I could go on and on about how much I love this age. This 2-2.5 age so far has, while living up to its reputation of toddler craziness, been my favorite. Zadie is hilarious and says and does the funniest new things all the time. It's amazing how quickly she's turning into a little person, becoming easier and easier every day to converse with and (sometimes) reason with. Some things about Zadie now and a few of my favorite Zadie-isms...
She believes that band-aids can cover a multitude of offenses...emotional, physical, bleeding, non-bleeding, etc. She is quick to show me that she has a "boo-boo" and needs a band aid as well as to point out my tiny injuries and suggest that I too get a Frozen band aid. The other day, she was revisiting some of her "boo-boo's" and noticed that she had an Elsa band aid and an Olaf band aid. She hurriedly found another boo-boo because she didn't have an Anna band aid.
She's really into turns and being "next". Whenever I go to the bathroom, she comes in to either announce "it's my turn!!!!" or "I'll be next". I'm not sure how she decides whether I'm cutting in line or rightfully taking my turn. Of course, she doesn't have to actually go. She only wants to boss me around. Speaking of the potty, her potty-training was unbelievably easy. We had talked about the potty, and for a long time, she's been telling me when she's going but that she wants to go in her diaper. On September 1st, she saw some princess panties. She said she wanted to wear princess panties and I told her that she was welcome to, but that she'd have to use the potty if she was going to wear princess panties. So she put them on and hasn't had an accident since. I debated whether or not to be bold enough to send her to school the next day in panties or run errands, but she never looked back. Girl loves her princesses.
We went to Disney on Ice recently and Zadie's life was made. She LOVED seeing Minnie, Mickey, and "alllllll da princesses". Before we went, she said she was most excited about seeing Cinderella and Baby Cinderella. Not sure where that came from. She's still asking me when we are going to see all the princesses again. She's also learned through this, that she lives in "Char-wit" and has to wait for the princesses to come back to "Char-wit".
We watch a lot of "Fwozen", sings the songs, and apparently thinks that she sings quite well because she told me today not to sing Let it Go because SHE was singing. We also watch a lot of Mickey Mouse and she knows all those songs and characters too. She kills me when she calls each character out in the intro song. She's been successfully marketed to by yo-kids and asks specifically for "Elsa yogurt" as opposed to the yogurts without pictures on them (hey Costco).
She is into counting, "pwaying sapes" (shapes), and colors. She skips 4 though, almost always, and told me that I could NOT help her count. "I do myself" is another of her favorite phrases. She does really well with her shapes, and even knows pentagon and octagon ("pent-a-don" and "ot-a-don"). She does NOT think that I know my shapes, and likes to ask me what they are.
She's in ballet and LOVES it. She loves her outfit and her teacher. I can't watch class, but she tells me that she dances on her tippy toes (big hit) and that she skips (sorta, maybe...). I think she really likes that there's lots of big girls in there.
She's excited about her baby brother or sister and tells me that it's a baby sister. We shall see! She thinks that the nursery is specifically for her to take care of her babies and the carseat is her favorite. She also likes to point out the baby moving in my belly.
A favorite car game right now is asking what you are. We'll say "are you a cow?" and she'll say "no! I'm not a cow! Are you a....". Zadie's animals that she asks about are super random. Goat, octopus...what??? Other than that little game, she's a tough rider. She throws things and then cries that she can't reach it.
So those are a few things about my girl now. She's my little busy buddy and I'm loving spending time with her in our last few weeks alone. I can't wait to see her bond with her new baby brother or sister :)
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Friday, April 17, 2015
22 Months
Zadie is 22 months old...what?? I tell myself I'll never forget the little things she does and says, but I know I will. She runs everywhere she goes. She tries to "jump"..bending her knees and saying "bun...doo...free!" and then with everything in her, she tries to leap up, but can't even get her feet off the ground (yet). She talks all. the. time. A lot of it, I can't understand, but she's so chatty nonetheless. She LOVES applesauce (ass-auce) and is constantly asking for a "sack. ass-sauce." She loves Mickey Mouse ("mouse") and recently Elmo. She likes to tell me that I'm "all done" with what I'm watching and it's time for Sesame Street by saying "all done! Elmo!" and grabs the remote. She's so sweet and loves to share and to help, especially helping me clean, vacuuming and sweeping specifically. She's really interested in her cats and likes to ask where each of them are. Tabs, Navi, and Mini are "Taz, Nami, and Meeeee". Also of note, she knows that Tabs is a cat, but she thinks that tigers are "Taz"'s. An ego boost for tabs I guess. At bedtime she gets only child syndrome BAD. She asks for hugs, squeezes, and kisses from me and Sean multiple times. It goes something like this: "mommy tiss, daddy SEEZE, mommy tug!, daddy tiss!, mommy tug! daddy SEEZE!" and goes on like that. It's sweet, so we indulge her. Girl LOVES an Easter Egg hunt and assumed after our first hunt of the season that we do it every day now. She also loves her baby and coloring. She's also a little sassy, if you define "a little sassy" as laying down- flailing back- screaming and yelling, kicking your feet over say- not being able to rip the toilet paper "paypa".
