this is what i think about when i have insomnia

The feelings and emotions that come with the end of pregnancy can be very overwhelming!! I would like to blame the hormones, but in actuality I think it's just part of the whole experience.

As the little ticker on the top of this page says, I love every day that I get to be pregnant. It's been an amazing experience, seeing and feeling all the changes in my body and knowing that I am nurturing and growing a new life inside of me! I've enjoyed seeing how people have reacted to this baby...my husband, my parents, my sisters, my inlaws, my friends...and the amount of love and support has been overwhelming. Baby Girl (or Babby Gril if you are one of my awesome 3rd grade spellers) is so lucky to be joining a world that wants her here so badly!

I don't know if I will ever get to experience this again. Unlike most women who just assume that they can have the family and kids they've always dreamed of, I know differently. It was a hard fought battle to get to this point. Not to say that it will definitely be as challenging if we decide to go for it again, but just that I am aware of the fact that it could be. And so I appreciate every day of this pregnancy even more!

At the same time, I kind of feel ready for it to be over. It's really hard for me to admit that, having said everything I said above. At this point, though, the waiting is excruciating. She could decide to come out any day now, or I could end up being induced at 41 weeks. There's no way to tell! Being in limbo is killing me. I am so impatient to meet this little girl!! What will she look like? What kind of temperament will she have? Whose personality will she get? I just want her out and in my arms. We're ready for you, sweetheart!

Catching Up

So, I realize it's been a while since I have posted anything on here. It's certainly not because of lack of free time...summer vacation is in full swing and I have more time than I know what to do with! I am definitely taking advantage of said free time, knowing what is coming and how time-consuming it will be to care for a newborn. Unless I have somewhere to be, I don't set an alarm and just wake up when it happens naturally, take at least one nap per day, watch a lot of mindless TV, read books and magazines, surf the web, and oh yeah, get ready for the baby!

We are about 1 week away from her official due date and she hasn't shown any signs of wanting to come out yet. At my appointment on Tuesday my cervix was still tightly closed, barely reaching what they call "fingertip" dilated. So we've got a ways to go on that end! The way she rolls and pokes in my belly you might think she's saying "Hey! Get me out of here!" but apparently she likes her home. And so we wait, knowing that it could happen any day now but preparing ourselves to wait for August 6 or after. My OB said that she doesn't usually let women go past 41 weeks, so we will probably get an induction scheduled for around then and just hope that things progress on their own before it comes to that.

The nursery is complete other than the wall decorations! You will see some pictures below but I will do a better photo shoot when everything is completely ready.

Here I am showing the room to Kate before we went to the movies. This was the old arrangement of the furniture, which I was never very comfortable with. It didn't look or feel right! But don't worry, we rearranged later.

Candid shot of my belly. I think this was at 37 weeks?

On our way to "get our teen angst on" AKA go see the third Twilight movie, Eclipse. If I am 37 weeks, I think that makes Kate 26 weeks? With twin girls!!
OK, now the furniture is finally in its correct spot! Crib to the left with the super soft birdy bedding, I am sitting in the glider that is on loan from the store where we ordered the real one which will match the rest of the furniture, baby girl's books and toys are on her new shelf, changing table/dresser is to the right...and Halley is checking it all out!

Halley was keeping me company while I was rereading the last Harry Potter book!

Last weekend we had a "Last Hurrah" BBQ, figuring it might be a while before we get to have another adult party. Here are me and Cindy doing the belly bump. I am 38 weeks pregnant, she is 24 i think? I know she told me but I've forgotten. She is due Nov. 1 and they are going to be surprised on the gender!

This time we'll let the daddys be in the picture. :) It was about 110 degrees outside (no exaggeration, and my husband had been out at the grill, hence his slightly sweaty appearance!

35 weeks

Not much new to share. We are busy, busy, busy reorganizing and making space for all the baby stuff. I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of the dresser/changing table we ordered so i can set up the nursery once and for all! Baby Girl is very active! She is running out of space (see below for how BIG my belly is!) so it is a lot of jabbing and punching. It makes us laugh but there are times when I need her to settle down in there! In one week we have our long-awaited ultrasound and we can't wait to get a glimpse of what she looks like. We are very anxious to meet this little girl!!



Outside our house in the July 4th heat!

From the mouths of babes

At one of my baby showers, my best friend coordinated with my co-teacher to have the kids make a book of advice to me as a new mom. It is truly priceless. Here are some of the highlights of what they wrote (I will spare you their atrocious spelling errors):

• Lookout because there will be a lot of questions and a lot of comments
• You can win 1 prize for best mom
• Teach her how to eat respectful
• When the baby is sad, rock him or her then she or him will go to sleep
• Make her strong by running and crawling
• Don't get mad when the baby cries
• It might be smart to give your baby more food after she finishes her old food when she's eating
• Sing her lullabies to lure her to sleep at night
• Talk a lot in front of her (except when she's sleeping)
• Make her feel special because if you don't you'll make her vulnerable
• Show her "Your Baby Can Read" it actually works
• Give her milk a little bit because my sister is stuck to milk now
• Read her a bedtime story every night
• Find things that you and your baby will enjoy
• Put her in immersion that are languages you know because my dad does not know Spanish so i have to wait for my mom and it's a pain
• Take care of your baby because she is so little and give her food and feed her good
• When she is crying, check her diaper!!!!!!
• Leave the baby naked for a while she needs to air out
• Be with your baby all the time because when my mom is with me I feel so so so happy
• Show your baby the video Your Baby Can Read
• Just be a good mom

School's Out!

