Waiting...2

I am 2 centimeters dialated...but the contractions have stopped for the most part. I didn't have this waiting game with Rayna and I hope I won't get to entry waiting...24 or something like that. The doctor says it could be hours, days, or weeks yet. It's all in how this baby wants to come. In the meantime, I am cleaning out closets and getting ready...didn't believe in the nesting instinct until experiencing it myself. Jon and I are having another long weekend at home and it's great. At the moment, Jon is on the last level of a videogame that is stressing him out majorly. Isn't videogames supposed to take stress away? Just a thought.

Waiting...

We had a wonderful Christmas here at home and have enjoyed the down time. Sunday, we went to church and then went to lunch with one of Rayna's surrogate grandparents. They gave her a Christmas gift and it was a pink leotard like a ballerina. She immediately wanted to put it on when we got home and it had little ballerina shoes to go with it. When we went to go to the Christmas Eve service, Rayna was determined to wear the new ballerina outfit. We tried to find the compromise and decided she could wear it underneath her outfit, which was a black crushed velvet pants set. When she got to church, she kept pulling up her pant legs and tried desperately to get me to let her take her shirt off. She walked around with the pink skirt part of the leotard hanging out the top and the pants pulled all the way up. It was so funny...and of course, she had on the black ballerina shoes. Sometimes you just don't want to fight those battles...that's our philosophy. Plus..she looked so cute dancing around. For Christmas, she opened up all her gifts and ours too and was truly spoiled by both sides of grandparents and other ones here who love her too. Our basement is now a disaster filled with more toys that we're not sure where they'll go! Jon and I have a long weekend coming up this weekend, if the baby doesn't come, and we're determined to organize ourselves a little bit more before this little one comes. All day on Sunday and Christmas day, I was having regular painful contractions but there wasn't any consistent timing. Then, I went to bed last night after they had gone away a little bit and slept all night and woke up feeling great? Weird...I guess the baby isn't quite ready yet. That's okay by me, we've dealt with a 36 week baby before, and it is better if they're closer to full term. I'll update anything else happening and we'll be sure to put a picture up on the blog when the baby is actually born. We pray you all had a wonderful Christmas and hope to hear from and see you all soon.

Christmas picture

I will be sending out an official Christmas letter and baby announcement at the same time after baby Hohm is born...but until then, here is a Christmas picture taken today. We pray you all have a wonderful week filled with some down time and peace.

Countdown to Christmas

Our family braved the mall yesterday in St Cloud and it was so packed, I can only imagine what today would be like. Rayna loved the pretty lights and Christmas trees. I think I got the rest of my gifts and was waddling big time by the time we were done. Just can't walk normal right now...thanks to the baby and how he is sitting. For the family that is reading this blog, I am getting things off in the mail soon...just can't guarantee that it will make it before Christmas! After the mall outing, I went over to Maria's to sit in her ginormous bath with jets and I relaxed so much. It was heavenly and she said she lived in it the last few weeks of her pregnancies. For a little while, nothing hurt and the baby didn't feel like a bowling ball. It was wonderful. This weekend is filled with getting gifts ready to send, finishing the piles of laundry, and starting to pack my bag for the hospital. We are getting anxious to meet this little baby and Rayna is talking more about her baby brother. Speaking of Rayna...for any of you who have had a toddler...she has hit a patch of weird defiance again and doesn't want to get out of the car or van when we get home. She begins screaming at the top of her lungs and literally would stay in the vehicle for hours if we would let her. If we lived in Florida...that would probably be okay, but it is downright cold here. So, for two nighs in a row, when we've come home, she has thrown a huge huge tantrum screaming at the top of her lungs about not wanting to get out of the vehicle? We have no idea what is the deal, but it is her current toddler issue. Any suggestions? She is 3..and there is sometimes no rhyme or reason to her actions...who knows? Other than that...Rayna is doing great and still very much into dressing up like a princess. Oh...another peek into Rayna. She is a sensitive little girl and lately if I've had America's Funniest Home Videos on..and they do those segments where everyone falls down on their bikes or skiis or something like that, she starts crying! She doesn't like watching other people get hurt! She's done that a few times and it baffles me. Ok...here are some more pictures of our good friends, Matthew & Cristina, and one of me that makes me look like a tent.

cute pictures

FREEDOM

I'M DONE! I'M GRADUATED! I can't tell you how excited I am! For all of you who said that I would do fine on that comprehensive final I took before Thanksgiving...I didn't and failed it by two points. BUT, my department had mercy on me and allowed me to take a retake in a written format over the area that I did the poorest in. I spent a solid week studying nothing and doing nothing but studying in order to finish it on Wednesday morning, the day I had my final two classes. So...It's all done. No more whoa is me posts about school...and how much I have to do. I can finally stop and smell the roses and all of the things that I've wanted to do and be. Rayna is enjoying me being home much more and is growing up so fast, it's hard to believe. She is really into writing letters and can write out her name, kind of, and knows how to write a lot of letters and will be practicing a lot. She is still a little princess and likes to be in dresses a lot during the day to dance. As we drive through our town, Rayna loves all the Christmas lights and keeps asking us if there are lights on her house. When we pulled into the driveway last night, she started crying because there weren't lights up on our house...and there's not even a tree up. I haven't let myself start decorating until school was done! SO, this weekend, it's Christmas time...amongst other things like laundry and clenaing the house! Rayna's other latest thing to watch is Charlie & Lola and sometimes tries to talk in an English accent...it's about a brother and sister in England and is super cute. As for the future Hohm baby, I'm not sure if I told everyone that we are expecting a little boy! We are very excited to have a little boy around and I've been slowly gathering things that we need for a newborn again. I slowly went through the baby aisles at Target last night and forgot all of the things that are needed, even just for me. I won't list them for fear of grossing out students that are reading this blog :) I have been having a lot of contractions lately and have had to take it easier and lay down more often to stop the regularity of the contractions. My doctor said I'm 50% efaced already and the baby has dropped, which isn't too unusual but a bit early to be happening. He wants me to get to at least 35-36 weeks...I'd like to get to at least 37 weeks before this baby comes into the world. So...it could be a Christmas baby or New Years baby...because I'm almost 34 weeks now. We get to spend today as a family and do some projects around the house. I love you all! Talk to you soon and should have some pics on the next blog.