James Bradford's Birth Story

Monday September 13, 2010

I walked into work and everyone was so surprised to see me. Everyone thought for sure that James Bradford was going to make his arrival that weekend. But sure enough - 8:30am Monday morning rolled around and I was back into the daily grind at work.

Quitting time rolled around and I was headed home. Cory and I had no plans that evening - we ate dinner at home, and I ran out to run some errands. I was in need of blue ribbon for our mailbox bow - the last minute thought of thing I needed before James Bradford's arrival. So Sabrina and I took a car ride out to Joann Fabrics. No sign of baby (yet!), but needed to make sure that bow was complete and ready for the mailbox.

I headed to bed around 9:30pm. At about 10:30pm - I woke up needing to go to the bathroom. After using the bathroom there was a gush. I immediately yelled down to Cory and had him come upstairs and told him I think my water broke. I had him look at it - he was like "I don't know!" So I immediately went downstairs and googled it. There is so much information on the internet! After everything I read, I still wasn't 100% sure, it was broken. I wasn't having any pain at all. Just in case, I finished packing the last minute things we needed and cleaned up the house. I started having cramps aka contractions. They weren't painful though. Cory and I began timing them and they were consistently between 3 and 4 minutes. So I called the Dr. on call. She said to head to the hospital. We took our time, I took a shower while Cory packed the car. We jumped in the car, called my mom and headed to the hospital

Tuesday September 14, 2010

We arrived at the hospital around 1am. After being admitted, they examined me. They were unable to tell if my water had broken, and I was still only 60% effaced and 2 cm dilated (same as it was at my last appointment) I felt so dumb - false labor! I thought for sure they were sending us home. The nursing staff decided to keep me until the Dr. arrived between 6:30 and 7am. She told us to get some rest and we would just see what happened in the morning.

As the night progressed my contractions got stronger, closer and painful. I got some pain medication. They checked me again at 3am - no change. UGH!, I couldn't believe it!

At 5am they checked me again. 5 cm dilated and in excruciating pain. They went ahead and called in the Dr. on call. (Did you know you can't have an epidural, until the Dr. is at the hospital?! - I learned this) I felt like I turned into a totally different person waiting on that Dr. to arrive!!

Finally the Dr. arrived (not sure, and didn't care what time it was!) I finally got the epidural at 8.5cm dilated!! Wow - relief! To all you that gave birth without an epidural (Ellen did it twice!), I admire you! They finally confirmed that my water had broken earlier in the night. (Good! - Now I didn't feel so dumb!)

I was so happy to see my Dr. walk in. I wanted her so badly to deliver my baby. I have known her for years and she goes to church with us.

Around 7:15 we were told it was about time to start pushing and that James Bradford would be here soon. James Bradford was not a fan of the contractions, and his heart rate would drop each time I pushed. They decided they needed to use a vacuum suction. My heart was racing hearing that. A million things racing through my mind - I just kept praying for God to keep him safe and let the rest of the delivery go smoothly.

James Bradford's first picture with our sweet Doctor, Dr. Cecilia Stradtman.

8:20 am - A perfect baby boy was born. - 6 pounds, 9 ounces and 20.5 inches long. They immediately handed him to me, and let me have 30 minutes of kangaroo / skin to skin time with him before they cleaned him up and checked him all out.

James Bradford's first picture with his Daddy.

My first picture with James Bradford. Already in love with him!!

I was in awe of what a blessing God had given Cory and I. What a miracle life is!

Us with our sweet labor & delivery nurse, Beth. She was amazing!

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above, coming down from the heavenly lights . . ." James 1:17

Happy Birth Day James Bradford!!

He's He's Here!!!

James Bradford arrived at 8:20 am this morning. He weighed 6 lbs 9oz and was 20.5 inches long. Mom, Dad and baby are all healthy and doing great.

Birth story and more pictures to come soon!! Thanks for all your prayers, support and love!