Some of my favorite Zadie-isms:
Water = Wasin
All birds = ducks...just recently we've added "gooooooooose", bats, and birds. A month ago, even an ostrich was a "guck" who says "cack cack!!"
Small 4 legged animals including squirrels and pigs = doggies...this is funny because Zadie loves animals and can identify most by pointing to what I ask for, but in public, they're doggies
Large 4-legged animals are "moos", unless it's a "gee-ga" (Zebra) or a horse. A month ago, horses were also "moos". Audrey has corrected her a number of times with "Zadie! I already told you! That's a horse!!!"
What is she up to? What is our schedule like? Well we didn't observe daylight savings, so we went from a 7-7 schedule to an 8-8. She naps 1-4. That transition was HARD. She didn't totally drop 2 naps until 18 months. She dropped it every other day from 15-18. She goes to school 9-1 on Tuesday and Thursday and loves it. She really likes art and they do a lot of that! She swims on Wednesdays and is doing great. She finishes "transitional tot" this week and I am totally out of the water. She dives (her party trick), jumps, and makes some forward progression. I've been a proud mom. It was tough for her to get used to being without me in the water, but I think we've made it. This summer she's taking a break and going to 2 3-day camps at her school. My hope is that that will keep her from being too surprised when she goes back in the fall. We're planning to fill our days with the pool, Carowinds, nature preserve activities, and maybe some gym or art classes. Love this age with my girl- trying to enjoy each day with her, I know it won't last long!
Some of my favorite Zadie-isms:
Water = Wasin
All birds = ducks...just recently we've added "gooooooooose", bats, and birds. A month ago, even an ostrich was a "guck" who says "cack cack!!"
Small 4 legged animals including squirrels and pigs = doggies...this is funny because Zadie loves animals and can identify most by pointing to what I ask for, but in public, they're doggies
Large 4-legged animals are "moos", unless it's a "gee-ga" (Zebra) or a horse. A month ago, horses were also "moos". Audrey has corrected her a number of times with "Zadie! I already told you! That's a horse!!!"
What is she up to? What is our schedule like? Well we didn't observe daylight savings, so we went from a 7-7 schedule to an 8-8. She naps 1-4. That transition was HARD. She didn't totally drop 2 naps until 18 months. She dropped it every other day from 15-18. She goes to school 9-1 on Tuesday and Thursday and loves it. She really likes art and they do a lot of that! She swims on Wednesdays and is doing great. She finishes "transitional tot" this week and I am totally out of the water. She dives (her party trick), jumps, and makes some forward progression. I've been a proud mom. It was tough for her to get used to being without me in the water, but I think we've made it. This summer she's taking a break and going to 2 3-day camps at her school. My hope is that that will keep her from being too surprised when she goes back in the fall. We're planning to fill our days with the pool, Carowinds, nature preserve activities, and maybe some gym or art classes. Love this age with my girl- trying to enjoy each day with her, I know it won't last long!
Monday, February 3, 2014
Trying
In these early days of parenting, I have found so much truth in the colloquialism that experienced parents tend to share with new parents, that parenting is the hardest and most rewarding job in the world.
As a new mother of a baby who's only (almost) 7 months old, I know that we have a long way to go, and already, amidst the commonplace difficulties of losing sleep, money, time, and flexibility, it's just so worth it. Even the trying days have left me excited to see her again in the morning (or later that night, although obviously that's less exciting). And while I had anticipated those things, it's the balancing that I have found difficult and (I think) that even if more seasoned parents wouldn't readily have cited the difficulty of balance as a motivator for the aforementioned colloquialism, that surely at least on some level, it is.
The physical strain, emotional strain, and all consuming scary type of love is definitely not to be underestimated, as I don't think that anyone could have adequately prepared me for the pull that our little person could exert on every facet of our existence, yet it is still the balance that always seems to leave me hoping (in the word's of the author of another article that I read recently) that my inadequacies will not somehow hinder my daughter and leave her lacking. And out of this, I have felt a dependence on the grace of God like nothing that I had ever known.
There's the little decisions and balancing issues. Really little things that I had never even considered are such hot topics on Pinterest, Mom Blogs, and general conversation, that I feel like it would be near impossible to handle them in a way that facilitates the growth of my child in the best possible way. There's crying it out- how long do I let her cry so that she will develop self soothing capabilities, good sleep habits, and good problem solving skills, but not learn that I will not be there when she needs me? There's the things like vaccines, fluoride, GMOs, baby led weaning, organic foods, and cloth diapering. My pediatrician knows a lot more about child development and health than I ever will, but where do I draw the line between "just doing what the doctor says" and "having a questioning attitude"? When I have a preschooler, will Christmas be magical enough even when I inevitably forget to move the elf for half of the December days and he didn't have a "north pole breakfast" to announce his arrival? I can't even seem to get our card out BEFORE Christmas and that's basic!
