Family, fun and sun and a butternut squash!!!

Mom and I
Neil and I

What a great weekend! SO busy, but so daunting! Thank goodness for Sundays really! My mom, brothers, sister in law and nanna came in from out of town (NY, FL) for the shower and for some family time. It was wonderful. I had not seen my nanna in quiet a few months!

For the baby shower we had a great time. The place, Charthouse Annapolis, was set up beautifully! All our tables were put up against the window so everyone had a lovely view of the harbor - the day promised views of all types of boats and sun. The windows in the lounge of the Charthouse reach from floor to ceiling. It's just a lovely place for lunch.

Seeing everyone was so much fun, I had not seen many of the Carbone family since the wedding and then even years back further for some. It was nice to see my mom enjoy the company she does not get to see often enough. These are people she grew up with. We had new, not so new and old friends, it was a wonderful time and the meal was more than enough! I highly reccommend Saturday afternoon affairs at the Charthouse if you need a private venue for a party!

As for the babe, we are 29 WEEKS now!!! He's a butternut squash size! 15 inches? He kicks plenty and is even responding to Neil's voice more and more. I tell Neil to talk to him and here soon we are going to start reading to him! A little bed time story here and there. As he grows stronger and moves more and more each day I feel full of love and find comfort in him. Someone hit the nail on the head yesterday.... she said once she gave birth to her babies, she felt lonely! You get so used to someone being there in your belly for so long, and their movement.. and then they are not there... it's a wild thought, and makes all the sense in the world. I am sure that's how I might feel it too.

Ok off to do laundry and take Marc to the airport! Time flies!!! Then it's all about getting the house back in order for another week of work!!! Yeah!! eh. Work.. that's another blog!!

Ohhhhh I fORGOT.. Ummm... Colostrum.. yeah had a dribble yesterday... first time... but so far that was it... I suppose the girls are getting ready to give milk!! I will keep that posted!

Babies are everywhere!!!

It's actually 28 weeks and +4 days! I can't believe how time is flying. A few of the gal pal crew are there... Lindy - congrats! ! I can't believe Vivian is here!!! Kristen, so close! Jen - how you feeling?

Well many of us are in shared status, waiting for our little ones! It's wild how many people have been pregnant this year that I know! ! ! Connor making his debut in March, Vivian only days old... the other Vivian I know just over a year! It's wild!

Last weekend I shared it with my mother. I had the opportunity to go to Florida and take a break and it was well needed! As it turns out I slept extra hours, I got naps in! I ate healthy and we got our nails done. Even got some new tops! I am outgrowing my clothes again!!! I can't believe how big I have gotten! It's just impressive the body can do it's thing even though I have days where I feel so great!

The weight has truly made itself apparent these past couple weeks, it's difficult to ignore the extra 20+ pounds that have gone on. I must say it hasn't been too tough to look at the scale but the mirror just reflects someone else! A MOM! It's amazing... just amazing. I walk by the mirror and enjoy looking at my belly. I can no longer see the tattoos on my tummy so the only place I can check them out is in the mirror... and yes they are growing!!! I will have to take a pictures here soon of them in particular.. or have Neil take it since I can't really reach around! Around the bump!

So vacation was so great I had to take a few more days off this end of the week, I am on leave Th and Fri since Cari (sister in law) is in town and to get ready for my mom and brother's arrival tonight! So exciting!!!!! James (my youngest brother) and my nanna is also coming in tomorrow! It's going to be such a wonderful weekend full of family and fun! The shower is Saturday at the Charthouse and I can't wait to spend some time with all my closest! I am overly excited really to see everyone! Babies are a great excuse to celebrate! We will have to have another get together when the little man arrives too! ;)

Well please enjoy the pic, they were taken today in the neighborhood.... belly is sticking out there now!!!

27 and ....

Almost to the third trimester, yeah! And I have been reading up and feeling new symptoms that come along with it. Some of the stories on babycenter.com are so humorous they make me pee a little, no really... no one told me there would be leakage!

Let me recap some of the newest symptoms I have been getting. Headaches come and go, so far the longest one had lasted three days, THREE DAYS!, I thought it was because I was over tired but not quiet sure. I am getting enough water.

