No Turning Back

Ugh - Monday. I am so sad to say good-bye to the weekend :( Especially a productive one! Nick and I actually got quite a bit of our to-do list done, and it feels so nice! I need more of those days! Unfortunately we didn't get any of the big stuff done - like buying a mommy car (yeah - we've been saying we were going to do this since May - It's just such torture!) or planning the rest of our vacation that we are taking in October, but I think I can be happy with baby steps. We had a huge list of things around the house that we needed to get so we did some shopping. Nick cleaned the bathrooms including the shower (oh so sad that I'm not allowed to breathe in chemicals...) :) and did other handi-work around the house like fixing leaking faucets (seems to happen a lot...) and yardwork. I even got some scrapbooking done so not only was it a productive weekend, but fun too :) But perhaps most exciting is that I bought maternity clothes! And now there is no turning back - I am sooooo comfortable in these elastic waisted pants and poofy tops - I have no reason to go back! I'm sure if I asked my other pregnant friends that are nearing the end they would say that they are done with maternity clothes and want their normal clothes back, but right now these are the greatest! It's hard to imagine wanting to wear normal clothes ever again :)

It was a pretty entertaining experience to try them on in the store too. I went to Motherhood Maternity and they have a velcro belly that you can try on with your clothes so you can see what you will look like as you get bigger. It was really strange - it's one thing to know that you are going to look like that someday, and its another to actually see it. I couldn't believe how weird I looked! But I guess since it happens gradually I will adjust to it slowly... But wow - its going to strange. Very exciting though :)

As much as I am glad it happens slowly so I can adjust slowly, it is hard to be patient! I want baby to grow faster! :) Some days I feel like baby is growing so fast and I look huge, and then the next day I feel like you can't even tell :( I'm hoping the next few weeks will be a turning point - I'm supposedly going to be gaining about a pound a week from here on out, so it can't be too much longer, right?

14 Weeks

So according to thebump.com, baby is now the size of a lemon! It says baby is busy with thumb sucking, toe wiggling, (not so cute but equally amazing) making urine, and breathing amniotic fluid as the liver, kidneys, and spleen continue to develop.

I sent an email to Nick with this info, asking how adorable is baby?!?! And this was his response: "Yeah, really really cute! I'm so excited to be a Dad!....my eyes are watering : )"

Priceless :)

GREAT Grandparents

I was really fortunate that I was able to meet (and remember!) 3 of my great grandparents. Of course I was young and not able to fully appreciate how cool that was - I didn't get to ask them all the things I would have asked them now about their life and experiences and what their childhood was like. They grew up in such a different time - I wish I knew more about it, and more about them. But being young I totally took those things for granted and maybe didn't appreciate their being there as much as I should have. But at least I can remember, and will never forget, that when I was with them I had fun. I know they spoiled me and most importantly, I know they loved me. I don't have a lot of memories, but the ones that I have are awesome - I know they were very special people.

Other very special people are my grandparents. My grandparents ROCK! And I am soooooo excited that they are going to be GREAT grandparents. Even more excited that Nick and I now (after this weekend) have 3 of the 4 sets of grandparents in Tucson. Yep - all of my grandparents live here (never thought that would happen!) now that Grandma Carol and Grandpa Gene (my Mom's parents) have made the move from southern California. We just need Nick's Mom's parents to move here and then that will be all of them! (Fortunately they make trips to Tucson 2-3 times a year so we still get to see them some).

But it was a pretty exciting weekend - Grandma and Grandpa got the keys to their new house (just built!) and got to start on all the fun things that go on when you get a new house. Aunt Jan, Uncle Nick, and Uncle Keith came out to help and I think everyone made a lot of progress! After the weekend, the garage floor is epoxied, the office desk put together, the laundry room cabinet put together, shelving paper on every shelf, and I think most of the ceiling fans are up too! It was fun to hang out with everyone and help where we could (I wasn't so much help, but I did what I could) :) No chemicals or heavy lifting, but there was other stuff to do.

I don't think it will take Grandma and Grandpa long to settle in - they seem to be very on top of things which is super impressive especially considering they haven't moved in 40-something years :) But it's super exciting that they are here and I know baby will be excited that they are here too. All of our grandparents are going to be wonderful great grandparents!

