Brooklyn’s Birth Story - November 21, 2011

At just over 40 weeks, I scheduled my induction for the evening of 11/20 hoping that our little girl would decide to come on her own and beat the “deadline”. In the week and a half leading up to this date, I was feeling all sorts of emotions…. frustration, anxiety, excitement…. I knew that I was going to go through with the induction if it came down to it, but that I could also be risking a less than desirable labor and delivery experience.

All throughout my pregnancy, I convinced myself that if I just had a laid back, go-with-the-flow mindset about labor, I’d inevitably have a really great experience. I researched and prepared myself for any and all possible outcomes and didn’t focus too much on a plan. I was going to have my baby however I saw fit in the moment.

We woke up on the 20th pretty excited that we would be meeting our little girl very soon. We spent the day doing some house cleaning, relaxing, taking the dog to stay with Ian’s parents, and making sure we had everything packed and ready to go. We were set to check in to the hospital at 6:45. Around 5, we left the house and decided to go for a last supper on our way (Daphne’s). The drive down to Mary Birch was a little tense, as it was POURING rain.




41w5d 
Ready to go to the hospital


6:45 pm – We checked in through admissions and were sent to wait for our L&D room to be ready. It felt like forever sitting in that room with a bunch of other people waiting on loved ones to have their babies.

7:40 pm – We were finally called and taken to our room. I changed, went to the bathroom in that crazy pee measuring device, and got hooked to the monitors. I was 1.5 cm dilated. No change since my last appointment a few days prior.

9:00 pm – I got my first dose of Cytotek. They explained to me that I would go 4 hours between doses and could potentially get it 3 times. All of this came as a surprise to me, because I went in to this whole thing thinking I already had a ripe cervix. On the induction form from my doctor, they’d specified Pitocin and nothing else. It was disappointing knowing that I had such a long road ahead.

The worst part of all this was that for one hour after having the Cytotek placed, I had to stay in bed, reclined. We entertained ourselves by watching Wedding Crashers, and then Field of Dreams.

1:00 am – I had a softer cervix, was more effaced, and the baby’s head was getting lower. I was still 1.5 cm. They gave me a second dose of Cytotek.

At this point I figured I should try and get some sleep while thing were still mellow. Problem was that our little feisty one was moving all over the place and constantly coming off the heart rate monitor. This would result in nurses coming in (what felt like every 5 minutes) to find her and reposition the belts. It was impossible to sleep.

2:30 am – I finally started to feel contractions around this point. Brooklyn’s heart rate was slightly on the slow side so they put me on oxygen for 30 minutes to try and get it back up. It worked. Ian tried to get some rest and I watched Pretty Woman.

5:00 am – There was some progress being made to my cervix and I was now 2.5 cm dilated. I got a third dose of Cytotek. The contractions started getting pretty painful at this point. Even though I was supposed to stay laying in bed, after about 30 minutes, I had the urge to poop REALLY bad…. There was no way I could wait it out. I went to the bathroom a couple times and just kept trying to get comfy through the contractions.

I had no idea if what I was feeling was what would still be considered mild, of if they were strong. It was as if there was no build up. They came, and they hurt. Bad. So either the drugs made them more intense right off the bat, or I’m just a way bigger whimp than I thought.

8:00 am – Dr. Bales came in and saw me for the first time. Thank god she was there to do the cervical check cause she was so much more gentle than the nurses. I was a whopping 3 cm. She offered to break my water and I obliged. Surprisingly it didn’t hurt a bit.

I knew I would be getting the Pitocin at 9 and would still have a loooooong way to go. They offered me fentanyl and I took it; 3 times. When they say narcotics “take the edge off” – that means, it takes the very very very very fine edge off. Basically, I felt a little loopy but the pain was pretty much all there still.

9:00 am – Pitocin was administered.

9:30 am – I went ahead and got the epidural. The guy who did it was amazing… and also hilarious. It was a little trippy because he was teaching someone else how to do it, so he was talking his way through the whole thing. Thankfully he was awesome and the fact that I was aware of every little step didn’t make me freak out. This also didn’t hurt like I thought it would.

At this point I quit keeping notes of what was going on. Ian said after they put the catheter in me, I slept for a solid few hours. I honestly don’t remember sleeping, but ok. It was so nice to finally be comfortable. Oh, and they put me back on oxygen.

It must have been around 2pm when Dr. Bales came in to check on me. They’d been upping my Pitocin dose and could see that I was having regular contractions, but there was no way to know how strong they were. Bales decided to put a monitor in me to measure the strength. Ian went ahead and took a minute to step out for some air.

After she placed the monitor, she hung out to make sure it was working while the nurse worked on re-positioning the baby heart rate belt. She found the heart beat and we could all hear that it was really slow. I could see them beginning to worry. Bales had me turn on my side; still slow. Then on the other side; still slow. Brooklyn’s heart rate had dropped dangerously from around 140 to 60.