Indigestion is getting fierce!! I think the baby must be leaning against my tummy sometimes as I will get a reflux for a short while and it goes away and then for no reason it comes on again. I know you do not digest foods as quick as pre-pregnancy so that might make sense.

Then there is the back pains, I have had about two days of serious pain but it's normally towards the end of the day. I hear it's the change in your center of gravity, and then there is the new found roundness... I AM ROUND! My belly is quiet round now and very pregnant looking. I am at that phase that I look like I am so pregnant that I should be having the baby soon but I still have 90+ days to go! Oh and when Neil actually makes some time to rub my back it just makes me have to go poo... I guess my intestines are all flattened against my back! So that's all interesting.

So now for the fun stuff...flat belly button! My belly button is moving outwards, I can see all the crevaces that are normally on the inside!!! My piercing is stretching too so it looks quiet odd. We will see if we go "inverted" by the end of it all!

14 inch/2lbs head of cauliflower.... well... as funny as that sounds... he doesn't feel like a cauliflower, but he does move around a lot. It's amzaing to feel all the movement. He kicks quiet hard adn some times I can feel a leg or arm on the surface that is just chilling there. Neil trys to tap at him too, super cute.

Baby brain is begining to take over! I call people and not remember who I am calling by the time they answer the phone! I am just a space cadet most days. I have to write everything down at work so I don't go too far off tangent, it's amazing how this little man does all this too me.

Cavities?? I think my teeth are suffering... but I am not sure if it's because of all the sugary yummies I eat or because baby Rubin is sucking all the nutrients from my bones!?! But I am pretty sure I have a new cavity or two... and the pain lets me know from time to time.

So many changes! Waistlines are overrated I keep trying to remind myself and the fact is that when he moves around in there and lets me know he's there, I get so happy, I forget the destruction that is going on with the rest of my physical self.

Until next week!

I see Pregnant People

Everywhere! We go to Target, saw three! Walking around Annapolis Towne Center, saw two! Whole foods, saw one, they are everywhere! It seems that the slowed economy over the past winter brought some people closer. Hmm.. It's interesting. When I asked the doc at Bethesda if she thought it was a fluke, she reassured me that there has been an increase of pregnancies this year and that its a baby boom!

See a few articles to read about the baby boom:
This one say's it's Hollywood's fault: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/976590/20062009_baby_boom.html
Some other theories: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323028,00.html

Coming back down from the big picture, this week I have felt like I really gained inches... I have not weighed myself but my tummy seems to really be dominating my body now. The mornings are still the best and on a good day I still get out and jog for a little bit. I have been walking though still and that helps. Got some new pillows too from Sleep Number and they are stellar! They match you with a pillow that works for you, so I got on the bed and tried all the pillows... and Neil and I got some decent pillows... it was neat and my neck is not so badly cricked in the morning now! It's so nice!!!

Big vs. Large.... feeling bigger this week. We don't have a scale so I am not sure where I am at, and a part of me is afraid to find out really. I have probably gained about 20 lbs by now and we are at 26 weeks... almost to third trimester. It's scary to watch that scale go up.. 20 pounds is a LOT OF WEIGHT!!! UGH!! But on the good side, baby is kicking happily and seems he is comfortable! I hope so, I am giving him half my body's real estate! ;) It's so fun to feel him move around! It's just amazing really. All the sacrifice we have to make to foster these beautiful little guys! I can't wait to meet him, really!

Baby shower is around the corner and I can't wait to see everyone! It's going to be nice to sit down with everyone and have a nice lunch! I can't wait! Well as for the rest of the week, doing well, having bad ups and downs, Neil could be more supportive, but what husband couldn't' use a lesson in support.... Sigh... he's doing wonderful though and he's just as excited I think... you would have to ask him. He puts his hand on my tummy more often these days. Might be because he is so happy about his new ride though. His Jetta was falling apart so we had to invest in a new car. Of course any old new car was not good enough for Neil and we did need a family car so we agreed on a BMW, and he selected a used 2006 750 in burgundy with tan interior. This thing has all the bells and whistles, it's a very nice ride and will do beautifully as a family car - very roomy!

