back to the drawing board

friday was not a good day - we went back to the doctor for a weight check and deck had lost 2 ounces since tuesday... i literally cried in the room after the nurse weighed him and felt like a complete failure... and to make matters worse, he hadn't pooped for 2 days either and the doctor said it was because he wasn't getting enough nourishment.... i can't even feed my own baby, how sad is that?!?! i really felt like he had been eating better and i was making more of an effort to watch him while he nursed, but i guess i wasn't... ugh, this is so frustrating! so the doctor said to start back with the formula again and bump it up to 1.5-2.0 ounces for the next few days and we'll have his weight checked again on tuesday morning... i'm terried that he'll gain and once i go back to just nursing - he'll lose again... :(

so we're back to the nursing, pumping, and supplementing schedule - thank god eric is still home and can help me because i'd be lost w/out him... he has been such a great help with feedings and is even getting up during the night to do the formula part (what a trooper!)... deck's latest thing is peeing on him when he's getting fed - have no idea how it's happening but i swear, it's like every time... pretty funny... :)

the weather has been so nice here in maryland - hard to believe thanksgiving is less than 2 weeks away... i took deck out in the bjorn earlier and liked it, though i had to make sure and walk slow so i wouldn't lose my balance and fall (since more weight is in the front)... then again, maybe i'm just being paranoid...

i finally put up deck's name/letters and some decals in the nursery today... i've already changed my mind about the one wall (with the dream & family words) and will put up his monthly photos instead... i think that would look nice and it will be cool to see how he changes each month, right before our eyes... :)

well, it's almost time for another feeding, then we're making pizza for dinner, and watching the steelers/patriots game... still hard to believe that around this time, 4 sundays ago, i was in labor and about to give birth to deck... damn time flies! :)

happy sunday...

talk about weird

things are moving along - the biggest weekend to-do item we crossed-off the list was installing the car seat (in my car)... no, we did not have it checked by anyone - eric is very handy/technical and i have every reason to believe the baby will be safe and sound... and according to the level on the side of the seat - it's perfect, so i'm not going to worry... we also washed/detailed both cars and as soon as the other base arrives, we'll install it in his mini cooper... :)

eric also put together the recliner and i'm very happy with it - the ottoman also rocks so it will be a nice addition to the nursery... right now, it's in the LR until we get the recliner (which is on back-order until weds)... :)

i managed to wash all the clothes that i've acquired via yard sales, thrift stores, friends, and family and let me just say - this kid has more clothes than both of us combined! my god! i've sorted the bigger clothes in a bin but he has enough 0-3 and 3-6 sizes to last a year, and i know he'll only wear this stuff for a few weeks before moving-up a size... the top drawer is socks, hats, newborn-sized onsies and gowns for sleeping (which have been recommended by many friends since it makes diaper changes easier in the middle of the night)... the next drawer is full of 0-3 onsies, tops, and pants... i had the bottom drawer full of the next size up, but may put all his blankets in there unless they look better on the shelf - haven't decided yet... i'm still working on the furniture arrangement, so once i figure out how everything is going to be situated - i will do my final organizing... nothing has been put on the walls yet, though the shelf is ready and i have the decals... all the bedding has been washed and is also ready to go - i just have a lot of little stuff to take care of and then i can rest... oh, and i need to finish packing my hospital bag... :)

food update: i made the turkey meatloaf on saturday and that has been frozen... yesterday, i made sauce so now i just have to assemble everything for the lasagna and freeze... eric made an awesome beer-can chicken last night, so that meat will be used for enchiladas and everything else will be made into stock (which will also be frozen)... thanks for all the suggestions too, they will come in very handy! :)

doctor update: i had my weekly check-up on thursday and i brought eric along so we could ask the doctor a few questions... after my exam - he said i was dialated about 1 cm, the head was down which he could feel, and he wouldn't be surprised if i went into labor before my scheduled induction (which will be around 38-weeks)... he also said that me and the baby were a perfect match size-wise, so lets just hope that means my labor will be easy (ha ha ha)... :)

workout update: i know i'm not doing as much as i should be, but i haven't been sleeping well so it's hard to workout when i feel like utter crap... i DID manage 30-minutes on the elliptical today and am going to take it one day at a time at this point... :)

happy monday...

