Back to life ...

Back to reality!

After 16 wonderful days off work, I'm back to the grind. Getting up at 6:15 a.m. (where I had grown accustomed to sleeping in/going back to bed until 9 or so) wasn't the hard part, getting dressed was! Thankfully it's a casual day at the office where we are here but closed to the public, so I get to wear jeans.

It's actually been a good day so far. We had a lunch meeting so it was catered, which was a great time to catch up.

Honestly, I'm very happy to be getting back to a routine of sorts. I think even Cooper was - he got out of bed and walked into the kitchen about 6:45 - something he never did over break, when I was still up getting the hubs off to work.

Of course it helps that I'm taking off next Monday-Tuesday to go to Nashville with the hubs, and then we are off Martin Luther King Jr. Day. No scheduled time off in February (but we typically get at least one snow day!) then our spring break is coming up in March. That's the great thing about working in higher education - you pretty much never go more than six weeks without a break, so there's always something to look forward to.

Of course, my eye is on the prize for my extra-long summer break, AKA maternity leave.

Now if I can just get my office to heat up! The system in my hallway has serious problems, in my opinion (it won't get warm, which is hard for this cold-natured gal!) --- it was 63 when I got here this morning. it's now 68 so slightly better, but it keeps kicking off, etc. Ugh. No bueno, especially with an extreme cold front coming through this week.

Happy week!


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Baby R2: 16-18 weeks

As I mentioned in my last post, life has been absolutely insane, which means these posts have taken a backseat. {Sorry, R2 ... life will probably just be like that.} Since it's been pretty basic I'm just combining the past three weeks into one post. 

How far along: Sixteen-eighteen weeks!

How big is the baby: 

Sixteen weeks: Size of an avocado ... about 4.5 inches long and 3.5 ounces. Legs are more developed and ears close to their final position.

Seventeen weeks: Weighs about 5 ounces, the size of a turnip, and about 5 inches long. Skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone and the umbilical cord is growing stronger and thicker. Baby can move joins and sweat glands are starting to form. 

Eighteen weeks: Baby is about the size of a bell pepper - 5.5 inches from head to rump and weighs about 7 ounces. Busy flexing arms and legs. Blood vessels are visible through the thin skin, and a protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around nerves. If baby is a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If a boy, his genitals are noticeable now. 
Weight gain/loss: Up 9 pounds. Yikes. The doctors office says this is great, but that's six lbs. in three weeks AND I still didn't have a positive gain at this point in my pregnancy with Coop. I intend to get rid of most of the crap holiday food around the house and back on track for healthier eating this week, and have a prenatal workout DVD ordered.

Sleep: No complaints. Began using the body pillow last week and that helped. Hubby and I also rearranged our bedroom over the weekend and flipped the mattress, which was a big help as well. 

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: I really can't think of anything specific. I like all food.

Gender: Still thinking girl. We refer to her as "Baby Margaret." Total steal from Daniel Tiger, and I also love that it annoys people who seem to think that's the worst name ever. LOL. But we are still planning to hold out until birth to know for sure.

Movement: Still feeling the butterflies/crampy-type sensations. I think I'm beginning to feel some more definite moves.

Worries: Nothing comes to mind! Last update I thought I was huge, but now comparing to my last pregnancy it seems the belly is basically the same.

The belly: Still rounding out. Getting too big for most of my "normal" clothes but still don't have enough of a gut to hold up maternity clothes. I've been wearing a size up (I kept quite a few of those clothes after I lost weight) and it's been about perfect.

--- I accidentally skipped my 16 week photo, so just 17 & 18 weeks below.

What I'm Loving: That it is beginning to look like more of a baby.

Symptoms: Exhaustion. Acne. Heartburn. Headaches. 

Milestones: Nothing specific. 

What's different this time: Being pregnant over the holidays/having a bigger weight gain

What I'm looking forward to: I've been looking forward to Christmas break of course. 

Best moment of the week(s): Being off work for 2 weeks! I've been able to catch up on sleep and other tasks in life, as well as get some time to relax. 

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Life lately

Whew. Life has just been absolutely insane for the past month or so. In fact, this post has been sitting in my drafts for more than 2 weeks. Unbelievably, I've been off work since last Monday and life has just been absolutely insane with the time off. So now a little update, as promised, on where life is. 

