27 Weeks

Is it possible that we're down to less than three months? The more I think about my desire to deliver early, the more I start to question my sani
ty. I really really enjoy this exclusive time with my 2 year old. I'm also booked up with work until the baby's due. Truth be told, there's a better chance of me wrapping everything up properly if this baby waits until his/her due date. Yes, that means one birthday on top of the other (my hubby is the 24th), but in the long run, it may be better to have a little more time on this end rather than on the other. Alas, the child will come when the child wants, and I'm perfectly okay with that.

Sad news. I just found out my doula is taking some time off. My hubby and I have been back and forth trying to decide if we wanted to use a doula this time. Last time, she was a LIFESAVER! Let's just say she went above and beyond (by about 12 extra hours) her call of duty. We would NOT have made it drug free for as long as we did without her. She made all the difference in the world. So why the doubt this time? Well, I'm believing this birth is going to go A LOT faster than the first (the first I clocked a solid 45 hours of awake and active labor--not to mention I'd been awake the 15 hours before the contractions began). I'd love to have a, well, 30 minute push time and pop--here's your baby! I know the reality is slim, but I will hope!

Secondly, my hubby proved to be stellar during the labor. My doula commented that she wished she could take him to all her births--his ability to stay in the moment with me and be attentive to my needs was a cut above. (I'm so proud!) Anyway, since I have an incredible hubby and will have a shorter birth, we questioned if investing the money in a doula is a priority. But, when it all comes down to it, we decided that no matter how quick the birth goes, she'll be worth every penny. Not to mention, I believe that her presence at the birth made my hubby a better person. We probably would've been lost without her.

All that to say, she (for very commendable reasons) is taking time off. Sigh. I'm not sure where we'll go from here. To be honest, I'm telling you, dear readers, before I have even had time to mention it to my hubby. I'll keep you posted on his reaction.

I had my last second-trimester checkup this week, and you all know what that means (well, if you've been prego) GLUCOSE SCREENING! Mmmm, mmm, tasty orange liquid tingling on its way down my throat. An hour of anticipating yet another NEEDLE! And then having my blood drawn. I psyched myself up for more drama than it proved to actually be, but still. Not my favorite checkup.

And then this zinger--I didn't pass! Horror of horrors. I feel like any advice I've given on this blog immediately lost all credibility. How could I boast a healthier-than-average lifestyle and then turn around and fail the glucose test? I passed last time, so this was really out of left field for me. Since then, I've learned a few interesting things:

1. If you don't pass the first time, they make you take another test to double check the results. This next test is over three hours long and requires you have your blood drawn four separate times in those three hours. Oh, and did I mention you can't eat before or during this whole process? I'm a woos when it comes to needles, but if my hubby is with me, I can make it through without passing out. But I can't justify making him take half a day off of work just to hold my hand while they stick me over and over with needles. I'll take the test sometime in the next few days . . . and I'm going to try and brave it alone. I'll keep you posted on how it all goes.

2. If you don't pass the second time, hello diet! There are all sorts of food restrictions that I would normally be excited about--forced healthy eating is a good thing, right? But since I'm prego, a lot of my food choices have been determined more by hormones and less by healthy choices. Doing a 180 in the midst of my pregnancy is not really something I'm looking forward to.

3. From the little I've read online, I don't really fall into any of the categories of people who get gestational diabetes. The only things I can relate to on the lists of symptoms or people who get it are 1. I've been more hungry this pregnancy--but not insatiable, and really not that much more than my first. 2. I'm over 30 this time. 3. I haven't been exercising regularly--but I figure chasing a two year old around and maintaining a business and semi-clean home somehow cancelled out that exercising category. I don't sit around and watch TV. I'm constantly active (except when I'm writing/editing). That's gotta count for something.

4. As I mentioned in an early post--your imagination goes wild during pregnancy, and overall it's best to stay away from books like What to Expect When You're Expecting because they primarily fill you with fear. Talk about a mental battle when you read the possible side effects of gestational diabetes. Hello! These are the moments when I'm glad I keep my faith built up even when I'm in a trial. I can't imagine dealing with this and having been slacking on building my faith.

