21 weeks

Please excuse the missing photo. Mr.Wonderful has misplaced our camera. I assure you my belly is getting big. I will post a picture this week.

Total Weight Gain: 15 (rough estimate since my scale tends to be moody)

Maternity Clothes: I did it. I officially bought maternity tops and bottoms. The small maternity "trousers" ( funny word right?- what am i 80?) fit a bit loose. 

Sleep:  Thank the lord Juju has an 8 a.m class monday through wednesday. Because of this class he now thinks that going to bed at 10 pm, instead of our usual midnight or later, is a fantastic idea. You know who benefits the most from this? right here. me. So i sleep a solid 7 hrs a night now. I sleep on either side with a body pillow support my belly and helping ease hip/back pain. 

Symptoms: This week i have been experiencing some lower right side rib cage pain. Mostly when i sit or sleep- but getting up to walk around every once and a while eases the pain. Nothing too bothersome though.

What I'm looking forward to: My next ultrasound in a few days!

Cravings: Fruit- anything citric. Chicken Nuggets. Chorizo con papas. Anything with cheese in it.

Aversions: Nothing currently.

Movement: Oh! So those weren't gas bubbles. I started to feel my sweet baby move in there about a month ago i would say. I just wasnt 100% sure if that was the baby or just my stomach. Baby has now progressed to kicks. and over the last few days they have become combination kicks and what i assume are punches.

  

Gender: I have a little secret!!

What I miss: Red Wine, Tequila.  I know this seems terrible- but i truly miss me a margarita, original- on the rocks

Milestone: I am noticeable pregnant. People can stop assuming i've just gained weight.

What no one tells you, but i will: Go ahead and put away those tiny lacy thongs, g-strings, tangas and everything in between. Hello Big Momma Drawes'. The last thing you will want up your rear is a dental floss. Trust me. This doesn't meant that you cant have sexy big momma drawes'. I stocked my underwear basket with lacy cheeky boy shorts, also one size larger than usual, in a variety of colors and animal prints. Rarrrr.

Halfway & Thankful

I am officially halfway through my pregnancy! I know- I cant believe it either ;-) I thank God that i have had a relatively smooth pregnancy thus far. When people ask me how I'm doing or how I'm feeling- I always say great, which isn't a lie.

I know a few other pregnant women who can't seem to stop complaining about every.single.thing. I can't speak for them- since I have yet to throw up, (stops typing...) and i haven't been nauseated by the sun, or by the stop and go traffic. But a enormous part of me feels guilty for even remotely complaining about back pain... or new this week... ribcage pain- Because i know that somewhere, out there, there is a woman yearning for a positive test result- who would gladly throw up 4 times a day, and sleep 4 hrs a night, and live with constant headaches, and get stretch marks in places you didn't event know existed- just to be lucky enough to call herself pregnant. 

And I am that lucky. God has chosen us as the parents of this sweet baby growing inside of me. Every ache, every tingle, every thing seems so minuscule in comparison of the great reward that awaits us in parenthood.

Lately I've been asked a lot if childbirth scares me. Sure it does. As any first time mother- I'm apprehensive. I've heard both horror stories and 'oh it isn't as bad as they say' stories. I try not to think about it so much ( as in the pain ) because really, at the end of the day- if that's the price one must pay to be called mommy, it seems all worth while. Don't get me wrong, I would like to try to prepare myself, mentally, physically & spiritually, as much as i can. I'll do everything that i can do in my power- and leave the rest in God's hands.

So thank you God- for my sore hips, my achy back, my heavy boobs. Thank you for giving us this opportunity. Thank you for entrusting us with your most precious gift. I promise we'll do the best we can.

It was all a dream

I cant count the number of nights that Juju has awakened me from a bad dream.... or is laughing his ass off because im talking in my sleep or I wake up and talk about my current dream- not knowing it was a dream.

Every since I got pregnant I have been having dreams- good, bad & ugly- just about every night. Ive read that you have very vivid dreams while pregnant. I've had all sorts of dreams. I have trouble sleeping through the night at this point in my pregnancy as it is... now throw in crazy dreams every night?!... that makes for a very sleepy pregnant woman the next day!

I once dreamt that juju was living 2 houses away from me, while being married. I woke up mid dream and told him that it would be a lot easier for us to cuddle if he moved closer.

The most recent dream included John Galliano, Yes. Galliano. He wanted me to join him as a groupie... of all women.  Go figure.

