Bumpdate: {22 Weeks}

Two things:

1) I do apologize that every bloomin' post this week has pertained to pregnancy. I can only imagine how exciting it must be to read about my eating habits and swollen ankles.

2) Since I already took a pic for Monday's belated 21 Week post,, I thought it was a little useless to take another. {Please trust that in four days time, I look positively no different.} So, I'll just share another pic from a more front-on angle from that same bathroom photo session at my office.

Here’s what’s happening in Week 22:

Weight Loss/Gain?  I don’t go to the OB until tomorrow, but I think I’ve gained another half pound or so this week. My guess? Five (ish) pounds total so far. 

Cravings:  Steak, baby! Also, mashed potatoes – yum! I’ve also been eating my weight in fruit and delicious Arkansas tomatoes with a pinch of salt and cracked pepper. Oh, they are so good.

Favorite Moment this Week: Finding a home for our spare bed in the second guest room, which is becoming Caroline’s nursery. Why is this exciting? Because a crib is taking its place : )

Funniest Moment this Week:  Stephen always gives me a big hug and kiss when he comes in the door from work, since I usually get home before him. Yesterday, when we went in to kiss, my tummy got in the way and we had to sort of shift angles, ha!

Sleeping: This week has been a little rough, but Unisom (yes, as recommended by our doc) helped me catch some sleep last night and I feel less Zombie-like today.   

Clothes: Regular clothes, even pants! I was able to just size up in the waist for my Forever 21 skinnies that I love, (at two for $22), and they worked pretty well. I do plan to invest in some maternity shorts later in the pregnancy, though.

Most looking forward to: Being able to actually get in the lake and float weightlessly – ahhhhh. The water is a bit too cold for my liking right now, but with these 90 degree temps, it won’t be long before it’ll be perfect for swimming.

Facts and Myths: {One Pregnant Girl's Opinion}

Lately, I've been pouring over books like What to Expect When You're Expecting and documentaries like The Business of Being Born in hopes of gleaning some honest information on the crazy adventure called pregnancy.

Before I got pregnant, I envisioned it would go a little something like this:

-We'd concieve quickly and easily. {And, coincidentally, this is the ONLY part that has gone according to plan.}
-I'd immediately have gigantic (yet perky, Sports Illustrated-esque) boobs, silky hair and radiant skin.
-I'd have complete strangers stopping me in the grocery store saying, "My gosh, you're glowing! You must be pregnant!"
-I'd be full of energy, indulge every delicious craving and, in 9 months, produce a beautiful human being.

And then we'd live happily ever after.

After a critical analysis and some self-reflection, I realized I MUST HAVE BEEN ON CRACK.

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Don't get me wrong, we are very, very grateful that God has given us this little miracle, but HEAVENS TO BRENDA...pregnancy ain't easy.

Here are a few things "they" say and what my experience has been like:

They say: You'll feel beautiful.
My experience: Um, not really. Although I love the bump, (and am having a ball dressing it up), my ankles are the size of tree trunks, my lips are always swollen (sooooo weird) and certain bodily processes I once took for granted have all but ceased. (Someone had to say it.)

They say: You won't care about the gender, as long as the baby is healthy.
My experience: So, so true. Our scare during the first trimester with the wonky test results and weird sonogram drove home this adage even more. Boy or girl, you really, honestly do not give a donkey's backside whether you get to buy blue or pink; a healthy baby is the only thing that matters.

They say: You might be sensitive to certain smells and foods.
My experience: FACT. Here's a little anecdote for you:
My co-workers had a huge pancake breakfast brought in for our supervisor on her birthday, which was awesome. Awesome, until I walked into the office that morning, took one whiff and had to run like Usain Bolt for the ladies room where I proceeded to projectile puke my Michael Kors slingbacks off. This was the day I discovered that the smell of maple syrup was like my kryptonite: not to be fooled around with. I have not tried to eat, smell or go near a pancake to this day.

They say: It flies by.
My experience: Sort of. The days where you feel good will fly, but those days where you're super sick, well, they crawl.

They say: You'll feel an unmatched connection to the human life inside you.
My experience: So. True. To feel her kick, twirl around, hiccup...it's a little bit sci-fi movie, a little bit surreal, but 100% amazing. I cannot imagine NOT having this baby. I also cannot imagine how my heart can love her any more once I see her than I do already. It's amazing.

They say: You'll experience a wave of emotions each day.
My experience: Werd. (We won't discuss my mini-breakdown the last month when I realized that Chick-Fil-A will never, ever carry the Southwestern Chicken Salad again.)

They say: You might be a little sensitive to heat and humidity.
My experience: If you plan, like myself, to endure your second and third trimesters during the summer, I'd give serious consideration to investing in a commerical walk-in freezer. Or, see if you can take up residence in the one at the local Pizza Hut, right there next to the frozen calzones and chicken wings. Because that's where I'd live right now if I could. I looked at this week's forecast here in AR and literally wept last night. I may need to procure a timeshare in Poland for the next three months.
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Know what though? At the end of the day - every day - I thank God and our lucky stars that we are having a baby. I am utterly humbled at the gift that is Caroline. Truly, I am. Every time I see her precious little body bouncing around on the sonogram screen, I'm overwhelmed with gratitude.

And the urge to pee.

*Again, please know that we are so, so happy about this pregnancy and, as much as I like to joke and "put it all out there", I am fully aware of how blessed we are to have been given this gift. If you are currently in the process of "waiting" for a baby, my heart and prayers go out to you.

