Velveeta Fail

Well I love how I went on and on about how I was going to cheat and just use Velveeta and add broccoli and chicken instead of following the recipe. Apparently, Velveeta went ahead and thought of that. Too bad I didn't know about it till after.


Whatever, I used fresh broccoli so...I'm convinced it was somewhat healthier. I'm still trying new things. B likes it. Its at least gotten us out of our food rut. We just get stuck on the same things week after week. I actually made a whole board on pinterest about recipes I've tried and my opinions. Too bad only like 1 person is following it :(

What's for dinner pinner?

The other day I called B to ask "whats for dinner tonight" and his reply was "I dunno whats on Pinterest?" So I'm sure everyone who might possibly read this is on Pinterest now. The hubs is ok with me wasting time on it as long as I'm finding new food ideas. We are def one of those families that get stuck doing the same 10 meals all the time for food. So, Pinterest has opened my eyes to other things. There is a little criteria to finding a good meal to try: 1)has to be somewhat quick or crockpotable 2)has to have simple and not a lot of ingredients. Lets face it, fewer ingredients isnt just time efficient, its healthier. So.. I've found a few things on there that worked for us that are keepers. Another thing I like to do with these recipes is attempt to make them even easier. For instance one I will be trying at some point this week is a cheesy broccoli and chicken bake. It has things like flour and whole milk in it. So instead I'll just buy shells and cheese and mix in some fresh broccoli and chicken and do it that way! And I also think about half of the crock pot recipes on Pinterest can be done on the stove top in like an hour tops. I guess its just for those who want it done by the time they get home use a crockpot. Cause there is no reason a can of corn, black beans, and cream cheese should take 5 hrs to make a dip!

Pumpkin Princess

Here she is! The cutest pumpkin in the patch!

Pumpkins Everywhere!!

I loooove October. Even though its the busiest month (besides June)I look forward to it so much. The weather is nice, the decor is awesome, the smells are great! Love it. So like many of you I am totally wasting time daily on the timesuck know as Pinterest. And there is a pumpkin pie dip recipe floating around and I tried it. It was terrible! Now, I don't like for things to be too cinnamony and thats exactly what this was, blah. I feel that the pumpkin to cool whip ratio was way off. So I tweaked it and made a better one.

Obviously adjust amounts accordingly, this is just to make for 2-3 people.

2 cups light cool whip
2 tablespoons of pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix just pumpkin)
1/8 tsp of pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp of cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla

Serve with graham crackers or apple slices

So much tastier! And lighter.

New House

So incase you haven't heard we bought a house and moved. I have been SLOWLY unpacking for like weeks now. No, I don't have any pics to show you yet. Mainly because there are still boxes and piles in some point of each room. I know, boo. Be patient! And thanks to Pinterest I am constantly finding new ideas of how I think I want things. We were going to paint her room this weekend but I felt like I was coming down with the flu or something so that didnt happen. It's not the flu but its something and I literally have no voice :( I think the hubster kinda likes it lol. I had in my head a personal deadline of Sept 30th to have things totally put away and decorated. The 30th is creeping up on me. Yikes.

Squash- the new pasta

So I've been hearing for some time about how you can use spaghetti squash instead of pasta in spaghetti. It's true! And so easy! I'm all about easy! It smells like squash but really doesn't have a taste so you can use it with any kind of sauce etc. you would normally put noodles in. So...

Step 1: Find spaghetti squash, looks like this:


Step 2: Boil in large pot for 25-30 mins, if you can stick a fork in it easily its done

Step 3: Slice in half length wise and let cool for 10 mins or so

Step 4: Scoop out middle and seeds

Step 5: Take a fork and shred from top to bottom

End result looks like this:


Do I have to point out the fact that being a veggie, its better for you than pasta. Its low carb and gluten free. Voila!

Thanks doc!

So...I may have mentioned before that I was really not happy with our pediatrician. He is only in the room with us for like 3 mins and in that time just rushes through, we're just one more patient to see. Doesnt like to answer questions, when he does he's vague. So we went yesterday for her 4 month appt to see someone new. This guy probably spent almost 20 mins with us! He was great! Turns out there is an entire clinic devoted to Hemangiomas (which she has) downtown. Did our other doc ever mention that? No! He said and I quote "dont let anyone tell you there is anything you can do for it." What did this doc say? "There are lots of things you can do for it, you deserve to know your options..." Thank you! Just goes to show how different doctors are. The first doc is older, maybe that has something to do with it. Get with the times dude, medicine is changing everyday!

Home Buying

Yep, I think we decided to do it. Do I want to stay here forever? No. But we've been trying to decide when was a good time to suck it up and buy a house and commit to this place a few more years and when they raised our rent, that seemed to be the push we needed. Its bittersweet-excited to be buying our first home, bummed that its not in the DFW area. Sigh.

