Week 34

Ahh... finally caught up on blogging!  Hopefully now that things have settled down a wee bit and the MAJOR projects are done at our house, I will be slightly less overwhelmed and will blog weekly for the next 6 (?!?!?!) weeks.  Oh perfect world...

Mom and Dad ended up staying about a week longer than they intended.  Since the bathroom remodel project took at least a week longer than anyone expected (due in parts to 3 full days of shopping for supplies + 2 full days of wandering around inspecting piping and attic tresses) they were kind enough to stick around long enough to finish the things Bryann couldn't do himself - like electrical work and lifting heavy bits.  But we have walls up, ceilings repaired, tile down in the kitchen/living room, tile half-way up on the shower, tile on the bathroom vanity, sinks plumbed, lights in, switches working, and walls textured, primed, and ready to paint. 

We had a very last fruitful weekend on Craigslist, too.  We bought carseats and bases, a pack n' play, couches for the living room, and a new car!  We also had the crib delivered this week, and from my haul at the baby shower, I feel like we have the stuff we need to welcome baby into the world.  It may not be set up and ready to go, but at least we have it in our posession and I don't need to stress about being able to take the baby home if she comes SUPER early. 

We also started birth preparation classes this week.  We went to "Breastfeeding Basics" on Wednesday night, although I'm not sure Bryann was mature enough to handle that class.  I think he giggled at every single photo and video of women breastfeeding.  :-P  We learned a lot though, saw a lot of examples, practiced some positioning, and I think we're much better prepared than without the class.  There are lactation consultants at all of the hospitals, too, so we'll be able to get advice down the road, should we need it. 


What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Calista could be as long as 20 inches and about 5 lbs - the size of a pineapple.
• Her fingernails and toenails are full length and may even curl around the tips of her phlanges.
• Fat layers are filling out and her skin is getting ever smoother.
• Her central nervous system is maturing, and her lungs are continuing to mature. 
• If she were born after this week, barring any unforseen health problems, she would generall do fine with a short Neo-natal stay. 

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• Well, I thought morning sickness was a thing of the past, but apparently it can rear its ugly head back up at any time.  I was sick Thursday morning and spent several minutes over the kitchen sink until I threw up the bile that was sitting in my stomach.  Oh joy...
• I'm starting to bump into things because I forget how big my belly is.  I've actually surprised myself in the mirror because I forgot how big my belly was.  I've been caught doing the "pregnant lady" pose with my hands inverted on my hips (fingers facing down towards my back, thumbs resting on my hip bones facing forward) and I think my feet are definitely starting to swell. 
• Heartburn resumed early last week.  I've finished off my jumbo bottle of Tums that I picked up in May, and need to go to the store to replenish the supply today lest I be caught without any trying to get to sleep tonight. 
• Baby continues to swirl around throughout the day.  She gets in these really uncomfortable positions and pushes herself outward, so my stomach is bulging out on the right side.  When I'm sitting she also presses up against my ribcage, so sitting really tall, standing, or lying down are the only comfortable positions. 
• Luckily I can still sleep through the night.  I haven't been woken by her movements, so I'm hoping it's because she's sleeping while I'm sleeping, and she's awake during the day while I'm awake.  Here's hoping to an easy sleep schedule when she comes! 

What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss being able to put my pants, socks, and shoes on like a normal person.  Anything that requires bending over just doesn't work very well. 
• I miss feeling like I had all the freedom in the world to do whatever I want, and like I had all the time to play and be young and irresponsible.  I've been told that I'm going to be a great mom, a fun mom, and I really hope that's true.  Honestly, I don't feel very "mom" like - like I've always thought of my mom as the ultimate mom, and I've never really felt like her, but I guess I'll be my own type of mom instead of my mom.  I know that doesn't make much sense all typed out.  :-P 

34 weeks along!

Bryann laying out the tile pattern for the shower

Starting to tile the shower walls!

