He's here!!!

There's my little trooper, givin' me the ok sign! This picture was taken right after he got swept away to the NICU. 

So, here's what I can tell ya. I'll be typing up a more official birth story but I figured I'd post a recap for my friends and family that have been trying to get a hold of me while I come down from the events of this week! Beware, I'm just gonna tell it like it was so you may learn a lot about me you didn't know you wanted to know, haha. 

As most of you know, my water broke at Target of Saturday, May 25. I was put on bed rest at the hospital which totally sucked, by the way. Well, it wasn't that bad but I just really hated being hooked up to all the wires and not being able to get up and stretch my legs without having a million people run in. I understand their goal was to monitor the health of my little guy, but I could feel him and my guy, literally and figuratively told me he was ok. Besides the c-section scare things were pretty uneventful. Then Monday night rolled around. 

The NICU doctors had told us Ryker would be ok on the outside, so I was ready to just get the show rolling. I couldn't stay stuck in that bed until June 4, so I checked out Ina May Gaskin's info on naturally starting labor and did the only thing I could on bed rest, nipple stimulation and I added a laxative to the stool softener the hospital was having me take. The nipple stimulation did all the work, the laxative didn't really affect me at all as far as I can tell. Vic and my mom had left to run some errands and let me rest early on in the late afternoon and came back to find me standing next to the bed swaying back and forth. I also had started to have some blood streaking the amniotic fluid that I was still leaking. While I didn't want to get too excited, I totally knew inside that the nipple thing had totally worked and things were starting. 

I sent my family home so I could get some rest and I laid down to try and watch Harry Potter again. We had alerted the nurse to the fact that I was spotting blood and she had tried to get me to switch back to the previous room that I had been in so that I could go back on continuous monitoring. This was the first interaction with the legal team at Portsmouth, I turned down their recommendation to move to continuous monitoring, signed the paperwork saying I understood my decision and I labored in my other room by myself for the night. Like I said, I tried to sleep but I was up by two-ish with cramps that were too much to take lying down. I wandered the room until about three, trying different positions and trying to ascertain as to whether or not I was really in labor. Finally, I called Vic around three and said it was time to get to the hospital. 

I let the nurse know what was up and reluctantly got wheeled over to the labor and delivery unit where I knew they would hook me up to a million cords. This is when things got really interesting. There is no other way to put it, the interns working that night were straight bitches. They wanted to me to essentially tell my body to stop laboring because they wanted to wait to induce me on June 4th. They wanted me to do this by laying in the bed without moving around during contractions. I let them know that what they wanted was adorable and that when a contraction hit (which meant my lower back and my butt got super sore and tender in an instant, no laying/sitting during that) I would be out of the bed and walking until it passed. They got pissy because Ryker would not show up on the monitor while I moved around. I let them know that I could feel my active baby move during the contractions and that they could just deal with it. I signed more paperwork. The checked me, I had gone from 1 cm, fully effaced and station -3 (meaning the baby was higher) at nine o clock that night, to 3 cm, fully effaced station -1 by three am. 

Vic got to the hospital around the time they finished the exam and I was kind of a monster to him. All I can say is, I have my way of dealing with stress and sometimes I'm not so nice about it, I made sure to apologize later though! Once I was in the actual labor and delivery room the contractions were no effin' joke. I couldn't sit down, the pressure was just too much, so I stayed standing towards the monitor, swaying with each one. Around four I had to have Vic start counter pressure on my hips to help get through them. I texted my doula, Christy, and asked her to be at the hospital by six to help me out. 

Well, little did I know things were about to get nuts. Within forty five minutes I went from man, these contractions suck, to holy shit Vic-text Christy and tell her to get here now! They checked me again and by the time Christy got there around 5:45 I was fully dilated and fully effaced with that little baby head all the way down. I had a feeling this was happening because right before they checked me my bowels had finally released (a good sign in labor) and I had started to shiver uncontrollably. I had recognized the signs of transition but was reluctant to say that I was that far along. Luckily though, Vic and I had gotten a hold of Christy and my mom in time. 

As Christy ran in to the labor and delivery room they were getting me set up to push. They had me start on my back, curled into a C around my belly. Because Ryker was so premature they had to bring the whole NICU team in, so I had a full audience of what I think was close to 15 people. The best part was that Vic had hooked up our Blu-Ray player to the TV and we had Harry Potter playing. He said the whole time I was pushing the men of the NICU team were watching Harry Potter waiting for my little guy to pop out. Too funny right? I also love that active labor to delivery took less than the first Harry Potter movie!

After about half an hour of pushing on my back they had me stop. I couldn't really distinguish contractions from non contractions in that position, there was just so much back labor that it constantly hurt. Here's where I got really frustrated and so did my team of supporters...

