Throwback Thursday

I know you've been waiting for it all day, but here's another look at my pregnancy e-journal.  And it won't be the last time I mention food...  Ha!

June 8^th

Went to lunch with my team at El Tequila.  Discovered the steak & cheese burrito – yum!!  Definitely will be going back again!

June 12^th

Our friends, Matt & Kat, invited us over to Matt’s parents’ ranch house for a pool party/World Cup party for Kat's 30th birthday.  USA tied England.  Kat gave me a bag full of useful pregnancy/baby items!  Tried to get some sun by the pool but it was cloudy most of the day.  Felt gross because my stomach was starting to show but it really just looked like I had a beer belly.  I didn’t look obviously pregnant, so I just felt kind of fat.  What's worse than not drinking beer?  Looking like you've been drinking beer - ha.

June 16^th

Forgot to take my belly picture on the 14^th, but remembered today before work.  Close enough!  Had lunch with Christine & Hagan.  He just slept through the whole thing – hopefully my nugget is a good sleeper!  She gave me a gift bag with a picture frame from her mom, chocolates, a white maternity top & super cute brown & orange earrings.  We talked about baby stuff – so glad I have her as a resource!

June 17^th

Bought Michael a book for Father’s Day – The Dudes Guide to Pregnancy.  It came in the mail & I gave it to him rather than waiting until Sunday.  He said it was a little corny, though.  Not sure if he’ll read it, but I tried!*

June 19^th

Went to see my parents to celebrate Father’s Day early.  We talked about baby stuff a lot during lunch (I’m sure my dad appreciated that on his Father’s Day lunch!)  I showed my mom my belly through my dress since I was showing a little.

June 20^th

Went on a walk with Sadie & it was already super HOT at 9:00 am.  I swear, my stomach grew a few inches during the walk & I felt like I was really showing.  Sure enough, when Michael saw me after the walk, he pointed it out.  We went to his parents’ house to have dinner.  His Granee said, “You’re showing!” as soon as I walked in the door.  It took me off guard (I was wearing a loose fitting tank top & didn’t think it was that noticeable).  I didn’t react very well, I think I made her feel awkward but I was just surprised that she noticed so quickly.  I just felt fat not pregnant.  This is all very weird to me.  Then Michael’s sister said the same thing as soon as she saw me.  I know that I’m supposed to get bigger, but I can’t help but want to fight it (or hide it).  I’ve never gained much weight in my life & am usually pretty good at reining it in if I get a little too relaxed with my eating or exercise habits.  This seems to be against my nature!  I don’t want to gain weight even though I know I have to.  I need to just stop fighting it & accept the journey.  Not sure how exactly to do that!

I remember those early days of "showing".  Having a belly didn't bother me as much later (although I did have one freak out session after seeing the scale one day).  But it was really hard at first.  I tried to disguise my belly until it was obvious I was pregnant.  Then I wore tighter fitting clothes.  Note to pregnant women - wearing loose fitting clothing makes you look bigger (at least by the time you really start showing).  You'll look better if you highlight that baby bump rather than wear a tent.  Especially if you're carrying the weight mostly in your belly.  Just my two cents...

This month's belly picture

*Michael did not read the book - I ended up donating it to our United Way book sale fundraiser.  I guess he survived without its knowledge though.  :)

Hump Day Humor

My friend Katie posted a hilarious forward on her blog the other day.  Last night, I read the jokes to Michael.  Most of these had me laughing out loud.  (A side note, I do not like the acronym LOL.  When I see it, I read it phonetically in my head - like rhymes with roll.  It bothers me.)  Anyway, I thought I'd have Michael rolling with laughter, too.  Check it out:

Dear Noah,
We could have sworn you said the ark wasn't leaving till 5.
Sincerely,
Unicorns

Dear Icebergs,
Sorry to hear about the global warming. Karma's a bitch.
Sincerely,
The Titanic

Dear America,
You produced Miley Cyrus. Bieber is your punishment
Sincerely,
Canada

