Finally "Out"!!

I finally told my work the great news yesterday and....they were so excited! I don't know why I was so nervous about it. My boss was completely excited and even gave me a big hug. All the ladies I work with were the same way. Whew! That was a big relief. Lots of people said they already guessed...ha ha! Guess I wasn't as sneaky as I thought. Well its nice to have so much support at work and not have to keep this pregnancy a secret! So exciting!!

12 Weeks...First Trimester Over!

Can't believe its already the end of the first trimester. Time is flying by! I feel like I'm really turning into a pregnant lady lately. I feel much more pregnant than I did the past 12 weeks. its sort of weird. This week the baby is developing reflexes including opening and closing of their fingers, curling their toes and moving their mouth. Crazy! Apparently the baby's intestines are developing outside of their body for now and will soon move inside after they develop a little further. I did not know that and that is kind of gross. ha ha! Baby is about the size of a lime this week and is looking something like this:

This week I am feeling much better. I am not nearly as nauseous all the time during the day and that is really great. I am also able to cook again and brush my teeth again without gagging so that's been a nice improvement. As far as energy level, I think I am feeling pretty good. I am still pretty tired at the end of the day but am able to make it through the entire work day. As far as how I look, I feel like I am really starting to show. I think at first you couldn't really tell if it was just belly or if I was pregnant but now it definitely looks like a pregnant belly. I have noticed women at work staring at my belly and I'm sure they are wondering. I don't know if I'm going to be able to wait another week to tell my work, I think most of them will figure it out before then. One girlfriend of mine at work asked me yesterday if I was pregnant. She said its pretty obvious...So I may have to tell them sooner than later.

Another interesting development this week besides people commenting on my belly is people touching it! I was not expecting that this soon. I read in the books that people feel free to touch your belly without permission when you are pregnant but I didn't think they'd be doing it this soon! We went to a wedding this weekend and people were rubbing my belly...that was weird! I guess I should get used to it!!

Exciting Moment of the Week: Even though people were weirding me out and rubbing my belly it was fun to see everyone at Steve's cousin's wedding being so supportive. We saw a few friends that have babies and they were very excited for us. It is nice to have so much support.

Oh and Steve went back to work this week! That is super freaking exciting!!!

What I am Missing this Week: At the wedding everyone was drinking and having a good time and its not that I really miss drinking or the taste of alcohol but I missed being a part of that. Its totally worth it not to drink during the pregnancy but just watching everyone drinking around me was a little tough.

Symptoms this Week: Mostly just fatigue. I am just really super drained at the end of the workday and can't usually find the energy to do anything in the evenings besides make some dinner, crash on the couch for a few hours and then go to bed early! I hope I get some more energy back in the 2nd trimester but I'm not holding out hope for much! ha ha

Obsessions this Week: This week especially I have been obsessing about what I am going to tell my work. I don't know why it is making me so nervous and I am sure they will all be happy for me but I am really going crazy thinking about it. I should just get it over with!

Message to the Baby: Baby, we are so excited to meet you! You are growing so fast in there and the fact that you are growing inside of me is so incredible and crazy. What a blessing you are and we are both so happy to have you!!!

Christmas Wish List

Even though it seems very early to me, I know some crazy people are already Christmas shopping...in October! I've seen some wish lists on other people's blogs and thought that was a good idea. I'm not expecting to get all or any of these things just thought I would put it out there as I think of it.

