Kimba

Thursday Bump Day: Week 21

Baby this week is 10 1/2 inches long, which is like, big, right?! Nearly an entire foot long, and making herself known by routinely jabbing me in mah bladder. 

I'm sorta worried she's turned the wrong way. Which isn't exactly the way I have planned for this thing to go, she can still flip, right? I'm not doomed to inevitable c-section am I? I mean, all you want is a healthy baby, blah blah blah, but a c-section is like, the absolute last thing I want to do. 

Anyway. Guess I got no choice but to sit here and send her subliminal messages to do some serious wiggling. 

At my doctors appointment this week he asked if I was having any like, I don't know how he phrased it, bad symptoms? Anything to complain about? I just told him that like last time, though much MUCH earlier than last time, my back and hips are killing me. I asked him if it was happening earlier because of how Wyatt was situated, like maybe he permanently tweaked my hips for pregnancy, and he was like, "No, they hurt because your uterus is about the size of a basketball." 

I guess that's one good reason. But seriously, these hips. I'm taking two Tylenol before bed, just so I won't wake up every hour in pain. If I bend over the kitchen counter to write my grocery list (that I will inevitably leave behind anyway) I can't fully stand up afterward for a good 30 seconds, I have to hobble forward hunched over and waddling a bit, 95 year old style. 

Things could be much worse. I'd rather be dealing with this than horrible nausea like my poor cousin (seriously Jenny, you're a rockstar in my book). I just think this doesn't bode well for the next 18 weeks. Or more! Right? Cause due dates are just a shot in the dark anyway. 

I went and did a bit of shopping this week, trying to see if I could find anything for this cruise, for the formal night, and a little gala we're attending in March. Nada. Of course I found a crazy amount of cute things in H&M, none in the maternity section. I went into Motherhood Maternity, and maybe I just hit the store at a bad time, but why is it that so many companies thing pregnancy women want to look like giant Hawaiian tourists? I'm trying to minimize these giant lumps, not showcase them. Might as well be wearing a giant neon sign, "I AM HUGE!"

Most pregnancy sites say I should be feeling "pretty good right now", and besides the hip pain, I am. I can't complain. Also, because I secured a crazy adorable blessing dress already. 

For less than what I paid for Wyatt's outfit. I call that success. 

Thursday Bump Day: Week 20

Halfway folks! 140 days left to go, just long enough to feel like it's eons away and close enough to make me freak out a tiny bit. 

But. Not as much as last time. 

I've found myself very....blase (how do you get those fancy doo-hickeys over the e?) about this pregnancy. I mean, I'm taking my prenatals and I didn't go sledding down the giant hill in a tub at Soldier Hollow last Saturday, and I'm not taking ibuprofen or anything crazy. I just have other things on my mind, you know? Things like getting Wyatt fed (and keeping him from eating EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY HOLY CRAP KID YOU CAN WAIT 10 MINUTES FOR DINNER) and trying to keep the house clean and running errands and making dinner and keeping Wyatt from bouncing off the walls. 

Is it summer yet? Cause I really need summer. I guess that means I'll be a mother of two (!) by then, but right now all I really want is to be able to let Wy burn some steam off outdoors for a while. 

Anyway! I'm much more preoccupied is what I'm saying. Last time around I was working, sure, but it wasn't exactly keeping my attention. If ya know what I mean. This time around, I'm almost startled when I feel her move. 

So yeah, she's moving now and I'm feeling it and Caleb felt it for the first time last night. Milestones! It's not like I completely forget, every time I move I remember I'm pregnant, every time I stand before my clothes I remember I'm pregnant. She's sitting WAY higher than Wyatt was, significantly so. Check this out. It may not look like much, but it's making a huge difference around here. For one, and I feel weird even saying it out loud....I don't wake up to pee at night. People, I woke up to pee before I got pregnant, and now I can go all night! With Wyatt I was up at least twice, probably the whole pregnancy. Clothes fit differently (never mind that I started out this pregnancy a wee bit larger than the last.....sigh....) and well, I'm just bigger this time. I know that's normal, you start showing quicker the second and third time around, but dudes. I feel like at this rate I'm going to explode by June. 

And I have a cruise coming up this month! (You don't have to feel that bad for me, but still. My first cruise and I'm going to be whaleish...)

So let's see, the baby is the length of a banana (they start measuring the baby's entire length now, instead of "crown to rump") and can hear and swallow and is just fattening up the rest of the pregnancy. We went on Wednesday to the big ultrasound, and it was awesome to see. I think right now she's laying sorta...sideways...so she better get her head down there because a C-section is not in my plans. (I can do that right, decide exactly how this labor will go? Yeah?!) She kept squirming out of the way, but we got some good views of her, and the technician went through lots of anatomy with us which I found fascinating. It was one of my favorite classes, and to see that she already has everything in place already is just insane. Kidneys! Iliac crest! Hypothalamus! 4 chambered heart! It really is a miracle.