Dear Yahoo,
I've never heard anyone say, "I don't know, let's Yahoo! It..." just saying...
Sincerely,
Google

Dear 2010,
So I hear the best rapper is white and the president is black? WTF happened?!
Sincerely,
1985

Dear Windshield Wipers,
Can't touch this.
Sincerely,
That Little Triangle

Dear Rose,
There was definitely room on that raft for the both of us.
Sincerely
Jack

Dear girls who have been dumped,
There are plenty of fish in the sea... Just kidding! They're all dead.
Sincerely,
BP

Dear Saturn,
I liked it, so I put a ring on it.
Sincerely,
God

Dear Nickleback,
That's enough.
Sincerely, The World

Dear Scissors,
I feel your pain.....no one wants to run with me either.
Sincerely, Sarah Palin

Dear Osama Bin Laden,
Marco
Sincerely, United States

Dear World of Warcraft
Thank you for ensuring my son's virginity.
Sincerely, Parents Everywhere

Dear Global Warming,
You're the best imaginary friend ever!
Sincerely, Al Gore

Dear Ugly People
You're welcome.
Sincerely, Alcohol

Dear Mr. Gump
WTF are you talking about? There's a little diagram on the lid that tells you EXACTLY what you're gonna get....
Sincerely, Jenny

Dear Katy Perry
I liked the kiss too.
Sincerely, Justin Beiber

Dear iPhone,
Please stop spellchecking all of my rude words into nice words. You piece of shut.
Sincerely,
Every iPhone User

Dear Dr. Phil,
Look man, there's only room for one fake doctor in this world and I was here first.
Sincerely,
Dr. Pepper

Super funny, don't you think?  Well, apparently not up Michael's alley.  I didn't get much of a reaction from him after the first few so I kept saying, "Isn't that funny??"  He was not impressed.  I forged on, thinking eventually he would get it.  Finally, I got a response:

Dear Stephanie,
Give it up.
Sincerely,
Your Husband

I think I found his joke funnier than he did.  I guess we just have a totally different sense of humor.  Like, mine is awesome & his sucks.  :)

Throwback Thursday

Here's another look back at my pregnancy days...

May 31^st – 12 weeks

No more hungover feeling or nausea.  Actually feeling pretty good except I still get worn out faster than usual.  So glad to be feeling normal again!

June 2^nd

Got massage at Clary Sage with Michael – fabulous!

June 3^rd

Went to Girl Talk at Cain’s Ballroom with Michael & Amanda.  Music was AWESOME!  The crowd was not.  It was all ages & it seemed the majority of the people were between 16-22.  And they could NOT hold their alcohol.  Girls were throwing up on the bathroom floor by 10:00 & someone threw up on the dance floor shortly after.  Some drunk girls walked in the puke on the dance floor, slipped & fell in it.  So gross.  They were so drunk they didn’t know what it was & they were flopping around in it.  Everyone was very shovey & kept knocking into me.  Then a fight between some meat head 18 year olds broke out right by us & one of the guys got thrown into me.  His elbow or something went right into my shoulder bone & it really hurt.  Michael got really upset & didn’t have as much fun after that.  He said “I think my nesting instinct kicked in or something.”  Ha!  I didn’t tell him that wasn’t the correct use of the term – I thought it was cute & funny.  Then a girl stomped on my foot because she was so plastered.  I yelled at her & she apologized but I had a huge bruise on the top of my foot for a week.  Those kids need to learn how to drink without being morons!  Of course, it didn’t help that I was stone cold sober (but Michael & Amanda were just as annoyed).  Overall, the music made it worth it & I danced my butt off!

At Cain's Ballroom for the Girl Talk show

Tantrum Trouble

You probably think this post is going to be about my child's temper tantrums.  No, not yet...  Luckily he's still a little young for full on tantrums.

No, this is about the tantrums of the other people in his house.  Yes, I'm referring to Michael & myself.  Having a baby can definitely push your buttons & this sometimes results in momentarily losing your patience.

