22 Weeks

How Far Along: 22 Weeks

 Real estate within your belly is getting tight; with growing baby leaving little room for your lungs to...well...breathe. Expect the huffing and puffing to start soon. There's not much room for your belly button, either -- it'll pop out any day now.

Size of baby: a papaya 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 9 lbs! 

Maternity Clothes: yep, I even have a tankini swimsuit to cover the bump now! yikes :)

Gender: B O Y

Movement: yep.  It is so fun when he gets a going and Luke is able to feel him. He is still small enough that it isn't too uncomfortable yet so he can move all he wants right now.

Sleep: is my BFF. I LOVE it.  I think you get the point.

What I miss: Chicken.  It is the only food that I really miss.  I don't want to be around it, let alone try and eat it.

Cravings: mac and cheese - only the blue box will do, and cucumbers! 

Symptoms: still relying on the zofran every morning but other than that I'm feeling pretty good!

Best Moment This Week: I stocked up on scrapbook supplies at Hob Lob this weekend so I can get to work on our little guys baby book!! I can't wait!!!

Milestones: Baby's settling into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop.

What I'm Looking Forward To: a month of nothing.  Our June calendar is wide open and I'm loving it.  Feel free to come and visit but I can promise you that we aren't going ANYWHERE! Our travels will pick back up in July and I'm excited for all of those trips but I am even more excited to spend my weekends at the pool here in Ruston!

Beautiful People

and Random thoughts/happenings around the Simmering house.

• First please just take a look at Lauren and Kevin's Wedding pix! They are AMAZING!  I told you she would be a beautiful bride!

• Luke got to feel our little boy moving around last night!  I had a Dr. Pepper with dinner in hopes that the caffeine would get him dancing.  It worked - and it was so much fun for Luke to get to feel him partyin'.
• I have had REALLY REALLY weird dreams the past few nights.  I woke up quite concerned one morning that our son was stuck down around my hip bone and I couldn't get him back to my tummy area.  It was really weird, he was stuck and we could see a perfect little baby outline in the tight skin around my hip.  I couldn't get him to move back to my Big Ole belly for the life of me.  Thank Goodness I woke up from that one!  The second in the string of odd dreams was more of a nightmare!  In my dream I sold Buddy!!!  I sold him to my college roommate Ashley.  She was living with another lady and a small girl and none of them were the least bit concerned with his severe allergies.  I kept telling them to call Marion (our vet) but they wouldn't listen.  I actually woke up in a panic until I found him under the bed.  He spent the rest of the night cuddled up with me!  
• I had my hair chopped off as soon as we got home from the wedding!  I really like it and I think it will be perfect for the summer! I can get up and get ready so much quicker now that I don't have all that hair to mess with!
• work has been crazy busy this week and I'm in NEED of the long weekend!  As I get more info I'll fill ya'll in but while I was in Kansas our hospital was sold to a new company and we are now in a transition phase.  I really think it is going to be a great change and the new company appears to be a good company and an even better fit for our hospital.  Everything will be official and we will all be employees of the new company on August 1st.  This throws a wrench in a few maternity leave ideas so I'm hoping to get a chance to discuss some options once we get things settled down and I have a good contact at corporate.
• We are still looking for child care once our little one arrives.  I think that we have a daycare lined out at a church here in town if all else fails.  The supervisor didn't think it would be any problem to get him in around the first of the year, but since I will most likely be taking a shorter maternity leave now I will need assistance for that in-between phase.  I'm just hoping/praying that I'll be able to bring him to work with me like I want too!  Living in a small town that we aren't native too makes finding the right person a difficult task!  I feel like we would have such an easier time if we were living around home where we know people!
• We are planning to begin our registries this weekend.  I think our plan is to do one at Target and one online through Amazon.  I figured that would allow all of our family and friends from LA to MN and everywhere in between to find a store or website that is easily accessible.

