Better late than never

Ok, back at it! I'll write posts covering the last 5 months another time, because if I don't write about today, I'll never feel caught up. So here we go

Work has been busy, there's a 9/30 deadline approaching. But at least I feel productive every day!
Lucy ate squash and peaches last night. She loved them! She's already got great eating skills - she pulls the spoon into her mouth each time. And she loves the fun of drinking water from a real cup. We tried the sippy feature, but she doesn't get it yet, so it works so much better to let her have an open container and help her hold it.

Meal plan
Wed 28: roasted chicken, sweet potato fries, peas
Thur 29: CT gone, chicken tostada
Fri 30: Thai chicken curry with peas, carrots & pepper over brown rice
Sat 1: Turkey chili
Sun 2: leftovers
Mon 3: Tilapia, broccoli, squash risotto
Tues 4: Sloppy joes

This weekend will be quiet. There's some fall yard work to do, and I'd like to paint our master bedroom (not sure if we'll have the time) and sew up the curtains. I'm getting lots of ideas from Pinterest about DIY art for hanging on the walls. I can't wait to update the bedroom and lighten it up in there! Penny needs some exercise, so maybe a walk along Saylorville.

Surprise baby shower at work

Yesterday the ladies in the department surprised me with a baby shower - complete with cake and games and gifts. It was very sweet of them to do that. I don't know many of them very well, so I felt a tad undeserving at their generosity. But like my mom said, I'll be able to pay it forward in the future and give gifts when the next office baby arrives.
Just for fun, here's what we got:
- Hooded bath towel, washcloths, Aveeno baby shampoo
- Dishwasher caddy, 2 pk of Dr Brown's bottles, travel diaper pad
- Car seat protector, Brown Bear Brown Bear, really soft blanket
- Beanie baby, handmade fleece stroller blanket
- Swaddle blankets, baby sunglasses, activity mat
- $120 to Target, Jacques the Peacock, $20 at Walmart
I mean seriously! That's a lot of stuff! So I felt pretty blessed after all that. Baby Lucy getting lots of love.

I have a friend/family shower this Saturday. Rachel, Julia & Courtney are hosting. I hope they don't go to too much trouble! The guest list will likely only include my mom, CT's mom + 4 aunts + grandma, 2 of my friends and 2 more Boone friends.

I'm getting antsy to have the closet system for Lucy's room installed. We might try to pick up the paint after work & paint her room tonight & tomorrow. I would love to have it painted & put back together before the shower on Saturday. That way all these gifts we keep getting have someplace to go! My parents are planning on bringing down the dresser - which I am really excited about!

Coming up: painting the nursery, getting our taxes done (!), doctor's visit on friday, baby shower on saturday & my parents will be here

35 weeks

I had another doctor appointment yesterday. Everything looks great! Baby was laying on my right side, and her heartbeat sounds good - clocking in at around 137bpm. My belly measures 35 cm, which is right on track, and I'm up 1lb over 2 weeks. I saw yet another doctor but I liked her, she was very nice. The front desk was busy, so I didn't ask, but they do have on-call schedules so I can know which doctor will be there when I go into labor. So baby is up to around 5 1/2 lbs - she still has some growing to do!
My latest pregnancy woe is that I don't sleep very soundly anymore. I wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning (even if I'm exhausted when going to bed) and am very awake. I don't know what the deal is! And then I'm so sleepy during the mornings, and my legs get achy (probably from tossing & turning all night). Some say it's nature's way of preparing me for being up every few hours in the near future...but right now I have nothing to be up for and I still have to go to work!

We had our last baby class last night. The instructor invited a pediatrician to field questions for awhile. Which reminds me, again, that we need to line up a pediatrician. When I looked into office hours, the Iowa Methodist group seemed to have better hours & more pediatricians at the Ankeny location. I don't know why I'm suddenly all worried about getting a "good" one. If we don't get along, we can just switch over to Mercer another day. The rest of the class was a discussion on c-sections and watching another birth video. Then she broke out the empathy belly for the guys to wear. It was pretty funny! I made CT lay down and stand back up, tie his shoes, etc. He did say it was awkward & got in the way. See!

Oh - the visit from last weekend! The crib is just amazing - it's so beautiful. And my mom did such a lovely job with the curtains & crib skirts. I love walking by her room every day. All that's left to do is paint & install the closet system. My dad is finishing up the dresser (which is going to be awesome) and my mom will bring that down next weekend. Overall it was a really nice visit. After some frenzied assembling of the baby's room, we did enjoy a more relaxed evening and Sunday. It was good to see John - and he got to see my baby bump and feel her kick.