And while I'm sure that all of those little things and decisions that seem so big now will ultimately not be, there ARE big things that I pray that we will find the right balance in. How will we teach our daughter to be humble AND self confident and that her identity is not dependent on her looks or her skills or her intelligence but rather in who she is in Christ? How will we find the balance between encouraging her to do well at things and letting her know how beautiful and wonderful we think that she is at certain skills without leading her to believe that those things, things that can be taken away, are where her worth is? And then even bigger, brought to our attention by our e group, how do you teach a child about the grace AND the judgement of God? That she needs to have a fear of the Lord, but that His grace is still sufficient for all of her shortcomings. As she grows, how can we correct her while letting her know how much we love her? What a responsibility that is to lead our daughter to know and understand these things.
Ultimately, I know that balance in these things and in all of the little things is something that we have prayed for and I believe that our prayers will be answered through each day with the little decisions that make up each day, each week, each year to grow our daughter into who she was created to be. And to take the advice of a very wise woman who I was lucky enough to be a student of, on the days that I don't feel like it's true that He will answer this prayer, I still KNOW he will, and will fake it 'til I feel it.
So thankful for a God who cares about EVERY detail of our lives from cloth diapers and crying-it-out to leading our children to walk with Him. And so thankful for this little girl who has taught me so much more about life, love, sacrifice, and responsibility just in the seven months that she has been here than I ever thought I would know.
As a new mother of a baby who's only (almost) 7 months old, I know that we have a long way to go, and already, amidst the commonplace difficulties of losing sleep, money, time, and flexibility, it's just so worth it. Even the trying days have left me excited to see her again in the morning (or later that night, although obviously that's less exciting). And while I had anticipated those things, it's the balancing that I have found difficult and (I think) that even if more seasoned parents wouldn't readily have cited the difficulty of balance as a motivator for the aforementioned colloquialism, that surely at least on some level, it is.
The physical strain, emotional strain, and all consuming scary type of love is definitely not to be underestimated, as I don't think that anyone could have adequately prepared me for the pull that our little person could exert on every facet of our existence, yet it is still the balance that always seems to leave me hoping (in the word's of the author of another article that I read recently) that my inadequacies will not somehow hinder my daughter and leave her lacking. And out of this, I have felt a dependence on the grace of God like nothing that I had ever known.
There's the little decisions and balancing issues. Really little things that I had never even considered are such hot topics on Pinterest, Mom Blogs, and general conversation, that I feel like it would be near impossible to handle them in a way that facilitates the growth of my child in the best possible way. There's crying it out- how long do I let her cry so that she will develop self soothing capabilities, good sleep habits, and good problem solving skills, but not learn that I will not be there when she needs me? There's the things like vaccines, fluoride, GMOs, baby led weaning, organic foods, and cloth diapering. My pediatrician knows a lot more about child development and health than I ever will, but where do I draw the line between "just doing what the doctor says" and "having a questioning attitude"? When I have a preschooler, will Christmas be magical enough even when I inevitably forget to move the elf for half of the December days and he didn't have a "north pole breakfast" to announce his arrival? I can't even seem to get our card out BEFORE Christmas and that's basic!
And while I'm sure that all of those little things and decisions that seem so big now will ultimately not be, there ARE big things that I pray that we will find the right balance in. How will we teach our daughter to be humble AND self confident and that her identity is not dependent on her looks or her skills or her intelligence but rather in who she is in Christ? How will we find the balance between encouraging her to do well at things and letting her know how beautiful and wonderful we think that she is at certain skills without leading her to believe that those things, things that can be taken away, are where her worth is? And then even bigger, brought to our attention by our e group, how do you teach a child about the grace AND the judgement of God? That she needs to have a fear of the Lord, but that His grace is still sufficient for all of her shortcomings. As she grows, how can we correct her while letting her know how much we love her? What a responsibility that is to lead our daughter to know and understand these things.
Ultimately, I know that balance in these things and in all of the little things is something that we have prayed for and I believe that our prayers will be answered through each day with the little decisions that make up each day, each week, each year to grow our daughter into who she was created to be. And to take the advice of a very wise woman who I was lucky enough to be a student of, on the days that I don't feel like it's true that He will answer this prayer, I still KNOW he will, and will fake it 'til I feel it.
So thankful for a God who cares about EVERY detail of our lives from cloth diapers and crying-it-out to leading our children to walk with Him. And so thankful for this little girl who has taught me so much more about life, love, sacrifice, and responsibility just in the seven months that she has been here than I ever thought I would know.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Zadie's Birth
We ended up having to wait until Tuesday morning, May 21 for an induction to have Miss Zadie, after 6 weeks of engagement, contractions, and constantly thinking "maybe today's the day"! May 21 was 9 days after my original due date and 5 days after a later due date. I learned that 41 weeks of pregnancy is a different thing than 36, 37, or even 38 weeks of pregnancy. At 37 weeks, I'd gained 25 pounds and was happily walking around with nary a stretch mark expecting Zadie to come any day. By 41, I'd been pregnant for an additional month, packed on 40 pounds, and had stretch marks everywhere. Now that I have her, it doesn't seem like that month was that long, but I know that it was.
