Dearest Adeline...

How I feel during pregnancy

How I wish I felt during pregnancy

I am 32 weeks pregnant now, and I am soooooooooooooo ready for this pregnancy to be over. Over the last couple weeks, things have gotten so huge and uncomfortable. The comments have started about how I look like I am ready to 'pop.' And about my swollen hands, wrists and face. Eight more weeks of this could possibly kill me. I'm already starting to look at exercise pins on pinterest. My fat-phobia is in full effect. And I hate it. I wish I didn't feel this way and I could embrace pregnancy for all it's worth. It's not like I want to be the angry pregnant woman. I just am.

I want to be able to wear normal clothes. I want to not cringe at every picture I am in. I want to be able to lay on my back. I want to not be hungry all.the.time. I want to be able to exercise without having extreme pain in my pelvis. I want to be able to hold Lydia without her squishing my belly. I want to be able to roll over without cringing in pain. The list could go on and on.

So my dearest Adeline, mama loves you very much and I cannot wait to meet you. If you feel the desire to make your entry into this world a little early, mama would be very greteful.

Belly Progression - Baby #2

This was fun to look at with the pictures I had during my pregnancy with Lydia. I thought I would do it again for this pregnancy so far :) I will continue to add more pictures as I progress!

4 Weeks

8 Weeks

14 Weeks

20 Weeks

23 Weeks



25 Weeks




27 Weeks



28 Weeks

30 Weeks

32 Weeks

36 Weeks

39 Weeks



Shopping Bug - Hits Again ;)

I've been really good about shopping this pregnancy! I'm actually quite proud of myself, actually. Not sure if you remember, but I went CRAZY shopping for Lydia...before I was even pregnant! This time, the only thing I have purchased for the little miss is her Pottery Barn crib bedding.

 

I got the Pottery Barn Penelope crib quilt (Retail: $99)

Pottery Barn Pink Callie crib bumper (Retail: $99)

 

Pottery Barn 5x8 Penelope Rug (Retail: $299)

 

And finally some Penelope-inspired canvas paintings that look similar to these.

Of course I didn't shell out an arm and a leg for this totally adorable (totally expensive) set! I only paid $65 total for all of it!!! Awwww yeah!

I'm getting the shopping bug though - just in time for Black Friday :) There isn't a whole lot I need for this baby, but there are definitely a few things I'd like to pick up. For example, I'd like to get Bean and Bug a couple matching outfits! Wouldn't that be so cute?!?! 

I picked up some more maternity clothes today. I hate spending a lot of money on maternity clothes that I wear for such a short period of time, but I have to wear something, right??? So I picked up a pair of dark-wash maternity jeans from Old Navy ($29) and a cute flowy top ($10). I was also tempted to get a Betsy Johnson winter coat at Nordstrom Rack ($75) that would work for pregnancy or non-pregnancy. I just couldn't decide whether I would wear it enough to justify spending $75 on it. I'm going to think about it some more.

And finally...I'm not obsessed with some of the new baby gear they have at Pottery Barn. Obsessed. I created a registry there with just a just a few things on it. Not sure if we will get much from there, but there might be a few things that I just have to have ;) Mainly, these:

The cutest. Ever.

Along with the matching stroller blankets ;)

Ok, that's it. I'm done, for now. Hehe.

They Finally Came!

Lydia has 2 new teeth!!! Yippeeeeeeee!!!! So now, at 20 months old, she has a total of 6 teeth - well, almost. Her new teeth are her top 1st molars, but they aren't completely in obviously - just one cusp so far. How weird is that!?!?! She doesn't have her lateral incisors yet, but we can see them coming. It honestly looks like all the rest of her teeth are trying to come in (except her 2nd molars. I haven't seen signs of those yet). She has been working on these teeth since before labor day! She got a nasty ear infection 2 weeks ago, so I knew there had to be new teeth to follow - there always is! I can't wait to see her with all her teeth!

We've decided to switch daycare. There were a couple reasons for this:
1. Lydia can't seem to stay healthy in the daycare she is at. I know, it's a daycare and kids get sick. But the other daycare has fewer kids and is at the lady's home. '
2. She kept getting bit and scratched resulting in 3 incident reports in less than a month. I felt so bad for her. But on top of that, she seems to be picking up some not so desirable behavior - like hitting and pushing other kids. I realize it is hard to disipline each toddler that acts out when there are so many kids. But since she only does it when she is around other kids, and she is rarely around other kids with us, it is hard for us to stop the behavior.
3. Money. This in-home day care will save us $200/month and it is only about 2 minutes away from our house! We met her and her family last week and really liked them. Lydia seemed to feel right at home when she was there and loved all the new toys!

