Putting things together (35 weeks 2 days)

One would think that our lives would begin to settle down. That has not been the case. We have still be extremely busy getting everything ready for Baby. Last weekend, we went though all of our gifts from the shower and put them all together. First we played with the car seat. It is so cute. Then we (I should say Brian) put the Jeep stroller together. The stroller is awesome. Brian had to even inflate the tires. It has a MP3 player with speakers. The car seat also fits perfectly in it for when Baby is small.

After Brian installed the car seat, I called the fire station to find out when we could have it inspected. Brian took the car there a few days later. Let’s just say that putting in the car seat base was a pain in the butt! Brian had to make sure it fit correctly and it was hard to get it to attach but finally it did. Luckily when Brian had it inspected, it was in there right. We will not be removing the car seat base from the car until Baby grows out of it! It is really nice to have the car seat in the car. (We can officially have the Baby now because we would be able to leave the hospital with Baby).

We started washing all of Baby’s clothes separately. They look so cute in the drawer just waiting for Baby to wear them. I decorated the nursery walls with cute animals decals. Brian even put the toy box together. Everything seems to be going together nicely. We still have a few more things to go though and put away but for the most part we are organized.

Brian has been installing a baby monitoring system in our house. There are 4 cameras. Two are in Baby’s room, one is in the backyard, and one is in the front yard. That was another interesting challenge. Brian ran all the wires though the attic and also installed a new power outlet for it too. I really did not do anything with it. The camera will be really nice to have. We can be watching TV in our living room and see Baby’s room live with picture and picture on the TV. Plus our family can see it from their house too over the internet. It is really nice!

We also decided on a pediatrician. It is right down the street from us. Plus they are open 365 days a year. That is really nice because if Baby is sick, we want to be able to take him/her to the doctors soon. We liked the pediatrician and are glad we are done with that.

We also attended baby basic class. It was a 3 hour class at the hospital. We learned about changing diapers, bathing, swaddling, and sleeping habits. It was a good class to take. We got to practice on Cabbage Patch dolls. I have a feeling Baby is going to be a bit more challenging. They will also offer a class again before leaving the hospital. It will be nice to feel prepared.

I have been feeling okay. I am starting to be more tired again though! I really could nap everyday but that does not happen except on the weekends. I have gained about 25 pounds. My doctor says everything looks good though. I am starting to feel more uncomfortable. I also now have acid reflux. I really don’t care for that, but what can I do? It is especially bad in the evenings. I have also stopped wearing heels to work. I can no longer run all around the hospital in heels. I continue to do my Bradley Method exercises and try to relax as much as possible.

Family Baby Shower (33 weeks 4 days)

Last Thursday, Melissa and my mother in law came into town. I took the day off work and picked them up at the airport. We went to breakfast and went shopping for the shower. It was a lot of fun.

Saturday was my baby shower. It was really exciting! Melissa worked really hard at organizing everything and making it perfect. The theme was monkeys and it really turned out nice! Melissa and my mother in law made cute little table decorations that were like cakes but with diapers inside and monkey faces sticking out of them. It was a clever idea. Also they made chocolate animal party favors. Again it was perfect! I cannot thank them enough. Everyone did a great job organizing the shower and we had a lot of fun. My dad and Brian stayed to help setup and load the car at the end. Brian also took pictures throughout.



There were about 30 people at the shower. It was great to see a lot of family and friends... especially people that I don’t get to see often. Melissa arranged several games that were fun. First they had to guess how big my stomach was. Then Melissa had people take a T-shirt and make it into a baby’s outfit. Somehow I was one of the model babies and they made me look crazy. I had fun though. She also had a baby animal game that I found pretty difficult. People had to match what baby animal is made when two different animals mate. I don’t know my zoology. It was a good game though. The last game was a door prize. Everyone got a diaper corsage when they arrived. At the end the person who had the dirty diaper (upon inspecting the inside) got a prize. It was a great shower.


Brian and I had people guess baby’s name. They could guess a boy and girl’s name. Surprisingly no one guessed either name right. We think that it is so obvious what baby’s name is going to be but none of our family has guessed it yet. We decided on a theme for the naming of all of our children. The boy’s name was a little bit more challenging to come up with but we found the perfect name. Soon our family will know the names.

We tabulated the list of guesses people submitted for the names at the end of this post if you are curious.



I got a lot of great gifts at the shower. My brothers and sister in laws in Texas got us phenomenal gifts. We got both strollers and the infant car seat. Those things are necessarily and we were so happy we got them. Also at the shower, Baby got a lot of clothes. I don’t think I will have to buy any clothes for baby for at least 6 months! We also got a lot of bath products, books, a bookshelf, gift cards, blankets, and diapers. My parents even got Baby a little suitcase and filled it with clothes. Everyone was so generous!
It was a fun weekend with the shower. It was sad that Melissa and my mother in law had to go home. There is a good chance that next time they see me I will have baby in my arms instead of my stomach. We are getting really close to delivery now.



