Our Nursery

It's been a long road to get here, but I think the nursery is almost complete. I love it! I think it is an absolute reflection of our love for sweet baby Grace.

Here is what the room look liked when we started:

(I'm actually not sure what the office chair is doing in there--it wasn't really normally in there, but whatever).

I loved the room. A pretty standard guest bedroom. It was already painted that color when we moved in, and we liked it well enough. We've never really spent a lot of time in this room--it's just nice to have when people come to visit.

I always knew that this was the room that we would turn into a nursery when we were lucky enough to have a baby. I love the bay window. I love the natural light. It's a nice, big room which will be great for baby as they get older.

When we started looking at decorating the room, it was pretty overwhelming. There were so many choices to make, even for the simplest things. If you choose this furniture, what color finish should you get? Do we have to have a theme for the room? We have found that one of the most useful tools is a book called Baby Bargains. It's written by a married couple who aren't sponsored by any particular brand or company, it's just meant to help inform new parents. The book is great- they give you an idea of when it is a good idea to spend a little bit more on something, because it will be worth your money, and when you will be fine with something on the low end.

After we had made lots of purchases and decided on our colors (a pale petal pink and a light gray) we decided it was time to paint. It only took us painting the room three times to get it right. Only had to paint the ceiling white once, though! 

Trying out paint colors.

Bless his heart, Corey insists that I can't help with it because of the fumes so he ends up doing all of the work. We initially picked a color gray that was way to dark and had too much blue in it. Poor Corey and my dad painted the whole room that color and I walked in and said "It's blue". Paint often dries a different color than it looks when it's going on.

In the background here is the "blue" color--paint attempt #1

Next, we went to the initial color I had gravitated towards--Stonington Gray from Benjamin Moore. Corey painted the room again completely in that, and I decided it still looked too blue.

Poor Corey. But he didn't give up. He decided to go back to ACE Hardware (he's made good friends with most of the people working there now) and asked them to adjust the gloss on the paint to be a step less glossy. That did the trick! Corey and my dad painted the room again and it really did look much better (meaning gray!).

The final step was painting the closets, door and windowsill white (they were cream) to match the ceiling and make the gray of the walls look less blue. It really made a difference.

Once the painting was done, everything else could move forward. Luckily, we had already purchased most of the items that we needed to put the room together--it was finally time to do it!

When I got home last night, thanks to the handiwork of my wonderful husband Corey and my amazing brother-in-law Cam, our baby's room looked like a real nursery! The painting is done (save a few touch ups), the chandelier is installed (and beautiful!) and her furniture is in!

Corey had put a few of the other cute items we've picked up along the way around to decorate. So sweet!

The first thing we decided on was the furniture. I'm so glad we went with the furniture we did. It is really beautiful and will grow with our baby. The crib converts into a toddler and full-size bed. The changing table is also a great dresser.

Last night, Corey and I hung out in our pajamas and put together the crib. It was such a fun experience and didn't take us near as long as I expected! Thanks to my wonderful in-laws, Denny and Chris, for buying Baby Grace her crib!

I'm not really into any of the theme-y stuff for nurseries. I like subtle touches of elephants and bunnies (our two favorite animals) but I'm not crazy about having elephants all over everything.

We found beautiful bedding that we love at Restoration Hardware for Baby & Child. We got it on a great sale. The crib skirt is from Pottery Barn Kids (and needs to be ironed!)

I love the way Grace's nursery has come together. I think it it so beautiful and I can't wait to bring her home to it!

Some of the finishing touches that we are waiting/working on: We are going to get some wood blinds and petal pink drapes (from Restoration Hardare) for her windows -- I love the natural light, but we want to make sure she will be able to sleep in there during the day. We are also waiting for the glider to come in--I really think that will be such an awesome addition to the room! That should come in mid to late January.

In the meantime, I'm so grateful to have such a wonderful husband and wonderful family who have helped us with this project along the way. I truly love the room and I know Gracie will, too!
Love,
Elizabeth

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

I love Christmas and I feel so grateful to be able to celebrate it with my wonderful family, my cuddly cats, my amazing husband, and our beautiful baby safe in my tummy.

I'm so blessed to have a beautiful home with the prettiest decorations outside. I love the way Christmas lights shine in the nighttime-something that is difficult to capture in a picture.

My favorite thing right now is to sit in our living room, preferably with some hot cocoa and enjoy some good snuggle time with my wonderful husband and kitties. It's so cozy with the Christmas tree lights twinkling and stockings I love (that my husband got me for my birthday!) hung by the fireside with care.

Did you notice that there are 5 stockings there? One for Corey, one for me, a cute elf-like stocking for each of the cats, and one for our baby girl with her name on it.

Grace

She already has the most gifts in her stocking (although the kittens both have lots of goodies as well).

Strut loves Christmas. He also loves wrapping paper.

I love my life and I love everyone in it.

I'm looking forward to next year, when sweet baby Grace is here to experience the blessings of Christmas and see all of the beauty of life with her own eyes. 

