The homestretch!

It's official, I'm in the 3rd (and final) Trimester! Bring it. Now it's just a matter of getting through all the holidays and it will "be time."

I had my 28 week appointment this Tuesday. This was the glucose test appointment to test for gestational diabetes. I am really starting to think some girls are total wusses for making this out to be so bad. Alright, so you have to drink something that you wouldn't willing order per se, but believe me I've choked down shots that were WAY worse in my day (and those are for fun, right?). This really wasn't bad. More than anything it was annoying because you had to time everything and not eat anything for several hours prior drinking the drink (which happened to be right at lunch time for me, so naturally, I was hungry). I came home from work with my empty stomach (as required), sucked down the drink, waited the required hour, and then had my blood drawn.

... suck'er down ... ... all gone!

After they did my blood draw it was onto the 28 week check-up with my doctor...

My doctor is the most adorable and bubbly thing. She always starts appointments with "So, how are you feeling, what questions do you have for me?" I feel like I never have anything good to ask because I google and research all the time (which really is a bad idea). However, I felt the need to still ask something... because I am a psycho and worry about everything I had her look at the photos from my last ultra sound again to confirm that it is indeed a boy. Yes, I said I'm nuts but I get nervous that they misread it or something. Fear not, still a boy. We listened to his heartbeat with the doppler which was good and steady around 140. He did get pissy when she had to put the cold gel on my stomach to pick up the heartbeat, and just as she was starting to pick up the heartbeat he kicked so hard where the cold gel was that it made that sound like when someone blows loudly into a mic. Both Dr. Offerdalh and I just cracked up. Little baby likes to be warm in his cocoon, don't mess with him, he'll show you who is boss.

He generally sits on my left side, and she told me if it's making me uncomfortable to take a cold wash cloth and hold it over there because he's going to move... clearly. Although, he will probably kick me with his 99th percentile legs first. She checked my blood pressure and weight gain... all perfectly on track. I have to admit though, being a girl who's go-to diet for years has been weight watchers, anytime I see a number going up on the scale it really doesn't feel like things are "on-track." I find myself thinking "Now what 'bad point items' did I have to cause this gain?" This is a mental adjustment. There are no more ultrasounds at appointments after 20 weeks unless something comes up that they would have to do one, so the appointment are pretty quick.

I got the results from the glucose testing back on Friday and everything was perfect. Woohoo! Bring on the pumpkin pie!! I'm sorry, but wouldn't that be the worst if I had to be 8-9 months prego and unable to indulge a little in all the holiday goodies?? And to think 8-10% of women are affected by gestational diabetes starting at 24 weeks. Just one more thing to be thankful for at Thanksgiving.

Sympathy Gains...

Studies have shown that expectant fathers gain weight throughout their partner's pregnant. They often refer to it as a "sympathy gain." According to this New York Times article the average weight gained by the father during the 9 months of pregnancy is 14 lbs. Woah, woah, woah, put down the chips and ice cream dad!! What I found equally funny is that, unlike the mothers, the dad's don't try to lose it afterwards.

I can't say that John is showing any real sympathy signs of weight gain thus far (despite his continued beer drinking)... but there is someone in our household who I can't say the same thing for.....

I think it's safe to say that it is time for a little vet check-up for the Boom-man. I'd hate to hold a measuring tape that backside. Oink!

Check, check, check...and CHECK!

It's been a big week.... and not just because I am in fact getting big....but rather because a lot of things were checked off the to-do-list.

1. Registering - Check! I overcame my fears of picking the wrong things and finally wrapped up the baby registries at Amazon.com and Target. Amazon ended up being awesome because I'm not locked into what just one store would have, and of course Target has a lot of the staples.

