Thursday, May 30, 2013

Ugh.....Cupcakes.

I treated myself to a Gigi's cupcake this afternoon.

Gigi's Mojito cupcake.

I should have known better.  I've been burping that cupcake up for hours.  And I've even eaten something else to attempt to mask the taste of the cupcake, but the cupcake is still fighting through like a champ.  And it's probably not going to go away until I either A) throw it up, or B) wake up tomorrow.  And quite honestly, I think I'd rather throw up now than wait until tomorrow.

I have got to knock my crappy eating habits in the bud.  I mean, I get that I'm pregnant and that healthy certain things taste gross right now and that I'm craving every carb there is and that I totally have an excuse to EAT every carb there is, but I really have to stop eating quite THIS badly.  I'm also pretty sure that I said (and did) the same thing the first time I got pregnant.  And that by the time I hit my second trimester, I didn't want crap anymore.  I ate fresh fruit like crazy.  So maybe I've only got a few more weeks of this ridiculous carb craze!

Riiiiiiiight.

Ugh.  Cupcake burp.

So the only thing I can think of that I need (so far) to prepare for two babies is a double stroller.  So do I want/need a standard double stroller, a double jogger, or both?

A standard double stroller for a toddler plus a car seat.
Double jogger.  This one has two wheels in the front, but I've seen the single-wheel ones, too.
Photo 3 in this one cracks me up. YOU SIT DOWN ON THE BABY RIGHT NOW!!

I'm guessing that the standard double stroller is easier to maneuver indoors, since it's long instead of wide.  And I do realize that, in that case, I don't need a jogger unless I plan on actually getting outside and jogging with it.  In my mind, I absolutely do.  But I also had big plans on running several days a week with Delano in my current jogger.  I HAVE taken him out in it several times, but not NEARLY as much as I thought I would!

A thought to consider that might actually get me jogging with the double jogger - I won't be taking on any more environmental projects after Baby #2 gets here.  Since Delano has been here, I've been working as an independent contractor for extra money, working on projects when he's asleep.  I'm not saying that I'm going to have more free time with two babies (I'm not stupid), I'm just saying that I won't be trying to work on any projects during nap times.  So in theory, I could take the kids out for a jog during nap time instead.

This all works out like a boss in my head.  ;)

I already have a second car seat, and by the time the new baby is ready for the crib, Delano will be ready to move into a "big boy bed" with a side railing (we have bunk beds currently being stored up in our attic).  If I need anything else major, I haven' figured it out yet!

Time for some TV and then bed.  I am POOPED.

Uh. Dorbs.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Nine Weeks Preggers

Happy Memorial Day!!


I am 9 weeks pregnant TODAY.  And a lot of you still don't know anything about it.  But you will - soon.  My doctor appointment is this Wednesday, so as soon as I get my "thumbs up", I will announce it and you will be reading this blog post.


I thought that I should start comparing this pregnancy with the last one, just to see what's changed.  I wrote about my first pregnancy in a journal (via a Word document), since I didn't start my blog until after Delano was born.  And people aren't kidding when they say you should write things down about being pregnant - you REALLY DO forget what happened and when!!  On that note, it's the same with raising your child....if you don't make notes and write down when things happen, when someone asks you, "When did he start doing so-and-so?", your answer might be, "Uhhhhhhmmmmmm............a while ago??".  It's the brain.  It just doesn't function at full force anymore.

So anyways.....I pulled up my journal and went back to find the point where I was about 9 weeks along.  I actually skipped writing between 7 weeks and 13 weeks, but here's what I said about 7 weeks:

  • No morning sickness as of yet (thank goodness), but I have discovered that every few hours I get suddenly STARVING hungry and then nauseous, like if I don’t eat something right then I’m going to throw up.  And I don’t like my whole grain pasta with pesto anymore.  I made it for lunch the other day, took a few bites, and turned it away.  Other than that, nothing different!  

In comparison, part of that is the same.  I'm STARVING every couple of hours and feel nauseous if I don't eat right away.  The only difference is, I also get nauseous periodically throughout the day, all day every day.  I'm not nauseous all the time, but I definitely have several waves of it hit me throughout the day and sometimes in the night, too.  I've thrown up three times since being pregnant, all in the middle of the night, and I can only assume it's pregnant-related since there would be no other reason for it.  I thought that maybe it was after I'd eaten a bunch of sweets, but during a test-the-theory attempt on Saturday (I ate a big ole' piece of red velvet cake with cream cheese icing), I didn't get sick.  So I haven't pinpointed the culprit yet.