For the record, I plan to come back to you next week and tell of a successful series of pricks that didn't cause me to pass out, and a report that the first test was wrong--I'm free and clear. Until then.

p.s. For those of you interested in a potty training update, it's still going. I now have no doubt that this process would have gone a lot faster if I had waited until my daughter was older. BUT, we've made so much progress now, I don't see the point of throwing in the towel. On the victories end, we're doing really well when we're out and about. Yesterday we went to the pool, and she told me twice she had to go! On the other hand, we're having a lot of trouble making going to the potty a priority when we're home. I've changed more poopy pants than I'd care to admit.

So . . . I know she understands the concept. I know she can alert me before she has to go. I know she can hold it until we get to a bathroom. I just don't understand why she chooses not to tell me sometimes. That's where the age factor comes into play. I think if she was a bit older, that would tie up the last missing link and we'd have this mastered by now. Until then, I just have to wait until she decides to tell me every time. I also think it'll help a lot when she sees her friends potty training. Since we started early, we're all alone when it comes to hanging out with friends that also have to use the big-girl potty. I really believe it'll help her to see other kids doing the same as she. Time will tell.

**Thought I'd include some real pictures of me and my family this time =)**

26 Weeks Prego & Still Potty Training

26-Week Babycenter E-mail: 98 days to go--folks, we're down to double digits. AHHHHH!!!!

The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches (an English hothouse cucumber) from head to heel. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take two to three days.

Twenty-six weeks, and I'm finally becoming a morning person again! Earlier this week I was awakened by one of those awful charley horses that could bring someone back from the dead. 5:00 AM and I felt it slowly forming in my upper calf. I literally woke up yelling, "No, no, no, NO, NOOOOOOOOO!" I mentioned it on FB and got some interesting responses. Two remedies I'd heard before: stay well-hydrated and eat bananas (lack of potassium causes the charley horses). Then, I heard one I hadn't ever heard before--put a bar of Ivory soap under your sheets at the end of the bed. Wha? I'm not a huge fan of the smell of Ivory, so I won't be experimenting to see if it works, but I had multiple friends swear it works. Have you heard of any other remedies for charley horses? Charley horses are my least favorite part of pregnancy.

Anyway, that charley horse had me wide awake, and thanks to my body practicing for nursing, I wasn't able to fall back asleep. Let's just say that was one of the most productive mornings I've had all year. Other than that morning, I've been waking up voluntarily at 6:00 AM or so. I love mornings: Quiet house. Time to do stuff I don't normally get to do (this morning I baked blueberry muffins--I love blueberry season). The cool morning air that makes it desirable to be outside. Ahhhhh.

I also have a confession to make--I never nested with baby #1. I kept waiting for it to happen--wanting it to happen, in fact. Being the Type-A that I am, I always have a to-do list calling my name. And I just knew that when I nested, I'd be superhero-size productive. But, alas, it never came. Thankfully, since it was my first pregnancy, I didn't have a little toddler running around to distract me, so I was able to accomplish quite a bit before baby #1 showed up.

This time around, since first and most of second trimester were so rough, I haven't had energy or willpower to do much of anything. The house is at a just-livable level, my nursery is far from done, etc. BUT I really want to nest this time. Think of the possibilities. I could get gobs and gobs of stuff done, cleaned out, thrown away, and take control of my house back. I got a taste of it yesterday--sorted through mountains of old mail, cleared out a junk drawer, and threw away half of a filing cabinet. Felt good. Was addicting. I'm starting to plot how to conquer the rest of my house so that it doesn't feel too small too fast. Rubbermaid storage boxes and metal shelving for our garage are about to become my new best friends. Today I may tackle a couple of hall closets. Yes! (Okay, I think it's safe to say I'm nesting.)

Potty training with my two year old continues. We've had some great victories this week--she told me she had to go, and we made it to a public restroom--that's the first time we've had a success outside of the house without me just sitting her on the potty. We've had some failures--she refuses to tell me she needs to go at the beginning of the day. And we've had some semi-victories: she tells me she needs to go, sits on the potty, but nothing comes out. And, right now our world revolves around stickers. You should hear her yell, "Sticker?!" when we check for dry pants or she goes on the potty. She gets so excited.