Coming up: a quick trip to Minnesota so I can go with Kayla at her wedding dress appointment on Saturday at 9:15. Then we're driving back & CT is off to watch basketball with guys.

34 weeks

I agree the title is a bit boring, but it's all I'm thinking about lately! Six weeks to go! Our babe is about 5 lbs and her brain is growing like crazy!

We had our baby class last night - we did more breathing & talked about positions and watched a birth video. I'm worried I won't be able to do it. But tons and tons of women have babies, so why shouldn't I be able to? I was feeling embarrassed about the birth part already - for some reason, right now I can't see the beauty part of birth  I just think "gosh I don't want my husband to see me like that, he'll never look at me the same again." I hope that when the time comes I'll appreciate the miracle for what it is.

Mom, Dad & John are coming for a visit tomorrow. I'm excited to see them & to see the crib and curtains they're bringing :)
We have some cleaning to do tonight - but the weather is a lovely 55 degrees, so perhaps we'll get a nice walk in for Penny before we stay in and clean. Oh, and it would be a great night to grill!
I am hoping to have my parents take some pregnancy photos with their nice camera (that way we save on having a studio do it) - I was hoping for warmer weather so we could do some outside (and we may, just as well) but it's going to be 40s and windy this weekend.

We got our hospital bags packed this week - I don't have an outfit for Lucy in there yet, but we'll get to that soon! We picked up a carseat this week too. It's the yellow Chicco one (we were deciding between yellow and green) but we can always return it to the store if we don't like it. My one complaint is that the hood doesn't push back very smoothly. I'm wondering if this is just how they are or if we got a bad one. Next time we're near Babies R Us I'll take a look at their display model to compare.

And we're set on getting a City Mini but just need to decide on color. We're pretty close to having almost everything ready to go. I've decided to start maternity leave on April 11th (so just 4 weeks of work left! yay!) and return 6 weeks after the birth + 1 week of vacation = which if everything's on schedule will be early June. I'm going to love having that time off! For the 2 early weeks I'm going to relax, take nice walks, clean & organize the house, finish up any loose ends, and did I mention relax?

I am so eager for her to get here! Actually, I don't want her to come early, I just wish time would go faster!

Coming up: Visit from Mom, Dad & John. Maybe a pregnancy photo shoot? CT has his work trip next Monday - Wednesday. So let's pray that she won't arrive until after then!!

33 weeks

I had my doctor's appointment yesterday. Everything still checks out fine. Her heartbeat's around 155. My blood pressure is good. The doctor was able to feel around and had me feel where her head was -which was cool. I have a bit a swelling in my legs and hands, but the doctor said she doesn't worry about it unless there is uneven swelling or a really sudden change, and as long as my blood pressure is normal. Like today, I couldn't get my rings on without it being painful (that has occasionally happened before, especially first thing when I wake up & I have to use cold water & a bit of soap to slide them off) this morning :-< big unhappy face. So I'm wearing a simple silver ring in their place. I think the only reason my rings fit up to this point is that it's been winter time.

On another sad note, the scale said I gained 3lbs over 2 weeks. However, I will try to remember that I weighed in the afternoon (all other weigh-ins were in the morning) and that Lucy takes up one of those pounds. The book says she'll still be gaining about 1/2 pound a week from here on out.
Regardless I don't like stepping on the scale and seeing 152. That puts my total gain at 32. And with 7 weeks left, if I continue to gain at least 1/2lb a week I'm at about 36. The books say 25-35 is normal. I'd just rather be in the mid-range instead of the edge! That's just my insecurity kicking in. Hopefully Lucy has her daddy's confidence!

We had baby class last night, but I was in a down mood. I had burned my fingers by grabbing a pan (that I had just taken out of the oven, mind you!) and I was already sad from my dr appt. But luckily the instructor made it a low-key night. We discussed more about pain, labor stages, and medication. After seeing what the epidural is, I don't want one if I can help it. I'm also not okay with the Stadol stuff (that's the pain med that goes into your blood stream & can affect baby too). So it looks like my options are tough it out. :) Which I am willing to do (I say that now, haha). The videos we watch of the pregnant women & their poor husbands looking on helplessly are depressing to me. I hope to have a fighter attitude and do my best to have distractions from the pain. My athletic husband will fit that role nicely. I remember when we went for a few long runs together when I was training for my first half marathon. I was tired and thristy and ready to be done (and I said so!) but he didn't care. He switched into coaching mode and got me through it. I'm expecting the same in the delivery room.

