Thursday, September 30, 2010

35/35!!



Today I am 35 weeks pregnant, only 35 days to go (maybe!)! I can't believe what a difference 3 weeks makes! I compared my 32 week bump (top picture) with my 35 week one (bottom picture). Holy cow!

So Clara's only duties right now are gaining weight and letting her lungs mature. Other than that, she's ready to go! Quite frankly, so is her mommy. :)

A few more check marks


Household/Misc.:
-laundry
-clean kitchen
-clean the floor in Clara's room
-make grocery list for freezer meals cooking session part 2

Projects:
-Finish painting in dining room-
should be done by the end of the week
-Finish tiling in foyer-should be done by the end of the day today, grouting to follow
-clean garage
-stain door for nursery-
stain is being put on tonight; polyurethane goes on when that's dry
-install door for nursery Stain is done and dry. Polyurethane should go on tonight.
-weed front flower bed
-plant new plants-
they're not here yet, but should be soon
-take compost to recycling center
-paint over patches in master bedroom
-clean master bedroom-
empty and remove all clothes baskets, clean out/reorganize dressers
-clean out vehicles-vacuum & detail
-hang wedding pictures
-shop for art for dining room

Baby:
*We just finished purchasing the last of our baby needs last night. We're waiting on them to come in the mail so some things won't be able to get done until they arrive. Things we are waiting for: dresser, swing, bottle sterilizer, book shelf, car seat base for Adam's car
-*sterilize bottles/nipples
-*organize dresser/put away clothes
-*change sheets on crib mattress
-sterilize breastpump parts
-put cover on changing pad
-*put changing pad on dresser
-*install car seat bases-
mine can get done, but Adam's is coming in the mail from Target, hopefully by MondaySo due to some contractions last night, my base got installed in my truck; Adam's base arrived on our doorstep yesterday. We still need to get them inspected, though.
-*get car seat bases inspected
*We have a glider; Adam's mom found it at a rummage sale for $10. The cushions need to be re-covered, but she said the wood is the same color as our nursery furniture, so it works out. I expect the cushions will probably be done by the weekend.
*I'd also like to find a rug for in the nursery, but it's not something that NEEDS to be done right away. I'm picky and it's hard to find something I like that doesn't cost a fortune. :)

I'll be making another post later today with my 35-week update...and I'll post a picture.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Additions to the Website.

I forgot to post about this! I have added 3 pages to the website. Two are under Baby Clara's page: One for maternity pics and one for nursery progress pics. The other page will be under our wedding page and will be all wedding pictures. There are a lot of pictures to upload from the wedding so it'll probably take a while, but I'll try to work on it when I can. Keep checking back-there's a link on the side of this page.

Check, check, and check!

So yesterday I emailed home a list of things that need to get done yet. I thought the list was pretty long. But after further analysis, most of those things can be done by the end of the week.

Household/Misc.:
-laundry
-clean kitchen
-clean the floor in Clara's room
-make grocery list for freezer meals cooking session part 2

Projects:
-Finish painting in dining room-should be done by the end of the week
-Finish tiling in foyer-should be done by the end of the day today, grouting to follow
-clean garage
-stain door for nursery-stain is being put on tonight; polyurethane goes on when that's dry
-install door for nursery
-weed front flower bed
-plant new plants-they're not here yet, but should be soon
-take compost to recycling center
-paint over patches in master bedroom
-clean master bedroom-empty and remove all clothes baskets, clean out/reorganize dressers
-clean out vehicles-vacuum & detail
-hang wedding pictures
-shop for art for dining room

Baby:
*We just finished purchasing the last of our baby needs last night. We're waiting on them to come in the mail so some things won't be able to get done until they arrive. Things we are waiting for: dresser, swing, bottle sterilizer, book shelf, car seat base for Adam's car
-*sterilize bottles/nipples
-*organize dresser/put away clothes
-*change sheets on crib mattress
-sterilize breastpump parts
-put cover on changing pad
-*put changing pad on dresser
-*install car seat bases-mine can get done, but Adam's is coming in the mail from Target, hopefully by Monday
-*get car seat bases inspected
*We have a glider; Adam's mom found it at a rummage sale for $10. The cushions need to be re-covered, but she said the wood is the same color as our nursery furniture, so it works out. I expect the cushions will probably be done by the weekend.
*I'd also like to find a rug for in the nursery, but it's not something that NEEDS to be done right away. I'm picky and it's hard to find something I like that doesn't cost a fortune. :)

Like I said, the lists look long, but I don't think it'll take anytime at all to get stuff done. The hardest part is waiting for everything to come in the mail.

Thursday I'll be going over my FMLA with my supervisor. My last day of work is scheduled for October 28th, though I'm hoping I won't be here that long. Tomorrow is also 35/35!! 35 weeks pregnant, 35 days to go! Not long now before we get to meet our precious daughter. We're both looking forward to it!

