Yoga Pants

As you might know, it's Fall here and there's nothing I love more than comfy clothes, holiday scentsies, Christmas movies, and being snuggled in my house with my big dog and husband. I have been on the hunt for some comfortable "hospital pants." I finally found the most comfortable maternity pants ever! And guess what, they are from Old Navy and are under 25 bucks!

I love, and highly recommend, these boot-cut yoga pants from Old Navy. I plan on living in them any time I'm not at work from here until this little girl is here. And probably after!

Happy Halloween!

I love Halloween...well, that's probably not true. I like it a lot. I like to curl up in sweats and hand out candy to little monsters and princesses. And I like it a lot because, unlike what I've been claiming for the past two months, it truly does start the Holiday season. I  think it's fair that any time after Halloween, I get to start decorating for the holidays and watching holiday movies. And by holidays, I mean Christmas! Don't judge.

But anyway, I have a friend who LOVES Halloween. Her house is amazingly decorated and she dresses up. She also demands that all of us dress up too. I have to admit, David and I were kinda dreading this. I never know what to dress up as and I don't like spending money on any costumes. This year though, our friend gave us a great idea! We had so much fun and even won the "Most Creative" prize!

What do you think?

So Much Love and Support

Yesterday was our first baby shower for this little baby girl. I have always felt very overwhelmed at showers. Like for our wedding, I was already getting to marry this amazing man and start our life together and be around the people we loved the most, and on top of it, people kept planning these amazing showers where people brought gift after gift. I feel the same way now. I get to be pregnant with this little girl and soon welcome her into our family. Everyone loves her so much already and she doesn't even know yet. And then, I get to go celebrate her with people I love and receive gifts. I feel like I should be buying gifts for everyone else!

Yesterday's shower was so beautiful. I had the best time celebrating her at her first baby shower!

34 Week Update

How far along? 34 Weeks

Maternity clothes? Uhhh....yes!

Stretch marks? Not yet!

Sleep: A little bit better since I have started going and laying down earlier, saying my prayers with David, and reading East of Eden (NOT labor and delivery books like I used to before bed!)

Best moment this week: I have two this week! One, at our appointment our daughter's heartrate was 190 when it has always been 150! We were terrified of course, but they hooked me up and monitored my contractions and her heartrate and it was nothing. Once again, they just reminded us that she is an active little thing. This was such a blessing to us and we have been celebrating her health and safety all week. The second thing is that one of my best friend gets to watch her for us four days a week!! We couldn't be more excited about this. I know that this friend loves her so much already and will love her almost as much as I do. I feel so blessed with our babysitting situation between her and a combination of family and our other friend for the fifth day.

Miss Anything? Peanut butter! See earlier post for complaints :)

Movement: Tons and tons....you read about her heartrate, right? She dances and moves all day long.

Anything making you queasy or sick: I have a cold so I'm a little off, but I haven't gotten sick.

Labor Signs: Just those fakey contractions.

Belly Button in or out? So far out!

Wedding rings on or off?  Off and in a safe place. I would have totally lost them by now...I put the frozen burritos in the refrigerator yesterday. I'm losing my mind.

Mood: Much calmer than last week. I am learning to not stress about anything. One of my great friends even brought over some Bible verses about trust and faith and not worrying. It's helped a lot.

Looking forward to: Our first baby shower this weekend!!

Rant About Nothing

I have not felt the desire to complain about this pregnancy thing at all. I truly do see each day as a blessing. I love my daughter so much already. I mean that. So now, just bear with me as I complain for a couple of paragraphs about what I just learned!

Okay so I don’t drink wine (even though I’m dying for some), I don’t hang out in smoky bars, I don’t even eat lunchmeat (warmed up or otherwise) even though I'm craving it more than I ever have. I have even avoided my favorite white cheese at the local Mexican restaurant I so dearly love. I sleep on my left side even though it’s torture. I walk at least two miles every day. I do my “kick counts” religiously. I don’t even come close to taking any medicine, even if it’s on the “approved” list. I drink zero caffeine even though I know I can have some and used to drink 5 cups a day. I eat meat even though I used to not because I was worried I wasn’t getting enough protein or iron. And I try to limit my stress and sweets (both easier said than done).