Back to Reality

So today is the first day I am fully back to work. School is finally out so that means B is home playing dad all day while mom is at work, boo. This will give them bonding time though but I sure do miss her already. I am so grateful to my job for letting me bring her with me and work a split schedule for 2 months.

Maybe its just that this week has already been busy at work and its only Tuesday but I can literally feel my blood pressure rising at the thought of the next few months here. We're entering gala season again and this time instead of having a co-worker who is clueless and no help, we have one that wants to change everything. Me and another girl have already been saying "any day now..." meaning any day now we are going to snap and be snippy. We have a small department and all work really closely and when you factor in the stress of an event this size it does not equal a fun time. So yeah, not looking forward to it.

I can't believe its already June. This summer is going to fly by. My sweet little girl has already started rolling over. As soon as you lay her on her back on her playmat she's rolling over so we're getting lots of tummy time now. She is so precious I just want to eat her up! I really love this time right now because she is so much fun. Her personality is starting to show, she smiles constantly, its great. I know it just gets better.

3 Months

My little girl is 3 months old! It feels like its been way longer and then again it feels like 5 mins. Everyone keeps saying "enjoy this time with her it goes so fast". Trust me I am. I was trying to recall things from her first month and last month and just thinking "wow she has really changed!"

If I haven't already told you, she has what's called hemangioma. It is a non-permanent birthmark on her face. She wasn't born with it but it started to appear around 3 weeks old. It will eventually go away but it may take years. I've heard everything from 2-10 years. Its most common in female, white babies who are born early. Well, thats her. It started out as a few red dots on one side of her chin and then got a little darker. I remember the first time the doctor said "it will probably get worse before it gets better..." I wasn't really sure what to expect. It has grown and spread some. Looking at how much its changed in about 9 weeks I'm scared to see the final outcome. It is a very dark red, and like me she is fair skinned so it really shows up on her sweet little face. The internet says the growth stage is the first 8 months, my doc said the first year. I guess its somewhere in between. But like I said, as much as its grown in the past 9 weeks I can't imagine it in 5-9 more months :( People aren't always tactful when they ask about it either. I usually get "what happened?" or "what's wrong with her face?" I hate having to explain it over and over again. I hate that people will stare at her. I fear that if its not faded when she starts school she will get teased. I realize compared to ALL the things that she could've been born with this is nothing but still.

Summertime

Yay! I love summertime!! Flip flops, etc. As usual, summer is busy for us. Weddings, trips, and of course since we live here alone, lots of trips home. This year will be a little different. We will only be able to go to the lake house once probably :( In summers past, Brandon can go up and stay the week and I would come up on weekends but, that won't really be the case this year as now we have the wee one. Next year will be different though.

We looked at our calendars a few weeks ago and already from June 1 through September we are booked! I think we have maybe 3 free weekends in there. Geez.

Some of the bigger things this summer:

My sister set a date for her wedding, May 26, 2012. A year away! Plans are already underway and we have already been talking wedding stuff non-stop. So we will be looking at dresses, etc this summer. I love wedding talk. My sweet little girl will make her debut as a flower girl. I can't wait to see her and Anden toddling down the aisle together. Anden is already going to have experience in that role, as he is in a wedding next month. I cant wait to see pics of his chunky self in a tux rolling down the aisle in a wagon.

Anden turns 1! So hard to believe its been a year already! Ctaziness.

Let's see August-weddings and dun dun duuunnnnn: my 10 year hs reunion. Omg how old am I?! I really want to go, oddly enough. There are a lot of people who have no desire to go. Will it be the greatest night of my life? Not a chance, but it would still be nice to have everyone together in one place. Yes its different than generations before ours because we have FB and can keep up with everyone that way. But still, how often do you see them? I think one night a decade is reasonable. Whilr I', freaking out thinking wow my baby will be a little over 5 months by then, its even weirder to think some of those people have 10 yr olds!

Sept brings a bachelorette party and a wedding. I really need to work on my alcohol tolerance before then lol. I did buy those milk screen test strips so momma can check the stock before feeding after a night out!

Follow Up

Well for anyone who might have been concerned-the milk situation did get better. I just had a dip in production I guess for whatever reason but we're back on track now, thank goodness. I have seriously increased my water intake also, not sure if it helps at all but I feel that it helps me so I'll believe it!

I am really blessed that I get to bring my baby to work. I know that is exactly why B didn't get another job anywhere else last year. Because we had her and no place else would've given me all the help from using all my sick and vacation time for maternity leave to working from home half the week, to bringing the baby to work the other half. They even put a crib in my office! Pretty sweet set up.

