Heres my deal... This will be my 3rd child.. I'm excited BUT nervous as well. My oldest is 11 and my baby's 8.... and I'm 35. My midwife says I'm in great health, but they've suggested the "over 35" tests anyway, which Ive been taking and everything seems fine.

Are there any other 35+ new mommies to be out there who may be feeling the same as me??

Also I was a cronic "fainter" with my 1st born.... seems like baby #3 has me headed down the same road.. can u relate?

These were done Nov 4 (13weeks 1day), I JUST thought of how to get them on this site w/o a scanner (DUHHH!! Jae) They're a lil crooked, but hey they're up right LOL .

My forgetfulness is ALREADY kicking in bigtime :O)

11/6/07(13 weeks 3 days) .. well my fiance' and I went to my prenatal visit yesterday.. everything went well...heartbeat was strong, got some tips on what to eat or take for constipation(so we'll see on that, Im not down with Prunes). Even tho we're kinda early we had hoped that we'd get a chance to find out the babys sex, unfort not... the person that does the U/S's in the office only does them Mon-Wed (BOOOO) anywho.. we made an appt to hopefully find out during our next visit..4 WEEKS away.. (sigh) oh well, its gonna be a long 4 weeks ladies :O) ! !

11/15/07 (14 weeks 5 days)-routine prenatal visit, u know the routine ladies, pee in the cup, check ur blood pressure and the best part of all LISTEN TO THE BABY'S HEARTBEAT!! Keith was looking forward to finding out what the baby's sex was, BUT unfortunately we'll have to try and check that out on our next visit Dec 12. oh well, no worries, baby's doing fine. oh, btw, Ive gained about 3lbs :O)

11/27/07 (16weeks 3days)-I feel as if I'm not holding up my end of the bargain after reading all of ur entries!! So I thought I'd drop a line just to check in. Today I added my 15 week tummy pics.. I'm FINALLY starting to show some growth aside from my HUGE breasts. Now that I'm starting to show, I'm wondering how big my butterfly (tatt) will get LOL. anywho, no issues with me thusfar this week, still no morning sickness( and Im not complaining), no fainting after taking the iron pills daily(yippie!), I'm not as tired as I used to feel (I dunno if thats good or not, I was getting used to all the "free" service in my household LOL) and fortunately no baby daddy issues(we're always pretty good). Have a FABULOUS week Mommies!

12/13/07 (18 weeks 5 days)- so, we had our normal 4 week check up yesterday afternoon and we managed to slip in a u/s just to be nosey and find out the sex of our lil pumpkin, but before I get to that..

Everything was normal, I've gained 3lbs since the last visit ( so Ive gained 8lbs altogether), the baby's heartbeat was great and they drew blood for the AFP test which took less than 5 minutes. oh and since I had that scare the other night with an increased heart rate I asked about that and was told that it is normal (thanks to the Mommy's who basically told me to calm down , its normal :o) ) and I was told to increase my water intake which floored me since I drink water ALL day ! BUT whatever the case I feel better knowing it was nothing serious.

ANYWHO.. the u/s was pretty neat, the baby was moving around ALOT... we saw the baby's mouth opening/closing, the baby seemed to waive at us which was cute enuff (..............drum roll..................) and we found out that I am........................................

YEP! I'm having a girl!!! ok when I say I was happy, but in total shock! To be honest, I think it took a minute afterwards for it to sink in that it was actually a girl rather than a boy-Keith and I had pretty much guessed it was a boy, BUT we're thrilled, now we will have a household with 2 boys (my son and his son) and my daughter and the new lil diva to come.. whew! 2 girls.. I'm not sure I'm ready for that LOL :o) so with that said.. out with the name that we'd decided on (Jayden Darrell) and in with the new- whatever that is LOL we're at a loss so far with girls names so I'll have to get back to u guys with that .

