Baby Update: 33wks

Wow! Only 7wks until the due date, 6wks until possible medical induction, & 4wks until we'd be considered full term! Umm, like 28days!! Wow!!!!

Today Elias is estimated to be a little over four pounds (hmm, the ultrasound, however, two weeks ago said pretty much four pounds... remember these numbers are just averages) or a PINEAPPLE's weight & is over 17inches long. Hard to imagine such a big baby in there, but he's just gonna get bigger! :)



Thoughts/Happenings:
** We ventured down to the Clearwater/Tampa Bay area for a shower Nick's mother hosted for us. It was incredible. We had an amazing turn-out & were so blessed with lots of goodies for Elias. Sturdy, functional stuff with lots of cute, "aww"-inspiring treats! Here's a picture of the whole group...


I snapped some picture of the items before attempting to organize them in the baby room...

{bathing/health related}

{feeding/nursing related}



{room related}

{and tons of cute clothes!! They're stacked up on the rocker!}
This was such a nice time & it was extremely emotional for me to see how special Elias already is to other people. I guess it's just touching to know that so many others are excited about this little guy!

** We had the mural painted on Thursday! Anna did an AMAZING job & we are so excited about how wonderful this little guy's room looks! She has also offered to come back & write a verse on the wall... we just have to pick out where it will go & the font we'd like. Here's what it looks like now:



He's got a turtle, froggie, & gator (which is named "Alligator-No") with palm trees, cat-tails, & grasses. We'll be putting up the baseboard soon (hopefully?) & covering a water-heater access panel behind the dresser. It's all coming together, but we still have some things to do, too! Kind of seems like time is flying now... ;)

** Had a doctor's appointment today. Nick couldn't make it since he started his new job yesterday, but I had questions for the doctor. Like how they estimate the weight if there's no more ultrasounds & such. He said he is not worried about Elias' weight & that he was in the 56th percentile two weeks ago. (They are only concerned if he's in the 10th or 90th percentile.) Also asked about how to contact him when we DO arrive @ the hospital & he gave me an authorization form for the nurses in triage to contact him. I scheduled all of our remaining appts until 39wks, too. If we want, he will induce @ 39wks... so we're looking at the latest date of August 25th or August 26th as the birth date. Overall it went great, except that I didn't even head into the little room until 1.25hrs AFTER my scheduled appt. But, I'm glad it was with my doctor & that I got to talk to him. Next appt will be in two weeks, then every other appt will be one week apart.

**

Cravings/Symptoms:
** Hmm, can you guess steak, milk, & ice cream? For all the meat I've craved, I sure haven't gotten that much! :) I'd love to go out for a steak this weekend for our anniversary, though!! (hmm, hint much?)

** I'm getting in the exhaustion stage. Like, not too much walking or bending or organizing will knock me out for a bit. :) Weird, but not too bad. I can still function & walk & work, so I'm great!!

Hope you all have a wonderful Tuesday!!

Free Chick-Fil-A! For a "Price"...

Check out this post: Free CFA when you dress up like a cow! on July 10th!

Gardening with Nick

Maybe I can have Nick "guest post" here about his gardening & outdoor pursuits, but for now... I'll show off some of his recent crops!

As I mentioned a few months ago, Nick created a couple of 4x4 raised beds. We went to Lowe's a bit late in the season & picked up some plants for the garden. We got tomatoes, cucumbers, asparagus, & peppers to add to the beans, watermelon, chilis, squash & zucchini already planted.

The yellow squash was SO cute & just when he thought it would be ready for picking... it was gone. We don't know what kind of animal the culprit is, but it's disappointing to see them gone. No zucchini or watermelon produced so far. The 'maters aren't too bad, but I don't think any are ready yet. The baby pepper was adorable & Nick's had a few cucumbers & banana peppers to eat.

BUT...

The weirdest thing was the asparagus. We know what asparagus looks like, but the plants were overtaking the garden & sure didn't look like the asparagus we were used to seeing. Last week, Nick picked some & they looked so weird... I had to take a picture!




Nick said they tasted like snap beans or some kind of beans... I think he said snap beans. I didn't try them. Daredevil I am not.

So, the next morning, he did a bit of google-ing online & came across info on this variation of asparagus. It's called Yardlong beans, AKA asparagus beans.

HERE's a link on wikipedia about these beans

Nick likes them & also found a recipe online to use them in. Kind of a stir fry in the skillet w/ rotel canned tomatoes & corn. I would actually try them...

Hope you have a wonderful Wednesday! I will be heading to class in the evening & have this weekend off from school... well, except for studying for a text next week... but off from clinicals! :)

Baby Update: 32wks

Wow! Crazy to have made it this far, huh!?

This week, Elias' size can be compared to a jicama (whatever that is?)...


