22 Weeks!

Jeez, I seriously feel like I just wrote about 21 weeks. Where the heck is the time going?? It's starting to get scary. The baby is now the size of a spaghetti squash. Ewww, I really don't like spaghetti squash. It's been a great vacation and I'm sad it's almost at an end. I hope everyone has a wonderful New Years Eve and stays safe tonight.

How far along: 22 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Oh man, after vacation I'm very afraid. I've had some really good food here!

Stretch marks: Yep, Three on the belly really low and fingerling ones on my hips. Thankfully they are very pale white.

Sleep: Once I'm up, I'm up. This has been as early as 5am or later. Unfortunately...it is usually early. On average about 5 hours a night, but I can definitely nap during the day.

Movement: The kicking is still weird although I get nervous when it doesn't happen. Still can't feel it from the outside...honestly mostly feel it between my legs. I think the baby is facing down.

Food cravings: Orange juice, chocolate, ice cream.

Frustrations: Being nervous. Everything makes me nervous. It would be nice to just never worry.

What I miss: Being able to easily stand up from a low seat.

Weekly Wisdom: Just eat it.

Milestones: Not getting too freaked out by a little e coli in my latest urine sample. I'm just taking the meds and dealing with it.

New friends!

Whisky has made friends with the other labs here in Washington, but his bestest buddy happens to be a kitty. Whisky hasn't been around cats before but he has taken to Casper. He likes to nose all over him and get him all wet. They also make good napping buddies!

Experience Music Project

The hubby and I spent the night in North Bend and decided to venture into Seattle to check out the Experience Music Project. If you like music and haven't been I recommend checking it out. Lots of great memorabilia and of course...music! I loved this guitar sculpture in the middle of the museum. The architecture of this place is insane! Also it gave us a chance to check out the Space Needle which I had also not seen before.

Port Townsend

Today we took a day trip to Port Townsend with the nieces and nephews. It was a great trip and fun to spend some time with the kids. They are all in their 20's, but I like to call them the kids still. On the drive there we got stuck on a bridge that was doing a test on their lift gate so I used that time to take some pictures.

That there is the hubby.

And that there is me! It's probably the only family portrait I'm going to get. The only other picture I took in Port Townsend, because I'm so terrible about taking the camera out, was a bathroom door. I couldn't help it. I found it hilarious that on a cafe door (we're not talking a bar) this sticker was on the women's restroom to remind me. I guess I better quit sneaking sips of those mimosas...someone is onto me!

I love it.

My niece asked if I had ever seen the show Glee. I never had. I have a hard time getting started on comedy sitcom style shows. The reason...track laughter. I know this sound ridiculous but I seriously cannot watch a show that has track laughter. It started in about 1996 and completely halted my watching of Friends. I haven't gotten into another sitcom since unless it's laughter free. I'm a big fan of The Office and recently got hooked on Modern Family. Since I was assured that Glee was track free I gave it a shot. I seriously love it. The music is great, the cast is great and it's all around funny. I'm going to have to find times at home to sneak in watching it!!

Grrrr.....

I've seen the monsters sweatshirts on Polka Dot Robot and love them. I wanted my nephew to have one for Christmas, but I seriously could not afford to buy him one. So, while my seamstress mom was here I recruited her to making a knockoff. It came out soooo good and Hayden totally loves it. He's been wearing it almost everyday since.

Merry Christmas!

Having a great time up in Oly with the family for Christmas. Hope everyone else had a good day and enjoyed all the goodies they got, or just time with those they love. This year the hubby and I decided to do a family gift and got a new Blu-ray player and put a limit on the gifts we could get eachother to wrap under the tree. I finally got the Pioneer Woman Cookbook and plan to put it to good use (you hear that G?!) I also got two board games cause I LOVE board games. The hubby went with some classics.....

Mouse Trap! I had NEVER played this before but it is sooo fun. I've been playing with the niece and nephew and I have to say I love it. Also the game of Life.Man, do I remember playing this a ton as a kid. It is quite a bit different now seeing how you can buy a flat plasma TV, but still super fun none the less. When looking for photos I sometimes get struck by something that comes up in the Google Images search and seriously...check this out!