Last week, we had a rough night with Alex.  As soon as we went to bed, he woke up & started crying.  Michael went to try to soothe him back to sleep.  Thirty minutes later, Michael came back into the room to head back to bed.  He turned on the monitor & heard Alex crying again already.  Michael was getting over a cold or bug & still didn't feel 100%, so he was tired & grumpy.  His response to Alex crying was to yell an obscene word very loudly in frustration.  I quickly took the monitor & told him to go back to bed.  I knew Michael had hit his limit & it would be best for us all if I took over.

A few days later, I was teasing Michael about his little outburst (I mean, thirty minutes of trying to get him back to sleep??  Try ALL NIGHT).  Then Michael reminded me of a recent meltdown that I had not too long ago.  To prove I'm a good sport, I'll tell you about my tantrum.

About a month ago, we started trying to get Alex to go to bed by 8 pm each evening.  For the first week or so, he thought it was more like naptime than bedtime & he'd wake up around 9 pm.  Finally, he started to get the memo & he would stay asleep until his next feeding.  I actually got to have an evening & relax!  A glass of wine, read, watch TV - it was nice!  One night I was looking forward to decompressing but Alex had other ideas.  He woke up around 9 pm & showed no signs of going back to sleep.  I was overtired & emotional.  Michael realized this & suggested that he take Alex & I go to bed.  My response?  I believe it went something like this.

"I don't WANT to go to bed.  I WANT to enjoy my evening & then go to bed at a normal time & then sleep all night like everybody else...  ACTUALLY, what I REALLY feel like doing is walking out the door & away from this life!!!"

Classic, right?  Had I thrown myself on the ground kicking, I could have easily been mistaken for a three year old.  Michael smartly kept his mouth shut & just quietly took Alex from my arms.  I proceeded to pout for about thirty minutes & then I went to bed.  The next morning I was feeling much more sane & Michael jokingly asked if I still felt like walking out the door.  I laughed at myself & told him I thought I'd stick around for a little longer.  :)

The lesson I've learned?  You're going to lose it sometimes & that's ok.  As long as you punch the couch & not your baby or your husband, don't feel too bad about those outbursts.  (Who would punch a couch, you say?  That's not important.  Couches are very resilient.)  Just let it out & laugh about it later.  You'll need that sense of humor once your child starts his own tantrum fest!

First Week at Daycare

Well, I guess Alex isn't miserable without me.  Dang it.  Ok, kidding.  Of course I'm glad he's doing well.

I think...  :)

Throwback Thursday

In this week's installment of my pregnancy e-journal, I finally get to tell the masses that I'm pregnant.  No more secret keeping - yay!

May 22^nd – 11 weeks

Went to a mommy-to-be brunch for Alisa.  They had mimosas but I just drank OJ *tear*.  Played a game called 20 Questions where everyone got a question that they had to read out loud & answer.  They related to being a mom (what’s your favorite thing about being a mom, etc).  Kind of frustrating for the non-moms but I guess there weren’t that many except for me.  Well, no one knew I’m a mom-to-be yet.  And I sure don’t have any helpful advice for Alisa!  My question was – How do you know you’ve succeeded as a mom?  This was not my favorite game.  I almost gave a funny, sarcastic answer but then decided to keep it short & sweet.  I said something like, “You love your baby & have the best intentions for her, so I’m pretty sure you’ve already succeeded.”  Everyone liked my answer & it was fun to hear some of the mom’s stories.  I had part of Alisa’s Christmas gift in my car (yes, I was giving her a Christmas gift in May - we're both notoriously late when giving each other Christmas & birthday gifts, it's become our thing - ha), so she came out with me when I left.  I decided to tell her our news.  I told her Annie was going to have a playmate in December.  She was very excited & we talked for awhile.  I’m glad I got to tell her in person.

