Weekend Recap

It's amazing to me that our baby free weekends are rapidly coming to a close so it's important to try cram in as much as we can while we can. I haven't been feeling that great that last few days, as I get closer to D-Day the worse I seem to feel physically so it's been tough getting shit done and just doing anything other than lay on the couch. Here's a quick recap of our weekend.

Friday Night-
-I made my husband take me out to dinner. We haven't been out on a "date" in a while and I felt I was due. We went to a little Mexican place close to our house and I've now discovered the best queso dip in Northern VA. Kristian loved his meal so much I really thought he was going to hug the waiter. I think we'll be going back.

Saturday-

-While my husband and father-in-law went to check out a gun show (yes a real gun show, not the kind where you just show off your biceps) I did some more baby shopping. I decided to check out a baby consignment shop I had heard a lot about. I picked up several little outfits (all in great condition) and only spent $17! When you think that most babies only wear an outfit a couple times before they grow out of it most of this stuff looked almost brand new. My only complaint- they didn't have a public restroom to use...when you have pregnant chicks as your main customer I highly suggest having a bathroom for them to use. Common sense.

Sunday-

-Got up early and dragged Kristian with me to see Breaking Dawn. If we go to the movies (which isn't often) we always go to the early show on the weekend because it's the cheapest....only $6 a ticket as opposed to $12.

-Overall I liked the movie but not nearly as much as I liked the book.  The theater was pretty packed for it being so early and there was a woman at the end of our row who thought it would be a good idea to bring her approximately 4 year old daughter to see the movie (totally not appropriate by the way). Well I guess the child is neither Team Edward or Team Jacob because she started SCREAMING during the movie (and not at a scary part either). The mother just acted totally oblivious until finally people started yelling "Take her out of the theater" or "Leave" before she finally got up and took the child out. By the way, nobody said anything for about 5 minutes, all hoping she would settle down, when the screaming got louder that's when people started to get pissed.

**Here's the thing I get that kids are going to throw tantrums and it sucks for the parent but you need to be a responsible adult and take your child out if you're in a theater or restaurant or other public place and they throw a fit (if you're on a plane and literally cannot go anywhere that's different). I know it's inconvenient but it's not fair to ruin the experience for those around you. Rant over.

-I spent the afternoon, washing baby clothes and working on a DIY project for the nursery while Kristian slept in his recliner watching football

So that was our weekend in a nutshell. I'm hoping to get a lot more accomplished on the baby prep front during the long holiday weekend as well as start decorating for Christmas. We'll see if my energy level can match my to-do list.

34 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights

 

How Far Along: 34 weeks

*Despite my hugeness I'm still measuring right on schedule according to my doctor's appt. yesterday*

 

Size of baby: According to babycenter.com the baby is about the size of a cantaloupe (this feels about right)

 

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he's born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies (this is comforting!)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +28 pounds approximately. I suspect Thanksgiving next week will definitely push me over the 30 pound gain mark.

Maternity Clothes: Yep and I'm already sick of the few outfits that I keep having to rotate but I refuse to buy more clothes to just wear for a month.

Gender: BOY!

 

Movement: He's still quite the mover and shaker and his movements are getting stronger by the day. You can just see my belly dancing around which is neat.

What I miss: My cute winter clothes and boots that no longer fit. I'm so sick of wearing the same few outfits over and over. Also being able to roll over easily in bed, it's a huge production to get comfortable every night.

Sleep: Still not great but I'm getting use to the lack of sleep.

Symptoms: Same as always. The braxton hicks seem to be increasing in frequency and the swelling is getting worse. I had to retire my wedding bands this past weekend :(

Cravings: Anything liquid, I'm ALWAYS thirsty.

Best Moment this week: Washing all the baby blankets and a lot of the clothes-Nesting has kicked in full force. Also, the changes/additions we've done to the nursery. It's so close to being done and I LOVE it! Can't wait to share pictures.

What I am looking forward to: my maternity leave! Work has been so busy lately that I can't wait to take my 6 weeks and just focus on my little guy. It will be the longest I've gone without work and/or school since I was 15. Not that taking care of a newborn is a vacation by any means but it will be a nice break.  

**Starting in 3 weeks I will be having my weekly appointments and they will be checking my cervix each time to see if I'm dilating. I'm not looking forward to the actual checks since I hear they can hurt but I am curious to see if/how much I'm dilating.**

Reality

Currently my commute each day to and from work is about an hour long, on a good day I can make it in 45 minutes but that's rare. Last Thursday night there were two accidents and it took me 1 1/2 hours to get home. Needless to say I was not in a good mood.

While sitting my car, realizing I wouldn't get home until close to 6:30 (I get off work at 5pm) I started to think about how it will be after the baby comes. Because we can't afford for either of us to quit our jobs the baby will be in daycare once my maternity leave ends.  Since Kristian has to be at work by 7am the plan is for me to drop the baby off in the mornings around 7:30am and then Kristian will pick him up in the afternoons. His schedule is flexible and he's usually done by 4pm at the latest so this way the baby won't have to be in daycare from 6am-6pm and will get to have a few hours alone with daddy every day until I get home around 6.

