Motherhood Monday ~ Things Not to Say to a Pregnant Woman

As you can see, I am trying to get back into the swing of things on this little blog of mine and get back to posting 3 times a week. This post was originally written for April 20th but that is the morning I went into labor so it never got posted. I didn't want the post to go to waste so here are a few things not to say to a pregnant woman:

You can google and find endless lists of things not to say to pregnant woman but the truth is someone is going to say something that is still going to offend you...even if its just a little. Here are a few I have I heard:

1 - How many do you have in there?! - I have one, yes one and I know I am HUGE! I don't need you to point it out for me.

2 - You look miserable. - Awe, thank you! You're so sweet! I know I look tired, again, you don't need to point that out.

3 - How much weight have you put on? - Jesus, are you eff-ing kidding me with that question?!?

I know I look different then my normal size 4/6 self, you don't need to point that out to me. I also know I look like I have beach ball under shirt, you SO don't need to point that out to me too. And I'm not sure what is worse, when these comments come from people you know or complete strangers. 

The truth is, is that everyone looks different and everyone's pregnancy is going to look and be different. Just google 35 weeks pregnant and see all the different sizes women can be. 

{Ladies, we all look great!; Source: Google: 35 weeks pregnant}

  

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Motherhood Monday

Well its another Monday so that means time for a post about being a mom :D I cant decide if I want to call Monday's post 'Mommy Monday' or 'Motherhood Monday' what do you think?

Today I want to talk about breastfeeding. The hospital I delivered at is VERY pro breastfeeding - upon delivery your are even assigned a lactation specialist! They also offer a class on breastfeeding, a support group and they have a lactation store where you can buy all sorts of fun things that have to do with boobs! (Sorry, my immature self needed to say boob!)

I'm not going to get into my thoughts and opinions on breastfeeding but I will offer some tips and things that I like:

Nursing Bras/Tops - I have some tank tops from Bravado! and I love them. Cake is also a great brand and I have a few from them (I also have their PJs). I also bought some tops from Destination Maternity.

Pumps/Pumping Equipment - I selected the Medela pump from my insurance and it has worked out great. Medela is also the brand my hospital uses.

Having a hands free pumping bra is REALLY helpful and a must! Mine is Simple Wishes and the best part is its one size fits all.

Nursing pad are another item you'll need to buy. When I bought my first box I went with the store brand, don't do this. Get the brands that are known for breastfeeding: Lansinoh and Medela (they are much softer and designed better).

Supplements - Some times you may need a little help in keeping your supply up. I was pointed to these supplements: Fenugreek and Malunggay. I also tried the Milky drink you can buy at Destination Maternity but it was pretty nasty tasting.

Have a great Monday - I am off to take care of the little bambina!

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Mommy Monday ~ Something New

You may have noticed my lack of posts and MIA status from the blog the past two weeks. Well I have good reason, my little bundle of joy decided to arrive a full 5 weeks early! 

I went into labor in the early hours of Monday, April 20th and within 24 hours my little girl was in my arms. Since she was 5 weeks early we only spent a little time together before the nurses took her to the NICU. After a week in the NICU where she learned to eat, regulate her temperature and get some treatment for jaundice she was able to join us at home. Being home for two nights without her was pretty emotional and something I may blog about later (I know other moms and families have it much worse and we hope all those little ones make it home soon!). 

I am going to take a break from the blog for a while and spend time with my sweet angel.

In the meantime I hope you are out there having amazing adventures whether it be at home or in a new destination. I am home loving my new adventure into motherhood.

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Maternity Monday

I am back to work today after having to take 2 sick days last week :( boo! Getting sick while being pregnant is NO fun. I also can't believe that February is almost over and in less than 3 months we'll have a little baby girl :)

 

Today I wanted to talk about parenting classes. Has anybody taken them? So far we have taken two that are offered at out hospital. Breastfeeding and Prepared Childbirth (and we have Newborn Care next month). Breastfeeding is pretty self-explanatory - expect to see a lot of educational videos where women just pop those suckers out!

 

Side note, I took this class then saw Fifty Shades...enough nudity for one day that's for sure!

