Belly Pics

So, initially, I had extreme camera shyness for my bare belly. The ugly truth is... the inventory under my shirt is more than just a growing baby! I have a half moon tattoo that I got years ago! I still love it, but it's just another reminder of a decision I made YEARS AGO... when I was a size 4... with no intentions of getting PG any time soon! :P The moon has grown since we got married = gained lots of weight. And let's just say it's grown some more during this pregnancy!!

Next, I used to have my belly button pierced and on a whim I took out my ring a couple of years ago and never put it back in. You can still see the wonderful former home of my belly ring!

Thanks to 100% pure lanolin, I can say that I haven't received any stretch marks ...yet. So after thinking about the bare belly pictures and the fact that I didn't get any taken at my first maternity session, I started to regret that decision. I just knew I'd regret not having any pretty pictures of the belly for my first pregnancy!

Sooo.... this past weekend I lent the belly to Amanda with Unique Images by Amanda Brotherton. She's growing her photography business and she took a few shots of the belly. This was my favorite! Love it! So glad I decided to do this!

I haven't seen any of the pictures from our first maternity session. As soon as I do, I'll share!!

Never will it be the same...

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Many emotions have been running through my body about how things are about to change so drastically. It's been just DH and I for 10 years! We starting dating in 2001 and I can remember distinctly that we were completely inseparable. We spent every waking and available moment with each other, and honestly, things haven't changed much since then! We'll be married 6 years in October.

Our days of it being just him and I are numbered, and that makes me a little sad. It's about to change in a major way and it will never be the same. One of my online friends mentioned that things will just transition into a "new normal" and I love to look at it that way!

[Don't read these words wrong. DH and I are over-freakin-joyed to be PG (finally!) and to be expecting the arrival of our first child!]

DH has shown me a completely different side of himself to me in the last 9 months. Every available conversation is baby related in some shape or form. He's so involved in the nursery planning, shopping, etc. He's never wanted to SHOP with me more than now! He's constantly asking about her movement and activity on a daily basis. He still gets a kick out of feeling her movements! I'm so incredibly lucky to have this man who genuinely cares about me and his daughter. I can't wait to see him holding his daughter.

DH has managed to mentally, emotionally, and physically prepare for his first child during this Spring semester and his grades are still remarkably high! I'm so proud of him. DH will be off and at home with our daughter till August 20th, when he'll start the Fall semester and take four classes. He will be in school Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and on Tuesdays and Thursdays he'll be home with our baby girl! I'm so jealous. She will be in in-home daycare those 3 days a week with my dear friend, H, who takes care of 4 toddlers (one is her own)!

36 week update

TMI update... Well, I'd be lying if I said this didn't excite me a little. It seems I'm starting to lose my mucuos plug! I know this doesn't mean much, but I can't help but to think SOMETHING is happening, and just maybe I'll have my little girl in my arms in mid May instead of late May or into JUNE!! I know I should want her to cook as long as possible, but if my body is ready and it goes into labor on it's own, then we are all ready for her arrival!

Losing the mucous plug did scare me a little, because I had 4-5 BH contractions within a 15-20 minute span, and that had never happened before!

DH and I have started to DTD more often to help soften my cervix. And taking walks when we're able. It is finals week for DH and I, so available time and energy is bleak right now. But next week is another story!! ;)

We've also planned to go to the Fort Worth Zoo on May 21st if I'm still PG! We've wanted to go to the zoo for so long. We've lived here in Fort Worth for nearly 4 years and never been! It's a MUST SEE if you're visiting here, so I'm stoked! DH and I are zoo kind of people! We've been on so many dates to different zoos, even went to zoo on our honeymoon! So the Fort Worth will be a FUN last date with DH if she's still in the belly on the 21st! I can't wait!

So the countdown is on and the bets are rolling in...

35 week update

35 weeks, 35 days to go!!

So apparently, my daughter had a bit of a growth spurt in the last two weeks. I can't believe the amount of growth in my belly in only 2 weeks. I can't imagine getting any bigger!! I don't feel huge; however, I am starting to notice the difference in her movements. They are more noticeable, because she's bigger and running out of room. I'm also finding it more and more difficult to roll over in the middle of the night!

My OB visits continue to be boring. Thankfully, fundus always measures "perfectly" in my doctor's words, BP is normal, nothing spilling into urine, and no complications. My OB made a remark at my visit last week that I was the first "uncomplicated patient of the day"! Awwww!