I got on Mirena the other day. Don't know that we'll actually leave it in the full 5 years but its nice to not have to worry about bc for that long if needed. I also asked my doc "so how long do we need to use some sort of back up with this" and she said "you dont! you're ready to rock!" Nice. It was a super quick and painless procedure too. Not sure what I was expecting but, I like quick and I'm down with painless for sure. Let's hope it works lke its supposed to.

Milk Me!

So...breastfeeding is a BIG commitment. I am really wanting to do it for at least 6 months. I bought the fancy pump and due to weight issues with the baby in the beginning, she has been nursing for about 10 mins and then getting a bottle of either breastmilk or formula pretty much since about her 2nd week. So of course, now that I'm back to work, it has been decreasing. I pump first thing in the morning then when we are at work she gets about 2 bottles then we get home I nurse her and pump, and then nurse/bottle till bedtime, then bottle during the night. I've maintained a 3-4 oz bottle on each size everytime I've pumped till about a week ago.

On Friday I pumped in the morning, afternoon and evening but didnt go for too long and didnt nurse her at all that day. That night my chest hurt sooo bad I couldnt sleep. So when she got up at 5am she nursed for a few mins then B fed her a bottle and I pumped. The rest of the day my left side hurt really bad so I kept letting her nurse and pumped and I felt better. Since then though, hardly anything is happening! These last few days I'm lucky to get a (as in single-combined) 3 oz bottle ALL DAY! I'm drying up! I keep reading that increasing the demand will increase the supply so I'm trying to let her nurse more. Not sure how long it will take for that to work. Yesterday I did that and when I woke up this morning I was feeling like I did in the beginning when I'd wake up-heavy and like ok I need to empty these things asap. But when I pumped this morning I got an oz out of the left side and barely enough to cover the bottom of the bottle on the right. I'm so worried now. I am not ready to quit breastfeeding and I need this stuff to increase like asap!

I've been reading that artificial sugars/sweetners and excessive dairy might interfere with it. So I'm going to really watch my intake. I've always wondered if my diet would mess with it but until these last few days production has been pretty consistent. I'm never hungry but knew I had to eat for her sake. Ah, this is so frustrating! I really hope things get back to normal soon.

Words With Friends

I mean this title in more ways than 1 actually. First, the game: I'm loving it. I was deprived as a child and never played Scrabble so I'm learning slowly what "TW" and "DL" etc mean. At first I was just spelling words. So yeah, I feel that this goes in the same category as Soduku (sp) as far as games that keep your mind sharp. I do not play Soduku, just using it as an example. I play Brandon and several other friends on a daily basis, and I feel pretty competitive!

Second, I feel that I need to have some words with friends. I feel like I havent talked to several people in forever. For obvious reasons but still, I feel disconnected!

Where is everybody?

Of all the blogs I follow only 1 person has updated in like a month! Where did everyone go?!

Oh this is why people are so tired

So...I've been (again) telling people "this isn't so bad" about having a newborn etc. Just like I ran my mouth about pregnancy, when will I learn my lesson that eventually you'll see why people say the things they do about it! Now that I am back to work I am TIRED!!! And this is sadly only day 2!! I'm not even at work for a full day either lol. Oh sad. I guess because even though I was up with her a few times at night before, I got to sleep later to make up for it. Now, being here by 8am, I can't sleep later when I miss those few hours at night. It's going to take some getting used to this having to be places at a certain time.

My job graciously has allowed me to bring the baby to work with me 3 days a week for half days and work from home the rest of the time for 2 months. So this will be a nice transition back into working full time. One of our volunteers even brought a crib for me to use in my office! And my aunt sent me a travel swing as a gift that arrived last Friday-JUST in time! Perfect. So my office is a little cramped right now with a crib and travel swing but we make it work.

Employee of the Month right here!!!

Pump Snobs

So after taking the breastfeeding class at the hospital and working with a few lactation consultants while in the hospital, I thought they were such breast pump snobs. Obviously the hospital has a contract with Medela so they use all Medela products and convince you that they are the best. And when they ask (multiple times I was asked might I add) what pump you have and you say anything else, they go "oh...well you know those dont have a good reputation..." and so on. Yes, thank you, I've heard it from almost all of you at this point. My sister was only able to breastfeed for 3 weeks because she ended up having to supplement formua so much it was pointless to nurse so she gave me hers. It worked just fine until about week 2 and it started making sad noises and eventually would lose all suction. Boo. So after reading reviews of that one that was $90 wondering should I just buy another one of these? The reviews were all consistent with my experience, it lost suction. So I knew I was gonna have to suck it up and buy a fancy Medela one. Ideally, I would like my baby to be on breast milk at least the first 6 months so, rather than renting one for $60 a month, it works out better to just suck it up and buy one. So I did, the $279 Medela one. I can just see all those snooty lactation consultants saying "I told you so". Not that they arent fabulous, cause seriously I would be so lost if it werent for them!

