baby bump: 10 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2013)

How far along:  10 weeks.

Size of baby:  Prune.

Maternity clothes:  I'm really enjoying wearing Ehren's size large shorts even though I don't need to wear them yet.  The less fabric touching me, the better. 

Weight gain:  No clue. 

Stretch marks:  Nope.

Sleep:  It's comforting to talk to other preggos who also take a nap when they get home.  Sometimes I feel guilty for taking naps but when I read that my body is working harder when I'm at rest than it did when I was up walking around before I was pregnant, I'm okay with it.  Growing a baby and a placenta is hard work, and darn it, I deserve to nap!

Exercise:  Too hot.  Too tired.  The few miles I walk at work count, right?

Best moment of the week:  Labor day weekend and an extra day off!  We told my step-brother/sister and their families this weekend and that was fun.  Also, we made an "ultimate to do list" and began nesting this weekend.  Cleaning out closets, cleaning out rooms that have become those rooms where you throw random stuff in there and shut the door and pretend it's not a disaster.  We've got lots to do before March.  I believe "March Madness" will have a whole new meaning to us in 2014.

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  Fruit and soups.  Even though it's 100 degrees out.  

Gender:  Some family members are saying they think it's a girl.  We shall see. 

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Eating too much.  Womp, womp.  Used to be my favorite thing to do but now I get full so fast!  Smaller and more frequent meals for me. 

What I miss:  I would say that I miss sushi but Ehren and I went on a date this weekend and got sushi.  Don't worry, I ate only cooked sushi and it was delightful.  I think I could eat Asian food everyday.  Especially when I'm sitting across from my favorite Ehsian. 

What I am looking forward to:  Telling EVERYONE that we're pregnant.  It's hard to keep it to ourselves.  But I don't want to officially make it official until I see that baby on ultrasound or hear the heart beat and know that everything looks okay.  

What I am not looking forward to:  Shopping for maternity clothes whenever the time comes.  

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  Tired.  Overwhelmingly tired. 

Nursery:  We cleaned it all out!  All that's left in it is the dresser/changing table and couple of my baby books I had when I was a wee one. 

Emotions:  The fatigue makes me feel overwhelmed.  However, Ehren has been so helpful and understanding with everything.  I seriously don't know how I could do this without him.  When we cleaned out the nursery and office this weekend, he was the one to run things down two flights of stairs to put them in storage.  If I had to do that, it would require a nap after each run to the basement.  Moving something into the next room felt like I walked the hills of KU's campus. 

Week in review:

While cleaning out the office, I found my ID badge from when I was a PT student at LMH.  Six years later, I'm still there.  Who knew my first clinical would end up being my first job?

Lots of family cuddle time after a productive three day weekend.  Cozy spoils us with his love.

As much as we LOVE the Jayhawks, we will not be keeping this for the nursery.  This is actually how our friend (who grew up in our house) had his room decorated from the time he was little.  Hopefully that border will come down easily and the red walls can be painted over without any issue.  This room will look COMPLETELY different by the time I'm done with it. 

Someday, I'm sure we're going to say to each other, "remember when we had empty rooms in our house? Yea, that was nice".

baby bump: 9 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN AUGUST 24TH, 2013)

How far along:  9 weeks.

Size of baby:  Raspberry.

Maternity clothes:  No, but if clothes are at all clingy it bothers me.

Weight gain:  ?

Stretch marks:  Nope.

Sleep:  I've found that eating a smaller dinner earlier in the evening helps me sleep better.

Exercise:  It's been so hot that I haven't been walking with Cozy outside much.  I justify my lack of formal exercise by reminding myself how much I walk and stand at work. 

Best moment of the week:  Going down to Springfield to visit our really good friends and their little 2 year old.  We got to walk through their new house and go shopping for furniture.  Shopping is even more exhausting than it was before I was pregnant.  Good thing there were large, leather sectionals to rest upon. 

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  Milk!  I've been having 1-2 glasses at dinner.  Oh, and mozzarella sticks from Sonic.

Gender:  For some reason I feel like it's a boy. 

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Nope. 

