It’s 37 weeks and Lizzy is full-term. Here’s a video of her reaction after I served her an eviction notice! Whoever said babies move around less as labor approaches hasn’t met Lizzy yet. She still seems to have plenty of room to do as she pleases.
Pregnancy by .
Image taken from MommyAPPELseed.com
I’m super nervous about having to breastfeed in public, especially around my immediate family. We’re all very outgoing and we love spending time together, but the precedent for feeding has been formula. It’s inevitable that I’ll have to feed Lizzy in front of the family so I’ve been keeping my eyes peeled for the right product to keep the awkwardness to a minimum.
Shortly after I began my search I came across ring slings. The great thing about these baby carriers is that you can breastfeed and it’s completely discreet. The slings come in a variety of different styles ranging from basic to quite elaborate. A couple of my favorite sites that sell these slings are Maya Wrap and Rockin’ Baby.
However, I have lots of free time so I decided to make mine custom. I found this great site for the pattern: Sleeping Baby. It gives very specific directions with lots of pictures (amen)! I spent around $25 on materials, which is under a third of the price of any other sling I found. After searching for rings at Home Depot and Jones Feed, supposedly horse shops sell them, I ended up purchasing them online at Sling Rings. They were only $6 bucks including shipping and I like them a lot better because you get to choose the color.
It took a couple of weeks for me to complete this project because it includes two things I’m not crazy about: ironing and hemming. I really like how it turned out though. Now I just have to convince my hubby that it’s safe for Lizzy. He’s been making me practice wearing it with a teddy bear LOL. I’m a little nervous too, but there’s lots of YouTube videos that demonstrate how to wear it properly and breastfeeding techniques. Lizzy will be here soon so I can’t wait to give it a go!
I never feel this big until I see a picture!
I’m nine months pregnant and Lizzy could arrive at any moment. I can’t believe it. Our family is filled with anticipation, but our family is also a “Hot-Mess.” My hubby broke his foot about a week ago and is having surgery on it today. He’s been hobbling around on crutches and is expected to have to continue to do so for the next 4 to 6 weeks. Therefore, we wouldn’t mind if she decided to stay put for a while. But when it rains it pours; so instead of naively holding my breath, I’m practicing my “heee-heee-hooos.”
It’s his right foot, which means I’ve become his personal chauffeur, nurse and assistant. It also means I no longer get to indulge in the last days of my pregnancy. Instead, I’m now grudgingly picturing the month ahead. When I do go into labor, my hubby will no longer be my ride. We’ll have to work our way down the list of friends and family until we have a taker. Hopefully, I won’t have too many false alarms for their sake. I also have to assume we won’t be taking turns getting up at night. I’ll be solely taking care of my little baby and big baby unless our pups decide to chip in, but I doubt it.
On the bright side, Lizzy’s nursery is ready for action! In pre-surgery this morning our doctor’s assistant was telling us that his wife is also nine-months pregnant and they’re currently waiting for their new house to close. They don’t know if they’ll be moving in before or after the baby arrives. I’m not sure, but I think I’d rather be in our situation than theirs! I’m so relieved that our house is organized and her room is ready with the essentials.
The other day we got one of our final necessities: a breast pump. I love shopping with my hubby now, because he rolls around in the handicap-electric-cart and it’s so cute! He’s so curious about the breast-pump too. He looks at it with both suspicion and interest, while holding it at arms length. I was going to wait to get the breast-pump, but our pediatrician said it’s really important to introduce the bottle sooner than later. I’m not sure I’m convinced of that, but I’m glad we’re prepared either way.
Now he gets around just as slow as me.
Other than his broken foot, the beginning of my ninth month has been pretty uneventful. My weight gain has leveled off and I’ve been feeling pretty good except for a few dizzy spells. The doctor says he believes Lizzy is already 6 pounds. I’m hoping she makes her grand exit at 7 lbs. That should be in approximately two weeks.
Pregnancy Uncategorized by .
Grandpa's Project
I had a rocking-horse when I was little. It was brown and had a saddle.
