Baby Shower for Baby Hawkins

These three ladies are amazing!! While I was home in Virginia they threw baby Hawkins the most beautiful and thoughtful baby shower. They are the best friends a girl could ask for and I am so happy we have stayed so close since highschool.

The two mamas to be due two days apart with the beautiful arrangement of yummy food.

The cute cake for Baby Hawkins and Baby Whitworth with the best frosting ever!

It was such a nice day to celebrate the little babies coming and they were showered with some beautiful things :)

Here are some pictures from the day.

With the beautiful hostesses

The two mamas getting showered with precious baby things.

Tiny little shoes

Love my sister

I can't believe I didn't get a picture of my mom and I together.

Thanks again for such a great day ladies! xoxo

2 Years

On Monday we celebrated our two year anniversary. I can't believe it has been two years since we walked down the isle. These two years have flown by and we have nothing but great memories from them. When we were engaged we never dreamed that we would be living in another country and traveling all over. We sure have been on an adventure and are about to start another one with our little baby.

I love looking back at our wedding pictures and reliving the whole day and night. I am so thankful to my parents for giving us the perfect wedding and a party to remember!

I am so happy and feel so blessed the Lord chose Zann and I for each other. We look forward to all our years to come together.

To celebrate we went out for a night in Zurich. We went to a wine bar for an appetizer and a glass of champange to celebrate and then walked across the street to a great Italian restaurant for some pasta. And we are going to Stockholm this weekend to continue the celebration :)

Happy two years!

Baby Bump- 29 Weeks

I have totally been out of blogging for way to long. I really hope to become better at keeping up with it especially when Baby Girl is born. From here on out I will try to post at least every week and maybe do some catch up posts.

How Far Along: 29 weeks. Welcome to the third trimester!! I know these last couple weeks will fly by with summer ending and school starting but I am sure by the end things will start to seem really long.


Size of baby: Baby Girl is the size of a butternut squash this week. Since week 25 she has gone from being a rutabaga to an English Hot House Cucumber (whatever that is) to a head of cauliflower then to a head of Chinese cabbage. I thought these were very interesting food picks for size. haha Baby Girl is now 2 and a half pounds and 15 inches long.

Baby Development:  The muscles and lungs are strengthening and the head is growing to make room for that big old brain :)

I have been feeling the baby move pretty regularly for a while now but all movements have been so much stronger in the past two weeks. Baby girl is very shy though and does not like to perform in front of other people. The whole time we were home everyone was trying to feel the baby move and as soon as I would feel her someone would put a hand on my stomach and she would stop. Susie, Jack, and Liz did get to feel some good kicks.

We went to the doctor last Wednesday and found out that the baby is head down (yay!!) and her feet are over on my right side. So I can now tell if it is a foot or hand moving. The movements are sometimes sudden kicks that shake my whole stomach and other times it feels like the little girl is trying to crawl out. The little stroking movements from her hands are the weirdest feeling. She mostly does that at night when I am trying to sleep on my side. Zann has felt it every night and we both agree it feels like an alien rubbing and poking inside me.

I have been sleeping pretty well besides getting up at least once a night still. It has become harder to roll over and get my pillows adjusted just right. This week I have been so tired though. I have been sleeping in until after 8 and then have taken a nap a couple days which is very unlike me. I think I have maybe taken 5 naps in the past two years and I have taken 2 already this week. So the tiredness definitely returned for the third trimester. I bet I will be exhausted after working all day soon.

I have been feeling great pretty much most of the time. I can tell moving around is slowly becoming more difficult. I now have to think about bending over and have been doing much more squatting to pick things up. I have made it to the gym twice this week and have gone on two long walks and those both felt great. My stomach does get really tight if I move too quickly or after walking for a while. Apparently those are Braxton hicks (practice contractions). When that happens my stomach gets sooo hard.

Luckily the doctor did not comment on my weight this time. He said that I gained the right amount since last time. I don't know how since I did not hold back at all during our three weeks in the US and ate out every meal for the last week we were there. But I'll take it. I loved getting some American food while we were home. We had our burger fix at Poe's no less than 3 times. I was a little behind discovering the serve yourself frozen yogurt places but when Candice and Mike took us for the first time in Charlotte, I was hooked. Our daily activities then revolved around when we could go get frozen yogurt. I so wish they had that in Switzerland! We have been having some pretty tasty Movenpick ice cream for dessert many nights though. I am so still hooked on fruit which I realized today how expensive it is becoming. Fresh fruit is not cheap to eat here and averaging 5 to 6 dollars a day on fruit alone for myself is adding up but it’s what we will do for now to keep me healthy.  

