32 Weeks, only 8 more to go!

Well needless to say I think it's pretty obvious that I've been doing a horrible job at keeping up on this blog. Luckily I have a facebook to keep everyone updated and to remind myself of the weeks past. Short and sweet version, A LOT has been happening! Things are really starting to roll now and lots of new firsts have been developing, it's been pretty exciting around here to say the least :)

For starters, I'm 32 weeks along! Just 8 weeks shy of her due date but I kind of have a feeling (hoping) that she'll come early and grace us with her presence in October :) What has happened and changed since my last update at 26 weeks? Well for starters I entered into my 3rd Trimester! By 26 weeks I was really actually starting to feel pregnant and Abby started kicking all the time like crazy! First thing on our list was to complete our registries which we've done, and have already received a few items off our lists ;) Next thing on the to-do list was to sign up for classes. After reading up on them we settled with 2 classes: Ready, Set, Deliver, and the breastfeeding class. Our labor and delivery class is a 4 week course that meets every Wednesday from 6-9 during the month of September. The breastfeeding class is a one night only course from 6-9 on a Monday. We've already started the L&D class and love it, we've got our 2nd meeting tonight :) Breastfeeding is next week. What else took place in the 3rd trimester? Well I partook in the fun loving glucose screening test and had to fast for a morning while having to drink a bottle of sugar water in 5 minutes and have my blood drawn every hour for 3 hours, not my finest morning ;) But it turns out I don't have diabetes which is a plus!

3rd trimester has also brought on some new and not so exciting changes. I survived my first cold that kid you not lasted 2 weeks! Longest cold for me EVER! But alas my sinuses have yet to fully recover and probably wont until after she's born. Too much blood flow to the sinuses keeps them nice and congested :P Next I wasn't sure or not if I'd felt those Braxton Hicks Contractions that I'd heard about but sure enough one day I felt my first BHC. Abby had been moving a lot that day so it was hard for me to tell at first if it was her moving or a contraction. But I distinctly felt my whole tummy tighten/contract and then release. Not painful at all, I'd say mild discomfort but I haven't really noticed them since. More fun symptoms, I had my very first case of heartburn. All my previously preggo buddies asked if I'd had it yet and I kept saying no thinking I was gonna go my whole pregnancy w/o it, but I was wrong. I'd already had a bad day that day and had a late night dinner of Panda Express so it was bound to happen. Started around 9 and went all the way until 6am the next morning =/ BUT I have yet to have it again so hopefully I wont ;) What lead to an already bad day was Bob and I went to get Abby's 3D pictures taken and the Dr. immediately said it's not possible. She's already dropped into the birthing position and once she's there she's not gonna move until birth and it's impossible to get a look at her face. Drats! I was so bummed and thought 30 weeks was too early for her to be in the birthing position but nope guess not. It does give me more hope of an early delivery though ;)

A new and exciting change though was I felt Abby have the hiccups for the first time at 31 weeks :) Now that was pretty neat! Weird feeling in the sense that she's so low but neat none the less. I've felt them about 3 more times since then :) Also Bob being the awesome dad he is knocked out Abby's nursery all in one weekend, his birthday weekend mind you ;) He surprised me one night after work by completely cleaning it out for me! Then he went to Home Depot that weekend and picked up the paint. He started painting that Saturday and had it finished the night. Then he and his brother picked up the wood for the chair railing and managed to get it all cut and painted on Sunday! He had it up by Monday morning, the day of his party before everyone came over ;) Not only that but he assembled my glider for me and I've been living in it ever since ;) It's like he's in the nesting phase for me. He also found time to clean out the garage, take care of the yard work in the front and back, getting finances and appointments in order, and has even taken it upon himself to cook dinner AND breakfast on occasion (including spaghetti and French toast) as well as running out and picking up whatever I've been craving ;) He is such a wonderful hubby and such a blessing and he's going to be a great dad ;)

Well last but not least, to sum up coming events, my babyshower is planed, invitations have gone out, I've got hair appointments and nail appointments lined up, we've booked a photo shoot for our maternity pictures, classes are underway which includes the tour of the hospital, I've got less than 4 weeks of work left, Abby's due in 8, and all is well in the making of baby Clements :)

The Registries are complete!

