baby shower #1

Earlier this month, my friends Vanessa, Michelle, and Erica hosted my first baby shower for Simon.  It was owl and blue themed, which was inspired by the theme we chose for the nursery.  As it was the 2nd weekend of December, the girls served up a bunch of warm, yummy comfort foods and dessert included mini cupcakes from Icing on the Cupcake.  My guests were challenged with guessing the size of my tummy (a few ladies went a little overboard with measuring their yarn lol), making babies out of Play-Doh, and trying not to say the magic "B-word" during the course of the shower.  It was a really nice afternoon with my friends, who showered Simon with many wonderful gifts of love.  Eric came towards the end of the party to say hi and thank you and to load up our treasures to take home.  My love and gratitude go out to Vanessa, Michelle, and Erica for taking the time to celebrate Simon's upcoming arrival with fun, games, and candy!  Here are some photos from the day... thank you to everyone who attended!    

comfort food

 

Emma, daughter of my friend Chelsea

 

Play-Doh babies

  guests eating and socializing

 winner of the Play-Doh baby game, my friend Cristin

 Emma giving kisses to Simon

Time for presents!

 Eric was immediately greeted by Emma upon arrival 

my friend Erica posing with Simon

 

my friend Jen

my friend Brittany

 my friend Caitlin

 my friend Athena

 Eric's sister's best friend Barbara and girlfriend Taryn

my friends Missy and Brianna

 

 Emma's mommy, my friend Chelsea

 my friends Kesley, Sara, and Brittany

Kesley and my friend Nicole

my friend Shea

 

 my cousin Teri and her daughter Josephina

The hostesses: Vanessa, Michelle, and Erica

 

 group photo

Eric loading Simon's gifts into the car

 

the amazing owl diaper cake!

the reason for the season

As this Christmas day comes to a close, I am grateful for all the wonderful things I have in my life and the joys of what Simon's upcoming arrival will mean for our family.  However, it is also the time of year to be reminded of what is most important during the holidays.  We sometimes forget to not put so much emphasis on how much you are able to spend on gifts or how many you receive; but instead to be thankful for what you do have, to enjoy sharing and spending time with loved ones, and to remember to give - even if only in a small way of donating your time or items to those less fortunate.  I'd like to think that most of us think in these terms around this time of year, but it never hurts to be reminded.

With that said, I am sad to announce the passing of my grandfather, my dad's father, Robert, today some time around 12:00 pm.  The news came as somewhat of a shock and of course was not easy information to deal with or share on Christmas.  The photo above is from my grandpa's birthday a few years ago (left to right: my dad; Grandpa; and Dad's 2 brothers, my uncles Don and Chris) but recently the 4 of them were all together in New Mexico for my great grandmother's funeral in October.  We won't know how or when the arrangements for my grandpa's funeral will be decided, and at this point I'm thinking I might be too far along in my pregnancy to be able to fly out to attend the services.  The plans will form as they get figured out, but doing so on a holiday is understandably kind of difficult.

While my grandpa's health had not been well for some time, it does not lessen the sadness of his passing.  His side of the family has experienced many losses during this year, and the synchronicity of my grandfather's loss with the holidays does not make mourning any easier.  What I do hope for--in our family, with my friends, and to anyone else reading--is that everyone takes a moment to remember the true reason for the season.  Don't worry about the presents and the traffic and the gas prices for just a moment and instead rejoice with those whom you care about the most.  Be thankful for your time with your loved ones and treasure your most important gift of all: Life.

Wishing a safe and Happy Holidays to you and yours.

my last visit with Grandpa Robert

February 2007

pregnancy [week 30]

The big 3-0!  I can't believe we're finally at the last 10 weeks of my pregnancy.  It gets more and more real everyday and the moment that we will meet our son gets closer and closer.  I told Eric the other night that I feel like I miss Simon even though I haven't met him yet.  It's been over 2 months since my last ultrasound when I last saw him and it kills me to have to wait another 2+ months.  While 10 weeks seems like a long time, I know it will creep up on us and be over with before we know it, which also freaks me out because we do not have the nursery together yet!  We've moved out the largest of the old furniture, still need to get rid of my old dresser, and need to organize all the crap that's on the floor into its new home in the office downstairs (or trashcan, as appropriate).  The next step will be cleaning the carpets and starting on the baby furniture - gathering and assembling.  I'm now officially on winter break until January 9th so I have plenty of time to dedicate to this massive project, which I'd like to be near finished with by the time I have to go back to work.  We'll see how it goes!