What I miss:  Having a glass of wine with my friends.  Especially when we go out for a nice, Italian dinner.  Sigh. 

What I am looking forward to:  My next nap. 

What I am not looking forward to:  Figuring out daycare. 

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  Just tired.  And bloated. 

Nursery:  I've found some cribs I like and I'm still deciding on color schemes.  It will be pretty gender neutral. 

Emotions:  Hanging out with a toddler makes me realize how busy we will be.  But seeing our friends have the grandparents take Cooper for a night makes me realize we will still have time for us.  That is really important to me. 

Week in review:

Cozy is cute, as always.  This is him asking if I'm ready to go upstairs and take a nap.  I asked him, "Coz, do you want to go upstairs and cuddle?" then he proceeded to walk out of the room, run up the stairs, and get in bed.  Cozy never makes me feel guilty for napping.

On Sunday, I made my breakfasts for the week.  I found that I kept getting hungry/lightheaded mid-morning and work and realized I needed to change my breakfast.  All I did was take a dozen eggs, a can of black beans, a couple handfuls of baby spinach, a green bell pepper, a tiny bit of red onion, a couple handfuls of sharp cheddar cheese and cooked it all in a skillet.  Then I topped it with hot salsa.  This kept me full all morning and I didn't have to find a snack to prevent me from passing out.  Score!

I did go on a walk at least once this week with Cozy.  And he actually loose-leash-walked and I had to take a picture just to document it.  If you've ever owned a German Shorthaired Pointer, you understand how big of a deal this is.

Ehren is practicing holding Cozy like a baby.  We've been doing this since we first met him.  It's actually a way to determine a puppy's temperament.  You hold them like a baby and if they relax and submit, you know they will submit to you.  If they squirm and freak out, they might not submit as well. He's definitely the Alpha-male when it comes to playing with other dogs, but when we hold him, he melts in our arms.  I felt like I was interrupting something in this picture.

My sister and her boyfriend got a new puppy - a GSP (like Cozy) to be exact!  His name is Winston and he is wonderful.  And he was born on my birthday.

We had a little fun while shopping for furniture.

See ya soon, 10 weeks!

baby bump: 8 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN AUGUST 17TH)

How far along:  8 weeks.

Size of baby:  Raspberry.

Maternity clothes:  Yes, please.  I feel like I'm suffocating in my normal clothes.  (Thanks to bloating)

Weight gain:  Don't know but I feel like I'm ready to deliver.  I know that's a little dramatic.

Stretch marks:  Nope.

Sleep:  Sleeping better if I exercise and don't eat too much before bed.

Exercise:  Went to the gym and walked on the treadmill, took Cozy for some long walks, did a step aerobics class at the gym.  My goal is to do something active everyday.

Best moment of the week:  Ehren coming home Friday after being out of town for a few days.  We went on a long walk and I vented to him about everything: work, how I'm feeling, what I'm worried about, what I'm looking forward to.  He's such a good listener and it felt great to get everything off my chest. 

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  Juicy, watery fruit.  I bought 5 pounds of apples yesterday.  I will probably need more by the end of the week.  Also, anything ethnic or spicy.  I'm also glad that coffee still sounds good in the mornings.  However, I can no longer drink it until I get the shakes.

Gender:  My Chinese calendar predictor thingie says we're having a girl.  We shall see.

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On.  But I need to remember to take it off when we go on walks because my hands get swollen.

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Smells in the hospital.  I almost threw up this week in the middle of the night... I was over the toilet and everything.  But I'm like my dad, I have an iron stomach.

What I miss:  Sushi.  I'm already planning our first date post baby: sushi, wine, and soft cheeses.

What I am looking forward to:  Telling people.  Not feeling bloated. 

What I am not looking forward to:  Getting bigger.  Yes, I know it's part of it but my jeans already feel tight and that makes me want to cry.  I hate shopping... especially when it's for bigger sizes.  I've already ordered bigger scrub pants for the future... :(

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  Feeling fat. 

Nursery: We will probably start working on the nursery late fall/early winter.  We've got some other projects to finish up before that. 