21 Weeks

Boy these weeks seem to go really fast now. I'm sure when I get really uncomfortable again they will slow back down. Right now the baby is the size of a carrot.Thank god were not talking this carrot...what the heck happened to this guy?! Anyway, back to the baby.

How far along? 21 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 3 lbs!! Still keeping it slow and steady, pretty good for 21 weeks.

Stretch marks: I have two still, I got some delicious mango belly butter for an early Christmas and let's just say I smell delicious after slathering it on. Thanks Judy!

Sleep: 5 hours is pretty much it. Well, it's more with naps on the days I can nap, but it's hard to sleep through the night now.

Best moment of the week: Making it through a 10 hour car drive with only two pee stops.

Movement: Crazy movement at night. Lots of flipping around and diving practice going on in there.

Food cravings: Still just orange juice. I do like to eat though.

Frustrations: Sleep at times. I wish I didn't have to turn as much.

Belly button in/out: In, still deep. I wish it was out more...I think it would make the belly cuter.

What I miss: Now that I'm in Olympia I realize how much I'm going to miss morning mimosas. I'm shedding a tear just writing that.

What I'm looking forward to: Christmas!

Weekly Wisdom: Bellies are cute!

Milestones: Seriously making it on the car ride with only two pee stops, I can't believe I did it.

Road Trip!

Today Bill and I set out on our big Christmas family vacation and drive up to Olympia Washington. I can't tell you HOW EXCITED I AM without using all capital letters. It has been quite some time since I've had a vacation and far too long since I've been in Washington. I can't wait! It will take us about 10 hours from Redding, CA where we will stay with family. I'm an easy car traveler, sleep alot, don't require much, don't have to pee alot. Now that I'm pregnant it's going to be a whole other story so maybe we should plan on it taking us 12 hours instead! Posts from Washington to come!!

The freaks come out at night....

There is something interesting that has started to happen at night. It starts after dinner and then as soon as my head hits the pillow it intensifies! The baby is a night owl. In the past week I have started to feel more than just the vibrating flutter. While I still get that at times I also get a sliding around feeling inside, which feels like the baby is doing flips.

Within the past couple of days I have really started to feel the individual kicks and pushes. I have to admit...they are kind of uncomfortable. It is such a weird alien feeling, I mean you really know something is growing in there. The slipping around I get a kick out of, but sometimes I can get a kick that makes me yelp a bit. I think the baby is still messing around with my bladder and that's what is getting kicked most of the time. Funny as I just typed this, in the morning, the baby just kicked me. I am really loving the feeling of movement and find it interesting that while I've had over 20 weeks to get used to the fact that I'm having a baby it's like the notion that something is really alive in there only happened recently when the heavy movement began. I look forward to when people can feel it from the outside.

Why Bake?

I got some Philosophy Red Velvet Cake wash for Christmas (an early exchange) and I have to say that after washing my body with this once I no longer have any urge to bake for Christmas. I'm pretty sure that the smell alone is going to get me through many a sweet craving. I smell like yummy cake. Can't wait to wash with the frosting tomorrow!!

It's been a while....

I realized yesterday that it has been forever since I have done a drawing on the chalkboard. Although we will be leaving for vacation soon I still wanted to make sure there was a holiday drawing. The hubby asked if he could pick out a photo which I jumped at because my least favorite part is picking out what to draw. Scooby Dooby Doo! I seriously love having this chalkboard! I'll have to take a picture of the whole thing sometime. It's actually a swinging old schoolhouse chalkboard. There are chalk surfaces on the front and the back...very unique! I wish I knew more about it and how old it is.

What a difference.....

two weeks makes.

Ultrasounds are fun!

As I already said, yesterday was my ultrasound. This was my first through the tummy ultrasound and a chance for us to have a look at the baby while the techs take pictures of vital organs and such. I was excited and also nervous for this to happen. The "what if they see something wrong" set in but once the hubby and I were in the room the excitement took over.

