Friday, November 30, 2012

30 Week Recap


I finished 30 weeks! It sounds so weird to say I'm 30 weeks pregnant, it always sounds so far along, ha! This week has been pretty busy....getting ready to go to the States on Sunday and lots of other things have just taken up a good bit of our time.
My friends gave Paige a baby shower on Tuesday nite. It was a cupcake theme and beyond cute....i'll try to post pics tomorrow. The nursery is a good way done...we have the crib, bedding and wardrobe ready. We'll get the changing table and baskets and things like that when we get back in April.
We also celebrated Daniel's birthday yesterday! It was a pretty busy day, but we had fun and managed to squeeze in Starbucks and have friends over for dessert :)

Here ya go!

How Far Along: 30 Weeks

Size of Baby: As long as a cucumber: 15-17 inches long and a little over 3 lbs

Weight Gain: 19 lbs

Gender: Girl-Paige Olivia

Movement: It was a little scary this week. There were a few days that Paige wasn't moving at all like she had been. She moved everyday, but not like she used to. But starting yesterday morning she got her groove back and has been moving non stop. She is currently turning my belly into all sorts of shapes!

Sleep: It's okay.

Maternity Clothes: Yes.

Symptoms: Really sensitive lips, dry skin, back/hip pain

Aversions: I guess hamburgers.....not much else

Cravings: Chocolate, Coke

What I miss: Running. I've really missed it this week.

Best Moment of the week: Having a baby shower for Paige and feeling her move like normal again yesterday.

What i'm looking Forward to: Eating some Chick fil a this week! And showing off my belly bump to the fam!

I'll try to post nursery and shower pics tomorrow!



love

laura

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

29 Week Recap


So sorry I am just now posting!! There has been some serious drama in the blogging world. I got a message saying that all my space was full so I couldn't post any pictures. I ended up just resizing this so it would let me post it. But I need to figure out how to add space without paying every month. If anyone has any ideas or tips, PLEASE PLEASE let me know!

Okay.... so I'm practically 30 weeks by now, but this was taken when I was 29. And yes, I am wearing the exact same sweater as my last photo.....I'm running out of things that are long enough. I have plenty of shirts that are still too big (width wise), but are about 3 inches too short. I'm convinced I have a very long torso for someone who is only 5 feet. 

This week we put up the crib and it's starting to look like a nursery! If blogger will cooperate, I'll post pics in the next few days!

And random, but I went to the dr on Friday-the day after thanksgiving and also right after I ate mcdonalds. Probably the WORST time to ever be weighed! So before i even stepped on the scale, the dr said "So are you still like carbohydrates?" I was like ummm, you know......
I'm pretty sure my dr believes in only eating meat and veggies and that carbs are from the devil. But seriously, I believe in a well rounded diet and that includes bread :)

Also, we were with some friends this past weekend and my friend was nursing her almost 3 month old. He started making some really loud, kind of coughing noises. My other friends son, who is 5 looked at my belly and asked if that was my baby making that noise! Ha!

Also.......my nephew made Paige her own ornament that says Paige, and My first christmas! SOOOO sweet!!!

How Far Along: 29 Weeks

Size of Baby: Butternut squash-about 15-16 inches long, 3 lbs

Weight Gain: 17

Gender: Girl-Paige Olivia

Movement: She moves a lot!!!! It's starting to feel really weird the bigger she gets. She moves so much and it feels so weird, i'm wondering what she is doing in there!

Sleep: It's been better.

Maternity Clothes: All pants and most shirts-even though the sweater in the pic is a normal sweater. crazy!

Symptoms: Dry, sensitive skin. Back and hip pain.

Aversions: not really anything

Cravings: Hot water, chocolate

What I miss: Sleeping on my back

Best moment of the Week: We went to the dr this past Friday and had an ultrasound. He said the separation in her kidney's has shrunk and is barely even there!! And she is back on track for her size! We are so thankful she is doing well and everything looks really good!

What I'm looking Forward to: I have a baby shower tonight!!! My friends here are giving us a cupcake theme shower and I am beyond excited!!! If blogger doesn't hate me, I'll try to post pics tomorrow.

hope to be posting again soon!

love

laura

Monday, November 19, 2012

A little news

Life here has been a little crazy. 

We were originally planning on delivering Paige in a nearby country, not too far from us. But through a lot of different circumstances, we found ourselves deciding to go to the States.