Shift change at the hospital is at 7 am. They had told me I was totally complete and ready to push, with no cervix blocking at 5:45. At 6:30, time for turnover, they had me stop what I was doing and sit up to hold in the contractions and not push and told me I had magically redeveloped enough cervix to need to wait half an hour. I tried to do so and my mom rubbed my back while Vic put pressure on the pressure points of my feet to help the cervix pull back, Christy helped with massage and a glorious heat sock that she put on my back for the contractions. Christy also suggested that I ask to get on hands and knees. Well, once she said that I was like "hell yea, I need to get off my butt!" so I flipped on over. Almost immediately I felt like there was no holding the baby in. The entire labor and delivery team and the NICU team had left for shift change, we were all alone. Vic ran out to the nurse to say "she's going to push this baby out, he's coming" and the nurse replied with "she can't have that baby right now, no one is here". We promptly let her know in not so many nice words that she better get them fast. While that conversation was happening I was already pushing him out with just my mom and Christy there. 

They finally came running in and this is the part that seemed to go by really fast. While I was pushing on my back I was holding my breath and curled weird. On hands and knees I made all sorts of sounds and literally growled at one point. I knew from my research and Christy was telling me that they loud noises don't actually help, but man they felt good to get out so I just went with it. I kept crying out that I couldn't do it, even though I could feel it happening! Then, all of a sudden, I felt the most bizarre feeling ever and they told me he was out. It really did just feel like I had gotten the biggest poop ever out of me, haha. Everyone kept telling me to turn around and see him, but I kind of had to linger on my hands and knees for a second and gather the fact that I had just done it, a baby came out of me. I had given birth with no medications, not even an IV for fluids, on my hands and knees in a sundress!

I flipped over finally and while they were messing with the cord and the placenta they brought over Ryker so I could hold him for about twenty seconds before they took him away to the NICU. Vic followed the baby while my mom and Christy stayed with me. The placenta didn't take very long, after a few minutes I just beared down again real had and plop, there it was. I had torn a little bit, probably because I had gotten so frustrated and pushed so hard once I was on my hands and knees, so I got a few stitches. The doctor had the audacity to point out that she was late for turnover because I had given birth at 6:58 at least three times. The bitchy nurses that had been so rude to my mom and I had also left, but thankfully the new nurse guy was really sweet. They got me cleaned up and pretty soon I was taken over to my recovery room!

After that everything was a blur of finally getting to shower, getting some food in me and Vic talking the NICU into letting me in during their rounds so that I could see my little guy. He came out with APGAR scores of 8 and then 9, almost perfect for a full term baby! I'll post later more about the NICU, but it's almost time to pump for my little guy so I've gotta go. I hope you enjoyed my crazy birth story!

Midnight C-section scare, but no scars!

I've been sending my family home at night because its pointless for everyone to be uncomfortable at the hospital. Well, last night I actually fell asleep pretty easy. Vic brought our blu ray player and hooked it up so I could watch Harry Potter. Harry and his crew have been my go to soothers since the books and movies came out when I was in high school. It sounds silly but those movies mean a lot to me. The second Vic started the first one before they left for a little to take my mom to her hotel I was out. He came back later to watch some Star Trek and then went home to get some quality sleep and be with the pups. Again, I was out to the second HP right away. Next thing you know the nurse is calling my name and putting oxygen on me and flipping me onto all fours because Ryker's heart rate disappeared. Then there are five doctors and an ultrasound and a Doppler and people start yelling about a C-section NOW. Of course the second they say that I start crying into my oxygen mask, I really wouldn't want that at all, but I really didn't want a c-section without Vic or my mom to be there. Luckily they found the little stinker, he was just laying on his cord for a bit.

I'm thinking from here on out its time that I have a family member stand watch with me over the night. That was pretty scary to do alone, but thankfully nothing came of it. I'm terrified to move out of being propped on my back now though because if I lay on my side he rolls a little and his heart rate drops. The NICU doc talked to us yesterday and said Ryker has a 99.4% chance of just being a small baby with no developmental issues- no eye, brain, digestive or lung issues. So, I honestly just want labor to start. I know he's safer in my belly for the next few days, but I'm kind of looking forward to knowing that by next Tuesday, the 4th, he's coming often way or another.

We have our meeting with our doulas today, the girls at Birth in Sight, BirthinSightVA.com, have been awesome. Well, the nurse jjust brought my breakfast in, the good news is I just found out I can order cereal instead of the greasy bacon and powdered eggs, yes! Talk to you guys later with some more updates!

So...my water broke.

Vic and I had a pretty chill Saturday yesterday for the most part. We had breakfast, watched TV. He did yard work while I picked up around the house. I took a bath and laid down while he played some Gears of War with his friend Danny, who also happens to be Ryker's godfather. Around four I kicked him off the Xbox and we went to Target to buy stuff for the hospital bag. After wandering for an hour of so I decided to try on a new maxi dress. That's when my water broke. Long story short, I'm stuck on bed rest at the hospital for as long as possible. Baby is doing good on the monitor, Mom is just annoyed at being uncomfortable, I'll keep you guys posted!

What's with all these crazy storms??

