Better late than never...

My first semester of grad school is over and now I'm getting time to catch up on items I wish I had kept up better....especially the blog!  Is this a look into how it will be once Baby A is here too?  I hope not...I really do want to keep a journal and keep everyone updated on our family, so I'll have to figure out a better way of structuring time for my blog!

To catch all of you up on the last couple months...
 I did my last big run at 29 weeks on Thanksgiving Day.  I hadn't run a 10k (6.2) since pregnancy began, but I had been looking forward to this race the whole time.  A week leading up to it, I was pretty anxious....but with a lot of wonderful other runners and supporters, I made it--AND RAN THE WHOLE TIME!  My Juju was a great motivator because she stuck with me the whole race.  I started with David and Azaria, but they decided to hang back after a bit...and I caught up with Ian, Julie, Harry, and a few other friends.  Julie and I stuck together the whole time and I will always remember finishing that race with her.  Love my cuz!!
IAN was awesome...and beat me this year!! :)  I'm glad he did because he was able to snap these pictures..including one of my baby bump!!  This was at the very end.  I ran 6.2 miles in 1:05--much better than I expected.
 Here is a Saag/Rathmell/Alevy shot after the race--loved seeing Lauren and Stef out there for a hot second!!!
My Alevy family---HOW PROUD I WAS TO HAVE THEM ALL THERE WITH US!!  Claude came in shortly after I finished--he and his brother Michel ran in regular pants!!!  Of course Joshua, David's younger cousin, finished before any of us...still young and on fire!  Caty and Judy also participated and I was so glad they didn't all hate me by the end of the race.
I was most excited to have my hubby out there!  We've never done a race together and while I wish we had finished it together, I'm either going to have to slow down or he's going to have to train for that to happen.  He and Azaria did the 6.2 miles together and that's a lot for David, considering he prefers his couch over any of that craziness.
 We hosted Thanksgiving at our home--and cooked the turkey on our Kamodo Joe!  It was delicious!!
I love having everyone together--and especially that we were able to have Alevy's and Rathmell's together this year.  Michel took the photo so I could join the group--so he's missing from the table.  Michel, Caty, and Joshua drove in from Houston and I loved getting to know all of them better.  One day down the road...I look forward to making a trip to visit them!  Good excuse to head out to Texas, of course, we'd be seeing my Ian as well!! :)
 This year we celebrated Hanukkah along with Thanksgiving....SO MUCH FOOD!!!  Bubbe hosted a night of Hanukkah at her house and I ate WAY TOO much.  I'm supposed to get an extra 300 calories each day, but not at one meal!  I had some pretty awful cramps...and learned that I have to be more mindful of how little space there is for extra food.  Aunt Lori and David were quick to join me on the couch, but I don't know what their excuses were ;)
 First semester DONE!  This is a snapshot from one of my last classes--a few of my peers were acting out a committee meeting--and it created quite a bit of laughter at times.  I'm going to miss the friends I've made and hope that we stay in touch...
I am taking one class next semester and will start the assignments as soon as my teacher posts them online--I look forward to having some school work stimulation when the baby arrives, but I don't want to stress out if I can't submit assignments--so hopefully I can knock them out earlier.
This is SOME of the Spring 2015 MSW class--such a great group of social workers!!  :)  I'm on the back row, far left.

Check out this hunk!  HE'S BUILDING A KITCHEN TABLE!!!  It will have plenty of room to eat on--and our meals will be even more amazing because we will sit around the beautiful table that he (and Claude) built for our family.  This was taken a couple of weeks ago--and it still needs to be planed, sanded, and stained--but I will make sure to post a photo when it is complete!  LOVE IT.  Especially love that it reminds me of my Dad--and how lucky I am to have a husband who enjoys similar, rewarding projects.
 I'm sure you've all been waiting for a baby bump update!  ;)  31 WEEKS and going strong!  I'm feeling well and still getting around comfortably.  Since running the Thanksgiving race, I've cut back to walks--after one wog, I was aching and having trouble sleeping all night-so walking it is.  Although, sleeping seems to be the most challenging, even without going on a run.  Baby A loves to move around when I'm trying to sleep, especially early hours in the AM and later hours when I'm relaxing.  I do love the movement though :)
 My Azaria--so spoiled :)  The futon is the only piece of furniture we actually allow her to be on, and she's really enjoyed keeping me company while working in the office.  This was taken last week after we had a nice walk together and I then worked on the computer for a few hours.
David and I attended the "New Life Series" class at UAB yesterday.  It was a great class and we were given a blonde, blue-eyed baby girl doll to practice swaddling and 'bathing'.  We learned a lot about labor and delivery, natural or medicated, and we met other couples who are expecting around the same time.  Out of the 15-20ish couples who were in attendance, I think there were only 2 of us who are trying to go natural. 


That's all for now, folks!  I hope to blog again before the New Year!  To everyone out there, Happy Holidays and Happy 2014!!  May it be a wonderful year for all ;)  

Love and hugs,
C