Angry Bird Birthday Party

I came up with two ideas all on my own for Chief's 5 year Birthday Party. The invitation idea came to me when I realized I may have over-bought the party favors. I simply printed the info for the party on cardstock and adhered them to the inside of an angry bird frisbee. The kids loved it! My second idea was to add worms to the ice cream to help stick with the "bird" theme. I also posted pictures of the cans WE made. I did the faces and Chief did the tails!

Master Bathroom Remodel

I spent a lot of time designing the layout and picking out every detail for the bathroom.  I have to say I am very pleased with the results. Koshi CE tile 12x24 from Contempo Tile. Atlantic Salt Caesarstone Quartz counter top from Surface Stone. Java colored cabinets installed with laundry hampers inside. The Kohler sink and accesories are from Ferguson. I do feel a little pampered in it!

Christmas Countdown

I have seen a ton of 12 days of Christmas ideas but I wanted to do something a little different so we could spend a bit more money with each gift and not get stuck with the traditional calling birds, golden rings, etc.  So I put my own little spin on a Christmas Countdown. Nine days of gifts spelling C H R I S T M A S. 

C - Candy Cane Chapstick
H - Home for the Holiday decor block
R - Reindeer
I - I believe in Santa Claus book
S - Starbucks steamers gift card
T - Truffles
M - Music 
A - Angel of Winter statue
S - Snow globe

We wrapped and labeled each gift and then delivered them all together in one big gift bag.  We picked two families to receive the packages but remained anonymous by just dropping them off on their porch. It was a great way to get in the Christmas Spirit. 

Comparisons

Measurements

1st pregnancy: I gained 22 pounds and measured 36 cm

2nd pregnancy: I gained  27 pounds and measured 36 cm

As my pregnancy has progressed it has been hard to compare it to last time because I didn't journal enough.  I can remember certain funny stories and moments that I want to write down now so I can compare. 

1st pregnancy:

I remember feeling like I was going to faint one day at work so I had to sit with my head between my legs.  I was only 6 or 7 weeks along so I hadn't shared the news, but being sick made me so happy I was unable to hide the huge smile on my face and they figured it out pretty quick.

I remember keeping track of how the baby was developing on a website and they compared the baby to sizes of food. I think I was about 9 weeks when they compared the baby to the size of a grape. I was so tired and exhausted and Kyle said how surprised he was that I was already having pregnancy symptoms and my response was "It's hard to grow a grape"

I remember not caring about throwing up a few times a week, I was happy to be sick.

I remember tears of joy streaming down my cheeks during the 20 week ultrasound.

I remember feeling pretty good for the most part and enjoying the pregnancy.

I remember taking off my wedding ring to go to the hospital to be induced.

2nd pregnancy:

I had to excuse myself from a patient one day at work to go throw up in the bathroom.

I have kept track of the baby's growth again and had fun reading what was new or developing.

I felt so content and happy during the big ultrasound finding out we were having another boy.

The baby is almost always active in the evening from 5 to 7  I love to sit focus on his movements.

This time it has been easier to see my whole belly move as a hand or foot sticks out or moves across.

He has had the hiccups quite often.

I have been swollen the last two months. Some days are worse than others but I haven't worn my wedding ring for a while. I did put it on for my maternity photo shoot but could barely take it off again. 

I feel like I have arthritis in my hands, they fall asleep easily and it wakes me up at night. I've even had my hands fall asleep while I was working on patients at work.

My ankles are pretty gross when they really swell up.

I am not sleeping well, I am often awake between 3 and 5 am. Once in a while I will get up and get started with household chores, but usually I lay there hoping to go back to sleep.

My back has been quite painful.  At first it was the lower left side, then either or both sides, then I also started having right sciatic pain. I have been doing pool physical therapy. It feels so nice to be weightless in the pool. 

Chief

It has been fun and endearing watching Chief as he has tried to grasp and understand the whole pregnancy thing. He seems to understand pretty well and is very excited to be a big brother. I need to write down a few of his comments so I can remember them. 

*Back in September we were at our favorite smoothie place ordering from a teenage boy when Derek asked him "Do you have a baby in your tummy?" Of course this boy responded with a weird and kind of embarrassed "No" and Derek proceeds with an almost then your not cool tone in his voice "My mom has a baby in her tummy"

*He has been watching carefully as my belly has grown and went through a phase where we had to compare our belly sizes after each meal. He would tell me "Your belly's getting bigger" and then at about 8 months he started to be more specific saying things like "Your belly is huge!"

