32 Week Update

I was doing so well, right? Now, I'm back to my old ways; it took over a week to get back with you. Sorry, again. But, here I am - large and in-charge...and looking for chickies. Okay, so I couldn't resist a good Joe Dirt quote. :)

How far along?
Technically, I am 33 weeks and 1 day. I am late on my 32 week update. :{ I am 83.2% through this pregnancy and I only have 48 days to go (27 days until she is full-term). :)

Baby is the size of a...
jicama. I can honestly say that I've never held or eaten one of those. I am at a loss. Here is a picture for you other "non-cultured" people out there.

She is approximately 17 inches long and 4.5 lbs.

Symptoms:
They are pretty sporadic at this point. I have had a lot of "symptoms" that last only a day and then subside: headache, hip-ache, constipation, diarrhea,  itchy belly, swollen feet, swollen hands, acne, etc. You know, the fun stuff.

Oh, and TMI warning...beware...are you still reading? The easily offended/grossed out need to go to the next paragraph...okay, don't say I didn't warn you. I now have a yeast infection. Fun times. I was pretty sure that I had one, or at least something was up. I was really itchy. I googled it and found out the pregnancy can make you a higher risk of getting one, AND antibiotics. Yep. I was on antibiotics for my tooth ache, remember? At least it doesn't affect the baby at all. It's just really uncomfortable. I read online someone said, "If it feels like you want to take a fork to it, then it's a yeast infection." I laughed pretty hard.

The only other thing is that I am flippin' hot. It is so hot! Hot, hot, hot! I don't know why I feel the need to tell you all about this completely obvious thing; I just want some sympathy I guess. Pregnancy and record temperatures and drought = worst ever. Hey, I never claimed to be less than dramatic.

Anything new?
Honestly, not really. Things are moving pretty slow these days. I sit around and basically count the days until Olive's arrival. I did get the rest of her clothes put away. Now, we just need to get some little knick-knacks for her room. I feel bad for her. Lucy had a baby shower, so she had a ton of little keepsakes. Olive doesn't have any...it's sad. It leaves the nursery pretty empty looking too. I need to get on it.


We did get Olive's name for the wall. Now, we just need to get some 3mm strips to hang it. :) It will help tie the room together more.


New with Heath?
He is still absent most times. He is doing really well though with his grad. class. I am really proud of him. He is over half-way done now. :) Yay!

Last Wednesday night, close to midnight, our hot-water heater decided to go to the big plumber in the sky. It spewed water all over while fighting too. It soaked a good portion of our basement (toy room) and even got on the drywall a bit. Thank goodness I heard the water leaking or who knows how bad it could have been! We don't have a drain down there...thanks a lot home builders. Anyway, this whole thing added a little more to Heath's plate. Like he needed more? So, the distractions continue....

New with Lucy?
She is just getting so smart and growing right before my eyes. A shirt she wore a week ago didn't fit yesterday. I couldn't believe it. I become more and more confident that she will be a good, big sister everyday. However, we really need to get the misbehaving in public under control. Although, who am I kidding? After Olive gets here, we won't be leaving the house for a while.

She helped me paint Olive's letters for the nursery. We made it another Mommy/Lucy project. :)


Yes - it was more trouble than it was worth to have her help. But, it gave us a project and she loves helping. I also want to tell Olive that Lucy helped, someday. :)

Anything else?
I have another doctor's appointment. I am going every two weeks now. I don't expect much from it. We get to hear the heartbeat again. We may gross Heath out with my talk about the TMI subject I mentioned before. I may even get to have a pelvic exam. Yay....not. I will be sure to let you know if anything eventful happens next week.

Have a great weekend! I'm so excited the Olympics start! Bring on the gymnastics! :)

Gizzards = Fun

I eat chicken gizzards. They are probably the "weirdest" food that you will get me to eat. I'm not big on game, or rocky mountain oysters, or even plain oysters. But, give me fried chicken gizzards dipped in barbecue sauce and yum! About four times a year, my mom indulges me with home-battered chicken gizzards. Most of the time she even sends a bag home with me that I eat cold, straight out of the fridge.

But, that is all beside the point...this time, Lucy asked if she could help. She even pointed to her apron that my mom had hanging on the wall. Little did Lucy know how much she would actually get to "help."

