the first trimester of pregnancy (tater tot style)

tater tot's 10 week ultrasound

So it's not really my style to keep secrets. I hate it. Let me re-phrase, I don't mind keeping other's secrets, I just don't have too many of my own. I'm a share-er. So the fact that we kept our pregnancy a matt-cora-me-and tater tot exclusive secret, I have some updating to do now...

Want to hear about the first 3 months of pregnancy, this second time around? I thought so!

Matt and I had finally just this January started talking about, hey we could probably have another child. Before that I wasn't ready physically...and we were adjusting to our new lives. I thought that perhaps getting pregnant may be hard again (it took us a year with Cora), and I wanted our babes to be about 2-3 yrs apart, so perhaps we should start thinking about it. Matt agreed- lets start getting pregnant after summer (ha.) And if we got pregnant now... it would be ok.

4 weeks(Feb 18th)
My initial symptoms? Flushed face. Weird right. Matt even commented- why is your neck all red?! I didn't know, so weird. I wasn't nervous or anything. Then I just missed my period by a day... so I took a test- negative. Still no period, some period-esq cramping and MAJOR grumpies towards matt. Oh man, I was awful and couldn't even help it. So 3 days later....took another preg test for the hell of it. Pregnant. CRAZY. I walked out to show Matt (and Cora)...we both smiled in disbelief. Seriously?! We didn't even try. This was too easy. No way. Seriously?!

We did the math super fast. I would be due in October. Cora and tater tot would be 18 months apart. WOW. That means a super prego- summer. I hadn't planned on that. We were going to be stress-free trying to get pregnant this summer, meanwhile camping the hell out of Idaho. Hmm. Interesting.

5,6 & 7 weeks
Still just fine. Minimal cramping...moderate grumpies...pretty exhausted. And just a tad bit of feeling uneasy, but not super nauseated. I just find that if I eat all the time, no empty stomach I feel better. (...yeah, I have no idea why I gained 50 lbs with my last pregnancy) But the first time I was much more nauseated, so I was pleasantly surprised.

We had our first prenatal appointment with our midwife at 7 weeks... she was ecstatic to see us. I think because we are easy patients- no questions, just happiness... pure joy.

8,9 & 10 weeks
Some nausea- uneasy days and days that kicked my butt, but mainly so incredibly exhausted. Last time during this stage I was able to loaf-around, sleep (when I wasn't in nursing school or working nights) but you know... not take care of a super mobile almost 1 yr old. So that's new. I constantly felt like I was so groggy ...like I just woke up from not enough sleep and needed a coffee badly...or that it has been the longest hang over of my life. All day, everyday. Didn't matter how much sleep I had. Night shifts- grueling. But I knew I would get my energy back in a month. It was short lived. And thankfully I had matt to let me sleep/take naps.

11 weeks
At 11 weeks we had our first ultrasound. We thought it was week 11, but turns out I was only 10 weeks along, so the due date was re-calculated to a November babe. We could have had an ultrasound earlier, but quite frankly I wanted to see a baby...not a comma or a gummy bear. I wanted to see our little tater tot. So I thought we could wait. Even though it killed me everyday- feeling like this whole pregnancy wasn't really real. For three reasons...#1 we didn't try #2 we didn't tell anyone to celebrate #3 all I had was some positive pee sticks. So an ultrasound could have helped, but we waited.

At the ultrasound we saw 2 arms, 2 legs...a beating heart and a sweet wiggly body with hiccups. The U/S tech said...oh wow... looks like you have an active baby. Ha! Well that will be brand new to us. Cora in utero was flopping all around, hiccups galore... and hasn't slowed down yet.

At 11 weeks all of our family came into town for Cora's birthday party. On friday morning we planned a breakfast for all to convene at. I put cora in her big sister shirt and put a zip up sweat shirt over it. When all were around matt took off her sweatshirt... the first to notice was my sister and matt's sister jenni. It was all so fast, but they basically said...umm...cora is not a big sister. Like I had accidentally bought the wrong shirt. But I don't buy shirts with words on them- its a pet peeve of mine. Anyways, I said...yes... she will be a big sister in November. They were all so excited and shocked. It was grand.

12 weeks
I feel great, my energy is mostly back, a little uneasy from time to time. But good. I almost forget that I'm pregnant chasing after Cora. Still some food aversions... but that's not hard to navigate. My waist line is increasing... I am feeling fat, but I have only gained a pound. But overall this pregnancy is much easier. Which makes me think it will be a boy. We shall see!

And just like that it seemed like the first trimester flew by. It was fun to have it be our little secret but difficult. For those 3 months we kept on secretly looking at cora and beaming that we will have a second one just as awesome, but totally a brand new human being. Pregnancy is exciting, I love it. And I love even more being done with the first trimester hang-over.

a spud birth story.