I am crossing my fingers we can finish the nursery up this weekend, but I'm waiting for her wall decals to arrive and I'm not sure we'll get them by Friday or Saturday. :( If not, I'll be busy putting the finishing touches on her room AND studying for finals next weekend.

It's becoming more real that we'll be responsible for a newborn in a few weeks. I'm training my replacement at work who will be taking care of my job responsibilities at the office. I'm also working hard to make sure everything is ready to go when I go on maternity leave!

Freaking Out...

I think I'm entering the "freak out" phase. The light at the end of the tunnel is so bright, and it's scaring the crap out of me. I'm about to start studying for finals. DH is also studying and on his last few days of normal class. ...and what happens after finals? What have we been waiting 9 months for? ...oh my.

Our to-do list and our to-buy list is getting shorter and shorter. I'm getting closer and closer to being officially emotionally and physically prepared for this baby girl to arrive. But, I'm also starting to ask myself. "What am I forgetting? This can't be everything! This doesn't seem like enough "stuff"... what am I forgetting?"

I don't feel 100% prepared for BF'ing yet. I'm in the middle of my first BF'ing book and I'm constantly reading posts on The Leaky Boob's Facebook page. I feel content knowing if I'm not 100% prepared I have those ladies to ask anything to! But I want to be 100% prepared. I don't want to "wing it", because I'll be easily discouraged and may give up quicker.

I'd also like to research some Bradley relaxation methods. I won't follow the Bradley Method, but I'd like to try some different things to help me through labor. Can't hurt, right?!

Fort Worth Shower and 33 week update

Our local shower was last weekend. It was hosted by Cathy, my boss' wife, and my oldest sister, Melissa. The one word I can use to describe the event was Magical. They made this occasion so beautiful and classy! We enjoyed brunch foods to include biscuits & gravy, eggs, pastries, croissants, fruit, curdled cream, and the list goes on! The meal was accompanied by mimosas, bloody mary's, and orange juice (for me!). The ladies used the colors of the nursery and decorated with fresh flowers, feathers, and satin.

Both sets of parents came into town, as well as my middle sister and her family. This occasion was particularly important to me, because this was the first time my family would meet Dr. G (my boss) and his wife. They all know how fortunate I feel to work for such wonderful people, and I wanted them to see that first hand. I witnessed Cathy tell my mother that I was dropped here [in Fort Worth] by God. You can imagine how that made me feel.

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So, I'll be 34 weeks in a couple of days!

I'm still feeling amazing and sleeping as good as I could possibly be, so I'm thankful! DH and I have turned the nesting into overdrive. We have a list of what is left to buy, and I'm so very thankful to our family and friends who have absolutely showered this baby in abundance with gifts, that our list is very short and only includes a few last minutes small items and a couple wants!

I'm still experiencing gallbladder pain. I had an ultrasound on Monday. The tech took lots of pictures, but my results came back normal. I may have buildup, but I have no stones. I may need a HIDA scan, but can't have one of those during pregnancy.

The tech did share two things with me. Baby girl has lots of hair! I was happy, but a little confused. I thought she was head down? ...YES, baby girl flipped and is now head UP! Grrrrrr. She's been head down for at least 5-6 weeks and now she's head up!?! This explains the strange circus acts I was feeling this weekend. And actually, as of this morning, I think I'm feeling taps of heels and feet again, so I'm crossing my fingers she corrected the error. :) Update: She is indeed head down again! She gets her indecisiveness from her daddy!

33 week belly pic...

A moment I enjoy and don't want to forget!

I read somewhere that the baby doesn't "enjoy" what I eat/drink until 2 hours after the meal. I eat breakfast at about 7:30 am every morning. Lately, I've been drinking a glass of orange juice with my bowl of cereal. She LOVES orange juice!

It's like clockwork, every morning at 10 am, I get some little reminders that there's a bouncing baby girl in my belly! I feel her little feet way high in my belly!

If I rest my arm at the top of my belly, it feels like she's walking on my hand and arm! It's so comforting. I love it!
______

We had our 32 week OB check up yesterday. She's measuring perfectly still and I've gained back all but one pound from my sickness. Total weight gain - 12 pounds.

I talked with my OB about a pain I've been having. All signs point to the gallbladder. At this point in my pregnancy, I do not think they will do surgery to remove it, but he wants me to have an u/s done anyways. Ultrasound is scheduled for Monday, so we'll see what's in there.

