Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Sunday, December 26, 2010
25 Weeks!
25-week highlights......
Size of baby: according to the The Bump, eggplant..... I'm starting to think this website is completely bogus. Today I read on it that if Chris were to put his ear to my belly, he might pick up our baby's heartbeat..... yeah, I don't think so. That's what they use fetal dopplars for. Jeez.
Maternity clothes: still fitting well.... I learned this week that I don't like the short panel jeans as my belly gets bigger because they just end up digging into my bladder, which is already uncomfortable.
Movement: mostly big jumps now, and I can frequently SEE my belly move now. Also sometimes it feels like I have a little swimmer in there.
Food cravings: BLUEBERRIES!!! And bananas. The best is blueberries, a banana, and a bowl of Special K all mixed up.... by far my favorite meal right now. I could eat that and nothing else and be happy right now
What I miss: sleep..... I love being in Arizona, but I do miss our bed..... also not being completely exhausted after 20 minutes of exercise. I think I'm in the beginning stages of having to accept that my gym routine is going to need another modification very soon. I definitely miss energy. And I already miss my belly button ring. Last night I switched to a pregnancy retainer, and it looks WEIRD. I haven't actually seen my belly button since I was 18, right before I got the piercing. Any day now, the snooze button is going to be popping out.
Sleep: see above..... enough said
Symptoms: just a growing belly and pregnancy insomnia
Best moment this week: Christmas of course!
What I am looking forward to: still almost 2 weeks of lovely weather before returning to the Great White North... also my baby shower in January
It was a really nice week here. Looking back over it, I don't feel like we did as much for how tired I have been all week (except for Christmas Eve and Christmas). We mostly just went to the gym and did a little bit of shopping. Christmas Eve was a nice night. We went to church that evening, and then several family members and friends of Chris's parents came over for a late evening. There was lots of food. I made pumpkin scones and the famous pork-on-pork, plus we had delicious meatballs, brownies, Special K bars (kind of like rice crispy treats, but WAY better), and other things. No one went hungry that night. Here's a few pictures from Christmas Eve:
For Christmas Day, we got up and watched one of my favorite Christmas movies, Elf. Then we opened up presents. Bailie was very happy as we gave her a Kong toy full of peanut butter. Actually, Bailie's been happy EVERY day. Here are a couple of pictures from Christmas morning...
Size of baby: according to the The Bump, eggplant..... I'm starting to think this website is completely bogus. Today I read on it that if Chris were to put his ear to my belly, he might pick up our baby's heartbeat..... yeah, I don't think so. That's what they use fetal dopplars for. Jeez.
Maternity clothes: still fitting well.... I learned this week that I don't like the short panel jeans as my belly gets bigger because they just end up digging into my bladder, which is already uncomfortable.
Movement: mostly big jumps now, and I can frequently SEE my belly move now. Also sometimes it feels like I have a little swimmer in there.
Food cravings: BLUEBERRIES!!! And bananas. The best is blueberries, a banana, and a bowl of Special K all mixed up.... by far my favorite meal right now. I could eat that and nothing else and be happy right now
What I miss: sleep..... I love being in Arizona, but I do miss our bed..... also not being completely exhausted after 20 minutes of exercise. I think I'm in the beginning stages of having to accept that my gym routine is going to need another modification very soon. I definitely miss energy. And I already miss my belly button ring. Last night I switched to a pregnancy retainer, and it looks WEIRD. I haven't actually seen my belly button since I was 18, right before I got the piercing. Any day now, the snooze button is going to be popping out.
Sleep: see above..... enough said
Symptoms: just a growing belly and pregnancy insomnia
Best moment this week: Christmas of course!
What I am looking forward to: still almost 2 weeks of lovely weather before returning to the Great White North... also my baby shower in January
It was a really nice week here. Looking back over it, I don't feel like we did as much for how tired I have been all week (except for Christmas Eve and Christmas). We mostly just went to the gym and did a little bit of shopping. Christmas Eve was a nice night. We went to church that evening, and then several family members and friends of Chris's parents came over for a late evening. There was lots of food. I made pumpkin scones and the famous pork-on-pork, plus we had delicious meatballs, brownies, Special K bars (kind of like rice crispy treats, but WAY better), and other things. No one went hungry that night. Here's a few pictures from Christmas Eve:
 |
| Chris, me, & Jeff |
 |
| There's no denying that belly poking out there! |
 |
| .....and the family |
For Christmas Day, we got up and watched one of my favorite Christmas movies, Elf. Then we opened up presents. Bailie was very happy as we gave her a Kong toy full of peanut butter. Actually, Bailie's been happy EVERY day. Here are a couple of pictures from Christmas morning...
 |
| Chris's present from me, Baby, and Bailie - a remote-controlled camouflage helicopter |
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| "the baby's present to us" - super cute footie pjs with dog feet - we call them Bailie feet |
 |
| baby's present to Uncle Jeff |
After presents, we drove down to Chris's uncle and aunt's house for a super delicious meal - turkey, ham, gravy, mashed potatoes, some kind of sweet potato casserole that was AWESOME, plus lots more. I personally sampled everything, so I can attest to how fantastic it was. That was also a day of no one going hungry. We got back home maybe around 8:30 or 9 in the evening and we were all exhausted, including Bailie. She had a very big day of being around several small dogs, and getting LOTS of attention and LOTS of turkey. I would bet that she ate more turkey than I did yesterday!
We still have almost 2 weeks of being here, which is awesome, but at the same time, its crazy to think that we have less than a week before our countdown to baby reaches the double-digits. On this Saturday, we will reach the 99-day mark. We still have so much to do. I really still cannot wrap my head around the fact that there is going to a little PERSON with us in just over 3 months. It seems like we were JUST here, not married, and I was meeting everyone for the first time. Fast forward one year and we've gotten married and are trying our best to get our lives ready for a BABY. While we could not be happier or more excited, it's still a scary thing. But I know it is only the beginning of so much fun, and I can't wait.
Bump photo to come tomorrow when I'm not in my PJs. :-)
Monday, December 20, 2010
24 week bump photo.....
That baby bump is definitely only getting bigger! And yesterday morning, when we were sitting in church, I could SEE my belly jumping! That was pretty crazy, but very cool.
Last night we went to the Star of Wonder Christmas program that Brad's girlfriend Lisa was so sweet to get everyone tickets to. We were in the very front section (with an aisle seat for me, my bladder thanks Lisa!!), and I think we were all expecting a little Nativity story, but it was a lot more than that. By far the best part was when the animals came out, including the kangaroo and the elephant! And then when I was about 2 feet from the camels as they walked by..... that was pretty amazing (although in the back of my mind I was thinking, please don't fall on me like that camel in Florida!). Also, the part when the GIs deployed and had a dance battle with the toy soldiers was pretty fun to watch. It was a fun evening, but I was very tired at the end. We stayed up really late to watch the Survivor finale afterward..... well, I slept on the couch while Chris, Cindy, and Jim watched the finale, haha.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
24 Weeks!
Here are the 24-week highlights:
Size of baby: still a papaya according to The Bump, babycenter.com says that baby's about a foot long, and compares it to an ear of corn
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame! .... the tops I got a month ago are starting to fit just a bit!