Blue Box Blues

I've got 'em! In the worst kinda of way!  I have a craving for mac and cheese that will NOT go away.  I don't want the good, homemade fresh from the oven mac and cheese either - I want the cheap blue box powdered cheese kind.  And I prefer to eat it the next day.  Reheated mac and cheese just can not be beat!  I know it's kinda gross but I ate some at 10:30 this morning and had a helping with dinner the past couple of nights.  I need this to end, it kinda grosses me out but I just can't stop thinking about how badly I NEED to get some.  Good thing Luke keeps me stocked with a fresh batch on a regular basis!

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I know at this point you just want to point and laugh but guess what - I'm pregnant so you have to be nice to me! ha!!!

Just a Few

I told myself I was going to do a GREAT job of capturing Lauren's day with my camera and once again I failed. OOPS!  I did get a few good ones while we were at the beauty salon and Luke got one or two from rehearsal.  Once again we will depend on the paid professionals for the best of the best.  Here are a few of my favorites from the weekend.

 

21 Weeks

How Far Along: 21 Weeks
(over 1/2 way!!) 

 Gasp...is that a stretch mark?!! Take deep breaths and remember -- they'll fade after delivery. Your skin may also feel dry and itchy, especially over your emerging bump. Take a cue from your fetus, now coated by vernix (a milky, protective cream), and slather on the lotion

Size of baby: a banana

 Total Weight Gain/Loss: 8 lbs according to the home scale!

Maternity Clothes: yes ma'am. No one ever told me how comfortable maternity clothes are!  I wanted to wear my new clothes out of the store but Taylor convinced me that was a little odd and that I could just change in the car if I really needed to wear the new pants ;)  After watching me fidget with broken rubber bands on my jeans while running errands Taylor took me shopping and I've been sporting the elastic waste bands ever since! I'm not sure I'll ever want to return to the buttons and zippers of regular pants :)

Gender: still a BOY!

Movement: YES, and I LOVE it.  It is still a little odd and takes me by surprise but I can usually feel him if I sit still after a meal.  I had a coffee Monday morning at work since I was dragging and I'm pretty sure he threw a dance party about a 1/2 hour later.  I could actually see my belly move and it was pretty exciting.

Sleep: like a rock!  I can't sleep in past 6 because I have to get up and go to the bathroom and then I'm wide awake but between the hours of 9pm and 6am I'm oblivious to my surroundings!

What I miss: Nothing really, pregnancy is going pretty darn good at this very moment. I'm knocking on my wooden desk as I write this so as not to jinx myself! 

Cravings: fruit and veggies.  I have to force myself to each meat to get a little protein but don't even think about trying to make me eat chicken! AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!

Symptoms: motion sickness.  The zofran can't touch it.  I had a few bad travel experiences after the eventful Target trip we made a few weeks back.  Let's just say getting sick in an airport with an automatic toilet is NOT fun.  I'm just hoping this little issue is short lived because I have alot of travel planned in July and August and I'd rather not spend it stuck in airport bathrooms!

Best Moment This Week: Lauren and Kevin's Wedding! We had a blast.  I'll devote an entire post to it when I've had time to digest all that happened last week. 

Milestones: Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion, and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, if baby is a girl, her womb is now stocked up with her lifetime supply of six million eggs (the number will drop to around one million by birth).

What I'm Looking Forward To: I'd like to say a relaxing weekend at home but I think we are going to try and get registered for a few things this weekend.  I've had SO many people ask where we are registered that I'm feeling the need to at least start a registry so I can have an answer.  I think we will wait and add to it as it gets closer to our due date and the seasons change but I'd like to get it set up now so that I can just feel a little productive.  Maybe I'll even get to work on some art pieces for the nursery if I get REALLY inspired.

sorry . . .

no 20 week update.  After a week filled with wedding prep, a wedding and a night in the Dallas airport I'll pick back up with 21 weeks on Wednesday!  I know you are so disappointed but I'll get some wedding pix up to show off the 20 week bump!

