Just kickin' it

For the last couple weeks Emmi has been kicking like a mad woman. Taryn has been able to feel her kick(obviously since she lives in her belly for the time being), Kona has been able to feel her kick since he likes to lie with his head on Taryn's belly, me? I've felt nothing. Until last night. We were lying in bed watching how people make cheese on the History Channel and I had my hand on Taryn's belly. Oh!! What was that?? I finally felt her kick a couple time!! Visions of Alien and the thing coming out the the guys stomach ran through my head. This made solidified the realization that I'm going to be a dad and I'm going to have a daughter. It wasn't what I expected. I was expecting a thumb or something. This was more of a pushing out against the belly. I can't wait to be able to see her little feet or hands pushing out.

Good times! So excited!

Dr Appt

Just the run of the mill appointment. Checked my weight, I have put on a total of 12 pounds. Only 2 since my last visit. Since we don't have a scale at home this is the only time I find out how I am doing in that department. The pee test which checks for proteins was normal. My heart rate was excellent and so wasn't Emmi's at 160 beats. It was really cool to hear her heart beat because since she is so active now you could hear the Doppler pick up her movements. It would be thump thump really fast for the heart then all of a sudden there would be a big rustle where she would move. Really cool to hear. Then my uterus measures where it should. He did check for swelling in my ankles. No swelling and he said I shouldn't really expect it until my third trimester.

In regards to the clothing department, I have on a complete maternity outfit today, black pants and a blue striped shirt. Just figured that since I would have to slide my waistband down for the Doppler and doctor checks I would try to make it easy without the bella. When I first get up I have to keep pulling my pants up but I guess soon enough I will fill them out completely.

My next appointment is July 26th which will be just like this one. The one after that is when they check for diabetes.

Pictures pictures pictures....

Here are two pics of me at 21 weeks. The one in gym shorts was taken yesterday after we had gotten back from riding bikes at Catawba. The other one is from this morning on my way out the door for work.

Can you see my issue??? The way I look in the work picture is how I feel, or at least the way I am seeing myself.... Not very pregnant yet I am 5 months and one week along. The pants I have on are my normal size pants that I have buttoned, no bella band. Although I think I am getting to the end of wearing them without the bella so I brought it in case the afternoon bloat pushes me to needing the extra room. The shirt is a maternity shirt I picked up this weekend and no tent like feel. Over the week, I had a fashion show for my stylists, so thanks to the shirts Sara gave me, Pam's stuff, and a couple shirts I picked up over the weekend, I think I have 8-10 shirts to wear to work which has been the struggle for me. Now I know what to wear to work... Yeah!

I haven't broken out the maternity pants or shorts yet on a regular basis. The first pair of pants I wore to work on Friday were capris. They felt great but I still don't feel the need to wear them all the time. I will continue to wear my regular pants with a bella band as long as they are comfy. I think I have one or two pairs that may get retired this week so I may work some maternity pants/capris into the mix.

If all I have to write about is my struggles with what to wear then I am definitely thankful with this miraculous experience. I have a doctors appt on Thursday this week. Nothing special just the normal check up.

Don't forget to sponsor us for the 24 Hours of Booty.
Taryn's webpage
Jacob's webpage

24 Hours of Booty

Jacob and I have signed up to ride in the 24 Hours of Booty. For those of you who do not know it is a fundraising event for cancer. There is a loop in Charlotte called the Booty Loop that they shut down for 24 hours and cyclists get out and ride. It is an amazing experience. One of the groups to benefit is the Lance Armstrong Foundation. This is the same foundation that we supported with our wedding favors for those of you still wearing your livestrong bracelets.

We each have to raise a minimum of $100 by July 20th. So please help us reach our goals and donate to this great cause.

Taryn's webpage
Jacob's webpage

Thanks for your support.

Goldilocks and the 3 Outfits......

I am officially half way through at 5 months or 20 weeks. Yeah. My belly is getting bigger but I still think I look like I put on weight opposed to being pregnant if I wear normal clothes. But I need to get this clothes thing figured out.

On Friday, I met my co-workers wife who is a week behind me. She was wearing a maternity top and pants because she said normal clothes just dont fit. Then Patti, the girl I rode bikes with who is 4 weeks ahead of me, was in majority maternity clothes by now too.... I began to think, are these clothes really comfortable and I need to wear them? Am I just fooling myself thinking I can still wear my regular clothes with a Bella Band? I am all about comfort and what will work best.