*He loves to hug and kiss my belly and ask "Did he like that?"

*Lately he has been talking about his brother like he is already here. He is not shy at all and usually strikes up conversations with anyone anywhere we go and likes to share the news that he is going to have a brother.

*He told my parents a few weeks ago that of all the babies his brother is the cutest.

*I think I usually tell him when I have my check-ups that Dr. Terry is going to see how the baby is growing. For the past few weeks I have been saying that soon I will go to the hospital and the baby will come out of my tummy. One time he asked "Is Dr. Terry going to be there?" (This kid remembers everything)

*Yesterday while driving in the car he was eating some grapes and found an extra small one and said while cuddling it "Oh, it's a baby grape! It came out of my tummy!"

*He will hug my belly and say "I love my brover"

Thoughts on Pregnancy

It really is an mazing thing to be pregnant. This is my second pregnancy in ten years of hoping and wishing to be pregnant. I feel so blessed every single day to have the experience of a little baby growing inside of me. I love having a belly. It's big, it's awkward, but I L-O-V-E it. Lately I have been thinking about how much I will actually miss the belly and that closeness of feeling his every kick and move. I don't know what the future has in store for us, if we will be lucky enough to have any more children, so I want to cherish these last moments as a mother-to-be.

Maternity Pictures

Yin and Yang

Today I went to a prenatal yoga class. I love the poses, the focus it takes to balance, and the challenge it is. The instructor was so positive and it was fun to see pregnant belly's all around. It was a great start to my day. I am feeling especially grateful to be pregnant and finding joy in the size of my belly. I have spent so many years wanting to be pregnant, that it is truly a dream come true to watch my body change and adapt. I love feeling the kicks and movements when big D is active. I love to feel a body part pushing up against my stomach and see my whole stomach move. It is a marvel.

This pregnancy is also fun to watch Chief interact with the baby. For a while he played a lot of peek-a-boo with my stomach. He likes to feel for kicks, talk to him, and give my stomach kisses. He also will lift up his shirt and say that his belly is growing too and wants to compare our belly sizes. He used to say "Your belly's getting bigger" but now he says "Your belly is huge!"

28 weeks

I am now in my third trimester! 

I saw my Doctor a few days ago. I had a follow up ultrasound to check the cord. I have velamentous insertion of the umbilical cord. Which is fine as long as it doesn't run near the cervix which mine doesn't. He is going to do another ultrasound in 6 weeks and a few non-stress tests as I get closer just to be cautious but he is very optimistic that I can go full term with no problems.  I measured at 27 1/2 inches, right on schedule but the baby measured 10 days ahead of schedule on the ultrasound. So obviously the placenta is working just fine. (hopefully it's not just a big head)

I am feeling pretty good so far. I am tired but it's not the baby who pitter patters into my room in the middle of the night. My back bothers me most on days that are busy when I do a lot of running around, but the physical therapy and exercises are helping. I do get heartburn but it doesn't stop me from eating whatever sounds good even if it is onions or something acidic. I never was very big with my first pregnancy. But in these last two weeks I have really grown a lot in size. I am even starting to get "cankles" AHH!! It's almost impossible to rest and put up my feet between chasing my 3 year old, working, and getting ready for Christmas. My wedding ring is starting to feel a little tight too. Hopefully I don't continue to swell.

My life is going to change a lot in the next few months. I am going to quit working and stay home full time with my two little boys. I am really looking forward to this. Chief is coming up on age 4 so it will be nice to be more flexible with my schedule for preschool and activities for him. I am happy to think of being with the new little one all the time without having to worry about pumping milk or depending on someone else to keep him on schedule or care for him. I feel like I am now entering a whole new "mothering" stage. I have always wanted to be a mom and this is my time to really make it my priority and enjoy it as much as I can. I feel so blessed.

100

Only 100 more days to go!

Pregnancy

I am now twenty-five weeks along. I feel a lot of movement every day and especially at night when I lay down. He kicks and kicks like crazy which I feel most often on the bottom left side of my stomach. This morning I was woken up at 5 by chief and could not go back to sleep. As I had been laying there for a while I started to feel a lot of movement. I put my hand on my stomach and enjoyed the moment. Then came a body part sticking out of my half circle stomach. I guess it is starting to get a little tight in there. I had an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. I am so lucky and blessed to be pregnant and have the experience of being a mother. What a miracle it is. I want to savor these moments and yet at the same time I can hardly wait to meet the little guy.