First of all, we really need a new camera. With the baby on the way, my old camera is just not going to cut it. It doesn't always turn on and takes pretty poor quality pictures so we really need to upgrade. I can't decide between getting a better point and shoot or trying to get into photography more with a lower end DSLR. I've heard lots of good things about the Cannon Rebel and read up on the reviews. I think that might be a good entry level DSLR and I could learn a lot using it. Its on sale at Best Buy...just saying ;)

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Canon+-+EOS+Digital+Rebel+XS+10.1-Megapixel+Digital+SLR+Camera+-+Black/8929699.p?id=1214611419717&skuId=8929699&st=canon%20rebel&contract_desc=null

Along the same lines, I'd really like to get a video camera for when this baby comes. I'm sure he or she is going to be doing all kinds of cute things and I'd like to have some videos to show to friends and family. I think we could use a Kodak Zi8 or a Flip. The Kodak is a bit pricier but has better reviews and features.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=-7720303637963100223&id=pcat17071&type=page&st=Kodak+Zi8+&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960
Looks like the flip would get the job done as well but I saw some reviews that said its not really great for far away shots.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Flip+Video+-+UltraHD+Camcorder+-+Black/Chrome/9281984.p?id=1218073822126&skuId=9281984&st=flip%20camera&contract_desc=null

I know we will start needing a lot of things for the baby pretty soon. I don't have it all ironed out exactly everything I want but some things I know we will need. I know for sure we need a boppy. I have heard from everyone who's had a baby that you must get one of these.
I would like the plain one or there are also some that come with slipcovers. I like slipcovers like this one:

or this one:
But really I'm not that picky and would take any slipcovers. I also heard its a good idea to get the water resistant cover...for obvious reasons.

Another thing I'd like to get for the baby is a co-sleeper. It will be really helpful when they are little and waking up all the time during the night (not looking forward to that). And we can use it in other parts of the house too since its portable. I really like this one: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3069590

I know I want to get a Moby wrap as well for when the baby is really young. They have them at Toys r Us but they are a little cheaper at Target I think.
http://www.target.com/s?keywords=moby+wrap&searchNodeID=1038590&ref=sr_bx_1_1

I want to get some CDs of kids music but nothing to obnoxious because well, I will have to listen to it too! A CD thats adorable is Snack Time from the Barenaked Ladies.

Some CDs that I want just for me:

Train, Save Me San Francisco

Dave Matthews Band, Big Whiskey and the GruGrux King

Maroon 5, Hands All Over (this is a weird CD cover, I know)

For the house I'd like to get a cake platter or something that I can store a cake in. Even though I don't make a cake very often it would be nice to have something to put a cake in when I do make one. I'd like to get one like this:

http://www.target.com/Wilton-Cake-Caddy-White-Clear/dp/B000EN4FCM/ref=sc_qi_detaillink

or this:

http://www.target.com/Luigi-Bormioli-Michelangelo-Cake-Plate/dp/B001V9EVOU/ref=sc_qi_detaillink

Those are some thoughts for now. Of course gift cards to Old Navy, Target, Babies R Us are always appreciated. Happy (very early) Holidays!

Can't Believe I Almost Forgot....

to thank my super awesome cousin, Kris for sending me a present She is so sweet!!

So the other day, I was just going about my Saturday when a box from Amazon.com arrived in our mailbox. I was thinking, "What did Steve order?" but it was addressed to me! Turns out it was a book I am wanting to read called Sippy Cups are Not for Chardonnay sent to me by my super sweet cousin Kris. This lovely lady:

Who, by the way, is getting married next October and I am sooooooooooo excited for her!! She was an awesome bridesmaid in my wedding and I get to be in hers! So excited!!

I can't wait to read this book and I think it was just so thoughtful and nice of her to send it to me. So I thought in appreciation, I'd have to embarrass her on my blog, sounds fair right? Ha ha! Thanks again!!

Nursery Inspiration

It is so fun to think about what the nursery will look like! I have been looking around on the Internet for some inspirations. Its hard to decide exactly what will be appropriate before knowing the sex of the baby but that's just a minor detail right? ;) Steve really wants to do an underwater theme, which I was surprised he suggested considering he is obsessed with the stars and Astronomy...but oh well. That is much better than a "space" theme, so I'll take it. I think that would work best for a boy's room. I guess it could work for a girl's as well but if we have a girl, I really want to go way more girly than that! So I've found some pictures of things that I could live with for an underwater theme.

