Fall pictures

I took Brendan to Toledo Botanical Garden on Sunday to get some fall pictures done.

OMG! I can not wait to see them.

Here is a sneak peek.

The pediatrician

It has been brought to my attention that my pediatrician is EXTREMELY overpriced.

As we took Brendan to his 6 month check up a few weeks ago, we received an EOB in the mail that the visit was not covered. Total office visit, $479.00. That was for 3 vaccines and a wellness checkup.

Now, Brendan is my first child and I have never discussed how much office visit cost with my other mom friends, so I had no idea it was overpriced.

B called the insurance company, come to find out that the prices the pediatrician charges are way out of the norm. So out of the norm, the insurance lady asked what exactly Brendan was having done. To date the pediatrician has billed us $1800 for 4 office visits.

So now, I am on the hunt for a new pediatrician. I think I am going to call South Toledo Pediatrics.

Sucks, because I really liked all the doctors there.

6 month check up

Ya know.... only a few weeks late.

Here are Brendan's stats.

17 pounds - 50%tile

27 inches long - 50%tile

Doctor said he looks perfect and says he is advanced for his age and is comparable to that of an 8 month old. Who know, my son the over-achiever.

Brendan's First Halloween

B could not resist this little chicken costume. I was torn between the chicken and the penguin. The chicken won.

Blogging = Fail

I apogolize for my absence and PROMISE to return to blogging.

Sit up, Stand up

It seems that all Brendan wants to do these days is stand up. Well yesterday he added a new trick, he can go from leaning back in his boppy to sitting up. This child is ridiculously strong. I fear that he will be crawling VERY soon.

Brendan Meets Charlie

Brendan took his first mini road trip down to Cincinatti the beginning of August to celebrate Charlie's FIRST birthday. He was SO good and had a great time.

Too bad I forgot to take my beny with me, as I am allergic to cats and we had to cut our visit short.

Pool time

A few weeks ago, when it was so god awful hot out, the three of us headed over to grandma and grandpa's house to enjoy the pool.

Brendan's first time in the pool was a huge hit. He loved it

Trip around the sun

It's truly amazing how much my life has changed in the past year.

A little over a year ago I was peeing on a stick discovering that my life would change forever.

I remember that day like it was yesterday. It was raining and we had chinese for dinner. Sometimes I wish I didnt have a photographic memory.

I can honestly say that I enjoyed every minute of being pregnant. Would I do it again? Absolutely. Do I want more than one child? I am not so sure.

In honor of our trip around the sun, here are some pictures from the beginning to where we are now.

I know this next year will fly by and be fullied with wonderful memories.

Jumper

To celebrate B2'a 4 month birthday I, yes I, put together his jumper.

He loves it, especially the frog.

Month 4

This past week has been very busy and tiresome.

B1 was in the hospital with kidney stones and B2 turned 4 months.

B2 took very well too his shots. He only cried for a little bit and slept the 15 minutes home. When we got home I gave him some Tylenol and within 20 minutes he was his usual smiling. laughing, babbling self. He even slept thru the night. Yea for me = )

He had a slight fever on Wednesday, but a little Tylenol did the trick.

He is weighing in at 14 pounds 3 oz and is 24" long. He is in the 50th percentile in everything.

This morning we tried cereal. I'm not sure what his thoughts were. But we will give it a try tomorrow.

We had our first diaper leak last night. B2 was crying at 1am when I got home from the Kenny concert so I fed him and it took an hour to get him back to bed. B1 said he was up at 3 and 6am.

Needless to say I strip down and wash everything and it is a complete PITA to do. Hopefully this doesn't happen anytime soon.

Here are some pictures of B2 trying out cereal.

Giggles

Who knew that the first time Brendan laughed would bring tears to my eyes. As much as I said I wouldn't be one of "those" moms...I am.

On Monday night Brendan full on laughed. It was the most hysterical thing. I squealed in such delight that I scared him and he cried. Thankfully I was able to calm him and then he carried on for 2 full minutes laughing.

Of course when you get the camera out he wont do it. And of course he only does it for B and I.

Laughter has been a nightly occurrence in our house and I LOVE it I could listen to him laugh all day!

Silly things in life

Brendan is now grabbing a hold of his little piggies and blowing bubbles and raspberries.

He can also roll from tummy to back, but cant quite figure out how to get back onto his tummy without help from mommy.

He loves anything that spins. He will spend hours staring at ceiling fans and the animals on his mobile. He even "talks" to them. I just love it and laugh everytime he does it.

