week 40

40 weeks and my due date have come and gone.  Well actually today I am only 1 day past my "due date"  but it feels like way more.  I am just really ready to meet this little one who has been growing inside of me for this long.  I am thankful that I am not a miserable pregnant person who is "just done" being pregnant - I just want to meet this baby and find out if it is a boy or girl and snuggle it!  I have actually probably felt the best these past couple weeks than I have most of this pregnancy.  I attribute that to not working anymore.  My back no longer hurts (minus the occasional ache)  and I have not thrown up since starting my leave at work.  I have also managed to gain a couple pounds these last couple weeks.  I guess I eat more when I am not working and not throwing up!  Since I last posted I have had my baby shower at work and taken a few more weekly pictures.  Brett has been busy at school as well and I think those college students have made him a little sick.  I hope it doesn't progress to be any worse but he's got a sore throat at the moment. 

Weeks 36-40.  I guess I have a thing for striped shirts.  I do own some that aren't striped I promise.  And now we just continue to patiently wait for this baby to make his/her appearance.  My doctor won't let me go past 42 weeks but I sincerely hope I don't go that long.  I don't want to be induced either.  Just been doing lots of walking and sitting on my exercise ball.  Hopefully the next post will have some pictures of baby! 

35 weeks - 5 more to go!

We have hit the 35 week mark people!  If baby comes at any time now then he/she would stay in the hospital here instead of being shipped to Peoria.  Any babies born 34 weeks or before typically go to Peoria to be monitored, so I am glad we have passed that time with this baby!  Of course if anything happened to be not quite right and the doctor thought it was warranted then baby would have to go to Peoria to the NICU there.  So the last pictures I posted was me at 28 and a half weeks.  I have a few more to share! 

30 weeks

32 and a half weeks

 

34 and a half weeks

This last one was taken at night since I had worked the night before and slept all day.  It is getting darker sooner around here.  

I have been feeling fairly well, and can't really complain.  This baby is head down with its butt/feet jammed up in my right ribs which is quite painful at times!  Baby moves a lot and I have to pee all the time and don't sleep more than a couple hours at a time because of that :)  I am still working 12 hour shifts overnight.  Doctor said all I have to do is let her know if they get to be too difficult and she will say that I can only do 6 or 8 hour shifts at a time.  I had my 35 week appointment this afternoon.  Doctor said that everything looked good and baby is growing appropriately - but is measuring a little small.  My belly was measuring at 33 weeks and baby felt a little small.  I seem to have not really gained much weight either.  The doctor wasn't too concerned and told me not to worry, but scheduled a growth scan for next week just to check everything out.  Kind of a change from baby measuring in the 88th percentile at the 19 week ultrasound.  I know I really haven't felt like eating much most of this pregnancy.  Food has never sounded good and I kind of have to gear myself up to eat.  Either I feel nauseous or really full - there doesn't seem to be an in between.  My doctor said at this point I just need to focus on getting any kind of calorie.  If a milkshake sounds good, then go ahead and eat the milkshake. 

So now we just focus on getting this baby to grow a little more and be nice and healthy!  We've got the car seat, bases and stroller.  The changing table and dresser are upstairs and I have the clothes that I have so far all washed and put away.  Next Monday the nurses at work are having a baby shower for me so we will be getting more things then.  After that I can figure out what is left that we need to get on our registry.  

Well time to get ready for our 2nd childbirth class!  We have a fun teacher and the class last time was pretty fun.  Until next time!   

Summer is ending...or is it?

So it is almost September and technically fall doesn't officially start until September 22.  That means it is still summer and boy does it feel like it!  Highs in the 90's recently and I turned the air conditioner back on.  Being pregnant I just cannot stand to be hot!  It makes me crabby and we don't need a crabby Emily - it isn't pretty.  Just ask Brett.  The end of summer however does bring the arrival of college students and now for us - a college professor!  Brett applied way back in May I think for a teaching position at Illinois State University in the Chemistry department.  School started Monday August 19 and Brett was offered the job August 14.  Thankfully the professor who taught it last semester gave Brett his notes and schedule so Brett could adapt everything to how he wanted to teach on such short notice.  So far he has really enjoyed teaching this lecture Monday-Thursday for an hour and then teaching a lab from 3-6 on Tuesday. 