So she will start there in about 1.5 weeks. I'm hoping we made the right decision and she adjusts well.

Baby - It's a GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So excited! And relieved. I would have been stressed about having to get a whole new baby wardrobe, especially when money is tight right now. We have plenty of little girl clothes in sitting in bins in the basement, ready to be worn again. I am going to have to go through everything, wash it, and figure out what we might need more of. I'm super excited to decorate their room! We decided that they will share a room and I have so many cute ideas in my head! I already know how I want to lay it out! I just got Pottery Barn bedding for Lydia (who will be moving to a twin size bed) and the new baby on craigslist for a KILLER deal! I am so excited to put it all together with the white dresser we refinished. I can't wait to take pictures and put them on here! I also need to put pictures up of the ultrasound (but they are on a disc at home, and I am at work right now). The ultrasound tech said everything looks great. She is a little peanut so far. She was measuring a week behind, but the ultrasound tech that we could have just caught her before a growth spurt. Lydia measured 2 days ahead at her appointment. Since Labor Day, I have actually lost 1 lb! I don't know if you remeber, but I gained 3 pounds over the weekend and was thinking, "here we go again." But I ended up dropping those 3 pounds and ended up gaining 2 pounds total last month. I am about 2 pounds up again this month - with the next appointment coming up in about a week and a half. It is weird to me to be gaining so slowly after gaining so quickly with Lydia (I had gained 20 pound these same two months with Lydia!). It makes me worried sometimes that baby isn't growing normally - but I think she is probably just fine.

Fall - I cannot express how excited I am that it is Fall. It has to be possibly my favorite season! The weather is so much more comfortable (especially after the ridiculously HOT summer we had this year), the trees are so pretty and there is fun activities to take part in. Not to mention the anticipation of all the fun holidays coming up! We went to Emma Krumbee's apple orchard in Belle Plaine a couple weekends ago. It was beautiful weather! Lydia was kind of crabby (teeth?) but we all ended up having fun and picking some delicious Harrlson apples!



Lydia helping pick apples




Our little family - including my bump from our new litle girl :)



All smiles with grandma waiting to catch her at the bottom!



Lydia loved the pirate ship with the big yellow slide!

 I can't wait to go to the pumpkin patch now!!!! I found so many fun ideas for painting and carving pumpkins on Pinterest. So fun!! 

Love, Brie

Already?!?!

We are playing the Fall league of sand volleyball this year, which I am so excited about! DH and I have so much fun playing. We have played the Summer leauge the last couple years and this year, I guess we all wanted more :) We play with my dad, DH's mom, brother, sister and dad (Except he is injured for this season). It is good family time (for the most part, haha) and so nice to have a reason to see everybody at least once per week. We had our first games of the Fall season last night - we won all 6 games (3 games/match)! Great start, especially having an aweful finish to the Summer season (We narrowly avoided a family brawl due to the overly competative nature of a certain family member). A problem has arisen, however. I got up this morning and had a hard time walking. It is a familiar pain. I had the same thing happen with Lydia. It is lower pelvic/groin pain. I think SPD is kicking in, already :( It did not happen this early with Lydia. If I remember correctly, it held off until the third trimester the first pregnancy. I guess we'll see what happens after the games next week. Maybe it's a fluke. Maybe I just tweaked something weird?

In other news....We find out what we are having on FRIDAY!!!! Yay! My oppointment was originally made for for next Tuesday, but I just couldn't stand to wait until I was 20 weeks +1 day! So I called and had them switch the appointment to Friday :) I'm definitely thinking girl. The heart rate has been the same as Lydia and I've had very similar symptoms, just stronger with this pregnancy.

DH is thinking we should put both kids in the same room. He thinks there is no reason why they would need their own rooms at this age. I definitely see his point. It would be much easier to have them share a room if this one is a girl also. But I suppose we could make it work either way. They just wouldn't be able to share a room for as long. We'll have to think about it.

Miss Lydia is definitely getting teeth! She woke up (after she had a rough night) Saturday morning with about 8 bumps in her mouth where she is working on getting teeth in. 8!!!! That is crazy! It would be great if she actually did get all 8 at one time and get them over with. Then we wouldn't have to keep going through the teething process over and over again. I can't wait to see all those new teethers either! It's going to be so cute! I just hope we have a couple more good nights of sleep in the meantime. Although I think last night was a fluke and we just lucked out ;) She stayed with my MIL Saturday night while DH and I had a BBQ and bonfire with friends. She only woke up once (from 3-4am) that night, which is pretty good lately.

