Baby Hare's Due Date 4/30/12

Today was Baby Hare's due date.  While he did not make his appearance (or at least hasn't as of 8:00 p.m.), I still enjoyed the day.  Adam and I had a late night at my parents' house last night watching the Nashville Predators play hockey.  Adam is a big hockey fan, and he plays goalie for the adult league in a nearby town.  So this morning we let ourselves sleep in late....really late....like 11:30 a.m. late.  (Adam is on vacation from work right now.)  I usually hate sleeping in, but I know days like this won't happen again for a while.  So we slept in and then just enjoyed a leisurely morning/early afternoon snuggling and hanging out in our pajamas.  Adam fixed us biscuits with bacon.  I ate a couple of my biscuits with peanut butter and syrup, a treat I grew up with.  Adam ate a couple of his with apple butter, one of his favorites.

This afternoon we went to the Chickamauga Battlefield Park.  Despite the heat, we had a vigorous walk for about an hour.  I walked as fast as I could, which was only so fast given my swollen ankles and a cramp in my right calf muscle.  I even managed to jog a few times for a fair distance!  I was proud of myself.  I was hoping it might get labor started, but even if it doesn't, it was good for me.  After we walked and jogged, we climbed Wilder Tower.  My legs felt like jelly by the time I got to the bottom. 

 

Heidi went with us.  She didn't climb the tower.  (Adam and I had to take turns climbing.)  We weren't sure if pets were allowed in tower, plus Heidi is not the most graceful dog ever.  She would be sure to miss a step or two in the dark parts.  She drowned herself in water when we got back to the truck. 

Don't worry, we didn't drink after her. :)  We drank from our jumbo water jug.  On the way home we picked up some Captain D's for dinner.  Adam loves Captain D's.  He said it makes him feel like he's on vacation at the beach.  So we pretended that we were. :)  Tonight we are recovering from our workout and just hanging out together.

I have been trying to soak up every last second with Adam.  I know he's not going anywhere, but it will only be the 2 of us for just a little bit longer.  I love him so much, and I am excited/nervous/scared about this new chapter we are about to begin.  I know he will be a wonderful dad.  I can't wait to see him in that role.  It's just really scary going into the unknown.  Sometimes I feel unqualified for motherhood.  I mean, my mom is a mom.  Other women are moms.  I'm not a mom.  I am still a girl.  Am I even a woman?  Haha.  Sometimes I feel like I'm still just out of high school.  I guess you can tell the nerves are setting in.  I cry pretty much every day now whether it be about anxiety about parenting, childbirth, our future unknown life, my rash, hormones, etc.  I don't handle big change very well.  Haha.  I'm always fine after the change, it's just leading up to it, that I tend to freak out a little bit.  But I have been praying that God will be with me and will give me strength to endure childbirth and to step into my new role is a mother.  Adam has been great and has done his best to comfort me.  I'm sure my hormones and emotions are a mystery to him, but he has tried his best to be very understanding.  I love him and appreciate him so much.

I'm gonna go enjoy the evening and do some relaxing.  I hope y'all had a wonderful day.  Please pray that if it is God's will, our baby will come on his own.  Otherwise, he will be born Thursday, which is fine too.  I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I will probably update after that.  Thursday is the National Day of Prayer, so that wouldn't be such a bad birthday to have. :)  Have a great night. :) 

Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent

You might remember a while back when I posted how to make your own Homemade Laundry Soap.  You can find that link HERE.  I have used that recipe for about a year and a half, and I love it!  However, I was interested to try a homemade powdered detergent, and that is what I'm going to share with you today.  The powdered detergent is less time consuming but is still a big money saver!  It uses the same ingredients as the liquid version.  Here is what you will need.

1 cup of Borax, 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda, and 1 bar of Fels-Naptha.  You can also use Zote, Dr. Bonner's, or Ivory Soap.  I prefer the Fels-Naptha because I like the scent.

If you aren't sure what the Borax and Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda looks like, here are pictures.  You can find these products at Ace Hardware (that's where I get mine) or any other hardware store.  I also get the Fels-Naptha from Ace.

The first thing you want to do is to grate your bar of soap.  I prefer to use the grater attachment on my KitchenAid, but you can also grate the soap by hand.  I grated mine by hand this time.  Bonus: calories burned! ;) 

This is how much one bar of soap is grated.

Next, pour in 1 cup of Borax and 1 cup of Super Washing Soda.

Lastly, you need to stir it up really well so that the soap and the powders are mixed together.  Then just put it in a container.  You could put it in a tupperware container, a ziplock bag, or a glass jar.  I put mine in a glass jar I had on hand.