I'd say my horrible cold is about gone.  After a week of constant nose-blowing and painful coughing, I don't know how much phlegm could possibly still be in there.  Simon seems to have remained unbothered by all my discomforts, despite the trauma I've felt during my numerous coughing fits.  Remember that line from The Night Before Christmas, "He had a broad face and a little round belly/That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly."  That exactly how I've felt each time I start up with a choking cough; my belly shakes wildly, often in pain, and I find myself trying to hold it in place to keep it from bouncing everywhere.  I even found myself in tears one hormonal night because the pain was really getting to me and I felt like if I coughed one more time it would be the end of me.  Luckily, Eric was here to clean up my emotional mess (as he always does so perfectly), and made me drink some hot water with honey.  It was disgusting, but I did as he said because he was just as frustrated trying to figure out how to make me feel better as I was with feeling crappy.  I don't think I say enough just how lucky I am to have such a great husband; the way he cares for me leaves no doubt in my mind that he will be an amazing dad.

Simon, my love, hit a milestone this week: he finally made contact with my ribcage!  No, I'm not exactly excited by this event... I've actually been dreading the day when he'd be big enough to make his way so high up to collide with my sensitive ribs.  He's been pretty close for the last week or so, but on Thursday night as we were lounging in the living room watching TV, my little active guy suddenly came crashing into the protective barriers of my lungs and OH BOY did it suck.  Eric had no idea what was happening by the look of shock on my face and the agonizing noises coming out of my mouth.  The collision happened 3 or 4 times, each one just as unpleasant as the next.  I don't know how to explain how it felt other than IT HURT!  I know it won't be the last time my baby gets all up in my ribs' business, and I'm trying to keep in mind that essentially this means he is growing and getting stronger, which is exactly what he's supposing to be doing!      

To be specific, Simon's grown to be about the size of a cucumber this week.  His skin is getting smoother as he continues to grow fat and and plump up like a full grown baby, and his brain is working away at developing all those important cells and tissues he'll need after he's born.  I'm finding myself waking up in the middle of the night - not with the leg cramps I've gotten before, but more like pain in my legs that resembles restless leg syndrome.  I read recently (I can't remember where) that some of this pain may be due to the baby resting on your nerves that lead to your legs, which of course makes perfect sense since he does so much other damage in there (crowding my diaphragm, jumping on my bladder, kicking my ribs... you name it!).  Thankfully, I'm still sleeping pretty well otherwise and have continued to not have any swelling in my hands, legs, or feet.  All in all, these discomforts are completely normal and just come with the territory of being 7 months pregnant.  I still can't believe I've already made it this far; only a short time to go!

pregnancy [week 29]

I started my 29th week of pregnancy with my first baby shower!  While I will share more info. and photos from the day in a separate post, I will say for now that I had a lot of fun and Simon was spoiled with a lot of loot!  Here I am pictured above at my shower with Emma, oldest daughter of my friend, Chelsea.  Although Emma is almost 2, she is quite light and I had no problem carrying her around and getting in some mommy-practice.  The sweater I wore for the occasion was purchased the day before from Target along with another really cute sweater dress - my first 2 winter maternity tops! I finally had to bite the bullet and go shopping since my pre-pregnancy attire is fitting less and less like it used to.  I'm lucky I still have 2 coats that I'm able to button up!

Other than the baby shower fun, the week was pretty sucky.  I came down with my 2nd cold of my pregnancy and this one was horrible.  It all started with an awful sore throat, which I briefly thought might have been strep since I had been in recent contact with a friend who found out she had strep.  Once the rest of my symptoms hit (runny nose, cough, runny nose), I was sure it was just a really bad cold.  My throat was so sore that I almost lost my voice a few times and I sounded just awful when I spoke.  Because I'm saving all my sick time for when I go on maternity leave, I did not call in to work and instead went in miserable the whole week.  And to top off the misery, pregnancy and cold medicine are not allowed to mingle, so I've been braving this thing solo.  In a nutshell: being knocked up and sick totally blows.