BTW, he is STILL STTN!!

Speaking of sleeping. How is it that the kid will be completely upside down and in the opposite side of the crib vs where I put him?

3 Months

I cant believe how fast life seems to be travelling for us.

Before I know it, my little man will be refusing my cuddles and kisses and going off to school.

STTN

Sleeping Thru the Night.

I honestly thought this was just a bunch of made up bull shit other mom told you.

This past week, I have found out otherwise.

B2 has now STTN 4 night in a row. And when I say slept thru the night, I am talking from 10pm - 7am. It only took 14 weeks to get there, but I am so glad we are finally there.

It was nice while it lasted

Sleep that is. For 7 straight nights Brendan slept from 10pm-3am. That is a whole nights sleep for me. We would get up at 3, he would eat and then go back to sleep till about 6am. During that time, I would go workout and start my day. It was GREAT!

Somewhere over the weekend, the wheels fell off and he is back to his normal up every 2-2.5 hours. WHAT GIVES?

And if my ILs bring up cereal one more time, I am revoking their babysitting privileges. They had their opportunity to raise their children the way they wanted, please let me do the same.

I have hands?

All Brendan does is eat his hands. The other day he had his fingers so far in his mouth I think he gaged himself.

GAH. No time to blog

FOR REALS! Between the little man, work and every thing else I have myself wrapped up in, I have no time to blog. I apologize for this.

You see, I work for a crazy Irishman who does nothing but run around and yell all.day.long. I can barely get my work done let alone find time to troll the inter webs or blog. Then I pick up Brendan, play with him, cook dinner, clean up dinner, do some house work, play with Brendan again, get stuff ready for the next day. Sit down to relax. Think about blogging, but B has the laptop and I am too lazy to get up and go to the computer. Ah, such is life. But I wouldn't have it any other way.

I cant believe that my little man will be 3 months old next week. How the time sure does fly.

I'll leave you with a few pictures from over the past few weekend.

Sleep hell

I am convinced that Brendan just doesn't like to sleep. Once in a great while he will sleep form 10pm -3am but that is far and few between.

He is up every 2.5 hours. I don't get it. And I don't know what to do to keep him sleeping.
He takes 2-3 naps a day I make sure he doesn't nap any later than 7pm. He has bath time at 8:45, jammies, bottle and rocking. Off to the crib at 10pm.

This is how it went down last night.
10-12:30 - slept
up from 12:30-12:50 - ate 3 oz of formula
slept from 12:50 - 2am
up from 2am-2:45 ate 3oz
slept from 2:45-4:40
Up from 4:40-5:20 nursed
5:20-6:00 slept

He has now been up since 6 am.
It's amazing I can enven function. I wish he could/would sleep from 10pm - 3am every night.

MONSTER

No, not the kind that hide under your bed or in your closet. Not even the dreaded MIL.

I'm talking about the beverage. The one loaded with sugar, carbs and calories.

I packed one today.

Brendan decided it would be a wise idea to wake up at 3am and not fall back asleep till 4. He was just a fuss bucket. He didn't want to eat, he didn't want his NUK, he just wanted to be held. So I caved and we went downstairs to finish sleeping. 5:30 came REAL quick!

If B didn't have to drive to the whore of a city, Ann Arbor, he would have been woken to help me.

I have a feeling that come 2pm I am going to crash so the Monster will come in handy.

Back to Work

Yesterday was my first day back to work. All in all, it went well.

B2 only woke once in the middle of the night to eat, and then didn't wake again till 5am. After that he fell back asleep and I was able to get ready for work and load the car all while he slept.

I dropped him off at the ILs and made it to work 15 minutes early.
Ugh. I felt so out of place and clueless. So much has changed. New computer system, new office arrangement...whatever. I am over it. I even came back for day 2. Here is to hoping the rest of the week goes as fast and smoothly as Tuesday did.

Some Pictures

Stomach sleeper

No. Not Brendan, me. OMG, it is the best feeling ever. I was a stomach sleeper before becoming pg and after I had Brendan I still couldn't sleep on my stomach due to the incision. Even thou I am only getting about 3 hours of sleep at a time, it is the best sleep ever. I am so glad to be back to my normal sleeping ways. No only if they could be say, 4 or 5 hours long.

St. Lukes Family Birthing Center

I wanted to take a minute and tell how awesome St. Luke's Hospital is.

The nurses at the Birthing Center will forever be in my hearts. They all went above and beyond to take care of all of us.