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone be found boasting. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:8-10

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

"And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger'" Luke 2:9-12

27 weeks (and 1 day)

I decided to wait to post anything until I went to my appointment today since I would have more news to share.

Total Weight Loss/Gain: As of today's weigh in, I'm up 12 pounds. My doctor gave me permission to eat some extra cookies. I think I can do that!

Size of Baby: At 27 weeks, baby is the size of a head of cauliflower, weighing in at almost 2 pounds. (Length: about 14 1/2 inches.)

Maternity Clothes: Yes. I did wear regular jeans this weekend, which was kind of awesome, but I like wearing maternity clothes. The negative side is that I feel like I wear the same thing all the time. Oh, well.

Sleep: I have a lot of aches and pains in my hips, but overall, it's not bad.

Movement: Tons of movement. And now, baby gets the hiccups at least once a day. Poor baby! It feels really weird on this end, too.

Cravings/Aversions: Cravings: I don't feel like I've had any specific cravings lately. I'm enjoying some seasonal hot chocolate. I'm looking forward to Christmas cookies and Christmas ham. Yummy!

Aversions: None that I can think of.

What I miss: Feeling well-rested.

Gender: Baby Girl :)

Mood: All in all, pretty good.

Milestones: Some consider the 27th week to be the beginning of the third trimester, but I'm a believer that 28 weeks marks the real beginning of the real third trimester. So I guess, none to speak of.

But I did take my glucose test, which tests for gestational diabetes today--won't get the results until later. I also got my rogam shot, which has something to do with my blood being O Negative and Corey's being A Positive and RH negative--I don't know. Can you tell I work with medical jargon all day? Me neither!

Also, from now on, our appointments are going to be closer together. We have another appointment 3 weeks from now (at 30 weeks), and then we go to one appointment every two weeks (at 32, 34, and 36 weeks) and then, I will go to an appointment every week. Eventually, towards the end, she has people come in every other day.

It's just amazing to me how quickly everything is flying by!

Medical concerns: None that I know of. I talked with Dr. O about all of the symptoms I have and asked her lots of questions. It always makes me feel better to talk with her and I feel like everything is going great so far!

Symptoms: Heartburn. Hip and pelvic pain.

Anything else you would like to share/vent about: Our appointment went really, really, well today. I love our doctor. We asked her about whether or not we will be seeing other doctors in the practice and she said that they don't do that for several reasons, but most imporantly because she will do everything she can to be there for our delivery. If she can't be, she went on and on about how wonderful the other doctors are and how they have all even worked on each other (i.e., one of the doctors in the practice performed surgery on her, another doctor in the practice delivered one of the other doctor's babies, etc). I feel confident about the care we are getting there.
She said that my blood pressure looked great, my fundal height (the measurement from the pelvic bone to the top of the uterus) is 27 centimeters, which is exactly where the want it to be at 27 weeks (1 cm=1 week). Baby's heartbeat was 160 bpm.
She also told us that if I measured small or large on a given week, they would do an ultrasound. Otherwise, they would probably come up with a reason to do another ultrasound at 36 weeks.
One thing I'm nervous about that makes me want to do a 3/4D ultrasound a little bit sooner? One of the girls on my bump message board, who had her anatomy scan at 20 weeks and was told she was having a girl, went in for her 3D ultrasound this week and they told her it was a boy. Now I had them confirm the girl at 25 weeks at another location, but that was with the 2D ultrasound. I think this is a good enough reason to get an elective ultrasound at one of those 3D places.
Switching topics, I'm getting really, really excited about the nursery. Lot's of work has been done over the last week (in fact, right now Corey and Cam are working on things there) and it is really coming together. I can't wait to see how things look when I get home!

Also, we have a real guestroom--with a bed and furniture set up. We have clean carpets in all the bedrooms. I'm a happy girl. I definitely have to do some organizing--having everything consolidated to the other rooms that weren't being worked on did not work well for me. But I will have time to work on that.

We've made some really fun purchases, too! My mom and I went to a really nice second-hand store where I got  a couple of really cute picture frames for the nursery. Corey and I picked out and beautiful (and really affordable) lighting fixture which I managed to get for 20% off. It's a little bit ridiculous, but it's a little girls room and I think it will bring some class. We also got the mattress for our baby girl's bed. I love buying these things for her and picturing her surrounded by all of her things in her room. It won't be long, now!

What I look forward to: Tomorrow is my last day of work before my Christmas vacation. I'm so excited to have 11 days off and just relax a little bit.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Elizabeth

Lessons Learned

Yesterday, I turned 27. I've been ready for it. But that number sounds so adult. I know logically that I'm an adult. I'm married--have been for years. I've also been a home-owner and a responsible employed person for several years. I don't know why I still feel so young. But I honestly feel about 17 on most days. Maybe baby will change that, and if so, I can't think of a better reason to grow up. But I hope that I will still hold onto at least some of things that make me feel so young at heart and pass them down to our little nugget.  

 Here are some of the lessons that I've learned along the way that I can't wait to share with our baby girl.