What I realized while sitting in traffic is that with me not getting home until 6pm or later everyday I'm not going to have much time with my kid during the weeknights. Once I get home we'll be busy making/eating dinner and then it will be time to give him a bath and start getting him ready for bed etc.. From what I've read most babies go to bed around 7:30-8pm. So basically I'll have 1 1/2-2 hours each night with my kid and that's about it (I'm not going to count the middle of the night feedings/diaper changes since I'll only be half conscious).

I know this is pretty standard for most working mothers so I'm in no way a special case but the realization of it just kinda sucks. It makes me sad to think that I won't get much quality time with my little guy during the week but unfortunately there isn't a whole lot I can do about it. We can't afford for me to be a stay at home mom, my job won't let me telecommute everyday and seeing how great the job market is I don't think I'll have much luck finding another job that pays me the same (or more) that is closer to home. Sigh.

So do any of you working mothers out there have any advice or tips for how to have as much time as possible with my little one once I head back to work?

O.M.G.!!!!

This morning the official movie trailer for the Hunger Games was revealed on GMA and it's AWESOME! I admit to doubting some of the casting choices in the beginning but I'm fully on board right now. The trailer gave me goose bumps and I CANNOT wait to see this movie in March. Better line up a babysitter now because mama's going opening night. Check it out below and if you haven't read The Hunger Games drop what you're doing and go read it!

Hunger Games trailer

33 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 33 weeks

Size of baby: According to babycenter.com the baby is about the size of a pineapple

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +26-27 pounds approximately. I seem to be gaining about a pound a week which is what I should be doing.

Maternity Clothes: mostly maternity and even some of those shirts are getting tight, but that could be because I seem to shrink everything I wash.

Gender: BOY!

Movement: Lots of movement and it's getting stronger everyday. He seems to be doing more rolling than kicking though some of his movements are so strong they catch me off guard.

What I miss: Being able to just move around easily like I use to. Even the smallest things like getting dressed in the morning or getting off the couch is a struggle nowadays.

Sleep: Not good, getting up a lot to pee, it's rather annoying.

Symptoms: It would be easier to list the symptoms I don't have! At this point I have a bit of everything- backaches, lots of braxton hicks contractions, minor heartburn, slight swelling in the feet, and just general discomfort almost 24/7.

Cravings: Chocolate milk and cherry coke (though not together) and basically anything sweet.

Best Moment this week: Going shopping with my mom last weekend for baby stuff. I have a slight addiction to baby clothes that is not healthy for my bank account.

What I am looking forward to: Having no set plans this weekend, hopefully I can get a lot of "nesting" done. Also, looking forward to Thanksgiving in two weeks and having a 4 day weekend, I need it badly.

 

**Don't forget to put your guesses into our baby pool

Baby Pool

With less than 2 months to go until this child makes his grand entrance into the world I thought it would be fun to setup a little baby pool and let everyone guess on when they think baby boy will make an appearance along with the rest of his stats. I actually saw this on Kirstens blog and thought it would be a really fun thing to do. You just go to our personal site and enter in your guesses. The winner will get....bragging rights! Who knows maybe I'll come up with a prize if someone really does guess dead on.

**If I end up with a scheduled C-section, we'll throw out the birthdate part of it and just keep the rest of the categories.

32 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights

How Far Along: 32 weeks

Size of baby: According to babycenter.com the baby is about the size of a large jicama

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +25 pounds approximately. I'm thinking my goal of not gaining more than 30 pounds is out the window considering I still have about 8 weeks left and the holidays thrown in there.

Maternity Clothes: mostly maternity but still can squeeze into some jeans and larger regular shirts. My shoes are starting to get a bit tight though.

Gender: BOY!

Movement: All day everyday. The other night Kristian was pushing on my tummy where the baby usually kicks and 30 seconds later he would kick. Kristian would push again and a few seconds later he would kick again, it was like they were playing a little back and forth poking game with each other. It was cute.

What I miss: Not feeling uncomfortable 24/7 and wearing heels

Sleep: Good nights and bad nights. Last night was great, Tuesday night was miserable.

Symptoms: Same old same old; backaches, braxton hicks, some slight swelling at the end of the day and just recently minor heartburn. Good times.

 

Cravings: Still more interested in drinking than eating. I'm always thirsty but not particularly hungry most of the time.

Best Moment this week: Getting my maternity photos done last weekend. I love them! As of my doctor's appointment yesterday I'm back to measuring on schedule rather than two weeks ahead so that's good news.

What I am looking forward to: Finishing up the nursery, my goal is to have it done by the beginning of Dec. unfortunately I need Kristian's help with a few things and he is not in the nesting mode like I am so he's taking his sweet time with things.