We definitely want to paint the walls and we both really like the idea of having animals stenciled directly on the walls.

It would be cute to put up some pictures of us with stingrays and snorkeling and stuff like that. We have a bunch from our cruises. That might be a good idea.

Here is some ocean-y bedding as well.

And this fish mobile is pretty darn cute...I could definitely see this guy in the nursery.

More than the ocean theme I'm really into the animal, nature theme. I've found lots of pictures of trees painted on nursery walls and I'm really digging that. Here are some of my favorites:

This one might be my fav for a girl. (Bonus we wouldn't have to paint the walls, they are already this grey color)

I love this one with the birds and owls. I especially love the birds "resting" on the edge of the crib! Too cute! That one is actually a decal you can buy if you want.

This one is admittedly pretty girly. But I love how it has a 3D component with the leaves and flowers glued on the tree.

Here are some other nature-like details painted on walls. So cute!

Ok, now I do realize that to pull this off we are going to either have to buy the stencils or decals, which a lot of them you can get from Etsy pretty cheap, or we are going to have to find some creative, artistic types in our family to help...since neither Steve or I can draw at all. So we'll see. But its fun to dream!

Here are some other nature like details that I love from other people's nurseries:

Peacocks!!

Ok how freaking cute are these knobs for the dresser? You can get them from Etsy pretty cheap also.

I love these bird pictures:

And these animal paintings are pretty adorable too:

I love these birds with the opposing colors that play off the cute turquoise wall color. I like the lyrics to the Bob Marley song divided between 2 canvases as well. We wouldn't have to necessarily use that song but its a cute idea.


So while I was on the Internet browsing for ideas, I discovered that I'm obsessed with owls. They are so cute! I can't believe how many owl pictures I saved...we have to have an owl in the room!

No this is not a name possibility...just a really cute print you can get from Etsy and customize however you want it. :)
This has to be my favorite mobile. Look how cute the little owls are! Some are even winking at you! OMG! So adorable.

This is a little picture of felt owls in a frame. How cute is that? I think I could make that at least!

I also saw a lot of nurseries with either fabric or wooden painted letters spelling out the baby's name on the wall. I think this is totally something we could DIY. It would be cheap and adorable too.

One other thing I like this group of frames with different complementary patterns, colors. Another thing we could easily do ourselves for pretty cheap.

So lots and lots of ideas! But no final decisions yet of course. We still have plenty of time to think and overthink and rethink how the nursery will look (and by we, I mostly mean me :) Still, pretty exciting stuff!!

11 Weeks...Almost 1/3 of the way there!

Can't believe I'm already finished with 11 weeks! The first trimester will be over in a week! It has just flown by so quickly. (Which is kind of good considering how I was feeling.) Lots of exciting things happening this week. We made some of our first nursery purchases. I will put up some pictures and the story of how we got them soon!

I had my monthly doctor's visit on Friday and he said everything is going great. He was happy I had already lost 12lbs during the first trimester and said that was really good. I almost feel guilty for losing weight, like I'm not eating enough for the baby or something. But I know that its normal to lose weight in the first trimester due to watching what you eat and the baby using your extra nutrients. I guess I am glad that I did since the doctor said it's what he would like to see for me. I also was able to see the baby again and boy has he grown! The baby looks huge compared to the ultrasound pictures we had before, about double in size. It's crazy how fast he's growing in there!

The baby is looking something like this these days:


It's funny that the baby in this picture is upside down because that's exactly how our baby looked in this month's sonogram. He was totally upside down. The doctor said that's fine and nothing to worry about. He said right now the baby is just swimming around in there having a good time. LOL My doctor is so funny! Anyways, on the ultrasound picture I saw the baby's arms waving around. Can you believe that!? My baby is moving his arms around inside of me. Totally weird. The baby is just moving around in there all the time, but I won't be able to feel it for a few more weeks. (Kind of can't wait for that!) This week the baby has fully developed his hands and is able to open and close them into fists. His gums are developing tiny tooth buds in them. Awesome!!

