Sunday, December 30, 2012

{week 30}


































Week 30 (Dec 22  Dec 28)

This week started off nice and festive with some Christmas cookie decorating:

Then came lots of wrapping, last minute shopping, and more wrapping, and all the sudden it was Christmas!  It came and went so fast this year, but it was a great time.  We spent time with family on all sides, were blessed with more presents than we know what to do with, and enjoyed the last Christmas as just the two of us. :)  Although baby girl was also blessed with a ton of presents...I can only imagine how ridiculous that's going to get when she's, you know, on the outside. :)  She's one lucky lady, I'll tell you that much.

Speaking of the lucky lady...I felt her get the hiccups for the first time on Sunday!  It was actually her daddy's fault...we were all sleeping when the dog started growling and he startled us awake by yelling at her.  The next thing I know, I'm feeling tiny hiccups in my belly, and Matt even could feel them from the outside.  It was quite possibly the cutest thing I could ever imagine. :)  Since then, I've felt them almost every day, and it just keeps getting cuter. :)  I just keep imagining her tiny little self in there hiccuping away. 

Anyway...the rest of the week was back to work - boring - our home inspection, and generalized freaking out over the list of things to be done over the next 3 weeks.  "To-do list" is my new middle name.  And on the top of the list: find a new place to live! 


Size of baby: Cucumber {I don't get it.  Maybe we're just talking length?}

Total weight gain/loss:  34 lbs.

Maternity clothes? Are still awesome.

Stretch marks? Not yet

Sleep: I'm just hoping that one day I will again be able to sleep like I used to... oh how I miss my ability to sleep through anything, and sleep all day. sigh.

Symptoms: still fighting this carpal tunnel junk.  I know I am one lucky pregnant lady for how few symptoms I've had, and how generally great I've felt the past 30 weeks.  However, this SUCKS.  Fat fingers, hands constantly falling asleep, tingling fingers, wrist pain - thanks but no thanks.  I have an acupuncture appointment this week, which I'm crossing my (numb) fingers will help.

Best moment this week: Christmas!!  And thinking about how different, but amazing, next Christmas will be in a new house with our little bundle of joy running around. :)

Movement: lots of it, plus the hiccups!  She is starting to wiggle her way into my ribs, which is less than enjoyable, but not horrible (yet).

Food cravings: yummy Christmas food and goodies.

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!

Gender: GIRL!!!!!!

Belly Button in or out? Still hanging in there.

Wedding rings on or off? Off.  But my darling husband got me a "placeholder" for Christmas, to wear until I can get the real thing back on.  I guess he doesn't want me walking around looking like an unmarried pregnant girl... ;)

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and stressed.  Christmas was lovely and wonderful and happy, but once we got back to real life the reality of all the stuff to be done and the short amount of time to do it has set in.  Enter: stress.

Looking forward to:  New Year's Eve!  I must say it will be an interesting one, being sober and all, but it's still exciting to ring in 2013 which is sure to be a big year for us!

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

{ho ho ho}

Merry Christmas! I hope you are having a wonderful day full of love and memories. :)
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{photos and card by the amazing Sarah Maxey Photo}

Friday, December 21, 2012

{week 29}

 29 weeks

Week 29 (Dec 15 Dec 21)

Week 29…the week this pregnancy tried to beat me.  Ok, it wasn’t really that bad, but I seem to have developed every possible pregnancy symptom possible this week.  More on that awesomeness later. :)