Movement: I'm pretty sure the baby will be born a master of martial arts, because the ninja moves come out in the early morning hours in a BIG way
Food cravings: still in love with grapes, cottage cheese, and chocolate milk
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing.... though getting back into the gym today made me feel a smidge like my old self
Sleep: what's that? I thought it would be a couple of more months before asking that, but lately I cannot get a good night's sleep... I wish I could get a pregnancy pillow, but I'll have to wait til we go home in January for it to fit in the bed
Symptoms: just a growing belly and pregnancy insomnia
Best moment this week: the 4 of us making it safe and sound to Phoenix
What I am looking forward to: still CHRISTMAS!!!!!! ..... and giving Chris is present that he doesn't even realize exists until he reads this
I can't believe I'm 24 weeks pregnant. That puts me at just about 6 months. We have reached viability. WOW. To put it lightly, this has been a crazy week! The main people who read my blog have already heard the story of our arrival to Arizona, but I'll try to sum it up. On Monday morning, we left Ottawa, car packed up, Bailie with us, and headed toward Syracuse. We stopped at the dentist's office for a cleaning for each of us. The weather was getting really bad really quickly. As we left the dentist and got back on the road, one of the scariest things happened. We were just heading down the interstate when we hit a couple of ice patches and went spinning and sliding down the road. All I could think was, how can I protect this baby? I was terrified. Fortunately, we went off the road into a snow bank before any collisions happened. UNfortunately, we were VERY stuck in the slushy snow and there was no way we could get out on our own. Even more unfortunate was the answer of EVERY towing service that our roadside assistance service contacted for us - sorry, we'd love to come help you, but the weather is just too bad..... WHAT?? Luckily for us, a cop had stopped to stay with us until someone could come get us out, and when we told him that wasn't going to happen, he located someone for us. So all in all, we were only sitting for about an hour and a half. It could have been so much worse, but we were all safe, and that's the most important thing.
The next morning was from hell. There's no other way to put it. I hate Delta Airlines, and once we get back home, that company is DEAD TO ME. We were told that Bailie could only fly with us as cargo, not as baggage, which means that she has to go on a different plane. Fine. We took her to the cargo facility where we were told there was no record of her going with us, and by the way, your flights are delayed - which means you're missing that connection in Atlanta - and oh yeah, I hope you have someone to come get your dog when you get to Phoenix and she's not there. So here I am crying my eyes out, still shaken up from the night before, and I'm calling the Delta ticket counter to demand some answers, and thank God for Audrey M. who was probably the only competent employee that Delta has. To sum it up, pets CAN in fact go as baggage, meaning they go on the same plane as you, as long as you're not flying through certain cities. Flying through Atlanta meant that it was more than fine for her to go as baggage. Thank you, lady person who made our reservations for us, for neglecting to give us those details. Being delayed was not that big of a deal, but the stress of figuring out what was going on with Bailie, combined with spinning on the interstate and thinking that I could lose my baby if the wrong thing happened, was just not good. I spent the better part of Tuesday in constant tears, or in a state of fighting tears.
The rest of the day had few hitches, we all made it to Phoenix, and it turned out that I was more worried for Bailie than she was for herself. When she was wheeled out with her crate to us, she was just laying down inside it, not stressed at all, and looking at us as if to say, hi guys, where to now? She has been the best dog here and I am so happy we brought her. She is such a good traveler, and it eases my mind having her here with us. Plus, everyone has gotten to see how wonderful she is.
Wednesday was probably the best day here. Chris and I had made an appointment some time ago to go and have a 3D/4D ultrasound done. Seeing our little baby was just the best. Here are some pictures from that:
The baby was all in all pretty uncooperative. S/he kept putting an arm over the face, so we had a hard time getting the pictures that we did. But, it was really fun and really special for Chris and me to get to see our little one in this way. It made that day and a half of hell worth it.
Since we've been in here in Arizona, we've been busy, but relaxed, and its been great. Tonight we are going to a Christmas program, and I will take a bump picture before that, and post it later. For now, I think I am off to take a little nap. My workout today was great, but it has left me worn out, though I don't know if the little ninja in my belly is going to get me get much rest...... :-)
Size of baby: still a papaya according to The Bump, babycenter.com says that baby's about a foot long, and compares it to an ear of corn
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame! .... the tops I got a month ago are starting to fit just a bit!
Movement: I'm pretty sure the baby will be born a master of martial arts, because the ninja moves come out in the early morning hours in a BIG way
Food cravings: still in love with grapes, cottage cheese, and chocolate milk
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing.... though getting back into the gym today made me feel a smidge like my old self
Sleep: what's that? I thought it would be a couple of more months before asking that, but lately I cannot get a good night's sleep... I wish I could get a pregnancy pillow, but I'll have to wait til we go home in January for it to fit in the bed
Symptoms: just a growing belly and pregnancy insomnia
Best moment this week: the 4 of us making it safe and sound to Phoenix
What I am looking forward to: still CHRISTMAS!!!!!! ..... and giving Chris is present that he doesn't even realize exists until he reads this
I can't believe I'm 24 weeks pregnant. That puts me at just about 6 months. We have reached viability. WOW. To put it lightly, this has been a crazy week! The main people who read my blog have already heard the story of our arrival to Arizona, but I'll try to sum it up. On Monday morning, we left Ottawa, car packed up, Bailie with us, and headed toward Syracuse. We stopped at the dentist's office for a cleaning for each of us. The weather was getting really bad really quickly. As we left the dentist and got back on the road, one of the scariest things happened. We were just heading down the interstate when we hit a couple of ice patches and went spinning and sliding down the road. All I could think was, how can I protect this baby? I was terrified. Fortunately, we went off the road into a snow bank before any collisions happened. UNfortunately, we were VERY stuck in the slushy snow and there was no way we could get out on our own. Even more unfortunate was the answer of EVERY towing service that our roadside assistance service contacted for us - sorry, we'd love to come help you, but the weather is just too bad..... WHAT?? Luckily for us, a cop had stopped to stay with us until someone could come get us out, and when we told him that wasn't going to happen, he located someone for us. So all in all, we were only sitting for about an hour and a half. It could have been so much worse, but we were all safe, and that's the most important thing.
The next morning was from hell. There's no other way to put it. I hate Delta Airlines, and once we get back home, that company is DEAD TO ME. We were told that Bailie could only fly with us as cargo, not as baggage, which means that she has to go on a different plane. Fine. We took her to the cargo facility where we were told there was no record of her going with us, and by the way, your flights are delayed - which means you're missing that connection in Atlanta - and oh yeah, I hope you have someone to come get your dog when you get to Phoenix and she's not there. So here I am crying my eyes out, still shaken up from the night before, and I'm calling the Delta ticket counter to demand some answers, and thank God for Audrey M. who was probably the only competent employee that Delta has. To sum it up, pets CAN in fact go as baggage, meaning they go on the same plane as you, as long as you're not flying through certain cities. Flying through Atlanta meant that it was more than fine for her to go as baggage. Thank you, lady person who made our reservations for us, for neglecting to give us those details. Being delayed was not that big of a deal, but the stress of figuring out what was going on with Bailie, combined with spinning on the interstate and thinking that I could lose my baby if the wrong thing happened, was just not good. I spent the better part of Tuesday in constant tears, or in a state of fighting tears.
The rest of the day had few hitches, we all made it to Phoenix, and it turned out that I was more worried for Bailie than she was for herself. When she was wheeled out with her crate to us, she was just laying down inside it, not stressed at all, and looking at us as if to say, hi guys, where to now? She has been the best dog here and I am so happy we brought her. She is such a good traveler, and it eases my mind having her here with us. Plus, everyone has gotten to see how wonderful she is.
Wednesday was probably the best day here. Chris and I had made an appointment some time ago to go and have a 3D/4D ultrasound done. Seeing our little baby was just the best. Here are some pictures from that:
 |
| This is my favorite. You can almost see a little grin. |
The baby was all in all pretty uncooperative. S/he kept putting an arm over the face, so we had a hard time getting the pictures that we did. But, it was really fun and really special for Chris and me to get to see our little one in this way. It made that day and a half of hell worth it.