I feel like I’ve done as much as possible for the last 7 months to be a good pregnant momma. So imagine me sitting at work, reading my quick pregnancy update for the day, being pretty proud of myself for staying calmn in a stressful work situation....and my jaw dropping to my desk when I receive an update that claims a woman who eats peanuts or peanut butter more than once or twice a week is increasing her baby’s odds of having a peanut allergy. What the?! If you don’t know this about me, I have eaten a peanut butter sandwich every day of my life since I was 18. I am not exaggerating. That’s my lunch of choice. I eat peanut butter or almond butter (no jelly or jam) every day with a slice of cheese, some chips or crackers, and an apple. It’s been this way for 8 years. I actually thought this was a good thing. How on earth can a girl keep track of all the things she should or shouldn’t eat during pregnancy. I thought I was going overboard by not even touching lunch meat, which some people say you can heat up and have every day if you want.

So most people take all of this advice with a grain of salt. I am not most people. I am completely irrational and obsessive about this pregnancy. You read that I am not drinking coffee, right? So it looks like you might want to invite me to lunch in the next six weeks. Six weeks of no peanut butter…that’s almost more grueling  than six more weeks of no fully loaded pumpkin spiced lattes. Wish me luck.

(Bo has been adorably clingy to me these days. He won't let me get up and go in the other room without following me. I think he can sense something going on and he's really protecting me. He is the sweetest and I can't wait to see how much he loves his little sister.)

Packing for the Hospital

I have just started thinking about packing a bag for David and me and a bag for our baby girl for the hospital. My friend helped me get started on a list this weekend. Does anyone have any other things they wish they would have taken or things they couldn't have gone without?

For our bag I know I need the following:
- Chapstick
- Suckers or popsicles
- Camera and charger
- Phone charger
- Warm socks
- Comfy clothes
- Extra layers for David in case he's freezing while I'm sweating
- Hair ties
- Things for nursing ( I won't scare you with all the things on that list)
- Boppy

For her:
- Special blankets and swaddles
- Going home from the hospital outfit
- Diapers
...I know they will have everything for her at the hospital, but I want her to have some of her own things like this.

What else would you suggest?

One Short Year Ago

One short year ago,  I was about 25 pounds lighter and had just finished up a half-marathon with my friend Molly. I know this because she ran it again this year, her third year in a row. She is such an inspiration to me. I remember back on our runs we talked about a lot of things. I really cherish those runs with her. One thing I remember talking to her about was the idea of getting pregnant and having a baby. One short year ago I was running 13 miles and day dreaming about having a baby someday. And now it's so close. So I may not be preparing for a 2 hour run and I may feel like a beach ball, but let me tell ya, I am still daydreaming about this perfect day that I get to meet our daughter and I have never felt stronger.

And if you need a chuckle, check this out. Here's what I looked like from the side one short year ago (in the bring green):

And here I am now...a little bit lumpier, but definitely feeling stronger than ever:

33 Weeks and Growing

I started following the cutest little blog, The Vintage Apple. Check her out; she is adorable, and we are almost the same amount of pregnant. (http://www.thevintageapple.com/)

She does these cute weekly updates that I think I would love to do for my last few weeks to have to look back on. So I'm stealing her idea. Thanks Vintage Apple!


Here are some picture updates. These first two are last week, 32 weeks.

And here is this week, 33 weeks. Can you believe this big old beach ball I carry around all day?! Unreal.

How far along? 33 Weeks

Maternity clothes? Oh my goodness yes...don't tell me that you know someone that is 33 weeks along and still in their skinny mini clothes. I don't want to meet those women.

Stretch marks? Not yet, but I feel like my poor ol' tummy is stretched to the max so it could happen any day now.

Sleep: This is not my favorite thing to report on. I toss and turn, toss and turn, go to the bathroom, think about work stuff, toss and turn, think about the baby girl, turn over some more...it's been a rough week. Last night I tried taking a bath and then reading a non-pregnancy, non-here's how you will mess up your kiddo, non-breast feeding book and I slept so much better. I am re-reading (for the babillionth time) East of Eden and I think it helped to think about something other than pregnancy, baby, delivery, or parenting right before bed. Plus I have this amazing husband who every time I roll over rubs my back or arm to help soothe me. Marry this kind of man the minute you meet him ladies.

Best moment this week: This week at our baby class we got to tour the OB unit in the hospital. It made us both so excited that the next time we are there will be to meet our little girl. Yes, I'm crying.

Miss Anything?Coffee!! It is Fall here and, as if I need to remind you, Fall is my favorite. And for Fall I really love warm, yummy coffees. Decaf is working okay for me, but it's still not the same. Very, very soon I will probably miss eggnog too. One of our favorite things is to watch a Christmas movie and have some rum and eggnog.

