Mmmmmm....Squash.

Almost 30 weeks!

It sounds so far along! So close to the end. I just can't believe I only have 10ish weeks to go. 

Baby is the size of a butternut squash which sounds very appropriate this time of year!

This week was your basic week for us. I wasn't home every night this week. Dan worked late. We didn't see each other much and then he had a gig Saturday. We were able to hang out some on Sunday and watch some football. We are actually a part of a fantasy football league this year. I know! My husband that knows nothing about football and me that knows about as much as a person who has never played the sport can know. But right now I am in first place! ;)

Mom was able to come over this weekend and we went to the big One Week Boutique event. It's a huge consignment sale for kid, baby, and maternity stuff. I got a few deals on some basic registry stuff and some fall maternity clothes. Mostly dresses and things without waistbands. I even a got a poncho. More to use as a winter coat this year but yeah. It's fringy and fabulous!

We also started getting the yard ready for the big shower that we are having at our house in 2 weeks. We decided that even though some friends are throwing it for me that it should be at our house with our fabulous deck. You remember that don't you? 

So we are having an outside "camping" themed baby shower in our backyard. Mom and I planted some new flowers and Dan edged out our flower beds so they look a lot nicer now. I am already excited/nervous about this shower! I just hope it doesn't rain/snow!

Questions!

How far along: 29 weeks! (I thought I was 30 weeks already when I started writing this post....Trying to get to that 3-0 too soon!)

Total weight gain: None this week! I am really trying to be better about my food choices.

Maternity clothes: Got a ton of outfits at the consignment sale this weekend! Very exciting! My shoes are starting to no longer fit though :( I am really hoping they go back to normal after the baby comes. My shoe collection is irreplaceable!!!

Stretch marks: Nada! Can't believe it, but I am swearing by my stretch mark oil.

Sleep: Passing out each night without even reading! Which is really surprising since usually it takes me a good 45 minutes to decompress enough to sleep. Been waking up more to pee every night (sorry) but still feeling good.

Best moment of this week: Watching football with Dan and getting to take a nap Sunday!

Miss anything: Wearing high heels!

Movement: Still a lot though maybe not as much this week. I did notice that he seems to like to hang out on the right side of my belly and that makes my belly look uneven. Which is kinda cool/weird.

Food cravings: Greek food! And there are NO Greek restaurants in our town! :(

Anything making you queasy or sick: Feeling good really! Not very hungry most of the time.

Have you started to show yet: Ummmmm yeah.

This outfit was provided by my friend Kate so I had a teacher friend

take a pic of me in it so I could show her. Even not turned sideways I am looking pretty pregnant!

Gender: Boy-noise with dirt on it

Labor signs: Little bit of Braxton Hicks this week I think. Belly was tightening some and it made me stop for a minute. Nothing painful though.

Belly button in or out: Getting sooooo shallow. Kinda freaking me out.

Wedding rings on or off: Pretty swollen all over this week. Face, fingers, feet and ankles. May just need to drink more water.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! Tired! Busy!

Looking forward to: A surprise 3-day weekend this weekend. We have school off on Friday now for a state championship baseball game. I think I will enjoy sleeping in immensely! I may even try and start cleaning the house for the shower!

3rd trimester

I know!
Can you believe it?
We are in the home stretch.

And I just had a mini panic attack considering our nursery is gorgeous but empty at the moment, we have a lot of clothes but not a single diaper and I still haven't found a maternity sub for school.

Breathe.....

Ok. On to the good things. I had a gorgeous shower this weekend thrown by my gorgeous sister. It was held at a winery (trust the irony wasn't lost on me) and it was a gorgeous day! It was a nice small shower for family friends and family. 

Guests got to guess when Baby Harts will come and make a wish for him as well!

Gorgeous food table

Favors for the sweet baby boy!

The delicious cake from Kim's Bakery in Indy (highly recommended!)

My beautiful sis and mom

Family shot!

Chowing down!

My sister made everything and it tasted great!

So that was my Saturday! I came home from Indy and passed out only to get up early for church today. A nap may be in order today! Dan had a wedding gig last night and has another this weekend as well. 