A few days ago I had one of the most beautiful dreams. EVER. I saw my baby in my dreams. The baby had a head full of hair and it was just perfect. It was so realistic. I woke up and told Juju that I saw the baby in my dreams- to which he responded... You know that doesn't count right?!?  I cant wait to meet my sweet sweet baby!

18 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 10 pounds [i blame the boobs and the baby ;-)]

Maternity Clothes: Stretchy bottoms and medium tops. I have yet to venture in to full blown maternity clothes, but i have a feeling it wont be very much longer.

Sleep:  I generally get about 5-6 hours of sleep a night. Not ideal i know- My body has this self timing self wake up at about 4 in the morning. Then i simply lay in bed just waiting to fall back asleep.

Symptoms: i find myself getting OUT. OF. BREATH. a lot easier than before. Since i've always generally stayed around the same weight... these extra few pounds have been making my back a little achy. But no big complaints here. 

What I'm looking forward to: Feeling my sweet baby move, punch, kick, somersault. DO SOMETHING.

Cravings: I have been very thirsty lately. thirsty for pineapple mango smoothies from McDonalds! yum. That and roast beef sandwiches. =-)

Aversions: Parmesan cheese. Just the smell of it turns me off. But i can still tear up some Fettucine Alfredo!

Movement: Nothing yet

  

Gender: Unknown

What I miss: Chai Latte, Red Wine

Milestone: I am noticeable pregnant. People can stop assuming i've just gained weight.

What no one tells you, but i will: Those cute 7.5 borderline 8 size shoes you used to wear? Kiss'em goodbye. Your feet are going to grow. And i'm not talking about swelling. I mean GROW. I've read that your bone structure in your feet changes to accommodate your weight gain. I have work heels in about 10 weeks. Do you know how hard that is for me? I am a slave to these cute (looks at shoes) black flats int size NINE & HALF. ( for the record i normally wear an 8.5/9)

Taking Care of My Baby

Cookie is my fur baby ya'll. She's the current boss at home, don't tell her, and I love her to death.  Last week I noticed an odd looking patch of hair on her back. After doing some research I self diagnosed her with ringworm. I went to petco/petsmart and purchase an anti-fungal shampoo and conditioner. In my research I read that it can be passed on to other dogs, i.e. Leche ( my in-laws dog) and humans!

I decided to take her in to the vet. We are still waiting for the ringworm test results to come back, but she did test positive for a bacterial skin infection. A couple hundred dollars later and a bag full of meds we are on day 4 of her antibiotics. 

The trick you see... is getting her to take it twice a day, for 14 days. 

So my brilliant husband decided to 'gut' a goldfish cracker and stuff her antibiotic in it. Clever eh? after the second dose he was a pro at carving out (not pulverizing like me) the outer layer of the cracker, as if he had done it a million times in the past. Kinda made me nervous- not gonna lie. 

But you know they say that behind a good man theres a great woman?  I opened a jar of skippy and slathered a healthy portion on top.

She loves the fished cuz' their so delicious, and nutritious.

Holy Belly!

How far along: 16 weeks

 "Hurry up babe i have to pee for the 67th time today!"

Total Weight Gain: 7 pounds

Maternity Clothes: For the past few weeks i have been living in dresses, Ponte pants and  loose, flowy (or medium sized) tops. I can still wear things with buttons... like jeans- but i cant come close to buttoning them. I do wear them unbuttoned with a belly band. Actually... now that i think about it- I haven't been able to button pants for a few weeks now. hmm. I DID buy 2 maternity dresses and a pair of maternity jeans because they were a good deal but the jeans are still too big. Although the dresses are maternity i would hardly consider them maternity, i mean they do have an elastic empire waist and all, but i think they mainly accommodate the girls. And don't event get me started on those- I had to go up 2 cup sizes already. ALREADY!!

Sleep:  My left side lower back/buttocks/aciatic nerve area have been bothering me, specially throughout the night. I have started to randomly wake up multiple times in the middle of the night, and not because i have to pee mind you, but just because. Matter of fact i have never been that person who wakes up just to pee. I usually pee right before bed and as soon as i wake up- move out the way...

Symptoms: Thankfully i have had a pretty smooth first trimester. I haven't experienced any morning sickness. I do begin to feel a little nauseous if i go too long between meals. There was a few days were it got really hot in these parts of town, that didnt make me feel so good either. Slight back discomfort mentioned above. 

What I'm looking forward to: Feeling my sweet baby move, punch, kick, somersault.