You only need 1 Tablespoon per load, so this will actually last you for quite a while.  I use 2 Tablespoons for tougher loads, like Adam's hockey clothes.  Yuck! :)  The amount in this recipe will probably last me about a month and a half to 2 months or so.  Next time I make this, I will double the recipe so that it will last me longer. Better to get all that soap grating done at once! You can work out both arms! :)  Haha.  I hope you found this recipe helpful, and I hope it saves you money! 

Induction

I called my doctor's office this afternoon to find out my choices for my induction day.  I actually thought I was going to get to choose what day I was induced, but they just told me what day.  I'm fine with the day they gave me, so I didn't say too much.  I will be induced next Wednesday, May 2nd.  I will be 40 and 1/2 weeks at that time.  I'm pretty nervous about it, but a lot of you have been really encouraging and have let me know your experiences with induction and that everything turned out well.  It's weird to know that our son will for sure be here this time next week.  That's crazy.  I am still going to keep up with walking and trying some natural induction techniques, but I am trying my best to make peace with the induction.  I don't want to go into it being a nervous wreck, and I definitely don't want to get upset, which I tend to do when I get nervous.  I want to go into the induction excited and looking forward to meeting our son.  So that's what I'm working on.  I appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers with my PUPPS, insomnia, and anxiety.  It is really encouraging to have such wonderful friends.  I hope you all have a wonderful Friday night and a great weekend!

The Tornado: One Year Ago Today

This is a video Adam took the morning after the tornado.  He had access to a lot of the closed roads since he worked for the phone company.

It has been one year since the tornado that hit our hometown.  In some ways it seems like yesterday, and in some ways it seems like years ago.  Our little town has come a long, long way since that day.  A lot of our town has been rebuilt and a lot of it is continuing to rebuild.  But our community is so, so much different.  We now share a bond and memory that most people will never have.  It's not one we would have chosen, but God brought us together through it.  He knew what He was doing.  Click the link below if you would like to read the post I wrote on August 27, 2011, four months after the tornado. I went back and read it today, so I thought I would share it with you.

http://newlywedhares.blogspot.com/2011/08/tornado.html

39 Weeks and 3 Days

Well, I just got back from the doctor's office.  No progress has been made since last week.  Still 1 cm and 50% effaced.  I was really disappointed.  I cried when we left.  The doctor told me that she will look at dates for next week for induction and call me back later today or in the morning.  I don't want to be induced, but I also don't want to go overdue.  His size is a concern, and if we wait too long he might  have to be delivered  via c-section, which I definitely don't want.  I'm also worried that if I am induced, things won't progress quickly enough, and then I'll still have to have a c-section.  I really don't want a c-section if you can't tell.  I would be terrified.  I was supposed to have my membranes stripped today, but she couldn't get to them because he is still so high up.  That was really disappointing.  This morning I thought he might come by the weekend, but it's definitely not looking like it now.   

Last night I got 2 hours of sleep.  We got in bed around 12, and I laid awake scratching and itching until 3.  The creams apparently aren't working on the rash anymore.  Finally I got up and got on the computer.  I got sleepy around 4, so I crashed on the couch.  I soon woke up around 6 because Adam came in to see where I had gone.  I couldn't go back to sleep after that.  So I'm running on fumes today.  I'm plain exhausted.  I just changed into my pajamas, and I will hopefully get in a good nap this afternoon.  Thank you so much to those who have been praying for me and this rash.  I really appreciate having friends like y'all.  I'm gonna go lay down for a bit.  I will update if anything changes. 

39 Weeks Pregnant!

Today I am 39 weeks and 2 days pregnant.  Once again, still pregnant!  I have been feeling really depressed lately, like he will just never come.  I haven't been nearly as productive the last few days as I was last week.  I have been sleeping A LOT lately.  I don't sleep well at night at all, so I nap a lot during the day.  It's just so hard to get comfortable at night for some reason.  The itching has really gotten out of control, and that is part of the reason why I can't sleep.  A lot of you have asked me what PUPPS is since you haven't heard of it, and honestly I would have never heard of it either if I didn't have it.  Only 1% of pregnant women get it.  I would be that 1%.  You'll have to google it to learn more about it.  I don't know that much about it myself except that it is a constant itch accompanied by a rash that starts on your stomach and spreads all over your body (except the face, thankfully).  The only way to get rid of it is to have the baby, which is why a lot of women who get PUPPS have an induction.  Y'all know I didn't want an induction, but since having this rash, I'm definitely considering it.  The itching is unbelieveable. This is the rash a few days ago at the top of my leg.  It's gotten a lot worse since then.