Here are growing belly pictures from the past couple weeks. I tried to do everything I know how to make the pictures turn but no luck. If anyone knows how let me know : )

24 Weeks

 Baby Hawkins getting some love from Erin T at 26 weeks on the 4th of July

28 Weeks after the doctor (The way I am holding my hands makes my belly look much smaller)

28 Weeks

29 Weeks on our 2 year anniversary

 Zann trying to make me laugh to stick out my belly

Not Cherry Picking

After spending a rainy day inside yesterday we decided to get out of the house today and go cherry picking at Jucker Farm. We weren't sure what kind of adventure we were getting into by taking public transport  but decide to go for it. And to our surprise to was very easy!

When we got there we were greated by skies like this behind us and

 this in front of us.

The weather in Zurich has been crazy the past coulple days. It was predicted to rain almost every day last week then it would be bright, sunny and 85.  Today it was sunny sometimes then very couldy and windy with temps in the low 60s. This week the temperate is predicted to range betwenn 60 and 80. Crazy!

Anyway, back to Jucker Farm. After walking around for a bit we set off to pick cherries only to find out it was closed today. We never found out why because it said online they were open and a friend went last week. Then we tried to pick strawberries but they were clearly out of season since all the plants were covered in flowers.

So we decided to walk around the farm for a while then eat lunch.

Last week I was swear summer dresses sweating and now we are wearing a winter fleece and jacket.

Right as we were finishing lunch it started to rain so we ran for the train. Of course as soon as we got to the train it was bright and sunny again. Oh well, we loved the walking around the farm and can't wait to take the baby there in the fall!

Baby Bump- 23 Weeks

How Far Along: 23 weeks or about 5 1/2 months.
Size of baby: Baby Girl is 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound.
Baby Development: She is developing blood vessels in her lungs to get her ready for breathing and noises are starting to become familiar.

Since last week we have been to the US and back for a wedding in Charleston. We had such a great time but it was a short trip. Baby girl has now been on 13 flights and  to 7 countries in my belly. She is sure going to be the world traveler! I didn't really feel any different flying while pregnant. The flight itself was fine except I had to get up to use the bathroom many more times. But my back was killing the day after and still is. I hope it is not a sign of what is to come.
I am feeling the baby move all the time and its so neat. I feel her the most at the end of the day when I am sitting down. I don't think we sat down the whole time we were in Charleston because we were so busy running around that I hardly felt her. Hopefully when we are back next week we can relax and everyone can feel her move. I think she has been lying with her head facing my back the past could days because I can feel the movement inside alot but haven't felt it on the outside as much.
In not so good news, my doctor told me last week that I have gained too much weight and I need to be on a strict diet now. Booooo on that!! I was devestated at first but have gotten over it after reading much more online. Swiss doctors are very conservative when it comes to weight gain and he said I should only gain 20 pounds total throughout my pregnany. All American website have given a slightly higher number. I am still on the high end for right now which I can't believe I have done but oh well. According to the doctor I should now have absolutely no carbs or sugar and stick to well cooked meat and fruit and veggies. Much easier said then done when working at a school where we have lunches and treats all the time. I decided not to start this while in Charleston but we have been eating tring to eat no carbs for dinner and I have been eating healthier lunches. Sweets have still been a problem though :) Its hard to resist when someone hands you a piece of chocolate cake when you are starving. I am hoping for a healthier summer where I actually will have time to exercise more instead of being dead tired after working 10 or 11 hours a day. And I will have more time to prepare healthier meals instead of packing a million snacks to bring to school. I am really going to miss the gummy candy we always have around the house and ice cream but I know I will be happier in the long run.
My mom and I have been working hard the past two weeks picking out bedding for the nursery. My mom is so sweet and patient to deal with everything I send her online. She has found someone in Arizona to make the bedding and my dad is bring over a rug for the room this week. We will hopefully have everything else by the end of the summer!

