36 Weeks and Nesting

I got behind again in my posts and now I can't really remember all the things that have happened. I do remember that the evening before I officially became 36 weeks pregnant, I could NOT fall asleep. Usually as soon as my head hits the pillow, I'm out (drooling included). I think I sat up in bed watching 3 episodes of Parenthood, pinning away on Pinterest, and making a list of to-do around the house for the weekend. Jesse was fortunately able to sleep through my craziness.

Jesse worked almost all day on Friday, which meant it was house cleaning day for me (it's hard to clean/organize with Jesse home). I think I realized I had a problem when I found myself standing on top of the coffee table, vacuuming the ceiling fan. I have never vacuumed a ceiling fan. I realize most people probably keep up with those kinds of tasks, but normal me couldn't care less. Thank you pregnancy. So I vacuumed ceiling fans, washed air vents, made homemade granola, and baked two loaves of bread.

On Saturday, Jesse and I went to a live auction. It was pretty cool. They had a ton of new baby stuff and tools that we were hoping to bid on. Unfortunately there were almost 500 items, and 3 hours into the auction, they were only on item number 150. The stuff we wanted was towards the end so we decided to leave instead of spending all day there. It was still a neat experience and the food truck that was working the event was AMAZING. Hello cheesy delicious tater tots!

We also practiced using the car seat which was pretty entertaining. I don't know why we struggle with such things. I think it's maybe because we have SO MUCH new stuff, all at once, and it's slightly overwhelming? I'm sure once the kid gets here and we get used to using everything we won't appear to be so challenged.

 

34 weeks

Last weekend we went to LA. It's been on our bucket list since we moved here and I was disappointed that we hadn't just sucked it up and made the drive. I'm glad we went but I definitely don't need to go back. The drive was forever long, my ankles swelled to something I've never seen before, and it was way too crowded. 

33 Weeks

I've gotten really behind with my posts! I was trying to be so good about it but oh well, here's a recap of valentines weekend, 3 weeks late. 

I went out to dinner with the girls Thursday night, and while I was gone Jesse put the crib together and hung the curtains. I didn't know he was doing it and when I got home he texted me a picture of everything done. Great surprise. It's the little things.  

There's nothing on the walls yet but I'll get to it at some point. 

Jesse had to work most of the day Friday, but the weather was GORGEOUS and he came home in between events to hand over the goods (candy, candy, candy!). I'm embarrassed at how quickly this pregnant lady managed to down that much chocolate. You'd think the individually wrapped pieces would slow me down.  Not so much. I probably could have eaten the wrapper without missing a beat. When Jesse went back to work I decided to take advantage of the sunshine and layout. 

The line running across my belly is from the spandex on my maternity jeans. Too tight? Perhaps! But I refuse to buy more clothes. So there. 

Jesse and I got pedicures that night. It was his first experience but I don't think he was impressed. We went to the beauty school because they were offering free treatments to military. Unfortunately they didn't have massage chairs and I think that's the only part Jesse was looking forward to. I can barely reach my feet these days so having someone rub them for half an hour felt pretty great to me!

Jesse took me out to dinner to an awesome restaurant called 94th Aero Squadron. I'm disappointed I forgot to take a picture so here's one from their website. 

Yum! I love getting dressed up and going out to eat. It's probably one of my favorite things to do. 

Saturday was spent at the beach volleyball courts. I didn't take any pictures there, but here's a picture of our ride to the beach. I'm pretty sure most of our family was shoveling snow at that time. 

It was another great San Diego weekend! 

How far along? 33 Weeks

Weight gain: 28lbs. 

Baby is the size of: A winter squash. Weighs about 4pounds

What's new with baby: this week baby's bones are hardening and baby can tell the difference between day and night.

Maternity clothes? Yes, but I'm starting to just wear the same outfits all the time. I don't see the point in mixing things up when I feel like a whale. 

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty great these days!

Sleeping on: Left side

Best moment this week: Jesse finishing the nursery 

Miss Anything? A good workout. 

Movement: Lots of kicking and elbow jabs!

Food cravings: Milkshakes. Chocolate. Sugar. 

Gender: we think girl 

Name selected?: Boy: Fletcher. Girl: Audrey 

Working out? Jog/walk after work and What To Expect workout video

Labor Signs: No.

Belly Button in or out? Out. Waaaaay out. 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Health: Feeling good!

Looking Forward To: no longer being pregnant 

32 Weeks

It was a quiet weekend for the Simmermon gang. Jesse worked most of the day Friday so I just cleaned and organized. Today we went to Del Mar and walked on the beach, then took the kid to the boardwalk but we were asked to leave after only a few minutes. Furry friends aren't allowed on the boardwalk even though bums are, and we think Derby is better behaved than most of the bums. 

How far along? 32 Weeks

Weight gain: 27 lbs. 

Baby is the size of: A winter squash. Weighs about 3.75 pounds

What's new with baby: this week baby is able to use all five senses

Maternity clothes? Yes, but I'm starting to just wear the same outfits all the time. I don't see the point in mixing things up when I feel like a whale. 

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty great these days!

Sleeping on: Left side

Best moment this week: Watching Baby swim around and hiring my replacement at work. 

Miss Anything? A good workout. 

Movement: Lots of kicking and elbow jabs!