Another exciting thing this week was going maternity clothes shopping...again! My super sweet parents came over for a visit and decided that I needed more maternity clothes. Who am I to turn down an offer like that? But they really were right. I only had a few shirts that fit right now and really only 1 pair of jeans. I love shopping in general but getting clothes to fit my new pregnant body is super exciting. My mom and I picked up several great deals from the Motherhood Maternity Outlet by my house. That was a great surprise to find an outlet at the mall. I had been into the regular Motherhood store and it was so crazy expensive! But this outlet had some of the exact same clothes at about half the price. So we got a lot of things for work and some comfy things for around the house. We also found some things that fit at Old Navy Maternity, which was great. I love the style of their clothes so it was nice to find some things there. Let me show you some of the awesome new clothes I got this weekend:

From Old Navy Maternity, we found a comfy sweater for winter. Its still a little big which will be good because I probably won't wear it for a while yet. But doesn't it look totally warm and comfy?

We also picked up a couple of these long sleeved but lightweight shirts for the fall. They are so comfy and soft. I'm excited to start wearing these right now! I have pink and also green and a similar one in black.

I got this *purple* shirt for the fall as well. Its pretty lightweight but I think it can be worn in the winter with a cardigan. Its still pretty roomy so I'm looking forward to wearing it when I can fill it out a bit more!

We also picked up a pair of jeans and khaki's from the Motherhood outlet that I absolutely love. They are fitting me now, but also roomy enough that I can hopefully wear them for the rest of my pregnancy. It's really nice to have some options in my closet now, instead of only 3 shirts and I pair of jeans that still fit!

So yeah for more shopping!! This is going to be one stylish baby bump! :)

Exciting Moment of the Week: Seeing our huge baby at the ultrasound on Friday! Holy Moly has the baby grown in the past month! I guess it could be because the other 2 ultrasounds we had were only 2 weeks apart but this time the baby seems to have grown like crazy since the last time we saw him. The doctor said we might be able to see the sex next month too so that is very exciting news!

What I am Missing this Week: Not really missing anything in particular. I went to lunch and a movie with some girlfriends this weekend and they were talking about drinking wine and going to a winery this fall. That made me kind of sad for a minute thinking how fun that would be and I am going to miss out. But really, its not that much of a sacrifice to me. I'd much rather have a beautiful and healthy baby and truly I don't miss drinking all that much. (Mostly because the thought of it makes me want to puke!)

Symptoms this Week: Still feeling super tired and worn out. Although I did notice an increase in my energy level. On Friday, when I was off work we went to the doctor and did a few errands and to the grocery store. Then we were home for a bit and went to have dinner with Steve's parents. That was a lot to do for one day and a month ago I wouldn't have had enough energy to do it all. So I think my energy level has increased somewhat but I still needed a nap the next day to catch up!

Obsessions this Week: Getting baby advice from everyone I meet! ha ha! This week and last week we were able to spend some time with a few friends with babies and also family. I probably annoyed everyone else there but I pumped them for info the entire time! There is just so much to learn and I think those people who have experienced it are the best resource. Thanks for all the advice and encouragement guys!!

Message to the Baby: Baby, you are growing so fast it blows your mommy's mind! I can't believe how quickly you have gone from a tiny dot to a real person! We are so excited to meet you so just keep growing in there!!

Books I'm Reading

I thought I would share the books I'm reading to get ready for this pregnancy and some I plan to read. If anyone has any other suggestions I am open to it!!


