Nursery - for plants or babies?

I don't know why but I find the word "nursery" to be annoying when describing a baby's room. Maybe its because my dad is a lawn guy so growing up the word nursery meant "place where plants are available for purchase" to me. Or, maybe because the word "nursery" sounds so dated. I don't know. Regardless, the point of this post is to give an update on the state of the baby's room. 
On Sunday night we assembled the changer/dresser. It was much easier and faster than the crib and no one had to throw any bags of screws this time. However, I did fall out of my little folding Ikea chair when the cat knocked over one of the sides. Funny? No. A little. The only piece of furniture left is the bookcase. Hopefully that one will also be a breeze.

Husband doing husbandly things.

Last night we went to Hobby Lobby to look around and to get decor ideas. We're definitely going to buy and paint large wooden letters for a monogram to go over the crib. I also found two giraffe print baskets for extra storage to go on one of the shelves of the bookcase. I don't want to go decor-heavy just yet. I want to put up and organize what we have so far and then decide if it needs more. Right now everything is sitting in the closet of the baby's room.
On Cyber Monday I ordered the mattress and baby mobile from Target. Unfortunately, there were no real deals on those two items so I didn't save any money - not even on shipping. But I did get to use all of my gift cards toward the purchase and only came out of pocket $8! They should be here in a week! I also ordered the crib bumpers and skirt. We decided to forego the comforter and crib sheet since they were (in my opinion) grotesquely overpriced. I saved about $60 thanks to www.babybedding.com's 15% off + free shipping deal. So exciting! Now we have to pick out a large giraffe print rug, rocking chair, and order the canvas-print photograph. That will come a little later though. (Side note: I found an AWESOME digital image of giraffes at sunset on Etsy. I plan on paying the $4 for it and printing it out for framing to go on one of the walls - it's so awesome.)
The essentials we still need are the car seat (currently out of stock at Babies-R-Us, so gotta wait til it comes back in so I can use my gift card toward it), a swing/bouncer (the one I registered for at Target is a swing/bouncer combo and matches the Pack N' Play), diaper genie, receiving blankets, diapers, wipes, baby grooming/first aid kit, and more newborn baby clothes. Taylor and I also want to pick out a boy's outfit and girl's outfit to pack in my hospital bag so baby will have something cute to wear on the way home. Whew. Eight weeks left to get it all. I'll definitely be bargain shopping, couponing, and requesting gift cards if anyone wants to know what to get us for Christmas.

Next week I go back to my OB's office. The week after that it's back to the perinatologist's office. Still taking Glyburide two times per day and checking glucose levels four times per day. Gotta be careful about the blood glucose drop - it's happened two more times since last Wednesday. 

I found an awesome sweater dress to wear for maternity photos next weekend. We will be going to a Christmas tree farm! If you have Facebook, check out Pics By The Moon. They do a fantastic job and are so fun to work with!

Weekly photo:

How far along: 32 weeks

Trimester: Third

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Current weight: 139 pounds according to the scale at work.

Maternity clothes: Yes. 

Stretch marks: Nothing new.

Best moment of the week: The long holiday break and getting to order more baby stuff.

Movement: Yes - lots of hiccups!

Food Cravings: Regular Coke, peanut butter cookies. 

Anything making you queasy or sick? Nothing in particular, I just get bouts of nausea every few days.

Miss anything? Not really.

Other symptoms: Heartburn if I don't take Prevacid at the same time every day, fatigue, irritability, hungry every 2-3 hours, and really thirsty all the time.  

Have you started to show yet? Yes.

Sex: It will be a surprise.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly button in or out? Outie. 

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Moody or not moody? Moody. 

Looking forward to: Making the baby's room look more complete!