Food cravings: Milkshakes. Chocolate. Sugar. 

Gender: we think girl 

Name selected?: Boy: Fletcher. Girl: Audrey 

Working out? Jog/walk after work and DR stretches 

Labor Signs: No.

Belly Button in or out? Out. Waaaaay out. 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Health: Feeling good!

Looking Forward To: still waiting on those curtains! 

Baby Shower

Last weekend was my baby shower! I flew to Pennsylvania for the weekend to celebrate and fortunately the weather held up. They were supposed to get a big snow storm Saturday, but it ended up not hitting until Sunday afternoon.  Transitioning from 75 degree weather to 20 degree weather was a bit shocking but I was tough :)  

I wish I had more time to spend back home but it was great to see everyone and celebrate Baby S! 

Soap favors 

Art for Baby's room

Yum!

Delicious cupcakes courtesy of Sweet Jenni D's (who also made our wedding cake).

Yum!

Quilt project 

I can't wait to see the finished product!

It was a great weekend! My mom, sister, and Lindsey did an awesome job of making my shower absolutely perfect and memorable.  Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make it a special day for me and Baby S!

30 Weeks

3/4 of the way there! I don't yet hate being pregnant, but I think I'm almost to that point. I feel really fortunate that I still feel great, am sleeping great, can still exercise and work, and I'm not too hormonal. I think I'm just getting really excited to meet the kid. The nursery is almost done and sometimes I just go in there and sit and think about what it will be like to have Baby here with us finally. 

We had a very busy and eventful weekend. Next weekend is my baby shower in Pennsylvania so yesterday Nichole and I went shopping for a dress for me to wear. I hadn't really considered how difficult it might be to find a warm maternity dress in Southern California. I won't have time to shop when I get home and it's slim pickins here at the beach, but I think I managed to work something out. We shall see! 

This morning we went to the Santee swap meet. For those that don't know, a swap meet is like a flea market. It's a combination of used, new, and (what I presume to be) stolen goods. 

We heard an announcement over the loud speaker asking for a doctor to come to the main entrance. A woman had given birth in the bathroom and they wanted a doctor to check on the baby while the ambulance was on its way. 

Swap meet baby! 

We walked away with 7 new baby books for $2.  Score!

Afterwards we headed to Coronado to spend time at the dog beach and to grab lunch. Coronado is beautiful. We figured out today that in addition to it being a quaint little town that you can easily walk around, we must love it because there's green grass and trees everywhere. It's also super dog friendly which is nice. 

Gelato!

There had been something weighing heavily on my mind all day. Typically the kid is VERY active, poking and jabbing me with feet and elbows all day. Today though I wasn't feeling much activity. I was trying not to be paranoid but my midwife had been so adamant about going right to the doctor if I didn't feel anything for more than two hours, and I couldn't remember feeling much of anything all day. The hospital is only about a five minute drive from Coronado so I decided that if cold, sugary gelato didn't wake the kid up then we would swing by labor and delivery, just to be safe. 

We pulled up to the guard gate at the hospital, but they wouldn't let us in because we had Derby with us. We had to turn around and Jesse got out with Derby so I could drive through. I made my way to L&D and they of course saw me right away. They hooked me up to fetal monitoring and let it run for 20 minutes. A nurse came in and turned it off and said that the baby's heart rate looked great, so I thought everything was fine and I was set to go. Then she ripped off the little paper feed and said the doctor was coming in.  The doctor informed me that, even though I couldn't feel them, I was having contractions and she wanted to run some tests to make sure I wasn't in pre-term labor. Surprisingly I still felt calm and was more anxious about Jesse being stuck on the side of the road with Derby. Two doctors and a nurse came in to do a cervical exam and some kind of test involving microscope slides. Then she wanted to do two ultrasounds to make sure I had enough fluid around the baby, which I did. They confirmed that everything was just fine. The doctor said that contractions can happen at this point in pregnancy and, so long as they aren't regular or close together, everything should be fine. She also said that babies have good days and bad days and that the decrease in fetal movement probably just meant that the baby wasn't feeling well today or disagreed with something I ate. 

I had to take a selfie since Jesse wasn't with me. 

"Property of the U.S. Gov't". I wonder what happens if you take them. 

Another eventful weekend in San Diego!

30 weeks 

How far along? 30 Weeks

Weight gain: 26 lbs. 

Baby is the size of: A winter squash. Weighs about 3 pounds

What's new with baby: this week baby is able to see. Baby's brain is growing rapidly and fluid is present in the alveoli. 

Maternity clothes? Yes, but I'm starting to not like them so much. Everything I wear feels awkward and uncomfortable. 

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty great these days!

Sleeping on: Left side, but sometimes I wake up on my back. 

Best moment this week: Finishing the bookshelf and getting another ultrasound. 

Miss Anything? Wearing shorts. I haven't bought summer maternity clothes yet. 

Movement: Lots of kicking and elbow jabs!

Food cravings: Milkshakes. Like as in I want one all the time.

Gender: we think girl 

Name selected?: Boy: Fletcher. Girl: Audrey 

Working out? Jog/walk after work and DR stretches 

Labor Signs: No.

Belly Button in or out? Out 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Health: Feeling good!

Looking forward to: Jesse hanging the baby's curtains.