All I Have The Energy To Update On...

I'm. So. Sick. Of. Coughing.

Went to the dr. yesterday to find out the somewhat dreaded words: "it's viral". Which means it's not something super serious like pnuemonia (good news) however it also means that, as anticipated, I just have to keep suffering through until it decides to leave my body (bad news).

I at least got a good night of sleep last night for the first time in over a week. I've been hacking like crazy since I woke up though. Eh, you win some, you lose some.

Off to work...

Pregnancy Update - Week 32

Feels crazy to say I'm in Week 32. The numbers seem to be ticking away faster and faster. It's a good thing because I'm starting to get impatient - I want to meet Sonnie face-to-face!! I don't typically like to wish time away but since the hospital tour and the 3D ultrasound, my excitement has gone into overdrive. :) I've always been a very visual person so it's not surprising that by adding such a clear image of her face to my mind makes every kick and twist and turn that's going on in my belly so much more real. Maybe that sounds weird but it's true. I can better picture where she is (especially since I know she's head down already too) and what it feels like she may be doing in there. I had an especially strong visual the night she started using my ribs as a kick board. ;)

Physically, I'm feeling very 8 months pregnant. In some ways it's kinda fun...I'm sure there are people who think I'm crazy for saying that but when you previously began to sadly accept that you'd never do the pregnant waddle, there really is joy in catching yourself doing it. And I love the nurturing part of rubbing my belly...I do it all the time without even realizing that I am. I feel very blessed to share this connection with her and in spite of the discomfort, there's a lot to this that I really enjoy. Not to be unreal about what's happening though, this is all heavily accompianied by plenty of discomfort: there's leg pain, back pain, difficulty getting up, difficulty getting comfortable, etc. but the insomnia is about on my last nerve...it's been heightened this week by a wretched cough that's keeping me up more than anything. If this cold follows it's typical historical pattern, I've still got a few days to go before the cough will subside. I've ended up on the couch the last few nights to better prop myself up but mostly just to give poor Eric a reprieve from my incessant coughing, but I hate sleeping separate from him.

Which highlights my emotional state: increasingly impatient/moody.

I've always been one to have very heightened cycles. I get major mood swings and it's not just during that week but in the weeks leading up to it as well (sorry if this is TMI to any boys reading - fact of life though!). I assumed b/c of that, I'd be an emotional wreck all through this pregnancy. Much to my surprise, I've actually been fairly even keel. At least not beyond just normal moodiness that is simply part of being a human, anyway. Oh but these last few weeks, I feel my patience slipping from me. I'm more easily irritated. I'm also just more emotional overall, crying more easily and yes, even over not getting to sleep next to my husband b/c I'm coughing too hard for him to sleep at all. The first night I finally gave in to sleeping on the couch, I started out TICKED off by the coughing (like that crazy "oh, she's got that look in her eye; better get back" ticked off). Then I started crying b/c I was lonely for Eric, and then finished crying b/c I was so happy to be so lonely for my husband who was only a floor away. Yeah, I think it's clear that I'm kind of a hot mess right now. You might consider praying for those who have to deal with me regularly. :)

Something I posted about a few weeks ago was our need for a new vehicle. Well, Eric took the reigns on that and we are now the proud owners of a 97 Honda Odyssey MiniVan!! Don't let it's age fool you. It's a great vehicle - only 80,000 miles and it's been my experience that Honda vs. other car years are the same as people to dog years. Any other car you think 80,000 is getting up there but this van's just getting started! :) Got a 250,000 mile Civic to prove it. Okay, Honda commercial over... I'm just so impressed with Eric's find on this. And it was so nice that he just took care of it. I've never felt comfortable with the car buying process so for him to just handle it without my involvement was an act of true love in my eyes. ;) One night he's doing a quick look for things online and by the next afternoon, we were heading in to pick it up. Here's a picture of our newbie...

For Eric's sake, I'll have to take a new one with the hubcaps that are now all one color but for the time being, this will do.  We keep calling it a CarVan b/c it's just not all that big on the outside. Especially not for how roomy it feels on the inside. It's so nice to have a vehicle we can all ride comfortably in.