Tomorrow we'll be going to Hickory Park for lunch with Justin & Linda who are down for a visit & other Boone friends. It's supposed to be rainy out - boo. I liked going for long walks on the weekend. Earlier in the week we took Penny to Saylorville and she and C.T. ran along the trail while I walked. The snow was all melted & Penny got filthy muddy - but it was still a good time.

I'm getting an itch to get things in order for Lucy's arrival. We can pick up the glider we ordered from Walmart. We'll order the closet system for her room and buy a carseat. And then hopefully next weekend we'll have furniture in there! I think I'll do some baby laundry, too, just for the heck of it.
We are still deciding on strollers. We really like the Baby Jogger City Mini but can't decide on color. The easy collapse thing is just too sweet to pass up!

Coming up: Lunch tomorrow in Ames, a Target run, and then who knows!

32 weeks - Nice Peaceful Stroll :)

I hit 32 weeks on Saturday. Which means our little girl is about 4lbs now (she'll continue gaining about 1/2lb every week) and practicing for life on the outside.
Baby class last week went fine. There was an awful balloon and ping pong ball demonstration. We talked about pain & coping mechanisms. I'm not all that worried about the pain - maybe that's naive or maybe that's just positive thinking - because I've had pretty painful menstrual cramps in high school and college. This can't be much worse I'd imagine. There's a purpose to this pain, and it's temporary. One thing that's reassuring to hear is that especially for first time moms the labor starts out pretty slow.

Our furniture arrived and so our house looks much more homey & put together. Our to-do list is still there, but it's shrinking! On Saturday, C.T. diagnosed the fridge (it was so noisy) by taking it apart & ordering a new part and I paid bills. We tried to do a bit of shopping but it didn't go very well (my fault there - I wasn't feeling very good and did not make the best shopping partner). That night we played cards at the Albers. On Sunday we got started kind of late, but we were able to take Penny for a long walk along Saylorville. The snow is cleared off the path & the temperature was perfect. Penny was really worn out afterwards which was awesome. We ate dinner with Carlson's and Alber's and Jacobsen's at Felix & Oscars, then watched the Amazing Race at Albers. It was a nice weekend.

One more comment on the walk - it was just so lovely and peaceful. We didn't see anyone else on the path, and Penny could run free a few steps ahead of us. She's so good at staying close. I felt very happy - the weather was nice, I was getting fresh air and exercise, and I was with my awesome husband and puppy.

On Friday night I had a small breakdown about my job and how I feel like my life lacks direction right now. C.T. tried to be as understanding as he could. I still don't have it all figured out, but I am trying to have a better attitude about things.

In 5 weeks she'll be full-term. Wow. And only 8 weeks until my due date. My parents and brother (he's on spring break and will be in MN) are coming to visit in a week or so. They are bringing the crib and maybe dresser if it's completed. C.T. and I want to paint her room soon (well, C.T. will paint it, I can maybe help tape but then I'm ordered to leave the house!)

Coming up: Doctor's appointment on Thursday, Baby class Thursday evening, then another open weekend.

31 weeks

I'll have completed 31 weeks tomorrow! That means only 9 to go - wow.
I had a doctor's appointment yesterday morning - I'm up 1 lb over 2 weeks, my legs are a little puffy, and everything else checks out fine. Baby's heartbeat was at 135, at the lower end of the scale but nothing to worry about. Maybe she just already has an awesome metabolism, lol. I saw Dr Hancock, he was nice & is very chatty. I had to switch my appointment to the downtown office because the Alero is having issues, and again I waited at least a half hour extra to see the doc. Oh well I guess.

By the way, yesterday's temperature was 68 degrees. Now we're back into the 40's which feels more appropriate for February. Last night we went to the first Prenatal class. The class is small, about 7 couples - some of who are very quiet and not chatty at all - they don't seem all that into being there, which is strange to me because it's a voluntary class! The instructor was nice, but I'm not sure how much we'll get out of the class. There are 4 more weeks so I guess we'll see how it goes!