Poop, Sweat and Tears

Its hard to believe that yesterday was my official due date and she's already been here for almost 3 weeks! I'm so glad I'm not still pregnant! I cant even imagine how my feet would look right now if I was. Talk about misery. It took 2 whole weeks AFTER having a baby for them to return to normal! Ugh. So just a few observations I've made in the past few weeks of mommydom:

My baby poops constantly. Almost every diaper change! Its the right color and everything and I know they say thats pretty common for breastfed babies to poop a lot but her little booty is so red. I promise I dont just let her sit in it for hours on end or anything. So I've started putting Desitin on her too. I dont know how to make it any better for her :( She does go bare a little everyday but thats pretty dangerous lol. Yesterday alone she peed/pooped on the changing pad cover, 2 blankets, and 3 outfits. Mostly by going while I was in the middle of changing her.

I wake up drenched in sweat or milk a lot of nights. Usually both. I read that its normal with all the hormone changes to sweat a lot the first few weeks after having a baby but geez. Talk about gross, the last place I want to sweat is in my nice bed while I'm sleeping! Also, I bought the silicone nursing pads Lilypadz that are re-usable and supposed to be awesome but I am trying to use all the cotton ones that I have before using those. I may not make it much longer though cause the cotton ones move and shift and clearly dont protect from leaks when you are sleeping. TMI? Sorry.

Oh the tears. I havent cried just a whole lot but I can tell my hormones are def making me more of a sap lately. I have cried like twice having one of those "I cant believe that just 2 weeks ago this little person was inside of me!: moments. Also, when I'm holding her and we get into a little staring competition. I wonder what shes thinking etc. She looks like a little monkey girl I love it! I guess I was right on decorating her nursery with jungle babies and little girl monkeys!

Falling Behind

Well, most of you that read this are close friends, although I know there are a few anonymous secret readers out there that arent...I havent blogged lately because I had a baby! 3 weeks early at that! My due date is still technically 4 days from now, crazy! So glad I am no longer pregnant. Its true what they say, the last month is horrible.

So one Monday I went in for my weekly appointment and my doc said my blood pressure was way too high, that there was no way I'd make it to my due date and put me on bed rest and sent me to the hospital for some testing to make sure everything with bambino was ok. It was, can't wait to get the bill for those few hours of fun, especially after how much the last 3 hour adventure there cost :( Anyways, went back on Wed of that week and my blood pressure was still ridiculous and of course, my feet at this point had been swollen 24/7 for about 3 weeks straight. So my doc said "yeah I think we need to have a baby..." so I was like "like this weekend?" and she replied "no like tomorrow, I want you to check in tonight to get cervadel (sp? a cervix prepper) and we'll start pitocin tomorrow morning." Ok at this point I'm thinking OMG WTF?! So I call B and say "hey we're having a baby tomorrow" and after a few times of telling him "no I really am serious...yes checking in tonight" type things he finally believed me. So we frantically spent the rest of that day going crazy trying to prep to go and make sure other things got done. THANK GOD I cleaned my house really well that weekend prior! Of course one thing on the to do list that did not get done: install carseat. Crap! So B had to get that done before we left as well.

So labor: Ha, what an experience. There really is NO way to prepare for that! I didnt take any child birth classes and I'm glad I didnt because it would have been a total waste of money! I got my epidural (amazing) around 1pm and could still feel things on my left side. By this point my contractions were serious and so I was feeling them all in this one concentrated area and omg it was painful. I was crying. Finally, the doc came back in to re-do it and then all was well. I was a little frustrated seeing as how I got to 10 cm by 1pm that day and they said "ok lets start pushing" so we shooed everyone out thinking here we go and no one came back for about an hour. Pushing commenced around 3pm and we would push for a min or so and then take a 30 min break, sometimes 45 mins. I was getting annoyed. She was born at 6:35pm on Thurs. Feb 24th (still trying to get used to that seeing as how this WHOLE time I thought I was going to have a March baby). She was 7 lbs, 20 in and looks like a little monkey. I knew there was a reason I gravitated towards the girl monkey decor.

They used the vacuum to help pull her down to get her out and it bruised her head pretty badly. This made her more vunerable to jaundice, which we also got and had to go back to the hospital for 2 days. Blah. So sick of that place. She's better now but has lost more weight so now I'm supposed to supplement formula every other feeding. Surprisingly, her head is totally healed now just 2 weeks later. It looked almost normal except for some scabs within the first week! When I first saw her head I was like omg my baby is doomed to wear hats for months! But its all better now. Everyday is an experience, some better than others. I can't wait till we arent on an every 3 hour feeding schedule and she sleeps in longer intervals.