FINALLY, summer vacation is here! It's a good thing, too, because 95 degrees, crazy third graders, and a teacher who is 34 weeks pregnant is not a very good combination! I tip my hat off to any teacher who works all the way up to (or very close to) their due date. I'm extremely thankful to be spending the last 6 weeks of this pregnancy at home, on my own schedule, not hearing my name said 8,000,000 times a day or having to be chipper and patient enough to continue high quality instruction!!

And now I get to focus solely on getting ready for the baby! Below you will see pictures of me in the nursery! Mike and his dad painted it a beautiful shade of "lilac bisque" which i am absolutely in love with! In some of them you will also see a cradle that Mike's grandma sent us. It is from the turn of the century and has been used by more than 40 babies, including Mike and his brothers! We are hoping to get the bedding and mattress all squared away to be able to put this in our room for the first few months before she gets into her crib.

And speaking of crib, it's finally in our possession and ready for Mike to tackle its assembly. The bedding also arrived this week! So we are ready to start putting the room together and filling it with all the great gifts that were showered upon our baby girl over the past 2 weekends. Next post will cover the showers in greater detail!

It's hard to really get a sense of the color from these pictures, but it is so adorable and i am so thankful to have the time to finally assemble and decorate.

30 weeks!

OK, so i am finally getting that "I swallowed a basketball" look! Sometimes when i see myself in the mirror it's a little alarming. Baby Girl has been moving around like crazy the last few days, making her daddy laugh and smile with enjoyment. Tomorrow i have another appointment. Also tomorrow Mike and his dad are painting the nursery! I will post pictures, i promise.

The next few were taken at the best restaurant in the world, L'Auberge Chez Francois. We went there yesterday for our 6 year anniversary!

Bye Bye, 2nd tri!

Hard to believe, but I am *officially* in the 3rd trimester! Things are still going well, though I am starting to feel a little large and have discovered that you can outgrow maternity clothes! This week I take a glucose challenge test to make sure that I don't have gestational diabetes and next Monday is my 28 week appointment. After that, we start going every 2 weeks!

We have been working hard to empty out our office in order to transform it into the nursery, and I think I have finally chosen the bedding! Huge shout-out to those who got roped into having an opinion on the many lavender/purple options i found: Daniela, Sarah, Betsy, Ann and Carrie. We've ordered the crib and it is supposed to arrive in the first week of June. So, preparations are underway to get this little girl a room worthy of the cuteness that she will be :)

Here are some pictures taken yesterday, my first Mother's Day!

24 weeks and all is well!

Last Friday I had my 24-week check-up and everything continues to go well! Weight gain, blood pressure and urine are all normal, and the little girl had a nice, strong heartbeat. Woohoo! I continue to LOVE being pregnant. It's hard to describe how special it is. I can't believe that my daughter is living inside me! There's just something so cool about that.

OK, enough of that. Here are my 24-week pictures; I haven't taken these since 19 weeks and there is a huge difference!

We're still here!

I know it's been a looooooooooong time since i updated all of you. 24 weeks tomorrow! I have a doctor's appointment in the morning so I'll save the details until after that. For now, here are some belly-showing pix to tide you over.This was in Buenos Aires, after having lunch in La Boca.
Buenos Aires on a very hot day! My ankles were about 4 times that size by the time the day was over.
At the Japanese Garden in Buenos Aires.
OK, this is wild. This dress I am wearing was my mom's first maternity dress!! She bought it in Europe when she found out she was having my older sister. It's a little bit Holly Hobby/Little House on the Prairie, but still so cute! I could do without the poofy sleeves though...

She's getting big!

Ohhhhh, We're Halfway There!

Ohhhh, Livin' on a prayer! Take my hand and we'll make it I swear!

(sorry couldn't resist a little Bon Jovi shoutout)

Yes, this pregnancy has made it halfway! 20 weeks last Friday! Getting to this point, coupled with finding out that the baby is a girl, has made it all feel so real! We are actually going to have this baby! After so many months of heartache, I get overwhelmed at times just thinking about how we are finally going to get what we have wished for. We are actually going to be parents! We get to start our family here in our cute little house! It's just unbelievable at times.

We are off to Buenos Aires on Wednesday for a week with family. I can't wait to see my grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins and family friends. This is a truly special time that I get to share with all of them. I am a little nervous about the 10-hour flight, but will be following all the doctor's advice: wear my oh-so-attractive support stockings to prevent blood clots, drink lots of water, get up and move around, do stretches, eat snacks, and try to relax! And oh yeah, try to milk the fact that I am pregnant for all that it's worth :)

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

On Wednesday we went in for an ultrasound and doctor's appointment. We knew that we were going to find out the gender of our baby, and I was like a kid on Christmas! I barely slept the night before. Most friends were guessing boy, a poll of my students showed that more of them were predicting boy than girl, and since I have been calling the baby Mike Jr. I decided to predict boy as well.

While we were sitting in the doctor's office waiting room, the song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" came on the radio. I started singing along without realizing it, and then I turned to Mike and told him that song was a sign that we were about to find out we were having a girl. Fast forward 10 minutes, and there we were with the ultrasound tech showing us the "girl parts"! The ultrasound itself was completely surreal. We got to see lots of body parts, including all 4 chambers of her heart beating, her entire spine, and several cute profiles. She was squirming around in there too!

Here is her cute little head and body:

This is one of her very long legs! I hope she gets Daddy's height and isn't doomed to the petites section like me!
OK, so apparently the white spots are the "girl parts".
One last parting shot of her head:

We won't get to see her again until 36 weeks. Boo. But I'll keep you updated on how this little girl is causing me to change as she grows in there!

19 week pics

It's been a busy time around here, and I never got around to posting last week's belly pix. These are from Friday Mar. 12 when I was 19 weeks pregnant.

check out my new haircut! chopped about 4 inches off that day.