  
Long story short - she made a mess! I guess what they say is true; you get more patience when you get older. I would have probably never allowed Lucy to make such a mess in our house, at least not without a drop-cloth, etc. My mom just let her be and let her play. I mean, "cook." The flour cleaned up rather easily though, although I admit that I just sat and watched. Lucy had such a fun time with that too, even trying to sweep.

During supper, Lucy tried a little bite of her batter gizzards. Not so much. That is okay. When she is older, we will try again. :)

Thank you Mimi for letting Lucy "cook" at your house. The gizzards (and sweet corn) were delicious! :)

31 Week Update

I am going to show you possibly the most unflattering picture of me to date. I look huge. I mean it - huge! I thought that last week, me pulling my dress down underneath my tummy made it look bigger. Turns out, not doing it makes it look worse. Leaving the bottom of my tummy to the imagination was a major "no-no" and I am sad about it - sincerely. I blame Heath. He told me I looked cute...

I literally forget how big I am, until I see it like this. Wowsers. I look way farther along than I am.

How far along?
I am 31 weeks and 5 days.I have 58 days until my due date and only 37 days until she is full-term.


Baby is the size of a...
umm...watermelon!? No. According to BabyCenter.com, she is the size of four oranges. That was a really odd comparison. Technically speaking, she is approximately 16.2 inches long and 3.9 lbs. She is still gaining half a pound a week. I wish that was all I was gaining...

Symptoms:
Well, I spent a lot of time nesting on Sunday and my legs hurt really bad. You would think my back would be more sore from squatting so much; but, apparently, I have good squatting form. My legs are totally paying for it! There is still more nesting to do!

I continue to have all the same, other symptoms - occasional back pain, hip pain, or the side of my tummy stretching. I am uncomfortable sometimes, but mostly flippin' hot! Never again. Never. A summer pregnancy was a ridiculous idea. What was I thinking? Someone as dramatic as me can't handle this.


Anything New?
My teeth started to make things interesting for me last week. I woke up with awful tooth pain. It was a tooth that I had cracked on hard candy, then had to get a crown put on (ouch, is right). It was really aching and got so bad that I went to the dentist about it. I wasn't sure they could do much; but, I thought I could try. The crown has been on for four years and they were surprised it hadn't bothered me until now. Thanks for the info, Doc! Basically, I need a root canal. Fun times. I can't have it until after I have the baby. They gave me antibiotics, to keep away infection in the mean time. The meds have actually been helping and the ache isn't as bad.

I went to the doctor then after the dentist; it was a fun-times day. We talked about the usual stuff. Lucy got to help her with the doppler and listening to Olive's "heart-beep," as Lucy calls it. :) It was so cute. I then asked about my huge belly and told her that I felt like it is just out there! It is so much lower than with Lucy.

She said that my core was just apparently that weak. I anticipated as much; but, I didn't realize that it was that weak. In fact, Dr. B claimed that she was surprised my back wasn't bothering me more (knock on wood). Damn-it. It looks like I will be doing a lot to try to get my core back after September...whomp, whomp. Planks here I come!

Oh, and Dr. B also gave me some pain meds for the tooth. :)

New with Heath?
He has been really nice, telling me that I look cute and that "my core" will recover just fine. He is sweet about it all, and makes me feel less like a fat, lazy turd. He continues to get wrapped up in grad. school and is pretty distracted even when he is around. But, he helped me nest on Sunday, which I truly appreciated. I am hoping I can get some more help this next weekend. :)


New with Lucy?
She is getting more excited, I think. She loved to help Dr. B with Olive's "heart-beep." She was more comfortable at the doctor's office and with Dr. B too. I hope that it will make her more comfortable at the hospital, when the time comes. :) Babies, babies, babies, though. That is all we talk about at our house. At least she is a girly-girl and loves to play with them. :)

Anything else?
I will now be visiting my doctor every two-weeks. I am hoping the more frequent visits will make things go faster. I am slightly starting to panic though about preparing for the absence at work. I am in-between bosses right now and I am sure the transition will be tough enough, then I go on 8 weeks maternity leave! Oops. We will see how it all goes. Wish me luck!

Hopefully I wasn't a debbie-downer today. My huge-ness has me down. :( Have a good day!

Baby Goats at DayCare

I wish this was some type of metaphor or analogy, strictly for comical reasons. But, it isn't. There were really baby goats at DayCare. :)

Lucy, being an animal lover, loved it! I thought I would share some of the pictures with you all.