I was told to drink a lot of water this time, which I found strange because in San Jose I didn't have to and I've talked to several people who didn't have to either. So I didn't drink as much as I was told and the technician didn't say a word or act suspicious at all. I've had to do it before, once when I was like 12 and they were checking my ovaries to see if I had cysts (or if I really did just have wonky periods for the heck of it) and it was one of the worst experiences of my life. Or at least it was up to that point, I remember sitting there in the dark room while the doctor pushed and poked and held the ultrasound wand right over my bladder for ages, and I was pointing my toes and squeezing every muscle I had so I wouldn't pee all over him. I begged my mom in the waiting room to let me just go pee a little bit, just a little! She wouldn't let me of course, because she said I wouldn't be able to stop. She was right, because at the end of the appointment I was near tears and then probably peed for 5 minutes straight. I was embarrassed, thinking my mom and the doctor probably thought I'd died in there. 

Of course I'm older and wiser (cough) but I wasn't looking forward to having to do that again, and I'm here to say you don't have to! Just drink a good 12 or 14 oz or so and you're good. You're welcome. 

I should really be taking these shots with my actual camera so I can cut out my poor, sad looking face. But look at how high! I've been thinking a lot about that actually, and wondering why it is that you can carry your babies so differently from one pregnancy to the next. I mean, your uterus doesn't move, does it? You'd think that your anatomy is kindof set. But there she is, way up high. Even the ultrasound tech commented that she was sitting high. I have a feeling this is going to not bode well for my breathing in a few months...

I rant and rave and finally make my point

You all come here for beauty advice right? 

I thought so. I'm your number one beauty advisor! 

Listen up people, I have dry skin. That's my skin type, dry. It took me about 27 years to figure this out, but there you have it. This would have been helpful information during the junior high years (I've blocked most of those 3 years from my memory) and very helpful for every return trip to Utah, but here I am finally figuring out my skin type. 

It's way worse when I'm pregnant, and when we moved into this house we didn't (and still don't, though working on it!) have a humidifier for our heater. Meaning, by this time I was very used to the dry Utah weather, but suddenly my skin all but shriveled up on me it was so parched. Lips, face, hands, they've all been crazy dry and itching for moisture.

Got it? Dry.

Several months ago I bought some Bio Oil from Costco to try and minimize the giant scars I have from when I removed those moles but truth be told, I've been horrible at remembering to put it on. When I got pregnant however, I started using it like crazy, twice a day, just to combat the constant, kill-me-now itching. I've been crazy itchy this pregnancy, and the itching is not your average itch. Most of the time you can ignore an itch, it goes away. Pregnancy Itch, you cannot ignore. It's a stinging itch, and just gets worse and worse and worse until you think you might die. By this point you're itching it, but it takes a good 20 seconds of itching before it starts to go away. 

Okay, so, Bio Oil. Helps with the itch. But this isn't why I'm telling you about it! I'm telling you about it because one day, sick of my dry face, I put it all over. And then I started putting it on twice a day, night and morning, and here I am three weeks later and you guys, I've seen a HUGE difference.

Huge.

Not only is my skin not dry (my face used to flake just from using the brush for my Bare Essentials) but it's much more even, I'm fully convinced that a bit more time and I could maybe go without makeup! (Besides the every present dark circles...I don't think those are every going to go away, right?)  

Anyway, go try it. You won't be sorry. 

Thursday Bump Day: Week 19

So! Lots has happened in my life lately, non-pregnancy related, which has made the last few weeks completely fly by. I'm one week away from halfway done! HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN!?!?

Regardless, here I am. I have a noticeable bump and my non-pregnancy wardrobe is starting to dwindle. The other day I went out a bought a giant comfortable bra (I sort of called it a Grandma bra....no offense, Grandma!), no wires.....completely off the sexy chart. Which, truth be told, I probably left ages ago. 

I had my first crazy pregnancy dream two nights ago!  A real freaky one. I was at the doctors having an ultrasound and the baby was all blue and illuminated, sort of like there was an LED light in there, and it was FREAKING out. Laughing manically, sticking it's tongue out (which was sorta pointy) and rolling all over the place. I thought well, she has Caleb's personality too! And then they had me drink this chocolate shake as I watched as the baby immediately started eating some from this straw that was in there, and it was still chocolatley. I remember thinking well, that does it for me and Diet Coke the rest of the pregnancy! 

Then the doctor came in, and he happened to be Elder Holland, a general authority in my church, and he had bionic legs. Suddenly Wyatt was there and acting up, and managed to get one of his bionic legs off him, and I had to help him put it back on. 

The end. Super freakin' what-the-heck-was-that dream. 

