Thursday, August 4, 2011

You know you've been pregnant for too long when...

Well, here we are! August 4th and still no bambino! I'm officially 40 weeks pregnant today and I have a feeling Baby Starr is perfectly content staying in there, and continuing to kick the heck out of me. We've scheduled the induction for Friday, August 12th. I'll go in Thursday night (8/11) to get started on fluids and they'll induce the following morning.

In the meantime, since all the baby updates I've been getting only say "Congratulations!" and that the baby is the size of a pumpkin, I thought it would be entertaining to poke a little fun at all of those crazy situations that happen at the end of pregnancy. I recently posted a thread on babycenter.com titled, "You know you've been pregnant for too long when..." and since Tuesday, it's gotten over 200 comments. Here are some of my absolute favorites:

You know you've been pregnant for too long when...

-Even your biggest maternity shirts are too tight, but you wear them anyway because you just don't care anymore.
-At least ten people at work say to you "You're STILL here?"
-Someone asks you if you are having twins.
-You can't get out of bed without grunting (Ask Jeremy about this one!).
-You fall asleep on the toilet during your nightly potty breaks.
-You notice you haven't been able to see certain body parts in months.
-You have mastered putting on bottoms by dangling them (OMG, this one is so true!).
-You left the light on in the bathroom but don't bother going back to turn it off because you know you'll be back in a half hour.
-You welcome contractions.
-You sit and watch the dog sleep and all you can think is "lucky bitch!" (No offense Callie.)
-You TRY to hit potholes on purpose hoping the bumps will induce labor.
-Your ankles look like Princess Fiona's from Shrek (Hilarious!).
-You have to stand on the scale at the doctor's office backwards because your belly is just too big to face forward.
-Your due date comes and goes.
-You're sleeping naked with no blanket and your husband is bundled up like it is the second ice age.
-Shaving your legs becomes another form of yoga.
-Your wedding ring hasn't fit in months.
-You stand at the bottom of the stairs and just stare up at them. (This has been going on for a few weeks at work.)
-You stop asking your husband if you look OK when you get dressed in the morning because you know at this point he would just be lying if he said yes.
-You lay in bed and contemplate what would take more effort, getting up to go to the bathroom or cleaning up when you pee your pants.
-You have worse gas than your husband and don't even care anymore.
-You wear a shirt two days in a row and it's a small miracle because you didn't get any food stains on it the day before!
-You feel like you need some sort of construction equipment to roll you over in bed at night because it's so much effort to do it yourself! (OMG, so, so true!! I call Jeremy my crane.)
-You go for a walk to try to induce labor and have to turn around after 5 minutes because you have to pee again (This happened to me last night people!)
-You spit like a llama while brushing your teeth because you can't reach the sink bowl.
-You have developed a 'system' for turning over in bed.
-You honestly consider sleeping naked with air mattresses for pillows in your bathtub just so you can pee 20 times a night without having to get up. (Loved this one!)
-Moving a load of laundry from the washer to the dryer is a chore that requires sitting down for a rest afterward.
-You can balance a plate of food on your belly.
-Baby's squirming hurts so much it feels like he's going to break right out, like an alien.
-You no longer fit in a standard booth at a restuarant.
-You lean forward to eat your dinner and find it doesn't help...there is no way you are going to avoid spilling food from your mouth! And it lands on your big belly again.
-Your legs and feet look like big sausages and your toes look like cocktail weenies. (This one's from me. This issue began two days ago and has not stopped.)



I hope you enjoyed these as much as I did. Baby Starr said to tell you all, "See ya in a week!"

Thanks for the many phone calls, texts and facebook comments. We love y'all.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

The waiting game

Well folks, I'm 1.5 centimeters dilated! Keep in mind that this could mean absolutely nothing. I could still go another 3 weeks. But at least I have a fun update for our blog, right?! Also, not to get too graphic, but the doctor did a procedure to try and start moving things along "down there." We'll see if it helped. So, at 38 weeks, Baby Starr weighs a little over 6.5 lbs, and is still approximately 20 inches long.

He/she now has a firm hand grasp and his/her organs have matured. My e-mail updates are getting pretty boring. This week, there's just not much to say, other than it's a waiting game from here on out!

Mom came over and took a few pictures of our "current" family before little Bambino arrives. Here are some favorites...







I got another "Is it twins?" last weekend... Hopefully, the rude and goofy comments will all come to an end soon. Just wait, I'm sure I'll get a "How far along are you?" AFTER the baby is born, which will really tick me off. I forget how big I am sometimes. Baby is still kicking plenty even though there's hardly any room left! As for being ready, I think we're as prepared as we can be at this point, but it still hasn't kicked in that we're going to be parents. And poor Callie... still clueless.