PS! I'm soo mad that all my messages are lost. BUT I guess its better than having all of my journal info lost huh?? I've read the horror stories and I'm hoping that doesn't happen to mine, BUT.. I'm not banking on it :O/ so with that being said, Ive started adding u Mommys to my "friends" list so that I won't lose contact.. I'm interested in ur updates and would like to keep u guys up to date on mine as well .. Talk to u soon Mommies :o)

12/12/07 (18 weeks 4days)

Blowing Bubbles or Catching Z's??

Hi Daddy!!

12/21/07 (19 weeks 6 days)- It's Friday, Payday, Ive got all of my Xmas shopping done, so u would think I'd be thrilled right?? NOT! I'm sitting at work with nothing to do! My back and neck are hurting and I want something to snack on but I have no idea what. Ok its DEF one of those days where Jae's just not satisfied, I'm sure u ladies can relate. :o(

My Princess remains nameless {sigh}. I just have no idea what I want to name her. Keiths been emailing me names/meanings today and I didnt like anything he sent over. Can u believe he even suggested "Lilly"? Imagine that Lilly McDowell..ummm ok NO. He even suggested "Ivana".. hmm Ivana McDowell... ummmm NO. To be honest I feel kinda bad about not having a name for her yet, thats one of the first things ur asked " what are u naming her?" and my response is "I dunno". LOL sad but funny. I keep telling myself that Ive got all this time, but well I just dunno.. my other kids names just came to me, they just flowed smh.. this isnt happening this time for whatever reason. So if anyone can give me suggestions, WE'D greatly appreciate it. We don't want anything too too ethnic, but no "Lilly's" either smh Lilly-geesh. Bless my baby's heart tho (Keith) hes trying so hard and I'm sure he doesnt think I'm trying, but I'm just at a loss.. a complete loss.

Anyways... Ive got an hour to go before I can hit the time clock and then I can go home and get in my comfy pj's, curl up next to my man and nap LOL. I hope everyone has a great Xmas, try not to eat too much.. well no I take that back, I plan to eat alot so.. enjoy urselves Mommies. Be Safe. God Bless u and ur Lil'Pumpkins

Christmas Glitter !Graphics

Possible Names for Our Princess (I'll add as we come up with potentials)

• Alise Paige McDowell ????
• Kailyn Elle McDowell????
• Kaidyn Elle McDowell???
• Kaidyn Elise McDowell??

1/2/08 (21 weeks 4 days)**ok so I think we've decided to name her "Kaidyn" for sure. BUT we're still going back and forth on the middle name, Keith likes "Elise" and I like "Elle". **

whew! I don't recall it being this hard naming my first 2 munchkins

Profile Graphics - SoulCityGraphics.com

Kaidyn Elise's Astrological Signs Western Taurus Chinese Rat

About the Taurus Baby Parents of a Taurus tot are going to have to be very aware of this baby's need to be touched. Loving caresses and a tender touch are what the Taurus baby lives for! Along those lines, this is a child who needs to be comfortable. Things to keep in mind are providing a room and bed that are neither too hot nor too cold, food that is tasty (a budding gourmand has arrived!), soothing sounds, and whimsical toys. As Taurus rules the Second House, the House of Possessions, this baby's playthings will be very important. When it comes to the learning curve, the Taurus baby is not in a hurry to grasp new concepts. This tot will learn things at their own pace and be unresponsive to pressure, yet persevering in the end. In light of this, a gentle manner to get this baby to react and respond is the sensible course of action. Also familial in nature, the Taurus baby will enjoy having the family in close proximity, especially siblings. You can consider this baby a people person in general, as they are also likely to control the play circle where that well-known Taurean stubbornness will reveal itself! To sum up, the Taurus baby wants to be touched, will revel in delicious toys, and as an Earth Sign, will want to have both feet firmly planted on the ground!.

• I'm back Ladies.. Kaidyn's looking great! I was even able to get the 4D pics of her which I'll have to post last this evening or tomorrow, she looks so cute! and get this.. they moved my due date up from May 20 to May 10.. can I just say I'm not mad LOL and I wont have to submit to anymore tests due to my age, they said Ive got a body like a 20 yr old and I could pop another kid out if I wanted to.. needless to say- THAT aint happening but whatever! Anywho thats my update for the day. I'm pretty happy about it :o) My next regular prenatal appt is set for Feb 5.. so it should be smooth sailing from here.