Welcome, Second Trimester

Well different books and websites seem to disagree slightly on when the second trimester starts. But it seems like it is generally around week 13/14. So maybe I'm rushing things a little, but I'm saying hello to second trimester! My symptoms seem to be going that direction anyway, so that's sort of a nice change. The complete exhaustion is gone. I'm still tired-ish, but I blame that on work and everything else going on. Overall I know I have a lot more energy than before - all my spare time is no longer spent on the couch! I actually have started getting a move on and going through things around the house and reorganizing and consolidating to make some space for baby! As many of you know there has long been the debate about who would give up their room once the baby was born and I am happy to say an agreement has been reached! For now :) Nick's room will become the baby room and his stuff will get moved to my room where we will have a shared room. There is nowhere near enough space for all the junk that we both have in the one room, so it is calling for some reorganizing and utilization of the attic :) But seriously, why are we keeping it if we are just going to put it in the attic? I'm a big fan of the idea that if you haven't used it in a year, you don't need it. Nick subscribes to the idea that he must save any and everything because who knows when he will need/want it. Sure, he hasn't touched anything in the closet in his room in the 4 years that it's been there, but you never know, right? :)

Anyway, I'm getting way off track. I was just so proud of the progress that I've made recently that I had to share that I've actually been productive and not a total bump on the log. Hooray! So yes - feeling less tired and the urge to spontaneously barf is ceasing. I never did barf which is pretty exciting, but trust me - there were times that I wanted to! But those feelings have been replaced my HEADACHES!!!!!!! I've always been one to get headaches anyway - especially during the summer. But now that I KNOW that I am drinking enough water we can rule out the dehydration factor. Apparently some women get headaches. I'm apparently one of them :(

The other issue that I am having is that I AM SO HUNGRY ALL THE TIME! I know that I am not eating for 2 - I have been reminded over and over that I'm only supposed to eat an extra 300 calories a day. And I have been sticking to that, but honestly - it is miserable. I have an appetite that I could easily eat for 2! Probably 3! It is so hard to control! My tummy is rumbling all the time! Ugh, I don't know what to do about it - I'm trying to use my extra calories on healthy things, but I feel like I could eat all the apples in the world and it still wouldn't fill me up! Fruit and veggies do not make me full. Potatoes do :) But potatoes make me fat... Ugh, this is going to be one of those things I struggle with all pregnancy - I can tell :(

Wish me luck!

Math

1 gallon of water a day = 128oz of water
1 shrinking bladder = 8 oz (IF I"M LUCKY!!!)/pee
128oz/(8oz/pee) = 16 pee trips

No wonder I'm exhausted!

WOW

We had our 12 week ultrasound on Friday and all I can say is WOW! It was amazing! We got to watch baby for like 20 minutes while the nurse tried to get it in the right position to get the pictures she needed and it was So AWESOME!!!!! Our baby is SO CUTE! The nurse said that he/she is healthy (yea!!!!!!) and very active which I could definitely see! It kept putting its arm above its head like it was relaxing on it - something Mom says I always used to do. And something I always still do - it kept strecthing out its legs as much as it could. It looks like it has long legs! I couldn't believe how much it could stretch! I don't know how much I am going to apreciate that as it gets bigger :) Nick said he was really surprised I couldn't feel it moving because it really was all over the place. But hopefully soon! The nurse said that based on my build I would probably start to feel the baby early-ish around 16-17 weeks. Which is so soon - my birthday week! Which is also when baby can start hearing. I am so excited!!!!!

Here are a few of the ultrasound pictures we got. I wish I could have gotten a video of baby moving, but these are still pretty darn cute :)

Bring on the FAT clothes!

OH -MY - GOODNESS I can't even believe how depressing every morning is to get ready for work only to find yet another pair of pants does not fit me! I realize of course that I am supposed to be growing and its very exciting to know that the baby is getting bigger - I'm just really not a fan of the "are you pregnant or just fat?" stage. I want to either be normal or obvious pregnant! None of this in-between stuff.

