Looking in the mirror

I know full well that I am pregnant, and with pregnancy comes a change in my body. I know this. But still, sometimes when I catch a glimpse of my bare stomach in a mirror, my breath catches. All I can think in that second is "oh, the hubs isn't going to like me getting big!" and then in the next second I sigh and remember, "I'm pregnant, this is supposed to happen!" Now, not all the changes are all that bad. I've already outgrown my bra, and I'm still growing...Goodness gracious. I'm kinda over that. 

Is it normal to feel this way about my growing stomach? I love the fact my stomach is growing and making room for this baby. I love watching it grow. I just still catch myself for split seconds at a time worrying that I'm "getting fat" when I know, I know I'm not. I don't like thinking this way. I want to continually rejoice over the changes. A growing belly means a growing baby and that is a wonderful thing!!

Don't get me wrong, I love the fact my belly is growing. I just wish my breath would stop catching at times in that negative way. No more negative thoughts!

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Birthdays

Tomorrow is the hubs's birthday. He will turn a quarter of a century old (the old fart). Growing up, my family always made birthdays a special day, a day where we got to make all the decisions. So once the hubs and I started dating, I took that mindset into the relationship. 

The first birthday we celebrated together was his 21st birthday. As I wasn't quite 21 at the time, we decided to go a different route than club hopping (and we're not quite club hopping people). Instead, his best friends and I decided to throw him a kind of surprise party. We rented a boat and took it out on the lake and spent the day boating on the lake. It was his special day and I was going to do my best to make it extra special for him. 

The next year, we spent his birthday traveling. It was the same day as my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary party, so we were busy hanging out with them and celebrating them. We did make an effort to go eat at a place of his choosing. 

Over the next years, I continued to try to make each day special. His 23rd birthday, he spent his birthday starting a new job. It was a wonderful day. He had been out of work for a month, and the fact that his job started on his birthday was the best birthday present he could have asked for. Last year was low key. We had just bought our house, so there wasn't much we wanted to do and he was okay with that. He picked a place to go out to eat and we enjoyed a nice birthday dinner.

This year, it's another crazy year. He just started a new job, and is subbing, cleaning an extra location on top of his already two locations, and he has something else going on tomorrow night. It's just a crazy week and I'm starting to think he might actually just want to chill this weekend and recover from such a crazy week. But I still want to make it a special day for him. Every year I try to make him a dessert, and every year  he asks for something fruity. This year it's a lemon chiffon. So here's to making him his special dessert...

The point is, I try to make every year special for him. We argue about it. He never really had his special day growing up. His family never really made a big deal out of birthdays. They were just another day to get stuff done. As we prepare to have our own family, birthdays are going to be a big deal. Maybe not so much with presents, but it'll be a day about them. Their special day. A day with cake and balloons and their choice of food. It's just the way I was raised and the way I hope to raise our kids. 

No more w(h)ining...

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Ever since I found out that I'm pregnant I have been craving one certain thing...a glass of good red wine. I know some people give the "a-o.k." to have an occasional glass here and there, but I just don't know where I stand on the issue. I've read mixed reviews on the whole issue, and people can be so adamant about it one way or the other. I guess in the end, giving up a good drink for a few months isn't too much to ask, no matter how intense the craving may get. So no more wine for me...at least not until this little one has said hello to the world. 

Anybody else have feelings about this taboo subject?

Week 14!

How far along: 14 weeks

Trimester: Second

Baby size: Lemon

Toes: I can still see them!

Gender: Find out in a month hopefully!

Movement: Not yet, but hopefully sooner than later!

Cravings: Milk and cheese, lots of cheese

Aversions: Ground turkey

Nausea/Morning sickness: It still hits me every once in a while, but it's not too bad. I've just gotta watch myself and not push myself or I get a headache, and worse a migraine.

Maternity clothes: Been wearing them for weeks and not ashamed, they are so comfortable!

Best moment of the week: We got the crib! Now just to spray paint it red :)

What I'm looking forward to: Getting the crib ready and continuing to set up the nursery.

I know I said I'd get a week 13 picture and information on the blog, well you know how things get. Eventually I got enough gumption to take a picture of myself. I'm loving this whole being pregnant thing and the fact that people are beginning to tell that I am indeed pregnant! Well, the people who know that I'm pregnant are able to see the bump. I of course think I'm huge and getting bigger every minute. But that's a good thing. It means this baby is growing and I hope s/he keeps on growing! 

