Halloween Weekend 2010

On Friday after work, Aunt Meg and I drove 3.5 hours up to State College, PA to seen soon-to-be Uncle Paul and the Indiana Hoosiers play Penn State.  The ride was actually pretty fun.  The GPS was pretty much dying to take us down all these back roads so we were hardly on any highways, which was ok because it was light out and had nice views.  We drove through a bunch of little towns and finally arrived at State College.  It was fun to be sitting in the stands and watching volleyball again for me, unfortunately Indiana didn't play too well and Penn State was sort of unimpressive to me.  But after the game, we got to say hi to Nancy, the assistant coach who knows both Megan and I (she was my coach when I went to Holland to play for a week.)  We only got to say hi to Paul for about 2 minutes since he lost his bag and was frantically running around.  So after a 3.5 hour drive up, a 1.5-2 hour game and 15 minutes of "catching up," we took the 3 hour drive on (on all the highways) which was also fun because we talked the whole way!  I'll try to upload some of the fall-ish photos I took on our ride up.

Yesterday, Justin and I just hung out with Megan and Samson for most of the day and then came home to get ready to get dinner at Red Robin (I've been craving a burger SO badly) and then head out to see a friend's band play in Fairfax.  It was relatively uneventful but the burger was delicious!  Here we are in our costumes- simple, cheap and homemade, and I posted a new belly photo.





P.S. I am no longer going to post un-clothed belly photos as I think my bump is slightly oddly shaped.  Maybe the maternity photos will be an exception.

Happy almost November! (Oh Aunt Meg got me an early birthday gift- tickets for us to see Michael Buble in concert - SOOOOO excited to see a great singer and have a sister's night out.)

Hellllooooooo Third Trimester!

Holy crap, I can't believe we are more than 2/3 of the way to having a baby.  I had my doctor's appointment on Tuesday.  I think I'm going to go back to my strategy of not paying attention to the weight each time I go in because it's really scary, I'm afraid I'll never be my normal size again.  I also had my glucose tolerance test which involves drinking a really sugary orange drink, waiting an hour and getting blood drawn.  I'm a little afraid I have developed gestational diabetes due to the amount of sweets I've been eating.  But then again, I've ALWAYS been a sweet tooth.  We'll see, if anything is abnormal I have to do a 3 hour test.  Other than that, I now I have to see the doctor every two weeks instead of every four.

For the most part, I'm still feeling pretty good.  Today, there were FOURTEEN mamas in prenatal yoga!  When I started going it was like 3 or 4 per class, so this is so exciting!  The other mamas probably think I talk way too much but oh well.  I'm definitely growing outward rapidly (photo update soon) and I thought it would be fun if I made a list of things I've noticed are much more difficult or becoming more difficult as my belly gets in the way...even things you don't really think about.

1. Putting on socks and shoes (of any kind besides flip flops): I usually just stand and lift one foot- this is no longer working due to balance issues and my ever-expanding belly.  I know have to literally sit and cross my legs, which is still semi difficult.

2. "Squeeze by" in crowds or around people: I used to be able to just easily scoot by people, now I forget that I'm a little wider than normal and my belly tends to rub against people.  ***This is also becoming an issues when doing hands on work with my patients.

3. Painting my toenails, shaving my legs, any grooming activity where I need to bend over- even washing my feet.  This seems obvious, and it is, but it's just becoming more real and I forget I can't do it as easily.

4. Breathing.  Yes, I get short of breath so easily it's almost embarrassing.  I literally become out of breath demonstrating the few exercises I still can to my patients- although they still think it's amazing I can still show them side planks with one hand on the BOSU ball.

5. Driving.  It's becoming increasingly uncomfortable to drive (or even be driven) anywhere.  Going over bumps I feel like I have to tighten my abs to hold my belly in place.

6. Sneezing/Coughing- trying to keep up with those Kegel exercises.

That's all my pregnant brain can come up with now.  I'm so excited for my little homemade maternity Halloween Costume...I'll post pictures later!  Happy Halloween and end of October to everyone!

Fatigue...again?!?

So I know it has been a while since I posted.  I'm pretty convinced most of the people who read this blog were getting slightly bored with my postings anyways!:)  So since our anniversary weekend, here's what's been going on:

Work

Travelled to VA Beach to see the Hales/Soetaerts.  Spending time with family is always nice, especially since we won't really get to do much of that over the holidays, which as you all know is making me mildly depressed.  This was a pretty short and relaxing weekend (minus the 5 hour drive down - 3 hour drive back - I hate DC traffic) and Justin and I (mainly I) got a new digital SLR camera from Grandma and Grandpa Hales as an early Christmas gift!

Needless to say, I spent the majority of the Saturday, studying the directions and hints and tricks.  (And yes "studying" is the correct word to use if you know me at all!)



We left early on Sunday so I could get back for yoga class - which is still such a nice workout for me and I love going and chatting with the other soon-to-be Mommies and Sarah.

Another week of work.  Well actually only four days for me because I had Friday off.

Well, not "off" exactly since I had a continuing education course all this weekend - 8-5 on Friday and Saturday and 8-1 today in Sterling, VA.  Getting there on Friday morning was a large pain in my you-know-what, but overall it was a great review course and we learned some really cool new things to help diagnose patients with ankle/foot problems and help treat them with orthotics.  I can now cast for orthotics and order them for patients who may really need them which is kinda cool.

Despite being a great course, I know have a full week of work ahead of me (and a Doctor's appointment on Tuesday) so I'm really dreading this.