May 24^th

Starting to feel better this week!  Michael & I went to Brandon & Christine’s house to see Hagan for the first time (he was one week old).  Christine’s parents were in town & we brought dinner for everyone.  While we were eating dinner, Michael told them we had a doctor appointment that Wednesday.  They figured out pretty quickly what that meant & were very excited for us.  I talked to Christine & her mom for quite awhile about the pregnancy.  And I got to hold Hagan who is quite the daredevil already.  He would lunge off you without any warning.  I kept thinking I was going to break him!

May 26^th

Told April at lunch that I was pregnant.  Then I told Teresa before going to my doctor appointment.  Michael didn’t go to this one.  They just did a regular ultrasound & the nugget was dancing around, moving his/her arms & legs like crazy.  I think it may have been the Coke I drank for lunch!  Weird!  Especially since I couldn’t feel it.  It looked less like a nugget & more like a baby (actually really like an Ewok) but the nickname stays.  The doctor said everything looked good & we may be able to determine the gender at the next appointment (in four weeks).  Got back to work & told my producers.  They were all excited & supportive.  Then I told my team.  It felt great to get this secret off my chest!!  Called our parents & told them everything looked good & they didn’t have to keep a secret anymore.  Hurray!

This is random, but I read a funny quote today by Ray Romano that I thought I'd share:

"Everyone should have kids. They're the greatest joy in the world. But they're also terrorists. You'll realize this as soon as they're born and they start using sleep deprivation to break you."

It made me laugh.  I know the feeling!!

Finally, Happy St. Patty's Day from Alex!  He made sure to put on his green this morning to avoid being pinched.  Don't think I didn't break the rules, though, and pinch those chubby little cheeks anyway!  :)

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin'

In order to cheer me up on my first full day back to work, Alex decided to give me the following gifts:

• He slept from about 8 pm to 5:30 am.  He usually wakes up once during that time to eat (and more often than that on a not-so-good night), but I guess he wanted me to have a good night's rest for my first full work day.
• I thought he may go back to sleep after eating at 5:30 but he was ready to play.  I didn't mind since it gave me time to hang out with him before work & I felt more rested than usual.  His second gift of the day was to roll over!  I put him on his back on his play mat, turned to grab something & when I turned back around, he was on his stomach.  The tricky trickster!  I seriously wasn't looking for about ten seconds.  But I turned him over & this time he showed me his new move.  Yay!  I knew he was getting close & I was worried he would do it for the first time at daycare.  I know I'll miss some of his firsts but at least not this one!

It was a good way to start a Monday!  But then...

In order to punish me for leaving him all day for the first time, Alex decided to keep me up pretty much all last night.  He didn't want to sleep unless I was holding him.  Any thoughts of putting him in his bed or in the swing were thwarted immediately.  Ok ok, I don't think he was actually punishing me.  The poor guy has been battling allergies or something & I don't think he was feeling well.  But it sure felt like punishment - ha.

I was able to catch a quick video of him rolling over this morning around 5:00 am.  It improved my mood slightly but not enough for me to forget I only got a few hours of sleep.  :)  I apologize for the poor lighting.  My eyes couldn't take the main living room light that early!

Here's hoping for a better night of sleep for all of us!

Three Months Old!

I can't believe my little man is already three months old!

He loves chewing on his hands

Oops, tipping over!

Blurry hand but a little smile

Just in the last week or so, he's made several new developments.

• He's given me a few actual baby giggles.  I about die of the cuteness!  I can't wait until he's giggling all the time.
• He rolled over from his back to his stomach on the bed in our guest bedroom (I was laying next to him, so he used the momentum from the soft bed being compressed).  Since then he's learned how to pull his hand from down beside his body to up under his shoulder when he's on his tummy & he's rolled from his stomach to his back on the bed (witnessed first by his daddy!)  He hasn't quite accomplished the feat on the floor yet, but he's definitely getting closer!
• He's starting to enjoy tummy time a little more & can last longer than five minutes without throwing a fit.

In other family member news, Sadie has decided his blanket is the perfect place to lay when Alex isn't using it.  :)

Throwback Thursday

Here are a few more days from my pregnancy e-journal.  The first trimester blahs are almost over, I promise!

