36 Weeks: OH DEAR GOD

The title kind of sums up life right now. I'm 36 weeks pregnant with bub #2 and I am officially over it. I know, I know, I should enjoy every minute of these last days where I only have one little one to look after. BUT, this pregnancy has been so much harder than the last one that I can't help but wish it along towards the finish line.

I have enlisted an army of childcare help with Lyla in the form of her four local grandparents. I knew moving ten minutes away from our parents would prove to be a good decision at some point and right now, it is an absolute lifesaver! Although I'm about to lose two as my folks are jetting off on a three-week South American adventure all the way up until 3 days before my due date. Great timing! (not) Honestly it was entirely our fault, they had already booked the trip when we got pregnant...the timing is just really ironic.

I've come down with a chest cold. So, on top of being 9 months pregnant, chasing a toddler, and taking care of two dogs, a house and a husband, my body is now fighting this nasty bug that has me coughing up gray boogers and all but bed-ridden. It's not my finest moment. This pregnancy is far from glamorous and I am just now realizing how easy I had it the first time around.

First pregnancy I worked out till I was 8 months pregnant and even after that would still take regular long walks with the dogs. This pregnancy I haven't so much as seen my toes or broken a sweat voluntarily since I was about 5 months pregnant. Between first trimester nausea and then a teething and/or sick baby I rarely got to the gym and even froze my membership till August. First pregnancy I hardly ever gave in to cravings and would satisfy my sweet tooth with fresh organic fruit or small morsels of dark chocolate and almonds. This pregnancy I have gotten and devoured a Chick-fil-A cookies and cream milkshake before 11am more times than I am proud of. Milkshakes are a freakin' revelation! I have never had a huge sweet tooth but something about a cookies and cream milkshake always sounds good these days. Number one pregnancy craving for sure. First pregnancy I took it easy when I needed to and took excellent care of my body. This pregnancy I am lifting a 22lb toddler every day, contorting in odd ways to get her dropped shoe or her thrown binkie, breathing like a mastadon every time I get up from a seated position.

This has been just so much harder in every way. Again, I hate to complain because we are completing our family with a little bouncing boy and couldn't be more excited. BUT I am DONE having kids after this. I'm saying it now. We are having our little four-pack family and then (assuming all parties are healthy and all goes according to plan) we are putting this chapter to bed. I will probably have to re-read some of these posts when I get a bout of baby fever in a few years but I'm confident that I will scare myself out of wanting a third.

XOXO

L

22 Weeks

This pregnancy seems to be going at rapid speed as i deal with more pressing issues. My adorable and precocious toddler Lyla has learned to walk and is now climbing, running, falling and zipping all over the place. Over the last few days she has also started teething and its a nightmare. I am pretty sure she is getting her 1-year molars and is absolutely miserable.

On the plus side, Matt and I did get away for our first weekend without the baby (and without any family obligations) since she was born. Actually...it's been even longer than that. I think the last time we got away just the two of us with no family members, no weddings, no holidays was when we went to Italy about two-ish years ago.

We went to Asheville, NC which is like a little hippy town in the mountains that is only about 4-hours away from Charleston. We ate, Matt drank, and we were merry. It was good to get away. We should do it more often but with the impending birth of our second child the opportunity seems to be slipping away from us. We don't expect another chance like that for the next two years.

Back to pregnancy news...I am getting bigger by the minute, my sciatica is also getting worse and baby boy is an active kicker. I haven't been able to get to the gym as much as I want to, nor as much as I did during my first pregnancy. I feel incredible out of shape, short of breath and exhausted. I just feel like I never gave my body enough of a break in between and that's probably the reality of it. I could only start bringing Lyla to the gym with me when she turned six months old and then I got pregnant again when she was about eight months old. I know I will get back into it when the boy is born but it just seems so far away.

Which brings me to my nerves. I am absolutely shake-in-my-boot terrified about having another baby with Lyla being so wild right now. I remember all the challenges we faced during Lyla's first year and I can't imagine how desperately helpless we are going to feel when there are two that demand my mind, body and attention. I am not excited to be breastfeeding again, which I'm sure makes me a bad mom but dear god it was so nice when Lyla started to take a bottle!

I want to do my best for both of these kids and I don't know how to do that. I am so in love with my daughter that I worry that her brother will just seem like an awful inconvenience for his first few months. These feelings will go away when I see him and get to know him, I hope. I didn't immediately fall in love with Lyla as a newborn either. I don't think I'm the biggest fan of the newborn phase. They're pretty useless. But now, even as Lyla enters into toddler-hood guns-blazing I am obsessed with her. Hopefully that happens with my second-born (everyone says it does).


I'll leave you with this bump photo:

18 Weeks / 19 Weeks

Here I am...again. 18 weeks pregnant and just starting to document my pregnancy.


*** I am now 19 weeks because of Thanksgiving I never actually wrote this post so here I go again.

This pregnancy has not been a picnic. The first three months were spent being nauseous, tired and generally bedridden. Since about 14 weeks I have been functional, but now I am already experiencing back pain, sciatica and some serious round ligament pain. Not fun.

The great thing is I am almost half way through already and baby boy is growing right on track. We go in for our anatomy scan mid-December and I can't wait to see our little man!

18 Weeks

Surprise!! #2 is on the way!

We're Expecting A Baby Boy

yes, that's correct, I am pregnant again and we are due with a bouncing baby boy on April 26th. I haven't written here in a long while and there is a good reason why. My first trimester with this pregnancy has been HELL. I got nauseous about five seconds after I found out I was pregnant and have felt terrible ever since. In between being nauseous, exhausted and emotional I also managed to get two colds and a viral stomach bug. I've lost 7 pounds and am pretty rough around the edges these days. For all those people who say being pregnant with a boy make you look and feel better are LIARS.