Saturday I went through the maternity clothes that I have piled in the spare room since it has been a while since I went through the shirts. Plus Sara had given me a box of stuff I hadnt even opened yet. I tried on a few tops that looked smaller but they still felt so big. I felt like I was wearing a tent. I didnt try on any pants as I know there are a few pairs I may consider wearing this week and had just went through them in the past few weeks. I have secretly been eyeing Jacob's stuff to see if some of his shirts would help in this time but no such luck. His stuff is too big or just not right.

The mornings are the worst for picking out what to wear. My fashion consultants, Jacob and Kona, are still supportive although I am sure they cant wait for me to figure things out myself. I had on 3 different outfits this morning. One outfit was just right but there was a spot on the shirt. One even included a pair of maternity pants. The maternity pants are baggier or have the panel at the top so I need to make sure I wear a longer shirt to cover the top of the pants. Once again that would bring me to maternity shirts which feel like tents. I ended up wearing the trusty Bella Band with a pair of pants that the weeks are numbered with getting away with the Bella and the one button up shirt that I can still wear.

Why cant everyday be the weekend where shorts and T-shirts are it?

Check back later for a picture of me.

Big Juicy Jr....

When I went to TX to visit my family back in March I was able to ride around in my cousin's, actually Tristan & Preston's pimped out van. It is a conversion van with all the bells and whistles. They have pimped it out even more by adding a separate DVD player for Preston since he faces the rear still. My new ride cant quite compare but I like to think of it as a version of Big Juicy Jr. Here is a full pic of it in our yard.

Welcome to Suburbia!!!!!!

Taryn and I had a discussion last night concerning where we are in our lives. We came to a realization that we are quickly approaching your typical suburban, middleclass family. We both work in white collar, professional jobs, we live in the cookie cutter suburban neighborhood, we have the picket fence, we have the Labrador Retriever, and now she's got the soccer mom vehicle and soon Emmi will be arriving. Its weird when you come to these realizations.
So the most recent change due to Emmi, has been the vehicle. There was no way that Emmi and Kona were going to be able to ride together in my truck or her car. Visions of her face covered in baby drool and dog hair and Kona's tail with lollipops stuck to it weren't very appealing. So after about 4 hours of haggling at the car dealership we came home with this:






Nissan Pathfinder with all the bells and whistles. Taryn is exited because she'll be able to watch dvd's while we drive home in August. Kona is a little confused and doesn't know quite what to think. Taryn folded down the 2nd and 3rd rows of seats so he has plenty of room but he seems confused.

So what is next on our journey into being suburbanites? I don't know. Maybe I'll sell all my bikes play golf regularly (very doubtful). Maybe Taryn will get a subscription to Oprah's magazine.

19 Weeks....the normal weekly update

I am now 19 weeks or 4 3/4 months. Today I found one pair of pants that I can still button. Everything else I wear with the bella band. I have many colors of Polo shirts which is a staple of my wardrobe right now. Any shirts in cotton are my favs since button ups are not working. Still not maternity stuff yet but that is fast approaching. Feeling great. Although my stomach doesnt do well if I dont eat regularly. I typically eat something every few hours, which I always had done just have added a few extra snacks. But now if I go 3 hours without eating something the next thing I eat feels like a lead brick in my stomach. At breakfast I am fine but during the day I have to make sure to eat something.

Still exercising. Getting out running more than biking but will get out on the bike at least once a week. For those not from the South, typically in the morning it is in the 70's but doesnt get too humid until 10-11am and then it cools down when the sun sets. Not good for a pregnant woman who is trying to exercise. I may start getting up before work since it is too hot to exercise after work. Last week was in the 90's with high humidity and even when waiting until 8pm. I dont monitor my heart rate but I definitely dont want to over heat.

I regularly feel Emerson moving around although it isnt overly predictable when it is going to happen. Seems to be after I eat but that isnt even a guarantee. We have started to see if Jacob can feel her but unfortunately everytime he has his hand on my belly she doesnt move. I think if he can feel it at this point it will be a very light feeling on his hand.

I seem to have the parents who never leave. :^) The visit with my dad was great but unfortunately for him a thunderstorm came through yesterday when he was suppose to leave. His flight got cancelled but he was able to get out on a later flight. But that didnt get him home until way after midnight.

It is official we are on target to join suburban america. More to come....

We're having a girl!!!!

If you haven't read it, we're having a baby girl. No longer an it. I've had to correct Taryn of calling her an it a few times. Her name is going to be Emerson Leigh(sounds like Lee). That way we can call her Emmy Leigh(Lee). I came up with her name years ago while working at Wachusett Mtn. Ski Area. Someone there had a daughter with that name and I thought to myself "One day, when Taryn and I have a girl, that is going to be her name." At the time I think we had been dating(again) for about 2 years. So yes, I will take all the credit for her name.