I got a prescription steroid cream for it, but that tube only lasted me for 2 days.  It was $20 (including the insurance coverage), so it's pretty expensive.  I didn't find that it worked any better than Benadryl extra strength cream, so that's what I have been using.  Today I tried the Walgreen's brand of Benadryl cream, "Wal-dryl", and it seems to work about the same.  I have also tried Goldbond, and I really like the cooling sensation of that cream, but it only lasts for about 45 minutes.  The other creams last 2-3 hours.  So if you have PUPPS, that's my review of the different creams. :)  Also, hot hot showers are the WORST for pupps.  It opens up all of the pores and makes the itch super intense.  So I have to take lukewarm showers.  That's not fun. 

Tomorrow I have my 39 week doctor's appointment.  I'm really excited about it because she is going to do a membrane sweep (or "strip my membranes", however you want to say it).  Basically she is going to manually separate the amniotic sac from the uterine wall.  I'm hoping it gets things started!  Tonight I have been having a ton of Braxton Hicks contractions, and I hope they are doing something!  I can feel him pushing down every time I have one, so we'll see what she says tomorrow.  Maybe I have made some more progress. I wanted to go ahead and do an update tonight just in case something happens tomorrow.  I kind of have my hopes up that I will have him this weekend.  I will probably do an update again tomorrow after the appointment if there is any news.  Here we are at 39 weeks!

I do have a praise to share.  I was dreading going to bed last night because I just can't sleep at night.  So I prayed that God would comfort me and help me to rest.  I slept for 8 hours last night and was only awakened 1 time to use the bathroom!  It was amazing.  I usually wake up scratching, applying more cream, going to the bathroom 5 times, tossing and turning, etc.  But last night He blessed me with rest, and it was wonderful.  I can't remember the last time I slept that long.  I am hoping tonight will be the same.  Y'all have a great night!  Hopefully there will be some news soon! 

38 Weeks Pregnant! Progress!

Well, here we are at 38 weeks and 3 days pregnant!  Yep, still pregnant.  I have to admit that I am pretty miserable at this point.  I have had quite a few breakdowns, and I am just ready to get this baby out!  Many of you read on facebook about my dream I had the other night.  For those of you that missed it, I will recap.

I dreamed that I had to go to the hospital for a c-section.  I went in, they put the curtain up, and took him out.  I didn't hear the baby cry, and none of the doctors said a word.  I asked what was going on and if he was ok.  Finally, without saying anything to me, one of the doctors put the baby in my arms and ran out of the room.  I looked down at my baby.  He was the size of a 2 year old, had a full set of adult teeth, jet black hair complete with a rat tail, and a skinny black mustache.  I was horrified.  I just stared at him.  All of my friends and family were in the room, so I tried to look as if I thought he was adorable.  Finally one of the doctors came back in the room, and I asked him what happened.  He said since the baby was in there for so long, he was pretty well developed.  I asked the doctor why he didn't look like Adam or me, but the doctor didn't have an answer.  Eventually the baby got out of my arms and started toddling around.  I finally woke up when Adam's alarm clock went off.  Scariest dream OF MY LIFE! 

Our precious son.

Terrifying. Well, if our 36 week ultrasound was correct, he currently weighs 8.8 pounds this week.  Yep.  However, my doctor told me that I have a normal sized pelvis, so at this point she thinks I will still be able to get him out.  However, if I make it to 41 weeks, he will be at least 10 pounds if not 10 and a half.  So that's where we aren't so sure.  I had my 38 week appointment today.  My blood pressure is slightly more elevated than last week.  It was 126/80 today.  (110/60 is normal for me.)  So it's still going up, but there is no protein in my urine, so that means that it's not preeclampsia.  So that is good.  She did check me, and I am a fingertip (about 1 cm) dilated and 50% effaced, so at least I have made some progress!  She said my body is headed in the right direction, so that's good.  Oh, and for those of you who are first time preggies that I probably freaked out a couple weeks ago, it didn't hurt this time when I got checked.  Uncomfortable and awkward, yes, but it didn't hurt.  Probably because I tried to relax more, and I had made some progress.  