Bed rest day 1

BORING!!! Ugh. So I managed to gain 9 lbs (pause for horror) since last week and I'm pretty sure its all in my feet. They literally hurt when standing for more than a few mins, horrible feeling. My doc said my face looked puffy and my usually normal blood pressure was 162/110. So she wanted to send me next door to the hospital for some tests to rule out pre-clampsia, etc. (Pretty sure that few hours will end up costing me $600 just like last time-yay!)

So I call B and off I went to let them draw blood and take my blood pressure about 35 times. My bp was WAY better laying down then even sitting in the bed so...I was told to go home and lay down. Also I get to trap my pee for 24 hrs and go back to the doc tomorrow with a jug. I am currently trying to figure out how I am going to carry that around without grossing people out.

Good news/scary news is: the doc thinks I will not be going another 3 weeks at this rate cause the swelling and whatnot are good indicators that its going to be sooner rather than later. Still trying to mentally prepare for that! We would ideally like her to still hold off another week or so but, we'll see what happens when I go back tomorrow!

In the meantime, if I'm going to be put on bed rest the rest of the time, I'm seriously going to need something to do. I feel so fat and lazy already and laying around isn't helping!!!

Dreams

Ok so the level of excitement/anxiety has reached new heights. Last night I dreamt about my baby. I was holding her and could see her face clearly, but now I can't remember who she looked like. She had my color hair. She was barely 8 lbs. I remember the first time we tried nursing it was effortless (one can dream right?) and easy. It was very strange. I told B it was an exciting feeling that this new person would forever be joining our family and then at the same time it was almost kind of a sad feeling that its no longer just us. I realize as hard as it may be, she can only improve our life together but still, I guess it was a weak moment.

I did get quite a lot done on our to do list today. Only half the house is clean though so kiddo can't come just yet, not till its all done!

Is that you summer?

Um its mid Feb and its 77 degrees outside. Don't get me wrong, I love nice days, however, I don't think the heat is helping my Flinstone feet right now. Yes they are still swollen and have been EVERY DAY THIS WEEK!! They feel tight and my calves are so swollen right now its making my jeans feel tight around my legs. I have a crate under my desk but the way my stuff sits its impossible to really get comfortable with my feet up or keep them up for long periods of time. I feel SO disgusting and lazy this week because I can't even put my tennis shoes on to work out. I'm over it!! :(

3 weeks to go!!

Maybe... Oh I have this huge to do list in my head so I may just type it all out here so I don't forget anything. The shocking fact that baby A may make her arrival at any time now is looming over our heads-ah! Let's see I need to:

-seriously clean the WHOLE house and make sure it stays clean (pretty much a list within this list!)
-mail back my jury duty ppwk with my doc note saying "in your face!"
-go to Hobby Lobby and get a wire put on the back of this picture frame to hang in her room
-download pics from the last 2 showers
-finish Thank you notes (buy more thank you notes!)
-clean the cars
-install and figure out how the carseat works
-pack a bag for the hospital (this has its own long list)
-make some returns/exchanges at Target and Babies R Us (each store has its own list!)
-buy things we're still lacking
-finish filing our taxes
-find out Monday from the doc if my water doesnt break on its own, at one point am I supposed to be going to the hospital
-take Cooper to the vet

Well, there's still more but this should get me through Monday at least! Ah! Did I mention B works tonight and tomorrow so he can't join in on the fun till Sunday. Poor guy has worked every day this week except Valentine's. At least we got that together.

Cankles!!!

Sexy huh? I've had swollen feet a few times this last month or so but this time, its been like 4 days straight. And these are just the am cankles! The pm cankles look way worse! My doc said my bp was normal and as long as it stayed that way she wasn't concerned. Also, that she's seen way worse. I was like wow! Cause at the end of the day I can't even get my shoes on! Oh joy :(

Time To Get Serious!!!

We have 4 weeks left (technically) and the realization that this could happen at any time is starting to set in! So this morning at my doctors appt I told B "omg we seriously need to clean the house and MAKE SURE IT STAYS CLEAN!!!" Cause our parents are coming and we cannot go into labor randomly and our house be a mess. You know you dont want your parents seeing your house gross either come on! Ah. Also, I was lazy when I got home yesterday and just put everything from the shower this weekend on the floor of her room and left it. I guess I know what I'll be doing this week!

The shower turned out great! Thanks to Terri who is awesome 1) for throwing us a shower 2) for rescheduling the shower due to crappy weather!! I'll post pics later. But she had the cutest cupcakes for us!!