Now on to the fun stuff. Barbies, Cabbage Kids, my daughter idolizing Linsey Lohan and her knife wielding escapades...............oh God!!! What am I going to do?

Kona is very excited about having a little sister. He's not too excited about being dressed up in girly clothes though. I had a conversation with him the other day about it. He asked if he was going to have bows put on him and dressed up in doll clothes. I informed him that, unfortunately, that would be the case. He said he would humor her but will draw the line at rouge lipstick. I told him that would be fine since I didn't want anyone to think we had a cross dressing dog that may be confused about who he is and we would try to keep embarrassing moments out of the public eye.

18 weeks...

Things are still going great for 18 weeks. We now know it will be a girl, Emerson Leigh. This will be the first girl grandchild for my side of the family and second for Jacob's side. Everyone seems excited and who wouldnt be for a girl. I am now having to wear my bella band pretty much with everything I wear. Jacob has been working on painting the hallway and trailwork while I was being a seamstress. I had gotten some maternity clothes from my step father's, son's wife, Pam. Got that. :^) She is a little bit shorter than me so I let some hems down and made some pants into Capris. I should be pretty set for maternity clothes between what she sent me and what my sister in law will let me borrow, although I did buy some this weekend. My first real purchase, two pairs of pants and two shirts. Super comfy stuff especially the shirts. It is the length that is needed in the shirts to cover the ever expanding chest and soon to be belly. So I am ready for when the bella band wont work with my regular clothes.

My father will be in on friday to come visit for the weekend and see his new grandson. It will be a quick visit but great to see him. If you have not noticed the addition of the links to other blogs, members of my family have loved our blog and have aspired to start their own. So check them out.

Still cast your votes since we still obviously dont know the date the baby will be born or the size.

Dinner.

Our dinner was awesome. It was raining but we still sat in the court yard since it is covered. Jacob wore his pink shirt with jeans and I had on a pink skirt with black shirt... :^) Since you have waited this long to find out I will go into details..... Jacob started with the Shrimp Cocktail. Then had the iceburg salad wedge. I went with the Country Salad. For my meal I had the Honey Mustard Glazed Salmon Fillet with Coconut Basmati Rice Tower and an Asian Mango Salsa. Yummmy. Jacob had the Pan Seared Free Range Chicken with Roasted Garlic Whipped Potatoes and a Natural Pan Sauce. Everything was delicious. We were able to enjoy all that with the box sitting on the table. We decided that we would open the box after we ordered dessert. I was surprised the waitress and no one around us were even interested in the package on our table. After Jacob ordered the worlds best lemon cheesecake and I the apple strawberry cobbler we started to proceed with the box. Jacob pulled the pink bow then the blue bow off. He unwrapped the box and took the envelope out. I was the one to open the envelope. I opened it so we both could see. The tech had put two pics in it for us. One that pointed to confirm and one that just said what it is....................

The majority of the people have voted correctly. (But still cast your votes as there is the date and size to still compete.)

Ultrasound....

Here are the pics from today. I was amazed at the details of the skeletal structure. The baby is 7 ounces and is right on target for November 5th. The Ultrasound Tech was not able to determine the sex at first due to the baby having it's legs crunched up. After she took some pics and measurements, she had me crunch my legs into my chest while sitting so that it would get the baby to move. Sure enough it worked.

The box, which my friend at work Cindy wrapped up so nicely for us -- Thanks Cindy!!!--, is suppose to contain the picture of what we are having. We have decided to go to dinner at Sante here in Matthews tomorrow night. That is when we will open the box to reveal what we are having. Do we open it after we order, after the meal, after dessert, hmm? Check back later this weekend to find out what we will have. And get your vote in if you havent already.

I had done some research on child birthing classes. I thought I liked the Bradley Method and looked at taking a class. After talking to my doctor today that doesn't sound like it will be the best fit so we are not going with that approach anymore. It looks like we will take the normal hospital class but then look into hypnosis a bit more..... The type where if you drive from point a to point b and don't remember how you got there or..... The concept of being able to reach your sub conscious to help with child birthing. If anyone knows of any good books to recommend, please let me know.

I was also quite excited to find out I have only put on 10 pounds. That is in the range of what I should have put on by now. Yeah!!! With the eating I have done lately I was a little worried. Plus with Jacob out of town and then having a dinner of nachos, a baked potato, and a vanilla frosty last night.

Another big event of the day is that Kona turned 6. Happy Birthday Kona!!