On Friday I went in for my 28 week midwife appointment. I passed my glucose test with flying colors! No gestational diabetes for me! :) 

I also found out that I haven't quite lost my mind. I haven't grown that much. At my 24 week appointment I was measured at 25 weeks when they measured my belly. At the appointment on Friday I only measured at 27 weeks even though I am at 28. So! Not a lot of belly growth. The midwives weren't concerned at all though. I have to be measuring more than 2 weeks ahead or 2 weeks behind for them to schedule a growth sono. I have a sono scheduled for 32 weeks anyway do to the chemo/infertility treatments. So we'll get to have a better idea about how big this kid will be.

Could I really have some petite child?! I highly doubt it considering Dan is 6'3" and I am 5'9". But hey! If I don't have a 10 pound baby I will be very happy! 

I however found out that the week I lost 2 pounds was definitely a fluke. So the midwives mentioned if I didn't want a 10 pound baby I may need to back off the candy corn a bit. :( 

Oh well.

Question time!

How far along: 28 weeks! 3rd trimester!!!!

Total weight gain: Ok....I gained 5 pounds since my appointment a month ago. So all total I have gained 15 pounds. Since my goal was only to gain 15 I am super bummed. But candy corn has hit the shelves and has been calling my name. I am continuing with my working out 3 times a week plus we add in birthing classes in October so maybe that will help quell my insistent desire for sugary confections.

Maternity clothes: It's fall! It feels like fall! I have been enjoying pants and boots and sweaters. My favorite time of year to plan outfits!

Stretch marks: None! This stretch mark oil has become my best friend! 

Sleep: It's going ok. Some more charlie horses and I wake up every time I roll over now. So maybe not the most restful sleep, but I am still sleeping! And possibly beginning to nap more....

Best moment of this week: My beautiful baby shower! Shout out to my little sis! I love you and you throw a great party!

Miss anything: Non-maternity shirts. Looking through my closet it is becoming more and more evident that anything that isn't maternity no longer goes over my belly. There are still a few non-maternity items that I wear, but they are getting fewer and fewer.

Movement: Tons! I also feel him during the day more now as well. I will be teaching and all of a sudden feel him kick or push me. It makes me smile. He especially loves to dance around during yoga class.

Food cravings: Candy Corn!!!

Anything making you queasy or sick: A little nauseous this week while drinking the orange glucose drink for my test, but it faded after a few hours.

Have you started to show yet: Ummmmm yeah.

Gender: Snips and snails and puppy dog tails.

Labor signs: Feeling good. No tightening and here's hoping Baby Harts plans to stay in there for a good long while.

Belly button in or out: Still in! Yay!

Wedding rings on or off: Actually a lot better this week! Both my rings can come off and I haven't felt as swollen in my fingers. My ankles however, are a different story!

Excuse random swollen ankle shot, but this was at my appointment when all of a sudden I looked

down and no longer had ankles. I sent this pic to Dan and he replied with "look at those toes!"

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! Though Dan notices pretty quickly if I haven't eaten lately. I skip being "hangry" all together and go straight to despondent. Then Dan reminds me to eat something and life is okay again.

Looking forward to: Getting some more art made for the nursery this week. I'll post some pics of some stuff when I get done with it.

This is a blog post

-Julia  "I need to write a blog post tonight."

                                     "I'll write one if you want."  -Dan

-Julia  "Really?!!  That would be really great if you did.
            I don't even care what you write.  Just something."
                     
                                              "Yeah, no problem."  -Dan

-Julia  "Just don't write 'This is a blog post' and nothing else."

                                              "  :-p "                       -Dan

                                                                    This is a blog post.

Well the business stuff first.  Julia said not much else has changed.  She's still pregnant.  She is still not putting up with my "lip."  And she still thinks rootbeer floats are a reason to get up in the mornings.  All caught up?  Good.  Next.

I'm sure those of you who have had children all know about the conversations that arise with anyone when you disclose the fact that you're pregnant.  Due date, sex, names, favorite coffees (editors note: who gets to drink coffee?? not me!) It is always a light-hearted fun conversation but I've noticed something.  Lots of people tell me we're going to be good parents.  I like the idea that I won't fail but I certainly don't have that confidence yet.  I only just recently realized that I have never thought to ask people why  they thought we would be good parents.  I still haven't but I was lucky enough to speak with one of my newest friends last night who has just recently crossed the line in the parenthood sand.

    "The exhaustion is extreme, but it's overwhelmingly made up for by the smiles and giggles.  You just look at her and she farts and you're like 'Aww.' "  -Paraphrased from Dave Carter

Thank you.  Thanks for saying that this is going to be rough for a little while.  And then in the same sentence telling me why you're still smiling.  This does more to alleviate my worries than hearing "you're going to love it."
                                                 Because I will not love losing sleep. (Neither will I!)