First of all, unless you've been living under a rock you've heard the gnarly coverage of the tornado in Moore, Oklahoma that was just absolutely devastating for so many people. I heard the audio of some interviews this morning right before I went into work and they broke my heart. Tornadoes scare the shit out of me, like nothing else scares me as far as natural disasters the way that tornadoes scare me. I can't imagine what those people are going through right now. 

I've had a feeling that Ryker is going to choose to come at the same time as a hurricane since I'm due right at the beginning of the season. Virginia is my first experience with real weather. Growing up in Southern CA doesn't do a whole lot for one's ability to learn weather. The first time I saw a real fall when I was living in Chicago blew my mind. My first hurricane here in Virginia happened while Vic was still in the Navy. We were living in our little bottom floor apartment and he had to go out to sea while I stayed back with our puppy. I prepped like a crazy person, tried to evacuate and eventually came to my senses and went home, only to ride out the storm with no issues and two good friends that came by to sit with me and drink A LOT while we waited for Irene to pass. 

Back to this summer...you see, Norfolk has a lot of tunnels and bridges. Our hospital happens to be on the other side of a tunnel. A month or two ago I got this stomach flu that led Vic and I to the emergency room, I got super dehydrated very fast so we went for an IV and a checkup. At 3 am on a Saturday morning the tunnel was SHUT DOWN. How do you just close down a tunnel? Apparently this happens every other weekend for maintenance. Luckily, we pulled up to the cop that was blocking the tunnel right when they were finishing and we didn't have to wait too long (which is good because I was puking like a crazy person). I'm totally prepared for us to pull up to the tunnel in labor and find that yet again, it may be closed. I just have that sort of luck! I guess there is a way to actually track which of the two tunnels are closed for maintenance in the wee hours of the morning, so that will be Vic's job while I'm working on preparing to push this kid out. 

Speaking of pushing him out, I've only got 56 more days until my due date!! Can you tell I'm a little excited about having a countdown? I'm so very uncomfortable. That's really the only way to put it. I'm so sick of being uncomfortable. I've decided that anyone who says they love being pregnant is a liar, or you really do get straight up amnesia after you give birth. I'm officially at 27 pounds gained. I haven't been able to work out the last two weeks or so, between a cold, family being in town and then this week I tried and cramped up really bad half an hour into it. I'm also starving, which I'm sure is combining with my lack of exercise to add up to all this weight gain at the end. I really wanted to stay at less than 30 pounds for the pregnancy but its looking like 35 will probably be the number to beat. This kid is getting so big in there too! 

We had our first total let down with our eMeals subscription last night with some flank steak and goat cheese-cilanto-greek yogurt potatoes. It was bad. The meat turned out over cooked even though I watched it like a hawk and the recipe for the potatoes was just bad. We fed the meat to the pups and went to Chik-fil-A for ourselves. In the drive thru Vic felt the baby rumbling around in my belly and he was amazed by how the movements are so different now. According to my What to Expect App he has the max amount of amniotic fluid at this point, so the nudges and stuff will just be more obvious. He really enjoys pushing on my rib cage now too, which kills. I would love to pretend that I just adore this stage of the pregnancy but man, I'm pretty miserable. Luckily I have a supportive hubby and a wonderful chain of command at work. I talked to my bosses this week about the possibility of having to ask to leave early some days from now on. I don't plan to take advantage of it but they were super chill about it which was awesome. It's like having that conversation with them helped get me through yesterday and today without needing to take so many breaks. Monday the baby was kicking my ass pretty well though, but hiding out in my car all stretched out helps for a bit. 

Since I probably won't be posting any workouts from here on out I'll try and get some of the tasty, low fat recipes that I'm taking advantage of posted. For now I'm still stubborn enough to be hittin' the gym but my workouts just aren't going to be as weight lifting focused, so they won't be worth their own posts like before. I found on Monday that I can get through a pretty solid half hour or so of the elliptical, when I switched to trying to lift weights like I normally do the stabilizing muscles in my core and in my um...lady parts, haha, and pelvis really didn't like the work. I think all that round ligament pain is just kicking my butt, but the good news about that is that my body is preparing itself for my big day with my little man!

Tonight made up for last nights disaster with a great chicken soup! I'll try and get that info up under the recipes tab soon. For now I'll leave you with a picture of my amazing husband as an adorable little boy, I think he's nine months or so in this pic.

Look at all that hair! If my heartburn is any sort of sign, and according to a number of old wives tales it is, then this little guy in my belly is going to have tons of hair too. Isn't it just the cutest thing ever?

31 Weeks, almost eight whole months!

No picture this week of the bump, I promise to get a good one this weekend! Some sandy beach toes will have to do :)

Vic's family came in this week to visit us for the last time pre-baby. Once the baby gets here we'll get to see them again this summer, babies are great for getting everyone to come visit you! I haven't made it onto my computer for a few days with work and everyone flying in, sorry about that! So far this week we've had good food and a great day out on the beach. It was in the upper eighties yesterday! I'll have a good amount of pictures to add later this weekend. 

Happy Friday everyone, I hope you have a great weekend!

