22 Weeks and the Final Countdown

Here's my baby bump at 22 weeks!




Not much as changed as far as the pregnancy goes. My headaches have decreased, sleep is getting better, I haven't had any bouts of morning sickness and I'm starting to feel baby girl move more and more! Our living room is jam packed with boxes of baby stuff as we picked up her nursery furniture this weekend. I can't wait to move and set it all up!

And onto the deployment! We are in the home stretch. Thank god. I have never been so ready for the hubs to come home. I have my to do list all written and plan on getting a lot done this weekend

My list is as follows
1. Wax- very important as a pregnant belly has decreased my shaving abilities.

2. Nails- Im def getting a pedicure and still debating if I'm going to get tips put on. There not a necessity but they sure make me feel pretty

3. Transportation briefing- my husband told me all along that when it came time to move all he had to do was head to the transportation office and sign us up! WRONG! Good thing I talked to one of my good friends who happens to be the captains wife and frg leader. I have to attend a briefing, sign the hubs in, register us on some online site, schedule a counseling session and then we get a move date. I've heard counseling sessions take three weeks to get which is cutting things close since we plan on moving the first week of May. So tomm I go for the briefing.
Also how many have you did a partial dity move compared to a full. I know on the full you can make money but by the time we move I'll be 27 weeks pregnant and useless in regards to lifting things. Any advice would be helpful

4. Cleaning- I plan on deep cleaning the house this weekend. I tool apart out vacuum and washed out all the pieces, I plan on cleaning out the fridge and giving the rest of our house a massive cleaning

5. Spray tan- I have a couple of sessions left from a package I purchased and plan on going this weekend for my final session. That way I'll be nice and tan for the hubs

Hopefully these things will keep m'e busy till the hubs comes home. I'm so ready to hear my phone ring and to get news I can go pick up my husband. But in reality who knows when exactly that will be!


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The Good Old Days

I don't know if my pregnancy hormones are going crazy or if dads visit just put me over the edge but I've been hit with a bad case of nostalgia lately. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that little girl will be here soon and theres so many things that I can't wait to do with her as a family that I can't help but long for the days when I was a kid

Growing up my family was very family orientated.While both my parents worked good jobs, money was always spent on us rather than on them. They gave up fancy cars, clothes and remodeling their house to send my brother and I to both private grade schools and high schools and instead saved their money for family vacations that we tool each year. They have been married 32 years and I can't honestly say that they've never taken a trip or vacation without my brother and I. Now their trips consist of visiting the hubs and I in Nc.

When I decided to go down to Florida and look at houses my dad immediately offered to come help, taking vacation days to come visit me and accompany m'e on my way to Florida. It was so nice to spend time with my dad. I've always been daddy's little girl but haven't really spent any time with him without the hubs or any other family members so this was really nice to have our own time together. I think it was this trip down that I was struck with how awesome my parents are, how much I am grateful and appreciate all their love and support and how I can only hope that I can be the type of parents that they were

It makes me sad to know that babygirl won't have her grandparents close by because she is so loved and spoiled by them already. And while taking a trip down memory lane with dad, thinking about all the trips we took, being taught how to fish and ride a bike and so forth I can't wait to show and teach baby girl all of those things! And all the while be grateful I have amazing parents who did all those things for me and continue to help and support the hubs and I out


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Ask Me Anything

Things have been crazy here at our household. In short we received our PCS orders and will be moving in 30-40 days give our take. I just got back from a trip to our future home and am waiting on news about a house. So lot's going on. With that said I thought now would be the perfect time to hold another Ask Me Anything.

I have some new follower's and thought now would be the perfect time to hold another Q & A. So go ahead, ask away. No holds barred, ask me anything. I look forward to answering your questions!!

Silence

I am heading to Florida today and forgot to set up my post with the button for the bloggers day of silence for Japan

So please take time out and pray for all those in Japan.


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20 Weeks!

How far along: 20 ! Halfway there

Total weight gain: 5 pounds now that my appetite has hit with full force

Size and growth of the baby: Info from Babycenter.com

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)

He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

Sex: A Little princess

Maternity clothes: Some pants and tops. I can still squeeze by wearing my regular clothes but that's getting more difficult each day

Sleep: Sleeping a lot better. I'm so tired all the time

Best moment(s) of the week: Reaching 20 weeks. Halfway to meeting our little girl

Movement: Lots of flutter's mostly at night.