We'll be in Oklahoma in a little less than 2 weeks! We'll spend some time in the Oklahoma/Texas area and spend Christmas with Daniel's family. The first part of January we'll travel to my parents who live in Illinois.

We'll deliver Paige there, then make our way back here by April.

We of all people are probably the most surprised that we're going to the states for almost 4 months. We bought our tickets a little over a week ago, and almost every day since then we say something like "can you believe in XX days we'll be in america?" It's pretty surreal. We didn't take the decision lightly. We prayed about it and really sought the Father's wisdom. We know this is where He is leading us right now and we have great peace about the decision. But still....a little weird. 

So I'm in a little bit of panic mode trying to get the nursery ready. I know I won't be able to get it completely set up, but I'm trying to get as much done so when we return it's one less thing I have to worry about. 

Daniel painted last week.....let's just say it looks great, but the color is WAY brighter than we thought it would be! We also bought a wardrobe (since closets are nonexistent here). I just ordered the crib and a rug, and hope they get here soon. 

That's our news......if I don't post in a while it's because i'm making our 100th to-do list!  :)

love

laura

Random Photo Post

I was travelling last week and have just random photos I want to share.

First, Sarah sent us a Christmas package/baby Paige package. We were allowed to open our Christmas presents early (separate post). This is my new mug!


Daniel and I had a date night at a Turkish restaurant two Saturdays ago.

This was the tub at the hotel where I stayed. It was really big and deep and I was pretty careful getting in and out.


I was at a womens training last week, which meant lots of girl talk and lots of Starbucks!


Back in my city, I took some friends to the Toys R Us here. I saw this. It was near the baby bathtubs. 

There really are no words.


Our city just got a GAP....like a reallllll GAP!!! It even has a baby and kids section, and totally felt like being in America. This was the babyGap.


I was away for our 3 year wedding anniversary, but these greeted me when I came home!


We went out for dinner this past Saturday nite to celebrate. There is this amazing italian restaurant in our city that is our fave. But we got there and it was a special reservation only wine tasting set dinner. We ended up going to a restaurant near our house instead. But we plan to re-celebrate in a couple of weeks.


love

laura

Sunday, November 18, 2012

28 Week Recap


Wow, can we say big mama?! The last couple of weeks I would say I/Paige are going thru a growth spurt! What's shocking, is this my regular sweater, that still fits. I fee like i'm already running out of things that cover the belly. I'm afraid to be walking down the street one day with my belly showing and not even know it. But I already get tons of stares here, so might as well make it interesting right? ha

How far Along: 28 weeks

Size of Baby: Small Cabbage-around 16 inches long, 2.5-3 lbs

Weight Gain: 16 lbs

Gender: Girl-Paige Olivia!

Movement: Not 24/7, she is definitely more of a night mover. But when she moves, my belly moves too!

Sleep: It's a little better. Still not great, but it's better.

Maternity Clothes: All pants, and most shirts

Symptoms: Back and hip pain, realllly dry skin

Aversions: None really

Cravings: Chocolate, hot water

What I miss: Not too much.....maybe eating lunch meat

Best Moment of the week: Sharing her name with everyone!

What I'm looking forward to: We were supposed to do the follow up ultrasound last Friday, but the dr changed it to this week. So i'm excited to see how much she's grown and how her kidneys are doing.

love

laura

Saturday, November 17, 2012

What's in a Name?


Announcing.................................................................

Paige Olivia

Whenever we would talk about baby names, Daniel focused on the meaning of the name. If a name sounded great but didn't have a strong meaning, it went out the window. You can imagine how productive and fun our 'what should we name the baby' conversations went, ha!

For years, I have loved the name Paige for a little girl. Ever since we found out we were having a girl, we've called her Paige. But we had a hard time with the middle name. I am very thankful that Daniel was pretty quick to like the name Paige. It probably didn't hurt that I would refer to our baby as Paige all the time....slowly winning him over :)

So I forced suggested to Daniel (several weeks back), that we should go to Starbucks, take the baby name book, and get serious about naming our little girl. After throwing out a few random names, we found Olivia. We loved the way it sounded and felt like it really was the perfect completion for our little girls name.  

Here's why:

Paige-a servant, assistant, or one who brings a message
Olivia-Olive or olive tree, which symbolizes peace

So together, our hope is that our daughter will be

 "a messenger of peace, or one who brings peace."

We absolutely love her name and can't wait for her to get here!!!!!!