Over the past 10 weeks I have had more help with Lyla than ever with my husband, mom and mother-in-law picking up my slack. Que the mom guilt. I am not 14 weeks pregnant and am finally getting out of it. I took care of my daughter today by myself for the first time in two months...not something I am proud of but at least it seems like its over. I am ready to resume my life.

My real thoughts on this pregnancy is that it seems too soon...I feel like I just went through all this, and I did. Lyla will be 17 months old when this baby comes and although she will be well into toddlerhood she is still a baby. I am excited and terrified to have two kids under two. Everything I keep reading and hearing from moms who have walked in my shoes does nothing to quell my fears and only furthers my panic. I barely feel like I've got a handle on this whole mom thing and now I am being thrown a newborn on top of it all.

The first question people apprehensively ask is if Matt and I were "trying". The answer is yes, but we both did not expect it to happen on the first try. It took us 6 months to get pregnant with Lyla and I was still breastfeeding so we figured it would take a few months. Nope.

Matt and I are both over the moon that we are having a boy, although I truly didn't care one way or another this time around. I am so in love with our little girl that I would have been delighted to have another. But we've got our perfect little package of one boy and one girl and I am pretty certain we are done having kids after this.

I haven't taken any bump photos yet but will start to post those soon. I will also hopefully document this pregnancy well and keep this little journal going.

XOXO

Lisa

She's Here!! my labor story

It turns out that all that false labor I was experiencing wasn't so useless after all! Lyla June Pontius was born on Friday November 14th, 2014 at 3:05pm and was exactly 8 days early at 38 weeks 6 days.

Matt and I went to bed around 11pm. I had been having trouble sleeping with all the pain and discomfort I had been feeling so I took an ambien to sleep. Matt took one too. I immediately fell asleep and Matt fought the slumber by playing on his Ipad. At 12:30pm I woke up from sleeping because I felt like I was leaking fluid. I turned to Matt and said "I think my water just broke". Considering that we had just been turned away from the hospital that Monday I wanted to be 100% sure before we left for the hospital again. So I put a pad in my underwear and got back in bed. Well, they told us in our prenatal class that it's your water breaking if it soaks a pad in less than an hour and after about 20 minutes and a few more gushes of liquid I was pretty certain this was the real deal. It's called a slow leak when your water breaks higher up in the amniotic sac and leaks out over a period of time (as opposed to the movie version where there is an eruption that comes at once). Anyway, we packed up our gear, which had conveniently been packed for our fake-out trip in Monday and called the doctor who told us to come in right away. Well, we had learned our lesson about rushing off to the hospital so Matt jumped in the shower  to wake himself out of the ambien haze and I got ready (did my makeup, packed my toiletries and got dressed). We then made a peanut butter banana protein smoothie and calmly left for the hospital, still a little skeptical that this was the real thing.

We got to the hospital around 2am and I was immediately checked by the nurse. They tested my cervix for amniotic fluid to make sure I had really broken my water. Well...I had! it was the real deal and we weren't leaving the hospital without a baby. At 3am they started me on Pitocin through my IV becuse my water breaking hadn't started contractions. in less than 30min contractions started and I was surprised that they didn't hurt as bad as they had on Monday (when I technically wasn't in labor). They checked my cervix and I was 3cm so we had a while to wait and they suggested I get some sleep and let them know when I was ready for pain meds. The epidural was still my biggest fear so I wanted to hold off as long as I could. I made a point to use the bathroom in those early morning hours, even managing to poop which was a huge coup because I was also worried about taking a huge dump with five people watching and my legs in the air.

So Matt and I drifted between sleep and awake until 7am when the staff switched over and the new doctor on call came to see us. we were told it could take all day so dilate fully so we were pretty much left on our own for most of the morning, listening to reggae and talking to family. Around 10:30/11am I was offered some IV pain meds that the nurse described as "like drinking a bottle of wine, you will still feel the contractions but you wont care". That sounded right up my alley so off I went to La-La-Land. In all honesty I hated whatever they gave me. There should be a street name for what it was. I felt like I was having a serious acid trip: I was out of touch with reality, I was trying really hard to stay conscious and I had this panic that I was going to forget to breathe and die. My mom got to the hospital around noon when I was 5cm dilated and right when the acid trip was subsiding and I was coming back to reality. I decided now was my moment to get the epidural...I was still kind of out of it from the pain meds and so  didn't feel a thing when they hooked me up to the epidural.

My biggest surprise during this whole labor experience was how happy and calm I was through the whole thing. I felt so at peace the whole day, it was truly an wonderful experience. I owe a lot of that to feeling no pain.

Around 2pm they checked me again and I was 8-9cm. Everyone was pretty shocked because I had progressed really quickly. The doctor said that I would be holding my baby by 3:30pm. She was right!! I got to 10cm really fast and then it was push time. I couldn't feel a thing below my belly button so they put my legs on stirrups and my mom took a leg and Matt took a leg and 7 contractions and about 15 minutes later out she came! The doctor was floored! A first pregnancy usually takes a lot longer, especially the pushing time. Pushing was hard, but I just gave it all I had during the contractions and thankfully she was a small baby.

So at 3:05pm Lyla June Pontius was born. 6lbs 12oz, 19.5" long.

The whole thing took 12 hours and was filled with calm, chill, happy vibes and I felt no pain. I couldn't have asked for a more positive experience.