Food cravings/aversions: I crave steak! Though baby loves cereal, bagels, poptarts and mac and cheese. Chicken is starting to make me sick

Morning sickness: None anymore

Symptoms: Hormone headaches, dizziness, fatigue

Labor signs:Thankfully none

Belly button in or out: In

What I miss: Having the husband home to watch my belly grow!

What I'm looking forward to: Moving and setting up the nursery. I ordered her bedding and bought some decorations for her room. I have my baby showers in a few weeks, a little early but with the move coming up we had to work around that. I also registered for birthing classes starting April 5th

I probably should start reading some of the baby books I spent a fortune on! I need to know what to expect

Oh and I heard of this company, Baby Be Mine. They make cute maternity hospital gowns that have snaps which allow for easy access for breastfeeding and medical exams yet are more comfortable and provide more coverage for us moms to be. I'm debating ordering one but don't know it it's really necessary. Has anyone used them or heard of them. Have any of you bought your own gown into the hospital during labor?

My thoughs and prayers

Today my thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Especially my bloggy friends and fellow military friends who are in Hawaii, Guam and Japan. The area my husband is in is also under a tsunami warning so I'm trying to stay as calm as possible today.

So please I ask that you all say a prayer for all those who just experienced the earthquake and those who are in the warning areas.




Today

Better safe than sorry

Thanks everyone for your comments on my last post. I was very interested to see what y'all had to say and am glad we all shared the same views! I def feel that drinking and tanning are things you can give up and avoid but if done can cause harm to the baby and no way do I intentionally want to harm little love bug. So my treat to myself will still be the occasional soda!

Anyway yesterday I had a little scare. I was working at a kids house when I went to the bathroom. I looked down after wiping and saw some blood on the tp. Sorry for the tmi but I then checked my underwear and urine stream and saw no other signs of blood. Still I was scared. I had been cramping all day and thoughts ran through my head of a uti, preterm labor and placenta previa. I know spotting can be common during pregnancy but I had never had any. I was scared

So I called my obs office and got connected to the advice nurse. Well she doesn't answer the phone between 11-1 an it was 12:30. So I called mom who is a nurse and asked her what to do. She has a history of preterm labor, both my brother and I were preemies and she said to go to the er. I immediately started crying and shaking. I walked to my car and started driving to post. I tried calling my
On and got patched through directly to their office and asked for any appointments that day. Apparently only the advice nurse can make same day appointments so I had to wait to call her. Finally as I pulled onto post I got ahold of the advice nurse. She told me to go to the er. So off I went.

The nurse who triaged me did the Doppler monitor right away so I could hear babys precious heartbeat. I immediately felt better. I was sent back to the waiting room before getting called back. Now I've never had a major hospital stay, nor broken a bone and spent any time in the er. So when they hooked me up to a heart monitor and blood pressure machine I was scared. They asked if I had anyone to call which terrified me even more. I said my husband was deployed so no. Then they left me to wait for the dr. I waited an waited. Everytime I saw shoes heading towards my curtain my heart rate spiked! I also realized that if I moved the arm attached to the pulse monitor my heart patterns went all over the place so like a 5 year old I entertained myself by turning and twirling my arm and watching my heart go all over the place

Finally i was seen. The dr reviewed all my precious ultrasounds, ordered new ones and even did one more himself. No signs of placenta previa and the ultrasound showed I have a jumping bean inside me. The physical exam concluded no signs of preterm labor and the urinalysis came back perfect. So I was released! Baby is fine thank god!

As many of you know Drs terrify me. The smell of hospitals alone make me anxious and seeing an medical personnel makes my heart race. So I was very proud of myself for staying calm, going alone and handling it all by myself. That being said the husband can come home
Any day now!

I also think that while the dr says that it was probably spotting or my uterus stretching that caused the slight blood that God and my body is telling me to take it easy and to relax more. I've been pushing myself to much and stressing out over work and things I can't control. I was going to put in my notice for April 14 but will be putting it in for the 1st. I need to start relaxing and taking better care of baby and I. But above all I am beyond grateful and thankful that baby is all right.


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Pregnancy Do's and Dont's

It seems like each book I read or Dr I encounter has various opinions regarding what to avoid during pregnancy. Add to that opinions of pregnant friends and it seems like everyone is full of different advice. So I decided to write out a list of pregnancy Dont's and see what y'all have been told or what your thoughts are on the topic!

1. Drinking- obviously a big don't is drinking, although I have friends who say their dr's say it's ok to have a glass of wine here or there. One friend had one ever night during her pregnancy, as approved by her Dr. Another was told a weekly glass of wine once she hit 30 weeks was fine, he actually recommended it. So what do y'all think. I have stayed away from all alcoholic beverages though on my bday I had a baby sip of wine. It just makes me nervous to even consider a glass of wine!