Since we've been in here in Arizona, we've been busy, but relaxed, and its been great. Tonight we are going to a Christmas program, and I will take a bump picture before that, and post it later. For now, I think I am off to take a little nap. My workout today was great, but it has left me worn out, though I don't know if the little ninja in my belly is going to get me get much rest...... :-)
Friday, December 17, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
23 Weeks!
This week's highlights:
Size of baby: still a papaya according to The Bump, babycenter.com says "large mango" (as opposed to small mango at 19 weeks?), and one website I found says that baby is the size of a "small doll, a real tiny baby" ..... whatever
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame! .... my jeans were loose after being in the wash the other day.... how does that happen???
Movement: from little taps to BIG kicks, baby moves a TON, but really likes to party around 11pm, 4am and 6am ... sometimes its not even a kick really, but a shake, like if you're belly had hiccups
Food cravings: still in love with grapes, cottage cheese, and chocolate milk
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing.... though I have more good days than bad days with this now
Sleep: still pretty good, and I've started having a few dreams about the baby, including finding out that we're having a ...... yeah, I'm not going to tell you what I dreamed we're having! Statistics show that mom's intuition is right 70% of the time, so we'll see
Symptoms: been really tired and a lot of back pain ... the doctor told me to up my red meat (for the iron) to at least 3 times per week - I told Chris I took that to mean I need to eat steak at least 3 times a week!
Best moment this week: finding out that I hadn't gained any weight in the last couple of weeks since our last appointment ..... and our nursery furniture arriving this week unexpectedly! It is now sitting in our spare room and it feels BIZARRE that we now own nursery furniture
What I am looking forward to: still CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
This week was a busy week. Split over 2 days, it took me about 10-12 hours to complete the first cookie order I got after Monday's tree lighting. It was for a woman in the Embassy who requested 5 dozen iced farm animals - sheep, pigs, and cows. She is a very sweet lady who not only paid me slightly more than my set price, but also gave me a cookie cutter set of farm animals because I'm "going to be a mom and will need these things." I thought that was very sweet of her. She also told me that another woman in her office had said she wondered if I could just bake cookies for her to have for her kids to decorate, so in addition to the order for the party next weekend, I will bake those today. But, I don't have to do any decorating, so it will only be a few hours of work today, not bad.
On Wednesday, we had our last doctor's appointment for the year. I didn't look at the scale as per usual, and was ecstatic when I was told that I was the exact same as the last time! I expected to be up at least 1 or 2 pounds, because I'm definitely in the realm now where I could be gaining a pound per week. I can at least attribute one pound of weight gain to the baby now, who should be weighing in at just over a pound now. My belly was also measured for the first of what will be many times now to check the fundal height (uterus position). For anyone who doesn't know, they don't measure around your belly, rather the measurement is taken of the "mound" of belly that is now present, from about 4 inches below and above the belly button. I'm measuring right on track, and baby's heartbeat was perfect. My blood pressure has also been very good, so I'm happy about that too. I will go back on January 10 for the dreaded glucose test (which will hopefully not be as bad as I am imagining, especially since I found out that I do NOT have to fast for it) and my next check-up. Then beginning with the next appointment, I will be going every 2 weeks! Things are going to move quickly at that point..... yikes!
Thursday was spent decorating cookies, and Friday night we went to a very nice Embassy Christmas party, the same one we went to last year right before the trip to Arizona. Its pretty boring in that we never know anyone at these things, but in all honestly, we go for the food and drink. We enjoyed some yummy food and Chris enjoyed the free wine. We were happy that we weren't missing that event.
Yesterday our new washer and dryer were delivered to us to replace the ancient ones! I never imagined that I could be so excited to get a washer and dryer. As I said in an earlier post, our washer began going in and out of life this week, so our landlord bought new ones for us, and to our surprise, we found out that they could be delivered to us before the trip.... though it was not a smooth day. If only our landlord was capable of covering small details, yesterday would have been much easier. On Friday I got a call from the store that they would be delivered between 7 and 11 the next morning, but closer to 7 because our house was the first stop on the list. Prior to this, our landlord told us that the delivery guys would disconnect and move the old appliances for us. NOT TRUE. Due to insurance reasons, they are not allowed to do ANY disconnecting OR installing of appliances. It says so on the website, and I bet they told him that at the store, but of cosue he didn't listen. The dryer was no problem for Chris to unhook. The washer, however, was impossible. The hoses could NOT be removed with our tools and we were afraid they might be rusted on. And, as if getting up at 7 for no reason on a Saturday wasn't annoying enough (the guys didn't show up til after 8), here we sat with our new dryer in the hallway, and our new and old washers in the laundry room. I tried calling the landlord but he didn't call us back for a couple of hours. In situations like this, it is imperative that Chris talks to him, otherwise Pregzilla comes out (though to be fair, it was just a frustrating situation, and Chris was aggravated too). In the end, the landlord called his realtor, the realtor called "a guy", and "the guy" and his 12-year-old son came to fix everything. Before they got here yesterday evening though, the realtor called to say that "the guy" speaks very little English, and to call her if we need translation. FANTASTIC. It ended up not so bad because as it turned out, his son spoke perfect English. About an hour and a half later, we were all set, and very grateful for our nice front-loading machines.
After everything settled down yesterday, we did something that is my very, VERY favorite Christmas tradition - we watched It's a Wonderful Life. Cheesy maybe, but I watch this movie EVERY Christmas, and have for years. One of my favorite memories of my dad is sitting in the living room watching, and at the same time having him talk about how he never liked Jimmy Stewart and how he always "over-acted" ..... and yet, there we would be, watching the movie. It's very special to me, and its not Christmas unless I get to sit down and watch George Bailey's adventure in learning how precious life is. It always makes me smile and cry at the end when his brother Harry toasts to him and calls him the "richest man in town" and there's just something wonderful about it.
Today its a nasty day in Ottawa, though we're not horribly bothered by it since we're leaving tomorrow morning. As I write, ice rain is coming down, on top of the snow that fell this morning. Though, it could be worse - originally the forecast called for about 2 feet of snow today! As of last night, only about 2 inches were expected, so that's much better (and MUCH better than what the midwest has gotten hit with - yikes!). Later we will pack (which will be easy for me since I have a limited wardrobe right now), and I will bake cookies. Tomorrow morning we'll head out, drop off my baked goods at the Embassy, and head toward Syracuse, with a stop at the dentist's along the way. In Syracuse, we'll get Bailie to her dog-sitter, and then Tuesday we will be on our way! I'm ready to be in warm weather and wear my flip-flops. I'm praying for a smooth travel day. I think Bailie's ready, but it will be hard not to worry about her.
Not sure when I'll get the bump picture up, but I'll probably at least take one tomorrow. I can't believe I'm 23 weeks pregnant. In just one more week, at 24 weeks, we will have reached viability, which means that if our baby were to be born after that point, so early God forbid, s/he could survive outside the womb, which is pretty amazing. I think our baby's going to keep cooking til April though. I'm pretty sure s/he doesn't want to spend anymore time in the cold than we do.
See some of you soon!
Size of baby: still a papaya according to The Bump, babycenter.com says "large mango" (as opposed to small mango at 19 weeks?), and one website I found says that baby is the size of a "small doll, a real tiny baby" ..... whatever
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame! .... my jeans were loose after being in the wash the other day.... how does that happen???