I have yet to buy maternity clothes and with today being 12 weeks officially it is looking like that time is approaching faster every day. The main problem is my work pants. I'm totally fine in jeans - I probably have a few more weeks in my jeans, but my work pants fall right at the part of my waist that is growing the fastest. And just because I can button the pants in the morning does not make it a good idea to wear them. Because I grow throughout the day - water and food and they just get tighter and tighter! Not to mention I sit down all day meaning the pants dig into my tummy and make it very uncomfortable :(

So I am resorting to my fat clothes. As my waist increases my wardrobe diminishes and I am busting out the dresses/skirts and anything with elastic. I've managed to stay comfortable the last 2 days, but I really think I am going to need to go shopping soon.

Unless they allow jeans and pjs at work every day :)

Celebrating 5 Years

Wow, 5 years of marriage! It seems like just yesterday we were having a wedding, but at the same time I feel like I can't remember life before marriage. Very strange. But very wonderful :)

To celebrate we took a trip to Sedona. I hadn't been there in at least 10 years and Nick had never been there and we wanted to go somewhere we hadn't been together. I had forgotten how beautiful it is. Wow. It is amazing that it is so close too - such a short drive for such amazing scenery! And the smells - yum! Pine, dirt and water!!!! It doesn't get any better than that.



We arrived Thursday and spent most of that day exploring the resort and Uptown Sedona. We stayed at the L'Auberge which was AMAZING. I have never stayed at a place that nice. It was right on the river and there were all sorts of seating areas where you could just hang out and watch the ducks play and enjoy the relaxing sound of the water. It was so beautiful and peaceful! And they had all sorts of things there that you wouldn't really think would make a difference, but the little extra really made you feel special. Like when we walked into the lobby they had ice water with orange in it (super yummy, wouldn't have ever thought to do that) and chocolate chip cookies for people to eat. And they had complimentary wine and cheese (just cheese for me!) tastings every evening and coffee and scones every morning. It just seemed like they really made an effort to make their guests feel welcome. The only little extra that I didn't care for was the mandatory valet parking. We can park our own car, thank you. Especially because you feel pressure to get in and out of the car so quickly and sometimes you forget stuff in there. Like after we went to Slide Rock we left our wet socks in there and the next morning when the valet brought the car to us we were mortified to discover that wet socks left overnight = stinky stinky car!!!!! It would have been fine if we were the ones to discover that, but no, some unsuspecting valet was the first victim. Yeah, we had to throw those socks away...

Uptown Sedona was cute. It was just a short hike up the hill from where we were staying. We had burgers there at a place with an amazing view of the red rocks after checking in but didn't hang out too long. We peaked at a few of the shops but then spent the rest of the day by the river.



Friday we took the 6 mile West Fork hike. The scenery was beautiful and the hike was relaxing. We had to cross the river quite a few times, but there were enough rocks and logs to get from one side to another relatively easily. It wasn't a difficult hike, but it wore me out pretty good. After we'd gotten all sweaty and gross we went to Slide Rock which was packed! There were so many people there! Fortunately it is a big enough place that you can still find a place to hang out and we found a couple of rocks to sit on and hung out in the refreshing icy water. And of course I did the water slide. I hadn't planned on it, but it didn't seem like it went too fast so I thought the baby would have fun :) And it was fun! There's just something about being in moving water that is super fun!!!!!





That night we had the most amazing dinner ever! The L'Auberge has a restaurant right by the river and it is so romantic! And the food was amazing - I had fillet mignon and Nick had chicken and I seriously didn't know food could taste that good. There were so many flavors! Wow. I could hardly move after stuffing myself so much. But it was really nice - they didn't make you :) They didn't feed you and rush you out of there. With everything they really took their time and let you feel like you could take your time and relax and enjoy the atmosphere. It was awesome!!!! Probably the highlight of the trip.

On Saturday we had amazingly beautiful weather - it rained all day!!!!! We went to Cathedral Rock and walked around there for a while. I think we took a million pictures. The rocks were beautiful and every view was different! Supposedly Cathedral Rock is the most photographed rock formation in Arizona.