As far as induction goes, I still do not want to be induced.  I want him to come naturally and for us to have that "it's time to go!" experience.  I know it's what is healthiest for me and for baby and gives me the least chance of having a c-section.  Of course, we have to think about his size though.  My doctor still says that she will induce at 39 weeks (next week!) if I want, given his size.  We are not choosing to do that though.  However, if I make it to 41 weeks, my doctor won't let me go any further than that, which is understandable especially given his size.  But, my fear is that I will make it to 41 weeks, I will get induced, and then he will be too big, and I will have to have a c-section anyway.  So that would put me with induction and a c-section.  But, if we induce earlier than that, then I have a better chance of getting him out on my own without a c-section.  So we are kind of weighing the options at this point.  We aren't going to make any decisions this week.  We are going to just give it until my 39 week appointment and then see where we are.  My doctor did say that she would do a membrane sweep next week (if you aren't sure what that is, google it) to see if we can't get labor started if it hasn't already by that time.  I wasn't going to opt for one of those, but I will take it over induction for sure.  So I am planning to have that done next week if I still have not gone into labor.

Symptoms this week have gotten more intense.  You read last week or 2 weeks ago that I was diagnosed with PUPPS.  Well, it has gotten A LOT worse.  The rash is now on my stomach, thighs, shoulders, arms, hands, and is spreading to my feet.  The itch is so intense, it just makes me miserable.  I dread showering because the shower opens up the pores and makes the itch that much worse.  I started out putting Cortizone 10 on it, and that wasn't doing much.  So I switched to Benadryl cream.  I have to apply the cream every hour to keep the itch down.  The cream comes in a very small tube, so I have been going through that stuff like mad.  It gets expensive.  I have also been taking a Benadryl orally at night to help alleviate the itching.  My doctor was hoping the Benadrly would also help me sleep, but no such luck.  I am up at least every hour now.  It has been a combination of not being able to get comfortable and going to the bathroom.  My doctor said she would prescribe me an oral steroid if I wanted, but I told her I would like to try to avoid oral medications as much as possible.  So she prescribed be a topical steroid cream instead.  So I will be picking that up today!  Hopefully it will help more than the other creams.

I have also been dealing with pain going down my left leg.  I believe it is sciatic nerve pain.  It hurts and sometimes makes walking difficult.  I can also definitely tell that the baby has dropped!  I can feel him pushing down, and it feels like he might just push himself all the way out!  It definitely gets uncomfortable, but I'm glad to know that he has "found the door," as Adam puts it.  Haha.  He is so low that I have very few shirts to wear that hide the bottom of my belly.  I'm definitely in sumo-mode, complete with waddle!

38 weeks and 3 days pregnant.

This week is my first week of maternity leave!  I decided to take maternity leave a couple weeks before his due date since I have been dealing with a lot of swelling and pain (due to swelling and back aches).  The time off has done wonders for the swelling.  For the first time in weeks, my ankles looked normal this morning.  I couldn't believe how normal they looked!  It has been really nice to be able to take this time to rest up.  I have also been able to stay on top of the laundry and keeping the house clean, so that has been nice.  I have also taken the time to do some hobbies like crafting.  I NEVER have time for hobbies.  I forgot I even had any hobbies!  I made these two wreaths yesterday.  Not sure if I will sell them or keep them. 

I also have had some time to do some baking.

And I even tried out a new hairstyle.  I just didn't straighten it.  This is the care-free, first day of maternity leave Amanda. :)

So as miserable as I am, I am trying to take the time to do things I enjoy doing.  I need to get walking this week.  I planned to start that at least last week, but I have been enjoying being lazy. :)  But now it's get the baby out time!  I am off to go enjoy the weather, so I will update y'all again soon.  Hopefully it won't be with a 39 week blog!  Enjoy the rest of your week!

37 Weeks Pregnant! FULL TERM!

I am officially full term!!!!!!  YAY!!!!!!!  I can't believe the end is near!  I am SO ready!  I have had some mixed emotions lately, but overall, I am ready. 

My hormones have been RAGING lately.  I cry over just about everything.  I feel bad for Adam.  He never knows if I will be up or down on any given day.  I really am trying my best to control them.  I know hormones are not an excuse for insane behavior, but some days it is very tough to act normal!  I get anxiety when the house isn't perfectly cleaned up or when I put on a pair of pants that just fit last week but don't this week.  I also get upset just not knowing when the baby will come!  I am such a planner anyway, but not being able to plan when one of the most important days of your life will take place is super hard!  It's so weird that our lives will change forever in a day, and I don't even know what day that is!  It's crazy. 

This week I have had 2 big symptoms: swelling and PUPPS.  The swelling got so bad yesterday and the day before that it felt like my feet would burst open with every step I took.  It was nasty.  My calf muscles were also super swollen.  I kept my feet elevated for 24 hours, but the swelling was not going down.  I called the doctor yesterday, and they told me to keep my feet elevated and to keep drinking water.  They also told me to go have my blood pressure taken (apparently CVS or Walgreens will do this), and to call them back the next morning to let them know the results.  I had my school nurse check my blood pressure this morning, and she said that it was 120/74.  My blood pressure is normally 110/60....I know, I'm barely alive.  So it was slightly elevated for me.  I called my doctor's office and told them the results, and they wanted me to come in to be checked out.   At the doctor's office, my blood pressure was up to 120/80.  My doctor said that it was still ok.  My swelling is actually down some today.  We slept with the heat on last night since temperatures got down in the 30s overnight.  I woke up soaked in sweat, so I think I may have sweated a lot of the swelling out.  Gross, I know.  But I do feel better today.

