Happy Easter and Stuff!

Easter weekend was nice and relaxing. And we had beautiful weather to boot! Jim and I spent the early afternoon downtown with his family enjoying an awesome buffet brunch. We then came home and took a little nap and relaxed for the rest of the day. Can't beat a day like that!

As for my family, I went over and visited my mom this afternoon and she had this cute surprise for me:

Easter baskets! One for Jim and I, the other for her little grand-baby ;)

Here was ours. It had lots of silly toys, chocolates and other fun candy.

And here was baby girl's basket. It also had candy it (for mom and dad, hehe) as well as a cute little easter plate for her to put carrots and lettuce on for the Easter bunny in a couple years. We also got a little stuffed lamb and the cutest pair of bunny booties!

How fun. My mom is awesome!


In other news, we have decided to do a 360 on the way we eat. After watching a very disturbing yet informative documentary called "Food, Inc.", we've decided to switch up to eating more healthy, organic foods. I also read a book given to me by Jim's mom called "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan that pretty much coincided with the movie (he was actually interviewed in the movie as well) and it was just a real eye opener. So here's to eating more veggies and less processed so-called "food" and just adapting a healthier life style free of ingesting chemicals at alarming rates!

Day 1 has been quite successful in the change. We had a great steak dinner with a veggie platter and baked potato. We don't know if it's mental or what, but that steak just tasted great seasoned with a little salt and pepper. I've prepped some big salads for us to take for lunches as well as some fresh fruit. Not too bad!


Lastly, let's finish off with a survey. It's been awhile for one of those!!

How far along? 34 weeks 5 days

How big is Baby? About 5 lbs, 20 inches (according to "What to Expect" website)

Total weight gain/loss: Oh boy....Doc says it is all good, but I hate thinking about it. Probably at around 30ish l.bs

Maternity clothes? Still wearing pre-preg shirts. Haven't bought anything since the shower dress. At this point going to keep making do with what I got!

Stretch marks? Stretch marks are here and taking over. Got a nice band of them around the lower abdomen to add to the collection. Ohs well ;)

Sleep: Sleep is okay. Not great, but not terrible. Toss and turn a lot (which takes a lot of work for a big ol' pregnant woman). Up at least once a night to take a tinkle.

Best moment this week: Just had my checkup this afternoon and baby is contently head down and everything is looking good!

Movement: Lots of movement. She likes to twist and turn and jab the crap out of my right side. But I love it!

Food cravings: Not much going on. Just like to eat!

Gender: Girl

Labor Signs: An occasional "Braxton Hicks" contraction which is a tightening of the belly and getting the body prepared for real labor. But nothing real, which at this time is good! She needs a few more weeks yet.

Belly Button in or out? Belly button still an innie!

What I am looking forward to: Honestly, having this baby! My body isn't the most comfortable anymore. Got lots of heartburn, back pains and rib pains. We are more than prepared physically for her arrival (mentally...not sure, haha!)

Milestones: If baby decides to make her arrival....she is pretty much free to come! The doctors won't do anything aggressive to stop her although we would really rather wait at least 2 more weeks for that! Only 37 days until my due date!!!


Pictures of the week (last two weeks):

Temporary Fix

New layout for now :) Still haven't gotten my stuff together to make something myself. I just had to get rid of those darn snow flakes though!!

My one and only post to b*tch

So I have tried my best not to complain about anything throughout this pregnancy. And frankly, I really haven't had much to complain about! It's been a pretty smooth ride and I feel just incredibly blessed that a. I am pregnant and b. it's been very uneventful. I know too many women that have had or are having problems even getting pregnant, maintaining a pregnancy or having a problem free pregnancy.

I've had nauseousness....but it came in waves, wasn't constant, pretty easy to deal with. I was very tired, but that isn't painful and easy to cure with frequent naps. I can't stand for long periods of time without getting dizzy: sit down, cured. A few other minor health scares, but they were managed and taken care of, done.

But, it's come to the time now....near 34 weeks that I have a real complaint:

Rib and back pain.