Movement: from little taps to BIG kicks, baby moves a TON, but really likes to party around 11pm, 4am and 6am ... sometimes its not even a kick really, but a shake, like if you're belly had hiccups
Food cravings: still in love with grapes, cottage cheese, and chocolate milk
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing.... though I have more good days than bad days with this now
Sleep: still pretty good, and I've started having a few dreams about the baby, including finding out that we're having a ...... yeah, I'm not going to tell you what I dreamed we're having! Statistics show that mom's intuition is right 70% of the time, so we'll see
Symptoms: been really tired and a lot of back pain ... the doctor told me to up my red meat (for the iron) to at least 3 times per week - I told Chris I took that to mean I need to eat steak at least 3 times a week!
Best moment this week: finding out that I hadn't gained any weight in the last couple of weeks since our last appointment ..... and our nursery furniture arriving this week unexpectedly! It is now sitting in our spare room and it feels BIZARRE that we now own nursery furniture
What I am looking forward to: still CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
This week was a busy week. Split over 2 days, it took me about 10-12 hours to complete the first cookie order I got after Monday's tree lighting. It was for a woman in the Embassy who requested 5 dozen iced farm animals - sheep, pigs, and cows. She is a very sweet lady who not only paid me slightly more than my set price, but also gave me a cookie cutter set of farm animals because I'm "going to be a mom and will need these things." I thought that was very sweet of her. She also told me that another woman in her office had said she wondered if I could just bake cookies for her to have for her kids to decorate, so in addition to the order for the party next weekend, I will bake those today. But, I don't have to do any decorating, so it will only be a few hours of work today, not bad.
On Wednesday, we had our last doctor's appointment for the year. I didn't look at the scale as per usual, and was ecstatic when I was told that I was the exact same as the last time! I expected to be up at least 1 or 2 pounds, because I'm definitely in the realm now where I could be gaining a pound per week. I can at least attribute one pound of weight gain to the baby now, who should be weighing in at just over a pound now. My belly was also measured for the first of what will be many times now to check the fundal height (uterus position). For anyone who doesn't know, they don't measure around your belly, rather the measurement is taken of the "mound" of belly that is now present, from about 4 inches below and above the belly button. I'm measuring right on track, and baby's heartbeat was perfect. My blood pressure has also been very good, so I'm happy about that too. I will go back on January 10 for the dreaded glucose test (which will hopefully not be as bad as I am imagining, especially since I found out that I do NOT have to fast for it) and my next check-up. Then beginning with the next appointment, I will be going every 2 weeks! Things are going to move quickly at that point..... yikes!
Thursday was spent decorating cookies, and Friday night we went to a very nice Embassy Christmas party, the same one we went to last year right before the trip to Arizona. Its pretty boring in that we never know anyone at these things, but in all honestly, we go for the food and drink. We enjoyed some yummy food and Chris enjoyed the free wine. We were happy that we weren't missing that event.
Yesterday our new washer and dryer were delivered to us to replace the ancient ones! I never imagined that I could be so excited to get a washer and dryer. As I said in an earlier post, our washer began going in and out of life this week, so our landlord bought new ones for us, and to our surprise, we found out that they could be delivered to us before the trip.... though it was not a smooth day. If only our landlord was capable of covering small details, yesterday would have been much easier. On Friday I got a call from the store that they would be delivered between 7 and 11 the next morning, but closer to 7 because our house was the first stop on the list. Prior to this, our landlord told us that the delivery guys would disconnect and move the old appliances for us. NOT TRUE. Due to insurance reasons, they are not allowed to do ANY disconnecting OR installing of appliances. It says so on the website, and I bet they told him that at the store, but of cosue he didn't listen. The dryer was no problem for Chris to unhook. The washer, however, was impossible. The hoses could NOT be removed with our tools and we were afraid they might be rusted on. And, as if getting up at 7 for no reason on a Saturday wasn't annoying enough (the guys didn't show up til after 8), here we sat with our new dryer in the hallway, and our new and old washers in the laundry room. I tried calling the landlord but he didn't call us back for a couple of hours. In situations like this, it is imperative that Chris talks to him, otherwise Pregzilla comes out (though to be fair, it was just a frustrating situation, and Chris was aggravated too). In the end, the landlord called his realtor, the realtor called "a guy", and "the guy" and his 12-year-old son came to fix everything. Before they got here yesterday evening though, the realtor called to say that "the guy" speaks very little English, and to call her if we need translation. FANTASTIC. It ended up not so bad because as it turned out, his son spoke perfect English. About an hour and a half later, we were all set, and very grateful for our nice front-loading machines.
After everything settled down yesterday, we did something that is my very, VERY favorite Christmas tradition - we watched It's a Wonderful Life. Cheesy maybe, but I watch this movie EVERY Christmas, and have for years. One of my favorite memories of my dad is sitting in the living room watching, and at the same time having him talk about how he never liked Jimmy Stewart and how he always "over-acted" ..... and yet, there we would be, watching the movie. It's very special to me, and its not Christmas unless I get to sit down and watch George Bailey's adventure in learning how precious life is. It always makes me smile and cry at the end when his brother Harry toasts to him and calls him the "richest man in town" and there's just something wonderful about it.
Today its a nasty day in Ottawa, though we're not horribly bothered by it since we're leaving tomorrow morning. As I write, ice rain is coming down, on top of the snow that fell this morning. Though, it could be worse - originally the forecast called for about 2 feet of snow today! As of last night, only about 2 inches were expected, so that's much better (and MUCH better than what the midwest has gotten hit with - yikes!). Later we will pack (which will be easy for me since I have a limited wardrobe right now), and I will bake cookies. Tomorrow morning we'll head out, drop off my baked goods at the Embassy, and head toward Syracuse, with a stop at the dentist's along the way. In Syracuse, we'll get Bailie to her dog-sitter, and then Tuesday we will be on our way! I'm ready to be in warm weather and wear my flip-flops. I'm praying for a smooth travel day. I think Bailie's ready, but it will be hard not to worry about her.
Not sure when I'll get the bump picture up, but I'll probably at least take one tomorrow. I can't believe I'm 23 weeks pregnant. In just one more week, at 24 weeks, we will have reached viability, which means that if our baby were to be born after that point, so early God forbid, s/he could survive outside the womb, which is pretty amazing. I think our baby's going to keep cooking til April though. I'm pretty sure s/he doesn't want to spend anymore time in the cold than we do.
See some of you soon!
Monday, December 6, 2010
22-Weeks and Bumpalicious!
I don't think there's any denying it.... every week, I think that I've "popped" more, only to see a picture and not think my belly has gotten significantly bigger. Could be the clothes, but Chris took this picture and when we looked at it.... hello bump!
Today was great - I tried on a dress from last year's Christmas that I can still pull off (made my day!), our washer died and then came back from the dead, but the owner's replacing it anyway (which is awesome because I'm pretty sure this washer and I might be the same age), everyone ATE UP my cookies today, and I got ANOTHER cookie order! And, we're having spaghetti for dinner, which sounds like the most amazing thing right now. Great day :-)
Sunday, December 5, 2010
22 Weeks!
22 weeks, feeling great, and here's the highlights:
Size of baby: papaya..... according to The Bump's Baby Tracker, baby is a papaya for the next 3 weeks.... I'm kinda getting over these fruit comparisons
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame!