1) Dance. Always, always dance like nobody is watching. Your life will absolutely be better if you dance around the kitchen while putting up the dishes and do some boogying in the car while you are stuck in traffic.

2) Take joy in rituals. Whether it be family traditions, story time at night, or writing in a journal, it is a special treat to create a routine and make something a priority if it means a lot to you.

3) Never be afraid to take a chance and put yourself out there. Even if it doesn't end up how you'd like, you'll be much more likely to regret not trying something than trying something and knowing it didn't work out.

4) Be silly and laugh as much as possible throughout the day.

5) Make it a point to travel as much as possible. Even if you don't have a lot of money or time, take a quick trip a couple of hours away and you will feel better.

Don't be afraid of a long road trip--it's an American Tradition and you will learn as much about yourself as the land along the way.

It is a wonderful thing to fly on an airplane -- don't let anyone convince you otherwise. Airports are amazing places to people watch and buy lots of ridiculous things and good (bad for you) food. And, once you get on the plane, you might get scared, but you shouldn't be--there is nothing cooler than seeing a new and exciting place from above as the plane descends.

6) Throw yourself into the holidays. I've always loved Christmas the most, but you may prefer Halloween or Easter of St Patrick's Day. It doesn't matter, just let yourself get into it. It is so much fun to plan and anticipate an upcoming event, and there is nothing better for that than a holiday.

7) It doesn't matter what your favorite holiday is, I've always felt a sense of wonder and excitement when I see houses decorated for Christmas and I hope you do, too. I hope you will love driving or walking around with me and your dad and seeing all of the beautiful lights on the dark night, the creative ways people try to make you smile and laugh, and the awesome nativities.

8) Learn how to be alone. This is a very difficult lesson for a lot of people to learn. But the reason it is important is you don't want to be one of those people who has to be entertained or considered entertaining at all times. Folks in that category are the most boring people in the world.

In general, if you are someone who can handle spending time on their own or even likes solitude, you will be happier in a multitude of situations. You will not have to call someone on your cell phone every time you are alone in a waiting room or an airport. You can enjoy long car rides without constant entertainment. You most likely will not drive people crazy by asking them their opinions on everything, because you will have your own, well-formed opinions on things and won't care as much about others' opinions on it.

Someone who spends quality time on their own knows their own likes and dislikes well enough to not waste a lot of time doing things or being around people they don't like. They have a good, heartfelt answer about their feelings on a topic because they have spent enough time alone to examine it. All in all, it's a good thing.

9) It's also good to know how to be yourself and be your best around people. Social graces are important, but they shouldn't be used to make other people feel bad, they should be used to make people comfortable. Hold the door open for the next person to walk through. Thank others when they do the same for you. If you are seated on a bus or a train and see someone less able or older than you standing, get up and offer them their seat. If a man offers you his seat, thank him and take it. If someone pays you a compliment, thank them- don't immediately discount what they complimented you on. It's also good to compliment others whenever you get the chance.

 Respecting the opinions of others and knowing when to express your own and when it's best left under your hat is a good thing. Of course you should feel free to express your opinion amongst close friends and family, but don't let that get in the way of you hearing what other people have to say. When you are in the company of folks you don't know that well or aren't that close to, it's a good idea to stay away from some of the hot button issues; namely, politics, religion, and money. You'll save yourself a lot of headaches and be a lot happier if you avoid adding your two cents if these topics come up.

10) Animals are the most loving creatures and way better than the majority of people. I'm sure our pets will love you and you will love them and I hope you will learn the value of having a pet. It is such a pure loving relationship and they will keep you silly and happy.

11) Write thank you notes. This may seem like an old fart thing, but I've done it my whole life (admittedly, before I was 12, it was because my mom made me) and over the years I realized that it is something that can make you really happy--it is a good thing to express gratitude and it will keep you from taking people (and their gifts) for granted.

12) You will learn from all of the opportunities you are given if you go in with an open heart and open mind.

The most important thing we can do as parents is raise our baby girl to feel loved and happy--she has already brought so much happiness to our world and she hasn't even been born yet!

I'm lucky enough to have great family and friends who have made me feel so loved and happy everyday, and most definitely on my birthday. Thanks everyone!

Elizabeth

26 weeks!