39 Weeks!

Well, Hello 39 weeks!! We made it through the weekend and still no sign of baby Hall! We really thought he was going to come this weekend - shows how little we know! We were glad he wasn't a September 11th baby since its 9/11 - but hey if he had been born on that day we would of welcomed him and his birthday with open arms. And plus the upside of September 11th is that it is good ole Coach Paul Bear Bryant's Birthday! (Can I get a Roll Tide?!) I joked, that we could always change his name. (Ha! Yeah right!)

At 39 weeks James Bradford is approximately 20 inches long and weighs just over 7 lbs - the size of a small watermelon! (Dang - No wonder my stomach is so big!) All of his organs are now fully developed. His lungs were the last to fully mature. He also continues to put on fat - I can't wait to squeeze those chubby legs of his!!
We are now just playing the waiting game now!! Will we make it to my 40 week apt. on Thursday, or will he make his arrival before than?!

Our weekend consisted of waiting on the arrival of James Bradford and lots of college football. Cory ended up staying home and not going to the Alabama v Penn State Game. He told me that I wasn't allowed to go into labor during the game and that if I did - he was thankful that my parents lived so close so that they could give me a ride to the hospital!! I told this to a couple of other Bama fans at Sunday School the following morning - and they all laughed and agreed, they would make their wife wait too!! Well, there was no labor - but a another big win for Bama! Overall a fun and relaxing weekend!

Some Progress Finally - 39 week appointment!

This morning I had my 39 week checkup. 39 weeks - Oh my! Can't believe we have made it this far!! As I have said numerous times before, I thought he would be here now going off of our family birth history! God has a way of perfect timing though! And he is showing us that, because Cory is now through with his traveling for the next couple weeks - Woohoo! So, no more worrying about James Bradford making his arrival while Cory is out of town or tearing up the highways trying to get back!
We had a 10am appointment today. I always try to get the earliest available - just because I feel like the later in the day the appointment is, the harder it is to find a parking spot and the longer you wait for the Dr. I was right about the parking this morning - Cory and I made our own spot in the deck! But we didn't have to wait long at all to see the Dr. We were in and out! Before leaving work though, I told the other ladies in the office that if I hadn't made any progression and I come back crying - James Bradford wont be here until 41 weeks!
So did I come back crying? NOPE! Thank goodness. I had some progression - not a ton, but enough not to get upset over. I am now 60% effaced (was 50% last week) and 2 cm dilated (was 1 cm last week). And I measured right at 38 weeks, so he has dropped. Plus he is in great downward position for delivery. The Dr. reported he could come any day now. So that was great news. Although I still had to make an appointment for next week.
Making that appointment for next week was hard. Why? - Because Lisa, one of my best friends from high school, (see blog post below) is getting married next weekend. Seeing all of her wedding festivities on my calendar along with that 40 week appt, made me sad. I know I prob. won't be able to make all the wedding festivities or be able to stay long at any events if James Bradford is here, but I still can't imagine not seeing her walk down the aisle and seeing her marry the love of her life. But like I said earlier - God's timing is perfect in all situations! So we'll just have to wait and see what happens!

Surprised and Spoiled!

Today at work, my coworkers surprised me with a baby shower lunch. I was told this morning that the office was going to order in lunch for everyone because it had been a "bad week." I didn't realize it had been a bad week - but I would never turn down a free lunch. Olive Garden or my Lean Cuisine?!- I think I will go with Olive Garden and save my Lean Cuisine for tomorrow!

While I was on the phone chatting with my sister (Ellen - were you told to call me?!) they were setting up lunch in the conference room and putting out this cute cake.


We had a yummy lunch and a delicious and adorable cake. ( I did not have my camera, but one of the girls took pictures on her IPhone for me)


They spoiled us with a Bama bib (James Bradford needed one of these for game day tailgating with the MLA tailgaters) and with a generous gift card to Buy Buy Baby. Now to decide what to get! Maybe James Bradford's big boy car seat or maybe even indulge in a jogging stroller!

Over these past 6.5 years at Baxley Dillard - they have treated us so well. I am so thankful for this job and that they are so willing to accommodate me part time after James Bradford's arrival. Thank You everyone at Baxley Dillard Dauphin McKnight & James!!

