I need your help

So you know that I must feel comfortable with you guys to be soliciting your help because I hate asking people for help in general.  Yes, so this means that we are officially..... cool :).  Kidding.  

Anyway, I've been obsessing over reading up about delivery and newborn care information for the past week (especially this weekend).  I feel like a procrastinator that's playing catch up.  I haven't been reading/read a ton of books like most women do.  I figure I would just go with the flow.  But now that it's close to crunch time, I'm trying to take in all the information I can get.  It reminds me of my old self--cramming studying sessions in because I waited too long to start studying.  So this weekend I've watched a million videos and read 10 million articles on "baby stuff."  

Also, I bought another baby book this weekend.  We got one as a gift at one of our baby showers but I wanted a different one.  The one below goes up to the first day of school and I like how it's organized better.  The color also matches the nursery better (kind of).  Here's what the memory book and photo album look like:


 Ok, so about the favor.  The memory book asks some questions that I don't know the answer to, so I was hoping I could get some ideas from you.  Ok, maybe I know the answer to some of the questions but I'd like your input too.  So here are the questions: (what was going on around me [babyK] when I was born?)

1) Hit movies and popular actors

2) Popular TV shows

3) Popular songs and musicians

4) Best selling books

5) Fashion trends (male and female)

6) Famous sport figures

7) technological advances

It also asks about price of gallon of gas, house, car, computer, movie ticket, babysitting rates, gallon of mild, diapers, stamps.  Isn't that interesting.  I know the answer to these questions for the most part and the answers to these will vary depending on where you live.   I like these questions and I never thought about recording these events before seeing this baby book.

So there you go!  Thanks for the input in advance :).  Also I appreciate all your comments from my last post.  They were very helpful and encouraging.

Mrs. K

Pregnancy Ramblings and Queries

I forgot to mention in my last post that we are having....... a boy!!!  We are excited.  But of course we'd be just as excited if we were having a girl too.  We just want a healthy, happy baby :).  I'm at the point now where I'm so ready to have this baby (for a million reasons) that I'm less anxious about the delivery process.

Hubby has been so awesome.  Everyone at work tells me that I look so happy and unstressed and I give him all the credit.  I joke that he allows me to be grumpy and whiny at home (and sometimes a complete mess) so that I can put my best foot forward at work.  Kidding.  But he's been very sweet and supportive and I really appreciate him!

RE: Pregnancy

-- So I can't say that I'm one of those women who ENJOY being pregnant but I don't detest it (well, at least not everyday).  Just kidding.  My body definitely has not felt "normal" or like it's in homeostasis.  However, the joy of knowing that I have a precious being growing inside me makes it worth all the challenges.  I love feeling him kick around, doing somersaults, poking around, having hiccups.  I love dreaming (day and night) about what he's going to be like.  So how many of you actually liked being pregnant? (honestly)

-- I've only worked out intermittently and it's showing but who cares.  I just don't feel like it and besides I'm working hard at work.  When I get home, I just want to be a bum.  Hehe!  BTW, since I'm talking about body I'll just mention that I have no stretchmarks (yet).  I have gained the right amount of weight based on my initial pregnancy weight.  This is great for baby but of course I'm already thinking about my post pregnancy workout plans.

-- I haven't had too many food cravings per se.  Here were some of my food likes and dislikes.  Dislikes:  For a while there I couldn't stand eating meat but this has been better.  I'm normally a sweet tooth but until recently I had no desire to eat anything sweet.  OK, so the list is very short. LOL.  Likes: sour, spicy and salty things.  I was introduced to wasabi and soy covered almonds and I love those things.  I'm loving potstickers (especially from Noodles and Company) with the sesame ginger sauce. Yum!  I had a 5 day period where I wanted nothing but black beans and rice.  I had a few weeks period where I wanted nothing but 3 soft tacos from Chipotle (very unusual for me because I'm not a big fan of Mexican or Tex-Mex food).  I was craving corned beef and cabbage for a while but I had to get over it because I could not find corned beef anywhere.