Blissfully Unaware

So...its occured to me recently that I seem to be blissfully unaware of a lot of potential issues that can go on during birth. This is sort of a good thing cause I guess I don't know about some things and so I don't worry about them. However, this is a bad thing because I don't know about them and what if the situation happens to me? This all started with that new show "One Born Every Minute" on Lifetime. The commercials made it out to be like more comedic reality tv but its really just kind of blah.

Anyways, so on the episode I watched the woman had pushed for over 2 hours and they were saying she had the turtle issue going on, in that the head would start to come out but go back in and this to the nurses was indicating that the shoulders might be too big, which indicated some problem called shoulder something-or-other. Never have I heard of this but evidently shoulders getting stuck is a serious issue because there could be nerve damage of the arm which could equal paralysis, death for the baby and other issues. So this poor woman is exhausted because she is getting nowhere and there is a nurse practically sitting on top of her at one point trying to pull that baby out and when they finally do they are calling the NICU and the baby is quiet etc. Eventually, everything is good and the baby cries much to everyones relief.

So now I'm wondering, should I be more concerned? Should I be reading more on the internet about all the things that could go wrong? I know it will just freak me out but I guess I would freak out if (knock on wood) something happens to us and I had never known whatever could be a problem, etc.

Sounds kind of vain but at this point, I guess most of my concerns have been with the possibility of things tearing and extreme hemoroids and things along those lines.

I pray for a healthy, mentally and physically, baby with no complications on my end or her end.

Oh the weather outside is weather...

Any Forgetting Sarah Marshall fans out there? Piopi? No? K.
It's cold here. Evidently not as cold as it is back home in the DFW area, who had their 5th snow day within a week. That's pretty much unheard of. Never in all my years living there did we ever get more than 2 days in a row. One thing that is kind of funny though is that I don't think any of those poor kids thought at the time, they get to make up those days at school lol.

Let's see this week has been a busy one. Let me run down the list of goings on:
-Got summoned for jury duty for March 7th. (FYI-Don't do what I did and run your mouth saying out loud "I've never been called!" cause it will happen. Stupid Karma. )Yeah see that won't work seeing as how I could possibly have a baby by then! So, had to track down the right person at the district clerks office to find out what exactly I had to do to get out of that one. Just need a doctors note! Sweet!
-Finally making some progress with our neighbors and realty company on getting the fence fixed. Seems like after 2 1/2 years everyone is ready to get on with it already.
-Hoping that there is no more ice here or at home this weekend so I can drive up tomorrow for our rescheduled family baby shower. Fingers crossed!
-I joined a book club! Virtually that is. Since I'm not there to attend meetings and whatnot, the girls started a group on FB so I can still be up to speed on the selections and the goings on.
-I finally got up the nerve to ask my boss if it was possible for me to work from home for a few weeks in May. Seeing as how technically my leave is up about 4 weeks before B is out for the summer. We didn't really want to pay the money to put her in daycare for 4 weeks just to take her out again for 3 months. So...we got some things worked out and I am blessed to have a very understanding boss and CEO who are willing to help me on this cause it was approved! Yay!

Good read!

I am currently reading "The Glass Castle" by Jeanette Walls and I am into it! This poor woman has endured some really hard things in life. I can't even imagine. She will also be our guest speaker at an event my work is hosting in May so I'm anxious to hear her speak then also.

I highly reccomend this book. Basically her parents are the hottest of hot messes and her and her 2 sisters and brother are forced to live this horrible life of poverty due to their laziness. Her father is an alcoholic who job hops constantly. Her mom is a wanna be artist who is one of those "someday I'm gonna be somebody" people who never amounts to anything but refuses to work a common job in the meantime. I would give situations as examples but I don't want to give anything away. Read it!

Going Weekly!

Ok we've started the weekly appointments now! Ah! So scary! Next week we do a sonogram to see where she is. I know I asked the doc last time if she was up and down and she said yes but she couldn't tell if it was a butt or a head up top so...I guess we'll see. So I get to spend Valentine's day with the most important people in my life, my hubby, my baby, and my doctor!

This was a weird weekend. We were supposed to go home for our family shower but since DFW has had more snow since we moved to Houston than ever, this was no different. They had an unheard of 4 days of snow and ice. So, since all we got here was a day of black ice, it made it a little difficult to get up there. Plus, we weren't sure who all would venture out in the weather to come even if we had made it up there. So, Terri was nice enough to offer to try again this weekend. Fingers crossed!

So, we got released from work at noon on Thursday because the "snow" was supposed to start that afternoon. Then, nothing happened. So we woke up Friday to no snow but on the news they were saying every road was covered in ice and dont leave the house. I'm not a 9 yr old but I too was a little dissapointed all we got was ice and no snow. So then Saturday it was still a little icy but turned out to be a nice day.

