Pregnancy Week 30

10 more weeks to go!!! Wow the time sure is flying!!

My Aunt Kathy had a fabulous idea (Hi Aunt Kathy!), that I should post baby pics of both Matt and myself to allow folks to start making some guesses as to what Baby Z might look like! :) So here y'all go:

Matt (close to 2 years old in this pic) and Uncle Dan
Oh Hey Chunky baby! If my child has fat thighs you know he got them from me :P
Let that girl eat her some cake! ;)
Matt's rendition of the Ghost Buster emblem's ghost face! ;)
Aww look at that blue eyed cutie! :)
Imagine that...my mouth is open...no doubt talking!

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 30 Weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss: +2 (total +23..ugh!)
Maternity Clothes: still holding out until the fall :) Might make an effort to get a pair of pants next weekend when we are home again
Best Moment this week: Having an extremely productive weekend! We got a lot accomplished with the house this weekend despite the heavy wind and rain from Irene on Saturday :)
Worst Moment this week: My doctor's office called early this morning (Tuesday) to inform me that the results from my glucose test (taken last Wednesday) were a little higher than they would like. According to my doctor they like to see the results less than 140, this is crazy to me because Kateland has type II diabetes and I am used to having to monitor her blood sugar. Less than 200 is good, but preferably in the 130-170 range. My blood sugar was 153, which is normal according to Kateland's doctor. Then again I am pregnant, caring for another little life form so I'll suck it up. Mama had gestational diabetes with all three pregnancies in her third trimester...so I wouldn't be surprised if my blood sugar is a little higher than normal. However, she never had to be given medication, she was only told to avoid sweets and sugars. I am not looking forward to that being the results or medication...UGH! I have a sweet tooth like no other! :( The worst part is that I have to go back in for another test, only this time its 3 hours long :( Starting midnight on Thursday (yeah I never normally make it past 10:30 these days) I cannot have anything to eat or drink. I'll go into my OB's office at 8AM where I will have to drink that nasty drink again. They will draw blood an hour later. I'll then have to drink another nasty drink and they'll draw more blood in another hour. I'll drink another nasty drink and they'll draw more blood in another hour. Yes that is 3 hours of sitting at my OB's office drinking nasty drink and having my blood taken. All during which I cannot eat or drink. This is not going to be a pleasant day.
Gender: Boy
Movement: None stop!
Food Craving: We have been loving on some preacher cookies lately! :) That may all change soon....
What I miss: I'm sure this is more for Matt, but I feel really awful when I roll over in the middle of the night because its a HUGE production. I have a hard time rolling over without some effort and a lot of grunting, then you factor in my body pillow...which always somehow whomps Matt. Poor dear :( I cant wait to be able to sleep through the night without waking up my husband.
What I am looking forward to: This weekend is Labor Day weekend and we will be making a trek up to Ohio to see the family and the newest edition Mr. Liam Scott! :) We are so excited to see everyone! :) Matt is super duper excited to get his hands on some dirty diapers and help put on some clean ones! :D It will be good practice for both of us to be around a new born baby boy! :)
Weekly Goals: Here is a recap of how well I did with my To-Do list last week
Organize the basement closet-This task was semi complete. I bought a tub from Target (my fav!) to organize the rest of Matt's music stuff that is currently in an ugly crate. That is the last remaining bit that needs to be organized.
Get a curtain rod and curtain for said closet (with our new rearrange the bed is so close you can't open the doors. Matt took them off this weekend! woo hoo!)-Complete! Well the second part of the curtain needs to be hung, but Irene delayed our schedule a bit :P
Fill out Jury Duty questionnaire-Complete
Finish Thank You Notes from Shower-Complete
Mail Thank You Notes-Epic Fail! I'll have them mailed tomorrow! :)
Discuss labor and expectations/birth plan with OB on Wednesday-Complete! Woo hoo for my tat not conflicting with being able to get an epidural if I want :)
Unpack bathtub set-Fail. However, in my defense we did assemble the diaper genie and the swing and get those set up! :)
Goals for this week:
Mail Thank You Notes
Unpack bathtub set
Store Car Seat in Baby Z's closet
Assemble rocker (yay the last big piece of furniture is in to make his room complete!)
Wash all towels and wash cloths and put them away (Baby Z's of course)
Get packed for Ohio :)

And without further ado here we are at 30 weeks!

