Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Holy Squash!!


Today marks the beginning of WEEK 32. Comparing this week to the last - it definitely went much quicker (probably because we had more to look forward to...).

Each week I've enjoyed looking at the fruit/vegetable comparison and rarely have I looked at the "your baby" picture. Today my eye went straight for the image. It's unbelievable to think THIS is curled up inside my belly. It's becoming so "real" as we inch closer and closer to her arrival!


Because very little has changed since last week - I've decided to share where I fall on this list:


As for the Braxton Hicks - I have felt them, but I'm not sure they're getting any more "intense". A few weeks back I feel like I felt them more often than I do now, but I also think that's because they were a strange feeling I hadn't felt. Now that I have, I've become "used" to them.

I'm sure no one wants to hear about my tatas - but I have to say, The Girls have just turned darker all over. I feel incredibly funny looking!

Shortness of breath happens when I'm up moving around, but only at a faster pace. I have no problem walking the aisles of Babies R Us for the millionth time. But, if I'm rushing up the stairs at work to beat the UPS guy - then, yes - I lose my breath quicker than I used to.

One of the strangest times I lost my breath - or just feel weak in general - is when I'm laying in bed and have to flip over or get up. The flat position is not one that's friendly with pregnant women - at least I'm not a fan! I've started to prop myself up more during the night (mostly because it helps me stay cool and on my side), which has made the several-a-night potty trips easier to manage.

Haven't had the heartburn - thank the Good Lord!

The "Enlarged breasts that may leak!" is laughable to me. I have had a problem with the leaks since about Week 20 - why TheBump is just now mentioning this is crazy! (Big thanks to Amanda for saving the night with part of her shower gift!)

Speaking of shower gifts...this past Sunday, Dana (with the help of her mom and Amanda!) threw Gwen and I an amazing shower here for our friends and family here in Greenwood. It was fantastic getting "showered" all over again - not to mention walking home with much-need (and much-liked!) items.

Dana outdid herself with the decorations and food (which, might I add she was told appetizers and desserts...yet, she planned a feast!). We played the "guess the baby food in the jar" game - and, it's official, I can not tell the difference between green beans and peas (especially since my guess was broccoli). Eric's sister, Kristin, nailed the game...I credit that to Jordan and Dalen! :)

We then played a game that's hard to title - but kept us all entertained! Amanda read a story about Mrs. Right - which each time the word "right" was mentioned (in any form, I suppose) we were to pass the gift bag to the right. Same thing for the world "left". I couldn't tell you a single sentence of the story, because the only thing I was concentrating on were the words "right" and "left". We had a few hiccups determining which way to pass - but collectively, we did great! (And, Angie walked away with the prize!)

Finally, we played the name-the-baby of a wide range of animals. Of the animals listed - I knew maybe seven...my strategy was just to add "ie" at the end of everything. Name of a baby duck? Duckie! Hey, in a few cases it works...

I can't thank the women who helped celebrate Gwen's arrival enough for the amount of gifts we received. She truly will be the best-dressed chick on the block! Eric's Mom - who had already purchased us a much-need gift (the crib mattress!) - surprised me with the baby blanket Eric had as an infant. She also tucked inside the bag a few pictures of Eric as a baby.

But, I have to admit - the most anticipated gift that I was looking forward to was my baby bag. I'm a big purse-person, so finding the best bag was super easy for me...and I noticed almost within days of Eric and I registering it had been purchased. Of course, I had no clue who bought it for me - but was sold that Christmas 2012 whomever they were would receive an extra stocking stuffer from the Davis Family! She threw me off with a few white-lies, so I was incredibly shocked when I opened the bag from Amanda (and Kathy and Amy!). Seriously, who gets excited for a baby bag?!

Again, thank you - thank you, thank you, thank you!! - to Dana, Becky and Amanda for going out of the way to plan such an exciting day for me. I could not be happier right now - and it's because of everything you did to make me feel spoiled! :)

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Broken Record

Call me a broken record, but really - could I be more spoiled?! The last 31 weeks have practically flown by - but I have to admit...the last few days have been dragging. Please tell me the next 9 weeks will bring the feelings like this past week, just not the speed...

Week 31 Reflections:

PINEAPPLE - by far, my favorite fruit!

Movement: I swear it's constant. I try my best to note a pattern - from what "they" say, you can determine this - but, of course it's very rare that I'm not feeling something. I feel like she's mostly hanging out on my right side, but I could be completely wrong.

Cravings/Aversions: Peanut Butter M&M's. Granted, I had high school flash-back cravings for these pre-pregnancy, but for some reason they've been a snack of choice. Maybe it's because they're an equal balance of peanut butter and chocolate - or that you can't eat too many without feeling super-gross? Who knows, really.