As I mentioned last week, I came down with a lovely cold, and this week the husband decided it would be a good idea to get it as well.  So there was a lot of sleeping, nose-blowing, and general yuckiness in our house over the weekend.  I managed to squeeze in one last photo shoot on Saturday, and drag Matt out of bed to our birth class, and then on Sunday I finished up some shopping and spent the afternoon baking away in the kitchen.  The work week started off pretty uneventful and then mid-way through things got crazy!  Tuesday night we found out we had a showing on Wednesday morning, so we scrambled to clean and I made arrangements to work from home.  A few hours after the showing, our realtor called and said the potential buyers wanted to come back.  That night.  And that they were probably going to make an offer. (Eek!)  So we left for the evening showing, and came home and went about our business.  About 9:00 that night our realtor calls again to inform us they officially made an offer!  (woo hoo!)  On Thursday I was pretty much just on the phone all day, but long story short: we countered, they accepted, OUR HOUSE IS SOLD.  Finally!  We had literally just emailed the realtor saying we were giving up and ready to take it off the market.  Ah, irony.  So now we just have a home inspection to get through, and if all goes well we are officially out of this house as of the end of January!  Yes, that means we’ll be moving when I’m right around 33-34 weeks pregnant.  Should be fun. ;)  So now we have less than a month to find a new place to live, pack up our entire house, move, unpack, oh and set up a nursery.  Guess this is a good time for that “nesting” to set in, huh…

Size of baby: Acorn Squash

Total weight gain/loss:  34 lbs.

Maternity clothes? Are still awesome.

Stretch marks? Not yet

Sleep: no such thing.  Between getting over the cold, my newest symptoms and the excitement/stress/general anxiety over our living situation – there’s not a lot of sleeping going on these days.

Symptoms: so, as I said, this week I seem to have come down with all sorts of wonderful symptoms.  First, is the lovely cold hanging on. At this point I don’t know if it’s still around or if I’m just back to that pregnancy congestion, but I am a sniffle machine that’s for sure. The heartburn has popped back up, so that’s nice (thankfully still not too horrible, but it’s certainly not enjoyable).  And to top it off, I woke up on Monday with serious sausage fingers (had to wrangle my wedding ring off before it got stuck!) and aching fingers and wrists.  As the week has gone on, I’ve had more pain in my fingers and wrists (it hurts to write!), and as I “sleep” I find that my hands and arms are falling asleep constantly.  According to Dr. Google, all of this adds up to pregnancy-induced carpal tunnel.  Say what?!?  I didn’t even know such a thing existed.  But apparently it does, is common in the 3rd trimester, and should go away after delivery when the swelling all goes down.  So, I guess I get to enjoy this for the next 2+ months.  Hooray.  I will be asking the doctor at our next appointment for any remedies I can try, but it doesn’t sound like there’s much I can do.

Best moment this week: getting the call that we sold our house!

Movement: same story – and now she apparently is turning into a morning person??  All week I have woken up between the hours of 5 and 7am and she has just been dancing away in there.  It also seems like whenever Matt gets out of bed she wakes up.  I can’t imagine how she knows that he has gotten up, but it seems like she does.  All I know is this is not going to fly when she is on the outside.

Food cravings: cookies, fudge, candy, hot chocolate, more cookies… all of the goodies that come along with Christmas.  I may have had cookies for lunch the other day.

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!

Gender: GIRL!!!!!!

Belly Button in or out? Seems to be disappearing.  And I’m not too happy about it.

Wedding rings on or off? Officially off.  Sausage fingers and toes have arrived. Boo.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy this week with all of the exciting news!  Although I will admit, the night we got the offer on the house I laid in bed and went through just about every emotion possible – I was happy all our work finally paid off, then I was sad that we were leaving this house where Matt and my life together started, then I was excited we get to bring our baby home to a house with more space, then I was nervous that we wouldn’t be able to find a place in time, then I was stressed thinking of all the work ahead of us, and then I was back to happy imagining things once everything is all said and done.  Whew!  Pregnancy does a number on your emotions, that’s all I’m saying. 