Here are some pictures of her weekend:


Eating corn at Grandma's




Checking out Grandpa's peppers

 Doesn't she look so big?!?! I can't believe it! I was asked this weekend if she is 3! She is only 19 months! It went too fast! But she is so fun at this age. She is talking so much! She learns so quickly now. She knows most of her body parts - head, hair, teeth, nose, cheeks, eyes, chin, ears, shoulders, arm, elbow, belly, belly button, leg, knee, foot, toes! We are working on letters, colors and numbers. She can count to 3 and is practicing "A-B-C." She is going to be speaking in full sentences before we know it!

Love, B

Escape Artist?

For the past week it has felt like my little bug has been trying to escape my belly! It seems my tummy is expanding daily and some days it feels like the little one is just going to expand right out of me! It is showing too... I think I went from barely showing/you wouldn't really know I was pregnant unless you knew me to "um, that is definitely a baby in there!" In a week! That doesn't seem right, does it??? Accompanying the growth of my belly is extra pounds. 5 lbs to be exact. In the last 2 weeks. But who's counting (I AM!!!)?

My appetite has been out of control. I have to eat every 2 hours, at least. I had been doing pretty well with making good, healthy food choices. This weekend was different. And it shows (at least I think so). We were up at Woman Lake Lodge from Saturday to today (Tuesday). We had an abundance of food, none of which I would consider healthy, with the exception of the fruit I brought. We had brats and burgers, chips and dip, fried fish and jalapeno poppers, soda and cookies, muffins and pancakes. I could go on, but I think you get the point. I guess those extra 3 pounds I put on this week is good motivation to eat right and exercise more. I am planning on  gaining no more than 15 more pounds for the rest of the pregnancy. Hopefully I don't put on any more weight the next couple weeks - the last two weeks already exceeded my weight gain quota for the month ;)

Miss Lydia had a great time up at the lake! She came fishing with us and loved looking at the fish. She liked the boat rides too. She was able to run around and explore lots of new things. The thing she didn't like about being up at the lake was not having her bed to sleep in. We brought the pack and play for her and her pillow and blankies. Apparently it just didn't cut it. She slept well 1 out of the 3 nights we were there. The other 2 were a battle. She refused to sleep in her pack and play. And she wasn't happy laying with us either. That meant to calm the raging baby, we had to stand and sway with her. This had to happen for at least an hour before we could even think about laying down with her. That was not fun. We think she is getting some teeth too. She has been drooling more, tugging at her ears and seems pretty uncomfortable at night. We have been giving her ibuprofen at night, but I don't like to give it to her so often. She sleeps so much better when she has it though. Hopefully those teeth poke through soon and we get our good sleeper back!

That's about all the updating I have for now. I'll see if I can get my hands on some pictures of Lydia from this weekend and post them on here.

Workin' Mama

And it's exhausting! I'm drained. And the weekend seems to be about 2 days too short! I have to give major props to working moms. Some moms really can do it all. I'm convinced I am not one of those moms. A full day of work plus an hour drive each way is about all the productivity I have in me for one day. When I get home I am beat. I don't have energy to make dinner, clean the house or help take care of Lydia. I do my best to push through the exhaustion and contribute as much as possible. I make dinner probably at least 50% of the time. But I feel like a total dud sometimes! Some nights I don't even have the energy to shower. And then I dread having to get up at 6:00am the next day, only to repeat it all. I feel lame.

On that note, I'm very grateful to have a full time job to help pay for our expenses, but man do I dislike what I do. I'm not used to mind-numbing work. Especially 8 hours a day of it. Just thinking about it is making me dread tomorrow. I don't know if I have ever been more bored before in my life. It's a job and it pays, but beyond that, I can't wait for it to be over!

I was able to dentistry for the first time since getting my license last weekend at Mission of Mercy. I volunteered Friday 10:30-5:00 and Saturday 5:00am-5:00pm. I loved every minute of it! I gave anesthesia (injections) on Friday and Saturday morning and was able to volunteer in the pediatric clinic in the afternoon doing fillings and extractions. It reminded me why I chose dentistry. It also reminded me how disappointed I am that I have not found a dental position yet. It brings back a lot of frustration, but at the same time, it makes me hopeful for the future that I will really love what I do. I am yet again learning a lesson in patience.

In other news, miss Lydia is doing much better with drop-off time at daycare. I have been dropping her off a little later so that I can drop her off in her room instead of another room before her teacher gets there. That has helped Lydia feel more secure when I drop her off, I think. She is also sick again. Sigh. Not good. She has had a runny nose, cough and fever for the past couple of days. DH stayed home with her yesterday and I stayed home with her today. Poor thing. It would be nice to not have to put her in a daycare with a ton of other snotty kids, but it seems to be the best option for us right now. When Lydia gets sick, of course the rest of us do too. I'm hoping it passes soon and this isn't going to be a trend through the winter.

