One Last Trip

With Eleanor's arrival getting closer and closer, I find myself getting more and more nervous about, well, everything really. But today, I am going to focus on my nervousness surrounding my relationship. D and I weren't exactly planing on getting pregnant when we did. I have known I wanted to be a mother my entire life, and am so excited that I am getting the opportunity to do so. I'm just really nervous about the effect that it's going to have on my role of wife. I love my husband, obviously. That's why I married him. I'm just scared that with a new baby our relationship might get pushed aside for a while.

I'm sure that Eleanor will cause some changes in the relationship that I have with my husband, but I want to try and minimize those changes as much as possible. The only way I have come up with doing that so far is frequent talks about life after she gets here and taking some last minute time for ourselves doing things that we enjoy and won't be able to do after she arrives.

Last Saturday, the weather in Southern California was beautiful. It was too pretty to stay inside, so we decided to go for a drive. D bought a convertible before I moved here... for a long time it was our only car, so we have a lot of memories in it. Many of my favorite memories involve driving up the coast, including the weekend that D proposed. There is no room for an infant seat in a convertible  so I know that it's something that can't happen as often after the baby comes.

We drove up to Santa Barbara and walked along the pier. We had ice cream and watched some dolphins and browsed through stores looking for things that said Eleanor on them. Nothing was over the top, but it was really nice to just be out in the sun and by the water. I'm going to miss getting to ride along side my husband with the top down and the sun shining. He loves getting to really drive his car and I love getting to snap pictures of the pretty landscapes we pass. It was a perfect thing for the two of us to do it together.

37 Weeks - Update

Countdown: 20 days -- I'm full term so Ella is now welcome to exit whenever she pleases. 

Baby size: She weighs upwards six and a half and could be 22in long. As of this week, I am full term so her growth is pretty much minimal at this point, although, her brain and lungs are still developing. 

Symptoms: I've been noticing more false contractions than before, so helpfully that's a good sign and my body is preparing for labor.  Her movements are also getting more uncomfortable. Poor girl is probably very cramped.

Cravings: No crazy cravings this week. I have been extra hungry though. 

Best Moment of the Week: Valentine's Day was pretty sweet. Not to mention, we ended the night by coming home and unpacking our infant carrier and stroller frame. So far, we still love both. 

Worst Moment of the Week: Wednesday at my doctor's appointment my blood pressure was higher than normal. It had been higher at home so it didn't come as a shock to me, but it did mean I had to go to the hospital to be monitored. Everything turned out okay so far, but I'm never a fan of being stuck in the hospital. 

What I am Looking Forward to: We have our last labor class on Wednesday. I have kind of mixed feelings about the class, but either way, I'm excited to be able to say that we are done with them. 

Love, Love, Love.

It's my first ever Valentine's Day as a married lady. I have mixed feelings about the holiday, but really, I can't turn down a day where I get to have lots of pinks and hearts and mushy sentiments.

Last year, D and I were living together, but he was super sick. The year before we were still in different states. So, not only is this our first Valentine's Day to be married, it's kind of our first Valentine's Day that we get to celebrate together. I was excited.

My night started with being greeted by a beautiful bouquet of roses, some chocolates, and a sweet card. The roses smell delicious. They are making our entire living room smell better.

Then, D helped me zip up my dress, which I can just barely squeeze into. I bought it around this time last year, and never seem to find an occasion to wear it, even though it is one of my favorites. It was nice to have a reason to get all dressed up since I haven't been doing that much lately. I should do it more often really. It makes me feel better and more confident in myself, which is something I can totally use right now. Plus, D would be happy to get the 50's style housewife routine for a while I'm sure. Heck, I may even greet him with a drink when he gets home.

We then headed off to dinner. I wasn't sure where we were going and the route D drove gave me no clues, at least not for a while. We ended up at one of D's favorite places. Chick-fil-a.

It was kind of cute actually. I know it's one of his favorite places to eat and they were doing a special Valentine's date night thing. Table service, decorations, live piano playing, and a free milkshake were included. I guess it could have ended badly for him, but I thought it was funny. And really, I don't need much to be happy. A date night, some chocolates, and an excuse to dress up are perfectly fine with me. I'm just glad that he put some effort into making this a special night and the location of said night would never change that.