at least the baby will have a place to sleep now

happy monday, especially to those in the DC area and if you're a redskins fan... what a great game last night! i was pretty much pacing back and forth during the last 5 minutes, but what an exciting and awesome game! and i'm also happy to report that the steelers won yesterday, so our household is 1/1 for now... i have made jokes that depending on what team wins each week, that is the outfit the baby will wear on sundays... :)

and speaking of baby - we finally finished putting together the furniture yesterday and overall, i'm pretty happy... there was only one piece that was damaged/cracked, but i was able to contact the company and order a replacement piece... hopefully, it will come sooner rather than later... norman has already slept in the crib and on the dresser by the window, but we have every intention on making it clear that it's no longer his room... the only other big thing we need to do is hang the new mini-blinds and curtain rods, but compared to the furniture - that will be easy... :)

we also found/bought a chair for the living room on saturday - after showing eric the two, oversized chairs i had looked at a few weeks ago, we sat down and discussed who/what the chair was really for... since we use the LR for pretty much everything (den, tv room, family room), he said that he would rather have a recliner so that's what we bought... it's actually pretty nice and it will go well w/my couch and chair... cost-wise - it was only a tad bit more than a chair and ottoman combined, so i think we did pretty good... :)

besides the chair and nursery, i did some quick shopping on saturday night and picked-up the end tables for the LR, but will have to go back for the sofa table since neither my friend or i could lift the box... and of course - the wicker storage bins that i also bought are on sale this week - wonder if they'd let me return them and buy them back... saturday night, we had a friend over and made grilled pizzas again - this time, we each made our own and they were awesome! yesterday, we had chili for the games and tonight - eric's making quiche... it's so nice to be cooking at home again... :)

well, that's all i have for now - hope you have a great day! ;)

at least the cats like it

sorry for the lack of posts - i've actually had 'work' to do here and we were away for the holiday weekend... we had a good visit with my sister and with eric's family in pittsburgh - his sister announced that she, too is expecting, but not until next may... though it's rather early, i guess they couldn't wait to share the good news with everyone esp. since all the siblings were together on sunday... the weather was downright chilly at night (low 50s) and i was loving it - i'm so done with this hot weather! i went for a walk outside yesterday and though it was only for 35-minutes, the heat and sun really did me in... :(

last thursday, we had the hospital tour after work and it was quite interesting... out of around 8 couples, only one was having a girl so i thought that was pretty funny... we were able to see the 3rd floor which is where the 'birthing rooms' are found... there's a bed, a couch/chair, bathroom w/shower, and all the necessary equipment for mommy & baby... the suites are on the 4th floor and again, the rooms are nothing fancy, but they are private at least and contain all the usual things... i can't say that we saw anything that was shocking, but when you're actually there and see nurses and doctors running around - it becomes more real that you're having a baby (surprising, right?)... maybe all expectant parents go thru this, but i found it rather eye-opening... ( o )( o )

in other baby news - i finished painting the stripes last week and after 3 rounds of touch-ups (because i'm a perfectionist), i called it a day... the windows and floors were cleaned on monday when we got back and the rug was delivered yesterday so that was put down last night... and even though i had cleaned the mini-blinds - eric found that one was broken so i'm just going to buy new ones... so now that the room is ready - we can begin assembling the furniture... yay! :)

hope you're having a good week and happy hump day! :)