In pregnancy news, I am now 4 months (16 weeks pregnant)! Yay! I made it to the second trimester! Here's how I'm feeling:

- My morning sickness is slowly fading, with some days being better than others. I am trying to wean off my Zofran (anti-nausea meds).
- I am definitely showing. My pants started to not button at week 15. I got a couple pairs of maternity work pants at Goodwill for $7 (for both). One pair is Gap Maternity, and the other Liz Lang.
- I've gained 2 pounds since my last appointment. That puts me at a net gain of +2 since becoming pregnant (-5 lbs in the first 8 weeks, +5 pounds week 8-12, +2 lbs week 12-16). Not sure what my Ob is going to say about that, since she said I gained too much last appointment... I disagree with her. If she says I gained too much this time too, I might just switch providers. Is that unreasonable?
- I'm very very tired! By 2:00pm I am about ready to curl up and take a nap. Sometimes I wonder how I am going to stay awake through the hour long drive home. I also frequently feel the need to go to bed before 9:30. Very tired.
- I have to snack all day to keep my stomach from growling at me. Every couple of hours, at least. I try to pack plenty of health snacks to bring with me to work (apple, nectarine, yogurt, etc). I've also been getting a coffee almost every day thanks to my wonderful friends and family who showered me with coffee shop gift cards!
- The Little Bug is quite the mover in there. I started feeling flutters at about 14 weeks and feel some jabs usually at some point throughout the day.

I think that pretty much sums up everything that has been going on in our lives. DH is in Ohio for the next couple days on business, so it is just me and Bean :) Hopefully everything goes smoothly on our own.

Our Life Lately

I am now a week and a half into my new job. The first week went pretty well, minus throwing up Monday. This week has been rough. Lydia was sick Sunday and Monday with a fever. It took a whole 5 days after starting daycare to get sick. That's fast. I hope it isn't a sign of things to come. I hate it when she is sick - I feel so bad for her. Yesterday I was feeling absolutely terrible. I wasn't sure I was going to make it through the work day. I toughed it out, but I wasn't nearly as productive as I normally am. Today, I felt horrible pretty much from the moment I woke up. I tried my best to suck it up and make it to work. I was about 5 minutes away from work when I had to turn around and head back home. I felt like I was going to have to pull over any minute to throw up. I came home and got back in bed (after my 2.5 hour commute). I slept for 7 hours. I woke up at 5:00, had some soup and goldfish and laid on the couch. I still don't feel all that great. My stomach and my lower back hurts. I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm hoping it is gone by tomorrow and I can get back to functioning.

This pregnancy has been less than enjoyable so far. I know I have written that (a lot) already, but it is really frustrating for me. I really wanted to enjoy this pregnancy and continue to eat right and exercise. I haven't been able to do either so far. I enter the second trimester on Monday and I am really hoping the honeymoon stage starts.

In the mean time, I am going to try to distract myself with the Olympics! Sorry for all the complaining :-\

First Day

I started my new job today as a "clerical assistant." Basically, I am transferring information from paper optical charts to digital charting. The went smooth and I think I pretty much have the hang of things.

In other news today, I've felt terrible since eating dinner...Then I puked my brains out for a while (there goes my dinner). Miserable. I felt better for a little while - now I'm sucking on Starburst and Jolly Ranchers to try to settle my stomach. I hope I feel better tomorrow :(

Appointment #2 - Hear the Heartbeat!

DH, Lydia and I just got back from our second pre-natal visit. Here is what we found out:

1. I gained 5 pounds since the last visit. Hmmm... Not exactly what I wanted to happen. And I am quickly remembering the frustration I felt the first time around. It seems like everything I eat just sticks to me. I eat frequently but they are small meals. I think the problem comes with the carbs. But they are the only thing that really sound good. Chicken doesn't sound that great. Neither do vegetables. They are great in soup though! Yuuummmm! Fruit sits well with me too. But fruit is basically all carbs/sugar (+ good nutrients). Then there is the exercise dilemma. I have been feeling way too awful to even consider exercising. But I am starting to feel better, so I need to start adding that into my daily routine again. Oh pregnancy.