Looking forward to:  CHRISTMAS!! I can’t believe it’s only a few days away.  It will be our last Christmas as a family of 2 (insert rollercoaster of emotions again).  Also looking forward to our annual Cousins Cookie Decorating Saturday, and of course all of the glorious food that I will be consuming over the next few days. Good thing I have an extra week before stepping on the scale at my next doctor’s appointment… :)

Sunday, December 16, 2012

a monkey birthday

 lexi-monkey-party_01
Little miss Lexi {who you have probably seen all over this blog, turned 3 recently.  THREE!  When I think about it, this little girl is pretty much my photography journey in a nutshell.  When she was first born, I was just getting my feet wet learning how to use my camera.  Now, three years later, I like to think I’ve come a pretty long way.  And so has this girl!  She is SO much fun at this age…I love every minute I get to spend with her.  So of course, her birthday party was no different!
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She was ready to go, monkey in hand. :)  Once everyone arrived, it was play time.
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Even the adults joined in on the fun…
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(yes, I know that is the world's blurriest picture, but it's still hilarious if you ask me!)

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The birthday girl even turned into a monkey herself!
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After playtime was over, it was party time. :)  Lexi’s mom and I spent lots of time planning the perfect monkey party for this special 3-year-old…and I think it came out wonderfully!
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Lexi came over the night before her party, and helped me bake up a storm.  We had so much fun, and she is such a good little helper!  We made: banana muffins, strawberry cupcakes, & chocolate cupcakes (all from scratch!).

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What’s a monkey party without a monkey cake?!
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I must say, I never thought I would be one to enjoy a 3-year-old’s birthday party :)  But Matt and I both had a great time!  There is just something about watching little kids run around playing and laughing that you can’t help but enjoy. I can’t wait to experience this with our own little girl!

Saturday, December 15, 2012

{week 28}

 28 weeks

Week 28 (Dec 8 Dec 14)

{Welcome to the 3rd Trimester}  HOLY COW.  I’m already in the 3rd trimester??? When did that happen???? 

Anyway, this week started off wonderfully with our 3D ultrasound on Saturday.  We got to see our girl, and watch her on a big screen TV for 45 minutes, and our families got to see her as well.  She tried to be a booger and had her face buried for the first 15 minutes or so, making it hard to get a good clear picture, but after lots of repositioning, jabbing and poking, she finally came out of hiding.  She gave us quite a show too, sucking her thumb, and even smiling a couple times!  It is still amazing to me that there is a little person growing inside of me, and to see her like that just makes it that much more real.  The ultrasound tech says she has big lips, big eyes, and a button nose.  Sounds like the recipe for adorable if you ask me. :)  I definitely think the “elective” 3D ultrasound was a worthwhile investment, and I’m glad Matt talked me into it!!  Now for your viewing pleasure…

BABY GIRL_25   BABY GIRL_15

 BABY GIRL_18   BABY GIRL_20

Later that day we had a somewhat last minute house showing (only minutes after I emailed the realtor with our decision to take the house off the market does this request come in…), and Sunday I had a fun ladies day with my BFF and our moms, and then Matt and I knocked out most of our Christmas shopping.  Overall, a great weekend!  The week was pretty run-of-the-mill, with some more Christmas shopping and plenty of hot-chocolate-drinking.  We did have another doctor’s appointment on Monday (I have graduated to bi-weekly appointments), which was also very run of the mill.  Baby is measuring great, and momma is holding up as best as possible.  It finally happened – I came down with a cold.  I have heard horror stories of getting sick while pregnant, and I must admit, it’s no walk in the park!  Not being able to take any medicine, combined with already feeling stuffy most of the time, does not make handling a cold any easier! I think I’m finally on the upside of it though, my throat is no longer on fire, but my head is still pretty much a block of concrete.  I have been drinking water like it’s my job, so here’s to hoping that helps flush this junk out of my system!

Size of baby: Eggplant

Total weight gain/loss:  34 lbs. {only gained 2 lbs in the past 2 weeks – woot!}

Maternity clothes? Are awesome.

Stretch marks? Not yet

Sleep: pregnancy + head cold = no such thing as sleep.  I finally got a decent night’s sleep on Thursday night (decent in that I only got up once to go to the bathroom, and maybe 2 times other than that.  every other night I’ve been up about every hour, gone to the bathroom at least 2-3 times, and chugged anywhere from 2-4 giant glasses of water.  Fun stuff!)

