Week 13 in Review!

Since all the fun, quirky, and weird stories seem to warrent their own post... I've decided to start making the "week in review" posts - quick recaps of the week...and save the stories for their own special place. :)

How far along? 13 Weeks
Total weight gain/loss: ...well....it depends...(reference "Queen of Throne" post, if you dare), But I'd say 5 lbs total since finding out in December!
Maternity clothes? Just that BeBand...which is still awesome
Stretch marks? Nope! (But that reminds me, I keep forgetting to buy Vitamin E oil!) And... I learned that Vaseline is a great moisturizer, and for my crazy dry skin, it has been a lifesaver...
Sleep: I love sleep, I love naps. I love not waking up every hour to pee... I'm not so much a fan of the charley horses I've been getting. Oh and feeling totally congested every morning - I'm trying to convince B that we need a humidifier, if it continues, maybe I'll win! (or borrow one).
Best moment this week: Realizing the baby has fingerprints! I know it's weird, but fingerprints are something that absolutely fascinate me! I've actually pondered about them on more than one occasion...think about it, everyone who has ever walked the earth, has a unique fingerprint...think about it...that's amazing.
Have you told family and friends: Yes...well...still need to tell the work folks!
Miss Anything? Tuna fish sandwiches. Yummm
Movement: Not yet... Hopefully SOON!
Food cravings: mmm, chicken nuggets.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Meat/Chicken...but not mcnuggets, probably because it isn't real meat...
Have you started to show yet: I think I've got my baby cushion (aka, layer of protection) - you know, because I'm clumsy. I'd say it's starting to round out a bit and look more like a bump than a cushion.
Gender prediction: Ask me a month ago, I would have said BOY...now I don't know... been getting the "girl" vibe lately!
Labor Signs: Man, I hope not...not that I would even know..but no.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!
Looking forward to: Everything!

Queen of the Throne!

**DISCLAIMER** This may be T.M.I. for you....so read at your own risk - and if you do, no judgement! ....Last chance to exit out and go check your Facebook or something.... ok, I warned you.

I think "Beauty of Pregnancy" is kind of a joke. I mean, the "pregnancy glow" is just greasy, oily skin, right? Well, maybe for me it is. And as I've mentioned before, the bloating (and all associated bodily reactions that go with) - well I'm not sure there's anyone out there that would find that beautiful. But, on that subject, I have to share... (ok, one LAST chance)...

....really....Ok then, brave soul, read on...

I've heard it's pretty common in pregnancy to be "irregular" - it might be a new experience for some who have always had their routine, but for me, this is not new news. But, it has gotten worse! Oh, my, goodness. In the last 2 weeks, I have (and I'm laughing out loud, because I can't believe I'm sharing this)...broken our toilet twice. ...I literally think it builds up to the point it just gets ridiculous, really. It reminds me of back in high school when one of our friends broke another friend's toilet, and out of fear of embarassment (and inability to find a plunger I'm guessing) - snuck outside, found a stick, and proceeded to fix the problem. We still joke and laugh about it! Anyway, I've now been there! And, I haven't been able to find our plunger, where the heck did it go?? (and there's no sticks around, I checked)...the first time, the problem self corrected, phew!

But, well, this week, I wasn't so lucky. I went to the store, and looked for a plunger. I think a normal person would be kind of embarassed to be carrying one around, right? It's kind of like wearing a huge sign that says, "yeah, I just flooded my toilet, whoops..." ---I kind of wanted to hold it like a King's septor, with pride. Like, "Finally! That's right, finally, I did it!" So I did (not hold it like a septor) but carried it with a little bit of pride, and no embarrasement. (well maybe a little) because I don't think I'm to the point where I look pregnant, and therefore, don't get those looks of understanding, so I'm sure people looked at me thinking in their minds that first sign...oh well!

Got home, fixed the problem. I felt so accomplished. I just hope this whole thing becomes a little more regular, because I don't think my husband wants me being Queen of the Throne anymore - I don't think he's quite as proud of my ability to break toilets.

Call Me Officer...

Well, maybe not yet... but... in like 2 weeks I start the Citizen's Academy, which, I'm probably more excited for than the average citizen. Like, tooo excited... like, I got the schedule for the next 12 weeks and I was giddy.