How far along? 31 Weeks

Total weight gain: 24 pounds

Maternity clothes? Yep. Although, I’ve been avoiding the bathing suit that we bought specifically for while I was pregnant and I’ve been wearing a bikini that I’m pretty sure I’ve had since 2005. I had Vic take a picture of me in it at the beach yesterday but I was laying down and that is soooo not winding up on the internet, haha.

Stretch marks? Only my angry little area between the top and bottom hole of my belly button piercing. It’s so funny how angry that tiny little stretch of skin is! But if that is the only area that gets affected I’m stoked. The spots that I get on my belly and back are getting pretty out of this world. They’re just like red splotches that come and go in color, but after being at the beach yesterday they looked pretty dry and angry. Hopefully those are just a pregnancy thing and leave when this is done!

Best moment this week: Getting to spend all day at the beach yesterday! Vic got me out into the chilly water to play in the waves for a while with his sister and his dad. It was so much fun! I love getting to spend the day in the sun and the waves. Luckily, the water out here on the East Coast warms up pretty early in the year, so the water was almost perfect. 

Miss Anything? Being comfortable. The baby is all over the place and this week he has been kicking my ass. I’ve just been so very uncomfortable all week. The whole laying down on my left side thing is actually all that helps, so I’ve spent a fair amount of time in bed or trying to get the baby to shift in my car.  

Movement: Mostly just jabs of knees and elbows, it really feels like he’s not too happy with the diminishing amount of room he has in there. 

Food cravings:  Ice cream and cake! I’ve never wanted cake so much in my life.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Same stuff. 

Gender: An old man at Confetti, a gelato shop here in Virginia Beach, tried to convince me that because I am carrying high that he is actually a six pound baby girl, but I let him know that the 3D Ultrasound said he was definitely a boy. 

Labor Signs: Braxton Hicks like a boss. I wanted to sit down in the parking lot on Wednesday to take a break during the walk from work to my car. Luckily they stopped Wednesday, but lately I’ve been feeling some bizarre pressure down below and in my lower back. Not comfortable. Vic asked me last night if the whole weird experience was early labor, letting me know that this would be a really bad time for this to happen considering his work schedule right now. I’m pretty sure the not so fully developed baby would feel the same way, haha. Alas, it went away with a warm bath. 

Symptoms: Hmm, listed above I guess. Heartburn and nasal congestion still. 

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Getting to see Vic’s office today!  

**I got Vic to take a picture on our way out to his office, Happy Friday!**

Happy Mother's Day!

It's pretty fitting that lately Ryker has been kicking me awake in the mornings, which has resulted in me being up at 6:30 every morning this weekend. Today was no different, I swear he was just rubbing his foot along the bottom of my belly, gently waking me up. He was pressing so hard against my skin that I think I could feel either his heartbeat or mine, that or he his already very proficient at snapping to a pretty quick rhythm! 

I've said from the beginning that I have this feeling like I miss him or something. Even though he is right there, the fact that I can't hug him or hold him makes me miss him and I just can't wait to see him. According to my Women's Log Pregnancy App we've got 2 months, 4 days, 16 hours and 51 minutes until my due date. Two months seems so far and way too close at the same time. 

Vic is working on being able to finish his internship before our little man gets here, which means that by the time that we have the baby we will both be able to be home for the whole summer. Nice huh? I'm looking forward to it. How many parents get the opportunity to take that much maternity/paternity leave together? We're pretty lucky people!

Speaking of luck, look at the beautiful Mother's Day gift that the baby and Vic got me! Vic had given it to me a few days ago to brighten that day too, and he's just as impatient of a gift giver as I am ;) If I manage to keep his Father's Day present a secret between now and then I'll be amazed.

It's beautiful! And gigantic. I'm pretty sure that if I wasn't the one carrying it I could actually just crawl right inside of it. You may have guessed from my giant car, my giant, sexy husband and my two giant dogs that I like things on the larger side, so this purse suits me just fine! 

Vic also worked super hard for a long time yesterday installing a new ceiling fan for us in our bedroom. Because it was the hottest day that we have had in a while and Vic needed to run the electric side of things in the super hot attic, every possible step of the process had something tiny go wrong or missing, making the installation a tad bit more frustrating and time consuming than we had planned. Of course, I just stood far away and wasn't very much help, but I promise that I'm more of a help if I don't help than if I get in the way!  It is absolutely amazing how something so simple can completely change our room. We can see, and there's a nice breeze! Being able to get the lamp and the fan that we had in there out of the room is awesome and should give us way more room to have Ryker's pack and play in there while he's itsy bitsy and waking us up a million times in the middle of the night for feedings. Cross your fingers that phase doesn't last long! 

This wouldn't be complete without a shout out to my beautiful Momma, so Happy Mother's Day Mom! 

