Five on Friday

ONE
I can't remember if I've talked about Dove Pistachio Cream with Magnolia body wash before, but I've been using it for a while and it's really good. I recently tried the Target Up and Up version and I'm sad to say it doesn't hold a candle to the real thing.

TWO
I am marking stuff off my "before baby gets here list" and was so proud of myself for making SIX freezer meals in one evening. I picked up a bunch of chicken and ground beef from Fresh Market on Tuesday, remember this deal, and churned a bunch out before Andy even got home from work. I weirdly feel so accomplished having meals in the freezer and I know they will come in handy to throw in the crockpot during those first couple of weeks as new parents.

THREE
Andy and I upgraded our phones last weekend and I'm so excited to have a nice phone with a great camera before baby gets here. I usually just get a plain cover, but I thought maybe I should get a pretty one this time. Honestly the custom ones are cheaper than the covers in the store so why not. Help me pick which cover I should get.

FOUR
I just started The Astronauts Wives Club book, because I keep seeing the commercials for the show. It sounds really interesting and I love that it's a true story. I'll report back.

FIVE
I'm officially obsessed with the Gelatis from Rita's Italian Ice. The vanilla custard with mango ice just speaks to me at the moment. Go get yourself one, you can thank me later.

Remember to link up with April at A. Liz Adventures.

Have a great weekend!

36 Weeks

 

How Far Along? 36 Weeks! We are officially 9 months!

We hit the “month before our due date” on Sunday. It’s crazy to think how fast it has gone.

Size of Baby: Large Cantaloupe (19-22 in, 6 lbs)

Gender:  Team Pink

Maternity Clothes: Still down to four maxi dresses in rotation. I can’t wait to add some of my old clothes back into the mix. Also I received some super-hot lingerie in the mail: nursing bras, pads, and some lovely shape wear. ;)

Nursery: We were not as productive as I wanted to be this weekend. But we have an official list now and we are going to check stuff off during the week. We are still waiting for our rug to come in and we are going to buy a new ceiling fan and have a dimmer switch installed.

Movement: All the time and girlfriend packs a punch. You can pretty much see her move from the outside all the time now. She loves to move during church, which we are hoping is a good sign. There have been a couple times recently that the kicks are not so cute and have taken my breath away. I think I give Andy a heartache every time.

Symptoms: The usual swollen hands and feet. We had some cooler temperatures over the weekend and I actually got to see my ankles for a bit. It was great! Good to know they are under all that puffiness and hopefully will return soon after baby arrives.

Sleep: Well, I think my sleeping peacefully through the night may have passed. I have a really hard time turning my brain off at night. (I’ve always had this problem and Melatonin would help, but I can’t take that while pregnant.) There are so many things to think about. It’s hard to find a comfortable position and boy does Anna Grace love to kick up a storm right around 11:30pm. Does that mean she will want a feeding around that time when she is here?

Something new about bedtime is that Camden has started sleeping in our room, which he never does. He usually roams throughout the house looking for the coolest spot during the night, but starting a couple nights ago he lays down on the rug in our room and goes to sleep. Clearly he knows something is about to happen and it makes me think my water will break in the middle of the night.

Cravings: Carbs as usual, but trying to keep that in check.

What I Miss: Cute clothes, wearing my wedding rings, wearing more than one pair of shoes every day. 

Best Moment This Week: I washed all of Anna Grace’s clothes this weekend in Dreft. It was the cutest laundry I’ve ever done. I’ve heard people talk about the smell, but it really does put you in the baby mood. Even Andy thought it smelled good. I put everything away in her dresser and I have a couple outfits to iron, I know I’m crazy for ironing baby clothes, and then we will be all set. 

Looking Forward To: Checking stuff off that list. I sat down and figured out everything I want to get done before baby gets here. This way Andy knows what I want done and we can cross things off together. Since I can’t plan baby’s arrival all I can do it try to be as prepare as possible.

Gardenias

I am not a gardener. It really wasn't until I owned my own home that I even payed attention to what people's yards looked like. When we moved into our house we knew there was a lot of landscaping work to be done and we thought it would be fun to do it ourselves. Well...some of it has been fun, but some has been a pain. Anyway, long story short, we have spent the last two years basically ripping out as much as we could and poisoning the rest, like ivy and bamboo. (NEVER plant bamboo!)