Well everyone have a wonderful week! I hope everyone had a great and safe weekend, we had a quiet one - stayed local and today we plan on going to see the Point Thomas Lighthouse as our weekend "outing"! Oh I did a chalk drawing as well, as you can see in the picture. Have a great short week!!!

Where's my hoo-haa?

We celebrated our 3rd year anniversary this past Wednesday and took the day off. We went to the aquarium and a lovely little restaurant in Eastport (the Wild Orchid), it was a nice day but man being pregnant slows me down, it's amazing how tired I get so quickly. Everything is a greater challenge than it was before!!!

So getting a little more personal... I can't see the goodies that got me here, but well... guess I don't have to groom her if I can't see her... LOL, ok this was probably too much information but it's part of this whole blooming experience! It's beautiful! My belly is sticking out further than I ever thought it would at any given point in my life and it's so strange to look down and see this moving little bump jiggle around. He's been pretty active and it's super fun and magical to feel him in there. At our 24 week appointment last week I was weighting in at 143 and the baby's heart beat was 140ish... I can't remember, but to say the least everything is moving along smoothly! Yeah!

I did run across something new and cute ... New clothes in the U.S. soon! Super cute! I wish we already had a store here! I love STRIPES! http://www.polarnopyretusa.com/index/page/static/subpage/about_us There is so much clothes out there for kids.. it's silly, and they cost more than my clothes! We have been purchasing a piece here and there at clearance prices to help us off set costs when he does come. Babies R us and carters had some good sales.

Oh I didn't tell you last week we also went to the classic wooden boat festival in St Micheal's and it was wonderful... we spent the afternoon by the water. The boats were so neat and the little town is worth going back. We just should have realized that traffic on the way back (over the Chesapeake Bay bridge) was rough.. but gave us an excuse to stop at the Prime Outlets out that way! Fun fun!

So uber excited about baby... I just can't wait to meet him, now if only we can come up with a name we can go with. So far we are considering Gustave as it's Neil's grandfather's name and we have one in my family down the lines too... hmm.. well I will keep going on that...

More later!

No pain, No gain oh and no abs?

Happy Summer Solstice and welcome to week 24~

This week the belly pains began! Well OK but new pains began. I started having bad round ligament pain and with good reason, this tum tum is starting to really stick out! There is no doubting my "pregnant" look now! I had some sharp pangs on my side early on this week and then a bit later this week they were in the front, just below my belly button. At first I thought, "OH NO!, what's going on?!" then I went to my trusty babycenter moms and realized oh yeah.. "growing pains" and I have a doc's appointment next week anyways, so I can be sure then.

In the mornings I feel wonderful though, I almost don't feel pregnant except for the part about trying to get out of bed and realizing that baby boy here has taken my abs away from me. I don't sleep real well cause every time I turn around I realize.. stay on your left side, move the teddy bear to lower back, re locate the pillow between your legs... get comfy.. yeah it's the new norm I suppose.

So lets talk about no Abdominal muscles: it's strange not to have something you always had, like being able to breath after a flight of stairs, getting up out of a chair or bed without wondering how to do it effectively without the appropriate muscles. I am starting to do the roll out of bed, but we have a very tall bed which adds to the challenge. It's fun, I laugh most of the time as I am trying so hard to get up and down... Neil sometimes gives me a pull or push... LOL... It also has made it "different" when I have to go #2. You don't realize how much you rely on them until they are unavailable to you. This little tike makes it tough to get in and out of cars.. I am slower at everything! It's funny, I want to move but well, have to be more cautious. <> I will keep doing my prenatal yoga and Wii Fit stuff... hopefully that will help me stay on the ball!

Baby Bootcamp. The fleet and family service center here on base gave a half day class in which they brief us on some of the ins and outs of having a babe. So we went over financial stuff, local and on base day care (much cheaper on base) and got some advice from the pediatrician about development. I believe we also talked about medical and where we can take our babe for his doctors visits. That was fun, but with that said we get a little baby "sea bag" too for attending - came with 6 onsies, blankies and a home made knit sweater and hat.. too cute! It's wild how much they do for us. I also had gotten a freebie earlier this week from work (two books, a onsie and a chill bag for milk). Fun stuff! !