The tech started and pointed out various things....there's the heart, there's the gallbladder. I can assure you that while the hubby and I said "Oh yeah", we saw absolutely nothing. Unfortunately the baby was not in a good position though and they were having a tough time getting the images. So, they asked me to go pee...seeing how my bladder was bigger than the baby. They figured this might get the baby to move. It did...into a tighter ball. They then brought in the "Baby Whisperer" tech who is supposedly the master at getting the baby to move. I'll tell you what she is really the master of, torturing the hell out of you until you are ready to cry in pain because it feels as if she is going to push the ultrasound wand through your stomach. Luckily she gave up and asked if I could come back later after a meal. They gave me a picture to take to show what position the baby was in.
There you go. Aren't you looking at that going "What the heck am I looking at?" Well, let me illustrate it for you so it's easier for you to see. Yep, the baby is folded in half. Folded in half and taking up only half of the space that it has to work with inside. My little taco. Rest assured it does have arms as well..I just can't figure out where they are in this photo! My theory is that this means the baby is going to grow up to be a diver. Don't you see a similarity??

Needless to say I went back and the baby had moved around so they were able to get what they needed. Here is the final pic I was sent home with. I'll leave it to you to figure this one out!

20 Weeks

Wow, you know what this means right? Halfway! Holy goodness that is just crazy. The baby is not the length of a banana. I definitely think I'm in the honeymoon stage right now because everything is pretty great. I have more energy, I want to eat and for the most part I don't feel like killing anyone. It will make for a much more enjoyable holiday!

How far along? 20 weeks.

Total weight gain/loss: I'll tell ya next week but let me assure you that the belly is BOOMING. It thankfully does look like a pregnant belly though and not just like I've eaten one too many donuts.

Stretch marks? Still two, but I got some stuff at the Co-op that I rub on the belly after showers. Lots of vitamin E goodness. We'll see if it works!

Sleep: Lots of tossing and turning. I switch from side to side but find that arms start falling asleep and hips start hurting.

Best moment this week: Feeling a distinct push from the inside.

Movement: Much more. Every night when I lay down the baby goes crazy. I can actually feel it spinning. Not so much kicking yet, just pushes and movement.

Food cravings: Orange juice is still going strong. Aside from cravings I can just say that food tastes good. Sometimes you have something that you have had a million times in your life and yet in that moment it tastes like it was made especially for you. Today I experienced that with a Rootbeer.

Frustrations: Not many right now. Sleeping can be annoying but I'm just not getting frustrated for a while.

Belly Button in or out? Cavernous.

What I miss: I don't even drink much but I have to go with the occasional beer with friends.

What I am looking forward to: Leaving on vacation next week. I know it's not baby related, but this momma needs a vacation!

Weekly Wisdom: It really does get better!

Milestones: Making it through the ultrasound today. More on that tomorrow...with pictures!

Pssssst.......

Hey ladies, come a little closer. I have a secret to tell you. There is something that the world has been hiding from us. Something that we didn't think were made for us unless we were in "a certain way." Something that is so comfortable you will quit leaving the house in your nasty yoga pants and pajama bottoms. You know who you are. I am here to help you be a little more stylish and at the same time feel good in what you have on. I'd like to introduce you to these....
maternity pants! Oh my heavens, they are ridiculously comfortable! I'm not talking the big old full panel ones either (although those are a slice of heaven as well.) See, most stores make them so you can hardly tell they are maternity at all. There are no buttons, no zippers and even the elastic waistband is cute and comfy. Seriously, there is no reason these pants should not be worn by everyone. I know so many women that can't wait to get out of their maternity clothes and back into their normal jeans. Let me tell you I will not be one of them. These are more comfortable and yet just as cute as any of my other jeans...and a smaller freaking size than what I wear normally! So take that uncomfortable jeans, you have been replaced.

Yep.