Other changes happening around here involve me at work.  In 2 weeks I start my weekend position.  What this means is I will be working every Friday/Saturday night and then one other day during the week.  I will be getting paid a significant amount more and have the option of just going down to 2 nights (Friday/Saturday) a week after the baby is here and I go back to work.  This would mean that I can be home with baby during the week and would not need childcare.  Brett would be able to watch baby while I am at work at night on the weekends.  It will be a huge change for us, and hopefully we will adjust well, but I think it will be good.  I plan on taking 12 weeks off from work after baby is here and I know that time will go by very fast.  

Our garden wasn't really a huge success this year but that is okay.  We learned a lot and hopefully can improve on things next year.  We got enough green beans to be able to eat them fresh.  Something ate most of the first batch we planted, so next year we will put a fence up right away so that doesn't happen.  Also, some bug or fungus got to our squash.  We only got one squash off our 2 plants!  It is quite sad.  Our onions were too close to our tomatoes which grew like crazy and shaded them too much so the onions could not grow.  Basically the only thing that really did much was the 4 tomato plants.  And I don't even like tomatoes!  HAH!  Right now I have 19 tomatoes sitting on the counter.  I might try to can some pizza sauce or something with them.  The other day Brett made some fresh salsa with the tomatoes which was pretty good!  

The last time I wrote a blog post I put a picture up of me pregnant at 18 and a half weeks.  Things have grown significantly since then!  :)  We have been taking pictures about every 2 weeks.  My next doctor appointment is September 13 and then after that my appointments will be every 2 weeks!  I signed us up for a childbirth class at the hospital in October, so that should be interesting.  The girls I work with are planning to have a baby shower for me in October.  Crazy to think I only have 11 weeks to go.  And if baby decides to come earlier then it could be less than 11 weeks!  I have been feeling pretty well.  This baby moves a TON.  I wonder if he/she actually sleeps in there.  I get tired and don't really sleep through the day (or night if I am not working)  because I wake up to pee often, or I get uncomfortable and have to move.  But overall I don't really think I can complain much!  Can't really hide my belly under my scrubs anymore.  I also am no longer working 3 nights in a row.  I usually do one night, then one night off, then 2 in a row.  It just gets too exhausting to do 3 in a row.  I have a couple loads of baby clothes washed and put away in the new dresser.  Otherwise I haven't done much "nesting."  

Well time to get back to cleaning the house and doing laundry.  Oh and some lunch...maybe I should eat some lunch.  Here's the recent pictures!  

 22 and a half weeks

24 and a half weeks

 26 and a half weeks

28 and a half weeks - quite the bump going on there. 

 

 

 