Total Weight Loss/Gain: I think at this point I'm up about 11 pounds.
Size of Baby: A quick internet search found that at 26 weeks, most babies are as tall as an English hothouse cucumber and weighs about 1 2/3 pounds. (Length: 14 inches, head to heel.)
Maternity Clothes: Are the most comfortable. I've been taking a lot longer to get ready the last few days because most of the sweaters I own (in regular sizes) are too small. Luckily I have a loving husband who is honest with me and won't let me leave the house in something too small. Our sweet friends Lindsey & Troy bought me a very pretty maternity blouse for my birthday which I'm sporting today and loving!
Sleep: Is getting worse. I've been having some pretty vivid, terrible dreams and I usually wake up feeling achy. I think that comes with the territory, though.
Movement:  Is frequent. At times it can be distracting. I love it so much, though!
Cravings/Aversions: Cravings: My mom made me a delicious chocolate pie w/ merengue for my birthday celebration this weekend. It was amazing and I'm still enjoying the rest of it.  
Aversions: I'm really grossed out by anything too soggy. Consistency of food has always been big for me, but now, something even a tiny bit too soggy is grossing me out.
What I miss: Having better control of my emotions. I'm all over the place these days.
Gender: Baby Girl :)
Mood: I'm not going to lie. I'm a hot mess some days. I'm doing the best I can, though.
Milestones: Today, the very last day of my 26th year, is the beginning of my 26th week of pregnancy. I think that's pretty cool! Also, on Monday, we hit the double-digits on our countdown to the due date--as of today, we are officially 98 days away from our due date! It's hard to believe it's moving so fast, now!
Medical concerns: None that I know of.
Symptoms: Heartburn and round ligament pain.
Anything else you would like to share/vent about: We are still perfecting the paint in the nursery, but we're getting there. I'm feeling very lucky to have such a patient sweet husband.
What I look forward to: Several things -- my birthday tomorrow.
My appointment with Dr. O next week (yes, that's right, I'm the weirdo who likes going to the doctor). 
My 11 day Christmas Vacation. I need at least 3 of those days to involve doing absolutely nothing.
And I'm looking forward to entering the new year--the year in which our daughter will be born. So exciting.

25 weeks!

Total Weight Loss/Gain: I believe I've officically gained about 10 pounds. Possibly 10.5.
Size of Baby: Our little baby eggplant. She is anywhere from 13.6 to 14.8 inches in length and 1.5 to 2.2 lbs. So exciting!

Maternity Clothes: Are getting used all of the time now except bedtime. And now I'm starting to wish I had some pregnancy sweatpants. And more warm maternity clothes-but I don't want to spend a bunch on clothes I'm going to wear for such a short time - it very rarely gets cold here, and if experience has taught me anything--with close to 27 years as a central Texan under my belt--I can predict it will probably be back in the 60s or the 70s (or even 80s) by the end of December.

Sleep: Is pretty good. Every once in a while I will have a night where I just can't sleep. And I'm getting more uncomfortable at night.

Movement: I think she has been moving her whole body around in there, not just her limbs. Occasionally I will get this feeling that the bottom of my stomach is dropping out and then this creepy feeling of something sliding around in my stomach and I think she is repositioning herself. Also, as we speak, it feels like she is punching me in the gut. She is such a sweet girl lol.

Cravings/Aversions: Cravings: I have been craving queso a lot. And chicken and dumplings (which I'm going to make tomorrow night in case you were wondering :)

Aversions: I feel like I'm eating everything in sight. So, no aversions right now.

What I miss: Being able to get up off my couch or any other seat I sink into without extra effort. I have a feeling this is only going to get worse lol.

Gender: A sweet baby girl!
Moods: Pretty good. I'm trying to enjoy life and all of the little steps along the way. Trying not to get so upset by small stuff. I succeed about 80% of the time, but occasionally I get annoyed by silly little things and I feel like I have a shorter temper.

Milestones: 25 weeks! Only 15 to go! Holy moly! I have gotten a few smiles from people out and about over the last few days while I've been Christmas shopping, and I'm pretty sure they realize I'm pregnant. On the other hand, I was sitting right in front of someone today who didn't realize I was pregnant. Go figure.

Medical concerns: Feeling blessed to be feeling great!

Anything else you'd like to share or vent about? I'm feeling pretty good about getting so many things done. We've accomplished a lot over the last couple of weeks, but I'm feeling like this is going to be how things are from now on - there are just so many things to do before our baby girl gets here. So I'm trying to get used to being busy all of the time when all I want to do is come home and lay around in front of the fire. I now do that for about 30 minutes and then try and knock out a few things on my to do list.

What I look forward to: I'm really looking forward to having the baby. After our hospital tour I'm not feeling so much anxiety at the thought of labor and delivery. I also feel like I've been seeing so many cute babies out and about lately. I just can't wait to have our little girl out and spend time with her. Of course, this is a very special time, and I'm trying to enjoy this and be patient. And of course I don't want her to come early, but I'm looking forward to her arrival in March!
Here is a picture taken in front of our Christmas Tree at 25 weeks, 2 days!

Have a great week!

Elizabeth

The Hospital Tour

Over the course of the past week, Corey and I have gotten a lot done. We've decided on a paint color and got opinions on it (thanks Mere and Cam!). We signed up for a birthing class (we will be going to it in January). We registered at Babies 'R Us, which I found fairly intimidating at the outset, but it went pretty well. I am, however, taking suggestions on infant carseats since I'm not in love with the one we picked out but I can't find any others that I like more. For the record, I'm fine with the safety ratings on the seat, I just don't think there are very many seats out there that are cute. And I know that sounds silly, but that's me.

And my favorite thing that we've done so far? The hospital tour.