Thanksgiving

Last Friday we met with the perinatologist at Northside in Sandy Springs, where I'll deliver. Unfortunately, Taylor wasn't able to come so I invited my mom to come along. I was bummed, but I was also a little terrified to go alone. I thought the visit would just be a medication consult - nothing more than a question and answer session and then I'd walk out with a prescription in hand. Doesn't sound scary, right? Sounds like something a normal, adult, 25 year-old woman should be able to do alone. Hahaha, nope. Turns out I'm a stage four clinger and not as independent as I'd like to think. So I brought my mom with me! They actually wanted to take full measurements and scans of baby bear via ultrasound. The room was warm, dimly lit, spacious, you get your own TV screen to see it on, and they even warmed up the bottle of ultrasound gel! Way nicer than the ultrasound room at my regular OB's office, which is small, cold, and they don't warm anything up plus you have to look on a tiny screen to see the baby. So, mom got to be present for an ultrasound and she got to hear his or her heartbeat for the first time. (There may or may not have been tears of joy.)
The doctor came in and said baby bear weighs three pounds five ounces right now and is right below 50th percentile (I never know what that means.) So, this is good! Not too big but not too small. I have started taking 2.5 mg of Glyburide two times per day. All of my glucose levels have been below 90 for the first time in weeks. The only concern right now is that if my blood sugar drops below 60 I'll need to start taking 1/2 a pill at a time instead of a whole pill. (It happened briefly yesterday while I was grocery shopping - had to cut it short and buy a soda and candy bar immediately. By the time I got to the car to check my glucose level it was 116, so I'm not sure how low it actually went.) I'll go in for a follow-up on December 11th.
I had my regular OB appointment on Monday. Because I'm taking medication for gestational DM they will start seeing me two times per week for a non-stress test and an ultrasound once I get to 34 weeks - the second week in December.

On Facebook I "liked" a baby/kid's consignment store a while back called Baby N' Kids Gear. It's located near the Mall of GA. Every few days they post photos of brand new, never used items they've received. Yesterday I happened to log on and see they they had just posted a brand new, out-of-the-box, already assembled Phil and Ted's Explorer stroller for about 60% off of retail price - so, pretty much a STEAL. I called them and had them put it on hold for me immediately. The owner of the store told me they'd gotten dozens of phone calls about it and it had been posted for less than an hour. I met up with my mom after work and we drove over and she bought it for us! I had been talking about this dang stroller for probably the past four or five months but decided it was waaaay too expensive brand new - even on Ebay where they were maybe $50 - $100 cheaper. (We had actually registered for the lowest model Phil & Ted's makes, the Classic - this one was still cheaper by $100 than the Classic and it's a higher-end model!)  I really lucked out on this one and I am so excited about it. Thanks, mom! All I've got to do is buy the car seat adapter bar, which is only about $30 and it will be complete! Also, the seat cushion can be swapped out for any color we want - right now it's navy, but should we choose to go with a different color it's kind of cool to be able to do that. (Check out the Explorer online here.)
If you look closely you can see sweet Heyward hanging out in the stroller in each photo. He's so curious!

The other two pieces of furniture have arrived and are waiting to be assembled. I think we're going to try and knock that out during this long holiday break.
I'm also planning on ordering the baby's mattress, crib bedding, mobile, and possibly car seat online either Black Friday or Cyber Monday. Also pretty exciting! Once we get that in I can pick out a changing pad cover and diaper stacker to match the decor and bedding. For now we've decided to forego curtains, which will save us a bit of money.

Baby mobile - adorable!

Today is Thanksgiving and I am so thankful for everything I have and everyone I know.
I am thankful for:
-life
-the best family (immediate and in-laws)
-my wonderful marriage
-baby bear and his/her good health so far
-my good health
-modern medicine
-our first home together
-the ability to be able to provide for my family and baby
-having found and joined a good church with the hubs this year
-my job and my husband's job
-all of my great friends
-everything we've already been blessed with and have in our lives already

How far along: 31 weeks

Trimester: Third

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Current weight: 137.8 pounds

Maternity clothes: Yes. I can barely fit into my pre-pregnancy shirts now.

Stretch marks: I asked Taylor if he saw any new ones and he says no.

Best moment of the week: Lots - getting the stroller, making delicious food for Thanksgiving, and receiving the rest of the furniture.

Movement: Constant.

Food Cravings: I know I've had some this week, but I can't remember right now. 

Anything making you queasy or sick? Not yet.

Miss anything? Not really.

Other symptoms: Heartburn if I don't take Prevacid at the same time every day, my legs feel like they're falling asleep/really tired if I stand for too long, slight swelling of feet/ankles at the end of the day, leg cramp (again), pressure and pain below the abdomen, and having to urinate freqently.  

Have you started to show yet? Yes.

Sex: It will be a surprise.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly button in or out? Outie. 

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Moody or not moody? Happy. 