Movement: She is a hyper little one and has been from the very first kick. Every time we listen to her heartbeat the doctor even comments on how she runs away and moves so much. I love it! And now I can see her move my whole stomach when she rearranges. It's so fascinating.

Food cravings: Apples! I eat at least one a day but usually two. And I feel like I could chug a gallon of apple juice Look Whose Talkin' style.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not today :)

Labor Signs: Nothing really.  A couple of weeks ago I started feeling Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing like labor.

Belly Button in or out? Embarrassingly out, out, out!

Wedding rings on or off?  I took these off last weekend to store them in a safe place not because I had to yet, but because I am terrified at how horrible my memory is right now and I take them off at night and don't want to lose them. And my sweet hubby "re-proposed" and gave me a great fakey to wear to get me through for a while. Now I smile every time I look down and think about him thinking about me enough to buy me this.

Mood:I've been a little anxious this week. I don't know what about for sure, but I've just been a little worried and excited.

Looking forward to:Packing our hospital bags! This past week in class we talked about how it's a good idea to start doing this now. A bag for her and a bag for us. Plus I bought my "going to the hospital" outfit to wear so I can't wait to get it in the mail and pack it up. 

What's Better Than the Holidays?

What do I think is even better than the holidays? Holiday onesies of course :) Okay not really, but they are really darn cute!

First, my friend Ally found this little girl a few outfits to change into and relax in on Christmas. What, you think that she might be chilly?  Don't worry, we already have red and white striped leggings and green leggings to go with these. What baby girl doesn't need four Christmas onesies for her first Christmas morning?

And then my mom already found a onesie for Valentine's Day and a few for Easter. I love them all!

And these aren't holiday onesies, but I still am in love with all of these colorful onesies. This girl is set for her first few months in onesies.

Pumpkin!

I would probably claim that I haven't had a ton of pregnancy cravings. In fact, I haven't felt that hungry or had that huge of an appetite for a majority of this pregnancy. Now that I do, I feel like I get really uncomfortably full very quickly. There are a couple of things I can't seem to get enough of though. For instance, I love cereal so much and have for weeks. I especially love Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Golden Grahams, but this week I'm obsessed with Special K Fruit and Yogurt. Also, during these past 7 months, through getting sick and not, David has woken up to make me an egg and cheese bagel for breakfast. I know I've already bragged about him, but this is something that is totally worth bragging about. He totally puts in a secret ingredient of love into each one of these. They are amazing. And really other than that, I haven't craved too many things.

Until now...

It's Fall, and I guess it's just in time because I absolutely cannot stop eating pumpkin any and everything.

A few years ago I used to eat these Healthy Choice Meals, pumpkin squash ravioli. I had the stomach flu this past weekend (seriously, being pregnant with the stomach flu might be on my list of least favorite things ever!) so my sweet husband did all the chores, including grocery shopping. And he found this for me! I am completely re-obsessed with this meal. I want it for lunch every single day.



And of course I'm still completely obsessed with the pumpkin spiced latte from Starbucks. How could I not be? I don't even mind that I have to skip the whipped cream and make it a decaf. It's so heavenly. In fact I tried to switch it up and try something else this weekend, the salted caramel mocha, and it was a huge mistake. As a pregnant gal, I should have known to just stick with what I know. And I know I love this drink!



My last pumpkin obsession of this Fall are these pumpkin, chocolate chip muffins. My friend Tracy made this and sent three home to me since I was sick. I have been trying to eat just a half a day to make them last longer. They are so yummy! I can't wait to get the recipe from her.

Sister #2's Wedding

I have had a very emotional week. Not only am I pregnant, but my Sister#2 married the man of her dreams. I have been waiting for this weekend for 6 years. I love them both so much that it's hard to even talk about. In my rehearsal dinner speech, I mentioned how I remember the first time Abby told me about Shane. She described him as gorgeous, she said he loved life, and he loved the Chiefs. I think this might be one of the best ways to describe them as a couple too. They completely love life, and they both love the Chiefs. And obviously they are so gorgeous.

Their wedding weekend was the most beautiful wedding ever! The decorations were perfect, the couple was gorgeous, and everyone there was filled with so much love and excitement you could feel it in the air. I could go on and on and on and on, and I probably will throughout the next week, but for now, here are some pictures.

With my honey at the Rehearsal Dinner

The Bride getting ready

The guest book

Sister #4 kissing her niece

My mom - the beautiful Mother of the Bride

Look at this bride...sigh

The Bride with her mom and dad (and mine)

She's married!!