If you are expecting and you have a choice of where you can deliver, I hands down 100000% recommend you deliver here.

My two favorites nurses were Stephanie (night shift) and Pam (day shift) I will NEVER forget these girls. They BOTH made sure all three of us were happy and well taken care of. I cant beging to thank them enough.

Some of the extra bonuses that come along with delivering here include the following:
For Brendan, the lady's auxiliary gave him and afghan with his name and birth date embroidered on it. They also make little hats. Unfortunately they didn't have any little blue ones, so he has a yellow one.

For mom and dad on our last night there they served us with a very nice dinner. I had surf and turf and B had chicken cordon bleu. Lets not forget the Oreo pie for dessert.

For every night you were there, they had a little midnight snack in the fridge for you. And if you were ever still hungry or didn't like what you were served, all you had to do was asked for something else and it was brought to your room.

Ya know, I could go on and on about this place the the nurses, but I wont. I will say it again, if you have the choice, have your baby there! You will be SO happy you did.

Updates

I know it seems like forever since I last posted, but I feel as thou Brendan is ALWAYS attached to the boob. The boy eats non stop.

We are all doing well. I cant believe my little boy is a month old. Time sure is flying and before I know it, I will have to return to the j-o-b.

B and I had our first date night on Saturday. We then vowed to have a date night once a month. It was SO nice to enjoy a hot meal. I seriously have the best husband ever. He was the one who suggested I get some time away from Brendan since I have been with him 24/7 since he was born.

I have recently started pumping. This way B can feed Brendan when he gets home from work and B can help feed Brendan in the middle of the night on the weekends. It also ensures father son bonding.

Brendan and I took our first trip to the Toledo Zoo on Monday. He slept thru the entire trip. Maybe next time when B can join us, he will be awake for at least a little of it.

That's all I have for now. I'll be back to post pictures later.

First Family Photo

My Birth Story

It was scheduled that I would go in Sunday night, April 19, 2009 to start cervidil.

B and I got to the hospital at 7:30, checked in and got settled into my what would turn out to be home for the next 5 days.

8:30pm
Internal showed I was about 2cm and 50%. Nurse administered the cervidil. She said that they would leave it in for 12 hours. And in the morning, I could shower and grab a light breakfast.

9:30pm
I started having a bad case of the shakes. I called my nurse in and told her that I couldn't stop shaking. She asked if I was cold and I said I didn't think so. She said it was most likely the hormones making me shakes b/c you don't shake like that until you are in labor.

10:30pm
Internal showed I was 4cm and 70%. I told my nurse I didn't feel well. So I thru up. Then I felt much better.
She said she wasn't getting good reading on the external belly bands and she wanted to do an internal to get a good heart rate on Baby Cakes. Whatevs.

11:30pm
After that was all said and done she came back in and asked if my back hurt. I said well yea, but I just thought it was the bed. She asked how I was feeling and I said fine, just crampy, which I thought was normal from the cervidil. NOPE. She said I was contracting every minute. So I got a shot to slow things down.
12:00am
The OB came in to do an internal and said I was 5cm and about 70%. She asked if I wanted the Epi and I said hell yes. So I got the epi and I barely felt anything. She said that at this point I should contract about 1cm every hour, so around 5am I would be 100 percent and ready to push.

B called the parents and told them what was going on and that he would keep them all updated.

At 3am, my mom showed up. She was so excited she couldn't sleep. So she came in and talked to me for about a half hour.

3:30am
Nurse came in and I, well Baby Cakes was ready to go. At 3:45 she asked me to give a few good pushes. OB was watching the monitors and every time I tried to push Baby's heart ones dropped to 90. The OB came in and did another internal and said that my pelvic is tilted and it was straining the baby while he was trying to get out. She said the best option for baby was a c/s. Which I was fine with. I wanted to do what ever was best for baby.

Here is where I lose track of time. All I remember is being wheeled down to the OR and getting the spinal. I remember B coming in and holding my hand and I remember looking up at the light b/c I could kinda see what was going on. It seemed like it took FOREVER!

5:12am
Doctors held up the baby and said "well dad, what is it?" B said "It's a boy and we both just starting crying. It was the most wonderful and overwhelming feeling ever! I will NEVER forget it.
B went with the nurses and Brendan to do all the clean up and what not while I was stitched back up.
5:45am
I was wheeled back to the room and waited for B and B2 to come in. We shared about a hour together and then B went out to the waiting room to get the family.

I was sitting in the bed holding Brendan and B walked over to me and said "everyone, I would like you to meet Brendan Emerson" Everyone started crying and saying its a boy, its a boy.