It wasn't this!  Mmmmmmm........

At this point in the last pregnancy, I wasn't showing AT ALL.  I also started out thinner (I was in tip top shape at the start of the last one) and was running a LOT, covering a lot of mileage.  This time is way different.  I started out about 8 pounds heavier than last time, with my running stints being few and far between with very little mileage.  And right now, at 9 weeks, I am definitely showing.  It's not necessarily obvious that it's a baby belly (though Lucas says there's no doubt that it is), but it's been hard to cover up regardless!  My jeans are way tight (and therefore look awful) and I've already slipped into some maternity clothes.  I feel like a fatty for sure.  But keeping in mind that this is happening at 9 weeks (or really a week or so ago to start), here's what I said last time at 13 weeks:


  • I still pee ALL the time including several times a night, and I’m still hungry and tired, but not as hungry and tired as I was even just a week ago.  So that part has mellowed out a bit.  I’m still at the stage where I don’t look pregnant, just fat, but I can tell when I look at myself in the mirror naked that it’s a different kind of “fat” because of the way it’s positioned.  My belly actually bulges some from the top….and when I suck in to try to look skinny it doesn’t go away.  But with clothes on, I just look a little chunky around the middle.  I can’t wait until I look pregnant and get away from just looking chunky!!

So at 13 weeks last time, I probably looked like I do right now.  I looked at the old pictures, but it's hard to tell if that's about where I am since my body is different post-baby than it was pre-baby.  It will be interesting to compare belly shots in a few weeks!

Once I moved into my 2nd trimester in my journal, I made this comment about the first trimester:


  • I did notice that in my first trimester I wanted and ate a lot of junk food (as in drive-thru fast food).

I can agree with that for sure.  I have wanted nothing but carbs and salt the past few weeks.  I've had a few sweet things, but I don't crave them.  There is actually an entire pie in my fridge right now that has been sitting there for weeks untouched.  That's normally unheard of.  But when I get hungry, I want bread and chips and thick, thick foods.  Forget the salad, forget the sugar, forget the lean protein.  So I basically crave junk, which I know is FANTASTIC for my mid-section.


I can't stand the smell of some of the foods I've made for Delano.  The turnip I steamed made me want to vomit right in the floor.  And the yellow squash and butternut squash?  Forget it.  I can feed them to him, I just can't smell them.  I won't ACTUALLY vomit, but I'll feel like I want to.  And there are a few things I've taken a few bites of and then just been like "DONE".  I had a bite of a mini BBQ sandwich at work last night....the rest went straight in the trash.  And it wasn't because it was gross to anyone else.  People were eating them up like crazy.  But I just couldn't do it.  And last week, I made a pot roast for dinner.  Took a few bites of it and then couldn't take another bite.  Wouldn't have been able to swallow it if I tried.  And I normally love pot roast.  So I just stuffed myself with mashed potatoes instead.

So there you have it.  9 weeks pregnant and gaining weight!


UPDATE:  According to the baby's ultrasound measurements, I am actually 8 weeks along with a due date of January 8th.   I have another ultrasound scheduled in three weeks, so we'll see then if that still seems accurate!

Babies, Babies and More Babies!!

It is currently Monday, April 29th.  No it's not, you say.  Oh but yes it is.  As I type up this blog post, it is April 29th.  Only you, my reader, will not be reading it until much later.  Until it is the right time.

THE RIGHT TIME TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE'RE PREGNANT WITH BABY #2!!!!

There they are in all their beautiful, positive glory.

That's right.  We're having another baby!!