She's all the way back home in California, but we got to see her and my brother in March and she'll be flying out again this summer for when the baby gets here. My mom is the strongest woman I know and I owe a lot to her. She's taught me wonderful strategies for getting through every situation that life can throw at you and she's been the perfect combination of parent and friend all my life. Sometimes growing up and being an adult can freak a girl out, but it's fun to have some of the conversations that you can't have with your mom until you reach this point in life. I'm sure she's looking forward to the late night "Oh my God, the baby is doing this- he must be dying" phone calls. 

I hope everyone enjoys their Sunday and their Mother's Day. My sinus congestion/cold/excessive snoring seems to finally be waning so tomorrow I will be back in the gym. I took one week off and gained three pounds! Even for a pregnant person that's pretty impressive, haha. I'm sure the giant bowls of raisin bran, the ice cream, the delicious apple muffin at Panera and the rest of the ice cream may have had something to do with it too. What is it about taking time off from the gym that makes me so hungry for all the yummy bad foods? Back to the routine tomorrow, I've got to take advantage of being able to still get in these workouts while I can! 

Ramblings of a Pregnant Lady

Lately the emotional symptoms of pregnancy have hit me like a Mack truck. I think the fact that Ryker is getting so big in my belly is what is really making it kick in. Oh yea, there's his name! No, he is not named after Riker's Island prison, yes- he is named after Will Riker of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Nerdy? Yes. Vic introduced me to TNG a few months before we had our wedding ceremony in August of last year. At first I was skeptical, but eventually I was hooked and we watched every episode on NetFlix and I fell in love. I think Ryker is a great name, and its meaning is "strong power" which is pretty legit. We keep bouncing back and forth on the middle name, once we nail that down I might post it, or maybe it will be a secret!

It's a beautiful day out today, I think summer is officially elbowing its way into the forecast. I can't wait to be able to take our little guy to the beach and play with him in the sand and the waves. Vic isn't much of a beach guy, I'm sure he won't mind if we have to bring umbrellas or a little tent for shade, he's basically like a vampire when it comes to extreme sun time. I could soak it up all day. We took our honeymoon to St. Lucia last year and I was amazed at how often I got him in the pool and on the beach. Here's a fun pic from summertime last year, I wish we could take a vacation like that every year, but of course the Navy and school get in the way of that for now. 

 I swear that lately its like I have been soaking up the sunshine during the day and then I use it all at night, I had Vic set the AC to 66 degrees last night because I get so hot in my sleep. While one part of me doesn't want to move back to California when we leave Virginia, a huge part of me does want to move back to the beaches and the sunshine. Vic promised me that if we move to somewhere without a beach, which right now is the plan, I get at least one yearly vacation to a beach and a great backyard that I can pretend is the beach. I hope to teach Ryker how to swim as early as possible so he and I can play in the pool all day! Have you seen those crazy videos that teach little babies how to roll over onto their backs so they don't drown? Those babies are amazing! They have videos that show infants as young as four months that know to flip over and float on their backs. That's nuts, I love it!

Last night I laid in bed thinking about how I should prepare the diaper bag. Being between 30 and 31 weeks makes it a little early to start packing hospital bags, but I figure the "preparer" in me can at least get a diaper bag ready and that might fulfill my urge for a while. HIs room is pretty much ready, all I need now are the pictures from Etsy that I ordered to show up. We bought a giant box of Newborn Diapers that I'm sure we probably won't use all of before he grows out of them. He has plenty of clothes. I don't have a bathtub or baby bathing stuff, but I do have the awesome Lavender baby wash. So, my next Amazon or Babies R' Us run will focus on bath time I guess. 

I'm really hoping that I can breast feed Ryker. It is something that is really important to me and I'm not entirely sure of why I've latched onto the idea so tightly. I like the fact that him and I would share that and that he would be getting something from me even while I have to work. Vic and my family aren't sure that I'll be able to, mainly because either they had issues with it when they had kids (my mom) or because after I had a little um, altering surgery, cough cough (a boob job!) my nipples are pretty sensitive all the time. I think that with a little determination I should be able to pull it off, or at least exclusively pump. That'll be a pain in the ass to do but I'd rather do that then switch to expensive ass baby formula! 

Well, the rumbly baby in my belly is telling me that it is time for breakfast. His daddy is still asleep and the pups are outside for some time in the sunshine. It's not very often that our house is so completely quiet and still, even though it is only us two and the dogs. I think we're going to try and go to the beach today for a bit. Like I said earlier, Vic isn't a huge fan of the beach so I'm not sure how long that will last but I need some time soaking up the rays. I hope you have a great start to your Mother's Day weekend! I got my present yesterday because Vic wanted to cheer me up after I got home feeling crappy from my sinus cold that I've been rocking all week. I'll let you know later what it was, all I'll say for now is that you should be jealous ;) Happy Friday! 

30 Weeks

How far along? 30 Weeks

(I feel like I should explain the random black paint on our door. We were testing out colors to potentially paint the doors in the house a dark color. Had to try out one of my many Pinterest ideas, haha.) 