Joy

So, my sister sends me this picture of my nephew wearing her glasses last night and I just keep looking at it and laughing. The look on his face is one that he has constantly but it cracks me up everytime. Then I start thinking of how often he makes me smile. I wish I got to see him more often. Then I started thinking if I smile this much at my nephew, I can't imagine how much or often I'm going to smile at my own baby! Awe, tear.

Has anyone seen my ankles?

Cause they seem to have dissapeared! Like I said before, there have been a few days where they were swollen but not this bad! Last night they looked like they belong to someone who was like 300 lbs. Even B was a little scared. He got me some ice packs and wrapped my feet and propped them up on pillows. A plus being married to a trainer. They looked a little better last night when I went to bed and I figured by this morning they'd be back to normal but not the case. They aren't as bad as yesterday but they have been swollen all day. :(

Baby Shower #1

I loved loved loved my baby shower this last weekend! I am truly blessed to have such great friends. We got lots of stuff and to be honest her room is a disaster right now because I don't even know where to begin with putting stuff away and organizing! I haven't loaded my pics yet but here are a few I stole from Amanda:

Me at the food table-cause where else would I be?

Cherry pop tart pops!!

The super cute cake Amanda made-her first attempt at fondant! Success!

Taking a minute to play with my chunker nephew

The girls got into groups and made onesies-creative!

Ok this is getting uncomfortable

I knew by uttering the words "this really hasn't been so bad" a few weeks ago would jinx me. So I'm starting to feel uncomfortable more often than not. Last week my foot was bothering me to the point of walking made me get teary eyed. This week its my back, my upper back at that. I have a mild case of scoliosis so I've always had pain in my upper back off and on. But this week, like clock work, come 1pm or so it starts to hurt. I can't pop it, stretching isn't helping either. I sit against a heating pad at night but even that doesn't really help. I usually have B spend a few mins rubbing on it and he can feel the knots. Boo :(

Also, bending down to put on my shoes sometimes I feel a sharp ping of pain in my lower belly. B thinks its funny watching me attempt to get off the couch. I usually grunt while trying to get the oomph to spring up.

Yesterday at my doc appt she said "yeah its usually about 32 weeks that I started to always feel blah." She's had 4 herself, I guess she would know. I'm guessing at this point its going to be one thing after another from here on out? I asked her if she could tell which way the baby was facing. She felt around and said she is up and down now. She couldn't tell whether it was a butt or a head at the top but she was definately up and down. Which is crazy because I constantly feel movement on both sides more than anything else. She must be dancing in there and I'm getting knees and elbows or something.

Bathroom Etiquette

So...is it that when you get older you just stop caring about everything? My floor at work consists mostly of administrative offices, however, there is a Senior Center on our floor. Where seniors come a few times a week for activities such as bingo, line dancing, yoga, sewing club, etc. So we share a bathroom with them and seriously, these ladies don't hold back. So, am I just modest and because they're old they don't care anymore? They can make that bathroom stink so bad your eyes water. Must be the prune juice. But not only that, they manage to carry on conversations with one another while pooping or farting, you name it! The seniors always entertain me with their choice of topics but, I don't think I could carry on a conversation while doing my business like they do.

Side note-once there was a lady that came up to play bingo one day and the old lady volunteer at the desk told her to pay her $1 daily fee and their conversation went like this:

Old Lady 1: You have to pay your $1 to play Bingo today
Old Lady 2: My husband died
Old Lady 1: What?
Old Lady 2: My husband died
Old Lady 1: Your name is what?
Old Lady 2: What?
Old Lady 1: Are you gonna pay your dollar?
Old Lady 2: My husband died
Old Lady 1: Well it still costs a dollar

Case and point! Never a dull moment with them. And listening to them converse is hilarious!

Anyone Read This?

I am more than halfway through it and still waiting for it to get interesting. Does it? I kept hearing it was great and it was a best seller etc. And I know the movie is coming out soon so I was wanting to read it before that happened. The movie has Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson in it. The trailer looks semi interesting. Maybe that was a mistake watching the trailer while still reading the book. Now I'm picturing the actors as the characters. Whoops.

Taco Soup-Where have you been all my life?!

So this is a meal that I hear about constantly from different people. There are 10 million different ways to make it, adding what you like etc. My mom gave me a cookbook for Christmas and there were like 4 different recipes for it. I chose one that appealed to our likes and seemed quick and easy and boy is it!

You need:
1 lb ground beef
1 onion
2 cans tomatoes
1 can rotel
1 can ranch style beans
1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning
1 pkg taco seasoning

Brown beef and add onions, then add everything else once the onions have softened and let it simmer for 20 mins or so. If its not soupy enough for you you can also add some water. By not draining any of the cans prior to adding them it already gives it a soupy consistency. But its definately a hearty chunky soup. We also added some shredded cheese to ours. Yum!!