37 Weeks & Some Projects

It's official. Today we reach a milestone of James Bradford being full term. Woohoo!! I am officially 37 weeks today! His lungs should be fully developed and be able to live outside of the womb with no problems. At 37 weeks, baby center says that he should weigh approximately 6 1/3 lbs and be a little over 19 inches long.

I apologize for not updating yall on my 37 week appointment last week. It was so disappointing and felt almost like a waste of time. I was on my last Dr. rotation and so he didn't give me an internal exam to see if i had progressed any. They said that my regular Dr. would do one this week at my 38 week appt. So we just have to wait and see. (Going by the poll, we have 5 votes for this week!) The good thing about our appt. last week was that we finished our hospital registration - so are all in the computer, and all we have to do is show up and have a baby! No forms, no papers!

Cory is heading out of town to Atlanta for work this week (I can say that, because this is a private blog, right?!) But he has a conference that he is unable to miss. He is fully accessible by blackberry and can be ready to jump in the car at any time!

People often ask doesn't it bother you that Cory travels out of town so much?! Right now I can say, it doesn't bother me at all (maybe it will change after baby though!) I keep busy while he is gone. Either enjoying time catching up with friends, running errands or working on a project. Here are two recent projects I have done over the past weeks while he has been out of town.

My friend Emily helped me and inspired me for this cornice board window treatment. She is so creative and talented. One evening, when our husbands were out of town together, we had a "craft night" at her house. It was so much fun. I brought over my sewing machine and all my materials and we just played. This was the finished product from that evening. Sweet Cory hung it for me yesterday. I was really pleased with how it turned out. Its kinda hard to see in the picture - but its of the same material as his crib bedding, and has little white pom poms hanging from the bottom. And of course it had to be monogrammed!
Here is a smocked day gown I did for James Bradford another time Cory was out of town. It's the same as the other day gowns I mentioned I had made in a previous post, but this one ties at the bottom to keep him all in!

Projects may be few and far between after James Bradford comes. But I'm glad that I got these 2 done before he arrives!

Another Class & Another Early Morning!

Last night Cory and I attended another class through the hospital. My mom and our friend, Meg also attended. The class was "Child Safety and Infant CPR." Cory was really hoping for a certificate for this one - since he didn't receive one from either of the other classes. Dad joked with mom before we left that she could frame her certificate next to his "professional painter" certificate. Much to their dissapointment - no certificate was rewarded! - Oh Well!


Although there was no certificate - It was a great class and we learned a lot. I highly recommend this class for anyone taking care of a child or just wanting to learn CPR. We learned both CPR and the Heimlich for an infant, child & adult. (I hadn't had CPR since Health class in 10th grade - so it was good to brush up on my skills!) We got to practice on these really cool manikins - Just like these:



They were really neat - their chests even moved up and down while performing CPR. I don't think the manikins were this advanced in my health class 12 years ago!!

We really enjoyed the class and definitely feel more confident that we would be able to help James Bradford or anyone else in an emergency situation.



On another note, I have perfected the art of sleeping. Only problem is that it takes Tylenol pm and I don't like the way it makes me feel the next day and that James Bradford doesn't become active until the following afternoon. So I try not to take it unless I am just completely exhausted and can't go on without it! - So I have been saving it for mostly just weekends when I know I can rest and not have to worry about how I feel at work.

Anyways, this morning came bright and early. I woke up at 3:30am - Of course I couldn't go back to sleep, so I got up. (I'm sure Sabrina thinks I'm crazy when I arise at these odd hours! - she usually lays in her bed and rests her head on one of her stuffed animals and stares at me!) So what did I do at 3:30am?! - I had an extremely productive morning. I washed the rest of James Bradford's clothes, sheets and my clothes for the hospital and then I put together these:

The Space Saver High Chair (tilts back for an infant so James Bradford can sit with us at the table when we have dinner - eating dinner at the table is going to be made a priority after he arrives - no longer will we have TV dinners every night!) We had several people recommend this to us, and its going to be so great in our little home.

