ugly duckling

i'm sure every parent wonders what their kid will look like.

ronnie and i have discussed the possibilities.
there are definitely things we don't want to pass on.
just say no to my square face or ronnie's flat feet.

and when you looks at these,

i think, no way, our kid will not be heinous.

i was freaking precious.

 

but then, there's this:

(chris farley's fat baby, anyone?)

ah shit.
i know you're thinking it too.

working for a living

i am excited to announce that this is my last week at work.

i put in my resignation about a month ago and thursday is my last day.

it was supposed to be next week, but with my schedule

it made more sense to call it early.

ronnie and i have been talking about having a baby for years.

i was never ready,

but i did know that when the time was right,

i wanted to be able to stay at home with my little one for

longer than any job would be willing to give me.

so with that in mind, ronnie and i have been

saving money for a couple years.

it's our "stay at home mommy" fund.

the great thing about our timing is that

since ronnie just became a journeyman,

he also got a raise.

we've budgeted out our money with his new income

and we can actually make it without touching our savings.

but its a nice feeling to know that we have it,

in case we need it.

 

i know not everyone has this option

so i feel very lucky to get to spend the first several months

(at least six)

of our daughter's life right along side her.

 

i have a friend that loves her kids more than life,

but she knows that she could never be a stay at home mom.

she needs her job and her time away.

i'm interested to see how i feel about my time.

and who knows, i might want to add a career back in my life

sooner that i thought.

but for now,

i'm planning on enjoying my time with my little girl into 2014

and i cannot wait.

persuasion

this weekend was operation:
getting baby out.

i'm trying to convince brette that the outside world

is just as comfortable as her inside world.

unfortunately, its sunday night and i'm still pregnant.

everyone has had suggestions for what will work,

and i feel like i've tried most everything.

 

the number one suggestion is walking.

we walk most nights anyway to take our dogs out,

but we did go out to a trail for extra miles.

 

the second is sex.

without going into detail,

lets just say we can check this off the list too.

 

my friend mowed her yard and went into labor.

so i've mowed my yard twice.

ronnie feels like a real dick letting me mow,

but i got approval from my doctor and dad.

at this point, nothing will really hurt the baby.

what's the worst that can happen? 

i'll either be really uncomfortable or go into labor.

 

and last, i made ronnie take me for a harley ride.

he said my tummy is great lumbar support, but

i couldn't go for very long because my hips have been bothering me.

it didn't work either.

 

i know i'm leaving off spicy food and caster oil.

i really don't know if i can stomach either.

but if you have any other suggestions of what worked for you,

let me know.

the graduate

 

 

after five years

and lots of evenings away

i am losing my one night a week to myself.

just in time for brette to get here

so ronnie doesn't get a free night either.

 

he is officially a graduate of the electrician apprentice program.

five years ago we weren't married

or expecting.

we didn't have puppies

or a house.

i still drove the sunfire

and ronnie had a lot less gray hair.

a lot has changed.

 

and i'm really proud of him finishing the program,

with all A's - no less.

plus, he took it a step further and got his master's license.

 

congrats, darling

 

(first day of school this year)

(last day of school this year)

 

same outfit and acting like a goof.

geez.

 

 

 

bumpdate

i got some new clothes from shannon and mauri

so i made sure to take advantage of my new wardrobe.

 

plus you get to see the last three weeks of my belly growth.

hopefully, only a little bit longer to go.

 

 

36 weeks

37 weeks

38 weeks

update: 38 weeks

i'm thirty-eight weeks.

weight? i have gained 25 lbs. total and since we know little missy weighs in around 6lbs right now, that means i have 19 big ones to lose once she comes. but… i have another couple weeks to go, so that number will probably go up a bit. i am looking forward to morning stoller walks, but I’m sure some treadmill time will be mandatory too. wah wah.


cravings?  i am in love with kid’s cereal.  fruit loops, apple jacks, captain crunch, cinnamon toast crunch, pops, frosted flakes - - i’ve bought them all in the last 6 months.  i can’t get enough sweet cereal.  in fact, i've noticed i missed coco puffs, so those are now on the list. ronnie doesn’t know what to do about it. he tries to buy our usual special k, multigrain cheerios or honey bunches of oats, but i’m not having it.  i'm splurging while i can.