2. One of the vials of blood they took at the last appointment broke. Which meant they needed to take blood again at this appointment. Not. Good. News. I got over it though. It wasn't toooo bad :)

3. I am not anemic (yet) this pregnancy. My hemoglobin levels were at 13.7. Anything above 11 is good. Yay!

4. The baby's heart rate was 172 bpm. I guess this is pretty high, but still normal. Lydia was 166 bpm at the 12 week appointment. Maybe means another girl? (I kinda hope so)

And that's about it for that appointment. Only 1 more appointment before we find out the sex of the baby!!! *Still 2 months away though :(

In other news...I have been stressing so much about our current financial situation. If you know me, this is very strange. I don't stress about much. And I don't know that I have ever stressed like this about money. We didn't realize how much we relied on living expenses from my student loans to make ends meet around here. Our eyes were quickly opened once that money wasn't coming in anymore. It took about 2 months for the "Oh crap!" mode to set in. Luckily, I will be starting a new job on Monday. It isn't in dentistry (and pays nowhere near what dentistry would pay), but it is a job. I will be transferring medical/optical information from paper charts to digital charts at an eye place. It is a full time/temporary position that goes through the fall. Pretty good timing. It would be best if it went to the end of the year, but beggars can't be choosers :) This should really help with the financial stressing and hopefully be enough that we are financially comfortable again. And ideally, fingers crossed, once the first of the year hits dental clinics will be ready to hire. Oh goodness, I hope this is true!

Lydia is going back to the daycare she was at previously - which we love! They are more expensive ($850/month) than another in-home daycare we visited, but I know she will be safe and enjoy her time there. And that, to me, is worth the extra $300/month.

Any finally (I was thinking this was going to be a quick post), Here are the pictures of the dresser we are working on for the baby room. I couldn't find a before picture of it before we started working on it, so this is our during picture with the top sanded and the drawers stripped...

And just for fun, Lydia picking flowers at Papa's softball game :)

This Ick Wants to Stick

I am 10.5 weeks along now. I was hoping by 10 weeks I'd start feeling pretty good. Maybe I'm jumping the gun a little bit. On Sunday I thought I was on the upswing. I was feeling like I had some more energy and the nausea seemed to be settling. Even the emotions seemed to be settling down a little bit. My anti-nausea meds had run out and I was hoping I could save $20 and not get it refilled. I was wrong. Very very wrong. I was so incredibly nauseous and miserable all day Monday. Needless to say, I had DH grab my refill for my anti-nausea meds. I felt much better yesterday but I was feeling quite emotional and overwhelmed. This pregnancy has been quite the roller-coaster so far. In my opinion, I'm not handling it very well. I'm having a hard time with it. Maybe it is because I have a toddler to take care of and not just myself. Or maybe because I am at home without all day - which allows me to focus on how crummy I feel. Or maybe it is just the way the hormones are taking their course this pregnancy.

Whatever the case is, I am hoping to be feeling back to myself in the next couple weeks. Mentally and physically.

In other news, I decided I wanted to do white furniture for the baby room this time around. I love the chic, clean look of white. I have been searching Craigslist for some affordable furniture and I stumbled upon a great dresser! For free! It isn't white, yet. We have already started sanding and taking the hardware off. Getting in all the nooks and crannies to get it ready to paint is going to be a challenge, but I am really excited for the final result! I wish I would have saved the before picture from Craislist to post on here. I will have to go outside and take a picture as it is now. Stay tuned :)

Emotions Running High

I'm not a very emotional person. I never really have been. I'm not saying it is a good or a bad thing, it's just how I am. I have been since I can remember. When I do feel emotional, I have a hard time knowing what to do with it. This pregnancy so far has caused me to be overly emotional about nothing at all. It is weird for me! I don't know what to do with myself. I was walking around Target and suddenly feeling myself wanting to cry. WHAT??? It doesn't make any sense. The weirdest part about it is I can't find anything to be emotional about. I hate it.

I just really want to feel like a normal person again. If it is anything like last time, by 12 weeks I should be feeling more normal. That's 4 more weeks. Oh boy. Day by day, I suppose.

First Appearance!

Our first appointment wasn't supposed to be until next Wednesday. Unfortunately, I couldn't stand the nausea/all day crappy feeling any longer! I threw up 6x on Tuesday and finally had enough. I called and rescheduled our first appointment for this Wednesday! That puts us at 7 weeks 2 days. They always do an ultrasound at the first appointment, so we got to see our Little Bug sooner than we anticipated! And they gave me drugs for my nausea - Praise the Lord! The NP prescribed me Zofran and so far it has helped :) I still don't feel 100%, but I am definitely functioning better than I was before. Hopefully Ms. Lydia and I can start venturing outside the house without me feeling like death. Being stuck in the house, feeling crappy all day every day has really taken an emotional toll on me. I'm not a homebody at all. It is really hard for me to stay in the house all day. I think it is hard for Lydia too. I think she gets pretty bored. I am praying things continue to get better and I start feeling great come 12 weeks.

Anyways, without further delay... Little Bug's first appearance!

We are measuring 7w 1d and 4.4 cm. The heartbeat (which we got to see!) was 140 bpm. They said everything was looking good in there!

