Donations, Consignment and Mom2Mom Sales

During my week off, I was able to spend some time looking at baby items.  I'm still not ready to have the items in my house, but was ready to learn about the things I will need.

On Monday, March 25th, 2013, I went to the Little Gems Consignment Shop with my friend, Kristy.  They had great items in there; it was a mix of new and used and every used item was clean.  I didn't buy anything because I still don't know what I need, but I will definitely be returning there after my shower for any other needs.

After that, we went to Babies R Us so Kristy could help me prepare for my registry.  After spending over an hour in there, I left with a list of about 50 items.  It was a huge relief and a BIG help.  I felt a lot better after going through the store with Kristy.  She's unbiased and provided me with a lot of insight and it was definitely not overwhelming like I thought it would be.  I am very thankful for that calming experience.

That week, I was also able to spend some time with my friends, Mara and Genie.  They also provided some insight with their experiences being new moms.  Mara said I can use her "breast friend pillow" when my time comes.

On Friday, we went to Sault Ste. Marie to visit family for the long weekend.  My in-laws gave us a generous gift that will be used for the nursery renovations.  My cousin Jeannette hooked us up LARGE.  She gave us the car seat, 2 adapters, bottle warmer, boomerang nursing pillow, bunting bag, Medela breast pump, 3 boxes of disposable nursing pads and a snuggly with the newborn insert.  This is just awesome considering how expensive these items are!

This past week, my friend Jen (she just had a sweet baby boy, Gavin Richard, on March 22) let me borrow her heart rate monitor and belly belt.  We've played with the monitor a few times and it's really exciting to hunt for the baby and then hear the rapid swooshing.  On the same day, I was able to pick up the vintage bassinet from a co-worker.  It's absolutely perfect and will look amazing in the nursery.  What's also special about the bassinet is that it has been used by many people at work and all the names of the babies are written in the base of the bassinet.

Of course my mom continues to purchase items for her house, but consistently offers them to us.  So we have a selection at my parents' house as well.  My mom is also letting us store the baby items at her house to help me keep my sanity.

This past weekend I went to the Mom2Mom sale at the WFCU.  Holy crazy moms in there.  It was a giant sale of mostly used items.  Again, I didn't buy anything because I don't know yet what I will need, but it was a good experience to just be there.  It was jam-packed and it was a good thing that Genie had the stroller as a buffer while perusing the isles.  I will be ready for the fall sale with a list and possibly football equipment on to make my way through the crowds.

It's really working out for me to not know the gender of this baby.  I would be buying way too many things at this point.  I think I can continue to hold out for a few more months.  In the future, I'll have to go back and read this post for strength.

Nursery Updates!

After flip-flopping with our decisions about the nursery renovations, we've decided to lay new laminate flooring.  Sanding and cleaning and sanding again to prep the floors for painting was too much work, as well as a painted floor requires maintenance.  Warren did some shopping around, and of course, Costco comes through with the best value for quality flooring.  I've been helping and it's pretty easy to install this flooring.  Warren does all of the cutting, but I help with some of the measurements and the layout of the pieces.  We absolutely love the result.  Warren is going to finish the last little bits today, then we can move on to painting and wallpapering.

Richard Fraser, from Fraser Hardwood Flooring, is doing our staircase.  He was here on Friday to fix the broken step.  He was able to salvage the original step, which I was very grateful for.  Not only is it a cheaper option, but we can maintain the classic characteristics of the old, original wood.  He should be able to sand and finish the steps to match our laminate stain in about two weeks.  I think the nursery should be done by the end of April!

Here are some before pics.... so you can see the original flooring, no baseboards or window trim, and the closet ready for wallpapering.  Enjoy the mint, high gloss walls.... it's a matter of time before they are gone!

My personal handyman.  He's pretty hot, too.

New flooring! Garden Select in Mocha Walnut from Costco.

Almost done!

Our Supervisor, Myles, who has a fear of the Dyson as well as any electrical tool.  He keeps a safe distance and bosses from the doorway.

I'll post more updates as soon as there are more drastic changes.

You don't have to love pregnancy, and that's ok.

Since I'm a little behind on blogging, there is a lot to talk about and I'll try my best to remember the details.  I've had some help from friends and Warren to be ok with not liking this whole pregnancy thing.  So I'll share what I've been feeling.

