25 Weeks!

Baby This Week: Little girl is about the size of an eggplant! Measuring 13.5 - 15 inches and weighing between 1.5 - 2.5 pounds! EEEK! 

What I am Feeling: She is kicking quite a bit - somedays more and somedays less. The days that she kicks less gets me a little worried, but evenings are usually her most active time. Once I can sit and really pay attention to what is going on in there, she kicks and moves and twirls! 

Milestones This Week:

1) Started working on the hallway - Rob installed beautiful sconces and a new light so the hallway is much better lit. We are going to paint and install pictures frames galore to get that done, and then start work on the nursery!

2) Received the prints I have ordered for the nursery! So siked to share with you all!

Miscellany: I am doing great. We had an awesome appointment on Saturday and were feeling awesome. Unfortunately Saturday night Guiness jumped on my belly and of course my pregnant-after-loss brain got all hysterical, but she's been fine and everything I have heard/read says it is not big deal. Now we just have to focus on how to really set those boundaries for Guiness. Oy. 

I hope that you all are doing great and are ready for the holidays. We are having some friends over on Friday and I am so excited :) I cannot believe the end of 2011 is nearly here! Next year we will be meeting our little baby girl! Yay!

23 Weeks!

I cannot believe we are 23.5 weeks pregnant with our baby girl!

We have had a busy busy few weeks and I am still quite pooped when I get home from a long day's work. 

So let's see ... I have done a lot more preparation for this little babe now that we know we are having a little girl! I think writing most of this post in list format is the only way to get everything down! Bear with me please ...

- On Black Friday Hubs and I ran a bunch of errands and came home with our little girl's crib and a changing table for only $150!! We decided on the Graco Lauren since it was so beautiful, simple, had great ratings and just... CHEAP! :) It's still in the garage but I can't wait till after the holidays when we can take the time to pull it out and start the nursery!

- Speaking of nursery - I also ordered a bunch of items on Etsy. I will be sure to provide the details once I do my nursery post (most likely in March - sorry, won't be done till then!). I am so excited about our purchases!

- We are officially decked out for Christmas now as well. We have all the lights up outside, the tree decorated, and all our nativity scenes and decorations inside the house as well! Yay for the Holidays!

- We spent last weekend in Baltimore with some friends for a babymoon. It was nice just to get away for 2 nights with hubs and friends. I didn't take many pictures but here is a pic of the beautifully lit Washington Monument!

- We went and registered for pretty much EVERYTHING at Buy Buy Baby and Babies R Us. I LOVE the service at BBB but the coupons and deals at BRU are too good to not register there as well. I registered for some of our 'big ticket' items at BRU so we can look for holiday specials and things. I can't believe we are officially registered! EEEK!

So now on to my 23 week update. 

Baby This Week: Baby is about the size of a papaya! She's almost a pound and a half and measures about 9 - 10 inches long! O.M.G. I cannot believe she's getting so big!

What I am Feeling: I love feeling her move, and now I can even feel her outside. While we were visiting B-more this weekend, Rob was able to feel her too! She kicked him right in the hand and it was sooo sooo precious. 

Milestones This Week:

1) Daddy feeling baby!

2) Seeing my belly move from the outside! 

3) 24 weeks this weekend! Less than 3 weeks from the 3rd trimester! EEE!

Miscellany: Overall I am feeling really good. I am tired at the end of the day but not ridiculously uncomfortable yet. I am going to share a bump pic this week! I haven't been very good about taking bump pictures but I was a "big girl" to begin with and so I think it took me a bit longer to feel "pregnant" instead of just bigger! So here goes ... my nearly 24 week belly! 

I feel like depending on the time of day, my bump changes shape and size. Hahaha. I think this weekend I will take a picture in the morning to see how different it looks! 

And that's all folks! Hope you have a great week! xoxo

21 Weeks & Gender Reveal!

Oh.My.Goodness.

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind. I am sorry I have not been posting much, but with work and making this baby, I have just been so busy and exhausted!

We had our Anatomy Scan on Monday and were SO excited to find out whether we are having a boy or a girl! We knew we had to keep it a secret until Sunday because we had planned a party where all of our family could get together and find out the gender together.

So first, my 21 week stats:

Baby This Week: Baby is about the size of a banana! Baby is about 11 inches long and actually weighed 14 ounces on Monday so probably we are at almost a pound now! EEEK!