Then it felt like all hell broke loose. They were calling in nurses, and ordering prep for the OR. I was so scared and Ian wasn’t even there. I kept saying “find my husband!!” I heard them paging him as I was being wheeled out of the room. I didn’t see him, but I guess he got back to the room right as I was being whisked off. Another nurse helped him change, get the camera, etc.

It was so awful… I was alone and trying not to cry hysterically. He was alone, and had no idea what was going on. One second he’s there and everything is fine. The next second he is seeing me being rushed to the OR.

When I got to the OR, they moved me to the operating table, and started monitoring the baby right away. What do you know…. Her heart rate was back up to normal. There was an immediate sense of relief and I could feel the room lighten up. It felt like people slowed down a bit and took a little more time to prep. It felt like forever, but I was happy it seemed we were perhaps out of immediate danger.

Finally they were ready to go and Ian finally got to come in. We were both crying. A couple minutes later, they pull her out and she screams. It was the best sound ever. I hear Bales comment on how big she is. And that she had a “really long cord” that was wrapped around her. I also heard later that she was facing sideways.

I can see her to my left and felt good about her health since there was only one nurse working on her. I figured if there was reason to worry, there’d be a crowd of people checking her out. I watched Ian stand over her. Tears and more tears. Finally that was over. She was here and we were all ok. Brooklyn was born Monday, November 21st at 2:34 pm; 9 pounds 1 oz; 23.75 (??) inches long.

Again, it felt like forever that I was alone in the OR while they finished up and closed me. I just wanted to be with Ian and our daughter. Once we got to the recovery ward, I was in heaven. She was so perfect in every way. And I could not have dreamed of how emotional it would be for all three of us.

No one knew what had happened yet, so Ian started to notify our family while I nursed Brooklyn for a solid hour. She was such a good eater.

We had a conversation about her name that went like this:

Me – So what’s her middle name?
Ian – Elizabeth
Me – Nah, It’s Paige. I’ve decided. I mean… I deserve to pick. Look what I just went through.
Ian – I went through a lot too. You girls scared me!
Me – Are you serious? How about something different? Kelly?
Ian – Ok, I like it.

(It’s a name we’d discussed since it’s got some family significance on his side)

We couldn’t move to our own recovery room until I could move my legs. It ended up taking about 3 hours for that to happen and then by that time, the nurses were in the middle of a shift change and we had to wait for them to get situated again. We wanted so bad to be in our own room, but it was also nice to just be by ourselves. I knew family would be coming as soon as we moved.

We got a private room. Yay! My parents stopped by first and then Ian’s Dad’s family. No one stayed long, thankfully. The first night was rough in that there was a constant stream of people coming in and out. Changing pads, emptying pee bag, replacing IV fluid, taking my vitals, taking B’s vitals. It was never ending. The second night was much better since I was unhooked from everything. All the nurses told us we’d be in the hospital until at least Thurs and we were totally dreading it.

On Wednesday morning, Dr. Bales stopped by to check on me. She asked when we were leaving and I said “sounds like tomorrow… we just want to get out ASAP”. And she was like “oh, well you can go today if you want. They just have to clear the baby but I think you’re fine so I’ll start the discharge.” WHO HOO!! I love her. We were heading home around 3 that afternoon; eager to start our life over, +1.

November 18th – 41w2d

Ok, last week was a fluke. THIS is my last entry before Brooklyn comes in to this world. She has a little less than 48 hours now to come on her own before she will be getting help in making her way out.

At my appointment this morning I was told I had progressed a whopping .5 cm. That makes me “soft”, about 50% effaced, and 1.5 cm dilated. I also went to the hospital for a non-stress test and aside from taking a couple hours, all was well. Little one is surrounded by plenty of fluid, placenta is a-ok, and she was an active little booger for a good hour. No wonder she doesn’t care to come out. I mean, it’s supposed to rain this weekend!

Ian and I have resorted to talking about her as if she knows what we’re going through right now and has an opinion about when a good time would be. For instance…

I suggested to him that maybe she’s not coming because she didn’t have a way to get home from the hospital. So he went ahead and finally installed the car seat. Nothing.

Ian joked last week that she’d be getting a spanking for every day late she was. I told him she’s probably scared now and made him take it back. Nothing.

And it goes on and on like that. =)

At the end of the day, she’ll come when she comes.
One way or the other.
CAN NOT WAIT!! <3

November 11th – 40w2d

Well, my due date has come and gone and our little girl is not quite ready to grace us with her presence. I feel obligated to blog in case this is my last update prior to my 3 hour, pain-free, single push, all natural hospital labor story. For the moment though, there isn’t a whole lot to share. I’m still 1 cm dilated, ripe cervix and no contractions. I did end up scheduling an induction for the evening of 11/20 so I hope hope hope she comes before then.

Up until a day or two ago, people would ask me how I am feeling and I would respond with an enthusiastic “good”. I think I may be getting past that point though. There is no denying the discomforts of being 40+ weeks pregnant.