Belated Bumpdate: {21 Weeks}

Hey, y'all! Hope every one of you fancy faces enjoyed your weekends. I'm well on my way to 22 weeks now, but I wanted to jot this down anyway. 

Without further adieu...

Awesome bathroom photo at work...taken five minutes before posting. Dress from J.C. Penney here.

Weight Loss/Gain?  Up three pounds, (yep, mama did some eating this weekend), which puts the total pregnancy weight gain thus far at...drum roll please...four pounds. Nice to be feeling (and looking) like my old self again. 

Movement? LOTS! We have a very active girl on our hands - oh my! Heart rate is typically clocking in somewhere around 150 at our OB check-ups.

Cravings:  Definitely getting my appetite back and, most surprisingly, getting my craving for sweets back. In fact, I even whipped up Pioneer Woman's blackberry cobbler yesterday. Sweet mercy, that stuff is good. I'm still eating lots of steak, too - YUM. 

Favorite Moment this Week: Caroline's bedding arrived from Restoration Hardware on Friday and I was riddled with giddiness at seeing her little monogram for the first time.

Funniest Moment this Week: Having to put actual momentum into getting out of bed on Saturday - haha! The bump is growing more and more each day and it's becoming a tad more difficult to - let's say - tie my shoes and get off the couch. 

Sleeping: Sleep? What sleep? I think the good Lord is preparing me for Miss Caroline by making sure I get no sleep during this pregnancy : ) I've heard so many of my pregnant friends say that insomnia plagued them the entire time, too. Due to my middle o' the night TV-watching, I've got the low down on just about any infomercial-driven product on the market, though. So, if you want to know your money-back guarantee window on that Nordic Track incline walker you're considering, I'm your girl.

Clothes: Regular clothes for the win! I bought a couple of really cute new things from J.C. Penney yesterday from their Joe Fresh line and adored how they showcased the bumpity-bump in a non-matronly way.

The dress I'm wearing in the pic from today can be purchased here.

Joe Fresh Twist Back Top - here

Most looking forward to: Our tour of Labor and Delivery at the hospital I'll be having Caroline. My OB likes to do this around week 24-26, just to introduce his patients to the L&D nursing staff, answer questions and make sure that we feel comfortable well before her birth. And for this anxiety-prone, Type A, control freak - well, that's a good thing.

Some notables that I don't want to forget. Bear with me, I know is riveting stuff.

• We think Caroline loves water and being on the boat just as much as her momma and daddy. When we are docked and the waves are gently rocking the boat, she goes CRAZY with movement. I freaking love it!

• Stephen has been so amazing and supportive, going on very late night walks with me through the subdivision to help keep the lovely pregnancy bloat/swelling at bay. 

• I find those weekly emails from The Bump alerting me to Caroline's current size a tad creepy. For example, "This week, your baby is the size of a Brazilian jicama root." (Okay, so that one probably doesn't exist, but the things they use as comparison tools seriously are that random. I always end up going to Wikipedia to research all this mysterious produce.)

• Strange things are happening with my boobs. There. I said it. 

Checking In

Hey y'all! Just wanted to let you know that I've taken a couple days to recoup and relax. I was really ill all last weekend when we were out of town and Monday was no easier. I couldn't keep any food down at all, i was running a fever and something just didn't feel right. So, I went to the doc Tuesday and learned I have a good-sized ulcer that has made itself cozy in my tummy...blah!!

Apparently, being sick so frequently for so many months, plus all the crazy stress and poor nutrition of those first four months has caused a lovely ulcer to form.

So, I've been working from my couch, trash can close by, enjoying a Cheerios and toast diet and waiting for this thing to heal itself.

Anywhodle, I'll be back Monday...hopefully.

Pregnancy: never a dull moment.

The Summer List

I’m so, so, so excited for this summer – a little bit more than usual because, um, I’M GROWING A BABY and it’s such a neat and fun time for us. I’m ready to have a ball this summer!

Here are a few things that I’m hoping to do with the husband during these next three months:

Play hooky with my husband

We call it “playing hooky”, but really, this means we will take a vacay day and let our bosses know two weeks in advance, (we’re such rebels, ha!) Since we aren’t really getting to take a full-fledged vacation this summer, we thought we’d take a day to cruise the lake while everyone else is at work : )

Create the perfect, girly nursery for Caroline Rose

This one is well in the works! I actually just ordered the bedding for Miss Caroline today and am SOOOOOOO excited to get everything all assembled with her crib and dresser. I will say, it’s neither of the bedding sets I shared with y’all last week. I found something I loved even more!

Spend a day with Memaw learning to make her famous bread rolls

I’ve said I wanted to do this forever, but this is the summer it’s going to happen. We head to Heber Springs again at the end of July for my brother’s wedding, so I’m thinking sometime that weekend will be perfect. She is such an amazing baker/cook and these rolls are the best I’ve eaten in my life. I NEED to know how to replicate them. (Backstory: The recipe actually belonged to my maternal great-grandmother, who handed them off to my paternal grandmother – Memaw. These are (to my knowledge) the only people who have successfully made the recipe. It’s a tricky one!)

Buy and master a new, fancy camera

I want to be able to provide better photos here on the blog and, above all, I want to have great photos of our little girl when she arrives. And this ain’t gonna happen with the little point-n-shoot I have now.

Go on a real picnic, basket and everything

I don't know that this one needs a big explanation. I just want to buy a big basket, fill it will delicious goodies and find a shady spot to split a sandwich with the guy I love.