Movement: still every day, with quite a mix of little taps and the occasional big flips and kicks. I get frustrated sometimes when I'm waiting for a big kick and I just get the tiny ones
Food cravings: really, really into grapes mixed with cottage cheese lately.... it's heaven
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing
Sleep: on average, very good, though its true what they say about having the STRANGEST dreams when you're pregnant.... I don't know where I come up with the stuff I tell Chris about in the mornings
Symptoms: a little extra tired this week, but I was definitely busier than I usually am, and the occasional sciatic pain
Best moment this week: there are 3 for this week: in third place, nearly selling out of all my goodies at the craft fair.... in second place, we picked out and ordered our nursery furniture yesterday...... but, by far the BEST moment was Chris feeling the baby move on Tuesday night!
What I am looking forward to: CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
It was definitely another great week.... On Tuesday, I only came home with 2 iced cookies, and 3 packages of scones, and to be fair, the cookies were broken, so I took them off the table, but my cakes and truffles were the biggest hits. I had one lady come and buy $19 worth of items, separated into 2 visits. That was pretty awesome! I also scored one more job before Christmas - tomorrow is the Embassy tree lighting, so yesterday I baked 4 dozen Christmas tree cookies and today I will ice them. Then next weekend, I'll be baking 6 dozen cookies for the kids to decorate at the family Christmas party hosted by the Ambassador. There was potential for a third job, but it didn't work out, but honestly, it's for the best because it would have turned into a lot of stress for me the day before and the day of leaving for our trip.
As I said, Chris finally got to feel our baby bumping around - I told him, see I'm not making it up! Usually when I lay down to go to bed, I wait to feel Baby give me some goodnight movement.... I hadn't been feeling anything, but I told Chris to put his hand on my belly just to see if the baby might react differently to Daddy hands than Mommy hands..... and all of a sudden it was the 4th of July in my belly! Baby gave some of the hardest kicks I had felt lately, and Chris felt almost all of them! It was very special. He's since felt the baby on another night too. I'm so glad he is able to experience that now. Baby movement is pretty amazing - I could lay down and feel the kid move all day and be happy.
Overall, I've still been feeling pretty great, though it seems I can rarely make it past 9 or 9:30 without falling asleep on the couch at night, and that's even if I take about a 90-minute nap each day! I was not even this tired when I was working out so much before the wedding, and I definitely did not take naps then. On Friday, I dropped Chris off at work, got to the Embassy to use the gym, parked the car, walked inside the door..... and walked back to the car. I was so tired! I went home and went back to bed for a while. I did make it to the gym later in the day, but only after I got some more rest. For now, I'm taking advantage of all the sleep I can get while its at my disposal... I wish I could "bank" sleep for later, because right now I can't imagine the exhaustion once the baby gets here. But, I figure that women have been doing this for years upon years, and surviving, which means I will too.
As I also said, we picked out our nursery furniture last night and ordered it! I had said that I wouldn't want to pick out something like that sight-unseen, but we did our research and feel pretty comfortable with what we're getting.... plus, it's from Kohl's, which means that it won't be too hard for us to return it in the event of a problem. And, we got a great deal - our 3-in-1 convertible crib, changing table, and dresser for under $200. Once we get back in January from Arizona, our furniture will be waiting for us, and we will likely have the glider that we ordered a week or so ago before we leave. This baby coming will really start to feel real when we start getting the room together. I feel better now that we have most of the major nursery items on the way. I know once January gets here, everything is going to come at us very quickly.
We have started working with Bailie to get her ready for the long trip to Arizona..... it has been so much harder on me than on her! We increase the amount of time she spends in her crate by about an hour each night, and last night was the 4-hour night. She has improved with each night, whining less and less, but those first 2 days were awful! She would just cry and look at us like, what did I do to deserve this???? And it would break my heart, and I would just want to let her out! Once she would settle down, I would be counting the minutes until her time was up! I just hate that she doesn't understand. How am I going to let our baby just cry it out when I know he/she needs to? Its a good thing that Chris and I are such a good team, because without him, I couldn't even get through crate training with the dog.
It's going to be a nice last week here before leaving. Tomorrow's the tree lighting, Wednesday we have one more check-up, and Friday we have a really nice Christmas party to go to. I'm just really excited for everything coming up. This time last year, I could only pray that we would be where we're at now within another year. Last year I was only meeting what would become the rest of my family, and now Chris and I are over halfway to our own family. And this time next year, our baby will be 8 months old by Christmas! It just goes to show you that prayer is for real, because I have gotten nearly everything I have prayed for regarding Chris and me, nearly down to the last detail.
I will take my bump picture tomorrow and post it sometime in the evening. Until then.... :)
Size of baby: papaya..... according to The Bump's Baby Tracker, baby is a papaya for the next 3 weeks.... I'm kinda getting over these fruit comparisons
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame!
Movement: still every day, with quite a mix of little taps and the occasional big flips and kicks. I get frustrated sometimes when I'm waiting for a big kick and I just get the tiny ones
Food cravings: really, really into grapes mixed with cottage cheese lately.... it's heaven
What I miss: still the same... this won't be changing
Sleep: on average, very good, though its true what they say about having the STRANGEST dreams when you're pregnant.... I don't know where I come up with the stuff I tell Chris about in the mornings
Symptoms: a little extra tired this week, but I was definitely busier than I usually am, and the occasional sciatic pain
Best moment this week: there are 3 for this week: in third place, nearly selling out of all my goodies at the craft fair.... in second place, we picked out and ordered our nursery furniture yesterday...... but, by far the BEST moment was Chris feeling the baby move on Tuesday night!
What I am looking forward to: CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS!!!!!!
It was definitely another great week.... On Tuesday, I only came home with 2 iced cookies, and 3 packages of scones, and to be fair, the cookies were broken, so I took them off the table, but my cakes and truffles were the biggest hits. I had one lady come and buy $19 worth of items, separated into 2 visits. That was pretty awesome! I also scored one more job before Christmas - tomorrow is the Embassy tree lighting, so yesterday I baked 4 dozen Christmas tree cookies and today I will ice them. Then next weekend, I'll be baking 6 dozen cookies for the kids to decorate at the family Christmas party hosted by the Ambassador. There was potential for a third job, but it didn't work out, but honestly, it's for the best because it would have turned into a lot of stress for me the day before and the day of leaving for our trip.
As I said, Chris finally got to feel our baby bumping around - I told him, see I'm not making it up! Usually when I lay down to go to bed, I wait to feel Baby give me some goodnight movement.... I hadn't been feeling anything, but I told Chris to put his hand on my belly just to see if the baby might react differently to Daddy hands than Mommy hands..... and all of a sudden it was the 4th of July in my belly! Baby gave some of the hardest kicks I had felt lately, and Chris felt almost all of them! It was very special. He's since felt the baby on another night too. I'm so glad he is able to experience that now. Baby movement is pretty amazing - I could lay down and feel the kid move all day and be happy.
Overall, I've still been feeling pretty great, though it seems I can rarely make it past 9 or 9:30 without falling asleep on the couch at night, and that's even if I take about a 90-minute nap each day! I was not even this tired when I was working out so much before the wedding, and I definitely did not take naps then. On Friday, I dropped Chris off at work, got to the Embassy to use the gym, parked the car, walked inside the door..... and walked back to the car. I was so tired! I went home and went back to bed for a while. I did make it to the gym later in the day, but only after I got some more rest. For now, I'm taking advantage of all the sleep I can get while its at my disposal... I wish I could "bank" sleep for later, because right now I can't imagine the exhaustion once the baby gets here. But, I figure that women have been doing this for years upon years, and surviving, which means I will too.