[just got the gown on at check in]

Read about part 1 of spud's birth story [here]. Hold on folks...this is a whopper of a post.

Here is part two... spud's birth story...only fitting to be posted on my very first mother's day. Happy mother's day to all of you out there! Being a mom is fantastically amazing...no small feat.

1am

We called the maternity center, and told them that I thought my water broke... they said come on in. So we gathered up our hospital bag....and headed out the door.

2am

After matt and I excitedly got into the car with my mild contractions, we realized just down the street that he didn't pack any pants for himself. Ha. So we turned around, it was rather funny... probably because my contractions were just about nothing at this point.So we get to the hospital at 2am.

They checked my cervix...I was only a 1. ONE?! wtf. I was a one the week before. So, they really didn't believe me that my water broke, and I was kind of doubting it too. They said they might not keep me... but they did an amnisure test, two of them to be exact, to see if I was leaking amniotic fluid. They were positive.... so I was guaranteed a baby in the next 24 hours. Yay! This was pretty exciting news. Holy shit we are having a baby today.

[pain is getting worse...]

[matt's excitement, hard to contain at this point]

3am

We waited for my midwife to come in... and maybe see if my labor would progress. I was 2 cm dilated, nothing big. But my contractions were picking up. I couldn't talk through them at this point. We were calling the grandparents... laughing... super excited.

We went over our birth plan with our midwife again...yes I wanted natural birth...no medications...peaceful delivery, healthy baby.

HA!

4am

This is probably when the excitement died...and gave way to extreme pain. Seriously the worst pain I have ever felt in my life. Like bone ripping apart pain. I couldn't stand nor walk- so those lamaze class prep for positions/walking/etc went straight out the window. I was okay in between the contractions, but they were coming on quick, on top of each other without much rest. I was shaking in between the contractions- which I thought may have been transitioning- no such luck. All I could do was sit, and listen to my dear husband tell me on the monitor when I was 1/2 way through each contraction and hand me ice water. He was fantastic.

[ oh, yes there was that pain]

7am

 I was still dilated to 2cm. I asked for the epidural. My midwife said.... how about you take a bath first. Had I not been contracting I would have thought this was hilarious. Sure, a bath will miraculously take away all my pain. But I was game. Let's do the bath, then the epidural.

8am

 I was 4 cm dilated. I got the epidural. Hell yeah. This epidural was fantastic. The IV start, lumbar poke- no biggie now. I had crazy mind blowing contractions that now were my basis for 10 out of 10 pain on the pain scale. Nothing else compares in life now. Birthing a human is painful. But an epidural was definitely the way to go for me. Fantastic. Natural childbirth. HA. I was so silly. My pain tolerance is not as high as I thought. Hats off to women who can endure without the epidural... or any childbirth. This is a challenging task.

9am

I kept on progressing....without pain now. Little spud's heart rate would decelerate, nurses would rush in....flip me to my other side...then tell me to rest.

The epidural was unbelievably amazing. All was good again in the world. The excitement came back. We laughed about how silly I was... it was grand. Matt got to have me, his wife, back again without intense pain. It was also surprising I could feel my legs, they were a little tingly...I could even move my legs and flip from side to side a little. But no contraction pain. I couldn't even feel the contractions- it felt a little like cheating at labor.

 

[oh the wonderful epidural]

[we were finally able to listen to music once the epidural kicked in...before that point it was too chaotic with the pain]

[external monitoring and bracelets galore]

12pm

They checked me again... I was now 6cm dilated. They don't do cervical checks as often once your water breaks for risk of infection etc. I was just to tell them when I thought I needed to take a dump....for it probably meant the baby was in the birthing canal. I asked the nurse anesthetist if he could please turn down the epidural. He did such a fantastic job, but I really felt like I was missing out. I wanted some of the pain back. I wanted to feel little spud moving about for just one more day....our last day. I loved being pregnant...I loved our bond. Anyways, he thought I was crazy, but he turned it down a bit.

2pm

I told the nurses that I was shaking a bit, uncontrollably. Now this was my transition. They checked and I was 9cm dilated!!!

3pm

A few minutes later I was complete- 10 cm dilated!! Everyone got in their places.... midwife, nurses, infant warmer, matt washed his hands (getting ready to touch our little baby). We were game. She turned off my epidural, and said that I should have a baby in about 5 minutes... she could see her little head. So I pushed. And pushed. And pushed some more.