Also, after I got home from our appointment we started to get the apartment cleaned and presentable for company this weekend. I think I started to feel my first BH contractions. I haven't been feeling these at all, but wasn't wishing for these to show up either! I'm still not 100% positive this is what I'm feeling. I guess it could also be baby girl's butt pushing up and out, because I feel that often! :)

Lastly, my daughter has nails... and probably long fingers like her momma. I feel her claw at my bladder and cervix often! It feels so strange, like she's trying to break out of there!! It worries me a little, because we've been told she's head down. Maybe she's messing with her beautiful brown locks! :)

Strange Changes in The Belly

I'm not surprised, but it's a little freaky to look back at my last 3 belly pictures - one picture before I got sick, one during my sickness, and one post sickness.

I lost 7.5 pounds during the week I was battling the virus. I gained most of it back, but I'm still about 3 pounds away from what I was before. So my total weight gain went from 14 pounds to 11 pounds.

I've been doing some hardcore nesting lately. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but the nursery is not finished. My goal date is still set for May 1st! I'm pretty confident I can achieve that! There are still some small things we need to get for this baby; however, I have my last shower next weekend, so I'm taking my time getting all of the loose ends taken care of.

We took our childbirth class this weekend. Working for an OB/GYN I thought it would be pretty boring, but it was actually pretty informational! I guess I really don't know everything about pregnancy and childbirth! :P I think daddy enjoyed the class as well! I asked him if he learned anything, and he said he didn't know I could poop on myself! lol. Oops! I guess I left that small detail out!

Another Fun Daddy Tidbit: Daddy heard baby girl's heartbeat loud and clear with his ear to my belly yesterday!! He loved it!

She's still head down... crossing fingers she stays that way! :)

Thoughts to my fellow infertiles...

I've entered the home stretch - less than 8 weeks left. I'm about to enter a new chapter in my life. My life will forever be changed, and still, I feel like I'm leaving someone behind.

I have been given the greatest gift. Why me and not so many others that want the gift?

My journey was 3 years long. I didn’t intend for it to be so long, but God knew what was best for DH and I, and He knows what’s best for all of you too! It’s hard to WAIT, period. It's also so hard to wait for the truth - to finally face and listen to the truth when the truth doesn’t just come out and scream at you. He may make you wait longer than 3 years, but you’ll understand the “why” when it’s finally your time.

I feel like I’ve left you all behind - left you in that evil hell of infertility. I don’t wish IF on anyone, but I do believe it has made us all better mothers. We have longed for this with deep intense passion. With that passion, we will love and care for our children with every ounce of our being. We waited countless days for answers - sometimes answers we never received. Thus, we have been taught patience.

As I welcome this baby into the world, I will always be an infertile. My heart will always wear that label. I will never forget my journey. I will never forget or leave behind those who are still enduring their IF journeys. I will think and pray for you all often! This isn't goodbye.

So very close to hospital...

(written on Friday)
Ok, so I hear that the 3rd trimester is the miserable one. First trimester is filled with the nausea, vomiting, stress of miscarriage, etc. Second is the best and, well, the third is miserable.

I started to feel the hip pains and waking up every 2 hours due to pain or pee. I struggle to roll over, get into, and get out of bed. Ok, so this is annoying, but I'm doing ok... until... stomach virus.

I'm going on day #3 of this horrible sickness. I suffered through day #1 in hopes that it was just a 24 hour bug, but nope, going on 72 hours now. At least I can bear to type and focus on the computer monitor today, without becoming horribly nauseated.

I had a regular OB appointment yesterday, so I know I'd be able to talk with him about the virus and hopefully go home with miracle meds. Well, my urine was nonexistent, it looked like Ziegenbock according to his nurse! He said if I didn't see improvement I'd be spending the weekend in the hospital. I was really surprised he didn't send me straight there.

(finished today)
Thankfully, I avoided the hospital vacation. I am finally 99% all better!! I can finally eat, but only tiny/small meals. I guess my stomach shrunk so much or baby took over the available space!

Here's a picture from our baby shower last weekend:

I had my first "Oh Shit!" moment yesterday.

Maybe it finally hit me??

Our baby shower back home was this weekend! We were so excited to see everyone who was planning to be there! I was so overwhelmed by the "attention" and the "showering" of graciousness, that I completely forgot to take individual pictures with some of my long time friends who attended. :( I don't think I forgot to say "Thank You" though! I must of said it to each person 3-5 times, because I meant it!!

