Third Trimester Feelings About Pregnancy

Although I am writing this post retrospectively, I think that has given me the advantage to reflect on how the last 12 weeks have been.  This whole pregnancy has been a wild ride of body transformations and emotions.  I know initially I did not like being pregnant.  Then, as second trimester passes along, you grow a cute belly and can feel lots of fun movement.  When third trimester arrives, you know the REAL countdown is on.

During the third trimester, I did not have significant weight gain (much to my surprise) and my emotions mellowed a bit.  I think it is at this stage when the excitement grows exponentially.  You can feel so much movement, you can identify body parts of the baby, you look super pregnant, therefore receive a ton of compliments, and you love the baby stuff so much more.  Well, this is my perspective anyway.  I'm sure there are lots of ladies who were ecstatic and looking at baby outfits when the preggo test was positive.  For me, it took a while to get excited about these things.

I find myself rubbing my belly and swaying side to side... things I thought I would NEVER do.  I have mastered to not waddle though; there is nothing attractive about that gait pattern.  I still believe that pregnancy is not an excuse to not be able to do things.  I was still helping lifting patients up until the end and still seeing my personal trainer until one week ago.  I still climb the 3 flights of stairs to my OB's office because the elevators are not at all in a convenient location and I'm fine doing all of this.  I have said over and over though, that I have been very fortunate with this pregnancy. I have not really had any major symptoms: no heart burn, no vericose veins (therefore not wearing compression stockings!), no stretch marks, no constipation, fleeting back pain, sleeping well, eating well, no swelling, etc.  I hope all of my pregnancies are like this.

Hopefully a great pregnancy is a sign of a good delivery and a sign of a fast recovery!  A girl can only hope!

My Baby Shower!

On July 7th, 2013, my mom hosted my baby shower and the theme was "The Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle.  Being a Grade One teacher, she was so excited to have every last detail reflect the writings and art of Eric Carle. Of course, Pinterest was a great inspiration for many of these cute ideas.

As you can see from the photos below, the sandwich and the dessert were made to look like a caterpillar and then every other thing to eat had some reflection of parts of the book.

The catering was done by Adelina's Cuisine here in Windsor, and she is HIGHLY recommended.  The displays were outstanding.  The thank you gift was a box of cookies; each cookie was a character from the story and the icing looked just like the watercolor paintings in the books.  Big thanks to my mom's neighbour Lynn for her outstanding talent.

The shower was a "come and go" style, however, I spent so much time socializing in the beginning that I ended up opening my gifts in front of everyone.  Now that was a bit overwhelming.  It's like all of a sudden.... BAM... you figure out this baby is coming and your life is changing forever.  Of course, I loved every single outfit, book, toy, bottle, etc., but it just becomes so surreal.  I was deeply touched by the generosity of family and friends and I can't wait to share the baby with everyone.  

My sister took many photos with her awesome camera and when she edits them, she'll send some to me so I can post them here.  It was a beautiful day and everything turned out perfectly.

A big thanks goes out to my mom for planning and organizing the whole thing, just a week after she was done school.  I know how much hard work went into planning this event.  She also gave me a ton of gifts, with the most heartfelt one of all being the outfit that I wore home from the hospital. Not a dry eye in the backyard.  Thanks, Mom.  I love you so much.