Amazing

Before he came people told me I'd love him like crazy. I dismissed it and said "yea, I'll love him because he's mine but, no big deal!" I was never a kid person. I can't stand most of them, and was quite concerned that I wouldn't be too crazy about my own either, however, I must say that since he's been here I have been in love. Nothing that I have ever felt for anyone else ever before. He's so perfect in every way! He's gorgeous, He's funny, He's always happy, He's so much fun. Every time I look at him I just can't believe that I created this little guy. I wouldn't trade him for anything in this world and I'd give up everything I had for him. I'm so glad that I was chosen to be his mommy. Everyday is an adventure and I look fwd to what tomorrow will bring, because everyday is truly a new day. That said I'll wrap this up so I can sit and watch him sleep for a bit. Night folx

xoxoxoxoxoxo

Wordless Wednesday

Gerber Generation photo search

Hey I entered Noah in the Gerber Generations photo search. Please vote for him once a day every day till Sept 24th. WIsh us luck!!

How to vote:
1. Go to https://apps.facebook.com/gerberps/gallery.do
2. "Like" the Gerber page
3. Search 1374 in the entry ID box
4. VOTE FOR NOAH!!

Vote ONE time PER day from Sept 4th-Sept 24th!

Quick update

It's been a while since I last updated. Life has been realllly busy! Who knew babies required so much work and attention? Lets see where do I start...... The first week postpartum was absolutely horrific. Full of crying and confusion.  I did the crying most of the crying fyi....  My self esteem was at an all time low. I felt uber fat b/c despite just giving birth to this 6.6 oz miracle I still looked 5 months pregnant. And of course people, more specifically my darling parents made sure to mention it to me every chance they got. My hair was a wreck, my skin was dry, my brows needed to be done, just awful. After being in a funk for the first few days I decided something needed to be done so I got my hair done which gave me an instant boost. I exfoliated my skin and got my brows done and bam! I was a MILF!

No one ever tells you what to expect or even what to do after the baby arrives. I had no idea what to do with myself. All he did was sleep so I spent my time pumping milk round the clock. If I didn't feel fat already my milk producing abiities had me feeling like a cow! Mooo! But since he wasnt latching properly and i felt like if i continued to put him on my boob my nipples would fall off this neded to be done. I was so disapponted though. I really wanted to exclusively breastfeed but atleast i was producing an enormous amout of milk so I didnt have to supplement with formula however the pumping aroud the clock was starting to wear on me.

Oh and those crying spells? ugh! I cried for everything..... Atleast once a day. Anytime something seemed off with the baby, tears, anytime someone looked at me funny, tears. It was disgusting and I wanted to punch myself in the face! I have never been a cryer and I wasnt about to start now! Thank god after about a week that tapered off. Aside from that my recovery has been going well. I lost all my pregnancy weight and more, so I'm now smaller than I was before I got pregnant. I do howeer want to start working out. All of my muscle tone seems to have gone away somehow.

This baby has seemed to have brought a lot of my friendships/relationships closer. For that I am thankful! My son is gorgeous and healthy. I can't even remember life before him and it hasn't even been that long.  I finally go back to work in about 3 weeks and I have no idea how tat's going to work. Not sure I want to although I'm not sure it's an option..... I'm gonna miss my little guy!


Until next time........

Wordless Wednesday

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the lovely mom's out there! Today is my first time celebrating and I had a wonderful day! My son had his very first photoshoot and I spent the rest of the day surrounded by love! hope everyone else enjoyed their mothers day as much as I did! What did you do to celebrate your first mothers day??

Sorry for the delay

So it's been a while since I last updated. A lot has happened since. Lets see... My last day of physically going into work was April 27th I was so glad I wouldn't have to go into the office everyday. The original plan was to work from home for the next two weeks or until I gave birth. Friday morning when I got to work I learned that they were giving me  work shower. I was surprised but I thought it was funny that their surprise was not so much a surprise lol. Any who, I really enjoyed it! it was small and short but it was a good time with good convo.


