8 days...

Laurel and Abigail had a great day in the sunshine today as we count down to her arrival. Abby walked Reilly around the neighborhood - Reilly enjoys that because he gets to show her around. He is really excited to walk with the stroller soon!

Tonight we enjoyed a quiet dinner at one of our favorite restaurants - Eastern Gourmet in Wyndhurst. We split an excellent Moo Goo Gai Chicken and then jumped over to Walgreen's for some necessities. Tonight is a quiet night at home with a good book and maybe a movie later.

Tomorrow will be one week to go - we have recently been hitting the IHOP on Saturday mornings to fill a pancake craving. Maybe tomorrow we skip it for a hospital trip?? :)

10 days...

Abigail is moving around a good bit but with less space to navigate. Based upon the ultrasound two weeks ago, she should be almost 8 lbs!!

Laurel continues to do well - today is a day that is definitely preparation for 'moving' day though! :)

We are double checking the hospital bags, charging camera and phone batteries and keeping ready with lots of Food Network TV!! We eat excellent meals inspired by some of the finest cooks in the land.

Thanks for checking in, more to come soon...

38 Weeks!!!!!!

We now stand 13 days from Abigail's arrival and we think we are as ready as we can be. Abigail's room is ready and stocked with diapers, burp cloths, clean clothes, etc. We have even spent this weekend trying to rest a little in order to get ready. :) Is that possible??

We wanted to share with you what Abigail's nursery looks like. Here are some pictures;

Meanwhile, Reilly continues to be a big help to Laurel in making sure that she rests (notice how he is holding her down). Reilly is very excited by the arrival of Abigail - he already loves her, notice in the picture how he has wrapped his arms around her...

Thanks for checking back with us. We will continue to update our journey and, very soon, will have pictures of Abigail to share!!!

Bob & Laurel

15 days....

Abigail continues to grow, move and excite her parents!! Her movements are so much more pronounced as she grows - we are amazed to watch Laurel's entire body move when Abby shifts her positions.

Each day brings us closer to her arrival - we think we are ready! :) Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. Look for the week 38 picture this weekend!!!!

37 WEEKS!!!!!

Wednesday March 18 we had an ultrasound and we are happy to report that Abby is in the correct head down position and continues to be very active and is growing each day. Her weight was estimated at 6 lbs 13 ounces with 23 days until her due date.

Because she is getting to be a big girl, it was difficult to get any clear pictures. The first picture

here is her foot and, if you look closely, you can see her grabbing it;

The second picture is the heart rate pattern showing a healthy 131 bpm heart rate;

19 days left!!! It is hard to believe how close we are now...

Showered with blessings

It is Sunday morning in Central Virginia and it is raining steadily with a forecast that calls for rain for at least the next 30 hours. The rain is a mixed blessing since our water levels are low but we sure would like some sunny days to enjoy the last weeks before Abigail's arrival.

The showers though remind us of the many blessings we have received from family and friends all over the country. You have gifted us with so many different things for Abigail and we are so thankful to everyone for their thoughtfulness and generosity. Our home is over-run with lady bugs and there has never been a more beautfil sight! Who knew that they put lady bugs on so many different things? :)

27 days are all that remain of our journey to the expected arrival date and we have loved the experience. It seems so long ago that we found out that we were having a baby but, also, the time has flown by! We now sit and watch Abigail 'renovating' her current living quarters in an attempt to make more room - much more entertaining than television!!!

We will continue to update the blog over the coming days (only 27 left - did I mention that?!?! :) ) and will post pictures and our thoughts of the remaining time. Once Abigail is born we will use this blog to share pictures of our bundle of joy as quickly as possible.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks to each of you for your generosity and kindness. Have an amazing week!

Bob & Laurel

Abby's getting active!

We are now 34 days from the expected arrival date of Abigail and she is getting more active and responsive to her environment. We are thrilled to watch her move and explore her 'home' as she gets ready for the big move!

Here is the week 35 picture, with Laurel standing in front of Abigail's bed;

For those of you who do not live in Central Virginia, our weather has been crazy. Sunday night brought a snow storm that dropped 12 inches of snow at our house. School's were closed Monday and Tuesday and delayed on Wednesday. By Saturday, the temperature reached 80 degrees and we were able to run around in short sleeve shirts and tank tops. We enjoyed a breakfast out with Jane and Anna Saturday morning;

Thanks for checking in with us, we will continue to post and update you on the last few weeks of our journey to Abby's arrival and then share our journey as parents through this same blog. Talk to you soon,

Bob & Laurel