up to my eyeballs

re: my previous post - i will be getting a glider for the nursery and am looking for an oversized-chair for the living room... since we'll only have a couch & chair - i feel we need one more piece of sitting furniture and loveseats just seem too big... then again - some of the chairs i looked at were almost as wide, so we'll see... i'm all about comfort and support and will make sure that is a priority for sure... :)

re: the nursery - the horizontal stripes were taped-off last night and a coat of each (green & brown) was completed... i already know that i'll have touch-ups to do, but am hoping they are minor and that the white stripe in the middle will need minimal fixing as well... i had a bit of a meltdown while doing the other trim (because of the pressure i put on myself and feeling overwhelmed) so eric stepped-in and finished for me... i'm still getting used too not being able to move around like i used too, so moving around on the floor is hard, if not just plain uncomfortable... i'm going to see if the white trim REALLY needs a 2nd coat tonight and then do the 2nd coat on the stripes... it would be SO great if all the painting was done by tomorrow because then i will have made at least part of my deadline... :)

re: iphone case - got it at the apple store (last year)...

part of the meltdown was a result of just getting back from visiting my friend in allentown - i had driven 3+ hours w/out stopping and then came home to a room that still needed a lot of work... feeling overwhelmed is totally self-imposed and i know that - even eric said, "if the little guy comes tomorrow, we'll be okay" and i know that too... it was just a combo of a lot of things and i just had to let loose...

my short weekend trip was good - this was the first time i had met the twins and they are quite the handful... she gave me 2 boxes of infant clothes, a bag of diapers, and 3 shopping bags full of maternity clothes... since it will be warm for another month or so, i think i'll be able to use most of them and then have minimal shopping to do towards the end... the babies were great, but between 3-hour feedings and changings - it felt like it would never end... she gave me lots of pointers/advice and am so lucky to have friends that are willing to share their own experiences... on saturday night, we had dinner w/another friend and then had some time to just hang-out and relax... my eating wasn't the best - yesterday, she had bought donuts and bagel-twists for her hubby and another guy who was working on the house... i will refrain from telling you how many of each i had, but for dinner last night - it was back to cereal so i think everything evened-out in the end... :)

here are some iphone pics of the boys, they are MUCH cuter in person... :)

happy monday...

progress

i FINALLY got the 1st coat of paint done in the nursery last night (with some much-needed assistance from the hubby)... only 1 more coat to go in blue, then it's time for horizontal stripes (green, white, and brown), and then trim... nothing major... who's idea what this again? oh, that's right - it was mine... even though i wish i could work on the room tonight - my fingers are crossed that i can find a nice, chocolate brown oversized chair while shopping with mom... painting will be continued tomorrow... :)

happy thursday..

hump day

i was all ready to start the non-stress test today at my OB appointment, but she said let's wait another week... not sure why, but i'm okay with that since i forgot a book and will need to lay still for 20-minutes... the baby got an 8/8 today and as for me - weight is good (though i'm up 2.6 since last week!), measurement is perfect, and blood pressure is normal... besides my allergies - i don't really have any complaints except for i now have ONE pair of capris that fit... since i am finally going to see my old roommate that had twins in may - i am hoping she will have some that i can have (why buy when you can borrow?)... i think i've gotten all the wear out of my 'normal/bigger' clothes and think it's time to just suck it up and accept that a stretch-panel can be my friend... here are my updated stats - i'm still holding at a good weight, but am expecting to gain more each week until i deliver this little guy (7 weeks to go!)... :)

• current weight: 195
• gained so far: 24.2 pounds
• how many weeks: 32

the nursery was finally cleared-out this past weekend, after the basement was reassembled and things were move downstairs... we also have an extra dresser in our bedroom which is making things tight for the time being, but it's nothing i can't handle... eric managed to get the ceiling painted on sunday and that's as far as we've gotten... monday we visited a daycare center and shopped at home depot, and last night - we ran to another home depot and then IKEA to find an area rug... no such luck, but it was swedish meatball night and we had dinner instead... i WILL be starting the walls tonight, come hell or high water! :)

work has been less-busy then i would like, but that just means september will be hectic and maybe that's a good thing so it will distract me from being pregnant (or make things worse, who knows)... my boss said that the designer who used to work here, is going to freelance for us while i'm on leave, so that makes me feel better... she just finished grad school and is looking for a job, so in the meantime - she can help us out... yay! :)

guess that's all the updating i have for today - hope you're having a good week!

happy wednesday...