PUPPS is my second symptom.  I was actually diagnosed with it last week, but it has gotten so much worse this week.  It stands for "pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy."  Yeah, that doesn't help me figure it out either.  It's basically a rash that forms on your stomach and itches like CRAZY.  It begins around your stretch marks (yes, I have been blessed with those).  But it starts as tiny little bumps that cluster together and turn red.  Then they itch and itch and itch, and pretty soon they start scarring because of all of the scratching.  I have started putting Cortizone 10 on it per my doctor's suggestion.  She also said to take a Benadryl at night to ease the itching and to help me sleep better.  I'm not a medicine girl as y'all know, but for this, I could be.  So I am going to try it.  The Cortizone helps, but it only cures the itch for about an hour at a time.  After a week, I am already just about out of a whole tube. 

I was supposed to have my 37 week doctor's appointment tomorrow, but since I went in today, she went ahead and checked the baby's heartbeat and everything.  She said he is sounding good.  She didn't check me this time since there isn't really a need.  I haven't been having any contractions, and I hadn't made any progress last time I was there.  She will be checking me at my 38 week appointment next Thursday.  Until then, I am going to be doing everything I possibly can to get this boy out.  I am planning to walk every day and just stay active and busy.  I do not want to be induced, and as you read in my 36 week update, he is a big boy!

Tomorrow is my last day at work.  I can't believe it.  It will be bittersweet for sure.  I will miss those kids so much.  I love seeing their faces everyday and hearing their stories.  Some of them just want someone to listen to them.  You can tell they aren't used to being heard.  It breaks my heart.  I know who my long-term sub is though, and she will be GREAT for those kids.  I am glad she is taking my place.  I am relieved to be able to rest, get some things done around the house, and get ready for our little boy though! 

Now for the good stuff.....pictures! 

We got the car cleaned up for the big hospital ride!  I even detailed the inside, leather conditioner and all!

My smokin hot husband washing his truck!



Easter Sunday.  Yes, I stole a watermelon and put it under my dress.

I wasn't going to allow any pictures to be taken, but I knew that once I lose this weight, I will wish I had a picture to compare my success to! :)  So there you go.

This picture is hilarious to me because someone started coming out the church door and rammed me in the elbow mid picture.  Hahaha.

Heidi has been very cuddly lately.  I think she knows life is about to change.

I like to pretend she is loving on the baby, but I think she really just wants me to herself.

Here I am in all my glory!  37 weeks pregnant!  I think he has dropped.  What do you think?

Thanks for reading!  Hopefully I will be updating on labor progression soon!!! :)

Nursery Tour

I am finally getting around to posting pictures of the nursery!  I finished it (for the most part) last week over spring break, but I have been busy every night since then.  I would have been busy with church tonight, but my feet and legs are so swollen that I can barely walk.  It feels like my feet might explode when I walk on them.  It's pretty nasty.  They have been swollen off and on for the past few weeks, but they have been really bad for the past 24 hours.  Not sure what's up with that.  I called my doctor's office, and they told me to keep my feet up and drink water.  So, here I sit.  But at least you get to see pictures of the nursery now, right? :)

When I first started planning the nursery, I knew I wanted to do a vintage theme.  I found lots of cute ideas on Pinterest, and started collecting bits and pieces that I wanted to incorporate.  The nursery never really came together until I found some artwork that I LOVED.  It turned the room into a "vintage beach" kind of feel, and I love love love it!  It's so relaxing in there, and I find myself just sitting in there and reading or daydreaming of life with our little baby.  I'm so excited to share it with you!

The lighting in these pictures is not completely accurate.  The walls are actually a gray color, but I took these pictures with my cell phone and adjusted the settings so you would be able to see everything since the light coming in from the window was so bright.  So if you are liking this paint color and want to know what it is, it's actually not this color at all. :)  It's a light gray.  Alright, here we go!

This is the view from the hallway.  All of our bedrooms come off of one hallway.