Overall, Zadie's birth was really great. We checked in around 9, started Pitocin at 9:30, broke my water around 12, and started hard contractions shortly after. I went in with an open mind about the epidural. Sort of wanting the experience of giving birth without it, but not ruling it out. In retrospect, I think that's a dumb idea, I feel like the experience was had, and next time I'll ask for it when I get there. I definitely did not have an appreciation for the amount of pain that labor involved. Prior to this experience, I'd never been in any real pain so I didn't know how much it could hurt. My mistake involving the epidural was waiting until long past when I wanted it to actually ask for it and subsequently finding out that I needed TWO liters of fluid to get it and I'd only had one. So around 3, at 8 cm, my nurse let the fluid run wide open to get that last liter in. As a consequence of my waiting, the epidural worked very briefly, and only on my right side. Despite all of my repositioning that the nurse wanted me to try before giving me something else, it wouldn't cross whatever nerve that it needed to cross. According to my nurse, this was because since Zadie was already so low, her head was blocking my nerve. The epidural did, however, offer about 20 minutes when I felt like I could catch my breath.
Finally, after trying all of the "nursing interventions" to get my epidural working, she finally called the anesthesiologist back at around 5:00. He gave me something else that worked like a charm viscerally and allowed me not to feel any of the pushing. After seeing the aftermath, I'm really glad that I missed out on what that would have felt like. Hence, I feel like I got the experience and am glad that I didn't get the rest of it.
Zadie arrived at 5:36 weighing in at 8 pounds, 11 ounces, and 21 inches long. She looked just like Sean and was mad as a hatter.
Overall, Zadie's birth was really great. We checked in around 9, started Pitocin at 9:30, broke my water around 12, and started hard contractions shortly after. I went in with an open mind about the epidural. Sort of wanting the experience of giving birth without it, but not ruling it out. In retrospect, I think that's a dumb idea, I feel like the experience was had, and next time I'll ask for it when I get there. I definitely did not have an appreciation for the amount of pain that labor involved. Prior to this experience, I'd never been in any real pain so I didn't know how much it could hurt. My mistake involving the epidural was waiting until long past when I wanted it to actually ask for it and subsequently finding out that I needed TWO liters of fluid to get it and I'd only had one. So around 3, at 8 cm, my nurse let the fluid run wide open to get that last liter in. As a consequence of my waiting, the epidural worked very briefly, and only on my right side. Despite all of my repositioning that the nurse wanted me to try before giving me something else, it wouldn't cross whatever nerve that it needed to cross. According to my nurse, this was because since Zadie was already so low, her head was blocking my nerve. The epidural did, however, offer about 20 minutes when I felt like I could catch my breath.
Finally, after trying all of the "nursing interventions" to get my epidural working, she finally called the anesthesiologist back at around 5:00. He gave me something else that worked like a charm viscerally and allowed me not to feel any of the pushing. After seeing the aftermath, I'm really glad that I missed out on what that would have felt like. Hence, I feel like I got the experience and am glad that I didn't get the rest of it.
Zadie arrived at 5:36 weighing in at 8 pounds, 11 ounces, and 21 inches long. She looked just like Sean and was mad as a hatter.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Full Term
35: Zadie was engaged at our appointment this week :)
36: 2 cm, 80%, fully engaged. She weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces on ultrasound and had a 33 cm head. 66th percentile. I got out of work for a week since she was so ready to show up and we didn't want that to happen before 37 weeks.
37: 2 cm, 80%, 0 station. This week we packed our hospital bag and Zadie stayed in there through the full moon.
38: 2 cm, 80%, 0-+1 station. Still waiting...
39: 3 cm, 90%, +1 station. 7 pounds, 5 ounces on ultrasound, 68th percentile. 34 cm head. They said ultrasound measurements were accurate within 10%. That makes her between 6 pounds, 9 ounces and 8 pounds even. Still waiting...
40: 3 cm, 90%, +1 station. Zadie passed her NST with flying colors. So still waiting...
41: We are thinking that Zadie's due date was a couple of days off since our "dates" due date and early ultrasound measurements were off by a few days. Lots of contractions, still no baby. We scheduled an induction for Tuesday morning. I never thought I'd love the idea of a Pitocin IV, but I do.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Baby-Mooning
A few weeks ago, Sean and I went to Charleston for our last getaway before our little girl arrives. We mostly just had breakfast at the bed and breakfast (which they serve on a silver platter to your actual bed, which is cool), walked around, and ate good food at Charleston's most popular restaurants. We're big on local cuisine and Charleston is a great place for that!
Our room at The Battery Carriage House Inn. We found out on our second night that this place is supposedly haunted with several ghosts.
Patriot's Point. Sean's grandfather was an engineer in the navy and worked on these boats, so it was really neat to go through and see them. It did require stepping through portholes on the submarine to get from room to room, and at 34 weeks pregnant, that's easier said than done :) Sean said it probably wasn't designed for pregnant women.
34 weeks on the battery
The Inn- this main house is actually a residence and the rooms used for the bed and breakfast are in the carriage house
The gardens outside of our room
Celebrating Miss Zadie
We have had the opportunity over the past 6 weeks or so to celebrate our baby girl with all of our different groups of friends and family in so many fun and creative ways. Everyone has been so kind and generous to her, as she's been gifted about everything that a little girl could possibly need, and has had her life prayed over by so many people that we love.