This morning I had my first (of this pregnancy) leg cramp. I could swear I had them way earlier last time, so I naively thought I was in the clear. It's been awhile since I've had one, so in my agonizing pain I couldn't remember how to move my leg to get rid of it. I'm still not sure. Do you point your toes? Flex them? One of them makes it worse and one makes it go away and I can never remember when I need it. 

This last Sunday was my first in our new ward and so of course I had the opportunity to tell people over and over about our family, meaning I said the phrase, "We have one 3 year old boy and one on the way" about a million times. Which is just weird, people! A whole 'nother child that could look exactly like or absolutely different than Wyatt. Which is hard to imagine, you know? 

Cause it's a girl. Remember? Cause I almost keep forgetting. I went from wondering how on Earth I was going to do a boy, to not being able to imagine how to NOT do a boy. I spent an hour or so the other night browsing crib sets for girls, and could instantly pick out the boy designs I liked and would get, but couldn't decide on any for a girl. Too pink, too flowery, not sweet enough. A girl! That will need her hair actually done every day, and will require tights! Ruffled bums! Hair bows! 

The other day Caleb brought up my girly box, and we found things I'd put in there that I'd forgotten all about. I can't believe a little girl is going to fill them soon. 

(Last weeks...took a pic but forgot to post!)

And this weeks...

I don't think I see any difference....but it feels like there's one! 

Perks

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaand I'm back. Quite a long absence, even for lately, and I have to tell you for a long time I completely forgot about this here blog. I was so engrossed in moving in, unpacking and finding spots for everything, the last possible thing on my mind was little things like the internet, (except for my phone) and TV and like, the outside world. I holed up in this house for days, Wyatt watching way too many Caillou episodes (holy crap do I hate Caillou) and nearly going berserk cooped up in this place. 

Most of the major gotta-have-it stuff is put away, so for the last few days I've stalled, done next to nothing regarding unpacking the small items. Don't even get me started on decorating, Caleb's breathing down my neck trying to get me to let him hang pictures, but I just can't do it. Pictures on the walls, for me, are the very last items. I've got to know what the room is supposed to look and feel like before I can adorn the walls. The only item we've hung is Wyatt's car picture, but that's because I knew exactly where I wanted to put it eons ago. The rest of the house? No idea. 

The closing process was a nightmare. We were actually moved in and living in the house for DAYS before we closed, and we only closed because we threatened to sue them. That's how bad it got people, and come closing time we told the mortgage company (mainly the loan officer from hell) not to attend. We just simply didn't want her there. Too many things gone wrong, too many itsy bitsy (read: HUGE) items she forgot to mention / completely told us the opposite, too many unreturned phone calls and just plain lies. The mortage company gives you a welcoming gift at closing, a Scentsy candle that I gave to my sister because there was no way in the world I was going to keep it, and along with it she included a note that said, "Sorry things didn't go as smoothly as planned...". The understatement of the world. 

But no matter, it's behind us (except for a few large items currently weighing our pocketbooks and my nerves down) and we're in and can forget they exist. (Mortgage companies sell your mortgage to a bank almost immediately. Hence the reason they seemed to care less about like, customer service.) 

Wyatt has adjusted pretty well, largely in part because he absolutely loves his "big boy bed" and room. Even though he tells me all the time that he wants to go back to grandma's house, he wants to make sure he can still sleep in his bed. I think we all miss being there, mostly because of the company. I don't think if affected Caleb as much, but both Wyatt and I got used to having other people around during the day, people for Wyatt to play with (he misses his Emmy and Rockband!) and cajole candy and snacks out of (though that's not the only reason he misses his Grandma), and people for me to chat with, really. It was nice having company. My mom and I shared meal duty and helped each other out anyway, nevermind the built in babysitters and help for both of us. Caleb and I could put Wyatt down for the evening and go see a movie, and my parents could go out of town and not have to worry about the hassle of switching car pools around and making sure Emily had rides to places and someone to wake her up. 

Not that we're far away and haven't seen them, it's just taking some getting used to is all, adjusting back to our lives. 

Something that doesn't take getting used to? At least in the negative sense? Parking in the garage. That will always be awesome. 

Book Review: The Underside of Joy

I recently devoured The Underside of Joy, by Sere Prince Halverson. I've been trying to pinpoint why exactly I read this book so quickly, maybe because it was the first fiction book I'd picked up in a while? Maybe it was just time to read a good book? Because it takes place in Northern California where we just moved from (and still miss)? 

It's not exactly the type of book I'd read, it's about what happens with your world suddenly turns upside down. Her husband is suddenly killed (it's on the back of the book, so I feel okay sharing that tidbit) and she's left to care for her stepchildren, ones she's basically raised since birth and loves as her own, their own mother having abandoned them. Or so she's been told. 