38 Weeks: False Labor

This week has been crazy, crazy, crazy. On Monday we went to the doctor for an appointment and I got my membranes sweeped. This is a procedure that helps "ripen" the cervix for labor. Pretty much it can help jump start labor or at least it can help move your cervix along so you go into labor naturally on your own. The doctor checked my cervix and then while she was all up in there, she stuck her fingers through my cervix and separated the amniotic sack from the uterus. Well needless to say, this got things going. It was mildly painful, more uncomfortable than anything but it only lasted a few seconds.

Later in the day I felt very crampy and around 7pm that ended up turning into real contractions. At first they were erratic and I wasn't really sure if they were contractions or what was going on. They felt different than anything I have ever experienced. They continued to get more steady and more and more obvious. They came on like waves, my blood pressure would rise and then i could feel them building in my back/butt and wrapping around my lower abdomen. Once they got to be 5-7 minutes apart for 40-60secs each we called the doctor. We sat at home with me having contractions for a long time. I was certain I was in labor, but alas, I was wrong. Around 2am they trickled out and I went to bed. Since then I have been feeling random contractions very far apart and some mild cramps. Searching the internet has told me this is completely normal after a membrane sweep and I could potentially feel this way for the rest of the time I'm pregnant.

How Far Along: 38 weeks, 4 days

How Long To Go: 1 weeks, 3 days

Weight Gain: .8lbs
Total Weight Gain: 21lbs
Weight: 141lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: Finally started using one of those pregnancy pillows (Matt calls it my candy cane) and I don't know why I waited so long

Best Moment This Week: Hanging with Nicole and Mason!! Dinner at a favorite restaurant with our friends Allison and Morgan Hurley and a girls lunch earlier in the week

Nausea: A little bit randomly

Craving: Sleep

Miss Anything: Don't even remember what its like not being pregnant. I miss that.

Movement: A little decreased movement, but still an active baby.

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: False labor contractions!!!

Wedding Ring: Off for the most part

Looking Forward To: Having this freakin baby!!!

Maternity Clothes: Lucky if I put on clothes at this point

Fruit: Swiss Chard (6.5lb, 19-22 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Don't remember


XOXO
Lisa

37 Weeks

 

How Far Along: 37 weeks, 2 days

How Long To Go: 2 weeks, 5 days

Weight Gain: 3.4lbs
Total Weight Gain: 20.4lbs
Weight: 140.2lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: The extra weight of my baby is making staying in one position difficult so I toss and turn all night.

Best Moment This Week: finding out that my body is preparing to have this baby. Nothing makes the light at the end of the tunnel seem a little closer than finding out you could have the baby at any time from here on out

Nausea: None at all

Craving: Halloween candy! and unfortunately, its around.

Miss Anything: being comfortable

Movement: She wiggles more than kicks. Lots of dragging of body parts. She's probably pretty cramped at this point.

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Lots of Braxton Hicks contractions...like almost every night, and tons of back pain. My feet are too small for this extra weight, they hurt so bad!

Wedding Ring: Off for the most part. Mostly because I wake up with a little swelling and forget to put it on in the morning.

Looking Forward To: Nicole and Mason are coming to visit on Wednesday night and staying for two nights!! Nicole and I made fast friends during my best friend Katie's wedding. Nicole is her cousin and was her maid of honor and I love her. We are gunna pal around downtown for the day on Thursday, for as long as my pregnant body can handle it. I'm also really excited to get some wise mama advice from her right before this baby comes.

Maternity Clothes: So happy it is spandex season!!!!!

Fruit: Winter Melon (6.5lb, 19-22 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had a dream that my mucus plug came out when i went to the bathroom during a dinner party with the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.


P.S. I just came back from the doctor and I am already 2cm dilated and 50% effaced and my mucus plug is gone. Doc said to make sure the car seat is installed (it isn't) and my hospital bags are packed (mostly there)

XOXO
Lisa

35 Weeks

How Far Along: 35 weeks, 5 days

How Long To Go: 4 weeks, 2 days

Weight Gain: -.4lbs
Total Weight Gain: 17lbs
Weight: 136.8lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: I was prescribed Ambien 5mg at my last doctors appointment and I am in heaven. I can actually sleep!!

Best Moment This Week: Just finished buying and ordering EVERYTHING we need for the baby's arrival, including ordering my breast pump so I feel a lot more in control and prepared than I did. We also got our stroller for 60% off after a bunch of sales and discounts...a super satisfying moment!

Nausea: None at all

Craving: Pho

Miss Anything: being comfortable

Movement: Her movements feel like drags and they hurt. I described it to Matt as the feeling you get when you're running and you get a cramp in your side.

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Holy shit these next four weeks are going to drag if I remain in this amount of pain. I've got bad SI joint pain, sciatica, and last night began the carpal tunnel that radiated pain through all the joints on my right side of my body: my hand, fingers, wrist, elbow, shoulder and neck all the way to my back, hip, knee and ankle. Today is a bit better, but I'm sure it will get worse later since all my symptoms get worse at night. Also working it's magic today is my debilitating sciatica. I am in bed with my feet up because every step shoots pain up my feet and into my back. This past week I have also started to feel feverish/sick every evening starting around 3pm.

Wedding Ring: Still on! there's a coupe of moments of swelling here and there but it's on for most of the day every day.

Looking Forward To: Getting all the rest of our stuff in the mail from Amazon.com.

Maternity Clothes: Just received my first nursing bra in the mail and I LOVE it already. It's from La Leche League and is meant to sleep in but I might wear it all the time. It's kind of like a v-neck sports bra and is not only super comfy, but it's kind of cute. I plan to see how much bigger my boobs get once my milk comes in adn then order a couple more of these. I also ordered some staples from H&M.com including a new set of pajamas, a pair of maternity black leggings (it's cold now!), a flowy long sleeve top that I should be able to wear and nurse in and still look cute and casual once baby arrives. I JUST discovered the maternity line at H&M and wish I had found it sooner.

