The 'diet' so far

Well, I felt like I ate alot yesterday, but I also spent most of the day feeling hungry. I think I need to choose better proteins for my meals and snacks although I've done ones they've recommended. I seriously feel like i'm eating more carbs now that I was before. All my numbers have been great, so that's a plus. I may try being a little more lax this weekend to see how it affects things. Daniel and I are meeting Mom and Freddie at the cabin for the weekend. Cabin = good food, so we'll see how it goes. Below is what I ate yesterday.

Breakfast: mini whole wheat bagel with TBSP cream cheese and a slice of low fat cheese, decaf coffee with cream

AM Snack: 10 reduced fat triscuits with 1 slice of low fat cheese

Lunch:turkey sandwich w/cheese, mustard, tomato, lettuce, cucumbers and carrots w/ 1TBSP ranch

PM Snack: 6 nilla wafers with half a banana and 1 TBSP peanut butter
PM Snack 2: had to have some sugar free jello at about 5 cause I was freaking starving

Dinner: 4 meatballs, sauteed onions and peppers, 1/4 cup tomato sauce, 2 slices cheese, half a hoagie roll

Bedtime Snack: 1 TBSP peanut butter, 1 sugar free chocolate/vanilla swirl pudding cup, 1 cup of 1% milk

I started today with a slice of bacon, an egg, and a mini whole wheat bagel with spray 'butter' and felt full much longer and my numbers were much lower than yesterday.

My dinner last night was a half a meatball sub with 2 meatballs on the side at a party to watch the game. Great food, sad game. I wanted a brownie at that party real bad, but resisted. Gonna be a long 2 months.

What are the odds? (stolen title and post)

After a crazy day of running to Tupelo for class, coming back to work and hitting up Kroger for groceries, I had to go to Walgreens for Keytone test strips (cause Kroger was out). Who should I run into while checking out? My friend Mary Beth over at http://nedandmarybeth.blogspot.com/. And what would she be wearing? The exact same maternity dress as me! We even both had green purses! I've always thought MB had excellent taste!



I would like to state, for the record, that we were not there to buy smokes!

Diabetic Teaching Class

Well, I just returned from my meeting with the dietician. Thankfully, looks like the worse thing I'll have to do is the testing 4 times a day. My level of exercise and my diet are both pretty good. A few of the diet changes I'll have to make appear to be: no more fruit or juice in the mornings, no more syrup (unless I use sugar free) if I do waffles in the morning, the addition of a protein with my afternoon snack, and the addition of a bedtime snack. I will of course have to limit my sweets, watch how sweets affect my blood sugar levels, make a note if I eat something extreme like cake after the test results. I'll be heading to the grocery this evening to make a few substitutions and will begin testing and tracking tomorrow morning. I'll keep you posted on how it goes!

Well, I failed.

I took my second 3 hour glucose tolerance test this morning and I failed. I was on the borderline, but that makes no difference. If you fail even slightly you are considered to have Gestational Diabetes. I have to go to a Diabetic Teachings class on Wednesday to get my testing supplies and learn about my new diet. Isn't pregnancy supposed to be the one time you don't have to worry about dieting? Apparently not! So I'll be dieting, pricking my finger 4 times a day, and keeping track of what I eat and my numbers after testing to report back to my doctor. Along with that fun business, I will now have to go for more frequent appointments, sonograms, and will not be allowed to go past my due date...or at least not far past it. My friend Jenny who has been going through all of this as well, has steadily lost weight since starting the GD diet. If I do the same I won't have any weight to lose at all after having the baby. I guess I should be happy about that. I think I'll be having ice cream for dinner tonight.

Dear Lancome,

Dear Lancome,
Last time I got one of your fabulous 'free' gifts, you included a product I had never used before. In the last few months I have been using said product, and have fallen in love. So, today I get an email from Belk telling me you are having a 'free' gift giveaway again. What a perfect time for me to buy an actual container of the sample product that I loved, right? Uhhh...until I looked at the price. I'm just not sure I can justify spending $120 on moisturizer. Even if it does get me a fabulous free gift. Oh Lancome, why would you be so cruel as to hook me on a product that is ridiculously over priced? If only you would offer this product in your 'free' gift again, I would simply find a way to get my hands on lots of those samples. As it is, I guess I am just s.o.l. unless someone out there can help me justify that expense. Maybe I can just use a few times a week to make it last forever?