By the time I was in elementary school the poor horse had almost completely fallen apart. Its back legs were detached from its body and the saddle was nowhere to be found. However, my father kept the rocking horse and has recently brought it back to life for his little granddaughter Lizzy.
This horse is over twenty-years-old, but you would never know it by looking at it now. It’s a little bit Vegas mixed with a little bit Barbie and definitely an unmistakable creation of my father’s.
It took a few months, countless bottles of lacquer and an endless imagination. The horse is now fluorescent pink with long blond doll-hair. He removed the handles and replaced them with earrings. It’s not the most baby-friendly horse, but it’s certainly fun to look at.
Here’s the finished project…
BEFORE
AFTER
Last week I finally got educated on breastfeeding. It’s about time too, because Lizzy and her appetite will be arriving shortly. I signed up for two different classes and read all the literature I could get my hands on. After attending the classes I’ve come to two conclusions: women’s bodies are absolutely amazing and “breast is best.”
The first class I attended was at Babies R Us on a Saturday afternoon. It was sponsored by Medela so I was a little apprehensive to go because I thought it might turn into a big long product-pushing advertisement. I was delighted to be wrong. The class was conducted at the back of the store where the gliders are displayed and that’s exactly where me and several other pregnant women made ourselves comfortable.
A petite bubbly lactation consultant from the St. Rose Dominican Hospital was our teacher. She began by introducing herself and then she asked us to do the same. Turns out, everyone in attendance was having a baby girl!!! I think that there must be something in our Vegas water and I’m going to keep drinking it just like my doctor ordered.
Our teacher ran through all the benefits of breastfeeding and listed the local resources available. She suggested stopping by the Barbara Greenspun WomensCare Center if we ran into any problems and that the center provides a walk-in baby weigh-station that could come in handy. We watched a video that depicted the different types of breastfeeding positions and then she went over all the products that would increase our breastfeeding success. Before the class concluded we participated in a “Q and A” which I felt was very helpful. I wanted to know when is a good time to introduce the bottle, if binkies are “blacklisted” and how to tackle breastfeeding in public. She throughly answered all of my questions and also provided me with her business card just in case. I would suggest a Babies R Us class to anyone interested in breastfeeding.
The following Monday I attended another breastfeeding class with my prego buddy Linnea at the Summerlin Hospital. I had extremely high expectations for this one because it was $30 and it was being held at a hospital with a nurse teaching. We were the first to arrive, but the classroom filled quickly. There was easily over 30 people in attendance. The chairs were much less comfortable then the gliders provided at Babies R Us and the video the nurse planned to show was unavailable due to “technical difficulties.” Both of us were disappointed when we left. The class definitely wasn’t worth $30 and it didn’t even last entire scheduled time. More importantly, the information conveyed was no more valuable or thorough than the information from Babies R Us.
However, I’m happy I attended two breast feeding classes because I had a ton of new questions that popped into my head after attending the first one. But I still feel the $30 would have been much better spent on a pre-labor pedicure.
Anyone who is planning on breastfeeding should check out Bebe au Lait. They currently have %20 off promotion on all of their nursing covers and they’re super cute!
Our Newest Backyard Residents
Almost immediately after our bird-feeder was hung, hummingbirds began to inhabit our backyard. There are only two birds that actually use the feeder and I think it’s a Mr. and Mrs. because hummingbirds are territorial. During mating season, one male dominates the feeder and only allows the female birds he’s mated with to share his liquid loot.
Just because only two birds are using the feeder doesn’t mean others don’t try. It was all out warfare the other day when 5 birds were battling it out in the backyard. I happened to be outside and all I could do was stand as still as possible as they swarmed around me and dive-bombed each other. They’re not as sweet as they look after all, but the Mr. and Mrs. prevailed and are sticking around.
As for the garden, it’s doing great except for the three strawberries princess Chloe smashed while lizard hunting this week and unfortunately, Frankie, my garden compadre, is now missing his tail. Consequently, she’s been spending a lot more time in the dog-run. But it seems like she uses this time to strategize, because all she does all day long is stare in Frankie’s direction.
