A One Day Can Change the Course of the Rest of Your Life

6 years ago today, despite hubby going to the wrong Starbucks (there is one on every corner in Colorado) hubby and I had our first date. It is amazing how something so simple can truly change the course of the rest of your life. We had met on Match.com and had a few long phone conversations but had never met in person. If I hadn't realized he was at a different Starbucks we both would've probably thought we were stood up and moved on in our dating adventure. Lucky for both of us that isn't how things turned out. Our first date was wonderful and we spent hours sitting in Starbucks talking and laughing. The rest is pretty much history but 13 months later we were engaged and 2 1/2 years after our first date we were married. Now 6 years later we've been married 3 1/2 years and are expecting our first "together" baby.

I love you so much Nate and thank God each day for bringing you into my life. You are a wonderful husband, father, provider, companion, and my best friend. I can't wait to see what 2012 has in store for us with the arrival of our new baby and all the excitement that brings. Here's to 6 more and 60 more years of happiness together! I love you!

If you want to read more about our love story I wrote about it here.

Then

Now

Pregnancy: 20 Weeks

Due date: May 4, 2012

How far along: 20 weeks

Weight gain: 17 pounds. I think my 16 week update was a little off with 10 pounds because I was up 17 at my 18 week appointment. I gained 10 first trimester and still am hungry all the time. I've just come to terms with the fact I am going to gain 40 pounds again this time. Luckily with Brennan it came off right away with no work. Hoping for slow and steady the rest of my pregnancy.

Maternity clothes: All maternity clothes. A couple pre-pregnancy shirts and dresses fit. The dress and tank in the pictures above are not maternity.

Baby bump: Between 13-14 weeks my belly definitely "popped". While it has gotten bigger since then I think it has been more gradual. It also depends a lot upon what I'm wearing.

Gender: We aren't going to find out the gender. We are really excited to announce both the gender and the name on the day the baby is born.

Heartbeat: We got to hear the heartbeat at my 18 week appointment again. The baby had a nice strong heartbeat of 152 BPM. I can't wait to hear it again next week!

Movement: Still waiting to feel lots of movement throughout the day. Brennan and Wynter were able to feel the baby move around 18 weeks when the baby was really hyper. Nate and Phoenix still haven't been able to feel it :-( This last week I have been feeling a bit more spontaneous movement throughout the day which is exciting. I'll be interested to see if I have an anterior placenta at my ultrasound because that can muffle the movement of the baby's kicks. Either that or I just have a really chill baby. The baby is still most active around 9pm.

Symptoms: Overall I still feel great! I'm happy to report my blood pressure has been great since early November! After several weeks of normal readings at home and a great reading at my last appointment I have stopped monitoring it. I think worrying about it non-stop doesn't help and now that it has been normal I don't worry. I still severely limit my caffeine intake though I have been cheating more this past week. I also still take all my heart health supplements and the liquid iron and herbs the acupuncturist recommended and will continue those throughout my pregnancy as a preventative measure. After 4 sessions of acupuncture I have stopped that now due to cost and that my blood pressure is normal again. I would definitely consider it again in the future if my blood pressure goes up. I also happy to report the mid-pregnancy headaches that I complained of last update have subsided too. I'm still tired if I do a lot during the day and occasional sneak in a 30 minute nap but I can stay up late getting stuff done if need be. I did have horrible pregnancy insomnia from about 8 weeks until about 18 weeks. I tried to just chalk it up to normal pregnancy stuff but it was starting to wear on me. After chatting with some other women at similar stages of pregnancy the biggest things I've done is add a snack right before bed so I don't wake up hungry, limit water intake after dinner which was hard because I am a water-o-holic, and sleep with a body pillow. The body pillow helps a lot more than I thought. I still toss and turn a bit and often I don't wake up with the body pillow but I always start with it. I really can't complain much though, just like with Brennan I am having a pretty easy pregnancy!

Exercise: I am still doing horrible with exercise which is disappointing to me since I was so active before. The cold weather really is my enemy! I signed up for an hour long prenatal water aerobics class two days per week the entire month of January so I hope paying for that and putting in on my calendar will keep me accountable. I need to get running again because I know if I take 6 months off it will be harder to pick up postpartum. Anyone want to be my running buddy? I run really slowly, especially pregnant ;-)

Next Appointment: Friday, December 30th. I'll be 22 weeks and Nate and the kids will all be coming. The kids don't have school so I thought I'd take the opportunity to let them meet the midwives and hear the baby's heartbeat. I know they can't wait. I hope the exam room doesn't feel too crowded with 6 people in it. Our ultrasound is scheduled for January 3rd and the kids get to come to that too!

Here is the link to the Baby Center: Your Pregnancy: 20 weeks. Some of the highlights are: baby is now 10 1/2 ounces and 6 1/2 inches. He is swallowing more these days and his digestive system is getting some practice. Your uterus is now level with your belly button and you've likely gained around 10 pounds (ha!). Expect to gain about a pound or so per week the rest of your pregnancy. 