As I also said, we picked out our nursery furniture last night and ordered it! I had said that I wouldn't want to pick out something like that sight-unseen, but we did our research and feel pretty comfortable with what we're getting.... plus, it's from Kohl's, which means that it won't be too hard for us to return it in the event of a problem. And, we got a great deal - our 3-in-1 convertible crib, changing table, and dresser for under $200. Once we get back in January from Arizona, our furniture will be waiting for us, and we will likely have the glider that we ordered a week or so ago before we leave. This baby coming will really start to feel real when we start getting the room together. I feel better now that we have most of the major nursery items on the way. I know once January gets here, everything is going to come at us very quickly.
We have started working with Bailie to get her ready for the long trip to Arizona..... it has been so much harder on me than on her! We increase the amount of time she spends in her crate by about an hour each night, and last night was the 4-hour night. She has improved with each night, whining less and less, but those first 2 days were awful! She would just cry and look at us like, what did I do to deserve this???? And it would break my heart, and I would just want to let her out! Once she would settle down, I would be counting the minutes until her time was up! I just hate that she doesn't understand. How am I going to let our baby just cry it out when I know he/she needs to? Its a good thing that Chris and I are such a good team, because without him, I couldn't even get through crate training with the dog.
It's going to be a nice last week here before leaving. Tomorrow's the tree lighting, Wednesday we have one more check-up, and Friday we have a really nice Christmas party to go to. I'm just really excited for everything coming up. This time last year, I could only pray that we would be where we're at now within another year. Last year I was only meeting what would become the rest of my family, and now Chris and I are over halfway to our own family. And this time next year, our baby will be 8 months old by Christmas! It just goes to show you that prayer is for real, because I have gotten nearly everything I have prayed for regarding Chris and me, nearly down to the last detail.
I will take my bump picture tomorrow and post it sometime in the evening. Until then.... :)
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
21 Week Bump......
There ya have it.... and just in case I might forget, Baby was moving pretty much ALL day, including as I'm putting this post up right now.... but its a nice feeling :-)
21 Weeks!
Since I am a couple of days late with the weekly check-in, it's actually 21 weeks and 2 days today, but OH MY GOODNESS 21 WEEKS! From now on, we're on the downhill stretch.
Size of baby: banana..... by length anyway. This means Baby is around 8ish inches long or so. No wonder I feel movement all over my belly now!
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame!
Movement: still every day, including as I am typing this right this minute! Still nothing strong enough for Chris to feel, but there is nothing that makes me happier right now than feeling this little guy or gal move around and bump the heck out of my belly. I love that I can easily tell what is Baby and what's not.
Food cravings: nothing major, but I want pickles WITH everything..... be prepared to be grossed out.... the other night I told Chris I REALLY wanted a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with bacon and pickles.... I didn't actually eat it, but I might today because my gosh it sounds delicious.... hey, the baby wants what it wants!
What I miss: other than the usual things, nothing much lately
Sleep: still pretty good
Symptoms: my back has been borderline killing me the last few days, but I don't think its pregnancy-related.... more like thanks to the 2ish days I've lived in the kitchen and been on my feet
Best moment this week: yesterday at the craft fair, one of the ladies who hadn't seen me in a while said, "ooh, you're belly is starting to get bigger!" While yes, I am sensitive to the whole weight gain, when it comes to belly, that's fine. I love people noticing. Also, at our appointment last week, I found out I've only gain 2 pounds since the appointment a month before that. 2 POUNDS! I was ecstatic! The nurse said that she would have never known we had been on a cruise. I can handle that.
What I am looking forward to: CHRISTMAS!!!!!! I could not be more excited!!!!!
Its only Tuesday and already I feel like it should be Thursday, but its been a good start to the week. I spent most of the weekend getting goodies ready for the craft fair. I made petit fours, which I must say turned out beautifully, pumpkin scones, assorted truffles, iced sugar cookies, and homemade hot chocolate. My best-selling items yesterday were the cakes and the truffles. I just finished the cookies last night, so we'll see how those go, but only one person bought hot chocolate, which was kind of disappointing, but as Chris and I agreed, neither of us would really want a heavy drink like that at lunchtime, so maybe the timing just isn't good. Overall, I do think that I sold more items than any of the other 6 or so ladies who were there, and I am happy with everything so far. I knew going into this that we weren't going to make any kind of huge profit; it was really just to test the waters. Hopefully today goes well too. Even if it doesn't, it has still been a fun "holiday" thing to do. And really, I am glad to have a break from the kitchen. My back can't take anymore, so I probably won't be doing any kitchen time other than dinners until Christmas.
To update, our appointment last week went great. My OB is currently on maternity leave, but will be back in January, and the midwife who is filling in was really nice. She told us that the report from the anatomy scan was great - everything came back in the normal range, which is of course what anyone would want to hear. She also found our baby's heartbeat immediately, and it was much louder and stronger sounding this time. When it popped up, there was no mistaking - that's a heartbeat! The only thing that I have to be checked for later on is the position of the placenta. The scan report said that it is "borderline low-lying" which, from what I've read, is VERY common early on, and usually it corrects itself by the time you get re-checked (around 34 weeks is what I read). The bottom line is that the midwife told me it is not something to be worried about, so I'm not. It sounds like in the very worst case scenarios, it means you end up having a c-section, but again, not worrying about it right now.
I'm so excited for Christmas!! Every year I get really excited, but this year it's even more meaningful for us. Its the last major trip for us as just the 2 of us as a couple. Even if Baby arrives late, s/he will still be 8 months old by Christmas - 8 MONTHS! I love everything about Christmas, and especially the Christmas story. I tear up in happiness so many times when I see it or hear it. It really is the greatest story in history, and it is even more amazing to me now that I am pregnant. There is NO way that I could see ONE person's life, let alone an entire world, being worth more than my child's life, and I haven't even met the kid yet. It's just not happening. So the fact that God could send a little baby is even more amazing to me this year. I think it makes me see parental love already in a completely new light, and I love it.
Well, that's it for now. I will try to have a bump picture to post later. For now, here are the 3 pictures from the anatomy, now in good scanned-in quality, and also some other pictures from the cruise:
Size of baby: banana..... by length anyway. This means Baby is around 8ish inches long or so. No wonder I feel movement all over my belly now!
Maternity clothes: all the time, and with no shame!
Movement: still every day, including as I am typing this right this minute! Still nothing strong enough for Chris to feel, but there is nothing that makes me happier right now than feeling this little guy or gal move around and bump the heck out of my belly. I love that I can easily tell what is Baby and what's not.
Food cravings: nothing major, but I want pickles WITH everything..... be prepared to be grossed out.... the other night I told Chris I REALLY wanted a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with bacon and pickles.... I didn't actually eat it, but I might today because my gosh it sounds delicious.... hey, the baby wants what it wants!
What I miss: other than the usual things, nothing much lately
Sleep: still pretty good
Symptoms: my back has been borderline killing me the last few days, but I don't think its pregnancy-related.... more like thanks to the 2ish days I've lived in the kitchen and been on my feet
Best moment this week: yesterday at the craft fair, one of the ladies who hadn't seen me in a while said, "ooh, you're belly is starting to get bigger!" While yes, I am sensitive to the whole weight gain, when it comes to belly, that's fine. I love people noticing. Also, at our appointment last week, I found out I've only gain 2 pounds since the appointment a month before that. 2 POUNDS! I was ecstatic! The nurse said that she would have never known we had been on a cruise. I can handle that.
What I am looking forward to: CHRISTMAS!!!!!! I could not be more excited!!!!!