We found out this past Saturday, on the 27th.  Lucas and I had been in Nashville since the previous Wednesday night, and starting on Thursday I noticed that I was feeling nauseous.  Not like I needed to puke, just like little mini-waves of nausea would hit me throughout the day for no apparent reason.  The first few days I didn't think much about it, because I was also apparently suffering from a little stomach virus (probably something I ate on Wednesday) that kept me going in and out of the bathroom ALL weekend.  I figured the two went hand in hand.  But on Saturday, I had Lucas stop by CVS on the way home from lunch so that I could buy a pregnancy test, which I promptly opened after we got back to his parents' house.  And sure enough, it was positive!  A very faint positive, but there was definitely a blue line in the "pregnant" window.  I took the second test the Sunday morning to make sure, and then I took a third one this morning for even more certainty.  And today at the store, I bought a box of two more.  I'm sure I'll keep peeing on sticks until the first doctor's appointment, which I need to schedule tomorrow.






As of today, we are 5 weeks along and due on December 30th.  Unluckily for Baby #2, he/she will be born over the Christmas holiday.  So sorry about that, Baby #2!!  But I guess we now know what Lucas and I will be doing with his last week of vacation this year!



As for telling the family, I think I want to get Delano a "big brother" shirt to debut to everybody.  We've just got to figure out how we want to do it and get everybody to see it all at once.
Something like this.
Or like this.

The "reveal" will be after the first doctor's appointment, when we get the thumbs up that everything looks good to go.  Of course, by the time you read this, the reveal will have already happened.  But for now, it's time to hit "Save" and let it rest for a few more weeks............  :)

Sunday, May 26, 2013

When Is A Mom Ever NOT Terrified??

I already know the answer to that question.  But let's still talk about it.


Let me start off by saying that I am not an insanely overprotective mother, or at least I don't think I am.  I never required people to sanitize their surroundings before holding Delano when he was itty-bitty, though I definitely would have been more particular of smokers had that been an issue.  I've been taking Delano out on the town since the day he was born, which was even against the "doctor's orders".  I don't mind the cats or dogs being around him (or even licking him), I don't wash his pacifier every time it hits the ground (merely wipe the dirt off of it), and when he picks a flower out of the grass and sticks it in his mouth, I let him eat it.  He's a little boy, and things like bugs and dirt are going to be CONSTANTS in his life for quite some time.  In my opinion, if you shelter your child from the bugs and the dirt and the germs and the fur, they are more likely to be allergic to the bugs and the dirt and the germs and the fur in the future because they haven't had any exposure to them.  Of course, there are many other factors that contribute to these forty-billion allergies us humans have nowadays, but that's a whole other blog post.......

Back to terrified mothers.

When your baby is an infant, you're terrified of SIDS, or that your baby will stop breathing for no apparent reason (still possibly SIDS), or will suffocate, or will choke and die on spit-up, or will get too hot, or too cold.  You also are aware that your baby can't exactly tell you that their belly hurts, or their ear aches, or their head hurts, or they just don't feel good.  When you can't console your baby's crying with food or a diaper change or rocking or singing or walking, besides wanting to pull your hair out, you're terrified that there's something seriously wrong that you just can't seem to figure out.  WHAT IF I'M MISSING SOMETHING???

We all recognize this face.

Nine times out of ten, your baby is just crying, and your doctor will reassure you of that (if you were one of the many moms who rushed to the doctor the next morning).  The remaining "one" out of ten is typically gas or an earache.  A very, VERY small percentage is something else.  But we're all terrified that WE are that percentage.

As our babies get older, we become terrified of other things. 

I am no longer terrified of the infant terrors, as Delano has surpassed the age to worry about most of them.  Granted, he still can't tell me if he has an upset tummy or an earache, but I also now can tell the difference between regular crying and pain crying.  At this age (9 months), I'm terrified that Delano will choke on something - food, a toy, a glob of hair, whatever.  He's still eating mostly pureed food with the exception of rice crackers and rice puffs and the occasional oddball item tossed in there, but soon he'll be moving onto finger foods.  And when those teeth start coming in, he'll really be into foods he can bite himself.  So I'm terrified of him choking.

I'm REALLY glad I haven't had to put my CPR training into action yet.

I'm also terrified of him drowning.  We don't have a pool and I never leave him unattended while he's taking a bath, but it still terrifies me.  Because it's a silent killer.  Most people think that when a person is drowning they splash and kick and scream "help!" and make a big noisy scene (like in the movies).  But in reality, drowning happens super quietly.  So even though the risks of Delano drowning at my house are slim to none, it still terrifies me.

I plan on starting Delano on swim lessons in the near future - yay!
They look happy.