What I am Feeling: I feel the baby move daily now. Sometimes more than others, but it's pretty much always during the day. I hardly feel the baby at night.

Milestones This Week:

1) Our anatomy scan! Everything was perfectly healthy and we have a gender!

2) We went to Buy Buy Baby and started our registry. I wanted to just get it set up so I could do some online registering and it was exhausting looking at everything!

3) We are seriously considering buying a crib on Black Friday - we are not sure if we want one from BRU or BBB because the quality is quite different, but we shall see!

Miscellany: Our Gender Reveal party! Here are the pictures:

 Team Pink!

Team Blue!

Rob pulling out the cupcakes! The grandmas were too excited, they decided dessert had to happen BEFORE dinner!

Cupcakes by Cinderellie's Sweets!

And It's a GIRL! We are having a beautiful baby girl!

18 Weeks

Today we are 18 weeks pregnant! 

Yippee!

We are very excited for the next 15 days to go by because our anatomy scan is on 11/14 and we get to see our little one again! Fingers crossed for everything to be perfectly healthy and to be able to find out whether we are having a little boy or a little girl!

Week 18

Baby This Week: Baby is about the size of a sweet potato. Measuring about 6 inches from head to rump and weighing about 6 ounces. 

What I am Feeling: I started feeling baby move more often last week. Now if I am sitting at my computer, in a meeting, or at dinner (s)he tip taps all over the place. It is usually if I am sitting forward a little that I feel it the most.  

Milestones This Week: I actually had a few! 

1) I got the call that I passed my gestational diabetes test! Because I am overweight and have PCOS, they asked me to do at 17 weeks and then again later in pregnancy. Normal is between 65 and 135 and I was at 115! 

2) Our sequential screens came back later this week and everything came within normal range! Yay! 

3) Starting to put together our "things to do" list and realizing that within the next few weeks we will be able to start registering and preparing for our baby!

I am feeling like it is getting more and more real by the day.  Being pregnant after a loss is ridiculously scary, but starting to feel some movement makes me feel better. I love the little reminders that (s)he is in there safe and sound.

Miscellany: As of now I have only gained one pound. I am all belly but am eating "ok". I had a hard time eating fruits and veggies at the begging because they would make me feel sick. I am loving salads the most at this point and am just trying to remember to keep eating fruits now too. 

I recently bought a snoogle pillow and I am loving it. I honestly couldn't sleep without it! Guiness is also a really big fan of the pillow:

(it's under the comforter but you can see where he is sleeping in the area I would normally put my legs)

Last weekend Rob and I went to a Jets game with my family. We aren't big football followers but I went to Penn State and absolutely love love love tailgating and football so we had a good time. The only thing I realized is that walking to the stadium, sitting in tiny uncomfortable seats, and walking all the way back to the car was EXHAUSTING. I won't be going to anything like that for awhile. 

(Here we are at the game!)

Hope everyone is doing well! XoxoX

16 Weeks

Oh.My.Goodness.

I cannot believe how awful I have been at blogging recently.

So much has happened since my last few posts and I have been awful at taking pictures of all of the wonderful weekends we have had.

Last weekend was my sister-in-law Laura's wedding and it was absolutely amazing!! 

Here are some pictures from the day!

Everything was absolutely gorgeous!!

Here is a candid of Rob and I at the rehearsal dinner. <3 him!

So now an update at 16 weeks:

We have been doing really well. Yesterday was Maveric's due date and Pregnancy and Infant Loss Rememberance Day so that was very hard on us, but otherwise we are doing ok. Baby is still in there with a strong heartbeat! 

Our next appointment is on Saturday October 22nd and our Anatomy Scan is scheduled for 11/14. We are very excited to find out whether we are having a little boy or girl and start really planning!

So far I have had some dreams about baby boys but not OUR baby boy. Just babies in general. Rob has had a dream about us with a baby girl, so who knows!! 

I am definitely showing now. Being a bigger girl to begin with has certainly made the bump obvious :) But that's ok - my belly is hard and definitely starts a lot higher than pre-pregnancy. Sometimes I catch myself with my hands on my belly - I think just to remind myself that this is really real. 

Being pregnant after a loss is so scarey. I have been over analyzing every twinge, cramp, ache, pull, etc. I just keep trying to remind myself that my uterus is growing and everything is moving. The pangs never really last more than a few seconds so I keep trying to remind myself that everything SHOULD be sore! I am just a paranoid person in general and keep trying to remind myself that we got this far, changes are we are bringing this baby home!! 

