Big Week of Purchases!

So we had a big week of purchases this week, after putting it off for ages. We just couldn't make a decision. To start it off, we visited Toys R Us last weekend. I was a bit disappointed with their selection. They only had 2 rockers, and the only crib that was reasonable and BEAUTIFUL only came in oak. It was SOOOO nice we almost bought it there on the spot. But the matching furniture (which we could of had to buy because we never would have been able to match it down the road) was rediculously priced and would have cost close to $2000. So we parted ways.

So Granny and Grampy Herbert took us to Sears this week and we found an amazing rocker/glider. It was in the regular furniture section and not one of the uncomfortable ones they sell in the baby section (which doesn't make sense to me??). You would think Stork Craft and the other baby brands would make something that doesn't feel like you are sitting on cardboard. This one was soooo comfortable, and had a high back which is good for me since I am a bit taller. I am in love and so so happy with it. It was a tad pricey, but I figure all the time we'll be spending in it, its worth the extra $200 from the ugly Stork Craft ones. (It's the beige one on the left...not the ugly carpet covered one on the right).

In other news, Sears had a 20% off ALL baby furniture once again. Determined not to lose out on another great deal, we finally made a decision on a crib :) It's Stork Craft Venetian, and we got it for $250. A steal! Its 4-way convertible, so we'll get plenty of use out of it. And it isn't too high, good for Tim and I since we aren't giants. I love it!

We also bought a matching dresser that can be used as a change table for the first year. The Stork Craft Aspen 3 drawer chest. Super cute and functional. And doesn't take up too much room in the nursery.

So here is my updated Nursery To Do List:

order crib

order dresser

pick out mattress

purchase changing pad

find rug

order name for above crib

nightstand beside rocker

baby books for bookshelf

build bookshelf

order and put up sheer curtains

order bedding

Crib sheets and mattress pad

purchase glider

paint room

order wall art from Etsy store Trafalgars Square

get frames for wall art 

find pillows for  glider

find ottoman for glider

Hamper and organization baskets
get shelves for corners 

find mirror for room

find lamp for nightstand table

find lamp for corner

find pictures frames and nick-knacks for bookshelf

Week 25

Where has the time gone? I'll be popping out this baby before we know it!

How far along? 25 Weeks, 4 days
Total weight gain: 20 lbs...ugh!
Maternity clothes? mix and matching maternity clothes with non-maternity clothes. Lots of dresses these days with the heat.
Stretch marks? not yet, thank you Mom and your good genetics!
Sleep: still sleeping great. LOVE my bodypillow.
Best moment this week: just feeling overly excited/happy about everything right now & the reality that Baby OB will be here in less than 100 days (unless I deliver way late..) Just trying to soak it all in!
Miss Anything? Being able to stay awake past 11pm during the week!
Movement: mostly in the evenings or after I eat. Auntie Sarah felt it kicking on Sunday after eating a big meal. She was pretty excited.
Food cravings: still sweets & fruit mostly.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing
Gender: Alot of boy guesses from other people lately!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: I woke up Friday night at 3am with the worst stomach pains in the world that came and went every 5 mins. I actually thought I was in pre-term labour or something. My stomach was stretched and tight and bloated. I got sick twice and couldn't lie in bed, i was pacing around the house. Luckily it eventually went away and I could get comfy in bed again, but if labour is anything like that it is NOT going to be fun.
Belly Button in or out? still in but I can see the end of it.
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: HAPPY! Having such a good summer :)
Looking forward to: Buying some furniture for the baby room. Its still so empty!

13, 20 and 25 Week Belly

Week 13                              Week 20                                                 Week 25

Old Wives Tale

I visited another Momma-to-be's blog Drizzle of Sunshine and she is one of the only other people i've heard of lately that aren't finding out what they are having. She had done a few of these old wives tales just to see if it would be boy or girl. I thought it would be fun!


Old Wives' Tales
1. Carrying high, it's a girl. Carrying low, it's a boy. Low = Boy
2. Heartbeat 140+bpm, baby girl. Heartbeat below 140 bpm, baby boy. 148 = girl
3. Craving sweet, pink it is. Craving salty and sour, blue time. I'm craving sweet = girl
4. Chinese Calendar = Girl
5. Mayan calendar says if my age and the year of conception are both even or both odd, it's a girl and if it's one even and one odd it's a boy. 27 and 2012 = boy
6. String with a needle. If it swings back and forth blue and green chucks! If it swings in circles, dresses! I did this game back in March at a girl's night when I was only about 8 weeks pregnant and only a few people knew. The girl who did this to me had no idea I was pregnant and said it was very definitive that my first child would be a girl. I sat there with my mouth wide open...if she only knew!


Definitely in favor of pink, but who knows!!

Engineering Turned Carpenter

Remember how I mentioned last week that Tim had been working on a gift for baby and I...well I fell in love with these display type bookshelves while browsing Pinterest one day. But they are impossible to find in Canada. The only place that had something similar was Ikea, and ofcouse they don't ship to Atlantic Canada.