This past Saturday, Corey and I braved the cold and rainy weather and went to the hospital where we will be having our baby girl. They have free scheduled tours for couples having babies three times a week. I grew up about 3 minutes away from this hospital, and I've been there (to visit sick friends) a few times over the years, but somehow, I had no idea where we were supposed to park to be near the women's center. We ended up parking at the complete wrong end of the hospital. Luckily within a minute of us walking in, we crossed the path of a very nice helpful man who worked there. When we told him what we were there for, he got a big grin and took us on a little mini-tour thru the back way to the women's center. Then he told us that he would let the tour guide know that we were waiting.

There was another couple there with their toddler and a third couple arrived shortly after us. Soon, a sweet nurse showed up with rubber duckies and sippy cups for every baby (they had the hospital's logo on them).

The nurse's name is Sherry, and she has been a nurse for over 40 years, 8 of which have been at the hospital we are delivering at. She was so knowledgeable and laid back and within a minute of meeting her, I felt so relieved that we would be delivering there. Everyone we came across had that same nice, easy-going attitude. They are all very focused on doing what is best for their patients, both mama and baby.

Some cool stuff that I didn't know/hadn't realized about our hospital:

1) Unless you end up having a c-section, you will go through labor and deliver all in the same room. I'm pretty sure this is how it happens most places. I just hadn't really thought about it. The beds are configured to come apart when you are ready to push and get that baby out. They have stirrups and leg grips on the bed.

2) After you deliver, baby will stay in the room with us for the next 2 hours while I get cleaned up, she gets cleaned up and weighed and measured and all that jazz. Sherry said that they make it a point to give you that time with baby on your chest as soon as you deliver and the cord is cut. She said that all the L&D nurses are trained to be able to help with breastfeeding in that first hour because that is very important.

3) For postpartum, they have lactation specialists on staff that do nothing but help with breastfeeding. They will schedule appointments with you and help you as much or as little as you like with the process.

4) You get to order whatever you want to eat from the cafeteria menu after you get to Postpartum. They also have a hospitality suite where they have lots of yummy drinks and juices and snacks--since you aren't able to eat at all during labor and delivery, I'm sure these things will come in handy.

5) They really want you to stay for the full time allotted-48 hours post-delivery for vaginal delivery, 4-6 days for c-section delivery. I had heard horror stories about people being pushed out of the hospital from a lot of people, but that is not the case here.

6) They let you keep the baby in your room as much or as little as you like. Most people keep their babies in the room with them the majority of the time. I can't imagine wanting to part with her much, but they do say it's good to have them take the babies every once in a while so you can get some really good sleep.

7) This particular hospital is big on epidurals. They are not going to guilt me if I want one. I'm pretty open to doing whatever I need to, but I feel like I will decide once I get there. It's nice to know I won't be judged by the medical staff if I decide to go for it.

8) They have fewer patients now than they did a couple of years ago. A lot of hospitals have opened in the area, so it's freed up a lot of room for them. This is good in a lot of ways-I won't be fighting to get a good room, me and my baby will be getting lots of attention, etc. And this is one of the best hospitals to deliver at in the area, as it is a level 3 (meaning they can handle a lot of complicated issues if need be).

All in all, I feel very confident and comfortable delivering at that hospital. It's within 15 minutes of our house, and I feel like I will be well taken care of by nurses and doctors that care about their patients. We are lucky ducks!

Random thoughts...

Today I have a lot of random thoughts and things to share, most of which are unrelated to each other. Hopefully this will be an interesting, somewhat entertaining post instead of confusing.

1) The other day I ran a few errands after work and stopped to get food on my way home. I went out to the (dark) parking lot and pressed the button to unlock my car, heard the beeping noise it always makes, opened the door and got into my car. Except it wasn't my car. It was an entirely different silver Camry parked right next to mine, except this one looked like it had been detailed recently and they had a moon roof (jealous!). I started freaking out--what if these people think I'm trying to steal their car? I got out of the car and ran over to mine and got into it, hopefully before anyone saw me. Too weird. I guess this means I also need to look for the flash of my lights whenever I unlock my car to make sure I'm getting into my car.

2) I cannot think of anything more annoying than the sound of ACDC -- except maybe Manheim Steamroller Christmas Carols. They grate my nerves. It's probably my least favorite part of the holidays--I'm not kidding.

3) I'm ridiculously paranoid that people just think I'm fat, and don't realize I'm pregnant.

4) I'm helping with interviewing people at my office this week, and I really think I want to work in Human Resources. I like the idea of helping people understand their benefits and helping with the hiring process, etc. I think that might be a good field for me to look into in the future.

5) Speaking of work, I'm so excited by the fact that I will be off for 11 days in a row at Christmas. I cannot wait! I look forward to doing really super-Christmasy things and baking, watching movies, sitting by the fire, etc. It will be a restful, fun time of year and probably the last time for awhile in my life that I will have a real chance to sleep in, as long as I'm not too uncomfortable while I'm sleeping. I plan to take full advantage of that as long as my body cooperates.