Again, add to it what you want. More beans, different beans, etc. My co-workers like to put sour cream in theirs.

Progress

Everyone else that blogs seems to do this so why not. We are in week 31 now so...

It seems that she is def moving more than ever now. Which I read they were most active around 26-28 weeks but it doesnt feel that way. The movements now are a little different and a lot of times its like they go from one side to the other quickly. Like I'll feel something on the right then immediately to the left.

Still getting lots of unsolicited "advice". Yesterday a co-worker asked what I did to workout b/c my belly was "still really high" I told her I usually walk on the treadmill with weights a few times a week for about 45 mins. She said not to do that b/c it would make my belly drop. Wtf? I said "isnt that going to happen eventually anyways?" Whatev weirdo.

I'm still freaked out about my weight and really hope to not gain much more in these next few weeks. People say not to worry about it but, I am going to so...stop telling me that.

I want to say it seems this pregnancy has been pretty by the book. For instance, it says the 3rd trimester you go back to being tired all the time-check. Boobs are growing again-I'm gonna say check b/c they itch like crazy! Which stinks b/c I really didnt need gigantic boobs, they were already big. The other day my friend saw me and proceeded to tell me they were as big as my head. It does seem like physically all my weight has been in my stomach and chest.

I've only noticed swollen feet and cankles a few times, not an everyday occurance-yet. Hopefully it wont be!

I still have an innie and dont have that linea negra line or whatever yet. I am starting to feel a little blah cause I cant keep up maintence on certain areas cause I cant see it! Lol. I have a co-worker thats pregnant that said she makes her bf do it for her. I just cant ask B to do that. So far I am making due with what I can accomplish on my own and will just deal with the scruff I guess lol.

Also, I am craving alcohol. I want some wine or a margarita so bad! Would it be tacky to pop a bottle after giving birth in the hospital? Lol. Also, I am thinking long and hard about what I want my after labor celebratory meal to be. Is that sad? Lol. Its just I know after not eating for however many hours it ends up being I'll be starving and damnit I want to make it count!

Sonny Came Home

Seriously hate that song, like its one of the THE worst songs ever in my opinion but its stuck in my head right now. Or more specifically, the line "Sonny came home with a vengence..." Here's why:

3:45am Cooper starts whining and needs to go out. In my head I'm thinking ok just wake Brandon up and make him do it. Then I start thinking well now that I'm up I have to pee anyways, great, thanks dog. So whatever, I get up and let him out and start getting mad and saying to myself that we are going to start taking up his water bowl at night. But then I start thinking no thats not fair cause he's locked up all day while we're at work so he only gets so many hours to eat and drink. Then I start thinking how this dog is on my nerves constantly anymore. Then I feel bad because I know its cause he's a hyper dog and because he's locked up all day he can't get all his energy out. By the time we get home now its dark so that means he doesn't really get any frisbee time anymore either. I know what you're thinking, why is he locked up all the time? Oh well thats cause OVER 2 years ago this little hurricane named Ike blew through and our backyard neighbors tree fell down and took our back fence with it. Then started this whole debacle with our backyard neighbor who's house was built about 7 years prior to ours and technically its an existing fence and belongs to them but they dont see it that way. We rent our house so we are just minions in this fight, we have no real say. So of course then I get mad thinking about how patient we have been the past 2 years and so I start composing an angry email in my head to the realty company. So of course I can't get back to sleep. I'm exhausted!! And mad!!

I'm anxious

Ok the reality of the baby count down clock is starting to hit I think. I'm starting to get worried and wonder what all else I need to get done at work, train the new girl on, etc before I leave. I want to have everything done by mid Feb just incase! But then just getting details of leave, etc worked out is frustrating. I am waiting to see if I get a raise or not (which we should find out soon) to ask my boss if its possible for me to work from home the 5 weeks AFTER my 6 weeks off until B gets out of school for the summer. They have already been pretty generous and flexible with me so far so I'm kind of afraid to ask but, I just dont want to put my kid in daycare for a month till B gets out of school. Thats stupid and a waste of money! I think I have a good chance of getting that approved. They might be a little scarred cause the last girl we had leave for maternity leave was supposed to work from home for awhile but then she just never came back... So that probably wont help my situation. I'll have to swear up and down "no seriously! I cant afford to be a stay at home mom! I'll be back I promise!"

I had a doc appt today and asked her what should I expect over the next few appts. She said next time we'll just check the heart rate and chat again. Then at 34 weeks we'll do an exam and the Group B strep test. Then at 36 weeks we'll do another sonogram and then we go weekly. This bi-weekly thing already kind of stinks for me cause I try to make up the time rather than take vacation or sick time since thats what I'm using for my leave. So its gonna really suck when its weekly!