My nannie purchased this glider rocker and foot stool for us.  It is the only new piece of furniture we have for the whole room.  It is AMAZING.  Seriously, best seat in the whole house.  We love it.  I'm sure I will spend lots of hours here nursing.  The table holds an old style clock from when I was little, and a book I will probably enjoy while nursing.  It's the "What to Expect the First Year" book (from the What to Expect When Expecting people).  It was a gift from Adam after we found out we were expecting. :)  The quilt was made by a dear friend (Susie!).  It has gray fabric with vintage looking flags on this side and a patchwork of different vintage looking fabrics on the other side.  I love it!!!  It will be a great background for all of the cute baby pictures. :)

 

This is the art that is hanging above the rocker.  My mom got it for us at Homegoods.  I believe it was about $24.99.  She got it recently, so they still have them if you are interested.  They also have one that says "peace."  It would be cute for a Christmas decoration if nothing else.

This is the dresser that we repainted, found HERE.  We also changed out the hardware.  It was my childhood dresser.  The basket came from a local shop in town, and I spray painted it oil rubbed bronze.  It was blue.  The changing pad and neutral cover are from Target. 

The artwork (which I am in LOVE with) is from Homegoods. It really set the tone for the whole nursery. If you can find some artwork that you really like, it is really easy to base the rest of the room around it. Once I found these pictures, I finished everything else within a week or so.

The wire basket holds diaper supplies.  I have pictured this from the beginning.  This basket actually has a memory to it because I was with my mother in law when I got it.  It was one of the last things we did together.  I drove her in my car for the first time that night.....and accidentally ran 2 red lights.  She never knew I was such a rebel. :) I was very newly pregnant then (I had known for 1 day), and I hadn't told anyone besides Adam yet. 

This crib is from one of Adam's cousins (thanks Maggie!).  It was originally a wood tone, and we painted it the same color white as the dresser.  It's a very solid crib.  I bought the crib skirt for $3.00 from a consignment sale when I was only a few weeks pregnant.  It is brown striped, so I knew it would work for a boy or a girl.  The crib sheet was a baby shower gift from our Target registry.  For now I am not using a bumper.  I haven't found any that I like, and they say that bumpers are a smothering hazard.  They really don't need a bumper until they are strong enough to hurt their head on the crib bars.

I got this wooden paddle from the same local shop that I got the wire basket from.  It used to be hanging in our kitchen, but I always knew it would look cute in a nursery.  The banner hanging from it is made out of the same fabric as the quilt on the back of the glider rocker.  It was a decoration also made by Susie that was hanging at my baby shower.  I love all of the different patterns.  The fabric looks very vintage.

These cutsie things will be removed once the baby is in the crib, but for now they just look so cute!  The pillow is from Target, and it was a wedding registry gift a couple years ago.  I recently bought the elephant at Homegoods.  It will be the baby's first stuffed animal. :)  Adam affectionately named him "Olliephant", so we will call him "Ollie" for short. :)

This bookshelf is a work in progress.  We got a TON of children's books at our baby shower.  (It was vintage book themed.)  I LOVE children's books!  Everything else is just little knick-knacks that will eventually have to find a new home when he starts collecting toys and things.  The bottom shelf and the baskets in the floor next to it have baby shower gifts that I haven't put away yet.  To give you some perspective, the door to the hallway is to the left, and the dresser is directly across from the bookshelf.  The crib is to the left of where I am standing.

This little corner will probably evolve as time goes on.  Right now it holds a chair (1 of 2) that came from my parents' house.  I have been meaning to get it recovered, but haven't gotten around to it.  I figured if I was in there nursing or something, it might be nice to have a place for someone to sit in there with me.  Another friend who helped out with the shower (Summer!) gave me a vintage poster that will probably be framed and hung above this chair.  One day this little corner will probably hold a small wooden table with a couple small wooden chairs for little boy to color and build things on.  (It is already in the garage!)  The door leads to his little closet.  I bought the hooks at Homegoods (goodness, are you seeing a trend here?)  I wanted something to hold his diaper bag and any of his little jackets.  The diaper bag was a registry gift from Target (thanks Becky and Pascal!).

This is his packed out closet!  The top shelf holds all of his diapers and wipes. 

I bought this hanging shelf from......Homegoods.  It was only $12.99 which is a lot cheaper than the ones from Walmart that we have hanging in our closet.  I love this thing.  It gives us way more useable storage, and it just takes a second to hang.  (It has a thick velcro strap at the top to hold it onto the wire shelf.)  I filled the shelf with receiving blankets, crib pads, changing pad covers, crib sheets, bath towels, and blankets.  His little bathtub is sitting just to the left of the shelf.  Simba (Lion King, duh) is currently bathing in it.