Tanning- In some of my pregnancy books tanning is a don't. One says spray tanning is ok which I have done but as far as regular tanning in a bed I think it's a don't. Again I do have friends that tanned throughout their pregnancies. I do miss being tan but if tanning is bad for us, surely Its bad for the baby

Hair dying- I have gotten my hair dyed. What are yalls thoughts on this. I read to avoid perms but other than that coloring your hair is safe.

Fish- every book or website differs on the amount of fish, or what fish is safe to consume. I will have an occasional fish sandwich from mcdonalds or make fish sticks at home but when going out to eat I avoid salmon and most fish products

Pedicures- I love getting pedicures and plan on getting one before the hubs comes home. However I've read that the massage on your feet can stimulate labor? Is that fact or fiction?

Caffeine- I have stayed away from all caffeine until I hit 12 weeks. However I find that caffeine helps my migraines which I get quite frequently and have started having one soda when a migraine hits. My dr did say caffeine was ok as long as it's limited!

Makeup products- some people say you have to be careful of what products you use as they can enter the bloodstream. I think that's a little extreme but then again I don't know. I do know however that pregnancy has brought about a pasty face with red blotches and no makeup seems to cover this. I though of switching to bare minerals but don't want to spend a fortune on makeup. Any drugstore brands that y'all like?

That's all for now. I can't wait to hear what y'all think about these topics




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Sunshine after the rain

I've always prided myself on being self sufficient and independent. I worked hard on getting my degree and liked working and earning a paycheck. I never wanted to be that girl who relied on her husbands job and money.

Looks like I will be that girl soon enough however. I mentioned last week that work cut down my hours, finding new tutors for my younger kiddos saying that since I'm pregnant and all I don't have the energy for the young ones. Ok understandable. Although it cut my work week down by 6 hours I didn't complain. Then last night at 830 to be exact I get a call from one of my supervisiors stating that tomorrow would be my last day with a client, again due to being pregnant and that since I'd be going on maternity leave soon she wanted to get someone on the program now. Again I said I understood, since at the end of the day the kids are most important but I still feel like my supervisor handled this in a very unprofessional manner. Now I'm down to less than 20 hours a week.

All last night I was upset and frustrated. I was worried about not saving enough money before moving, stressed about having to put my notice in and just anxious about everything. Never mind the fact my blood pressure was sky high which the dr told me to be careful about

So this morning I typed up my resignation. Although I only need to give two weeks and people say less since they are cutting my hours, I am putting in 30 days notice. Hopefully I will be able to work these last 30 days but that's not up to me

So being stressed and worried about all that I decided to focus on the positives. Since I'm privately employed I don't get off holidays or vacation pay. Any time off is unpaid. So usually I work on the holidays and only take vacation when necessary. This means that while the hubs is off during these times I'm at work. I know some people don't understand but when you spend months of the year away from your spouse due to training and deployments, any time together is precious

One of my favorite times with the hubs was the first two weeks after I moved down to Nc. I was able to clean, run errands and what not throughout the day before making a nice dinner that was ready when the hubs got home. I know this may sound 1950ish but I loved it. Now I don't get home until 630/7ish, dinner is something thrown in the crock pot and by the time we are done eating it's 8 and I go to bed by 10. That's two hours out of the day spent together. And weekends are reserved for errands, and cleaning and finishing up things we didnt do during the week due to work

Now with lovebug on the way I'm excited to be unstressed for a few months before the baby comes, have unlimited time with the hubs before the two of us becomes three and endless hours of time to get the nursery ready, get move and unpacked and then once babygirl is here, all the time in the world to spend with her.

I'm also excited to have some me time. My work schedule is so crazy I'm always running around and never taking the time to relax. Now I'll have more free time to workout, play with and walk the dogs and lay around and catch up on my stack of unread books. Namely baby books I should probably start reading

I def won't be unemployed forever but for now I'm looking forward to this new change. I would like to have a part time job once we move to Florida but who is going to hire a 7 month pregnant girl!

So I'm over crying and worrying and onto being excited about the new phase in my life!


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Baby things

Since finding out we are having a girl I have been obsessed with shopping. I've only bought a few things but spend hours online looking up baby girl outfits and headbands. Especially on etsy, I'm addicted to etsy.

One of the little girls in my clients class always comes to school wearing adorable head bands in her hair. Today she had on a tutu and matching headband. Her teacher told me her mom makes everything! I so need to learn seeing as I'm obsessed with headbands and tutus for our little lovebug.