My New Diet

Finally, the beans are spilled and I can now post all my blogs I've been doing :)

June 16, 2012
I started this pregnancy off with the best of intentions. I was going strong with a 42 day Little Black Dress Challenge and down 5 pounds in the first week! The challenge started the day after I found out I was expecting and I was so excited that I was able to start my pregnancy off so healthy!

Everything changed once morning sickness kicked in (with a vengeance). The sight of all the healthy foods I had been eating made me sick. My attempt at jogging ended 4 minutes later with an extreme urge to hurl. Unfortunately the only foods that I can seem to stomach are:
Chex cereal
Cinnamon Raisin Bread with Peanut Butter
Apples
Pasta
Chicken Noodle Soup
Crackers with cheese
Chicken fingers and Fries (preferably from Culvers - with ice cream)

I haven't stepped on the scale in a few days and I am hoping my weight hasn't sky rocketed from my less than healthy food choices. PLUS I lay on the couch all day long with a minimum amount of movement because I feel so icky and exhausted. I am hoping to gain no more than 25 pounds this pregnancy. Once I start feeling better I'm going to have to get back into my healthy habits.

But for now, I will eat what I can stand and hope to goodness this miserable feeling goes away soon.

And so it Begins

June 10, 2012 - 
 
Welp, no such luck in being spared by morning sickness this time around. It didn't even wait until 6 weeks like last time (I almost made it to 7 weeks last time). It started kicking in yesterday (5w 5d). Today it was on and off all day. Not going to lie, I forgot how miserable it is. It is going to be a long 6 weeks if it lasts until the 2nd trimester. One of the more annoying things about it is, I am trying to do this 42 day little black dress (LBD) challenge that I signed up for before I knew I was pregnant but the m/s is making really hard to follow the eating plan. Or to be motivated to workout for that manner. For example, yesterday morning and this morning the thought of having another mushroom and spinach omelet made my stomach churn. I've really been craving carbs... Which ironically aren't allowed in this LBD challenge I am doing.

I lost 5 pounds the first week of the challenge. However, I think that is going to slow or stop in the next coming weeks. With morning sickness and fatigue, I just don't know how I can keep up with the program :( I am going to continue to try until I just can't do it anymore. I am happily down to the weight I was at at this point with Lydia. However, I am determined to gain MUCH less weight than I did with her.

Tomorrow is Monday - meaning DH goes back to work and it is just me and Bean all day. I am wondering how difficult this will get with the whole not-feeling-so-hot thing going on. Maybe we will go to the pool at Safari Island in Waconia tomorrow. The pool seems to make things feel better :)

That's all for now. Good night!

5 weeks 4 days

 June 8, 2012-


 It is really starting to feel like I am pregnant. The fatigue really kicked in the past couple days. And insomnia. Which is a really frustrating combination! I am also hungry all the time! Which is really frustrating as well, knowing that my calorie intake isn't supposed to increase until the 2nd trimester. Well, why is my body telling me that I am hungry then??? It must be confused.

We still have another 2.5 weeks before we are planning on telling anyone. That seems like a long time. It is hard to keep it a secret. I almost let it slip to people who don't know a couple times. Luckily I caught myself ;) I got Lydia's T-shirt in the mail that says "I'm going to be a BIG sister!" It is so stinkin' cute! I can't wait til she can wear it! I'm thinking if the morning sickness kicks in right around 6 weeks like it did with Ms. Lydia, it is going to be really difficult to hide.

In other news, I lost 5 pounds last week, the first week on the 42 day little black dress challenge. That was really exciting. I am at the same weight now that I was at this point in my pregnancy with Lydia. I hope to lose another 5-10 pounds in the next 5 weeks. That'd be great! It might get trickier though as I get more tired and feel more crappy. But hey, maybe I'll feel really good for the first trimester of this pregnancy?!?! ;) Haha

I think that is my only update for now. Until next time...

P.S. Can't wait to post ultrasound pics!

Ready for Round 2??? I am!

June 1, 2012 - 

Here we go again! Things feel much different this time than they did last time, although I need to look back to help me remember last time. We weren't exactly trying this time. We've had the 'goalie pulled' since last November though. I suppose it was bound to happen at some point. Plus, the last couple of months I have been feeling more and more ready and it wasn't all that difficult for DH to see us with another one. Last month was the first month I was really paying attention to my cycle.

