Introducing...

The hubby and I have decided on the name Macy Elizabeth for our sweet little girl! Macy is the female version of Matthew in French and means "happy and upbeat" in America. Elizabeth is Matt's mother's middle name, which makes it extra special and meaningful to us!

Welcome to the world, Macy Stowell!!

XO,

Mom

Oh, Baby! What a Weekend!

It was another baby-filled weekend at the Stowell House! On Saturday, Matt and I sat down with a wonderful lady who will be helping us with child care beginning in November. This was a HUGE weight off of our shoulders, as she lived up to all of the lovely things that we had heard about her from my co-workers. We feel very confident leaving our little one in her hands!

To celebrate our victory, we headed into Charlottleville for the day. We stopped by Old Navy's maternity department and I loaded up on some mommy-to-be essentials like t-shirts, maternity jeans and, of course, a sweet outfit for our sassy little girl. :)

After Old Navy we spent 2 1/2 hours creating a baby registry at Babies "R" Us! It was exhausting, but VERY exciting! We registered for everything from crib bedding to nipple cream. :) I can't wait to start filling up the nursery with all of our little girl's precious belongings. 

After registering, we met up with a few friends on the downtown mall and enjoyed a delicious dinner at Fellini's #9. One cup of cookies and cream fro-yo later, we were on the long road home. 

What a day!! See ya later week 18. :)

Ashley

We're having a little...

GIRL!!

Can you believe it? I've been SO WRONG this WHOLE time! I received the results from our Harmony Test yesterday afternoon when my doctor called and informed me that our little one is both healthy and lacking a y-chromosome, i.e. female. Yahoo!! Matt and I are thrilled to be welcoming a little girl into the Stowell family. 

We shared the news with our families last night and afterwards, I prepared for our creative gender reveal (thanks, Pinterest!) by visiting, oddly enough, Dollar General and Ace Hardware.

Early this morning, we took these photos and sent them to our friends. Although it was a bit hectic, having to take the photos by ourselves on a timer, it was well worth it! The t-shirt is currently drying and I'm hoping to hang it in the baby's room this weekend. Fun stuff!

It's taking me some time to wrap my head around the idea of a little girl after swearing up and down that I was carrying a boy- but I'm SO excited! Now I just need to work on referring to my growing bump as she and her, instead of he and him. :) Here's a picture from yesterday, at 18 weeks and 1 day. (I wore pink to the gym to reveal the baby's sex to my Zumba ladies!)

Many of you asked, so I will have you know that Matt and I are still playing the name game... but Harper is still at the top of our list! We'll let you know as soon as we decide.

Sugar, spice and everything nice!

XoXo,

Ashley

It's official!

I've officially felt our little one move! It's a gentle, but distinct feeling in my lower stomach. I feel him or her move more often when I'm resting on the couch or lying down for bed. It's a nice little reminder that our little one is healthy and doing well. As a first time mother, I can't get enough of those kinds of reminders! :)

Now, if only I can hear from my doctor before Easter weekend! We can't wait to find out the baby's gender. I'll keep you posted!!

Week 17 💕

Happy Easter!

Ashley

Centering and Week 16!

We had our second centering meeting yesterday and it went really well! I've gained about 4 pounds in the past 16 weeks and my uterus can be felt right between my pelvic bone and my belly button. The baby's heart was 159 beats/minute- just thinking about that sound makes me smile!

We opted to take the Harmony genetics test, which will give us important information about our little one's chromosomes, including whether or not there's a Y chromosome (little boy) or not (little girl). We should find out the results next week!

Our centering meeting focused on common and uncommon pregnancy symptoms. My symptoms are limited compared to some of the problems discussed by other September moms in our meeting. These included leg cramps, lower back pain, headaches and pimples in very strange places...none of which have been concerns of mine...YET! :)

I'm feeling pretty good! My jeans continue to get tighter and tighter and the belly band that my uncle and soon-to-be aunt gave me is coming in handy. Not having to zip or button my jeans is a game changer! 

I've decided to stick with my PALS Aide job at Clymore next fall, which is a decision that has been weighing heavily on me. It's what's best for me and my growing family. I'm getting excited for "baby shower season" and our trip to the beach this summer. We have a lot to look forward to, but the most exciting thing of all is the arrival of our little one! 

We are preparing slowly, but surely, for him or her to join our family. We found an amazing deal at Target, thanks to Matt's discount and the Cartwheel app, where we bought our little one's high chair, stroller, Pack-n-Play, car seat and swing. Matt's side of the family is gifting these items to us for the baby shower and we couldn't be more grateful! It's killing me not to open and put them together, but I don't want them to collect dust over the next few months. :)

I will keep you posted on the sex of our little one, but not before (hopefully) surprising our families with the news at Easter. My fingers are crossed that we'll receive our results this week!

4 months down, 5 months to go! <3

XoXo