Anyway out there know how to make baby headbands? Please teach me!!

And another question. What is everyones thoughts on baby bumpers? I've heard to not put them in the crib, and have other friends who do. What are your thoughts!

Happy Friday everyone. One more month give or take of this deployment to go!
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18 Weeks and Dr Update

My older brother was born with congenital heart defects. When I mentioned this to the first dr I saw she didn't see any reason for concern. However at my 16 week appointment I was referred to a maternal fetal specialist. Today was my appointment with that specialist. All week I had been on edge, I woke up every day with a pit of anxiety and was terrified for today's appointment. I prayed so hard that baby girl would be ok. Good news is that she is!!! The specialist gave me the results of the genetic testing we had done and baby is very low risk. The ultrasound today focused on her heart and brain and everything is looking as they should. The dr says he will not be considering me as high risk, nor referring me out to a specialist. That as long as my blood pressure continues to stay regular baby and I are good to go. I feel so relieved. Just knowing that something could be wrong with my baby terrified me. As a treat to baby girl and myself I went home and immediately ordered her bedding. I know I know I'm only 18 weeks. But the bedding is being custom made and takes 6 weeks to be delivered. I want the bedding before we move to Florida so once down there we can paint and set up the nursery. So bedding is ordered and should be here right before we move. I can't wait!!

I am so beyond thankful to God that he has looked after baby girl and I so much.She truly is a miracle and the hubs and I couldn't be more blessed

In other news, I think after we move and baby girl is born I will go back to school to be an ultrasound tech. I know it's different from what I'm doing now, but actually my first major in college was sonograph. About a year and a half into the program it was discontinued and moved to a different school. One that was two hours away. So I changed my major. Now sonography is a 2 year degree and I think I'm going to go for it. We shall see what the hubby says hehe!!

Thanks for everyone's well wishes and prayers. Oh and the votes for the nursery bedding. We went for choice number 1!

Learning to be...Frugal

You can ask anyone, especially my parent's. Frugal I am not! Over the years I have gotten better. In my single days my favorite stores to shop at were Express, Macy's Nordstrom's etc. Shoes were another favorite purchase of mine, Steve Madden, Nine West and Kenzie brand were some of my favorites to name a few. However after getting married I have found a new appreciation for target, kohls and forever 21. And I def have curbed my spending a lot but could probably tighten things a bit more

Since I have one more month of work I'm getting a little anxious about being down to one income. I have no problem giving up cable, internet, trading in my iphone for a cheapo phone,and shopping for baby girl instead of myself, etc so we can have more money for the baby. But at the same time I think there is more I can do to cut down on spending and enable us to save more money.

I have a few friends who do the extreme couponing. These friends post their loots on facebook, 300 bucks worth of stuff for 3.00. What!! How is that possible? How do they do that? And can I learn? So do any of you coupon? Any favorite blogs or websites that give away coupons or are cheaper to buy stuff through. Fill me in..Please!!!

So much to do!

I have a crazy two months ahead. M's amazing captain put us on the early move list along with another family to move May 1st. The rest of the guys won't be reporting to our new duty station until June but since baby is due in July and this other couples baby is due in June we are authorized to move early. This means I have two months to find us a place to live!

And where are we moving you all are asking! We are moving to Florida! My favorite place in the whole world. We even found a house, are approved for a mortgage and are hoping things work out. My amazing dad is coming to NC hopefully in two weeks so we can drive down to Florida and check out the house along with some other ones. I am so excited and hoping things work out. That in two months we will be homeowners.

Although I must admit when the hubs informed me we'd have official orders in two days I cried. NC was our first duty station together, where we started our married lives together. I know Florida marks another chapter in our lives with a new baby and hopefully new house but still. My two closest friends, while in the same unit are choosing to live here in Nc until their husbands get out so they won't be joining me on the move. I have grown close to a few wives on M's team which is great so I know I wont totally not know anyone but still I'll be a little sad to leave NC.

Good thing I started packing things up this weekend. Moving so soon also means I'll only have one more month as an employed wifey. So I better order baby girls bedding now and strt saving as much as possible since in a month we will be a one income family!
So much to do and plan ahead

In baby news I mentioned a few posts ago that I had an older
Brother who was born with and died from congenital heart defects. Thursday I meet with the maternal fetal specialist for a very in depth ultrasound to look at baby girls heart. I wasn't so anxious at first but this week I wake up every day nervous for Thursday to arrive and be over with. So keep your fingers crossed that lovebugs heart is developing normally!




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