I'm terrified of being in a car accident that hurts or kills Delano.....or me.  I drive more carefully now that I almost always have my child in the car, but just because I'M driving carefully doesn't mean that the people around me are.  I'm terrified of being T-boned or side-swiped or even just hit head-on.  I'm terrified of something happening to Delano or leaving Delano without a mother.  All it would take is a SECOND.....just ONE SECOND for someone to make a mistake and kill us all.

SCARY.  Baby or no baby.

Sidenote:  I recently Googled the Wrong Way on the Taconic story, about the mother who drove the wrong way on a New York interstate in 2009 killing herself, one of her two children, all three of her nieces and three men in an SUV she crashed into.  Super sad.  Don't click on the link unless you just really want to put the details into your brain.  I just thought I'd mention it because it's been on my mind a while.

Lastly (for the moment), I'm terrified of Delano being kidnapped.  Whether he's taken directly from my arms, or during a carjacking, or a robbery, or later (when he can walk) at the playground or in a store.  Children are taken ALL the time, and so many parents never see their children again.  I CAN'T EVEN IMAGINE.  There are no words, other than I would just die inside if this ever happened to me.

I do know that if it DID happen to me, I'd want one of these two men on the case:

Former CIA agent Bryan Mills.
Or Jack Bauer.

So there you have it - my current terrors as a mother.  I don't live my life scared to do anything.....Delano and I live a good life doing just about anything we want to.  I don't live in a state of paranoia, and I don't let fears overrun our daily decisions.  But they're still in the back of my mind like a Lifetime movie. 

I don't ever want to be a story for a Lifetime movie.

As Delano gets older, new fears will arise.  He'll be making friends who will make bad decisions, HE will make bad decisions, he'll start driving and dating and just growing up in general.  It will be my (and Lucas's) job to protect him but not hoard over him, and that (at least for me) will be hard.  But I will always be his mother, and he will just have to get over it.

:)

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Walking, Waving and Whining

My child is now 9 months old.  That's only THREE MONTHS AWAY FROM A WHOLE YEAR!!!

Crazy.  And yes, I realize I say the same thing every month.  And will continue to do so, so get over it.  ;)

Delano has learned "purposeful, directional movement" with his feet in the past week or so.  Before, he could push himself around in his walker, but it was almost always backwards, and almost never intentional.  And if he backed himself into a corner - the end.  Well, it was practically overnight when all that changed.  He not only can move forward, but he can go EXACTLY where he wants to.  And if he gets stuck, he wiggles his way out of it and just keeps on going.  Nothing is safe within reach anymore.  He is a man on the move.  And he is PROUD of this movement.  He does the same thing while holding your hands to stand up.  He'll take off walking in a specific direction and just expect you to come with him and be his personal, live walker.  Probably because we all do it.

I was going to post a video here, but apparently all my videos saved sideways on my computer and I have no idea how to flip them.  So here's a picture instead:

Hey wait...that's not my baby.  AND WHO IS DRIVING WITH THEIR BABY IN THE FRONT SEAT??!!

Just kidding.  That's Amanda and her baby Lily in a parked car.  But still funny.

Delano has also learned to wave.  He will either pump his arm up and down at you or stick his arm out and twist his hand back and forth.  I really need to take a video of him doing this before it advances out of the beginning stages.

I don't have any pics of D waving, but this is close.

It dawned on me the other day.....should I be crediting images I "steal" from the internet?  I mean, this is a public blog, but it's not published, per say.  I'm not submitting it for review or claiming any image as my own.  And the images are just sitting there on Google for the copying and taking.  Just wondering if I'm a law-breaker in any way.

P.S.  Delano just waved at the hippo.  Here's me attempting to get him to do it for the camera:


He's a classy kind of dude.  Now here's where he was actually waving:



A fun fact about my child (and probably any child out there) is that he can go from 0 to 60, back to 0, back to 60, down to 30, back to 0, up to 15, back up to 60 and back to 0 again all in a matter of about 10 seconds.  As in he can go from thinking I'm absolutely hilarious to screaming his ears off (tears and all) to  thinking I'm hilarious again before anybody even knew what happened.  As his mother, I've learned certain things about how this works.  For example, just because he starts screaming bloody murder and bucking his body like a fish when I go to put him in his walker (so that maybe I can get something done with BOTH hands), it doesn't mean he won't actually be content in his walker about 30 seconds after I put him there.  Sometimes it just takes a little distraction (like a spoon or a measuring cup) to make him forget that he didn't want to be there in the first place. You think you've got strategy, Baby?  Your mama's better than you are at that game....at least for now! 