Look at this beautiful dress my fab roomie at school and her little girls gave Baby H today. Her twins picked out the design and a Swiss lady sewed it on the dress. I am going to miss those sweet girls and their mama when they move to Texas :)

All three pictures were taken on the same day but the bottom one looks much bigger to me. My belly has popped out for sure and I feel like it is growing quickly. Thank goodness Zann brought me back a bunch of maternity clothes when he went to the US two weeks ago.

As I am typing this I am watching Zann eat a bowl of ice cream with chocolate fudge. No fair!! In his defense, I did sit on the couch and watch him do P90X right before that.

Baby Bump 21 Weeks

How Far Along: 21 weeks

Size of baby: Baby Girl is 10 1/2 inches long which is about the size of a carrot and she weighs 10 1/2 ounces.
Baby Development: She now has eyebrows!
Gender: We were very happy to find out last week that the baby is a GIRL!!
Movement: I feel her move all the time. It feels like there is a trampoline in my stomach sometimes.
Sleep: I have been sleeping alright at night but still getting up at least once for the bathroom.
Cravings: Ice cream! I have felt myself getting full much faster lately though. I haven't been able to finish what I am eaing sometimes.
Symptoms: Chapped lips. I'm not sure that is even a symptom of pregnancy but no matter what I put on them they still feel so chapped.

We didn't get a picture at the beginning of the week because I was with my class on a field trip then as soon as I came back Zann left to go to his cousin's wedding in Columbia. So, I tried to get a picture the best I could in the mirror.

My belly is growing more and more everyday.

Its a Girl!

On our third time trying to tell if Baby H would be a girl or a boy we found out at 21 weeks we will be having a little GIRL!! We are so excited!
At my 20 week appointment, we went to a different doctor for a 3D scan. After not finding out at 16 weeks, we were certain we would be able to find out at 20 weeks. Well once again Baby H did not want to show.
At this appointment they also were looking at all of the organs. I was so nervous through all of that while he was looking at everything I almost forgot we were going to find out the sex. After about a 40 minute ultra sound I asked the doctor to check the sex and the baby had it's legs perfectly crossed at the kneess. We were able to see a very clear picture of both knees on top of each other. We were laughing at this point because wanted to know so much what the baby would be so go figure we wouldn't be able to tell. We tried everything we could to get the baby to move but no such luck.
The doctor was very nice and could tell we really wanted to know so he let us make an appointment for the following week.
Well we almost missed that appointment also because the bus on my field trip broke down but the doctor stayed open until 7 that night so we were able to make it. He said it wasn't the best picture but he couldn't see any boy parts so he was 99% sure we are having a GIRL. 99% was good enough for us to believe.
So lots of pink will be coming into this house!

20 Weeks. About to go into the doctor thinking we will find out boy or girl.

And no such luck :)

I am sad we don't have any pictures of when we actually found out but things didn't go as planned. I was planning on getting back from my field trip at 3 and going home to shower and changed into nice clothes so we could go out to dinner to celebrate. Well our bus broke down and we missed our 5:30 appointment. I litterally hopped off our new bus at the train station in my sweat pants and rain coat to run to the doctor to make it by 7. I was so exhausted from our trip and Zann was leaving the next morning for the US so we just came home and celebrated with some frozen pizza and I was in bed by 8:30. But most importantly we found out about our baby girl and she is healthy!

Baby Bump -20 Weeks (half way there!)

How Far Along: 20 Weeks. I can't believe I am half way there! It seems like the time has gone by so fast but at the same time I feel like I have been pregnant forever. Its hard/exciting to think in this same about of time we will have your precious little baby with us. That makes it seem fast but it feels like so long ago we were in London and found out we were expecting a baby and eating dinner with Liz D.

Night number 2 of knowing I was pregnant



Size of baby: Baby Hawkins is weighing in at about 10 1/2 ounces and is about 10 inches long from head to heel. So baby H is about the size of a banana. That seems alot bigger to me than a tomato but we'll take it :)

Baby Development: Baby H is starting to swallow more and getting it's metabolism going.

Gender: Only two more days until we might be able to find out. I seriously couldn't sleep last night I was so excited.