So, I think we're doing well. We're already into week three. We're nowhere near mastering this thing. Since I'm putting her in diapers for nap time and overnight, our time to train is limited. If she wets during a nap and at night, there's not a lot of other chances throughout the day to train. Is this normal? Should I have her nap in training pants? Plus, if we run an errand, go swimming, etc., inevitably we lose another chance because she's wearing a pull-up. Ahh, the joys.

Moms who haven't trained yet, be prepared. It could be a quick process (and I sincerely hope it is for you), but worst-case scenario, prepare yourself for the long haul. My greatest encouragement I can give you: Don't stress the accidents. It's okay if it takes longer. Just take it in stride. It only makes things worse when you're freaking out because things aren't going as planned. Plus, as many of my friends have pointed out, how many adults do you see in diapers? It all works out in the end =)

**Photo courtesy of tenaciousme**

25 Weeks Prego & Potty Training a 2 Year Old

Twenty-five weeks already? Is that possible? Three measly months until baby ninja is here? Yikes!

From my email this week:

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

I have no idea what a rutabaga looks like, but I know what baby fat looks like--chubby heaven! I love baby rolls and sagging baby cheeks. My first baby had the cheeks, but her arms barely could have qualified in the "wrist chubs" category. Plus, she had long, skinny legs and narrow, narrow feet--I don't think a baby shoe fit for at least three months because all baby shoes are made for short, fat feet, not long, skinny ones. So, I'm hoping for some more chubs on this baby. I'm SO curious to see how this baby looks--will baby ninja be a clone of my first child, or will baby ninja prove to look as different physically as I feel physically compared to my first pregnancy? If my eating is any indication of how fat my baby will be, I'm well on my way to producing a cute chubby bunny this time around. (BTW, I can't wait to kick this pregnancy weight in the head as soon as possible after the baby is born--My mom told me today they say in Weight Watchers, "Nothing feels better than feeling thin." I agree!)

This week has been a huge test of pregnancy brain and hormonal overload. I decided to potty train this week, which would give me a four-month buffer before baby 2 gets here. So I read my books (mainly followed Toilet Training in Less Than a Day), bought training pants and underwear (I was shocked that most people skip training pants and just use pull-ups--that seems like it'd be confusing because they're so similar to diapers), and loaded up on treats for rewarding my daughter for dry pants and going in the potty.

Well, the day before we started, our AC went out . . . again. Happens every summer, and we usually do a semi-cheap patch to get us through to the next summer; but this time I was done. We decided it was time for our 40+ year-old system to retire and a new one that actually cools our house to less than 78 degrees be purchased.

Being a the Type-A that I am, I decided that it'd be no problem to continue with potty training plans while sweating profusely at home and entertaining various AC salesmen trying to sell me a system that cost, hmm, about the price of my firstborn. Needless to say, sticky sweaty bodies means even more difficulty for my little one to learn the fine art of pulling underwear up and down, and an overheated pregnant mama does not make for a very enthusiastic and positive teacher. Again, determined to cross potty training off my list in the timeframe I had previously decided, I forged ahead.

We ended up moving in with my parents until we could sort out the AC thing, which meant I was not there 100 percent of the time for the training; so my daughter had two teachers, two houses to learn in, and, well, let's just say we weren't trained in less than a day . . . it's been a week, and we've just hit the crying, kicking, and screaming protests when we insist she go to the potty because she's doing the tell-tale tippy-toes dance on my mom's carpeted floors.

Sigh. I should've let this one go until the AC was installed, but now that I'm in the middle of it, I refuse to give up. I've been encouraged that the parents that are the most persistent are the most successful; plus, I've read more than once that starting and stopping potty training further delays progress.

I know, I know. There are tons of stories out there of people who stopped and started, and everything turned out just fine. I'm well aware of the fact that everyone's different. And, yes, I'd probably be fine if I threw in the towel and restarted at home. BUT, being a type-A, being less than four months from delivery of baby #2, and being stubborn, failure at this point is not an option. I will endure!