It's Iowa high school wrestling tournament weekend. C.T. asked me if he should have taught high school & coached at Boone instead of doing the insurance thing. It's this way every year. :)

In other news, Kayla & Steve are engaged!! Date & location haven't been discussed yet, but I'm so happy they decided to forego the "Steve has to have a job before we can even think of getting married" thing. They clearly choose to be together, so what's the hold up with marriage? I'm looking forward to helping out with wedding details. Thinking back to our wedding, I'm so glad I don't have to do that again - too many decisions to make!

The girls here have offered to throw me a shower - and the date will be March 26. I think C.T. and I are going to try to register for some baby things this weekend. The shower itself will be small, and I don't expect people to get many things - but it'll be nice to get the discount on things. The one thing I can't get over is what stroller to get. I want to get a good one right off the bat that will last for multiple kids and can go from infant to toddler (so we don't have a bucket baby). Trouble is finding a store that has a floor model to try out.

Coming up: Registering for baby, cleaning up the house, putting together a closet system for Lucy's room...that's it!

30 weeks!

Ok, well almost. But that means we are 10 weeks away - that sounds crazy! And yet, I am ready to be done. No offense baby Lucy! I love caring for you during this time, but I'm sooo anxious to see you and hold you and kiss you! She's around 3 lbs now, and about 17 inches in length. She's still very active, and I can feel some big punches and kicks now and then. On my pregnancy woe list is heart burn (sometimes out of nowhere, like today), crazy dreams (last night I gave birth to twins, found out that day), a belly that feels like it cannot be stretched any further, achy pelvic muscles, and overall lack of feeling pretty.

I'm really starting to stress out about our decision whether or not I'll be working full time. I know that it is an "acceptable" option, but I don't care! I'm having a hard time discussing this with C.T. because he's convinced we'll need extra money to make ends meet, and he's not acting all that flexible on changing our lifestyle. I guess we just pray about it - perhaps together would be best. I contacted Bonnie to see if there were potential work remotely options at Mercer. She wrote me back a positive email and said she'll look into it for me. Though, even if that works out, we still have to do something about care during the day - be it a nanny or daycare, etc. But at least I can have some flexibility to my day. Continuing to work at NW provides me zero flexibility.

We took a quick trip to MN last weekend and found some furniture at Crate & Barrel. So that's on its way. I really dislike shopping, and spending money, so it was not the best trip in my book. But we got to see my parents for a bit and C.T. feels a lot better about getting the house furnished. And around the same time, C.T. got struck with an icky cold. I thankfully never got it as bad (I think it's because of all the prenatal vitamins I take!)

Tomorrow I'm taking C.T. "out" for valentine's day. Though he'll probably guess the location before we get there (he usually is good at guessing), I'm taking him to the Art Museum. They're open late on Thursday evenings. Three or so years ago when we were living in Des Moines we went because valentines was on a thursday. So, this year we're celebrating early, but hopefully it's as fun as it was last time. And then maybe stop for dinner/dessert.

Coming up: We have a mostly open weekend ahead, and the weather is supposed to be 40s and gorgeous (especially compared to the last few days of below 0 temps). Perhaps we'll take the Penster for a long walk along Saylorville. About a week or so ago we went for the first time and it's a really nice peaceful stroll.
In celebration of Saul & Mike's birthdays we'll be getting together for dinner on Sunday.

3rd Trimester

Here we go! Final lap! I'll be 28 weeks on Saturday. Lately she has become quite the gymnast. I can even look down and see my belly move when she kicks. Which is no wonder, I guess - she is over 2 pounds and about 16 inches in length. The funny thing is I have a hard time imaging her that size - I still for some reason think of her as a little tadpole in there.

Yesterday I worked on my crafts. I finished cutting out all the quilt pieces - it's going to look very cute, I hope I don't mess it up now! I made a fancy burp cloth (which sounds funny, but now it looks really cute) with a cheap cloth diaper and fleece fabric. It took me a little longer than I expected. And the sewing could be better, but I'm pretty happy with it for being the first one.

Decisions, decisions...

