Oh, what's in a name?

Finally, right?? I've kind of been avoiding this one for as long as possible.

Also I wanted to note that my test results came back negative for gestational diabetes. So YAY!

Some of you may know that Joey is a "Jr".  So the plan was obviously to name a baby boy after him- JKG3.  Like I said- everything was planned if it were a boy.  Name, pirate room, check and check.

So, since the boy name was chosen from day 1, I've been looking at only girl names since day 1.  Soooooo that means that we have pretty much had a name since week 16.  By the end of our Disney trip we'd narrowed it down to 3 favorites and after further discussion, chose the name we both liked the most of the three. 

[Side note- picking a name in this day and age is stressful.  With social media making everyone's lives available and out there for all to see, it's pretty difficult to pick a name that at least one other person has not already chosen for their child.]

But it was too early to have a name, wasn't it?? I decided that we'd let the name sink in for a while. Let it marinate.  See if we changed our minds or came across something else we liked (not that we didn't scour every Baby Name app there is in the universe).  I mean, it's weird to have a name when you can't feel the baby kicking yet.  Technology is weird.

Fast forward about 10 weeks and it does appear that the name will stick, so we've told some family BUT we're not planning to make any sort of big announcement until she is born.  Just in case.  I KNOW. I'm a terrible person.  But what if I change my mind?!?!

Since I know that is not going to appease you, I'll provide you some of the names that each of us liked, although I'm not giving you our top 3 because what if someday we have another daughter?

Some of Sarah's Likes:
Allyson
Emma
Emily
Evelyn
Hailey
Natalie (This one was okay until I joked that her nickname could be Natty...)

Some of Joey's Likes:
Alyssa
Brooke
Lillian (thanks to Lillian Gish, this was not an option)
Olivia

With having a name and a nearly finished nursery, I'm starting to get stressed out that we're too far ahead of ourselves.  (Really. I can find anything to worry about. It's a talent.) 

So I think now would be a good opportunity to focus on some of the "nesting" projects (is this also a myth? like the cravings?) that I've been thinking of doing.  I need to clean out all the cabinets on our main floor, clean out my closet in our bedroom, donate a bunch of old clothes, etc.  Hopefully that will keep me occupied for a while...

~SG

25 Weeks

Holy cow! This is the last time we'll have 4 weeks in between appointments.  Friday's appointment went well- I drank my glucola and then was told there was sugar in my urine so "we'd see how the glucose blood test comes out".  Ummm well considering ALL I ATE/DRANK so far that day was the glucola, yeah, I can see why there was sugar in my urine.  I would be really shocked to have gestational diabetes considering my slow weight gain and my so-low-I-might-be-dead blood pressure. BUT it could happen and it's not the end of the world if I do have it.  Just waiting for the results.

Saturday we went to a wine festival in Reston and met up with our friends Jess and Ryan who were in town from Raleigh. It was so nice to get to see them and visit. 

I was obviously DD and things got....squirrely.   Luckily I didn't have to say anything because Joey's hangover yesterday said it all ;)

Finally, Sunday I got to go out and get a pedicure for the first time in forever. (Cue Frozen music!)
It's really amazing what getting your nails done can do.  I was a little worried about getting massaged on the ankle and triggering contractions (I need to just stop reading things all together) but obviously it went fine.  Afterwards, I got to go judge Mason Dance Team auditions which is one of my favorite things to do each Spring.

Date: April 28, 2014

How far along? 25w (Baby is as big as a rutabega.) There are conflicting reports- she could be anywhere between 9-13 inches long at this point and 1.5-2 pounds. I think that's because from now on, babies develop at varying rates.

How is Mama doing?  I continue to feel good and make lists of stupid questions to ask the Dr. because I don't have any real concerns.  Oh! And she said peanut butter is fine, just that there is a lot of fat in it so I shouldn't eat it by the jar ;)

Movement:  I wish I had a little window on my belly. Ya know, like a glass bottom boat? It would be cool to see what the heck is going on in there sometimes!

Maternity Clothes?  Still shopping around for shower dresses.  Also, it's officially time for me to get a bra fitting and a real bra.  I've been living in the same one for months and it does not fit me correctly. Maybe it did at first... but not anymore.  I found a business near my house that I'll be visiting in the next week or two and I'll be sure to follow up with a report.

Pregnancy Fitness:  2 workouts this week. And I use the term 'workout' loosely.  When I got pregnant I comitted to 3 times per week as my goal, and since I'm not crazy about fitness, I decided that anything active will do.  So taking the dog for a walk definitely counts.  Because it's better than nothing.  The point is to stay active because it will help with l&d and also recovery.  I like having this section of the survey because it holds me accountable to do SOMETHING, even if it's taking my fat dog for a walk up a hill.

Symptoms: Nothing new to report. Tried folding the pillow in half for more leg/hip support and it seems to have helped a bit with the hip pain.

Belly Button:  I kind of want to take this off the survey and I'll let you know if/when it changes.

Stretchmarks?  I almost want to take this off the survey too.  I still have my pre-existing zebra stripes and I'll let you know if more emerge.  If I keep taking questions off this survey there will be nothing left!

Nutrition/Cravings? Since the last growth spurt, the appetite has returned to normal and no additional cravings. I'm guessing the growth spurts are going to be more frequent from now on so I'm chillin with my yogurt waiting until I'm hungry for an entire pizza. 

Sleep: The sleep part is going okay but I'm really done with the bad dreams.  Every night. And they range in scariness levels but I'm tired of waking up in the morning feeling like something is wrong because I had a nightmare. Pregnancy dreams are definitely weird and I appreciate the weird and totally random, but I could do without the scary ones :(

Looking Forward To:  My last class begins this weekend and in two weeks I'll be done with my certificate program. Very exciting!

What I miss: Of course I missed participating in the wine festival. I had a couple sips (OMG CALL THE COPS) but it wasn't the same :( PS: I know women who drank full glasses/bottles of wine throughout their pregnancies. So I guess I COULD have participated if I wanted to...

Doc/Chloe:  Nothing new but I know you wanted to see some pictures of them:

 

25 Week Pic: More of a bump to see this week! (That's prob because I borderline shouldn't be wearing this shirt anymore as it is not maternity... but hey...)

Nursery Progress

This is a little late/outdated but it's what you are gonna get!  A couple weeks ago, A Love and I painted the baby's room.  Joey got us started with the taping and we knocked the whole thing out in less than two hours.  We kept the window open and fan on, and the fumes were barely noticeable/didn't get to me at all until the very end.  As the paint dried, it sort of took on different hues.  OH one thing I should mention is that I ended up going with a different color than my original choice- this one had more purply undertones than pink ones. In case you care.

 

Anyhoo, when wet, the paint looked bluish.  When initially dry, it looked darker and more purple.  After setting for a few hours, it looked perfect.

 

Purple!

With the painting :)

The following weekend, it was time to start putting together the furniture that had been collecting in various boxes in random locations throughout my house.  Joey did a great job assembling the crib, glider, side table, and the 100+ piece changer/dresser.  Which I don't have a picture of. Sorry.

 

 

YAY

Chloe helped me test out the glider.

Glider, wall, and painting

Now that all the big stuff is done, it's time to do the window blinds/curtains, frame that beautiful painting, and get some more decor on the walls. 

 

We like to go in the room from time to time and just sit there talking about what's next.  The dogs LOVE the glider because they can see right outside and Chloe just loves to sit in my arms and look out the window. It's going to be hard for them when the baby gets here :(

 

Hope you enjoyed this mini update!

 

~SG

24 Weeks

Hope everyone's Easter was very hoppy!  We had a great weekend- Joey crossed a zillion things off the honey-do list (he's really awesome).  The Easter Bunny brought me a new mailbox! (at 730am... with a chainsaw...) The Min Pins opened their Easter Baskets and we enjoyed some sunshine and good eats.

I have my monthly prenatal massage this week and our 24 week appointment on Friday.  I get to do the Glucose screening again, so fingers crossed that I pass (again).  My Mom is also coming into town for work and she'll be staying with us! 

Busy week ahead, so quick(er than normal) update below:


Date: April 21, 2014

How far along? 24w1d (Baby is as long as an ear of corn) According to baby center, my uterus is the size of a soccer ball and baby has gained 4 oz since last week.  I can tell when she's growing because I'm more hungry/more tired and I can usually feel my ligaments stretching.  This week there was a ton of that!

 How is Mama doing? Doing great! Got my hair cut over the weekend and I feel like a new person. I didn't think to take any pictures of it of course. 

Movement:  Every morning around 5-6am, after I eat meals, and in the early-mid afternoon, and then a TON of movement after I take my prenatal vitamin around 830pm.  I like that there is a bit of a schedule, but I also know that things can happen to cause her to get off schedule, so I'm trying not to freak out too much.  Doesn't mean I didn't whip out the doppler this week when I didn't feel her move after dinner. Now that she's much bigger, her heartbeat is really loud! Don't need to have the volume way up like I used to.  I will need to start counting kicks in another 4 weeks or so (did you know that's a thing?) but for now I'm just paying attention and making sure I feel her moving regularly.

Also felt some weird sensation in my lungs earlier this week... either she was kicking them or pushing some random organ into them. I didn't like it.  She's sitting pretty low in my pelvis so I haven't had too much of that, but I know it's only going to get worse.

Maternity Clothes?  Perusing some sites looking for shower dresses.  Also my sister works at Lilly Pulitzer and she swears up and down her boss wore Lilly throughout her pregnancy. I might need to take advantage of her enormous discount. OH and they make Mommy and Me outfits for little girls.....!!!!!

Pregnancy Fitness:  We had some COLD weather this week.  Even though I'm perfectly capable of working out indoors, I feel that the outside temperature has a direct effect on whether or not I exercise.

Yep. I actually spent time making this.

So, since we had 3 freeze warnings this week at the expense of some of my daffodils (but YAY my tulips lived!), I worked out once with Denise Austin.  Hoping for a reprieve this week with some nicer weather.

Symptoms: Lots of ligament pain/stretching. Nothing too bad. The only symptoms I have really had through the whole 24 weeks so far have been exhaustion and anxiety. And really, the anxiety isn't anything new. So... I've just been tired a lot. Doesn't garner me a lot of sympathy from Joey when I try to pull the preggo card. But I have been extremely blessed and hope I continue to be.

Belly Button:  Still there. Still innie.

Stretchmarks?  I'm sure they are around the corner.

Nutrition/Cravings? The latter part of last week I was so bad about what I ate. I wasn't very healthy. I have re-stocked the fridge and we're off to a good start for this week.  No cravings to report.

Sleep: Noticing some hip pain even with the extra pillow. I was pretty much expecting that though.

Looking Forward To:  Hanging out with my Mom this week :)

What I miss: Nothing really at the moment.

Doc/Chloe:  Are excited to have Grandma here and are really enjoying the glider in the baby's room since the blinds/curtains aren't up yet and it provides the perfect perch to see outside.

24 Week Pic:  Sorry, this week's pic is not very cute. I'll try harder next week.

From the front... where's the bump?

I never really knew what "child bearing hips" meant until now. It appears that I have them.  Baby girl seems to enjoy her roomy pelvic palace. 

23 Week iPhone Photo Shoot

As I mentioned, Saturday we visited a day care for their open house.  This particular school is well known and really awesome.  And therefore really expensive.  I thought that we should probably look nice when we visited so that they'd know we were serious buyers. I just don't see them taking me seriously in crocs and a baseball cap.

So I did my hair and make up for the first time in months. I haven't seen that blowdryer since....December? I also hadn't realized how the prenatal vitamins are helping my hair until I saw the pictures of it in the sunlight. Awesome!

Before we left the house, I had Joey snap a couple shots of me in front of our gorgeous flowering cherry in the front yard. And I hated every single picture.  When we got back, I made him take more and the more pictures we took and the more picturs I hated, I realized I didn't really hate the pictures I just don't really like the way I look.

And that's not fishing for compliments- that's just a cold hard fact that I think any pregnant woman can identify with.  You don't feel pretty. You don't feel like you.

Looking at these pictures I've realized two things- 1. My boobs are gigantic. 2. My belly is still relatively small, especially from the front.  Both of those things will undoubtedly get bigger over the next four months. Great.

But, regardless about how I feel, I think we got some nice shots that if I stand back and squint one eye, I'm okay with.

So here are some of my favorites, all taken on the iPhone (we're working on getting a nicer camera before baby gets here) and edited with Snapseed App.

23 Weeks!

Whew! It's Monday again! I was just thinking how convenient it is that my weeks start on Mondays.  For those that don't know how that works, pregnancy is calculated based on the first day of your last period.  So everyone's "weeks" start on random days.  I just got lucky that mine start on Mondays because it's the beginning of the week and I can do a recap of my weekend in one fell swoop.

Something else that is interesting to note is that pregnancy is 10 months long, not 9 months. I don't even know where that came from, since 40 weeks is clearly 10 months.  So, when I tell you I'm headed into my 6th month already, don't freak out!

Anyway, we had a WONDERFUL weekend.  It started out with temps in the 80s on Friday. We left work early and sat outside with music on and I drank sparkling apple-peach juice out of a wine glass and it was awesome. Then we had dinner with some friends and they gave us some baby things!  Saturday we went to Lowe's in the morning before we headed to the day care open house. It went well and was a definite contender. It was also super nice outside and since I actually did my hair and makeup to go to the open house I made Joey do a mini photo shoot with the cherry blossoms in our front yard.... pics to come later this week! Saturday afternoon, Joey went to play golf with his buddies and A Love and I painted the baby's room! More to come on that as well, but it looks soooo good!  Sunday morning, Joey had a 10 mile race so we spent the morning outside by the Potomac River and then walked around Old Town Alexandria for a while.

Date: April 14, 2014

How far along? 23w (Baby weighs as much as a large mango)

 How is Mama doing? Doing great. This weather really raises my spirits. I think if we lived in Florida I would be a much happier person. Someday.....

Weight Gain: I'm about ready to just delete this entire section. I'm tired of answering this question every week and I'm tired of getting on the scale and seeing no weight gain. Or weight loss, as is the situation this week. I know that the baby is healthy and I'm probably losing weight because I'm not drinking booze all the time and I'm eating a healthy dose of veggies and fruits.  I think this question is just making me crazy and I'm going to take it out at least for a little while. <end rant>

Movement: Pretty sure she's practicing for her future tour with Cirque du Soliel. 

Maternity Clothes? I think I prefer to wear tighter shirts/stuff because it accents the belly instead of hides it.  Flowy clothes make me feel like a whale.  Just some thoughts from the peanut gallery.

Pregnancy Fitness:  Beautiful weather this past week as well!! I got in a workout with Gabrielle Reece, who is pretty much the complete opposite of Denise Austin, as well as a walk with Chloe and also the nice long walk around Alexandria on Sunday. 

Symptoms: Nothing new to report this week.  An old one I keep forgetting to write about- body temperature. Everything I've read says I'm going to be hotter than usual. Except I've always been freezing cold.  We had to buy a space heater this winter to put by my bed! I think a big part of it is that pregnant women end up with more blood volume, which lowers their blood pressure. If you inherited ridiculously low blood pressure from your Mom like I did, that means you are cold all the time!

Belly Button: Innie, although looking larger these days, prob because it's getting pulled a little bit on the sides!

Stretchmarks?  Still oiling up and praying for a miracle!

Nutrition/Cravings? Did well eating-wise this past week, although I enjoyed a lot of bad things this weekend.  Made a pan of brownies on Saturday and it looks like two people have been eating on it instead of just one... 

Sunday it was just plain hot out and after our 2nd trip to Lowes for the weekend I decided that Rita's water ice would taste delicious  (italian ice for your weirdos).  I haven't eaten that since like 12th grade. It was just as amazing as I remembered and my mouth was bright red for the rest of the day.

Sleep: Same old same old. Since I'm not using it, Doc commandeered the body pillow and made a fort out of it and the curtains.

Looking Forward To:  I'm getting my hair did this weekend!!! I think it will help me feel better about how I look and I'm definitely excited about that!

What I miss:  I realized I'm going to miss out on crabs and old bay this summer.  They are just coming into season and I'm realizing I won't be able to partake. That sucks :(

Doc/Chloe: Nothing new. They were confused about the painting and new furniture. Chloe has also adorably started asking for walks.  Well, running over and nosing the leash and standing expectantly by the door, anyway. But I think it's cute.

23 Week Pic:
If you catch me from the front, I still look like I could have eaten a large breakfast. Side pics are the only way you can really see the bump!

Also I don't know if they still make static guard but I need some today :(

Baby Girl's Nursery

As I mentioned, I had everything planned out if the baby was a boy.  A girl, though, had me totally lost.  I knew I didn't want much pink- never was much of a pink person.  Didn't want to do any gimmicky Disney Princess stuff.  Blech. My style is very traditional and....boring.  So I really had no ideas as to what we would do for her room until we went to Disney World...

I KNOW you think you know where this is going but just hang in there ok?!!?

We found out the day before we left that we were having a girl, so reality was still setting in while we were on our trip.  Doesn't mean I didn't buy a few pink and purple onesies that cost an arm and a leg, but I was still rather bewildered and excited.  We were in Disney with friends and our friend Amanda asked me what we were doing for the nursery and I told her I had no idea.  Really, I just wanted it to be pretty, somewhat girly, but something that wouldn't make Joey barf.

We were walking along through Fantasyland and stopped here to use the bathroom (probably for the 25th time that day):

If you don't recognize it, it's the village from Tangled and Disney has made an entire bathroom area out of it.  We went in and I was admiring Disney's usual level of detail- the paintings on the ceilings just like in Rapunzel's tower, the suns on the flags, the colors, etc.

We came out and A Love said "why don't you do Tangled for your theme?"
DUH! It hit me like a mickey bar to the face! I suggested it to Joey and he liked it and was cool with it.  And, in typical Gish fashion, the decision was made.

Now, the most important thing to me was that it NOT be full of pictures like this:

I wanted to use the IDEA of Rapunzel/Tangled, specifically the pretty lanterns, and the color scheme, but not really the themey-ness of it all.  Make sense?

After some considerable time spent pinning ideas to a secret board with some friends, it was decided that the room would have a focal point (a painting) that we'd draw colors out of and then we'd take it from there.

Now... where to go when you need a painting?......... Hmmm... how bout a ridiculously talented friend who offers to paint it for you?! Enter Amanda......

(Doc modeling for size)

Now that we have this gorgeous piece of art, we are able to draw out colors.  First big thing was what color to paint the walls.  Unfortunately, Joey is a big fan of unpainted walls.  So it took a little convincing/begging/offering to paint it back if we move, but he finally agreed to this color:

Hosta Flower

 Next thing is the furniture.  If you remember, we got the crib fo free from our friend Danielle.  I searched the crap out of it and turns out it's one of the highest rated cribs that Graco makes and it's still under warranty.  Awesome.  It's a pretty cherry color, so we ordered a dresser/changer combo, side table, and glider to match (the glider is covered with yellow gingham).  None of this has been put together yet so just use your imagination...

Once we picked the paint color, I was free to choose the bedding set for the crib.  I drooled and drooled over Pottery Barn Kids, but ain't nobody got time (or money) fo that!  Then I happened upon a bedding set sold at most baby stores that really reminds me of Rapunzel's paintings on the walls and ceilings of her tower...

Sweet Jojo Designs: Suzanna Collection

Up close picture of the design

 I also found these curtains a long time ago and loved them...

I'll probably do a matching crib skirt as well

Joey also suggested a lantern mobile to go with the lantern thing, maybe something like this-

And finally, if I have any money left after all this, maybe a throw rug to tie it all together-

ok, this one IS from PBK...

I also have to get a pretty frame for the picture, shelving, other things to hang on the walls, etc. etc. etc.

These are just our preliminary ideas.  All are subject to change once things actually come together and I see whether I like it or not ;)

In the end though, I just want Baby Girl to have a place that's her own, that she can play in and grow up in, and someday we'll explain to her the secret Disney references in her room's design ;)

Hope you liked it! (And if you don't, it's not your room anyway!)

~SG

PS: It's not the Hogwarts castle. Just...watch Tangled and then you'll get it!!

22 Weeks

22 weeks down! Finally showing some major progress as my belly has pretty much officially "popped" out and the scale is showing some weight gain.  I'm viewing all of this as a major positive considering I'm entering my 6th month of pregnancy soon.  It's also kind of a reality check that I need to get my rear in gear when it comes to exercising. 

This weekend I completed my 5th out of 6 classes toward my Certificate.  Only one more to go! This means that because half my weekend was spent in class, I spent the rest of it catching up on laundry and cleaning up the house.  Didn't have much time for any additional baby stuff this weekend.  Joey has been hard at work on our labyrinth of a backyard and there is some major progress going on back there that I should really devote an entire post to.  Also speaking of the yard, I don't know if you remember this post about Grandmother Willow, but it seems as though she has pulled through:

She's ALIIIIIVE (can't say the same for the grass)

Date: April 7, 2014

How far along? 22w (Baby is the size of a papaya)

Papaya. Just in case.

 How is Mama doing? Same old same old! Starting to do some more research on things like child care (woof) and signed up for a tour of Labor and Delivery at the hospital for next month. Also starting to read articles about labor for the first time. Of course it's scary but it's just part of the ride so I'm just going along with it. Not much I can do about that now anyway ;)

Weight Gain: As mentioned above, my first-thing-in-the-morning-no-clothes weigh in has shown an increase in +1.5.  Makes sense as baby should be nearing the 1 pound mark by now!

Sex of the baby: Girly girl. I think I might also take this part out of the survey considering we know what we're having and it's (hopefully) not going to change!

Movement: Lots of movement in the early mornings and evenings/nighttime.  I swore I could see my belly moving the other day but I still can't really feel things on the outside yet.  Book says it should be a week or two before that happens.  Baby sleeps 12-14 hours a day and most of it is while I'm at work (I don't blame you, little one).

Maternity Clothes? After laundry mania (and unpacking our suitcase from Disney... from February...) I found a lot of the maternity clothes that were missing and my wardrobe is back in full function.  I'm struggling now with what to do with my regular clothes since I'm not wearing them at the moment and they are just taking up closet space. I will deal with that next weekend I think.

Pregnancy Fitness: Was able to take advantage of the spring-like weather this week and get outside for several walks with both dogs (Dogs need to be walked separately when I'm by myself. Let's just say Doc is a handful.) I enjoy walking in my neighborhood because it's hilly and Min Pins walk fast, which leads to a pretty solid cardio workout- better than I get with Denise (sorry BFF).  Unfortunately we don't go for a very long distance because Chloe is a little... out of shape...

Passed out after a 20 minute walk...

Symptoms: A little bit of heartburn again this week.  I'm not surprised as my uterus has definitely moved up (1 inch above my bellybutton says the book) and I can hear my stomach gurgling in a place it never was before. Things are already getting cramped in there and we have a lot more growing to do! The heartburn is mild and goes away with a couple of tums. Hoping it stays that way. 

Tons of back pain this week too :( Mostly upper back, but this morning I woke up with lower back pain as well.  Glad we have the massage roller from running.