The website says that he is approximately 16.75inches long & weighs 3.75lbs. Now, a week ago... he measured 5days ahead & 3lb15oz... so he may be even longer. It's hard to imagine a 17inch baby in my belly... but he sure does like to remind me he's there! He'll get to poking my far side & it's so funny to me!

Thoughts/Happenings...

** We worked our heineys off in the baby room on Friday. Thursday evening we went to the store to purchase the dresser & God worked it out to have no rain when we headed home (we drove through a crazy storm to the mall) AND the 25% discount was already applied w/out having to hassle w/ the coupon! We have some great neighbors & they came over & helped Nick move the furniture around a bit since it would have been much more difficult even w/out the weight-lifting restriction he's still on from his appendectomy. Friday morning, we woke up & got to setting up the dresser (removing from the box, checking all the drawers, putting the feet on, etc). I also went through the clothers we've accumulated through yard sales & hand-me-downs & purged some of the clothes. I have been told I really don't NEED 20 sleepers in each size! :) So, set up the stuff & got the baby room cleared & somewhat organized. I guess I'll still have to wash all the stuff, but for now... I wanted to make sure there was a place for each group of stuff! Oh, yes, we haven't purchased the hutch, yet, but plan to by the end of the year. Here's the dresser we got...


** We had our last birthing class last night. It went until 10:30pm (yes, w/ a 30+m drive home... we were dead tired last night!!), but it was so good! One of the girls brought a camera, so we're supposed to have pics emailed to us soon. I will post them once I get them. We learned about post-partum expectations, c-sections, & brea.stfeeding. We also practiced more laboring positions & found some we like & more that we didn't. I'm hoping it was because my belly was so tight & achy feeling & not because it really won't be helpful during labor! :)

** We have a baby shower in the Tampa Bay area this weekend... it'll probably be our last trip w/out a baby in our lives. Looking forward to heading down there as we haven't been since probably October or November of last year. Our school schedules on top of work schedules have made that pretty difficult... hoping the weather is good & looking forward to seeing everyone @ the shower, too! :)

Cravings/Symptoms...

** Some heartburn, exhaustion (or could that be because I worked a 40hr week & then had 2 days of clinicals @ the hospital on the holiday weekend? Hmm...), & swelling of my feetsies... had too much sodium last Thursday & woke up Friday morning w/ marshmellow feet! :)

** Not too much in cravings, although I did have a crazy craving for Honey Nut Cheeries last week! I had a bowl for cereal every day this weekend & even as a "meal replacement"... so good!

Hope you all have a wonderful Tuesday!

Baby Update: 31wks

Today marks 31wks of pregnancy! Can you believe it!? It sure is getting more & more real, but still unbelievable! :)

Little One is over 16inches long (WOW!) & weighs approximately 3.3lbs... or the weight of...


(four naval oranges)

Thoughts/Happenings:
** We got the stroller + carseat set this week! It was magically assembled by Daddy Nick & I love it. I pushed it around a bit to see if I could work it right, but it worked MUCH better after Nick unlocked the front wheels. I still ran into stuff, but I'm hoping most places will be a bit more spread out than our little house is! :)

** We saw Elias via 3D/4D ultrasound on Friday. It was wonderful. His little head was buried deep in my right side & his legs & curled up knees where tucked under my right ribs... poor guy doesn't know he's got a whole other half of the uterus to get comfy in! We went home w/ two DVDs, a CD of photos, & 10 or so pictures. I love them. :) My parents, g'parents, Nick's mom + nieces, & my sister-in-law made it!




** We had a doctor's appt today. This was the one where they scheduled another 2D ultrasound to review Elias' growth as I was measuring a teeny bit small two weeks ago at our 29wk appt. Our little guy is measuring 31w5d, so even a bit ahead of schedule! Which is awesome! They estimated his weight as 3lb15oz instead of the "average" 3lb5oz (like the oranges above), so a bit bigger. We'll take that! :) He is also head down & the doctor said that he will more than likely stay head down. He was very active during the u/s & for the appointment that followed! OH, he also has hair! We have a picture, so I will plan to scan it tonight to share tomorrow on the blog! :)

** Birthing class went well again. We watched a video about different coping techniques during labor & practiced more positions. Weird to think we only have 1 more class left!

** Since we have a couple of baby showers coming up soon, I am pretty sure I finalized up our registry & will not be peeking in the next couple of weeks! :) Got some super cute things in there that I'd love to have for the baby... cute AND functional. Or so I hear (functionality), like the swing & bumbo seat & baby wrap! :)

** We're hoping to head to the store & get the 25% discount on the dresser/changing table to complete the furniture in Elias' room. Then, we can finalize plans for the mural in his room, & really get his room ready. I'm SOOOOO ready for his room to be set!!

Cravings/Symptoms:
** Same ole, same ole cravings!

** I have an achy lower back during the night... I can still sleep, but it seems the only time my back hurts is when I'm laying down. I'm considering moving to the recliner in the future if it gets worse, but for now... it's fine!