Symptoms: nothing really pregnancy related this week, just a big fat head cold.

Best moment this week: seeing our girl smile at us on the big-screen at the 3D ultrasound.  And seeing her suck her thumb.  Ok, just seeing her. :)

Movement: she is still my little mover and shaker!  I’ve noticed a lot more activity in the middle of the night this week, though…probably just because I have been up more.  Let’s hope this child isn’t a night owl… but who am I kidding, if she’s anything like her mother we’re all doomed (at least those of us who value our sleep anyway)

Food cravings: nothing exciting.

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!

Gender: GIRL!!!!!!

Belly Button in or out? Still in, but looks different to me every day.  Matt thinks I’m just imagining things.

Wedding rings on or off? Right hand rings are still off (and unable to be put back on) :(  Wedding ring is holding on for now, but not sure how much longer it will last. :( 

Happy or Moody most of the time: Still pretty happy for the most part…no crazy pregnant lady outbursts this week. :)

Looking forward to:  a Sunday with absolutely nothing planned, and hopefully lots of baking, shopping, present-wrapping, and general holiday cheer :)

Friday, December 7, 2012

{week 27}

27 weeks 

Week 27 (Dec 1 Dec 7)

We had a non-stop weekend full of party preparations and our usual Bradley class, and then the party of the year on Sunday!  It turned out great, and I had so much fun watching Lexi play with her friends and open her presents.  I have a billion pictures, and of course will share them as soon as I’ve had time to go through them all.  For now, here’s a quick sneak peak of the little monkey and her party…

 lexi-party

After the hectic weekend, luckily the work week proved to be much quieter.  We didn’t have anything major going on, which was nice for a change!  This weekend we have a 3D ultrasound on Saturday, which we are all sorts of excited for.  I’ll admit, I’ve always been one of those people who think those 3D pictures are sort of creepy, but being that it’s my own child I don’t see how I could possibly think it’s creepy when we see her.  Plus, we get to see her again!!  Hopefully she will stick to her daily routine of dancing and flipping around all day, so we can get some good pictures.  Other than that we don’t have any major plans this weekend…hoping to knock a big chunk out of the Christmas shopping!

Size of baby: Rutabaga (I don’t have the slightest clue what this is)

Total weight gain/loss:  32 lbs.

Maternity clothes? How did I ever live without them? 

Stretch marks? Not yet

Sleep: not really much new here… I am still waking up at least 1-2 times to hit the bathroom, and another 3-4 times to chug water.  But I am usually able to get back to sleep pretty easily, and the vaporizer has really helped with the congestion.  So, it could be worse!

Symptoms: still the lovely pregnancy congestion, but nothing to add to the list this week (thank goodness).  I did get a killer headache on Monday, but I’m pretty sure that was due to me not drinking enough water that day.  Lesson learned! 

Best moment this week: Lexi’s 3rd birthday party – 3 year olds are just so stinkin cute, and watching her run around with her friends and play with her Uncle Matt was just a blast.  It’s even more fun thinking that we’ll get to watch our own kid do all of this in the future. :)

Movement: lots of it!  Can we all just collectively send out some good vibes into the universe that she doesn’t freeze up or decide to take a nap during our 3D ultrasound?  Thank you!

Food cravings: I’m still sad to report I haven’t had any crazy pregnant lady cravings.  Sigh.

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!

Have you started to show yet: ha!

Gender: GIRL!!!!!!

Belly Button in or out? It seems to be morphing, but is still most definitely in.  Stay in, belly button, stay in!

Wedding rings on or off? The wedding ring is still on, but rings on my right hand have come off.  The other day I was playing with them and realized I almost couldn’t get them off – I am terrified of getting my rings stuck on my fingers, so I am playing it safe and took them off for the time being.  Strangely, though, my wedding ring still has plenty of wiggle room.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy ~ I feel the occasional wave of moodiness, but I think I control it well.  And that’s all that matters, right?!