I found a lot of solace in the simple explanation of cause and effect in child rearing.  Feels nice to give yourself permission to admit that life isn't perfect but it's still worth it.



This has been a blog post.
(Thanks Dan!! I have a midwife appointment this Friday. More updates next week!)

Double Digits!

We are at day 99 before Baby Harts arrives!

It's fun to finally be in double digits, when we started at almost 300.

I won't say the days are fast, but the weeks are flying already! School is going well and I had my first rehearsal today with my choir at First Presbyterian. I think I will really enjoy the job there since it is very much like what I already do every week. 

This week has been a little weird though because I feel like my belly shrunk!

Pic: 

26 weeks

Here is a comparison from last week:

I guess maybe I just haven't grown? Not necessarily "shrunk"

I definitely felt less pregnant this week though. Not as many aches and pains thanks to a new mattress topper we got for our bed.

But Baby Harts has been kicking up a storm, letting himself be known. So no worries there!

Dan and I spent a lovely weekend together since he actually had the weekend off. And we weren't running around like a chicken with our head cut off either! We had nothing to get done for the nursery and nothing to get ready for or clean. We slept in, hung out with friends and went and saw RENT over in Springfield on Saturday night. 

It was nice having a "normal" weekend. We don't get them very often and know how few and far between they will be once we add a baby into the mix. This week is super busy for me with aqua aerobics, pre-natal yoga and Open House at school. Dan should have some more down time though before he has another gig this weekend.

Question Time!

How far along: 26 weeks! (not months!)

Total weight gain: Lost 2 pounds!! I KNOW! I think just running around school all day and being super busy at night too kept me from stuffing my face. But hey! I don't mind! 

Maternity clothes: Stupid hot weather! Nothing is comfortable when it's that hot out and I am starting to run a lot hotter too. My students complain about how cold my room is, but I just tell them I am baking a human and try and bring a jacket to music.

Stretch marks: None! Still! :D

Sleep: Ahhhhhhhhh. Soooo much better! I love my mattress topper! If I could just get the charlie horses to stop and the nightmares (from watching too much Dexter) I would be perfect!

Best moment of this week: Having a relaxing weekend with Dan. And getting through my first choir rehearsal at my new gig!

Miss anything: Alcohol. I know, I know, but we went out with friends both Friday and Saturday night. Sitting outside in the summer time was always my favorite time to have a cocktail. Dan jokes he is drinking for "two" now. He also doesn't mind that we never have to talk about who will be the DD for the night!

Movement: Still everyday. More of a "pushing off" feeling this week. DAN GOT TO FEEL BABY HARTS MOVE!!! The first time!!! We were over at a friend's house watching TV and Baby Harts was kicking up a storm. I put Dan's hand on my belly and the baby kept kicking. Dan felt 2 good kicks! Super happy!

Food cravings: Candy and Cereal (why can't I crave beets? or spinach??)

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still feeling good.

Have you started to show yet: No growing this week! Luckily I usually still look pregnant. 

Gender: Baby Boy Harts

Labor signs: Had a pretty bad cramp that lasted a good 30 seconds in the parking lot today. Had to breathe a little, but I don't see it as a labor sign. I went home and drank some water and laid down since that is what the midwives said to do if I began to cramp. It hasn't returned.

Belly button in or out: Still in!

Wedding rings on or off: Testing them out a lot everyday to see if I can still take them off. My wedding ring I can't sometimes. Not sure if it worries me enough yet to get another ring though.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! Great week!

Looking forward to: Can I say sleeping in next weekend? Too soon? 

Laboring on Labor Day

(I just realized the title of my post may be a little scary to some people but I promise I am not in "labor"!)

Another week down!
Can't believe it is already September!

This week was long, but fun. It's been tough with it being so hot to find things to wear to school or to be outside at all. Hopefully things will start to cool off a bit. 

This weekend Dan headed to the Ozarks to play with the Shenanigans. I thought about going but decided to stay home and work on the nursery with my mom.

My painting outfit!

Mom is a rockstar and always helps me get a TON of stuff done when she is here. 

So we got the WHOLE nursery painted! The whole beautiful thing! I am in LOVE with how it looks right now! So is Dan!