Bob and I completed our registries today! Yay one more thing out of the way :) Such a good feeling! Hopefully everything stays up to date and we don't have to change too much from here to November ;) Anyways, we are registered online and in stores at Target and Babies-R-Us/Toys-R-Us. You can also find our nursery bedding, decor, books, CD's, and DVD's online through Amazon. Here are the links...

Amazon Baby Registry

Target Baby Registry

Babies-R-Us Baby Registry

Hopefully dreams do come true :)

So I have just been totally and completely blissfully happy lately and I'm loving it :) God has blessed us in so many ways and I continue to be thankful for all He has provided us with and for the smooth sailing of pregnancy. Bob and I have utilized our time this month to get things done around the house and he has been such a trooper and an amazing husband and I could not ask for more! We finally bit the bullet and called a landscaping company to come out and prettify our front and back because they were just starting to bum us out =/ The people who did the landscaping of this house had no idea what they were doing and in result our grass was just not growing in the front or back :( So they laid new grass for us, trimmed the shrubbery, and replaced the bark! Bob did a trading of services with the company too so now they're going to fix our fountains for us as well ;) One less thing to worry about! Abby will have a nice yard to play in next year :) Then he also cleaned out our garage for us so we can fit both cars in it! Our garage wasn't even that bad and there wasn't a lot of stuff it just seemed too small to fit both our cars so I parked in the driveway, but Bob made it happen and I have to say it's nice getting in the car without having to worry about the heat from the sun ;) We've also tackled finances and bills and are pretty well lined up and ready for the months to come. We've also scheduled dentist appointments and eye appointments to get those out of the way and next on my list is sining up for all the fun pregnancy classes (I've got 4 on my list). We're also selling a few items on craigslist to help pay for Abby's nursery such as our old kitchen table, a TV stand, and Bob's old iPad :) Yesterday we started the task of breaking down the guest bed and cleaning out the room :) A little bit here and there and everything is just coming along nicely! Now about my dream ;)

To start, this weekend has just been awesome :) We went out on a date Friday night to BJ's in Natomas. We got the 2 for $20 deal which included 2 salads, a pizza, and a pizookie, the red velvet is to die for! Then we went to the movies with our free movie passes that Bob got at work for being so great ;) We saw "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" and to be honest I had no desire to see it whatsoever! I figured it was going to be like the original and just a movie about talking apes on a planet :P But I was so wrong and I actually enjoyed the movie :) I laughed, I cried, and I even came home quoting it ;) Saturday Bob and I woke up and went to the store to make breakfast. French toast, sausage and fruit were on the menu. Bob even made the French toast ;) and then we got to work on the nursery. Last night the moon was 3/4 full and hovering over our neighbors house in the backyard. Perfect time to get out the telescope! We hadn't pulled it out in a while... Got some pretty good pics too and was an awesome ending to the day. Which led to my awesome dream :)

I totally had a dream about giving birth to Abigail! I was 2 weeks early in my dream and already in the hospital. It was either really late at night or early in the morning and there were no nurses or doctors around and I gave birth to Abby myself :) Since no one was around to weigh her I guessed she was around 5 or 6 pounds. But she was beautiful :) First thing Bob and I commented on were her eyes, they were tiny but blue :) Bob immediately called everyone who in return called everyone else :) Pictures were being sent through text messages and facebooks were being updated :) It was such a wonderful and joyous experience and so vivid I can only hope and pray that's how I feel on the actual day ;) Plus it gives me hope that she will be born in October! Life is grand and I intend to sit back and enjoy the ride :)

Oh the joys of pregnancy!

