Wardrobe Update

With Hadley continuing to grow inside my belly, I have had to make a few updates to my wardrobe.  Thanks to my sweet in-laws who gave me a gift card, I was able to get a few pieces that I really love!  My packages came in the mail the other day, so I thought I’d share my new favorites!

 

We also have a wedding coming up at the end of next month that I needed something a little fancier for since it’s black tie.  Black tie and maternity do not exactly go together, but hopefully with accessories I can make this dress work…

I have a denim skirt and pair of maternity jeans already that I have been living in.  I really think that all clothes should be this comfortable… I am seriously going to have a hard time going back to regular clothing after the “comfort belly” tops that my jeans and skirt have!

P.S.  I know I haven’t done a belly picture update… I’ll get one up this week!

Little bumps in the road…

Life isn’t always sunshine and roses.  As tempting as it is to paint life that way on this blog, that wouldn’t be true to you or to my own memories (although who really wants to remember the bad days?).  Yesterday was one of those days that I wouldn’t mind forgetting about, but it’s a part of this life and this pregnancy, so I’m going to document it.  

I had a routine doctor’s appointment for my 20W check-up in the morning.  Everything was going great; step on the scale: check, blood pressure: check, telling me I had to drink the lovely orange sugary drink for GD at my next appt: check, pee in a cup: check, have a seat and wait for the doctor: check.  My doctor came in and all was still fine.  We talked briefly about our last appointment a couple weeks ago where we had the “big” ultrasound and found out the gender.  (The doctor isn’t there for that appointment – just the ultrasound tech.)  She scanned over the results, exclaimed “oh! We’re having a girl!”  then proceeded to say everything looked great, right on track and they found a small cyst and some fluid in the kidneys, and now let’s listen to baby girl’s heartbeat.  Ok great, (swoosh swoosh swoosh swoosh)…. wait…. WHAT?  My doctor had glossed so quickly over the last bit of findings that I almost didn’t even catch it.  Back up a second, a cyst?  Fluid where?  What does that mean?  “Oh they’re just really soft markers, really not anything to worry about, we’ll just watch ‘em on ultrasound and they should hopefully go away on their own.”  Umm… soft markers for what?  What do you mean they should go away on their own?  “Well, they are really soft markers for the possibility of a chromosome abnormality, but they typically go away by the third trimester so we’ll just keep an eye on them.  Oh, we just got the flu shot in too, I’d like to get you one while you’re here, let me go write up an order for that.  Be right back.”   Oh, okay.  I sat there feeling totally fine, got my flu shot and was on my way out the door.

It wasn’t until I was in my car on the way home that my thoughts started to catch up with me.  “Wait, where did she say the cyst was?  How big was it?  How much fluid was in the kidney?  Which kidney was it?  What if they don’t go away?  When will I get another U/S to know if they went away?  What did I do wrong to cause this?  How can I make it go away?  Surely there’s something I can eat or drink or take to make them go away? And OH, why is my arm hurting so bad?  Something about a flu shot? 

I got home and called the doctor back to get the specifics that I failed to catch while I was actually in the office.  They explained that they found a “small” CPC (Choroid Plexus Cyst) – which is a big term for a cyst in the Choroid Plexus area of the brain, and that they also saw some unilateral (in just one) fluid in a kidney that was on the “upper limit of normal” at 7mm.  They told me both of these are very common to pop up in second trimester ultrasounds and that they typically resolve themselves in utero by the third trimester.  And that was about all they had to say. 

Needless to say I spent most of my afternoon and evening googling (feel free to google for yourself) both of these terms to find a lot of other people out there with the same “diagnosis” where their doctors, too, were completely calm and almost glossed over the terms.  I guess that should bring me some comfort.  They really were common and my doctor wasn’t the only doctor who didn’t seem to realize the weight behind what she was saying to a expectant mother. 

So now we wait.  And pray.  And last night, while I was up not feeling so great from my day of emotions and flu shot, I was about to get up to go to bed and thought “Lord, let me just feel a little kick, okay, a big kick, to know that Hadley is ok in there and everything will be fine.”  Nothing.  I sat in the silence and heard “Get up.  Trust ME, my child.”  So what did I do?  I waited.  “c’mon, one kick.”  Nothing.  After a couple minutes I got up and immediately felt a huge kick underneath my belly button.   “Ok God… I get it.  You’re in control here, not me.”  So I’ll find comfort in the fact that God isn’t surprised by any of this and I’ll wait.  And pray.

Blog Design… again

I just finished my sister’s blog design and wanted to make sure I blogged about it before I forgot.  She is currently in the middle of blogging about her recent mission trip to the Dominican Republic and I HIGHLY recommend you take the time to click over there and read a post or two, maybe even follow her blog so you can catch the rest of her updates.  I’m not just saying that because she’s my sister, I really do think it would be worth your time!  I think I have yet to read a post from her trip that hasn’t made me tear up a little…

Without further adieu… here’s the design.  You can click on the picture to be taken directly to her blog.