DH and I don't come from the most wealthiest of families. None of us were born with silver spoons in our mouths. We all work very hard to support our families, most without formal educations. So when the gift table was completely full and the floor below it as well, I was soooooooo overwhelmed with emotion. Everyone who surrounds me, family and friends, were there giving gifts to us and our baby. I've been given so much already and now I'm being given MORE!? Wow. How will I ever repay these people?

Thankfully, we weren't able to come home with everything. My in-laws will bring the rest of the gifts up to Fort Worth when they come to our local baby shower in a couple of weeks.

So last night after we got home I went through all of the babies things that we were able to bring back with us...got it all organized and ready for washing or put away... and it hit me. I looked around the nursery. The shelves are full, and I'm running out of room in her closet. I started to think of other ways to create more shelving or storage space. I said to myself "Oh Shit! We're really having a baby!" So I guess it finally hit me.

I expected the preparation for this baby to be so difficult for us. We don't have a lot of extra money to spend on baby things. That's just all there is to it. I expected to be shopping at garage sales and other used/consignment shops for items. I can't believe we're 'almost' set and it's been so easy... and FUN!

And I'm having another "Oh Shit." moment.... I'll be 30 weeks tomorrow..... oh shit. :)

A Riot?!

If my math is correct, I haven't blogged in nearly 2 weeks. Wow. Time is flying, and unfortunately, I've been kept very busy with school. This week is Spring Break, but last week I had a comprehensive exam in Chemistry, a midterm in Chemistry Lab, a paper and exam in Drama and tons of homework and assignments due for Pysch. I was so stressed out! Thankfully, I made it through all of that... now I wish my professors would just post my grades!!

So I'm in the THIRD TRIMESTER!! It doesn't feel any different. Just a heart getting bigger and bigger to hold all the love I share for the LO inside!

I'm still experiencing some minor hip pain at night, and it's becoming more and more difficult to function with a big belly. I do feel her in my right rib sometimes, but if I sit up straight the pain goes away! I can't say I'm miserable yet.

Movement has definitely increased this week. One night I was convinced she was auditioning for the circus, and last night she was either rioting or trying to break out of there! She moves so much sometimes that it freaks me out a bit. Like how can she move soooo quickly with her limbs a flailing like that!? I'm enjoying it though!

And BOY has the belly grown. It wasn't until I took a belly pic today and looked at my last belly pic that I noticed a difference!

Baby Shower #1 of 2 is this weekend. We'll head south to Austin after work on Friday. I'm so excited! It seems that MANY of my friends, some whom I haven't seen in YEARS, will be in attendance!! I can't wait!

Dear Gestational Diabetes, I kicked your A%$!!

Wahooooooo!!! I'm so thankful to be able to say this... I PASSED MY ONE HOUR GLUCOSE!!

With my insulin resistance, I was certain that I'd fail my 1-hr glucose and have to
take the 3-hour. I guess this Metformin stuff really works!! :)

So how did I do it?

Well, I give total credit to the Metformin and my body.

Some doctors require fasting, but my doctor actually said it was ok for me to eat before. They advised that it wouldn't be smart for me to eat a carb and/or sugar filled meal though. I contemplated fasting after midnight and taking the test first thing in the morning; however, when a friend told me that with our IR our bodies may actually hold onto the sugars in the orange drink MORE because of the "fasting", I totally rethought that decision.

So, at about 8:00 am, I ate a breakfast consisting of 2 eggs, a yogurt, and a glass of milk. I drank the orange drink at about 9:30 am.

My test result gave me an 85. Abnormal is 141. My result wasn't even slightly high! ...maybe the Metformin is working too much!

So so, thankful!

This pregnancy has been so wonderful to me. Now, I can't help but to think... what will/can go wrong? Maybe a difficult delivery? Maybe a c-section? Maybe she won't latch on? Maybe my milk won't come in?

27 weeks 2 days

How far along: 27 weeks 2 days

Growth: Per DH, baby girl is as big as a head of cauliflower! My uterus is as big as a basketball! I think she weighs a little over 2 pounds.

Symptoms: heartburn and indigestion is lessening; hip pain; possible braxton hicks (still not 100% on these); leg cramps; swelling in ankles

Total weight gain: 11.5 pounds

Maternity clothes: The first maternity shirts I bought are becoming very faded and tight, so I've bought a couple more that are more comfortable and that I can grow into to! My scrub pants are very tight and very uncomfortable!! Eeck!