I’m totally amused by the constant calls/texts/emails/FB messages from close friends and immediate family asking me about the status of our baby. As if I wouldn’t let them know? Even Ian calls me from work and asks me if anything is happening. LOL

My “vacation” thus far has been a good combination or productivity and lazy relaxation. During the first week Ian was working almost every day and I got pretty lonely. I think it just wore on me that I was home alone, huge, pregnant, and not knowing when she would come. He’s been off more these days and it’s been great to spend some QT with him before our lives change forever.

Here are some of my accomplishments over the last two weeks:

• Hospital bag packed
• Carpets/Rugs/Upholstery professionally cleaned
• Dog groomed
• Car truck cleaned out (still need to do Ian’s since it’s mostly full of my stuff)
• Baby book mostly filled out with everything relating to pre-birth
• Signed off on our refinance loan docs
• Cooked for fun - my latest obsession being homemade chipwiches
• Had some good meal dates with friends, family and coworkers
• Watched Seasons 1-3 of Breaking Bad

Brooklyn reminded me just now that I should discuss her in-utero gymnastics. I know she’s not actually flipping around since I can feel her head way down in my pelvis all the freaking time, but she sure likes to stretch out. When she really goes at it, I can sometimes feel bone from the outside! Like knees and elbows or something. Maybe fingers and toes? Anyway, that’s one cool thing that has only really happened in the last week or so. Hopefully next time you hear from me, she’s in my arms!!

November 4th – 39w2d

This past week has been so great. I love being off work! =) And so far, I’m not as bored as I thought I would be. Between catching up on some tube, cleaning and organizing things around the house, and visiting with friends and family, the time has been flying by.

At my appointment this morning, I was told I was (barely) 1 cm dilated. I say barely because she first said nothing and then changed her mind. Same doctor as last week too, and not nearly as painful for whatever reason. Thank goodness.

She asked me if I wanted to schedule an induction date or wait and schedule it next week. Of course I’m going to wait; either way, I wouldn’t have scheduled it for anytime sooner than 2 weeks from now still. The doctor was cool and agreed it’s always better to go in to labor naturally but I was still a little surprised how quick they are to bring it up. I’m not even past my due date! And when the nurse was first talking to me and I told her I wasn’t having contractions, it’s my first baby, etc… she said “oh – I bet you’re going to be induced then.” Huh? WTH? Why in the world would she say something like that? Whatever.

I’ve been so awful at taking regular pictures of my big ol’ belly growing. So here is a blurry one I managed to get on my phone today. Ready to pop!!

October 31st – 38w5d

Celebrating my first day of vacation maternity leave today! Whohoo! I think the timing is perfect, even if Brooklyn decides to come a little late. Just this week I started to feel that whole “can’t wait to have this baby out of me” thing that everyone talks about. Of course that is all physical; mentally, I’m ok with her staying in another week or two. Or not. Whatever floats her boat.

Some notes:

• When I’m on my feet for any extended amount of time, I start to feel a lot of uncomfortable pelvic pressure.
• I woke up last Thursday morning with a distinct waddle going on; I’ve officially lost my normal walk.
• It’s pretty awesome to feel kicks and jabs all the way down in my hips, and up in ribs at the same time. She’s getting so big!
• I’m starting to notice her head down in my pelvis when I move around. It’s an odd feeling.
• It’s as if my minimally existent ab muscles from pre-pregnancy are now 100% non-existent. I can hardly lift my legs up and down.

I had my first vaginal check last Friday morning at the doctor. There isn’t much to report on about that other than – OWIE! Didn’t know they had to dig around so hard in there to feel the cervix. And for so long. Sheesh. Good news is that her head is totally down and “right there”, and my cervix is very soft. No dilation to speak of. And no contractions.

The only thing I HAVE to do still is get the hospital bag stuff organized and at least partially ready to go. Other than that, there are just lots of odds and ends that I’d like to take care of before baby comes.

Now, I just have to get through this evening.  As much as I'd like to leave the house, or pretend I'm not home, I think I just have to suck it up and pass out candy.  Ian is at work and the thought of dealing with the dog freaking out, and getting up and down a million times to get the door, sounds less than exciting. 

October 21st – 37w2d

I ended up taking the day off since, well, frankly I don't have much going on there lately and I had other fun things I could do instead!

I had another pretty typical visit to the doctor, but she was able to confirm that Brooklyn's head is down.... and it's way down. Which I think explains the minor cramps I'd been feeling a few days ago. I totally feel her new position. The doctor traced her from her head, along her back, to her butt and then her feet. I love knowing now exactly how she's sitting in me!

I went ahead and declined a cervical check and we agreed to do it next week, for sure. I just really didn't see the point. Does it matter if I'm 1 cm dilated? Eh.... no. And if I'm 5, well, I'll figure it out here pretty soon, right?

So then later this afternoon I got the most amazing massage. Ian surprised me with the appointment... Apparently he spent a whole day of work researching where to go in SD for a good prenatal massage. Very thoughtful. So I ended up at a place called Equilibrio in Bankers Hill. They specialize in prenatal and postpartum massage therapy and the prices are pretty good, too! 75 minutes for $90 -- Now, if only I could recreate the pillow concoctions at home I'd be in heaven.