Movement: I have been feeling the baby move around all the time in the past week. It feels like bubbles popping in my stomach. Over the weekend I couldn't feel the baby that much but think he or she must have flipped around and was moving toward my back. Then tonight I think he or she flipped back because I felt some strong movements and Zann could for sure feel them on the outside of my stomach. Its just the neatest feeling!

Sleep: Still waking up at least once a night and I don't think that is going to go away. The other night I got the worst cramp in my leg and that kept me up for a while. When I woke up in the morning it felt like it was bruised or I have done about 1000 calf raises.
Cravings: Icecream, juice, and fruit. I just finished eating an ice cream brownie sundae with heath bar on top. Yum! I have also been making fruit smoothies for breakfast before school. I think this summer when its so hot I am going to live on ice cream and smoothies. I have also not been in the mood for any Asian food which I normally love. We have had it once and it tasted find once I started eating but I do not like the thought of it.
Symptoms: I am still feeling great. My stomach really feels like it is starting to stretch though. I have not been able to eat as much at one time. I have eaten too fast a couple time and eaten more than I should and then it feels like my stomach is going to burst open.
We are going to the doctor on Wednesday evening to see Baby H in 3D. I can not wait! I will post updates when we get back!

I feel like my stomach looks bigger in person. I was looking in the mirror and thought it looked bigger there but not so sure...

Wahooooo for making it to 20 weeks!!!

Baby Bump 19 weeks

How Far Along: 19 Weeks

Well I missed the 18 week post so this will be a little recap of both weeks. Things have been super busy with getting close to the end of the school year so no time for the blog.

Size of baby: Baby H is growing growing and is about 6 inhces long head to bottom which is about the size of an heirloom tomato (the fruit comparisons crack me up each week that I get emailed). The baby now weighs about 8 ounces and is in a major growth spurt.

Baby Development: Baby H has now developed smell, taste, hearning, vision, and touch in its brain. So the baby can now hear us so we better watch what we say :) The baby's arms and legs are now the right proportion to the rest of its body and tiny little hairs are growing on his or her's head.

Total Weight Gain: Not so sure. I'm sure I will be surprised at the doctor next week because I feel like I have packed on the pounds in the last couple weeks. My legs feel tired from carrying my heavy self around all day.

Gender: I have had dreams about the baby being a girl 2 or 3 times this week and about it being a boy once. So we will see.

Movement: I think I can officially say I have felt the baby now! I have felt small kicks every day for about 4 or 5 days and Zann could even feel it last night on top of my stomach. I also feel like a baseball is rolling below my belly button sometimes.

Cravings: I have been trying to eat a little bit healthier these past two weeks but its hard to stay away from pizza, bread, and baked goods. We also made a trip to McDonalds last week for dinner since we had coupons and dinner for 2 would only cost 30 dollars (with out a drink)!! Then a little boy at school brought me a lemon bar last week and I thought it was the best thing I had ever had and needed another one immediately. I went right after school to buy the ingredients but put off making them until the weekend. Those have been a nice treat all week.

Feeling the baby move has been the best feeling in the world. All weekend I was getting worried because really felt like I didn't look pregnant. Well my prayers were answered when I woke up Monday morning becuase I could notice a difference how I looked with a shirt on. The bare belly still does not look pregnant at all but clothes make it look so much bigger. It was weird to think about being almost 5 months pregnant (half way there!!) and not being able to see a difference or need new clothes. From the day I found out I was pregnant I thought all about maternity clothes and what I should order and how my belly would look, then 5 months later it just looked the same. I know this is a silly thing to worry about and I will be kicking myself at the end when I am too big to even more. So for now I will be happy my jeans still fit and I can still move around very well.

Every day it seems like it is getting a little bit more real that we will really have a newborn little baby with us in 5 short months. We are so grateful and really can't believe it. Zann and I have been talking about all the things we can't wait to do with the baby.

Last night we were wondering what the baby would look like? Would he or she be born with hair or no hair? What color would it's hair be when it grows up? Will he or she have big teeth like me? haha I feel like we have so much to look forward to right now!

Here I am at 18 weeks

And 19 weeks

Last week my sweet kiddos at school were so excited that it was Mother's day. They made me this cute card and brought me flowers on Friday.

 " Mrs. Hawkins, Happy Mothers Day! I hope you have a great time with Zann, your baby, and family. You are the best teacher!"