So I was excited when my mother-in-law gave us two gardenia plants to put in our front yard. This will be the first pretty thing we will have added to our yard. So sad, but true. I'm thinking we will put them in two planters to go in front of our steps. I just can't wait to get them planted and have those beautiful smelling blooms greet us everyday.

If you have any gardening tips I'm all ears!

35 Weeks

How Far Along? 35 weeks and 2 days

Size of Baby: Canary melon (19-22in, 5.5lbs)

Gender: Sassy little girl

Maternity Clothes: Still sticking to my rotation of maxi dresses. No one probably cares, but I miss having a little variety to my wardrobe. Also, I finally bought a couple nursing tank tops, bras, and button down pajamas for the hospital.

Nursery: It’s still unfinished but that will be taken care of this weekend hopefully. We have floating shelves and will get those hung and we’ll put all the bedding in the crib. I finally got my drawer organizers for the dresser, since I insisted we couldn’t live without them, so we can wash all the clothes and put them away.

Movement: Umm… I think she is starting to get uncomfortable in there. She seems to stretch and push a lot, but then she gets kicking and it’s really un-fun for mama here. It’s like she is frustrated about the confide space. It’s very easy to see her move from the outside now too.

Symptoms: I know you are tired of hearing it, but y’all, the swelling in my feet and hands is no joke. I had to buy a bigger pair of sandals, because none of my shoes fit. I’ve tried drinking lots of water with lemon, sitting with my feet up, and soaking in an Epsom salt bath. Also when I wake up in the morning my right hand is always completely numb. It takes a good 30 minutes for me to get full feeling back in it. Then it happens randomly throughout the day. So weird.

Sleep: I thought a friend of mine, who is due a week before me, was going to kill me when she asked this week how many times I get up in the middle of the night and I said “usually none, but sometimes once.” Bless baby girl for not resting on my bladder and letting me sleep before she gets here.

Cravings: Banana bread. And anyone who knows me knows I HATE bananas, like can’t stand the smell or texture of them. Period! However I accidently picked up a banana nut muffin at a function recently and couldn’t get my mind off of it. Thankfully I remembered that Carolina Charm posted this banana bread recipe and it did not disappoint.

What I Miss: I had my last major event for work this week and it felt so nice to have that in the books as a success. However it was weird to not be able to run around like I usually do and having to hand off tasks instead of doing them myself. I’m sure this is great practice for letting go of control once baby gets here, but it’s a hard transition. Here is a picture from the event. I loved being in Charleston, but that humidity and heat wiped me out. 

Best Moment This Week: We came home after running errands last weekend to our stroller/carrier sitting on our front porch. Both Andy and I were super excited about it and ripped into the box as soon as we got in the house. Andy put it together and then we both took turns putting it together and then folding it up. The carrier is definitely heavier than I thought, but if it protects baby girl than I’m good with it. Bring on the toned arms! 

P.S. Camden was not thrilled about the stroller and all the attention that wasn’t going toward him. Hopefully he will be so taken with Anna Grace that he won’t notice the attention shift. No worries though, Andy and I have already chatted about how to make sure the pup still gets enough love once the baby is here.

Looking Forward To: I don’t know if it’s too early, but I’ve started making a mental list of stuff to pack in our hospital bags. We also started stocking up on things from my “must do before baby gets here” list and can’t wait to have everything done.

34 Weeks

How Far Along? 34 Weeks

Size of Baby: Pineapple (20 in, 4.9 lbs)

Gender:  Baby Girl

Maternity Clothes: I did try on a bunch of nursing bras and tank tops in Target yesterday. It felt so weird knowing I would need those things in a couple weeks. Recommendations welcome….

And just for fun, look at the difference between 10 weeks and 34 weeks makes in the same shirt. 

 

10 Weeks Along

 

34 Weeks Along

Nursery: Andy and I spent the weekend nesting and getting the nursery ready, which was a wonderful way to spend Mother’s Day. We made a huge trip to Target to get the crib mattress, sheets, and some floating shelves. Andy set up the monitor, Diaper Genie, etc. And I took all the tags off the tiny little clothes and got them ready for washing. I loved getting this room ready and can’t wait to share it with you once we get some stuff on the walls.

Movement: All the time. Her movements aren’t as sporadic, now they are more stretches and bumps. She still loves to push an appendage straight up the front of my ribcage which is an odd feeling. I’m really feeling her all over now, which makes me think she is definitely growing and running out of room.

