2 months

The little princess is now two months old.  Sheesh....how'd that happen?  She's now 9 pounds 5 ounces and still 21.5 inches long, but the doctor thinks she's longer than that and was just scrunching up when she was measured.

She is now sleeping through the night (YEAH!!!) and I don't know how we managed that.  I didn't follow any book, or doctor's advise.  I just let her lead the way and tried different things until we found the magic formula, which is a routine of jammies, bottle, burp, swaddle, and her Twilight Turtle (this thing is a DREAM!!  Ocean sounds with a gentle light show.....perfect for her!)

She is the happiest on her changing pad....I have no idea why!  She loves to smile and laugh and coo.  She recognizes voices and faces now, which makes this mama happy when she gets home from work and gets a huge toothless grin when she sees and hears me.

I just packed up her newborn clothes last week and now she's exclusively in her 0-3 clothes (unless Daddy is watching her and then you never know what she might be wearing!) even though some of them are STILL too big for her.  At this rate, she won't be in her 3-6 month clothes until Christmas!

First trip to Bar Harbor!!

One Month

How is it even possible that she's one month old already????  WOW!

That is our little princess who has taken over her personality and has decided to live up to everyone calling her a princess.  She is our high maintenance baby!!  Clearly this child is mine as she has NO patience whatsoever....no really.  NONE!  She will not tolerate one second of staying in a dirty diaper and you better prepare that bottle with lightening speed for her or else she will let you know of her displeasure!  It's actually really comical.  My favorite quote for her is "And though she be but little, she is fierce."  Oh, Shakespeare.  You always did know what to say!

She just started fitting into her newborn clothes a week ago and now they are getting a little short.  She's got skinny little legs and arms, but her belly is getting pudgy.  She's gotten better at sleeping longer lengths and we're only up with her once in the middle of the night now.  And she hates bath time!

 The little princess

Happy princess.....

Wait, no.....I've had enough now, Mom!

She is honestly so cute and that makes up for the cranky moments she has.  She's starting to smile and coo some, loves her swing, usually does well in the car and in her stroller, and loves her blankets.

We are very excited (and very nervous) about the road trip to Maine next week.  While we can't wait for family and friends to meet Bostyn, it's going to be a LOOOONG two days up and two days back in the car with a 6 week old princess.  At times I think we're crazy for even considering this trip, but we think it'll be worth it.  My little car will be jam packed with her "stuff" for the week.  I'm hoping to get some great pictures out of the trip though (Zack.....that is your mission!!) and be able to relax some before having to go back to work on the 10th!

Playing Catch Up

WOW!  It has been so long since I posted.  Thank you, Oliver, my fat grey cat for making my laptop die right when I needed it most!  You are so lucky that you love that little princess!!

Ok....so here's a few pictures of the baby shower from June 10th (wow, two months ago!)

I worked another month after this up until July 13th when one of my doctor's said it was time to stop working because I needed to rest before she got here and I was probably getting ready for an induction which would be a tiring process.  So what to do a week before baby gets here and no work?  Wash all of her clothes and get her nursery 100% completed.  Here are the pics!

 Clothes....she needs NO MORE clothes....but we'll get more for her anyway!

 The dogs were SUCH a big help....HA!

Finished crib bedding!

I love this chair.  Love it, love it, love it!!!  And yes, that's me at 40 weeks pregnant.

The week of her due date, I had 3 doctor's appointments.  One on Monday, where Dr. L said that i still wasn't progressing and no induction date would be set yet, come back on Wednesday.  Bummer.  On Wednesday, Dr. C said still no great progress.  At this point, I had a choice.  Set the induction for the next day, knowing that I wasn't a good candidate for it and that my odds of winding up with a c-section would be higher, or come back on Friday and we could re-evaluate.  Ok, fine, I'll wait two more days.  Friday came and slight progress was made but since Tuesday would be one week past my due date and they won't let me go further than that, we decided to set the induction for Sunday night so that I would have her Monday.  I stood outside her office as she called over to the hospital to set the induction for Sunday night.  She told me to get to the L&D floor at 5pm on Sunday and set my 4 week post delivery appt before I left her office.  Got it.  Ok, Sunday night.  5pm.  L&D floor.  These details are important.  I wouldn't forget this.....really, even with pregnancy brain.