Ouch!!

It creeped up slowly, occurring only on occasion or when I was in one position too long (usually sitting in a chair). Then it started to come more frequently. Started as only rib pain, then twinges of back pain. NOW it's constant. 24/7. Won't go away. Doesn't matter what position I'm in. It lessens if I am laying down on my side or walking around, but it's still there. It flat out sux! And there is nothing I can do about it. I just have to deal with it.

Ice packs help a little, hot baths help a little, back massages help a little....but that lingering pain just doesn't go away.

And I still have a month and a half to go. Each day just drags on...and it's not like I can just lay in bed all day! I have to work, have to do chores, grocery shop, etc. That's the part that kind of sucks. I just have to endure the pain all day long until I can finally go to bed.

It's all worth it, I know this. Overall, I wouldn't trade it for the world as long as baby is happy and healthy. But, I just needed to vent. I know it's not going to get any better, I just hope it doesn't get too much worse!

Got some pics to post...but camera is MIA at the moment :) Will post later!

Still haven't done it....

Yep, gotta get rid of the snow background. I might as well just do something quick and simple for now. I was hoping to delve into something deeper, but alas, now just may not be the time.

For now, here are some updated pics!

Time for a makeover?

So it's officially spring....I think it's time to knock these snowflakes outta here! We will see what we can throw together!

On a completely random tangent.....I need to bake a loaf of bread. I haven't done so since "the incidient"

Pictures Anyone?

So got some fun pictures to share! We will cut out the chit chat and get right to it:

Nursery


The blank space above the crib will be where we will hang the letters of her name...TBD.... :)

We just love the way everything turned out and couldn't be happier. Just one thing missing....our little girl!!

Cats

Took them for a grooming appointment the other day. They are just so darn furry sometimes and I was just getting fed up of all the tufts of hair flying everywhere! Even 10 minutes after I would brush them, they would still be just shedding hair. Jim has allergies, so it's just a nice reprieve to have a few months of no shedding. They of course look hilarious, but still cute as usual:

Sadie

Devo

Crafts

Yet another project I made for the baby.....cute little hair clips!! Looking forward to putting them in her hair someday!


Belly

I will post an "official" 31 week pics (omg, 31 weeks!!) later. Once I get myself presentable and the hubby gets home to snap a good pic. But here is a "mommy view" pic from yesterday and a 30 week pic from last week (don't mind the messy hair!)

Goodbye feet!

Look at me grow!

So, things are coming together. We have already packed our labor/hospital bags. A little early, perhaps, but it's comforting to know that if God forbid something were to happen, we are prepared and ready to go. Car seat should be arriving this afternoon. We are actually ready for this to happen! But don't get any ideas little girl, we need you to keep cooking for another 9 weeks :)

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

To sum up this pregnancy in one word so far would be: great! Not saying that I have felt totally awesome and like "normal" the whole time, but overall, things have gone smoothly, I've felt pretty good.

The Good

- The miracle of life! We are constantly just amazed by the fact that I am carrying a living being inside of my body! Every time she moves or kicks around it is just an amazing experience. It really never gets old, I will miss it when it's gone (even though that means she is on the outside with us)!

- Body image. Okay, so this one falls into two categories I think. Before I was pregnant, I wasn't really satisfied with my body. I wasn't necessarily disgusted or anything, but I felt there was room for improvement (doesn't everybody though). Now, as my belly kept growing, it didn't bother me....because I knew it was supposed to and I liked it! Nothing else was growing along with it either, just my belly, so it made my booming thighs look a little bit smaller too ;)

- The attention! Everyone likes some positive attention now and then. The same thing seemed to happen to me when I got engaged. All of sudden strangers would come up and comment on my engagement ring. Now of course, it's attention of the pregnant belly! I've yet to have anyone come up and rub on it or something (besides some close family and friends). But even if they did, it wouldn't bother me. If it really is going to make someone have a happy moment to rub a pregnant lady's belly, I'm not gonna stop it!