In these last couple of weeks as we prepare for her arrival, we finished her nursery, picked out some outfits for her to have at the hospital, installed her carseat, packed a suitcase, prepped her cloth diaper collection, and become the wiser on sleep habits of babies and children with the help of some of the field's "leading experts". So I'll dare to say that I really think that we're ready for this little chick to make her appearance.
The doctor tells me that this much anticipated day will be sooner rather than later. Last week, at our 36 week appointment, I was 2 cm dilated with a very favorable cervix, and Miss Zadie was at a 0-+1 station leading our doctor's best prediction to be a delivery within the next 2 weeks (but we all know just how (un)reliable delivery predictions can be, so take it with a grain of salt). As a result, I am having to sit with light activity for the week while I wait to be full term in just a couple of days. We are so excited! Sean and I both agreed that we think that we sort of understand the pride that people take in their children. While the doctor seemed almost alarmed at Zadie's progress at only 36 weeks, worried that she would come before 37, Sean and I both saw it as none other than proof of our child's genius that she would be ahead of other babies her age :) So now I guess we just wait.
In these last couple of weeks as we prepare for her arrival, we finished her nursery, picked out some outfits for her to have at the hospital, installed her carseat, packed a suitcase, prepped her cloth diaper collection, and become the wiser on sleep habits of babies and children with the help of some of the field's "leading experts". So I'll dare to say that I really think that we're ready for this little chick to make her appearance.
Baby girl's bows
Where our Christmas decorations used to reside. Sean said that he is in complete shock over all that's needed for a baby.
This Christening gown has been in my family for over 100 years. When my great-grandmother (for whom I am named) was studying at Cambridge around 1905-1910, the woman who sewed for the queen of England made this gown for her. It traveled back to Norway and was used when she had her two children. It was passed down to my grandmother and used for her 2 children, and then to my dad who used it for the three of us. Sean and I go to a non-denominational church and so Zadie will not be baptized as an infant, but to keep this family heirloom alive, I think that she will wear it at her dedication.
Thanks to Heather for making this pretty bumper exactly as I had described :)
Dresser/changing table
From the door of her room
The doctor tells me that this much anticipated day will be sooner rather than later. Last week, at our 36 week appointment, I was 2 cm dilated with a very favorable cervix, and Miss Zadie was at a 0-+1 station leading our doctor's best prediction to be a delivery within the next 2 weeks (but we all know just how (un)reliable delivery predictions can be, so take it with a grain of salt). As a result, I am having to sit with light activity for the week while I wait to be full term in just a couple of days. We are so excited! Sean and I both agreed that we think that we sort of understand the pride that people take in their children. While the doctor seemed almost alarmed at Zadie's progress at only 36 weeks, worried that she would come before 37, Sean and I both saw it as none other than proof of our child's genius that she would be ahead of other babies her age :) So now I guess we just wait.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Nursery Projects
During the later part of January and most of February, we have spent the majority of our free time working on nursery projects...
We used spray paint, ribbon, and some crystal dots to transform this rocking llama from Sean's childhood...
into this masterpiece. More suited for a little girl.
We used wooden blocks, scrapbook paper, mod podge, and scrapbook embellishments to make a nameplate for her bookshelf...
and wooden size dividers for her closet
Painted a canvas for the area above the changing table
Transformed an old wooden side table into this new girly one with some homemade chalk paint and a new knob
Made a place for bows with a picture frame and ribbon
Stained a ceiling medallion
And let Dad hang it up...
Made new lampshades for the chandelier with gray fabric and ribbon embellishments
And last but not least, started washing and organizing tiny clothes
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
This Great New Baby
Again, I have neglected this blog, but I want to start writing again, especially as Sean and I embark on the newest journey in our lives: being parents. Namely to a sweet little girl to be born around Mother's Day.
I started out trying to document this journey with a Tumblr, or in a book, or in a journal with letters to her, or in some other pinterest-inspired way that I could one day share with her, but even with these high aspirations, I'm 24 weeks in and have not done it. Hopefully when she arrives, I will do better in the way of creating memories with her and documenting her life. As a side note, and a confession, I also had delusions of eating all organic food, running, continuing a dedicated yoga practice throughout this pregnancy, etc. and have fallen short of those goals as well. I think that these delusions were fed by a belief that pregnancy entailed mostly sporting a cute soccer ball sized stomach and the joy of feeling the baby move, but I think that most people know that those beliefs were delusions as well. Just in the past week, I've been able to stop taking an anti-emetic several times a day, and have traded those pills for lower back pain, heart burn, and varicose veins. But I'll take it :) And there is a lot to be said for the joy and excitement of feeling her move and watching her tiny body roll over in my stomach.
So to backtrack, mainly so that I can write it down while still fresh in my head, here are some highlights of her life so far.