"Here goat, goat, goat."

Grabbing it's tail....tsk, tsk.

If you are now wondering if I am no longer "banned" from DayCare because of the pictures, the answer is no. I am still "banned." I was given the pictures...

I imagine that Lucy got right in there, and  was perhaps a little pushy looking at the baby goats. :)

Toy Boxes

I have been nesting again. I really have the mental energy to do a lot to our house every evening; but, my physical energy only allows for one project a night. I am having a much rougher go this time around...

Anyway, we have two "boxes" or "bins," whatever you want to call them, in our living room.

Note: the black things on the wall next to them, are the latches for the big, baby gate that we used to have to block the stairs. It will be back out soon enough... :[

The bins used to hold photo albums, craft stuff, blankets, etc. They were catch-alls. Then, when Lucy came, I cleaned them out and they currently hold all of her living room toys.

The toys that you see in the picture? They are from Lucy's room. Of course the toys in the bins weren't enough, she had to bring more out!

I was recently cleaning up the living room and going through the toy bins. I've been slowly taking the things that are too small for baby mouths and putting them in Lucy's room. I decided to separate the toys into the bins by "baby-friendly" and "toddler-toys." Then, I decided that each of our girls would get their own toy bin, once Olive's toys started to take over the living room too. Wouldn't labels be nice? :)

I started by making two 7 x 5 in. name tags, one for Lucy and one for Olive.

Seriously, how sick of "olives" will Olive be? :)

I printed them on card-stock and for anti-destruction purposes laminated them. I love my laminater! :) Lucy loved it too. :)

I wasn't sure how to adhere them to the lids of the bins. I didn't want something that would be permanent necessarily or leave a gross residue. So, for the meantime we pined them on there. I think I can staple them...I'm not sure.This part is to be determined, and I lean heavily on my intelligent husband for a fix...

 

Lucy was so proud and told me who's bin was who's, over and over again. :)

It was a small change; but, I love it. 

I know that once they hit a certain age that it won't matter who's bin is who's anymore. But, this way they can each decide what toys they want in the living room and what toys they want in their bedrooms. Each of them only get what fits in the bin! Also, when it comes to clean-up time, they know where it goes....hopefully. :)

What do you think?

30 Week Update

I better hurry up and get this 30 week update out, as I am now on 31...I will get caught up eventually. :) Perhaps it will be before the baby gets here. ;)

Are you ready for this picture? I am wearing a dress...not a good idea. Or, rather, holding my dress down under my belly wasn't a good idea. I even tried to make the photo black and white, to make it look better...fail.

The way I am carrying Olive is so different! I swear my uterus popped out of my pelvis and then dropped onto my lap. I feel like my belly is hanging down...it is so much more uncomfortable. Were my muscles and skin really that weak?! Let's not even talk about my completely popped-out belly button...

How far along?
I am 31 weeks today, going on 40 - or so I look and feel! Bah! I am really getting antsy here people...It's not that I really want her to come today or anything. I just want September to be here already. Forget August! I have 63 days to go.


Baby is the size of a...
large cabbage. She is approximately 16 inches in length and 3.5 lbs now. Or, this big:

:)

Symptoms:
I am getting tired again. I want to do so much, but my body just isn't keeping up with my brain. I am having to take breaks a lot. Lucy makes me laugh about it. We will be playing and I have to sit down for a second. She will always ask, "What you doin' mommy?" I can't tell you how many times I've told her, "Mommy has to rest for a second."  I seriously feel like Gilbert Grape's mom most days...I can't even move without getting out of breath, or light headed, or weak.


I am getting really forgetful! It is pretty bad. It is really simple things too. I can't believe I am spacing off so bad. I don't even care to admit some of the things that I've forgotten. :{ Hopefully it will get better!

I want ice. I really want it. I don't think I would constitute it as a craving; but, every single day I want to stop and get an ice water from Sonic. I drink it and then eat the ice. Mmmm...sounds good! :)

Anything new?
I'll admit, not really. I can't even tell you where the last week went. I guess the ultrasound was new; however, I've already updated you a little bit about that. I still need to get the other, better photos for you. 

I have another, regular doctor's appointment this Friday again - Friday the 13th! :) I know how to pick'em, right? I think it will be the usual. I am seriously hoping for no more than a 5 lb weight gain; but, it isn't looking too promising. I am trying not to fret about it too much. It's hard though. I really, really want to stay at my goal. Then, I feel guilty when I think about weight while I'm pregnant. Don't worry though. I think it's obvious to everyone, especially after the ultrasound pictures, Olive's not starving and neither am I!