AND

And the My Little Lamb Infant Swing - Another highly recommended product by friends. - Aren't the lamb ears adorable?! Both of these were gifts that I know that we are going to get so much great use out of them and that James Bradford is going to love them.
So, even though I may be exhausted today - I feel so much better that we now have EVERYTHING put together and ready for James Bradford to use!

36 weeks & Showered Once More!!

Today I am officially 36 weeks pregnant! Woohoo! I have to admit, this pregnancy has flown by. When we found out January 4th that we would be expecting on September 20th - wow! - that felt forever away. And our Dr. even told us it would prob. be a long pregnancy because we found out so early!
BabyCenter's update for the 36 weeks says that he should weigh approximately 6 lbs (size of a crenshaw melon) and is 18.5 inches long! At the end of this week, he will be considered full term. Whoohoo! We go for our 37 week appointment on Thursday. Can't wait to see if there has been an progression since Friday!
I am feeling pretty good. But I still feel like there is so much to do before James Bradford arrives. The nursery is just about ready - just have to hang my window treatment and get a few more decorative things for the walls. Nothing that is an absolute has to be done though. I am continuing to wash all of his little clothes. He has more clothes then I do, and is definitely more fashionable!

This past weekend I had ANOTHER baby shower. YES, another! This was number 4! We have been so blessed and everyone has been so extremely generous.
This shower was in Nashville and hosted by my sister in law, Megan and my mother in law. It was wonderful and we all had a great time.

The decorations were adorable. Megan's sister is studying to be a graphic designer. She designed these precious elephants and sign and also the invitations. She is great at what she does!



And the food was fabulous - check out this awesome strawberry cake Megan made - it was amazing!! And all the special touches - every Bama baby has got to be surrounded by cute elephants!!

I had the cutest helper to assist me with opening gifts. Thanks for all your help Trevor!!


Our sweet friend, Kim and her son (Cory's Godson) came all the way from South Carolina. It was so much fun to see them!

Thanks for making that long trip, Kim & Aiden. It was so special to have you there!

We had so much fun. We played several games. One of the games was a name that baby game. The guests were divided up in teams and everyone was shown a picture of a baby. The teams would pick a name for each baby, and from their answers, I would have to choose the name I would choose for that particular baby. The last baby that was shown Cory had seen it and had been asked what he would name it. Guess what he chose?! "Jamal Lee Hall" Are you kidding me, can you see me with a Jamal?! Nothing wrong with the name, but from James Bradford to Jamal Lee - doesn't really sound like something we would choose! HA! Made for some good laughs!

Thank you so much everyone for everything! It was such a fun day!! We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family. James Bradford has already been so spoiled by everyones love and generosity.

36 Week Appointment

Just wanted to give an update from my 36 week appointment this morning. (although, I'm not officially 36 weeks until Monday). I was really excited about going and to see how James Bradford has progressed.
I am 50% effaced and almost 1cm dilated. And measuring 38 weeks. She said he is still high. I mentioned that we were heading to Nashville in the morning for a baby shower. Oh - I don't think she was to happy! Opps, but I didn't realize that they preferred you not travel after 34 weeks! But she said it would be ok, if it was a short trip, because I haven't been having any contractions.
She asked me how much I weighed when I was born. I told her 6 lbs something (I couldn't remember my exact weight), but I was born at 36.5 weeks. She said, "Well I think your going to have a big baby, maybe he will be born at 36 weeks!" I said, "I hope not, that's on Monday!" and she said "well hopefully he will stay in a little longer then."
So we'll see what happens. All I know is that he will be here in the next 4.5 weeks! Loving the poll responses - thanks for participating!!! Have a great weekend!!

(Oh - and sorry for the lack of Fabulous Friday Finds - I need to get out there and find some!)

When will he get here?!

My entire family is anxious about James Bradford's arrival. I am on pins and needles wondering when he will arrive. So I decided to add a poll to the blog for fun. Cast your vote on when you think he will be born.

Here is a little Grinnell women Birth history:

My Mom's Baby Births:

Ellen: 40 Weeks

Anne: 36.5 Weeks

David: 38 Weeks

My Sister's Baby Births:

Davis: 37 Weeks

Isaac: 36 Weeks

Wonder what mine will be?! Would love to hear your guess!