4pm

Now this was more painful than my contractions pre-epidural. Holy shit. I could feel everything....and it wasn't just for 5 minutes. I had been pushing for an hour and a half now sans epidural. I was getting exhausted. I believe I might have asked for the vacuum to be used.... episiotomy- that sounded like a fabulous idea. Hell cut the baby out of me....c-section anyone?! My midwife said no to the vacuum, that at this point she would have taken the vacuum off.  Her little head was crowning...matt could see it... he was in disbelief. My midwife asked if I wanted to feel her head.... I said eww. no thanks.

4:49pm

I pushed with all of my might...and then I heard my midwife say...Lindsey use two hands!! What?! Lindsey use two hands!!!- and I looked down to see and I grabbed our little cora with my two hands and pulled her out of my body and onto my belly. Holy shit. This was unbelievable, is this even possible?? Did this just happen?? Matt was in awe.... I was blown away... this little human I pulled out of myself was ours! This was our cora.... all hot and red and beautiful and healthy.

Matt cut the cord... they checked her out. Super APGAR scores... Cora Elm was born at 4:49pm April 18th 2012. She was 7 pounds, 10 ounces, and 19" long.

 We tried to breastfeed right away and I thought we had a latch. I hemorrhaged a lot... got pitocin... hemorrhaged more. Whatevs. The fundal massages just about killed me though- where the nurses press on your uterus through your belly to get it to stop bleeding and cramp up. But it was all fine. I'm a mom!! Matt's a dad!! This is crazy.

 

12am

We made it to our postpartum room...very nice....but I just knew we had to go asap. We asked to leave 24 hours after delivery....which was their minimum length of stay possible. Sure, cora wasn't latching.... just had her frenulum cut (tongue tied)....she wouldn't stop crying...matt and I hadn't slept more than 1 hour in 48 hours. But we were done. We wanted to go home. We could be better parents in our own home, less stress. So we left the next day at 5pm as parents, with our little Cora in the back seat. What an unbelievable day.

a spud pre-birth story.

[oh geez I was huge... huge, 39 weeks pregnant.... and had no idea what we were in for]

So here is part one of Cora Elm's birth story...I wrote this part week by week so that I wouldn't forget. And now I need to work on part two- her actual birth. It's funny, I am forgetting already what labor felt like. I loved reading birth stories when I was pregnant and pre-pregnancy. So enjoy if you care for this type of thing...

[38 weeks]
This started off as the longest week ever. Seriously. Time just seemed to drag on. I was 38 weeks pregnant... still working fulltime, and going to school and I just had enough. I was starting to get uncomfortable. The only plus side to this long week is that I got a job offer... which I accepted! Wahoo!! I really will be a nurse!! So with that huge relief off my mind, I felt like I could now deliver a baby. Which....I didn't. I really thought I would deliver on the earlier side.

[39 weeks]
I went into my 39 week appointment. My midwife offered to check my progress, which I declined but she thought I was going into labor so she wanted to check just to be sure. My contractions started to change the night before. Instead of being a squeezing pressure... it was now uncomfortable. Not downright painful... but a little tricky to breathe. I also couldn't sleep- maybe it was the nerves, maybe it was the contractions. But I thought this was it!! It wasn't it. I was 1cm dilated.... thinned...and 0 station....for those of you who care :) So, it was good...she is definitely sitting low, which is why I am a chronic waddler... but a little disappointing, which is why I declined initially. There is no benefit to these checks early on- I will either clearly be going into labor and pop out a baby or I won't.

My blood pressures were high and my lack of sleep with increased discomfort...I was placed on maternity leave a week early. It was a little weird, I love work.... but I really wasn't feeling the 12 hour busy shifts. I needed a break.

I tried to fill my hours of waiting this week at home....I made a new shopping list template for winco, finished sewing a diaper changing pad, dyed some onesies and swaddle blanket, cleaned the house again, did spud's laundry, packed my hospital bag, sat in the sun, made a closet ladder... I know, my midwife told me to get rest, put my feet up... that's great if I want to last 2 more weeks, but I wanted that babe out now-ish.

Throughout the week I had intermittent hours of painful contractions...just hoping that they would ramp up and be unbearable. But no, they would subside to bearable contractions. I guess I had been having braxton hicks- but I didn't find that changing what I was doing would make them less intense. They were just milder, and sporadic. I considered this to be my pre-early labor. A practice round.