AWWWWW look at my lil Pumpkin Pie!! {yeah shes a cutie just like her Mommy}

glitter-graphics.com

Wanna hear something cute, but funny?? They are passing Kaidyn's 3D pics around my company, LOL everyones checking out MODERN TECHNOLOGY! Everyones commenting on how clearly u can see her AND how she looks like me

1/21/08 (24 weeks 2 days)- not much to add today Mommies.... everythings going pretty good so far. Still alot of movement from Princess Kaidyn and I'm starting to feel HUGE. The weekend was cool, it even tried to snow in GA (imagine that) we NEVER get snow in GA and when we do.. its nothing to write home about, BUT I managed to get a picture ...

• otherwise not much went on.. oh we bought a printer/scanner for home so I cant wait to scan something! NOW is the time for sono's LOL.. no worries tho.. I'll find something to scan and post. :o) umm what else..
• We bought Kaidyn a crib, got it for a deal on ebay $80 and in the store I saw it for $130 and mine comes WITH the mattress (yeah I go thru a thing where I'm a ebay junkie, this weekend was one of those times, I bought a brand new maternity outfit for $1.26!!) can't wait until Keith picks it up so I can decide what colors for her bedding... its all coming together slowly but surely. I went to Wal-Mart just to browse the baby isles and saw alot of cute sleepers etc, I'm sooo trying to hold out until after my baby shower before I start buying things, but I gotta admit its getting really hard.. guess I should just stay out of that dept in the stores huh?? (EASIER SAID THAN DONE!)
• oh well.. I hope u ladies have a great week, talk at u soon!

2/12/08 (27 weeks 3 days).. ELBOWS, KNEES, FEET. Thats all I'm feeling these days (and nites) Miss Lady is extremely active. Ive noticed it doesnt do any good to change positions at nite because she doesnt stop dancing until shes tired-its Kaidyns world. It doesnt help when her daddy says Kaidyn please give Mommy a break- cause again its Kaidyn's world and she does what she wants. Warm baths/warm drinks no longer work-I guess shes onto that game. I dunno what else to do except let her have her way, lol again it's Kaidyns world.

Other than it being Kaidyns world... nothing much is happening... Since my gluclose test week they've only called to say that I'm still low in the iron dept, which I pretty much figured I would be because rather than taking iron 2x a day, I'd only been taking it 1x cause it made me so sick, BUT I guess I'll just have to suffer thru the sickness and do what I should be doing . No word on the actual gluclose test yet tho.. I hope all's good with that

My pumpkins growing- I can REALLY tell.. my tummys finally growing LOL, I'm no longer able to get by wearing some of my regular jeans/tops its all maternity gear from here on out( yeah I know real cute) I REALLY need to update with pics, but I've been so lazy its just easier said than done, but I will... ummm soon LOL. oh yeah another sign that I'm getting big.. not only do I "waddle" when I walk, BUT its a BIA! trying to pick something up and lets not mention getting up from a sitting or lying position-thats out of the question! Oh well.. the joys joys joys of pregnancy continues.. I am happy its going pretty fast tho.. I thought I'd NEVER get to this point

2-27-08 *29 weeks, 5 days and counting*Yesterdays Drs appt sucked! my appt was at 9:40am, I thought I was doing the dayum thang arriving 15 minutes early.. OBVIOUSLY not the case.. I had to wait for almost a freakin hour to be seen and the only reason I didnt leave was cause I wanted to make sure I got the results of my gluclose and I wanted to hear Kaidyn's heartbeat. BUT I was pissed and short with everyone. Anywho.. Glucose results were negative for diabetes, heartbeat was fantastic, and I've gained a whoopin 8lbs since my last visit. Midwifey told me to slow my roll on whatever I've been eating alot of.. which I have no idea cause hell I've been eating errthang in abundance. OH WELL! and to complete my morning yesterday, when I attempted to update here.. I wasn't able to for whatever reason.. whenever I typed a line the next line would type ontop of the previous, so today I deleted some glitter pics and moved some things around BUT I'm still getting a "error on page" message so I wouldn't be surprised if the whole dang page is gone tomorrow!