• When I started my job in July 2011, the goal was to raise money and get a new building built. The second week of December, I moved into the new building. So surreal. And still raising money :) I'm loving my new office and can't wait to have it "done."

• Once I think I'm starting to get caught up, I get slammed again. Case in point - I still haven't written Cooper's 3 year update. His birthday was 11.23. Ouch. So I don't feel like a super horrible mom I'll probably post date it but still.
• I had grand plans of doing some catch up a few weeks ago, but my dad had a tonsillectomy, among other procedures with the ENT, on Wednesday of last week. He was supposed to be home around 3 p.m. and ended up in the hospital until Friday. Essentially the stitches struck a vessel and had to be redone twice. No good. So my Wednesday and Thursday were spent in text message convos with the family, and evenings at the hospital, as I'm the only kid close by.
• I definitely scaled back on my holiday baking this year, and it's OK. I did a couple batches of oreo balls and some covered pretzels. My nieces came one day last week and we did a big batch of sugar cookies, which we plan to make an annual tradition. 

• Remember how I talked about being a mom failure? Well of the 10 days I have off work for Christmas break, my babysitter is closed 7 of them. Which I boil down to, essentially, a three day break. Thankfully I've been able to have a good time spent with Coop as well as get some work accomplished around the house. In fact, I'm about to pick back up on that soon! I've got a big brother room to prepare.

• I'm also extremely behind with my pregnancy updates and will probably just combine the last three weeks into one post. I had a check-up yesterday and told them I basically feel like I'm just cruising along, as I'm now 18 weeks ... which is basically how it usually goes at this point. Hard to believe I'm almost halfway there. 
• Happy New Year!

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Our 2014 Christmas Card

Now that I think they have all been received in the mail, I'm ready to show off our 2014 Christmas Card. {Yes, I am behind on everything this year. Expect more of an explanation in a "Life Lately" post coming soon.}

I used Treat and was again so impressed by the efficiency and quality of the cards. We had such a great family photo session earlier this year so I definitely wanted to show those off and our cards were perfect for that!

I considered including Baby R2 on the "With Love" line, but I get weird about things like that so just included the three of us.

Treat also has an option to include your return address, so I took advantage of that. In the future, I should probably just elect to input all the addresses and have Treat mail for me, but right now, I still prefer to at least hand-write the addresses when I can.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. Pretty sure it may just go up in a frame on the gallery wall.

Special thanks to Treat.com for providing a credit toward my purchase! However, I'm totally in love with these products and the ability to design a personal card from my jammies!

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Baby R2: 15 weeks!

Caught up! Well, OK, I'm a few days behind (Tuesday is my change day again this pregnancy) but from here on out it should be pretty current.

How far along: Fifteen weeks.

How big is the baby: Baby R2 is the size of an apple. He/she now measures roughly 4 inches crown to rump and weighs in at approximately 2.5 ounces. Legs are growing longer than arms now, and he/she can move all those tiny joints and limbs. Eyelids are still fused shut, but he/she can sense light and would likely move away from the beam if I were to shine a flashlight at my tummy.

Weight gain/loss: Up 3 lbs. I've got to stop all the snacking/laziness!

Sleep: Getting better. I still have nights that I wake up and it takes forever to go back to sleep, but I've been getting some really solid nights as well, which is great.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: I HAD to get bagels for my breakfasts the other day and they are really good. I did one of the Greek yogurt-type cream cheese spreads and it's absolutely delicious. Nothing else comes to mind. I've eaten out way too much in the past week and have to get that in check.

Gender: Still thinking girl. Already getting comments of "I hope you'll get your girl." Which annoys me, I would be just as thrilled (and complete) with another boy!

Movement: Still feeling the butterflies/crampy-type sensations.

Worries: That I'm going to be as big as a boat!

The belly: Looking more and more like a baby and less like a beer gut. LOL. I call this the "muffin top" stage of pregnancy - where I am too big for a lot of my regular clothes, but maternity clothes are too big. So I'm pulling out some of the clothes I got too small for and that's working well right now.

 

 

What I'm Loving: That it is beginning to look like more of a baby.

Symptoms: Exhaustion. Acne. Heartburn.