How Far Along: 19 Weeks

Those nasty leg cramps are probably making it tough to get comfortable. One way to ease the pain: Extend your leg and flex your ankle and toes toward your knees. Or enlist your partner for a calf (and back!) massage. Good news: Your now-bulging belly should get you a little more compassion from everyone around you.

Size of baby: Mango 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: scale at home says +1.5, scale at work says +3 so we are somewhere in between the two! 

Maternity Clothes: not yet.  I attempted a maternity clothes shopping trip on mothers day but got overwhelmed and left.  I'm going to try a small trip to the store here in Ruston today and see if I can ease my way into the maternity clothes.  It is time, my shirts are really beginning to look silly as they ride up the bump.  I've become that woman with the belly hanging out, thank goodness for the belly band that keeps me covered!

Gender: BOY! and we have a name.  Actually we have had a boys name since before we were pregnant. It's not a secret and I'm not sure why I never type it. Maybe I'll do a post just on his name later.

Movement: YES! I wasn't convinced at first.  I kept telling myself it was just gas.  But it didn't feel like gas, it is different.  Thats the only way I can explain it, just an odd sensation.  After a few days of the same feeling I allowed myself to accept what it was!  I didn't want to go around thinking I felt him when in reality it was just the constipation :)

Sleep: lots of it.  I developed a nasty rash that ran from my left shoulder across my body and down my right leg.  I've been on 1/2 doses of Benadryl every 4 hours for the last few days and it is making the sleep even better! 

What I miss: other than clothes that fit I'm pretty content!

Cravings: Fruit and Veggies.I make myself eat meat/beans to get the needed protein but I could survive on a diet of just fruit and veggies. 

Symptoms: other than the new allergy to something that has caused a nasty rash I'm doing great! 

Best Moment This Week: painting the nursery and getting the crib up and bedding washed and in place.  We hang out in the nursery now.  It is an empty room now except for the crib but Buddy LOVES to go and sleep under the crib and I just lay on the floor and smile!  We always kept the door to this room closed since we didn't really use it but now it stays open.  We just like to wonder by and take a peek.

Milestones: Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil, and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.) You might get to see the vernix at birth, especially if baby is premature.

What I'm Looking Forward To: My sisters wedding!  I fly to KS on the 16th and then it is wedding, wedding, wedding! While home I'll reach the 1/2 way point of this pregnancy too which I think is pretty darn exciting!

Mother's Day

I had a great Mother's Day!  Luke made me banana nut muffins and served them to me with grape juice in bed, after a little cuddle time from Buddy and Kato!  After a lazy morning we headed to Monroe to continue the spoiling.  I've been craving a "good" salad so we went to Pie Works and I devoured a Greek Salad and bread-sticks.  I'm not sure how I managed to eat so much and not get sick,  I guess our little guy is a fan of the Greeks too.  Our mission for the day was to get swim suits a crib mattress, and a phone case for me. I got a new phone for work and I'm trying to treat it a little better than my last few.  I've been dreading maternity clothes, which includes swim suits but I had on my big girl panties and was ready to face the challenge.  My fighter spirit was broken quickly when I got to the mall.  The maternity stores are just too overwhelming right now and since Target doesn't have maternity swimsuits in the store I came home with out one.  Luke doesn't understand why I can't just wear one of my old suits.  I know other pregnant women wear a bikini while pregnant but I just can't do it.  Right now I just appear to have a major beer gut and I'm just not really all about sharing it with complete strangers at the pool.  I refuse to go until I have a suit to COVER all of me!  I have strict orders to get something online today so we can be at the pool next weekend.  Now, don't start feeling too sorry for us, we didn't come home completely empty handed, Luke got a swim suit, I got a new polka dot case for the phone and we purchased a crib mattress!  I believe there is nothing more satisfying that making our little boys bed.  I had so much fun, his room is painted, crib is up and bed it made!  Buddy tried the crib out and seems to think it will work for our little one.  All is Good!  Now we just need to get through the summer and get him here!