And that is how Brendan made his appearance into the wold on April 20, 2009.

Boy oh Boy

I proudly Introduce Baby Cakes to you!

Brendan Emerson

Born on April 20, 2009

5:12am

7 pounds 10 ounces

20 1/2"

Textbook perfect

I know this post is a few days behind schedule, but I have been very busy.

I had my 38 week appointment on Wednesday which included a U/S, a NST and a exam.
The doctor said everything was text book perfect.

The U/S was great, Baby Cakes looks to be measuring about 8 pounds 5ounces. But she measured high b/c Baby Cakes was in a ball and she couldn't get a good read on the waistline. HR was 120.

The NST was perfect. Lots of activity and the HR was 132.

The pelvic exam was good. She could tell there were some changes, but nothing major. We made a decision to strip my membrane. Holy fucking shit. That hurt! I about came up off the table,

After all that and 2 hours later we decided to scheduled the induction. Which will be tomorrow!!! ACK! I go in at 7:30pm and then Monday morning they will start the pictocin.

I have so many feelings running thru me.

I have tried everything to get Baby Cakes out on my own and have had NO success. I even ate an entire bag of habanero potato chips. This kid does not want to come out!

I'm sure I'll blog some more Sunday night as I will be bored out of my skull in the hospital. So
Stayed tuned. Baby Cakes to arrive no later than MONDAY!

F/U to 37 week appt.

I know you are anxiously awaiting the news from my OB appointment, so here it is.

It was fabulous. I had a GREAT Non Stress Test and a great U/S. Poor little Baby Cakes is SO squished in there. He did manage to move "his" head and give me a sweet little smile and put "his" hand into "his" mouth. "He" appears to be measuring at 7 pounds, give or take a few ounces. HR was 131.

The internal went OK. Didn't feel great, but wasn't horrible either. The OB said I am 1cm, soft and she could feel "his" head. ACK!!! At that moment I felt so overwhelmed. I guess I have just felt like I was going to be pregnant forever with no light at the end of the tunnel in sight.

We talked about being induced and she said to let her know by my next appointment, which is Wednesday and then she says, if you make it that far. OMG, another overwhelmed feeling.

So of course I have to ask what are the odds of that happening. She says 50%.

50%! I can not work with a number like that!

B and I had a discussion about it and he thinks it would be best if my last day of work were to be Wednesday, I said Friday. I just want to finish out the week. And as we all know, I always get the last word.

So that settled it. If I don't have Baby Cakes on my own, I have decided to be induced. I think I am kinda pissed with myself, b/c all along I have been telling myself what ever happens, happens. Just roll with it. And now here I sit planning on scheduling an induction. Oh well. I'm sure Baby Cakes is just as uncomfortable as I am these days.

One more week!

One more week of work!

I told Mr. Boss man that next Friday will be my last day of work. He turned a ghostly shade of white. I thought he was going to pass out on me. Then he proceeds to make this statement
"hmmmm, now I have to think about what I am going to do while you are gone."

**Blank stare**

Really? You have had a good 7 months to think about this. Whatevs. Wont be my problem for 8 weeks.

Which brings me to my next statement. He then says "Oh, you will be gone what, 6 weeks? I said "No. Eight." He then asked me why 8.

**sigh**

I swear, I cant live with this man half the time. Part of me is a nervous wreck about being gone and the other part thinks it nice knowing that this place would.not.function with out me. Then I freak out again at the thought of people using my computer, my stapler and going thru my file cabinets. I don't like my stuff touched. And it makes me REALLY nervous that a coworker keeps asking me to write down all the passwords to everything. Not gunna happen.

I'm also glad that I decided to set a "last day" but now I feel even more under pressure. Which is all fine and dandy, I think I accomplish more when I KNOW shit has to get done.

37 Weeks

Well, I was going to take a picture for you this morning, but of course, as my luck would have it all the batteries were dead. So, you will have to wait till tomorrow to see my belly.

Now the waiting game begins.

I took a trip to Target this weekend and got everything I would need for my hospital bag. My bag is packed and I am ready to go.

I've been having some contractions and some cramping. I think I overdid it this weekend. The nesting has taken over. I was up at 6:30 in the morning on a flipping Sunday cleaning the house. Not just cleaning, but I rearranged the kitchen cupboards and the pantry. I even dusted, swept the floor and moped the kitchen floor. Took a nap at 2 and was right back at it. I even managed to stay up till 10:30....only to wake up to snow...but then I remembered I live in Ohio. Anything is possible at any time of the year.