 

Prepared Childbirth is kind of like what some might call a lamaze class. Although we only spent about 30 mins on "breathing" the rest was informational on what one's options are for birth and what to expect. I wouldn't even call it "breathing" it was mostly how to take your mind off the pain of a contraction. Our goal was to try and ignor the handful of ice we were holding for 60 seconds.

 

So do I feel more prepared to give birth?! I feel more educated but I don't think anything can truly prepare you for giving birth or prepare you for being a parent.

 

Each hospital's classes are going to be catered for that hospital so its helpful to take them at your hospital if you can.

 

 

 

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Maternity Monday

On Friday I was looking at my baby registries and realized that our little one will be here in less than 100 days! WHOA!!!!

Today I wanted to talk about maternity clothes. When I got pregnant I didn't know what to expect and certainly didn't think I would need to buy maternity clothes at 12 weeks but I did. She seemed to be developing right where I needed to button my pants and so it just wasn't happening. First I just wanted to buy some regular jeans but just a larger size and I did that. But after about a week of wearing jeans that only fit in the waist and baggy everywhere else I knew I had to hit up the maternity story.

The only maternity store near me is Destination Maternity, which has two stores in one. It has Motherhood Maternity on one side and Pea in the Pod on the other. Motherhood is less expensive and regular quality and Pea in the Pod is more expensive, designer style and really good quality. My first stop in there I think I bought 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pairs of leggings, and 5 tops.

Jeans

Target – Don’t buy them from here. I feel like they are made with extra fabric in all the wrong places.

Pea in the Pod – LOVE them! They pretty much take designer jeans and cut the waist off and add the belly band. You still have part of the belt loops and your front pockets. But they are hella expensive.

Motherhood – These have a good cut to them but you have faux front pockets and they seem to sag a bit more than the Pea in the Pod ones. They are WAY more reasonably priced.

I’m sure other places have great jeans but these are the ones I have had experience with.

After talking to the employees in the store they pretty much told me that all the jeans are going to start to sag throughout the day because denim is just a heavy material and its heavier than the belly band. Makes sense.

Tops

Target – Hit or miss. I have 2 tops from them, both bought on sale - one fits great, the other not so much (no, I didn't try them on before I bought them).

Pea in the Pod – Great tops, love the extra length they have. But again, they can be expensive.

Motherhood – Same as above but at much better price!

Old Navy - I bought some tank tops here before we went to Hawaii and I love them, I know I'll be wearing them more once the warm weather sticks around for good. 

I love the tops at Destination Maternity, either side is great. They are really long and expand in all the right places for your growing belly.

{Target, Old Navy, Destination Maternity, A Pea in the Pod, Motherhood Maternity}

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Maternity Monday

So I decided that I wanted to blog a little about my pregnancy on this blog...after all, it too is a journey just like traveling. 

I'm not sure why I feel the need to share but I think people take comfort in knowing that other people out there had had similar experiences to theirs. So, this is the beginning of our pregnancy story…

I recently listed to an audio copy of American Sniper and I like how Chris Kyle described how he and his wife got pregnant for the first time. It was something along the lines of, "… all we had to do was kiss without protection and we were pregnant."

That is pretty much how it happened for us too.

The summer of 2014 was when we decided to start to try. And like I said above, it didn't take much time at all. 5 days after my missed cycle I took the test (p.s. I also took one 4 days before my expected cycle and the test was negative).

On September 19th I found out I was going to be a mom…whoa!

How was I feeling at this stage, 4 weeks pregnant? I was feeling pretty normal; I had a few symptoms like acne and hunger. Also, if you had laser hair removal all that hair is going to come back in full force! If I had known that I probably would not have done it before kids. 

Moving on… Week 7… What was going on with me during week 7? Two words, MORNING SICKNESS! And folks, it isn't pretty. I ended up having to take multiple days off from work, was prescribed some nausea medication, and I was trying all sorts of anti-nausea tricks. I tried everything from ginger ale, to ginger gum, eating whole pieces of ginger, peppermints, you name it. The one thing that has really worked for me was the motion sickness wrist bands that most people use when they go on cruises. Also, another thing that has made me feel better was sleeping on the floor. Yep, that’s right, the floor. I made myself a little cot with workout mats, sleeping bags, blankets and pillows. While on the floor it seemed I was able to keep a consistent temperature, no hot/cold flashes, and I had less nausea. If I could have slept next to the toilet I would have...

