33 weeks

33 weeks & I think it looks like I have dropped some... I don't think I am carrying as high as I was a few weeks ago

Birthing Class: We starting our 5 week birthing class last Wednesday and out of about 16 couples we were the only one's that apparently didn't read directions before coming to class b/c WE were the ONLY couple that did not bring out pillow and blankets for "floor work" You may be asking what is floor work? Well it's actually kind of nice so far, they had John and I lay on the floor and then John was instructed on the best way to massage me during labor. So pretty much floor work has been me getting a 20 minute massage from John, which I told him we have to practice every night so that we get it right when the time comes. Other then the lovely massage I have not learned much from birthing class so far. We learned about the women's anatomy but I already knew all that stuff since.... a) I'm a women & b) I have been reading up on the child birth process.


Pittsburgh Shower: I just wanted to thank everyone again who came to the lovely shower last weekend and those who couldn't make it you were very missed! The food at the restaurant was SO GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YUMMY :) It made baby and I very happy to be surrounded with such love. I truly appreciate everything everyone has done for us. XOXOXOXO to all of you!


Water is my NEW friend: So I finally tried Water Aerobics this week and I loved it!!!! Since it's been so hot out, walking outside has been a challenge (not to mention walking it's self is becoming increasingly hard!) My gym actually had a ton of different classes I want to try, the one I took this week was water kickboxing which was fun and I felt so weightless in the water plus I got a great workout without it being too intense. There is even a Zumba water class which I want to try next week, dancing in the water? Why not!

Getting down and dirty: With Diapers! I am trying to figure out what I'm going to do about diapers, I would love to go retro and use cloth diapers for the most part just because it better for the environment (not b/c I love to do laundry everyday) but I worry about being a full time working mom and having time for all of that laundry so I am going to learn more about it and see if I can at least cloth diaper 75% of the time. I also found out there is a service that will bring you clean cloth diapers and you give them your dirty one's and they do all the laundry! I'm sure I won't figure this out till I have a baby and see what works for me so stay tuned for the exciting outcome of this diaper saga.

The Good & the Bad: My favorite part of the third trimester is feeling the baby move all the time and know that I get to meet her soon! I feel like she is so big and can actually hear me now so it's been a good time for bonding with the baby and talking to her. The hardest part for me right now is having to slow down. Things just are not as easy anymore with my belly getting bigger, if I drop something it a chore just to bend down and pick it up! I also get major calf cramps in the middle of the nights that I have to get out of bed and walk around to get ride of. But I really hate to complain b/c slowing down has not been that bad (it's kind of nice to relax a little) & I feel pretty good for the most part. I have not even had heart burn that I hear most women get in the third trimester. I still have 7 weeks left so who know what I will experience towards the end.

Our Growth: So I read that Juliet is suppose to gain a 1/2 a pound a week for the next month!!! WOW :) I am at about 17 pounds for my weight gain. Oh and for the poll on the baby's weight, John was around 8 1/2 pounds as a newborn and I was a little shy of hitting the 8 pound mark when I was born. And in regards if I go early or late (crossing my fingers I go a little early!) It's hot in August, well it's hot now but still... Not sure if they say you follow what your mom did but my mom had my older brother two weeks early and had me two weeks late. So I guess anything could happen.

32 weeks

John was out of town for work all week so I had no one to take my picture. He comes home late on Friday so I will get him to take a proper picture this weekend but for now here is my belly!

Getting Impatient: I am trying to enjoy every moment before the baby comes but I am just so excited and feel like I'm getting impatient for my due date to arrive. I will have to try better at being in the moment instead of wishing time away because right now 8 week seems like a long time to wait to meet the baby.



Doctor's appointment this week: So I keep thinking these doctor's appointments will get more exciting but the last couple have been the same thing over and over. I go in, they weight me, take my blood pressure, check my belly measurements to make sure she is growing, and then listen to the heart beat. At the end they ask me "do you have any questions?" If I didn't have any questions the whole appointment would last about 15 minutes so I try to think of at least one question before I get there. Today my blood pressure was good 110/72, my belly has grown to 31 centimeter and the babies heart beat was 140. My question of the day was about cord blood donation... I wanted to know what I had to do to donate her cord blood. The midwife told me I had to research places that do cord blood donation and then call them to arrange the donation. So I pretty much have to do some research on the subject since she said there are not a lot of centers that do blood banking but we thought it would be nice to at least donate the cord blood if we were not going to bank it ourselves to hopefully save someones life. So I'll let everyone know what I find out.