side effects? back pain is no longer an issue.  i mean, i can’t carry a heavy load or go on a long road trip, but all in all, i’d say its 90% better.  i still don’t understand why it would hurt so bad when i was smaller and gradually get better as i get bigger.  very weird. 
but no fear, i am far from pain free and still pretty uncomfortable by the end of the day.  plus i’m having a real issue with my left foot and ankle swelling. it goes back down over night, but i feel like a real fatty by bedtime.

baby? last week in my ultrasound, brette weighed 5lbs 14oz.  if she stays on track to gain 8oz per week, she should be around 6lbs 6oz right now.  i’d like her to be around 7 lbs so she needs another week or two to grow. i guess i’ll wait. her body was still measuring around 4 weeks behind and her head was still measuring two weeks ahead, so really, get ready for my little bobblehead.  i have a dr. appointment tomorrow, so i’m going to ask what the weird measurements mean, if anything.  

preparations? the nursery is finished and i love it. her diaper bag is packed.  her clothes for the hospital are bought, but not washed.  i have a couple things of mine out and ready, but i still need to pack my overnight bag. ronnie and i took an infant CPR class last week and we have the tour of the maternity ward tomorrow. we also have an appointment tomorrow with the highway patrol so they can check the installation of our carseat.  apparently, 80% of carseats are not put in correctly and since we’ve never done it, i thought we should get a safety inspection done.  just in case.  ronnie thinks i’m crazy, but hello, i’d rather be safe than sorry. i think besides that, we’re pretty much ready for her at anytime.    

the best thing? she gets hiccups almost everyday and i can feel every single one of them.  at first, i was so confused because i couldn’t figure out what was going on. i thought maybe she was hitting me to a beat - my little fist pumper. but once i figured it out i love feeling them. its pretty cool to know exactly what’s going on with her, even if its only for a couple minutes.

the worst thing?  my mixed feelings about the birth.  on one side all i want is to go in labor.  i am so ready for her to be here.  on the other hand, i never want to give birth.  it is scary as shit, there’s no turning back and it freaks me out.  so i wanted her to be here like yesterday, but i never want to actually go through it.  i'm torn... and nervous.

since this is probably my last update before she comes i have a couple extra things to add that I’ve seen other people do.

rings?  still on.  my fingers never swelled up, so i am still able to wear my wedding band.  i had a plan to go to walmart and buy a fake one if mine stopped fitting just so people didn’t think i was an unwed mother. hahaha.

belly button? still in.  although my stomach is tight and my belly button is more shallow, it is still an innie which i prefer because i didn’t want a little bump sticking out with every shirt i wear.

stretch marks? i still only have the one and i'm lubing up every morning and night.  hopefully that will keep them to a minimum.

maternity clothes? i am definitely in maternity clothes but i have some pieces from my closet that still fit.  my good friend, mauri, just sent me a whole box of summer wear so i am set for these last couple of weeks.  i love that i only ended up buying three pairs of pant and three shirts.  i cannot tell you how much i appreciate jana, shannon, jaime and mauri for letting me sport their clothes these last 6 months. thank you, thank you, thank you.

looking forward to the most? meeting brette and not being pregnant.

 

so there it is.

me at 38 weeks.

ready or not, but really we're ready

i had a pretty great going-to-be-a mother's day last weekend.

ronnie bought me some flowers and of course my favorite, reese's.
i think this is his go-to gift now.

 

but what really made my day is that ronnie could not say no

to all the things i wanted to get done.

and what i really wanted to do was finish the nursery.

so we went to work.

the nursery looked like this

after bringing home all the things from last weeks shower.

 

we sorted, put away and organized.

then i decided that we needed to buy a night stand

and a build our pallet shelf.

ronnie got to work on both.

i supervised and tried to help where i could.

 

 

we made her bed

packed her diaper bag

did more of her laundry

made her things a home in the bathroom and kitchen.

hung everything on the gallery wall

lined her drawers

and put out the finishing touches.

 

we were really busy all day

and very tired by the end of it.

and now finally,

the big reveal:

 

 

  

 

i'm really proud of it.

i think its adorable.