Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Alive and well

I have been busy the last few weeks and haven't had a chance to post. Getting the computer is difficult.  But i just wanted to say that i am now the proud mother to a baby girl.
Charlize Linda born December 4th @1pm. She was 6lbs 11oz and 19.25" long.


We were shocked at how small she was considering how tall we both are.
Our stay in the hospital was nice, we went in Tuesday Morning and were home Friday by 1.  Everyone at St. Josephs Womens hospital was wonderful and very helpful.

My parents were here for her birth as well as my friend Stephanie.  My father went home the following Monday and Tuesday (a week after her birth) Adam's dad came for a visit.  My mom will stay here through the new year and then come back when i go back to work.

We have adjusted well and are slowly getting used to having a 3rd family member. The dogs seem not that interested and more lost, but they're very good towards her and haven't caused any trouble.

This weekend we'll head south for our family Christmas on Marco Island. It will be nice to see my brothers and cousins and aunt and uncle.  Hopefully Ms. Charlie will adapt to the location change and let us have a restful vacation.

If i don't get back to the blog for a while, I hope you all have a very merry Christmas and a happy New year!

Thursday, November 29, 2012

3rd Year in Pictures

um so I totally forgot to do this this year. WTF? maybe I was too busy thinking about this baby!! For our 2nd anniversary Adam bought me a camera, so I was able to take pictures more freely…Lets see how well I did.
September 2011
2nd Anniversary
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October 2011
Sunday Funday
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November 2011
Yuengling fun
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December 2011
Christmas in North Carolina
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January 2012
Mount Dora get-a-way
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February 2012
Valentines day
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March 2012
Getting to see my man in action
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April 2012
Our dreams come true.
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May 2012
Working weekend at the cottage
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June 2012
Getting excited…meeting Adeline
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July 2012
Michigan Vacation-Polka Fest
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August 2012
Joseph’s wedding
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September 2012
3rd anniversary…On bed rest…ordered in sushi
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ok...so i guess taking the pictures...you don't get in many! ha ha but it was a very good year :)

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

6 days

Well here we are, 6 days away from meeting baby Charlie.

I really can’t believe it’s finally time. It feels like it’s been FOREVER.  I’m at the point where I wish I could hit fast forward…get to next Tuesday and just see her.

Last night I asked Adam, do you think about what she’ll look like? I haven’t really, but I do think if she had a dark head of hair (which is entirely possible) I’d be a little shocked.

I guess I never posted that I am getting a c-section. Dec 4 @ 11:30 am. She is STILL breach. I feel for her big head everyday. And I’m ok with this. Actually I think it’s better this way. and it’s faster, Adam and I are not the most patient people in the world.

I have been feeling good. I’m tired a lot, my upper back gets sore from sitting at a desk too long. Oh and my baby likes to wedge her head under my ribs, so that’s fun. And I’m finally getting “Congratulations” from strangers now that I’m obviously pregnant. I have a couple more belly pics to share.  one thing is no one believes that I’m due in a week. According the the girl at Dunkin Donuts “girl! you are wearing that girl good! you only look 6 months!” I thought to myself, if I were this big at 6 months I wouldn’t be able to leave the house now that I’m 9! But I take it as a compliment, smile and say thank you.

She’s moving around right now…it’s still so weird. I think she’s realizing her mistake of not flipping and doing whatever she can to get out…just wait little girl, it’s almost time.

Her room is basically ready. I’m going to post a bunch of pictures once it’s all complete. but right now it’s definitely good enough to bring a baby home too and house a bunch of visitors. What? you didn’t know? our guest room now comes with a crying and pooping baby at no extra charge to you Smile

Charlie has already been spoiled beyond our belief. I need to go buy more thank you cards! she’s got it all and then some. We feel so blessed and loved by all our family and friends.

We are all done with Dr. apts and classes. I think we feel prepared. I haven’t read a baby book or pregnancy book in months. I guess I’m just at the point where I’m going to wing it and deal with life as it’s thrown (up) at us.  Adam is way excited. I’m nervous, scared, excited, anxious, freaking out while being calm at the same time. We’re ready. We’re going to do this. Be great parents-or at least good parents. Speaking of parents ours will be here soon. We’re so thankful for them…and the impending help they will give us!