Thanks for reading as always. We can't wait to put up ACTUAL pictures of our little pumpkin! Love y'all!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

37 weeks down, 3 weeks to go!


I'm officially full term!

According to "thebump.com," Bambino is the size of a watermelon! He/she is approximately 6.5 lbs and gaining about a half ounce a day. Baby can blink, suck, inhale, exhale and grip, pretty much everything that a newborn can, minus breathing and pooping. He/she is about 20 inches in length.

We visited the doctor yesterday and everything is still normal; no dilation or effacement yet. And if Baby is anything like the Starr's, you can bet that I'll go a week past my due date, haha! Baby's heart rate is usually in the 140's. Good news... I lost a whole pound this week! We've packed "the bag" for the hospital and the car seat is installed. Callie still has no clue about what's happening. But she'll know soon enough!

Aside from the regular back pain, constant pee pee visits and lack of sleep these symptoms are causing, I've been feeling OK. Waddling is now unavoidable and bending down is virtually impossible. I have an almost non-existent wardrobe and it's getting harder and harder to paint my toe nails. But as they say, "It will all be worth it!"

Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a nice, cool weekend! Oh, and keep sending those "girl vibes" our way!!

Thursday, July 7, 2011

36 weeks and as ready as we can be!


Baby's room is complete! (Special thanks to Dad) ... Well, except for Baby. We've got about four weeks left til my due date and boy, are we ready! Baby Starr is weighing in at around 6 lbs. and is about 19 inches long, according to the baby websites I follow. His/her job is to basically plump up til delivery from here on out. If he/she is anything like Mom or Dad, that should come very naturally.

Little bambino is constantly kicking; in fact, my belly is sore. I've been feeling at least one Braxton Hicks contraction every day or so, and I think he/she has "dropped" into position. (BH contractions are kind of like fake contractions and I hear they feel a little bit different than regular contractions.) It's hard to believe he/she will be full term next week! Where has the time gone? I feel like we were just telling you all only a few months ago! Poor Callie... she still has no idea what she's in for. She already thinks that Bambino's toys are hers, especially the squeaky ones!

My company gave me a very nice baby shower yesterday. There's actually two of us pregnant, so it was a twofer! The other girl is due two weeks before me and wouldn't you know she went into labor early this morning?! Good thing they had the shower for both of us yesterday! We received plenty of diapers and wipes, along with some fun toys, which was really great. But, man, I'm seriously ready for it to be my turn. Oh! And Christina had her baby last week! Garret Nicholas Grandt was born June 28th, weighing 8 lbs. and 1 oz., and he measured 22 inches in length. He's beautiful!

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. From this point on, we'll be going every week, and she'll check to see if I'm dilated. Pretty exciting stuff! I'm definitely ready for it to be my turn. And I know Jeremy is ready too. Last night, I dropped the remote control on the floor just as he was falling asleep. I cursed out loud knowing there was no way I'd be able to pick it up. Can you believe, he got right up, walked over to my side of the bed, picked it up and handed it to me without me even asking? And trust me, I have plenty more stories like that... In fact, I never realized how often I drop things until now...

Y'all have a great weekend! Not too much longer!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Favorite photos from Baby Starr's shower and a quick update

Well, the shower was a HUGE success! Bambino received soooo many nice gifts! We're very appreciative of our family and friends, and it's great knowing how much Baby Starr is ALREADY loved. Here are some favorite photos from the shower. I hope you enjoy them!

No, we're not having twins! Since we don't know the sex of little bambino, "Grammy & PawPaw Starr" were nice enough to buy us TWO LSU outfits. Our kid is definitely coming home in purple and gold! Can I get a GEAUX TIGERS!?! Bambino will arrive just in time for the 2011 season. I think Jeremy planned it that way...

Speaking of LSU, I just love how Makenzie is sporting this "LSU" bib. FYI, Makenzie is my best friend, Kira's daughter, and my godchild. AND Kira and Dusty hate LSU. Yes, hate is a strong word, but that's pretty much how they feel. But look how excited Makenzie looks in this adorable "purple & gold" bib. No worries, I have another 16 years to convince her to go to LSU. I got this!

I just love these pictures of the Munstereifel girls. This is Dad's side of the family and I had to post this great picture of Mary. Yvette, Adelina and Chrissie are on the left. So glad to see them. It's been too long.

Don't worry, Christina and I didn't actually wear the same dress to my shower, but we were about to. We were talking a few days before the shower and I mentioned how I finally got a new dress from the maternity store. Thank God I started describing it! It was the same dress she planned to wear. So instead of wearing it to the shower, she brought it along with her and put it on after so we could take a picture together. Christina is expecting to deliver any day now. It's amazing how fast time flies. I feel like Jeremy and I just told family we were expecting a few months ago! And here I am at 34 weeks today!