OK back to making some yummy summer solstice meal items!

Went to the Sea Services Leadership Symposium as well (Navy/Coast Guard/Marines thing) and got my annual dose of female leadership. There were some 600+ women in uniform there (about 6 men) and it was just so neat. One of the speakers made a good point, she said, this is how the men must feel every day surrounded by the same sex. Funny huh? Yeah well I thought it was interesting. Of the 300 CMC's in the navy only 57 of them are females. In the ranks E7-E9 females only make up 7%, in the Navy as a whole women make up 15.9%. It was an interesting couple days, long days too! Got out past 5 each day! Well it wouldn't have been so bad if the event wasn't down in D.C. I think next time I will just stay at a hotel instead of commuting.

Well anyways, so besides all the good stuff, been having more tiredness, no change on irritability (much of that is based on how much attention Neil gives me, wink), and I have been getting a few cramp here and there in my legs. . the restless leg syndrome seems to have tapered off but now I get random charlie horses, so I increased the water intake... see if that works. Well enough for me, I need to really work on these during the week, I could have sworn the week was funnier than I am reading here.. but well... baby brain, I can't remember where I park my car when I got out let alone what happened to me all week!

It's almost the weekend!! (and almost Week 23)

It's almost the weekend and I am going to get my blog in a bit early as Alisha will be here! Yeah!! How exciting! I get to see my bff after a couple years of her being in Japan! I can't believe how time has flown. It's surreal really. I mean I am sitting here in the couch of our second home and watching the granite counter tops being installed and it's amazing how far Neil and I have gone as a couple and how we have been growing up over the years we have known one another. I feel like it was yesterday I was cruising the Eastern Pacific on ships and pulling in to port o calls finding what trouble I could get into for the day.

<> I enjoy looking back but I don't miss those days. With my anxiety concerns from the last year and change, I have been coping with all sorts of emotions and looking at my own life to see where it's going. Some days I was feeling it was just going to end and it was all for not, for nothing, just another life, no different than that of an ant or pigeon. But lately as I have been cruising through my second trimester of pregnancy I am reveling in the good and the bad and what a wonderful future we have together as a family ahead. I was strangely focusing on the end.. and how fast it will come and what impact have I made, but I think when it comes down to it, having given the ultimate back, a new life, will fill this void and really give a feeling of fulfilment as a creature of this earth and universe. I feel the little kicks inside my vessel and wonder how well I will be able to prepare him the best for the future, planning on how to set him up the best we can as parents. I am sure we will do a wonderful job, what trials we have ahead, and how I just can't wait to meet the little man. What a blessing this is. I don't know why I never knew what a marvel this was going to be and how I would feel about it. I had so badly wanted to adopt, I just wanted to ensure someone else had a home and a chance, and I may still hope to adopt another child but being pregnant is the epitome of being woman and alive. It's just wild.

My tummy continues to stretch out and I feel the "growing pains" as the days pass. Most days I am feeling pretty good and easy going, second trimester is awesome! But it has it's moments and I must say that emotionally this is the most stable I have been in a while, and it feels great to be back in "control" somewhat of the crying and the emotional aspect. The world around me is amazing and I am reveling in it. Even my job is becoming more rewarding and the fact that promotions have passed and I was overlooked was not as painful as I thought it would be. Next year is another try. What can we say... hopefully I will be able to repair my record, but if not I have chosen to accept this path that has been chosen for me and I need to take the challenge period.

Our house is slowly coming together too! Our kitchen is functional, we have a living room, we have TV (it's all digital now isn't it??), we have a bed room and next week we will have the beginnings of the third room upstairs and hopefully the upstairs guest bath. It's all so exciting!!! The baby shower is just over a month away too and I cannot wait to see our family and friends!!!

OK, well this week has been fun and thanks for listening to my ramblings, things are good and the animals around our house have been active (saw the fox in the daytime yesterday - so neat, saw ducks this morning and one of the ospreys was flying around too!). Enjoy the pics, I did them in the mirror so they are not fabulous or anything but you get the idea! It's Week 23 pics and he's growing fast in there!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!!!