First of all, I'm ready for more activity.  I've decided that I lack the structure I had pre-pregnancy and really there's no excuse. Most people have the attitude, "Who cares; you're pregnant.  Love being lazy and eating what you want." What I want is to feel fit and active, not lazy and full. I've been following on Pinterest, youtube, facebook and Instagram different ladies who are so inspirational during pregnancy.  I've been having a tough time with the whole, "loss of control" and "body changes" and I've decided there's more I can do.  I ALWAYS feel great after a workout, so why can't get I get this feeling 5-7x's a week?
In my earlier blogs I was saying I was still active, but it's definitely been decreased lately.  I have not been doing much cardio for about a month now, but still seeing Joe for weight training.  So, I am making a pledge to go to the gym every weekday this week for cardio.  30min minimum on any machine.  I'm not going to set goals for intensity or pace; the goal is to just be there.
I also started Prenatal Yoga this week and I'm going to love it. The class only has 6 ladies and it's at Breathe Pilates in Walkerville.  It's for 6 weeks, and although the yoga so far is not as challenging as I've done, I need this more than anything to help with my quest for balance with change in my life.

I'm not getting all of the "beautiful" things that go with pregnancy.  My backne (back acne) is out of control and the medication is really not helping.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to go through painful laser hair removal again when I'm done having kids.  I'm hoping after pregnancy I'll return to my hair-free days once this baby's out, but I have no idea what's to come.  My boobs are huge for me (just found out I'm a D cup, no big deal) and I do not like them one bit.  It's funny how I've always said it would be great to move up a few cups, but I am looking forward to my mosquito bite-size boobs to return.  It won't be for a long time; I am fully aware of this.

My nails are not strong, my hair is not thicker, and I definitely do not have the "glow."  My acne is worse on my face than it's ever been and I'm pretty sure I have more wrinkles, despite my facial routine and skin care regimen.  I miss having a tan, so I started using some self tanner this week.  I can feel my legs rub together with every step, and I'm officially out of breath after two flights of stairs.  I'm full after half a dinner plate like I just ate Christmas dinner and two helpings of dessert. I'm almost 23 weeks and therefore in for another 4 months of discomfort.

Ok, there are some positives.  Some women love the feeling of their belly.  Now, it's definitely exciting to feel the baby having a dance party in there, but when your belly hangs over your pants when you sit down..... you know what I'm talking about.  Many people are kind and tell you daily that you look great, but it's hard to believe it when you feel so uncomfortable.  Hmmmm, another positive..... no period?

I was struggling with this guilt of not loving pregnancy, because I truly feel blessed to be able to carry a baby.  I was able to get pregnant 6 months post competition and have had really no issues with this pregnancy.  I'm going through the normal symptoms.  But this is me, and I do not have to like it.

20 Week Ultrasound Pics

On March 26th, 2013, we went for the final and most exciting ultrasound: The Anatomy Ultrasound.

It takes over an hour and the technician takes over 100 pictures.  It's amazing what they can read and see on the grey, fuzzy screen.  Some of the pictures include the ventricles in the brain, the kidneys, and they can even screen for a cleft lip or palette.

The technician was great.  Warren could not come in for the first 45minutes while she took all of the necessary photos, but then he was able to join us for "just looking" and it was amazing.

I had no idea how big the baby was, but she had the wand of the ultrasound all over my belly and a couple of times she had to find the heart beat and even that location changed.  Once it was in the upper right corner, then the lower left.  Apparently the baby still has lots of room to swim.

The technicians are not allowed to give much information, since it's the doctors that communicate the results, but she did say, "everything looks perfect" so I'm going to go with that statement as good news.

Warren was amazed by the whole thing and I'm so glad he was able to be a part of it.  He was going to skip a call-in anyway, but it didn't even happen.

I don't have any photo editing software to point to what's going on in the pictures, but I'll try my best to describe it.

PHOTO #1: It's a side profile of the head and the round bump in front of the mouth is a hand.

PHOTO #2: Another side profile shot (opposite the first picture), however in this one you can see a full arm and the hand is in front of the nose again.  The elbow and knee are close together.  The foot is in the top left corner.

PHOTO #3: The baby is kind of turning away from the camera so the curved line at the bottom of the picture is the spine, and on the left side you can see the leg bent at the knee.  The white dot in the middle left of the head is the ear.

I was also told that the thickness between the inside of my uterus and the skin on my belly is about 3.5cm so therefore we'll be able to feel a lot of movement from the outside.  The other good news is that I have a really long cervix, and that means I have decreased chances of having an incompetent cervix and therefore less chance of being on bedrest.  My placenta is at the back as well, so that is also great news.

We're pretty excited with this ultrasound. Next visit with the OB is April 18th.