35 weeks & Showered Again!

Today I am officially 35 weeks! Only 5 more weeks / 35 days to go! Hard to believe that this is it! He is growing, growing, growing! Babycenter says that at 35 weeks he should be approx. 18 inches and 5 1/4 lbs! - The size of honeydew melon! James Bradford is going to spend the next few weeks aka the rest of the pregnancy putting on weight! It's so fun and exciting! Can't wait to squeeze his chubby little cheeks and love on him!

We have our 36 week appointment on Friday. I can't wait!! And will continue going to weekly until James Bradford decides to make his grand entrance into the world!

This past Saturday James Bradford and I were blessed & Showered once again. We feel so loved that our friends and family are so generous and have spoiled us so much. And we still have one more shower this upcoming weekend in Nashville!

This past Saturday was so much fun! The shower was hosted by several of my closest and dearest friends at the home of Emily Jensen. Everything was perfect and beautiful. And so many special touches! Cory and Jeff even got in on the shower - they were the shuttle drivers! Everyone parked at a nearby church and Cory & Jeff shuttled everyone to and from the house. They were so cute (and hilarious, on their walkie talkies - calling each other by their Jersey Shore names)

Beautiful table, including my favorite cake from Olexa's and delicious cookies from Icing on the Cookie - YUM!

Look at those cute napkins - "Welcome James Bradford!"

My sweet and beautiful hostesses. Katie, Sarah, Lisa, Leslie Emily & Beth. Thank yall so much!

The Grinnell Girls!

Nanna & DeDe - we missed you Megan! Look forward to seeing you this weekend!

Cute, Cute Favors!




Thank You all so much!! We are so blessed to have such wonderful and generous friends! Can't wait for all of you to meet James Bradford!! He is already so loved!

34 Weeks and VHHS Class of 2000 Reunion!

Today I am 34 weeks! 6 weeks or 42 days until James Bradford enters our life! It's so for real! Last week we took a tour or the hospital which concluded our 4 week course on "Prepared Child Birth" Cory asked if we would be receiving a certificate / diploma for now being a certified parent. But he was denied! No certificate of completion! Ha! We also completed our "Breastfeeding" class - no certificate for that either. We are enrolled to take a "Child Safety / CPR" class in 2 weeks - maybe they will surprise Cory with a certificate for that class!

I am continuing to overall feel great! Other then being hot all the time. - Which you know is so unlike me. I am no longer using my heater at work, and taking my shoes off and putting them on the slate floor is just an amazing feeling these days!

I have discovered the secret to great sleep. - Lots of pillows set up in a fort like fashion & Tylenol PM (don't worry, I have ok'ed this with my Dr!)
This past Saturday was my 10 year high school reunion! Hard to believe it has been 10years!! I loved High School - Especially, my senior year! So I have been anticipating our reunion for 10 years now! Hard to believe the night has come and gone.

We go in tomorrow to see the Dr. for our 34 week appt. Can't wait to hear his heart beat and see what the Dr. has to say. Yippee!

Cory had been out of town all week so he opted not to go. So one of my best friends since 5th grade, Leslie, and I and went together.

When we arrived at the Museum of Art, I don't know why, but I was actually a little nervous - WHY?! Who knows! We walked in and this is what we received:

Name tags with our senior portrait. Ha - Just in case you didn't recognize me or forgot my name! It was fun looking at peoples pictures on their name tags to see how people had changed over the past 10 years.

And walking into a room of everyone you recognize - all nervousness disappeared!

It was so fun catching up with everyone. Some people who I hadn't seen since High School, others that I hadn't seen much since college. (We had a pretty good size group from our class attend Samford) and then others who I just occasionally bump into since a lot of us still live in the Vestavia area. All night they played music from our high school years. Wasn't much dancing going on though!

I think the world of facebook has honestly killed reunions. There weren't any surprises. I already knew who was married, who had kids, who was divorced, what people looked like and who else was going to show up to the reunion pregnant! But it was still fun!