- Life experience. It's just a new experience in life. It's great to have this time and to be learning as much as I can about pregnancy, birth, taking care of children, etc. We are expanding our family and we couldn't be happier about it! It is the right time in our lives for this drastic change.

The Bad

- The worry. Andrea worries about everything. First trimester was the worst I think. Just every little twinge would freak me out. I had no clue what to expect and even if things did go wrong, that early on, there really wasn't much that could be done about it. It's a scary feeling to have!! I still have that constant worry of what if something bad happens, but with each week that passes, I feel that much better knowing that if something bad did happen, there is still hope for a healthy baby with the help of modern medicine!

- The nausea. I definitely didn't have it as bad as some girls do, so for that I am very thankful! But, nonetheless, I had some nasty 'bouts of nausea during the first trimester. I was very very sensitive to smells, so anytime I walked into the garage if there were grass trimmings or garbage in there, ugh, not good. That and I had issues with taking a shower of all things. A steamy shower would totally make me super nauseous. So glad that is over with!

- The heartburn. Oh the burning. It was actually worse in second trimester. I mean, it was sit straight up in the middle of the night awaking from a dead sleep bad. It is still lingering, but thankfully (for now) it seems to be calming down. Apples have seemed to help with keeping it at bay. And well, I have been eating at least one apple a day. I guess an apple a day does keep the doctor away....at least when it comes to heartburn.

- The discomfort. The recent "uncomfortableness" is probably been the worst. I just can't get comfortable anymore. If I sit or stand too long, my back or my ribs start to hurt. And well, since I have to sit all day in front of a computer at work, let's just say I am not a happy camper. If I stand too long, I tend to get lightheaded and dizzy. So unless I am laying down or am just constantly going between sitting and standing, I am usually pretty darn uncomfortable. I don't forsee this getting any better, but hopefully it will become more manageable.

The Ugly

- Body image. Alright, we are back to this one again. Things aren't so cute anymore. Skin discoloration (the mask of pregnancy so they call it), veiny boobs which I don't find too attractive, and a little extra weight gain in other areas than the belly. I know these are things to be expected, but still...not fun. And at last but not least: (dun dun dun) Stretch marks. Ugh, I was really hoping the lathering and slathering of different lotions and creams would keep these at bay, but no. The little suckers are starting their journey around the bottom of my boobs and the bottom of my belly. It's not the end of the world of course, but definitely don't want 'em!

- Swelling. It's not bad. Normal amount I'm sure. But just enough that I have to give up wearing my wedding rings. I'm still sneaking on my wedding band and wearing it here and there, but overall, it's time to put them in their little ring boxes and just visit them daily. I feel totally bare without them. It's a uncomfortable feeling to be constantly checking my empty finger thinking that maybe next time I look down, they will be there!



I am in the home stretch really. 29 weeks down, 11 to go! Can't believe it. It is really going so fast. Still need to take this weeks picture (big surprise there). So instead of a 29 week pic, I leave you with a pic of my nice morning surprise I got from the hubby today.



What a great guy. Love ya babe!!

Great Sock Debacle

So I'm gonna just blame it on the pregnancy brain, because this is just plain dumb! So for the past few weeks or so it's been getting a little harder to put my socks on. You know how things like this are just second nature and it's like you have blinders on and just do things a certain way.

So bending down to put my socks on or trying to raise my knees up a bit to bring the feet up to me has been proving rather difficult with the bulging belly in the way. I can still reach my feet and bend down to them, but it's very uncomfortable to squish into the belly like that.

Not until this past weekend did I have my "duh" moment. If I bring my leg up "indian style" so that my foot is resting right atop my knee, voila! I can put my socks on with out any problems. I was so excited and felt like such a dummy all at the same time.

Shower!

We had our baby shower on Sunday and it was wonderful! We just have some wonderful family and friends and to all them I just want to send out a huge Thank You!! Here are some pictures from the festivities. Mostly just the prep and some good family pics. I'll have to track down a few of the guests to get more pics after everyone was there!