Its only Tuesday and already I feel like it should be Thursday, but its been a good start to the week. I spent most of the weekend getting goodies ready for the craft fair. I made petit fours, which I must say turned out beautifully, pumpkin scones, assorted truffles, iced sugar cookies, and homemade hot chocolate. My best-selling items yesterday were the cakes and the truffles. I just finished the cookies last night, so we'll see how those go, but only one person bought hot chocolate, which was kind of disappointing, but as Chris and I agreed, neither of us would really want a heavy drink like that at lunchtime, so maybe the timing just isn't good. Overall, I do think that I sold more items than any of the other 6 or so ladies who were there, and I am happy with everything so far. I knew going into this that we weren't going to make any kind of huge profit; it was really just to test the waters. Hopefully today goes well too. Even if it doesn't, it has still been a fun "holiday" thing to do. And really, I am glad to have a break from the kitchen. My back can't take anymore, so I probably won't be doing any kitchen time other than dinners until Christmas.
To update, our appointment last week went great. My OB is currently on maternity leave, but will be back in January, and the midwife who is filling in was really nice. She told us that the report from the anatomy scan was great - everything came back in the normal range, which is of course what anyone would want to hear. She also found our baby's heartbeat immediately, and it was much louder and stronger sounding this time. When it popped up, there was no mistaking - that's a heartbeat! The only thing that I have to be checked for later on is the position of the placenta. The scan report said that it is "borderline low-lying" which, from what I've read, is VERY common early on, and usually it corrects itself by the time you get re-checked (around 34 weeks is what I read). The bottom line is that the midwife told me it is not something to be worried about, so I'm not. It sounds like in the very worst case scenarios, it means you end up having a c-section, but again, not worrying about it right now.
I'm so excited for Christmas!! Every year I get really excited, but this year it's even more meaningful for us. Its the last major trip for us as just the 2 of us as a couple. Even if Baby arrives late, s/he will still be 8 months old by Christmas - 8 MONTHS! I love everything about Christmas, and especially the Christmas story. I tear up in happiness so many times when I see it or hear it. It really is the greatest story in history, and it is even more amazing to me now that I am pregnant. There is NO way that I could see ONE person's life, let alone an entire world, being worth more than my child's life, and I haven't even met the kid yet. It's just not happening. So the fact that God could send a little baby is even more amazing to me this year. I think it makes me see parental love already in a completely new light, and I love it.
Well, that's it for now. I will try to have a bump picture to post later. For now, here are the 3 pictures from the anatomy, now in good scanned-in quality, and also some other pictures from the cruise:
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| profile |
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| sweet little hands |
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| ...and Skeletor! |
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| love this picture of us |
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| first formal night |
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| great family pic |
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| second formal night |
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Back from the best vacation ever - pictures and bumps and updates, oh my!
Everyone returned home safe and sound at different times Monday night. Chris and I made it back to Ottawa a little before 11:30pm, and the rest of the family got back to Arizona sometime late evening as well. Its been about 2 weeks since the last post, but it was a very busy 2 weeks. Today as I'm writing this I am 20 weeks and 3 days pregnant, so we'll start with the 20 week highlights, and then I'll have up lots of cruise and bump pictures....
Size of baby: cantaloupe..... that just sounds HUGE to me
Maternity clothes: just got my shipment in from Motherhood, and now I have a fair amount of shirts that are long enough to cover the band on my jeans, so comfy
Movement: every day! It's the most awesome thing ever. The entire cruise, Baby was moving SO much. Its incredibly distinct now, especially after I eat pretty much anything, or am around loud music (like on the cruise) Baby just starts popping away.
Food cravings: GRAPES! I canNOT get enough of red seedless grapes. I could just eat tons of them right now
What I miss: I finally really missed alcohol when we were on the cruise. It would have been nice to sip a pina colada, or enjoy the free champagne on those certain cruise nights, though it is a small sacrifice to go without, so oh well...... still really miss my old body, including being able to walk up more than 2 flights of stairs without getting winded like a morbidly obese person. Weight is still the hardest. I wish there was someone who could understand that. Everyday I remind myself that I will only get bigger, but that doesn't make it easier. I was so faithful to the gym on the cruise, but still the scale goes up. Unfortunately, crying about it doesn't help either.
Sleep: I cannot believe how well I slept on the cruise, but I have been sleeping GREAT
Symptoms: other than a growing belly, nothing to complain about
Best moment this week: lets call it best moment of the last 2 weeks, and that was when one of the cruise crew said to me when we played shuffleboard, "you're 5 months pregnant, but you are so small!"
What I am looking forward to: the craft fair next week, where I am very hopeful to sell lots of my delicious goodies, and then Christmas!
The cruise really was the best vacation I have ever been on. Aside from being in Canada, my only time out of the US was about 6 years ago when I went to Cancun, but that was nothing compared to this trip. I have never felt so spoiled or pampered in my life, and I loved every minute of it.
Since I was pretty limited in extra things I could do when it came to getting off the ship, Chris told me to do whatever I wanted at the ship's spa, and let me tell you, BEST massage of my life! I got one on our first evening, as we were setting sail. From traveling and just sitting all day, my back was in a world of stiffness and pain. I checked with the staff to make sure they were trained in prenatal massage, and the girl I talked to said, "oh yeah, those Philipino women will know exactly what to do" ..... and oh she did! I had no back pain the rest of the cruise, save for a smidge of sciatica on one of the last few nights. It was sooooo great. I would have gone back 1 or 2 more times had it not been so expensive. I also got to have a pedicure, which I haven't enjoyed since the day of the wedding. That was also quite nice.
Our first stop was in Labadee, Haiti, and it was just really beautiful. There was a roller coaster there that everyone (except me of course) got to take many turns riding. Here's a few pictures of that:
And here's Jeff and Chris on the beach in Labadee with their very oddly shaped beer bottles:
After our stop in Haiti, we spent a day at sea, which was great.... just laying around in the sun by the ship's pool, listening to music.... ahhh..... That night was the first formal night on the cruise. It was fun getting super snazzed up, although being pregnant and wearing nylons when you have to go to the bathroom constantly is really annoying! Here is a picture of Chris and me from that night:
Our next stop was in Cartagena, Columbia, and it was pouring for most of the time we were in port. Chris and I made it just off the shop and a very short walk away before realizing that this was no fun. We were only there until about 1 that day, so we went back to the ship and just relaxed with some coffee, which was still very nice. The next place we went to was Colon, Panama, which was okay. Cindy and I found some great knockoff designer bags. I felt really nervous at first when we went off the ship because the girl doing my pedicure had told me the night before that her manager told her that if she went off the ship to make sure she didn't go alone. That did not sound good to me. But, the 5 of us hooked up with another couple who was trying to negotiate a cab, but the driver was trying to charge them a lot, so we invited them just to walk with us, and it was great. We found a huge shopping area (where we got our purses) that is guarded and does not allow locals in, so we were very safe in there. We did find something very different in Panama's clothing stores..... have you ever seen a mannequin like this in the US? ....
Not even at Victoria's Secret..... those were some busty mannequins! Here's another picture from Panama:
After Panama, we were in Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. Jeff went zip-lining, which I would have loved, and Jim and Cindy were supposed to go horseback riding, but it got cancelled. But, here are some pictures from our time there:
We spent a while walking around in Costa Rica. I tried going for round 2 of that after lunch with everyone, but I couldn't make it very long. The heat/humidity, combined with Baby sitting precisely on my bladder that day was not making for an enjoyable afternoon, so Chris and I went back to the ship where we took a much needed LONG nap.
The next day was a day at sea and the second formal night. Here's a picture of Chris and me from that night:
Our last stop was probably the prettiest - Grand Cayman. We went to Seven Mile Beach which was unbelievably beautiful.... and yeah, you can literally see the belly in some of these!