My 36 week appt went well. Doctor said I am looking beautiful...well duh. My BP is good, Baby Cakes HR is 134. Had the Strep B test done. Wasn't nearly as bad as some people make it out to be. I was supposed to have an internal, but they decided to wait a week. So I go back Wednesday for that as well as a U/S. I am hoping that the internal will set things in motion. But at the same time, I really hope my mom makes it back from Florida before Baby Cakes decides to make "his" appearance. Really bad planning on her part.

Not gunna lie

I am miserable today! I am also on the verge of tears.
I got zero sleep last night and my back is wrecked.

Every little things annoys the piss out of me and I just want to slap a bitch. Its so bad, I cant listen or be around people eating without there being background noise....loud background noise. This annoyed me before pregnancy, but now, OMG. I'm like how can people make so much noise when they chew? And how is it that people, grown adults, don't know how to share? Is it acceptable to have 2 muffins in a matter of 5 minutes when other people, especially the pg lady, haven't even had ONE! Argh.

Don't even get me started on the dumb asses at Target and Kroger from last night. I mean come on, do you think you own the isle? Is it acceptable to leave your cart unattended in the middle of the isle while you look for a jar of pickles? Move your fucking cart over.

I am not gunna lie, today is the WORST I have felt this entire pregnancy.
I feel like Peter on Family guy when he throws his hands up in the air and simply says "done". That's me done!

I cant even focus on my work b/c everything hurts and I feel like a walking zombie.
I'm going to try sleeping on the couch tonight. Hope B doesnt take offense to it. If he does, oh well...its honestly for his own good at this point.

The Home stretch!

Any day now Baby Cakes. OK, not really. But maybe in 2 weeks you can make your arrival.
I'm hoping to make it to Easter. Partly b/c my mother decided to go to Florida between the 6th and 12th. Great timing mom! I just know if I go into labor while she is gone I will never hear the end of it.....NEVER.

And seriously, if I more person tells me b/c this is my first I will go late, I will seriously throat punch them! I'm very hostile these days.

The nursery is done. Just waiting for Baby Cakes. We went to BRU and purchased the PNP with the gift cards we have. I began working on my thank you notes yesterday....yea, I got about 15 done... out of 70. I'm pretty sure they will go out in batches. As long as they go out before the baby gets here, I'm cool with that.

B and I had what I am sure was our last baby free getaway this weekend. We went up to Windsor to see Chicago and do some gambling. Concert was awesome, the room was awesome, losing $140 to the slots, not so awesome. But we both had a great time and I managed to stay up till 2am with OUT a nap!

I have my 36 week appt on Thursday, so be sure to check back for that update!

One month or less

I am so hoping for the less part.
I feel as thou I have been 8 months pg FORever. I'm ready all ready.

Last night Baby Cakes had Party at the Disco on my bladder. I thought for sure I was going to lose all control and pee my pants. Then I starting having cramps, this along with my cankles...that B could see. I mean seriously, he couldn't see that I didn't have any ankles? Whatever. The rest of the night I was just uncomfortable.

I did manager to get some paperwork for the hospital filled out. Gotta love that pre-registration. And B and I continued our "little discussion".

The boy is crazy I tell you , down right crazy. I told him that when the time comes and I DO finally go into labor, I want to get to the hospital, get checked in and settled into a room before he starts dialing for dollars.

When I said that, he looked at me like I sprouted another head. He wants to drive 100MPH down the trail to get me to the hospital while calling everyone. UM, HELL TO THE NO! NO Fucking way! I don't know how many times I told him I would kill him or hide his phone from him. He just doesn't get it. I honestly think he watches too much tv. He thinks my water will break and if I am not to the hospital within 10 minutes I will have the baby in the Jeep. I have told him over and over that it could take onwards up to 24 hours before the baby would arrive. Again, you would have thought I sprouted another head. I don't know what to say to make him understand my position. His argument, but they are SO excited. I get that. I really do. But I don't want to have to kill my MIL or SIL b/c they are all up in my business. And knowing my MIL, if B does call her while we are on our way, she will be there before me. No lie.

Moving on. I am so annoyed lately. People drive me bat shit crazy. I cant take it anymore. I just want to throat punch a bitch. Maybe I just need more sleep.