Tomato Worm- Ewwwwww
In addition to Chloe, there has been another garden nuisance. A single tomato worm almost completely destroyed my Serrano peppers. Thankfully, they’ve made a full recovery and the hubby relocated the worm over our back-wall. The tomato worm was really weird looking with a sharp horn on its head. It’s the kind of thing that makes a pregnant girl wanna throw up in her mouth a little.
In other news, our first bell pepper has arrived. I didn’t realize bell peppers grow like flowers on a stalk. I kind of figured it would be more like a carrot or a potato. I wish the garden was producing more abundantly, but for now this single bell pepper will have to do.
El Pimiento Solitario
The parsley has been cut all the way down. It was used in the spaghetti for LIzzy’s baby shower along with a great deal of the basil plant. The parsley tastes exactly the same as what you’d get at the grocery store, but the basil is much more fragrant and almost has a bit of a sweet taste.
About to Bloom
The sunflowers are towering and finally about to bloom. I had to thin them down to two so they’d have more room to grow. Sunflowers also double as natural bird-feeders so maybe, if we’re lucky, we’ll have some more backyard-birdie residents soon!
Crafts and Hobbies by .
Tuesday morning, around 10 a.m, I started having really bad abdominal pains. It felt more like a stomach ache rather than cramps. There was no explanation; I didn’t do anything unusual. At about this time I started feeling guilty about everything… what if it was the deli meat I snuck at my baby shower, what if I’ve been too active, what if… what if…?
At 1:30 p.m. nothing had changed. I made soup and grilled cheese for lunch hoping it would help, but I still had a persistent pain. I tried to lay on the couch and distract myself by watching TV, but certain positions only made things worse. At this point I decided it was appropriate to call my doctor.
A nurse answered and I explained the situation in detail. It was now even hurting when the baby moved, which is never the case unless she’s under my ribs. She said she would talk to the doctor and call me right back. While I waited, I tried to take a warm bath and a nap. Nothing seemed to work and I two hours later I still hadn’t received a phone call back from the doctor’s office.
I tried to call the hubby, but he was at work and not answering. I scanned my “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” baby book/Bible, but it didn’t seem like I was having contractions. My stomach wasn’t getting hard and then soft. It was just staying hard and there was no relief from the pain. Sometimes it was worse than other times, but it never went away. I wasn’t sure if it was an emergency situation or just a stomach ache, but I decided to go to the emergency room at Centennial Hospital.
So Excited Lizzy Decided to Extend her Stay
I started filling out the paperwork and the lady at the admitting desk asked me how far along I was. I said 32 weeks and she said we have to take you to labor and delivery because of how far along you are. She asked a young boy who was sitting at another desk to get a wheel chair. I told them it wasn’t necessary and that I could walk just fine. She then informed me that it wasn’t a choice; I started bawling crying. I was so embarrassed. The young boy was trying to make light conversation, but it seemed like it was his first week in a hospital. It was only making things worse. I was started to realize that this may be serious.
Wheelchair Chauffeur: “So are you having a boy or girl?”
Me: “Waaaaa a girl, Waaaaa.”
Wheelchair Chauffeur: “Oh congratulations!”
Me: “Thanks, Waaaaa, sorry I’m crying it’s only 32 weeks, Waaaaa.”
Then, once we arrived to labor and delivery I really new he was a newbie. I felt just as sorry for him as I did for myself. I could tell he was really uncomfortable.
Wheelchair Chauffeur: “What’s that noise?”
Me: “Waaaaa, I think it’s a baby’s heartbeat on a monitor.”
Wheelchair Chauffeur: “Oh, it sounds like somebody is running on a broken treadmill.”
Me: “Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.”
A new nurse approached me as my wheelchair chauffeur quickly retreated. She gave me a gown and of course I put it on the wrong way, like usual. They always say to get undressed, but they need to be more specific. For instance, when I had to get stitches in my side after a four-wheeling accident the doctor asked me to get undressed. I came out wearing only the gown and he was like, Whoa- put some clothes back on! This time I was allowed to leave my bra on.