 Saturday Morning I decided I needed to finish moving so I rented a uhaul and loaded it up & hauled everything (well most things) to the new place.  Next I had tons of errands to run so I took care of those then we put together the crib. Throughout most of the day I was having contractions but they weren't consistent, nor were they too painful. Now that I think of it I was having contractions at work on Friday as well. After the crib went up, we put my bed up, ordered some take out and I laid down for a bit. At this point the contractions were way more frequent and painful. I realized it was time!! I timed a few contractions on my iphone app, and then I called my Dr. (who was sleeping btw) . He advised that I should go to the hospital. If I was being admitted they'd call him & he'd meet us there, so we hopped in the car and went on our way. Got to L&D and they had me change into a gown and strapped me up to a fetal monitor & contraction monitor. They contractions were like 4 mins apart. Someone (I had no idea who anyone was, especially since my sleepy dr. never made it until AFTER I gave birth) checked me and said I was 7 cm's dilated. They decided they were going to admit me. At this point I was in quite a bit of pain. I originally planned on doing this 100% natural no drugs nothing but the contractions were becoming intense and once the asked if I wanted the epidural before the woman even had a chance to finish her sentence I said YES I NEED IT! We went over to the delivery room and things started moving even quicker. I was checked agin and surprise surprise 15 mins later I was at 10. They broke my water and mentioned that they noticed the baby passed meconium.  I suddenly had the uncontrollable urge to push so as I started pushing (lol) I told them I have to push, they told me when I felt the urge to go ahead and push! First push & his head popped out! Unfortunately daddy was robbed of being able to cut the cord b/c the cord was wrapped tightly around baby's neck. They told me hold off on pushing and they cut the cord, then I pushed 2 more times I think and he was out! It was so easy. I knew I wasn't worried for a reason! ANyway since he passed meconium they took him and made sure he was okay. About 45 mins to an hour later we were finally allowed to hold our son

I'm so glad it's over! I was so uncomfortable towards the end of my pregnancy and even though I didn't get to finish nesting how I would have like to ie: having his room painted etc. I'm happy he's here 2 weeks early and all. He's such a good baby. He's very quiet and barely cries unless he's hungry. Once he's full he's out like a light again. Only thing that bothers me is the fact that he cries when it's diaper change time. he cries bloody murder! I can't figure out why he hates it so much. Anyhow, his umbilical cord stump fell off today and I can't wait to give him his first bath. Soo excited! I think I hear my hungry baby grunting so I gotta go! 

'

My Maternity shoot

Saturday I had planned to take my maternity shoot. It was supposed to rain, however, it didn't which was a plus BUT it was freeeeezing & windy! It was definitely a fun experience & I would do it again (on a warm day). I was kinda against it at first but I'm very happy with the first of many pics and I'm certain the others once they are edited will be awesome!

My Baby Shower

So Saturday was my baby shower. I had a blast! I really didn't think I would have enjoyed it as much as I did. I need to thank my girl Shonel, she kept everything running smoothly & without her I'm not sure it would have happened at all, next I must thank my sister Stephanie! She put a lot of time and effort into this as well, next thanks to my other sister Diane, and friends Peggy and Allison! Without you guys it would not have gone as smoothly as it did. There were people who were initially gung-ho on helping with the shower and when it came down to it they were nowhere to be found! It's times like this when you know who's really there for you and I have to say I really appreciate all the love and support! Thank you to everyone who came out and helped me celebrate this very special day. 

Watch lil one move!

He's such a busy body!

Week 33

I had my growth scan yesterday and he's measuring at 5lbs already! Gadzooks! He's huge! No wonder I'm limping around. If he gains half a lb going fwd he'll be about 8 lbs or so at birth. I know these scans aren't always very accurate, however, this has me a bit concerned. Especially if he is MORE than 8lbs at birth!

Anywhoo, he was rolling around flailing his arms and legs and opening his mouth. The tech was getting frustrated b/c she couldn't get good measurements of his arms/legs it was funny! Guess he was waving at us :-)

He appears to have a slightly pointy chin which his father seems to believe I have too.... I'm not sure I agree, however we shall soon see!

32 week belly shot & Survey

• How Far Along?  32 weeks 
• Symptoms: Fatigue, general achiness
• Total Weight Gain/Loss: -2 lbs as of last appointment. 
• Sleep: It's been pretty good lately. 
• Food Cravings: none. 
• Food Aversions: same. 
• Best Moment This Week: This week has been uneventful
• Movement: Non-stop 
• Labor Signs: NONE
• Gender: BOY OH BOY
• Belly Button In Or Out? Outtie
• What I Miss: being able to move around without waddling
• What I Am Looking Forward To: seeing his little face

9 weeks left!

I'm in my 31st week and ironically I feel much better than I have most of the pregnancy. Not so tired/lethargic (Dr. put me on some iron supplement and I believe that has helped tremendously).  I also think the weather is playing a major role in this, spring has finally sprung (unofficially) the sun is out longer and I'm so excited about that!

I had a Dr.'s appointment today and she said he looks perfect. He's head down, lots of movement, and my stomach measured right on point as well. I however lost 2 lbs. I wasn't at all alarmed to hear this because of course during the winter I tend to layer up, tights under my jeans, shirts under my sweaters paired with a pair of knee high boots. All of that extra clothing & shoes weighs quite a bit, I always notice a difference in my weight when I get on the scale naked vs fully clothed w/shoes on! I asked the midwife about it and she did mention that although my weight gain hasn't been exceptional, I gained majority of my weight early on in the pregnancy, and I'm on target so if I don't gain much more that would be fine. So far I've gained 17lbs. 