Sorry this wasn’t a fun full of pictures fun topic post…but I thought if I didn’t get it all out right now, I’d forget and before you know it she’ll be 6 and I’ll have forgot this quiet crazy time in my life right before I became a mom.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Light Activity and 34 Weeks

Yesterday I was given the green light to go back to work! At 34 weeks the Drs. won’t do anything to stop labor, so at this point I’m good to go.  I am allowed light activity and since I sit at a desk all day, work is ok. I still am not allowed any exercise or heavy lifting. I will finish out the week at home and then go into the office on Monday :)
I am feeling good and more pregnant as the weeks roll on.  Speaking of rolling, that is what I must do now to get out of bed or off the couch…my abs can no longer propel me up.
34 weeks
Another aspect we discussed at the Drs. yesterday was Charlie’s Breach position.  At 34 weeks, while she still could turn, it’s not as likely.  He gave us the option of doing a external cephalic version at 37 weeks, but Adam isn’t on board.  I’d like to get the opinion of my OB friend, Krista. Second opinions are always good and I'm lucky to have a close friend I can ask. I will continue to try and do some exercises to get her to turn, but he told us to start getting used to the idea of a c-section. It would be scheduled at 39 weeks.
34 weeks
Actually a c-section doesn’t scar me as much as normal child birth.  While I might have a slight feeling that I’ve missed out on something special, I feel like this route would be easier for me on my nerves and anxiety.  I am really nervous about giving birth. I keep telling people I don’t want to be there for it. I want to give birth like Betty Draper; get knocked out and then wake up with lipstick on to a beautiful clean swaddled baby.  But I’m pretty sure it’s no longer 1960 and they don’t do twilight births anymore.
Whatever happens will happen. We truly believe whatever God has planned for us will be the right route. But we’ll just have to wait and see if I have to face my fears or sport a scar.
Despite all that we’re getting very excited. Charlie’s crib arrived, a gift from Grandma (my mom) and Adam set it up all ready making sure everything was tight and secure. Her nursery is coming along and really looks cute. As soon as I go back to work, we’ll get rid of the stuff I’ve been using for my office and can get started on the textiles and décor.
My mom is here helping out until after my shower.  She has cleaned and cooked and sewed and mended and filled Charlie’s closet with an obscene amount of little dresses. I am so lucky that she is able to do this, because I really don’t think I would have been able to get to all she’s done. We’re blessed in so many ways.
We hope everyone has a safe and fun Halloween.
Boo!

Friday, October 19, 2012

32 down 8 to go…

32 weeks

At 32 weeks I am now starting to not only look more pregnant, but I feel it too. Getting up, rolling over, sleeping, back aches, heartburn, and the overall feeling that I’m large are all issues I deal with daily now. But I probably shouldn’t complain if it took 32 weeks to get to this point.

Baby Charlie is still moving around and it’s just crazy to see my stomach move like there’s an ocean under there…or some sort of alien life form a la the movie Tremors.  My mom keeps telling me it’s beautiful, it’s a miracle and I keep saying it’s weird and hard to believe.  I still can’t believe there is a person growing inside of me. who by the way, just lodged herself under my rib! ugg

She is still breach so I have been trying to do little exercises to help her flip. However, the dogs think this is the time to come over and lick my face.  Hopefully she’ll do it on her own, but a little help never hurt anyone, right?

The nursery is coming along.We purchased a new rug, changing table, rocker and ottoman and finished the flooring and paint.  My friend Tara brought over her bassinette so now we even have a place for our little girl to sleep. I’m really happy with the way it’s turning out and can’t wait to get started on some sewing when my mom gets her next week.

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On the bed rest front I was told this week that after another two weeks I should be able to be released and sent back to the real world! that’s 2 weeks less than I was originally told. So I’m super happy an anxious to get back to work and life. I’ve been lucky that I’m able to head out to eat or to church, but I still spend the majority of my time sitting/lying in a bed or on the couch.

And I can’t post this without mentioning how much of a saint my husband is. He has really been great. doing all the cooking, cleaning, laundry, painting, waiting on me, shopping…all while working full time. I try to help, but he won’t let me. He’s taking good care of his girls. As much as I’m disappointed he’s going to California next weekend and I’m not, he deservers to go. And I really do hope he has a wonderful time hanging out with all his buddies.

Also, we started a little pool to see when you all think Baby Charlie will come, so If you’d like to join in here’s the link :

http://www.whatsinmybelly.com/baby-pool-baby-charlie-276

I believe you have to hit the JOIN tab before you can enter your predictions.

As cool as I think the 12/12/12 birthday would be…I’ll take anything after thanksgiving at this point!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Thirty

30 weeks

Wow, what a difference 2 weeks makes! I finally, after 30 weeks, feel and look pregnant. No blaming it on carbs and beer anymore!

The last two weeks have been ok. I was starting to go a little stir crazy.  Adam was gone most of both weekends so it was harder when I wasn’t working.  I have been lucky to have friends drop by and even drop of treats and meals (Adam was even more thankful he didn’t have to cook!)

I have kept busy with work, watching 5.5 seasons of The Office (in chronological order), Learning to embroider (thanks to my friend Rebecca) and attempting to read a few books here and there.