A coworker of mine, who was 3 weeks ahead of me in baby due dates said at her week 39.... I feel like I'm going to be eternally pregnant. Yup. Check. I feel the same way. Sometimes I would catch myself thinking... what if I never go into labor?! Like seriously think this. Yikes. Then I realized I indeed do have an induction date. This spud will come out by week 41.  (FYI, my coworker is not still pregnant...she has a beautiful healthy baby girl)


So... on Tuesday I was having serious menstrual-esq cramps. I realized it had been 10 months free of period pains, and how nice it has been. I thought nothing of the back pain and cramping and went to bed, motrin and wine free....which normally would have been my cramp-go-to pre-pregnancy. I woke up at midnight-wednesday morning with intense cramps. I tried to take a dump....eat... move around in bed. Nothing worked, I quietly climbed back into bed next to matt ...spud did a few cartwheel feeling like things in my belly....and GUSH. Yup. My water broke at 1 am. I almost started laughing out loud as I ran to the bathroom in this very wet state I was in. I ran back into the bedroom and told matt my water broke. It felt like christmas morning....no joke. He smiled, laughed...and got up running around like a chicken with his head cut off super excited...ready to do this. Finally...I'm in labor at 39 weeks and 5 days!! Let's do this.

our spud is born!

[welcome to the world cora elm]

She is beautiful and healthy....and all ours.

Cora was born on Wednesday April 18th 2012 at 4:49 pm.

She is 7 pounds 10 ounces and 19" tall.

She is perfect... We are in love.

I can't wait to tell you all about the whirlwind that our little 3 day old baby has created in our world. She is nothing like we expected...nor is parenthood... nor is the extreme almost unfathomable love and joy that she brings to our lives. These are the best days of our life, without question. Please bare with me as we attempt to leave survival mode, and come back to life.... blogging and all.

hospital bag -packed!

[an over-sized tote bag I whipped up...and the most adorable PJs with fold-over mittens that I seam-ripped off the "brother loves me" or something patch from carters...and don't be fooled by the colors or toy trucks....we are still having a girl]

I thought this was a little silly... why would you pre-pack a hospital bag? Laboring isn't really as quick as the movies show it...oh shit...my water broke and race to the hospital... I think most people have hours of laboring at home. But, then the closer I got I realized, wow...I should really pack a hospital bag. What if I didn't have my chapstick? Yoga pants after delivery?...would I have to resort to my butt hanging out the back of my gown? Yes, I needed to pack a bag, stat.

So after referring to a bunch of fellow bloggers lists out there... I compiled a list of what "necessities" I needed to have. There are a ton of over-packers in this world, I am not one of them...nor am I a minimalist. I like to go tent camping... with our truck....and wine...and nice cheeses and meats...and dog beds... and an air mattress. That's my style of camping, so I find this situation rather similar. Matt calls me moderately moderate about everything in life... usually with some type of frowny face. He is more on the extreme/excessive side of things...he likes to live large, which is something I love about him. Can you tell I am processing how our life of two-dom will be rapidly changing to a family of three soon?! Anyways, I digress.

I like lists... they make me happy... so here is mine...

Hospital Bag:

• camera- a point and shoot for matt to use...that does black and white for my unflattering labor pictures.
• music- our iphones with playlists and pandora and little speaker
• camera and iphone battery charger
• chap stick.... maybe two of them.
• my own disolveable zofran... can I take this while laboring? My least favorite thing in the world is vomiting. I will ask this of our midwife next appointment
• snacks- I get rather cranky without food...crackers, cheese, granola bars, peanut butter, veggies
• matt's swim trunks for the standing jacuzzi
• matt's change of clothes/ pajamas
• matt's toiletries
• after delivery lounge wear... fresh, clean yoga pants, tank top, sweat shirt
• flip flops
• travel sized: shampoo, conditioner, face soap, face and body lotion, tooth brush, tooth paste, deodorant
• makeup (the little makeup I do wear, I don't want to do without)
• hair dryer and curling rod (if I didn't have a short-styled hair cut, I could do without this stuff...but alas, I do. No ponytails for me)
• spud journal to write about our experiences that I don't want to forget
• one newborn pajama and one 0-3 pajama to go home in... extra snugly with fold over mittens and footies
• one blanket to swaddle/cover her on our way home
• infant nail clippers (this is silly, but the hospital can't cut your baby's nails, and I think it would drive me crazy...some of them are so very long! I don't want her to scratch herself)
• car seat safely installed in car
• box of candy for the nurses...maybe I like this sentiment because I will be a nurse soon? But screw it I like it, and I'm doing it.

Stuff I don't think I need:

• pads, underwear, my own hospital gown... this birthing process and recovery is bloody and gooey. I'd rather use their disposable gear or they-wash-it clothing
• diaper bag, lots of baby clothes, pacifiers, diapers...they supply all of this
• breast feeding pillow- I think I can manage without the boppy pillow. They have ample pillows to use and prop in any way imaginable.
• books, movies, magazines.... we have each other to be entertained, I think.

...Any suggestions/thoughts from moms out there?!