I am feeling starting to feel: uncomfortable at night. I've been getting extremely hot at night, so swapping out my winter blanket for my summer blanket has been a must. I look over at night and I'm half-hanging out of the blanket and Eric is in socks, a sweatshirt and tucked-in as tight as possible. Oh, the contrast...

What I miss most: I really don't have a differing answer for this one...there really isn't that "thing" I just miss most.

Best moment of the past week: Gwen's rug arrived! I debated purchasing the rug for a few days, finally decided to order it and am glad I did. I think it fits, and just adds a little touch.


What I'm looking forward to this week: My (second) baby shower!! :)

...now, excuse me as I coach UK to another win...

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Nesting

"They" say at some point during the third trimester, Moms-to-be will have a sudden urge to nest. "They" were right. Just over the past few days, Eric and I have unpacked, put together and organized everything Gwen related.

For starters, I unpacked all of the gifts received from Baby Shower #1 - including organizing her closet. I hung up her clothes - organized by size (not by color, unlike my own closet) and began putting items in the dresser drawers.

...less than half of her outfits...

Wall of Diapers!

Not all of Gwen's gifts could be hung and tucked away - a handful needed to be unpacked and put together...all of which were not easy to be assembled, but after a break in the middle, we accomplished them all!

Rocking Sleeper

Bouncer

Car Seat & Stroller - personalized with her pink poodle!

Pack 'N Play

After completely finishing the organization, I sat down to write out the "To Do List" of items yet to be completed. I kept thinking to myself that this list was miles long. Turns out, I need to give myself more credit - the list was a whopping four items long!

1. Touch-up the paint on the dresser.
2. Paint and hang the shelf for Gwen's room.
3. Purchase nightstand next to recliner.
4. Repaint the closet wall (where we outlined a bird, that we decided against painting).

(And, I'm happy to say - as of this evening, this list is already down to 3! We purchased the nightstand at Garden Ridge - which needs to be put together and will be placed next to the recliner, holding the lamp she received from Motsy.)

The pictures below are pre-Baby Shower gifts, but I couldn't help but share images of my favorite room in the house! As I'm starting to place items where they "belong", I still catch myself sitting in her room imagining what it will be like to have her here.









As I mentioned earlier, this is by-far my new favorite room in the house - and I love the warm feeling it already carries. :)

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Birthentine's Day

Happy Birthday! Happy Valentine's Day! To the most amazing man in my life! :)

Today, I didn't quite win "Wife of the Year" - but, celebrating Eric's birthday and Valentine's Day is second to celebrating my own birthday. I may have waited until the last minute to buy him a card, and still I haven't purchased a gift - but he loves me anyway.

I reverted back to the young-love days, using the spare car key to break into his car while he was at work- filling the passenger seat up with balloons. :)

Eric, I love you so much! Birthentine's Day will never be the same - knowing instead of buying you Daddy cards from the dogs, I'll be buying you Daddy cards from Gwen. "You are Home to me."

Hello, Week 30...

To see the number "3" before this week's mark is extremely scary...but, in the best kind of scary way. It's real - she will be here in just 10 weeks. This is the last double-digit countdown week. :)

Very little has changed between last week and this week. Gwen is still booking it around my stomach like she's running a marathon. I had to push (what I think is) her foot away from my ribs more than I'd like, but outside of that, I love the movements. She's pretty consistent in the morning and in the evening - and mellow during the afternoon.

As for me, I'm still feeling great and have very little to complain about. I'm starting to get back into the tired feeling - which I've read is common - but at times I'll get a boost of energy as if nothing can stop me.

I find this week's food-comparison to be extremely funny looking...

Cucumber!

This upcoming week will be pretty boring - but building up to the excitement of Baby Shower #2, hosted by my amazing best friend, Dana (and her lovely Mother!) the following weekend! Also next week is my next two-week appointment with Dr. Bell. Any opportunity I can get to hear that little heartbeat, I'll take!

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Baby Shower!

Today was the first of two baby showers for Gwen. Today's shower was held in Louisville by my amazing Aunts, Anita and Maria. I can not thank them enough for a wonderful afternoon! I was surrounded by my family and friends - who some traveled just for the day...for me Gwen.

Gwen was truly showered with gifts, which made it extremely emotional for me. Building up to the time the shower started, I had this nervous feeling - realizing how real this is, how close we are to her actually being here.

I, personally, love party games! My Aunts did a wonderful job personalizing the game boards with Gwen's name written across the top of each. We played a trivia game built around baby facts - which, I had played once before...and still got almost all of them wrong! We then had to guess how many diapers were stuffed inside a basket. I was only 6 off from the actual number - which I'm extremely proud of...knowing my knowledge of diapers is minimal!