Well, I think that covers the Week 32 update. On this weekend's agenda is to get the office/where-a-lot-of-baby's-stuff-is-going-but-it-won't-be-a-full-fledged-nursery cleaned up so we can actually fit her stuff in it. And if there's time, maybe check out recliners. After that, it's just a matter of having baby showers and setting things up. Work is throwing me a shower on the 25th and the family one is a month from today on May 14th. I'm so excited about both. My dear friend/office mate, Elizabeth, asked me about preferences for the work one and my reply sums up where I am: "I don't really have preferences about the food & presents. I'm just excited to have a party to celebrate that I'm actually having a baby!" I think I'm most excited to just have the time to gush about all of her kicks and moves and how I'm feeling and how she's doing. I know I'm gonna risk sounding cheesy here but I don't care b/c it's how I feel: I'll be so grateful for the work that goes into the food prep and the presents of course but really, it's about celebrating this amazing miracle that's growing inside of me. God's blessed us with an amazing gift - what could be better than that?!? :)

3D Ultrasound Pics!!

So we had our 3D ultrasound today and it was SO much fun!! I was already looking forward to it but enjoyed it even more than I anticipated. I just had to hop on here to post pics.

All curled up in a ball :) This didn't surprise me at all because that's about how it feels that she's laying most of the time. I'm hoping it means she'll be a little cuddle bug.



The chubby cheeks picture - so cute!!



With her little hand up by her face. There was a LOT of effort that went into all of these pictures to get any without her hands completely in front of her face!



This one is my favorite - I love that little pointer finger. And I love this one b/c it seems like you can really tell what she looks like. Such a clear picture. Mommy thinks she is just the most beautiful baby she's ever seen. ♥

Between the baby stuff that's starting to come in, the hospital tour we had on Sunday and these pictures, I'm suddenly very impatient for June to get here!! ♥ I'm smitten...absolutely smitten. ♥ 

Apparently it's in week 31...

My last post title asked when nesting takes precedence over a nap. My title this time answers that. As of last weekend, we had one dress purchased, a travel system chosen but not purchased and a few things thought out in our minds of how to rearrange furniture to accommodate one more person and all the stuff that comes with one that size. No birthing classes taken. Not really anything beyond the pre-natal care was taking place. Since last weekend, here's what we've accomplished:

• Rearranged the living room (not a small feat since it involved mounting the TV to the wall, running some different wiring, etc.)
• Cleaned the basement (had to find a place for all the stuff that no longer needed to go in the living room to be without it just going into a messy pile; a project that had been on my mind every time I'd head down to do laundry)
• Bought & assembled new dining furniture - fits MUCH better with the space we have!! We could actually all 5 sit down for lunch yesterday and not feel like we were on top of each other.
• Picked up Sonnie's crib - a hand-me-down from a friend along with a mattress, sheets, a never-opened bumper pad, and a boppy pillow. This is the same friend that handed off a bunch of maternity clothes to me - she's spoiled me rotten!!
• Ordered our travel system - it's the 2011 version of the one I posted about a few posts ago. It's so freaking pretty. Eric said I better hope this baby really is a girl b/c it's MUCH more girly than I'm giving it credit for. Guess we'll get further confirmation when we head to our 3D/4D ultrasound on Tuesday!! :)
• Registered at Babies R Us - that took a lot more time than I gave it credit for. We didn't even have anywhere near as much to register for b/c a lot of the big items we already have, were getting used from someone or knew we wanted it from another store. My son, Roma, tagged along for this and did all the scanning which I think he really enjoyed.
• Went to do our hospital tour - we had a great nurse doing our tour. She was very reassuring and I felt comfortable there. I actually got quite emotional during two times that she started discussing ways the mother & baby bond through skin-to-skin contact or "kangaroo care". I don't know why but I teared up both times (in a good way). I'm so looking forward to her arrival. :)

So where napping was taking precedence before, nesting is starting to take over. Oh, that and insomnia. Now that I'm in my last week of my 7th month, I'm reeeeeeaaaalllllyyyyy feeling like I'm in my THIRD trimester. It's hard to get up and down. My back hurts a lot more. My legs hurt. And sleeping might as well be an afterthought. The effort it takes to turn over coupled with the foot in my rib (at least I think that's what she's doing in there...whatever it is, it impedes sleeping!) or the fact that on my right side I can't breathe as well but on my left side my hip goes numb, I've just given up. I'll start sleeping better in 2014.

