Today is the big day...

And I wake up to find, it's RAINING! I should have expected that. But I checked the radar and it looks clear for the rest of the day. So unless a stray shower pops up later, it should be a nice day for the wedding.

I don't think either one of us slept last night! I slept from about 10 until 2 when I got up and had a bowl of cereal. I dozed off again, but woke up sometime later and moved to the couch. I slept there for a little while and then went back to bed. 7:30 I finally decided I'd had enough of not sleeping so I got up. Adam's still sleeping, so I hope at least one of us is coherent for today. :)

I'm going to go get my hair done at noon and then Jessi's picking me up and we're heading to Luxemburg. I still have to get the suitcase packed, but that shouldn't be a huge deal. It should only take 10 minutes.

I'll post pictures when we get them back. I'm really excited and just a little bit nervous, but I can't wait. Tomorrow morning I'll wake up for the first time as Mrs Adam Mueller. :)

The countdown is on!

4 days to go til our wedding! I'm excited, but I'm really glad that it'll be over soon. I came home from work yesterday to find out that (we think) Adam has a kidney stone. So not good. And because he won't have insurance until we get married, there's not really a lot we can do about it at this point except drown him with water and ibuprofen and hope the stupid thing comes out before Saturday. We also ended up having to make alternate plans for what to do with Scooter, too. Not a big deal, but something I would have rather dealt with a week ago, rather than five days before. But that's all worked out now, so I feel better.

Hormones + wedding planning=bad news. I cried for almost 4 hours on and off and upset myself to the point of giving myself Braxton Hicks contractions. Thankfully, my schedule of stuff to do was light and I was in my bed listening to my Hypnobabies by 7:30 and apparently passed out by 8:15.

Today I'm taking Scooter to Bark Bath & Beyond to get his nails trimmed and to get him some more food. I have a bit of homework, too, and I'm not looking forward to that. But I am almost done. Only about 2 weeks left now. Just 2 more weeks and I'll be done with school til Spring! I can't wait! I'd like to say it'll be a nice break, but it'll only be a nice break for a few months until Clara comes. Then I'll be busy all over again! :) But a lot happier because of it.

Holy belly, Batman!

25 weeks today! I know I posted yesterday that I was having a lot of pain. Well, I think I figured out why. Compare, if you will, the difference in belly size from exactly one week ago and today.

I do believe our little Clara has had quite the growth spurt!

Here's some interesting facts on what our girl has been up to in there. :)

Your Baby: Month 6

Let your spouse put an ear to your belly -he might be able to pick up her heartbeat (no need for a stethoscope). Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving her a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink-perfect for batting those newly grown eyelashes.

Head to heels your baby now measures about 13.5 inches. Her weight-a pound and a half-isn't much more than a rutabaga, but she's exchanging her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more like a newborn. She's also growing hair-and if you could see it, you'd be able to discern its color and texture.

Coming up in August we've got our 28 week appointment (3rd trimester, yikes!). We'll be doing our gestational diabetes screening at that time. And a follow-up ultrasound to check on the placement of the placenta. After that, we'll be seeing Dr. V every 2 weeks. And August 21st will be our baby shower. Lots to look forward to, but first OUR WEDDING!!! One week and 2 days from now, I'll be Mrs. Adam Mueller. :)

Complications.

So I haven't posted in almost a week. It's not really been all that crazy around here, surprisingly!

Tuesday morning I was woken up by a very bad leg cramp. I'm guessing I was extremely dehydrated because it took over 100oz of fluids for me to start feeling better. It's Wednesday, and I'm still not feeling my oats. I still have severe pain in my leg, as well as quite a bit of round ligament pains. Clara's still moving well, so I'm not worried, but I have striation marks on my leg (where the cramp was). I may see if I can get in too see the doctor tomorrow. I'm hoping it's just my little girl having a major growth spurt.

As for what's been going on around here? It's been pretty quiet. Friday we're going to stay at my parent's cottage near Sturgeon Bay and then at night we're going to see Eli Mattson play in Bailey's Harbor. Saturday night we're going to the Kewaunee County Fair, again to see Eli play.