The after party: A Keg Party at someones parents house! (someones house they used to have parties at in high school in our old neighborhood - it was for old times sake - for the record - he no longer lives at home and is now married!) Leslie & I chose not to attend, But we got a good laugh out of it.

I was a little disappointed in the overall attendance of the reunion. I keep saying - I don't understand why people wouldn't come. And Cory keeps telling me "Not everyone loved high school and wants to go back!" But I did understand that it could be expensive, especially for those who live out of town.

Overall though - A great fun night of catching up with old friends, reminiscing about old memories and our awful fashion style from 1o years ago! Counting down the years till the 20th reunion. 10 more years to go!!!

33 weeks & Showered Again!

Today I am 33 weeks - that is going off my original due date - Sept 20th. Since they haven't officially changed my due date, Im going to continue updating each with with that date. (Although going by last weeks ultrasound today I would actually be 34 weeks & 4 days - crazy!) Just 49 days to go and still feeling good! Although, today my rings seem a little tighter. Ugh! - Fingers beginning to swell. =( I don't want to take my rings off!! But I guess taking them off now, is better then having to cut them off later!!

I think I may of reached my nesting stage! I have been cleaning and washing all of James Bradford's clothes and just trying to get everything ready for his arrival. We are making progress though. His changing table /dresser and closet, are filled with cute clean clothes. And his bouncy seat, car seat and stroller are all put together - ready for his arrival! His diaper bag is all packed and ready for the hospital. Now if only Mom and Dad could get their bag together and ready!!

Yesterday we were very blessed to be showered by our Sunday School class. Another girl in our class and I were honored at a Diapers & Wipes shower hosted by the women of our class. It was such a sweet and special time - Great food and Great fellowship! And we spent time praying for the babies and for us mamas to be. All the prayers mean so much to our little growing family. It was so much fun! And check out all the loot:




We are stocked for awhile! Thank you Cornerstone Ladies!!!

Almost Pros!

Last night we had class #3 of our Prepared Childbirth Class. It has been so much fun and really interesting. Both Cory and I feel like we have learned a lot. I would definitely recommend the class if you are expecting.

Last night we learned about Recovery after Childbirth, How to Care for an infant (including breastfeeding, bathing, burping, swaddling, diaper changing) and special for the men - "What if feels like to be pregnant" - See Pictures Below:

Here is Cory wearing the baby suit. It weighs approximately 30 lbs. Doesn't he look so cute?! haha!

Here we are both showing off our baby bellies!
Cory demonstrating how not to hold a baby after you have swaddled him!

We are looking forward to our final class next week. We take a tour of the hospital. And then we will be parent pros! (Ha! yeah right!)

32 Weeks & Being Showered!!

Today I am 32 weeks! Wow - in just 8 shorts weeks, we are going to be parents. Life is going to change, but I think we are ready. We are so excited!! We can't wait to meet James Bradford.

According to babycenter - this week he weighs approximately 3.75 lbs (size of a jicama - really?! What is that?!?) and is approximately 16.7 inches long. I am still feeling pretty good. Although I this week I have come to the conclusion that all his kicking may have given me a bruised rib. Oh - but that little bit of uncomfort is so worth it!

Insomnia has also set in! For the past week I have been waking up between 3 - 4 am. What to do at 3am?! - Watch Nickelodeon (The Nanny & Family Matters have become 2 of my favorite shows!), Ive also spent time sewing and cleaning. I have taken Tylenol PM (Doctor approved) several times but I'm not a fan of the way it makes me feel in the morning. I guess I'm just preparing myself for early morning feedings with James Bradford!

This morning I had my 32 week checkup. Cory was unable to go with me because of a work commitment, so my mommy went with me. I love going and hearing his precious heartbeat and just getting the reassurance that he is doing well. When Dr. Stradtman measured me this morning, I was measuring 5 weeks ahead! (37 weeks!) She said he could just be high, but wanted to make sure everything was alright (that there wasn't to much fluid) so she sent us over for an ultrasound. I was so excited to see our baby boy again on the ultrasound as we weren't planning on getting to see him again until his birth day.