But, after 4 weeks on bed rest there is a light at the end of the tunnel! We had a great check up with Dr. Young yesterday.  My cervix is now at 2.8 cm (up from 2.3) which he said some people would argue is normal. With that said and the fact that I’ve hadn’t had any issues I am now on modified bed rest for the next two weeks. That means I can sit up, walk around the house, go outside and in the pool and even go out to dinner. I can’t go crazy and I’m still taking it really really east, but it was so nice to accompany Adam to Home Depot last night to pick up some paint.

At my next check up if everything looks good I should be able to add a bit more activity. And if at 34 weeks I’m still in good condition and stable I can go back to a normal life! That’s two weeks off my “sentence”! That means I can go back to work and get back to reality!  I still can’t go to California (Dr. said that would be pushing it) So my mom will come down and stay with me while Adam is gone and she will stay until my shower in November. An extra set of hands will really be appreciated and the company too!

So with that said, I have a much better outlook now that it might be 4 more weeks instead of 6. I’m also so excited to be able to move around a little more. The sono tech said that would be good for the baby and helping her flip, as she is still breach, and in the splits. One of her legs is down kicking at my cervix and the other is up by her ear. Little ballerina if I do say so.  Oh, and she officially has my nose, poor thing. But we still think she’s super cute.

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Happy October everyone!

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Nursery Sneak Peak

We’re finally getting ready for Ms. Charlie.  Daddy is busy doing everything that I can’t do (prepping/painting/demo-ing) and I’m busy picking out paints and fabrics and furniture (the fun stuff!)
Luckily before I went on bed rest (like 2 days before!) we spent the weekend purging her new room, shopping for certain items and laying out a game plan.
I had decided early on that I wanted white furniture, I feel its more versatile (girl or boy) and timeless. For color I chose to go with gray as my base color.  I love Gray as a neutral-it’s modern without being obnoxious and trendy.  Since I'm not big on baby pink I chose Green for the accent color.I LOVE green. Unfortunately since we're having a girl pink is going to be unavoidable.  While registering we quickly realized that we had two choices for most items, blue or pink. I would have picked everything blue, but seeing as Charlie is traditionally a male name, I didn’t want to confuse anyone.  So not to worry there will be plenty of pink in her future! Back to color; So the colors in her room will be white, gray and green.  
P9201977(our paint choices)

(Side note: Adam did have a say in all of this...and it was "whatever you want, you're the designer" Smart man)
Another aspect that had been decided long ago…as in before Charlie was a stencil we found in Chicago while touring Frank Lloyd Wrights studio. Frank Lloyd Wright Wall stencils(if you didn’t know, I’m an architect and FLW is kinda of a famous one) We didn’t end up buying the stencil that day, but we kept the idea in our back pocket. It was Adams idea to use the pattern and create a whole wall mural vs. stenciling a border. I loved the idea of an accent wall and he was willing to do it, so I played around with color options and came up with something we both like.
After those decisions were made, I began shopping for fabrics and furniture and putting a big picture together.  While searching for fabrics we came across two cute prints we couldn’t decide between. They were modern, but definitely child prints and Adam was in love with them both. He asked me, can we do them both?  “Of course!” I said. But then it came in multiple color options and while I loved the green there was this cotton candy pink that was tugging at my heart. So in addition to green, hot pink would be our  2nd accent color.
Premier Prints Ele White/Candy Pink - Discount Designer Fabric - Fabric.com Closet curtain$5.61 Premier Prints Gisella White/Chartreuse  CURTAINS(our curtain fabric. Grandma will be making them since I can’t)
Since then I’ve continued internet browsing and Adam is working on getting the physical room ready.
Here is where is what the room looked like before we did anything:
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Here is Adam working away after we cleaned out the space:
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And here is my design board with the selected items for the room:
Design Board copy
We’re so excited to get it complete, but even more excited to bring a little girl home to enjoy it!
Oh! And the best part, we’re keeping the double bed in that room, so if you come to visit this is your guest room! (Optional Baby in crib for no extra charge)

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Three

It’s been three years since we said “I do” or was it “I will”?
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I really don’t recall.
All I know is that is seems like yesterday.
Yesterday that we were full of love and hope for a bright future.
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Yesterday that we had dreams of starting our own family. 
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And just yesterday that I got butterfly's in my stomach just looking at him.
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The good news, we’re still in love and have good hopes and dreams for our future. We have a baby on the way. And I still get excited every time I get to see him.
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I made the right choice.
Happy Anniversary Adam.
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(As much as I  hate kissy photos, this is one of my favorites from our wedding day. I call it our Hollywood shot)

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

28 Weeks

28 Weeks

Starting to look a little pregnant.

I’m starting my 3rd week of bed rest. The 1st 2 weeks went by relatively quickly. Everyone said the 1st 2 weeks are the worst…I’m hoping that’s true.  I’m lucky that I get to work from home, that is really keeping me sane.

