23 Weeks!!

As of yesterday I am 23 weeks pregnant!  Hard to believe it has gone by so fast!  I feel really good (besides some mood swings) and have really increased the exercise (mostly walking New Girl in the neighborhood).  My back has started hurting, but it feels more like my SI joint and not a disc.

On March 18 we attended our second childbirth class: “Caring for Your Infant.”  It was really good and we both learned a lot.  We also got to play with baby dolls.

We have also been working on the nursery a little bit more.  Here is a bedding trial using items that a friend gave us + a quilt that Brent’s grandmother made (we need a fitted crib sheet):

We went ahead and ordered a separate quilt so we can mix & match & see what looks best. We also want to avoid actually using the quilt from Brent’s grandmother so we can keep it nice. All the “stuff” – bumpers, quilts, toys, etc – will have to come out when baby comes anyway.

Another big thing that has happened the past few weeks is that it has become spring!!!  Daylight savings time is here & everything is in bloom!  I love it.

Here are some other pics from the past two weeks:

Mostly hanging out with the pugs (watching movies), homemade pizza with Publix dough (THE BEST), hummus + pretzels at work and a car pic on the night we went to eat dinner at one of Brent’s coworker’s house.  They are due on the same day we are and they have a 10 month old who is adorable!  We got to hold him a little bit. 

Some one also had a birthday on March 21:

Happy 31st!!!!

And some pics of the bump!  I am getting bigger!  I have felt like I look bad in my clothes, but recently I have started wearing maternity pants & it makes a HUGE difference.  And it feels so much better than trying to squeeze into my regular pants.  The scrub pants are regular (non-maternity), but I can wear them really low with a belly band.  I bought some maternity leggings from Destination Maternity as well as some yoga/exercise pants – oh my goodness they are the MOST COMFORTABLE items of clothing I have ever owned.  I could live in them every day.

Here is week 22 & week 23 (I usually take these first things in the morning; please excuse my morning face & hair).  As of 23 weeks I have gain exactly 15 pounds, which is right on track.

Comparing week 4 to week 23:

Wow. And here are some of the outfits I have been wearing:

Week 24 is our next appointment!!

21 Weeks: Dairy, Disaster, Deals

Well, the baby must love ice cream.  It has NEVER tasted this good to me!  This (above) is what I have been working on this week.  Mayfield is awesome, and it was on sale last week at Target.

This week we had a small disaster.  We found out that our heating unit was leaking carbon monoxide into our house…..yikes!!!  So, that had to be repaired and it was a major expense that we obviously had no time to prepare for.  But at least we got it fixed, and Brent has installed some carbon monoxide throughout the house.

More pug pictures, as usual:

And a new addition to the nursery:

I saw this giraffe at Babypalooza several weeks ago & fell in love with it.  I also saw it all over Pinterest when looking at nurseries.  But I was disappointed about the price….$100! I knew there was no way that I would pay that much.  So, I started searching on ebay and I began to see them for a little bit less – mostly around $75, which was still too expensive.  I decided that I would pay $50 if I could find it for that price.  The last Saturday I got on ebay and saw one for $60 or best offer…..so I put in an offer for $50 and it was accepted within minutes!  Plus free shipping!  It came this week and I love it!  I think it will look great in the nursery and then will also transition to a big boy room, etc, so we will use it for years.  I’m so happy about it.

Little buddy has lots of toys waiting on him! The little Mickey Mouse was Brent’s favorite toy as a baby!

And a friend from elementary school sent him a little onesie for football season!  It is adorable!

21 week pictures (Please excuse the dirty mirror!  My goodness!):

That dress above is a thrift store dress that I *almost* took back last year….but turns out is a PERFECT maternity dress. So comfy!

This is the first week I feel actually pregnant an not just super chunky.  On Saturday I wore maternity jeans for the first time.  I am also feeling the baby kick/move around several times per day. I love it.  There have been two times when I think I have felt him from the outside.

Also, I am very proud to report that I exercised 5 of 7 days this week.  Woo hoo!  I went to the gym twice & walked with Brent on the other days.  Love the warmer weather!  Although I am struggling so bad to walk the hills in the neighborhood.

One other thing I am loving lately is couponing!  I got into it back in January when I saw an extreme couponing show on TV.  I’ve been using the Krazy Coupon Lady website, the newspaper inserts & www.coupons.com. I’ve been shopping at mostly Publix & CVS and also sometimes Walgreens & Winn Dixie & doing great!  In fact, two cashiers today complimented my skills!   Here are the pictures of the things I got today:

Winn-Dixie: 5 boxes of K-cups, 3 bottles of laundry detergent, 2 body washes, 6 bars of soap, 1 toothbrush, 1 deodorant & 2 Cadbury eggs for $38.00.  I saved ~$45.00 with store sales + coupons.