And as a side note, I want to say good luck to my friends Katie and Carrie who are finding out today what gender their precious babies are going to be! I'm in a baby pool for Katie's baby and I do believe I told her I think it will be a boy. Carrie's I think is going to be a girl. :) I'm so excited for them! Good luck today, girls! Enjoy seeing your precious babes!

Monday, September 27, 2010

Monday, Monday...

Normally, I hate Mondays. I should even have a reason to hate today. I got to work and the computer decided it wasn't going to work. Normally, this would have put me over the edge right away. For some reason, I'm in a really great mood. I don't know if it's the weather or what.

We had another great weekend. On Friday we went to Oktoberfest in Appleton to watch Eli Mattson (www.elimattson.com) play. He's Adam's friend from high school, which makes it even more fun, especially when we don't get to see him that often. We also got to see his fiancee, Carrie. I've been looking forward to seeing her again since she came to Wisco 3 weeks ago to visit! It was great. And it's nice not being the only one who can't drink. They'll be finding out the sex of their baby on Wednesday. I'm soo excited!! She and I also talked about us coming out to PA this spring for a visit.

Saturday was spent, at least for Adam, in recovery mode. We were supposed to attend a birthday party and then go to dinner with Eli, Carrie, and the band guys, but Adam and I both ended up in bed at 6:30; him with a hangover and me with a bad case of the grouchies. Apparently all I needed was a lot of rest, though. I got up 12 hours later feeling pretty fantastic.

Sunday we were up early....mostly due to being in bed for 12 hours. :) Adam's parents came over and brought the cornice for our dining room. It looks AMAZING!! Anita also made us a table runner for our new table out of the same fabric as the cornice. And she brought the curtains for the closet in Clara's room. Adam spent the day home-improving. He took down the half-wall in the dining room and got the remainder of the walls primed. All that's left to do back there is paint and repair the floor/wall/ceiling where the half-wall was. Then he'll be starting in the living room. We're ripping out the carpet in front of the front door and replacing it with tile. The carpet is pretty much destroyed, which one would expect when you put carpet in a foyer and you live in Wisconsin in the winter.

This week is pretty busy. Tonight I'm getting my oil changed and we might be going to the Y. Tomorrow we're going to Green Bay. We're going to Babies R Us to pick up the remainder of the items we need for Clara, and then we're going out for sushi at Little Tokyo (http://www.thegreenbaysushi.com/). I might see if I can convince him to go to Motherhood Maternity, too, since I need a few nursing tops and maybe a pair of jeans. Wednesday my Dad is coming over to stain the new door for Clara's room and Thursday there's nothing on the books. I'm enjoying staying busy because it seems to make the time between now and my due date (38 days) go faster, though everyone thinks I'll be delivering early. Clara has dropped over the last week. We'll find out on October 6 if we've made any progress dilation-wise.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

34 Weeks & Maternity Pics.


So today I am 34 weeks. Yesterday I had my 34 week appointment. I still can't believe that Clara is going to be here soon! I have 6 weeks left until my due date. Out of curiosity (morbid or otherwise) I asked Dr. V how much he though she might weigh right now. He told me he thinks she weighs around 6 lbs right now! At this point in the pregnancy, the baby is likely to gain around 1/2 lb per week. If those calculations are correct, this could end up being a 9lb baby by my due date! The nurses at our last baby class last night said they didn't think I'd go til my due date, though. To be honest, I hope I don't either! I'm shooting for 37-38 weeks...*fingers crossed*.

As far as the doctor's appointment goes, everything is still looking really good. My bp was 104/80, my weight was 165, and Clara sounded really well on the doppler. My uterus is now measuring 2 weeks ahead, so we'll be keeping a closer eye on that. Dr. V said that if it gets to be 3 or more weeks we may go for a growth ultrasound to make sure she'll still fit! Our next appointment is scheduled for October 6, which will be 36 weeks (35w6d).

Which brings me to my next update. Adam is going to be having more surgery. Right now they're just going to do a diagnostic arthroscopy. It shouldn't be a big deal...other than the fact that I'll be 36 weeks pregnant! But I'll be at a hospital and I'm bringing his mom (and the car seat and my hospital bags!) along with me just in case. It is scheduled for October 7. This is a new doctor who will be doing the surgery. We gave up on waiting for the VA to take responsibility to fix him so we've sought the help of The Kennedy Center for the Hip & Knee at Mercy Hospital in Oshkosh. Apparently this is a very prestigious place because it took a month just to get a consult and another month to get the surgery scheduled. We'll know more after the scope, but for now we just have to wait and see what Dr. Tsai says.