So to be quite honest, the first 20 weeks of pregnancy were a piece of cake! I wish that's how it would be for the whole 40 weeks and for every pregnancy for that matter! But I know they're all different and how lucky I am to of had it so well ;) It wasn't even until round 22 weeks that I started to FEEL pregnant. Some new pregnancy symptoms I've picked up are leg cramps, slight swelling of feet and hands, and sensitive gums. I have yet to actually HAVE a leg cramp but of course in the middle of the night if I stretch my feet I can feel the muscle about to pull, so I immediately stretch my toes back to my calf to avoid the dreaded charlie-horse! I know many women who've experienced leg cramps during pregnancy starting around the 1st trimester so I guess I'm just lucky it's only beginning to happen now. And with me working on my feet 4+ hours 3 days a week and standing in the sun for 30-60 minutes at work, I find coming home that my feet and hands are a little swollen =/ Not anything crazy or to be worried about, actually to be expected given the circumstances, but still a bummer =/ I've opted out of wearing my rings and bought a fake $25 bling ring to wear on my ring finger for the time being. I miss my ring though :( The sensitive gums isn't even really anything either. I just notice they bleed more then they used to which is also very common and to be expected due to the greater blood supply to the gums. I have an appointment for a cleaning mid August though, thank goodness.

Other pregnancy changes would be the fact that my uterus has now grown up passed my belly button with my expanding baby :) She has been kicking a lot more frequently and her movements tend to be more-so during the day rather than at night like they used to be. I'm told this is a good thing seeing as how that usually means she'll be active during the day and sleep at night :) But I still have 15 weeks left so I don't want to get too excited because that can always change ;) But boy is she moving! Not just kicking but my whole tummy moves sometimes and it feels like she's doing somersaults in there :) Greatest feeling in the world! I know I'll miss that ;) She is however I'm assuming facing down already because the kicks are at the top of my belly button and there is definitely more pressure on my bladder! It sucks having to pee so frequently... I was a trooper though and toughed it out camping not just 1 but 2 weekends in a row! After having done it, I would not recommend it ;) But I did have a blast and it had been 7 years since my last camping trip and it was mine and Bob's 1st camping trip together so it was well worth it :) Another complication though was I had a bum knee for the 2nd camping trip =/ Yeah I'm now one of those women who have fallen while pregnant =/ In my defense though it would not have happend had it not been for my weak knees.

I've had knee problems in both my knees since I was a kid. They both lack the normal amount of cartilage on the insides to hold the knee cap in place so just the slightest pressure on the outside of my knees can cause them to give out :( Well Monday last week that's exactly what happened. A kid was knocked into my right side causing my right knee to give out. My knees giving out was nothing new but this time I actually had to pop it back into place myself =/ Only other time it hasn't popped back on it's own was in my car accident back in October of 2003. The muscle around my knee became extremely tight, tender, and sore and I was worried about it possibly swelling due to the extra weight I'm carrying or it giving out again. So I was taken to Sutter's Occupational Health Clinic to have it checked out. Yes I'm now also one of those people who have had to file workman's comp :( The Dr. told me to take it easy and wear a knee brace for the time being. After going back to work that Friday, I went camping on Saturday and only had mild discomfort but now it's almost back to normal :)

Some good news being that I'm 25 weeks along this week! 3 weeks shy of the 3rd trimester and starting to move forward in preparation for baby Abby :) Yup, not sure if I wrote it on here or not yet but we've named our daughter Abigail Elizabeth Clements :) Bob picked out both Abigail and Elizabeth, and Abigail I read means "my father's joy" which couldn't be more true and perfect :) He's so thrilled and she will be his little princess :) Denise and Eric got the keys to their house this week and will be moving in this weekend so that means we can tear down the guest room and turn it into a nursery! I'm SO excited about that part ;) Bob and I already decided we're going to buy the bedding (it's not exactly cheep), the glider (since that's more for me ;) ), and the bassinet (since that's also more for us and we'd rather have people buy the crib and not have to do both). Some items we've already acquired would be a play mat, a swing, and a soothing spa bathtub from my sister! Gotta love the hand-me-downs ;) And my father-in-law purchased us a new carseat and base for when my sister-in-law Joy comes to town this weekend! My niece Elli will use it when they're here so Joy doesn't have to worry about flying with one ;) The carseat is super awesome and we've already decided this one will go in Bob's car ;) And I think it's safe to say that I've pretty much completed our baby registries! We've registered at Babies-R-Us and Target. I've only done it online though (we haven't actually gone into the stores yet) and it's still kinda early so items might change but I'm pretty happy with what we've registered for so far :) One less thing to worry about ;) Well I think that is it for now. I'll leave you with a 22 week belly pic ;) I'm due for another one just haven't had the time :P

About to get personal...