Almost every gift was decked out in some shade of pink...and, I'm not going to lie...I loved every ounce of it. She will be - by far - the best dressed baby in town! She received outfit after outfit, snuggle blankets, her bouncer seat (thanks to the Drury's), Pack 'N Play (thanks to Mamaw!), toys and Baby Bjorn carrier (thanks to MarMar!). She also received the rocking sleeper (thanks to MarMar - again - that I think I'm more excited about), swaddlers, car seat accessories, Sleep Sheep (thanks to Pamela, that Eric and I might "borrow" for ourselves) and, finally, her lamp and mobile (thanks to Motsy!).

Gwen also received a few personalized gifts - made especially for her. She received hand-made burp clothes from Nana, a water-resistant and blanket cover for her car seat from Andrea and, even though the items weren't hand-made the creativity won us all over - a baker's box of baby cupcakes (a receiving blanket wrapped around a onesie, positioned like cupcakes from a bakery).

And, of course, she walked away with a few UK gifts - including two cheerleading outfits and a handful of UK onesies...all of which will come in handy!

I had an absolutely amazing afternoon and could not be happier! Thank you to all of the women who came and celebrated Gwen's upcoming arrival. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing family surrounding me - during such an amazing time in my life. :)

Friday, February 10, 2012

Pregnancy Survey

Call me a thief - but, after reading this from Ali's blog - I couldn't help but steal it!

Pregnancy Survey!

1. What name did you and your spouse call your baby before you knew the gender?
"Baby", "Bean" and I think I used "Nugget" once or twice. The most overused was, by far, "Baby".

2. When did "Oh-my-gosh-we're-having-a-baby" really sink in?
I'm not sure I've stopped having this feeling! The moments that stick out the most are the times we got to see Gwen during an ultrasound. From the first time, seeing the small speck on the screen (with a heartbeat and all!) at 6 weeks to the last ultrasound at 23 weeks. Just being able to see her on the screen, we felt like we were given a glimpse into her personality!

3. When you think of yourself as a mom, what's the first thing to come to mind?
Being over-protective. I've mentioned this before, that I haven't laid my eyes on her yet - but I know she's everything and more. I don't want her to ever feel less than protected and spoiled (or "well taken care of...").

4. Is your nursery complete? What's the theme and what do you have left to complete?
For the most part - yes, it's complete! I like to think of the theme as just flat-out super girly! We've gone with the tree and bird theme - with little whimsical features throughout. What's left? - adding a few registry items, painting and hanging the small shelf (the same shelf I had in my room growing up!) and buying the rug for the floor.

5. List 5 qualities you hope your baby will possess.
As a baby, I hope she's (1) patient, (2) lovable, (3) warm, (4) happy and (5) a consistent sleeper! :)
As a woman, I hope she's (1) patient, (2) humble, (3) honest, (4) brave and (5) faithful.

6. What's your ideal labor experience?
Ideal? I'm not sure that's even possible. Ideal would be completely painless and quick. Chances of that happening are slim to none.

7. List 5 things that have changed in your relationship with your spouse since you've been pregnant.
Really, the only thing that has "changed" is how much more I'm in love with Eric. I feel so blessed to have him as my best friend, and feel so blessed to give him the opportunity to be a father.

8. List 5 things you think will change once your baby arrives:
(A 5th was hard to think about...so I went with 4!)...(1) The obvious...less sleep. (2) We won't be bored on weeknights anymore! (3) Instead of talking in our "dog voice", we'll talk in our "baby voice". (4) I pray for better eating habits.

9. Where do you think you'll be when you go into labor? Why?
I have this fear of walking through Target or being at work and having my water break. I guess to answer the "ideal labor" question above - I'd really like to be at home, with Eric, when it's go time.

10. Have you been talking to your baby? Playing music?
We talk to her just about every opportunity we can - or when we have something to share with her. We never stop referring to her - or what life will be like with her. As for music, I like to think the car rides are her favorite - as I belt out the radio tunes to her!

11. In what ways do you hope your baby is like your spouse?
Every. Way. Possible. I hope she's calm and patient like Eric. Eric and I define "opposites" - and I envy his patience in so many situations.

12. In what ways do you hope your baby is like you?
I hope she has my desire to protect those close to her. I hope that one day, we give her the opportunity to be a big sister - and that she protects her little sister/brother with as much love as I have for Ryan.

13. How long will you wait for the next baby, or if this is your last one, why/why not?
We need to get through the first one, before we're ready for the next one! :) I am six years older than my little brother, and can remember so many memories of being "just me". I truly wouldn't trade in being a big sister for being an only child, but I love that I had those years to spend with my parents alone. I want Gwen to have that same feeling.