Fruit: Canary Melon (5.5lb, 19-22 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had a dream about preparing for Christmas last night....I think I'm a little ahead of myself lol

XOXO
Lisa

34 Weeks

How Far Along: 34 weeks, 6 days

How Long To Go: 5 weeks, 1 days

Weight Gain: .4lbs
Total Weight Gain: 17.4lbs
Weight: 137.2lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: I was prescribed Ambien 5mg at my last doctors appointment and I am in heaven. I can actually sleep!!

Best Moment This Week: My whole weekend. The baby shower with friends and family, my bestie Rachel coming into town and staying with us! I haven't spent that much time with her in years and it was so freaking great.

Nausea: None at all

Craving: nada

Miss Anything: being comfortable

Movement: She is maintaining her amateur gymnast status

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: back pain like nothing I've ever felt! thankfully I have some prenatal massages from my parents to use! I'm also starting to notice some bloating in my face and arms...Matt doesn't see it but I think I can.

Wedding Ring: Had to remove it this morning because it was tight.

Looking Forward To: Hitting the milestone of once-a-week doctors appointments...sounds weird but it means I'm in the home stretch. Also, looking forward to finishing up our registry by getting all the essentials we need and finally cleaning and putting it all away so we are ready to go whenever little girl Pontius wants to make her debut.

Maternity Clothes: The dress in my picture this week isn't a maternity dress but it was on super sale from $80 down to $20 so I couldn't resist. It fit over the bump so I got a medium and will just alter it if I need to once I'm no longer preggo...but I LOVE it! I've come to realize that whatever can fit over the bump is now maternity wear.

Fruit: Pineapple (4.9lb, 19-22 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Dreamed about our daughter last night. Saw her face and her hair was just like Matt's. I also changed her diaper like a champ in my dream, but she has some serious poop going on.

XOXO
Lisa

Third Trimester Update: fears, hopes and dreams

I am starting to slack off on doing these bump pictures. Mostly because I'm usually wearing pajamas, with no bra, and a face full of "I woke up like this". Last night however I managed to put on a cute outfit and actually do my hair and makeup because my in-laws were taking my hubby and I out to dinner to celebrate my birthday. You know it's been a while since you've gotten dolled up when your husband can't stop commenting on how pretty you are. He seriously raved about it, which made me realize that he hasn't seen me dressed up and looking sexy in quite some time. Something I hope to remember and do a better job at...even when baby comes (but we'll see lol).

So all four of us went to dinner at this great little Italian place on Sullivan's Island called the Obstinate Daughter. The meal was great and despite some awkwardness, the conversation flowed well and we all had a great time. It didn't hurt that Matt and both his parents probably drank a bottle of wine to the face (while I soberly sipped on my water) Aah in-laws.

So I am entering the phase of pregnancy that everyone dreads....the last month. I've got about five weeks left, give or take some days, and I have hit a weird phase. I am at once, both excited with anticipation and terrified. I feel like there is so much longer to be pregnant, and I also feel like this baby is coming fast! It is so bizarre to be on this knife edge of emotions and be going back and forth multiple times a day.

I am down-to-my-bones terrified of having a baby. I know deep down that I will be a great mom, I've always wanted to be a mom and I already love this little girl so much it makes me cry. What I am terrified of is the unknown, mostly the labor, delivery and aftermath that will ravage my body, mind and emotions. My mom had postpartum depression after she had me and she told me that it can be hereditary. In all honesty there is a history of depression in my family and I am terrified that it will rear its ugly head in me at the moment when I should be experiencing the greatest joy.

Besides the emotional fallout of having a baby, I am definitely scared of the physical act of birthing a human out of my vagina. Like, how exactly is it going to fit? I am well aware of my body and I just cannot wrap my head around the fact that the same lady bits that get a bit sore after some rough sex are going to stretch enough accomodate an entire person....that just seems like some crazy science fiction shit. Then, of course, being big and pregnant every woman wants to tell me their story or their friends story, or their cousins story about how they tore their entire perineum, or the baby had such a big head it broke their tail bone, or any number of other gruesome things that I do not want to be hearing. I still remember being traumatized from watching the birthing video in 8th-grade biology...I DO NOT need to hear about some other woman's emergency c-section...it will NOT make me more prepared, or less anxious. The crazy thing is that almost everyone I've talked to said that the labor wasn't that bad!! That the recovery once you're home, and off the drugs, and taking care of the newborn is the worst. That you bleed for weeks and you're sore, and going pee is like a 30 minute exercise in hospital-grade hygiene. 

And then....there are the baby books. Matt and I decided it was a good idea to read up as much as we can about the first few months of having a baby because we really don't have a clue what to expect. So we bought three very well respected and recommended books and i can summarize all three in a few short words: It's all down hill from here. Yes there is the outpouring of happy hormones and you are all in love with your baby, but physically, you've just lived through the equivalent of breaking all your bones at once while being set on fire...and now, a tiny human is chewing your nipples off. I might be blowing the recovery time way out of proportion, and I do hear those love hormones really do send you into euphoria as soon as you hold your new little miracle...but while I'm over here on the still pregnant side of things, it just sounds awful.