We are so in love and really looking forward to the next ultrasound on 11/14! Yay!

XoXoX

12 weeks

I can't believe I haven't written a post in 3 weeks baby! 

We have been able to find you using our at-home doppler and we are so excited every time that we hear that beautiful thump thump thump. 

We are having a party with some of your future faux aunt and uncles to tell them that we are expecting you to join the family next April! We are really excited and can't wait to celebrate your expected arrival.

Both Mommy and Daddy's work know about you now and so do all of your family in Maine! Everyone was so excited and can't wait to meet you (but make sure you keep on cooking in there for a good long while)!! 

Love you baby! xoxox

9 weeks

Dear Taddy!

We got to see you again yesterday. You were measuring perfectly with a beautiful heartbeat of 169 bpm again! 

I could see your beautiful head and heart and the little paddles that are the beginning of your little legs.

We are so in love with you and get to see you again in 4 weeks. 

I can't wait baby. We love you and are so glad you chose us to be your parents. 

XoXoX

8 weeks

I am getting nervous little one. 

Daddy and I are anxiously waiting for our next ultrasound on the 27th.  You had such a strong beautiful heart when we met you 2 weeks ago, and I just desperately hope and pray that you are still in there growing and healthy. 

You mean everything to me and I hope that God's plan is for you to come home with us near April 1, 2012.

Love your Mommy and Daddy.

Update: Sunday (8/21) I had a little bit of spotting. Went to the doctor's the next day and got to see you again! Measuring 7w6d with a heartbeat of 169 bpm. 

Daddy wasn't able to make it so he can't wait to see you on Saturday! 

You look like a little turtle today love!

7 weeks

Today I am 7 weeks pregnant with Taddy.

This has been an amazing week.

Monday morning I went in to get my last set of betas drawn. The number was 14,566 which meant that the number definitely doubled within the 72 hour time frame! 

I had my ultrasound on Monday night. Robert and I were so anxious and hopeful that this would be different and thankfully, it was. 

We saw Taddy. With a beautiful, strong heartbeat. The sac was perfect and measured EXACTLY 6w1d. Taddy's heartbeat was the most beautiful sound we had ever heard at 117 beats per minute it was even stronger than the technician expected. 

Rob and I were so blown away and are soooo excited. We immediately texted our parents with a picture of Taddy saying, "Hi Grandma and Grandpa. I have a heartbeat!"

Now we are just holding our breath till our next ultrasound appointment on August 27th where I will be nearly 9 weeks. 

*fingers crossed for a healthy sticky baby*

6 Weeks

Today, August 7th, I am 6 weeks pregnant with Taddy. 

Robert and I have been calling this baby Taddy since it looks like a tadpole right now. 

Tomorrow is my first ultrasound.

At 5 weeks, my HCG was 2590

at 5 weeks 2 days, my HCG was 4774. 

Doubled after 55 hours which fits well into the 48 - 72 hour time frame.

I pray that this little baby is sticky. According to my calculations we are due on April 1, 2012. 

We have already told our immediate families about Taddy. We knew that if something did go wrong we would want them to support us and know what was happening, and this means they should also have the opportunity to be happy with us. Telling everyone was absolutely amazing. Now we are just praying we get to also tell them that our Taddy shows us his/her heartbeat tomorrow.

I will not be publishing this until we make Taddy known to the rest of our friends and family, but will continue to document along the way. 

News!

Good morning all! 

I have some amazing news to share with all of you today. 

Rob and I are expecting! 

Our little one is due April 1st 2012!

Today we are 13 weeks pregnant and so elated! I have been writing posts nearly every week since we found out, so I will start to share those. 

I am sorry I haven't been posting much otherwise, I have been sleeping so much and was focussing on growing this baby as healthy as I possibly could. 

Here is Robert with Baby's picture at our last ultrasound on Wednesday. 

Baby was measuring 12w6d!

We are so in love and pray each day that this is our take*home baby!

Back from Vacation

We have been away for almost a week now visiting our family and friends in Maine.

We had an absolutely amazing time and my cousin's wedding was beautiful (another post about this later this week). 

Here are some pictures of us at the beach!

Me, Mom and Sister Cindy

Hubby and I with Guiness

We had a great time picking up Sand Dollars and Seashells

And my favorite picture of the day!