Just another post

So we took my 28 week pic the other day and I look blech, so I'm not posting it, lol. I figure we will take lots of pictures tomorrow at my shower with my cute little dress and shrug that I made (will post pics of that for sure). They are bound to be better than the one I have!

But, while we were up in the nursery snapping the pic, I took a picture of the great glider/ottoman we got (mentioned in last post). So here that is (now with bonus Sadie included!)



Looks pretty good, huh!

And here is Jim playing around as usual:






So here it is Saturday afternoon, and I had planned to be ambitious today. I started by sorting my dirty laundry and then decided to go through my closet and get rid of clothes that I just didn't like anymore or that didn't really fit me well (before the pregnancy that is). I then sorted out the clothes that don't fit my now, but should be fit after baby. After all that sorting and organizing, I got a little tired so decided I would head downstairs to take a small break on the couch....

2 hours later, I ate lunch.....another hour later and here we are. Nothing else done. I really need to do laundry since it is pretty backed up. I know I'm pregnant, but frankly, I can't always use that excuse! I am still capable of getting up and doing laundry and doing a little cleaning! And well, that is my "lent" this year. Be more productive with my time. Yes, I do need time to rest. I know my limits and I know that in between tasks and chores, I require a bit of "put my feet up" time. But probably 30-60 minutes would be plenty....not 2 hours!

So after this post, I am at least going to trek back upstairs and get that load of laundry into the wash. It's the least I can do! And perhaps I will straighten up the kitchen before the hubby comes home from work so it will be ready to make messy again with dinner.

Get With it!

Seriously, why can't I keep this up on a least a weekly basis! Blah.

Anyways, so I was hoping that I would be able to update with pictures of our nursery with our new crib.....but when it was delivered on Monday the box looked like it had been through a shredder. So of course, when we opened it up, the first piece pulled out had a few large gouges and scratches in it. So back in the box and back to the store it went. We still need to reorder it. So boo to that, I was really looking forward to setting that up!

We do have some furniture set up in there however.....we scored an amazing deal on a glider/ottoman combo! I found someone on Craig's List selling a like new glider for like half the price that it would of been in the store. I have personally never dealt with buying anything on Craig's List and have to admit I was a little doubtful. She had sent me a really crappy phone picture of the thing and told me it was "like new".....so I was suspicious. But I figured it didn't hurt to look. If we didn't like it, we could just leave. Well....it was gorgeous! It really was like new and it was just in great shape. So we loaded it up into the car (that wasn't an easy task, luckily the seller's husband was home to help Jim out, because I was pretty much useless to help...oh wait, I carried the cushions, lol) and we were on our way! I will post a photo of it when we take more pics of the nursery!

On the crafty front I have made a cute little tutu for my little girl :) We are going to use it when we get her newborn pictures taken! It is so much cuter than the picture does justice, but here it is anyways:

This weekend is the big baby shower! A little early than most girls have them, but I'm a bit glad. It will be nice to get things together while I am still able to move around and not feel too tired, etc. My friends Kellie, Ann and Kelly are throwing it for me and they couldn't be doing a better job! Kellie is just amazing at this....she seriously should be a professional party planner! She is so organized and just has everything under control. Just blows me away how kind my friends can be! I knew I had them in my wedding party for a reason ;)


So I am officially 28 weeks today! Craziness....really I can't believe it. Just feels like yesterday I found out I was pregnant! So I am due for a new belly pic today, but for now I will post last weeks picture! And we will do a survey to kick off the third trimester!!

How far along? 28 weeks

How big is Baby? 16 inches, about 2.5 lbs

Total weight gain/loss: I've really been eating a lot of crap, so I can only imagine how much weight I've gained. I am not stepping on the scale and I'm going to try to cut back on all the crap. Time for more protein, lots of water, and some fruits and veggies!

Maternity clothes? Pre-preg clothes won't be fitting me soon. Every other day or so I find another shirt that I can't wear anymore, but again overall, I've done pretty well in not having to invest in a whole new wardrobe

Stretch marks? Ugh, they are starting. I started noticing them here and there in the lower mid-section and on the boobs. Blah, where they with pride right?