New with Heath?
Heath who? Oh, you mean that man who cohabits with me? Alright, it isn't that bad. But, since he started grad classes again, he's been pretty distant. He is either not in the house at all, on the computer, or outside reading. It's tough. We knew it would be. But, it distances him a little more from the pregnancy. I know how it works though. He will be super ready for her arrival as soon as his course is done. He will then be in "prep" mode. :)

New with Lucy?
Well, we continue to discuss Olive with her and have even been reading books about babies. I still think that the thought and idea of Olive is fun for her. She thinks of it as she does her baby doll, Aurora. When Olive actually gets here it's going to be tough. I really don't know how to prepare her for that. We will see...

Anything else?
There really isn't anything else. I am just so ready already. I am so uncomfortable. Come on! It is too early to feel like this too. I have a long way to go! I mean 63 days! The entire month of August! Bah! I need something to distract me...come on cool weather, fall, leaves, and football season.

Dear...

Dear Hyundai...I sincerely apologize for the stains you have acquired in the last three years. I would blame it on Lucy, but even the driver's seat has some marks. That is what you get for having tan interior. What were you thinking?

Dear Chico...you are a lazy bum and I envy you in the worst way.

Dear Blue Sippy Cup...I am sorry that we had to part ways. You should know every time we poured milk into you, that you took a risk of being tossed. Perhaps you could have laid under the bed forever, with your sour contents. Unfortunately, I found you and after a mutual, family decision, we opted for the trash can. It's nothing personal; we have weak stomachs.

Dear Organizing Blogs...I've come to realize that it isn't simply putting items into baskets that make things look spiffy (although it helps). You must have matching bins/baskets and name tags to really look great. You make me feel mediocre...damn you.

Dear Heath...although I think Lucy's new freckles (10 or so, on her cheeks) are absolutely adorable, it isn't quite fair that she looks so much like you. :[  This is a picture of Heath, not Lucy, for anyone who needed the clarification.

Dear Chilis Restaurants...I think our city could totally support a Chilis. What do you say? Yay or nay? I think so.

Dear Olive...if you haven't heard by now, you look kind of like your sister, or so it seems. This means that we will have to explain your grumpy disposition all of the time. However, don't take it personal. You come by it honestly. :) I mean, look at your sister...

Dear Scale...if you could just keep that first number as a '1,' I would really appreciate that. I don't intend to see a '2' during this pregnancy, but I am getting pretty worried as of late. Help a pregnant girl out!

Dear Lucy...you can lie to us and say that you didn't poop your pull-up; but, you not sitting on your butt is a clear indicator something is up...literally.

Dear Motherhood Maternity Store...thank you for the adorable olive-colored dress that I purchased this weekend; however, I hated that I had to give you an arm for it. On another note: please consider giving the weirdo who helped me a different job, preferably in the back room where she can't be heard. Well, now that I think about it, you could also send the 90 lb, 20 year old wearing tightss back there too.

Dear Husband...I know you think I have an obsession with going to Sonic for slushes. But, I crave those strawberry slushes and Lucy loves getting one too.

Dear Olive...since we have confirmed that you are a girl, you are officially stuck with that name. :) I hope you like it.

Have a great day everyone! Any, "Dear..." letters you would like to send?

Bread Painting

Heath has started up graduate classes again. This time it is a 6 week period, with two classes a week.  So, that leaves Lucy and mommy alone two nights a week. I have used this opportunity to try fun, Pinterest projects. :)

First, we got a paint brush. Now, we really needed those little, cheap, water painting brushes, but didn't have one. So, I found a new, foam one and washed it with dial soap. Then, I got Lucy situated and ready to paint.

Then, we got out four bowls and poured a little milk in each one. Then, I asked Lucy what colors she wanted. Of course, she said purple. I had to remember my color mixing, since I only had four colors of food coloring.

She requested: pink, purple, orange, and blue. I could have gone darker; but, I didn't want to waste the food coloring and it worked!

I laid out two pieces of bread and a napkin for Lucy to blot on.


She picked it up pretty well; however, she kept dabbing all of the milk in the middle of the bread. It was getting too soggy. I kept trying to get her to go around the edges...