Baby and more

Well Hello again world.  I'd probably begin this by saying not much has happened since the last time I wrote but the reality is that a lot has happened considering it has been 6 months since my last post!  Brett graduated with his Master's degree in Chemistry after many many hours of writing his thesis, more continued progress on our basement, we traveled to Oklahoma to watch my brother graduate college, built a garden, planted a garden, planted flowers, traveled to MN for a wedding and much much more that I just can't think of.  We also celebrated being married for 6 whole years.  It is crazy how time flies when you are having fun, right?  On the first of March we also found out that I was pregnant!  I have my own written out pregnancy journal but thought I might share a few of the things I wrote on here as well.  Friday March 1 I came home from work in the morning and decided to take a pregnancy test just because it was getting to be about that time again.  I had bought about 50 of the really cheap ones because they can get really expensive and I was peeing on a lot of strips :)  Well it turns out there was one line on there and then this really faint other little line.  I honestly didn't believe it.  I showed it to Brett and told him that on his way home from school that day he should pick up a digital test just so we could check.  I took that test when I woke up that evening and surprise!  It said pregnant.  We were both standing there waiting and waiting for the hourglass figure to stop and the words to show.  Brett saw it first and said, "well it doesn't say not pregnant".  We were of course thrilled and I just couldn't stop laughing.  :)  Then began the weeks of waiting and keeping it a secret.  Hard to keep that kind of thing secret at work when I was pretty sick and never wanted to eat anything and always had to sit down while getting report because I felt dizzy.  Weeks 6-13 I was pretty much sick every single day.  I look back on it now and I am just amazed at how good I feel now compared to then.  Thank goodness for Brett who went and picked up my prescriptions, got me popsicles, fed me plain toast and ginger ale and always made me whatever food I wanted if I actually wanted to eat.  I don't know what I would have done without him.  We had an appointment when I was 7 weeks and 2 days and had an ultrasound and heard the little nuggets heartbeat already! Strong at 160 beats per minute. That was pretty amazing and kind of surreal.  There was a little thing growing inside of me and nobody else knew.  I had a couple other appointments since then and everything seems to be going well.  The doctor was happy I have gained 2 pounds finally.  Currently I am 18 and a half weeks.  Still wearing my same clothes.  I noticed last night for the first time that my belly is more firm than squishy :)  This coming Friday we have the big ultrasound/anatomy scan to check out all the little one's body parts and everything.  We are not going to find out if it is a boy or girl so that will be a surprise at the end!  And now some pictures for your viewing pleasure.  Probably would have been nice if I was fit and skinny before getting pregnant then maybe I would like to share more pictures :)  Oh well!  I'm hoping I can start running again after the baby is born.

18 and a half weeks! 

 I found this picture on the camera as well.  It is from our anniversary trip to North Carolina last year.  I have a blog post started on that trip somewhere :)  

I also wanted to give a shout out to my dad and say Happy Father's Day!  You have taught me so much and I continue to learn from you.  Thankful even now living 530 miles away that I can text you and ask for advice :)  

I will try to post updates more often!  Now, back to my movie.  We are watching Captain America on Netflix.  

 

arrived

2013 has arrived.  And I sit here writing this blog post while avoiding the cleaning and dusting and scrubbing that needs to be done before we have friends over for supper tonight.  Yup - that's me - procrastination at its finest.  I really could have had the whole house scrubbed from top to bottom in the time since I have been awake this morning.  Instead, the vacuum sits in the living room, with couches to be vacuumed (darn cat hair), furniture to be dusted, dishes to be done and bathrooms to be scrubbed.  I have actually written several blog posts in the past few months and saved them as drafts yet to be finished and published.  I'm good at that.  Having ideas and my head and things to do and yet they never get done and time passes on.  Like 2013 has arrived and the first month is more than half over and the days and time just keep moving.  Wait that all sounds so morbid and depressing.  Maybe I should erase it and start over...nah.

While I hate New Years Resolutions because I can never keep them and they just seem like something a person tries to do for one whole year and then they can be done with it - I might have a few of my own.  Although I don't really think of them as resolutions having a new year upon me seems like a fresh start and a good time to aspire to new heights and dreams.  Okay that sounds like my "resolutions" are dramatic and awe-inspiring.  They are quite far from that.  Ahem - without further ado - my life "resolutions" 

- Recycle.  While we have curbside recycling and most of my cans and milk jugs get in the recycling bag under the sink there are still things that could be recycled that just get thrown in the trash.  I want to think twice about everything that gets put in our trash can and think if maybe it could possibly be recycled.  I want our recycle can to be more full than our trash can each week. 

-Compost.  We have a yard.  We have a pile of dirt/grass in the back corner that when we dug up our yard the summer we moved in was to become our compost pile.  Instead it is still just a pile of dirt and grass.  I know nothing about a compost pile except what kinds of things I can put on it.  I will have to get a book from the library about compost for dummies.  So there it is - throwing my garbage in a pile in the back corner of the yard.  Quite the resolution huh?  