On a slightly related note, I am trying to think of a good name for my blog designs.  I am still learning, but it might be nice to have a little design business on the side eventually, so I’d like to make a little tag to put on the blogs I design.  Just a simple “Designed by…” but I can’t decide on a name!  Although I think I may be blogging solely for my family as I rarely get any comments, I thought I’d throw the question out there to the blogging world to see if anyone out there has any suggestions? 

Let me know what you think!  About Katie’s blog, the new design or a good name for my designs! 

p.s. I am working on the blog design page on this site – you can see some samples of the designs, but it’s still MAJORLY under construction… 

It’s a…

GIRL!  Seeing as how there was only a matter of hours left on the poll in the sidebar, and we already announced it to family and on facebook, I figured I should update the blog as well!  We are so thrilled and can’t wait to meet our little Hadley! 

Creative Juices

Staying home and finally feeling better (despite the fact that I have yet to get that SURGE of energy everyone talks about in the second trimester) has started to get my creativity flowing again.  I thought I’d post a couple projects I’ve been working on lately! 
First up, I made a sign for a friend’s classroom (it’s actually for the teacher I student taught with last spring).  She had been wanting something with the school letters (SCMS) and colors.  We went to Hobby Lobby together and bought a canvas, some scrapbook paper and some letters and here’s the final product!

Amy and I also went with another friend, Melissa, to a paint-your-own-pottery place here.  I decided to make a platter with our name on it (especially with football season coming up, you can never have too many platters!)  I really wasn’t sure how well this would turn out, but overall, I’m pretty pleased with it!  The fleur-de-lis on the sides are actual little add-ons that I painted brown and then had them glue on prior to baking it all together.  This won’t be the final resting place for the platter, but it was the most accessible holder I had to get a picture of it. :)

And last, for now, a sneak peak at the blog design I’m working on for my sister…
Stay tuned for some serious baby C updates coming up!! 

Boy or Girl?

With the big ultrasound coming up next week, I thought  I’d make a list of all the wives’ tales I’ve come across so far that are supposed to tell you whether or not you’ll have a boy or a girl.  Initially, I thought for sure it was a girl, but the last few weeks I have started thinking it’s a boy, so really, I think we will be surprised either way when we find out!  Here’s the list…

• Baby’s heart rate:  If the HR is >140, then it’s a girl; if it’s <140; it’s a boy
• = GIRL
• Acne: If your skin gets worse during the pregnancy, it’s a girl; if it stays the same or gets better, it’s a boy
• = GIRL
• Maternal Grandmother: If the maternal grandmother has gray hair it’s a boy; if she doesn’t (whether natural or dyed) it’s a girl
• =GIRL
• Sum of the mother’s age + the month conceived: Odd = girl; even = boy
• =GIRL
• Hair on legs:  If the hair on your legs grows faster it’s a boy; if it stays the same or stops it’s a girl
• = BOY
• Carrying: If you’re carrying low and all in front it’s a boy; high and wide = girl
• This one is a little hard to tell so far, but I’ve been told it looks like I’m carrying low, which = BOY
• Feet:  If they are colder than usual it’s a boy; normal or warmer it’s a girl
• = GIRL (although this probably has something to do with the month or so of 100+ degree days we’ve had here)
• Morning Sickness:  If you had it = girl, if you didn’t = boy
• = GIRL
• Chinese Gender Prediction: predicts based on the mother’s age (you are supposed to calculate your ‘lunar age’ and I have no idea how to do that.  Probably why I can’t get similar results on them) and the conception month. 
• If I go with my regular age, the charts all say BOY
• If I go with what some pages calculate to be my “lunar age”, then the charts say GIRL (although I found one that still said BOY)

TOTAL:  GIRL = 6 (and a half?)

          BOY = 2 (and a half?)

So what do you think?  You can vote in the poll on the side or leave a comment!

18 weeks…

I am officially 18 weeks today (so starting my 19th week) and we have our big ultrasound next week!  I don’t have a belly pic this week (it really hasn’t changed much – if anything I swear it has gone down just a tad), but I thought I’d do the weekly update anyways.  Baby is now the size of a sweet potato (ready to get past this week... that is not a very 'cute' picture down there) and will be the size of a large mango by the end of this week! 
This week, baby “has become amazingly mobile (at least compared to me), passing the hours yawning, hiccupping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. And, baby's finally big enough that you'll be able to feel those movements soon.”
As for me… not a whole lot has changed since my 16 week post. 
How Far Along: 18 weeks
Total Weight Gain: 6 pounds
Maternity Clothes: I have one pair of jeans left that I can button (two if I’m only wearing them for like an hour first thing in the morning).  I have a pair of maternity jeans and a maternity skirt that I pretty much live in now. 
Gender: What do you think?  Vote to the side…
Movement: I still don’t really know what I’m trying to feel.  I think I’m feeling little kicks occasionally, but they are still pretty subtle and feel almost like someone flicking me from the inside. 
Food Craving: Nothing specific really – the biggest "food story” lately is that I have to eat every 2-3 hours.  Twice now I have been out shopping with a girlfriend and suddenly turn to them and say “Um… can we take a lunch break?  I need to eat now!” 
What I miss: (Same as last time… hopefully this will get better as soon as this heat is outta here!)  Being able to walk around outside without feeling like I’m going to pass out.  This baby has the ability to zap up every ounce of water inside of me so I am constantly drinking water!
Sleep: I toss and turn throughout the night.  I think this is just my body’s way of preparing me for the extreme lack of sleep to come!