I don't want to sound like I am bitching too hard. I know that being able to get pregnant in and of itself is a miracle and I honestly have had an easy pregnancy and enjoyed the feeling of growing my child...but I wouldn't be me and it wouldn't be honest to say that I am looking forward to every moment of the next six weeks. I've got about a month left of being pregnant and it is starting to suck. There's no way around it. Last night I ended up with such horrific back pain that I needed Matt to lean on in order to walk to the bedroom! I literally felt like I had broken my tail bone or something had gone seriously wrong. The baby is growing so much that the pressure on my ribs feels like I might pop one out of place and the pressure on my lungs is making it hard to breathe and causing my heart to race.

Alright....switching gears. No one needs to read any more bitching from an 8 month pregnant lady who didn't sleep last night. What I want to end this post on is a positive note, so now I will tell you all about everything I am excited for.

First and foremost, I can't wait to meet my daughter. It sounds really corny but I am so unbelievably in love with Matt that I think it is the coolest miracle in the universe that we have come together to make this brand new person that is our two souls combined. She is going to be a part of both of us and the greatest way to celebrate our love. I couldn't be more excited for Matt to be her dad, and for me to be her mom. I can't wait to see what she looks like, what her personality is like, who she is. I can't wait to raise her to love life, and to always look on the sunny side of things. I can't wait to watch her grow and change every day and to see her first moments. not even the big moments. Like, do you remember the first time you tried ice cream? or the first time you saw the ocean? I get to see those first moments in her life, the ones that she wont remember or think of as milestones. I get to watch this glorious little person discover the world!! I get to watch her be curious and excited about everything! I get to read to her at night and start family traditions that she will cherish for a lifetime. Matt and I get to show her what a marriage should be, and she will learn through our example that a happy home is full of music and laughter and silliness and cuddles. We will sing silly songs and teach her how to tie her shoes.

I can't wait for all of it. I am so in awe of it all. It really is the most amazing thing I will ever do with my life, and the most important. If I can live a long life, and have my only accomplishment be that I was a good wife and mother, I will die a happy old woman warm in my bed............like Rose from Titanic (lol).

XOXO

Lisa

33 Weeks

How Far Along: 33 weeks, 5 days

How Long To Go: 6 weeks, 2 days

Weight Gain: 1.8lbs
Total Weight Gain: 17lbs
Weight: 136.8lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none..and starting to think I might be safe

Sleep: I don't think sleep in the third trimester is possible. It takes forever for me to get sleepy, and then when I do my back and hips hurt so bad that I have to move to get comfortable again. It's like the weight of my belly is crushing my bones!

Best Moment This Week: My birthday!!!

Nausea: None at all

Craving: nothing this week

Miss Anything: being comfortable, sleep

Movement: She is doing some crazy full body rolls that are now inching into my rib cage and sternum...kind of painful

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: still going strong with the back pain, leg pain, feet pain and overall feeling like a weeble wobble

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: my bestie Rachel coming to visit, and our second (co-ed) baby shower on Saturday. Also, I have my last even tomorrow so after this weekend I am officially on maternity leave!

Maternity Clothes: As fall approaches I am not as excited as I usually am for the change in wardrobe...mostly because my bump is enormous and i can't buy cute new fall clothes

Fruit: Honeydew Melon (4.5lb, 19 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had my first "I'm in labor" dream. Woke up still pregnant...kinda disappointed

XOXO
Lisa

32 Weeks

Okay, okay, so I missed last week. I have been fighting my lack of motivation in all things lately, not just blogging. I feel like my first trimester exhaustion has come back with a vengeance and nothing seems quite as good as curling up on the couch with a book and hibernating from the dreary rainy weather we've been having. Luckily I cut back on work for the month of October and have the free time to do so. I have written recently about my sense of guilt at slowing down my work pace and I think I am finally at peace with the decision. Perhaps it took me having another bout of excruciating sciatic pain that rendered me horizontal for hours. During those hours I contemplated how horrific life would have seemed if I had a client to cook for in my compromised state, and now I know that I have made the right decision. I have two more events scheduled already, one this Friday and another on the following Friday, and then I am on full-blown maternity leave. It seems crazy to me that we are here already. Just a few short weeks and I will be packing a hospital bag and preparing our home for the arrival of our daughter. YIKES!

Matt and I finally acknowledged out ignorance on the subject of child-rearing and ordered a couple of books from amazon and signed up for some classes at the hospital. I'll hopefully read and review these books before the baby arrives, or else I will be learning on the job and trying to stay calm. Our biggest priority is getting her on a schedule as quickly as possible. We already have three dogs that have a pretty solid routine...one that runs the household mind you, but that's a whole other story. To save our sanity we will need to at least have a slight handle on our new addition after a few weeks (although this might be wishful thinking).

How Far Along: 32 weeks, 2 days

How Long To Go: 7 weeks, 5 days

Weight Gain: 1.8lbs
Total Weight Gain: 15.2lbs
Weight: 135lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: Getting hard to get comfortable again as my belly gets bigger

Best Moment This Week: Having some friends over for football

Nausea: some slight nausea last night and this morning

Craving: fruit and chocolate

Miss Anything: being comfortable

Movement: her kicks are becoming less often, but her full body movements are increasing...I think she is just a bit more squished in there and so when she moves I can feel huge parts moving. She is also probably getting ready to turn head down

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: OMG back pain!! Sciatic pain to be exact. It is killing me!

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: My birthday on Monday!!

Maternity Clothes: I'm getting sad looking at all the cute fall clothes that I will not be purchasing this season because I am enormous and don't want to buy the maternity versions.

Fruit: Head of Lettuce (4lb, 19 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Tried really hard to remember my dream from last night but already forgot it...maybe it will come to me later.