One wall mostly completed

Dad patching up the ceiling where the wall was knocked down and mom cleaning up the insulation ceiling bits

Kitchen nearly finished!!  A few more doors to paint, and knobs and pulls to put on.

Dad cutting tile for the bathroom countertop

Laying tile on the vanity countertop

Finished product!  Still needs grout though.

New car!  2004 Ford Focus Wagon.  Should get us through the next 10 years.  :-)

Week 33

(Disclaimer: Week 30-33 might be a little sparse... I'm writing these mid-week 34, and the last few weeks have been a daze, so I may be hazy on some details)

Work continues on the house...  Mom and Dad are still here, bathroom structure is complete, walls are up, and texture and priming have been done.  For the most part, the big projects are finished.  Now we're working on tiling, putting molding up around the door frames, painting, and lots and lots of cleaning! 

Bryann started his new job this week.  I think it's really hard on him starting a new job and being under the stress that he is with all these house projects.  I'm really grateful my parents are here helping, and for my aunt Reezy who still comes over almost daily to help with anything she can!  I have the best family.  :-) 

We got a little bit of relaxing and fun time this week.  On Wednesday, we went to Annie and Aaron's for a BBQ dinner and made s'mores over their firepit.  Then Thursday was the 4th, and we went to Tamara and Rian's for some more delicious BBQ and good times with friends.  Unfortunately I caught a cold this week, so I had to leave the party early - generally coughing, and feeling too stuffy and tired to enjoy myself - so we went home and watched some of the fireworks going off around our neighbors houses. 

What Baby T has been up to this week:

•  Baby Calista weighs about 4 lbs and has passed the 17-inch mark - about the size of a pineapple.  She could grow a full inch more this week alone!
• She is loosing her wrinkled-alien skin in favor of a more human form
• Her skeleton is hardening, though the bones in the skull aren't fused together yet to allow them to shift so she can make it through the birth canal. 
• Amniotic fluid levels are at their height, and baby is starting to outgrow the fluid cushion, which makes her nudges and pushes more noticeable - less liquid cushion to soften the blows!
• Callie's eyes are open while she's awake, and closed while she's asleep.  More light is penetrating the uterine walls, so she may be able to differentiate between night and day (as long as I wear light colored clothing and no layers).
• This week, Callie's immune system has also developed, so she didn't catch that cold that I caught this week!

 Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• I've read that I should be expecting insomnia (due to hormonal changes, midnight treks to the bathroom, leg cramps, and heartburn), but this week, along with the previous one has been pretty smooth.  No heartburn.  No restless leg at night.  And I can actually make it through the night without getting up to pee!  (Though I do wake up awful early needing to use the bathroom, but 6am is better than 3am!)
• Only mild pain in my groin muscles - again the feeling that a nerve is being pinched.  My OB said it's actually due to ligaments being stretched.
• Baby moving pretty often throughout the day.  She's stopped kicking so much as just maneuvering around and pressing against my sides and rib cage.  It feels more like she's "swirling and twirling" than anything else.

 What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss feeling like I have all the time in the world to get everything done and ready for baby to arrive.  Seriously?!  Only 7 weeks left??  And she could be EARLY?!  Feeling overwhelmed...
• Looking forward to actually having everything done and ready for baby to arrive... 

33 weeks along!

Taping the seams of the backerboard in the shower.  I get the easy jobs!

Bryann had a really hard time figuring how which direction to attach the hardware.  I couldn't resist documenting. :-P

The bathroom vanity is installed, and the walls are taped and mudded.

View into my new closet.  Bathroom is through there, on the right.

Shower floor is getting cement on top of a layer of water barrier.  The bench on the left is our "dry" bench.

Bryann applying the texture to the new wall separating the bathroom from the bedroom.

View of the new bathroom and closet wall from the West side of the room (looking East).

Week 32

(Disclaimer: Week 30-33 might be a little sparse... I'm writing these mid-week 34, and the last few weeks have been a daze, so I may have forgotten some details...)