-- Nursery is pretty much done.  The colors are brown, beige, tan, ivory with green accents.  I think it's cute but also practical.  I think we have pretty much everything we need.  Everything is set up.  Some of which I did because I'm impatient.  We bought the stroller (well travel system) a few weeks ago and I was so excited to set it up that I cut it out of the box and set it up myself.  Hubby thinks I'm nuts. LOL.  What can I say.  I'm a woman on a mission.

RE: Delivery

-- I only want hubby in the room + our doula.  I am in the process of creating our Birth Plan.  I guarantee it wont be anything elaborate--just some ideas of how I would like things to go (if possible).  I definitely want to deliver vaginally.  When I asked my ob gyn about how I can reduce my chances of getting a c-section, she said to use the midwives service offered at the hospital.  LOL.  I'm still using the ob gyn because it's my first pregnancy and I just want to.  

-- I'm definitely getting an epidural.  I'm deathly afraid of pain.  I hate pain.  I'm a punk when it comes to pain.  I know that the epidural may not completely remove the pain but I'm ok with it dampening it.

-- BTW, I've been thinking about how to do my hair for the delivery and post delivery time.  I know I wont have time to spend hours washing, conditioning and styling (twisitng) my hair after the baby gets here.  Do you guys have any ideas about natural hair styles?  Right now it takes me a few hours to twist my hair and I wear it like that for a week (max 2 weeks).  I also wear it untwisted for about 1 week.  I've thought about flat ironing it but I figure I'll sweat it out during labor and I'm also apprehensive because I haven't applied heat to my hair in close to 2 years.

RE: After Baby K comes

-- Can't wait to meet him!  Hubby will take off a week with me (right after he's born).  I'll be off for about 12 weeks.  We'll have tons of family help (from both sides).  After I go back to work, we'll have family help until Baby K is about 6 months old.  This means that we thankfully don't have to worry about childcare until then.  Still not sure what type of childcare we will do after.

-- I'm hearing about all the post delivery stories and I'm a little nervous.  Pain (did I mention I hate pain).  No sleep.  Don't expect much from baby.  Fatigue.  Helplessness.  No sleep.  Tied to glider.  At least I know what to expect (kinda) so I'll be more prepared.  Right?

-- Of course, how I could forget.  BREASTFEEDING.  My goal is to breastfeed for at least 6 months but we'll see.  For now, I plan to only breastfeed for at least 1 month.  Then after that I may introduce the bottle with breast milk.  This may change after a few days of sleep deprivation and being tied to the glider.  I don't plan to formula feed at all and haven't bought any formula.  If I eventually have to I'd be disappointed but it wont be the end of the world for me.  I have a lactation class that I'll be attending soon and I'll try to utilize a lactation consultant also.  My goal is to not introduce the pacifier until after 1 month but once again if I have to before then I wont make a big deal out of it.  These are plans that I have but I realize that the baby will have his own plans too :).  When did you introduce the bottle?  When did you introduce the pacifier?

-- WORKOUT:  I already have my workout schedule/plan.  I figure the best way to get something done is to plan for it.  I'll let you all know how this goes.

Look at me, 2 post in 1 week.  That's a record. LOL.  Thx for stopping by :)

Please feel to leave your pregnancy ideas/suggestions/comments.

Mrs. K

Hey there

Hi ladies,

How are ya?  Happy Thanksgiving.  Merry Christmas.  Happy New Year.  Happy MLK Day.  I figure I'd try to get at least one post in before Baby K gets here.  I know, it's been a while and yes we are still doing well.  Thankfully our family is doing great.  Hubby and are I excited to meet our little one in a a few weeks (well less than 1 month).  I'm still having intermittent nausea.  Good sleep is a thing of the past.  And, hello back pain!  LOL.  Actually things have been good overall and I can't complain too much.  I'm just ready to have this baby (only one week from being considered full term). Yippiee!  

I know I've only done a first trimester recap but here are some pics to make up for my delay.

These are from the second trimester:

9/28/11

9/30/11

10/16/11

The following were taken by our good friend who does photography as a hobby.  These are part of our Maternity Photos and were done at 33 weeks I believe.