Dan 

He was gone all weekend in the Ozarks for a gig. So I sent him cryptic pictures to keep him guessing a bit at what was going on. I want to save the pictures of the nursery for a big reveal on the blog but I will show you the cryptic ones I sent Dan. Keep in mind I was trying to confuse him!

So yeah! Dan came home from his gigs just chomping at the bit to see the nursery. The reveal was fantastic and I am thrilled he likes it as much as me!

That was pretty much my whole weekend but next weekend Dan is home again so we may even get more stuff done. Or...we may sit on our butts! ;)

Next weekend is also my first Sunday as the new music coordinator so I am already nervous about how that will go. 

25 week photo!!!

25 week questions!!!

How far along: 25 months!

Total weight gain: Stayed the same! Woo hoo!

Maternity clothes: Keeping myself from buying some cute stuff I saw this weekend. Hoping for cooler weather soon though! All my maternity is fall stuff.

Stretch marks: Bathing in stretch mark cream. I feel especially tight in my stomach.

Sleep: We ordered a gel mattress topper and I got a new pillow to help with my hips. I am hoping for improvement any time now. 

Best moment of this week: The nursery project! #nurseryproject

Miss anything: Caffeine still. :(  

Movement: Feel kicks every day! Especially when I sit down.

Food cravings: Sweets! Pie, milkshakes, frosting, root beer floats. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still feeling good!

Have you started to show yet: Really popped this week. Some friends noticed and so did Dan but he didn't say anything till I asked him. ;)

Gender: Baby Boy Harts!

Labor signs: Feeling good. Reading a lot about pre-term labor just so I know the signs. Just in case! I tried to come 4 months early. We hope Baby Boy will want to stay in for as long as possible.

Belly button in or out: Still in, pretty shallow though!

Wedding rings on or off: Can no longer take them off. They don't feel uncomfortable though. Trying to decide if I should try and get it off or leave it be.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy happy! 

Looking forward to: Starting swim aerobics class again and pre-natal yoga this week! I am excited about getting my blood flowing and working out!

6 months!

6 months sounds so far along!  I don't feel like I could possibly be that far along!

This week he is the size of an ear of corn, which seems appropriate right now!

                              

The bump is a-growin'!

This week I went back to school but only had students for 2 days. 

I was amazed though at how tired I was at the end of those days! 

Poor Dan had to live with some easy to make dinners this week while I tried to keep myself from going to bed at 6pm.

The kids loved hearing I was pregnant. I always get such honest answers from kids (which I love). They were so excited for me though and loved reminding their classmates that I had a baby in my belly. So between having hair and a growing stomach I look a lot different from last school year!

This weekend Dan was actually home! For the whole weekend! I felt very spoiled. We hung out with friends on Friday night and went to bed early (see exhaustion from school day). Then Saturday we spent a ton of money at Home Depot and got a lot of work done in the nursery. I am going to save pictures for when we are all done with the nursery. It still looks like a hot mess at the moment.

Saturday night we went to the drive-in for the last time this season. We saw Despicable Me 2 which was very cute. We also enjoyed some corn dogs and elephant ears! Yum! 

We hope next summer to bring baby boy to the drive in as well. Drive-ins seem to make it easy for new parents to go see a movie. Just stay in the car! Kid can pass out in the car seat and parent don't have to worry about disturbing other people by bringing a baby to a movie. 

Questions!

How far along: 6 months!

Total weight gain: 2 pounds again. So the total is 10 pounds with 16 weeks to go. My goal was to only gain 15 pounds. 

Maternity clothes: Doing good! Unfortunately with this heat wave we are having I don't have very many summer maternity clothes. Here is hoping for cooler weather soon!

Stretch marks: Nope! And my new super organic stretch cream seems to be working great!

Sleep: Ouch! Between sore hips and falling asleep hands sleeping is not so easy anymore. Looking into more pillow interventions.

Best moment of this week: Getting so much done in the nursery this weekend and getting to hang out with Dan! We had a lot of fun together.

Miss anything: Caffeine. I have a feeling that might just get worse with the school year.

Movement: Baby boy loves kicking me at school and if I sit down at home. Dan still hasn't felt him though. :(

Food cravings: Chocolate frosting. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Feeling good!

Have you started to show yet: Belly is bigger than my boobs (sorry Dad!)

Gender: Boy Harts

Labor signs: Some tightening at school, but running around made me get dehydrated sooner. I will have to keep up on my water intake.

Belly button in or out: Still in!

Wedding rings on or off: Better this week! Not as swollen!