Total weight gain: 21 pounds

Maternity clothes? Same as last time, still rockin’ the maternity leggings and my one pair of maternity jeans. I’m super excited about the bandeau bras that I got from Victoria’s Secret. My bras and sports bras have all gotten pretty tight so it is nice to have some stuff that is more comfortable.  

Stretch marks? None! I’m pretty amazed.

Best moment this week: Hearing the baby’s heartbeat at our last appointment. The weekend and these last few days have been pretty all around great so it’s all been the best!

Miss Anything? Being able to sleep through the night. Last night I welcomed (sarcastically) a new symptom- nasal congestion. I woke up thinking that I had the worst sinus infection ever, but it turns out that my nose and sinus have just completely swollen shut. Adding the whole not being able to breathe thing to the having to pee every two hours is making sleeping (which is comfortable only on my left side) a little bit more difficult!

Movement: He’s actually been a little bit quieter this week. I feel like he’s at the point of getting pretty big for his living space, so the movement now is more defined instead of the somersaults. I do my kick counts on a regular basis though and he is good to go!

Food cravings: Ice cream, gelato, anything ice cream related. Oh and chocolate. And apples. Basically, anything sweet. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Meat. I’ve been pretty touchy with meat the whole time, but through the second trimester I was able to start eating red meat, while chicken still made me sick. Now, unless I hide chicken or ground turkey in soups or bakes I pretty much just skip the meat or eat just enough to feel like I’m getting protein in. I’ve been drinking more milk lately, so hopefully that’s helping with the protein.

Gender: Boy, oh boy!

Labor Signs: No, sir! 

Symptoms: Still all the goodies, heartburn, nasal congestion, general feeling of being big enough for satellites to orbit me! 

Belly Button in or out? I feel like it’s pretty shallow and on the road to popping, but Vic swears it’s been too deep from the get go to ever be anything but an innie! 

Wedding rings on or off? On. However, the other day I noticed that it felt a tad bit snug, still comfortable but just a little tighter than usual.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, with a side of random emotional outbursts. I randomly cried twice this week and my level of tolerance for silly questions at work has kind of diminished to non-existent. I’ve always been one to wear my heart on my sleeve though, so my emotions are pretty obvious but I feel like they pass pretty quick too. During my random crying bout on the phone with my mom I cried about how perfect and happy everything is, gotta love the way crazy emotions can come together!

Looking forward to: The weekend and time to sleep! 

Monday, Monday...

Monday's Workout

CARDIO

40 Min on Elliptical

Average Heart Rate: 142 bpm

Calories Burned: 460

WEIGHTS: Chest and Triceps

Bench Press on the Smith Machine

 12x20 lbs 12x40 lbs 9x50 lbs 7x55 lbs

Dumbbell Incline Bench Press

 10x20 lbs 10x20 lbs 10x20 lbs

Tricep Cable Extension

 12x50 lbs 12x60 lbs 10x70 lbs

Dumbbell Tricep Extension 

10x15 lbs 10x17.5 lbs 10x20 lbs  

Dips (Assisted) 

6x78 5x78 6x78

*I have no idea how the weights on the assisted dip machine work, but I found 78 to be a good setting for keeping me from dropping to the ground or not being able to move!

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Monday down, only four more days to go until the weekend!!

The nice thing about Mondays is that it's a PT day at work, so we go to the gym at 7:00 and don't have to be at work until 8:45. It's pretty nifty as far as getting the day started. It also makes the day feel like it goes by way faster since we do lunch at 11:00 in our shop.

 I usually get on my cardio around 6:45, work out until the episode of Baby's First Day is over and then I switch to weights. This morning I woke up feeling pretty drained and was considering skipping the weights, but I wound up muscling through it (literally!). It was a good enough workout from me, if you've read other chest and triceps days you know they are my least favorite. 

My third class for my Masters started today, the Criminal Process. I emailed the prof as soon as the class opened online and let him know that I'm due the week after the final, so realistically if the baby comes early I may have some scheduling conflicts. As much as part of me really wants to get as much of the Masters completed, part of me kind of hoped that he would suggest I drop it. But, turns out he's a stand up guy and promised to help me get this class completed one way or another! 

Today was one of those awesome random emotional days, so while sitting on the couch talking to my mom on the phone I randomly burst into tears. I did the same thing last night while we were laying in bed. This better pass, no one likes a cry baby, haha. I told the hubs he was on his own for dinner tonight, I kind of just want cereal and feel too drained to make the carrot, ginger, chicken soup that I was planning. 

Any thoughts on the new layout of the blog? I figured I'd try out the new dynamic view, let me know what you think!

Weekend Recap

I can't believe the weekend is already over, it seems like they always go by so fast! The weather this weekend was absolute poop, it was just cold enough to not wear flip flops and need a light jacket and super cloudy. Apparently some storm is moving in from the south or something that has potential for some major rain this whole week. Rain during the week doesn't bother me much because I'm stuck in a building with no windows while I'm at work. We made sure to take the pups on a good walk today so that they can get some energy out before they're stuck inside for the next few days. 