Come last Saturday, I had just 2 items left to finalize for the registry... the car seat and the stroller. So on Sunday, John and I went to some stores around town to check out items these items in person. It was quite an experience.... we went to the dreaded Baby's R Us and John disliked it just as much as I did, so it was another short lived trip. We then went to a local baby boutique called Real Baby where they have just  about every stroller and car seat out there on display. We had one of the sales girls walk us through every stroller model as we stood there sort of glassy eyed trying to absorb the differences between the two. Another couple was going though the same "training" and the husband turned to his wife and was like "I don't get it" to which John responded "Me either." The car seat was an easy choice once we saw them, but strollers are in.freaking.sane. Not only are they pricey, but there are tons of nuances between them, some allow car seats to click into them, some don't. Some allow you to have the baby to face either way, some don't. Some have special shocks to help with walks on crappy sidewalks, some don't. Some close with one hand into a manageable size, some don't. And on, and on, and on.  I've come to terms with the fact that the bugaboo is overpriced for no good reason, in fact the gal at the store (where they were selling them) flat out told us that. I'll admit I can be a label whore, no doubt about it, but as I looked at the bugaboo there we actually a lot of things I didn't love about it, and I found myself falling for another stroller that happened to be cheaper (please take a moment to pick your jaws up off the floor). After "test driving" the strollers at the store, both John and I agreed the UppaBaby Vista is the best option for us (which can be found cheaper on amazon, thankfully). My countless hours of online reviews also checked out - this stroller gets rave reviews. So check, final item decided.

2. Hospital Selection Tour - Check! Monday night John and I toured the Rose Medical Center labor and delivery floor. Everyone raves about this hospital here in Denver... it's sort of known as the baby hospital around town, so I told myself that unless there were any real deal breakers on the tour I'd just go with it. Well, the finishes and hospital were a little dated - we're talking some teal vinyl flooring and wallpaper boarders, but other than that no real complaints so Rose it is. I mean I'm popping a baby out, I'm not expecting that to compare with a night stay at the Ritz, so I can deal with some outdated surroundings. I will say, that standing in those birthing rooms was a bit like an out of body experience; the kind where you feel like you are watching from above thinking ""is this my life?" This really caused the reality to settle in for both John and I that this is happening... ready or not... It won't be long before I am laying in that hospital bed likely yelling for drugs.

3. Glider - Check! I ordered the chair for the nursery, which has a 10-12 week lead time. Um.... fingers crossed it will be here in time, otherwise I'll just have to be like a hippie and sit on the floor with him until it gets here.

4. Birthing Classes - Check! I have us all signed up for the birthing classes... it's 4 classes total, on Monday nights starting at the end of November. I'm sure I'll have some stories from class once those start.

So, it was a successful week for getting things done. I feel in a much better place and a lot less overwhelmed than I was a few weeks back. Don't get me wrong, there's still a lot left to do, but things are happening and moving in the right direction.

As I mentioned earlier... I'm getting bigger.... woof. There is NO hiding it, I'm 7 months pregnant. I wore spandex so you could really get the full effect (see below). Oh look! My stomach is finally sticking out as far as my porn-star sized boobs, hey, now that's really something.

Ok, stop looking at it! I'm embarrassed now. According to my sources at Baby Center, this 28th week "Wendell" weighs about 2.5 lbs... and is about 16" long. He's busy adding new skills such as blinking to an already impressive repertoire of tricks like coughing, sucking, hiccuping, and taking practice breaths. Crazy. They also mention that he's starting to fill his skin out with more and more fat. Awesome! Everyone loves some chub on a babe.

Back to the pretty...

Ok, despite my new found understanding of form follows function when it comes to baby land.... There is one area I refuse to give up my aesthetic values... The Nursery. I plan on doing my best to make it good looking as possible. After much debate it's been decided to make the nursery on the 3rd floor (the floor above ours). Ok fine, I'll admit that John suggested that floor/room early on, but I had it in my head that it should be the room right next to ours on the 2nd floor. So naturally, I called him crazy, came up with a million reasons it would never work and said no way. Then my mom came to visit and made the same suggestion John had... So naturally, I thought "mom knows best" ...3rd floor it is. Oh I'm so bad. In my defense though, when my mom bought up the point that we would be less likely to wake the baby if he was upstairs I was sold, not to mention it's a bigger room with a tv/computer room right next to it perfect for hanging in. And in my "not-yet-a-parent" mind I believe I'll be able to keep all the baby clutter, crap, toys, etc on the 3rd floor (bye, bye John's man cave, hello baby land). I'm sure I'll eat my words and stuff will creep it's way onto the main floor in due time, but we can all have dreams, right?

Anyway, point being, I'll admit it, John might  have been right about this.