It's something that I've wanted to do for about 3 years now - a friend went through the program before and recommended it, so I've been trying to fit it in my schedule since then. Well this is the first year I've had some free time! (I'm a little worried that having this class from 6:30-9:30 on Wednesday nights is going to give me flashbacks of falling asleep in class and doing the whole infamous head nod - "noimnotsleeping...itwasjustatwitchinmyneck!" reaction...not out of boredom, but because I've made a habit the last few months of crashing about 9pm....and without coffee/rockstars...well, this may be a challenge. But I'm up for trying!!

Anyway, what is the Citizen's Academy you ask? Well, I don't know yet. I just know it looks cool!

For example - here's an idea of some of the awesome things I get to learn/see:
*Canine Unit Presentation
*Crime Scene Forensics
* Tour of the County Jail
*Lethal Weapon demonstration / Taser demonstration --(I can only think about the scene in Hangover, LOL) this is going to be crazy!
*Medical Examiner's Office
*Drug Task Force

...and a bunch of other cool stuff - you want to do in now don't you??

My husband thinks I'm a dork for being "this" excited - and then got me even more excited when he told me (jokingly? I don't know) - that I could become a Deputy Sheriff, or maybe it was make citizen's arrests...well either way, I graduate from the program in May - so I'm sure I'll be certified to do something...maybe I'll get one of those gold Sheriff stickers to wear! Haha

"Pregnancy Brain" - is it real?

So, my best friend swears the next few months are going to drive her insane...so....let me start from the beginning...

In the past, I've always kept a really busy schedule, and sometimes...I have so much on my plate, I get distracted easily, and sometimes, I forget things. Like, I'll have some great exciting news I can't wait to share, only to find out with the look on her face, that, oh...duh, SHE was the one whole told me the news in the first place, I just forgot!

Or...for example, we went out to dinner a few weeks ago with some friends and I had a n/a pina colada with strawberry - I asked her if she wanted to try it, and she looked at me, "you JUST asked me that!" ---I thought about it, nah...I'm pretty sure I hadn't...and then she recalled the entire conversation we'd had 3 minutes ago. THAT, I could blame on "pregnancy brain" at least...I don't really have an excuse for the other million times...


Well anyway, today we were discussing another friend's upcoming bridal shower, one thing lead to another, and after a miscommunication where she thought I forgot everything again (which I hadn't, for once!!) - but that's beside the point - it lead me to tell her about one of my legitimate "forgetful" moments this weekend...she told me I HAD to share it...


So, I was on my way to Vegas this weekend, and I'd packed a little envelope of fun money to bring with me (you know, gambling, shopping, etc - so I wouldn't be tempted to spend anymore!) ---well my sister and I were on the strip, decided we wanted to play the slots (more for the photo op) - but regardless, I went to my purse, looked for my envelope of cash...no where. Huh, I thought, maybe I dumped it in my luggage. Oh well, for once, my sister had more cash than me, so I bummed some off her!


We got back home, and I looked through my bags, and my clothes, and my purse ---no envelope! I thought back to when I left the airport on my flight out - I had gone to the little mart and purchased a water and some peachy-o's. I used cash! I never have or use cash, so I thought... I MUST have left that stupid envelope of cash on the counter! I was sure of it the more I thought about it, duh... blame it on the pregnancy brain!

So I decided to call the airport's Lost and Found - I described the transaction, and the envelope in detail (I remember because I had doodled on it) - they looked it up, nothing. Then they transferred me to Information - so I could get the contact information for the actual station I purchased my stuff at. Talked to them - they didn't recall seeing any envelope (in my head, I was thinking, yeah... I wouldn't "see" an envelope of cash either) -but it was worth a shot.


Anyway, the gal told me to contact the supervisor of all the stations and they could look into it further. Talked to the supervisor, really nice guy. He assured me that his staff was trained to turn anything in to Lost and Found - even cash - and that he'd look over the transactions that day and call me back regardless. And he did! He told me he didn't find anything, but I appreciated the call back (for those who know me, I'm a skeptic when it comes to customer service) - anyway, I came to the conclusion that my cash envelope was found by someone who needed it more than I did (I mean, I had full intentions of blowing it all anyway, right?) - glad to think it maybe found a better use. So, I summed up my loss as my "Random Act of Kindness" for the year and went on with my morning.