Baby Z Update

We had an OB appointment bright and early this morning and I had to do my glucose test. I don't think it would have been so bad if I could have done it later in the day, but we were scheduled for 9:30. I cannot eat two hours before the test....well this was somewhat easy considering I don't get up until 7:30-8:00. Today it was 8 because we had a very restless night of sleep, we could not get settled again after my visit to the bathroom. Let me please clarify that we is me and Baby Z :) So I'm sleep deprived...awesome. I cannot have a drink of water....sweet. And the one thing I love more than my child itself right now....I cannot eat. Then I have to drink this nasty orange drink. When I started drinking it I all for psyching myself into thinking it was yummy...this I started to feel nauseous and queasy. Then I just had to down the mess so I wouldn't vom or gag on it. Cue cotton mouth. Needless to say I was little Miss Crankypants all the way into the Doctor this morning. But how wonderful is my husband? BEYOND amazing! He made me a bagel and we stuffed it in my purse and I brought water and a cookie. BTW I made preacher cookies and apple dumplings last night...Yummmmy! As soon as that blood work was done I was eating! :) When it was time for our sonogram little guy was not feeling it. He was being a shy little porker. Oh yes you read that right. I just referred to my child as a porker. He is very much like his Daddy in that he doesn't want to have his picture taken and had his little hands up in front of his face the whole time. He is very much like his Mama in that he is an overachiever likes to exceed expectations and goals and loves to eat! :) Normally, most children are averaging 2.5-3 pounds. Our little fella (who isn't so little) is weighing 3.7 pounds...we can thank me for those large baby genes :P
In other news the placenta is still sitting rather low, not blocking the birth canal, but low enough that it could potentially be an issue, maybe possibly. So we will be having another sonogram at Week 35 to check back in on our chunky boy and check on the movement of the baby sac.

Pregnancy Week 29

I just looked at my last blog post and I am horrified at the lack of detail I have been providing with my updates lately. Seriously we had two showers last weekend and all I referenced was a "Guess the Poop" game and the cake my Mama made...you can see where my priorities lay. I realize my problem is I am less enthused about details in my updates when I do not have awesome pictures to accompany these updates. Erg! There are some AMAZING pictures from the shower, however they are in my Mommy's possession. :( We will be making a trip home to Carrsville this weekend (more on that later) so I plan to get said pictures and do a nice long post about the showers! :) YAY for details!