My parents were in town on their vacation (im)patiently waiting for her to get her.  Every day I was guaranteed to be asked 5 times, "Do you want to go to the hospital?" after any wince or deep breath.  I'm not a patient person to begin with, people!!

Sunday afternoon, the 22nd, came, final dinner before going to the hospital was eaten, bags were packed, and I was ready to go get this whole thing over with!

Stephen and I drove to the hospital and mom and dad stayed home with the fur babies.  We knew this was going to be a LONG process.  We arrived at the hospital at a quarter to 5 and go to the L&D floor to check in.  It was eerily quiet and I knew Sunday's were their slowest day of the week.  When I gave my name to the nurse at the desk, she politely told me that my induction was NOT scheduled for Sunday night, but for Monday night.  WAIT.  WHAT????  No, no, no, no.  Dr. C said SUNDAY.  I heard her say this 3 times and heard her tell the hospital while I was standing RIGHT THERE to book me for SUNDAY night.  Oh dear god, do not do this to a 41 week pregnant lady who is already nervous.  Poor nurse Penny.  She didn't know who she was dealing with!!  She digs deeper and sees my booking sheet from the doctor says Sunday, but whoever scheduled me in the system put me in for Monday.  She can't admit me without doctor's permission and verification of the error.  It's Sunday night.  My doctor isn't the on call doctor for the weekend.  Doctors tend to not answer phone calls from the hospital on the weekends if they aren't on call.  See where I'm going with this?  She calls my doc and leaves a message and tells me to give it 15 minutes to see if she calls back.  Nope, no luck.  She offers to call the on call doctor (who isn't part of the practice I see) and he won't override the schedule issue since I'm not his patient and he doesn't want to get in the middle of it (and honestly, I don't blame him for that).  It is now 5:30pm.  Poor nurse Penny calls another doctor in my practice to see if they will override the schedule issue.  She instead offers to call my doctor and discuss it with her before overriding the issue.  No luck.  She doesn't answer her call either.  So instead of making me go home, she offers to be my on call doc for the night if anything goes wrong and tells the nurse to admit me and stop stressing me out!  At this point, it's 6:15pm.  I've been alternately fuming and crying.  So I finally get admitted and put into a L&D room.  PHEW!  Finally, now the fun part begins.  Twelve hours of cervidil to get started.  Dr. L came in at 7:30am to break my water and start the pitocin.  I got no sleep overnight to speak of so I was already tired at this point!  I got my epidural at 10:30am and that helped ease the contractions, but I was still only 3-4 cm dilated.  The day progressed SLOWLY until about 4:15pm when the contractions got very strong and I could feel them.  The nurse checked and I was 8 cm.  Not even a half hour later, I felt the need to push through contractions, and they checked again and I was almost to 10.  They got everything ready in the room, and poor nurse Penny from the night before was my delivery nurse!  She was so sweet and so great.  Two hours later at 6:44pm, she finally emerged, just absolutely perfect and tiny at 6 pounds 8 ounces and a crazy amount of hair.  We had the doctor and the nurses cracking up after she got here because to distract me from what was going on, we were singing the ESPN Monday night football theme song and laughing.

And she's just perfect!

40+ weeks

Tomorrow night (Sunday the 22nd) we have a scheduled induction. Apparently this kid really doesn't want to come out and needs to be convinced to get out! We will update you all once she gets here!