14. What kind of grandparents do you think your baby will have?
Will have?! How about DO have!! There are very few words I can use to even describe how amazingly blessed we are to have my parents and Eric's parents in our life. They have already done so much for us, that we will never be able to repay.

15. Who will be with you during labor? Who will visit you in the hospital during your recovery?
As for labor, it will just be Eric and I. Spending those first few moments of her life as just the three of us is incredibly important to Eric and I. During recovery, we hope to share the those moments with our family and friends - all are welcome! :)

16. How much will tell your baby (child, teenager) about your past? Why/why not?
As long as she'll listen - I'll share as many stories and experiences as I can. :)

17. Do you have any hopes for your child's activities? (Sports, academics, school preference, activities, etc.)
I like to think about what she'll be interested in as a baby and toddler - but, can't even begin to think about sports and school preferences! Of course, I hope she prefers to to wear UK blue instead of Texas orange...

18. When will you tell your baby about the birds and the bees?
I'm not sure I'm mentally prepared for this conversation. For the meantime I'll stick with the "babies come from stroks" version.

19. In what ways do you hope you'll parent like your parents did?
I hope we can teach Gwen to pay it forward instead of giving back. Without question, my parents are the first to help someone in need, not questioning it for a minute and not expecting to receive anything in return. As an adult, I have tried to live by this in so many situations - and can only pray that their example becomes our example to our child.

20. And, finally - which childhood memory do you hope your child will have (similar to the one you fondly remember)?
Disney World! Even at 26, I'm giddy over Mickey Mouse and Cinderella.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Week 29

Today marked the first of several every-two-week appointments. It was a quick and easy check-up, and like Dr. Bell mentioned - they seem silly for how short they are, but knowing how quickly something can change, it's important not to take the risk.

At today's appointment, Gwen wasn't quite as active - but I must say, she's our rather consistent little booger. Her heartbeat was racing at 145 bpm and she's measuring right on track at 29.5 weeks. Dr. Bell said most of the same things as last time - what to watch for - confirmed the "feeling" I was having last week was, in fact, Braxton Hicks and that the pain I'm feeling around my ribs is common. She confirmed that most likely it's Gwen's foot smashing up against anything she can. I'd just prefer that she find something else to smash against.

As for this week's Reflections...

TheBump states she's the size of an acorn squash...translation: heffer! :)

Movement: It never stops! Today I was conducting a phone interview and couldn't help but smile as I felt her moving the entire time. I'm telling you, this baby in my belly loves HR!

Cravings/Aversions: I think if anyone in the pregnancy process is having cravings, it's Eric. Today he sends me a text message asking, on a scale of 1-10, how much am "I" craving Margarita's Grill. There are multiple paths to get to my heart, but one of the quickest ways is with refried beans. :)

I am feeling: Large. Maybe it's because we did have Mexican food for dinner, but even after a walk through Target, I feel like a whale.

What I miss most: This category really isn't a good one for me, because I'm not missing much of anything. The whole "not being able to bend over without feeling uncomfortable" feeling would have to be the closest example to what I miss.

Best Funniest moment moments of the past week: I changed the title of this category, specifically because I have to share...and, I'm so not ashamed of the story about me!

So, "pregnancy brain" - I always thought it was an excuse women make. I'm here to tell you - it's a true, known fact. Just this week, my alarm went off at 7am as usual - instead of hopping right up, I decided to press snooze...not once, but twice. It just wasn't a morning for me to pop out of bed. I walk into the bathroom, turn the shower on - take off my pj's, open the shower door and walk in. I'm standing there wetting my hair - when all of a sudden I look down and realize I am in the shower...with my panties STILL on. I immediately busted out laughing at myself - took them off, threw them over the shower wall into the tube and went about my business. I couldn't believe what I just did - and am almost positive it was Gwen's way of making her Mommy giggle.

Now, it wouldn't be a week of funnies without mentioning an Eric story. Last night I stumbled across a "must buy for baby" checklist. I started reading the first few items off and came across "Activity Mat". I mentioned this was an item we registered for - and he says to me, "Activity mat?! Like Twister??" I can imagine coming home one day and seeing Gwen practicing her tummy-time and Eric stretching his left hand on blue, over his right leg on yellow. :)

What I'm looking forward to this week: My baby shower in Louisville!! I'm so excited to see my entire family this weekend I could pee in my pants...well, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration - but I really could probably pee. Either way, I'm looking forward to sharing this exciting time with the women in my life who mean so much to me. I'm undoubtedly thankful for my Aunt Anita and Aunt Maria for hosting the shower - a girl couldn't ask for anything more.

Exactly 75 days to go! :)