I only posted 2 of my maternity pics (because I'm writing this at work and for whatever reason didn't upload them to Tinypic so I could add more to the blog). They were taken last Friday at the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary. It was beautiful! And our wonderful photographer, Katie (http://www.ksphotographygb.com/), did an awesome job as usual. I'll try to post some more-maybe on my website. Adam and I couldn't be happier with how they turned out! We're all looking forward to doing newborn pictures. :)

Friday we'll be going to Appleton for another Eli Mattson concert. He'll be playing at Octoberfest. We're also going to stop in at Babies R Us and pick up our swing. My parents are picking up Clara's dresser on Sunday and I'm really looking forward to getting it put together and getting all of her clothes organized!! Pretty much all we need now is the baby and the room will be complete!



Monday, September 13, 2010

Baby week!

So this week has been unoficially dubbed "baby week." We have the 2nd of 2 Infant Care classes scheduled for Tuesday. This is just a basic course on how to do things like bathe a baby, change diapers, basic first aid, and this week's class will be on car seats with a demonstration by someone from the local fire department. Unfortunately, Tuesday is also Adam's 30th birthday. Because we have class all night, we won't be doing anything special. We will be having a party later this month for him, though.

Wednesday night we have our Baby Boot Camp class, where we will be taking our hospital tour. I've been to our hospital before and visited people who had babies, but now I'll be learning all the ins and outs of L&D at Aurora. I should be able to finalize my lists for what to buy for the hospital bag as well as what to pack in it.

Thursday night my mom is making a garlic-free lasagna and we're getting an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen to celebrate Adam's birthday. It should be fun and relaxing. :) And I LURVE me some ice cream cake!

Friday morning I have a chiropractor appointment (YAY!!) and then we're off to Green Bay to have Katie take our maternity pics (http://www.ksphotographygb.com/) at the Wildlife Sanctuary (http://www.baybeachwildlife.com/). I hope the weather cooperates!! I'm looking forward to this because Katie does such a wonderful job taking pictures...if you don't believe me, check out her website or see my post about our wedding!

Saturday morning we have our Breastfeeding Basics class. Adam was unsure about whether he'd come along (still not sure if he is) but I think it would be beneficial for him. He'll probably need to help me out a lot after we get home because I'll be too exhausted to think straight! And after our class is Ethnic Fest (http://www.trmainstreet.org/) which I know I plan on going to with my Mom and possibly my MIL.

Though it's going to be a busy week, next week should be great because we don't have anything planned until Friday night!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

32 weeks and Nursery update.

32 week! I can't believe how fast this trimester is going by! We've gotten a lot done, but there's still enough to do where I don't feel like I can relax just yet.

So what's new for 32 weeks? Size-wise, she's somewhere between a squash and a honeydew melon; probably right around 17 inches long and around 4 pounds. She'll gain a third to around half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks, which also means I can expect to see the numbers on the scale climbing, as well. She's still moving really well, too, though I suspect she's quickly running out of room. I can also tell if she's head-up or head-down depending on where I can feel her hiccups (which she seems to get an awful lot!!). As I'm typing this she's practicing her dancing! We had our 32 week appointment a day early because I was feeling extremely dizzy. Turns out my bp was REALLY low (92/something). I went home, took it easy and drank a lot of water. Clara was fine, though. Her heartbeat was just pounding merrily away. :) My weight is still good, too (161) and I'm still measuring one week ahead. Our next appointment is scheduled for September 22 at 3:30.

Other things we've been up to? Almost finishing the nursery! Adam's mom brought us the beautiful curtains! We picked the fabric out last weekend and she brought them today when they came over. I think we were all pleasantly surprised how nice everything turned out. We're just waiting, now, on the curtains that will cover the closet door. I also got the diaper bag packed. I still need to pack my hospital bag, but I have quite a few more things to buy that have to get put in there. My family will be getting our dresser-the last big piece of furniture (well other than something to sit on) and we'll hopefully be picking up the swing towards the end of the month as well.


In other news, Adam had an appointment with a non-VA doctor, one who specializes in knees. We were hoping he'd be able to get something done soon, but that's not the case. The doctor, instead, opted to do a diagnostic arthroscopy but the only time he could get in is October 7. We'll be bringing all of our "baby" needs with us as I'll be 36 weeks pregnant by then and quite frankly, I feel like a ticking time-bomb lately...which I'm sure won't change by that time!

Today my mom came over and helped me cook. I made 5 different kinds of soups and froze them in quart jars for after Clara's born. Each quart jar should be enough to feed both Adam and I, especially if you throw in some refrigerator biscuits. It'll be nice to not have to cook and it'll give us a chance to get other things done....or sleep!!

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Another great weekend.

This weekend was super! It was a 4-day weekend for me. It was my Friday off and I was off Monday for Labor Day. :)

Friday we did our big baby-shopping spree (see previous posts) and got a lot accomplished!