Moving like a Turtle but eating like a body builder: I am slowing down!!!!!!! The belly is making it hard for me to move these days and ever since the doctor told me I need to get lots of protein I feel like I'm eating like a body builder. I doubled the amount of egg whites I consume and have protein shakes in my hand regularly. Working out is getting hard :( My 3 mile walks used to be at a pretty brisk pace but now the pace is similar to that of a turtle but at least I'm still moving. I get out of breath walking up one flight of stairs and exercising at the gym is definitely getting hard! Right now I am making it to one weight lifting class a week but have to take more breaks then before and people are starting to stare at me when I walk through the gym. But I really think lifting weights has helped me avoid back pain since I been doing things to strengthen my back to hold the extra weight. In the next week or so I am going to try water aerobics soon and see if I like that better.

Did you know? That pregnant women have 1,ooo times more estrogen in their bodies then their non prego counterparts? I learned that in my prenatal yoga class tonight and was shocked! So ladies if your pregnant and emotional that is why, it's that darn estrogen. In particular the teacher reference sadness, crying, fear, and anger as typical emotions we prego's feel more intensely. So I was reflecting on my own emotions and realized that I am more angry then normal but this often only shows up while I'm driving -- otherwise known as road rage. I pretty much drive around all day for my job so it's an easy outlet for my anger since there are tons of bad driver out there (not saying I have always been the best driver). My sadness comes randomly, like when I am watching the news and see a pelican covered in oil b/c of stupid BP and start bursting into tears. Then when I thought about fear, I realized that was the longest list... since I'm afraid of a lot! I am afraid of life after the baby and how things will change, if I will know how to take care of a baby, if I will be a good mom, if I will lose myself and my identity in this whole process... The list goes on but I am more excited than I am afraid so I think what ever comes up I can handle it or have a support system that can help me handle it!

Pittsburgh bound this weekend: I am very excited to go to Pittsburgh this weekend, my very sweet MIL is throwing me a shower and I'm excited to see everyone and spend time with the family. Much love to everyone in Pittsburgh, can't wait to see you!

Weekend update and new poll to vote on :)

I got motivated this weekend and took some time to start to decorate the babies room :) just wanted to share what I have done so far. (if you are on facebook you may have already seen these)

To make the letters I bought white wooden letter from Michael's crafts, painted them and attached some orange bows to try and bring all the colors together. The tree's and birds are decals I bought online, just an FYI decals take forever to put on and are a bit of a pain to get to stick to your walls.

Also there are also 2 new poll on the blog if you want to vote :)

31 weeks

I think I look like I'm carrying super high but I guess she will drop one of these days!

Here is our bedding and part of my unfinished craft project, painting letters for Juliet's name

We learned how to "Swaddle" a baby in Infant Care class, so I practiced what I learned on my stuffed frogs! ha ha.

I so very happy that the count down to baby is in the single digits, 9 more weeks!

My Mom: Threw me a shower this past weekend and I had a great time! Juliet and I felt very blessed and loved that everyone would come out for the day and shower us with happiness :) I am so lucky that everyone in my life is healthy and with me right now to go through this journey of motherhood right along side me. My heart is truly filled with love, so much that at times I think it might burst! I am also looking forward to the shower that my Mother in Law is going to throw me in Pittsburgh next weekend :) I can't wait to see people from Pittsburgh I have not seen in a while and catch up!

Maternity Leave: I just check on my benefits for Maternity leave for my work and found out that because I will be employed 5 years in august (good timing!) I will get 100% of my pay for 6 weeks of maternity leave but can take up to 12 weeks off (the last 6 is at 75% pay) I had thought they only paid 60% pay for 6 weeks and then no pay for the last 6 weeks, so I'm pumped that I will still have an income during my whole leave!!!!! I will take the whole 12 weeks b/c I really want time to adjust before I go back to work. I am so scared that it will be hard to concentrate and do my job well once I go back... I feel like my brain and heart will want to with Juliet and not at work. Just trying to prepare myself already for the transition. Anyone that's done it before and wants to give me advice, all advice is welcome.