Well, when I came home on Tuesday, would you believe....on the kitchen counter was my doodled on, full of cash envelope?! Right there......the whole time, I realized. Whoops. Apparently I had totally forgotten to pack in at all in the first place! Talk about pregnancy brain! Wow, this one was a doozie. So, to make up for all the trouble I caused, and for thinking those thoughts about someone who'd take my cash!... I decided I better pay it forward and went to Starbucks and bought a coffee (which I thought I wanted, and didn't - what a waste!) - but I also paid for the car behind me in the drive thru. Maybe I made up for it a little? .......Now where was that notepad I needed....


PS - A little Starbucks trivia tidbit, I learned today....DID YOU KNOW...that the delicious, awesome Chonga Bagel stands for CHeddar, ONion, GArlic? CHONGA! It totally makes sense...and now I feel smarter, I hope you do too.

Maternity - Win!

Oh, and I should mention, a little plug if you will…prior to my trip down, I finally broke down and mainly out of curiosity, purchased my first “maternity” item – the BE Band (at Target)… like a belly band. Best. Purchase. Ever. Seriously. It was a lifesaver – and talk about being comfortable!

Prior to finding out we were expecting, I’d been working out – I ran my first half marathon this summer – and I was toning down. I’d purchased new work pants and jeans with that extra little snug for motivation to fit comfortably in – and I was on my way! That being said, obviously, they’ve been a little snug lately (not even weight gain, maybe weight shifting, and that damn bloating!)– and I’d been really uncomfortable. Not wanting to go buy more pants/jeans – I’d been trying the whole rubber band / button hole trick – and it was working, but – instead, I’m so glad I invested in one of these bands. It’s so much better!

Week 12 - Part 2 and...Vegas!

Week 12 Baby Bump!

For quite some time now, my sisters and I have talked about doing a girl’s getaway and visiting my grandma in Vegas. We finally booked our tickets this fall and left this weekend for some fun, sun, and family. My older sister couldn’t make it – so it ended up being my younger sis, my Grandma and I. It was a great trip – we got to see parts of Vegas I wouldn’t seen on a normal trip – we visited Red Rock Canyon, Hoover Dam, and most importantly – spent some time catching up with my Grandma who I haven’t seen in years.

We spend a good half day at Red Rock Canyon (my sister described it as Disneyland for geologists, and I knew she was excited to go) - I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it too, it was absolutely beautiful! I could have spend 3 days there just looking and exploring and going on all the hikes and trails they had. It was fascinating to watch the rock climbers too!

I shared the news with my Grandma over breakfast at the Omelette House –she was thrilled. I was happy to share the news – especially since I told her we’d gotten some pictures taken on her birthday (which was the day of the ultrasound) – so it was a nice little present to share. During our trip it was so nice to hear some of the family stories and, best part? She showed us how to make the best “noodle gravy” in the world (a Thanksgiving tradition, that I think may just become a monthly ritual – it’s THAT good).

My sister and I spent a day on the Strip and saw all that Vegas has to offer. As I've shared before, last time I went on a trip, I had a bunch of "horsehead" pictures I shared...my sister has a similar tradition - but with mid-jump pictures. At first, we probably looked ridiculous, because I could NOT get the timing down - so 20 shots in people were probably looking at us like we were loony with her continually jumping in the middle of the street! ...but! We got it figured out and this is probably my favorite one - it just screams "Rockstar!" doesn't it?