XOXO

Lisa

30 Weeks

30 Weeks

How Far Along: 30 weeks, 5 days

How Long To Go: 9 weeks, 2 days

Weight Gain: 2.6lbs
Total Weight Gain: 13.4lbs
Weight: 133.2lbs

Belly Button: Total outie

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: Getting hard to get comfortable again as my belly gets bigger

Best Moment This Week: My awesome baby shower!!

Nausea: none

Craving: Asian food in all forms

Miss Anything: Not really

Movement: She moves like crazy and is definitely kicking harder

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Braxton Hicks, back pain, the beginning of a Linea Nigrea is starting to show, heartburn!

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: Girls night tonight with Tess!

Maternity Clothes: The dress I ordered for the shower didn't work. It was too flowy and made me look bigger than I am

Fruit: Butternut Squash (3.1lb, 17 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Nothing really notable to report.

XOXO

Lisa

29 Weeks

This week was really exciting because we went to the doctor and we went back to See Me 3D (pictures in a separate post) for another ultrasound all on Thursday. The doctors visit couldn't have gone better. We saw a different doctor this time, which was fine because they're pretty boring appointments, and we loved her. She was also very impressed with my charts, saying that both the baby and I are in perfect condition and right on track. She even said that I could teach a class on how to be pregnant. I have to admit, I don't think I've ever been told how good I look more consistently than since I've been pregnant. It's  a real confidence booster, which is definitely needed on the days that I feel like I'm sporting a trucker's beer gut around.

Since we saw our baby girl on that 3D ultrasound she is all I can think about. I can't wait to meet her and I am so in love already.

 

How Far Along: 29 weeks, 2 days

How Long To Go: 10 weeks, 5 days

Weight Gain: 1.2lbs
Total Weight Gain: 10.8lbs
Weight: 130.6lbs

Belly Button: starting to poke out! I'm getting an outie!

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: Getting hard to get comfortable again as my belly gets bigger

Best Moment This Week: Seeing our beautiful girl in 3D!

Nausea: none

Craving: Chocolate Milk

Miss Anything: feeling comfortable

Movement: Her kicks are getting harder, and more painful

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Braxton Hicks, back pain, the beginning of a Linea Nigrea is starting to show.

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: My baby shower on Saturday!!!!! So excited I can't even stand it!!

Maternity Clothes: Ordered another dress off ASOS.com for the shower, can't wait to wear it

Fruit: Small Cabbage (2.9lb, 17 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had a dream that Matt was running errands with me and I had to get home to prep for an event. He wouldn't take me home because he wanted to run to Lowe's and I got so mad I slapped his arms. I woke up because I was actually hitting him in my sleep in bed!! LOL

XOXO

Lisa

28 Weeks: Third Trimester!!!!!!!!!!

 THIRD TRIMESTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How Far Along: 28 weeks, 3 days

How Long To Go: 11 weeks, 4 days

Weight Gain: 2.4lbs
Total Weight Gain: 9.6lbs
Weight: 129.4lbs

Belly Button: flat!

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: I love and cherish my sleep

Best Moment This Week: Reaching the third trimester!! Getting and putting together our baby's crib!! Going through Matt's old baby stuff and found a journal that his mom kept when she was pregnant. Our pregnancies seem very similar. I think this baby is taking after her daddy. Also, spending some great quality time with our friends at the beach...I love our friends

Nausea: none

Craving: sweets

Miss Anything: I miss knowing my body well...everything is new now

Movement: I think I'm giving birth to a soccer star...or a ninja

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Braxton Hicks, back pain, the beginning of a Linea Nigrea is starting to show.

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: Seeing our baby girl in 3D on Thursday!!

Maternity Clothes: I actually fit into a pair of pre-pregnancy shorts over the weekend and couldn't have been more pleased about it!

Fruit: Head of Cauliflower (2.5lb, 16 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had a sexual dream where I was watching porn and tried to entice my hubby to have sex and his response was: "nah...I'm busy, just take care of yourself" (HAHAHA this would never happen in real life)

XOXO

Lisa

27 Weeks

Last picture in the 2nd Trimester!!!

How Far Along: 27 weeks, 4 days

How Long To Go: 12 weeks, 3 days

Weight Gain: didn't weigh myself this week
Total Weight Gain: 7.2lbs
Weight: 127lbs

Belly Button: flat!

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: trouble getting to sleep

Best Moment This Week: the wedding in Aspen!!!

Nausea: none

Craving: Sushi

Miss Anything: Had a lot of bummer moments this weekend at the wedding with all the fabulous wine, beer and booze everyone was partaking in. I also had to pass up tuna tartare and lox during the festivities that cut me right to the heart.

Movement: Lots of kicks and movements, last night she had these rapid fire machine-gun-like movements that actually freaked me out a bit.

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: milk is officially coming out of my boobs when i grab them...my hubby actually found this out. Also, I had my first experience with Braxton Hicks contractions

Wedding Ring: on

Looking Forward To: our next 3D ultrasound which we are scheduling for next week

Maternity Clothes: Couldn't have been happier with my purchases, especially at the wedding. I received a lot of compliments on my dress which I got from ASOS for $25! Gotta love a deal on clothes, especially clothes I can only wear for another three months. 

Fruit: Cucumber (2.2lb, 15 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: I had a dream that Ray Lewis was trying to break into my house to murder me during a tornado...my friend Jenn made an appearance as she ran into my house for safety (from the tornado, not the crazed Ray Lewis)

XOXO
Lisa

26 Weeks

This week was a little rough, physically. The closer to the third trimester I get, the more I am starting to feel the affects of my growing body. My back and pelvic pain is at an all-time high. I went to the gym the past two days and after I got home yesterday the pain that was radiating down my legs was almost unbearable. Along with back pain, I have now developed acid reflux. I have never had acid reflux before so it is particularly unpleasant, especially because I love tomatoes and spicy food. Another lovely symptom that has developed this week is trouble sleeping. My enlarged belly is making getting comfortable extremely difficult at night time, and it also happens to be my daughters favorite time to kick me.