Oxford Baby Shower

My amazing friends threw me a baby shower in Oxford last weekend. It was wonderful to see most of my family and friends in one spot! They did a beautiful job with the decorations and the food was incredible! I'm still waiting for everyone to send me their recipes, so I can pass those along!

some of the wonderful food and the decadent chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting!


My lovely cloth diaper cake! Super cute!


Audrey and I (Happy Birthday Audrey!)


Bebe and Fred Daddy (Mom and Freddie) gave me a wonderful baby book! I've got to get started filling this in while I still have free time!


Xerxes is ready for his first trip to the cabin now! My cousin had shirts like this made for all the family a few years ago, and now onesies!


What is it about tiny bathrobes? So cute!


Most definitely not the most flattering photo of me. I pretty much live in a hot flash these days, but I had an especially bad one in the middle of opening gifts...hence the plate/fan.


A couch full of relatives!


On top of such a lovely shower, the hostesses bought me the car seat/stroller combo we had registered for! We will now be allowed to bring baby Xerxes home from the hospital!


I sure do have some good looking womens in my family! Thank you all for coming! From left to right: my mom, my grandmother Frances, my aunt Anne, me, my cousin Sallie, my cousin Kaylee, my aunt Havis, my cousin Jan, and my aunt Beth!


My wonderful friends and hostesses! From left to right: Audrey, Corinne, Jennifer, Lisa, me, Nina, Sage, and Natalie! Note to self: you are pregnant. if anyone says lets turn to the side for a photo, JUST SAY NO! :)


Daniel was very excited to have something new to put together! And look, he even read the instructions! We practiced strolling around the house and Bailey WAS NOT amused. I'm going to have to get her used to the stroller if there is any hope of her going with me when I stroll the baby. She was very scared of it!



On the baby front: I'm in week 30! Scary how fast time is flying by! Still feeling good. I've forgotten what it was like to take a deep breath or have my rib cage to myself, and I dream of the day I can sleep on my back again. All in all, still not too bad! Baby still kicks around like crazy and I sometimes feel like I'm crushing a foot or something when I lay on my side. Kinda freaks me out! Haven't taken my 3 hour GTT again yet. Maybe one morning this week, but since I have meetings most mornings, it's hard to skip out for 4 hours to do the test. And, needless to say, I'm not looking forward to the starving and the getting stuck 150970808 times. We are still in names discussions. Hate to say this, but we may just have to take the few we've narrowed it down to to the hospital and see what fits our baby when he arrives.

*Please say a prayer for my friend Rivers Collison who delivered a baby girl today (5 weeks early)! Haven't heard anything else, but praying all is well with Mom and baby!

Upwords Movement and Trisol

The group my friend Priscilla sings with has just released a cd. go here to listen or buy a copy. Priscilla is working on a solo album as we speak, so I'll keep you posted on that as well.

while I'm promoting my very talented friends, check out Trisol. My friend/sorority sister Tricia just started her own jewelry design company. she has some absolutely gorgeous stuff! I've seen some of her pieces in person, and they are even more stunning than the website shows!

enjoy!

Gone so fast!

This was the shortest long weekend ever! I started Friday night off by sitting in the car for 2 hours while Daniel bought a new shotgun. I'm trying to stay out of Wally World and grocery stores to cut down on my germ exposure. All I can say for that super fun 2 hours is thank goodness for my crackberry. Saturday Daniel went dove hunting all day, while I basically vegged. I did go makeup and shoe shopping, but the rest of the day was spent reading and watching movies. Sunday we headed to a friend's house to watch the game and eat some excellent smoked butt and sides! Monday we bought some new (deer proof) shrubs to go around the fire pit, cleaned the house, I made turkey chili to freeze, roasted a chicken, made sweet potato casserole, steamed broccoli and rolls for dinner last night and to snack on during the week. Yesterday wore me out! I needed a foot rub so bad by the end of the day, but alas, that is forbidden!