I'm going to be an attention whore for a minute. As you all know from following my blog, I have GD. I have been doing really well (except for lately). I was weighed at the doctors last week and then I weighed myself again yesterday and WTF, I weigh less today than I did BEFORE I got pg. I am in no way complaining, but holy shit, how awesome is that? Everyone said I would most likely lose weight being on this diet, but I honestly didn't believe them.

That's all for now.

Where is my brain?

This has been going on for a while now, but last night it really hit me that I am losing it.

I swing by the ATM and CAN NOT remember my pin number. OMFG. Of course, the first time I enter it, its wrong... so then I had to think, think, think about what the number was. Thank god I got it right. I can only imagine how pissed I would have been if the machine ate my card. More pissed if I didnt have the cash to stop and get the ice cream I so badly wanted.

Then this morning, I get up and totally space about testing my BS before I ate. It wasn't until I was walking out the door to leave for work that I realized I had already eaten breakfast and not tested...oh well.

With all that being said. Lets see what I can remember from my 34 week appointment.

My BP is good, I lost 2 pounds, Baby Cakes HR is 134 and I am measuring right on track.

We talked in great length about being induced and what are the odds of having a c/s. I go back in two weeks and begin my internal exam.....EEEK! At week 37, I will have an U/S to check the size of Baby Cakes and we can decided from there what course of action we want to take. My OB is very optimistic and wants everything to take its own course. As of now, I agree with her.

I have to give a shout out to my friend Jill, whose water broke last night and we should be expecting her little bundle of joy sometime today!! He is TWO weeks early! OMG, I am so excited for her and her hubby!!!

3 is my lucky number

Not really. But every night this week I have woke up at 3am. And not just 3am, 3:08 to be exact. Whats up with that?

And whoever said sleep was over rated couldn't be farther from the truth. I slept from 6:30-8:30, 11:00-3:08, 3:15-5:45 last night. OMG.... it was heaven.

I'm feeling 95% better, but now B is sick. And of course being a man, it is TEN times worse than what I had and he doesn't know how he will make it thru the day. ***rolls eyes*** So I tell him to stop and buy some dayquil. His response. I don't like that stuff. I said the pill, not the liquid... and if you don't like it, then you can suffer all day. He told me I didn't have to be mean about it. I said, I am sorry but in all honesty, you can get over this quicker than I did. And you can take the good stuff.

Aside from my dying husband, I have my 34 week OB appt today. Hopefully they don't piss me off and make me wait 45 minutes.

Nursery Updates

Thanks to my wonderful, extremely talented friend Cyndi, I now have the valance and rocking chair pads. I LOVE them. They are oh so awesome.

She hand stitched those little balloon buttons on there.

Here is a picture of the ceiling fan we purchased off eBay.

And here are just a few pictures of the room overall with the pictures on the wall I put together. I got the frames at IKEA and printed the pictures from the Internet.

Too bad the room looks like a tornado went thru it. I finally got my red lamp, put the mattress in the crib and put the bedding on. After I sort thru the 646548 blankets I got, I will post finished pictures of the nursery.

Updates

I am still sick. I managed thru the shower and had a great time. Of course there are a bunch of snarky comment being tossed around, but whateves. I am so blessed to have an amazing group of family and family.

I do have one thing to get off my chest. My MIL and SIL need to realize they are not the only family this baby will have and I REALLY wish they would refrain from making all the grandma, at grandma's house, I'm the grandma, I'm the babysitter comments in front of my mother, who also happens to be a grandma as well. I mean seriously, do you think I was spawned from aliens? No, I have a set of parents just as B does. So before you make a snarky comment about being grandma, remember who you are in front of. I don't think I can hold my tongue much longer.

I am so blessed to have such an amazing group of friends and generous family. I think it took about 2 hours to open all the gifts. It looked like BRU exploded in our house and it will take me all weekend to sort thru all the gifts.

The best gift of all was spending some QT with Jene, who drove up from Cincinnati. I wish we lived closer. None of my friends share my excited for baseball like she does. But its all good. Baby Cakes and I will be taking a road trip down to see her and Baby Charlie this summer.

My shower Hostess, Nicole

Another Shower Host, Ms. Joyce.

My mom (AKA the other grandma) and I

My Nestie Besties!

Part of the aftermath. There is crap in the dining room and nursery.

Let the craziness begin

To start things off, I woke up sick as fuck this morning. Not as sick as I was in December but still feeling like ass none the less.


I can not breathe out my right nostril, my right ear is killing me and my throat hurts.



I decided the best thing for my sore throat was McDonald's for breakfast, which included a LARGE OJ....which I am SO not allowed to have.