Infant care class: John and I started our first baby classes this past week! We took infant care classes through the hospital that I will be giving birth at. It was actually a lot of fun b/c John and I were learning a lot and making each other crack up during most of the class. We had to provide care to these dolls that acted as our baby, ha ha. Our instructor called us her "playful couple" so I guess we will both have no problem "playing" with Juliet on a child-like level in the future. I think john is going to be a great dad and he is also my best friend, if anything this experience of being pregnant has brought us so much closer, I can't say enough about how supportive he has been about everything I have needed him to do or learn. We start are birthing classes in two weeks.

Midnight feedings: I'm glad I am not a Gizmo from the movie "The Gremlins" b/c I would have turned into an evil gremlin already by breaking the rule of not eating after midnight. I have had the craziest sleep patterns lately. I usually wake up around 3AM every night and can't get back to sleep for about 2 hours. So while I'm awake I get hungry and have something to eat, watch TV, or do work on my computer till I get tired again. It's really hard to then get up in the morning for my real work b/c I want to sleep in past 9am! I hear this only gets worse....

My Belly: John says he can tell how much my belly has grown in the last two weeks, she is getting all her baby fat in and I can tell also how hungry I have been lately that she is growing. I am up to 17 pounds this week and have a doctor's appointment next week to do my measurements to make sure she is growing :) I can't imagine how big my belly is going to get in the next two months... I'm a little scared of it! ha ha.

I'm Crafty: At least I'm trying to be crafty! I have been hitting up Michael's for craft projects to decorate the nursery! I thought it would be way cheaper to make some of my own decorations then to buy them so the room is coming a long and I'm enjoying making crafts for Juliet.

Maternity and newborn photo's: I have booked Maternity photo's for July 8th, I will be thirty-five weeks by them and my belly will probably be as big as a house so it will be a good time to capture John and I in maternity photo's. Then after we have the baby we go back for newborn pictures about 10 days after Juliet is born. Of course I'll share the pictures on my blog :)

30 Weeks - I can't believe I only have 10 weeks to go :)

30 weeks

The Babies Room - The Chair (we have not decorated yet, just have the furniture together)


Thanks again to BOTH our parents for getting our furniture for us :) It looks great!







Part of our new Bathroom!

John Working Hard!

John Practicing changing diapers! ha ha.

Memorial Day Weekend: This weekend has been spent vacationing the past few years but this year we worked on our house the whole weekend! I guess I am officially nesting :) John has been great with doing home repairs all by himself and setting up the babies furniture. So far we have remodeled our downstairs bathroom. I was project director, which means I picked out everything and John was on the hard labor duty (b/c my hard labor is not for another 10 weeks!) We also had people come in an re-carpet most of our house & we are starting to get the babies room together. Lots of work but totally worth it!

YEA SHANNON :) I had the privilege of meeting another new baby this past Wednesday, Elizabeth Marie Diamond! My friend Shannon had a little girl on Tuesday June 1st and she is the cutest little thing. Everyone is healthy and happy & I love that all my friends are sharing the details on labor & delivery so I won't be totally in the dark when it's my turn.

Summer & being pregnant: I was never looking forward to being pregnant in the summer b/c I hate the cold and the extreme heat. I think I was meant to live in 75 degree weather all year long but don't really want to move all the way to California, so I guess I am stuck with the extreme heat this year. So I am going to focus on the positives to make myself feel better... So my top 5 list for why being pregnant in the summer rocks.

1. My work - Is the lightest in the summer b/c schools are out so most the summer I will be working from home

2. The clothes - I will have to buy less maternity cloths b/c I plan to live in target's babydoll dress all summer

3. Pools - I plan to slash around in my maternity bathing suit

4. Farmers Markets - I can load up on the fruits and veggies Juliet needs

5. ICE CREAM

Baby OR tape worm? Okay I know it's a baby but sometimes she feels like a little tapeworm eating up everything I put in my mouth. I have been so hungry lately. I usually feel fine if I eat small meals every 3 to 4 hours but this past week I feel like I can't go an hour with out being hungry. Also, the last three nights I have woken up starving and had to eat in the middle of the night. She is acquiring her baby fat right now so I guess it's her way of telling me she would like to pack on the pounds to get ready for delivery :)

Weight gain: 16 pounds