The end is near!

The end of pregnancy, that is. Don't worry!
We're 15 days away from our due date (who's counting?) and feeling pretty confident about our preparations. I'm sure all that confidence will go out the window once we realize it's "go-time," but hey, we can enjoy it for now!

Today, Branden and I went to Yellow Springs {Check it out! } with Brianna and Troy. It was so much fun! We toured all of the little shops in the area and had lunch at a little tavern in town (which I totally forget the name of already...). We also ran into Dave Chapelle, which is a common occurance in Yellow Springs, but still very cool. We've all decided that we would be totally happy living the simple, hippie life in Yellow Springs =).

I've been thinking a lot lately about what un-pregnant life will be like. After all, it's been a pretty long time since I've gotten to experience it! I know there are a lot of things I'm looking forward to, and a lot of things that will be difficult. Just for fun, let's measure up:

Things I'm looking forward to
1. Sleeping on my stomach
2. Not running into everything
3. Not being pitied, or at least the
center of attention
4. Weighing a whole lot less (hopefully!)
5. Watching my baby grow up
6. Having a little Branden to laugh at
7. Not getting up 5 times a night...

Things I'm going to miss
1. Being able to go to sleep in minutes
2. Having an excuse for running into everything
3. Not being the center of attention =)
4. Having an excuse to eat so much ice cream
5. Knowing my wild baby has nowhere to escape!
6. Having only 1 Branden to take care of (AGHHH
7. Wait. Scratch that. That won't change. I'll get up 5 times a night anyway.

I could probably go on for a while, but I guess what I'm trying to say is life is about to get really hectic and really magical. I can't wait to hold my son, and see what he looks like, and hear what he sounds like, and watch him experience the world from the very beginning. Yeah, it'll be tough. I understand. But I know we can do it. For now, we're just counting down the days.

Love,
Jill

Mini Me... You Complete Me.

I have an exciting update for you guys!
Are you ready!?!?
Here we go...

So the first time we went to get a 3d ultrasound at Ultrasona (in Columbus) our baby wasn't really cooperating. He covered his little face with his little hands =(. Fortunately, Ultrasona will schedule another free appointment when this happens, so ours was last friday. It was a success this time!

Any of you who know Branden know he has some pretty dominant facial features (i.e. big lips, chubby cheeks, wide nose...) Note* This isn't me making fun of him, I think he's very handsome, as a matter of fact! And of course I don't have the thinnest of cheeks either. I've been mistaken for a squirrel on several occasions, it's no big deal.

Can you imagine our surprise/excitement/amazement when we saw firsthand that our son looks like this:

The many emotions of "Lucas?" Number 2 is my favorite, even though the poor little guy isn't happy. He's squished! Number 3 is angry baby (I would be too, if someone kept poking me!) and Number 4 kinda of looks like he's so mad, he's giving us the finger! Do you see it? What a little punk.

So basically it's Branden 2.0!! Isn't it amazing how much they look alike?
For reference, here's a baby picture of Mr. Tussing himself:

Technology is awesome.

Love, Jill

And our wolf pack... it's growing by one

...One BOY that is! Yes! We finally found out the little peanut is a boy... which unfortunately makes the naming process more difficult. We've narrowed it down to the following:
1. Lucas Parker
2. Micah Parker
3. Jackson Parker
(and apparantly "Obi Wan") *Note: This one is still up for discussion.
We'll figure it out soon enough, relax.

So I must state the obvious: We're TERRIBLE at updating this blog! I apologize, my procrastination knows no end. As it is, we've got a lot of stuff to tell you about, but that would mean one LONG, LONG blog. Here's a quick summary:

1.Baby Shower 1 - Our friends here in Dayton threw it. It was AMAZING! Thanks to everyone involved and came. I was so excited and touched that you guys took the time to celebrate with us! Thanks especially to Tiffany, Megan, and Sam for planning this shindig. We even had an adorable cake made by Mitch's mother and grandmother in the shape of a pregnant lady's belly =)

2.Baby Shower 2 - Tussing Family - Another HUGE success! Janet, Brad, and Bri - you guys helped us so much. It was nice to be with family and celebrate "Prince Branden Jr.", I can't explain how grateful we are for all of your help. Highlights: ridiculous and hilarious baby shower games, wonderful gifts, wonderful family =)

3.Ultrasound!! Finally, we got to see HIM again! Life is a lot easier knowing we're dealing with a little boy rather than what I assumed was a little ewok.

4.Baby Shower 3 - Dunham Family - Again, I can't even tell you how grateful I am to have such an amazing family. You guys really worked hard and it was awesome to get to see so much of my family. We had a great turnout, and I think we're officially prepared for this baby now! Unfortunately, we forgot to take any pictures, but I can assure you: it was so nice!

5.New Apartment - Branden and I are loving our new apartment. We're slowly preparing for the baby by putting together his nursery. Here are some cool amenities... (By the way, feel free to come and visit! We're super proud of our new home.)

*there are a LOT more pictures on my Facebook:


6.Summer!
Finally, I have to mention that its summer, so I'm extremely happy. I'm taking a few online classes, and Branden is taking classes and working, but we've still found a lot of time to have fun. We just went to Zoombezi Bay with my nephew, Gavin, and Branden's sister, Brianna, and her boyfriend, Troy. Aside from all of the waddling I did, it was really nice to spend the day in the sun and in the pool. I wish we could do that more often! We're busy with doctor's appointments too, but sometimes being able to spend time both in Fairborn and Columbus is nice. We go through a lot of gas, but hey, at least we get to go to Zen Cha and Katzinger's every now and then. =)

I'm sure I've forgotten to mention a lot of things, but I'll leave you with this update for now. Hey, at least it's something! For those of you who are counting, we're at week 34 (and 5 days)... it's only a matter of time, right? I don't think I can handle much longer!