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy! Looking forward to September being a great month!

Looking forward to: Next weekend I am working on the nursery again. Dan is gone next weekend to the Ozarks so mom and I will be tackling as much as we can. If I can talk her into sitting down for a few minutes we may try and get pedicures too! ;)

two to the three

23 weeks!

Feeling great this week as summer winds down. 

Last Wednesday Dan and I headed over to Barnes hospital which has the Siteman Cancer Center. It is a HUGE complex and the cancer center itself is well renowned. We wanted to have a consultation with another oncologist about the reasons/benefits for keeping our baby's stem cells.

The next course of treatment for me, should the cancer ever come back, is a very high dose of chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant. If you have been pregnant within the last 5 years you may have heard about stem cell banking. I know that most of my weekly pregnancy newsletters talk about it or have ads that are advertising big stem cell banks. 

I thought that having a stash of stem cells set aside may be a good course of action for us. Usually you save stem cells for the child in case they become sick with some horrible disease. 

Well we found out a lot of information that we didn't know. One, that for there to be enough stem cells for a transplant of an adult we would need 2 or 3 donors. Also that 90% of the time with stem cell transplants they use the patients own cells. The other 10% of the time they like to use a close family members. 

So it looks like my baby's stem cells won't get to help me this time, and unfortunately due to the cancer/chemo I can't keep the cells for my baby to use either. We have to "trash" them, as the doctor eloquently put. 

So a long day of driving back and forth to St. Louis, but much information learned.

Other than the trip to St. Louis I had a very lazy week. Trying to soak up as much summer as possible. 

Bump pic!

At first I was worried I didn't look any bigger...

But then I pulled up weeks 18, 20 and 23

Definitely see some growth!

AND! I forgot to mention. I got the job as a youth music coordinator at First Presbyterian Church. I am very excited to start! I took a tour of the church this week and started planning out a program. It will be a program to build from the ground up, but I am excited to do it!

Questions!!!

How far along: 23!

Total weight gain: Ok, only 2 pounds! So pregnancy total is 8 so far. Once school starts my eating habits always get better so I am hoping the weight gain will slow down.

Maternity clothes: I have been on a mission with finding flat shoes to replace all my lovely heels. Having some fun trolling Ebay looking for good deals. With as clumsy as I tend to be I didn't want to risk running up and down stairs and falling. Falling is one of my huge fears with this pregnancy and my school is full of stairs!

Stretch marks: Still none! Planning on making some homemade stretch mark cream out of lovely stuff. I found out bio-oil has some junk in it that makes me nervous to use it anymore.

Sleep: Harder. I end up sleeping on one side most the night and then I wake up so sore! Also my hands keep falling asleep from carpal tunnel brought on by the pregnancy. yippee.

Best moment of this week: Going to the chiropractor for the first time! I was always a little leery about chiropractors but my hip pain convinced me to try it out. I really liked it. The chiropractor was really gentle and works with pregnant women all the time. Afterwards I was able to walk normally! No more pregnant waddle! I am headed back tomorrow to see if the pain in my hips can lessen even more.

Miss anything: Margarita. Sitting on a patio at a Mexican restaurant with Dan and his mom Wednesday night really made me want a chilly, fruity beverage. I treated myself to Sprite instead.

Movement: Feeling a nice kick or 5 everyday! LOVE IT! Now we are trying to catch one so Dan can feel it.

Food cravings: Besides margaritas? Potato skins!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Felt pretty good this week until this morning. We waited awhile before we had breakfast and then I realized that all of sudden I was feeling pretty bad. Cramps, nausea, just awful. Realized that on top of being pretty dehydrated I probably needed to get my blood sugar up to. As soon as I ate some breakfast and had 2 big glasses of water I felt perfectly fine.

Have you started to show yet: Yep!

Gender: Baby Boy!

Labor signs: Feeling great this week. No braxton hicks.

Belly button in or out: In but getting shallower? Is that a word?

Wedding rings on or off: Still wrestling a bit to take it off, but still keeping it on. For now.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy, maybe a little overwhelmed by everything coming up. 

Looking forward to: School starting! I always love the start of a new school year. Clean slates, excited kids, new classes, the whole year in front of me to tackle any goals I can come up with. LOVE IT! I may start posting more maternity fashion, just because I was able to get so many great ideas for my wardrobe from looking at maternity blogs. We'll see how I handle looking nice 5 days a week. Eek!