From there I went to get my hair done (finally). I know it seems silly but I'd pretty much made this appointment so that I could be "safe" before the baby came, but still wait as long as possible because I know it will be a little while now before I can go back. This was 10 whole torturous weeks with a gazillion gray hairs showing everywhere. I'm happy it's gone... and Miss B can come whenever she'd like. Particularly now that I picked up some baby wipes and burp clothes. How the heck had I forgotten those items?!?!

October 14th – 36w2d

It’s sure been a busy last couple weeks in pregnancy land! I can’t believe we’re only a few weeks away from meeting our baby girl.

As you saw, the nursery is done, we’re done with our classes, I have a pediatrician that we will use (but likely won’t meet with in advance), I’ve learned about how baby insurance coverage works, sent in our hospital pre-admission form, and have made a hospital bag packing list. Still to do – pack the bag as much as I can and actually call the ped office and make sure they take our insurance, take new patients, etc. I think that’s it! We’re totally ready.

Totally ready in every way except mentally. Haha. If she decided to come today, I’d definitely be taken off guard… I really think I need the next two weeks to completely wrap my head around it all. I’d also like to finish a few more things at work, finish my thank you cards, get my hair and toes done, have the furniture and carpets shampooed, get our cars totally cleaned out, and relax. THEN I’ll be 100% ready.

Physically, things are getting to be much more challenging. Sleep is rough since my hips get super sore and I feel like I swap sides every 30 minutes. And turning over is NOT as easy as it used to be. I’ve learned if I quit drinking a ton of water by 8pm, I can still make it through the night with only one restroom trip, so that’s nice.

In the last week or so, Brooklyn has gotten more cramped and I don’t feel her jostle around quite as much. She stretches and wiggles around enough to keep my peace of mind, but it’s a totally different feeling. I’m already missing the huge hard jabs and watching my belly go nuts. Most movements these days are felt way up high, or very low.

I had a good Doctor’s appointment this morning.. Actually, the best one yet being that I was in and out in 10 minutes and even had an extra test! Yes, thankfully the butt swab was not nearly what I had made it up to be in my head. Heartbeat sounded great. Uterus measuring right on track. Weight “fine”. And even though she didn’t appear to do an official check, when I asked about B’s position, she said it did feel like her head was down.

Oh! I meant to touch on our two classes. I’ll go ahead and make this super long and bore you with that information now ;)

We opted for the one-day Childbirth Preparation Class. THANK GOODNESS. I can’t even imagine 2 days of that, or even 6 evenings… Both of us would have never made it through. To be perfectly honest, it was pretty much a total waste of time. Anyone who has read ANYTHING about labor would have already known about what to expect – the signs, the stages, etc. Maybe if your husband was totally clueless, I could see it being helpful to expose him to this stuff, but Ian had already learned about it.

So then we briefly went in to some breathing techniques and laboring positions. 1 – If you are planning a natural labor, you’d probably want more than this. 2 – If you are not planning a natural labor, you probably don’t care much about this. 3 – If you’re undecided, or unsure which way you are going to go, you could google and read about this and be just as well off. BUT, I’ll admit having Ian give me hand and back massages the whole time was nice.

I was most excited for the hospital tour and that fell pretty short of my expectations as well. I’d seen a recovery suite before, and we didn’t get to see a delivery room because none were clean. But what can you do? At the end of the day, we wouldn’t have known what we already knew unless we went to the class, right? And I’m happy with the few tid-bits I did pick up and can feel sure I did what I needed to do to prepare for the birth of my girl.

Last night I drug Ian along to the breastfeeding class. I could understand why his expectations were pretty low at this point… Turns out this was a thousand times better and we really did learn a lot! The instructor was fun, the couples were fun, and who knew that 3 hours could so easily be filled with information regarding breastfeeding? I’d highly recommend this class to everyone. So yay, happy ending!

Guest Bathroom - DONE!

Man, it feels awesome to have all these projects done.  Especially this bathroom, as it was really the only shabby space left in our house.  Now it's be-u-ti-full like the rest and I just love it!  

Ok, so maybe it wasn't really my project since all I did was pick stuff out, buy it, and watch as my dad worked his magic.  THANKS DAD!!!!!

Here was the bathroom before, as it was when we bought the house.  We thought we could probably make do with it for a while longer, but at the end of the day, it wouldn't have been super conducive to having and bathing a baby.... slippery tile, tub shower doors, etc. 

And here was the demo shot I posted a while back.  It was totally gutted.

And TA-DA!  This is what we have now!

We selected this shower head because it seems handy for spraying down poopy/dirty kiddos

We hadn't realized how shallow this vanity actually was until we got it in.  And now, it's perfect!  Doesn't take up too much space, and there will be plenty of room for a step stool.

We also went ahead and got porcelain toilet seats for both bathrooms and they are awesome!  Both have a soft close feature so they don't go slamming down when you're finished.  Bonus -- the one in this guest bath has a removable toddler seat insert for a teensy butt.  We are so happy with how everything turned out.