Normally I'm not one to complain, but I'm really feeling FOUL and I cant explain why! Yester I went home and didn't have to cook dinner, Keith and the kids had already started dinner-meatball subs and fries, which sounds hella good right?? I didn't even eat it, I think I lost my appetite from the whole day to be honest.. I just took a long bubble bath and decided to lounge in bed and read a magazine, I didn't get any peace tho Jazzy came to spend her regular QT with Kaidyn which wasn't really comfortable for me, but I let her do her thang. I tried to go to sleep and when I finally fell asleep, I woke right back up around 3am .. so I was watching tv rather than sleeping!!

Now I'm sitting here thinking.. ok I'm about 30 weeks along.. haven't had my baby shower yet which is no real biggie, but whats up with that??? AND I'm thinking ok all these Mommies are getting their baby's nurseries together and my babys crib is in our bedroom, she doesn't even have her own room! Am I being "hormonal"?? I mean our bedroom is hella big, we live in a 4 br house (which is ours) so whats my complaint?? AND Keith and I are talking about upgrading within the next 12 months.. so somebody tell me if I'm trippin or not! WHEW!! I hope u Mommies are having a better day than me!

3/13/08 (31weeks, 5days) Yesterday's dr's appt, ehhh the norm I guess.. weight, pee, heartbeat LOL.. I weigh 150lbs- which was good, not too much gain since the last visit. Baby's measuring at 31in-right on track, heartbeat strong and fast-yippie, shes not head down yet-or atleast she wasnt at the appt, no telling how many times she's flipped/flopped.

ummm thats about it. I didnt think it possible, BUT I think I'm getting less sleep, smh.. so its gotten to the point where I'm atleast laying in bed by 830ish trying to wait for miss thang to wind down.. I'm sleeping on my left side more which they say is better for her(and my circulation) so I dunno if thats whats helping her eventually settle down or the fact that I'm laying against her daddys back so he can feel her toss'/turns/flips & flops too :o) hey what can I say I love to share LOL he says he loves it tho. but man o man what I'd give for just 1 nite of some hard on the tummy sleep LOL.. anywho, thats all for now mommies, hope all is well, belly rubs to all !!

3/17/08-32 wks 2 days Yesterday, Keith and I went to do our Hospital tour so that he'll know where to go when the blessed event comes. I gotta say.. reality REALLY kicked in on me hard. As we walked down the halls and in the different rooms, I was thinking OMG, I'm about to have another baby and SOON! Keith of course was cheezin' like a freakin fat cat, hes sooo excited, but to be honest I was kinda terrified. So much to the point where I slept really bad last night.. I was in bed by 930-10ish and couldnt sleep.. I dozed off, but woke up around 1am soo uncomfortable, so I tossed and turned.. and everytime I felt Kaidyn move, I'd sit up in bed thinking OMG am I in labor??!! Of course I wasnt even feeling any pains, just paranoid. So I'm sitting on the side of the bed thinking ok I havent packed yet, I need to get this and that together, which car has gas in it?? where are my ins /id cards?? smh meanwhile.... Keiths asleep so I'm like ok Jae-ur trippin! so lay it back down.. I slept so bad. Today I have a consultation with a doctor so that I can get my tubes tied after Kaidyns birth.. I have no idea what questions to ask, nor do I know what he's going to ask me.. I'm kinda nervous about that too I guess.. Ive got wayyy too much on my mind these days.