I don't have any personal experience with stepmoms or stepchildren, but because the author is both herself, I feel like this gives the book much more depth - she writes in a way that you can understand, you can comprehend what that might be like. It was devastating to read, to see bits of what it would be like to lose your husband (or wife, respectively) and inspiring to see how she came to cope with that, and with all the other things that were thrown into the mix during it all. 

It made me wonder what would happen to us, to Wyatt, if anything were to happen to either or both of us. We're young, and I've naively not touched any of the will / custody issues, for many stupid / bury-my-head-in-the-sand reasons. Obviously that does us no good. I think the only thing we've got covered is Caleb's life insurance, but that hardly solves half the issues that would arise in such an occasion. 

Basically, Caleb and I need to sit down and figure this stuff out. And thank our lucky stars every day that we wake up and don't have to deal with it yet. 

Check out the book here! 

George was curious...

Wyatt has a favorite book, Curious George Goes to the Chocolate Factory, and it's been his favorite for a looooong time. He used to make me check it out at the library in San Jose all the time and it was the only book he wanted to read all week, both nap time and bed time, and it got so bad I'd attempt to hide it behind other books at the library when we'd venture back, just so we could go an entire week without reading it again. 

I know, slightly selfish, but variety! Right?! Expanding his horizons! 

Well, for Christmas we got him a big box set of Curious George books, and of course it became his favorite once again. And now he insists on reading it to us. 

I have a video of me reading to my parents several books word for word at his age, but they were much smaller. Have you seen Curious George books? Rather wordy, but he has much of it memorized. We're just a little bit proud of him. 

And yeah, it still blows my mind that I have a kid old enough to memorize books. 

Book Review: Why Women Need Fat

Do you like bacon? Sure, we all do. Do you want a diet that includes bacon and butter and sugar and carbs and dairy and meat? 

Sign me up, right?! 

Except this isn't a diet, in fact, Doctors William Lassek & Steven Gaulin argue in their book Why Women Need Fat, that dieting is partly the cause for why American women on average weigh 20 pounds more than their mothers and grandmothers did when they were the same age. 

Everything about this book made sense to me, the whys, the hows, and the ways to fix it. Maybe it's because I've already heard bits and pieces of their argument from reading Omnivore's Dilemma and watching Food Inc., but it was all very logical. No crazy claims, no all-liquid solutions. Just plain 'ole common sense with I-can-definitely-do-that ways to get yourself back to your healthy weight. 

I highly reccomend you check this book out, and guess what? I'm going to go so far as to venture this ain't just for women. Go check it out, and definitely pick it up! 

I am a reviewer for Blogher's Book Club and have been compensated, however, all words and opinions are mine and honest!

Drumroll please..........

Well, these boys were right. Wyatt's gettin' a little sister!

We'd been telling Wyatt how the visit would go, how the doctor would use a special camera to see the baby, so of course that meant Cabe and Wyatt had to turn it into a song. Thus, he's been singing "Jelly on my belly!" all day long. 

She was facing forward on her side, so we got to see her face, her hands (up by her face) and even her little foot. As soon as the ultrasound started I got a pretty good idea that it was a girl, and I felt more reassurance than anything. I think I would have been shocked if it had been a boy, just because Caleb and Wyatt have been so sure, from day one, that it would be a girl. So fun.

We're super excited, what a change it will be! All things balls  and construction and baseball to tea parties and ruffles. I have no doubt however, that she'll get some wrestle time in. I think that's required when you have an older brother, especially one that loves nothing more than wrestling with Daddy. 

I just can't wait to see Caleb having his first tea party. Hopefully wearing some kind of princess crown -yes -that will be the day!

Big Day

Tomorrow, Wednesday, is our Big Day! It was originally going to be our Giant Day, where we find out what sex the baby is AND close on our home, but it's looking like that might be Thursday. But! Baby! Hello! 

This came waaaaaaaaaay faster than I could ever imagine. It felt like I'd been pregnant for eons by the time we finally went to the ultrasound last time, but this time I can't even believe we're here. I keep forgetting it's tomorrow and then remembering and freaking out again. And then not really believing it. 

Caleb and Wyatt are still convinced it's a girl. I still have no idea, but am crazy excited. I'm praying this baby is nice and cooperative like Wyatt was. No need to be shy! Momma's gotta start picking out a paint color for your new room! And bedding! And itsy bitsy outfits! 

And holy crap, a double stroller? Uuuuuuughhhhhhhhhhh...............

Speaking of itsy bitsy outfits, I've gathered a few for my girl box recently, ones I just simply couldn't pass up. I will be happy either way, but if it's a girl at least I'll know (read: Caleb will feel better) that my purchases will be put to good use. Cause I've gathered quite a few adorable items over the years. 

If it's a boy, my wallet will be all the fatter.

See you back here tomorrow with the news!