I decided that I wanted to send my clients a Christmas card. I've gotten to know so many of them and felt it would be a kind gesture to send something their way. I went to Hallmark and did some personalized cards. Have you used this feature yet? You don't have to do photo collage ones either you can just add your own text and then the beautiful part is you can pay for the postage and Hallmark will address and mail them for no additional cost. To me, that is heaven! I did this last year for my own Christmas cards and it worked perfectly. I picked a snowman card and did the thanking for business. On the back of the card there was a small place to put a picture. So, to make sure the card had that Stacey touch to it...I used this...All I can say is they love it!

Success!

This year, much like last year, I decided that I wanted as many of my gifts to be handmade. This could be handmade by myself or by someone else. Last year I did pretty good with this, but this year I feel like I was even more successful! I had 22 people to get gifts for, of those 16 are handmade items! I think that is pretty darn good. I have to admit it makes it more fun finding gifts. I don't find myself schleping at the mall in and out of stores buying random stuff. It's more personal when it's handmade. I'll admit too....it also saves a bundle. Later I will be able to show you the stuff I made, I better remember to take pictures. Of the 16, I made 10 of them. Wow, that's alot of making!

Mad Lib Winner!

Using the random number generator, a winner has been selected! Congrats Sarah!! You are the winner of some new Christmas ornaments. They are still a work in progress as they need hangers, but I saw these round pieces of wood when I was collecting my Christmas tree and I thought they would be perfect for little paintings. I hope you enjoy them.

Now onto the fun part...the Mad Lib. I figured I would give the Mad Lib to you blank and that way those that didn't win could see how theirs would read. Let me tell you, there are some funny entries! It's a good thing I did a random selection and not by humor because that would have been more tough. So the blank Mad Lib is:

Snowed In
If you can't get out of your house because of a sudden (noun) storm, don't panic!
You'll be (adverb) safe if you have warm clothes. Preferably woolen (plural noun), thermal (plural noun) and, of course, (adjective) underwear.

And now for Sarah's winning entry!

Snowed In
If you can't get out of your house because of a sudden Nutcracker storm, don't panic!
You'll be blatantly safe if you have warm clothes. Preferably woolen margaritas, thermal
sprinkles and, of course, flashy underwear.

Nice one! Congrats Sarah. I already have your mailing address so your ornaments will be mailed to you shortly! Thanks to all those that participated.

19 Weeks

Wow, that's so close to half way that is scary! It really goes by quickly and yet at times you want it to be quicker. The baby is now the size of a heirloom tomato. My mom was here for a visit and some more room planning was done. She's making me a great crib skirt with a vintage looking fabric that has letters and numbers all over it. I also found some fantastic vintage flash cards at the thrift. I'm going to frame them with a bunch of those Ikea frames and use that as the art. So the room will just have kind of a vintage ABC and 123 theme. I can't wait to get started, but there is alot of stuff to get out of that room first. It's safe to say we won't be doing any of that until after the holidays. So, without further ado..here is the survey. I've made a couple changes...removing the gender because by now you have figured out that we aren't going to find out! Enjoy!

How far along? 19 weeks.

Total weight gain/loss: You'll just get this one once a month. I'm not a big scale user so I'm limiting my weigh ins to my 4 week appointments. I'm sure there is another pound or two in there somewhere though!

Stretch marks? There are two small ones now. I've got to get on the vitamin E regimen before it's too late!

Sleep: The Snoogle is awesome, but it's still tough sleeping. You definitely get somewhat prepared for waking up with baby during the pregnancy while you wake up to pee, wake up to roll over, wake up just because.

Best moment this week: Finding my dog curled up inside my Snoogle.

Movement: Yep, although I wish I felt it more. Should in the next few weeks...for now it's just sporadic vibration.

Food cravings: I really don't know if there are cravings. I guess there are things that I suddenly like that I never used to. Drinking a glass of milk for example. Tastes so delicious now, but never did before. On the other hand I'm not guzzling the milk. I feel like I crave things no more than usual. I do really still like orange juice and have some every day.