There's still a lot to do. Mainly in our office where a lot of her stuff will go. Our closets need some MAJOR attention - they're the spots that have potential to put stuff but we are definitely not using those spaces wisely. You know when you move and you've got that stack of stuff that you know you should really go through but just don't have the energy to so it all gets shoved somewhere? That's the essence of nearly all of our closet space. Oh, and there's the whole idea of purchasing a different vehicle that we can all fit into. The 4-door civic isn't quite going to cut it with 2 car seats, a booster, and 3 more people! Not that the need is there all the time but when it is, I don't want to deal with driving separately everywhere we go. So that's on the not-too-distant to-do list.

But for now, it's time to start another week at work. Roma starts a new quarter this week at school and he's really excited to get his report card from the last one. Grades went up AGAIN!! Wahoo! And he starts track meets this week. (I'm really hoping the weather starts improving for these meets. I don't think my immune system can handle sitting out in cold rain!!) Talk about two different worlds. Registering for baby gear one week; heading to track meets the next. Wouldn't have it any other way. :)

At What Point Does Nesting Take Precedence Over a Nap?

Week 29 this week which means only 11 weeks until Lil Miss Sonnie is due to make her arrival! You know, saying that I'm 29 weeks along makes it sound like there's a lot left to go in the pregnancy. But saying that there are 11 weeks left makes it sounds like I have a LOT to get accomplished before she arrives! I kinda started a registry but I really need to go finish it out (especially since everything I picked out in my online registering were things that could only be purchased online-whoops!). And I need to pick out a rocker. And should probably pick a pediatrician. And read up a bit more on labor & delivery...I've heard about this "walking epidural" that gives you relief from the pain without as much medication (e.g., your legs don't go numb hence the "walking" part). I'd like to check into that. And get the room that a lot of her stuff will go in ready. And go pick up the crib that's been offered to us.

Yet, none of that sounds as appealing as a nap. 

I'm sure my drive to do more will pick up. That somewhere along the lines the "nesting instinct" will hit full-force and I will accomplish many great and wonderful things. I had goals for that this weekend. Great lofty goals. They just got interrupted by naps. Oh well...

In talking with bestie Amy, I said that while in many ways Sonnie is my first (first pregnancy, first child that has a chance of looking like me, first newborn), there's a LOT of ways that she's my fourth too (too many things going on with the other 3 kids to really give that overdrive of attention that the first baby typically gets). I don't think that's all bad. Had she been my first in every way, I'm sure I would've been obsessive over all of this stuff. I would've stressed over if this was the right thing to do or if that was the right thing to do. Things would've had to be more "perfect". But this way, I'm just along for the ride and loving every minute. Not to say there aren't things I can get obsessive or worried about but it's really been minimized compared to the potential that's there. There are days that I'm envious of the posts I read on an online board from other FTMs (first time mommies) where they spent their evening playing "tag" with the baby in their bellies for hours, so they say. I've only accomplished this game once and it lasted about 5 minutes. But I also feel so bad when I read about those moms obsessing b/c their baby didn't move for an hour and they're ready to run to the ER. I have to stop and think, "did I feel her move today while I was at work? Oh of course...she was thumping on my bladder like a trampoline in the middle of that meeting! How could I forget?!" I'm sure there were times where she didn't move and I didn't notice. And that's okay. I've got enough awareness that she's got regular movement throughout the day to let me just be at peace and not riddled with worry. It's a nice feeling.