I've already finished The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy by Vicky Iovine. I enjoyed this book. It was written in the 90's so its kind of out of date though. However, she is hilarious! I laughed out loud so much while reading this book. I even read some super hilarious parts out loud to Steve. I read some reviews online and some people didn't like this book because she does downplay natural labor and talks about getting drugs for her deliveries. However, I wasn't offended because I am of the same opinion. She does describe a lot of the pregnancy symptoms to a T though and I appreciated that. She also wants to get out all the "dirty details" of pregnancy and labor, she calls it the stuff your doctor won't tell you. I thought it was a good book and I enjoyed reading it. But I am looking forward to some more "scientific" information.

The next book I'm reading is You're Pregnancy Week By Week by Glade Curtis and Judith Schuler.

So in the interest of being cheap, I ordered this book online from Half.com. However, I did not notice that I ordered the 5th edition published in 2007. Now they are up to the 8th edition and I'm not sure if I should spring for the newer one. There can't be that many updates right? I'm not sure what part of me is going to win out, the mothering side or the cheap side. But for right now I have this one so that's what I'm reading. I'm really liking it so far. I enjoy how it is broken down into weeks so you can just read a little at a time. It has several sections in each week and I like that. They have one for the baby's development and one for your development and symptoms you might be experiencing. They also talk about nutrition and give you tips for eating better. I am liking this one so far, I'll keep you posted.

I started reading Belly Laughs by Jenny McCarthy.

My friend, Julie, recommended it was a good book to read during pregnancy. It kind of turned me off because its more simplistic and brief than I thought it would be and also she has a ton of fart jokes. (Not saying I don't enjoy a fart joke but she has a ton.) So we'll see, I'll probably finish it because its an easy read and Julie loaned it to me (for free) :)

I also got a few other books from Half.com and I plan to read them soon. I also bought Baby Bargains by Denise and Alan Fields. This book came highly recommended on some pregnancy blogs I read. It is supposed to give you the tricks to getting good and safe things for your baby on the cheap. I'm not sure if its the type of book you read cover to cover or if its more for reference. I haven't gotten into this one yet, but I am excited to.

I also ordered The Happiest Baby on the Block by Harvy Karp.
When I was a nanny all the moms were reading this book. I've heard its a great reference for how to help your baby sleep better and get to sleep on their own. They also have a DVD and I might get that later to watch with Steve. I'm hoping to have some tools in our arsenal before we have sleep problems and are super exhausted ourselves.

I have one more baby book that I actually got from the family I nannyed last year. They were going to sell it at a garage sale but she said I should have it. Probably because she knew I was baby crazy even back then! Its What to Expect the First Year. It has some things regarding pregnancy but mostly I think its about handling a newborn. I am planning to read this as well.

I want to order the Vaccine Book by Dr. Sears:

I'm not sure how granola-y we are going to be yet, but even if we do choose to go with the regular vaccine schedule for our baby this book will be a good reference. I'll let you know after I read it. I'm also looking forward to reading The Baby Book by Dr. Sears as well as The Attachment Parenting Book by Dr. Sears but I don't have either of those yet.

Other books I want to read but don't have yet: Sippy Cups are not for Chardonnay, Baby Wise by Gary Ezzo and The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book by Dr. Jack Newman. All of those came recommended by other new moms and I think they will be good reference.

Wow, I guess I am doing a lot more reading than I thought! Well it never hurts to be too informed, right?

10 Weeks...Double Digits!!

Finishing up 10 weeks prego and I can hardly believe it! Double digits seems so big. I know I still have 30 weeks to go but still! Making it to 10 weeks seems like a great accomplishment, especially with our miscarriage before and being super worried about that the entire time. I feel like now, I can relax a little. Plus, I've started feeling much better this week and that is really nice. Now I don't feel horrible all the time so I can at least enjoy this pregnancy a little bit or at least enjoy day dreaming about what our baby will be like... :)

Our little guy is growing quickly this week. He has started developing his tissues and organs. They are growing and maturing everyday. Also, he has started kicking up a storm, even though I won't feel it for a couple months still. (Not sure if I'm looking forward to that yet...) His limbs can bend now and tiny nails are growing on his fingers and toes. Tiny fingernails people! How cute is that?! Here's how our baby peanut is looking these days:


Still looking sorta alien-like but getting bigger and stronger each day!