Seriously Summer?

114 degrees? Seriously? I don't think I have ever been more ready for fall to get here.  We have had highs from 101-105 all week long.  This wasn't even from my car sitting in the sun - it was in the shade of our garage!   Fall is my favorite season, but I think I will be dancing in the streets when that first cool breeze blows through after a summer like this. 

Girl’s Week

This past week, one of my closest girlfriends/college roommate and her 20 month old (happy 20 months today Kate!) daughter came to stay with us.  Even though by some standards we didn’t do much, it was one of the best weeks I have had all summer!  I took lots of pictures and 3 different videos of little miss KateKate while they were here, so I thought I’d share.  Unfortunately I didn’t get a video of Kate saying “hidog!” outside out back window (no, we don’t have a dog, but our neighbors do, and that’s all it took to get her excited) every single morning when she woke up.  Or saying “hidog!” when she walked past this little dog figurine/doorstop we have in the guest room.  She’s just got the cutest little voice!  On top of all that, I got to spend some good girl time chatting with Becky – when we lived together in college we could literally talk an entire night away and it was so nice to relive some of that. 
Video #1:  Unfortunately Kate didn’t get to see much of Matt because of her sleep schedule and his work schedule, but she did discover that his name was pretty easy to say, so she would repeat it over and over.  This is me, repeatedly asking her who she was going to call just so I could hear her say Matt some more.

And a couple pictures before the next video…

Kate striking a pose with Max – her dog

Happy little girl!

 

Video #2: Kate loves to sneak up on someone who is “sleeping” and wake them up by jumping and screaming.  For this video though she was a little distracted by the camera and had her best behavior on.  I pulled out the camera and caught the tale end of a “CHEEEEEESE” with a huge smile.  She was lovin’ this camera.  She was also a little more fascinated by seeing Becky through the camera than the actual real life Becky, so she came up to me a couple times, crawled all over me to get to the camera only to be disappointed when she turned it and it suddenly didn’t show her mama anymore.

And a few more pictures before the last video… I had fun playing around with the editing of these.  I swear you’d think I was at least related to this child I’ve posted so much about her, but I’m not.  I just love her to pieces anyways though!


Video #3:  A little more of Kate saying Matt over and over, a quick “hidog!”, a little baby babble and then we had to go look for “nana” – her name for her baby (and all babies).

Ok – I think that’s probably definitely enough (for now).  Hope you enjoyed your glimpse into our week!

16 weeks

This is a little overdue seeing as how I am now 16 weeks and 3 or 4 days, but better late than never, right? I am going to try to start filling out this little “questionnaire” with each bump post to keep track of everything throughout the pregnancy.

Right now, baby is about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces or so.  Watch what you say... tiny bones forming in baby's ears mean the little one can now pick up your voice. Eyebrows, lashes and hair are starting to fill in, and taste buds are forming.  Baby’s legs are much more developed.  The eyes have come closer together so that they face forward, and the baby begins to blink. Plus, tiny toenails are beginning to form.

How Far Along: 16 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 5 pounds (although by the end of the day that is closer to 8 lbs!)

Maternity Clothes: I can still button most of my jeans (again, by the end of the day though I am using a rubber band through the button hole!), but I have a maternity skirt and pair of jeans so far that are FAR more comfy than my regular jeans.

Gender: Counting down to August 17th!

Movement: I have felt little pops/flutters occasionally.  Feels like bubbles popping or popcorn popping inside of me.  It tends to happen much more in the evenings/at night.  Hopefully that’s not a sign that baby won’t sleep at night!

Food Craving: Still craving fruit – although I can finally eat vegetables again.  Lately, I’ve been craving ceasar salads a lot (I know, super healthy, right?)

What I miss: Being able to walk around outside without feeling like I’m going to pass out.  This baby has the ability to zap up every ounce of water inside of me so I am constantly drinking water!

Sleep: I have a little bit of insomnia when I head to bed at night – typically I have to lay there for a couple hours before I can fall asleep.  I’m also using extra pillows now to help my back.

Hard working

I have to brag on Matt for a minute… I wish I had a picture of him outside last weekend in the yard!  We have had temps in the 100s+ and he has still been going out and working in the yard to keep things looking nice!  Last weekend he put some stone in around the rest of our garden beds.  I think it looks great! 

Don’t mind the construction going on next to the house… oh how THRILLED I will be when they are done!