9 more weeks to go I reckon I'll gain about 5-7 more maybe 10.... In 2 weeks I'll do my final growth scan to see how much he's gained and then we wait!!

Last night Baby's grandma ordered our crib/changer combo & mattress. I'm excited!!

Here's a pic of the crib. While this isn't the one I wanted (one I wanted was out of stock) this one appears to be cute and has good reviews, can't wait till it arrives and we put it up!

Till next time

30 week update

How Far Along? 30 weeks 
Symptoms: Fatigue, general achiness
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 2 lbs this month. 
Sleep: It's been pretty good lately. 
Food Cravings: Fruit. 
Food Aversions: same
Best Moment This Week: having my first fight with the L.O. (he kept pushing his foot out & i kept pushing it back down, he won, I gave up! Stubborn little boy! )
Movement: Non stop 
Labor Signs: NONE
Gender: BOY OH BOY
Belly Button In Or Out? Totally out
What I Miss: my flat belly
What I Am Looking Forward To: seeing his little face

Dear Non-Pregnant Person,

Dear Non-Pregnant Person,
I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women, as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm. If you are thinking, surely she doesn’t mean me – then you should probably read this twice.

1. The appropriate response to a person telling you they are having a baby is ‘Congratulations!’ with enthusiasm. Any other response makes you a jerk.

2. Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father – not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase ‘my baby’.

3. On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in 2, the pregnancy, birth, and raising of the child are not about you. You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it…

29 weeks bump pic

My little cousin & I

Can't even see the bump!

I passed!!!!

Yayyyyyy I passed my glucose test!! woohooooo!!! BUT I'm a bit anemic booooo! Dr. is calling in a rx. I'm just soooo happy I don't have to do that nasty 3 hour test!! Now I'll celebrate by eating a whole juniors strawberry cheesecake!!

Countdown

84 days left till I meet my LO

One hour glucose test

On Saturday I took my glucose test. I spent the whole entire week stressing out over it. I heard it was oh so nasty, thick and just all around gross so I wasn't looking forward to it.... At all!  I made my appointment for first thing saturday morning I figured i'd get it out of the way and I'd be fine. 

I decided to go with the lemon/lime flavor because my sister told me the orange was really disgusting. So at 8:15 am I got out of the bed and chugged this nastiness down. It actually wasn't THAT bad. It tasted like flat sprite on my first gulp. After that first gulp however I started gagging, but I made sure I kept it down because I was told if I threw it up I'd have to do it again. I quickly finished it up, showered, got dressed and off to the Dr.'s office I went.  They drew 2 vials of blood and now I wait..... I'm praying I pass this test because I do NOT want to take the 3 hour test! Pray for me.

Few purchases & freebies

Oh the joys of working in the world of social media! There are always tons of events where you get all this cool free swag. The lovely mommy blogger Holly Pavlika and I happen to work together and a few weeks ago she happened to have attended an even hosted by Jessica Alba. Apparently she has a new line of organic diapers and all natural baby products and since Holly has big kids, when she got the gift box she thought of me! I was so excited when she walked over to my desk and plopped this stuff on my desk. First the gift bag/box is so cute!

Once I finally got it open it had these adorable diapers inside. The boys diapers were plaid, some were skull and cross bone and the other had a nautical theme goin on and the girls diapers were pink with a floral print, one with pink stars and one with ice cream cones. Too cute!

In addition to the diapers there was a small pack of wipes and a box of the all natural products in sample size

I thought the whole thing was adorable. Kudos to whomever came up with the idea for the gift boxes, very very cute. They also included a little brochure introducing the line and explaining what everything was bla bla bla

I also scored this style manual from Holly as well. She's hosting this awesome fashion show featuring all moms and someone sent this over to her in the mail and I happened to have been around as she opened it and she gave it to me to read over.

lots of style tips, if only I had an awesome maternity wardrobe or if my tummy wasn't so huge I'd probably have more of a desire to try to put some of these outfits together. I did however get a few tips that I have and will be using. Thanks again!!

Then the other day we decided, (I have issues accepting expensive gifts from people) that we would go to buy buy baby and start purchasing a few things for the little tummy dweller. For a while now I've been eyeing the Britax B-agile stroller and B-safe car seat travel system so we went ahead and purchased it. We also purchased the Avent isis twin electric breast pump, and a box of nursing pads to avoid any leaks, and because I didn't want to put any newborn diapers on my gift registry for fear that I'd wind up with tons of them, I got one box of newborn diapers. I feel much better knowing that I have a few things for baby besides clothing now. 