Baby Bedroom - DONE!

I'm relieved to say that we are officially done with our girls bedroom.  There is still one bare wall that will one day be home to some bookshelves but for now, we are all set with everything we could need and more.

Remember what the spare room was being used for a few months ago?  Junk storage...

And TA-DA, here is what we have now! 



Crochet blankie I made

Closet FULL

FLOR tiles.  Love how they turned out!  Furbabies like it too....

I go in this room almost daily just to hang out, look at the itty bitty clothes and think about how much life is going to change so very soon.  <3

October 3rd – 34w5d

I went ahead and made some decisions on nursery décor. I figure if I just went with cheap, I won’t feel bad if I have to re-arrange or change it up later on down the road.

First up is 2 custom prints. I think they’re cute even though Ian says “it’s stupid to frame the alphabet”. Huh? Since when does he care? So if he had his way, I’d only be using the one on the right… but do you honestly think he’s going to get his way? =P

Then I got a bunch of 3D paper butterflies that just stick to the wall. As long as they actually stick, they should prove to be a good space filler on the crib wall and not pose a threat to the sleeping baby in the event of a quake or something.

We’ll still have one blank wall that will be home to some bookshelves at some point, but I think these things will complete the main part of the room. They should arrive in the next couple of days and then I can finally post some pics! Our bathroom should also be finished any day. Whohoo!!

Now, on to the subject of fat fingers. I wore my engagement ring and wedding band for the last time on Sunday. Well, last time until post baby at some point. Ian was just in Vegas and said he almost got me a $200 giant cubic zirconium ring that he saw but I told him I was glad he didn’t. I was definitely thinking of spending closer to $5 for my temporary ring.

I found a set of 5 bands for $9.75 at Claire’s and was just going to use the plain one. Ian carefully chose this one instead and I think he’s totally right… it looks much more expensive. LOL.

I wish I’d taken a photo of my ring finger when I tugged the nice rings off – it was seriously indented and all red, with dry skin flaking off. Really awesome. So far today, the redness is gone and skin less dry. I wonder how many days my finger dents will remain?

September 28th – 34w

Ok, I’ve officially recovered from my whiney attitude that came out two weeks ago. Maybe it helped to get it out though, because this last week and a half has been pretty fabulous. Sure, I still relate to most of the “symptoms” but the closer I get, the more and more exciting everything feels.

The baby movements are really powerful now. It’s fun to imagine what she’s doing in there when I feel her all over the place, twisting and turning in every direction. I can tell it’s getting pretty snug because I’ll feel her up in my ribcage, really down low, and way off to both sides. It’s totally distracting and I catch myself sitting at my work desk just watching my belly wig out for a while. Oh! And a couple days ago I definitely felt her case of the hiccups as I was going to bed. It was annoying, in a cute can’t-wait-for-it-to-happen-again way.

We need to buckle down now and check off a few serious things from the to-do list:

• L&D Class – 10/9
• Breastfeeding Class – 10/13
• Pack Hospital Bag
• Health Insurance – All 3 of us stay on Ian’s or get back on mine?
• Life Insurance – Amend our current policies?
• Choose and meet a pediatrician

Hmm… I wonder if I’m missing anything else?

Back in non-serious land, I also need to get a new wedding band since I actually do care if strangers think I’m an un-wed floozy. Let’s face it, that’s what they see and they will judge you with their eyes! I thought I just may be able to make it the whole way with my already snug rings, but alas, they are getting much to tight.

The nursery is done except for its bare walls. I’m losing motivation fast, though…. Why is it so hard to decide on a couple pieces of art and some book shelves? This may have to wait until post-baby.

I think I’m already exhibiting signs of “short-timers” at work, now that I’ve got people mostly trained. After this week, I’ll have 4 more weeks to go and I’m hoping to take it easy and let everyone else take care of my stuff next month. What? It’s for practice! That way they are more comfortable when I’m gone. Bwahaha.

I do have some laid back weekends coming up during which I plan to catch up on some blogging (w/ photos) and continue my aggressive nesting efforts.

September 14th – 32w

It’s been 3 weeks since my last update and a lot has changed.


1. I’m humungous.
2. Reflux is worse.
3. Sleep sucks.
4. My back hurts.
5. My hips hurt.
6. My feet get mildly puffy.
7. I definitely can’t see (and can hardly reach) my nether regions.
8. I have awful stretch marks. Like, a million of them. I’ll post a pic. -----NOT-----


But on a more positive note, lots of fun and exciting things are happening too! I’ll likely touch on some of these more in follow-on posts.

1. I had a really awesome baby shower.
2. Then I had another awesome surprise baby shower at work (today!)
3. We have a FLOR rug and curtains in the nursery.
4. I like ice cream again.
5. Our girl is almost 4 lbs and 17 inches long.
6. I can’t wait to meet her! I hope these next 2 months fly by as quick as the rest of it has.