Exciting Times

- in less than 2 weeks I'll be in KS getting ready for my little sisters wedding! I fly out on the 16th and Luke will join us after finals on the 18th.  Rehearsal dinner is 2 weeks from TODAY!  It is hard to believe it is already here.

Lauren is going to be the most beautiful bride!  I got to go with her to her last  fitting over Easter and see her in her dress again! It is PERFECT!

- Little Sister Lauren has a full time 1st grade teaching job in Wichita, KS!  I'm so proud of her!  She will be teaching at a private school in Wichita, and if I made enough money I would move back there and send our little boy to that school just so he could have her as a teacher.  Maybe by the time he is in 1st grade I'll have an extra 8-9K a year for his education.

- We have bedding and paint for our little boys room!  I can't wait to see the room transform this weekend. 

- We have another ultrasound coming up on the 11th!  I LOVE getting to see our little boy.  Dr. M has mentioned that he may be moving our due date up depending on the findings.  The measurements Mandy took a few weeks ago had our little guy measuring 1-2 weeks ahead of our due date.  Her calculations gave us a due date of 9/25 which is a week and a half before our current 10/5 due date.

- Luke and I both dreamt about our little guys birth this week.  On the same night! I thought that was kind of weird.  In his dream it was an easy process, everything went smooth and we had a healthy little boy.  My dream was VERY different.  I ended up with an emergency C-Section after he got stuck and they kicked Luke out of the room!  I woke up really upset because neither of us got to witness the birth of our baby!  Only time will tell but I really hope that Luke's dream is more accurate.

- Tomorrow is Friday, my favorite day of the week!

18 Weeks

How Far Along: 18 Weeks

this picture is a place holder.  Taken with a co-workers phone.  I forget to take pictures once and week so this is what we get stuck with. 

As your growing uterus starts shifting your center of gravity (belly forward, bottom out), hormones are causing your ligaments to relax and joints to loosen. The result? Back pain and soreness. On the bright side, if you want to know baby's gender, this might be your first week for a sneak peek.

Size of baby: sweet potato

Total Weight Gain/Loss: 3 lbs according to the scale at work. 

Maternity Clothes: not yet, but I have contemplated cashing in some of our discover rewards for a gift card to a maternity clothing store.  Mainly for shirts, mine still kinda fit but they are starting to get short in the front and I really don't want to be that lady walking around with half my belly hanging out below my shirt!

Gender: BOY BOY BOY!

Movement: Haven't felt it yet but I'm getting ready.  I keep telling myself it will be a few more weeks but I'd be more than thrilled to feel a little something.

Sleep: bad nights and good nights. I need a bed in my office because I think I could get the best sleep at about 2pm.  I can hardly keep my eyes open at my desk, I usually end up going for a walk around the hospital to wake myself up!

What I miss: My memory!  I couldn't remember the name of our gas company today when trying to pay bills!  I've only paid them once a month for the last year and a half.  Other than that I really don't miss too much of anything. I went with out my beloved Zofran for a week and was pretty darn miserable, again.  I convinced Dr. M I wasn't quite ready to be weaned off of it so I'm back on the magic little pill and once again food is good, and little boy is happy! 

Cravings: FRUIT! Any and all fruit!  My new favorite snack is a piece of angel food cake, topped with chocolate frozen yogurt and fresh strawberries!  Molly got me hooked on this when we were home for Easter!  I have a bowl of this after dinner every night.

Symptoms: morning sickness has once again subsided with the help of meds.  So really besides the growing belly I'm back to feeling like myself.

Best Moment This Week: We got our crib bedding and nursery inspiration in the mail this week.  

Milestones: Baby's become amazingly mobile (compared to you, at least), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking, and swallowing. And baby is finally big enough that you'll soon be able to feel her movements.

What I'm Looking Forward To: Getting to work on the nursery!  We received bedding and will take it to Sherwin Williams this weekend to get paint so we can knock that out over the weekend.  I can't wait to see it all coming together!