I have SOOO much to post, i'll try to get my weekly recap up later today, along with tons of other stuff that is happening.

love

laura



Saturday, November 10, 2012

27 Week Recap


I can't believe i'm in my third trimester!! I'm starting to really feel pregnant. That might sound weird, but today I told Daniel I've never felt more pregnant than I do right now, ha! Since i'm only 5 feet, there isn't a lot of room for this baby to hang out, and I'm feeling that more this week than I have before. I look back at some pictures when i thought i was really 'showing' and have to laugh....it's nothing compared to what i look like now, and i'm sure in another month I'll look back to now and realize how much bigger I could actually get!

How Far Along: 27 weeks

Size of Baby: Head of cauliflower-about 15-16 inches long and 2-2.5 lbs

Weight Gain: 14 lbs

Gender: Girl (we officially know the name and if I have time to blog this week, i'll announce it!)

Movement: All. The. Time. She is so active, and I love feeling her.

Sleep: It's okay.....some nights are better than others. I'm sleeping on the couch most nights.

Maternity Clothes: All pants and most shirts. I did find some of my old sweaters this week that i can still wear. I'm quickly learning that what fit this week doesn't mean it will fit next week!

Symptoms: Back and hip pain, hunger

Aversions: hamburgers

Cravings: chocolate, hot water

What I miss: Sleeping

Best Moment this Week: Deciding on her name! Feeling her kicks get stronger and more often. We also picked out the paint.....we tested a part of the wall tonight and it's a lot brighter than it looked in the store. So it might take some getting used to. Also getting a package from my sister with the sweetest note to our baby and several cute cute things!!


What I'm looking forward to: Having another ultrasound on Friday. We're hoping she's gained some weight and her kidneys will be perfect!

I fly out tomorrow to a nearby city for a few days. I'm excited to see some friends and for a good time of refreshment. I feel like I have so much to blog, but not sure what this week will look like, so no promises on when I'll get to post.

love

laura

Monday, November 5, 2012

Weekend Rewind

I haven't done a weekend post in a while!

Last year, Daniel and I did an 8 week intensive language class together. We had the same teacher, and quickly became friends. Our teacher has the same personality and Myers Briggs as Daniel. They are a lot alike., minus the whole Asian thing. 

A few months later, his girlfriend (our teacher's, clearly not Daniels) tutored me. 

We have enjoyed getting to know this couple over the past year, and really enjoy them. 

This past weekend, they were married! We were so excited for our friends! Except, here most of the weddings are always in the morning. So Daniel wasn't going to be able to go because he teaches Saturday mornings. One thing I might take for granted being married, is  always have a wedding date. It was very weird to get ready and go to the wedding by myself. Luckily we have a lot of mutual friends with the couple, so I had people to hang with.

Here's the groom getting ready to walk down the aisle:


Bride with her Dad (i don't think the usual custom is for the dad to walk her down the aisle)


Our friends met while teaching at a language center. The same place I take all of my classes, so my current and past teachers were all there too.


These girls are so sweet and special to me!

Daniel ended up having time to bike over to the reception. He wasn't planning on having time to come, so that's why he's not super dressed up. 


My fave face of the groom!


Us with the lovely couple!!



love

laura

Sunday, November 4, 2012

26 Week Recap


Sorry this wasn't up on  Friday. I didn't like any of the pictures we took and then yesterday we were without power, so I couldn't post.
I went to a wedding yesterday so that's why i'm  more dressed up than normal. We also had a cold front come in, so it's time to get the sweaters and long sleeves out.
I just finished Week 26 and am almost in the last trimester. So. Weird.

How Far Along: 26 Weeks

Size of Baby: Head of Lettuce-about 14 inches long, 2 lbs

Weight Gain: 13 lbs

Gender: Girl

Movement: Some days she moves non stop, then others she will only move a little. But most of the time she is moving!

Sleep: I've been sleeping on the couch and that has helped my hip pain. I wake up a lot during the night though.

Maternity Clothes: ummm yes.

Symptoms: Dry skin, achy hips and back

Aversions: hamburgers

Cravings: Chocolate, ice cream, cake

What I miss: Sleeping

Best Moment this week: Not really sure.... just continuing to feel her probably.

What i'm looking Forward to: There is a GAP opening in our city this week, and it has a Baby Gap. I've already told Daniel he's saving A LOT of of money since I'm pregnant and can't buy anything for me. But we might need to start eating ramen noodles to make up for what I might buy for our baby.  :)

Here's a front view:



love

laura

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Preggo Ramblings

Last week, when I had my glucose test we were at the dr's for over 4 hours. We had a lot of time on our hands, so Daniel took pictures of me drinking the glucose.