Adam brought my big work computer home and set it up in the guest room right next to the bed. I get up and work from 830-530 just like normal. only I get to wear yoga pants and a t-shirt…without a bra! ha ha

Once Adam gets home I move to the couch. Then we’ll have dinner there (at the couch) and watch TV or play a video game or I’ll read one of my baby-pregnancy books. Lets see I’ve just learned about burping and c-sections.

The hardest part is not being able to help out or do things around the house. I feel so bad, but Adam has stepped up and done an awesome job. He cooks dinner and fills up my water bottles and washes all the dishes. He’s even done a load of laundry. Which luckily I was able to help fold.  I hate having to be dependent on him, I know he works hard and needs a break just like everyone else. But he insists I lie down and gets very mad if I don’t. He’s a good nurse.

Our dr. apts have been good and the outlook to reaching 36 weeks is good too. So far my Cervix is stable staying at around 2.5-2.3 cm.  Charlie is breach and her little bottom is just bouncing on the cervix. But this is better then when she was kicking at it.  Hopefully she will flip sometime soon here, but it has been fun to feel her little head that sits just to the right of my belly button.

I’m back to going to the dr. every two weeks so that I can rest more.  Adam is going to set up the beach lounger on the patio for me so that I can get some fresh air and some moisture back in my skin. Hopefully the weather will cool down here and it won’t be so unpleasant outside.

We've also begun planning the changes for Charlie's room.  Adam will have to do all the work himself now, but I can help pick things out. We’ve got paint samples to put up on the wall and new flooring to be put down once the carpet is ripped out. Having our plans come to a halt has given us a few more weekends to get things done.  I am disappointed about not being able to meet my new God daughter and be at her baptism. I'm bummed I don’t get to watch Adam play at regionals (and check out a stroller they only have in Orlando!) And I’m super duper bummed about not being able to go to California. But this is life and its what I have to do in order to have a healthy little girl. we waited 2 years for her…what’s 8 more weeks?

We hope you are all having a wonderful fall. And hope to see you soon! I’m always around if you want to come visit.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Well hello there

Look what popped up, or should I say out, this week.

24 weeks

There is definitely a big change from two weeks ago.

22 weeks

And just so you know, I do not have a Beyoncé behind…that is a lovely shadow.  I still think I just look fat…but it’s coming…soon it should be pretty obvious. At least in another 3 months it should!

We leave tomorrow for Joseph’s wedding. Everyone is so excited and it’s looking to be a good time.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Bump Watch 2012

The most common question I get is “Do you have a bump yet?” And for the first 18-ish weeks I said “nope”. Finally at 20 weeks I am starting to show. But I still think it looks like I’m fat or bloated.

Adam and I had very good intensions of taking pictures every week or every month…but with out much change in the bump department, we slacked and only snapped 3 pictures in the first 5 months.

So here for your viewing pleasure is the up-to-date evolution of my baby belly.

Four weeks

2 days after finding out.

11 weeks copy

Still not much going on.

20 weeks

Finally, something to show for!

We’re going to try and do them every week from now on.  Fingers crossed we remember to do it and I’m not to tired to get into my leggings!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Is that it??

Well we’ve made it to 19 weeks! And I still don’t look pregnant. (So no cute bump pictures.) I do feel a lot better so I’m not going to complain.

Everyone keeps asking if I have felt her move yet. And I keep saying no.  I read that at first it feels like someone tickling you from the inside or like gas bubbles.  And honestly I haven’t felt that.

I have felt a random something every once in a while. But if I’m not paying attention, I don’t notice it. It’s more like if someone touches your arm.  which could be anything…like a house that is settling, but only it’s my body. Could be I’m hungry, or that I moved to quick and jostled my organs…But my mother informed today that That’s it!. I don’t believe her…that can’t be what they describe. If it is, it’s a miracle anyone even pinpointed that as fetal movement. I seriously doubt it. I do have all sorts of pains from my round ligament that feels like an uncomfortable stretch and some sharp jabs, but my DR. informed me that those are all normal.

But we’ll see. I told Adam “there’s no way this can be our kid and not be moving around” But then he reminded me that on lazy days we don’t move to much…so maybe she's just having a lazy day.

I’m sure I’ll be getting kicked and popping out here soon enough. And hopefully when I do I realize what’s going on and not chalk it up to my intestines.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Our little Girl

Yes, I have been the worlds worst blogger. I apologize.

Here are some pictures to make it up to you.

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She has fabulous cheekbones

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And a killer smile

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And very possibly my nose Smile

18w2d. All is good. Todays ultra sound was a level 2. So they counted all her parts and pieces. As far as they could tell she’s perfect. I am feeling good and just starting to notice a little bump, but only when I lay flat on my back.

We are excited and anxious for the next 22 weeks to go by so that we can bring our little Charlie home.