Emotions:  When my mom told my dad she was pregnant with me he said, "are you sure you want to do this?".  Ha!  Wrong thing to ask after the bun is already in the oven.  However, I've definitely had that feeling this week.  I was thinking, "I don't know if I want to do this".  And I know how ridiculous that sounds but I can't help it.  My mom and sister and I went out to dinner this week and there was a crying baby and it just irritated the crap out of me.  And then I got bummed out, and then I felt fat, and then I just wanted to go home and cuddle with Cozy (Ehren was out of town).  My mom reassured me that it's completely normal to feel this way and that she felt that way herself when she was pregnant.  (Probably when she was pregnant with my sister, not me ;) )  I told my boss this week that I'm pregnant and her reaction was so wonderful and emotional that it got my excitement back up.  I needed that.  

Weekly recap:

When I worked at Cold Stone (ugh, yes I sang when we got tips and yes I hated every second of it) my favorite thing was lemon sorbet with GCPC (graham cracker pie crust).  I could literally eat a pint of it.  I never took any real ice cream home, only the sorbet.  Customers would ask me, "how do you stay so skinny working here?" as they ordered their 'gotta have it cake batter with snickers and gummy bears'.  I would simply say, "I don't eat it".  Well, anyway, I recreated it and it's fantastic. 

There are certain things Cozy does only with me and only with Ehren.  He follows me around wherever I go, only gets out of bed when I get up, and loves to sleep between my legs.  With Ehren, he will literally army crawl up Ehren's body, pin him down and lick his face until it's exfoliated better than a microdermabrasion from a dermatologist.  I'm aware that it's kind of gross but Ehren doesn't mind and I think it's Cozy's way of saying, "you are my master and I respect you". So, that's what's going on in the picture below.

I don't have a lot of pictures from this week as I was feeling blah and Ehren was out of town.  But the picture below is really the only picture I need.  Little Ehren and his brown little self.  (And his unibrow).  I mean, can a kid get any cuter than that?  Cheers to my child having a chance at getting a tan!

See you soon, 9 weeks!

baby bump: 7 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN AUGUST 10TH)

How far along:  7 weeks.

Size of baby:  Blueberry.

Maternity clothes:  I'm thinking those will be in my future before I know it.

Weight gain:  I know I look bigger in this picture compared to the one at 6 weeks but I think it's because of bloating.  Or I'm having twins or triplets.  JK.

Stretch marks:  Nope.

Sleep:  Not sleeping that great.  But I'm amazing at taking naps when I get home from work.  Walking around the hospital all day and lifting not-so-little humans makes me a bit tired.  Physically and emotionally.

Exercise:  We earned our Dog Days shirts this week!  It was a lot harder to get one this year as we had to go to at least 30 work outs.  Last year we only had to go to 20. 

Best moment of the week:  Getting our Dog Days shirts.  Especially earning them together.  Working out and staying fit is so much better when you have a partner.  Especially when the work outs are at 6 a.m.  Oh, and telling my mom's side of the family.  It was my grandpa's 86th birthday and we told him that we had a gift for him but it wouldn't be ready until March.  Let the hugging (from 20-some family members) commence!

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  We went out of town this weekend and needed to grab breakfast on our way out.  I literally changed my mind 3 times in less than 30 seconds.  Wendy's... no Sonic... no Spangles! 

Gender:  No idea but we will definitely be finding out.

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Meat doesn't really sound good.  I'm really digging soups right now and I used to only like those when it was cold outside. 

What I miss:  Jimmy Johns.  No deli meat (maybe) until March 2014 for this girl.

What I am looking forward to:  Our first prenatal appointment.

What I am not looking forward to:  If I'm this tired now, I can't imagine what it's going to be like when the baby is on the outside. 

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  Tiiiiired.

Nursery: I started a secret Pinterest board as soon as I found out we were pregnant.  I've been pinning lots of ideas.

Emotions:  I get excited and then I get not so excited.  I think it's because I know how much life is going to change and that feels overwhelming to me. 

Week in review:

Dog Days shirts, woohoo!