I tried to prepare myself for it to taste really gross. I don't have a really strong gag reflex, but I had prepared myself to drink something completely disgusting.

I'm not sure what it is like in the States (where I hear there are actually flavors), but here it wasn't that bad. I saw the white glucose powder in the bottom of the glass, then they mixed it with lukewarm water. I know what you're thinking...lukewarm....yum. 


It tasted okay. The first 2/3 wasn't bad at all. The last 1/3 was apparently where all of the glucose was, because the last few sips were a little of a struggle. 


So here's the story on the 4D ultrasound. Again, this is my first pregnancy, so I'm not sure how things are different than in the States. But, when I had my 20 week gender ultrasound, that's pretty much all they did....told me the gender (girl in case you missed that).

So I went in last week for the 4D and to do the congenital defect check. I heard that they would do the normal ultrasound to do all the checks, then go to 4D so we could look at our little sweet pea.

So for about 30 minutes they looked at EVERYTHING!! We struggled a little thru the language to ask what we were looking at sometimes. Shocking, but there are certain organ names like kidney that I haven't learned in class yet.

Then they went to 4D for about 2 seconds, turned off the machine, then told me I was done. I was pretty surprised and asked why, and they said her hand was in front of her face, so they couldn't get any good shots. I tried to explain to them I would be happy with a picture of her foot, I just wanted to see her in 4D. But they would not have it, so they cleaned me up, I had my blood drawn for the glucose test, and then we waited for the dr. I was really disappointed!

After an hour, he told us the ultrasound technician suggested we walk around to get my heart rate up and drink a lot of water to get her to move so they could try the ultrasound again. Had we known that for the last hour we'd been waiting, the information would have been helpful. So I had about 5 minutes, so i jogged in place while guzzling water.

They tried again, and we saw our little baby!!!! We have pictures of her face, arm, and feet. In one picture you can see her little arm is raised next to her head. We were also given a disc with several short videos showing her movement.

I keep trying to figure out who she looks like, but Daniel keeps telling me it's impossible to tell. My teacher however thinks she has Daniel's nose. 

The doctor did tell us that her kidneys have a slight separation to them, and she may not be passing urine correctly. He said we'll just watch it for now, and see if it heals up or continues to separate. From everything I've read, it doesn't sound too serious and I'm not too worried about it. We are praying that Father will completely heal her kidneys and it won't be a concern at all. We go back for another ultrasound in 2 weeks. 

Random, but as I've been getting bigger Daniel gets more and more protective. Walking is our main mode of transportation, so whenever we're near an intersection or even close to a motorcycle or car, Daniel reaches his arm out to keep me safe and tried to build a barricade around me.  I joked yesterday that maybe he should just put me on a leash, and instantly he said "are you kidding, leashes have way too much give to them." I laughed so hard! It's sweet how protective it is, he takes it very seriously! 

I've never had a contraction (as far as I know), but Sarah has them all the time, and I know it's not too uncommon to feel them every so often. So if I do get a random pain or anything in my stomach and Daniel asks me what's wrong, I just say 'oh don't worry, it's just a contraction.' I mostly say this because he can't handle it and it's fun to mess with him. He gets really uncomfortable if I even say the word contraction. I probably shouldn't tease him about it as much as I do, ha!

Also random, I have one teacher who continues to bring me food and wants me to eat it during class. I do let myself eat chocolate and sweets, but I also try to control when and how much I eat. But my teacher continues to bring candy and snacks for me to eat. Today she gave me 2 Snickers and told me I should eat them right then because it was a healthy snack with protein. I ate half then said i would save the rest for later. It's still a shocker to me that i haven't gained more weight.

What is also ironic, is both my teachers daily tell me my belly is getting big. They're convinced my stomach grows everyday...but they also continue to feed me non stop. I'm trying to see this as a compliment, that they really do just care about me. :)

And just to keep the randomness going....I've slept on the couch for the last 3 nights. I wasn't sleeping at all in our bed, and the hip pain was just becoming unbearable. I have several pillows I use for my head, back, legs, and stomach. I get in position with all of my pillows and Daniel tucks me in. I've also started doing some hip stretches at night to help. Something is working, cos the last two mornings are the first ones I've woken up without any hip pain. Today everything else hurts, but my hips don't, so that's something. 

Bless you for reading this far! Tomorrow is week 26 recap!

love

laura