21 Weeks!

After working Monday through Thursday this week to get my classroom ready for kids (they start on Tuesday), I took today off to enjoy the nice weather. I slept in and took Westin for a really long walk. Then I let him run through the park across from our house. While he rested, I went to a dentist appointment and picked up lots of great children's books at the public library for the start of school next week. After my dentist appointment, I picked up Westin and we went to Ottawa Lake for a swim. They have a dog beach area and he LOVED it. Usually there are several dogs there but today there was only one other dog for most of our visit. A few more came right as we were leaving. Westin and his new friend had fun chasing each other in and out of the water and fetching water toys. I took a few pics of our fun day :)

Yesterday, I pulled a 12-hour work day in my classroom to make sure things were totally ready. I was on my feet for pretty much the entire time and I regretted it later...I woke during the night with a really bad backache. I was uncomfortable in any position and regardless of how many pillows I had all around me. I guess I pushed myself a little too hard. Won't do that again!

I continue to feel the baby more and more each day. My baby book says that I should start to notice the baby's sleep/wake patterns now and that will be indicative of what we can expect after the birth. Maybe all of the movements just aren't strong enough to be felt yet, but I do notice long periods of no movement followed by brief periods of a ton of movement. Every little kick is just amazing to me. I love it!

We bought nursery furniture today :) Now Chad has to hurry up and finish the front porch project so we can get the nursery room ready. The furniture is scheduled to be delivered and assembled on October 1st, so we've got a month to empty out the office and paint the walls.

Lastly...a belly picture of me at 21 weeks pregnant. I managed to still fit into my favorite dog-walking outfit today. Here's my growing tummy:

We're headed to visit Chad's family in Indiana tomorrow morning. Looking forward to a fun Labor Day weekend! Have a safe and happy holiday :)

Love,
Mindy and Baby S.