Registering

Definitely had way too much fun registering with my mom today! My goodness, there is SO MUCH STUFF!!! It just amazes me just how much you really need for a baby. Good grief. Yeah, as much as I want to finally meet her, she's definitely cheaper being inside me right now. LOL. That's what I keep telling Jordan. But I think I got everything... We'll see...

Next doctor's appointment, I'm asking about what I can do with my restless legs. I'm really sick and tired of either not falling asleep or not being able to be in bed with Jordan while he's trying to fall asleep. So here I am, online, at midnight, waiting for my legs to calm down or Jordan to fall asleep. Whichever is faster. It's really been messing with my sleep schedule and making me more grouchy. Not such a good thing right now. Oh, the joys of pregnancy.

On another note, starting to pick out dates for baby showers. Seriously, 11 weeks away (til my due date). That's CRAZY! I can't believe how close it is. Wow.

Yeah, definitely ran outa things to say... So I figured that I would borrow a survery that my fello preggo got from one of her friends. Looked cute, so enjoy ;-)


How far along? 28 weeks and 6 days
Total weight gain/loss: Gained 24 lbs
Maternity clothes? I'd rather wear my lounge pants (that I made) with a sports bra and an oversized t-shirt... Ahhhh, sounds so much better than tight clothes!
Stretch marks? None (so far...)
Sleep: Sleep? What's that?! Definitely tossing and turning or up and peeing... Take your pick!
Best moment this week: Actually being woken up by her moving. I know it sounds crazy, but I kinda enjoyed it :-)
Movement: Everyday, several times a day. She's a very active baby!
Food cravings: Pickles and Culver's Icecream (but not together... Ewww)
Gender: It's a girl :-D
Labor Signs: None (yet...)
Belly Button in or out? Neither. It's more of an even-ny... LOL... I guess it depends on how I am sitting. But definitely more out than in sometimes.
What I miss: SLEEPING ON MY STOMACH!!!!!! :-(
What I am looking forward to: Being able to hold her in my arms, kiss her little cheeks and see that beautiful face that Jordan and I created. Miracle of life is such a beautiful thing!
Weekly Wisdom: Make sure you don't sneeze on a full bladder....... :-/
Milestones: I think just being less than 3 months away from my due date is a milestone.
Realization of the week: I'm gonna have a baby in 3 months!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!!!

28 weeks (and counting)

So I had my 28 week check up (last Thursday, lol) and everything's looking great. The doctor wants me to start counting the number of kicks every day, 3 times a day. Gave me a log to keep track. It's been fun watching the numbers and seeing when she's most active. Definitely got the least painful shot of my life then too. I was all worked up over nothing. SHEESH! I also had an awesome nurse too :-) Autumn's BPM were 144 and my blood pressure was 112/70. Gained weight, LOL... It's so crazy to step on that scale, because I know why I'm gaining it, but I've never weighed this much before. I just have to sigh and say "oh well". It'll go away when she arrives.... Hopefully....

Tomorrow is going to be a very exciting day for me!!!!!!!! My mom and I are going to register for baby stuff. AHHH!!! I can't wait :-D Jordan's super happy that he doesn't have to do it. I had to drag him to do our wedding stuff. Oh well, I'll have tons of fun with my mom! Starting to pick out dates for baby showers. I can't believe I'm due in less than 12 weeks. Wow has time flown by! Three months seems like a long time, but I feel like I just found out I was pregnant. And that was 6 months ago...

Definitely not enjoying this humidity. I think I've taken off my wedding ring for the last time. I never wear them (I have another ring that Jordan gave me while we were dating) at night, because of bad circulation in my hands. They swell up too much and makes my fingers go numb. But with the heat and me being pregnant, I've decided that I shouldn't risk forcing them back on anymore. I'll just get a cheap band and wear that instead. Sigh. Oh the joys of pregnancy ;-)

Overdue

Yes, I'm definitely overdue for an update. Just really haven't had a lot of time to sit down and think of what to say. It hasn't been very eventful in the pregnancy world here. Just getting bigger, started getting puffy ankles (YUCK) and Autumn's moving around like crazy. Jordan's newest kick is that he likes to pat my belly and say "Wake up Autumn!" until she starts kicking. He LOVES it :-) He did that last night and just sighed and said that he can't wait to hold her. Just melts my heart!!!

Did my glucose testing last week. And I'm assuming since I didn't get a phone call that nothing abnormal, but I'll find out for sure tomorrow at my regular check up. A lot of my other preggo friends made a big deal about the sugary drink you had to drink before hand. Made it seem like it was huge and you could barely drink it in the 5 min they allowed you too. I actually really liked it. It honestly just tasted like a kool-aid drink that my brother would make (with extra sugar). So thanks Bryan, for preparing me for the glucose test. HAHA! Definitely didn't like the needle poking they had to do. Sigh... Will this ever get easier?!?!? First time I ever bruised too from it. Looks worse today than it did last Thursday. I guess that's what I get for an overly chatty nurse poking my arm. LOL.