On the agenda for this 4 day work week: gym then Rotary Christmas Store meeting tonight, another daycare visit tomorrow, visit with potential pediatrician thursday, and here's hoping nothing on Friday! Saturday is my first baby shower, and I'm so excited! Can't wait to see all my family and girls in one place (minus a couple)!

On the baby front: I think we are getting closer on names. Still feeling great! The baby is super active and it just makes me giddy when he kicks the mess out of me! He definitely knows Daniel's voice and jumps around when he hears him as well! Oh yeah, I failed my 1 hour glucose screening, so I have to go back in for the 3 hour glucose tolerance test. Only 4-7% of pregnant women end up with GD, so hopefully I'll pass this time! My doctor was in no hurry for me to take it, so I guess I'll go in sometime next week.

The home stretch!

Well, I'm officially in the third trimester! Wow, the 2nd really flew by! I guess feeling good made all the difference. Scary to think how quickly this last trimester will probably go! No turning back now! Tomorrow is my second 1 hour GTT, so keep me in your thoughts around 8:45 tomorrow morning!

Thank goodness for Moms!

I would like to begin by apologizing for my rant on Friday. I hope my friends and family realize they can always ask me anything at any time! Well, except for the weight question. I mean, what woman anywhere, pregnant or not, wants to talk about how much she weighs? You show me yours and I'll think about showing you mine. :)

Now on to my wonderful Mom! She came up on Friday afternoon, and by the time she left on Sunday we had marked so many things off my to-do list, I couldn't help but feel less stressed! We enjoyed a lovely dinner at Taylor Grocery Friday night and then it was on to Tupelo Saturday morning! We purchased the crib bedding, picked out and ordered a swivel glider for the nursery, bought a dresser (thanks again Mom!), bought paint for the nursery, new pillows for our guest room, and an accent rug for the kitchen! I thought that was accomplishing alot for one weekend, but yesterday Daniel and Mom got the nursery completely painted! Daniel finished off our weekend by vacuuming and steam-cleaning the nursery as well! whew! Talk about a productive weekend! Our changing table should be arriving today, so tonight we may try and get that and the crib put together! So much fun!

As for the other things on my list friday that were stressing me out, I'm dealing with those one thing at a time. Daniel and I are researching several other daycare options in case 'flakey lady' doesn't work out. He's helped me call places all over town and we've been to visit one place that looks promising as a backup.

Tomorrow night we have our first official appointment with our doula (aka Corinne)! I've been reading so many baby books, it will be nice to get down to the nitty gritty with Corinne! We have a baby doctor appointment in Tupelo Thursday morning, so we will also be finalizing our birth plan to discuss with my doctor. Thursday's appointment also has another 1 hour GTT, so fingers crossed that I pass it! Just found out Daniel has a conference Nov 8-11, but hopefully baby won't be deciding to come during that time! He'll only be in New Orleans, so at least he can hop in the car and drive back quick if something changes! I'm still feeling great and just love that the baby is kicking the heck out of me! Feels so good to be able to just focus on the baby instead of a list of to-do's!

Thanks everyone for your support and friendship! Thanks Mom and Daniel for being such a big help this weekend! Love you all!

Case of the Mondays on a Friday

I am in a foul mood today, so today's post is going to be a vent. Maybe getting it all out there will make me feel better. Let's hope.

1. Lady who has been saying it shouldn't be a problem to keep the baby, is now having to 'check the schedule'. Perfect.
2. I could not sleep last night for thinking about where baby is going to stay if lady from above totally flakes on me. Will my baby end up having to stay at some horrible place? How unfair that I can't stay home all year to keep him myself.
3. Crying at work is not cool. Especially when your office is a fish bowl.
4. Have massive headache this morning from lack of sleep and stress.
5. Have been trying to get things organized at work for my 3 month absense. Not an easy task.
6. Have been trying to organize financial junk for when I'm not working for 3 months. Oh, and lucky for us, Christmas falls during that time! You all may be getting homemade presents this year...how does a pic of the baby sound?
7. I'm really tired of people asking about the following things cause it just adds to my stress: how much weight have you gained?, do you have a name picked out yet?, who is going to keep the baby?, is your nursery done yet?, yada, yada, yada. As if I don't mentally have a long list of things that need to be done.
8. Let's not even get started on the details of labor, delivery, and all that follows.