After the shower we took everything home and started to find places to put it. Baby's room is getting more organized. We still have a lot of stuff to organize and put together though! Good thing we still have a few weeks left.

Overall I am still feeling well. I am getting more tired. Many night I need a little nap in the evenings because I am so tired. I have been working 9-11 hours a day so that is not helping. Baby is growing but my stomach can't keep up. It is leaving less and less room. I feel baby kicking and moving a lot and many times it is painful. I have gained 23 pounds. Most people tell me that I look really good for being 8 ½ months pregnant. I hope that is true because I still think I am pretty big.

Today I went on a job interview. I will write more on that on my next blog post. For now, I need to get some sleep.

Here are the guesses we received for the names at the shower:

Girls Names Alexa Ann Ava Carrie Catherine x2 Cindy Chelsie Elizabeth Emily Emma Hazel Julia Kathy Madison Marie Margarita Mackenzie Mattie x2 Megan Melissa Rachel Shara Tracy

Boys Names: Brian x2 Donald x2 Ethan Frank Hunter Jack Daniels James x2 Jason John x2 Mattie Michael x5 Ryan Shawn Tom Tyler Wayne William

Work Baby Shower (32 weeks 0 days)

On Wednesday night, the girls from work had a baby shower for me. It was at a local restaurant near our work. They told me that Brian needed to be there too. Luckily Brian is easy going and he did not mind. After all it’s his baby too!

When we arrived there was a chair for me to sit in with several balloons on it. Then they even had a corsage for me to wear. I was getting the special treatment. I could not believe they did all of this. The cake was so cute too. We all ordered off the menu and had dinner together. There were about 20 people there. It was so nice of them!

After dinner I opened up gifts. I (really baby) got all kinds of really nice things. We got baby clothes/sleepers, diapers, bathing set, car seat, baby head rest, changing pad, baby blanket, books, swing, booster seat for the kitchen table, baby book, and a toy box. It was amazing. Brian and I had a great time. We are so thankful for everything.

When we got home, I could not wait to start opening things and playing with them. We got a baby music toy. Once I opened it, I started playing it near my stomach so baby could hear it. I was having so much fun. My house is now looking like a baby lives in it.

On Thursday night we went to the Cavs vs Heat game. This has been marked on our calendar ever since the schedule came out. (There was even talk from other people of what would happen if I went into labor before this day. All I can say is we are glad baby is still developing inside of me right now-for many reasons, not just the game). This was a big event and we had to be there. Brian and I love basketball and use to really like LeBron James. Now we hate him.

We still remember the night the LeBron made “The Decision” on national TV. That night Brian and I were convinced that he would stay in Cleveland. We stood in front of the TV just waiting and when he said he was “taking his talents to South Beach” we were very angry.

Back then (July), we knew I was pregnant but no one else did. We knew even if LeBron would have stayed, our days of going to every home Cavs game were going to end this winter. We had more important things to focus on. Even so, we still really wanted him to make the right decision and stay in Cleveland. But he did not. Therefore we needed to attend this game to let him know what we thought about him. Tickets were very expensive and in demand, but we have season tickets. So far we have attended every home game this year (around 10 so far).

We arrived at the game at least an hour before tip off. We had to make sure that we were there for when LeBron came out. It was crazy to be there. When he came out, the crowd booed so loud it was indescribable. It was not long before the entire arena was chanting a**hole over and over again. Even though I was not chanting it, I could see how it made people feel better. Other clever chants were "Akron Hates You" and "Scottie Pippen" (since Lebron is a sidekick to Dwyane Wade). I think Lebron got the message. The Cavs played terribly except for the first quarter. We still had lots of fun chanting, watching security, and seeing people get ejected at the end (mainly Miami fans causing trouble).

Today Brian and my parents went to an infant CPR class. Since I am already certified in infant CPR I did not register myself. I thought it would be good for all of them to go. We hope we never have to use it but you definitely want to know what to do if you do.

I am at home this morning doing some housework. It is hard to keep the house together when we both work a lot during the week. Yesterday I was at work for 11 hours! I get a little tired and cranky at times but for the most part I have been feeling pretty well. I am starting to be uncomfortable at times... especially if I am in one position too long. Even at night, I am up moving around just so I can get comfortable. I am getting practice for when baby arrives!