Well, for those of you who aren't scared off by now . . . back to pregnancy stories =) Got my first pregnancy-wake-you-from-a-dead-sleep-with-excruciating-pain charley horse last night. Whew, was that fun! Thankfully I'm not sore and hobbling the next day like I was with my first pregnancy. I've heard staying hydrated and eating bananas helps keep these things at a minimum--so I've got to up my intake of both H2O and bananas.

I'm really, really excited about having a fall baby. Holding my five-month-old niece and nephew and feeling their warm cheeks when I kiss them just makes me more excited. The nursery is nowhere near ready for this baby, but I know that really doesn't matter. But, we did take advantage of Memorial Day sales and bought a ceiling fan for the nursery. There's at least one thing I can cross off the list!

Off to eat a banana . . . that looks strangely similar to a brownie and ice cream =)

24 Weeks Prego & 2-year-old Birthday Party

My email this week says:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Only 112 days left (less if I deliver when I want to--about a week early). Things are really starting to feel like they're going a lot faster. Three and half months sounds like a long time, but then again, it doesn't. I'm starting to get pretty sentimental about my time with just my firstborn. A friend of mine on FB talked about being a little sentimental that her second baby was coming because it meant she wouldn't have the exclusive time with her firstborn (I can certainly relate). Everyone's comments assured her she was completely normal, and it's just as wonderful with two as it was with one. Regardless, I teared up just reading the comments. Actually, I've been tearing up a lot lately. Holy emotions! I was not this sensitive the first time around.

A (my firstborn) had her second birthday, and it was a complete success! I didn't do a party because it's too much chaos and money for something my daughter's not really going to understand anyway. Instead, we took Saturday morning and dedicated it to A. Shortly after she woke up, she opened her first present--modeling clay, crayons and colored pencils. We promptly sat down and put all of them to use. Then my hubby insisted on opening her apron--the one he picked out. She loves it! I love the modeling clay--it smells so yummy, and I don't have to worry about it going in her mouth. A used it as "food" and put it in different bowls and pans and stirred and served it to us.

The next present she opened was finger paint. We stripped down to bare essentials, headed outside, set up a huge cardboard box (leftover from my parent's kitchen remodel), and she went to town on the box. By the time she was covered in paint, we filled our kiddy pool, rinsed off with the hose, and spent the rest of the morning playing in the pool. Lunchtime came, and we opened another present (clothes), and then it was nap time.

We went out for dinner that night (A probably could have cared less), and we told her after dinner we'd go and get a cupcake. Well, that was the magic word for "don't eat your dinner and just get really hyper instead" because she spent the rest of the meal picking at her food, crawling out of the booth, asking for a cupcake every five seconds, and trying to visit all the tables surrounding us. We let her choose her cupcake flavor, carrot cake (girl after my own heart!), and when she was only halfway done, the sugar high kicked in. She spent the rest of the time running circles around our table while chanting, "Run, run, run, run, run." It was pretty hilarious.

All-in-all, a perfect choice for the two-year birthday celebration. Plus, I loved that my hubby got tons of playtime with A (something that doesn't happen often because of his work schedule). That meant more to A and to hubby than an expensive party ever could have.

22-23 Weeks Prego

Yikes, this is going fast. Only 17 more weeks to go, and little mango is determined to make its presence known.

I have to admit, as I've pondered what to write about this week, I've found myself dwelling on little more than my discomfort and longing to have my body back. Mother of the Year right here! Yikes, how selfish does that sound?

These are the times I have to remind myself of the miracle of growing a baby in your belly and the fact that carrying a baby in my belly (no matter how uncomfortable I feel) is infinitely easier than carrying a real live baby that cries, poops, squirms, and demands constant attention. I'd much rather do these forty weeks with the baby warm and cozy inside of me growing in a safe environment than try a hands-on approach to growing a baby. Yikes, can you imagine? (Yikes, do I say "yikes" enough in this post?)

