31 Weeks!

Not the best picture, but it was the only one we got on Christmas day!

How far along?  31 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain/loss: +23lbs...darn those Christmas cookies! haha but really things seem to be on track and my OB is happy with where we're at so far....

Maternity clothes? All the time!  Now I'm also trying to focus on nursing clothing and taking that into account when/if I purchase any clothing.

Sleep: Seems to be okay...getting tired and taking some weekend or evening naps here and there.  I've gotten a few leg cramps in the middle of the night which is not fun.  I'm having a little more back/hip pain as this bump gets bigger and bigger so sometimes it's difficult to figure out a way to lay that is comfortable.

Best baby moment this week:  Several!  Jake and I went to childbirth class on Saturday and learned lots about preparing for the exciting, yet dreaded, childbirth.  I have to admit that it pretty much scares the mess out of me.  But, I'm now feeling super informed and finding some confidence in myself and the choices that Jake and I will make for bringing our daughter into this world.  We had a great instructor and both really liked the class.  

 

On our way home from class, we bought little one's crib mattress!  Selecting one seems overwhelming and impossible to do with all of the choices available, but I did some research and we settled on the Lullaby Earth Stage 2 crib mattress from Buy Buy Baby [thank you 20% off BBB coupon!].  It's a huge matter of personal preference, but the important aspects came down to organic materials, firmness/support, and it's waterproof so it will be easy to clean and hold up well.

 

Also all the love and Christmas gifts for Ryleigh :)  She's already one lucky little girl.  She got some outfits and pj's, bedtime prayer board book, squeeze/teethe blocks, and two handmade quilts!  I had to hold myself together when I opened up the beautiful quilt from my friend Shanti, which she also had embroidered with Ryleigh's name and it has the softest minky fabric back.  That will keep her warm next winter for sure! 

Have you told family and friends: Yes

Miss Anything?  Being able to sit down and get up quickly...being able to get dressed quickly...being able to do anything quickly...haha

Movement: lots, especially around meal times or after 7:30pm.  Night owl!

Food cravings: Still pasta, chocolate milk, and juice!  Trying out some out-of-the-ordinary flavors but not necessarily weird--like Hawaiian pizza.   

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really

Have you started to show yet: Oh yes :)  belly bump is measuring right on track at 32cm/32 weeks [I've been measuring 4 days ahead for a while now]

Gender: GIRL!  

Labor Signs: No, hopefully not until sometime in February!

Belly Button in or out?  In, but getting pretty shallow. 

Wedding rings on or off? On, but some days it's a little snug.

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy/tired.  I do get emotional over sad/sweet things.  

Looking forward to: More nursery progress, and celebrating on New Year's Eve--closing out one pretty great year and looking forward to 2014 because I know it will be even better!  Also our maternity pictures and baby shower coming up in a few weeks!

 

 

 

If it's not One Thing, It's Another.

I think someone is trying to make it very clear to me that this little baby is going to be head of household come February.  I am so not in control.  It's a very weird feeling after being healthy, athletic, and so in tune with my body for so many years to be experiencing pregnancy where you don't know your body anymore.  How is it going to react to this?  What will happen from that?  Why do I feel pain here?  Why does it hurt when I lay like that?   Catch my drift?

Don't get me wrong, while I've had some different things going on [Hydronephrosis, sciatic nerve pain, failed the 1hr glucose test] I feel that I've been relatively healthy and I love being pregnant.  Feeling her kicks and movements, especially as she grows, is like nothing else in this world.

Well, to elaborate on what I've updated on facebook lately...I took my 1hr glucose test and failed.  My doctor wants you to have levels under 140 and I was at 157 from the 50 g(?) sugar drink.  I went back about a week later for the 3hr glucose test which brought back nightmares of my hypoglycemia test in high school.  They drew my blood beforehand, I drank the 100 g(?) sugar drink--or should I just say orange syrup, it was horrible!!--and then they drew blood every hour for the next three hours.  I'd like to thank the tech who found my difficult veins every time and didn't have to re-stick me any of those times! A rarity for me when getting blood drawn, maybe because of my low blood pressure?  Who knows.  Well, it's really almost funny with the results for that test. Before the drink, my glucose level was at 66, at 1hr it was 139, 2hr was 119, and 3hr was 98.  How I could consume twice as much sugar and have lower levels is beyond me.  Again, just showing that a pregnant body has a mind of its own!  Either way, I'm just happy that this means no gestational diabetes! Yay!