So back to the nursery.... aka my the baby's modern nest....
Being the crazy, overly anal, detailed designer that I can be, I took it upon myself to make a little inspiration board for the room. As well as a floor plan (always important) and I went ahead and did a little wall elevation to see how the decals on the back wall would layout since the ceiling slopes and it changes height. These are the details that keep me up at night and haunt me when I'm shampooing my hair. After drawing this all up, I am feeling pretty good about things now. I ordered myself about 45 paint samples to get the perfect shade of blue-grey selected for the walls. Let me tell you greys are tricky little devils and you have to look at the in the light at all times of the day, but I think I have it picked. Now it's just time to check things off the to-do list, get things ordered, and get the room in place. No gentleman, in case you were wondering the walls will NOT be purple and black (Rockies colors). The child has the rest of his life for his father to jam sports down his throat and have a Rockies inspired room, but as a baby we're going to have nice and serene room. Don't try fighting me on this, I'm pregant, I bite, and last I checked I am actually an educated interior designer.

I also spent the past month researching cribs, looking at websites, checking local places (which Denver is lacking). There is some serious decision making that goes into this "statement piece." Plus, nowadays they often convert into toddler beds, which means the little guy could be in this puppy for quite a few years. Anyway, I made a spreadsheet of my favorites. Weighed the pro's and con's. I tried asking John his opinion but his response was always "I like the cheapest one." So after a lot of agonizing got it picked! It's an awesome sort of mid-century mod looking crib/dresser collection by Muu. It's made in the US with non-toxic materials, by a company founded by a woodworker who cares about nice and quality design. To me that sounds like form and function. Bingo I have found what I need!

I might add that we have the BEST parents! John's mom & husband Tom are purchasing the crib for us, and my mom & dad are getting the dresser/changing table. So nice! I cannot thank them both enough. It was seriously so nice of them to help us. I'm really excited because both pieces were ordered this week, so now it's just the waiting game till they arrive!

So without further ado, here's the inspiration board & plan...

(Feel free to let me know your thoughts, unless of course they are something like "I think the wall should be purple and the trim should be black." Because then I don't care).

This baby is going to be AWESOME....

With parents like this.... I ask you, how could he not be?
Pretty sure, we're going to have a PaRTy ANiMaLl!!

Yes, this is us. Photobooth. Meggie & Ryan's wedding 9.10.11.

Don't just pick the pretty...

I was reading a book of things I should be doing at this stage in the pregnancy and I'm failing. According to this book, I should have started the baby registry at week 20. Fail. So, I decided that I better go scope out Babies 'R Us and get this train back on the track. I am not sure if it was the florescent lights, the aisles jammed with carts from which screaming children were hanging all over them, or the amount of junk they had crammed into 5000 square feet, but I couldn't not handle it. I had a full on Babies 'R Us induced panic attack. I literally walked from one side of the store to the other and walked back out. Yep. This was not the place for me. I wish I knew this before I drove 20 minutes out to the suburbs (and those who know me, you know that I don't leave a 5 mile radius without good reason). So if I couldn't handle this excursion, why should I expect others to endure the same experience to get registry gifts? Answer: I don't. I will be finding places more in my comfort zone. I am actually trying to register online... so very comfortable to not have to leave the house... we'll see how it goes. Did you know you can register on Amazon!? So nice.

I also realized that I have no idea what I'm doing when it comes to selecting the correct items to put on a baby registry. Typically, when purchasing something I think "oh that's pretty, I'll take that." I mean that's how a wedding registry goes... you know you need plates, you pick the ones you like aesthetically and you move onto silverware. It's a cakewalk. This is a totally different game... It's not about what's pretty... it's about what is the safest, the most durable, the most functional, with the highest consumer report rating. This takes an insane amount of research. Therefore, I tapped into the BEST resource out there... my friends who are new mom's, and they are amazing. I asked them for recommendations on what things they would put top on their list, and what to not put on the list. The advice I got has been such a value I cannot even tell you. I still feel out of my element, but with some solid guidance. My goal is to have this registry complete by the end of the upcoming weekend.

Through this research, I've also come to realize that babies are not free (shocking, I know). Sure purchasing little things like a pacifier are manageable, but the second you put wheels on it or batteries in it, you better get out the credit card. Don't even get me even started on day care. I'm tackling one battle at a time, and much like the birth I'm pretending like day care is not a part of the equation....yet... For now I'm focusing on function and not just picking the pretty.... hard words to get a designer to live by, but we're working on it. Registry onward!