Looking forward to:  seeing my beautiful baby girl tomorrow!! And getting to share the experience with our families.  Someone better be bringing Kleenex, that’s all I’m saying.

Monday, December 3, 2012

{week 26}

 26 weeks

oohff.  Between the bad lighting (picture was taken after dark), and the fact that I did not put myself together that day, this picture is definitely not the best.

Week 26 (Nov 24 – Nov 30)

After all of the turkey time, we enjoyed the rest of our long weekend, and had a nice and somewhat less busy week.  Sunday was an unseasonably nice day, which was perfect for us to take our maternity photos! {spoiler: I already got the proofs back, and LOVE them.  I will share our Christmas card after they go out, and then the final pictures once I have them.} 

Monday was another doctor’s appointment – and I was lucky enough to get to do the Gestational Diabetes screen.  It actually wasn’t that bad… I had heard horror stories about this drink you have to chug, and the resulting tummy ache.  I personally thought the drink just tasted like a flat orange soda, and there was no tummy ache to speak of afterwards.  Now I’m just waiting on the results…hopefully I passed!  {If not, I get to do another longer test, and if I don’t pass that then I officially get diagnosed with GD.  Let’s not go down that road, though…}  Otherwise the appointment was a success – saw the Nurse Practitioner as Dr. C was busy delivering babies, and again everything is measuring great and baby girl’s heartbeat is still going strong!

The rest of the week was busy at work, busy running errands, and busy helping plan little Miss Lexi’s 3rd birthday party.  It’s going to be a busy weekend as well, but I am most definitely looking forward to the party of the year happening on Sunday. :)

Size of baby: head of lettuce

Total weight gain/loss:  32 lbs. {this month I gained 6 lbs… I’m considering that a win since I’ve gained 10 the last 2 months in a row. And once again, no scolding by the doctor, so I’m still on track!}

Maternity clothes? Love them.

Stretch marks? Not yet

Sleep: my darling husband got me a vaporizer {at the suggestion of the doctor} to help with my clogged-nose-can’t-sleep problem, and it’s making things a bit better.  Although I still wake up at least 3 times to chug water, and like clockwork I’m in the bathroom around 3am every morning.  I’ve recently discovered that I can pretty much only sleep on my left side if I want to be comfortable.  As someone who moves non-stop while I sleep, this isn’t ideal, but at least when I wake up I know to just roll over to the left side to get back to sleep.  So, I guess we’re making progress??

Symptoms: stuffy stuffy nose.  I asked the doctor, and was told this is common in pregnancy and there really isn’t much I can do about it.  Hooray.  It’s not the worst symptom in the world, but it isn’t very pleasant either.  I’m just thankful I don’t have a full blown cold or the flu.

Best moment this week: Taking our maternity pictures.  Matt probably won’t agree {why do all men HATE having their picture taken??}, but it was fun to run around Loose park, and focus on my belly for a good 45 minutes. :)

Movement: still all day every day.  Just last night, we discovered that our girl is already a music lover {surprise, surprise}.  Matt had a song playing on his phone, and the girl was kicking like nobody’s business.  Then he turned it off and she stopped.  So, she’s already a fan of good music {The Dirty Heads was her artist of choice…have no fear, we will be giving her some good 311 experience very soon :)}

Food cravings: nothing in particular this week.

Anything making you queasy or sick: nope!

Have you started to show yet: most definitely.

Gender: GIRL!!!!!!

Belly Button in or out? still holding on as an innie.

Wedding rings on or off? Off at this very moment, but hoping to go back on very soon.  My hands don’t look swollen, I swear!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy ~ of course that is subject to change at the drop of a hat.

Looking forward to: this fabulous party Sarah and I are planning for Sunday, and maybe just maybe a calm week. :)