Although it sounds like I am doing a lot of complaining here, I am actually really enjoying being pregnant still. I feel so blessed to have this little girl inside of me and I can't believe I am almost in the third trimester! Things are getting into gear for both of our upcoming baby showers and I am planning out my last two months of work. All of a sudden it feels as if we have very little time to get our ducks in a row before our little one arrives. We have also reached the point where we will now be seeing the doctor every two weeks.

We went to the doctor yesterday and she gave me some good tips for my back pain (heating pad, muscle relaxer if necessary, taking it easy with the exercise) and gave me a thumbs up as far as baby's heart rate and growth. She said I was measuring at 25.5 which means baby girl is on the small-ish side, which I don't mind. She is definitely getting bigger and I wouldn't mind a 6lb baby on delivery day lol. My weight gain is starting to become steadier and I have definitely gained the most weight this past month (about 5 pounds). The only concern from the doctor was that I am on the verge of having too low of an iron level, so she just asked me to be mindful of eating high iron foods to keep my levels up.

We leave for a wedding in Aspen on Thursday so today I am cooking the remainder of my delivery meals and hopefully will have time to get primped before we go. I can't wait to show off my bump to my in-laws who haven't seen me since pre-pregnancy. They are so excited for this baby that I'm sure I will be closely monitored this weekend...I anticipate being offered lots of food and being asked if I need to rest constantly. Hopefully my back pain will be manageable enough for me to dance at this over-the-top wedding!

grimacing in back pain

 

How Far Along: 26 weeks, 3 days

How Long To Go: 13 weeks, 4 days

Weight Gain: 0lbs
Total Weight Gain: 7.2lbs
Weight: 127lbs

Belly Button: flat!

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: Really tired all day and then a lot of trouble sleeping

Best Moment This Week: Having a couple of at-home date nights with my hubby, including a movie marathon

Nausea: none

Craving: sweets...went and got TCBY the other night and it really hit the spot. Still trying to beat the craving with fruit.

Miss Anything: Sleeping on my stomach

Movement: Lots of kicks and movements

Gender: bouncing baby girl

Symptoms: Acid reflux, back pain, pelvic pain, leg pain, general body discomfort...and i'm supposed to get bigger???

Wedding Ring: still on

Looking Forward To: Going to Aspen on Thursday!!! I need a vacation!

Maternity Clothes: purchased a pair of maternity jeans and can't wait to rock them out in Colorado

Fruit: Butternut squash (2lb, 9.2 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: Had a dream this week that when the baby was kicking, her little arm and leg protruded from my belly skin and looked kind of like barbie limbs were sticking out of me...I had to push them back in. Also part of the same dream, I was in preterm labor.

XOXO
Lisa

25 Weeks

 

 This has been a stressful week. I was busy with work, we started and completed a huge project, and my niece was in the hospital for 4 days. Everything is fine and little Brooke is back at home, but it gave everyone, myself included, major anxiety for the entire week. 

To keep busy, Matt and I embarked on an ENORMOUS home renovation project that was brought about by my extreme nesting. Nesting, like pregnancy brain, is entirely real. For no reason at all, the state of our kitchen and dining room area bothered me and it had to be changed. So we painted, then Matt installed a new backsplash and sink, I decorated and we both took on the biggest headache - refinishing our dining room table. It was a lot of work, but it kept our hands and minds busy and off of Brooke being in the hospital. 

Between the home projects and the worry there wasn't much sleep this week and both Matt and I felt like zombies the whole time. My brain actually had a hard time functioning. Thankfully, with the good news of Brooke's discharge from the hospital and a couple of solid nights of sleep, I feel back to myself again.

 

How Far Along: 25 weeks,5 days

How Long To Go: 14 weeks, 2 days

Weight Gain: 2.8lbs
Total Weight Gain: 7.2lbs
Weight: 127lbs

Belly Button: flattening out

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: exhausted!

Best Moment This Week: Finishing a HUGE home renovation project. We painted, tiled and re-finished furniture in our kitchen, dining room and sun room.

Nausea: none

Craving: nothing this week

Miss Anything: Nope

Movement: Lots of kicks and movements

Gender: girl

Symptoms: emotional, tired, back pain, pregnancy brain!

Wedding Ring: still on

Looking Forward To: Going to Aspen next week for a wedding!!

Maternity Clothes: Still loving my maternity clothes but feel good that I can still fit in to a lot of my pre-pregnancy clothes too (with a belly band)

Fruit: Eggplant (1.7lb, 9 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: I was married to Jennifer Lawrence....referred to her as my wife and everything


XOXO
Lisa

Fitness and Health While Pregnant

My 24 week pregnant self

The theory with fitness and wellness during pregnancy is that pregnancy is not an excuse. Since I've been reading the message boards on the What To Expect app, I have noticed how many women are using pregnancy as an excuse to go all out, and I mean ALL out in regards to their diets. They post pictures and comments about their cravings and indulgences, constantly one-upping each other with more and more trash that they are putting into their bodies.

I should have prefaced this post with the fact that I am a food snob. As a professional chef and a slow food advocate I am a 100% believer in the power of sustainable, local, real food. I have read books on the subject of nutrition and would say that I am pretty knowledgeable on the subject of food. That being said, I don't diet and I LOVE food. I simply eat when I'm hungry and try and make the best choice as to what I put in my body. I love good food, especially carbs and make no apologies for not living a gluten-free existence. I take food very seriously and even more so now that I am pregnant.