40 weeks

Hello due date. Goodbye due date. Ok, I know most first time moms go past their due date, but I kept being told that I'd probably go earlier due to the nature of my job and being on my feet 40 hours a week. Yeah, that didn't happen. Last Friday was my last day of work per my doctor and an induction was SUPPOSED to be scheduled for tomorrow. Today's appointment did not support that plan. I was told today that if I was to be induced tomorrow with my stats being as they were today, I had a higher chance of ending up needing a c-section (which I don't really want unless medically necessary), so she gave me two options. Option 1: be induced tomorrow, for no reason other than to have her by the weekend and knowing my chances of c-section are higher. Option 2: Go back Friday,get checked again for more "favorable" stats. However, if I'm still not favorable Friday, they will induce me Sunday night because at that point they deem the induction medically necessary as they don't want me to go more than a week overdue because more complications can arise after 41 weeks. I appreciated her honesty and candor with me today even though those were not the options I wanted to hear. Obviously I chose option 2 as it seemed the more medically sound and logical choice (even though the impatient side of me was screaming for option 1!!). The families have a cluster of birthdays coming up in the next few days and I really wanted to avoid her being born on a family members birthday, but I know that's out of my control. I was just hoping she would be here by now! There's still a chance I could go into labor on my own before Sunday, but chances are still slim there. That's all for now!!

39 weeks

Sorry for no posts in so long, but my wonderful grey fluffy cat chewed the cord on my laptop and shorted out a part internally. Great job, Oliver. So I'm stuck posting from my phone. I'll have pictures posted hopefully this weekend. So I'm 39 weeks, barely any labor signs (dialated 1cm, random contractions, and she's dropped), and it's so hot here in SC!! My swollen piggy feet actually hurt now. The good news is tomorrow is my last day of work! HELLO maternity leave! She wants me off my feet because they are talking about an induction mid week next week if I don't go into labor on my own. So I go in on Monday to check progress and then we will schedule the induction. Her words to me today were, "go watch trashy tv and rest because by next Friday, you'll have a baby to take care of and your life will forever change!". I like the sound of that!!! Every day I tell her why today would be a great day to come out and greet the world, but she is stubborn.....shocker! The nursery is done! We picked up the chair this week and I'm in love with it! It's a power recliner glider in custom fabric. It's so comfortable and looks awesome in the room. Her car seat and stroller that match the pack and play are here and ready for her. My bag isn't packed for the hospital yet, but everything is together in one place. So really, we are ready for her to get here already. Stay tuned for baby shower pics, belly pics, and nursery pics! And by next Friday, princess pictures!

33 weeks

Yup, I skipped 32 weeks.  I wasn't feeling well at all and really didn't feel like having my picture taken.  I thought about using Luna as a stand in for the picture for the fun of it, but I didn't have the energy to do that either.  Oh well.

It's so weird to say I'm due NEXT MONTH.  Where did that time go?  I've had two complete strangers look at me and say, "You must be having a girl!" this week.  I find that funny.  They did have a 50/50 shot of getting it right.

I've officially gained 27 pounds....and I FEEL like I've gained more than that!  My appetite has gone down (no more room for my stomach in there apparently!), I'm drinking tons of water, but the weight keeps piling on.  Oh well, at least my blood sugar levels are good, hemoglobin levels are good, blood pressure is good, minor Braxton Hicks contractions that are few and far between, so all in all, not too bad.  Just need to stay off my feet more these days which is not happening.  The restless leg syndrome hit pretty hard last week too and I've found that keeping my feet up in bed with a heating pad over my calves has helped (thanks, Stephen!!), and I should probably stick to 40 hours a week or less at work instead of the 45 I'm averaging. 

I am halfway done with the nursery bedding.  Since my shower is HERE next weekend I really need to finish it up this week!  One day in my sewing room should fix that.  Pieces are cut, just need to be sewn together and finalized.  It'll happen.  I'm not worried......yet.  I'll be worried Sunday when people are arriving and I don't have it done for them to see!  It'll be great once it's all done though!  And just in case you want to see the invite for the shower, here it is.