Last weekend was really rainy so we decided to clean out our guest room turned nursery. We had some things to donate so we were able to do that and move our guest bed down to the cellar. I wanted to make sure all the furniture is going to fit in the room so we moved the crib up. Obviously it is not put together correctly but we were able to get an idea. Right now it is put together as a toddler bed so Zann just needs to get some screws to put the rails on. This will probaly be a summer project since we have a while to wait :)

We also have this beauty to fix up. We bought this from a site like Craigslist here. The size was perfect for the room and I really like how it has the border around the back part that can hold the changing pad. We plan to paint it white. This will also be a summer project since we need to sand it first then paint it piece by piece on our patio. This is where we will keep Baby H's clothes and we will put the chaging pad on top.

Next big project will be picking out bedding. I seriously can not wait! Only one more week until we know pink or blue bedding and I can stop spending hours beyond hours on the internet looking at things. haha

Baby Bump- 17 Weeks

How Far Along: 17 Weeks

Size of baby: The baby is about 5 inches long from its head to its bottom. Last time we were at the doctor, he said he/she was about 17 cm including its legs which is about 7 inches. So this week I am guessing that has grown to about 7 1/2 inches. The baby wieghs about 5 ounces and is the size of a turnip.

Baby Development: Little baby can now move its joints and is starting to develop sweat glands

Total Weight Gain: As of last week I had gained almost 3 kilos which is about 6 pounds. I feel like if I post this for other people to see then I have a reason to hold myself accountable and try to watch how much I eat.

Gender: No news yet. Everyone in my family and most people at work tell me they think its a boy. One friend at work thinks its a girl and Zann's aunt. Kathy, had a dream we are going to have a girl this week. She used to have dreams about what her friends were having, and she was only wrong once. We are going back to the Dr. on the 25th, so maybe we can find out then.

Movement: I haven't felt anything that feels like a kick or an arm, but sometimes I can feel something hard in my lower stomach. Also a couple times a day it feels like I have a baseball moving through me. I am guessing this is might be the baby moving positions but am not sure. Zann has tried to feel for something but can only feel that my belly is a lot harder below my belly button.

Cravings: This week I have not been eating as healthy. I have felt like having pasta for dinner almost every night, but I have tried to be good and resisted a couple nights for us to have some vegetables also. Tuesday night I kept telling Zann all I wanted to eat was Cheez-Its and pretzles together and a bag of gummy bears. I could not get that out of my head. Zann was so sweet and came home with all sorts of treats for me the next day. They don't sell Cheez-Its here or anything close so Zann found lots of other goodies for us.

I also have discovered something at school that will not be very good for my weight gain. We have a wonderful cafeteria at school and they make fresh muffins, croissiants, and bagels (which is the only place in Switzerland you can find bagels) every morning. I almost always bring my breakfast to school but it is nice to go down there if I don't have time to bring something. Well last week I found out they will make you a breakfast sandwhich if you request it early. I have just let myself have one a week but they are to die for so it might become a problem :)

And yes that is a cheese bagel it comes on with cream cheese added to the bacon, egg, and cheese.

Symptoms: I am still feeling great most of the time. After work this week I was pretty exhausted and only made it to the gym one night.

Best Moment this week: My stomach is starting to look a little bit like I am pregnant which makes me so excited.  It makes it seem much more real to us. We are both just so excited and talk about the little baby all the time. Our biggest blessing has been to hear that our little baby is healthy and I am so thankful for this everyday.

These pictures were taken about 10 second apart and look totally different. 

We started watching a birthing class video and that has made it seem like "ok this is really going to happen". I know its really early to think about this but a friend recommended it and she needs it back next week. Zann is now a pro a figuring out what all the numbers the doctor will rattle off mean. He is going to have to keep practicing since everything we will be hearing at the hospital will be in German.

Last time we were at the dr's he signed me up to deliver at Hirslanden and I received my introducation package from them earlier this week. It looks like it has tons of great information, but too bad I can't read any of it since it is in German :(

I am going to have to find a patient German speaking person to translate the binder and folder for me. It has many cute little pictures that help your get an idea of what it will be like to deliver a baby there. I am very excited about going to this hospital. First of all it is literally right across the street from our house, but it is also very nice inside and Roger Federer's wife delivered thier twins there.