Finally it was our last day at sea, which also was the 20-week mark for our pregnancy. WE ARE HALF WAY THERE!!!! Its very exciting, and even more terrifying for Chris and me! But here are the 20-week bump photos..... it is definitely here to stay!
And here are some random pictures:
It was a great trip. I'm very happy to report that I did not get motion sickness, which I never have, but I wasn't sure if being pregnant would affect that in some way. It was fun to have people notice my belly. I had one guy ask me if I was smuggling a bowling ball, which I thought was pretty funny, and I got one belly pat from a stranger, but nothing very intrusive. When I got brave enough to wear my 2-piece bathing suit, I don't know if I still looked more belly or just fat, but after seeing some of the women who had no shame in wearing a bikini despite not exactly being in the best of shape, I decided that comfort was more important.
Each time we went to a show, Baby started popping away like crazy, especially if there was loud music. One night was dedicated to the 70s, the 70s Disco Inferno. The next morning when I was laying in bed, Baby gave me probably the hardest movements I have felt so far - still had some disco fever left I guess! Still nothing is really strong enough for Chris to feel, but soon it will be. He thought he might have picked up one thump one night, but maybe not.
Today we are off to another doctor's appointment (should just be a monthly check-up), and then we get Bailie back this evening. I have really missed her. Next week is the Craft Bazaar at the Embassy, which will hopefully be lucrative for me, then the next week we have another doctor's appointment, then we leave the following week for Arizona! And oh yeah, Thanksgiving's tomorrow! I'm excited to make our turkey and pumpkin pie again this year. And after Christmas vacation, the countdown to Baby is really on! It's going to be a whirlwind, but we're ready...... I think :-)
Size of baby: cantaloupe..... that just sounds HUGE to me
Maternity clothes: just got my shipment in from Motherhood, and now I have a fair amount of shirts that are long enough to cover the band on my jeans, so comfy
Movement: every day! It's the most awesome thing ever. The entire cruise, Baby was moving SO much. Its incredibly distinct now, especially after I eat pretty much anything, or am around loud music (like on the cruise) Baby just starts popping away.
Food cravings: GRAPES! I canNOT get enough of red seedless grapes. I could just eat tons of them right now
What I miss: I finally really missed alcohol when we were on the cruise. It would have been nice to sip a pina colada, or enjoy the free champagne on those certain cruise nights, though it is a small sacrifice to go without, so oh well...... still really miss my old body, including being able to walk up more than 2 flights of stairs without getting winded like a morbidly obese person. Weight is still the hardest. I wish there was someone who could understand that. Everyday I remind myself that I will only get bigger, but that doesn't make it easier. I was so faithful to the gym on the cruise, but still the scale goes up. Unfortunately, crying about it doesn't help either.
Sleep: I cannot believe how well I slept on the cruise, but I have been sleeping GREAT
Symptoms: other than a growing belly, nothing to complain about
Best moment this week: lets call it best moment of the last 2 weeks, and that was when one of the cruise crew said to me when we played shuffleboard, "you're 5 months pregnant, but you are so small!"
What I am looking forward to: the craft fair next week, where I am very hopeful to sell lots of my delicious goodies, and then Christmas!
The cruise really was the best vacation I have ever been on. Aside from being in Canada, my only time out of the US was about 6 years ago when I went to Cancun, but that was nothing compared to this trip. I have never felt so spoiled or pampered in my life, and I loved every minute of it.
Since I was pretty limited in extra things I could do when it came to getting off the ship, Chris told me to do whatever I wanted at the ship's spa, and let me tell you, BEST massage of my life! I got one on our first evening, as we were setting sail. From traveling and just sitting all day, my back was in a world of stiffness and pain. I checked with the staff to make sure they were trained in prenatal massage, and the girl I talked to said, "oh yeah, those Philipino women will know exactly what to do" ..... and oh she did! I had no back pain the rest of the cruise, save for a smidge of sciatica on one of the last few nights. It was sooooo great. I would have gone back 1 or 2 more times had it not been so expensive. I also got to have a pedicure, which I haven't enjoyed since the day of the wedding. That was also quite nice.
Our first stop was in Labadee, Haiti, and it was just really beautiful. There was a roller coaster there that everyone (except me of course) got to take many turns riding. Here's a few pictures of that:
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| Jeff & Chris |
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| Jeff & Cindy |
After our stop in Haiti, we spent a day at sea, which was great.... just laying around in the sun by the ship's pool, listening to music.... ahhh..... That night was the first formal night on the cruise. It was fun getting super snazzed up, although being pregnant and wearing nylons when you have to go to the bathroom constantly is really annoying! Here is a picture of Chris and me from that night:
Our next stop was in Cartagena, Columbia, and it was pouring for most of the time we were in port. Chris and I made it just off the shop and a very short walk away before realizing that this was no fun. We were only there until about 1 that day, so we went back to the ship and just relaxed with some coffee, which was still very nice. The next place we went to was Colon, Panama, which was okay. Cindy and I found some great knockoff designer bags. I felt really nervous at first when we went off the ship because the girl doing my pedicure had told me the night before that her manager told her that if she went off the ship to make sure she didn't go alone. That did not sound good to me. But, the 5 of us hooked up with another couple who was trying to negotiate a cab, but the driver was trying to charge them a lot, so we invited them just to walk with us, and it was great. We found a huge shopping area (where we got our purses) that is guarded and does not allow locals in, so we were very safe in there. We did find something very different in Panama's clothing stores..... have you ever seen a mannequin like this in the US? ....
Not even at Victoria's Secret..... those were some busty mannequins! Here's another picture from Panama:
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| Jeff, Chris, & Jim enjoying their Panamanian beer |
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| 19 Weeks! |
We spent a while walking around in Costa Rica. I tried going for round 2 of that after lunch with everyone, but I couldn't make it very long. The heat/humidity, combined with Baby sitting precisely on my bladder that day was not making for an enjoyable afternoon, so Chris and I went back to the ship where we took a much needed LONG nap.
The next day was a day at sea and the second formal night. Here's a picture of Chris and me from that night:
Our last stop was probably the prettiest - Grand Cayman. We went to Seven Mile Beach which was unbelievably beautiful.... and yeah, you can literally see the belly in some of these!
 |
| Chris with his baby rock, Jeff with the Daddy rock, and Cindy with no rock |
Finally it was our last day at sea, which also was the 20-week mark for our pregnancy. WE ARE HALF WAY THERE!!!! Its very exciting, and even more terrifying for Chris and me! But here are the 20-week bump photos..... it is definitely here to stay!
And here are some random pictures:
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| Me & Jeff |
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| One of our awesome servers, Georgiana, & Jeff |
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| Jeff being silly |
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| Chris and one of his many glasses of wine and champagne (he had to drink my share so it didn't go to waste) |
Each time we went to a show, Baby started popping away like crazy, especially if there was loud music. One night was dedicated to the 70s, the 70s Disco Inferno. The next morning when I was laying in bed, Baby gave me probably the hardest movements I have felt so far - still had some disco fever left I guess! Still nothing is really strong enough for Chris to feel, but soon it will be. He thought he might have picked up one thump one night, but maybe not.
Today we are off to another doctor's appointment (should just be a monthly check-up), and then we get Bailie back this evening. I have really missed her. Next week is the Craft Bazaar at the Embassy, which will hopefully be lucrative for me, then the next week we have another doctor's appointment, then we leave the following week for Arizona! And oh yeah, Thanksgiving's tomorrow! I'm excited to make our turkey and pumpkin pie again this year. And after Christmas vacation, the countdown to Baby is really on! It's going to be a whirlwind, but we're ready...... I think :-)
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