31 weeks

Maxi dresses are my new best friend.  Especially since it's getting hot here in Myrtle Beach!

This post is a little late, but it's been a busy week with a lot going on.  And I can't seem to cut my hours down to 40....

We went to the doctor's this week.  Everything is still progressing along just fine. Gained 21 pounds in 31 weeks.  Measuring on target as well.  Hemoglobin levels are fine, so no iron worries.  Tried to test my blood sugar like I was supposed to, but Dad's tester and I didn't see eye to eye, so I gave up on that.  Stretch marks have started popping up on my ever expanding belly.  Greeeeaaaat......oh well, I did expect to get them, and especially where most of my weight gain is in my belly. 

We've decided to skip the birthing classes and just tour the hospital.  Whatever happens will happen when I get there and there's no point in stressing myself out over what may or may not happen in worst case scenarios.

Monday we had our 3D/4D ultrasound at Special Delivery in Myrtle Beach.  Jackie was fantastic!  Mom and Dad got to join us for it and it was just relaxing and so much fun to see the nug hamming it up for a good 45 minutes.  She stuck her tongue out multiple times, cracked herself up and was laughing, and licked her arm (apparently she's been learning from the cats already!).  And for the millionth time, YES she is girl, NO we are not telling you her name, and YES there is only one in there (since I get asked these 3 questions CONSTANTLY).  And surprisingly, she doesn't have a ton of hair!  I'm shocked!  Between her father and her mother, so should have a full head of hair. 

Here's a few shots of our little ham.....

 Laughing and sticking the tongue out

 Striking a pose

 This is my angry face complete with wrinkles on the forehead

 And please, stop with the paparazzi!

Yup, that's our kid!

30 Weeks

Looking (and feeling) like a whale still......On the bright side, Stephen and I played 3 rounds of mini golf today and I kicked his butt on 2 out of 3 rounds and won overall!

Can't believe I'm at 30 weeks already!  Where has that time gone??

I booked our 3D/4D ultrasound for next Monday.  I'm very excited!  We also ordered the chair for the nursery this week.  It's a power recliner/rocker/glider in a great grey swirly fabric.  I'm so impatient for it to get here.  I'm hoping to finish the bedding this week too since the crib is all set up. 

Friends of mine who were due a short two and half weeks ahead of me had their baby boy 11 days ago.  I know they would appreciate your prayers as baby Cohen is still in the NICU.  They are the sweetest family with the most adorable boys.  You can read more about their journey here.  Thanks in advance for your prayers on their behalf!

29 weeks

She has a crib!!  YEAH!  It's all put together, but I won't post pictures until the bedding is done and on it.  So now, we have just about everything we NEED for her, and it's onto the fun stuff!  I'm ordering the chair for the nursery tomorrow.

I went to the doctor Monday.  I got a second opinion on the whole glucose test.  I never went and had it retested.  She told me that if I tested my own fasting levels for the next two weeks and they were both below 95, then I'd be ok.  So, I'll try that.  I don't mind pricking my finger a couple times.  She's not overly concerned since I've only gained 19 pounds, I'm measuring right on target, and the last ultrasound I had showed that she is right on track weight wise.  I mentioned the only issues I had were the crazy, ridiculous heartburn and the cankles. She gave me a prescription for Nexxium to deal with the heartburn. As for the cankles, well, I'm supposed to work no more than 40 hours, keep my feet up as much as possible, and drink lots of water. 

Here's a few extra pictures this week.....

Stephen and I at Market Commons

LOVE this sign I got from the Kangaroo Pouch.

Best invention ever!  So excited for this.  Plays soothing music and gives a gentle, wavy light show.

28 weeks

Yes, I'm in my pajamas....I've been in pajamas the past two days...don't judge!