6) Switching topics - Corey exchanged the paint again for what we think is the right color this time and painted most of one whole wall.

7) People keep asking me what I want for my birthday, which is coming up. I have a hard time coming up with things. Because I want is for people to do stuff for me or help me with stuff. Is that terrible? Like coming over to my house and telling me what you think of the paint color in the nursery. Or help with getting rid of our old couch, which is now on the side of our house in our backyard, and is worrying me. I want it out. I don't want some family of vermin to move in on it and build a little home in what used to be our man room couch. All I want for my birthday is a house not in disarray. And preferably decorated for Christmas. I need people's time and elbow grease but it is hard to ask for at such a busy time. Unfortunately, we have also been so busy lately that we are having a hard time getting everything done and a lot of the heavy lifting falls on Corey. There is only so much I can expect him to handle. I feel like a bad wife.

8) I haven't really talked about it on the blog, in part because I was a little bit nervous about it, but my OB asked me to go see a perinatologist to check on the baby's heart and make sure everything look okay. The baby has some risk factors for heart issues, and she just wanted to ensure that everything was fine. They can do a fetal echocardiogram and she said that if they found anything, most times nowadays they could do something to fix it in-utero. Which is amazing to me.

9) Anyway, I went to my appointment today by myself, not realizing that by fetal echo, they would also be doing a regular ultrasound as part of it. Everything looked great with baby's heart--Yay!--and they said that she did in fact look like a she (which is good, because if not, I have a lot of dresses and pink things to return) and I got a great chance to see our baby girl again. First I saw the ultrasound tech, who was really nice and reassuring and printed out a picture of our baby's profile because she said that she was "really cute". She kept saying how everything about the heart looked normal, which was such a relief. Then the doctor came in, who was this sweet, quiet older man, and he agreed that everything looked normal, no need for me to return, the heart looks "excellent" and he said I had "a nice looking baby". I feel very grateful that she is very healthy! I wish Corey could have been with me to see her, I think he would have enjoyed the appointment as much as I did :(

10) So a few funny things related to my appointment this morning. Baby girl had all of her limbs up by her head. At one point, the ultrasound tech was laughing because she was able to get an image with both feet and hands in the picture. She likes to put her hands up next to her face and kick her legs up. There was one time that they were looking at her profile and you could just see this perfect image of her leg extended in a high kick, toe pointing above her head. Could she be a possible future Rockette? Or a soccer player? Or a gymnast? Do we have karate in our future? I'm in full support of anything she wants to do, but she seems to like kicking.

11) They said she is 1 lb 6 ounces, the placenta is posterior and they baby is breech. It is fairly common for baby to be breech at this point, I'm not concerned about it--they usually move around and get in position over the next 15 weeks or so.

12) Other interesting observations: in the waiting room, I saw a 14 year old girl who was 7 months pregnant. She was there with her entire extended family and her little punk/gangster boyfriend. I also saw his underwear because his butt was hanging out of his jeans. Lovely. Anyway, they all seemed thrilled that she was having a baby and I heard her mom going on and on about being a grandma. Of course I think it's good that they aren't abandoning her because she's pregnant, but I was somewhat surprised by the whole scene. I can't help but feel bad for the baby. I need to work on being more empathetic towards the pregnant girl.

13) Also, after filling out my paperwork in the waiting room, I got up to hand in my clipboard and some weird pregnant lady saw me get up and stole the chair that I'd been sitting in. I gave her my evil pregnant lady look when I went to return my seat and found that it had been taken. Why take a chair that you already saw me sitting in?

14) I also parked in the doctor parking area. Oops. Luckily, I wasn't towed. But I guess how do they know I'm not a doctor?

15) This will be my last embarassing story for the day, I promise. During the ultrasound, I had to pull down my panel of my maternity pants and when I got up to leave I half-hazardly pulled my shirt down and forgot to pull up my panel. When I got to work today I walked in, sat down at my desk, and about an hour later I realized that my panel was still down and my shirt was halfway tucked into it. Oh, well. Hopefully not too many people saw me.

If you made it to the end of all of those random thoughts, you are awesome. And you are probably wondering if I need my head examined.

Thanks for reading!

24 weeks down, 16 to go!