Sleep: Sleep has been pretty good. I think I toss and turn a lot, but I haven't had any issues with waking up and not being able to go back to sleep. Apparently I am snoring like a lumber jack though according to the hubby.....how embarrassing!

Best moment this week: Passing the glucose tolerance test and being told by my doctor that everything is going PERFECTLY! Let's keep this up!

Movement: I think I'm starting to get a schedule going with her movements. She'll move a bit when I wake up, then get active in the mid afternoon and then again usually right before bed. It's time to start doing "kick counts" to make sure she is continuing to do well in there!

Food cravings: I think I am finally over the sugar rush. Don't get me wrong, I still want chocolate and stuff, but I don't NEED it.....like an overwhelming need for it. Luckily that has passed.

Gender: Girl

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In....starting to notice a difference though, may be popping soon

What I am looking forward to: Looking forward to the Shower on Sunday!! Then we can start getting the nursery more put together!

Milestones: Well, again, every week is a little mini milestone! However, 37 weeks is the biggie. That will be full term! So even though it would be nice for her to stay put a few more weeks after that, if she decides to come a bit earlier, than anything after 37 weeks is a-okay and the docs wouldn't stop progression. So....only 9 weeks!


27 weeks!

Why is it?

I always think of different introspective deep thought kind of things to blog about when I am sitting in my car, or at work, or anywhere where I can't actually write a blog about it!!

So here I am, a boring Saturday morning...and I got nothing. Nothing new to say, nothing interesting. Just same 'ol same 'ol.

Our life is pretty uneventful....which is fine by me really! Which is soon going to change when Baby arrives I'm sure ;) Jim tells me all the time "We are so boring". Not really though. We are just older and we work all day and have chores to do etc. When we finally can sit back and unwind, we really don't want to go out and party....we just want to chill out and relax, watch some tv and go to bed shortly after. We better enjoy the quiet for the next few months while it lasts.

Well, here we are 26 weeks. On the cusp of the third trimester already! Can't believe how fast the second trimester has gone. The first was rather slow and I felt rather blah for most of the time. Second tri has been pretty great. Got some energy back, felt pretty normal. But now, third tri discomforts are creeping. Increasingly bad heartburn, uncomfortable ribs, and I think I'm starting to lose a bit of my energy. The next three months will probably slow down a bit, but I'm going to enjoy them and prepare for the big change that is ahead.

We painted the nursery! It's not 100%, we still need to do some touchups, but the paint color is up thanks to my wonderful husband. He took care of it all in one weekend. It looks great! We are very happy with our color choice. It should match perfectly with the bedding we are getting.


Here is the bedding:



Well I missed last week's picture, so here is my 26 week survey and photo:

How far along? 26 weeks

How big is Baby? 15 inches, about 2 lbs

Total weight gain/loss: Doctor said I'm up 13 lbs. Not too bad. Still don't like to think about it ;)

Maternity clothes? Slowly building the wardrobe. Picked up a new maternity/nursing bra last night since the girls are seemingly growing!

Stretch marks? Pretty sure I got a couple on the girls....no fun!

Sleep: Sleep is mostly back on track for the last couple weeks. Do a lot of tossing and turning, but nothing too bad. Usually wake up feeling okay!

Best moment this week: Passing the glucose tolerance test and being told by my doctor that everything is going PERFECTLY! Let's keep this up!

Movement: Still moving all the time which is what we like!

Food cravings: Cupcakes....and lots of sugary stuff. Not good to be craving those things!! I wish I was craving broccoli or something!

Gender: Girl

Labor Signs: No

Belly Button in or out? In

What I am looking forward to: Third Trimester. Almost there...26 weeks 6 days is the start of the last third of pregnancy.

Milestones: Every week is a new milestone. Every week she stays put is just another week of growth and development and just that slight percentage of survival rate goes up. The doctor calls this "crunch time". Babies born now will survive, but not without difficulty. Each week we go, we get closer and closer to a happy healthy baby!

Please ignore the crazy hair....it was just before bed ;)