Lucky for Simon, he's not feeling any of the suffering I've been dealing with.  At 29 weeks, he is happy and healthy and the size of an acorn squash!  He's about 15.2 to 16.7 inches long and weighs anywhere from 2.5 to 3.8 pounds.  The Bump says to expect baby to triple in weight before birth, which is fine with me as long as he's closer to the 2.5 lb. size than the 3.8 lb. one... ah!  If it's possible, it seems like Simon is even more active during the day now, but his movements don't feel as cute and adorable as they once did.  I joke and say it feels like he is trying to claw his way out of me, but sometimes that's honestly the best way to describe what he feels like!  My tummy has finally started feeling itchy, even though I moisturize with my cocoa butter regularly.  My bump remains to be the smoothest part of my body (even more so than my face) and I know my lotion isn't going to be able to relieve all the effects of my stretching skin.  But as massive as it looks and feels, I really do love my pregnant belly and it's safekeeping of my precious bundle of joy.  I just hope my property isn't too damaged once my little tenant moves out of his rental space!

pregnancy [week 28]

Holy 28 weeks/7th month/3rd trimester!  I have entered the beginning of the homestretch of my pregnancy!  Where has the time gone?  As much as it seems like I've been pregnant forever, I can't believe I'm already so far past the halfway mark.  I feel enormously pregnant; I catch myself in the mirror or in the reflection of a window and I'm like, WHOA I'M HUGE!  The belly view from the side is so much different from the belly view from above (and yes, I can still see my toes, but I have to lean forward just a bit).

The photo above is from our 5th Annual Holiday Cocktail Party.  Back in 2008, we decided with our friends that it would be fun to pretend to be fancy one evening and get dressed up to drink and party at our house (I use the word "pretend" because we were in our early 20s and not quite as capable of being truly fancy at the time haha).  I planned the very first cocktail party for the first Saturday of December as a fun way to kickoff the holiday season and figured the first weekend of the month wouldn't conflict with too many company Christmas parties.  Five years later, the tradition has stuck and we have been able to include more and more of our friends each year.  It excites me to know that everyone still looks forward to our annual shindig and enjoys dressing up according to my 'fancy' attire request.  I didn't let being pregnant hold me back from entertaining this year, but I did have to sit out from participating in my famous champagne pong tournament for the first time ever.  It was still a great evening with great food and great friends, and I think Simon enjoyed himself in my tummy!

We had my 28-week prenatal appointment on Tuesday and everything is still progressing normally and healthy.  I took care of my glucose test and RhoGAM shot and got all of my other regular vitals checked.  The nurse commented that my blood pressure was perfect, which set my mind at ease considering all the stress I've been experiencing at work over the last few weeks.  My nurse practitioner assured me that high blood pressure would only be a sign of a major complication with my pregnancy, and stress alone wouldn't cause it to spike (at least to levels that we would be concerned about).  I'm up a total of 19 lbs. and according to this week's video from The Bump, I am supposed to gain another 11 lbs. this trimester.  If I stay on track, that will put me right at my 30 lb. goal!  I also received my Kick Count Card at my appointment so I can record Simon's movement and be aware of anything abnormal.  So far, he has been doing great and is as active as ever!  We booked the rest of our appointments through my 40th week, which is just another reminder of how close we are to reaching the end of my pregnancy and the beginning of our son's life outside the womb.  It's exciting and scary all at the same time!

Our boy is about the size of an eggplant at 28 weeks.  He's still getting the hiccups often and I feel his pounding movements more and more throughout the day.  I'm beginning to wonder if Simon will be born with a full head of hair considering how much heartburn and indigestion I've been having lately.  The burning in my throat is no fun, especially when I'm resting or trying to fall asleep.  Once I am sleep, I'm completely out and haven't been woken by any discomforts yet, thank goodness!  I'm tired earlier and earlier in the evenings, and even get worn out at work pretty easily if I'm running around a lot.  It's no joke that the bigger baby gets, the more room he uses and the less your internal organs have, squishing everything together and making breathing a little tougher.  All aches and pains considered, it's definitely all worth it for the health and safety of my baby boy.  And because I love him so much, I've already begun compiling my list of pains I've experienced and sacrifices I've had to make in preparation for me to throw in his face when he's being a rascal of a teenager.  I can see Simon now, rolling his eyes every time I start off a rant with, "I carried you in my belly for 9 long months...!"

maternity photos!

We got our maternity photos back from Shannon Squires Photography and are in love with how they turned out!  Our session with Shannon was great and we would definitely love to use her again for our future portrait needs.  We'd also recommend her to our friends and family or anyone looking for a photographer.  She has great rates, was comfortable to work with, and got our photos back to us very quickly!  Check 'em out: