Pickles Really?

One fun thing about being pregnant is that other people's stories come out as they reminisce about their pregnancies. Whether from close friends and family or random people at work, I love to hear about their journeys. One frequently discussed topic is pickles. Now, I hate pickles, always have and apparently always will. Why is that food so commonly someones craving? I mean I've heard pickles and ice cream, pickles with peanut butter and even pickles dipped in orange juice. I simply can't relate. I still find myself ordering burgers with no pickles. Nothing about them sounds appetizing. As you know I am a junk food junkie so one of the biggest challenges with pregnancy has been forcing myself to eat healthy (or at least healthier). I think women who crave pickles are lucky. At least they are somewhat nutritious. All I crave are pancakes, waffles, donuts, cakes, etc. I mean lets be honest this isn't new, I've always craved these things. Like mother like daughter I guess. I like to think that I now have an excuse to eat whatever I want, but last week I learned a lesson...one piece of cake is enough. Tim is not a cake person, so he was no help. I was left to eat an entire German Chocolate Cake by myself. Needless to say I had my weekly weigh in today and it was my biggest week of weight gain yet. Total weight gain so far= 7 lbs. Now don't get me wrong I'm not one of those weight obsessed women, in fact I know it's good for me (and baby) to see scale numbers I never thought possible, but is it too much to ask to crave broccoli, tomatoes, bananas, or heck even pickles? It sure would make life easier.

Hannah's First Home

These pictures are long overdue of our new apartment. It's a two bedroom/1 bath in San Jose and we have really enjoyed it so far. The nursery is still a work in progress so those pictures will come once it's complete. It's nothing thrilling, but at least you can get a feel for where we live and where Hannah will spend at least her first few months of life.

Nothing but the Best for Baby

Being away from family and friends has been so difficult for Tim and I. We love and miss everyone so much. Having our little girl on the way only makes us miss loved ones even more. We know that it may be too difficult for people to join us for the birth so I want you to know when the big day comes we will be in good hands. Sequoia Hospital was voted 2010's "Best Birth Center" and "Best Hospital" in the bay area by Parent Magazine.

With that said, let the countdown begin....

Bump...

I have been taking a bump watch picture once a month which I will continue, but today you get a sneak peak early. Today one of my Assistant Principals decided to start her own bump watch and made me pose in the hallway. So here I am at 23 weeks. Month 6 is underway! This past week things have gone better which is a blessing and we haven't had any more problems (cross your fingers). We are feeling her kick and get more excited for her arrival daily. Lately Tim and I have been relearning nursery rhymes and practicing children's songs. It's been funny because the songs end up getting stuck in my head and I walk around work singing them to myself. And I assure you some of these are ridiculous. It doesn't look good when the Psychologist is singing "I'm a little frog and my mommy loves me" to herself. I'll probably get referred to therapy soon. Also this week, Babies R Us came to our apartment and fixed our dresser which made me so happy. With every new thing we receive for Hannah we just feel more and more excited. I can't thank you all enough for your love, thoughts, prayers, phone calls, gifts, letters, etc. Hannah is so lucky to be loved already. I know she will love each of you as well!

'He's got the whole world in his hands...'

This is your warning that this post may have TMI for some readers. Stop now if you prefer not facing the tough experiences that sometimes come with pregnancy. For the rest of you who enjoy all the details, Tim and I had a scare on Friday. I know it sounds weird because on Thursday we had our appointment and all was great, but on Friday I woke up to a great deal of pressure in my stomach. I went to work, but for the first four hours I was very uncomfortable and spent most of the time in the staff bathroom thinking about how I was going to get through the day. Finally by about noon, the pain stopped and I figured it was just stretching of the uterus which is normal. However, later that night (TMI alert) I went to the bathroom to find blood. Now many of you know that I experienced this for about three weeks early in pregnancy, but haven't for months now. My heart dropped. I thought back to earlier that day and wondered if it was related to the pain I had. After freaking out, and of course tears, I pulled myself together to call my doctor. Why do all emergencies seem to happen on Friday night? I felt so bad calling. I pictured him at home watching TV, but I called anyway. He was so nice and calmed Tim and I down. I had to lay on my back for two hours and then call him back. Today (Saturday), he met Tim and I at the office in the morning to check things out. It was really nice of him as he could have told us to go to the ER, but he always gives personal attention. There in an empty medical office, in his regular street clothes, he did multiple assessments and confirmed that our baby girl is just fine. Her heart was strong, and the cervix and placenta were good. He saw no problems so contributed it to 'unexplained circumstances.' We have to see him again in a week just to make sure, but things have already improved so I think it was just a scare. She's in there happy as a clam, floating around, probably listening to Tim and I crying thinking her parents are nuts. I am bias, but I think she is already so strong. He also said that due to the position of my placenta being in the front near my belly button, I can't feel her as often which in turn may make me worried, but it doesn't mean she's not moving. We felt so much better after seeing our doctor and I feel so blessed to have doctors who are willing to help in that way. In the end, all is well. He did say however that from here on out I really need to change my activity level and should be laying with my feet up anytime I am not at work. In his words no shopping, cleaning, or hiking. Hiking? really? who do you think I am? Hope I didn't scare anyone, I just want to fill you in as my loyal followers do deserve to know the good, the bad, and the ugly.

She's Still a Girl

The next time you are at the market, swing by the fruit section, stop at the cantaloupe and think to yourself...that's how big Hannah is. I'm not sure why baby's size is constantly compared to food items, but it helps us visualize I guess. It feels like yesterday we were coming home from our first appointment and Tim took a grain of rice and placed it on our coffee table. That's how big she was at the time. I am currently 21 1/2 weeks and we had another appointment today. The placenta issue is looking okay at the moment, but he said we won't really know until 32 weeks. One good thing about having this issue is that we get lots of ultrasounds and I love seeing her. Today she was a stinker and decided to sleep face down the whole time. We are still being told she's a girl and the proof is below. Total weight gain so far is only 2 lbs, but I've definitely added more than two inches to my waist. I feel really good and am enjoying every minute. I also love our doctors. They are both kind, patient, and spend a great deal of time with us every visit. One is from Sweeden and one is from Africa. We feel so confident in their abilities as their speciality is high risk pregnancies and they are just so nice. I must say though I think the advantage to a female doctor is that they probably capture better ultrasound pictures. Not sure men know how important these are for the scrapbook. The one's below are not great, but still special to us.


*This is the proof that she is a girl. Below the tiny arrow is her foot print.


*She was sleeping on her stomach the whole time so this is a picture of her spine and rib cage. Not sure why he cut her head off in the picture.

Furniture is Here

Obviously the baby's room is not decorated at all yet, but I wanted to post the furniture we picked out. The dresser still needs to be replaced because the one they delivered has a broken door. I love it all and can't wait until we can put it to use.