Mom and Dad made it up last weekend to help with the remodeling.  Bryann got a new job, so he took this week off work to dedicate towards getting the master bathroom remodel well on it's way.  Apparently my original idea of moving everything to a different location wasn't going to work - something to do with plumbing and running pipes and sewer lines all different directions, and having to tear up the basement ceiling in order to accomplish this, who knows - so the first 2 days were spent wandering around, inspecting the pipelines from the outside of the house, and trying to come up with a new plan that would leave the toilet in the same spot, the shower in approximately the same spot, add in a double vanity sink, AND allow me to access the bathroom from my closet.  It couldn't be done from where my closet currently lived (on the West side of the room) so we decided to expand the shower into what will now become Bryann's closet, and construct another angled wall on the East side where my new closet will reside, and through which we can access the bathroom. 

What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Baby weighs almost 4 lbs and could be as long as 19 inches - about the size of a
• She is supposedly in the head-down, buttoms-up position, but it's impossible for me to tell what I'm feeling when she pokes herself out.
• Her digestive system is all set to go - in case she's a premie, she's able to survive outside the womb without the umbilical cord providing nutrients.
• She continues to gain fat and her skin is turning more opaque.

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• Feeling baby squirm and swirl around a lot more than the movements I've been feeling previous.  She juts herself out and I imagine her pushing and stretching since things are becoming a little cramped in there for her
• Apparently I can expect Braxton-Hicks contractions in the coming weeks, but I haven't felt any yet.  Or at least I don't think I've felt any contractions.  My OB promises I will know it when I feel one.  :-)
• Heartburn has lightened up a lot.  I actually can't remember having ANY heartburn this week!  Am I finished with it?!  Could it be!?!?

What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss a clean, put-together house.  I've kicked myself several times during this week for deciding I really wanted to get all these projects done before the baby comes.  I know it will be worth it when it's all finished, and it's better to do everything now than with a newborn, but it's still hard and very stressfull to not have a place to relax and unwind.  Luckily the porch outside our kitchen is completely amazing, surrounded by trees, recieves a wonderful breeze, and is my most favorite place to be lately. 
• Baby shower on Saturday!!!  I'm REALLY excited to have a day dedicated to Calista and me, with some much needed girl time, and getting dressed up and looking pretty again. 

Week 31

(Disclaimer: Week 30-33 might be a little sparse... I'm writing these mid-week 34, and the last few weeks have been a daze, so I may have forgotten some details...)

We are all "moved" into the house!  Meaning all of our posessions are at our new house.  Everything is currently in a state of complete disarray while we paint kitchen cabinets and prep the Master bedroom/bathroom for the remodel.  We can't really unpack and settle in to any room because every room is housing extra stuff that can't be put into a room currently being remodeled.  So we have to finish projects first, then unpack last.  It's going to be a long summer getting all this done... 
What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Baby measures over 16 inches long and weighs about 3.3 lbs and is heading into a growth spurt.  She's at about half her birthweight now, so the next 9 weeks will be the big growing period.
• Callie can turn her head from side to side and her arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• I'm feeling much more tired than I have previously.  Fatigued, I guess.  Not tired.  But I think that might also have something to do with the amount of hours we've been putting into updating the house.
• It's much more difficult to get out of bed lately.  And it doesn't help that my bed is on the floor, so I don't have any leverage when I need to stand up.  Bryann is very helpful in the mornings and pushes me upwards.  :-)
• The skin on my stomach and sides is drying out and flaking a little bit.  I haven't kept up my lotioning regimen that I had before we moved, which is probably a bit part of it.  Otherwise, still no stretch marks.  Hoping to make it through without many!  *Keeping fingers crossed*
  

What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss the old house a little bit.  I keep calling it "our house".  :-)  I feel like the new house is home already - I felt like it was "home" the minute I walked in - but I still miss the comfort of the old house where everything had a place, and we'd loved it for 3 years.
• I miss being able to sit down and have a beer after a long day of hard work.  Luckily, Bryann is sensitive and doesn't rub it in my face TOO much, but I could really use a cold one at the end of these long, strenous days!
• I miss being able to lift things and be useful.  I was pretty pathetic on moving day.  I just directed traffic and carried a pillow or two.  I wish I could contribute more.
• I'm looking forward to getting all moved in and setting up our new house as our home.
• Also looking forward to my baby shower next weekend!!!  Wheeeee!!!!