Brennan's New Etsy Shop

My 11 year old son, Brennan recently opened his own Etsy shop. I'm so proud of him! He makes custom made duct tape items. Right now his shop is offering wallets, purses, checker boards, and bull whips with plans to add more items as business expands. Each item is made to order with your specifications. You chose the color and can even add a custom design. His prices are very reasonable too. Please take the time to click over and check out his shop.

Orders placed by 12/16 will be shipped in time for Christmas delivery.

An example of a wallet

Woven wallet

Bull whip

Checker board, includes duct tape checkers

Purse, size can be customized as well as colors

Current colors he has available

Thanks for looking!

Bedtime Battles

You would think with two 11 year olds and an 8 year old the bedtime battles would be over but they're not! Sure I can get them to go to bed, stay in bed, and sleep through the night but now that we have entered the tween stage we have entered a new battle: the fair bedtime battle.

I am not some sort of routine or sleep Nazi but my kids have always had a pretty early bedtime. This is mainly due to the fact that they've always had to get up early for school. Experts still recommend children ages 7-12 get 10-11 hours of sleep. Over the years my kids school schedule has dictated how early that have to get up from 5:45am until 7am. For my 8 year old who has to wake up at 7am and truly needs more sleep than the older to that means to get 11 hours she would have to be sleeping by 8pm. For my two 11 year olds who get up around 5:45am and need a little less sleep, in order for them to get 10 hours of sleep they would have to be sleeping by 7:45pm.

Getting ready for bed, bedtime, and when the kids are actually asleep are three very different things in our house. I will admit how smoothly the process goes depends how involved I am that night, if they had after school activities, how early I was able to serve dinner, and how early we start the process. The earlier we start getting ready for bed, the smoother the process goes, and the earlier they are sleeping. Up until this year 8pm was their bedtime and we would start getting ready at 7pm. Usually all three take showers at night which makes the process a bit long but alleviates morning stress. They also pack their lunches, pick out their clothes for the next day, pick up their rooms, do their chores, and take care of their other personal hygiene items like brushing teeth and hair.

Last year Brennan was in 5th grade and began complaining about his early bedtime. Most of his friends had bedtimes of at least 9pm and he felt he was being babied. He really began bringing this up at the end of the year while we were preparing for our move and hubby was living in Colorado already so I told him we would reevaluate this year when he entered middle school. With three children 2 years 8 months apart it is difficult to institute separate bedtimes, especially for the older two who are only 6 months apart. My youngest needs more sleep but the older two get up earlier so the same bedtime makes sense. After some discussions we decided on an 8:30pm bedtime, and 7:30pm get ready for bed time. This seemed ok if it was strictly enforced but it seems like life keeps getting in the way and they aren't sleeping until 9pm a lot of nights.

I began to realize the later bedtime wasn't working especially for my middle daughter who goes to the middle school for math so she is up early and at school late. Her school day is 1 1/2 hours longer than the other two kids. There have been several instances over the past few months where I have sent her to her room at 5pm or 6pm because she was in trouble only to go up there and find she had fallen asleep and stayed asleep the entire night. They truly need the sleep and I was tired of bedtime always getting pushed back.

So yesterday I instituted a new rule. We now start getting ready for bed at 7pm. Anytime they are ready before 8pm is their free time to play video games, watch TV, etc. but at 8pm I want them in their beds to start winding down. I told them they can read or listen to music quietly or relax but they had to be in bed. I then came around at 8:20pm last night and tucked everyone in and turned the lights out. It was a lot less stressful for me because I had some quiet time after they were sleeping before I went to sleep. I know the bedtime isn't too early because they all fall asleep right away. A long day of school with a 40 minute bus ride each way makes for a long day. Plus whatever we do after school usually wears them out too.

I hate being the mean mom or the strict mom but sometimes it needs to be done. We are only one night in but I hope I can keep it up and keep them on track with their earlier bedtime and getting the sleep they need. I guess we will see.

Proud Mama

This week we were able to celebrate a special achievement of Brennan's. Brennan is a 6th grader and his middle school participated in a county wide poster contest. The winners of the poster contest's art work was made into the 2012 Drug Free Calendar that is distributed county wide by the district attorney, law enforcement, and in local schools.

This year's theme was "Too Smart To Start" and Brennan made poster that showed the earth in the middle of black space with a giant tower coming up from the earth, with drug addicts jumping off the tower, throwing their lives away. Very unique design and a great idea!

There was a lot of great art work. First all the winning posters were displayed in the judicial center during Red Ribbon week in October. The kids were invited to a little celebration where their pictures were taken with the District Attorney and the School Resource Officers. The photos are featured on the back of the calendar.

This week the kids were invited back to the City Council Chambers at City Hall for a special awards ceremony with the area Police Chiefs, The District Attorney, and the Mayor. Each child received special recognition and prizes. It was neat to see Brennan's work recognized. 

Here are some highlights from the awards ceremony:

Brennan and his poster and award

Photo featured on the back of the calendar

Up close of Brennan's poster

Brennan receiving his award from the County Sheriff

Brennan and his poster