At least until you're a toddler and start to play real dirty.

Alright, time to go bartend a wedding!  Lucas and Delano are on their own for the rest of the evening.  If the weather at least semi-cooperates, they're going to go meet up with some friends at Beer Over Dirt.

Have fun, boys!  :)



Friday, May 17, 2013

A Special Kind of Birthday

***This post was going to have pictures, as all of mine do.  But for some reason, my photo uploader is not cooperating.  I think I need to restart my computer maybe.  But I'm going to go ahead and post this and then just re-share it again when I get the pictures incorporated!


The last time I blogged, it was two days before my birthday.  Well since then, a little bit has happened.

I GOT MARRIED!!!!

  

Yep, that's right.  Lucas and I tied the knot.  On my birthday.  And YES I was totally holding out on everybody, because we had planned it and known it was coming but kept it a big fat secret.  So I guess we technically eloped.  I know most people would NEVER get married on their birthday (or any other gift-related holiday, for that matter), but I loved the idea of it.  It makes my birthday even THAT more special.  And then every few years, it will be our anniversary, my birthday AND Mother's Day all at once.  It's like an explosion of happiness, and who wouldn't want that?

We got married at the courthouse by the county mayor, Jim Coppinger.  Not the most romantic story in the world (unless you consider eloping in general to be romantic), but we wanted to do it, were ready to do it, and it turned out to be really nice and fun.  I don't know anything about Jim Coppinger as a public figure, but from a personal perspective, he's a super nice guy.  And his middle name is Mac, just like Lucas.


Waiting in Mayor Coppinger's office.
Hi baby!
Hi Daddy!

A surprise did come right before we got married, though.  I had told Lucas that at some point before we got married that he needed to officially ask me.  Since we had mutually agreed and planned to elope, I didn't get the down-on-one-knee proposal.  And I was fine with that.  But I told him that I wanted to at least hear the question come out of his mouth.  So as we're walking from the car to the courthouse that morning (and I'm thinking he weaseled his way out of asking), he not only got down on one knee in front of the courthouse, but also pulled a ring out of his pocket!  So not only did I get to hear the words I wanted to hear, but I got the ring to go with them.  Happy birthday/wedding day to me!

Here's a mini photo session of our nuptials......









After we got hitched up, we went home to finish packing for Nashville.  Once we got to his parents' house in Nashville, we took off our rings and put them in our pockets to save for later.  Right before we were all leaving for dinner that evening, Janice (Lucas's mom) gave me a wooden sign for my birthday that said, "And they lived happily ever after", which of course was the PERFECT segway for telling them about our day.  

We announced it the same way to Lucas's family as we did to my family two days later.  I told everyone that for my birthday, Lucas gave me THIS.......(place engagement ring on finger).....and let everybody scream and celebrate.  Then once that settled down, I told them that about 45 minutes afterwards Lucas gave me THIS....(place wedding band on finger).....when he married me.  More screams and cheers.

Good times.

My new bling.  My engagement ring was too big at first so I had to use my wedding band to hold it on!
As you might can tell, I'm real super-proud of it.  :)
The wedding band is an eternity band, which I LOVE.

Next year, our anniversary/my birthday falls on a Saturday, so we're going to plan a big shindig for that day.  Maybe a vow renewal ceremony would be a nice idea?  That way, we still have the "wedding" with all our friends and family there.  But there will be less stress because we're already married, so the focus will be on the party.

Mark your calendars now!  May 10, 2014 - you have plans that day!

And maybe next year I'll actually wear something pretty and white.  :)

Maybe something like this.  Not too fancy since we're already hitched, but still long and pretty.
Oooh or maybe I should go with a shorter dress?  Still kinda bridal but also just summery.  A shorter dress would definitely call for a spray tan.
Or I could really slut it up since it's not formerly a "wedding".....this one is a reverse mullet - party in the front and business in the back.
OR........cough, cough.
I could seriously do this forever.