This month was the first month I actually felt like something was different. I told DH a couple weeks ago that I was pretty sure something was going on. Took a couple tests (quite early I might add). They were negativo. Didn't change my mind though. I just knew. The day AF was supposed to show, I popped out of bed and tried it again...WE'RE PREGNANT!!!!!!! AHHHHH! Baby Borntrager #2 is due February 4th, 2013 :)

Things that tipped me off:
Twinges on my right lower abdomen (Like I had with Ms. Lydia)
Heightened sense of smell (Never experienced that before)
Moodiness (Like I had with Ms. Lydia)

I was so convinced that I was preggo, I wasn't taking anything but AF as a no! When my pregnancy test started forming that second line, I just couldn't believe it! Even though I knew I had to be, it wasn't real until that test showed up positive. It's still not all that real to me! It's so amazing. So exciting!

At this point I am only 4 weeks and 4 days pregnant. I'm feeling really good, minus random waves of nausea. With Lydia it kicked in just after I turned 6 weeks pregnant and it was there to stay until the second trimester came around. I am SOOOOOOO hoping my energy stays up and the nausea stays down this time.

I know one thing for sure though, I am going to do this pregnancy right! I learned my lesson with the amount of weight I gained last time and how hard it was to lose.. Not this time! I am planning on losing some weight still this first trimester and hoping to keep the total weight gain under 20 lbs.

I signed up for a 42 day Little Black Dress/Ripped in 42 challenge before I knew I was pregnant. It started Tuesday (I found out I was pregnant on Monday!). It is a diet high on protein, spinach and water. Really clean/good for me foods! Plus, I get to eat 6 times per day which is so nice for me, especially pregnant. I have 5 weeks left. I am hoping to lose at least 15 lbs on this program between the clean eating, water intake (12 cups/day) and HIIT/weight training. I'm excited to be in great shape for this pregnancy!

Our first appointment/ultrasound is scheduled for 8 weeks (June 27th). We are waiting until we find out everything is going ok in there before we tell everyone (ie our family and bible study). I got Lydia a t-shirt that says "I'm Going to Be a Big Sister!" That is how we are going to announce it to everyone :) I can't wait to tell everyone! For now, this post is going to drafts until we make an announcement!

Words Little One Can Say - 15 months

It amazes me how much Miss Lydia picks up in such a short period of time. It seems like she learns SO FAST! Babies are amazing. Here are the words she can say at 15 months old (almost):

Mama
Papa
Dada
Palmer
Bubbles
Ball
Puppy
Uh-oh
More
Please
Birdie
Belly (and can point to it)
Nose (and can point to it)
Roo (as in Roxy)
Baaaaaah (For sheep)
Woof Woof (For dog)
Bottle
Shoes
Wheeeeeeeee (mainly when she is pushing her doll stroller)
Nums (Her pacifier)
Diddle (DH's nickname for her)
Hi
Buh-bye
Wow

In other Lydia news... She seems to have gotten a yeast rash :( It does not look pleasant! It started out looking like a strange diaper rash. It hung around for a couple days and then it just exploded - It is all over her diaper area and has even spread to her arms. She has a horrible fever on Friday and that is when it got a lot worse. I might have to take her into the doctor if it doesn't seem to be getting better. I hope she is ok and that it is nothing serious. Poor baby.

Feeling Trapped

I can't think of many feelings I dislike more than the feeling of being trapped. It's kind of like claustrophobia, but instead of small spaces, it's limitations on life. There are several decisions I have made that have gotten me to this point.

Decision 1: not to re-apply to dental school after getting wait-listed the first round.
Decision 2: thinking dental therapy was going to be a comparable career path.
Decision 3: deciding to leave my baby and return to finish my dental therapy program, in the hopes I could have a great career helping people.

Well, turns out the job market for liscensed dental therapists isn't what we thought it would be. Out of the 6 available dental therapy graduates (the rest of my class), ONE was hired. It's been 4.5 months. So here I am, 7 years of post highschool education, up to my ears in student loan debt and no job prospects. Which has lead me to the feeling of being trapped. DH makes the money in the family, which in turn, leaves me having to report every purchase I make - Ask permissions for anything other than gas or groceries I want to buy.

I guess I just needed to vent a little. I'm going to sleep on it and hope I feel better in the morning. Good night.

Trip to the Park!

Something happened yesterday that hasn't happened in a long time... It was beautiful outside AND it was my Spring Break!!! I was a very lucky girl yesterday! It was a pretty busy day, but I enjoyed every moment of it :)

Lydia and I slept in until 10:30, then I dropped her off at daycare (I had a meeting at a dental office later in the afternoon). I met a great friend at Starbucks (my fave!) for coffee. We had some wonderful mama time, which in my opinion, can be grossly underrated! After coffee, I scoped out a prospective pediatric dental office to work at, then headed to my meeting at a dental office near my house. All this was done with sunglasses on and sunroof open. Fabulous.