Definitely looking forward to house sitting for my best friend's parents this coming July (first full week of July). Out in the country, taking care of their farm animals, laying in the pool ALL DAY LONG! I might actually be able to tan my back for once. SOOOO excited. Nothing relaxing me more than just being out there in the quietness of life. Enjoying the farms noises and smells (yes, I love the smell of farms) and the cool breeze of the country air. SIGH. I'm getting relaxed just thinking about it! I would love to live in the country. But not sure if my clients would want to drive down to Caledonia to get their hair done (that's where they live and they found a house for sale that they want me to move into, teehee). Someday...

Oh yes, something exciting did happen to me this past week. My car brakes failed on me. NICE. I knew they were pretty bad. Every now and then I would touch the brake pedal and it would slowly go to the floor, but I would still stop. So until we could afford to fix it, I would just pump my brakes everytime I got into the car and I wouldn't have any problems. Until this day... I believe it was Monday. Just driving home from a client's house. Through construction (so I'm going super slow and keeping my distance) and everyone stopped cuz someone wanted to turn. Touched the brakes and went STRAIGHT to the floor. Started slowing down, but not fast enough. There was no way I was swerving, too many cars and other people around. So I just went straight into the Jeep's tailgate in front of me. SIGH. Pulled over and there was no damage to his car, a little to mine (very, very minor) and he just said "Get home safely" and took off. Fine by me! Super scary though. AHHHHH! However, my super awesome and talented husband fixed them for me and it's all better now :-) I love how handy my hubby is!!!

Offically in my third trimester today. WOO HOO! I'll make sure to post a picture of my belly up soon. I know, I'm WAY overdue...

Unbalanced

Let's just say that before I got pregnant, I was very clumsy. Now I'm EXTREMELY clumsy!!!

Since we're staying at my parents right now, Jordan and I pretty much have the basement to ourselves. But since we moved in with a dog, my parent's dog has been getting territorial and started peeing on our chairs down here. So now that we have the crib and dresser set up, we put up a gate to the basement (so Rudy, my parents dog, doesn't come down here). Tonight, I went to put up the gate. Stretched around the flatform (in front of the garage door) to get it, took a step back, but missed the platform entirely. So started falling backwards, FREAKED OUT and grabbed anything and everything I could. Which meant back of the thigh into the guard rail, head/arm/palm into the textured ceiling and ribs into the door handle. None of that really hurt (at the time), I think I was more scared about falling backwards, down the stairs, and hurting our baby. So yeah, definitely started sobbing. Jordan ran upstairs to check on me and put his hands on my belly, Autumn kicked for him :-) Letting him know she's ok or startled that I woke her up. LOL. But yes, now I'm in a lot of pain. Sigh, just another bruise to add to my list...

On a better note. Jordan and I had a date night tonight. Went to the Whitecaps baseball game. Since I work there now, I don't really have time to sit and watch the whole game. So it was fun to sick back and relax for once. For dinner, we had french toast.... Not sure about you pregnant (or were pregnant) women but syrup most definitely wakes the baby up! She was moving constantly. Kicking like crazy. During the game you could see her kicking on my belly. So I showed Jordan and he thought it was really cool. Then he put his hand on my belly and she "moved" and then he had enough. HAHA. It just cracks me up how much it grosses him out when she moves around. I think it's the coolest thing ever :-) Men, they just don't understand!

Me? SHY?!?!

I officially believe that my little growing baby (Autumn) is shy!!! Which is not really normal when it comes to Jordan and myself, so it cracks me up. Everytime she's moving and someone wants to feel her, she stops. As soon as they pull their hand away, she starts back up again. The only person she hasn't done that for is, of course, Jordan. My mom is sad. She keeps calling out "I'm here grandbaby, let grandma feel you!" :-) So sweet. Someday mother, someday...

"Dancing Queen"

The past few days have been fun when it comes to Autumn moving. It's almost been non-stop since Monday. Last night Jordan got to feel her moving, not just kicking and it was hillarious! He didn't know what to think. Part of him was grossed out, but he still thought it was kinda cool. LOL. It's just not normal for him. It's still not normal for me. But I just thought his reactions were funny :-) I am currently 26 weeks (and 1 day) along and not looking forward to the next 2 weeks full of needles and glucose testing... SIGH... Oh well, what can ya do?

I put away all Autumn's baby clothes the other day and it got me thinking... I really hope she doesn't come out as a boy. LOL. It's in the back of my mind every now and then. I've heard stories of babies that were supposed to be a girl, come out a boy. Not that it happens too often, but still, I think about it. That'd be a lot of pink our boy would be wearing. HAHA!

Tuesday night was fun, Red Wings game (sad they lost). But my brother came into town and painted my belly for me. It was funny. I think more because Autumn was moving a lot and Bryan couldn't tell. So then I'd start laughing and he'd get mad cuz I was laughing and shaking my belly. I'm hoping he comes back into town on Friday so that he can paint the Stanley Cup on my belly.

One last final thought. Jordan decided that Autumn isn't "dancing" inside my belly... She's training to be an MMA fighter. Typical, right? LOL

My brother did this pretty much free hand with wax face painting crayons.