Cooking along... another appointment

I ended up having to move my 24 week doctor appointment from last week to Monday, because my "very important" law firm client decided to reschedule our design meeting for the 100th time to conflict with my doctor appointment. I'm telling you attorneys are the only ones who's schedules matter....Well and I suppose doctors...
Since I ended up having to just go to the nurse practitioner instead for this appointment because my doc wasn't available at the new time. Thankfully this was a pretty uneventful appointment. She checked my blood pressure, measured my uterus, listened to the baby's heart and I was on my way. Everything looked good and progressing as it should be. The next appointment is a dreaded by a lot of people, but I heard it's not that terrible from my friends. It's the glucose test appointment, and they already gave me my bottle of sugar punch which is chilling in the frig until the end of the month hopefully John won't accidentally mistake it for Gatorade and drink it.

For those wondering, we are still no closer on a name for the little guy. Everyone just keeps calling him Wendall as a joke... and this will likely be what we call him until his arrival when he gets his REAL name. I am feeling "Mr. Wendall" move and kick around quite a bit. John's timing is always off and he hasn't been able to feel him yet. So of course he tells me that I am hogging the baby. Personally I just think the baby is terrified of him, since he insists on getting his face up against my stomach and yelling "Wendall!! Wendall!! Can you hear me?"
This past weekend I cleaned out the closet, and I now have about 6 articles of clothing left that "fit." It's depressing, but I refuse to spend a lot of clothes I'll wear for like 3 months. So get used to seeing me sporting the same thing a lot. John got a good laugh at the maternity jeans when I pulled them on last week. I mean, they are pretty hysterical... no buttons... just a bunch of spandex-like fabric at the top. Bit of a change from squeezing into designer jeans.

Being that I would love to live my life in a robe if it was socially acceptable, I thought I'd really enjoy these maternity pants, but I have to admit, they suck at staying up. All day I'm pulling my pants up like a girl with a strapless dress at a wedding, and we all know there is nothing more annoying. I haven't figured out why a draw string isn't part of the equation. So I've now resorted to running in the door from work and putting on some sort of over-sized shirt, or my robe.... Don't judge, This. Is. Attractive. Lies. Yep, I am starting to get antsy and I still have 3 months left... this could get bad.

Seven Year Itch

....Or is it the 7th inning stretch?

Well, given my expanding stomach I think this year is causing some itching and stretching. Regardless, John and I blew through any old sayings, and happily celebrated our 7th year wedding anniversary. I'm telling you, time has FLOWN. How was this day 7 years ago (see below) ?!?!

I cannot believe we have been married for 7 years (which means we've been together as a couple for 13...holy crap). This year in particular we have a lot to celebrate and still a lot to look forward to! I feel so fortunate that John and I had so many years with just the two of us together living our dreams and getting to enjoy just our time together. And now, it's the perfect time to start the next chapter in our lives as we start a family!

To celebrate we went to a nice steak dinner with all the fixings. We embarrassingly ate EVERYTHING on our plates. No joke, polished it all off with no left overs to spare. Don't we look stuffed in the picture above? :)

John also surprised me with not one, but 2 little blue boxes! Um, yes please. He said one "One is for the anniversary and one is an early push present, since your 30th birthday and the baby's birthday will both in January, so I'm spreading out the gifts." No complaints here!

We do make it difficult in the McG family by stacking all of our holidays/gift-giving events one month after the next. Oct, anniversary. Nov, John's B'day. Dec, Christmas. Jan, my B'day (and soon to be baby's), Feb, V-day. Makes spring and summer a lot less expensive, but we do bring the party for several months in a row.

Ok, and now for our mom's viewing pleasure... here is a bump pic from after dinner. As John took the picture he was like "Well, you're not going to like this, you hate these pictures." Tis true, but I'm sucking it up. However, I refuse to do anything that involves me pulling my top up and showing off my bare stomach - sorry to girls who do that sort of thing, but it in't happening here. I'm a modest Mormon, remember. Maybe I'll wear something a little more form fitted next time though, so you can really see how big the bump is.

I'm at 25 weeks... so really that's like 6 months! The baby is growing away, and according to my baby center updates he's longer than an ear of corn! Based on my last ultra sound where they told me he is in the 99th percentile for height, I bet he is even longer. I am feeling him kick and move around a lot more now. It's crazy. I really notice it when I'm sitting at my desk for awhile or when I'm sitting watching tv. I've been feeling good still, and I go to the doctor tomorrow on Monday for a check-up.