{update: so the tubalization consultation went alot faster than I thought. theres no such thing as cutting, burning or tying of the tubes anymore, theres also no incision AND they no longer perform it immediately after childbirth. so thats cool... I guess. it IS permanent however so if u did this and wanted to have a baby years down the road u'd have to go thru invetro (WOW).. anywho, I was given a pamplet and told to visit the website.. I'm convinced.. THIS is the route I'll be taking.. I know we cant advertise on this site but the name of the procedure is "Essure" add the www and the .com and go check it out :o) }

3-20-08 32 weeks, 5days Has anyone else's tummy "dropped"? Mine has and its very obvious. Does this mean I may go in labor soon?? I'm going to take a pic later today and post it beside one taken previously and u tell me what u think ... hmmmm I think I've dropped a little , but I feel like Ive dropped ALOT.. oh well.. maybe I'm being overly anxious, ya think?? LOL

23 wks, 5days

32 wks, 6days

3/27/08-{33wks,4days}. Dr's appt the normal. Kaidyn/I are both doing fine. I now weigh 153lbs. Feeling ALOT of pressure below especially when walking for any distance. Kaidyn KEEPS the hiccups, atleast 3xs a day and shes still constantly on the move. I dont think I'm really big, BUT I feel huge. Otherwise- thats about it. Just counting weeks. oh and those Braxton Hicks-are NO joke! I get those alot too and they can be uncomfortable and kinda painful. ESPEC when accommpanied by the sharp pain in my lower back and butt :o( oh well.. the joys the joys

4/11/08-{35 wks,6 days} Ok so these are the dr's appts that are kinda boring.. except today I had to go thru the exam where they took cultures and more blood uugggg!!! ( and the exam room was cold as I dunno what and all they give u is that paper sheet thingie which doesnt even cover all of my azz!!) I gotta admit I was pretty grossed out about the whole exam, I even felt sickly afterwards-maybe it was more mental than anything, but.. Kaidyn kept moving so I was thinking she could feel Mommy being poked and scraped etc and I'm thinking what if its touching her, is that why shes moving??.. Mommys poor dumplin!! So now I will go once a week until Kaidyn decides to grace us with her presence. Anywho.. Kaidyns good.. measuring at 35(whatever the heck that means), her heartbeats great even tho she kept moving when the dr tried to listen with the doppler AND she had the hiccups. Shes head down, but who knows if she'll stay that way. I'm now weighing 156 so thats a gain of 3 lbs since the last visit and a whoppin 36 lbs all together. Whew! Not too bad tho.. hell I'd gained 65lbs with Jazmin so.. I'm doing hella fantastic this go 'round :O) oh well.. Now that Ive gotten the dreadful exam over with... I can sit back and impatiently await my baby shower on next Tuesday!!

4/16/08{36wks,4days}Yesterday was my long awaited baby shower. Can I just say I was DEF feeling the love?! Kaidyn rcvd soooo many gifts!!! She actually got alot more than I expected and what she didnt get, we were given gift cards for Target and Burlington that will more than cover whatever we didnt get :o) My backseat and trunk were totally full. So needless to say.. if Miss Thang decided to come right now.. we wouldnt have to worry, we're totally prepared. I'll have to post a few pics to show her stash. I'm quite pleased. So now that that blessed event is over.. I only have my weekly dr appts and of couse Kaidyn's arrival to look forward to .. unless something else comes up :o) I'll keep u Mommys in the loop.. until then-Belly rubs to all and talk at u soon :o)

oh yeah, almost forgot.. one of the things I didnt get at the shower was a baby bath tub.. and I'm thinking I really NEED to get one, heres why... one of the last conversations I had with Keith last night before falling alseep was about the tub... he says " we dont have to get a tub, I'll give her a bath in the kitchen sink"... hmmmm of course I'm looking at him like hes lost his freakin mind, but I had a dream last night that I was asleep in bed and jumped up when Keith walked in the bedroom, I asked him where Kaidyn was and he says I'm giving her a bath.. I run in the bathroom looking around for her and shes in the bath tub, laying on her back and floating in the water smiling. Scared the crap outta me!!... needless to say when I woke up this morning.. I was trying to plan a trip to Target for a tub LOL AMAZING what the mind does to u huh? LOL Anywho.. lata Mommies!