Walgreens: all of these items pictured above for $20.00 out of pocket.  I got back $9 for use on a future purchase, so it’s like getting all of it for $11.00

CVS: This came to $13 after coupons/discounts + I got $4 back to use on future purchases, so it is like getting it all for ~$9.  Yay!

Publix is BY FAR the best grocery store to use coupons.  Today I saved ~$75 with store sales + coupons.  Before coupons the total for groceries was $101 and after coupon it was $85….I was pretty impressed.  I am still learning A LOT and I could do a lot better if I bought multiple copies of the paper or used a coupon clipping service, but honestly, this is as good as I can do with the amount of time I want to spend on it. Our goal is just to save money on stuff we already buy and have a little stockpile of things to use when the baby comes – so we won’t have to worry about buying a lot of groceries & household supplies.  At this point I have got the hang of it enough that I just go on Krazy Coupon Lady, go to my stores, see which items are “stock up” items & only purchase those.  I don’t do the really complicated transactions and I don’t buy things we don’t need/use, of course (i.e., lotions, lots of makeup, Crest whitening strips, etc).  It is pretty fun to be able to get great deals!  All you have to do is be willing to #1 plan your meals for the week based on what is on sale at the grocery store & #2 search out the coupons, which does take some time. 

That’s all for this week!!!  I will leave you with a picture of my view when looking at the floor:

The belly!  I can still see my feet, but not much of them!  I *love* it!!

20 Weeks: Halfway There!!!

I can’t believe that we are halfway through this pregnancy!  This was a pretty exciting week due to the scheduled anatomy scan.  Of course we found out at Babypalooza that it was probably a boy, but were really looking to this appointment as confirmation.

Confirmed!

Here are some other US pics (look at that arm!):

Remember the very first ultrasound?

It’s so amazing how much he has grown!!  All of the measurements they took were perfect.  He is right on track!  We also had some bloodwork to see if there were any detectable genetic abnormalities and that came back fine.  All of this is just too good to be true.  More pictures from the appointment (Brent does a great job capturing all of the important moments!):

My OB was on call the day of our appointment and we had lots of down time as she got called away to deliver two separate times. But we were still very happy parents-to-be!

Other important things from this week include getting the guest room mostly finished!  What a relief!

Brent worked so hard & did an AMAZING job!  Before and after below!  Feels so good to have this task behind us!

Other highlights include pug pictures, baby gifts, Cadbury eggs and a long evening stroll on a warm, sunny Sunday afternoon (although I did manage to turn my ankle and fall down in the road ).  I can’t wait for Spring!!  Although it is supposed to be cold again this week, I can tell Spring is on the way!

And now for the 20 week pictures!  Look at that gut! Maybe soon it will look like a real baby bump & not just chub!

Weight gained: 8-10 lbs, depending on the day

Cravings: ice cream, chicken nuggets/strips

Aversions: grilled chicken & hot food in general – the thought of a full meal with meat, veggies & bread is just unappealing

Energy: pretty good, although I do get sleepy during the day at work

Sleep: wonderful & as much as possible – I have been falling asleep at night before 8 o’clock & sleeping at least until 5 a.m.

Exercise: went to the gym twice, long walk tonight, and plenty of housework – although I really need to make an effort to do formal exercise ~5 days per week

New things: As of Friday, I officially have to sleep on my side, and it is taking some getting used to. I would much rather sleep on my back or my belly.  It is also a little uncomfortable because Oscar insists on sleeping right up against me all night long. I know I will eventually be much more uncomfortable than I am now, so I’m trying not to complain.  Also, even though people keep telling me that I’m not obviously “showing,” clearly my belly is bigger and my face is rounder also – I have noticed that over the past two weeks.  This week, after we found out the sex (for sure), I posted the ultrasound picture on Facebook – so now the news is really out!

Also, I unfortunately still have that UTI – I had a get a shot and take another round of antibiotics last week and repeated the urine culture at the appointment this week.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it is gone.  I am so tired of the antibiotics.  This is crazy!

Maternity clothes: Kind of – I think any of the items I’m wearing below could be considered maternity because of the fit.  I am definitely getting bigger!

Finally, I must say that I am SO PROUD of Brent for being so supportive and involved and hard-working and encouraging and exciting!  He has worked so hard on the nursery & guest room, he encourages me to exercise, eat healthier, nap and just generally goes above and beyond every single day to make sure I am as comfortable and happy as possible.  He really is the best husband!