2 is better than 1

might as well start-off with a confession - i had TWO donuts today... why? because they were there... i know things even-out in the long run and i've been to the gym twice this week (and will be going today), but still - i am struggling with eating enough of the good stuff... we've been doing green monsters in the morning, but i was feeling crappy, hot, and big last night so eric goes, "lets grab a gyro" on the way home... i didn't argue - the last thing i wanted to do was make dinner... then all i wanted to do was lay on the couch (even though i have a good excuse)... i hate complaining/whining/bitching, but some days are just - hard... :(

i've started contacting in-home daycares and that hasn't been going too well (shocking)... most places are full (MD has a law where you can only have 2 infants in your home under the age of 2) and/or tell me to call back in oct/nov to see if they have an opening... that just makes me uncomfortable... 1 woman wasn't sure if she could wait until january to fill the spot, but seemed very nice so we may go talk to her... and 1 place is literally 3 blocks from our house (in the same neighborhood) so we're going to check-out that place tomorrow night... that would be the most ideal situation because if eric had to go into work early - i could drop-off the baby, come home, and still walk to the metro to get to work... we'll see what happens - i still have about 8 people that i haven't heard from and who knows if i will if they don't have an opening... :(

lets see, what else has been going on... eric and i finally went to see 'inception' on saturday - it was really, really good and we both agreed that we need to see it again... so much going on, but also so very interesting... highly recommend it...

eric also made progress on his office in the basement and moved his desk/computer down there on sunday... there's still much to remove from the soon-to-be-nursery so i'm hoping we make more progress this week/weekend... i'm going to look at furniture tonight and then will make my decision - i like what i've found online, but just want to make sure i'm buying good quality...

i'm pretty sure that i mentioned having my couch & chair redone - the place that i had THOUGHT was going to do it, told me that he still had a job to finish-up, then would be going on vacation, and then still had some other jobs ahead of mine... i spoke w/him back in june and he never told me this, so i was pretty pissed... luckily though - i kept the info from another place that i had contacted and they was more than willing to take the job AND matched the estimate from the other place... we will be dropping everything off on saturday so bye-bye to our LR furniture... we will still have another couch, but i want to get rid of that and buy and oversized chair & ottoman, along with some tables... i'm tired of not having anything that matches (eric thinks otherwise, but he's a guy and could care less) and we need more storage/shelf space... so this has been my project this week - trying to find a nice sofa table and end tables that match... :)

that's about all the updates i have for now... i have my weekly OB check-up tomorrow and then my sonogram on friday... maybe i'll have a better pic to show you since their equipment is much better than my doctor's...

happy hump day...

yes, this is me

i know these photos aren't very flattering or show that much, but they are the most recent ones i have (this morning actually)... this is one of the dresses that i bought at kohls a few months back, before i was really showing - now, it's pretty obvious and i hope i can wear it a few more times before it gets too small (it's a size large)... my pantyhose, on the other hand, are definitely too small and aren't that comfortable - they may be coming-off later today... as for my weight - i forgot to do it this morning so i'll have to do it tomorrow instead - lets hope i didn't gain another magic 5-pounds... =)

since the bathroom demolition begins tomorrow - i was busy last night cleaning out the closet and trying to find a place for everything... we also have to put up the door to the basement (since that's where the kitties will be living during the day) and move some furniture in the LR... i also need to order the wall cabinet today and see if i can find anymore faucets that have the white, porcelain handles (that say hot and cold)... if any of you know a good website, please pass it along... =)

everyday when i get home, there's been a package for me... i ordered some new workout gear that will fit my ever-expanding belly and keep me motivated to workout (great sale at hanes.com)... i also got the nursery bedding which is just adorable - i will have some decisions to make about how to paint the walls since the blue in the bedding is almost the same as the blue i want for the bathroom... call me crazy, but i can't have the same color in 2 different rooms so i'm not sure what to do... i could always do brown on the bottom, but then it would be the same as our DR... ugh... any suggestions?