Symptoms: Oh my poor feet and hands. They are swelling at all times of the day now. Thank goodness it’s warm outside so I can get away with wearing sandals, because there is no way I would get real shoes on. When I run home at lunch and as soon as I get home after work I lay on the floor and prop my feet up on the couch. This helps until I standup, then the swelling comes back instantly. Still not going to complain too much, this is a super normal symptom. However if anyone has any tricks I’m all ears.

Sleep: Still thanking my lucky stars that I’m sleeping through the night. I wake up a bit when I turn over, I never did get the hang of staying on one side, but nothing bad. Oddly enough still sleeping with only one pillow too. Everyone I know either has a body pillow or sleeps with 12 regular pillows. I think I move around too much for that.

Cravings: Nothing in particular, I’m just hungry all the time. I’m trying to get as much protein as I can to make me full, but it doesn’t seem to have much effect. My What to Expect books says most women graze all day by this point, but I don’t want to get into that habit if possible.

What I Miss: Ummm…my feet not swelling and I miss my wedding rings.  

Best Moment This Week: Nesting in the nursery was wonderful. Andy and I sat on the floor and did projects, while Camden wandered in and out. There was lots of love in the room and I think we are both feeling better knowing that if Baby came tomorrow, which we don’t want yet, we would be ready for her. 

Looking Forward To: We should get our stroller and changing pad this week, which will finish off our last big to-do list things. It’ll feel so good when everything done.

Fancy Water

With the lovely new pregnancy development of my hands and feet swelling I did what every other woman in America now does, check Pinterest for solutions. I found that lemon and cucumber water was supposed to help with inflammation so I decided to give it a try.

Fill a large cup with half a lemon, quartered, a couple slices of cucumber, and a sprig of mint. The nice thing is that you can just refill with water throughout the day and the flavor continues to infuse and change.

Has it helped with the swelling? Well.....I'm not so sure. But it definitely has encouraged me to drink more water throughout the day, which hopefully will flush out any salt. Plus a couple coworkers have been super intrigued by my "fancy water" and have tried  it too. See, it's good for everyone's health.

33 Weeks

How Far Along? 33 Weeks, 1 Day I just can’t believe how far we have come. The time really does go by really fast.

Size of Baby: Honeydew Melon (19 in. 4.5lbs)

Gender:  Little Miss Anna Grace!

Maternity Clothes: I can’t tell you how much I’m loving maxi dresses right now. I throw a cardigan over them to make them office appropriate and they are a great alternative to pants. Let’s face it, shaving is a pain in general and shaving while pregnant is a lot of work. Maxi dress = problem solved. Plus they are pretty and feminine.

Nursery: The nursery is a wreck at the moment with gifts everywhere. I had my last shower last week so I’m now in organizing mode. I’ve gone through all baby girl’s clothes and have made all the returns that need to be made. Now it’s on to buy the essentials and putting the room together.

Movement: Oh yes, so much so that people could see her move during a meeting this morning. Nothing really hurts yet, but sometimes the take me by surprise and I jump. I have a tendency to push back on her with my hand when she gets too forceful.

Symptoms: My energy levels are decreasing noticeably. This weekend I had two errands to run and was so tired after the first one that I had to take a break. I feel so pitiful, but I guess it’s just my body telling me to slow down. Also throw in the, now, usual swollen hands and feet. I had my TDAP shot on Thursday and my arm was pretty sore for a couple days, but really not a big deal.

I’ve also been a little forgetful lately. I haven’t been forgetting major things or anything, I’ll just be telling a story and right in the middle of it I’ll forget the whole reason I was talking. It’ll usually comes back to me within an hour. Funnily my What to Expect app mentioned this morning it’s scientifically proven that women who are having girls are more forgetful. Weird, but interesting.

Sleep: Still a light sleeper and waking up when I turn over, but I’m sleeping and I refuse to complain since I know a lot of people who aren’t at this stage.

Cravings: Anything but water. Water is my choice of beverage usually, but lately I want everything from juice, to tea, to soda. I try to only indulge in something other than water once a day to keep the sugar intake down.

What I Miss: We have shortened Camden’s walks around the neighborhood, half because it’s so warm, but half because my swollen ankles will only take me so far. I love our family walks, we pretty much always go together, so I’m sad that they are shorter because of me. But I can’t wait to add Anna Grace to the mix and walk around as a family of four!

Best Moment This Week: I loved my work baby shower, the ladies from my office were so sweet and generous.

Looking Forward To: My first, almost, Mother’s Day!