Of course I will re-visit this list after delivery for what we really needed... and how I shouldn't have been so silly.

just waiting...

Um. Pregnancy is crazy. No, I am done talking about swollen ankles (for now)...but this unknown of when it's all going down is craaaazy. When am I going to go into labor? Will my water break? When will the last contraction I have start a rapid fire of consistent contractions that puts me into labor? This is exciting!!

Part of me wants this babe out... like now. I am ready to see her, I am ready to be out of this bulky immobile body, I want our blissful summertime to be here with spud in our arms. I want to see matt learn how to change a diaper and hold his tiny daughter in his big arms. I want this all now. So I dream of stripping membranes and inductions. Seriously.

Then the other part of me wants to relish in this time and put the side effects of pregnancy aside....and just be utterly present. I want to focus on her little body tossing around in my belly for these last days, to relish in matt and I being a two-dom, and process what is about to happen to us and our life. I also really want that thrill of...oh crap...this could be it! Let's go to the hospital!! ...instead of a planned induction. I really do want to be patient, but it's tricky!

The unknown is crazy. Could it be tonight? Could it be exactly on our due date of April 20th?! Maybe I will just have to wait and be induced April 27th? So Matt and I are feeling this unknown...and anxious to finish our long list of spud-to-dos. None of it absolutely has to get done, but it would be nice to check some things off our list. Maybe help us sleep better at night. HA.

So, time is ticking. Just like before when I was thinking every single day...maybe now I could be pregnant... now I fill my head with oh.... maybe this could be the day I meet our sweet cora.

stretch marks and other third trimester fun.

[why not throw up a non-glamorous shot of pregnancy?!... curlers in the hair... painting my nails outside with the dogs... trying to get some spring-vit D-enriched-sunshine?!...it's me and the spud-belly in our final trimester together...thanks photographer matt]

Yup, I have the marks. I guess it's genetic... so I could use all the creams in the world (ok, I only used 3 of them religiously) and I would still get my destined stretch marks. I found these little squiggly red lines under my belly last week. I don't know why the ones on my hips don't phase me one bit...but on my belly?! Tiny bummer. I think my bikini days were over about 8 years ago....but I still like to do the float the river thing during summertime... and now I have lines that who knows how big they will get this month.

What other fun things can I reflect on this third trimester of pregnancy?!

• close to 50 lb weight gain. Yikes....right?! I'm still shocked by this number, so I don't weight myself at home any longer. Once a week at the OB appointment is plenty.
• swelling in my ankles that makes them feel like logs I voluntarily lug around.
• pregnant butt...thighs...arms...face. Yes a systemic pregnancy. It has engulfed my whole body, there is nothing localized about this.
• waking up every two hours to pee and potentially eat is a norm in our house
• my energy level has drastically plummeted from my 2nd trimester bliss. It feels a bit like the first trimester except sleep is impossible and no nausea.
• my pubic symphysis cartilage (that groin area...wiki says "symphysis pubis dysfunction") feels like it's majorly bruised/ripping apart... I think a nurse at work described it as though you crotched-a-bike. Yup. Check! I got the dysfunction...that will hopefully be uber-functional next month.

I'm not complaining about any of this, pregnancy is just a trip. I wouldn't change any of it for the world... I will actually miss it when it's over. I have loved this process of growing our little human and I hope I this won't be our only time. But for those of you trying to get pregnant or early pregnancy I think its nice to have a realistic idea of what can happen. I know I searched the internet like hell to find the pubis-dysfunction because no one really talks about it. When does "hey...so.. my groin feels like it's severely bruised!" come up in conversation? It doesn't. It's more fun to talk about meandering elbows and rhythmic hiccups in the belly. So here you have it!

[week 37]

I'm 37 weeks (ie. full term)! Feels like I've been pregnant for ever. You know, 10 months is a long time to wait for something. At our last OB appointment the midwife said...okay...we'll see you at your appointment next week if you haven't had your baby yet. Um. CRAZY! Matt and I are collecting our last minute questions and birth plan for next week's appointment. Matt has been awesome and has gone to all of the OB appointments with me...it has been fun and so surreal that it will be over soon.

Pregnancy is a trip....right?! I don't even remember looking like this 12 week photo anymore.
Oh, spud.

...so without further ado here is spud's progression from week 12 to 37 weeks.
Music is M.Ward's-Never Had Nobody Like You.



Want to see spud's first movie?!
[a spud movie]

Want to see my weekly posts about pregnancy and my thoughts/symptoms?!
[weeks]

lamaze!

Matt and I went to our first birthing class a few weeks ago... lamaze! Now, ideally I wanted to take a hypnobirthing class but it just didn't work in my schedule. We decided not to cry about it and instead take a lamaze class and supplement it with our hypnobirthing book.