September: On the day before Sean and I left on a vacation in Italy and Greece, I found out that I was pregnant after noticing that I looked sort of chubby in the bathing suit that I'd purchased a few weeks before for this trip. I had to confirm this pregnancy with no less than 4 pregnancy tests. Sean was on a business trip, and while I had the best of intentions (see my success rate with intentions above) to wait until he got home to share the news with him in a pinterest-inspired way with banners and cupcakes, I ended up succumbing to telling my mom no less than 30 minutes into "waiting". For full disclosure, I also told my sister-in-law, Lyndsey. When Sean got home, I had gotten him a "homecoming present" of a book entitled "Dude! You're Gonna Be a Dad!". It took him a second to connect the dots on this one, and he asked me if I was pregnant. In typical Sean style, he was never anything less than completely thrilled and excited, and thus we began our lives as the parents of an Appleseed-sized baby.
Later September: We came home early from Italy because of horrible morning sickness that settled in a little over a week later. I have never felt so sick in my life and was sure that I would die. Zofran helped with that, but I spent the next 4 months of my life revolving everything that I did around when I could take my Zofran. And later my Phenergan as well. Zofranigan-again as we call it. I learned at this point, that everyone has advice for pregnant women. Eat before you get out of bed is popular, but didn't help. And all of the other google-friendly solutions that people offered again and again didn't help much either. I eventually accepted that it would just have to go away on it's own and hopefully that would happen before May.
October: We shared the news of our baby with Sean's family over Patrick and Stewart's wedding weekend with a video that we'd made on our trip. We shared the news with my family inadvertently shortly after when my grandfather died suddenly. While we'd wanted to share it with them obviously in a different way, God's timing was so clear and perfect in offering the joy of new life in the midst of incredible grief. The baby is due the day before my grandfather's birthday, and I think that it reminded all of us that "for everything there is a season" and that we serve a perfect and loving God who may take, but who also gives, and gives in abundance.
November: I was eventually admitted to the hospital for dehydration, which helped tremendously. I also felt the baby kick for the first time around 16 weeks.
December: We found out that Appleseed, as we'd been calling "him", was a her. We went in with intentions (intentions again) to have the tech write the baby's sex on a card for us so that we could find out the next day with our families. In the end, I didn't have the patience for that, and we went ahead and found out in the ultrasound room. We went to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory in an effort to teach her not to be a cheap date and talked about what it would be like to have a little girl. The next day, we had a gender reveal with our families and let our moms cut the cake.
January: We've been working on the nursery, and picked out a name. We also started being about to see her move, and feel her much better. So sitting around watching my stomach, and then subsequently talking about how smart and strong she obviously is, takes up most of our time in the evenings. Strangers began for the first time acknowledging my stomach (I think that's pretty courageous) and asking when she was due, so I must look fatter.
And now here we are, so maybe I'll keep up with this blog again.
I started out trying to document this journey with a Tumblr, or in a book, or in a journal with letters to her, or in some other pinterest-inspired way that I could one day share with her, but even with these high aspirations, I'm 24 weeks in and have not done it. Hopefully when she arrives, I will do better in the way of creating memories with her and documenting her life. As a side note, and a confession, I also had delusions of eating all organic food, running, continuing a dedicated yoga practice throughout this pregnancy, etc. and have fallen short of those goals as well. I think that these delusions were fed by a belief that pregnancy entailed mostly sporting a cute soccer ball sized stomach and the joy of feeling the baby move, but I think that most people know that those beliefs were delusions as well. Just in the past week, I've been able to stop taking an anti-emetic several times a day, and have traded those pills for lower back pain, heart burn, and varicose veins. But I'll take it :) And there is a lot to be said for the joy and excitement of feeling her move and watching her tiny body roll over in my stomach.
So to backtrack, mainly so that I can write it down while still fresh in my head, here are some highlights of her life so far.
September: On the day before Sean and I left on a vacation in Italy and Greece, I found out that I was pregnant after noticing that I looked sort of chubby in the bathing suit that I'd purchased a few weeks before for this trip. I had to confirm this pregnancy with no less than 4 pregnancy tests. Sean was on a business trip, and while I had the best of intentions (see my success rate with intentions above) to wait until he got home to share the news with him in a pinterest-inspired way with banners and cupcakes, I ended up succumbing to telling my mom no less than 30 minutes into "waiting". For full disclosure, I also told my sister-in-law, Lyndsey. When Sean got home, I had gotten him a "homecoming present" of a book entitled "Dude! You're Gonna Be a Dad!". It took him a second to connect the dots on this one, and he asked me if I was pregnant. In typical Sean style, he was never anything less than completely thrilled and excited, and thus we began our lives as the parents of an Appleseed-sized baby.
Later September: We came home early from Italy because of horrible morning sickness that settled in a little over a week later. I have never felt so sick in my life and was sure that I would die. Zofran helped with that, but I spent the next 4 months of my life revolving everything that I did around when I could take my Zofran. And later my Phenergan as well. Zofranigan-again as we call it. I learned at this point, that everyone has advice for pregnant women. Eat before you get out of bed is popular, but didn't help. And all of the other google-friendly solutions that people offered again and again didn't help much either. I eventually accepted that it would just have to go away on it's own and hopefully that would happen before May.
