They're Going to be Parents?!

As Sean and I were watching one of the last episodes of this season's How I Met Your Mother, we both busted up laughing over a sequence reviewing moments featuring Marshall and Lily, soon to be parents, doing crazy stuff when they were younger. As the screen freezes at the height of the absurdity, Ted, the narrator, poses the question "These people are going to be parents?!"

It's hilarious, really, that Sean and I will be responsible for another human being. We both thought of pictures of us on Facebook, not our finest moments, that our child will someday see and either laugh at or shake her head while tsk-tsking the fact that she is stuck with us. Especially in this digital age where our lives are literally played out on Facebook, this blog, Twitter....there is simply no hiding the fact that we are freaks.

100% sober. Yup, I am just THAT cool.

But, we certainly enjoy the life we're living. We turned out all right, and hopefully our kids will, too.

Photo Credit: Melissa Robotti Photography

And we can only hope to pass on a little bit of that crazy to our kid. The world would be so incredibly boring if we didn't.

 

Hump Day Bump Day at 23 Weeks

Um, hello summer! Nice of you to bust through the walls like the Kool Aid man, dousing me in sweat and very little motivation to do anything at all on Memorial Day. 

I'm nearing the 6 month mark and am feeling really great this week. We're hoping to start the nursery in the next week or so, and I have a feeling the summer is going to just proceed full speed ahead. I've actually started feeling more achy and uncomfortable in the past week. My goal is to stay cool and comfortable for the next 3 months, which means long, loose, and comfortable dresses and sandals. 

Today was a big day because I felt Baby Girl kick on the outside for the first time! A couple nice strong kicks right after lunch, and I was on Cloud 9 the rest of the day. I just wish she'd kick her daddy now, too. 

Baby Development 

Baby Girl is about 11 inches long and just over a pound. Blood vessels in her lungs are preparing her for breathing, and her ears are becoming more keen to sounds in the outside world. She will start to become familiar with more and more sounds, like my voice and the music I listen to.

Best Part of the Week

The long weekend! Two days spent at home seeing my parents and getting lots of belly rubs. It's funny, when it's a stranger trying to touch, I will pretty much karate chop them. But having my mom, Sean's mom, and my grandmother give a little rub and talk to Baby Girl was just awesome. Monday was really nice, as Sean and I didn't do anything. We just chilled out at home with Loki and relaxed in the air conditioning. I'm very easy to please lately.

Maternity Clothes

I am all about dresses. The less planning I have to do in the morning the better. Throw on a dress and shoes and head out the door is my style. I am also digging these long maxi skirts from Old Navy with a tank top. Easy and breezy. The dress I'm wearing in these pictures is by Everly Grey Maternity, purchased through zulily.com.

Weight Gain

Well, according to my mother's scale, I've lost 3 of the 14 pounds I've gained since the start. I have a hard time trusting scales, especially knowing how much my weight can fluctuate in a day. I have my 24 week appointment next week and I'll get weighed there. At my last appointment, I was up 14 lbs total, which my doctor was happy with. I feel like it's all in my belly. I haven't really noticed any other parts of me growing (yet), so I guess that's a good sign!

Symptoms

Belly Discomfort: I've had a few aches here and there that I think may be Baby Girl practicing her tapdancing skills on my sides and my ribs. I get a tingling feeling across the top of my belly sometimes, which I suppose might be skin and muscles stretching. It tends to happen towards the end of the day after I've gotten a couple meals and snacks in me. I also need to pace my eating and eat a lot lighter. Heartburn is really uncomfortable and if I eat too quickly, I get pain and discomfort on the top right of my belly. I have to remind myself that my organs are getting a bit cramped in there.

Back pain. Not terrible, but sitting all day at my desk, I definitely feel better lying down on the couch on my side and getting a lower back rub from Sean. I am attributing my upper back pain to my bras being too small. Time to go shopping!

Swollen feet and ankles. The ankles haven't been bad, but I've noticed my feet getting a little puffy if I spend a lot of time standing. I shot a wedding Saturday and there was no better relief in the world than taking my shoes off the minute I got in the car to go home.

Stretch marks? I've had these since pre-pregnancy. I use Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lotion and Burt's Bees Milk and Honey Nourishing Lotion. There's only so much you can do to fight nature!

Mood swings: Well, I tend to get more mood swings at work, but I'm sure it tends to be part hormonal, part stress. I have been a lot weepier. I cry a lot.

Cravings

Ice cream is always welcome. Last week I was craving peppermint stick ice cream from Far Far's in Duxbury, my hometown. I sadly did not make it there over the weekend but am determined to go next time I'm home. And the other night, we were watching Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations and he was in Lisbon, and for some reason I had a sense memory to sitting on the beach in Corfu eating a chocolate frosted donut, and all I wanted was that donut. I didn't make Sean go out to get me anything, though (and he was willing!). I'm stockpiling the crazy for much later.

I dream of donuts....This is the actual donut from Corfu. 

What I'm Looking Forward to This Week

Saturday will be "V-Day", which at 24 weeks, is Viability Day. It basically means that should I go into pre-term labor or the baby needs to be delivered, this is the earliest it would have the best chance of survival with a lot of medical intervention and assistance. Every week after V-Day the chance of survival further increases, so making it to this point is quite a milestone. Plus - 24 weeks = 6 months! Wow.

Thoughts on a Thursday Evening

I am turning into that weepy pregnant lady. It's hilarious. You could tell me you had the best bowl of mac and cheese of your life and I would just lose it.

Major kudos to Marvel Comics for continuing to inspire kids young and old everywhere, and contributing to my weepy ways.

The next Darwin Award and some major side-eye goes to the mother behind me in traffic on the commute home who let her young son run rampant in the backseat of her car. Not strapped in, the kid was very small and all over the place. Oh, and the backseat window was down so their spaniel could hang outside in the breeze. Epic fail, lady.

Rain, rain, go away. We're in a fight. You're sapping my mojo.

I'm patting myself on the back today for McGyvering my potato sack of a maternity dress today. All it took was 2 bobby-pins attaching the neckline of my dress to my bra straps to take my neckline from boobalicious to work-appropriate.

I have been feeling like I need to grow more creatively lately. I'm not quite sure how, though. Hopefully the long weekend will do me some good and bring a little refreshment.  

It'll be a busy weekend, so I hope whatever it brings for you, you're able to take some time to think about all that you have and thank the service men and women in your life for the gift they give each one of us. Freedom isn't free at all and we're blessed to have people in this world willing to put themselves on the line for the love of our country. 

Stay classy, loves.