Frustrations: The round ligament pain is off the charts right now. This make sleeping difficult cause I feel every movement I make. Stretching at night helps. Still need to get into the yoga class, but I also have ANOTHER cold right now and yoga plus drippy nose is never a good idea.

Belly Button in or out? Cavernous.

What I miss: Being able to just pick stuff up and carry it around without thinking about it.

What I am looking forward to: The ultrasound next week. Although at the same time it makes me nervous. Being pregnant is such a worrisome thing. I was finally in a place that I wasn't worrying much and now knowing that we are going to look at the baby makes me freak out just a little bit.

Weekly Wisdom: Embrace the belly and show it off!

Milestones: Posting a picture of what looked like a beer gut on the world wide web.

Christmas Time!

Last weekend we went to Apple Hill and got our tree. We were going to do a trip with the family up to the Redding area, but the hubby was under the weather so mom and I drove up to Apple Hill for a day of tree fun. It was actually painless and we found a great tree at the first place we stopped. We go with the colorful hodge podge decorating theme. You can find fishing stuff, Snoopy, Nascar, and general Christmas. I love it!It looks so bare in this photo but I can assure you that there are a lot of ornaments hiding in there..and look already packages thanks to Mom! I also put out our few Christmas decorations around the house and thought I'd show you my favorite one...I know you are probably thinking it's the Iron Maiden box set, but actually it would be The Grinch. See, the Grinch is one of my favorite Christmas stories. Long ago at a job far far away I participated in a Secret Santa. The rules were that you had to gift every other day for two weeks and then give a gift costing no more than $5 on the final day. Only problem was I wasn't getting any gifts. Everyone was getting all this crazy good stuff and I had nothing. After week one of no gifts I started getting vocal with my coworker that sat on the other side of the cubicle from me about how awful my Secret Santa was. A day or two later I got a candy cane. I really bitched more then. I waited a week and a half for a stinking candy cane?! Finally the reveal came and boy was I ready to really glare at my Secret Santa. Unfortunately for me, my Secret Santa had been the coworker on the other side of the cubicle the whole time. You know, the one I bitched to constantly about the lameness of my Secret Santa. I was mortified and learned the lesson that it's best to not be a greedy bitch and to keep your mouth shut! He gave me the Grinch...which cost way more than $5...cause he knew that it was my favorite. I have put him out every year since and even bought the dog to go with him...he's on the other side of Iron Maiden!

No dummy!

Even Whisky knows the comfort of the snoogle!

Finally a contest!

I think I said I was going to have a contest on, um, Thanksgiving. Unfortunately a week got away from me and I never got around to it...so today is the day my friends. It's super cold here in Sacramento right now, in fact snow touched down very close...it's finally feeling like winter. When I came into work my Mad Lib calendar had the perfect little story so I thought it would be a great segway into a contest. So, here's the deal. Leave a comment, either on the blog or on Facebook, giving me the following information so I can fill in the Mad Lib.



1. Noun
2. Adverb
3. Plural Noun
4. Plural Noun
5. Adjective

On Friday I will randomly draw a winner. Unfortunately I can't show you what you will win because it is a work in progress, but just know that it involves painting, Christmas Tree ornaments and possibly an elf or two. Basically, it's going to be kick ass so gets to submitting. Deadline is Friday morning at 8am Pacific Time.

Two fer Tuesday!

Except it's Sunday. I seem to have a desire to post two humiliating photos of myself in a row though so just go with it. We're here to discuss the bump. When looking at the photo I myself see quite a few bumps! The belly is in full force and has grown with each day this past week. Normal tops slide up, as you can see in the photo. Don't worry, I don't wear that out of the house like that. No, instead I just post it online for thousands (ok all 40 of you) to see.

Being a full size woman posting a picture of my stomach is not an easy thing to do, but golly there is a baby in there and I feel like I deserve to revel in it as much as the skinny girls with the cute round bellies do. I've never been one to have a pouchy round stomach so you are looking at all baby there. My butt on the other hand, always pouchy and round as much as I'd like to convince myself that maybe there is another baby living in there too. I thought maybe the Christmas lights would be a small distraction!