Let me tell you...we learned a lot and maybe more importantly it was fun and encouraging! It was one night and one full day long. It also included a maternity center tour. The instructor was great and super positive. It's just what we needed. Lamaze as it turns out isn't really about breathing anymore. Crazy right?! It's more about positioning, massage (fantastic), and some breathing/relaxation. We learned about the other interventions that may go down....which is great for people to know what could happen. We don't all get to choose our birthing plans 100%, so that was a nice realistic side of a natural birthing class.

What we took away from the class:

- Matt needs to support me with ample amounts of massage....we learned techniques, just grand I tell you.
- I tried some new positions for comfort and helping spud progress in the birthing canal. So helpful! A bit of squatting, birthing ball use, and positioning using matt as support.
- We both understood a little more of what the interventions can be- episiotomy, amniotomy, pitocin, c-section, epidural....not presented in a scary way just potentially necessary, so it was great to get educated on it.
- We did an exercise where we had about 30 flashcards about a birthing plan. One side said something like "amniotomy" and the other said "let water break naturally"...or "midwife/ OB" or "vaginal/c-section." We had to place all the cards face up with what our ideal birthing plan was. Then we had to flip over 7 of them, because realistically everything won't go as planned. Matt and I then decided to pick up all the ones we just didn't really care about when it came right down to it. We were left with 3 face up: "Hospital birth, baby girl, healthy." Birthing plan complete.
- After the class Matt said...Ok, well I'm ready to have a baby! Sweet, me too. Now we just wait for spud to be ready.

(side note...why is blogger f-ing up my paragraph spacing?! I'm really trying hard to not be OCD about this, but come on blogger...anyone else having issues?)

music in-utero.

[precious picture from here]

Well... we have been a little cognisant of the fact that little spud hears a muffled version of everything that we hear. Do I want her to hear us potentially yelling? negative tones? ugly music? screaming? Probably not. I want her to hear her dad's voice and my laughter following it. I want her to feel my endorphins pulsating through her tiny little veins and arteries when I speak of her arrival and mention her name. I want her to hear the dogs breathing on my belly and trying to talk to us about wanting bones, car rides, and endless love. I want her to hear only the best of music to start her eclectic open-mindedness now, in utero. I want everything to be cheery in her warm little world. Why not? This world is great. We will make her world great.

I read somewhere about how fetuses start to gain a musical taste in utero. That she doesn't have to come out wanting to hear barney songs... she may want to listen to a little bob dylan and devotchka instead. That would be nice for us. Matt and I have always *loved* andrew bird music. He is fantastic. I made that little spud movie at week 16 to andrew bird's song "You Woke Me Up." We listen to him camping, on road trips, in the house, even walking down the aisle at our wedding (we asked him for a version of our favorite song of his without words... they sent it to us...it was sensational). Anyways, what prompted this post was his newest album that I just can't turn off nor turn down low. This will definitely be playing during my labor. I hope with as many hours as we spend listening to it that she comes into this world wanting andrew-bird-style lullabies. That and being soothed by matt's guitar playing. That would be blissful.

My questions for spudlet...

-Can she hear music when I wear headphones?!
-Can she hear both sides of the conversation on a cell phone?
...Probably not. I like to think she is my little ESP friend. Everything I think, she can feel. But I am sure this is not the case. I've just never had anyone living and thriving in my belly before. It's a pretty grand connection we have, even if she can't read my mind.

next month...

So... FYI...we are having a baby next month.

NEXT MONTH!!! Ahhh!!!

That's all.

Best news ever for this first week of March 2012 in our little house.

a little splurge here and there.

[my disappearing pink pedicured toes]

There are a few things during this pregnancy that I have splurged on and loved every second of it.

1. pedicures. Even when I could reach my feet (which I can't now) I justified that it was the perfect amount of pampering I needed. So once a month I get one. It's amazing. I love that time.

2. prenatal massages. I have had about 3 of them. I like them...I will probably get another. But I like really deep tissue massage- something they are hesitant to do on a pregnant lady. So I feel like they are not as satisfying as pre-pregnancy. However, my next one I will be trying is a hot stone massage... I can't wait. Regardless.... laying on your belly is amazing on their special beds. I feel like Cora has the most optimal blood flow possible. It's her time to really develop her little meninges. My hospital that I will be delivering at gives all new moms a *complementary* massage. Sure, I know I'm paying a few thousand for it in reality...but I am really looking forward to this massage. It will be well deserved.