May 15^th – 10 weeks

Went to a graduation party.  Was supposed to go to a birthday party in Broken Arrow that night but was worn out & decided not to go.  Was craving french onion dip, so Michael & I went to Reasors.  I ate a ridiculous amount but it was so good.  Started feeling even crappier later that night.  YUCK.  Seriously – someone invent that pod.  I’m ready.

May 16^th

Still feeling pretty bad.  Laid around all day & hoped it would pass.  Ate the rest of the french onion dip for breakfast (healthy!)  Then had some soup for a late lunch.  Starting throwing up mid-afternoon & didn’t stop the rest of the day.  Tried to eat some brown rice & oatmeal raisin cookies for dinner.  Tasted good & I thought I was ok but they eventually came up, too.  After that, nothing stayed down (not even a sip of Sprite or water).  Much movement would cause dry heaving.  YUCK.  I showered & washed my hair out of necessity & hopes of feeling good enough to go to work the next day but then I didn’t have the energy or stomach power to dry my hair.  This is EXTREMELY unusual for me!  My hair does not do well without a hair dryer.  Went to bed with it wet.  When I told Ashley later that’s how bad I was feeling, she said, “Wow, Michael probably should have taken you to the hospital.”  She’s known me since I was 12 & I don’t know if I’ve ever gone to bed with wet hair in the time I’ve known her.  She knew it was serious!

May 17^th

Wasn’t able to go to work.  Called my OBGYN’s office as soon as they opened.  My nurse was out for the day but another nurse called in a prescription for me.  I was able to eat a cracker & drink a sip of water as long as I stayed in bed & didn’t move.  I could do this about every 10-15 minutes & didn’t throw up.  I got up around 10:45 to go to Walgreens to pick up the prescription.  I was fighting the urge to puke the whole time.  I get to the drive through & they tell me they don’t have a prescription for me but it may be on the voicemail.  I went home & called the nurse.  She said she had just left the prescription on their voicemail about 15 minutes ago.  I waited a few minutes & went back to Walgreens.  The prescription was ready, thank goodness.  I sat in the parking lot & let one of the pills dissolve on my tongue.  I had to fight not to puke the whole time.  Then I went to McDonalds & picked up chicken nuggets (ha).  By the time I got home, I was able to eat & didn’t throw up or feel nauseous.  Hurray for the magic pills!  

Doesn't pregnancy sound like fun??  I shudder a little just remembering this time...  That trip to Walgreens (twice) was very miserable! 

Three Month Pictures

We had some three month pictures taken of Alex on Sunday.  You can check out a sneak peek on the photographer's blog.  Addie did a great job & I can't wait to see the rest!

Alex also wanted to give a shout out to his Mo today (Mo is Michael's mom).

The Day Has Come...

My maternity leave is officially over.  Only one thing could make me feel a little better today.

And I'll have a nice back-to-work present for myself by the end of the day.

I'm definitely more into shoes than purses but I've had my eye on this one for awhile & I found a good deal online.  I decided I deserved it after carrying most of my stuff in a diaper bag the last three months.  :)

At least I'm only working half days this week.  Next week is going to be REALLY hard.  I'm going to miss this sweet face!

Dance Party

Michael got a new receiver for our sound system a few weeks ago.  He also bought a bluetooth device, so he can stream music from his iPhone to our stereo.  He was messing around with it & I had Alex in his bouncy seat.  I started dancing in front of him & he started kicking his legs like he was dancing too.  We cranked up the music & had a dance party.  I caught a few videos of the fun.

I think he's got The Running Man down - ha!  Sorry for the odd angle & the shaky hand.  I was holding the camera out to the side, so he would look at me & not be distracted by the camera.  And yes, we were jamming to Big Pun's "Still Not a Player" on the first video but it was the edited version, so it's totally baby appropriate.  :)  By the way, please disregard my commentary - I hate hearing my recorded voice.

I look forward to when Alex is a little older & can really dance.  I always think it's so cute when little kids party down!