I will try to post more over the next few weeks but I'm making no promises :).  Miss you all!

Mrs. K

Life Update

So much has happened since the last time I've blogged.  Although I haven't written a post, I've been thinking about you all.  I've told myself for the past few weeks that I was going to post more often but I haven't.  My bad :).  Hope you all are doing well.  I'm good and growing. LOL.  I know I still have to post preggo pix but I promise they are on their way.

I just wanted to drop by to give you all a brief update:

-- Hubby, Baby K, and I are doing well

-- Our "vacation" went well.  The crabcakes at Koco's Pub in Maryland are to die for.  It was great visiting all the museums, monuments and memorials in DC.  We did the DC by Foot tour, which was great.  Stopped by Philly on the way to NY and had a long (fun) lunch with my cousin.  Cheesesteaks at Ishkabibble's were yummy.  Saw the Liberty Bell in Philly (which was anticlimactic).  Crammed a lot in during the 2-3 days in NY.  We stayed in NJ at a crappy hotel to save money (instead of staying in Manhattan) which was almost a disaster but I was a trooper. :).  Wicked was great!  Spent last 2 days in a cabin Luray, Virginia.  We were unexpectedly snowed in but we needed the time to recuperate from our "vacation."  We basically ate egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner during the 2 days we were snowed in.  We played scrabble and hubby taught me how to play chess.  We just enjoyed each other's company.  The day we left hubby had to dig us out of the snow with the fireplace shovel.  Overall, good experience :).  Oh, how could I forget.  The fall foliage was beautiful (especially in Virginia).

-- I went to my first hockey game: Carolina Hurricanes vs. Tampa Bay Lightenings.  Interesting experience but still not a fan of hockey.

-- We finally started getting prepped for baby stuff.  Created a registry.  Well at least, I started one.  Have 2 showers coming up (late Nov and early Dec).  We bought our first baby item in DC at the National Aquarium.

-- Hosted a dinner at our house that turned out great (with less than a week's notice).  There were 12 adults and 6 kids. 

-- Got a stomach virus that was horrible (not related to the dinner I don't think).  Thankfully that's over.  Had to call in sick for the first time ever.

--Planning to take pregnancy photos within the next few weeks.

So, how are things going with you?  Great, I hope :)

Mrs. K

A photo trip down pregnancy memory lane: 1st Trimester

FIRST TRIMESTER:

Found out we were preggers on 6/10/11:  Super duper excited.  

First belly pic (also 6/10/11): Hubby used his cell phone to take this picture.  This is later that morning we found out we were preggers.  I was not having any nausea yet.  We went hiking with the dogs.  Was bursting with excitement and wanted to announce it to the world but we stuck with our plan to wait until after the first trimester.  Was still running regularly.

The following week we told our good friends C and D.  Well we tried to announce it in a creative way but D popped our bubbles and guessed it even before we said anything.  We were leaving MS and although we said we wouldn’t tell anyone until after the first trimester we really wanted them to know before we left (especially since we talked babies with them so many times in the past)

Shortly after, I got my first pregnancy gift from D which included crackers, sour patch kids because the nausea (and vomiting) had kicked in.  She also got us a book (What to Expect When You’re Expecting).  That same week I went into work then had to leave because of a combination of headache and intolerable nausea.  While in Walmart I projectile vomited in their bathroom (barely made it).

About 1-2 weeks later I told another friend (B and C) who also live in MS.  C was so excited too and started brainstorming about baby shower although I was still in the first trimester. LOL.  That same week I told a friend and co-worker (S and her husband B).  We had always joked about being pregnant and having kids.  I just could not leave MS without telling her in person.

All these people were awesome and kept our secret so well.  We chose to not make the BIG announcement until after the first trimester because of the risks of first trimester miscarriages, etc.  We wanted to get past that critical period.

Graduation for hubby and I 6/24 and 6/25

Hubby’s parents were in town and went to both our graduations.  They also helped us with the big move to NC.  It was so hard holding back such exciting news.  Of course, as usual the talk about kids would come up and we (hubby and I) would make a funny comment.  We didn’t lie, we were just creative with our answers.  I remember his mother asking us directly and we completely avoided answering by using humor.  It was so hard trying to move AND hide a pregnancy (not only was I nauseated I also could not lift certain objects).