Cravings: When i first found out i pregnant i was craving hot dogs non-stop. I could seriously eat one everyday. I've read that you shouldn't have hotdogs but thankfully they were referring to uncooked hotdogs due to potential bacteria growth called Listeria monocytogene. Other than that i only crave something after someone mentions it, for example say you casually mention spaghetti and meatball. Lightbulb. All systems go on that craving until i actually eat it.

Aversions: Lunch time. I don't know what it is about the mere thought of lunch- but it makes me feel uneasy. I still eat and what not... but as soon as the clock hits noon i cant help but shutter.

Movement: Nothing yet

  

Gender: Unknown

What I miss: Chai Latte, Red Wine

Milestone: First trimester is over!

What no one tells you, but i will: You get gassy. I mean G.A.S.S.Y. and you know how sometimes you fart and your like sniff sniff. meh- no big deal. oh boy. yeah not these farts... Even you, yourself, will be shocked. Juju is. Every time.  Thankfully they occur in the evenings and during the night.

"Gas? What gas? that wasn't me!"

Meet Baby Reyes

Baby Reyes; Meet your blog family

Blog Family; Meet Baby Reyes

Tilt your head to the left and you'll be able to make the out babys body a bit better. 

My sweet sweet baby <3

Sporting the bump

Im a little more than 3.5 months but I feel like I've been pregnant for way longer since Juj and I found out very early on that I was pregnant. I mailed out my pregnancy announcements to my entire family, I wanted everyone to find out roughly at the same time and I wanted them to hear it from us. 

Here is my belly premier shot

Hello bump!

One of the most difficult parts (thus far...) about being pregnant, or finding out very early on is keeping it a secret. We wanted to wait until after the first trimester to officially announce our pregnancy- The only problem is that you know your life has changed... but no one else does. This makes everyday tasks that much more difficult. I lost count on how many times I had to fake a headache, or sip and spit.

I attended a co-ed baby shower- of course there was alcohol... and sangria was purchased just for me, since I'm the only one of my girlfriends who drinks sangria. "Have some sangria Lorena, we got it just for you" My poor sangria cup took so many trips to the toilet/sink where I oh so slyly poured it out.

Then, I had my cousins bachelorette party- where everyone is expected to use the occasion as an excuse to drink until they no longer look like the former hot version of themselves from beginning on the night. I threw a few shots over my shoulder as everyone was still in the tilted head position. I drank a ton a cranberry juice that night and I 'sipped' on the same plastic cup (which worked to my advantage thank God!) of champagne the entire night before heading to the bar.

I'll hopefully try to take weekly belly pics... but I'm not going to lie... I'll have to start fresh this week because I've sorta fell off the wagon since doing the announcements.

21 questions or just 3

This is week 2 of coming out of the baby closet. And it feels liberating! After I told my office that I was pregnant, I told them that I was beginning to fear that they would think that I was just getting fat. I honestly felt like there was an elephant in the room. I felt that everyone 'knew' I was pregnant and I was trying to hide it from them.

One of the top questions that people have asked me, which is a little weird-

Were you guys trying?
You might have well asked me if we were going at it like bunnies. I think people who are trying don't generally tell people that they're trying. People who struggle to conceive, well the majority of them, don't make it public knowledge until they are successful.

So anyhow. We weren't checking temperatures, tracking days or trying the best positions. No, we weren't trying but we weren't trying to NOT get pregnant either, you know to keep it PG.

I always knew that I wanted to have children. I also knew the I didn't want to wait too long to start 'trying'- I've heard/read many stories about people who wait and wait and wait until they think the time is right and when they finally do start trying- they struggle and sometimes aren't able to conceive.

The night before i took the pregnancy test at home I was praying. I had the feeling that i was pregnant but i wasn't certain. And with the uncertainty came, well uncertainty. I thought to myself- what if i really am pregnant? and my mind started racing a thousand miles a minute with every possible answer to "what does this mean?" What does this mean for me? For juju? What about school? What about work? Can we afford a baby? Can we pay to send our baby to private school? it's first car? college? and then i thought but what if I'm not?


So i laid out my cards on the table for God to see and said Let it be your will, not mine. If we are meant to have a baby and that time is now- so be it, I was ready to accept God's plan.

And just like that God sent a little blessing our way the very next day.

1+1 =3 (+dog)

The one time math doesn't add up- Yet it makes perfect sense.

I'm thrilled to announce that Juju and I are expecting our first bundle of joy early February 2012.

I spared you the pee tip and the brand- you know this isn't a free publicity post for first response, though i did find out i was pregnant up to six days before your missed period.  ;-)  I always wondered if i would be that persons who's first thought would be 'holy shit hurry get the camera' right after having peed on a stick. I am.

I can't believe I (we) were able to keep this secret for so long. I had to stay away from the blog in fear that I may just give in and blurt it out. I am so excited- its one of those feelings that you cant describe.

Stay tuned for additional Q&A, I've received plenty of question and I hope to answer the majority here. Please, feel free to stop being a shadow stalker- follow; don't stalk.

We never win- and then we won

You know how people say that they never win anything? Well I, we, never win. But then again I never enter sweepstakes, or giveaways, or raffles. Basically anything where our chances are like 1 in a billion 32. I still get suckered in to buying church raffle tickets or donations. 

So there I was, 2 weeks ago it was Sunday night about 9:30 when I get the phone call, from our priest, saying that our ticket was the first prize winner. I was a little flustered and wasn't sure if i had heard him correctly. He told me to 'come on down and collect my prize'. So Juju, his cousin and I hoped into the car and went to claim our first prize-

A 43" Samsung plasma (1080p- if that makes a difference) 

We were in total shock. In fact Juju thought it was an intervention. Needless to say Juju was thrilled to pieces. So I've started filling out and entering every giveaway, every sweepstakes, every survey.... I'm in it to win it!!

Don't forget the tampoons

On Sunday night Juju and I ran to target to pick up a few things... ( a post on that later ). When we make quick runs- we are determined to not use a cart and spend less than $50. So when we walked in Juj asked if we needed a cart. I said no. I knew this would lead to a whole lot of 'i just want to check out the clearance aisles' or 'oh uh look babe its on sale's. Reluctantly I walked back to get a cart and saw this:

I laughed so hard I almost needed # 3 to clean up my mess.



Quit Your Whining

I've lived in Wisconsin all my life, as well as the majority of the people that i know. And one topic that never ceases to amaze me is the weather. Yes. Weather.

People complain when its cold. I understand. I mean Wisconsin winters consists of snow and ice and very very cold temperatures... -10F with a -30 windchill? yes. Its very common. And yet people are shocked when they step outside and their nose hairs freeze instantly. Its called winter.

Then people complain that we have very short summers. This again is true. We have falls and winters that seem to last forever. Our summers are short and sweet. We typically don't experience heat like Texas or California. We have Midwest summers. Wisconsin's east border is surrounded by water. Its called the "lake effet'.   

Yesterday... it was this hot.

Not very typical for Wisconsin

And while its not the most favorable conditions to be outside, or running errands, I think we all need to take this weather with a grain of salt. Be thankful that you are able to see the sun, that you are able to feel its warmth on your face. Try explaining to the other half of the world that is in famine that your air conditioner went out last week and it is impossible to live with out it. Seriously people, lets find some eperspective here.

Im a murderer- cuz i kill time

And squirrels.

Last monday i was driving to work as usual. I saw a squirrel standing on the side of the road. I knew that as soon as i approached it would make a run for it. So i slowed down. I approached with caution. It simply stood there. It wasn't trying to cross the road.

and then it did.

and i hit it.

There was nothing i could do. It darted across the road just as i was lost sight of him through my windshield. I couldn't break, i couldn't swerve.

It honestly didn't feel like i did. I mean, granted it couldn't have been bigger than a couple of pounds, but it didn't feel like i hit anything- it more so felt like i hit a small crack on the road.

The worst part of this all is that i didn't kill it, i simply fatally injured it. I looked in my rearview mirror to see it drag its fluffy tailed body off the middle of the road to safety. I felt absolutely terrible. I was on the verge of tears. I pulled off to the side thinking of what the proper protocol for something like this was. I did the second best thing to running after the squirrel and nursing it back to health- I called Juju.

He tried his best to console me- I felt so guilty. I knew this squirrel didn't stand a change, he was injured and it wouldn't be long before he died.

I'm a murderer.

a squirrel murderer.

DIY Diaper Cake

A little late, but i wanted to post pictures of the diaper cake i made for my sisters shower a few months ago. I watched a few you tube videos and read various instructions and took a swing at it- I have to say i was pretty impressed with the results. Its not too difficult to make, but like with all projects, you just have to have a little patience.

