am definitely now counting that as a huge blessing! Or when you realize that it’s okay to not be showing until 21 weeks! And that what one woman looks like at 30 weeks may not be what you look like! I think it’s extremely humbling to recognize that you really can’t expect anything and that it’s always going to be different for everyone.
– Feeling our baby move everyday is seriously the BEST thing in the world. I never really thought about how it must feel for a pregnant woman to feel another human move inside of them… until I got pregnant. And then it was one of those things I was a little nervous for but also couldn’t wait for! When it finally happened I was just in awe, seriously it was the most miraculous thing! And I’m so thankful that Rand was able to feel the kicks at the same time! Baby E moves the most when I’m trying to go to sleep, but I really don’t mind one bit, because like I said, I LOVE feeling our baby kick! It’s such a daily reminder that our baby is doing okay! It is such a gift from God that I’m always grateful for.
– We care about strollers and carseats. I’m really not sure why but this was our hardest decision yet and one that we were both really serious about. We went back and forth on all of the different options. I’m not sure why it was one of the things we cared so much about, but all I do know is that we really wanted to invest in the best option for us, plus Rand did some serious research on the topic! However, I’m so glad that both are now purchased!!
– We have names chosen! But we aren’t sharing! Everything about Baby E is a surprise and I am so happy about that decision! I just can’t wait for April when our baby is born and Randy gets to be the one to share the gender and name! It’s going to be so special!!
– I married a good man. Randy has put up with a lot the last 7 months. Most of which was in the first trimester when my moods were all over town and the exhaustion just didn’t let up! But between the mood swings, the constant (and I mean constant) crying at commercials on the television to being overwhelmed about how much stuff babies need, to more tears about nothing at all. Randy has been the very best throughout it all! I just know that he’s going to be the very best Dad and although sometimes I worry about the demands of the first few months I find such peace and safety knowing that he will be right there by my side and we will have each other through it all. I truly love Randy so much and besides meeting our little one, I’m most excited about seeing Randy become a Dad.

There’s so much more to share, but those are some of the highlights that have really stood out to me! It’s been a crazy season, but I wouldn’t change it for the world! And I really really can’t believe that there are only 10 weeks left until we meet our little one! This baby is such a miracle and we are SO thankful!!
Here are a few pictures (some iPhone and some not!) from the shower on Saturday! Enjoy!! And a huge thanks to Randy for hanging around for the first little bit to snap a few photographs for me!!