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 29 Weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 0--Thank you Sweet Baby J! (total +21..ugh!)
Maternity Clothes: still holding out until the fall :)
Best Moment this week: We had an AUH-MAZING maternity session with our photographer Marirosa this past weekend! :) See our sneak peek below!!!!! **Insert a squeal of delight** We have already begun discussions of a new born session in November with both of our families present. We think it will be really special for our little boy to have a picture with all his aunts and uncles as well as one with both sets of Grandparents. :)
Kateland was a HUGE help getting everything in the nursery sorted out. All the clothes and other items have all been organized! YAY my favorite! We marked a ton of things off our to-do list as well (another fav!).
Gender: Boy
Movement: I probably should have provided this update some time ago, but lets face it I have a case of baby brain like none other....any hoo our little guy has gotten SO BIG! For some time now I have def been able to identify where he is which is so CRAZY! Its so sick yet so awesome at the same time! He really enjoys hanging out on the left or right sides, so my belly constantly looks lopsided. Yesterday, our little fella discovered my ribs. This was new and thankfully short lived. He prefers to hang out lower in my belly so I am more used to frequent bathroom visits then pains in my ribs. I'll take it :P Today was by far my most favorite movement experience to date. I had to truck (literally I took the Tacomasaurus) it into DC for a meeting with my agency. I tend to stick to dresses any time I need to look nice because I still fit in all my work dresses (SCORE!). The one I wore today has a little tie sash around the waist, so I always clip my badge to it when I'm in buildings. This causing my badge to sit on my belly while I am sitting down. In the middle of my meeting my badge is flipped up and it startles me...I then realize that Baby Z has kicked my belly in the perfect spot to kick that badge right off my belly! It was hilarious! :)
Food Craving: My cousin Rachel has been baking some delish treats and then posting pics on FB...OMG I'm so jealous I wish I could eat everything! But now I'm currently craving Preacher Cookies and Apple Dumplings. I will be making both later this week, I was waiting after Kateland had gone back home because neither are items she needs. Let's face it with my awesome 4 pound increase last week I don't need them either....but what the Baby wants the Baby gets! ;)
What I miss: a nice cold glass of moscato! :)
What I am looking forward to: Getting to see our little man tomorrow!!!! :) However, I am not looking forward to the fact I'll be having my glucose test and will not be able to eat until after 10ish! Also, I'll be going home for my 10 year High School reunion this weekend. I'm not so much looking forward to it as I am at just being able to catch up with a few people and see my bestest good friend.
Weekly Goals: I have really been slacking in the To-Do list department lately and I thought maybe if I set some weekly goals on here, then I'll follow through better. Or have an epic fail and will have to shamefully confess. So here goes for this week:

Organize the basement closet

Get a curtain rod and curtain for said closet (with our new rearrange the bed is so close you can't open the doors. Matt took them off this weekend! woo hoo!)

Fill our Jury Duty questionnaire (Dagger! I cannot believe I got this 2 months before Baby Z is due! Just want I need more time off from work...boo!)

Finish Thank You Notes from Shower

Mail Thank You Notes

Discuss labor and expectations/birth plan with OB on Wednesday

Unpack bathtub set (Kateland gave us this at the shower!)

And without further ado here we are at 29 weeks!

Pregnancy Week 28

Hello 3rd Trimester!!! Wow I cannot believe how quickly our pregnancy has progressed...wow! Only 12 more weeks (or maybe less...hopefully not more!)!!!! Matt had a really great idea that since we are almost at the end, it would be fun if I did a little flashback to what I looked like when we started and how much our little boy has grown in (short) 28 weeks!!!!

Week 14

Week 16
Week 17
Week 18
Week 19
Week 20
Week 21
Week 22
Week 23 Week 24
Week 25
Week 27
Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 28 Weeks
Total Weight Gain/Loss: +4 (total +21..ugh!)
Maternity Clothes: still holding out until the fall :)
Best Moment this week: The showers this weekend were a blast. Unfortunately I only took one picture and that was of one of the cakes that Mama and Kateland made.
The showers were a blast! Everyone seemed to have a great time. We played a lot of fun games but my favorite game by far was "Guess the poop!" Hahaha so sick I know! They melted candy bars in diapers and you had to pass them around to identify what the "poop" was. Baby Z was showered with lots and lots of goodies, so Aunt Kateland has been super busy helping us get it all organized this week.
And my most favorite moment of this week by far is my Mommy made a special trip to visit us just to paint Baby Z's room! Here is Baby Z's Jo Jo hard at work painting his wall!
The dino mural covers one wall of his room that is right above his crib! He is such a loved little boy :)
Gender: Boy
Movement: I can tell he is getting bigger! Instead of his movements being concentrated to one specific area, when he moves now I can feel him in several places at once!
Food Craving: Pineapple
What I miss: a good night's sleep
What I am looking forward to: Aunt Kateland is here visiting with us until Tuesday, so it is fun having her here help get all of Baby Z's stuff organized in his room. I'm excited to get the rest of his stuff organized and set up this weekend! :) As well as marking off some major things on our "To Do" list! :) We are also getting maternity pics taken on Saturday! :) And next Wednesday we have our OB visit and sono to check up on little Z!