3. eating. I eat a lot. I justified eating anything that would calm my stomach in the first trimester. And now...I just eat every 1-2 hours. Seriously. I try to get all my nutrients in, but I still eat unhealthy things too. I am trying not to be too hard on myself and enjoy the ride. Because if I eat, don't eat, or over eat I still feel bloated...so I eat!

4. buying a comfy couch. I have hated our couch for years. Really and truly hated it... I have no idea why we kept on getting uncomfortable couches. I hadn't realized that we could buy a comfy couch just like our parents have-where you sit in it and immediately feel cozy. Well we did it- we bought a cozy couch. I love it. We justified this purchase due to the countless hours I hope to be breastfeeding and sitting a lot on the couch with little Cora. It's microfiber, which is fine... not as good as leather for the dog hair or soon to be spit-ups. But it's warm and comforting and worth it. It even has a chaise part on it too that I love.

baby apps.

[my kick counter from BabyBump App]

Now that we are in the third trimester, our midwife asked that we keep count of the spud kicks. I am to choose a time each day that she is most active and record 10 kicks and see how long it takes. If it's fewer number of kicks or spud is just not very active in an hour I am supposed to go into the OB office immediately. Nerve wrecking right? This is serious stuff. Less activity could mean a low level of amniotic fluid, low blood flow, baby growth issues, stressful conditions for the babe, or still birth. Each baby has his/her own level of activity and awake and sleep periods... so it's not meant to freak us out just make us more aware. I think spud is most active in the morning, after I drink coffee or eat sugar (don't judge me! :) ), after I eat, drink cold water...and all of this has to happen when I am sitting and relatively still for awhile.

I have two baby apps that I like to use on my iphone and both are free (I'm pretty sure they are at least)!

[screen shot from babycenter app]

BabyCenter App:
I use this app just for fun. I think that site babycenter.com is the most helpful throughout trying to get pregnant and pregnancy, so the app is great too. It gives nice little updates day by day about what spud could be going through then weekly progress and utero pictures. The only downside is that I wish I could get a kick counter and be able to track my weight. But I love the community birth groups through babycenter.com. It's an awesome group of women who you know are going through the exact same thing week by week. It's fun.

[there is no coincidence that I chose a 6 week prego pic, as opposed to a 28 week face-shot]

BabyBump App:
I use this app to track my weight gain, do the kick counter, and see a different style of weekly in-utero photos of spud. I think this app has less information, but very helpful for documenting progress. You could also take weekly photos of yourself, which would be fun if I didn't have this blog. It also has a contraction counter which I am looking forward to using.

Do you like using any specific baby app? How about any mom apps you'd recommend?

birthing classes.

[here]

Now is the time for us to start thinking about attending birthing classes. Our options in our area include:

• Happiest Baby on the Block
• New babies are such a blessing, but they can also bring with them sleepless nights, crying, and sometimes quite a bit of extra stress. In our Happiest Baby class, new parents will learn step-by-step how to help their baby sleep better and how to soothe even the fussiest baby in minutes. Magic? A miracle? No, it's a reflex! Our class is based on the new approach to babies pioneered by Dr. Harvey Karp in his best selling book and DVD, Happiest Baby on the Block.
• Music Birth (super exciting but only offered once April 17th -3 days away from my due date)
• Appropriate music enhances pain management, relaxation, imagery, movement, breathing and bonding. Personalize your birth with playlists and an original lullaby for your baby. Learn how music blocks pain, improves heart rate and blood pressure, increases the production of bonding hormones and makes remembering comfort measures easier. This class is designed to help you experience less pain, a shorter labor and improved outcomes by combining proven techniques with music. Natural and medicated births can utilize the MUSIC BIRTH method.
• Hypnobirthing
• HypnoBirthing is a complete childbirth education program that teaches you how to work with your body during labor and birthing for a calmer, easier, more comfortable birth experience. Breathing, Imagery, Massage and Relaxation techniques to help eliminate the Fear-   Tension-Pain Syndrome. What to expect/what to do during the birthing process. Prenatal bonding techiques for you and your partner. How to partner with your care providers and discuss your options in birth so you feel empowered by the experience. Nutrition, stretching and preparation for a healthy birth . How to work with your body, your partner and your environment in order to achieve a calm, peaceful birth.
• Lamaze
• For first-time parents or those who have not previously attended childbirth classes. This is a condensed course designed to provide information on prenatal care, labor, and delivery.  Learn skills necessary to make the best choices for your birthing experience. 
• CPR for infants and children
• The class teaches the basics of CPR and airway management for infants and young children. A course completion card from the American Heart Association is available after the class. Because class size is limited, please call if you are unable to attend.
• Breast Feeding
• This single class offers breastfeeding information and support to assist expectant parents. Topics include physical and emotional preparation, getting started, common problems and solutions, family adjustments, nutrition, and group questions and answers.
• Natural Childbirth
• By using a combination of techniques, this class assists couples in experiencing childbirth without the need for pain medication. Topics include creating an ideal setting in the hospital environment, activities and positions that allow free and comfortable movement through labor, comfort measures such as massage and acupressure techniques, and relaxation methods such as visualization and guided imagery.
• Child Birth Preparation
• These classes prepare mother and her support companion to become more physically, mentally, and emotionally ready for labor, birth, and postpartum. A variety of coaching, breathing, and relaxation techniques are demonstrated and practiced during class. Instruction covers the process of birth, pain management of labor, decision making, and the transition to parenthood.
• carseat checks
• hospital tour
  