Looking forward to: Spending time with family during the long break, and ordering more baby stuff soon.

Big brother Heyward

The most eventful thing that happened this week was the assembly of the baby's crib. It took about 24 hours because we took frequent, long breaks. If you've ever assembled furniture with your spouse then you understand. But, alas, it is complete and our marriage remains intact! The only ongoing problem is the drawer on the bottom. It is temperamental and we're going to have to invest in some wood glue to keep it from falling apart every time we need to use it. No big deal though.

On Sunday we ordered the other two pieces for the baby's room - a changer/dresser combo and the tall book case. They shipped on Tuesday and should be here next week. We still need to do a lot in the nursery though:
1.) Order the baby bedding.
2.) Buy a rug. (Giraffe print, of course. Nope. Not kidding.)
3.) Order the canvas print photography.
4.) Buy wooden initials for a monogram (yes, the names are picked out and we're going to buy letters for both a boy name and a girl name.)
5.) Pick out and purchase a rocking chair.
I'm sure I'm leaving some things off, but I feel that those are the most important items to complete before the due date.

Tomorrow is my initial perinatal appointment. I was reading over the paperwork I'm supposed to bring in and it asks normal questions like my race, family medical history, genetic testing questions, etc. And then there was this one: "Are you and the baby's father cousins or related in any way?" I know it's supposed to be a serious question having to do with genetics. But it just struck me as hilarious and gross at the same time. And no. WE ARE NOT RELATED. Just so everyone knows.
I'm sure the appointment will be fine, but I really don't know what to expect. I've been trying to keep up with my daily blood glucose logs like they've asked me to. Some days all of my readings are normal. Others they're really high. And then there are days where all but one are normal or vice versa. There's just no consistency despite my diet restrictions. I will provide an update next week to let everyone know what the treatment plan will be. 

And finally, the title of my post is in reference to my sweet cat, Heyward. He is going to be a wonderful "big brother" to baby bear and Taylor and I felt he deserved to be included in my weekly photo this week. 

How far along: 30 weeks

Trimester: Third

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Current weight: 136 pounds

Maternity clothes: Yup, no point in even trying to wear anything that isn't made for moms-to-be.

Sleep: I wake up a few times per night. Definitely noticing the fatigue coming back though.

Stretch marks: I don't think anything has popped up, but I also can't get a good look at my rear.

Best moment of the week: Placing the order for the rest of the furniture!

Movement: Always moving. In fact, some of the movements are painful now. And baby gets hiccups a lot!

Food Cravings: Regular Coke,  subs on white bread, and peanut butter. 

Anything making you queasy or sick? Hmm. I don't know why but I have felt pretty nauseous the past two nights. I hope it's not coming back for the remainder of this trimester...

Miss anything? Not really.

Other symptoms: Heartburn, thoracic back pain is happening a little more frequently now, shortness of breath.  

Have you started to show yet? Yes.

Sex: It will be a surprise.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly button in or out? Out. 

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Moody or not moody? Happy. 

Looking forward to: Going to see Breaking Dawn: Part 2 this weekend. Terrible books, but I got sucked in anyway. Lol.

Best baby shower ever

Saturday was my baby shower! I've never been to a baby shower before and the first one I got to go to was my own.

I decided to wear my new dress from American Apparel and my new cowboy boots, plus mom got me a sash to wear that said "new mom-to-be."

My mom did such a great job decorating the house and coordinating everything. It was weird for me to let go of the reins and have someone else throw a party for me - I've never had that happen before. I got to go to Trader Joe's with her and pick out party food - and we all know menu planning for a party is one of my favorite things to do. We had fancy schmancy pigs-in-a-blanket, mini quiches (feta with caramelized onions and ham & cheese), veggies with cucumber tzatziki sauce, garlic hummus and lavash chips, cream cheese with homemade jalapeno blackberry jam, crockpot meatballs, and mom special ordered three dozen petit fours from Rhodes Bakery. Since I have gestational DM and couldn't eat a lot of it all at once I mostly just grazed around the table, so I was able to make it work! Also, we had cold sparkling spiced apple cider as the specialty drink. SO good!
Once everyone had the chance to mingle and munch we played games and then I got to open a rather large pile of gifts. My friends and family are so generous - we got SO MANY awesome things!! I can't wait to assemble the crib and order the rest of the furniture for the baby's room so we can have a place to put everything! I'm still surprised when I look in the baby's closet and see so much stuff. 