And probably my favorite picture of the whole trip:

Week 12 In Review! ...part 1

Well, we had another appointment this week! As instructed, I knew I was supposed to “go” before we went in for the appointment (something we have to do every time, so they can check sugar levels and proteins, etc) I went in to do my work, and dribble dribble…done. Uh oh, I think I got like 4 drops, surely not enough to count. Shoot. So I went out to the lobby and started chugging water. Our appointment ended up being pushed back about a half hour so I had plenty of time to drink like 2 bottles of water. The problem was, I didn’t need to go yet! And then we got called in… they weighed me and I know that extra 2-3 lbs on the scale was ALL WATER…had to be… ;)

Anyway, we got in, did the usual – my husband got to see the “fashion dress” for the first time – hahaha, and our Dr used (or tried to use) the Doppler thing to hear the heartbeat… tried some more, the pressure on the bladder – boy, I had to go now! …anyway, she kept trying, and there was no sound. She didn’t seem too worried, but said, well, guess that means we’ll go do an ultrasound. (I’m not going to lie, for a fraction of a second, I had a vision of seeing the ultrasound and thinking there’d be a floating fish on the top of my uterus) – It’s terrible, I know, but it was a second of panic, we couldn’t hear the heartbeat! She then reassured us, it could probably be because my full bladder was in the way—but that I had to wait a little longer to go now, because we were going to the ultrasound. (Writing this, I feel like I’m obsessed with talking about “going” – but really, it was like the ONLY thing on my mind!) Anyway – got the ultrasound – everything was perfect – baby was moving SO MUCH! It was crazy to see, amazing really. And it’s looking more and more like a real person.

So that was the exciting news of the week – oh and yes, I did finally get to go, what a relief!
In other pregnancy news… let’s recap. It was Valentine’s Day this week! The hubs was great, his dad is out of town visiting family, so he brought me over to her mom’s house and he and his sister’s boyfriend cooked all us ladies a delicious meal – steak, salmon, asparagus, mashed cauliflower. Dessert was strawberry cheesecake and chocolate mousse. I ate…asparagus. Ugh, so it’s true, I thought I’d be one of the lucky one’s who would laugh at the idea of meat aversion – I mean, I love a good steak – and salmon, yum…and chicken, I could eat it everyday…well I used to. Now, a bite in and I’m done. It was so disappointing! The asparagus was amazing….I ate a lot of it, thankfully. But yeah, I’ve tested my theory, and sad to say, I’m just not feeling it anymore. So sad. Oh, but my husband was awesome and on top of getting a bouquet of lilies at work (lilies trump roses every time!) - he also drove like 30 miles out to Cheesecake Factory to pick up two pieces of banana cheesecake (my favorite!!) – great little surprise!

For Valentine’s Day I thought it would be cute to send family a little Valentine’s Day card with our news – I love the photo booth pictures, so I decided to make my own – I saw a similar idea online (not sure where) but thought it’d be fun to recreate – so my hubby and I took the pics, I edited them and we printed out these little cards to send out. Happy Valentine’s Day!

**PS - I will consider this "part one" of my weekly recap - if I'm being honest - I can't seem to wrap my head around the week "end" as being Wednesday. In my head, it's Sunday. So, I keep forgetting half the week when I do my recap! ...And going down to visit my Grandma in Vegas is pretty much half of my Week 12...so, that will be Part 2. And that is where I'll add my Week 12 picture. And that is all.

Book Recommendation!

If you’re pregnant, trying, or know someone who is – you definitely have to read this book! It is hilarious. And accurate. And a quick easy read. I actually saw it years ago and bought it as a baby shower gift for a friend – I read the back cover and glanced over a few pages but didn’t read it. I should have. Then, another friend was pregnant so I bought another copy and gave it to her as a shower gift. Same thing, glanced over a few pages, but thought it’d be weird to read a pregnancy book when I wasn’t pregnant. I’ve been missing out! That same friend lent it back to me, and I started reading it this weekend. I love books that literally make you laugh out loud! It drives my husband nuts, but after cracking up about "the bread situation" I shared it with him, and I think he chuckled too.

...It may be due to the fact I had a similar experience the other night when we went out for our post Valentine's Day dinner - reservation at 7pm, we got seated at 7:30 practically - and I was about to take food off someone else's plate as we walked by if there wasn't any bread. Thankfully, as we were seated, the bread was there too, in all it's glory, (it may have had beams of light coming out...) - I wouldn't know because it was gone before we got our drink order placed. I'm told there was a second plate of bread that was brought out... I don't remember it. Haha.

Anyway, go get that book, it’s great!

Dreams…whoa.