Hospital Tour (31 weeks 4 days)

On Saturday, we went on our hospital tour. We invited our parents to come along. My mom had to work so she did not come. However my dad and Brian’s mom went with us which was nice. I decided that I wanted to deliver at Hillcrest. I really like that they have a neonatal intensive care. I hope that we don’t have to use it, but if we do I want to have it available to us.

Once we arrived to Hillcrest, we first went to registration. We had to register with my medical and insurance information. It was also interesting because I had to sign a consent form for baby already. Wow this is all seeming very real!

We walked around the hospital for about an hour. We went to labor and delivery then over to postpartum. The labor and delivery room looked really nice. I asked several questions while I was there. Brian and I are very informed about our options about the birth. We wanted to know what they have available to us and what we need to bring.

I am hoping to deliver naturally so I will need things to help make that happen. One thing is a birthing ball. Hillcrest has them but we will bring one along too just in case. We will also have music prepared for me to help as needed. I am also thinking that the shower and/or bath tub may help me so we will need to make sure Brian packs a swimsuit so he can help me as needed. Even though I am the one who has to deliver our baby, Brian has an extremely important role to make sure I do this successfully. I will need his support and encouragement though everything. I know he will do great.

We were all very happy with Hillcrest. I think it was a good choice to deliver there. The only thing I have a concern about is that they have semi private rooms for postpartum. They try to avoid using them however sometimes they have to. I really hope I don’t have to share a room. I want Brian to spend the night with us but he cannot do that if I have to share a room. The hospital encourages new parents to have baby in the room all the time. I think that is a great idea and what that to happen but I am going to need Brian’s help.

Sunday night Brian came down with a GI virus. I woke up around 3 am to Brian vomiting. He has not been sick like that for over 15 years. He had a fever of 101. We had a daycare tour scheduled on Monday morning but I had to cancel it because Brian was sick. I then told him that he had to stay home from work. At first he thought I was crazy but after he threw up a third time, he realized that he was not able to go to work.

Brian was so concerned that I was going to get sick. He would not get near me and he actually locked himself downstairs in our spare bedroom. I tried to explain to him that I work in a hospital and am around sick people all the time. Of coarse I did not want to get sick but at times he was going a little too crazy. There was no contact for a day and half until he got better. He sanitized everything he touched and he was doing his our laundry daily. I was not allowed to touch anything he had contact with. All the windows were left open for 2 hours before I got home from work to get rid of germs (it was near 50 degrees today).

I wanted Brian to get better quickly which luckily he did. This is an important week for us. My work baby shower is Wednesday and Thursday is the big Cavs and Heat game.

Braxton-Hicks (31 weeks 1 day)

Last Sunday night, I developed some Braxton-Hicks contractions which are basically fake or practice contractions. I knew they were Braxton-Hicks because there was no pattern to them and they did go away once I changed activity. They were a little painful for me but they went away by Monday evening. I have been active and may have over did it at the rec center on Sunday so that may have contributed to some of my abdominal pain.

Also this past week, we finished touring daycares. We ended up touring 8 total. There is one near my work and one near Brian’s work that we like. This week we are going back to both of them and hopefully making a decision. It will be nice to have our daycare figured out.

Thursday was Thanksgiving. I love Thanksgiving. Brian’s mom came up for Thanksgiving which was great. We went to Grandma and Gramp’s house in the morning to visit them along with Carol and Mike. Then we went to my parent’s house for dinner. Grandma and Gramps also came to dinner with us which was wonderful. We had a nice dinner. I have so much to be grateful for this year. This baby is the greatest gift ever. It was a really nice day visiting family.

Friday morning, we got up early to go out shopping with all the other crazy people. We were out by 4:45am. There was not anything that we really wanted but we figured this may be our last year to be able to do this so we did. Its kind of fun to be shopping on Black Friday morning. We came home around 6:30am and then went back to bed. It was great that we could do that too. Sometimes I have to work on Black Friday so I would go shopping then go to work but this year, I went back to bed.

Carol, Mike, Grandma, and Gramps came over for dinner Friday evening. It was the first time they got to see baby’s room basically all finished. Baby seems real when you go into his/her room and see everything all set up and waiting. Everyone is getting really excited!

I am starting to feel more tired again at this stage of pregnancy. I have been trying to rest as much as possible. I am able to sleep better with all my pillows around me now however I get up every 2-3 hours to go to the bathroom. That makes things a little challenging but I am doing okay. I am also starting to get severe leg cramps especially at night. The best way to deal with them is to stand up and walk it off. It hurts but it goes away quickly. All and all everything seems to be going along very well.