Before I was expecting I had high hopes for myself during this time. I wanted to keep working out (previously I had been working out 150 minutes a week) and I wanted to be healthy and eat the right things. Well that all went downhill quick! The few things I could manage to keep down were carbs, at this point I had consumed very little meat and I could manage some apples here and there. And working out…well I haven’t really at all. I take walks when the weather is nice and I have taken a few yoga classes. I am bummed because working out gives you endorphin's and endorphin's make you happy (and happy people don’t shoot their husbands…Legally Blonde anyone?).

So did it get any better after week 7? That’s a big fat NOPE! During week 9 we made a trip to the ER and that’s when I was diagnosed with Hyperemesis Gravidarum. I could not keep anything down for 48 hours, even water. I'm almost certain that as soon as anything hit my stomach it was coming back up.

We spent about 5-6 hours there while I finished up an IV bag and had some liquid Zofran pumped into me. And once they ran my blood work, urine sample and I could keep down a cup of juice I was released. They gave me some paperwork which stated not to take anything with extra iron in it so my prenatal vitamins needed to change to prescription ones. And the ER doctor told me to take my Zofran medication more frequently. This seemed to help A LOT!

Today we are over half way there and we'll soon be parents. With a little bit of morning sickness still lingering and a 20 pound heavier belly I wish you a happy Monday!

See my previous posts about pregnancy here. 

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Surprise!

 

So I dropped a pretty big bomb on Facebook Monday, I announced that we are expecting! That's right, I am pregnant. I still think its weird to say. I have debated on when to "let the world know" and if I wanted to post it on this blog or create another blog more focused on prgnancy and family. I'm still not sure what I'll do. But I will share a little with you now.

 

As Elizabeth Banks' character in What to Expect When You're Expecting says, "...pregnancy sucks. Making a human being is really hard." If you have or had an easy, no muss, no fuss prgnancy thank baby Jesus and your lucky stars! Back in week 9, after 4 weeks of hellish morning sickness, we had to take a trip to the ER because I knew I was on my way to dehydration. After our 5 hour stay there the doctor diagnosed me with Hyperemesis Gravidarum (which is what Duchess Catherine had). Word to the wise, don't Google that over lunch. The doctor suggested some modifications in my nausea meds and prenatal vitamins and things seemed to get a little better.

 

Being so sick made having the type of pregnancy I wanted impossible (and hard to get excited about). I wanted to be fit and keep up with my workouts. I wanted to drink healthy fruit smoothies instead of binging on carbs... But like I said, that all went out the window a week after I found out I had a human growing inside me. If I could keep anything down it was carbs (bread and potato chips and crackers).

 

After our trip to the ER, the following weekend we told my parents and then the weekend after that we told my husband's parents. Of course I wanted to include our dogs in the reveal so I bought them the cutest shirts.

 

{they aren't the best models}

Shortly after letting our parents know, around weeks 10-12, I was entering that awkward phase where none of my pants would really fit anymore because I had a little bump right where I needed to button my pants. After trying to just go up a size and not liking how that looked and felt I went ahead and bought some maternity clothes. I tried the cheaper ones at Target first and those were so ill fitting I didn't know what to do. I finally headed into a maternity store and asked for help - HUGE difference in the fit and quality of clothes, especially the jeans (which is what I need for work).

 

A week before Thanksgiving we found out we are expecting a little baby girl! We are so excited and it brings the pregnancy to a whole new level. We are going to have a daughter... whoa! It's crazy to think about.

{I have 7-8 pairs of these so it was only fitting I get her a pair too}

I am into my second trimester and almost to the half-way point. I have had my fair share of pregnancy symptoms like the morning sickness, fatigue, nose bleeds, peeing all the time, and pregnancy brain (leaving the full half gallon of milk out on the counter all day and putting clothes on inside out just to name a few). I did have my first pregnancy travel experience this past weekend and I'll share that with you coming up in the next few posts.