Also dealing with some gas pain.  Not pleasant or ladylike.  I've felt like a giant balloon over the past couple of days and I'm not deflating :(

Belly Button: Innie

Stretchmarks?  No new but starting to worry as my belly starts to grow. I know stretch marks are a natural part of pregnancy and are also hereditary, so I'm expecting some new zebra stripes.  Doesn't make it any easier though :(

Nutrition/Cravings? Still not loving meat but forced down a few bites of steak last night so I can get my iron.  Didn't have any cravings although one night last week I did suggest Thai food for dinner. Maybe these ARE cravings although for me, I don't feel as if the world will end if I don't eat such and such food RIGHT NOW. So. Either cravings are all overrated or I'm just not there yet.

I also had a random freakout last week (as I do about once every 2-3 weeks) where I started worrying about something and googling and finally ended up emailing my doctor.  I have been eating PB & J almost every day when I'm at work for lunch.  I read some articles about women who eat a lot of peanut butter might increase their child's chance for an allergy.  Then I read some articles that said the exact opposite.  Now I'm just confused.  Haven't heard back from the Dr. yet on that one.

Sleep: Got me a new body pillow this weekend (it's not a pregnancy pillow but it's a start).  It's honestly really annoying to have in the bed. Maybe I just need to get used to it (or get a bigger bed).

Looking Forward To:  Maybe this is lame but we're going to an open house this weekend to kick off the "Great Day Care Search of 2014". I'm looking forward to it because I have no idea what to expect and even though it's going to drain my bank account, it'll be fun to check out the places where Little Miss could be spending her time when she's not with me or her Dad.

What I miss: Can I write about cold lunch meat again? I miss it. 

Doc/Chloe: They sure do love to snuggle up to my belly.  I've started pushing them off a little bit. I don't know why I'm afraid they are going to squish her... she's surrounded by tons of cushioning.  OH this reminds me that I'm keeping a list of irrational things I have worried about and I plan to share it sometime after the baby is born. Should be entertaining.

Other: When I talk about the "book", I'm referring to "What to Expect When You're Expecting" which while I'm not using it as my pregnancy bible, has come in quite handy with following along week-by-week and learning about what's going on in there.  I realize that everything in this book is not the law, though, which is why I go to my doctors for advice on my major concerns and questions.

22 Week Pic: Ok, it's not quite 22 weeks as I took it on Friday, but I like this outfit better than what I'm wearing today ;)  I wasn't kidding about the belly was I?!

That awkward moment when...

on the drive to work you realize your pants are WAY too tight (they are maternity pants but they are not the right size) and you start worrying about the baby and she's kicking you as if to say "I need more room Mom!" and so you get there for your 7:30 meeting, attend, and then go to Target to get a better pair of pants....

...except the local Target has a TERRIBLE Maternity section and all they have is jeans and dresses, so you show back up to work in a COMPLETELY different outfit than you did when you arrived.

Sigh.

Baby Boy Nursery Ideas

First off- I'm not too sure about the word "nursery".  I am getting more used to it because I see it EVERYWHERE, but I think I like "baby's room" better. 

I thought it would be fun to talk about what we would have done for the baby's room if it had been a boy.  A boy would have been a lot easier because I knew what theme I'd do for a boy from the very beginning.  I didn't even have to think about it.  For a girl, I was clueless.

I know this will come as a shock to many, but I was planning a Pirate/Nautical theme for a baby boy room.

Unfortunately, I didn't get too far into the planning process (read: didn't start), so I don't really have any solid plans to share.  But I did want to share things that I like and who knows, maybe someday I'll get my pirate nursery!  (This is not to say that baby girl is not going to be a pirate- she absolutely will be.) Yarrrrgh!

It would have been really cool to create a pirate ship on the ceiling of the room like the below... but obviously that's for bigger kids and a much bigger house....

Realistically, it would have been rather traditional (as that's the style we always come back to), and have looked something like this:

 

Maybe a little more piratey, though, perhaps like this?

 

Or maybe I would have had A Love paint us a mural, like this one?

And I do like this set from Sweet Jojo designs:

 

 

Orrrr we could just totally plagiarize Disney's Caribbean Beach's pirate rooms:

I WILL stay here someday.

 

Doing a pirate nursery would have been so much fun, but I love the idea we've come up with for our princess.

 

Stay tuned for more on that!

 

~SG