Cousin’s wedding on 7/2 in VA:

So, no one in my family knew about our news.  I have a HUGE family and a lot of them were at my cousin’s wedding.  It wasn’t so tough hiding it because I wasn’t showing and I had already committed to taking anti-nausea medication (if I was going to be able to function at all).  We had a great time and no one had a clue.  It was actually fun keeping that secret mainly between hubby and I.

Belly pic in NC (taken by hubby): 7/21

Maybe showing a little bit.  I don’t know.  Anyway, I went through work orientation and no one suspected.  The first month I had to tell one of the girls I work with because I wanted her to switch calls with me (because one of my calls fell during the time when I would be on maternity leave).

Ignore the disorganization in the room.  We were still in the middle of moving.

 Not long after that I told my program director who was very excited for me.  She even encouraged me to take at least 12 weeks or as long as I need on maternity leave.  My training program was so supportive so all the worrying I had before hand was for no reason.

We had our first OB appointment at 10 weeks.  We had to see the ob nurse which we felt was somewhat of a waste.  We decided we wanted to work with an OB Gyn for this pregnancy and not the midwives in the practice.  The next week we saw the doctor for the first time.  We were almost 12 weeks when we got our first ultrasound.  It was so exciting seeing that there was a real baby in there.  I had been nauseated and vomiting for weeks and my body had been changing but seeing the baby brought it home to us.  Hubby was with me.  He was a teeny-tiny bit disappointed that there was only one baby (and not 2 or 3) but I was jumping for joy.  I can't imagine having multiples.

We had labs done (which were all normal) and opted to not have the First Screen or the Triple Screen.  We figured it wouldn’t make a difference in our approach to the pregnancy so we decided not to have it.  Also knowing that they were screening tools and NOT diagnostic and that I was healthy we didn’t see the need. 

After our Ob appt we called my mother on the same day.  She was so excited about having her first grandchild.  I had my husband announce it to her in patois (over the phone, as she lives in Jamaica). 

A part of the package we sent to my husband's parents to make the announcement.  They were ecstatic too.  We then told his siblings in order of age.  That part was exciting too.  We tried to have one of his sister's kid (4 yo) announce it to her but we were on speakerphone so hubby's sister heard us prepping his niece and she started screaming with excitement.

We then announced it to the rest of my family and went in age order too when it came to my extended family so that no one felt left out or that we had preferences.  I know, we are such crazy planners when it comes to certain things.

Anyway, bottom line is that everyone was surprised and excited and basically said it was about time. LOL.  No one was upset that we waited that long to tell them.  

OK, so more to come in future post about the second trimester (which I'm more than half way through).  I'm documenting all the details so I can refer back to how it all unfolded some day.  Oh and by the way, I am so ready for Baby K to get here, although we haven't bought anything or prepared much.  I'm just excited to meet our little one.

Mrs. K

It's Official

I need to only use the oven for baking main dishes and NOT desserts.  I am really bad at making desserts (especially in the oven) and I am officially giving up (for now).  Tonight, I tried to surprise my husband by making cinnamon rolls (of course courtesy of Pillsbury) and I failed miserable.  I misread and placed the oven on 425 for 25 minutes instead of 325.  You can only imagine how bad they looked.  Hubby said that they didn't taste too bad but I think he was trying to be nice OR maybe he's not very picky.  I say they tasted terrible (like cardboard with icing on top).

Anyway, we are going on a road trip from North Carolina to New York next week.  We plan to stop in DC for about 3 days, stop in Philly for a day then go up to NY and spend 3 days in the city.  On our way back to NC we plan to rent a cabin for about 2-3 days to chill out before going back to work.  We've never done the DC tour before so we need your help.  Do you have any recommendations about where to visit/eat?  What to do?  The only part of our trip that is planned so far is that we are seeing Wicked on Broadway.  We would appreciate any tips.  Thanks!

Mrs. K