Pale Ale Pooch Treats

Ian came across a recipe for dog treats in one of his homebrew magazines and we couldn't wait to try it out.  This past weekend he was brewing up a base for what will later become some delicious Citra Papaya Pale Ale.  All we needed was 4 cups of his spent grains (meaning post-mash) and a couple other things that are usually on hand.

Here's a shorthand version of the recipe from the magazine...

Ingredients:
4 cups spent grains
2 cups flour
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350
Combine ingredients
Roll out on parchment paper to 1/4" thick and cut treats to desired shape/size
Bake @ 350 for 30 minutes
Turn oven down to 225 and continue baking for 2+ hours; until treats are dried out

Kaiser wanted me to say "rawrrrrrrrr rwar rwar YUMMY rawrrrrrrr"

Yep, he loves them.  And I can see why -- when they were baking they stunk the house up with peanut butter deliciousness.  Now that we know he likes them so much, I'll have to invest in a bone cookie cutter.  Ian was displeased that they were plain old rectangles.  Haha!

FLOR

We’ve been making some good headway on the nursery and have managed to cross a few big items off the to-do list:

• Put together dresser
• Get a glider
• Window treatment/curtain panels. DIY?
• Replace closet doors
• Find a rug
• Decorate walls – DIY button monogram? something to hang? decals?

I’m pretty sure I’m going to DIY curtain panels since I really just want plain white and Sherry from YHL makes her fabric tape iron hem jobs look so easy. And now that I’ve ventured inside Jo-Ann’s for the first time ever, I’m slightly less intimidated. Now, making these guys will be another story; I have no clue where to begin, but aren’t the little balls so cute?

As much as I’d love to have a white fluffy rug in the nursery, I just know that it would never stay clean. Not with our furbabies all over the place and the fact that we wear our dirty shoes everywhere. I searched high and low for something green or pink that would be the perfect size, color and price. Needless to say, I got nowhere fast.

Have you heard of FLOR carpet tiles? It turns out they aren’t as outrageously expensive as I’d imagined so I was totally stoked to order a few samples and see if this would be a good option for our nursery floor. As luck would have it, these two were a perfect fit!



Can't remember if I posted this before but as a refresher, this is our bedding/color palette

I asked Ian if we should go green or pink and he suggested some sort of combo. What a smarty pants! Especially since the whole point of using the modular carpet tiles is to make up fun designs while mixing and matching. This sent me in to neurotic planner mode and I set out to get exact dimensions of the room with everything in it. I needed to see what size rug would be best, and then play around with different design configurations. MS Word worked ok for this. So I present to you – my scaled rendition of our nursery and the design concept of our FLOR.

I went ahead and ordered plain pink tiles so as not to clash patterns with the green. I can’t wait until they come and I can put it all together!

Midwest – Missouri, Part 2

We got up fairly early on Friday to be at Silver Dollar City when it opened.  I hadn’t been to the theme park in years but knew I had to take Ian!  Think pioneer theme park with rides, shows, shops, festivals, etc.  And to top it off, there is a heavy Christian influence that is very predominant.  Quite an experience.  

Thankfully Ian had my cousin to roam around with and they were able to hit up all the major rides while I took care of my unborn child and enjoyed a clogging show, a saloon show, and some singers.  We all met up for lunch and then Ian and I went off to spray people with water guns. 

MO was hotter than IN but not nearly as humid.. much more tolerable to me.  But we still didn’t last too long I the sun and headed back for some afternoon naps.

That night we took Ian to another Branson highlight – The Dixie Stampede.  It’s like Medieval Times of the South and the theme is the Civil War.  Good show, good food, good fun.  I couldn’t take pictures in here either but here are a few from the website to give you the idea.

I think that about covers all the major highlights of our trip.  Our last day in MO was spent hanging around the hotel, visiting with family. 

I guess it's not hard to believe there is a store like this on "the strip"?

We were happy to be heading home soon.  And when you step out of the San Diego airport after being in the Midwest for a week, you remember that the price we pay to live here is WORTH EVERY PENNY. 

August 24th – 29w

My child is kicking my ass these days – literally. As in, I feel like she is residing in my butt sometimes and it’s the strangest feeling ever. And since I like sharing things here that people pretend they don’t want to hear but I know they really do… I’ll elaborate some more. Not only do I feel like there are kicks in my butt, one day I stood up and felt like a foot was going to come out of my vag. Totally freaked me out. That must have been a friendly *pow* on my cervix? Totally not complaining though. I still love it no matter where she wants to beat me. I just figured I’d point out a few areas that you may feel the baby and the books will never tell you. You’re welcome.

I feel like my belly is so huge and I can’t fathom how she is supposed to triple in size over the next 11 weeks. Where will she fit? Ian’s response – “A huge ass belly”. Yeah, thanks.

A few symptoms that have arisen over the last week or so: reflux, gas and constipation. So those are super fun things! Overall I’m still feeling great though, sleeping pretty well, and only have 1-2 trips to the restroom over night. I’m finding it harder and harder to drink enough water but I’m motivated these days by my poo-problem. I know the extra fluids are supposed to help with that.