Stretch marks: No new ones, but thinking that I need to start using some creme or lotion again, just in case.

Movement: She has her days. Some days she's super active and others, not so much. Some days I feel her kicking towards my back and some days towards the front! I haven't grasped her size yet, so when she gets the hiccups, I'm totally surprised that I can feel her hitting both of my sides at the same time.

Sleep: Not the greatest. No longer sleeping on my back. Sleeping with a pillow between my legs to help with my hip pain, so rolling over and changing positions is getting more difficult.

Best moment this week: Did lots of shopping and booked our maternity and newborn photography sessions!

Food cravings: Still thoroughly enjoying my Biscuits and Gravy!

What I miss: Drinking! Ok, I said it. Yes, this week I've wanted to have a cold dark beer so bad! Or a mixed drink... yumm. After a stressful day, I just want to be able to go to happy hour with my hubby, drink a cold one or two or three, and RELAX! I miss those days!

What I am looking forward to: Getting my 1 hour glucose test results back. I'm nervous that I failed. :(

Milestones: I guess I've hit the 3rd trimester! Some say 27 weeks, some 28 weeks. You know me, I always go with the later of the dates, so I'll do my official celebrations next week! :)

How is daddy? He told me this week, he's ready for her to be here. Awwwwww! I melt when I hear him talk like that! Men are so funny. You never know how they are really feeling, and FINALLY after 3 years I know he wanted this as bad as me!! -- He has also read that he can hear the baby's heartbeat by placing his ear on my belly. He tried it the other night and said he only heard the gurgling of my stomach!

How are the grandparents? Still busy, but so ready for May! MIL and FIL addressed, stuffed, stamped, and mailed off 90-ish baby shower invitations this week! Wow.

Last week's belly pic.... 26 weeks 4 days.....

Nursery Planning - Ideas and Inspiration

I think we're about 90% completed with the nursery planning phase. I stressed and stressed over the nursery bedding, which I knew would be the main inspiration point. I couldn't look at curtains, accent pillows, fabric lined baskets, wall decals, lamps, ... really anything without making a decision on the bedding.

The stress started when I couldn't find anything WE liked at Target or Babies R Us (where we registered). There were tons that I liked, but DH veto'd. (Looking back I'm glad he did, because I'm totally infatuated with the crib bedding set we ending up choosing!) I also stressed because at one point my sister and I were totally set on sewing a custom set! We had the pictures printed, the pattern picked out and purchased, and all of the measurements and totals written down..... the problem? I LOST the paper with all of the measurements. When I was ready to start buying fabric, it was no where to be found. Thanks Pregnancy Brain. Again, looking back, I'm glad I lost it! :)

So here it is! Our crib bedding, Lulu Sweet Potato by Glenna Jean:

This set was priced a bit more than I was planning on spending. Our original plan of sewing a custom set would have saved us at least $100-$150, so you can imagine how elated I was when my sister told me she would buy us our bedding! I was speechless when I found out she also added the mobile and valence to her purchase! I love my sister so!

Furniture
Our crib was purchased during Thanksgiving of last year, thanks to my wonderful in-laws!! We went with the Graco Lauren when it went on sale for about $130 w/ a FREE changing table!

DH and I purchased the chest of drawers in January and went with Ikea's Hemnes collection. We originally wanted to go with the tall 6-drawer chest, but when we realized that the 6-drawer was really only 1 large drawer more for $100 more, we went with the 3-drawer instead! The one large drawer and 2 small drawer difference wasn't worth an extra $100 in our opinion! We are very pleased with the drawer space and tall height on the 3 drawer option!

DH and I plan to add this shelving unit in March as the last piece of furniture for the nursery:

I'm undecided on a glider. The ones I love are $300-$400. Eeeeck!

Wall Decals
Since we're renting at the moment and unsure if we're going to stay here past October, we may just go with decorative wall decals to give the walls some color. I've found a guy who can duplicate the large flower decals seen on the picture of the crib bedding!

I'd also like to add our own version of these!

Her name above her crib... this will be tricky as we won't decide on a name until AFTER delivery! :)

...and this quote, which DH and I loathe CORRECTION by the college educated hubby who informed me I didn't know what "loathe" means: love. It's sort of our mantra within our marriage. We went without THINGS for 3 years to be able to bring this little girl into the world... and still be able to attend school... all while maintaining a one car household... with one full time income. And, we plan to continue to do so after she arrives!