So if you're a guy or get easily grossed out then you'll probably want to skip reading this post... Remember I'm also using this as my "pregnancy journal" so some of it might be a little personal but things that I will want to remember down the road when I have another :) Just so you know though, you have been warned ;)

Well today, July 27th, I am 25 weeks and 2 days along with only 106 more days to go and just 3 weeks shy of my 3rd trimester. I had been told that things like lactating doesn't normally happen until your 3rd trimester or even not until after the baby is born! So I thought I didn't have to worry about that for a while, well I was wrong =/ Today I woke up from my nap only to have a creamy, yellowish fluid leaking down the side of my breast! Then I notice there was a wet spot on our sheets where I was laying on my side =/ How uncomfortable and embarrassing is that?!? So after I cleaned myself off and threw our sheets in the wash I immediately went online to research ;) Well as luck would have it apparently it's more common than I thought and some women claimed to of started lactating at the beginning of their 2nd trimestre! Sheesh how horrible! And here I was enjoying pregnancy and then this comes along ;) Well I guess I'll be needing those breast pads sooner than I thought ;) Good news is I also read that it's viewed as a good thing meaning that I should have no trouble whatsoever breastfeeding! Again just one of those things you worry about for your first, you never know until you try! But I can't help but be uncomfortable and grossed out at the thought =/ One of the many un-fun things women endure that men are lucky they will never have to experience ;)

Let the kicking begin!

Bob with his sonogram picture frame for Father's Day :)

So last night (or early this morning seeing as how it was at 2:30am) I felt our little girl kick for the first time! Everyone's been asking me if I've felt it yet and I'd sad face reply no not yet :( Flutters?!? Yeah possibly so, but again this being my first and I wasn't really sure. But every night between 2 and 3am I have to get up and use the bathroom, it's like clockwork ;) Well sure enough last night at exactly 2:30am I roll over on my back to stretch before getting up and place my hand on my belly and sure enough, right at the tip of my belly button I felt a kick! I of course am in shock never having felt it before but then I felt another one! My little nudger ;) Ahh it was so neat, the most amazing feeling ever! So she kicked 4 times before I got up to pee but of course when I lay back down in bed to show Bob she stopped ;) I tried rolling all over for about a good hour after that trying to feel her kick again but I couldn't. Restless night after that though! My alarm went off at 5am for me to get up for work but of course I turned it off and fell back asleep ;) I didn't get up until 10 after 6 when I had to be to work at 7. Everyone who knows me knows I take at least an hour to get ready ;) Well believe it or not I was only 5 minutes late to work, but I think I had a good excuse ;) How cool was it though that it was the morning after Father's Day :)

Well today marks the halfway point in my pregnancy! I'm exactly 20 weeks along and have roughly 20 more weeks to go (give or take a few). Again still all is well, so far so good :) I could get used to this pregnancy thing and definitely wouldn't mind doing it again. But again check back in about 10-20 weeks ;) Still seems to be going by fast, but then not at the same time. I feel anxious to get things done though. I want to do as much traveling as I can, spend as much time with Bob as I can, oh and get in all the rest that I can ;) Plus I so cannot wait to do the nursery but again having a hard time finding anything I like! I really just might end up decorating it based on a color scheme rather than a theme or print. Me not being a girly type and hating the color pink and not being too fond of the color purple I'm limited to my choices ;) I love the idea of browns, sage greens, light yellows, creams, things like that. Something soft, sweet, with a classy feel to it. Old fashioned if you will ;) I was gonna do white, sage green, and yellow and then decorate with daisies but I'd probably end up doing a lot of painting seeing as how I can't find anything daisy =/ Oh well, I keep telling myself I still have time and maybe they'll come out with something that I like by November ;) She won't be in the nursery for AT LEAST the first 3 months anyways, I would just like to have it done for my own personal gratification =/

First belly pic @ 20 weeks!

Our Baby GIRL :)

The 3 dots telling us it's a GIRL :)

Her doing a back-bend :)

Look at that beautiful profile with those cute little lips and button nose!

She's yawning :)