Cavs Season Ticket Party (29 weeks 6 days)

Last weekend, we set up all of our Christmas lights. Our Christmas lights are synchronized to music and it is a lot of work to get them all set up. Luckily the weather was beautiful. We were almost hot setting them up. That has never happened before. Usually we are freezing out there and it’s miserable. My dad came up to help us with was great. The more people willing to help us the better especially with me being pregnant.

This week was yet another crazy week. On Monday night, we went to a Cavs season ticket holder party. It was a Dave and Busters. They had food, drink, games and the Cavs players were there. We have friends who are also season ticket holders so we hung out with them throughout the event. It was really a lot of fun. Our friends convinced us to get our pictures taken with some of the Cavs players. At first I was not so sure about going up to them to get a picture taken with them but after a few times I did not mind at all. I was so excited because I got my picture taken with Mo Williams. He is my favorite Cavs player. It was a great night out together.

I have still been working a lot so I have been tired. Actually Wednesday night I was lying on the floor while Brian and I were doing our relaxation exercises for birthing class and I fell asleep. Brian was nice and just let me sleep. I have been getting up between 5:00-5:30am all this week. So a little nap on the floor felt really good.

Overall I have been feeling well. Baby has been active which is a great feeling. At the Cavs game, when they would announce Daniel Gibson’s name, baby would kick me. I guess that is baby’s favorite player. I have gained 20 pounds now. I am so lucky because all the weight is in my stomach. I really have not gained it anywhere else. I have been trying to keep as active as possible.

We were asked if we were getting really excited about baby’s birth coming soon. We are excited but right now we are still very task oriented. We have many things we need to do before baby comes. Brian is going to set up his own type of baby monitoring system. It will be very cool of course (with picture in picture on our TVs). I am still looking at getting a mattress for the crib. There are many options out there. Plus we are still working on figuring out day cares and then pediatricians. Finding the right daycare does take a lot of time. We have 3 more daycare tours then hopefully we will have our decision narrowed down and can move forward with a decision.

Next week is Thanksgiving. It will be nice see and spend time with our family. We have not seen much of them recently since we have been so busy. I am really looking forward to it. Also Brian and I only have a 3 day work week. I need a mini vacation. Brian and I will be out shopping on Black Friday. This might be the last year we can do it for a while so we will definitely be out there with all the other crazy people.

Tomorrow night, we are going out on a double date with another couple. I am looking forward to it. It will be nice to go out with some friends.

Baby Shower Invitations (28 weeks 6 days)

This week I got the invitations to my baby shower in the mail. Melissa ordered extremely cute baby shower invitations. I love them!!! I want to cut the monkey out and just hang it on the wall it is so cute. At first, I think people thought I was crazy by going with a monkey theme but now I think people are realizing it is a good theme.

When I got the invitation in the mail it was addressed to me and Miss Baby Mattie. I thought that was a cute touch too. Melissa is really going all out for this baby. I am also getting really excited about having our baby. I cannot wait to meet him or her (okay I guess I can wait because we want baby to get big and healthy before being born).

Also the girls at work are throwing me a baby shower too. I got that invitation this week as well. I thought that was extremely nice of them to do this. I work with really great people. On many days work is stressful but the people I work with are wonderful.

Thinking of work, I have a major job decision to make this weekend. There is an opportunity for me to advance my career and I have to decide if I am going to apply for it. This has been a very difficult decision for me and I still don’t know what I am going to do. Being pregnant makes this decision very hard. That is all I am able to say about it for now. (I am very emotional about this).

We have been blessed with this baby which we are both so grateful. Therefore we need to make decisions that are best for the baby not necessarily us anymore. There are no guarantees in life. Getting pregnant is truly a miracle. Having this baby inside me has made this so real. There are a lot of couples that are unable to get pregnant. My heart goes out to them because having a baby is the best gift in the world.

We got advice from a couple on our cruise ship to enjoy each stage that your baby/child is in because it will go fast and you never know if you will be blessed with this opportunity again. You don't want to wish it away (e.g. I can't wait until they sleep all night; I can't wait until they can talk; I can't wait until they are potty trained, etc.) We are taking that advice to heart. We would like to have more children someday but the only thing we know for sure is we have this baby now. We are going to treasure every moment. Even with being pregnant, I am enjoying it as much as possible.


Also this week, Brian made me homemade applesauce. It was so good! He cut up all the apples and created his own recipe. I told him he now he has to make it once a week. I think my favorite food during this pregnancy is applesauce. When I get up in the middle night hungry I eat applesauce. I cannot get enough applesauce. I also like apple juice too.