Big brother Hank wanted to join in on the picture taking.

Dreaming Away

As I sit here trying my best not to nod off (this baby making is exhausting work and this weather isn't helping), I'm looking at mobiles for our sweet baby to stare up at as s/he lays in their crib. Some are just absolutely dreamy. Others extremely expensive. I'm amazed at the prices some of these things cost! But they are beautiful and wonderful.

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I may just attempt to make something myself. It depends on how I crafty and thrifty I feel. Who knows, the perfect mobile may appear at the right time and the right price. What do you think?

Okay. I'm not able to fight this sleep for much longer. Nap time has never sounded so good.

Welcome Second Trimester and Crib Debacle

So far my first few days into the second trimester and here comes:

* back pain worthy of a whole bottle of Tylenol (of course I haven't had any)

* heartburn - thank you for not letting me sleep last night

* more energy

* and the feeling of getting bigger every second

Overall I'm feeling fine, as long as I have my back brace on and I've been able to cook a little more here and there. Until recently, I haven't really been able to spend much time in the kitchen which has put a lot of strain on the hubs. But he has taken it on like a champ. I have to say, I miss being in the kitchen cooking and doing dishes and creating. Hopefully as time continues I'll find myself back in there cooking. Oh nausea. What a wonderful thing...

So the hubs and recently have been having this debate on cribs. I've been scouring Craigslist for months in search for the perfect crib. Unfortunately ones that I found that I liked, the hubs didn't like. He's a picky one, that husband of mine. So then, we toyed with the idea of using the same crib my parents used for my brother and me. My brother got it out from under their stairs and the hubs and I brought it home. It's an old crib and we were worried that it didn't have all it's parts. We started playing and lo-and-behold, if we wanted to use it then we would have to rebuild the thing. The parts were missing. That sent me back to Craigslist, where I found a little gem. I knew the hubs wouldn't like it, so I had to form a plan of action. 

I love the Jenny Lind style crib. The hubs, however thinks it's either a)too fancy or b)too girly. I disagree.

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This is the crib I found on Craigslist. Not a full Jenny Lind, but I thought maybe it would be a good compromise between the hubs and me. He saw it, and kinda approved. His only deal was that the white was still too girly for his liking. I told him we don't yet know if we'll have a girl or a boy, but if it turns out we are having a boy we can paint it. No big deal.

So that's our new crib and we're going to pick it up this weekend. I'm super excited about it! Now for the ideas of paint. Here's what I think we'll do:

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I love the red paint! But then I'm also thinking:

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I like the idea of the blue. We have a really pretty blue that I could use. 

I don't know. I guess we'll see once we find out the sex of the baby. Just 5 more weeks!

Cravings and Aversions

There's one thing I can say about this pregnancy, it has come with it's fair share of food cravings and aversions. 

Before pregnancy I have always had a tendency to lean towards all things sweet. Especially ice cream, cookies, and the like. I would have taken a good candy bar anytime anywhere. But now...it is on a special occasion that I go for anything sweet, other than a peach. In fact the only thing sweet that I'm craving right now is my mom's special dessert, and lucky me, I get some tonight! 

Now, my big thing is milk. Before I knew I was pregnant I wanted glass of milk after glass of milk. Still I want milk. And cheese. Milk and cheese. I could eat cheese just by itself. I don't. Or I don't do it as much as I'd like...but I do occasionally indulge in some yummy cheese eating.

Aversions. I've noticed that my biggest aversion is to ground meat being cooked. I. Can't. Stand. It. And that's putting it lightly. I'm getting sick just thinking about it. The hubs cooked lasagna and enchiladas last week and I about died from the smell. It was awful. Also, chicken is out of the picture now for the most part. The only chicken I allow myself to eat can be found in the Zaxby's grilled Caesar salad. But that is it. The thought of chicken makes me want to gag. The thought of ground meat makes me want to run and hide and never return. 

I get random cravings for things like grilled veggies, sauteed onions, quinoa, a coke, pizza, Zaxby's fries, and salads. Oh and Waffle House. I love Waffle House. Last night was a Waffle House night and boy do I have the best husband in the whole world. He gets me just what I want. Well, pretty much what I want. 

I don't know what cravings and aversions say about a person, I personally think mine say that I'm absolutely insane. But that's just my personal opinion. 

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