This is a time in our lives as women that our decisions on food and wellness are affecting our growing babies and setting the stage for their health and behavior later in life. It is already proven that starting around week 22, a fetus can start to actually taste the food you are eating! It makes me so sad to hear about women drinking soda and eating fast food during pregnancy because they just "had to have it!" because your baby is being exposed to harmful chemicals, preservatives and insane amounts of sodium and processed sugar.

As a pregnant woman myself I call bullsh*t on the craving excuse. Of course there have been times when something especially bad for me sounded great, but you improvise, you satisfy your craving in other ways, or else you satisfy the craving in moderation. The most common pregnancy cravings are for sweets and even I have had them on occasion. My solution is eating fresh fruit. It's the summer here in South Carolina and there are several farms right up the road and let me tell you, nothing you can get from Dairy Queen tastes as good as a farm fresh peach. I seriously can't get enough fruit and have stocked my fridge with fabulous seasonal options like watermelon, nectarines, cherries, peaches and melon. I have also made sure to have squares of dark chocolate and almonds on hand when I need something a little more decadent. The antioxidants in dark chocolate are actually beneficial to your body (especially if you're staying active) and the almonds add a nutritious crunch that adds to the yumminess.

Now on to fitness. I hate working out. I've always been an active person but it has always been a love/hate relationship with exercise. I'm not the girl who loves to wake up at 5:30am and make it to two classes before 9am. I enjoy sleep and on the scale of 1 to lazy, I would rank myself close to sloth-status. However, it's a necessary evil, like going to the doctor or brushing your teeth. In my book, there is no option, you work out, you stay active and you sleep better knowing that you are taking proper care of yourself. Sure, I would love a perfect body and six-pack abs like a Victoria's Secret model but I have made peace with the fact that a) I'm not built that way, and b) I love food too much to ever have 4% body fat. I'm satisfied with staying trim and trying to ease gracefully into my 30's without letting my cellulite spread too rapidly.

Pregnancy makes working out even more tedious. You're exhausted, your body hurts (for good reason) and the notion of exerting extra energy seems impossible. My tip is to give yourself a break in the first trimester. I beat myself up for taking a few weeks away from my normal gym routine once the morning sickness and exhaustion set in. I was terrified that I would never get back to working out and as a result would spend my pregnancy in sweat pants on the couch growing fatter. This was not the case. Once the second trimester hit I felt like myself again and back to the gym I went. You have to modify your workouts to accommodate your growing and changing body, but for the most part I do everything I used to do pre-pregnancy.

Believe it or not, working out helps a LOT with the symptoms you will undoubtedly deal with. I prefer yoga and weight lifting with moderate cardio mixed in. Everyone needs to find what works for them but the key is to stay active! It will make it much easier to lose weight postpartum (so I've been told) and get back to your before baby body.

Pregnancy is an incredible time but it definitely comes with its fair share of challenges. Keeping yourself healthy and active not only benefits you during the journey, it will give your baby a step-up in life from day one.

XOXO

Lisa

24 Weeks

This week has been an emotional roller coaster. My hormones are definitely raging, as I have entered a very weepy stage of pregnancy. I have cried three times this week, one of those times I would categorize as hysterical. I freaked out about bills, work, money, and how we are going to be responsible for this tiny new person we're creating together. The crazy part is that work is fine, I'm busy and have recently taken on some new clients and I have a big event booked for the beginning of August...so really, I'm just a nut. I think the knowledge that I am shutting up shop soon has gotten me on edge and I'm worried about juggling being a full-time mom with a full-time entrepreneur.

In actual fact, minus the cry-fests, we actually have a LOT to be excited about in the near future. We are going to Aspen in two weeks for a family members wedding and we are stoked, afew weeks after that is my baby shower and we've almost finished two huge DIY home projects (the nursery, and the kitchen/dining room). I plan on posting about both projects once they're completed because we are really proud of how they're coming along.

Anyway, I'm chalking up my weepy week to hormones and hoping to get a grip in the coming weeks.

How Far Along: 24 weeks, 6 days

How Long To Go: 15 weeks, 1 days

Weight Gain: .4lbs
Total Weight Gain: 4.2lbs
Weight: 124.2lbs

Belly Button: holding on for dear life

Stretch Marks: none

Sleep: tired all the time but hard to get to sleep

Best Moment This Week: Picking our daughters full name. Going out to dinner with my sister and brother-in-law. starting a huge makeover of our kitchen/dining room. Finding out my Glucose Tolerance Test came back negative and I need no further testing for gestational diabetes

Nausea: none

Craving: nothing this week

Miss Anything: wine :-/. With my raging hormones I miss my usual crutch - some lovely wine.

Movement: She is so active that it is starting to keep me from getting comfortable

Gender: girl

Symptoms: emotional, tired, back pain

Wedding Ring: still on

Looking Forward To: Finishing our projects

Maternity Clothes: Loving the pieces I got this week from ASOS and Pinkblush Maternity. The dress from ASOS is a powder blue bodycon dress that I am going to rock the hell out of at this upcoming wedding. The pieces from Pinkblush Maternity fit well, although some of the maxi dresses were too long. I am actually wearing one of the Pinkblush dresses in my picture this week.

Fruit: Ear of Corn (1.5lb, 8.5 inches)

Weird Dreams This Week: I don't remember any particularly interesting dreams from this past week...I'll pay more attention next week


XOXO
Lisa