Total Weight Loss/Gain: When I went to the doctor on Wednesday last week, it said I was up 8.5 pounds! I was wearing my Converse, which are pretty heavy, but I'm still pretty amazed at how quickly things are moving along. And that was before stuffing my face at Thanksgiving. According to my scale this morning, I'm up 7.5 pounds, but that is without the Converse. I'm guessing I've gained at least a pound since last Wednesday. I'm actually pretty on track with what they recommend gaining, but all bets are off once Christmas Cookies enter the equation!
Size of Baby: She is apparently the size of an ear of corn. I'm not sure I understand these food comparisons, but that's what they tell me.
Maternity Clothes: Yes. I actually have to dress like a professional 4 out of 5 days this week, so my mom and I braved the crowds this weekend and she helped me pick out a couple of very cute pairs of dress pants at Motherhood Maternity. It's nice--I wore some nice pants a couple of weeks ago with my belly band and I felt very uncomfortable. This is better.
Sleep: Is great right now. She does like to move around a lot right before I go to sleep, which always puts me in a good mood. Not as many crazy dreams.
Movement: Is good. I have a hard time distinguishing what people can feel from the outside and what I can feel on the inside. Everytime baby kicks, I try to get somebody to feel it (if I'm at home or amongst family) and then they feel...nothing. I think our baby is playing possum once someone else comes around!
Cravings/Aversions: Cravings: A lot of my cravings were satiated over Thanksgiving. I got to have yummy turkey, dressing, scalloped potatoes, rolls, etc. My mom also had a Thanksgiving Eve dinner which seemed centered around meeting my cravings for things like hot dogs and onion dip. It was a very food-filled holiday, and I loved it!Also, I'm loving Blue Bell Ice Cream right now. I don't know why, but every year, I get hungry for Ice Cream when it's cold outside. I'm a weirdo. I'm on the search for the Blue Bell Tiramisu flavor which I've heard rumors of. Does this really exist? If so, can someone please get it for me for my birthday? Thanks!
Aversions: I'm dealing with more and more heartburn, so I'm trying to avoid foods that aggravate it over the last couple of days. Although, yesterday, I stopped at the store to get some necessities (toilet paper, milk, potato chips and ice cream) and came across one of my favorite things..a loaf of warm french bread. I bought it, thinking we could use it for dinner that night and I ate about 1/3 of the loaf on the way home (I'm all about honesty on this blog). That bread, which is about the least acidic thing I can think of, caused me heartburn most of the night. Really?
Anyway, I'm sticking with light and bland for the next few days in the hopes that I will get the heartburn under control.
What I miss: Feeling comfortable. I have a hard time getting comfortable when I'm just hanging around these days. I can only imagine how I'm going to be feeling 10 weeks down the road.Gender: A sweet baby girl!
Moods: I've been dealing with some anxiety un-related to the pregnancy. I cried my eyes out on Thanksgiving about something not very important. I'm feeling very protective of Corey and our baby girl. Most of the time I'm in a great mood, but when it turns, I can be difficult to deal with. I'm not sure that all of that can be blamed on pregnancy or just the insensitivity of other people and the mega-sensitivity of moi.
Milestones: We've now hit 24 weeks, which is considered viability by most doctors. That means if, God forbid, baby came tomorrow, she has a decent chance of living. I'm happy for her to stay in for quite a while longer so that she can come out fully cooked!
Medical concerns: None to speak of. I'm a little nervous about the Glucose test, which will be done at my next Dr's appt on 12/21. I'm not too worried about the drink that everyone complains about, as I've had to drink my fair share on contrast over the years with multiple CT scans, so I doubt it can be worse than that crap and I know it's not as much volume. I'm just worried about the results. Everything has been so perfect so far with this pregnancy, I feel kind of spoiled and I keep waiting for some kind of complication. Knock on wood, hopefully it won't ever come. If I have gestational diabetes, I have it, and it's better to know and deal with it. I have no reason to think that I will, though.Anything else you'd like to share or vent about? More information from my doctor's appointment- Dr. O said that they have found that babies born after 41 weeks have a higher risk of being stillborn, so they would be encouraging me to induce if I go over 40 weeks by the time I reach 41 weeks. She said the latest they would want me to have this baby would be March 27th. This makes me happy, although I don't like the idea of having to be induced and I'm hoping it will come naturally. But whatever happens, happens, and I'm going to go with whatever is best with my baby. I 100% trust my doctor and what she recommends.
I have to share a really cute story-last night, I asked Corey to read to Lil Buns. He picked out the Poky Little Puppy, one of the books he bought for her, and read it with his hand on my bump. She loved it! She kicked and kicked! We were both laughing at her response. I think storytime is going to become a nightly routine. Our little girl is so lucky to have such a great Daddy!
What I look forward to: I'm getting really excited about the baby's room. We found the perfect glider chair and ottoman this weekend for 20% off. My wonderful parents are giving us the chair as a Christmas gift. I'm thrilled! It is so beautiful and it will be custom made for the nursery! We got to sit in the model we are getting and see the fabric that we want on another chair. The fabric is gorgeous and durable and the chair is so super comfortable, which will be nice during those all night parties with our baby girl! It will be ready in about 6-8 weeks. I'm pinching myself - I feel so lucky that we get to have that beautiful chair!
We think we have found the perfect color for the walls in the nursery, but the paint that we ended up with does not look the same on the wall as the sample did, so we are going back to ACE hardware again to get that fixed--they must have just mixed it wrong. It will be repainted before too long, but I've asked Corey to make sure and paint half a wall, then let me see it. I'm crossing my fingers this will work.
Here is a not so great picture taken of me last night in our currently blue-gray nursery. Bump is growing!

Have a great week!