I have two cakes to make this weekend. Lets see how creative I can be when I am sick....


AND my baby shower is Sunday. I really, really, really don't want to be sick for that. I think I will call the doctors office when they open this morning.

And I have a teaser photo for you. I had maternity pictures taken a few weeks back. Everlasting Images is beyond freaking awesome. You can check out their site for all their info or more of my photo session!

Things I need

* More sleep
* Tylenol
* A haircut
* Eyebrow wax
* More sleep
* A massage
* A day off from testing
* More sleep
* A day off with nothing to do. No housework included.

50 days...or less

Holy crap! I had another mild panic attack last night when I was marking appointments on the calendar. Yea, I am the intelligent one. Holy Shit! We are going to have a baby NEXT month!

This month is going to be VERY busy for us, thus resulting in time flying by. Starting on the 15th, I have my shower that Sunday, start L&D classes on Monday, meet with the crortchmuffin Dietitian on Tuesday, and have my 34W appt on Thursday. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

One exciting little fact, Mr. Freeze just so happens to be open. And they are so conveniently located right across the street from the OB's office. I will be sure to have cash on hand so I can get some ice cream for the drive home.

I had my 32W checkup yesterday. Went very well. Baby Cakes HR was 138. I talked to the doctor about the chances of being induced. Having GD isn't going to help.
Although, on the plus side, I get another look at Baby Cakes around week 36 to make sure s/he isn't gaining to much weight.

My OB said she doesn't like to induced b/c chances are it could be a hard labor for me and more time spent in the hospital and if all that can be avoided, she would rather have it that way. But if Baby Cakes starts getting to big, that's my only option. So I have to stay on top of this diet and make sure s/he doesn't get too big.

The doc did say that if I chose to be induced technically/medically speaking since I have GD I could. But it wouldn't be until week 39, hence the 50 days or less. She left it for me to decided. Like I need another decision to make.

I'm still trying to figure when my last day of work will be. In an ideal perfect world, I could work till the 24th and have the baby over the weekend. I only get 6-8 weeks off (unpaid at that) and I want to be able to spend ALL the time possible with Baby Cakes. I don't want to "waste" time off before hand.

That's it for now. I have a lot of decisions to make and a very busy schedule ahead of me!

The power of a nap and 32 week picture

The power of a nap is an amazing thing. As usual, I tossed and turned and got up to pee in the middle of the night. BUT I had a half hour nap after dinner last night. When I woke up, I didnt feel exhausted and today was the first day B didnt tell me how tired I looked. I think I need to make a 1/2 hour nap part of my evening routine.

Here is my 32w5day belly shot. Why in the hell do they copy so small? When I save them, they are so much bigger. Ugh.

**edit** If you click on the picture, a new BIGGER one will open for you.

Sympathy pains and Spring fever

It appears as thou B is having sympathy pains. He keeps getting charlie horses in his calf. I laugh. Aren't I the loving wife. My answer to everything these days is to drink more water...or is it B's answer. I cant remember.

I am so ready for spring to be here. Not because that means the arrival of Baby Cakes, but more so the fact that it will be WARM out. I don't know how much more I can take. Yes, the sunshine is nice. Whats not so nice is walking out into teen temperatures. I have had enough. This is right about the time B and I take off for a long weekend to someplace warm. I thought with Baby Cakes coming and having 8 weeks off, I could get thru the winter. I was wrong. I have spring fever in the worst way. I must have spent an hour looking online at 3 days cruises. **shakes fist at the ILs were on a cruise as we speak.**

Then I spent some more time looking at the deals on expedia for NYC and Vegas. I am desperate to go anywhere right about now. Just to get the hell out of Ohio would be a nice change up.

**sigh**

Wishful thinking.

Getting the hang of it

Do you have any idea how long it takes to grocery shop when you stop and read every label? A long time. Well, not really. But long enough for B to wonder WTH took me so long.

First let me bitch about the crotchmuffin dietitian I met with last week. I did not like her. We will just leave it at that. But she told me that pasta was pasta no matter what brand/type it was. She may be right. But I don't want to believe her. I picked up a box of Kroger Brand pasta and compared it to Healthy Choice, I think (I honestly cant remember for the life of me right now.) Anyhow, the carbs where WAY lower on the HC. So I bought that.

My Blood Sugar (BS) was low all day yesterday. I had a salad and spaghetti for dinner and two hours after I ate, my BS was 90. Not that it is bad. But when my numbers are low, I do stupid things. Like reward myself with ice cream or brownies. I really need to stop doing that.