My Mom is coming up this weekend to help me knock some of the things off my to-do list. Here's hoping I'll feel a little better after that. Sorry for the rant. Happy Friday.

Our last vacation

Well, our last vacation before baby comes has come and gone. I can't believe we were gone for 8 days! It felt like a weekend at most! It was a very low key vacation. Days on the beach, nights out to dinner then home to bed. Speaking of bed, the beds at this place were HARD! Not great for the two pregnant ladies in residence. By the last night I had figured out just how to arrange the pillows to give my poor hips some comfort. Below are a few pics. I'm fighting a cold today, so I don't feel like narrating.




The couples we went with:



us:


Seaside:





Our last day, there were lots of jellyfish that had washed up. Neat to look at, but you can bet I didn't get in the water much that day!


Went to the pool instead:


Those of you that know Chris will understand when I say I have no idea why.





Daniel and I headed to Mobile Friday to spend the night with my sister and her family. My nieces were very interested in my belly and how the baby got in there and how he can hear us, but can't talk back, and when will he kick. The below are pictures of Daniel and the girls talking to the baby to try and get him to move around.


Madeline had told me to bring a list of names and she would tell me which ones were good. Unfortunately, she didn't like ANY of the names on our list. For those of you who keep asking though, we are getting closer. I would say we are down to 5 to choose from.

Saturday we packed up again and moved on to Ocean Springs for the night. We had a lovely dinner with Daniel's mom and got to visit with his Aunt Catherine briefly as well. It was a quick trip, but I'm glad we were able to stop in for a night. Our camera is trying to recover from getting dropped in the sand, so I didn't get any pics.

On the baby front: I can't believe we only have 95 days to go (according to the counter at the top of this blog). As of next week I'll be in my third trimester! Crazy how fast time is flying by! I still feel great. The prilosec is keeping the acid reflux away, so that just leaves me with the constant running to the bathroom! Our next appointment is next Thursday, and I will be taking the 1 hour GTT (Glucose Tolerance Test) again. Fingers crossed that I pass it! Mom is coming to visit this weekend and we are going to attempt to pick out a chair/rocker/glider combo for the nursery and maybe paint for the walls. I'll feel much better if we can get these big things taken care of this weekend!

Corinne's 30th Birthday

Corinne celebrated her 30th birthday yesterday. As much as I would like to tell you that our dinner and drinks out in Oxford were the highlight of her birthday, I have my doubts! She and her husband just got back from a trip to NYC, and from her pictures and stories, I'm fairly certain that trip topped last night. But just barely I'm sure. :)

Some candids of the evening.






The birthday girl!


Trying to get all the girls organized for a photo! I guess Daniel couldn't help but capture the chaos!




I also wanted to spread the word about my friend Melissa's book that is out in stores now! It's called Bite Me! It's a young adult book, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait for the next one! I highly recommend it for any teenage girls you may know, or yourselves! Melissa came to Off Square Books Saturday night for a signing, as seen below! I meant to get a pic with her, but she had such a line of admirers, I didn't want to interrupt!


Other excitement from our weekend...


Daniel finally got a riding lawn mower. He is very excited, and I can't really blame him. Using a push mower on an acre of hilly terrain couldn't have been easy! One rule of the new lawn mower: no riding around the neighborhood shirtless, while drinking beer, as you 'walk' the dog (we have a neighbor who does this all year long).

On the baby front this week...well, not much has changed really. The baby is still moving around a good bit as I feel pressure in different spots. I still spend a large percentage of my time in the rest room due to the incessant need to pee. Still having acid reflux, but going to get my prilosec OTC today. Our company has added a proper gym with nice, new equipment, so I'm back to my working out! Still no decision on name. While Daniel and I are at the beach next week, I hope to make some progress on this. OH! I also wanted to share with you all the website of some of my pledge sisters. If you know someone expecting, these would make great gifts! I've already gotten my Hotty Toddy shirt! http://www.preggieprep.com/

Hospital Tour

Yesterday Daniel and I toured the Women's Hospital in Tupelo before our doctor's appointment! Can I just say WOW?! I had a list of questions to help me determine how flexible they really are with natural childbirth, and they passed with flying colors!
Some of the things that really impressed me:
1. Labor and Delivery rooms have in room shower
2. L & D beds have squat stool and bar
3. IV's are not mandatory, so I won't be 'chained' to an iv pole
4. Monitoring is only done for 20 minutes out of every hour, so I won't be forced to stay in bed during labor
5. They encourage immediate breast feeding after birth
6. They encourage rooming in with baby
7. I have heard that I can arrange to have all bathing, etc done in room so the baby never has to leave me!