As for the wedding, it's about a week and a half away!! I can't believe it's coming up so fast! My ring should be back tomorrow. My SIL Jessica is going to pick up both of our rings after she's done with work, and we'll get together with them later on to pick them up. My dress came in the mail yesterday!! We'll be dropping that off at Adam's parent's house later this week. Our marriage license should also be ready tomorrow. So at this point, we're just waiting for the day to come! I can't wait. :)

Yay for V-Day!

It's Viability Day! I thought to celebrate, I'd actually post a picture on the day of, rather than on Sundays when I usually take my bump pictures.

We had our check-up at Dr. V's. My weight and blood pressure were good. Clara's heart rate was 150. She didn't like him checking on her-as soon as he put the probe on my belly she kicked at him. :) He measured my uterus and it's actually measuring at 25 weeks instead of 24! No wonder I feel huge somedays!

The only mild concern from the anatomy scan was the placement of my placenta, which is a bit low. It's actually borderline, but he just wants me to come back at our regular appointment in 4 weeks to get a quick ultrasound to make sure it hasn't gotten any lower. Other than that, we checked out great! Our next appointment is August 12...28 weeks. I'll also be doing my gestational diabetes screening. Yuck! After that appointment, I'll be going in every 2 weeks instead of every 4.

I had Adam take my pic for me today. But Dukie decided he wanted in on the picture, too!

Wedding updates!

We met (after some confusion) with our photographer Katie on Monday. She's got all of our information and we'll be seeing her again at the wedding! I can't wait to see how the pictures turn out!

I finished putting together the wedding party invitations last night. I got them all stamped and threw them in the mailbox so they go out today.

And last night I ordered my dress from Motherhood Maternity.

Today we go pick up Adam's ring and send my engagement and wedding band out. I'll be picking them up again in about 2 weeks (hopefully sooner!). While my ring is gone, I'll be wearing my Grandma Kappelman's engagement ring. My mom got it all cleaned up for me and it's gorgeous. It's a large ruby with diamonds on both sides. I'm very proud that I get to wear it. :) I'll probably try to figure out some way to incorporate it into the wedding day, as well....possibly tying it into my bouquet.

Another busy week.

It's a good thing I had a nice, relaxing weekend camping. We went to Potawatomi State Park in Sturgeon Bay. We left Friday afternoon and came back yesterday. The weather was gorgeous! Sleeping was good and Scooter was mostly well-behaved. :)

Today starts a busy week ahead. Today is also the day that I want to start my Hypnobabies Home Study course. There are assignments every day, and I plan to do them all, as well as picking up on my Prenatal Yoga, and continuing my assignments for school! I can't wait until August when school is finished and I can just relax!

Tonight we're supposed to be meeting with our wedding photographer. I sent her an email on Friday about getting together today, but haven't heard anything back as of yet.

Tomorrow Adam has a VA appointment in Milwaukee to address some more of his disability. Shouldn't be an eventful appointment, but he won't be home by the time I get home so it will suck.

Wednesday after work we're going to Appleton to pick up his wedding ring, and to drop off my engagement ring to get sent out. It needs to get soldered to my wedding ring, as well as having my wedding ring sized.

Thursday we have our next OB appointment. We will be 24 weeks on Thursday, which is also Viability Day! It is at 24 weeks that babies are able to survive outside if they're born this early. Our little girl, however, has been given explicit instructions to stay in there until at least 36 weeks. It shouldn't be an eventful appointment. We'll probably do the weight/bp/heartbeat check ups, and possibly schedule my 1-hour glucose testing to screen for gestational diabetes.

Friday, we've got nothing on the schedule, so I plan to take it easy as Saturday is my friend Roxy's wedding and it'll probably be a long day.

23 Weeks.

17 weeks left to go. I can't believe how quickly the time seems to be going, though it does seem to have slowed down quite a bit since the 20 week mark.

Here's a few interesting facts about this week:

Size: She's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound.

Development: Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop.

She's quite the active baby most days. And I can definitely tell she's going to be a handful when she's born! She was quite the sassy girl yesterday! She gave her momma a kick so hard it startled me!!

We had Baby Boot Camp last night. I think we're the farthest behind out of all the couples, but I don't mind. Most of the couples are really nice. There's only a few who are a little "high school-ish," but we don't really socialize with them. We learned all about contractions and what to do if we think we're in labor before and after 35 weeks, as well as different induction methods.