We went to the doctors on Monday. He said everything looks really good. No issues with my blood pressure or anything. My glucose test came back fine too. I have gained 18-19 pounds. I did not gain much weight last month but he said that is okay because it will catch up to me. All the weight is in my stomach. My belly button is going to pop out soon and I am not happy about that! For the most part I feel pretty good. I am tired but that is to be expected. I am working a lot plus we have something to do every night of the week (day care tours, Cavs games, doctors appointments, birthing class, etc).

We toured a local daycare this week too. We liked it but I think we are still leaning towards KinderCare. We have 4 more daycares to see then hopefully we will make a decision.

I am still really enjoying our Bradley classes. They are very informative. It is also nice bonding time between Brian and I. Last night, we had to answer questions from a card that was handed out. My question was what is my biggest fear during this pregnancy. It was when I was spotting so much early on. Brian’s question was how the pregnancy has changed our relationship. He said that the focus is now on having a baby and being parents and how we are going to adjust to it. We have been married for 6 years so we are comfortable with our routines and the life we have made together. Baby is going to change things a lot and we are trying to get prepared for it.

The weather has been perfect this week for November. The highs have been in the 60s with mostly sunny skies. We have been putting up our Christmas lights this week. We hope to have them all up by tomorrow. That will be impressive if we get that accomplished too!

Day Care Visits (28 weeks 1 day)

I am now in the 3rd trimester. It has been a journey but I am very happy to have made it this far. If baby would happen to be born now, the chances for baby to survive are high.

Last week we started looking at day cares. We know that baby will be attending day care after my maternity leave. Everyone’s situation is different and for us our child must go to day care. I am unable to be a stay at home mom. Brian and I have talked extensively about day care and we are both satisfied with our decision to send baby. Therefore we must find the perfect day care for baby and us.

Our first day care tour was at Kinder Care near Brian’s work. We met with the director and toured for over an hour. Day cares are really amazing. I think they get a bad rap however they really teach children a lot starting very young. At Kinder Care, there are three different infant rooms so the 3 month olds are not with the 14 month olds. We really liked that. Also in that room, they start teaching baby sign language. We don’t know sign language so this is just one example that they will be able to teach our child something we cannot.

Nowhere in the day care are there TV’s that the children just sit there and watch. They have rocking chairs and interactive toys for babies. They have a schedule for the day with lessons plans as they get older. In the infant room, baby has his/her own crib and dresser. Baby would have his/her name on it. It is cute. As parents of an infant, you give the day care a report of when baby naps and eats and they follow that. At the end of the day, you get a written report that everything baby did for that day (eat, sleep, potty, play, etc).

We toured each of the rooms since our plan is to find a day care and stick with it until baby goes to school. Obviously things can change but we don’t want to be changing day care every year. We really liked it and think it would be a good fit for us and baby.

Also last week we toured The Goddard School. Again it was a very nice day care. One thing that we like about day cares is it gives the child structure and social interaction that cannot be learned at home. The Goddard School is very similar to Kinder Care. There are some differences but we don’t think we could go wrong with either of them.

Things we liked a little better at Kinder Care is that they are open from 6:30am to 6:30pm. That would allow us to drop off baby early if needed. The Goddard School does not open until 7am. Also Kinder Care will supply the child with breakfast, lunch and two snacks a day once they are eating food. It would be nice not to have to pack meals each day. Also The Goddard School is closed two weeks between Christmas and New Years. That means Brian would have to take vacation during that time each year because I would not be able to get that time off working at a hospital. Again we could make arrangements but these are little things that are having us lean towards Kinder Care.

We still have at least three more day cares to tour before making a decision. We want to make sure that we make an informed decision and not just pick one. Day cares are expensive however we really believe it will be best for our child to attend. The socialization and learning should be worth it. As we continue to tour more, I will update on how we are doing with this process.

Also last week we went to a Halloween store on November 1 because all costumes were 50% off that day only. We bought baby a Halloween costume for next year. We really like to plan ahead. Baby is going to be a monkey next year. It is so cute!!

We have had all kinds of troubles recently with appliances around the house. First our refrigerator water dispenser is not working properly. The water has what we call “floaties” in it. Brian tried replacing the water line thinking that would fix it however it did not. We are still trying to figure that out. I am very annoyed that I don’t have my ice and filtered water. Then our fireplace was putting off some weird odor. Brian took that apart. We realized it was a chemical reaction between open flame and wood stain. Brian stained the baby’s room woodwork where the old doors use to be. Even with the door closed it caused a terrible kerosene like smell whenever we used the fireplace or oven. We had to evacuate the house leaving all windows open for a while until the smell was gone (remember it’s pretty cold here). That was not fun but at least we have that fixed. Now our furnace is not working. The good news is at least our fireplace is working. Brian thinks the igniter is bad. He ordered a part online, but we will be without a furnace for the next few days until it arrives.