Pretty darn good if you ask me!!!

1 o'clock blabber.

I just want to say I've been so blessed to have such wonderful friends, family and even clients! I started washing all of Autumn's clothes that I've been receiving from everybody (garage sales are amazing) and I don't think she'll need another outfit for a while! Not that I'm complaining, this is me we're talking about here :-) Just sitting back and appreciating everything that everyone has done so far for us and our baby. My parents have not only bought us a georgous crib, but also a dresser/changing table as well!!! I knew the crib was coming, my mom and I discussed that a long time ago. But my mom surprised me one night with the dresser! LOVE IT!!! I'm super excited now. It's almost torture just staring at it everyday and watch it collect dust. Sigh... Soon enough...

So here I am, writing a blog at 1:40 AM because my restless legs are bothering Jordan. He can't fall asleep when I'm moving around so much. And I can't sit still because it's so incredibly painful!!! Forgot to drink my glass of milk at dinner and this is what I get. Stuck on the computer until I know he's fallen asleep. Poor hubby. Has to put up with me throughout this pregnancy. He just read the other day that my mood swings will get worse in my third trimester... Scared him, just a little. LOL. I'm not all that bad, just more emotional and more tears. Not so much up and down.

Most definitely not looking forward to the next 2 weeks. Sigh, lovely glocouse testing (blood work an all) along with test for antibodies and the rhogam shot at 28 weeks. Can't stand needles! My aunt told me that my fear of needles would get better as the pregnancy progresses.... LIES!!! It's been getting worse for me because there's so many!!! LOL. And there's more to come.

Ok, definitely the drowziness talking now. I wish there was more exciting things to write about. Besides the fact that Autumn is fully aware of where my bladder is and is successful at making me jump at the worse times (like kicking me so hard when I have fries in my hand). Good times Autumn!

A New Beginning

Hey everybody! Definitely new at this blogging thing. But I find it easier to keep up with my friends through their blogs, so I figured that I would do the same thing. It just makes sense vs. all the ads and quizzes that facebook is starting to do now. That's why I stopped using myspace in the first place. So I'll give this a try and see how it goes :-) I hope you all enjoy. Feel free to post questions if something is a little confusing. There's a lot that goes on inside my head and it tends to come out in weird ways when I write.

God has truely been amazing throughout our marriage and this new journey we're about to enter in. Although it's been frustrating to not know the path He has laid down before us, I am beginning to trust that He knows what's best and letting Him lead me through the unknown. I stand (or sit) here today knowing that He is a wonderful and gracious God. I have no doubt in my mind that Jordan and I would not be ready for this parenting thing if it weren't for the struggles and forgiveness that we went through with God's help! Most of you already know our story, but if you don't, please please PLEASE go and watch the movie Fireproof! I cannot explain it better than that movie (at least not online).

Let's give you all a current update about what's going on in my life. I've been married for over 2 1/2 years now to my best friend, Jordan. We are currently expecting our first child this September (16th) and that's part of the reason why I wanted to start a blog. I tried the whole journal thing, but that lastest a whole 2 weeks. I like telling other people my story rather than just writing it down for me to see.

I have been blesssed with a wonderful pregnancy (so far). Never got sick during my 1st trimester (sorry ladies) and so far everything has been progressing very well. I am 25 weeks pregnant and feeling the little baby move everyday! Found out April 1st that we're having a little girl!!! Very excited :-D Ultra sound was absolutely amazing! Technology has come so far these days. It was such a touching experience to see the little one inside me, healthy and growing. Definitely shed a few tears! Jordan was definitely hoping for a boy (don't they all) but he is very happy that she's doing well and growing strong. He'll still take her hunting and fishing. I have no doubt that his heart will MELT the first time he sees her though. Definitely looking forward to that day! We've decided that her name with be Autumn Rae. I got Autumn from a client of mine. She was looking through her daughter's year book and just pointed out that name. Instantly fell in love with it. We struggled with a girl's name for a long time (wishful thinking for a boy, perhaps). Ray is my grandpa VanBall's middle name (my mom's dad), whom I'm very close with. We were going to use that middle name for both boy or girl. So Rae is just how I would spell it for a girl.

I think I've run out of things to say, for now. But please enjoy some of the ultra sound picture I have for you :-)

My favorite ultra sound picture with her hand under her chin. Jordan says she's flexing. I say she's gonna be a smart one cuz she's thinking ;-)

She's sucking her thumb with the rest of her fingering sticking straight up. So cute!

In this picture, she just pulled her fist out of her mouth. Don't ask Jordan to do that for you!

Long legs and feet, just like mommy and daddy!!

Last, but not least, it's a girl! The ultra sound tech had to explain it to Jordan. Bottom right is her hand, above that is her little butt. Then you can see her left leg clearly, but her right leg is pulled up so you can see a break (black) between the butt and her foot. And there's nothing inbetween those little legs. Ha. I hope that helps those who are confused by ultra sounds :-)

God Bless