We actually got a good picture of them this weekend while I was cleaning up the kitchen, now if I could only figure out how to get their eyes to not look like they glow, haha. 

If you saw friday's post, you know that we had a pretty ridiculous night giving those two baths at Two Brothers Dog Wash. That pretty much wiped us out. We had rented Silver Linings Playbook, which was pretty good but I was surprised at how they had changed it from the book. The book was kind of bizarre to read, but I liked the movie. Vic liked it too, I was a little worried that he wouldn't be too interested but in the end he really enjoyed it. I'd suggest it!

Saturday was a pretty legit day, we got a lot of shopping in! I had ordered some shoes off of Macys.com with gift cards that I had left over from our wedding last August. I had gotten two pairs of Steve Madden sandals, one of which turned out to be way too intense. I guess the name Jelybely should have given it away, but I wasn't prepared for the neon orange jelly sandals that showed up, with gold spikes and everything. They just looked a little more tame online. So, I returned those, kept the other pair and got a pair of Sperry's!

I've wanted Sperry's for so long and just never pulled the trigger. The whole $90 thing killed me, but hey, that's why gift cards are great right?

I have this vision of laboring in the cute little bandeau bras that Victoria's Secret has and I also just think they're the cutest thing for under tank tops so Vic and I headed over there to check them out too. Turns out they are super comfy and I actually still look pretty cute in their loose tank tops and the bandeaus! With the waist of my maternity leggings folded down it turns out to be a pretty cute outfit, I'm way stoked on being able to rock normal clothes that I would wear not pregnant while I'm heading into my eighth month. Pictures to come of the whole outfit soon! We had to get a new water bottle too, my other one that I've been obsessed with was left in the waiting room by a certain husband of mine. My new one is pink, which can only be a good thing! I got a cute bracelet for free too, apparently there was some promotion going on that I knew nothing about. Score!

Of course, we had to hit up Babies R' Us to use my nifty coupons that they send me each month and that print out on the receipts. Very tricky Babies R' Us, those coupons keep us coming back for more. We're not having a baby shower so getting the essentials has been making me pretty nervous. Of course, Vic is super relaxed and not worried at all, but he's pretty great at dealing with my craziness and lets me pick up a few things every few weeks. This week we used our 20% off coupon for a Medela bottle package. We used our $5 off coupons towards getting even more bottles to add to the package. We had some coupons for clothing too, so we got some cute little outfits, some more socks and some bibs. If you take advantage of the sales and coupons you can get a damn good amount of stuff for not too much money, all together I think we kept it around $120. 

I thought I'd have a problem finding cute clothes that I wanted to buy for a little boy...we organized his closet today, think we have enough??

Oh, and I almost forgot the best part of this weekend, getting a Michael Kors Ipad case with my gift card! Who doesn't need a fancy case for their Ipad? 

I love it :) The sales lady did a pretty good job of trying to talk Vic and I into this beautiful Michael Kors tote as a diaper bag and surprisingly Vic was almost ok with it! I would have had to exchange pretty much everything I had just picked out to get just the bag though, and I could never justify a MK bag with diapers in it. However, I still hold that sometimes a girl just needs a purse that adorable, even when she is carrying a diaper bag at the same time, so if any husband of mine happens to read this...you should still consider it for a Mother's Day gift! Oh, we totally get to celebrate Mother's/Father's Day this year as far as I'm concerned. 

After all that shopping we met up with some pals to wish luck over dinner to our friend that is deploying to the Middle East. Maybe I ate a whole basket of fries, a chicken tenders appetizer and then we got a Gelati from Rita's to top it all off. It was delicious. 

Saturday pretty much wiped us out so today has been pretty lazy. In the spirit of seeing Iron Man 3 sometime this week we watched Iron Man and the Avengers. We're also a pair of trekkie nerds- all Vic's fault, so now we're watching Star Trek in preparation of the movie that is coming out later this month! I hope your weekend was as great as ours, cheers (with my hot chocolate, I hope you have something more interesting) to a good Monday!

We ❤ Two Brothers Dog Wash!!

Vic and I try to support small businesses in our area as much as possible. In particular, we have a favorite Indian restaurant called India Palace that we are downright obsessed with, but we're also terrified that they might go out of business. We try to blame ordering everything on the menu on our attempt to help keep them afloat, but really their food is just friggin' delicious and we can't help ourselves!

Another small business that means a lot to us is Two Brothers Dog Wash. The place is owned by two brothers who are also both veterans. They're super chill and so are their staff. They offer self dog wash and they also do grooming but its super hard to try and get an appointment, you usually have to make one a week ahead of time. They sell awesome healthy foods and treats too, which is where we found the only food that both dogs will gobble up without getting hot spots or stomach issues. 