So, I heard somewhere that you start to have some crazy dreams when you’re pregnant – and I will say, the other day, I had a weird one. Well, it wasn’t weird, it was really realistic and it freaked me out. I dreamed that I’d gone with a friend to a ball game with our baby (which was a girl!...interesting) – and then after the game we were home. I ran into my husband and asked him, “so where’s the baby?” ---he paused, looked at me, and said “are you serious?”…. “you took her with you to the game. Where’s the baby?!” Crap. I panicked, and rushed back to the stadium. I found someone and they told me, “you’re the one who left your baby? – she’s at the hospital – she went into Anaphylactic shock” – and then I work up freaking out. So wait, we had a baby girl, I was a forgetful mom who LEFT her kid at a stadium, AND she had a peanut allergy?! (in my dream it was peanuts, maybe it was because we were at a ball game…) – yikes! Apparently there was a lot on my mind. I tried to go back to bed, and started having the dream again, woke up and decided I needed to go to the bathroom anyway, clear my mind!

Week 11 in Review

Well, we had out appointment this week – we got to see our baby!! It was a surreal experience, I mean, to actually see and hear it moving and the heartbeat – pretty. cool. Originally we weren’t scheduled for the ultrasound this week but because they wanted to determine what the due date was, we got to have a sneak peak! Results: “Official” due date at this point is August 30th! Originally they’d estimated August 28th or 29th – so we were actually pretty close. (I’m secretly hoping for a Labor Day Weekend Baby – it just seems fitting doesn’t it?) – Plus, I’m pretty sure my child would thank me for having planned their birthday around a 3 day weekend – at least, I think it’d be cool!

Anyway, wow. What an experience, seeing and hearing, again…so amazing! Apparently Baby Vick had the hiccups so we could actually see the little belly bounce every couple seconds – really cute, and funny! Now, I will put a disclaimer out there…normally, hiccups drive me nuts! It’s one of those weird, unexplainable, pet peeves…hearing them over and over and over just strikes a nerve with me, and I can’t even help it. (Thankfully I learned this little trick when I was a kid on how to cure hiccups, every time. It doesn’t’ involve peanut butter or water or anything, just a little magic touch!) But anyway…. Seeing them, that was cute. ---here’s comes the hypocrisy! I know, I know…

Oh, we also have pretty much shared the news with almost everyone now – well.... my dad still doesn’t know! I want SO bad to tell him in person, but between our schedules, it hasn’t worked out. So, I may have made up a little fib and told him I needed a ride to the airport next weekend, since NO one would be available to take me. Lie. There’s like a million people I could have asked – and he’s 75 miles away. What a great dad, driving 75 miles to take me to the airport which is 20 minutes away. I actually feel kind of guilty, but at least he’s coming to town!

Let’s see…what else this week? Well, if I’m being completely honest, and I will be, I had a bit of a struggle this week with the whole picture thing. As you can see, I DID do the 10 week (it was a week late, shhh) and as you can see the 11 week – it was a lot tougher than I thought. My hubby took the first few pics, I looked at them, and WHOA! When did I plump up?! I mean, I haven’t gained any wait yet, a little pound up, pound down the next day, but nothing significant really. I’ve actually been eating really healthy, for the most part, and drinking tons of water – not coffee, not beer. What’s the deal?
I thought I felt much smaller than I looked and actually seeing those profile pics, un….flattering. It was a little shock to my system, kind of bummed me out a bit. For like the whole day. Then, reality set in, and being honest, I was looking at all the cute pregnancy pics people post online, and on pinterest, etc – and they are adorable. They are also all like 100lbs to start out with. I am not starting out at 100lbs, I don’t think I’ve been 100lbs since I was a freshman in high school. I’m 5’9” – that’s not realistic. I have a great best friend who, after reading my rant text, emailed me and told me to enjoy it and be proud, I have an excuse, and a damn good one, to not feel self conscious. So, I’m going to continue on my weekly photos, and I’m guessing, I’ll look back in like 6 months, and be like, whoa! I was so small then! :)

So the debut....here are the first 2 bump (slash, cushion in the belly, protective roll, gas bubble, you name it) pictures! ----and no, I didn't suddenly become SUPER tan... it was the lighting, week 11 was at night, and the flash I think made it come out different ---week 10 was first thing in the morning....anyway, clearly I need to work on some photo consistency! (and yes, Em, I did the "arm thing!" hahaha)

Week 10 In Review

We had our first appointment! It was a lot of questions, forms, etc. It was a morning appointment so I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to eat, or drink anything (except water) – so half way through our appointment my stomach was growling and turning… so embarrassing! –Now I know for next time, food is definitely ok, unless otherwise noted. Just in case, I’ve packed a few extra granola bars in my purse for my emergency stash!