For lunch we went to the Enchantment Resort where the restaurant faces the rocks and has huge windows so you have an amazing view no matter where you are seated. It was really cool and the food was yummy too. I think next time we go to Sedona we might stay there. We LOVED the L'Auberge, but it would be fun to stay somewhere new and this place is a definite possibility. (Because I guarantee we will be going back to Sedona!)

After lunch we went back to hang around by the river more. I think I could have spent the entire 3 days there. We finally went to the wine and cheese tasting (we should have gone the fist 2 days - I didn't realize how yummy it would be) and then we drove to the airport because the clouds had decided to clear just before sunset and you can see the sunset and the whole city and it is very pretty. The parking lot was a complete mud hole from the rain, but I think the view was worth it.

Sunday we spent some more time at the river before leaving for the Grand Canyon. The drive there was quite an adventure. We had some car issues before leaving - some rattling/squealing that we think was caused by the rain. But it turned out to be a belt that Nick fixed with some conditioning spray and then we were off! An hour later than we had planned, but hey, it could have been worse. The drivers on the way were very slow and it was a one lane road for a good part of it, but we finally made it. Only to discover that the entrance few was $25, we only had $17 in cash, and their debit machine was down. So we had to turn around and go back to get money in the little town just before. Now here is where pregnancy brain comes in because I had $40 cash "emergency" money in my wallet. Except that I never count it for anything because its "emergency" money. So I let us drive all the way back to town before I realized I had it. Oops :) But we finally made it and WOW. I hadn't been to the Grand Canyon since I was 7 and I definitely did not remember how amazing it was. It is HUGE!!!!! So awesome! We walked around a little, took lots of pictures, and have resolved to (someday) hike it. And I figured it would be appropriate to take my first baby belly picture here :) I don't know that it looks as big as it feels - it feels huge!!!!



Anyway, It was a very fun, relaxing trip - an awesome way to celebrate 5 years!

Tough Call

A lot of people have asked if I want a boy or girl. Well, I want one of each eventually, so I really have no preference which comes first. There are lots of reasons to be excited about either, but I was reading a scrapbooking blog yesterday and they had a segment that I thought was pretty entertaining (and scary). It sounds like a little boy would be a lot of work...

So here it is: "Why boys need parents"

1.) A king size waterbed holds enough water to fill a 2000 sq. ft. house 4 inches deep.

2.) If you spray hair spray on dust bunnies and run over them with roller blades, they can ignite.

3.) A 3-year old Boy's voice is louder than 200 adults in a crowded restaurant.

4.) If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not strong enough to rotate a 42 pound Boy wearing Batman underwear and a Superman cape. It is strong enough, however, if tied to a paint can, to spread paint on all four walls of a 20x20 ft. room.

5.) You should not throw baseballs up when the ceiling fan is on. When using a ceiling fan as a bat, you have to throw the ball up a few times before you get a hit. A ceiling fan can hit a baseball a long way.

6.) The glass in windows (even double-pane) doesn't stop a baseball hit by a ceiling fan.

7.) When you hear the toilet flush and the words 'uh oh', it's already too late.

8.) Brake fluid mixed with Clorox makes smoke, and lots of it.

9.) A six-year old Boy can start a fire with a flint rock even though a 36- year old man says he can only do it in the movies.

10.) Certain Lego's will pass through the digestive tract of a 4-year old Boy.

11.) Play dough and microwave should not be used in the same sentence.

12.) Super glue is forever.

13.) No matter how much Jell-O you put in a swimming pool you still can't walk on water.

14.) Pool filters do not like Jell-O.

15.) VCR's do not eject 'PB & J' sandwiches even though TV
commercials show they do.

16.) Garbage bags do not make good parachutes.

17.) Marbles in gas tanks make lots of noise when driving.

18.) You probably DO NOT want to know what that odor is.

19.) Always look in the oven before you turn it on;
plastic toys do not like ovens.

20.) The fire department in Austin, TX has a 5-minute response time.

21.) The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make
earthworms dizzy.

22.) It will, however, make cats dizzy.

23.) Cats throw up twice their body weight when dizzy.

24.) 80% of Women will pass this on to almost all of their friends,
with or without kids.

25.) 80% of Men who read this will try mixing the Clorox
and brake fluid.