They definitely seemed to have an appreciation for the fact that women's bodies are designed for birth and don't require intervention! The facilities are really nice and they have a great courtyard and cafe for visitors to use. Daniel and I are going to work on a formal birth plan to discuss with my doctor at our next appointment. This plan will cover specifics about interventions (pitocin, pain relief, episiotomies---all things I don't want), when to cut the cord, and what will happen immediately after birth. A friend who will also be delivering in Tupelo went to childbirth class at Oxford hospital last night and did not get the same responses as above. They require Iv, the require constant monitoring, etc. I feel very relieved to know I chose the right place for us to deliver! As for my appointment, everything looked great. Next month I will have to take the 1 hour GTT again, and fingers crossed, I will pass it!

We are still deciding on names, bedding, etc. I'll keep you posted if we ever make any final decisions!

Below are some photos from my friend, Jenny's baby shower this week.

Can't believe I'm posting these

I don't know why I can't take some belly shots when I'm dressed up with makeup on. Oh well. Since you are all my friends, I'm sure you've seen me looking worse!





So, as you can see, the belly is large and in charge! I'm feeling really great though! I do have acid reflux pretty bad and some possible sciatic nerve stuff going on, but can't really complain about that! My poor friend Jenny who is 7 weeks ahead of me is still having morning sickness, so I feel blessed to feel as good as i do! Our baby boy still has no name, so Daniel has taken to calling him Xerxes. Daniel assures me this is only his 'in utero' name, but someone please make sure he doesn't put that on the birth certificate! We have been narrowing down our name list, so one of these days maybe we will decide! I think I've found the bedding I want to order, so I'm super excited about that! People have made lots of comments about Xerxes being a soccer player like his dad after the sonogram pics of his leg and I'll have to agree with that! He moves and kicks like crazy! Daniel has been able to feel a few times, and it still startles me when he kicks hard. There is nothing like feeling him move inside me though! Strange and amazing! Such a miracle!

I do have to share a funny story that happened to me yesterday. When I arrived for yoga yesterday the instructor had not yet arrived, so everyone was sitting on the porch outside the building. I took a seat on a stool and immediately heard water begin to rush out and hit the ground. I jumped up before I got wet, but the faces of the girls next to me were priceless! Everyone thought my water had just broken! Figures the pregnant girl would sit on the water filled seat! One of the girls remarked that she had only ever seen water break on t.v. and was mentally preparing for what she should do next to help! Can't imagine what that scenario would have been like had I been surrounded by men!

Daniel is heading for a mini men's trip this weekend. He and Jonathan Parker are going camping and canoeing on the Sipsey Fork River. The weather is supposed to be pretty terrible this weekend, so I wish they would find something inside to do, but men will be men! I think I may make a quick trip to Memphis to visit Babys R Us, Target, and a maternity store. Let me know if you are interested in joining me! As exciting as this trip sounds, don't all break down my door fighting to go with me :).

Indian-Style Curry

I tried a new recipe that a co-worker recommended last night- Indian-Style Curry with potatoes, cauliflower, peas, and chickpeas. I give it an A! I'm going to add the recipe to the list on the right side of this blog. Only things I did different: I used 2 serrano chiles (one with seeds, one without) and it definitely had some heat! I also did not serve this with rice. We just had it in a bowl with a side of warmed pita. Very easy, hearty, healthy, and delicious recipe!



It's been so long since I've tried a new recipe! Hopefully this will inspire me to cook more often and get out of the rut we've been in!

It's a BOY!!!!

He is very active! Wiggled around through the entire ultrasound! He also kept trying to suck his thumb! So amazing! We are happy to have a boy, but mostly just thankful that everything looks good! Time to start picking out names and nursery stuff!