Usually our Friday nights consist of making a nice dinner, listening to music, and having some wine.  I tried to get the same effect by drinking water out of a wine glass.  It's not the same.  P.S. can you tell there was a little humidity in the hair air?

Went up to the big town of Axtell, Kansas for Axtell days and drove my cousins Brodric and Kacia home in my mom's convertible.  It was cold... and it's August!

We went to my Uncle Dale's house to look at his flowers.  He's been featured in Better Homes and Gardens as well as Farm & Ranch magazine.  He's amazing.

Oh, ya know, just a quaint little playhouse for my 5 little cousins.

I told you my uncle is amazing.  He planted 7,500 gladiolas in 60 different colors.  Oh, and he farms full time and has 5 kids.  I love how the glads are situated in a field of corn that is literally 10 feet tall.

And the white glad in front of my aunt Linda is literally taller than her.

After we all put our bouquets together, we let them soak up some water in the fountain.

I love playing tricks on my mom... especially when it comes to her phone.  I changed my name to "Favorite Daughter" in her phone and we've set funny ring tones.  She has had a picture of my sister and me embracing on her lock screen for a while.  I thought it would be funny to get the same effect but with Josh and Ehren.  She hasn't changed it because it makes her laugh every time she looks at her phone.  I love those boys... they are quite a pair together.

Holy crap, next week I will be 2 months along! 

baby bump: 6 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN AUGUST 3RD, 2013)

How far along:  6 weeks.

Size of baby:  Sweet pea.

Maternity clothes:  Nope, hoping those are still a ways away.  Partly because I hate shopping. 

Weight gain:  No clue.  I'm trying to eat well and continue exercising so that's all that matters to me.

Stretch marks:  Is it possible to get stretch marks from being so bloated?

Sleep:  Hmm, not sleeping so well.  Waking up to go to the bathroom 1-2 times a night.  Feel like I'm sleeping on bowling balls. 

Exercise:  Dog Days and going on walks with Cozy.  Talk about enjoyable exercise!  I get emotional sometimes at Dog Days when I see hundreds of people from 6 months old to 70-something working out together at 6 a.m.  Truly inspirational!

Best moment of the week:  While going back to work wasn't very fun after having a week off, it's fun to walk around knowing about my little secret.  I want to tell everyone but I should probably wait awhile. 

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  I get hungry ALL OF A SUDDEN and feel like if I don't eat anything I will literally die.  Saltines and a cup of water take care of that feeling pretty quickly.  Oh, and I randomly craved broccoli cheese soup from Dillon's.  Haven't had that since high school.

Gender:  I don't know why, but I feel like it will be a boy.

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  I had a strong sense of smell before, now it's even stronger.  And working in a hospital makes it not-so-pleasant.  I've become very good at strategically holding my breath.

What I miss:  Eating a full meal without feeling stuffed after three bites.  Looks like frequent, smaller meals are in my future.  Boring.

What I am looking forward to: Honestly, earning my Dog Days shirt next week and always remembering I was pregnant while running up and down the hills on campus. 

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  Just hunger attacks.  No real nausea or morning sickness yet.  I hear that it usually starts around 6 weeks so fingers crossed I'll be lucky.   

Nursery:  I've already got it all planned out.  I've had my plan in my head for a while... okay like a year.  Can't wait to get started. 

Emotions: Kinda sensitive towards things.  Kinda feel bipolar where I'm happy and then all of a sudden get really frustrated about the littlest thing.  Poor Ehren.  

Week in review:

Cozy enjoyed the left over broccoli cheese soup.  

Cozy haaaates the air compressor and nail gun.  We're using it for our stairway project and he's terrified.  Cozy has never gotten up on the furniture as we taught him not to as soon as we brought him home from the pound.  He was so scared of the bubble kicking on that he jumped up on the couch where I was laying down.  He laid on top of me for an hour.  It was magical.

He tends to lay directly on or near any project we're working on.  Yes, even wet paint.  

And this is how our little gentleman kindly asks to go outside.

And this is how he asks to come back in.