I have just about reached the last trimester now (so this is probably my last second trimester post!) and the severe fatigue I was feeling in my first trimester is slowly creeping back up on me, which is a main reason I haven't posted in a while.  Justin and I are trying to figure out some little details to prepare for our little one's arrival, including deciding between hiring a doula and just taking birthing/baby classes through our doctor's office.  I'm really looking forward to this week of work being over, and travelling to see soon-to-be Uncle Paul play at Penn State next weekend with Aunt Megan.  And a big night out on Saturday with our friends for the yearly Brion's Grill showing of the Fred Chao Band for Halloween.

Speaking of Halloween - I (or we if I can get Justin to dress up) need costume ideas for pregnant ladies (or couples)- my pregnancy prevents a large amount of brainstorming so any help would be appreciated!!

Grandma's Birthday

Today is my mom's birthday. I know how old she is but I don't think she'd want me to put that out there. She is young at heart and I think that's all that matters :).

 

When I think about my time growing up I didn't treat her nearly as good as I should have. My mom had it tough because my dad was gone a lot. I said and did some (or a lot) of things that I shouldn't have. I'm sure that my childhood wasn't much different than a lot of kids in that respect. My mom deserved better. It's waaaaaaaaaaay after the fact, but I'm sorry for the gray hair, stress, and heartburn I probably caused you when I was growing up.  I can see her reading this and going, "Yeah, Justin, that's right. But your time will come."  Then she'll start laughing that laugh.

 

I got her a present, but it's on backorder. It'll be here in January. She has no clue what it is. Happy Birthday Mom. I love you.

Paper Anniversary :)

Yesterday was our very first anniversary (of being married).  On Friday, we will have been together 6 years (since our first date, when Justin cooked me shrimp for dinner)!  Everyone says that the first year of marriage is the hardest, but I actually found this to be one of our easiest years together, despite the shock of starting our family a little earlier than we planned.  Here's a little recap of our weekend.

Friday:

We had lunch like we usually do, but this time it was with a friend of ours, Tamara.  After lunch, I went to Buy Buy Baby because I'd been thinking that we may want to register for a stroller that can convert to a double since I'd like to have at least 2 kids and I'd like them close together.  While I was there, there was a couple doing basically the same thing I was doing so we got to chatting.  When Justin got home, I really wanted him to come with me to look so we could make an educated decision.  (I think we are going to end up trying to get the Britax B-Ready stroller which is compatible with the car seats we registered for.)  Then we got Arby's for dinner...romantic, I know! :)

Saturday:

We relaxed all morning, watching football and such.  Then we decided we were going to get ready and head to the GMU women's volleyball game since they were playing UNC Wilmington where a friend of ours coaches.  It was fun to see some volleyball again.  We then headed to our big event of the weekend, OVO, the Cirque du Soleil show at National Harbor.  It. Was. Awesome.  I highly recommend that everyone see it, but don't splurge on the close up seats.  We sat in the last row and it was perfect!  After the show, we drove out to one of our good friend's house for a party to hang out with his new girlfriend.  It was pretty fun- wishing I could drink but alas...  All-in-all it was a relaxing and fun day...but we went to bed REALLY late.





Sunday:

Sleep in a little bit.  We then went to brunch at the Original Pancake House (a place we went in Milwaukee with my family and Paul got an 8 egg omelet.)  It was delicious.  We then drove out to Leesburg Outlets and walked around, then went to Outback for dinner.  Although all these events seem so not special and normal, we enjoyed just spending time together!





Today:

Grocery store to get some food and ingredients for our dinner together.  I got Justin a book and a cookbook (Top Chef) for our paper anniversary so he wanted to make some macaroni recipe and I've been wanting to bake something for while.  I made some S'mores bars.  We finally got to use our KitchenAid mixer.  We are going to attempt the top layer of our wedding cake later, Justin is the taste tester because we don't need me getting sick!







It was a great weekend spent with the best husband anyone could ask for.  I love you, Justin, and I can't wait to see what the next 57 years hold! (Today is my grandparents 58th wedding anniversary!!)

P.S. I think tomorrow starts my last trimester!!  See new belly photos!

Fun with Family and Friends

I can't believe we are inching towards the third trimester.  It's extremely scary considering I have no idea where in our little apartment we are going to put anything.  But anyways...

Last weekend, when Meg's best friend Amanda was in town, they went to the Natural History Museum and said there was a new exhibit called "Origins" that talked about evolution and had some cool bones and how our species has evolved.  Naturally I wanted to go.  So yesterday, my husband, Baby and I hopped on the Metro (which I haven't been on in a while) and headed downtown despite the AIDS walk and rally going on in the city.  It's nearly impossible that all the roads in the city would be open on any given weekend, plus it was such a beautiful fall day!  The museum was fun and the exhibits were pretty cool, plus the whole day was FREE and I got to spend some time with my husband.

Last night, we went out in Arlington with some friends for a friend's 40th birthday party.  It was fun!  One friend hasn't seen us in a while and wasn't aware we were expecting so that was fun to let her in on the secret!  Lots of people touching my belly and a late night later, we were in bed.  I'm not going to lie, one of the things I miss about our pre-pregnancy life is going out and having a good time with our friends without feeling exhausted and boring.  Part of me feels like my youth is slipping away from me, but I'm so excited for the next step in our journey!

Enjoy some pictures from the past couple of weeks, and I've posted a new picture to the belly shots page.  Happy October to everyone, my favorite month of the year!!

Emotional

So they say that when you are pregnant, the hormones kinda put your emotions all over the map: sad one minute, laughing hysterically the next.

Did anyone else watch Project Runway last night?  I was just watching it on my DVR and they all got really emotional about being able to see their moms.  Needless to say, I started to tear up because I really miss my mom (as well as the rest of my family).

Miss you and love you, Mom.