So right after the shower, it was like, "Everyone get in line to touch the belly!" It's a good thing that I got over that whole "I'm not letting anybody touch my belly" attitude. I'm still not over people telling me how big I am though... As if I don't know. I mean, I literally ROLL out of bed three times a night to use the bathroom and Jeremy has to be my "crane" and pull me out of bed every morning. It's a good thing I don't have self esteem issues. LOL.

Here's another picture of Jeremy and I at the shower opening up more gifts. How appropriate was Brittany and Kevin's gift, "Star of Mommy's blog." Too cute. I couldn't help but put this one in. I also love Kira's face in the background.

Mr. Mike, this picture is for you! Here's my father-in-law and I comparing bellies. I FINALLY have him beat! LOL! He keeps telling me that it's not fair, I'm going to lose mine a lot faster then he'll lose his. Thanks for being a good sport Mr. Mike.

And finally, a picture of Jeremy and I with our hostesses (minus Carol and Debbie). Special thanks to all of you, especially Tristi, Kira and Jessica. We really appreciate your efforts to make our shower so nice and we're so thankful to have you in our lives. You're very important to us and we can't wait for Baby Starr to meet Aunt Tristi, "Nanny" Kira and Aunt Jessica. We love you. And Jess, the cake was AMAZING, in case I haven't already told you!!

Now, for a quick baby update. According to my e-mails from random baby websites, here's what I know... Bambino is about 5 lbs, measuring 18 inches long (It makes sense that I sometimes feel like I have feet moving in my chest!). He/she is roughly the size of a honeydew or bag of sugar. His/her central nervous system and lungs continue to mature. Bambino can recognize and react to songs. Some not-so-pleasant information, he/she urinates about a pint a day. Hey, I thought it was interesting. Brain development is nowhere near complete at birth, however, in the first year, bambino's brain will triple in size and become three-quarters of its adult size. Something else I didn't know!

As you can see, I'm bigger than ever and I still have six more weeks to go! Other than some back pain in the mornings, I'm feeling great. Dad came over on Sunday and spent his Father's Day morning putting together the stroller and pack-n-play. And he loved every minute of it, right Dad?? I washed bambino's clothes last night and put them away. Next is installing the car seat. Once we get the 10 lbs. of Callie hair out the back of the truck, we should be ready to move forward with that!

I hope you're enjoying our blog and the photos from the shower, and thanks for reading!



Wednesday, June 15, 2011

33 weeks and counting...

With the baby shower just days away, we've already received some awesome gifts from friends and family, including these fun New Orleans onesies. Dad and Cindy surprised us with the changing table Saturday night. It was already assembled too, which Jeremy appreciates! Jeremy will be with me on Saturday and we're really looking forward to seeing everyone.

Here's the baby update... Bambino is weighing in at approximately 4.5 lbs (about as heavy as a pineapple) and is about 17 inches long. And I just loved this comment from the website I use... Baby is "rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his/her skeleton is hardening." Well that's good to know! We certainly don't want little bambino coming out looking like an alien!!

We visited the doctor on Monday and while we were waiting, something weird happened. I'm laying on the hospital bed and I look down to see the right side of my belly LITERALLY raised about 2 inches higher than my left side. I guess baby was just stretching, but man, did that look creepy!?! Even Jeremy was a little weirded out. Ha, just wait til the birth!

At our visit, we also decided, well, I decided that we would no longer look at the scale. It's just too depressing. So I got on the scale as usual, and made Jeremy look away. As soon as the doctor walks in, she says, looking good, gained 2 more lbs! Ugh, I wanted to ring her neck!

Well, that's about all of the updates I have for now. Only seven weeks to go! Hope everyone has a nice week and we're very excited to see all of the ladies at Baby Starr's shower!

Saturday, June 4, 2011

An "outside" baby shower in JUNE?!





Today, we celebrated Christina at her baby shower. Not sure who had the "fun" idea to have a baby shower outside, in June, in New Orleans... did I mention OUTSIDE!? But Christina looked wonderful, as you can see, and Baby Grandt received some really nice gifts. (Christina is about 5 weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy.)

But damn, it was freaking hott!! Forget the "pregnancy glow." I sweat so much today in that sun that even bambino was asking for a snoball as we drove home. (FYI, his/her favorite flavor is nectar cream too!) Thanks to Mom for coming and sweating it out with me. She's always such good company.

I got into my truck on the way home, and the temperature was 101 degrees! Gotta love Summer in New Orleans. Just think, I've got two more months of being preggo (getting bigger by the second) and it's only going to get hotter! We spent Friday night at Mom's in the pool til 11:30 p.m., which was such a relief. I'd be OK with just living in that pool for the next two months, pruned up fingers and all!

Well, enjoy the pictures from Christina's Shower. And if we're not home, we'll either be poolside, or at the snoball stand of course!