October: We shared the news of our baby with Sean's family over Patrick and Stewart's wedding weekend with a video that we'd made on our trip. We shared the news with my family inadvertently shortly after when my grandfather died suddenly. While we'd wanted to share it with them obviously in a different way, God's timing was so clear and perfect in offering the joy of new life in the midst of incredible grief. The baby is due the day before my grandfather's birthday, and I think that it reminded all of us that "for everything there is a season" and that we serve a perfect and loving God who may take, but who also gives, and gives in abundance.
November: I was eventually admitted to the hospital for dehydration, which helped tremendously. I also felt the baby kick for the first time around 16 weeks.
December: We found out that Appleseed, as we'd been calling "him", was a her. We went in with intentions (intentions again) to have the tech write the baby's sex on a card for us so that we could find out the next day with our families. In the end, I didn't have the patience for that, and we went ahead and found out in the ultrasound room. We went to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory in an effort to teach her not to be a cheap date and talked about what it would be like to have a little girl. The next day, we had a gender reveal with our families and let our moms cut the cake.
January: We've been working on the nursery, and picked out a name. We also started being about to see her move, and feel her much better. So sitting around watching my stomach, and then subsequently talking about how smart and strong she obviously is, takes up most of our time in the evenings. Strangers began for the first time acknowledging my stomach (I think that's pretty courageous) and asking when she was due, so I must look fatter.
And now here we are, so maybe I'll keep up with this blog again.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Catching Up..
An update since I've abandoned this blog...
In March, we celebrated my then future sister-in-law in Greenville with a shower. Sisters are fun, and I am psyched to have a new one.
And we moved my mom away from the house that I grew up in. This was so bittersweet. Bitter in that it's the only place that I remember ever living, a place where all of my memories from growing up reside, and to quote Miranda Lambert, is the place where "under that live oak, my favorite dog is buried in the yard". It was sad to pack up and/or throw away so many things that had meant something to me at one point or another, and to know that I couldn't ever "come home" again. But sweet in that the house that I loved so much had become a burden in the past several years. My mom lived there alone and the upkeep was a lot to handle. Things would break and it was expensive and the mortgage was too high. So while it was a blessing to grow up in such a great neighborhood, it really was time to say goodbye. And since then, my mom has moved into an apartment nearby. I think that everyone who's lived in an apartment can attest to the simplicity of that life, and it's been really good.
In April, we celebrated Easter in Hilton Head with Sean's family. It was kind of a cold weekend, but I can't complain about the beach!
In May, we celebrated Jensen and Laura as they graduated from college. Jensen received the President's Award, and I can't say how proud of him that I am. He was the student body president, the editor-in-chief and founder of the Anderson University Centennial Yearbook, a member of SGA as well as a member of the homecoming court (which he does not claim as an "accomplishment", but as his sister, I will) for the duration of his college career, a Presidential Ambassador, an intern for a company in Greenville, a board member for a business society (that I don't remember the name of), and still graduated Cum Laude with a job to start the following Monday.
Laura graduated Summa Cum Laude with a perfect 4.0 GPA and a teaching job to start in the fall. She also had an impressive list of accomplishments including being a Teaching Fellow and the preschool director for a local church. I know that she will be a phenomenal kindergarten teacher. She already has tons of great ideas for her classroom and is so passionate about it. It makes me wish that I could be in her class.
In June, we celebrated Jensen and Laura again as they got married in Florence. My youngest brother, my cousin, my husband, and myself were all in the wedding, and it was fun to have a time aside from Christmas to all be together. Since I've already bragged on Jensen and Laura a lot during this blog, I'll just say that we're really proud of them and love them very much :)
In July, Sean and I went to Orlando to visit his grandparents and go to Disney World. I had not been to Disney World since I was pretty young and it was awesome. After a lot of debate, we decided on Hollywood Studios as the park to visit, since that was the one that I thought I'd never been to and I think it was a good choice. My mom pointed out later, sounding almost hurt that she had gone to the trouble of creating this memory for her children only to have me forget all about it, that I have actually been there. Tower of Terror was amazing, and as someone with little Disney World experience, I was blown away by how much went into each ride and show. I'd love to go back in January and run the Disney Half Marathon, but that's still up in the air :) Sean said that he would settle for just going back in January, sans 13 miler.
We celebrated July 4th with Nick and Lyndsey in Charlotte in typical 4th of July fashion on the lake kayaking and finished the day grilling at our house. Hanging out with our best friends/siblings makes me feel bad for people without them.
And...that's about it.
In March, we celebrated my then future sister-in-law in Greenville with a shower. Sisters are fun, and I am psyched to have a new one.
And we moved my mom away from the house that I grew up in. This was so bittersweet. Bitter in that it's the only place that I remember ever living, a place where all of my memories from growing up reside, and to quote Miranda Lambert, is the place where "under that live oak, my favorite dog is buried in the yard". It was sad to pack up and/or throw away so many things that had meant something to me at one point or another, and to know that I couldn't ever "come home" again. But sweet in that the house that I loved so much had become a burden in the past several years. My mom lived there alone and the upkeep was a lot to handle. Things would break and it was expensive and the mortgage was too high. So while it was a blessing to grow up in such a great neighborhood, it really was time to say goodbye. And since then, my mom has moved into an apartment nearby. I think that everyone who's lived in an apartment can attest to the simplicity of that life, and it's been really good.