Throwback Thursday & A New 'Do

Here's my weekly post from my pregnancy chronicles...  Warning - morning sickness alert!

May 13^th (9 & a half weeks pregnant)

A big storm hit Tulsa late at night/early morning.  My sister’s school got the roof blown off it.  Lots of people were without power.  I went to work knowing the power might be out (our building ALWAYS seems to have power issues).  Not surprisingly, the power was out when I arrived.  PSO said they thought it would be on for our building around 10:00.  I went to breakfast at Panera with my co-worker April & almost told her about the pregnancy.  I was losing my willpower, but I kept my mouth shut.  The power was still out by noon & the company sent everyone home with instructions to keep checking voicemail for updates.  Kickball got canceled due to rain.  Michael & I went to Louie’s for dinner (Guinness for Michael *sigh*).  We had fried green beans & a margarita pizza.  Yum.  When I stood up at the restaurant, I felt really light-headed & dizzy.  It was so odd.  I continued to feel weird when we got home.  I needed to take a shower & wash my hair even though I was feeling so weird.  I started feeling nauseous in the shower (putting my head back to wash my hair made the dizziness worse but I kept going).  I thought, “I might throw up tonight.”  I was finishing up my shower & about to get out when it hit me.  I was definitely going to throw up & had seconds to react.  Not enough time to get to the toilet or a trashcan – it was coming NOW.  I tried to hold it in to give me enough time to get out, but no luck.  I ralphed up my entire dinner IN THE SHOWER.  Can’t even describe the grossness.  Poor Michael.  When I got out, I told him what had happened & he cleaned it up.  I know it wasn’t fun.  I was more upset about it happening in the shower than about throwing up.  While Michael was cleaning, I heard him say, "I love my mom."  I asked him about it later & he explained he realized how often his mom had to do stuff like that & how this was just the start having a kid.  It made him appreciate her.  It made me have anxiety because I know how much my mom did for me & I'm not sure I'll be able to live up to her or my mother-in-law (I'm just not good with the gross stuff).  They are amazing women!  Usually after puking, I feel better & hungry again.  Not this time.  I felt better than I had, but still light-headed & not hungry at all.  Don’t know if I’ll ever be able to eat fried green beans or Louie’s pizza again*.  I went to bed & hoped I felt better in the morning.

May 14^th

I still felt a little off, but better than yesterday.  I wasn’t dizzy or light-headed but wasn’t hungry either.  I ate a little & didn’t have any major nausea.  I had planned to take half the day off because the Maytag store was delivering our new washer & dryer (sometime between noon & five).  So, I went home & ate soup & took it easy.  Didn’t throw up again & felt ok (still crappy but that was normal for me now).  Took my first tummy picture with the intention to take one each month on the 14^th to track my growth.  Just pulled my shirt tight rather than lifting it up.

*FYI - I didn't eat Louie's fried green beans or pizza the rest of the pregnancy.  In fact, I just tried the fried green beans again a few weeks ago.  Not bad but I definitely don't like them as much as I used to!

 First belly picture

In other news, I got my hair done today.  My last appointment was right before Alex was born, so it was much needed!  My maternity leave ends tomorrow (boo), so I decided I needed a change...

And a change is what I got!  I think Alex would like it if he wasn't so interested in his feet.  :)

First Play Date

Alex & I went to visit my friend Alisa & her daughter Annie yesterday.  Annie is a little over eight months old & is such a cutie!  We had a great time & I think Alex has a little crush.  The car ride was mostly uneventful.  Alex played with his toy octopus, slept & only cried a little.  Here are some pictures of our fun day.  The first one is really a video because I didn't realize my camera was on video mode.  But it catches a great smile from Alex, so I couldn't resist posting it!

First time in a Bumbo seat

I think he's wondering why his house doesn't have so much fun stuff

Miss Annie

Checking each other out

Size comparison

 Annie's over it & on the move again

 BFFs already

 Alex realizing he has feet

Thanks, Alisa & Annie!!  We're looking forward to the next play date!