Our lives are extremely busy right now. Every night we are either touring day cares, going to child birthing class, making doctor appointments, or heading downtown for a Cavs game. We have also been working longer hours so it has been a little crazy. I am trying not to get too burned out, but sometimes it's difficult. I am hoping once we decide on a day care things will slow down a little bit for a while... however next we need to start interviewing pediatricians next!

Bradley Method (27 weeks 5 days)

Last week, we started our child birthing classes, The Bradley Method. It focuses on natural childbirth. We will be attending class two hours a week for 12 weeks. I did not know what to expect but I really like it. I am hoping to have a natural birth. I really don’t like drugs and hope to not pass any medications to baby. It will take a lot dedication and work but it will be worth it. Since I am a nurse, I am realistic too. I understand things happen and I may need to take medication and I am okay with that too if absolutely necessary.

During our first class, we did introductions first. There are 6 other couples in the class. I was surprised how many women there do not work. They don’t even have kids yet and they are not working. I find that kind of crazy. I could not imagine not working. (Maybe I don’t want to be working so hard and so much, but not working at all... wow!) Then we did a task where Brian had to give me directions on where to walk while I was blindfolded. It was a trusting exercise. I trust Brian completely and we did not have any issues with it. I knew it would not let me run into anything or fall down the stairs. Initially he did tell me that the instructions said we had to go outside and cross Cedar road (4 lane busy road) but he was only kidding. It was fun. Then the “moms” had to give the “dads” a backrub. (It is weird to think of us as mom and dad). Brian enjoyed his nice backrub. After that was over the instructor told that dads that they better have enjoyed it because it was the last time they would be getting it. Poor dads!

At the end of the class we were given our homework assignment. First we have to write down everything we eat for the week. Of course they chose the week of Halloween for that! They are concerned with how much protein the moms are eating. They want us to eat 100gm of protein a day. That is impossible for me!!! I looked online and the general recommendation for pregnant women is 70gm per day. That is a little more realistic. I am currently eating 50-80gm a protein a day. I am trying to eat more but it is hard.

Brian staged this photo earlier in the summer. Despite being
hungrier, I don't eat an entire box of cereal at a time!
My other homework assignment is to do several exercises to prepare my body for childbirth. I need to walk as much as possible (at least 10 minutes a day). I definitely have that covered. I should also sit on the floor Indian style more often instead of sitting in a chair with your legs in a dependent position. I do that a lot too even while sitting in a chair. I also need to squat often. When I first started doing them my legs were a little sore but now I am good and do about 10-15 per day. Another exercise I am doing is pelvic rock. They want me to do 20 four times a day and 40 at bedtime. Now for those women who do not work that is possible however for me this is not. (I’m not doing them on the hospital floor!) I am doing about 40-60 per day. That is the best I can do right now just because I don’t have the time. Another exercise I must do everyday if the butterfly working my abductor muscles in my legs. I only have to do 5 a day so that is easy. Plus I am to do 100 kegel exercises a day. I do them often so I am close to that. It is a lot of work to do all of this but it will be worth it in the end.

Also this past week, the Cavs started. We are planning on going to all the Cavs games until baby is born. It was fun to go and watch them again. I hope they do well this season even though it is not looking too pretty right now. I think we may be taking baby to a Cavs game in the spring. That should be fun too! Baby is getting use to hearing all the Cavs chants right now. I dressed up as Moondog for the Halloween game.

Also this past weekend, we had to finish registering for our baby shower. It was fun to look through all kinds of baby things and pick out stuff. However it was also difficult because we wanted to make sure we were registering for good things so we would look at reviews and compare them to others. We are just crazy like that. We mostly registered at Amazon.com. It was perfect for us to look at reviews and pick out things. We buy so much online anyways so it makes sense to us. It is much easier than going to a store and trying to find something. Plus they have free shipping so it’s great. We also registered at Target for those people who don’t like to shop online. That was not as fun of an experience but we did it. I am excited to have our house looking like a baby lives in it (as long as too much clutter does not accumulate).

This week we are touring daycares. It has been a very interesting experience. More to come on them on my next post.

Melissa and Jonathan in Town (26 weeks 3 days)

We had a fun weekend! Melissa and Jonathan were in town. They are always so much fun. On Friday Brian and Melissa's cousin Micheal got married. We all went to the wedding together. It was an hour drive to get there. During the drive, we laughed so hard it was unbelieveable. Brian actually missed our exit to get off because we were all talking so much. You put Brian, Melissa, and Jonathan together and there is nothing but laughter.