These are some of his "church" clothes.  They are newborn to 3 months.  All of his other sizes of clothes are in storage tubs in our garage.  His onesies, sleepers, and pajamas are stored in the drawers of the dresser.  Most of his clothes came from my friend Abby who passed them on from her boys.  So she will get most of the credit for his cute attire! :)

This little girl refused to be left out of the tour.  I had to retake just about every picture because she would get in front of the camera.  Heidi is modeling on the new rug we got from Target.  I had been trying so hard to find a striped rug that I liked (that was cheap), and I finally found this one.  It was only $41.00, and it is a 5x7.  Pretty good if you ask me.

I hope you enjoyed the tour!  We are so excited about the nursery, but we are more excited about the little boy who will be in it!  If you have any questions about where I got anything or how we did something, feel free to ask.  Have a wonderful evening! :)

Pregnancy Week 36!

Wow. Wow. Wow.  I can't believe I'm 36 weeks pregnant!  That is insane!  We are finally coming close to the end of this pregnancy and meeting our little boy!  Adam and I can't believe it.  We talk about it all the time.  We are both so excited.  Adam is nervous (as am I), but I know he will be a wonderful dad.  He is one of those men who was just made to be a dad.  You can just tell.  I am so excited to see him as a father.  I can't wait!!!

This week I had an ultrasound as well as my 36 week doctor's appointment.  We couldn't see too much detail in the ultrasound since he is so big now.  I actually thought it would be the opposite, but each part of him takes up so much of the screen, it's hard to see much of anything.  We did find out that he is head down, and he is quite big!  At 36 weeks and 1 day, the ultrasound estimated him to be 7 pounds 7 ounces!!!!  Oh. My. Goodness.  I was born late (about 3 weeks late according to the doctor) and weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces.  Our son has me beat!  The doctor says that he is in the 82nd percentile for weight.  Oh my dear.  I knew he was big just from how big my belly is, but I didn't realize he was this big.  If he gains the average 1/2 pound per week from here on out, he will weigh a whopping 9.7 to 10 pounds at birth.  Adam of course is proud of this.  I am a little scared!  Yikes!

The ultrasound was yesterday.  I went back today for the doctor's exam and some tests.  For some reason our insurance wouldn't let us have a doctor's visit and an ultrasound in the same day.  Weird.  At the appointment today, my doctor did an internal exam, Group B strep test (yeah, that's not your average strep throat test, haha), and they did some blood work to check for HIV (routine).  I was really nervous about the internal exam.  I have heard from some people that it hurts and some that it doesn't hurt.  I will say this for the record.  It hurts.  Yes sir, it does.  I don't say that to scare anyone, but it does.  Thankfully it doesn't take very long, but it's not any fun.  I am glad that I know what to expect though.  I was a little sad to find out that I am not dilated, and there has been no progress made.  I was hoping for something, but I know that labor can happen at anytime, and I don't have to be dilated to go into labor.  I am hoping that since he is big, gravity will be in my favor.  Maybe with his weight pushing down, things will get going before too long.  I know I'm just 36 weeks, and I still possibly have 4-5 more weeks to go, but surely his weight counts for something!  Can't I be done now?  I guess the pelvic soreness I have been feeling is just the weight of him on my bones.  I was hoping it was more than that.  But there is still time!

My doctor asked me if I had considered induction.  She said she would induce at 39 weeks if we wanted, given his size.  Of course I would much rather go into labor on my own.  I only want to induce if there is a medical reason to, so unless he is just super overdue, then we won't induce.  So, in the meantime, I am going to try to get this baby out on my own.  I am going to start walking and whatever else I can do to get things moving.  I haven't been walking since I have been working til 6 most nights, and my swelling has been so bad.  But with working winding down (next week is my last week), I will have the time/energy to do it.  If you have any suggestions as to how to get things to progress, let me know! 

I am on spring break this week, which is wonderful!  I am using it to rest and get things ready around the house.  His nursery is pretty much done, I am just getting all of his things put away where they need to go.  The house is my main concern.  Yesterday I got the weeks and weeks worth of laundry caught up.  I am trying to get all of the cleaning done today and tomorrow (floors, bathrooms, kitchen, dishes, pantry, laundry room, etc).  I know after the baby is born, we will probably have a lot of friends and family stopping by, and I am just one of those people who cannot relax if I know my house is not as presentable as it could be.  I will sit and stare at one of Heidi's hairballs in the floor, hoping our company doesn't see it.  I don't want to have to worry about that!  I am also trying to make sure all of the "behind the scenes" areas are clean like the pantry, laundry room, closets, etc. in case someone comes to help me with laundry or cooking or something.  I don't want to feel embarrassed.