Surprising news of the appointment? Well because I’ve never really had a consistent cycle, since, well, ever, they weren’t really sure how far along I actually am. Because some of the tests are pretty date sensitive, they decided we should go ahead and schedule an ultrasound so they can measure the baby and get a more accurate and “official” due date. …wait, what?! That’s right; we get to see the baby in like a week!! Woo hoo! So that news was pretty exciting! …..however, now I’m stuck wondering if I should start my chalkboard progress chart now…like I planned…or wait until the appointment – what if I’m past 10 weeks, or not even there yet, that could be confusing… maybe I’ll wait… we’ll see…no pic this week though. If I do find out I’m at 10 weeks, maybe I’ll cheat and do a 10 AND 11 week picture at the same time…and maybe suck in a little at the 10, haha.

Recap of the rest of week – feeling pretty good! A little bit of back pain, ok, maybe a lot of little back pain. Apparently my sciatica is feeling pressure or something – I guess that’s common in pregnancy with everything moving around. I can’t help but say “oh, my sciatica” in this weird voice in my head, I think it must have been a line in a TV show or something…Seinfeld maybe? Every time I say it, it’s with an accent… haha. Still napping on my lunch, which is really the best thing ever, I love power naps! Appetite is still good, the only thing that isn’t appealing as much is chicken, I can handle a few bits, but then I’m done. My husband went out of town this weekend so with a Friday night to myself, I decided to make cinnamon rice pudding – delish! A friend joked that I was old, who eats rice pudding? I corrected her and said that tapioca pudding was old (even though I LOVE that too) – and rice pudding was exotic! ….then I followed up a text later saying that eating rice pudding while watching Wheel of Fortune may in fact be old – and I loved every minute of it!

The next day, I met a friend for lunch and shopping, (this is the friend who is sharing our due date…to the day!) and I really wanted to make sure to surprise her with the news. At lunch, I casually asked her questions on how she was feeling, how things were going, and oh, when’s your due date again? She responded, “August 30th” and I replied, “yeah….me too…” :) I think I definitely caught her off guard and had that surprise element – it was really fun. And so nice to share information!!

Sunday, was SUPER BOWL SUNDAY! And the weather here has been fantastic – beautiful sunny weather!! I had originally planned to Skype date my sisters and share the news as “in person” as I can with them both being hundreds of miles away. I set up my handy little chalkboard against the wall and set the camera to focus on the sign (never mind that it was a mirror image, and I tried to set a mirror up against it to un-mirror it, and it was a huge ol’ process that didn’t work, and looked ridiculous, and my sisters are smart, they can figure it out, so I scratched the un-mirror plan). I video chatted my younger sister and shared the news! I’m pretty sure she’d partied the night before, and may have been hung over, which possibly made it more anti-climatic as I’d thought it would be, but, it was still fun to share! She’s going to be an awesome aunt! My older sister ended up teaching a class and wasn’t available to Skype, darn it! But, we did end up chatting old school…via phone! It actually fell perfectly into our conversation, she was mentioning how someday when she’s a grandma...(which is far, far away, I’d think!) …anyway, she said that and I cut in and said “you’re way too young to be a Grandma, how about an Aunt?” ---I think she was really excited! We talked for a long time about everything, her having 4 kiddos herself, I know that she’s going to be a great resource and have a lot of great advice to share!

Super Bowl was fun, lots of food, lots….of food! I will say, I haven’t really missed it yet, but a beer sounded pretty wonderful that day. Especially since someone brought blueberry beer! It smelled awesome! I’ll put that on my list of things to try next fall!

Well, I think that was about it for the week – the exciting news anyway! In just a few days we’ll get to see Baby Vick for the first time! SO. Excited! …and maybe we’ll have that chalkboard thing figured out by then.