The wedding was really nice. It was great to see their dad's side of the family. Unfortunately we do not see them often. They are all crazy fun too. Now I know where Melissa gets it from. :)

Once we got home, I was tired. Melissa said I was cranky. She actually called me bad words but we will not repeat her language. Besides, I don't believe it anyway. Melissa told Brian to put me to bed but I refused. Instead I played Wii with Melissa and Jonathan. Then I finally went to bed.

On Saturday Brian and I got ready for our annual fall outdoor movie night. The weather was great. It sprinkled a little bit but after that it was fine. People came over around 5:30pm and we hung out until 8pm when we started the movie. Everyone who came over also got to see baby's room. It is almost all done! We need our blinds to come in and order a mattress.

We watched the movie "The Strangers". I did not like it. It was a weird movie. I really don't know how else to describe it. Some people stayed outside and watched another movie "The Crazies". I did not want to watch another movie so I hung out inside and talked with some friends. It was another fun night.

On Sunday we put up Christmas lights because it was almost 80 degrees. The weather was spectacular! We only put them on the house because it would seem a little too weird to have them in our yard now. Plus we need all of our leaves to fall before we can do that. We made our first pass at raking leaves on Saturday morning.

Sunday evening Brian and I walked a Metropark. I never understood why there were benches along the trails in the park. I do now! They are for pregnagnat women would need to take breaks because they can't breathe.

After our walk we went to the Halloween store to get me a dog costume. My mother in law made me a Moondog jersey (the Cavs Mascot for those who don't know) so I decided to be Moondog for Halloween. We bought a dog mask and a tail so on Saturday night when we go to the Cavs game I can be a pregnant Moondog! It's the halloween night themed game. I'm really excited.

Overall I'm feeling good. Baby has been really active lately. I now feel many movements thoughout the day. Its such a wonderful feeling!

Crib Assembly (25 weeks 4 days)

I am feeling better from my UTI. That was not fun but at least I am better now. I have even been able to sleep in bed all night long for the last 5 days. Sleeping in our bed has been a challenge because either I was sick and I did not want to wake Brian up with all my moving around or I hadn’t learned how to sleep on my side yet so I would end up on the couch in the middle of the night.

This weekend was our 6 year anniversary. Unfortunately we did not have our scheduled date night on Friday night because I was so exhausted from working! We did go out to the Cavs game Saturday night which was fun. We always enjoy going up to the Q. We still planning on going out to a movie soon but have not scheduled it yet. The matinee showing is at 3:55 and recently neither of us have been getting out of work early enough to pull that off.


On Sunday, we put the crib together. We have heard horror stories about assembling cribs but luckily it went smoothly for us. Brian is an engineer so one would think he could put a crib together, and he did without any difficulty. I basically just sat there and only helped when needed. It was fun and scary to put it together. It made baby seem more real. With just new dressers in the bedroom, it could be setup for anyone. However the crib is definitely for our baby!



After putting the crib together we realized we hate the closet doors in baby’s room. We were going to replace them in a few years but decided Sunday night they were getting replaced this week. Monday we went to Home Depot and bought new mirror sliding doors like we have on all the other closets. Brian put them up Monday night. I would have pictures of Brian putting them up however I had a little melt down.

Last week, work was the week from hell. This weekend we were very busy doing many little things so I did not have much time to relax. When Monday came around, I was done! Brian needed my help holding the top panel for the closet doors so he could screw it in. I could barely reach it. (Which I expected Brian to know that since I am short and usually cannot reach anything high). Finally we got me a stool to stand on, then I had to hold it for what seemed forever to me. My arms were sore from exercising on Sunday. (I am still lifting weights weekly). Plus my body is adjusting to carrying an extra 15 pounds on it all the time! It is not easy being pregnant. (I am not complaining but it’s definitely different than what I expected). Finally I told Brian to hurry up and he could tell I did not want any part of this. So he sent me downstairs to relax on the couch. Therefore I did not take any pictures. Sorry!

This weekend Brian’s cousin is getting married. We are going to the wedding on Friday. Melissa and Jonathan are coming up for the wedding too. My dad is going to pick them up tomorrow at the airport. It will be fun to see all of Brian and Melissa’s Dad’s side of the family. We know his dad would be excited about our baby. It’s sad that he is no longer with us but we know he’s watching over us everyday.

It is going to be another busy weekend for baby and I. We really do not know how to relax much these days. All this craziness is preparing us for once baby is born.

Doctor's Appointment (24 weeks 5 days)

On Monday, we went to the doctor for our regular 4 week check up. I was having some bladder spasms and urinary discomfort. I thought something was probably going on like a urinary tract infection. I was happy though that I was home with these issues and not somewhere overseas on vacation.