On a happier note, I'm getting really excited about the baby stage. I know when you're in it, it's easy to get caught up in figuring out how you can possibly get anything done around the house--but the cuddling, the sleeping on your chest, the tiny toes and fingers . . . they grow so quickly. I'm really excited to have a little tiny baby in the house again. Plus, my daughter is fully taking on the mother roll with her dolls. She shushes them on her shoulder; she reads books to them; and she generously shares her snacks and agua with them whenever they're close. My favorite observation so far is that when she puts her dolls "night night," she covers them (I mean completely covers them, head and all) with her blankets. Where'd she learn this? I promise, I have not demonstrated any baby suffocation techniques for her. And since the TV is on so little in our house (right now the only thing she watches is the sole Veggie Tales DVD that we own), I know she's not getting it from there. Who knows?

I also ordered and received my giraffe print in the mail. I'm basing my entire nursery off of this--colors and everything. I'm so excited!

Oh, and my daughter's two-year birthday is this weekend. I've chosen to play it really low key this year. I just don't see the point of going all out on a party my child will not remember. Instead we're celebrating with each side of the family during our normal Memorial Day or weekly family events. A cake (probably covered in strawberries since that's one of my girl's favorite foods) and some decorations are all we need. Instead, I've allowed myself to buy a bunch of presents . . . in fact, I had so many fun ideas I couldn't buy them all. But I figured with not spending as much on a party, I could ignore some of the budget to buy just a few more cute things!

Here's what I got:

Art supplies from Oompa (non-toxic crayons, colored pencils, and modeling clay)

A personalized apron (this was my hubby's pick but I love it too!) from Em Tanner

A few wooden puzzles from a consignment sale

Some clothes from a consignment sale =)

Tableware to add to her growing kitchen kit from Plan Toys

And a new Veggie Tales DVD so we can have a tiny bit of variety!

Here's where I finally drew the line and wouldn't let myself buy:

Birdhouse for our backyard. Don't you love the use of the knobs?

Bento box for picnic lunches

Kitchen to house all her pots, pans, and new dishes

A new doll to shush (and suffocate? ;-)

I'll try and post pictures soon!

**Above photo courtesy of joyosity**

21 Weeks & Transitions

Baby carrot is developing right along. Eyebrows and lids (and more personal parts) are on the agenda for this week. Appropriately enough, my email told me that it would seem my baby is "practicing marital arts," which makes baby ninja all the more appropriate of a nickname :)

Exhaustion is a big battle nowadays. I get excited at the beginning of the day and forge on to accomplish a billion to-do list items, only to find that I can barely function by 1:00 PM and my girl's nap time/my work time (anything that correlates with my Editor Joy business) is severely jeopardized by sheer exhaustion. Thankfully, my laptop allows me to accomplish most work on the couch--so I can rest while I work (that's possible, right?). But I do find I'm most productive when someone watches my girl (thanks, Mom and MIL), and I just camp at a cafe and work with no distractions (except the Internet--okay, that's a MAJOR distraction, but at least housework, cooking, books, etc. aren't tempting me too).

I started playing around with registries today. My SIL is planning a diaper shower for me, but I'm throwing together a couple of registries just in case people want some guidance on what to buy--since I'm a cloth diaper mama, this is particularly helpful if anyone wants to buy me cloth diaper supplies. I'm finding that my registries are more of a wishlist since I have the basics, but I also know that the things I'm registering for would be greatly appreciated and used often based on my previous-baby knowledge.

I started the standard BRU registry. This is definitely where I've put all my "basics" that I still don't have and greatly need. Then I started a registry on MyRegistry.com. I wanted to use a registry service that allows me to add items from various stores. I like the concept, but I'm not thrilled with how it functions. Every time I try to add an item to my registry, it makes me log in again (for some reason this only happens on my laptop--it works better on my desktop). Very annoying. It also doesn't automatically link with BRU--grrr. I'm going to have to go to BRU and manually add each item to MyRegistry. Not looking forward to that. The good points--it allows me to register for cloth diaper supplies not available on BRU. And it allows me to register for handmade items (non-etsy) from vendors I've discovered over the past couple of years and have been wanting to try their products (i.e. ResaDesign, DearJohnnies, CottonBabies, etc.)