Unfortunately we did not take many pictures during the shower, but here are a few snapshots. 

Thanks again to everyone who came!! I felt so honored and I love that you took time out of your schedules to come and celebrate our new baby!

Monday I had my 29 week appointment. My fasting blood glucose readings have been running high for the last week or so, despite watching my diet. It's supposed to be under 95, but it's been reflecting between 94 and 101, whereas two to three weeks ago it was between 70 and 85. The other after-meal readings (which should be under 120) have been way too high at times - like 185 - and totally normal at others. There's really no rhyme or reason to it. I had a few cry fests because I felt like I was making the right food and drink choices but it wasn't reflecting as such, plus I was (am) worried. Dr. Nix agreed that my readings are all borderline high. This is because the placenta (which is the source of my blood sugar troubles) is growing larger, therefore emitting more hormones which are making it harder and harder for my body to absorb insulin to regulate my blood sugar. She asked me to continue to monitor my glucose readings through the end of the day yesterday and then call in with the readings. (Side note - going on walks for 30+ minutes is supposed to help regulate insulin levels, but it's hard to do that during the work day. I wish I could do it more often during the day since my job activity level is sedentary. Plus, depending on the severity of my back and hip pain, I can't always go for walks after work.)
Dr. Nix has decided to go ahead and refer me to a high-risk specialist. I will be seeing a perinatologist at Atlanta Perinatal Consultants on Friday the 16th for an initial consult. That was the earliest available appointment. I'm trying to relax and be cool, but have decided that I will just have to be okay with taking the medication because it will only be oral (no insulin injections!) and it will ensure that baby bear will be healthy at birth.

Dr. Nix said my belly size and weight gain are all normal and I have no swelling so far. I was reassured that chiropractic visits are beneficial and I am allowed to continue taking Tylenol as needed, plus the use of Icy Hot patches is okay. 

Speaking of my chiropractor, I had another appointment yesterday. He commented that it was my best adjustment so far - I would agree! Saturday my low back and hip pain (which was pretty prominent and nagging) kind of disappeared all on its own. It was the first time I woke up without noticeable pain in weeks. Hallelujah! Each day since then has been about like that, too. I still get achy by the end of the day, but it's not even close to what I had been feeling before. Progress! 

Weekly photo (in honor of the election!)

How far along: 29 weeks

Trimester: Third

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Current weight: 136 pounds

Maternity clothes: Yes! Got permission from hubs to purchase a few more essentials since I'm growing out of some stuff already AND one of my BFFs bought me a pair of maternity jeans for $4 brand new. Awesome!

Sleep: Drastic improvement now that my back pain is starting to get under control.

Stretch marks: Still nothing new - been slathering on lotion like nobody's business.

Best moment of the week: I have a few! Had dinner with my dad on election night. Got to hear baby bear's heartbeat on Monday. And Taylor got to feel baby bear's hiccups for the first time over the weekend! I think that was a neat moment for him.

Movement: Constantly. :)

Food Cravings: Sigh. Regular Coke,  a peppermint chocolate milkshake from Chick-Fil-A, cheese danish, cake, and  a white peppermint mocha from Starbucks. Sadly, I cannot indulge in any of these, but I also know its for the better. 

Anything making you queasy or sick? Taylor's Jeep smelled like a nasty old gym bag one day after he went to the gym. I really thought I was going to throw up after sitting in it for less than a minute.

Miss anything? I miss not having to worry about food choices and carb count everything. It gives me slight anxiety sometimes. I also feel guilty for typing that because I'm not resentful at all. I'm just not used to reading food labels and putting so much thought into what I eat.

Other symptoms: Nothing new, except being overly sensitive about silly things.  

Have you started to show yet? Yes.

Sex: It will be a surprise.

Labor Signs: None.

Belly button in or out? I think I can officially say I have an outie. 

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Moody or not moody? Moody, but mostly happy. I think I'm just a moody person in general though - not necessarily pregnancy related. 

Looking forward to: Taylor comes back from traveling tonight - I look forward to dinner with him and catching up on our shows.

Also, Instagram has recently made each person's account available online instead of just through the app! If you want to check out my Instagram account, you can do so at instagram.com/saroberts143.