This week, we tried to wrap up telling all our friends and family. So that's been fun to hear how excited everyone is. I'm pretty sure Steve's entire family knows by now and they are so excited. Most of my family knows and they were psyched too. We have told most of our friends, but I haven't told my girlfriends at work yet for fear that it might get out at work before I get a chance to tell my boss. I feel sort of bad for not telling them and I hope they can forgive me when I do tell them. I think they will understand. I am planning to tell my boss on November 2nd, that is the day we have a scheduled one-on-one meeting. I am thinking that will be great timing, I should be out of my first trimester and we will have a chance to talk about it. But that also makes me super nervous. I think they will be ok with it, but you never know!

Other developments this week, I got to go Maternity clothes shopping with my mom this weekend. That was awesome! It was so exciting to try on Maternity clothes! I felt so mom-like and it was just a surreal feeling to be needing these clothes and wearing them. I guess this pregnancy thing is for real! She got me a ton of clothes and I am so appreciative for that! I am wearing some now and let me tell you, they are so much more comfortable than my other clothes. Even though the scale says I've lost 10lbs so far, my clothes aren't fitting the same way they used to. My pants are feeling tighter so I'm thinking there must be some major bloating going on here. So its super nice to have some clothes to fit my growing belly!

We are going back to the doctor on Friday for my monthly check up. I can't wait to see the baby again and hear how he has grown. I hope everything is great and the doctor says we are on track.

Exciting Moment of the Week: Getting some real Maternity clothes! It was so nice to be able to share that moment with my mom. Maybe its a sentimental pregnant lady thing but its so nice to think that my mom was going through all this with me in her tummy. It makes you really appreciate your mother!! She is so sweet too, I just loved shopping with her.

What I am Missing this Week: My appetite? LOL. I haven't had much of one lately. Even though the nausea is subsiding, its still there. I can't eat very much in one sitting still and I'm constantly hungry so those two make for a crabby lady!

Symptoms this Week: Still feeling super tired. We had a 3 day weekend and I think I probably slept 10 hours each day. Maybe more! I needed a nap everyday and we mostly just laid around the house! Just cleaning the house wears me out. Steve has been really understanding in letting me catch up on sleep on the weekends, which is awesome. Other than that, the active nausea is gone and now its just a general yucky feeling but no puking so I'll take it!

Obsessions this Week: I finally got the baby books I ordered from Half.com in the mail this week so I've been trying to read those and learn as much as I can. I also have been looking around at stuff for the nursery and have a ton of ideas. I will have to do a nursery post soon!

Message to the Baby: We hope you are enjoying your time in there, baby! Thank you so much for easing up on mommy and letting me have some rest from feeling gross all the time. I hope the second trimester brings even more of that! We love you!

Getting Excited for Halloween

Ok people. I am getting really freaking excited for Halloween! For some reason, I love this holiday! I don't even know why. Maybe it has to do with loving it when I was younger, I'm not sure. But I love, love, love it. Is it sick that I put up Halloween decorations last weekend (in September!). Lol I was having an organizing day and put them all out. Our front room looks so festive. I will have to post pictures. But in the spirit of being excited for Halloween, I wanted to post some pictures of our dogs from our "Holiday Calendar" Photoshoot from last year. Lol. Steve and I made calendars of our dogs for our parents last year and that meant, I got to dress them up! Yes!! Here are couple of Zeusy and Zander in their Halloween costumes. Too cute!

Zeusy was our little pumpkin. Ha ha! He was pissed! But you have to admit, he makes a pretty adorable pumpkin!

Poor Zander had to wear the Frankenstein costume. (It was on clearance from Petsmart). He looks miserable yet adorable too.

This year the budget is pretty tight so I don't think we will be able to get any costumes, but maybe we can find some on clearance...We'll see.