Hello 3rd trimester.....I don't like you.  The first and second were much easier than you've been in the last week.  Maybe it's my fault for working too many hours and ignoring the fact that I'm 7 months pregnant.  Or maybe you could be a little nicer on me?  I don't need to have heartburn when I drink water.  I don't need cankles on an daily basis either.  And please, please, please let me get some quality SLEEP!

Ok, now I'm done complaining.  Honestly, it could be so much worse, and I know it.  I've had it easy.

Got the curtains done for the nursery today.  I would hang them, but I forgot to get the hardware to hang them....oops.  Oh well, it'll get done this weekend.  I make a test crib sheet to see how hard it would be.  So easy.  The crib skirt will be a quick project too, but I decided to wait until we actually have the crib to make sure the measurements are 100% correct.  Then just the crib bumpers, which should be fairly easy as well.  One project at a time....

Now to go eat more of those Reese's cheesecake brownies......

27 weeks

I'm still feeling huge....even the doctor this week said I'm "getting big"....what's that supposed to mean???  :)

The good news is that after my Monday morning doctor's appointment and ultrasound, I am no longer on pelvic rest!  The placenta has moved and is no longer in the danger zone!  YEAH!  And I got further confirmation that the princess is STILL a princess, so that  closet full of girlie clothes is safe.  It was great to see her again and see her tapping her feet and covering her face.  And she has my nose.  How great is that?  She is weighing in at 2 lbs 6 oz.-- right on target.  We are hoping to go and get a 3D/4D ultrasound next month to see her one more time before she makes her arrival.  And I'm still debating the maternity pics....I already feel like a whale....do I really want to pay to look like a whale too?  Although, I've only gained 16 pounds this pregnancy, I feel like I've gained 56.`

I took my glucose test last week.  The nurse failed to tell me to fast before the test.  The lab asked me if I had fasted, I said no, and they still let me take the test.  I get to the doctor's office and they pull up my results and I just barely failed...by 10 points.  He said it could be because I didn't fast, but is making me take the test AGAIN next week "just to be sure".  UGH!!!  I hate having my blood taken since my veins are deep, thin, and move a lot.  Fingers crossed I pass this time.  And on that note, I am at the point in my pregnancy where they are starting to schedule me every two weeks instead of four.

Crookshanks has been SUPER lovey lately.  If I am home, she follows me everywhere.  This really is worse than usual.  She totally knows what's going on.  And if I hold Oliver in my lap on my belly, within 2 minutes the princess is kicking away at him.  I'm sure its because he's so heavy and is invading her space.  It cracks me up.

That's our girl!!

26 weeks

And add to that our taxes our done....yeah refund!!

The nursery is looking great!  It's painted a great grey shade that has blue undertones, her closet is all cleaned out and organized, and Stephen put together her pack and play with bassinet today (which is SO awesome!!), so I feel like we are making progress in getting ready for her.  Next up, crib bedding, crib, and chair.

I've been avoiding getting my glucose test done.  I go in on Thursday and I'm not looking forward to it.  UGH....any advice?  And Monday I go in for another ultrasound to check and see if the placenta has moved up any.  Fingers crossed and praying it has moved so I can be taken off of pelvic rest and have options for delivery, but if it hasn't, it will be ok, and I will just have to have a scheduled c-section.

I have been craving milk, milk, and more milk lately.  Usually I don't like to drink plain milk, but lately that's what I want to drink.  That's better than what I usually crave!  Oh, and keep those chocolate cupcakes coming!! 

25 weeks

No doubt I'm pregnant now.  Complete strangers ask me when I'm due....

Two trips to the dentist this week.  UGH....and will have to go back after the Princess is born to have a root canal, X-Rays, and more fillings.  I suppose I should be thankful that it's not worse than it is.  At least they could put a temporary filling in where I lost a filling a few weeks ago, but that's the tooth that's up for a root canal late summer, early fall. 