First- decided whether or not your going with a theme or a gender. Since her shower was more so an animal jungle theme I decided to go with jungle like animals. You can also incorporate additional items into the cake its self. I've seen a few with bottles, baby blankets, baby lotion, pacifiers, etc. Here is a snapshot of what i used & for the cake itself i used 96 size 2 diapers, black hair ties and larger rubber bands.

First i began by rolling each diaper up and securing it with a black hair tie. I made sure i rolled all the diapers in the same direction and rubber banded them roughly in the same spot.

You want to ensure that they are rolled pretty evenly as far as tightness and that they are able to stand on their own. This will make the cake building processes a lot easier.

As i began building my cake I realized that using only 96 diapers would make a small cake, smaller than i wanted it to be. So i quick improvised and wrapped a cookie tin in tissue and added bulk/size by wrapping diapers around the tin. I've seen people wrap diapers around baby bottles, cans of formula and  blankets.

As you can see the diapers are all roller in one direction. This is where the larger rubber bands come in. Once all the diapers are in place place the larger rubber band around them all to secure them together.

The mid tier was starting off unevenly proportioned to the bottom tier so i wrapped the diapers around a toilet paper roll, which worked perfectly!

The top tier i wrapped around a bottle of oregano! That was the only thing in my pantry that fell into the size proportion i needed. This flat surface also worked well for the 'cake topper', so if your using some sort of topper this might be a good idea, though it doesn't have to be oregano ;-)

Once all the layers were assembled, i wrapped a thick brown ribbon, 1.5 in i think, around all three tiers using double sided tape to secure it to the diapers.

I added an accent color to the middle tier. I decided to only add it to the middle tier because I didn't want the cake to become overwhelming to look at.

Once done, i added the small decorations to the cake and used double sided tape to keep them in place. If your wondering where I got the small stuffed animals from... long before we began to plan my sister baby shower  McDonalds had an animal themed happy meal. So what did a dedicated sister do? I bought happy meals until i got the two stuffed animals that i wanted- the giraffe and the tiger.

Here is the cake topper that i used. I bought the pacifiers from her registry, curled a little ribbon and wrapped a monkey beanie baby around it.

Here is a few other pictures of the finished product. 

and yes, i fixed the center ribbon once i noticed it was crooked by the baby wash.

and if your wondering that is the same wrapped board i used here and used here.

Fullbar Review

In my never ending quest for weight loss, i never discard any idea or product - no matter how silly it may seem. My latest try has been the full bar. A coworker of mine gave me a box of these bad boys because they made her gassy. This concerned me, I'm gassy just because, let alone eating something that will induce gas.

And although i cant really say its a full review because i haven't followed the directions exactly, your supposed to eat 2 a day alongside your 2 biggest meals. BUT i have eaten a few of them.

 Here's the breakdown: They are 160 calories and only 10 are from fat, so they are very low in fat. Though they are high in carbs, 31g, most granola, cliff, luna, etc bars are the same. My husband tries to convince me that carbs are not the enemy, and they are not, he's right. Our body needs them- my problem is that i carb over load- and that's what makes you gain weight. It has 4g of dietary fiber, and the average person needs about 25-30g of dietary fiber a day. It has 5g of protein, that ones a no brainer, protein is good for you- helps rebuild muscle.One bar has 13g of sugar, which is the same as 2 Oreo cookies, yes, the oreos might taste better, but these have some nutritional content. Overall they aren't unhealthy and they taste what you would expect from any other bar. They are a little grainy, again like many other bars, but honestly... its not a deal breaker.

In a nutshell, you are supposed to eat a Fullbar with 8 oz. of water, wait 30 mins and then eat a reasonable meal. As the name indicates, this bar will make you feel full- so by the time you eat, your stomach is partially full and you eat less. Simple, right?

So far, I've never felt gassy after eating a Fullbar. I follow the direction and drink at least 8 oz of water, but i tend to drink more. I also eat the bar slowly, by choice.  This actually may be the reason why i've never felt gassy or bloated. Then came the moment of truth... 30, 40, 50 mins later and i didnt feel hunger. I eventually got lunch because i was afraid this feeling of fullness would wear off and i'd binge later. I eat a smaller lunch than usual and felt completely satisfied.

On another occasion i actually substituted my lunch for the Fullbar. I had my regular grande coffee round 8:45a, had my normal 20 oz of water before noon. I opened up a Fullbar and had at least 8oz of water with it. I didn't eat until about 3pm once i got home and again i wasn't crazy hungry.

Go on now, go. Run and try it. What do you think?