(all taken with my iPhone)

xoXox

Irene!

Hurricane Irene!

We are now waiting out the storm. It's raining here in New Jersey and it's only supposed to get windier and rainier over the next 12 - 24 hours. Where we live it is very easy to get flooded in to a certain area so we are eagerly anticipating how bad it will really be.  We are most concerned about all of the trees in our backyard.

Please pray that hurricane Irene spares our home and our neighborhood. 

Thanks! Will update tomorrow night and how we are doing!

5 months?

I seriously cannot believe that it has been 5 months since we lost our baby. 

I was thinking about it the other day and we would currently be 2 months away from giving birth to Maveric. Rob and I have been talking about what we should do on October 15th to remember him, but haven't made any official plans.

What did you ladies out there who have experienced loss do to remember you little angels?

Super Mario Party

I honestly cannot believe how long it has been since I posted. I am SO sorry to all of you readers out there.

Things have been absolutely crazy around here.

We have been trying desperately to do some work around the house and I have been having some random health things going on that needed a little attention

(don't worry - I am ok).

So I wanted to tell you all about my Sister-In-Law's absolutely amazing 25th Birthday Party. She is a lover of Super Mario Kart and decided that she wanted to have a Super Mario Kart themed party. 

My Father-In-Law started only mowing where the obstacle course would be. Everyone had to bring a Kart of some sort, and everyone had to come in costume. Rob and I supplied the cake as Christiane's Birthday present which was OF COURSE decorated by Cinderellie's Sweets! 

Here are the pictures and a video at the end. I completely forgot my camera so all were taken with my iPhone (sorry!)!

The amazingly fab Birthday Cake!

Rob and I were Mario and Luigi and Guiness was Yoshi! Rob and I made the costume with felt, thread and velcro. It came out really cute and he basically just chilled all afternoon.

My lovely little family!

<3Love

Rob was getting ready for the party and wanted to check out the obstacle course on his Sister's bike. Guiness was chasing him the entire way around :) 

I promise I will be back sooner rather than later. XoxoX.

Farmers Market Love

I feel like I have mentioned the Farmer's Market in previous posts but never officially wrote a post about my area Farmer's Market. 

Now - the Farmer's Market doesn't know that I am writing about it and I would rather not tell the entire world wide web exactly where I live (wink) so I am sorry - but I am just going to have to tell you that it is in your BEST interest to find your area Farmer's Market and utilize it as MUCH as possible. 

We love this Farmer's Market. It is a part of our weekend routine because it gives us the opportunity to purchase sooo many fruits and veggies (and more) with such little money! 

Hubs is my list*holder while I bag! We love this shelf of spices! Less than $3 for each of these HUGE bottles! We bought Cayenne Pepper for Chicken with Avocado Lime Salsa (will post that recipe later this week)! 

Had to add a little loving in here! He was sleeping when we came home and then started whining while I set up for the picture below. He just wanted hugs!

So we normally spend less than $40 at the Farmers Market but this week they had Coconut Milk, Almond Milk and Chicken Broth! Normally these each cost more than $4 at the Grocery store but instead we got these for $2.99 each. 

I adore this Farmer's Market. It's open year round and it helps me to be so much healthier. After we stop at the Farmer's Market and buy our fruits and veggies, we drive across the street (yes, directly across the street) to the Grocery Store and get our meats! It's the best $$ saver ever!

Ok - Plug over! I promise that Farmer's Markets across the world have no idea I am writing this (wink). I just really really love my area Farmer's Market!

Roebling Weekend!

Hi Everyone!

I am sorry I have been so MIA recently. However - I have LOTS to update you on this week!

First - Saturday was the 2nd Annual Roebling Museum Car Show! My Father-In-Law put it together and you can see the article for the show here.

Two of my sister-in-laws and I were responsible for selling water. We basically rode a Gator around for 4 hours making money for the museum! It was SUCH a beautiful day and everyone had a great time! Here are some pictures for you (disclaimer: they were taken with my iPhone):

This one was taken by my Father-In-Law (too good to be a phone pic :))

Me, Christiane and Diana; aka The Gator Girls

Roebling Museum's American Flag. Picture filtered with Instagram

Look at that beautiful smile!

He always humors my picture taking .... hahaha

Pointing to their branch of the tree (and Rob just thinks we are crazy)!

It was an awesome and perfect day! If you are in the Jersey Area - you should plan to come next year!!