On a side note, I've watched my fair share of Ghost Hunters. When ghosts are present there are sometimes these orbs in the photos or film. If this shows up in every picture of my belly I'm going on record to say that I'm going to FREAK OUT.

The ultimate comfort!

This is for you Carol Browne, this is for you!

All snoogled up!

It arrived, the infamous Snoogle. I seriously couldn't wait to go to bed to try it out and once I did...boy was I comfortable!! This thing is awesome, pregnant or not. It's just so...well, snuggly! I have to admit though I had a good laugh when I looked at the information card. Let's have a gander shall we?
You know this this is comfortable, just look at how happy all these woman are. I personally tried the Back to Back and Tummy Tuck and used both equally. I doubt I will be trying the Donut Deluxe. That one cracks me up. Can I admit something naughty? Can't you just imagine these names being sex positions? Ok, I guess I'm the only pervert.

18 Weeks!

Wow, these weeks are going by alot quicker since I've been feeling better! I had a check in the other day and all is good....will go for an ultrasound in the next couple weeks and surely will share with you the detailed picture. The baby is now the size of a Bell Pepper.

How far along? 18 weeks.

Total weight gain/loss: Seriously, in 4 weeks I have gained ONE POUND! I thought it was going to be 10, I felt like I was eating a ton. This is probably the first time in my life that I've only put on 1 pound between Halloween and Thanksgiving!

Stretch marks? Just one, it's always been there but is getting pinker.

Sleep: Was supposed to get my Snoogle yesterday and damn Amazon screwed up. Hopefully it will help me get comfier.

Best moment this week: Having the hubby at the doctor appointment with me.

Movement: Yep, still vibrating around in there. I feel it about every other day, sometimes just for a second and sometimes it lasts for a while.

Food cravings: Seriously, I am just hungry. I get full fast though so I think that is why I'm not eating as much as I think. I want to have pizza today, but I don't know that it is a craving. Still really like orange juice.

Gender: Could be male or female.

Labor Signs: I feel like I should change this question, so for now I will just tell you what hurts...because I'm sure labor hurts. My hips. Some days it feels as if I just went horseback riding, or I am a Barbie who's legs are being ripped off. I'm looking into prenatal yoga IMMEDIATELY!

Belly Button in or out? If it ever pops out I will be very surprised.

What I miss: Not having to locate the bathroom in every store I go into, just in case.

What I am looking forward to: Feeling more movement.

Weekly Wisdom: Sucking it in doesn't work, just stick that gut out!

Milestones: Not killing anyone.

Next week....I will post a picture of the belly.

Thrifty

Today I went thrift store shopping with my mom and friend Melissa. I scored some pretty great stuff! To add to my collection, I found this Fisher Price Family House for $2.99! Now I just really need to find some people and accessories. Those are the hardest. Also scored a ton of records, a vintage Mr. Happy book, a fish pattern baby sling, a cowboy pattern blanket, a baby sleeper and some wooden blocks. All in all a fun thrifty day!

It's Advent Time!

I'm a crafty person. I like making stuff and appreciate the handmade. However there is one handmade item that I just chuckle at whenever I see it. That is the advent calendar. I know they can be adorable. I know they can be filled with chocolate and fun handmade surprises behind each number. They are missing something though. They are missing the whit and humor of Carol Browne.

When I was laid up with my knee it was Christmas time. I was depressed, I was lonely, I was stuck to the sofa. I spent alot of time on the laptop and that is when I found Carol's blog. At the time she was right in the middle of her Playmobil Advent Calendar. It was love at first site. It was something to wake up and look forward to. It was something that always made me laugh. For me it is Christmas. It is my tradition.

The advent began today and will continue each day until Christmas. I highly recommend checking it out and seeing if it will become a part of your Christmas tradition! Thanks Carol for creating something that got me through a tough time and has become a tradition I look forward to each year....can't wait to meet you!