Milestones: Another baby doctor appointment. Everything looks good. The scale was WAY off, but I was wearing jeans and boots, so I'm not going to stress over it (It showed like a 6 lb. gain and I'm only up 3)

What's different this time: Just that I'm a lot bigger, I think

What I'm looking forward to: Christmas break! LOL I need some time to sit and relax.

Best moment of the week: Decorating the house for Christmas. Cooper loves it, which is both a blessing and a curse!

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Baby R2: 14 Weeks!

Written 12.2.14

How far along: Fourteen weeks. Officially in the second trimester.

How big is the baby: Size of a lemon! Baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee and possibly suck his/her thumb. Baby can grasp and is beginning to stretch Measures about 3.5 inches from head to bottom and weighs about 1.5 ounces.

Weight gain/loss: Up 2 lbs. Which would likely be the case even if I weren't perggo with all the Thanksgiving food!

Sleep: Comes and goes. I wake up almost every night around 3-4 a.m. needing to pee and with a dry mouth, and it takes awhile to get back to sleep. I've been staying up until 10 a few nights lately, so that's definitely a plus.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: Nothing specific right now. My SIL made a sweet potato dish topped with brown sugar and walnuts last week and I was really loving it so she let me keep the leftovers. It's much easier to tell you what doesn't sound good than what I want.

Gender: We'll find out when he/she is born (much to the dismay of 90 percent of the people we know.) Right now I'm leaning toward girl.

Movement: More "pressure" than actually movement I would say.

Worries: Nothing.

The belly: Definitely beginning to show. I should do like a 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. comparison shot some day! And you could definitely see my little turkey belly on Thanksgiving!

 

 

What I'm Loving: Sharing the news! We posted on FB and IG on Thursday, and I love all the sweet comments and love Baby R2 is already getting.

Symptoms: Exhaustion. Acne. Heartburn. I got a horrible cold sore on my chin this week (probably more due to the stress of the holidays than the baby) but it still stinks.

Milestones: Feeling the baby move and spreading the news!

What's different this time: I'm starting to show, and don't think it was this obvious until about 17-18 weeks last time.

What I'm looking forward to: I have a dr. apt this week and can't wait to hear the little heartbeat! We are planning to take C with us so maybe that will help make being a big brother more real for him?  

Best moment of the week: The holiday. I got to spend so much time with family friends and had all that food available ... basically a pregnant woman's dream, right?

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Baby R2: 13 Weeks!

Written 11.25.14

How far along: Thirteen weeks. Finishing up the trimester, depending on what books you believe (I tend to feel "safe" at 13 weeks, but prefer to consider 14 weeks as second trimester only because of the mental part of it!)

How big is the baby: Baby is the length of a pea pod - about 3 inches long - and weighs nearly an ounce. Fingerprints have formed on the tiny fingertips, and veins and organs are clearly visible through his/her still-thin skin. If a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries!

Weight gain/loss: Up 1 lb. Considering the amount of fast food, pizza and desserts I had over the weekend AND a potluck at work yesterday, I'm surprised it wasn't worse. I'm not going to complain about 1 lb. of weight loss overall being 13 weeks pregnant.

Sleep: Comes and goes. I wake up almost every night around 3-4 a.m. needing to pee and with a dry mouth, and it takes awhile to get back to sleep. I've been staying up until 10 a few nights lately, so that's definitely a plus.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: I'm not really liking bacon (too salty?) but love sausage. The other day I thought of the meal my parents always used to make for my birthday (pork tenderloin with a tomato gravy) and I want it NOW! Loving veggies and anything carb-laden.

Gender: We'll find out when he/she is born (much to the dismay of 90 percent of the people we know.) Right now I'm leaning toward girl.

Movement: Actually not much in the past week, but I'm not really concerned at all.

Worries: Nothing.

The belly: Definitely beginning to show.  

 

What I'm Loving: Sharing the news!

Symptoms: Exhaustion. Acne. Heartburn (which sometimes wakes/keeps me up at night!)

Milestones: Feeling the baby move and spreading the news!

What's different this time: Nothing specific comes to mind!

What I'm looking forward to: Thanksgiving.

Best moment of the week: Celebrating Cooper's birthday and becoming a mom. It's still so crazy to think that I'm going to have two!

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