 

 

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Under Bite: The Tail of 2 Bulldogs

I hope everyone is having a fantastic Monday! We are since we have the day off. And today is a very special day in our house...Lola is 5 years old today!!!! Her birthday falls on a national holiday, how fitting!

{Lola's Fifth Birthday!}

If you know Lola personally then you know she has been through a lot in her short little life. When she was just over year old she had to have heart surgery to see if they could correct her condition, they couldn't. And our little bulldog became an even higher maintenance dog. Its okay, I wouldn't trade her for anything. She is the sweetest dog I have ever known and she is the apple of my eye :P

Anyway, the rest of our weekend has been filled with pure barre, binge watching Chuck on Netfilx, hanging maps and some decorating.

{Sunset, Chuck - Source, Pure Barre - Source, Map, Decor}

How has your weekend been? 

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The Last Days of Summer

Well…I suppose summer is coming to an end in most places. People have been posting that “August is the Sunday of Summer” saying around lately. I have to say that summer is a bit longer here in Texas and it never really registers as a big deal for me... its hot here like ALL THE TIME so the association with summer = hot/warm weather doesn't work down here. As you can see we’re still expecting weather in the 90s Fahrenheit (30s Celsius) on into September.

{weather.com}

Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful last weekend in August! We have a three day weekend here in America and we are going to take full advantage of that!

What are your plans for the weekend?

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Weekend Workout

How was everyone's weekend? Mine was pretty good - I signed up for Pure Barre classes and I intend to get my full moneys worth! Seems all Pure Barre studios have an introductory rate of $99 for 4 weeks of unlimited classes. So I went Saturday and Sunday...after my Sunday class I was REALLY feeling the soreness set in! I am fully expecting stronger abs by the end of the month! :P

I also continued to work on a Pinspiration project I have going on right now (I'll be posting a full post about it next month but I wanted to share a sneak peek because I am that excited about it!)

{Sneak Peek}

We also got a desk for our office! We were both starting to get fed-up with having the computer in the kitchen with all the wires exposed and whatnot. Now we have a wonderful, organized work space.

How was your weekend? Did you go anywhere? Buy anything? Do something new?

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Pinspiration

It has been a while since I have done anything crafty. I have been wanting to make some cute labels for the baskets we have in the laundry room. Here is what I did:

1 - Bought wood plaques

2 - Drilled holes in plaques for ribbon

3 - Painted the plaques with chalkboard paint

4 - Used a smaller drill bit to push ribbon through the holes

5 - Found a font that I liked and copied it with chalk on the plaques

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Under Bite: The Tail of 2 Bulldogs (and friends)

We have another house guest this month (I should start a side business, Bulldog Babysitting…) her name is Bella and she is pudgy-wudgy ball of fun! Her parents are off exploring Europe with their family for 12 days.

What do you do with your pets when you travel? Does family watch them? Do you board them? Let me know in the comments!

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Under Bite: The Tail of Two Bulldogs

A few days after we got back from vacation we had a new house guest! His name is Charlie and he is a French Bulldog! Charlies parents were going to be Europe for 2 weeks and as a bulldog parent I understand not wanting to just leave them with anybody so we offered to watch him. Having 3 high maintenance dogs is a hand full! But Lola and Coco had a new pal for 2 weeks; here are some pictures:

{Lola and Charlie}

{new BFFs}

And this is one of my baby angels silly sleeping positions :P

{my silly girl}

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Pinspiration

After moving into our new home we had a dilemma, where do we keep the dog food. First, before we bought a dinning room table, we had a sweet little set up for them. But once we had a table we didn't have room for their little buffet. 

{Their old set up equipped with puppy buffet and personal fans}

And it was inconvenient to pull their food out twice a day and then put it back again. So we ended up just leaving them out on the counter… but that didn't look nice. So off to The Container Store we went! They really didn't have any super large glass containers that were air tight so we bought the biggest ones we could find (1.5L). They also didn't have any that would hide what was inside.

I had some chalk board paper that I was able to wrap around the whole canister to conceal most of the dog food.

{Old}

{New}

Now we can leave it on the counter and it looks cute!