Speaking of things to worry about, I feel like I should update from the last post about my drs appt regarding GD (gestational diabetes). I was very pleased to learn that the doctor not only feels I don't need shots but I also don't need any medication either. Just diet and exercise. Of course. Because I was so good at that before getting pregnant... No seriously, I'm very pleased that this can be managed in that way and I can avoid having to add any meds to my bloodstream. I got my little One Touch at-home glucose testing kit and have to prick myself 4 times a day, 4 days a week. So far my numbers are within the ranges that they want. Ah-hem, well, except for the post-meal reading and the next morning reading after I over-indulged on Pizza Cottage Saturday. We'll call it a lesson in learning about my limits. :) My morning reading today was fantastic though so healthy eating gets me right back on track. I'm sure the 45-min (but very slow) hike helped on Sunday too. There were even hills involved!

So while there are worries to be had like, how in the world will I get everything accomplished that I want to before she comes?!?, there are also the blessings of the current kids in my family to remind me that it'll all be okay. When she comes, she'll work her way into the family just like each of them have and as long as she's got a safe place to sleep, diapers and a food supply, she'll be set for a while.

And in the meantime, while I've still got a fighting chance, I'm taking a nap.

Third Trimester!!

Well, it's official. Despite my little pregnancy ticker which is off by 2 days, I'm officially 3 days into my 28th week which also means 3 days into my third trimester! Feeling pretty good still though I have to plot now how I will get up from the couch and out of the car. Ha!! I did find out that I have gestational diabetes so I'll head to the dr today to find out what all that will entail. So far it sounds like they'll manage it with meds & diet since my numbers weren't incredibly high. They actually said "we're going to treat it as though you have gestational diabetes" rather than "whoa, sister! You've got it!!" At this point I have 12 weeks until my due date and as my dear friend/cousin Amy said, "You can do anything for 12 weeks!" Even watching my sugar intake ;) At least with proper monitoring, the pregnancy has a really high chance of maintaining just fine and the baby can remain healthy. And that makes me happy. :)

So, since I should not spend a lot of time on here so that I'm not late, I'll wrap up with a picture of the travel system that I've picked out for Sonnie. While I do love the color pink, I am not all that crazy about having pink everything for the baby. I want lots of bright colors like yellows, oranges, & reds. If we were doing a nursery, it'd be all yellow & orange. But since Graco doesn't do much in those colors (that I like anyway...they were all too pastel for my taste), I did some searching and found this darling set. Not glaringly girly but enough flair for Mommy (without too much flair for Daddy!).

That trim is in red, not hot pink by the way. Of course Graco is no longer supplying it but I did find a website from a store based in CA that has it. Graco's also coming out with a different travel system in the same pattern in April if that doesn't work out. Here's hoping one works out. Mommy's got her heart set on it. ;)

Oh, and one more thing...went to a Thirty One party to benefit a friend's adoption and bought a pair of these for Sonnie with her name embroidered on them in place of "Princess":

I've been so blessed with offers of hand-me-downs for so many things (not to mention all the stuff we already have on hand for my step-daughter) that I haven't bought her anything but one dress the day we found out she's a girl. I'm so excited about this diaper cover though! It'll make for the cutest lil newborn picture! :)

Okay, enough baby talk...I really must go!

Honeymoon!!

We have been blessed with a week in Hilton Head, SC. It has been FABULOUS!! So relaxing and nice to get away from the Ohio weather for a bit. Here are some favorite pictures of the week. :)



This is the light hitting the water while we were on a boating trip to see dolphins.



One of the dolphins we spotted. We saw quite a few on this trip. We also saw some while walking along the beach one day but didn't get any pictures of those.

  

The main entrance to our condo. Look at how GREEN it is!!




We found this beach after we drove by the small airport that was behind where we were staying. There was a park that felt like Hocking Hills where you parked and then there was this very quiet beach behind it. It was interesting to smell the combo of the woods and the ocean all mixed together.

  

More of the beach at the park.




Underneath a pier - I had a very similar shot this time last year when I headed to NC with my cousins/besties.

 

My feet belong in the sand. :)

 

View from the lighthouse tour we took. At 26 weeks pregnant and no elevator, I was pretty glad that the lighthouse was as short as it was!



And just to show what 26 weeks pregnant looks like for me, here it is! I felt like I got huge this week!

 

♥ Me & my sweetie on the beach ♥

 

♥ Us on the boating trip ♥