In April, we celebrated Easter in Hilton Head with Sean's family. It was kind of a cold weekend, but I can't complain about the beach!
In May, we celebrated Jensen and Laura as they graduated from college. Jensen received the President's Award, and I can't say how proud of him that I am. He was the student body president, the editor-in-chief and founder of the Anderson University Centennial Yearbook, a member of SGA as well as a member of the homecoming court (which he does not claim as an "accomplishment", but as his sister, I will) for the duration of his college career, a Presidential Ambassador, an intern for a company in Greenville, a board member for a business society (that I don't remember the name of), and still graduated Cum Laude with a job to start the following Monday.
Laura graduated Summa Cum Laude with a perfect 4.0 GPA and a teaching job to start in the fall. She also had an impressive list of accomplishments including being a Teaching Fellow and the preschool director for a local church. I know that she will be a phenomenal kindergarten teacher. She already has tons of great ideas for her classroom and is so passionate about it. It makes me wish that I could be in her class.
In June, we celebrated Jensen and Laura again as they got married in Florence. My youngest brother, my cousin, my husband, and myself were all in the wedding, and it was fun to have a time aside from Christmas to all be together. Since I've already bragged on Jensen and Laura a lot during this blog, I'll just say that we're really proud of them and love them very much :)
L to R: Kristen, Wallace, Bo, Jensen, Laura, Me, and Sean
In July, Sean and I went to Orlando to visit his grandparents and go to Disney World. I had not been to Disney World since I was pretty young and it was awesome. After a lot of debate, we decided on Hollywood Studios as the park to visit, since that was the one that I thought I'd never been to and I think it was a good choice. My mom pointed out later, sounding almost hurt that she had gone to the trouble of creating this memory for her children only to have me forget all about it, that I have actually been there. Tower of Terror was amazing, and as someone with little Disney World experience, I was blown away by how much went into each ride and show. I'd love to go back in January and run the Disney Half Marathon, but that's still up in the air :) Sean said that he would settle for just going back in January, sans 13 miler.
I insisted that we wait in line with tons of little kids for the half an hour that it took to get this picture. Sean said that he "didn't mind SEEING Mickey, but didn't have to have a picture". I begged to differ, as this is part of the experience.
Disney's own Chinese Theater
We celebrated July 4th with Nick and Lyndsey in Charlotte in typical 4th of July fashion on the lake kayaking and finished the day grilling at our house. Hanging out with our best friends/siblings makes me feel bad for people without them.
And...that's about it.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
This Great New House: Front Door
I've been making a point to go into our house through our front door instead of the garage so I can take a minute to be happy with myself for our DIY front door :)
Pre-makeover
Since making this wreath, a bird has made her nest in the flowers which makes me feel particularly spring-y.
I saw a welcome sign similar to this on Pinterest, took a trip to Home Depot, and there ya go. Since I love painting and holidays, I'm psyched about this switchable sign.
The finished product
This Great New House: Powder Room
This is one of my favorite rooms in our house because this is where I get ready. We painted it grey and put in a few other little things to improve it including a medicine cabinet, a rug, and some white towels. I'm so happy with it :)
Original
Winter Sports, Summer Sun
Last week, Sean headed out to Sun Valley, Idaho for a conference with work. In addition to being home of the Power Engineers headquarters, it's also one of America's premier ski resorts, so I flew out later in the week to meet Sean for the recreational part of the trip. I can honestly say that, randomly, this was one of the most fun vacations that I've ever been on (and I consider myself a beach person...with an appreciation of the mountains). In Idaho.
Sun Valley Club, where we had dinner with Sean's company on Thursday night
Dollar Mountain. This is the beginner mountain, a build up to Bald Mountain. This one is 1000 vertical feet and proved difficult enough for both of us. Neither of us even managed to be able to safely ski all of the green slopes. There's like, 30 slopes on this mountain and over 2 days we couldn't even attempt all of them.
Bald Mountain in the background of the top of Dollar. That one is 3000 vertical feet, but other than eating on it, we stayed on this safer choice :)
River Run Lodge, at the base of Baldy where we had an amazing breakfast Saturday morning
We rode a gondola midway up Baldy for lunch at the roundhouse
The Roundhouse. One of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.
The level of talent that skis here is unlike any I've ever seen. This mountain is covered in almost straight vertical moguls. But even little kids were zipping down these and into the trees, no problem. Unbelievable.
Natural hot springs in the west are pretty cool. We drove almost 7 miles down a tiny snow covered dirt road to get here, to this isolated little hot spring in the river. It's a little weird to strip down to a bathing suit in the middle of the snow and maneuver down a hill into hot water, but it's one of the cooler experiences I've ever been privy to.
Brunch in the lodge dining room. While we look pretty beat here, this was so relaxing. We spent a couple of hours eating an unbelievable breakfast and drinking coffee in this cozy dining room while watching it snow outside.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)