Those puppy dog eyes get this mama every time.  And I'm sure our little baby's eyes will do the same.  On to 7 weeks!

baby bump: 5 weeks

(ORIGINALLY WRITTEN JULY 27TH, 2013)

Our baby is the size of a soccer ball!  Just kidding.  I didn't have a good picture to represent this week so I thought a cute picture of Cozy would do. 

How far along:  5 weeks.

Size of baby:  Apple seed.

Maternity clothes:  Nope.  Just my baggy scrub pants during the week and baggy sweats on the weekends. 

Weight gain:  No clue.  Probably nothing.

Stretch marks:  Nope.

Sleep:  Sleeping fine, having some vivid dreams.

Exercise:  Going strong with Dog Days.  Based on stuff I've read online, I'm probably going to put a hold on Bikram Yoga as much as I hate to do so.  I've never felt overheated during hot yoga but just because I don't get overheated doesn't mean the little apple seed won't.  It's just not worth the risk.  Plus, I love pushing myself during the entire 90 minutes and I don't think I could go half-ass.  

Best moment of the week:  I know it's very early, but we started telling people.  Our friends came into town and stayed with us for the weekend and usually we sit around, drink, and make fun of each other.  Joanna is very observant and is not afraid to ask, "is your uterus occupied?"  We went ahead and told them, knowing that if anything bad happened, we would want them to be in the know and be there for support.  We also told our families, partly because Ehren's parents were in town for a few days and we don't get to see them very often.  We told them by wrapping up an apple seed as a gift.  When they asked what it was we said, "it's the size of your future grandchild/niece or nephew.  Their reactions were priceless.  Especially Ehren's mom's reaction.

Movement:  No.

Cravings:  Nothing so far. 

Gender:  Ehren's dad randomly proclaimed, while we were driving on the highway, "it will be a girl".  Apparently he had a vision.  I'll go with it.

Belly button in or out:  In

Wedding ring on or off:  On

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Eating too much.  I feel like I'm getting full much faster. 

What I miss:  I know I'm talking about wine again but we went to dinner at The Capitol Grille on The Plaza and the wine list was as big as a 36" flat screen TV.  Ehren let me smell the wine he ordered.  It was a Malbec.  Sigh....

What I am looking forward to:  Seeing our family's reactions makes me excited.  It makes me realize we will have a ton of support and many built-in babysitters.  My sister already has a room picked out for the Feldmeyer fetus at her new house.

Labor signs:  No.

Symptoms:  TMI alert.  Boobs still hurt.  We took a week off of work for a staycation and I'm worried that when I go back to work my co-workers will think I got a boob job.  Oh, and I'm tired.  But that also may be from shopping; shopping is exhausting.

 

Nursery:  We may or may not have driven to Kansas City to get a dresser for $50 off of Craigslist.  Okay, we definitely did.  It's got nine drawers and I can't wait to fix it up. 

Emotions:  Still overwhelmed.  Happy to have so much support already.

And now for the week in review:

Our friends got into town late Friday night and I had made personalized chicken pot pies.  They were delish.

Cozy stole Cooper's soccer ball and decided it was his new favorite toy.  And having two toys in his mouth is kind of his thing.  He's a talented little horse.

Apparently, Cooper knows what a parallelogram is... and a rhombus.  WTF?  He's not even 2 yet. 

I guess we better get used to cheerios and cartoons on a Saturday morning.

When I woke up Monday morning, I found Ava (Ehren's parents' dog) hanging out in the future nursery, just chillin' on the air mattress.  You can see the dresser on the lower left part of the picture.

Ava wanted my nuts.  Sorry, this girl just got hungry all of a sudden and I'm not interested in sharing.

Ehren's making sure his chest will be able to support the weight of a baby.  I think it will be a while before our apple seed weighs 55 pounds.

I wouldn't say I'm nesting but I'm definitely feeling the urgency to get projects going before this little parasite comes along and ruins all my DIY plans :)  If you can't tell, we ripped the carpet off the stairs and found some lime green remnants underneath.  And some navy wallpaper.  Lovely!

Bring it on, 6 weeks!