I thought it would be fun to do a little comparison. Here we are at the start of the Second Trimester (Week 14) and the start of the Third Trimester (Week 28)!

Week 14
Week 28

Everything you ever wanted to know about birthing plans (but were afraid to ask)

My wife decided it's high time to start working on our birth plan.  That sounded like a good idea in theory.  If Hollywood has me taught me nothing else (and it hasn't), it's that birth plans simply consist of knowing where the hospital is, who our doctor is, how to get checked in and whether or not my wife wants to be injected with enough analgesic to subdue a small mastodon.  Also, a checklist of simple items like "make sure not to be in an elevator after this point, because it's pretty much a guarantee you will get stuck on said elevator and have to deliver the baby right then and there."

But oh, no, there is apparently a whole world of delivery related nuances that I never could have imagined.  A few choice items that showed up on our birth plan options:

"My delivery is planned as: Water bath"

I knew this was a thing, but I thought it was worth pointing out that we're only on question #2 and I was already weirded out.  I just don't understand this one, do you just do it just because you think people just had it right back in the 1880s?  Do you also use prefer to use leeches instead of Advil?

"During Labor I'd Like: Music played"

Are we just letting them know if she wants to bring in an iPod with headphones?  Or are they going to play it over the loudspeakers for us?  If so, what would they do if we insisted on Metallica's Master of Puppets album?

"During Labor I'd Like: The lights dimmed"

Awwww yeah, a little tender mood lighting to put us in the baby deliverin' frame of mind.  On second thought, maybe we should go with Al Green as our soundtrack.


"During Labor I'd Like: As few vaginal exams as possible"

This may surprise you, but the option for as many vaginal exams as possible doesn't exist.

"I'm not interested in: An enema"

You and me both, baby.  You and me both.

"I'd like labor augmentation: Performed by membrane stripping, Performed with prostaglandin gel, Performed by rupture of the membrane, Performed by stripping of the membrane"

I have no idea what any of these things mean, but they all sound absolutely awful.  If I was pregnant, this is the part where I'd quit.  Though I am curious to find out what the difference is between "membrane stripping" and "stripping of the membrane."  I'll see if I can find the most inappropriate time possible to ask the doctor this one.

"For pain relief I'd like to use: Distractions"

Look over here at my fingers held up like dancing bunny ears!  Look!

"For pain relief I'd like to use: Hypnosis"

Sub request: I would like to wake up no longer thinking I'm a chicken laying an egg.


"For pain relief I'd like to use: TENS"

I had to look this one up.  It's basically glorified electric shock therapy, and the machine looks like something you'd use to jump-start a truck.  Hospitals seriously humor this?

"During delivery I would like to: Squat"

I can imagine for some women this is beneficial in terms of making delivery easier.  But it's just... I mean, you're crapping out your baby?

"During delivery I would like to: Use a birthing stool"

At least squatting makes strategic sense.  Can someone diagram this one for me?  Because I'm at a loss.

"As the baby is delivered, I would like to: Help catch the baby"

I see only one scenario in which this works logistically, and it involves a trampoline.

"As the baby is delivered, I would like to: Let my partner suction the baby"

Off the top of my head I could list at least 10 reasons why this is a terrible idea, and several of them involve me recreating proton pack scenes from Ghostbusters.

"Immediately after delivery I would like to: See the placenta before it's discarded"

I know some people keep the placenta to eat it, or plant a tree, or inject it straight into their blood stream like Captain America's super serum.  But is the look of it a deciding factor in this decision?  How do I tell the difference between a good placenta and a bad one?  Do I need to also feel its texture, like an avacado?