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Pinspiration

Happy Valentine's Day y'all! I hope you have a LOVEly day :) Over the last week I have slowly been prepping for some cupcakes to bring to work. It always seems like something goes wrong with my icing. Its either too stiff or too creamy. And today it was too creamy. Of course I didn't want to run to the store to get more sugar so I just went with it...they don't taste bad but after being out of the fridge for some time I know the icing will start to drip.

I made the little hearts out of melted vanilla wafers that I piped into the shapes I wanted.

At least they taste good...

yummy vanilla cupcakes

Vanilla on Vanilla

I <3 you!

Did you make anything special for Valentine's Day? Or do you have any special plans?

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Under Bite: The Tail of Two Bulldogs

I wanted to share a picture of my babies and brag about how they are the two most beautiful bulldogs ever! We took this pic last weekend.

Coco & Lola

Although bulldogs are cute I always feel like lecturing people when they oooh and aaahh over them. Bulldogs are pretty much like having a kid - at least ours are. Lola has a heart condition and is on meds for the rest of her days. She also has a skin issue and has to have a bath every week with a medicated shampoo. Coco just recently tore both her ACLs in her back legs and has been hobbling around the house. Please research them before you buy :)

This video will help you understand the bulldog better! Click here. 

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Shutterfly & Bulldogs

Today I want to complement Shutterfly on their AWESOME customer service! Every year I create a calendar featuring my dogs and this year was no different…except I forgot to update my account and it mailed the calendar to our old house :( boo! Once I realized what happened I called them up and they didn’t even question if it was my fault they just asked for the new address and even rush shipped it FedEx to deliver before Christmas. I was so pleased! Thank you Shutterfly! I will use you again and again!

And here are pictures of my sleeping beauties! 

My sleeping babies!

25 Questions: Holiday Edition

Hope you all have a wonderful Holiday Season!

Everywhere I go I buy an Christmas ornament!

Eggnog or hot chocolate?

I'm not big on either but I prefer hot chocolate

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?

Growing up Santa would wrap the presents in a different wrapping paper then the other presents

Colored lights on tree/house or white?

I like white on the tree but we put some colored lights outside this year and I LOVED it!

Do you hang mistletoe?

Nope

When do you hang your decorations up?

This year, since Thanksgiving and Christmas were so close, we decorated it Thanksgiving day

What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?

I'm a fan of carbs: dinner rolls, mashed potatoes, au gratin potatoes

Favorite holiday memory as a child?

I don’t think I have one…or can't remember one anyway…

What is on your Christmas wish list?

This year my 2 big items were a new camera and the Surface 2

Do you open any gifts on Christmas Eve?

In my family we would open one on Christmas Eve. In my husbands they would open all on Christmas Eve and then open the ones from Santa on Christmas Day.

How do you decorate your Christmas tree?

Star first then ornaments

Snow, Love it or dread it?

I have only been in "real" snow twice. I like it enough I suppose but I don’t think I want to shovel it and remove it from my car…

Real tree or fake tree?

I grew up with a real tree but we now have a fake tree in our home. And since pine needles are bad for dogs it will probably stay that way…since my dogs pretty much run the house!

Do you remember your favorite gift?

I have one each year…nothing from my childhood really stands out. I'm sure my Barbie dream house was real score!

What’s the most important thing about Christmas for you?

Just the time of the year to either be with friends and/or family

What is your favorite holiday dessert?

I love me some chocolate pie

What is your favorite tradition?

There is no one thing I like over the other. And as times moves forward we'll have to make new traditions. 

What tops your tree?

A star!

Do you prefer giving or receiving?

I love both! I love to open mine and I love watching people open the presents I give them

What is your favorite Christmas song?

Classic Christmas hymn is Silent Night. New age Christmas song would be either All I want for Christmas by Mariah Carry or Baby It's Cold Outside

Candy canes, yuck or yum?

Not a fan

Favorite Christmas movie?

I really liked Miracle on 34th Street growing up

What do you leave for Santa?

Cookies and milk

Do you have a Christmas morning tradition?

Stockings first and then presents

Do you prefer to shop on-line or at the mall?

Now I like to shop online because I can get extra rewards points and opening the package is like opening a present and I love that!

Christmas letter or Christmas card?

We send cards and I'm sure once our family starts to get bigger and more exciting things start to happen we'll send a letter.