Tonight, we learned just how much we appreciate the people at Two Brothers. Nothing all that amazing happened, all it took was Vic and I taking advantage of the two free self service washes that we had earned from buying dog food and paying for full grooms. Well, an hour into trying to get Sam and Chelsea clean and dry I had almost fallen a few times, we were both soaked and at our wits end. I wanted to run to the owners crying and beg them to take over and dry my dog somehow, because apparently they are the only ones that have the magic ability to actually get water out of a St. Bernard's fur. Finally, with dog fur completely filling the air, we managed to get them acceptably dry, we bought our dog food and I left a tip on our bill for our self service dog washes just to thank the guys for existing. Vic and I decided on the way home that only when we earn two free self service washes after paying for twenty bags of food or groomings will we ever make the mistake of washing our dogs ourselves. The people at Two Brothers are amazing and we couldn't love them more!! There's my two cents today :) 

If you live in the Virginia Beach area and you have a pup you should totally check our Two Brothers Dog Wash, if only for the great foods and treats, the leashes and toys they carry and of course...the clean puppies that walk out of there! They have a lot of good connections with local shelters and such too!

Happy Birthday Annichen/Legs days are the best!

CARDIO

40 Min on Elliptical, Aerobic Setting

Average Heart Rate: 147 bpm

Calories Burned: 477

WEIGHTS: LEGS

Hack Squat 

15x140 lbs 12x160 lbs 12x170 lbs 12x170 lbs

Leg Press 

15x170 lbs 12x190 lbs 12x210 lbs 

Calf Raises w/ Dumbbells 

20x50 lbs 20x60 lbs

Leg Extension 

12x110 lbs 9x115 lbs 9x120 lbs 

Leg Curl 

15x90 lbs 10x110 lbs 10x110 lbs 

Funny story about today's workout. I was sitting in the machine room, getting ready to do my second set of leg extensions and this old guy, who I'm assuming thought I couldn't hear him because I had head phones in, goes "ugh, I can't watch this happen anymore" and stomps out of the weight room. Considering we were the only two in there, I can only guess something about me grunting my way through a leg workout bugged him somehow. It kinda cracked me up! 

We had our 28 week appointment today, a week late-woops! Everything is going great, I guess I'm measuring 31 centimeters, my iron/sugar/whatever else they check levels are right where they should be and she said my weight gain is right where she likes to see it, so all around great appointment. 

We switched to a midwife after our first two appointments with this ridiculous nurse practitioner that was really pushy with unnecessary tests and medications. Vic and I have talked it over extensively (we're both planners and researchers) and we really want to try and have this experience be as natural and as in our control as possible. Now obviously, its having a baby and that naturally comes with a lot that we can't control. However, for all that I can call the shots on, I plan to. We found out early on that I tested as a carrier for cystic fibrosis. Our nurse practitioner was super pushy and refused to understand why we didn't want to have Vic tested to see if he was a carrier. At that point we were pretty far into the pregnancy and all that finding out if he was a carrier would have done is cause me a crazy amount of stress and anxiety. After the NP told Vic to get tested behind my back and just not tell me the results we switched providers. Every time we make a new appointment I have to have them reschedule providers because the Navy likes to ignore wishes, but I manage to get appointments with the lovely Mrs. Brown each time now. She's super legit, our appointments are about as quick and to the point as they can get and she doesn't make me feel like a nutball for having researched everything and having my own opinion on stuff. 

I recently read a pretty ridiculous article about working out while pregnant on bodybuilding.com that led to my double checking some stuff with her. I just wanted to make sure that I wouldn't cause any issues with doing my weighted squats and she basically said that the only way I could hurt the baby or the placenta at this point would be some severe trauma to the belly, she used a car crash as an example. So, we're all good! I'm telling you, this baby has made me stronger than ever so I would have been really disappointed if I couldn't continue with my plan. 

Well, there's my thursday wrap up! Today is my sister in law's birthday, so happy 24th birthday to Annichen! Wishing I could share a birthday cocktail with you right about now!

Bicep blasting Wednesday!!

CARDIO

35 Min on Elliptical, Aerobic Setting

Average Heart Rate: 140 bpm

Calories Burned: 403

WEIGHTS: Back and Biceps

Dumbbell Bicep Curl  

10x20 lbs 10x20 lbs 10x20 lbs 

Lat Pull Down 

8x80 lbs 9x80 lbs 8x80 lbs

Seated Row

 10x80 lbs 10x80 lbs 12x80 lbs

Bicep Cable Curl 

5x60 lbs 8x50 lbs 8x50 lbs

Underhand Pull Down 

8x80 lbs 5x80 lbs 9x70 lbs 

Single Arm Bent Dumbbell Row 

8x20 lbs 8x20 lbs 10x20 lbs

Best part about this workout? I was curling twenty pound dumbbells, for three sets of reps! I'm absolutely amazed that I managed to do that. A year ago if someone had handed me twenty pounds to curl with one arm I would have laughed at them. I used to be proud of the twelve pound dumbbells. Needless to say, that was a pretty big moment for me in the gym yesterday. I learned that I should not do those first though, by the time I had moved on to do lat pull downs I could barely move my arms and my forearms actually started to get a little numb and tingly, so now I know to maybe get some of the other big movements done first! Overall, great workout!