The other item I was planning on purchasing myself was the crib and mattress, however, baby's paternal grandma has expressed that she would like to purchase it as a gift for us. The crib that I really took a liking to and had great reviews was the Graco Stanton crib. It's quite inexpensive but the reviews were pretty amazing, everyone stated that it looked just like if not better than the more expensive ones and it was really easy to put together and sturdy.

This weekend we're gonna start painting annnnnd the nesting begins!

26 week belly shot

26 Week update

So sorry I'm so late in updating! I've been so tired and busy lately I haven't had the time.

                                       


How Far Along? 26 weeks 
Symptoms: Fatigue, general achiness
Total Weight Gain/Loss: only gained one lb this month woohoo!! 
Sleep: Varies, some days I sleep well, others, not so much. 
Food Cravings: orange juice (normally hate OJ) & I'm obsessed with cereal. 
Food Aversions: same
Best Moment This Week: seeing the LO at todays dr appt
Movement: I have Jackie Chan in there
Labor Signs: NONE
Gender: BOY OH BOY
Belly Button In Or Out? outtie, it's kinda cute though!
What I Miss: sleeping on my belly
What I Am Looking Forward To: Meeting him
Weekly Wisdom: Take your time. 

Rainy Day blues

Last night I got my first prenatal massage. It was decent albeit a bit uncomfortable. I was asked to lay on my side and switch sides after a while. I felt that the pressure they were applying to my back was too light, but the pressure they used on my shoulders was too much. Because of the pressure she used on my shoulders I barely slept last night. I spent the entire night tossing and turning due to a dull pain in my shoulder. After a while I got up and went to lay on the sofa and finally was able to get a couple of hours of sleep. But b/c I'm not rich, I have to work...  I woke up extra grouchy,however, I made it. I'm now at work in the worst possible mood and of course it decides to rain, so not only am I sleepy, and grouchy, but this darn rain is depressing me. It's not even noon and I'm over this day. praying it will get better.

Awesome read for FTM's

(FTM= First time Mom's)

What every new mom should know

http://redwhitebluelife.com/2012/01/19/what-every-new-mom-should-know/

January 2012 $100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway- GIVEAWAY ENDED

Hey!! Welcome to my very first giveaway on this blog, simply read below and follow the directions to enter. I plan to have many more so make sure to bookmark this page and visit often!! Good Luck! 


PLEASE NOTE, THIS GOES LIVE THE EVENING OF MONDAY 1/16 

Welcome to our January $100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway!

After a busy holiday season, wouldn't it be nice to do some shopping at Amazon on us? 10 Bloggers have teamed up to offer you the chance to win this fabulous prize!

How It Works:

To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form. Each blog has a different form. You can enter on one or all the blogs, but the more you enter, the greater your chances of winning! Each blog has daily tweet options so that's a potential 10 daily entries should you choose!
At the end of the giveaway, all entries will be added up and one winner from all the blogs will be chosen.

Giveaway Rules:
Open worldwide, 18+.
Ends January 30, 2012 at 11:59 pm

The WiC Project
The Mama Report
Baby Costcutters
Philzendia
Journey to Mommyhood
Bonkers in Barnhart
Mama Writes
The Thought that Counts
Fabulous Finds by November Girl
Musings From a Stay At Home Mom

22 week survey

                                       


How Far Along? 22 weeks 
Symptoms: Fatigue, general achiness
Total Weight Gain/Loss: up 15lbs
Sleep: Varies, some days I sleep well, others, not so much. 
Food Cravings: random "ethnic/haitian foods"
Food Aversions: same
Best Moment This Week: getting the results from my anatomy scan & seeing LO.
Movement: I don't think he sleeps, he's always kicking
Labor Signs: NONE
Gender: BOY OH BOY
Belly Button In Or Out? 75% outtie
What I Miss: being energetic
What I Am Looking Forward To: Meeting him
Weekly Wisdom: Time to start taking it easy.

22 Week belly shot

This week.....

has been pretty uneventful. Nothing exciting to report. I've been having a bit of pain/discomfort in my pelvic bone area but that's pretty much it. My balance is completely off. I tried to wear a pair of wedges to church on Sunday and wound up twisting my ankle and falling, no more heels till July for me lol...

This little boy is very active. Feels like he's practicing kung fu in there it's pretty funny actually. Sometimes I feel him in two places at the same time I assume that's him stretching? I played some classical music to my belly the other day and he went crazy, I assume he liked it, or not... lol

That's pretty much it... I have my 6 mth Dr. appt on Monday hopefully all goes well with that.

Ciao

oh & happy new year all!