Next, the tests and the monitoring began and I also got a hold of my hubby. He left work and was on the way. My nurse said my cervix was closed, but that I was having a lot of contractions. She gave me a shot of Terbutaline. It made me jittery and only slowed the contractions temporarily. By the time I was going to receive a second shot my hubby had arrived and next thing you know the whole family was there. He told me I was in trouble for not calling anyone to take me to the hospital. But this is my first baby, and I just didn’t realize that what I was feeling was contractions.
At around 5 p.m. my doctor’s office finally called back. The nurse apologized for the delay and explained that the doctor said that all I could do is lie down and drink lots of water. I was so irritated. I told her that I was in the hospital having contractions. She was very surprised. My doctor doesn’t have privileges at Centennial so they weren’t going to notify him of any test results or if the baby had to be delivered.
The second shot of Terbutaline started to wear off and the contractions were back. Dr. Harter, who was amazing, decided to try Procardia next. He didn’t have an explanation for why I was having the pain or the contractions, but he told me if they couldn’t stop them Lizzy would have to come out that night. I was scared and sad. This wasn’t the plan.
Luckily, the Procardia worked and by 9 p.m. the pain started to ease. All my test results came back good, except for a slightly elevated white-blood-cell count. They never figured out exactly why the stomach pain and contractions started. I was discharged at around 9:50 p.m. with bed-rest orders and to follow up with my doctor in the morning. When I got to my doctor’s office he questioned why I was there because he had just seen me last week. I told him I was in the hospital and he reprimanded me for not calling. Turns out the nurse never even talked to him!
Next time- if I don’t get a call back in reasonable amount of time I’m going to be a little more persistent and I’m going to ask to speak directly with the doctor! My doctor told me he would prescribe the Procardia if I start having contractions again and that I should go to Sunrise so he could care for me.
I plan on taking it easy from here on out. I want her to bake as looooong as possible. I also realize now that it’s really unlikely that my make-up and hair will be done for her delivery day. Even if I was able to slap something on it would just be sweated off in an instant.
When we arrived home the hubby set up her bassinet. I told him he was jinxing it and that we should wait, but I guess it wouldn’t be a bad idea to put together a hospital bag and start working on a delivery plan. Obviously, she’s going to be here before we know it!
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Baby Shower 7/25/10
After the absolutely perfect baby shower my momma Cheryl hosted I think we’re all set for Lizzy to arrive. We received all the necessities from our friends and family and tons of the cute stuff too.
For everyone that was able to make it, thank you for sharing a very special day with us. And I’m positive Lizzy loves her new gifts, so much so she put me in the hospital the other day trying to get out to use them.
If she does make her way into this world early it’s nice to know I can now finish her nursery. My bestie Christina gave us Lizzy’s shabby chic bedding and my sis Jenae made some beautiful letters to hang above her crib. I know Jenae’s going to be in business soon making these letters, they’re just so amazing and a great finishing touch to any nursery.
Jenae's Baby Letters
Lizzy also has wheels now! Our parents and aunt purchased us three different strollers- so the girl is definitely ready to roll. Plus, we used some of the gift card money we received to get a snazzy bike trailer. It will be nice and cool by the time I’m carting her little butt around. All I need to do now is find some great trails. I sure wish Desert Shores was a little closer.
Pretty Delicious
The cake was another party highlight. I was under the assumption that it was from Freed’s Bakery, but it was actually from Retro Bakery. So I apologize to everyone I told otherwise. The cake was vanilla and filled with strawberry. The frosting was so rich it could give you a toothache. Most importantly, it tasted just as good as it looked.
However, the most memorable part of the shower was one of the three games we played. I don’t even think it has a name, but if I had to choose one it would be Conception. Now it’s time to use your imagination. You basically had to wrap nylon around your waste with two golf balls in it and try to knock as many balls into the goal as possible within a certain amount of time. It was hilarious; I was crying and my makeup was everywhere. My sis Jenn won this challenge. Although the game will probably make your grandma blush, I really think it should be a new shower staple!