Pregnancy Week 27

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 27 Weeks...ummm Can you believe this is our last week in the 2nd trimester?!?! OMG! Where is the time going?!?!
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 0 this week...holla! (total +17, counting the original -10)
Maternity Clothes: Still getting by with stretchy gauchos/skirts, tanks and cotton dresses
Best Moment this week: We put together all the furniture for Baby Z and his room is now looking more like a nursery! :) We still have a ways to go but its getting there! Here is the little fella's crib! And here is his dresser. You can see already we have lots of fun stuff for him! :)And here is his changing table. The bookshelf still needs to be cleaned off and prepped for Baby Z's room....the last thing we have left to do! :)
Gender: Boy
Movement: Lots and lots!
Food Craving: Nutter Butters :) New fav: DQ Nutter Butter Blizzard!
What I miss: a nice cold glass of wine!
What I am looking forward to: We have two showers in Carrsville this weekend! So excited for them! :) And I am BEYOND excited to see my Mama and Sisters!!!!!! :) And I have gotten the cutest gifts for them for hostessing the showers that I cannot wait to give them!!!! YAY! I love giving presents! :)

Here we are in our last week of the 2nd Trimester:

This one is a little blurry, but it shows my weirdo belly button! Yikes! The top half is poking out......I think I should make a poll to guess when this sucker is gonna become a full outtie! :P

Pregnancy Week 26

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 26 Weeks...a week late AGAIN. :(
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 0 this week...holla! (total +17, counting the original -10)
Maternity Clothes: Still refusing, I figured come September I'd invest in a pair of nice khakis or black pants to get me through the Fall and work. :)
Best Moment this week: Well last weekend on Friday for Uncle Dan's birthday in Dupont Circle...yeah that will most likely be the last metro experience Mama has until Baby Z comes. Friday was a record high gazillion degrees with a HORRIBLE heat index. I was drenched in sweat walking from the Vienna parking garage to the metro...embarrassing. Thankfully we didn't have to wait very long for a train. And we get a seat! YAY....yeah not so fast. Once we start moving I realize that we of course got into a car that the air is broke phi broke...SERIOUSLY?!?! OMG! DYING! MIZ! BRAT! My poor husband. I get super cranky in the heat and I've realized that it makes me more uncomfortable and more tired. We get off at metro center and never in my life has the actual UNDERGROUND stop in mid summer felt like heaven in comparison to the actual train. We hop on the red line only to discover that we lucked out again and this train has no AC either! WTF metro!!! Thank the sweet baby J we only have two stops...then to get out in the hot hot heat and walk to find this bar. The bar was pretty awesome other than the fact it doesn't have central air either. I felt like we temporarily flashed back to the 1800s where no indoor cooling existed, not cool for pregnant ladies not cool at all. I'm just glad we were able to celebrate with him for a bit anyway. On Saturday we had us a little date night at Wolf Trap, Matt got us tickets to see the National Symphony Orchestra play the music while they show Casablanca on the big screen for our anniversary (in case you didn't know the first anniversary is paper!). It was awesome! However, I start to get cranky and uncomfortable late at night and it was hot because Wolf Trap is outside. But the show was amazing! :)
Gender: Boy
Movement: I'm starting to see a pattern, when he wants food he moves A LOT more! He is without a doubt his father's son, cranky when he doesn't get fed on time ;)
Food Craving: Eggs, we went to a diner and Cracker Barrel to settle these cravings :) This is odd for me because I'm not usually a big fan of eggs.
What I miss: OMG I could have used a nice cold Strawberry Marg this week!
What I am looking forward to: All of Baby Z's furniture is in so we'll be working on his room this weekend. We moved the guest bed down to the basement (it now has two beds!). I'll be working on finishing my clothes clean out/closet clean out project. Also I'm EXTREMELY excited to see my family NEXT WEEKEND!!!! :) I haven't seen them since June (well except my Daddy!), which is the longest that I have ever gone without seeing my family :( We'll be making a trip to Carrsville for baby showers! :) :)

Sorry Mama was super lazy gross this week, so no picture update :(