Saturday we started cleaning the house, as we were having people over on Sunday. I WAY over-did it and my back was killing me. I managed to get a little snuggle time in with Adam in the early evening before leaving for Elkhart Lake for Jessi's birthday party. It was fun, but a little chilly outside! We got home around midnight.

Sunday morning we all slept in. Then it was time to get up and finish getting things ready for the barbeque. I finished up cleaning and laundry while Adam ran to the store and then started mowing the lawn. We got things finished up before the first guests arrived. :) It was a pretty good time! My parents, my grandmother, my brother and his wife, Adam's mom & dad and brother & sister all came over to our house. Everyone got to check out the nursery and some of our new stuff that we bought on Friday. The only bad thing? My dad got stung in the lip by a yellow jacket. OMG! I've never seen a lip that big! We had to run out to Walgreens really quick and get him some Benedryl, but after that, he was doing better. After everyone left, it was finally time to RELAX!! Adam and I snuggled up on the couch and watched some Ninja Warrior (well he watched mostly...I read the paper).

Monday we planned to go to Green Bay to look at a new dining room set (his parents gave us money for a wedding present in order to buy something along these lines). We ended up finding one we really liked at Oak Express and should be getting it in a couple of weeks. We also met up with his Mom and Dad and his mom helped me pick out the fabric for the curtains in Clara's room.

All in all it was a good weekend. :) Busier than expected, but still nice. It's going to be a busy week ahead, but at least it's only a 4-day work week!

Friday, September 3, 2010

Big changes.

So there have been some major changes in Clara's room! On Thursday night, Adam's parents brought the crib over. We, of course, wasted no time putting it together. I also started getting her clothes separated to be washed.
Today we made the trek to Appleton and did the BIG baby-shopping spree at BRU. We got her travel system, a bunch of feeding supplies, some covers for the changing pad, a mattress pad, some sleep sacks, a few more receiving blankets, some pacifiers, and a diaper bag for me. I'm sure there were a few more things on that list, but that's all I can recall off the top of my head. We also went to Target to get a few more things (mostly little things). We came home with a whole truck-load of stuff! I even managed to get everything put away in the hour before we left for dinner! Her room is really starting to look like someone is going to live in it! Here's a couple quick pictures. I'll post some more of the room when we get the Dr. Seuss decals up on the walls....and the room gets cleaned up a little more! I ran out of energy today to do it. We're also going to find some hooks to hang on the wall to hang the diaper bags and carrier on, rather than where they're hanging in the closet at the moment.


Wednesday, September 1, 2010

A great week so far!

After such a fun weekend, I was sad to have to come back to work. But it ended up not being so bad.

I got a pretty good night's sleep on Sunday night-something that doesn't happen often anymore. Aside from the a/c being out in the building where I work (again) and it being 90 degrees, it was actually a somewhat pleasant day at work! When I got home Adam & I went grocery shopping, finally, and then my Mom & I went to a friend's house for a Tastefully Simple open house. I bought some boxed soup mixes for after Clara's born.

Tuesday was another hot day, but not unpleasant as far as work goes. I went home in the afternoon and immediately crawled back into my pajamas...and stayed there! lol I did a little laundry and cooked some dinner. The only damper on the night was the fact that I had 3 or so Braxton-Hicks contractions in about an hour and half. I decided it was time to go lay down. Well, I ended up falling asleep. But I think it was 7:30 anyway so it's not like I wasted a lot of time, and I can use the sleep!

Today I got to work, only to find that the supervisor who is usually on is goose hunting! It's almost like a vacation at work! AND I have an interview for a promotion today! I've been trying to get this promotion for over a year now! I'm not expecting miracles, especially since I'll only be at work until 10/28, but I'll take what I can get at this point!

Tomorrow, I'm hoping for the same sort of workday as today. The weather's even supposed to be a lot cooler. It's good because I am SO OVER being hot all the time! Then tomorrow night Adam's parents are bringing the crib over. That'll be really exciting! I'm going to wash some of the sheets tonight so I can put them on tomorrow....except I just realized I don't have the waterproof mattress pad yet. Ok, well I'll wash the sheets and just hang them on the side of the crib until I get the pad on Friday.

Friday we are doing our marathon baby-shopping trip! We'll be taking all of our remaining wedding/baby shower money, gift cards, and coupons to Babies R Us and purchasing all of the remaining things we still need for Clara. Some of the heavy hitters: Travel System, bouncer, swing, feeding items, diaper bag, and a lot of other little stuff. We got a few items in the mail from Target yesterday...a pacifier sterlizer, a bumper set, and a cooler bag for bottles. It's going to be a long day, but it should be fun anyway. Though I think I'll have more fun once we get home and I can finish organizing the nursery! My family is buying our dresser and it hasn't gotten purchased yet, but it should be soon and that will really be the final item we're waiting for-other than Clara!