I’m excited to get home from work today because I’m expecting 2 fun packages. The first being my FLOR carpet tile samples for the nursery; the other being an embarrassing number of baby flower headbands that I procured in moment of weakness.

Midwest – Missouri, Part 1

On Wednesday we flew from Indiana to Kansas City (where my BIL joined us), and then drove a couple hours to Springfield, MO where my g-parents live.  By the time we got in, it was pretty late so we passed out.

I was really looking forward to lunch the next day at Lambert’s – Home of the Throwed Roll.  It’s really a highlight of MO, IMHO, and has been featured on TV as one of the country’s top 10 pig out places to eat. Yes indeedy.  Basically, the experience is this: GIANT mugs of drink, GIANT plates/saute pans of food, generous helpings of sides that come around family style in addition to your GIANT meal, plus a never ending supply of the most amazing rolls ever that are thrown at you. 

Me

Sister Becky, Aunt Mary, Cousin Katherine

Roll Thow-er

Grandma and Grandpa, diggin' in

My meal -- chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans and apple sauce.  I ate about 3/4 of it too!  Yay me!!

Family Full Face (Dad)

Family Full Face (Katherine)  LOL

From here, we made our way to Branson where we would stay for the remainder of our trip.  Our hotel was called “Branson Towers”.  Guess how many stories it was?  THREE.  Haha.  That afternoon we were so full and lazy that we went to see a movie.  Horrible Bosses.  Pretty funny; not amazing. 

Around 9 we were finally getting hungry again so we walked to a bar that was across the street.  Luckily they still served us but they were totally shutting down.  Guess the Branson bar scene isn’t too happening after 8 pm.  Fine by my preggo self....

August 17th – 28w

Well hello there third trimester; pleasure to see you! I’m definitely counting down the weeks at this point, rather than how far along I am. It’s trippy to think in terms of only having 12 more weekends before itty bitty comes, but I can’t wait!

This week my BabyCenter email says our girl is the size of a Chinese Cabbage. WTH? How does that help me visualize? Why can’t they just say a red cabbage or something relatable? This is not the first time I’ve gotten bizarre fruits and veggie sizing comparisons…maybe they should incorporate more variety and not limit themselves to healthy eatable things. I think it’d be cool if I read that my baby was now the size of a small fryer chicken or quart of ice cream, for example.

I had my glucose screening done last month and never got any results, so I’ve been assuming I passed. I guess I’ll confirm tomorrow at my appointment…. My last monthly appointment before starting to go every two weeks! Eek.

Here is what I feel like is going on with my bod these days:

• The feeders dribble frequently enough that I have to wear disposable pads in my bras 24/7 
• I don’t really have issues these days with my hips being in pain from sleeping on my sides but I think that may be because I’m tossing a lot more and moving back and forth. I’ve always been a really good sleeper and lately it’s taking me a long time to shut down. =(
• My ever protruding belly is totally in the way now. It’s frustrating to not be able to reach things as easily or bend over to pick things up.
• I’m not very tired overall; instead I get winded really easily. I need to get out walking more, at the very least, because I am totally feeling the out-of-shapeness kicking in and taking its toll.
• I notice my feet swell a bit on warm days when I’m standing more than usual.
• Speaking of warm – I’m totally hot all the time.
• Baby kicks have gotten crazy! She’s still seems to be shy around her dad though… every time he tries to feel, she stops. Most of the time I love feeling it but one day last week, I stood up and she must have been so low that when she moved, it felt like a foot was about to poke out of my vag. SO WEIRD. I did not particularly enjoy that feeling.  

So other than all that, things have been going well. We are making good headway now in the nursery – dresser is put together, new closet doors installed, and a glider is on it’s way. I foresee my next headache being finding the perfect rug.

I’ve been pretty good about lately about avoiding baby clothes in stores and online; trying my best not to buy any more! But I do confess to going on a bit of an Etsy flower head band shopping spree the other day. This shop - Fab Flower Headbands – LOVE. I can’t wait to get them!

That’s all for now folks!

Diaper Bag D-R-A-M-A

I started getting really frustrated the more I looked at diaper bags online. There are just too dang many of them to sort my way through! All I knew was that I wanted something that still resembled a regular purse but would be awesomely functional for carrying baby crap. Based on input from friends, and my own preferences when it comes to bag-things, I was able to narrow my search based on some personal criteria.

I wound up with four bags that peeked my interest and ordered them all. I think most, if not all, fit my criteria so all I need to do is try them on for size, weight and functionality. What? This is serious stuff!

So without further ado, I present to you the four diaper bag contenders. *Listed in order of price, ranging from ‘reasonable’ to ‘guilty-unnecessary-pleasure-but-mama-deserves-to-treat-herself’. I tried for ‘economical’ as well but it just wasn’t working out:

Skip Hop ‘Studio’ Diaper Tote – Black $89

Pros – Lots of outside pockets in zip and open form; water resistant in and out; contrasting lining.