Elizabeth

23 weeks

I totally missed blogging last week! Somehow, the blog fell through the cracks--it was pretty busy at work and in life but somehow I don't have much to report--here is my picture from last week, though! In general, I need to start updating more often with interesting things--I'm afraid this blog has gotten a little bit boring, to say the least. I'm hoping I will find some time this weekend to blog about our trip to Fredericksburg or the millions of articles of clothing this child already has or perhaps the great saga that has been our journey through decorating the nursery.
Total Weight Loss/Gain: According to my scale at home, I'm up 6 or 7 pounds total. I'm interested to see what the scale says when I go to the doctor tomorrow.

Size of Baby: Baby girl is now the size of a large mango according to the interwebs. The average baby is a little over 1 lb at this point! Pretty amazing!

Maternity Clothes: I haven't attempted to put on my regular jeans in over a week. They might still fit, but I'm pretty sure they would be rather uncomfortable to wear throughout the whole day. I do wear lots of my regular pajama/sweat pants at home. Does that count? Oh, okay...probably not. On shirts, I can definitely go either way, but I usually prefer maternity tops because I think they make it more clear that there is a baby in there and not just a few too many big lunches in a row.

Sleep: Is much better. Part of my inability to get anything done for the last few weeks is that I felt so terrible. Allergies were hitting me pretty hard for about 2 1/2 weeks there, but (knock on wood) both Corey and I have felt better for about 3 or 4 days now, so I'm hoping the worst of that is over for the timebeing. So I've been able to sleep pretty soundly, minus a few interruptions for trips to the bathroom over the last few days. It's wonderful!

Movement: Is so lovely. A little distracting at times, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. She definitely has a pattern of when she moves - usually early in the morning for about 30 minutes (usually between 6 and 8--talk about a great wake up call!), then again in the afternoon at work for about 20-30 minutes. Yesterday it made it a little bit difficult to finish up a call when she was doing the salsa on my organs, but like I said, I love it. She also likes to move a lot in the hours from 6-7 and at night when I'm going to bed. I don't see a direct connection to my eating patterns or anything, I think that is just when she isn't sleeping. Corey feels it more and more from the outside, and it's pretty cute to see his face!

Cravings/Aversions: Cravings: Powdered sugar is still the loveliest thing ever according to my pregnant stomach. I'm hungry for a lot of other very unhealthy things, and I'm looking forward to dressing and the pies that come with Thanksgiving which is now just two days away!

Aversions: I can think of any right now. Food is my friend.
Symptoms: I've had some pretty bad round ligament pain over the last week. I'm not surprised, as I feel like my stomach is expanding rapidly. I'm also experiencing some nasty heartburn, which is putting a damper on my love of eating. Tums help, though!

What I miss: I'm trying to think of the best way to word this, but I'm not sure I know how. I've always been pretty emotional. I'm a little annoyed that people are now blaming my pregnancy hormones for my getting annoyed/mad at them when they do insensitive things. Newsflash --don't be rude or do stupid things and I won't get annoyed with you.

Exception to this rule - Corey and my immediate family. Sometimes I get upset with them over stupid stuff that isn't there fault. This is mainly referring to some really annoying people that I work with that have always been pains to deal with for everyone else in the work place.

Gender: Baby Girl Granstrand

Anything else you'd like to share or vent about? Corey and my Dad got the guest room and the nursery painted over the last week. I love the color in the guest room! It turned out a beautiful pale blue. The nursery, which was supposed to be a beautiful shade of light gray? Turned out to be a beautiful different shade of light blue. I feel a little bit guilty, but some more work is needed it to get it looking right. Corey is going to see if adding another coat in one area makes a difference, and if so, they will just add another coat. Otherwise, we will go back to the store and see what we need to buy to get it looking gray. We just want it to look perfect when Baby Girl gets here!

We got the furniture for the nursery and it looks beautiful! Uncle Cam was awesome and helped Corey with picking it up at the store and carrying the heavy boxes into the garage where they are going to stay for now. Once we get the paint color figured out and on the walls, the other furniture in the nursery moved into the guest room, and the carpet cleaned in all of our bedrooms, we will move the furniture inside and get the crib put together. I'm looking forward to that!
We also got the bedding for her, and it is beautiful! It includes some personalized pieces, and I just can't wait to see how everything looks once it's put together!
I find myself worrying that I will never find the right paint color, that I will pick the wrong glider and it will look bad in our nursery, etc. I'm second guessing myself on those things, but I'm glad I like all of the big things we have purchased so far. Paint is a pretty easy fix (even though I feel bad because I'm not allowed to help with fixing it).

What I look forward to: I'm looking forward to my appt w/ Dr. O tomorrow. My mom is coming with me! I'm also looking forward to getting off of work tomorrow at Noon and then plan to enjoy Thanksgiving with my family and all of the wonderful food!

I'm hoping to get some shopping done this weekend. We've got a good start on Christmas shopping, but still have a lot more to do. I really hope to get all of my shopping done by December 5, so I can really just enjoy the Christmas season and not feel the need to run around like a chicken with my head cut off right before Christmas.

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Elizabeth