While it was interesting to learn about, it's not something that will be included in my birth plan when I make it. Once your water breaks, you're on the clock (so-to-speak). I plan to labor at home as long as I can before going to the hospital. I want to be able to eat and drink when I want to and not be hooked up to monitors constantly. We have a doppler at home if we're concerned at all about the baby. And there's really no reason for me to go in as soon as labor starts, as I don't plan on getting pain medication. I'm planning on using hypnobirthing to manage my labor. I should be getting my home study course in the mail next week. I look forward to practicing, and it will allow me a few minutes relaxation everyday, too.

As for the rest of the week, I have a test to take tomorrow in Correctional Philosophy after work, and then we leave for camping! I can't wait, it looks like a beautiful weekend. I'm planning on bringing my Kindle so I can do some reading, and if it isn't too hot, I'd like to do a lot of walking, too.

Whew! What a busy weekend!

Well, after a busy weekend, it's back to work tomorrow.

Yesterday, Adam's family came over and we got the first coat of paint up on the walls in the nursery. It still looks a little bright, but with another coat or two, it'll look great!

We also got one coat of paint on all the baseboards and trim. We're hoping to get the floor in next month.

Jessi and Stacy got the venue for the baby shower booked, so now I have to come up with addresses for her to mail out the invites. Adam & I went to Target today to finish up the registry.

We're also hoping that by the end of the week we can get over to Kessler's in Appleton to get my ring sent out and Adam's picked up.

Happy 4th of July!

First of all, a big Thank You to all the veterans and service personnel for us even being able to celebrate this day and secondly, happy 4th of July to everyone. I hope everyone has a safe and fun holiday.

Yesterday Adam finished up demo in the nursery.

The floor is scraped and most of the trim is down. We got some holes patched, too. After that we ran out to Menards to get some paint. We ended up finding a really nice ceiling fan as a bonus! And at Fleet Farm we got all new outlets and plate covers. Plugs were always falling out of the outlets that we had so I opted to change them. It was a cheap and easy fix, anyway. :) Today his family is coming over to start painting! I can't wait to see what it's going to look like by the end of the day! We still have to get the flooring, which I hope we'll be doing soon. We're putting bamboo flooring in. All the trim will be painted white and the walls will be a bright yellow/green. Instead of closet doors, I'll be putting up some white floor-length tab-top curtains. If we end up getting the tall chest of drawers we registered for, then that will be going in the closet as well for more storage.

Last night we went to Ken & Karen's house in Kellnersville for a cookout and to watch the fireworks. It was a great time. :) We're already looking forward to next year, so Clara can see them too! We had been sitting around waiting for the fireworks to start and music was playing over a loudspeaker. Our little girl had a pretty quiet day yesterday, but when Johnny Cash came on, she was kicking so hard everyone could see my stomach move! It was really funny. We'll have to experiment with this. :)

Not much on the agenda for this coming week. I have Monday off. And Wednesday I have a chiropractor appointment and our next Baby Boot Camp class. Other than that, we're just counting down the days until we leave for our next camping trip (7/9) at Potawattomi in Sturgeon Bay. So far the weather looks fantastic!

Big Ultrasound day!

This morning at 10am we had our big ultrasound! This was the ultrasound where the take measurements of things like the heart, head, and other internal organs. Here's some pictures:

We've had names picked out, almost from the beginning. For our girl, we picked out the name Clara Ann. Clara is a family name on both sides, and Ann is Adam's mom & sister's middle name, as well as sounding a lot like mine. :)

The only new "symptom" I've developed recently is some wicked all-day heartburn. I think I'm going to have to trade in the Tums for some Prilosec. I was trying to hold out as long as I could, but I just can't take it anymore!

Wednesday was the first time I saw the baby move from the outside!! I was sitting in my desk chair and could feel herkicking so I pulled my sweatshirt up and waited. Sure enough, I could see her poking from the inside! It was so weird! Guess that means she is growing well.

Tomorrow Adam and I are going on a date. He's taking me for dinner at my favorite Sushi restaurant-Little Tokyo. Then after, we're going to go see Eclipse!! I'm so excited. We also might start painting the nursery this weekend!