The doctor was happy with my weight and blood pressure. I have gained 14 pounds total so far. My blood pressure has been good. They tested my urine and I have some blood in it. You cannot see it with your eyes though. So they sent out cultures and I was suppose to get results today. They are not back yet. He started me on Macrobid (an antibiotic). I was not happy about taking medication but I have to so that it does not get too severe and harm baby. This is the first medicine that I have taken other than prenatal vitamins. I have been very compliant with my medication. Brian also makes sure that I take it!

Earlier this week, I was having a lot of urinary discomfort especially after urinating but things seem to be getting better. Thank goodness! I was miserable for a few days. I could not sleep and I really wanted to rip my bladder out.

Everything else is going well. I am back to work and it is crazy there. I have been working about 10 hour days. That is a little too much. I am exhausted. Last night, I took a nap on the couch. I woke up and the clock said 6:30. Well I thought it was morning (I have been sleeping on the couch since I have not felt well). I ran upstairs and started getting dressed for work all along wondering where Brian was and why he did not wake me up. I thought he had already left for work. My heart was pounding because I thought I was late to work. Finally after about 5 minutes I realized that it was still evening and I still had 12 hours before returning to work. Brian was playing basketball and hadn't gotten home yet. That is how crazy the pregnancy has made me!

I am so grateful that tomorrow is Friday. I really need the weekend to relax! It is our 6 year anniversary this weekend. I cannot believe that we have been married for 6 years already. Where has all the time gone? In a few months, are lives are going to change even more. We really enjoyed our time alone together but are ready to start a family!

End of Vacation (24 weeks 1 day)

We are back home now. Vacation was wonderful. Brian and I really enjoyed our trip together. We got to do some really cool things plus relax a lot too. It is amazing to think that baby has already went through the Panama Canal with us. Baby sure has been a lot of places already! Baby was good throughout the trip. I was nervous that I might have problems while far from home and go into labor or something crazy but everything went really well.

Baby was really active during the beginning of our trip then he/she calmed down a bit. On the last few days of the cruise I barely felt baby move. Of course, we got nervous since I was not feeling baby as much. He/she is back to being active again, so there are no worries. Baby is most active first thing in the morning (before I get out of bed).

We did end up buying the cute baby outfit we saw on the cruise. We think it is cute now but in a few months we probably won’t find the party at 3am in baby’s room as amusing. We read a lot about breastfeeding while we were on this trip. That is going to be a challenge. I really hope that baby and I are successful but time will tell. I think I am more nervous about breastfeeding than labor. That is a scary thought.

At the end of our cruise, Brian and I were emotional. We knew that so much is going to change for us starting at the end of this trip. The obvious is that we will not be traveling as extensively and exotically. However we also have a lot of things going on with our family, work, and leisure. Brian’s grandfather (Gramps) was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. He is still undergoing additional tests so we don’t know much yet. This is going to be really difficult time for our family on many levels. Brian and Gramps have a close relationship. They are very similar in many ways and Brian has learned so much from him.

I never realized how much knowing that you are having a baby changes you. It makes you think of things from the past and, of course, the future. The main theme that always comes up is family. It is neat because we are now creating our own family. However it is also sad because we know that our baby may not really ever know some very important people that helped shape our lives. Baby will never know Brian’s dad since he passed away 5 years ago. We are sad about that. When Brian’s dad was dying in the hospital, Brian was outside the hospital using a cell phone to call family from out of town. While talking he saw a pregnant woman go into the hospital and a baby leaving with new parents. It made him think of the circle of life. That is becoming extremely real for us now. Grandma and Gramps are still doing extremely well for their age and hopefully have many more quality years left. However realistically baby will not know them as well as we do. It’s really sad just because baby will not be able to remember these young years. We are going to buy a video camera and tape some interactions with Grandma and Gramps so one day we will be able to show our son/daughter these amazing people.

Then we have work that is also changing for us too. Another company bought out Brian’s company. This happened while we were on the cruise. We are optimistic that it will end up being a positive thing but you never know. My job has been going through a lot of changes and they will be continuing. Before I went on vacation, I was not able to sleep well at all. Interestingly, while on vacation I was able to sleep very well. I am beginning to think stress has something to do with it. Also I may be finally getting used to sleeping on my side.

On the leisure side, our travel will be more low key and domestic in the short term. We also won't be able to go to every Cavs game like we have for the past several years. For the first time in a while, the Cavs are no longer considered a candidate to win it all this year. Changes, changes, and more changes.

I have been more emotional than usual however it is probably due to all the changes that are occurring for us right now. I have also not been feeling like doing too much. I get tired so easily. I really could take a nap everyday. It is time for me and baby to relax. Bye for now.