New house!!

Moving day - loading the truck up

Emptying our former living/dining room

Stacking up boxes miles high in our new kitchen

New living room!

New dining room!

New master bedroom - looking East

New master bedroom - looking South toward the bathroom entrance (hiding on the right).

Main floor bathroom

Bryann and Reezy prepping the kitchen with primer and getting it ready to spray

Bryann - spray master



Taking a little break and playing fetch in our giant yard



Finished product on the cabinets.  Doors and drawers to come later.



New "office"

Week 30

(Disclaimer: Week 30-33 might be a little sparse... I'm writing these mid-week 34, and the last few weeks have been a daze, so I may have forgotten some details...)

After a series of unfortunate events, and things looking like they were going to be pushed back until NEXT TUESDAY, we WERE able to get the keys to the house on Thursday at 1pm.  So Bryann took off from work early and immediately started prepping the Living/Dining room and Kitchen to be taped, molding calked, and ready to spray the trim.  I warned him that I didn't want to deal with dark oak molding anymore and that the first thing we'd be doing when we got in was painting the trim.  I think he was hoping I'd let it go, but alas, we got to work right away! 

We slept in the house Thursday, are working on it all day today (Friday), and are moving in tomorrow (Saturday).  TBD how much we'll get done before moving in.  Hopefully at least the living room will be ready to recieve furniture! 
What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Baby is about 15.7 inches and 3 lbs now - about the size of a cabbage head. 
• She is surrounded by amniotic fluid, so her movements are very cushioned.
• Callie's eyesight is developing, but even at birth her vision will be 20/400 and will only be able to make out objects a few inches from her face.
• Her brain is changing from smooth to taking on those grooves and indentations - wrinkles that allow for increased surface area (higher amount of brain tissue).
• Baby's bone marrow has taken over production of red blood cells wheras before, the spleen was producing most of them.
• Her languo hair is beginning to disappear because she's growing more fat and her brain is regulating her temperature better
  

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• Apparently I'm supposed to be feeling off balance and clumsy, but I feel pretty normal. 
• Heartburn continues, and has gotten worse lately.  I can't bend over without some acid reflux.
• My stomach feels miniscule, so I'm hungry, but I can't actually stuff any more food in my belly.  So I have to eat small amounts of food, pretty often.

What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss being able to gobble down as much food as my heart desires, and eat until I'm full. 
• I miss the days when I didn't have heartburn constantly!
• Looking forward to my next OB visit.  It's always fun to check in with the baby.
• Looking forward to a "finished" house - though I have a feeling that the finished product is several weeks further out than we'd anticipated...

Rachel, dutifully de-papering the nursery walls.  This room was a nightmare!  There are 4 other people here (Paul, Nate, Kimber, & Molly), but couldn't get a good shot of them all slaving away. 

Getting the Living Room/Dining Room taped, calked, and ready to paint the trim and walls

Getting the Kitchen cabinets and windows taped, calked, and ready to paint!

Finished product in the living room!

Week 29

I get these pop up reminders every Friday morning from my pregnancy app letting me know what week I'm at, and what baby is up to, and what to expect from my body during the coming week.  I find the app's way of delivering information to me much easier to "digest".  I get information in little chunks and I get through week-by-week.  When I first found out I was pregnant, I got a lot of books from friends and family, and I scoured them being the good little researcher that I am, but I found I went into information overload shutdown mode.  Getting updates conveniently delivered via my phone in the mornings is working quite well for me!