I hope you all had a wonderful day with your loved ones. I know I did.

36 Weeks - Update

Countdown: 27 days 

Baby size: She weighs somewhere around six and a half and could be 22in long. Roughly as big as a watermelon according to my what to expect app! I'm not sure if the fruit comparison can possibly get any bigger. 

Symptoms: Nothing out of the norm this week. All the normal symptoms of being 36 weeks pregnant are present, but in moderation.  

Cravings: I had a strong brussel sprouts craving over the weekend.  

Best Moment of the Week: My baby shower was pretty awesome. We skyped in some family and it was just nice to get a bit of home for a minute. All of the gifts were so sweet, and we are just about set for Eleanor's arrival. 

Worst Moment of the Week: Thursday night we took the c-section portion of our labor class, and I had pretty bad dreams about it. I am so terrified of a c-section. I know that my fear is a bit extreme but I can't help it. 

What I am Looking Forward to: Valentine's Day! D was sick last year and all of the other years we have been apart. It will be our first actual date on the day. I'm excited for a night for just the two of us, especially since I worry about how our relationship might change after the baby comes.

Nice to See You Again, Morning Sickness.

Please tell me that the sarcasm in that title is obvious. It should be, really. Morning sickness is never ever nice to see... and it's not nice to experience either.

I shouldn't complain. I really shouldn't. My first trimester morning sickness was a breeze compared to most other pregnant ladies. I only threw up a total of four or five times. My nausea could mostly be controlled by making sure I ate frequent small snacks. As long as I had something in my tummy, I didn't vomit or get too crazy nauseous. It got a little worse whenever I had to be in a car, but even then it wasn't that bad.

Don't hate me please. I get it, I was super lucky.

That doesn't change the fact that my morning sickness is back and badder than ever. Still not a ton of vomiting, although in a few short weeks, I have wildly surpassed my record in the first three months. This time around, the nausea is way less predictable. Keeping my tummy full doesn't always mean I'm not going to throw up. Plus, trying to keep my stomach full is much harder considering my appetite has grown immensely in the past month or so. Seriously, I feel like I could eat as much as an olympian swimmer and be just fine with it. The problem is, my stomach is cramped for space. So eating just a little makes my stomach feel bloated, but it doesn't necessarily mean I am full. It kind of means that I am having to choose between sure fire nausea from an empty stomach or feeling overly stuffed.

Sensitivity to smells has also returned full force. That makes public bathrooms a nightmare. Nothing is worse than being in a stinky bathroom and then getting sick.

Brushing my teeth is a really bad trigger for me too. It sucks so much. It's one of the only ways to make my mouth feel less gross after getting sick, but sometimes, it causes me to get sick all over again. I just can't win. I do try to substitute mouth wash sometimes. I can tolerate that a little bit better.


I realize all of this is pretty normal morning sickness related complaints. And honestly, I don't think I would complain so much if this had all happened in the first trimester. No one told me that there was a chance it would come back in the third trimester. I wasn't prepared. I was prepared for back aches and uncomfortableness, not more vomiting. So, newly pregnant ladies, this is my warning. Morning sickness is not always just a first trimester thing. It's sneaky.

35 Weeks - Update

Countdown: 33 days 

Baby size: She weighs somewhere around 6lbs and could be 22in long. Roughly as big as a large cantaloupe according to my what to expect app. 

Symptoms: Hot flashes and heartburn were particularly terrible this week. 

Cravings: Chocolate. Particularly in brownie or cookie forms, although I will settle for spoonfuls of nutella in a bind. 

Best Moment of the Week: I was super emotional this week, but it has to be listening to D sing and talk to my tummy. He's so sweet and I can't wait to see him grow into the role of a father more and more. 

Worst Moment of the Week: Waking up five times in one night just to go to the bathroom or doing weird inverted stretches to try and get Eleanor to get into a head down position. Both are equally awkward and tiring. 

What I am Looking Forward to: We start our labor classes Wednesday night (and D will officially be a year older!). I'm nervously optimistic. 

Congrats husband!

My wonderful husband started a new job today. I'm so excited for him. He is such a hard worker and really deserves to be successful. Taking this new job was a difficult decision, but it really is the best for our litte family.

I love you D! I'm hoping that your first day was everything you want it to be and more.