We are proud to announce...

Imaya Ruby Armstrong

Our precious angel was born at 5:50 pm on June 26th, 2009 at Phelps County Regional Medical Center in Rolla, MO. She was a healthy 7 lbs, 14 oz and 19.5 inches long.

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Twinkle twinkle tiny light,

little eyes that shine so bright.

A precious baby from heaven above,

fill our hearts with so much love.

The last of the baby bumps...

39 Weeks

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I am getting bigger and bigger everyday. Little peanut weighs over 7lbs now and is about 20 inches long. I am ready any day now to meet our little peanut. The biggest change that I have noticed this week is the increased swelling in my feet. Ouch..I wore boots the day of this picture. It will be the last time I do that. Flip flops will be the style of choice from here on out. At our appointment today, we scheduled an induction on June 26th. I better get my butt in gear to get all the last minute items we need! Maternity leave starts tomorrow...yeah =)

TJ graduates his first cycle...what an achievement!

TJ graduated his first cycle of Soldiers on June 18th, 2009. TJ's mother and brother were able to attend and watch him proudly as TJ reached this accomplishment. During this cycle, TJ said one of his Soldiers asked him what his biggest accomplishment so far in his career was. He responded with telling his Soldiers that watching them graduate would be that moment for him. Peanut and I were so proud to be a part of this day and share it with him and his family. The break between this cycle of Soldiers and the next is extremely short. TJ will ship his Soldiers off on June 19th and will begin day 1 with another group of recruits on June 29th. The video posted above is TJ calling cadence for his Delta Dawgs, 3rd Platoon, as they walked across the stage. "Army, Army, Army...I love the Army." The video posted below is a video that was played at the graduation. Does this motivate you to join?

Ruber ducky your the one...

I finished the bathroom in the nursery. I received so many ducky stuff that I thought it would only be appropriate to decorate the bathroom with ducks. The duck toilet seat cover and rug were given to me by a co-worker. Thank you Cynthia...it looks so cute with the rest of the decor. I had to hang the little robe that we got from Tracy, another co-worker, from my shower. This is just the cutest thing I have ever seen. Once we moved in, we immediately took the doors off the bathrooms. As you can see, they are pretty small and with a door in the way it was ridiculous. Now I am able to actually get my big belly into the bathroom. I am almost done with the nursery and will post pictures soon.

More gifts...

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Great Grandma McDougall made a blanket for our little peanut. When I sit in the rocker a night and read I drape this blanket across my chest to keep warm. Thank you Nana Mac. Also, Grandma and Grandpa Elbert bought us a teddy bear. We love him..he is just too cute. I can't wait to show everyone all of these items in the nursery. I am almost finished. I have a few more projects and then will be posting pictures. Stay tuned...

37 weeks...full term

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I gained only a pound this week which is due to all the nausea that I experienced. So far, this week was the worst that I have had. I have not been able to eat very much, due to getting sick afterwards. Thus far I have gained 24 pounds. Baby is about 6.5 lbs now. My sister was 6 lbs when she was born, however, I was 8. We are not sure how big/small TJ was...lets hope we have a smaller baby! I had my weekly appointment today. My cervix is still closed, therefore, no inducing anytime soon. Our next appointment is next Tuesday. We hope there is some activity in the cervix so we can induce as planned on the 19th. If not, we will be patiently waiting with TJ's mom and brother here for the arrival of baby Armstrong. Not feeling any contractions at this time. Baby continues to move quite a bit. I posted a quick movement video for you to see.

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This weeks goal is to find a mommy wagon to purchase. Possible cars: Dodge Charger, Nissan Altima, and Chrysler 300. It looks like I will be trading in my Celica as there has not been much interest =( Not what I had intended, but I hope to get a good deal for it. No more manual, 2 door cars for this girl. I guess it had to happen sooner or later...

24 days to go and our closet is filling up...

I can't believe how much stuff we have gotten.

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The clothes are from Cynthia at work. Her husband is currently deployed overseas and she recently attended a family support event. At this event they were giving away FREE, brand new clothes of varying sizes. While she was there she thought of us and picked up all the clothes you see pictured. What a great gal! Our closet is growing daily as a result of the wonderful gifts and a shopaholic mom!! Hopefully we have a girl so we can put our little one in all these adorable clothes. I have to admit that I have also bought more girl clothes than boy...as I have a gut feeling that it is a girl. If our peanut ends up being a boy, I know some very special ladies who are also having babies.

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The toys are from our next door neighbor. Their little boy Dominick loved these toys, so she thought to buy them for us. Sadie and Jeff bought us the Boppy and cover from our Target registry. I can't wait to use it for breastfeeding! Lastly, the lamb is from grandma and grandpa Elbert. They brought it with they brought it with them when they visited over Memorial weekend. It is so soft. I can just see our peanut relaxing in the bobby on this comfy floor pad.

I'd like to say, though I'm not here yet

thank you for the all gifts I'll get

And thank you from my parents, too

for all the gifts in pink and blue

My closet was empty, my belongings were few

but that's all changed now, thanks to you!

...love peanut

36 weeks and positive to group B...

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Our peanut is now 6 pounds. I can definitely feel the extra weight on my body. Peanut is pushing more and more on my bladder so I am constantly back and forth to the bathroom. The head is already in the down position as I feel frequent kicks to the ribs. I feel peanuts foot sticking out of the right side of my belly quite often as there isn't too much room in my belly for the little one to move around anymore. I have experienced much trouble trying to eat a full sized meal and the heart burn continues...yuck!!

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Our doctors appointments continue every two weeks. This week we found out that I am positive to group B. The group B streptococcus (GBS) bacteria is usually harmless in healthy adults, but it can cause a relatively rare but very serious infection in newborns. Between 10 and 30 percent of pregnant women carry GBS bacteria in the vagina or rectal area, where they may pass it to their babies during labor or birth. I will be receiving an antibiotic treatment during labor as a result of my positive results. This will greatly reduce the risks associated with GBS. Without this medication, the consequences to peanut can be very serious. GBS disease can cause sepsis (an infection in the blood), pneumonia, and meningitis.