I'd love your recommendations--especially the lesser-known vendors that offer high quality, unique items for babies. I've noticed the recent trend at baby showers is to give a gift that you ordered online (or someone local made) that someone introduced you to, and you couldn't imagine living without. Some real treasures are found this way. Do you, dear readers, have any treasures to share? Maybe some I could add to my registry =)

The first major transition--toddler bed is in progress. After reading all of my friends' advice about which order to transition (toddler bed, potty training, paci), the common message among them all was "go with what's natural." The bed's the most natural for us, so that's where we started.

We just took off the front panel of her convertible bed to make the transition. The first nap she was pretty freaked out, so I stayed in the room with her til she fell asleep. That night she fell asleep at my parent's, so we woke her and laid her down in the bed, and she went right to sleep. Since then, no fears. BUT these last couple of days we've found her either on the pillows we set up on the floor or in her play tent. My hubby thinks she's rolling off, but I think she's getting up and trying new places to sleep. Personally, I don't care where she sleeps as long as she stays in her room (and since she can't open the door herself yet, this isn't an issue). I'll keep you posted. I do really like not having to hoist her over the big crib rail.

Remember to give me your links to high quality, unique, can't-live-without baby items!

Halfway There!

Photo courtesy of db*Photography

(That's not me in the picture, but I wish I had her hair . . . and sunglasses . . . and skinny body ;-)

Baby banana is supposedly 10 inches from head to heel right now. That's literally half the length of my first newborn baby. Go figure, halfway really does mean halfway!

Life hasn't changed too much lately. I'm definitely more uncomfortable. I can feel my skin stretching, especially around my bellybutton. In fact, that's where my lovely stretch marks appeared last time--little squiggly snakes dancing around my belly button. I swore I'd put more cream and jojoba oil on this time so it wouldn't worsen; but my belly's growing too quickly and I'm too lazy--so I can already feel those ominous stretchings (is "stretchings" a word? Doubt it. I blame pregnancy brain.)

I moved all the baby stuff from my firstborn's closet to the office. It's a huge pile--bigger than I thought it'd be . . . and I haven't even added furniture. Yikes. I kinda think that preparing a nursery is harder the second time around than dealing with being pregnant. You know? Right now I have a nursery that's already done, a toddler running around demanding attention, and a budget that's already stretched pretty tight. All of the sudden, the idea of decorating, furnishing, and prepping a room for baby #2 seems like a monstrous task--pushing a baby out, psh, no problem! ;-) I'm kidding. . . Well, I'm half kidding.

I've made some decisions about prepping my first child for the transition. We're going to tackle changing to a toddler bed first. It feels the most natural for us, and I'm done catapulting up my 30+ pound child over the crib rails for every nap and bed time. After that we'll tackle potty training. The paci may be the last thing to go.

I'm so excited about the transition to two children. My firstborn's birthday is coming up, but every present I buy seems like the perfect item to keep until the baby's born and give to my eldest to help through the transition. I just ordered an Ergo doll carrier (the ones the kids wear with their dolls in tow) that I'm super excited about. It was half price on www.kidsteals.com--my new favorite site (I'm a little concerned what it will do to my pocketbook). I plan to use my Ergo all the time, so this will give A something to make her feel included too.

I've also heard it's good to have a box of toys/activities that only comes out during the times that I'm nursing. This gives my girl something special to do when the baby's nursing, and it also gives her something to look forward to. I got some Melissa and Doug wooden farm animal lacing beads at a consignment sale, and I think it'll be best to save those for the nursing box. It's something that will require a little more coordination on her part--so about the time the baby's born, she'll be getting into that.

Any other suggestions for nursing box toys? And while we're on activity suggestions, I've got a big road trip planned for Thanksgiving--newborn and two year old. I'm already starting to think about what activities I can make/buy for that trip. I'm following @MomMostTraveled and @travelkiddy on Twitter for ideas; but I'm open to more! Please share!

Realistically, if I can prep/make activities before the baby's born, there's a better chance they'll actually get done!