Then it was time to truly enjoy the beautiful day! I picked up Lydia from daycare and we went for a long walk to the park. She wasn't completely sure about all the safety of the play set... We headed to the swings first. We started out in the bucket swing while she got used to the idea of playing at the park. Then we graduated to the baby swing that she could sit in by herself! She laughed and laughed! Then she got scared. Haha

She really wasn't sure about the slide. I think part of it was the two older kids that kept following us around and playing where we were. Do all kids do that? Personally I thought they were pretty rude. They kept running into Lydia when she was sitting on top of the slide (It was a double slide, so they were going down the other side). Then they decided they were going to occupy both sides of the slide. I just calmly told the little boy (8 years old?) that we were still using the slide and asked him to please move :) It was weird. Maybe I just don't understand children?

After all the playing (and fending off random children) we decided to relax and explore in the grass for a little while before we headed home.

It was such a beautiful day with my little Love Bug!

Sleep Training at 13 months???

For the past week-ish, Lydia has decided she does not want to go to sleep in her crib. We have always snuggled with her at night until she fell asleep (around 8:00) and then gently set her in her crib to continue in her restful slumber. Well, the new trend is we cuddle her until she falls asleep around 8:00pm then head up to her room to put her to bed....just like before. But now, as soon as we open her door she starts squirming and crying. We have been trying to figure out if something is wrong with her. Does she not feel well? Is she teething? As far as we can tell, she just doesn't want to go to bed in her crib. Great. Now what? Two nights ago, DH tried to cuddle her all night. Picker her up and cuddling was the only thing that got her to stop crying. So she went to bed with us. That did NOT work. She tossed and turned and squirmed and whined all night. I don't know that any of us really got any sleep. This led to crabby Thursday for a very sleep-deprived mamma.

I was curious to find out how her day at daycare was yesterday. They said she did just great! Took 2 good naps and was her happy self all day. Hmmmmm.... I think that confirms our hypothesis that she feels fine. We were hoping her sleep issues were just going to be a phase, so we were hopeful that we could go back to our normal bedtime routine. No such luck. Last night was much of the same as the night before. We needed a game plan. We decided that it might be time to do some sleep training. Ugh! So she fell asleep with me last night around 8:00, I went to put her down, she threw a tantrum, I comforted her for a little while then left the room to let her cry. We let her go for about 15 minutes at a time and then we would go in and reassure her. This went on from 8:45-10:30. Then I decided I had to go to bed. So I'm not sure how long after that it lasted. But I do know that DH and I were in our bed this morning and Bean was sleeping in hers. This might mean that I'm on baby duty tonight :-\ I'm really hoping this works....and quickly!!!

In other life news... I passed my dental boards!!!!!!!!!!!! Yippppppeeeeee! Now I have a bunch of competencies to complete at school before I graduate in MAY! Now it's time to hit the job hunt hard!

Spring break starts for me at 4:00pm today! I decided it was a good day for a half day. I slept in until almost 9:00. It felt soooo good. I have a patient this afternoon, so I couldn't take the whole day off ;)

For a little comedy - Lydia hitting the bottle:

Happy 1st Birthday, Baby Girl!

Leading up to Lydia's first birthday party, the whole family had been sick. Lydia had been fighting an ear infection and cold, and I had been fighting a sinus infection. Needless to say, we were running a little behind on the party planning. By the grace of God, we were all finally feeling better by the time the big day rolled around! Obviously we didn't do it alone, we had some wonderful help!

Auntie Jill and Uncle Ben were the amazing decorators. They arrived at our house first and put up all the balloons and streamers and picture line! Jill used to work at party city, so she took on the balloons, making sure each bunch was absolutely perfect. And Ben, well he must just have a knack for decorating ;)

 My good friend, Crystal made the adorable cake for Lydia's party. It was quite the hit. Not only was it adorable, but it was oh-so-goooood! Coconut and chocolate - Yummmm!!!! Lydia thoroughly enjoyed it as well! At first, she was unsure what it was. I don't think she understood that it was food. Once she tasted the delicious sugar, she knew exactly what to do with it :)

Besides the cake, we had some other goodies! I made red velvet cheese dip, cookie dough dip, brownies cookies and Oreo pops (most ideas found from Pinterest!). Lots of sweets for her first birthday! And the main dish was PIZZA (Papa Murphys)! We has several different toppings to choose from and we blew through 5 pizzas!

We were debating whether or not to open gifts with everyone there because it seemed like Lydia was going to konk out any second! I'm so glad we decided to do a gift opening - Lydia had so much fun! She got the cutest gifts! Our family and friends are the best!!!! Not only did they drive out to Timbuktu to our house for the party, but they came with the most wonderful gifts! We just had the most amazing time! The party turned out to be better than we could have ever imagine!