and on the food front - i've been doing pretty well i think... eric made beer can chicken last night and it came out fabulous (see below)! i also made smashed potatoes with that buttermilk dressing i made the other night and roasted veggies... talk about yummy! =)

happy hump day!

decisions

i have one more doctor appointment today and that's it for the week (annual physical)... hopefully my bloodwork results will look good and i'll get another "thumbs-up" for the year, minus the whole being pregnant thing... will have to ask what my weight was, should be interesting if not down right depressing... anyhoo...

i did NOT go to the gym yesterday - my quads are extremely sore from the workout on tuesday, but i will be going after my appointment today... may check and see if the gym has a class later, but a nice walk outside could be in order since it's gorgeous out there... doing well with food and have used 'lose it' every day this week... =)

i've been working on registry lists - more like putting items on there even though I need to go to an actual store and make sure I like what i've chosen (so hard to tell what the actual color is, ya know?)... since amazon.com seems to be much cheaper that target, i am doing both so that way - people will have options... i've also researched cribs, strollers, and pack-n-plays on consumer reports and that helped a lot in my decision... ironically, the crib and dresser that i liked was one of the highest rated so i'm happy with my decision - see below for what i've been looking at recently... =)

are any of you watching this season of next food network star? i forgot to set my DVR on sunday night, but was happy to see they replayed it last night ... aria seems to be kicking-ass so far and she's definitely got great presence on camera... who do you like so far?

happy thursday...

small world

as far as my diet goes, i'm not eating bad things (really)... and yes, we really indulged on vacation - bread, cheese, pate, dessert, soda - so i know some of that 10 pounds is from that... generally, i eat very well during the day - cottage cheese & fruit, salads, apple, etc. - but have been slacking on the exercise... that is being remedied and i'm going to start weighing myself once a week again (which i haven't been) so that will help keep me on track... our garden has been doing well with lettuce and soon the tomatoes and peppers will be coming-in too, and hopefully beans and peas... i'm not a huge sweets person (thank god) so there haven't been containers of ice cream or stashes of chocolate around the house... no strange/bad cravings yet, but maybe that will change - who knows... i appreciate the concern though! =)

this morning i had my monthly blood test and it came out fine... as i was sitting in the room, waiting for the results, in walks my old doctor whom i haven't seen in years... she mysteriously left my primary care's office a few years back and i never knew what happened - she said things were just getting weird/bad there and she decided to find something else... i really do miss her - she was the type that would sit and talk to you, for as long as you needed, and that was nice... my current doctor is good, but it's a man and it's just - well, different... anyway, i hope to see her next month when i go back...

i haven't really started on the nursery yet, but know that has to start sometime this summer... currently, eric uses it for his office and dressing area since there's no room in our bedroom for any more furniture (and the closets are tiny)... he still may have to share the room, but that's okay - it's not like i'm going to be hanging up baby clothes... i have been researching cribs/dressers and while i was on target.com - i found this utterly adorable bed set... it also has curtains, decals, a mobile, and wall art so it may be just what i'm looking for - cute, right? i can stick to a neutral wall and then use the other colors as accents - very exciting! i may order the bedding to see if it looks as good in person as it does online - i may hate it, who knows... =)

went to the gym last night after work (yay me) and did 45-minutes on the treadmill... i even did hills and felt pretty good... today is weights and speaking of, i need to find a new routine before i head down there...

happy tuesday...