We bought paint for the nursery this week and have sketched out our plans for the room.  Stephen should have it painted by the end of the week.  Next week on my days off, I'll be putting together her crib bedding.  Very excited to get it done!


I'm still debating on maternity pictures.  I'm wondering if it's worth it.  I'd rather be able to have the rights to the pictures to print whatever I want and post whatever I want, but pros charge so much for that.  I'm looking into finding someone local who is starting out and wants to build a portfolio.  I have a few ideas, but I may bypass it altogether, which, if you know me, is odd since I LOVE taking pictures and having my picture taken (just ask my cousin Zack!).  Anyone have opinions or ideas on this?

Dunkin Donuts in now in North Myrtle Beach.  This is a wonderful thing and a terrible thing all at once.  Their new pumpernickel bagels are delish and the 99 cent any size iced tea makes me happy as well!  And well....chocolate donuts are never wrong!  Between those and chocolate cake, that will keep this pregnant girl happy!

Oh, and I officially cannot fit into my pre-pregnancy "fat pants".  That's a problem right?  :)

24 Weeks

The ever growing belly.....

She has turned into a ninja or a kicking machine in there.  Just last weekend I was laying on the couch and felt her give a good kick, but it didn't feel the same.  My hand instinctively went to my belly where she just hit me and not 5 seconds later she did it again and finally I could feel her from the outside!!  Then I had to impatiently wait for Stephen to get home from work to feel what I've been feeling for a few weeks now.  The novelty of it has worn off a bit and now I'd like her to take her ninja practice down a notch, but hey, I really can't complain.  It cracks me up.

My mom and Aunt Rose went shopping for this little princess last week.  Her closet is quickly running out of space....but so is mine, so it's ok!  She now has a collection of Disney princess dresses to play dress up with when she's about 4.  I just need to get a Tinkerbell outfit and she should be good!!

I'm off to see the dentist tomorrow.  SO not looking forward to that.  I've lost a filling and am pretty sure I have AT LEAST two more cavities to deal with.  Oh the joys of pregnancy.

I've just realized I have about 15 weeks left and the nursery isn't even CLOSE to being ready.  Painting will happen this weekend or next week and then we will see about getting the pieces into place.  We still need to decide on a chair for the nursery that will be comfortable for both of us.  We still have a little time, though I feel it's running out quickly!

23 weeks

She's growing at an alarming rate!!  6 oz a week on average right now.  No wonder I feel the growing pains.

I figured I would show some pictures of her homemade goodies so far....

and now I'm off to spend time with family by the beach!

22 Weeks

Yup, the feet are SOOOOO swollen today.  The combination of hot weather, rain, and being on my feet probably more than I need to be has finally caught up with me.  Oh how I love my Crocs even more now.

This Nug of mine has been quite the mover this week....like to the point of making me nauseous at times.  Oh well, at least she's active and reminding me she's there.  No forgetting I'm pregnant now!

She also received many presents this week (I'll take pics next week).  This kid's wardrobe is RIDICULOUS!!  And yes, I need to stay out of the Disney store....I already know this.  But it's not my fault that family members and coworkers can't stay out of the kid's stores!!  It's SO MUCH worse when you work in an Outlet Center.  Gymboree, Carter's, Children's Place, OshKosh, Old Navy.....we have nothing but clothes and few other essentials for this child!  Good thing we have some more time before she gets here. (Note to self:  Go buy child size hangers....)

So I finally caved in and bought fabric to make her bedding set.  I wasn't in love with any sets that I found, so I made the hour trek to Joann's Fabrics in Wilmington and found coordinating fabrics I loved.

 The stripe is for the curtains and a crib sheet.  The purple/white dot is for the crib skirt (and extra for another crib sheet). The white/purple dot will be the inside of the bumpers and the butterfly will be the outside of the bumpers.  And there is extra of the fabrics to take what's left over and make her a quilt.  I got 13 yards of fabric for all of that for less than $50.  Gotta love coupons!  Now we just need the crib.......