 I thought that maybe it was the brush - it was picking up too much milk. So, we tried a basting brush...


It worked MUCH better.

Lucy asked me to do some too, which she enjoyed.

We did four pieces, front and back. She especially liked when I tried to paint around her hand.

Then, we threw the bread in the toaster to dry.

I thought about just buttering them, but decided to make grilled cheese sandwiches out of them instead.

 Lucy thought they were pretty fun. We both had a colorful sandwich. Of course, Lucy had the one with an 'L' on it.

It was fun and she made sure to tell Daddy all about it the next morning. I am sure we will do it again sometime. :)

3D Ultrasound

Well, I don't have all of the pictures ready for you guys yet; however, I wanted to share what I do have. :)

First things first...yes, it is still a girl. :) And yes, there is only one baby in there. It was confirmed.

Here the little beauty is:

Sorry about the quality of photos. Since I don't have them downloaded yet, they are pictures of pictures...

Olive cooperated much more than Lucy did a couple of years ago. Here are our other favorites:

The umbilical cord kept getting in her face.

This one isn't as clear either, because the umbilical cord. However, we loved that is showed her hands up by her face. :)

Again, it's a little blurry and you can see the reflection off of the picture.

So, if you were wondering...YES - she looks like Lucy!  We all thought so and she is super chubby, or so it looks. :)

What do you think?

I will get more to you soon and share a little more about the visit. It was a fantastic day!

Keep cool!

29 Week Update

This post will likely be short, since not much has changed in the last week or so. Here I am again...

My hair is down! What? Yep, that is me and my hair is really getting long. It's so long that I can barely stand it being down in this heat!

How far along?
I am 30 weeks and 1 day (a little late again on the update). I have 69 days left and only 48 days until I'm full-term.

Baby is the size of a...
butternut squash. Or, in my terms, one of those gourds that hallow out in the fall and you can make a birdhouse of them. :) Olive is approximately 15 inches long (probably more like 13), and 3 lbs! She should start gaining about 1/2 lb a week from here on out. That would put her around 8 lbs, which is right on.

Symptoms:
I am still achy, uncomfortable, excited, and above all - HOT! It is so flippin' hot! I sweat just sitting here...if a third child is in our future, it will NOT be a summer baby! Plus, did we pick the hottest summer in years or what? Gee-whiz.

I am just carrying so much lower this time. Everyone thinks that means the ultrasound technician was wrong and I'm really carrying a boy. I think it is a testament to how awful my abs were and that my uterus just flopped out there, with nothing holding it back! We will see this weekend at our 3D ultrasound who is right. :)  Anyway, carrying lower is much more painful, or at least in my experience. It stresses my pelvis and lower back; I didn't have the same aches with Lucy. I get up from sitting on a hard bench or the floor and can barely walk for a few steps. I'm like an old person! Eh, maybe I am old...

Anything new?
Not really. We got Olive's sleeper in. Isn't it cute. Heath and Lucy put it together.

It looks just like the picture. It really folds easily too. I think it was a great purchase for us!

New with Heath?
Either Heath is very intuitive or I complain like crazy. I think the latter is probably more true, no offense to Heath. He has been super helpful this last week. I made supper and he even wrote on our board, "I love you because...you cooked supper even though you were tired. - Thank you!"

It was sweet. He has also pampered me pretty well. I imagine that with him start up night classes again (6 weeks, two nights a week), that I will be a little bit on the back-burner again. But, I understand. We are all excited for that MBA to be done in August! :) I'm so proud of him.

New with Lucy?
She still acts excited about Olive in theory. But, when it comes to Olive's things vs. hers, that is another story. I think she will have a hard time sharing things; she hasn't ever really had to before. I am still 100% positive that sharing her daddy will be the biggest problem.

Oh, and one a cute note, she tried to put a diaper on my belly the other day - "for baby Olive."

Anything else?
The biggest new item will be the 3D ultrasound. Prepare for a post about it and pictures on Facebook. :) I am so excited. We are going to see if she is still a girl and see if she looks like Lucy at all. I can't wait! Here is what Lucy looked like:

Let's hope we get a good picture like that of Olive...and that Olive is still an "Olive" and not a boy! haha. It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world; but, we would have to do a lot of shopping.

Oh, and for the few in the family, we will also be verifying that only one baby exists....crazy people...haha.

Have a fantastic weekend!