So I found DIY instructions on the internet, and Tim and I went out and bought the supplies for $40 and he built them himself! I am so proud. Here he is working away last Sunday morning, putting the first coat of paint on. He got the 2nd coat on yesterday and now all we have to do is mount them to the wall. I love them. I'll take a picture of the finished product when we get them on the wall.

Totally made with love! Such a good daddy-to-be!

24 Weeks

Approx. 100 days to go we meet Baby "Charlie", "Baby OB", "Baby Z", and/or "JR"! Our child is racking up the nicknames!

How far along? 24 Weeks, 4 days
Total weight gain: Still looking like 17-18 lbs
Maternity clothes? Well I had a 20% old Navy coupon so I went shopping and got a few maternity and non-maternity things. I got 2 great long maxi dresses that look super cute now, and I can wear next summer when I am not prego. Also got a cute dress for work which is non-prego but I can totally pull-off now with a sparkly belt. Got a GREAT pair of dark mat skinny jeans...im in love! Also 2 summer T's, and 2 maternity work shirts. All for $120...which makes me even happier!
Stretch marks? Still good in this department, no tightening feeling yet or itchiness.
Sleep: Sleeping well and trying to enjoy it while I still can! Starting to feel more tired the past week or so, I think its the heat.
Best moment this week:  Tim made baby and I our first gift...stay tuned for details!
Miss Anything?  I do miss having a real good long exhausting run. One of those runs that you finish and feel exhilarated, instead of feeling knee pain and insanely out of breath and having to pee every 2 seconds. But in all seriousness, I feel fortunate that the sfirst and second trimesters have been really good to me.  People keep asking me how I am feeling and I feel like I need to start lying and saying horrible and making up stories because nobody believes me! 
Movement: Yes, mostly at night.
Food cravings: lemonade and ice capps!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: I was starting to feel kind of guilty that I was so sure it was a girl...so now I am totally undecided!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: My back will get sore if I'm doing anything too strenuous, like standing for too long.
Belly Button in or out? Still in
Wedding rings on or off? On
Mood: HAPPY
Looking forward to: Heading to Moncton to do some shopping this week, here we come Toys R US!

What I Am Loving Lately...

1. The Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy - my good friend Kerri (who is pregnant with baby #2) lent me this book last week and I can't put it down! It is absolutely hilarious, and leaves nothing to the imagination. I find it especially helpful being one of the first few of my friends to have a baby, its hard when you don't know who to talk to about what is going on with your body, and you kind of feel like the odd one out. Sometimes you need a reminder not to take things so seriously. I hope to circulate this book amongst all my pregnant friends, it's good for a few belly laughs for sure.

If you are looking for a textbook on pregnancy or some hardcore facts about nutrition, exercise and all of the things that could go wrong - there are many other good resource books out there. For me, this book did exactly what the author intended -it made me laugh and comforted me during my pregnancy!

2. My Body Pillow - I've heard this referred to as "Magic Mike" and the "Great Wall of China" from other friends hahaha. While mine still remains nameless, I can't say enough good things about how much this has helped my sleeping!

3. Palmer's Body Butter - I bought this at Motherhood Maternity on a whim, as it was one of those "catch your eye" purchases while you are standing at the counter. I love it, especially those days when I just don't feel like greasing up with Bio Oil. This is a much less greasy option, and smells good too.

4. Pre-natal Pilates and TRX - I joined a pre-natal class a few weeks ago with some other friends who are expecting and we are having so much fun! It's so nice to catch up every week and compare bumps and hear what is going on with everyone. We can workout without fear of anyone judging or giving us strange looks. I highly recommend it to all mommas-to-be!

5. Kijiji - I know you're all going to laugh, but i've been scouting this out every day for some new baby finds. I check it first thing every morning to see if there is anything new added. Ofcourse I only go for the gently used items, but for us most of our friends either are still having kids, or haven't had any kids yet, so we don't have a lot of people to get hand-me-downs from. This is the next best option! So far we've gotten a bouncy chair, diaper genie, snuggli, winter car seat cover, and some smaller things.

A little splurge...

Once again, I just couldn't help myself. They were delivered today and I was so excited. Tim just looks at me and shakes his head. I know I know....we don't even know what we are having. But I figured, with so many of our good friends expecting babies within weeks of us, these will make great gifts :)

Ellura Sage on Etsy has the cutest ones, and they are so reasonable. Shipping was only a few dollars.
Check them out mommas!

Soooo cute!

Ok I couldn't help myself...how cute are these little baby shoes! I know we don't know what we are having, but I couldn't resist a good deal :)

Week 23 - Time is a Flying!

Here we are, 23 weeks! Things are rounding out :)

How far along? 23 Weeks, 4 days. According to "What to Expect When Expecting" I'm in my 6th month...woah!