Everything looked great! Not 5 weeks ahead - just a week and 4 days! (est. delivery date Sept. 9 - although not officially changing the due date) Our tech also could give us his approximate official weight - he currently officially weighs 4 lbs 12 oz!! She also flipped over to 4D Ultrasound - he was covering his little face with his hand. So cute!

Yesterday I had my first shower. It was so much fun. And we are truly blessed to be showered by so many special loved ones. I was overwhelmed by everyone's generosity. We were so spoiled today! Here is a just a glimpse of all the fun and celebration.

Love all the special touches! The napkins with his precious monogram, the beautiful flowers, and above in the baby bump picture - the favor - yummy cookies with his Monogram on it.

The wonderful and beautiful spread of food! And look at that cute wagon flower arrangement!

It was so fun opening gifts! I was overwhelmed with the amount of gifts and everyone's generosity. Thank You ,Thank You everyone!!

What a sweet and special gift! This is the outfit that Cory wore home when he was born. James Bradford will be wearing it on the day he comes home too. It will be so special!

One of the special things about this shower was that instead of guests attaching a card - they were asked to attach a book for James Bradford and sign it. It was so much fun and now James Bradford has a great library!! Plus, all these books are so special with everyones sweet notes. What a fabulous library he already has!!

All the Grinnell Girls!

It was so special to have the whole Hall family together. They came down for the day from Nashville. It was so much fun getting to spend time with them and our precious nephews!

Me with my fabulous hostesses! THANK YOU THANK YOU!! What a fun time I had. Thank you for your love and all your hard work and making my shower so special.

31 weeks & a Nursery!

Today we are approximately just 9 weeks away from James Bradfords arrival! I can not believe it. Over the past few weeks and months I have heard several stories of babies coming as early as 6 weeks early. I hope and pray that James Bradford will bake as long as possible - but thinking "what if" he were to come in 3 weeks?? - would we be ready?! We're working on it!! I came home from work this past Friday and my sweet hubby had the crib put together and all the furniture arranged in the nursery. So of course I immediately had to put the bedding on the crib. I'm in love with the room - definitely my favorite room in the house! We are still working on it - got to do some decorating, but at least we now have a place for him to sleep, to rock, to be changed and somewhere to store all of his clothes and toys!

At 31 weeks, James Bradford is approximately 16 inches long and weighs 3.3 lbs (about the same weight as 4 Naval Oranges!) and is heading for a growth spurt! He can turn his head side to side and he is beginning to plumpen up all over. He continues to kick around a lot and we he's changing positions a lot. Cory felt him move yesterday - it was definitely not kicking - but him changing positions, maybe he was doing somersaults or practicing diving in for that football!!

Below are some pictures of the nursery. Like I said, it is still lacking some decorating.

This was the iron crib I hunted for months for and was so excited to finally find it on craigslist. And the bedding is from Javis Davis - if you are looking for custom bedding,this is a great place to order from. They are so helpful and you can match up the different materials online to visualize what it will look like. And they are fast!

We found this toy box at Junior League's Bargain Carousel. It was pink and had flowers on it. Cory painted it white and we are going to get James Bradford's monogram put on it. It's going to be great for storage.

This was Cory's changing table as a baby. (Please excuse the shoes on the floor and the mismatch of knobs.) The white knobs are the originals - we are in the process of changing them out. We found black iron elephants that we are replacing the white ones with. If you look closely at the top left hand knob, its an elephant. Had to have some type of Alabama paraphernalia in the nursery - ROLL TIDE! A top you will see a cute onsie and bib - my sweet friend Emily surprised me with these sweet monogrammed items on Saturday. They are so cute. Time for me to get to washing and putting all his cute clothes away!

Here is my dream nursery glider. Cory and I sat in several different chairs and finally decided to order this one. There were lots of fabrics to choose from but thought this one would work the best for us. It took 7 weeks for it to come in, but finally, it's here!! It is fabulous. The ottoman even glides! We are looking forward to many hours and hours of rocking with James Bradford.

And of course big sister Sabrina! - I couldn't leave her out. She loves the nursery. We think she knows life is about to change. She is going to be such a great helper though and I know she will be providing James Bradford with lots of kisses and love!