I'm finally getting the hang of this testing and knowing what I can eat and what will fill me up without going over my carb intake. I also know what I should stay away from and which foods are free and I can eat all I want....Free foods help a lot. But do you have any idea how hard it is to make Jell-o and not put alcohol in it? Its hard. I had to read the instructions 3 times.

Tired and Hungry

I haven't been sleeping worth a shit lately. Getting up 2 times a night to pee and all the tossing and turning makes for a cranky me in the morning.

I am so hungry in the morning. I really need to get to the store and buy Lite bread and some things. This GD thing is going to get old real quick. Seriously, 1 slice of bread with PB is NOT enough for breakfast. Not to mention that I can NOT have any type of juice or milk in the morning. So I am thinking, more like hoping, I can trick myself by getting the Lite bread b/c with that I can eat two pieces vs 1.

Let me tell you what B pulled last night. I had planned on making spaghetti for dinner. Sans the garlic bread. Like any other day, B asks whats for dinner and I tell him spaghetti but no garlic bread. You would have thought I committed a sin. He says WHY? I explained to him that since I am already eating pasta, I cant eat the bread too. So I figure instead of torturing myself, I just didn't buy it. What is his response? "What else can you make for dinner? I can NOT eat spaghetti without garlic bread."

OMFG! AYFKM?!

Don't be supportive and understanding that I have to adjust my diet for the next 8 weeks. God, I wanted to kick him in his nuts.... See, I didn't sleep well last night.

3D U/S pictures

We went to Sylvania Ultrasound http://www.sylultra.com/ last night and seriously, these women must have been the nicest people I have ever met!!

I am totally in love with Baby Cakes. It was such an awesome experience and I am SO glad we paid the money to have it done. I cant stop looking at my little baby.

So here are some pictures. I hope you enjoy them as much as B and I do...or at least half as much.

I started with this b/c it is SO my child. As you can see there are TWO fingers in front of the one that is upright. I fucking love this picture!!

Well, its official

I have GD. Its OK. I'm cool with it. My OB said 2 of the 4 blood draws were elevated. So I need to see a dietitian. Aside from that everything is great. No sugar in my urine, which is a good thing and I have only gained 6 pounds. WOOT!

Get this, my BP was 102/70. If any of you know what I deal with at work on a daily basis, you are probably like me and wondering how on earth it is so low. Got me....

Moving onto Baby Cakes. HR was 132 and according to the doc, my belly is measuring right on track.

I cant wait till Thursday. We are getting the 3D u/s done.

Check out this cuteness I bought at Target the other night. Each item was ONE DOLLAR. How can you wrong for $1?

And last but not least. 30 weeks picture of me.

Can you tell I didn't sleep very well last night?

Be sure to check back on Friday for 3D pictures of Baby Cakes!

30 week appt today

I have my 30 week appointment today and I get the results of my 3hour GD test. To say the least, I am a little nervous. **fingers crossed** that I passed this time.

Baby Cakes has been a wild child lately. The other night BC kicked me so hard in the southern region I just about peed my pants. It hurt so bad that I yelped. I seriously have no idea what is going on in there.

We made more progress on the nursery over the weekend. B and I put up the border and B put up the ceiling fan. My friend Cyndi came over to pick up the rocking chair and to take measurements for a blanket and a valance. Its so wonderful to have talented friends. I cant wait to see how everything turns out. I'll try to post pictures tonight.

And last but not least, I went to Target last night and I just so happened to be walking by the baby section and what do I see, a 75% off sign. I got the cutest little onesies for a $1 each.
I'll post pictures of those too.

Whats that smell?

Not what you think... its new furniture!!! I have the best ass kissing hubby in the world. He was off work for two days and I came home on Tuesday to this. Check it out!!

View from looking in from the hallway:

The light switch and outlet covers.

The Crib

The changing table

Its all coming together! I am so excited!! I still feel as thou I have a long list of things to get and get done. I need to find fabric for the rocking chair (which happens to be my great grandma's). I need to find fabric to make the valance. I would like to find a red lamp and a white shade. I am waiting on the border to arrive, so I can put that up and B needs to put up the new ceiling fan.

Once I get all that done, I just sit and wait for my shower, and then its back to work!!

Mural and 29week picture

Here is the mural that I put up over the weekend. I freaking LOVE it.

And here is me after a LONG Monday. 29 weeks.

Guess I don't have much else to say. Well we did pick up the crib and changing table. But it is not assembled yet. Hopefully B will get to it this weekend.