Baby Size: A grapefruit or an ear of corn. His/her little face is fully formed this week! 
Total weight gain/loss: 17-18 lbs.
Maternity clothes? Still the usual...nothing new lately.
Stretch marks? Nothing yet, so thankful.
Sleep: Sleeping great... waking up at about 4am to pee, but that's about it.  Love my body pillow!
Best moment this week:  Starting pre-natal trx/pilates with a great group of momma's to be. It is so much fun and one HECK of a workout!
Miss Anything? What I wouldn't do for a smoked salmon bagel from Leohnard's.
Movement: Feeling kicks at night when I am trying to sleep. Occasional movement during the day.
Food cravings: Nada! Although I have been on a iced capp kick lately. Delish!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: NOOOO IDEA
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: My left hip has been really sore this week. Also, getting shin splints when running due to the extra weight on my joints. Wah wahhhh.

Belly Button in or out? It's in, but looking quite funny.
Wedding rings on or off? On, the day I can't get them off will be a very sad day for this girl.
Happy or Moody most of the time: HAPPY!  I don't have a single complaint so far in this pregnancy. LUCKY!
Looking forward to: Making our first big purchase! We've been so slack...

Nursery Update

So we got the final coat on the baby's room Friday night, and it looks great! We couldn't be happier with how it turned out. We got things cleaned up, scrubbed the floor on hands and knees (well Tim did, I cheered him on), and got the curtain rod and sheer panels hung. It is finally coming together and only a little over 100 days left until we meet Baby OB! Now all we need is the furnishings...which we have yet to start on.
A big shout out to Timmy for his hard work! xoxox

The picture above is without the light on, and below is with the light on later in the evening.

Running and Pregnancy: My Thoughts

So I was reading recently about the 2011 Chicago Marathon and a woman who ran it at 39 weeks prego after being ok'ayed by her doctor. That's right, you heard me...39 weeks pregnant!! So she claims that her doctor gave her permission to run the first half, AND yet she continued on and walked the final 13.1 miles while having contractions. She contined on to the hospital after crossing the finish line and gave birth!

Would I ever do this, heck no!! I am lucky to get my 3 miles in on the treadmill  doing a walk/run, and I just would not feel comfortable running a half marathon while pregnant. The only finish line I am looking forward to is the delivery room in November. But I suppose everyone's experience is different, and we shouldn't compare what one body can do to others. Some ladies can run full marathons during pregnancy, but I am guessing they do so when they are very early on in their pregnancies.

The reason why i am still able to lace up my Asics is due to luck, but I like to think I have made a few smart choices along the way. So it's likely 90% luck, and 10% Kate's wise decisions.

I think I am still running because:

• I don't run that far. When I got prego, I was running 4-6 miles 3-4 times a week, which would take me around 40-50 minutes. After finding out I was prego, I decreased my mileage but kept up the 30-40 mins of activity and started a run/walk plan.
• I don't run back-to-back days, to avoid pelvic pain. 2-3 days a week max now.
• I accept it takes my body awhile to warm up. My first mile is always SLOW, like 10 min pace and my last is always faster, around a 9 min pace.
• I take walk breaks, and listen to my body if it starts to ache. There is lots of extra weight on my joints now, and sometimes it hurts!

Please keep in mind, this is me and everyone should listen to their own Doctor and body when it comes to running during pregnany. And obviously, if it isn't something you did before you got pregnant, you definitely don't start while you are pregnant. Just remember, your pregnant body is just as amazing as this lady who ran the marathon, but you don't have to run 26.2 miles to prove it!

Thank you Hubby!!

So for a few weeks I wasn't able to get comfortable at night at all. I would toss and turn, trying to flip from side to side but would always wake up on my back where I wasn't suppose to be! When I got home from Turks and Caicos, Tim had a special gift waiting for me from him and Jax! This giant, soft, lime green body pillow! It has improved my sleeping ten-fold. The only downside...I can't see Tim in bed since its so big and it gives off a power of heat! hahaha. Oh well, its worth it! I've even caught Tim using it a few times at night ;)

22 Weeks Update

How far along? 22 Weeks 2 days
Total weight gain/loss: 15 lbs
Maternity clothes? Nothing new lately, still wearing elastic waisted skirts from before I was prego and my mat shorts.

Stretch marks? Nothing yet, still lathering like crazy.
Sleep: Sleeping ok, but the heat has been making it hard lately.
Best moment this week: Feeling some definite kicks!
Miss Anything? Nothing, i've come to realize that pina coladas taste way better without rum in them anyway and lemonade is just as refreshing as a cold beer on a warm day!

Movement: see above

Food cravings: nothing

Anything making you queasy or sick: just when the baby moves too much it kind of makes me queasy

Have you started to show yet: oh yea!

Gender: Still thinking its a girl
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In, but it really used to be a true innie, like I couldn't see where it ended. It seemed to go on forever. Now....I can see the end of it and its making its way out!

Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: happy as a clam
Looking forward to: Hearing the heartbeat again today and getting the results from our ultrasound a few weeks ago :)