I feel like I say this week after week, but this week has been a little crazy!  Having a baby, and moving, and having a husband in school while both of us are working full time is really kind of too much sometimes.  We are entering the final stages of the home selling/buying process... finally!!  We sign papers for both the sale and the purchase on Monday, we'll hopefully get the keys to our new house on Thursday.  We're hoping to get in right away Thursday evening to start painting, work on the house all day Friday, and then move at 9am Saturday morning.  We have to be out of our house by Sunday at 5pm.  I just keep thinking "get through next week and it will all get easier" but then we have unpacking to do, some remodeling, and a nursery to set up.  We are definitely on a time crunch and I keep warning Bryann that I'm getting near the end of my stress-capacity and he might have a difficult, emotional, irrational, pregnant wife on his hands any moment now.  :-P

But even among all the commotion, we still find time for each other to relax and just "be" together.  We were watching the tail end of the Sex & the City movie last night (Bryann had one eye on the movie, and one eye on the baseball game on his ipad) when a scene came up at the very end where Miranda says something like "Is it really possible to be happy in your relationship every day?" Which made me reflect about Bryann and my relationship.  And I AM happy every single day.  Yes, I'm annoyed with him almost every single day also, but I love him endlessly, he makes me laugh daily, I feel like he's my "home", and I never ever go to bed thinking I wish I would have done something differently.

Needless to say, Bryann is extremely excited for baby Calista to make her way out and into our lives.  Since I've become noticeably bigger and actually pregnant looking, Bryann has been putting his hands on my belly and talking directly to her, or putting his face on my belly and giving her kisses.  It is probably the most adorable thing I've ever seen, and I love him all the more for it.

What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Baby is now between 2.5 and 3 lbs and measures between 15-17 inches - the size of a butternut squash!  Her weight will double (or potentially triple) over the course of the next 11 weeks.  Growth spurt, here we come!
• Her muscles and lungs are growing and strengthening, and her head is growing to make room for her genius brain.
• She is gaining more white fat for energy (as opposed to her previous brown fat for temperature regulation) and her skin is smoothing out and becoming less wrinkly-alien-like
• Space in her living quarters - aka MY STOMACH - is becoming cramped and she is kicking and punching more in protest.  She also kicks, rolls, and jabs in response to stimuli like noise, my movement, light, and that tasty chocolate ice cream I just ate.  :-P
• Teeth buds for her permanent teeth are forming underneath the teeth buds for her baby teet

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• A general and ongoing feeling of huge-ness.  Things are getting VERY crowded in my stomach, and I often feel like I'm going to explode.  I'm hungry, but I feel full and like there's no room to stuff any food in there.  My stomach feels very stiff (you know, filled with my organs AND a baby) everywhere except right at the very top underneath my bra line.  
• Heartburn and digestion issues continue.  The digestion issues are most likely contributing to my feeling of huge-ness. 
• I have to burp a lot.  Now, I know that I burp a lot normally (my friends can attest to this), and maybe I don't actually have to burp more than normal, but with all the crowding in my stomach, it's become difficult to burp, and very painful if I don't.  I actually have to get Bryann to burp me.  As in pat my back up for a few minutes until I can get a few out so I don't feel like I'm going to throw up.  Contemplate that tonight...  
• Frequent trips to the bathroom.  I'm still sleeping ok, but I have to get up at least once during the night to use the bathroom.  
• Restless Leg Syndrome has popped up over the last few weeks.  Just when I'm trying to fall asleep at night, and I try to meditate through it so it doesn't drive me insane. 

What I miss/What I'm looking forward to:

• I miss normal body functions.  
• I also miss beer again this week - I went to my choir's yearly post-season BBQ this week, and there were some tasty looking brews sweating away in coolers.
• I'm looking forward to moving next weekend.  Not so much the packing, which will be the rest of my weekend... 

29 weeks along!

Bryann taking a break from packing

We've made progress!

Kitty's "Box Heaven"

Disaster Zone