We took advantage of having MLK day off of work and set up appointments at quite a few daycare centers. The reality of the whole situation is a lot to take in, and some centers were much better than others. Needless to say, we were really overwhelmed by the end of the day. Our favorite was the most expensive, but if I will be working full-time, cost is no issue. So for the past week we've been hemming and hawing over this decision. Do we take the conservative route and have me work full-time at my current job and do daycare? Do we have me find a different job for evenings and weekends? Do I drive a hard bargain at work and demand either work-from-home days, part-time, or reduced hours? Do we eat into our savings and hope things work out better in a year or two? Do I stay at home and watch another child in addition (perhaps little baby Lawson, who is due in August by the way, yay!)? So we are praying hard about this and doing the math the best we can. You can't predict the future, for better or worse. Financially, spiritually, or emotionally. I am hoping and praying for an option that feels right. The one great thing we have going for us is that my mom is willing to come down for a few weeks at a time this summer to watch Lucy. And I'm looking into taking some unpaid FMLA time off after that, which means we can delay daycare until at least 4 or 5 months.

A new year

I don't know why I have such a hard time keeping up with this blog. I think to write in it a few times a week, but then get to thinking that I don't know exactly what I want to say. Hope that changes, I do want to keep a journal of these pregnancy months and beyond so I can look back and remember.

Well, half way through January and here's the recap:
For New Years Eve we traveled to Pella and hung out with CT's college friends. There was a Euchre party going on that was really fun! And everyone there was really nice and friendly. One of his friends is expecting her 2nd baby and is about a month behind me. I was a tad jealous that she was taller than me because her baby bump doesn't start right under her chest like mine does. That's probably my only complaint as of late is that when I sit too long at work the top of my belly gets achy. Ah well.
It was strange having the next monday off of work because most people didn't (even the schools). But we got in a nice walk with the dog.

On the 4th we went to a Breastfeeding essentials class. It was helpful, and a tad overwhelming. I left thinking "this is going to be a lot of work"! But the up every few hours thing only lasts so long, I'll have to remember that. There were some helpful videos of latching on and we got some rules about breastmilk storage. Overall, glad we went.

On the 6th I had another doctor's appointment. I really liked the doctor I saw, I think I'll go on Thursdays now if it works schedule-wise! She was really nice and asked me more than just "so how's the pregnancy? good? okay bye" The heartbeat sounds good and my belly measures normal. I gained about 4 lbs since last month. I'm at 142 now. I really don't like seeing the scale that high, but I have to remember I am carrying a growing little girl (and more blood, and fluid, etc etc). I had my glucose screen and passed. Yay. The doctor said to schedule an appointment for February, and then they'll want to see me every 2 weeks after that. We're getting close!

Last weekend was MLK weekend. My mom came down for a visit, it was really good to see her. On Saturday we went to Homemakers for the upteenth time but we actually bought stuff! A couch and loveseat will be arriving next Saturday. yay! It wasn't our first choice, but we are sooo happy to get some furniture in that front room. The house will feel lived in when we welcome this baby. The rest of the day flew by, we stopped in a babies r us and that was about it. We drove up to Ames to see the gang and just chatted and held babies. On Sunday we tried out the church nearby "Prairie Ridge Church". It had some good vibes to it. We'll be going back. Then mom and I went to fabric stores and got some awesome seersucker fabric for making a baby quilt we saw in Martha Stewart magazine (no explanations though, thanks Martha!), some baby flannel for decorating burp cloths & onsies & bibs, and really discounted awesome fabric for recovering the rocking chair (we paid $3 for that fabric). We got home and recovered the chair with the help of my strong husband (the seat and back were just heavily glued into the frames - so he had to bust those out). We used the staple gun to wrap the seat and back with the new fabric, then reglued them into the frames. Ta-dah. Cool looking chair. After a quick dinner of fish & vegetables, my mom got on the road because Monday looks to be a bad weather travel day :( bummer.

I'm excited about my new sewing projects though! I've been feeling sort of crafty lately and mom left me her sewing machine. So on my to do list:
Add flannel to cloth diapers = cute burp cloths
Cut out animals/shapes and use fusible webbing to adhere onto onesies and bibs = cute outfits
Make seersucker quilt (at least piece together the top, mom will have to help finish the edges)

I'm entering my 27th week, and the last week of the 2nd trimester. Here's an update on baby Lucy - she's over 2 lbs now, and about 15 inches in length (from head to toe). Her sense of hearing is getting sharper, mainly because her brain is more developed. She can open her eyes and is practicing blinking. I am really looking forward to seeing her!!

Rachel was sweet enough to offer to throw me a baby shower! I'm guessing that won't be until March, but it's fun to think about! Heck, March is only one short month away, lol