Penny and Baby

This is our cat Penny. She is our "furbaby". We aren't sure how she is going to react to the big change of a new baby in the house, and we have been taking steps to prepare her. In the meantime, here she is loving the baby bump.

11/27. I will be 35 weeks and will have 35 days til my due date. FUN!

Online Shopping

Ok, I've always enjoyed finding HUGE deals. I'm not talkin saving a buck or two, I'm talkin the big time. So, I figured, since I'm supposed to be on "bedrest," and not out shopping or runnin around, that I'd do most all of my gift shopping online this year. Boy, has it paid off, literally.

In the last 2 weeks, I have saved well over $250. Seriously. It's 1:30 am right now, and I just got done getting $20 worth of stuff for $1.90 from a widely known site...i'll tell you after Dan opens his gifts :)
I cant expose all my deals as of right now because they are gifts for family...


I found a crazy code online for $20 off $20 ( so, yes, a free 20 bucks ) at Babycenter, last week. I found it at 11pm and shopped til 4am because the site was hammered with people. I got so much free stuff it's sick. Stuff that I would never just buy for our baby, because it's overpriced.I will post pics when it all comes. I got $180 worth of baby stuff for $22. NAME BRAND.

It's been fun getting a package in the mail almost everyday, and to not feel guilty about the money I'm spending ( if any ) is SUCH a rush!
I'm officially the queen of online codes and deals. If you need help, I'm your gal.

Bedrest?

2 nights ago I went into labor and delivery at St. Francis after calling my OB and explaining that I had been cramping continuously for 6 hours with low back pain and he thought I just should go in, better safe than sorry. ( Since I am at risk already for pre-term labor )
They put me on monitors and I was contracting, not alot, but it was there. After a very painful exam to check everything, they gave me 2 shots of Terbutaline to stop them. I wasn't dilated yet, so they figure she's just on her way down, slowly but surely. The nurses were great!
I go to see my OB in 2 weeks and hopefully I'll be progressing on time and I'll find out how big she is :)
In the meantime, I am suppose to be on bedrest. They literally want me getting up only to shower and go to the bathroom, until the cramping stops or until my next appt. But I have things to do around the house! Dan is great though and is doing everything he can on his days off to help me out ALOT. He's wonderful.

I am so pregnant

These last couple days have been quite eventful as far as pregnancy pains/twinges/kicks go.
I will not go into specifics of course, even though Renae ( thanks ) knows me intimately now.
I am constantly cramping low, not enough to take tylenol for, but it's there. She has been moving around 24/7 as if she is planning on doing something. I have these jabs in my belly that take my breath away and make me yelp out loud ( that's fun ) and OHH the acid reflux ( of course i only get it when I lay down to go to sleep ).
I'm 33 weeks 1 day and I already feel like 40 weeks. Ahhhh.
Please pray for my anxiousness!!
I go in on Friday to have my checkup, so we'll see what's goin on.

ps. Christie and Renae - I am jealous you are as far along as you are. :)

Baby Stuff

Here is baby's closet right now: ( looks like alot, but I'm needing sleepers! )


Here is the pattern for her bedding in which I am making:
I've jumped on the bandwagon and here are my handmade burp cloths thus far:

Profound men in my life

I love my husband. We came into each others lives at the perfect time. I admire him oh so much. He has an amazing drive, he's so compassionate about his work, and other people, He's quirky, intelligent and so funny. I look up to him more than he realizes. He has a lingering Minnesotan accent that pops up here and there that I still giggle at. He was truly tailor made for me, and I for him. He scares easily, and I mean, easily. He has a giant soft spot for our cat Penny. I cant begin to imagine how this little girl of ours is going to have him wrapped around her finger. I have learned to live with him reading the weird books he chooses and his love for scary movies.
He's truly one of a kind, and I'm glad he's all mine.


This is my grandpa ( mom's dad ). You cannot compare him to any other man. I hold him on a high, high pedestal and always will. He played a huge part in my wonderful childhood. He had a heart that I yearn to have, and knowledge that would knock your socks off. Of course he was loaded with every joke in the book too. He would always remind me to respect my parents and not to disappoint them. I could literally write an entire book on him, just from MY perspective. I know my sisters could easily do the same, as we all have fun different memories of him. It's almost been 3 years since he left us, but my gosh it feels like yesterday. I love him.



This is my daddy.
I dont think I could describe him in one word. He is good at giving hugs, letting us know that we are loved, and a great family man. He's more creative than we all give him credit for, he is a hard worker and loves the Lord. I admire his compassion. When Suz and I were little, he'd have a day called "Suz and Steph Day" in which we could pick where we go for lunch ( usually mcdonalds ) and a couple activities to do with him. ( We'd go to the ducky park and feed them, or shoot off rockets in the neighborhood often )
That is something that I want to continue with our kids. He may look intimidating due to his height, but as his friends say, he's one big teddy bear. He is going to make an awesome grandpa. I love him.

Craigslist deal

So my latest deal, that I'm so proud of, comes from Craigslist, once again. I had originally registered for an extra carseat base ( retails at $70 ) for my parent's SUV. We already have our "travel system " ( carseat and stroller combo ) which is a Chicco in green trim which I adore. I just so happened to find just the carseat on Craigslist for $60!!! It's in immaculate condition, looks new. Instead of my green, it has a nice orange trim. This retails for $160+. So instead of just a base, I got the whole sha-bang for less. Yippee!

Updates

Well I had my surgery 3 weeks ago today. I've been feeling ok, but it's been a long processI was told that I could eat normally after the surgery. Ya that's not happenin. I get really really bad stomach aches at random if I eat something I'm not used to. So I'm still sorta sticking to the diet I had before ( really low fat, or no fat at all ) which is fine. I'm used to it. I got weighed in last Friday and at 31 weeks and some days I had still only gained 12 lbs, but my OB isn't worried. I shouldnt gain much more anyways.
Baby is tugging down on the incision spots on my stomach and it hurts after just a few minutes of walking. I went to my massage therapist today and he was surprised at how bad my muscles and joints were acting ( it had been 3 weeks since I'd seen him ). SO I was in there for an hour and a half. It wasn't one of those leave and feel great massages! We are trying to make sure that the scar tissue forms properly while being tugged on and of course he found all sorts of new spots all over my body that were tight. I felt like crap when I left lol. But he's great. He is always giving me a hard time because sometimes I act like I'm not pregnant, doing things I shouldnt ( like walking Bellevue Square Mall this weekend ) BUT he was impressed because I still have ankles :)

Ok besides that, the nursery is so close to being done. I'm on the hunt for a crystal chandelier under $100 and still have to make the crib bedding, then I'll be done and have pics up.

I had a wonderful shower thrown by my sis and her sister in law this past weekend. Family and close friends of family came and it was just so nice. Dan and I got alot of great things off of our registries, as well as random fun stuff. It's been fun filling the nursery with baby gear, and stuffing her closet with clothes :)