Autumn Playing "Conception"
Diaper cake from Jenae
Thank you all again! It was so much fun and me and the hubby absolutely loved all the clothes and baby accessories. She’s a very lucky lil’ lady. Plus, there was leftovers for days and that was quite alright with me!
Pregnancy by .
On a recent trip to Utah my Blackberry was fried by an unruly outlet.
I’ve been a loyal “Crackberry” user/abuser since I was a teen. I never thought another smartphone would outdo it’s capabilities, until the iPhone came on scene. However, my wireless provider is Verizon and I’m happy with their service and coverage, but they won’t be getting the iPhone until sometime next year.
Hallelujah, that this is the case. The iPhone 4 has been having a ton of problems and now I don’t have to deal with them.
But either way I needed a new phone. I figured I’d just get another Blackberry, but my hubby who had Droid-fever accompanied me to the Verizon store. He convinced me, as if Motorola already had a check in the mail with his name on it, that it was time to make a switch.
I’m so happy I did. I realize now that my Blackberry has completely failed to evolve with the times. It’s practically the same product as 5-years-ago.
I love my Droid and I love all my new apps. Here are some great ones I’ve found for tech-savvy moms…
Best Droid Apps for Moms:
1.) Pregnancy Calendar
This app by the developer Libero tracks your prego-progress and gives you a week by week status-update. It shows cute cartoon pictures of your baby’s growth and what it might be doing at the moment. Most importantly, it displays a countdown at the top of exactly how many days you have left so you never lose track.
2.) Garage Sale Rover
This great resource was developed by Navigation App. It displays all the garage sales posted on Craigslist for the week in your area on a GPS-map. If you want more details about the garage sale, including what is being sold and pictures, the link provided will take you directly to the Craigslist post.
Recently, I used this app and found that someone was selling a bicycle-trailer right down the street from me. I had this on my baby registry so I could ride my little girl around and I was so excited to see that I might be able to get it for a bargain.
3.) Safe Neighborhood v3.0.6
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of this app is the movie “Knocked Up.” In the movie, the character Debbie is searching the National Public Sex Offender Registry and is upset that her husband isn’t getting as worked up as her about the amount of offenders in their area. Then she famously says, “You think you’re so cool because you don’t care” and the husband replies, “It’s not like I’m going to go over there and ask them to babysit.”
In my opinion, everybody’s got to be at least a little curious about who’s living in their neighborhood. This app fulfills that curiosity by displaying all the registered sex offenders within a specific radius on a Google Map layer. It even provides the offenders’ pictures and specific charges.
Accessories Pregnancy by .
I was really looking forward to my doctor’s appointment today. I quit drinking soda approximately three weeks ago and I was sure he’d be singing my praises.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned.
I stepped onto the scale, that I thought was my friend, and the nurse kept scooting its bar to the right… further and further. From the corner of my eye I saw my hubby raise his brow.
“You’ve gained eight lbs in the last three weeks,” said the nurse. “You need to start watching what you eat.”
Huh, I thought. But I quit drinking soda!
This is not how things were supposed to go today. The staff was supposed to be complimenting me on how great I looked; the nurse was supposed to be concerned about my weight loss not GAIN!
Reluctantly, I waited for the doctor to arrive. When he did he began to lecture me on approved meals for a healthy pregnancy. At that point I should of asked my hubby to leave because the first thing he did was throw me under the bus.
“So just to be clear, Whopper Jr.’s aren’t on the list?”
It was obvious from the doctor’s response how he felt about one of my favorite meals and that I wouldn’t be having it anytime soon. I guess I’ve been taking the eating for two too seriously.
Other than that all is well with Lizzy. It has been reported that caffeine may be responsible for smaller babies. I wonder if it’s possible that Lizzy has had a growth spurt since I cut soda from my diet.
Later in the day we stopped by the store to pick up some items from the LAME approved list. Hopefully, this will insure that my next appointment goes better and the scale and I make amends.
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