Which do we choose? How do we make the time for the classes? Did you take any classes that were successful and worth your time that you couldn't get from reading a book?

a spud name.

Our little spud will be named Cora Elm. 

We decided on the name Cora before we were even definitive about when to have a baby. Something about it is so sweet, quite unique, and an old soul name that's simply beautiful. The name dates back to 1850 in my family, but never again resurfaced... until now. We also decided that our children (if that is 1, 2, or 3) will all have earthy but not too hippy middle names. Middle names are not real big in our families, so we thought we could have fun with it and she probably will never even use it. So, elm it is. Strong and beautiful like the tree, our little girl. We kind of like it all lowercase though...a touch more girly. We also had a heck of a time trying to match a name to our last name. We are quite pleased with the result.

As you can see I doodle her name everywhere just like a 5th grader.

 It makes me happy.

She is very much a Cora to us, already.

DIY scratch-off gender reveal cards

Our little spud is a GIRL! 

I knew we wanted to surprise our families with the big news of spud being a boy or girl. They all live in different states, so unfortunately we couldn't tell them in person. We already announced our pregnancy to them over the phone, but we wanted this to be fun and special. So this is our version of a "gender reveal party." I got the idea from here on pinterest on how to do the DIY scratch off card just like a lottery ticket. After reading the comments it sounded like it was a big fail. So with research I found this technique. And it worked beautifully! We thought this would be perfect. Our moms would probably be the first to open the mail, but we didn't want them to read it without our dads there. So the scratch-part made them wait to be there all together for the fun news.

Oh and before hand we knew we couldn't tell them all when the date of the 20 week ultrasound appointment was, otherwise we'd get bombarded with phone calls and rightly so! So we told them the appointment was a week later than it was scheduled to give us time to have the cards mailed to them. (Sorry you guys!) It was torture finding out and not calling them, let me tell you.

Matt and I also crafted these cards ahead of time over thanksgiving, planned it all out, pre-addressed the envelopes, made the card layout on our computer, bought the supplies, and did a little craft-dry-run for fun. We left the boy/girl portion blank until we knew, then we hit print as soon as we found out! We stuck on the contact paper scratchy and sent it off in the mail that day. Also, for fun we attached an idaho quarter to the cards, as their "lucky coin." It was soo exciting, but a touch anti-climatic at the same time.

But yes, the excited phone calls we got this past weekend were fantastic. It was completely worth the wait. Our loved ones agreed too. No tone of resentment at all. They thought it was totally our style and had no idea it was coming. Super fun. Yay Girl Spud!

Supplies to make a DIY scratch-off card:

• metallic acrylic paint (we chose silver)
• dish soap
• clear contact paper
• paint brush
• cardstock
• paper punch

Mix one part dishsoap, two parts metallic paint. Apply one coat of paint/soap to contact paper let it dry and apply another coat. Let dry. Punch out contact paper the size of your scratch area with a scallop paper punch. Apply contact paper scallop over to-be-hidden words. Ta-dah! Scratch-off cards!

[paint I chose to use that I found at michaels]

 [I found that I had to tape down the contact paper sheets so that they wouldn't roll up as I painted. So I just taped them to a thick chipboard, it worked really well]

 [first coat of paint]

 [I used a scrap of contact paper to seal off my soap/paint while I waited in between the two coats...I think I will use this trick in the future to keep paint from drying out]

[I was worried that the metal punch would scrape off the silver paint...but it didn't surprisingly. They were just cute little scalloped circle stickers ready to use]

 [all of the cards cut up, ready to be sewn, kraft paper obviously]

[I sewed the pieces of card stock together... because that's just what I do... wedding invites, thank you cards... anything really I can fit under the sewing foot]

[I had a few paper-source calendar months in the perfect turquoise, so I used that as our background for the cards, some nice up-cycling going on here]

[finished card with spud U/S picture and our lucky Idaho quarter attached... and tah-dah gender reveal cards done!]