Our baby boy has definitely dropped.  Adam and I noticed the other night that when he went to hug me, we could actually touch.  Obviously not completely, but it was odd that we could get that close.  I have also noticed that when I drive or sit down, I have to make room in between my legs to accommodate my belly.  It's kind of gross.  I feel like one of those sumo wrestlers where their belly hangs down in between their legs.  Nasty.   My belly button has also popped out!  I didn't think it would, but it has.  It was flat for several weeks, but just within the past couple days it has popped out.  It feels like where you tie off a balloon.  Haha.  You can see it through all of my shirts now, which I hate.  But oh well.  Not much I can do about it!

Well, I need to go get started on my work!  I'm ready to have things looking nice around here.  Don't worry, I know a lot of you have been telling me that I need to rest, and I have been!  I have let myself sleep in every morning, and I do take breaks in between tasks.  So no worries!  Adam has also made me promise him that I won't overdo it.  So I am taking it easy, but chipping away at the to-do list as well.  I will leave you with my 36 week belly!  Thanks for reading!

36 weeks pregnant

Pregnancy Weeks 34-35

I am 36 weeks and 2 days pregnant today, so I think it's time I do another update!  I actually had an ultrasound and a doctor's appointment this week, but I will share more about that in my 36 week update which will hopefully be posted later today!  For now, I'll recap weeks 34-35!

First off, thank you so much for all of your kind and caring words after my last post.  I had so many people coming up to me at church, commenting on my facebook and blog, and giving me words of encouragement as well as lots of hugs.  That meant so much to me.  The past several weeks have been really hard.  I know some of you may be thinking, how could it be hard?  You are so close to the end of pregnancy and meeting your child!  And ya know what?  I'm trying to look at it that way!  The physical stress on my body and the hormones are just  A LOT though.  I am just ready to feel like myself, look like myself, and act like myself.  But things have definitely gotten SO much better.  I am all caught up at school.  All of my progress monitoring, grades, filing, meetings, everything is all caught up.  I have everything sitting out with specific directions (for the sub) in case I go into labor.  It feels amazing to have this done.  I can finally focus on getting things ready at home.

Sub plans ready to go!

 We had our baby shower at church the day before I turned 35 weeks.  It was amazing!  My parents' camera actually has all of the pictures from that day, so as soon as they transfer them to the computer and e-mail them to me, I will post pictures of that.  My friends Summer, Susie, and Kimberly made everything SO nice.  The theme was "vintage books".  Everything was decorated with vintage decor, and there were books everywhere.  They also had everyone bring us their favorite book in addition to whatever gift they were bringing.  I LOVED it!  What a great idea.  Now our baby is starting out with so many wonderful books, and pretty much all of them are classics!  I am so excited!  Adam and I have already been reading to him. :)  Adam read him Green Eggs and Ham, and I read him Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog (one of the funniest books ever).  It was a lot of fun. I can't wait to show you the pictures.  I have some really talented friends! :)

As far as symptoms go, heartburn, pelvic pain, and swelling have to be my main complaints.  I have been getting really bad heartburn at night.  I know for sure that tomatoes cause it with me, so I have been trying to cut those out.  My feet swell daily, even if I stay off of them.  I wake up in the morning, and they are already swollen.  So I have started sleeping with my feet propped up on 3 pillows.  It's pretty uncomfortable.  My pelvis feels like I have been riding a bike for days straight.  I think that must be him pressing down.

I am trying to think about what else to update you on, but I think most of it I will save for my 36 week blog.  I have a few blog posts coming up that I'm really excited about.  I will have my nursery blog post up soon!  I am hoping to possibly do a video tour of the nursery, so we will see if that works out.  All of the decor, bedding, and everything is done.  I'm just getting all of his things put away!  I'm also working on getting our hospital bags packed, and I will do a blog post about the things we are taking.  That may sound boring to some people, but I have found myself doing research about what to take, haha.  So if you are going to have a baby in the near future, maybe it will help you out.  Also, all you non-rookie mamas can tell me if I'm forgetting anything.  (I can go ahead and tell you that I'll probably be somewhat overpacked.  But that's ok!)  I will also update you on the nesting that has been going on around here.  I am on spring break right now, so I'm trying to soak that up and rest as much as possible, but there are still things that need to be done.  I promise I just saw Heidi's dog hair blow across the floor like a tumble weed.  Floors are still on my to-do list.  But I have been letting myself sleep in, which has been wonderful! 

I think I'm done with this update, so I will leave you with some belly pictures!  Make sure you look for my 36 week update!  I will have it posted today!  Thanks for reading. :)

34 weeks pregnant

35 weeks pregnant