-Water.  Drink more of it.  End of story. 

-Have more friends. What I mean by this is not be such a loner.  Invite more people over to the house.  Have more planned dinners and game nights.  Put myself out there for people to come into our messy house and have fun.  Life is messy.  (as I sit here typing that I see more crumbs and dust under the couch that are staring at me) sigh.  

-Write more blog posts.  Even if they are random and just a rambling of my crazy mind and boring life...write more blog posts. And publish them too. 

Alright well now that I've just typed a random post instead of just saving it for later I will hit publish.  And then I can feel good about one of my "resolutions".  Oh and since we are having friends over tonight - I get 2 points today!  A blog post and friends.  whoo hoo!  Adios for now. 

  

Attitudes

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude of life.  Attitude, to me, is more important than facts.  It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.  It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill.  It will make or break a company, a church, a home.  The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrance for that day.  We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way.  We cannot change the inevitable.  The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.  I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.  And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes." 

- quote by Charles R. Swindoll

I haven't posted in awhile, and while many things have happened, life continues to remain about the same.  This quote represents a mantra I have been telling myself lately, mostly surrounding work.  I often wonder to myself why in the world people act the way they do.  If they hate their job and have to complain about everything, everyday  - why in the world wouldn't you quit or find something else - something that makes you happy?  Lately I have allowed too many people to influence my mood and attitude.  It is my life, and my heart, and my attitude.  I have control over it and I control how other people affect me.  It isn't up to them - it is up to me.  It is just so difficult sometimes because people are fake, are rude, are mean, disrespectful and sometimes just down right awful.  Anyway, I thought I had more to say about this subject but now my mind is tired after working all night so I need to quit.  Moral of the story?  I no longer give a rat's behind what other people think (most of the time).  I will choose my own attitude and my own response.  No one can take that away from me and no one can take my happiness away.  No one. 

My Mother

Happy Mother's Day to my one and only Mom.  This post is a tribute to her and to thank her for being my mom and everything she has done for me in my life.  Thank you mom for carrying me for 9 months and giving birth to me (and 3 other children!).  I will never know the sacrifice your and your body made until I have children of my own.  When that day comes I hope I can be half the mother you were to me.  My mom worked very hard in the house and outside the house.  Not only did she work several days a week as a nurse she maintained a home.  For as long as I can remember we had a huge garden.  My mom spent countless hours out there to provide home grown, nurturing food to fill our bodies.  While I probably grumbled many a times about helping pull the weeds and snapping those green beans, I am thankful.  We always had a home cooked meal on the table even if my mom had to work that night.  My mom is a wonderful cook and I look forward to eating her home cooked food (especially the rolls) whenever we travel to Iowa. 

My mom supported me in all my endeavors throughout school.  She supported, encouraged, and sometimes nagged me about the piano.  Without that nagging to practice though, I wouldn't have accomplished what I did.  She made it to almost all of my cross country and track meets, cheering for me all the while.  I always had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with Gatorade and a granola bar thanks to my mom.  She sat in the stands and iced my legs when my shin splints were so bad.  She held my hand while I cried as I found out I had compartment syndrome.  My mom always encouraged me to do my best at everything and work hard.  

Thanks to my mom for being the role model I needed to become the nurse I am today.  Thank you for supporting me through nursing school when things were really really hard.  One day my mom came over to our apartment and cleaned and did dishes so I could study for a test.  Thanks Mom.  She was the first person I called when I found out I passed my boards and the first person I called when I had my first patient death.  She celebrated with me and cried with me.  

My mom is strong and loving.  She loves her son in law like a son.  My mom has a heart for Christ.  

Thank you mom for being my mother.  Thank you for raising me to have a relationship with Christ.  We've had our differences but like dad always told me - we are more alike than different.  Thank you for loving me and showing me that love.  Happy Mother's Day Mom.