Cravings

Last pregnancy I wanted eggs any style ALL THE TIME. I do still want and like scrambled eggs late at night when I feel hungry, luckily my husband is nice and always makes them for me when I ask. But with this pregnancy I want most everything I see or hear about eating. We watched a TV show where they were eating spaghetti, guess what we had for dinner the next night... spaghetti. I do seem to really like onions right now, especially red onions on sandwiches so I am hitting up Kneaders a lot for lunch. I am also liking salty things and garlicky stuff. I was craving garlic bread twists from The Pizza Factory so we have picked them up twice this week. The other thing that I want is the Chef salad from Ligori's. So yummy with chunks of ham and pepperoni, cheese, green peppers and the best ranch dressing ever. It is making my mouth water just thinking about it. Notice I am listing foods to pick up and eat so I don't have to make them myself. I have been terrible about cooking lately. Maybe someday soon I will start a better dinner routine.

Boy oh Boy!

I had my big ultrasound today. It's a boy! My husband had a hard time seeing the body parts so finally the tech got a great shot in between the legs and there is no doubt. We are so excited. My boys will be just shy of four years apart so I already have a lot of boy clothes in the correct season and now they will have a buddy to do boy things with!

It was so fun to see him moving around and kicking. He kept bringing his right hand up to his face but we couldn't tell if he was putting it in his mouth. He measured at 9 ounces and 6 1/2 inches.

The ultrasound went well. There is a little concern because the last third of the placenta is not fully covered with tissue and umbilical cord. They are NOT diagnosing it as vasa praevia BUT they are going to watch a little closer and do another ultrasound in 8 weeks to check it again. My doctor is very reassuring that he just wants to be cautious and expects everything to be fine.

Here is a picture of the little guy:

I have been feeling well for about two weeks. I made the mistake of taking my vitamins in the morning and threw up during lunch. I won't do that again.

I've got a feeling

I felt the baby move for the first time on October 5 (18 weeks). It was a fluttery feeling across my stomach. Now everyday I feel it moving around, kicking, turning, doing whatever it does in there.

For Sale

Maybe I have hit the nesting stage because I have this urge to get rid of furniture and items I have been holding on to in an attempt to clear out my house. Thank you KSL classifieds.

Belly

I had five people at work say something like "Wow! Your belly has popped out" so I must be really showing. (14 weeks)

How is it that I am feeling worse this week ? I was hoping to start feeling better but the nausea and throwing up has increased dramatically.

11 weeks

Today I saw my famous OB Dr. Terry. He and his nurse Cyndee were so excited for me to be pregnant and made the visit so fun. He used an old ultrasound he had for a sneak preview. It is amazing how much has changed in 5 weeks. The baby was kicking like crazy and punching it's arms the whole time, so fun to see. I measured exactly on schedule with the original due date of March 11. I can hardly wait.

Something In The Air

I'm feeling OK most of the time. Not ever really great, but OK.  My routine right now is to eat a small breakfast right when I wake up just to get something in my stomach. Then about an hour later I need a second breakfast to really fill up my belly and then I can usually just snack until lunch. Once I eat a good lunch I feel better until about 5 or 6 pm then the queasiness hits me again.

I am still super tired and haven't done any yard work for over a month. I do try to keep the house somewhat clean but really it is the last thing I want to do. I have figured out though that keeping up on dishes are a must. One morning I was doing dishes that were left out from the night before. The dried up food on the plate was hard to handle. I tried to soak it and scrape it off looking the other way and holding my breath but it still got to me and it did not end well.

Smells are hard. For about a week now I can hardly stand to be in any bathroom because it smells overwhelmingly like "toilet water." The worst was when someone left a dirty diaper in the garbage can at work. I had to ask a fellow employee to remove it for me so I could walk down the hall without gagging. One day I made the mistake of putting leftover bread ends in a grocery bag in the pantry (I usually keep my bread in the fridge) with the intention of taking my little boy to a local park to feed the ducks. I forgot all about it and so for a few days I would gag every time I opened the pantry door and was so puzzled as to why it smelled. Finally I was brave enough to hunt down the source of the problem. I found the bread in the bag. It was perfectly fine but it just had a warm bread smell that I didn't like. We went to the park that very night.

There was another incident at work when I had to excuse myself from my patient so I could run to the bathroom and throw up. Not a good day.