So the day after being happy about that, I get a call from my urologist [the doc I've been seeing to follow my Hydronephrosis].  I had a follow up renal ultrasound to check on my dilated kidneys last week and while the scans came back good--no change, which means although I'm still dilated I do not need to get stints put in--they found bacteria in my urine.  They found this before, about 6 weeks ago, however now the levels were higher and they were concerned enough that they wanted it treated with an antibiotic.  So, after reviewing everything with my ob, they informed me that I tested positive for Group B Strep which is a bacteria that lives in the body and many people have it but may never know.  It doesn't cause any problems, sort of a "good" bacteria in a way, however the concern comes in because it can be passed to the baby during childbirth and the baby's immune system isn't built up yet so she could get sick.  Even though I'm taking the medicine now, they will give me antibiotics during labor as a precaution to protect the baby. 

So there you have it.  If it's not one thing, it's another, but I am loving this experience and getting closer to having our little one here to hold!

 

Decking the Halls

Or should I say Decking the Kitchen....because after 2 years our kitchen is officially fully remodeled.  Maybe we were just taking our time, maybe we I was a little picky, maybe it just wasn't a top priority...but let's take a look back at this remodel that started back in the Fall of 2011...

Remember that our kitchen originally looked like this?

Oak laminate cabinets and laminate countertops

Old flooring

No Peninsula dividing the kitchen & living room spaces

and the slowly but surely all of this happened...

New wood cabinets

Granite Countertops, new sink and faucet



New lighting over the peninsula



New Patio Door

Did a little painting...

And, the final piece, the backsplash...

Here's the final product!

 

It's been a labor of love, and we love the results!  Of course, we owe many, many thanks to my Dad and Mom for volunteering their free labor to help get these tasks done!

 

29 Weeks!

Whoa hello 3rd trimester!  I can't believe we are already a week in, and that I'm going to be 30 weeks next week! That number just makes me feel like I'm sooo far along! 

Had my Glucose test this morning for my 28/29 week appointment.  I guess it wasn't quite as horrible as I had built it up to be, but it was still pretty nasty.  I took the first sip of my drink [I had the red one] and thought "well, maybe this won't be so bad" because it tasted like really strong Hawaiian Punch.  However, by the time I got to the bottom of that bottle I was questioning if I'd be able to hold it down for an hour!  I was told to put it in the refrigerator so that it tasted better, but I think that made it thicken a little.  Yuck--makes me gag just thinking about it again.

Everything else at the appointment seemed good! Measuring on track, baby's strong heartbeat at 143 bpm, and got my T-dap [whooping cough] vaccine.  Also found out yesterday at my follow-up renal ultrasound--for checking my kidneys/Hydronephrosis--that baby girl is head-down.  Of course, it's early and she could still move, but that's a good sign for being on track for a "normal" delivery.

Me & hubs before my company Christmas dinner last weekend :)

How far along? 29 weeks!

Total weight gain/loss: +20lbs...little bit of a jump in the past month! Let's blame it on Thanksgiving....

Maternity clothes? All the time!  With a couple pre-prego shirts and sweaters mixed in, although those options are starting to dwindle because they won't fully cover my belly. [And let's be honest--some of Jake's sweatpants and shirts for comfy lounge clothes and pajamas!]

Sleep: This past week, pretty terrible.  I think it's a combination of being extra tired from the weather, a growing baby, Jake's crazy work schedule last week, the dogs being unsettled because of the weird work schedule, lots of things to do.....I guess I've probably over-done it a bit.  I just can't seem to get comfortable, my kidneys have been acting up again [but still not as painful as 6 weeks ago-thankfully!], I've had more back pain from my ever-growing belly.....the list goes on.  I'm just glad that although I toss and turn all night long, the sleep I do get is pretty darn good--like when you've only been asleep for 45 minutes, wake up/toss & turn, and feel like it's been 5 hours--so I'm not walking around like a zombie all day. 

Best baby moment this week:  Feeling her STRONG kicks.  Some so hard that they move my whole body.  Jake was talking to my belly the other night, and she kicked so hard my belly hit him in the face! haha...Also, had a great time Black Friday shopping!  I found some great deals on things like picture frames and a bookcase for her nursery :)

Have you told family and friends: Yes

Miss Anything?  Being able to sit down and get up quickly...being able to sleep on my back or my stomach...putting on socks or underwear without difficulty...

Movement: tons

Food cravings: Still pasta.  Always TONS of milk, chocolate milk, and juice!  Ice cream/milkshakes--not necessarily a craving but it's the only thing that seems to help my terrible indigestion/acid reflux or whatever it is. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: The drink for my glucose test made me super queasy.  I think the worst part was having to have an empty stomach.

Have you started to show yet: Oh yes :)

Gender: GIRL!  

Labor Signs: No, and better not for a while!

Belly Button in or out?  In, but getting a little shallow. 

Wedding rings on or off? On, but some days it's a little snug.

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy/tired.  I do get emotional over sad/sweet things.  My lack of sleep has made me a little moody/irritable this past week though.

Looking forward to: Childbirth class, Christmas, and getting the crib set up!