Cons – Cute but not REALLY cute; stroller straps but no adjustable shoulder strap; insulated side bottle holders on outside (I realized I'd prefer them inside, if at all).


OiOi ‘Baby’ Leatherette Tote - Black $159

Pros – Nice soft leather exterior; open exterior pockets - 2 with magnetic snap closures; detatchable shoulder strap AND stroller clips; unattached insulated bottle holder.

Cons – Black interior; exterior not water resistant; Ian actually had an opinion about this and wasn’t a huge fan of the studded design. (Do I care what he thinks? Meh. Not really.)


Storksak 'Olivia' Nylon Baby Bag – Black $198

Pros – Nylon inside and out for ease of cleaning; open exterior pockets; lightweight; two of my trusty friends own (and love) this same bag.

Cons – Two of my trust friends own this same bag ;)


Petunia Pickle Bottom 'Cake - Hampton Holdall' Diaper Bag - Black Walnut $335

Pros – Super cute print...unfortunately that's the only positive aspect, IMO.

Cons – Heavy; stiff; had a double closure top that would require a twist snap AND zip


Clearly I was able to rule out the Petunia Pickle Bottom right away. Thank goodness because I really wasn’t interested in spending that much.

For weeks I had pretty much ruled out the OiOi for no particular reason other than Ian hadn't like it I guess. I knew I didn't LOVE the Skiphop so I just figured I'd end up being a super follower and getting the Storksak that my friends have. I kept sitting on this decision until the whole thing was going to drive me mad and I just new I had to decide.

I tried on the Skiphop one last time and realized it was a definite no-go as the tote straps did not sit well on my shoulder. How annoying. So then I realized how important it was that the bag actually be comfortable to wear. DUH. I threw the Storksak over my shoulder and realized I was going to have the same problem of straps sliding down my shoulder ALL THE TIME. This would bother me to no end. *sad face*. So then I went back to the OiOi and what do you know? We have a winner!

After all that, who would have thought it would ultimately come down to which bag was the most comfortable to wear? I'm super happy to have this figured out and I think all the other positive things about the OiOi tote will be perfect for me and baby girl.



Diaper Bag - CHECK!


And now I’m in search of the perfect wallet. I NEED something smaller and non-black so it doesn't get lost in my new bag.  =P

Midwest – Indiana, Part 2

Over the next couple days, families left and we continued to see all that was Brown County Indiana.  

Funny story – In planning this reunion, our hosts emailed out a list of activities, sights to see, etc. to find out who was interested in what.  One thing that we saw on the list was “Downtown Nashville”.  So Ian and I were like – oh hell ya, we’d love to see Nashville.  We had no idea it was so close!  Come to find out (once we got to Indy) that they meant Nashville, Indiana.  WAY DIFFERENT.  

So anyway, we did go to downtown Nashville, IN, which was about a 10 minute drive.  We had a nice lunch, shopped a little, and then I enjoyed lots of water at a local brewery with Ian and my two sisters. 

This was so crazy!  There was a paid parking lot with an unattended booth and people just left their money in this little basket.  You know you're in a small (crime-less) community when....

Samplers at the local brewery

Mmmmm, water.

Later that afternoon we headed out to the swimming lake that was equipped with a floating trampoline, slide thingy.  Lemme tell you – it was NOT easy to hoist yourself up on to that thing.  Can you believe I somehow managed?  Thanks to Ian first shoving me up from below, and then pulling me the rest of the way from the top.  “Look out – pregnant lady rolling un-gracefully on to trampoline.”  I’m not sure why I really even wanted to get up there so bad; it’s not like I was going to be jumping around on it or diving off.  Meh.   But yes, it was a ton of fun for the kiddos. And Ian.  I spent most of the time just floating around on a noodle. 

Ian having fun

For our last full day in IN, whatever family was still in town rounded up to go on a tour of a sock factory.  Yep, you heard that right.  We saw how socks are made…  But not just any socks.  This was the largest novelty sock factory in the country.  Whoop Whoop!  ;)

I wasn’t supposed to take photos but I snuck these in during the intro presentation.   PSA – If anyone is in the market for novelty socks, here’s their website – For Bare Feet.

Dad is intrigued

Another sock machine.

Later that evening we went to the fair to see how my Aunt did in her “competitions”.  She’d entered a jar of jam, some squash, and a painting.  A winner on all accounts!

There wasn’t a whole lot else to do at this fair so we just watched my cousin’s kiddos ride the merry-go-round and the ponies.  One of them was semi-horny and it was extremely distracting.

Oh! I forgot to mention our lunch at Gnaw Bone that day.  I think that’s the name of the eatery and also the name of the town! World famous, apparently.  It was this sort of hole in the wall place at a gas station, with dining tables set up in the back storage area.  Totally classy… you know us!  Not gonna lie though – it was one darn good pork tenderloin sammie, with home fried potato chips.  I tried a gizzard but didn’t need to have more than one.

Aunt Mary

Mom in front of the "kitchen".  And to the left you can see where the tables were set up in the back shop/storage area.

Infamous sandwich with a side of gizzards.