Crib & changer

So with just about 3 more months to go, (and after reading some fellow bloggers who are gearing up for the arrival of baby with completions or almost completions of nurseries and realizing that I'm so not on the ball with this stuff), I decided to place my order for Kaua's crib! It's the Da Vin ci Park er 4 in 1 crib in coffee color. I got it from ama.zon for $269 and the shipping is FREE! I chose it b/c it's got a drawer underneath to store bedding (but the drawer is detachable if we dont like it), and it's got a dip in the front to help when bending over the crib to put baby inside. I also like the curverature designs of the back portion of the crib and in the crib legs. Its not a drop side crib, which I read isn't the safest for baby. It's also pretty sturdy (I got to see one in person when visiting the NEX with a friend).




I'm a little worried about spending the money when money is tight, but I figure, the crib, the stroller, the car seat and the breast pump...those are the necessities I'll need right away. So my goal is to purchase several of the big ticket items now.


We already got the gra.co stroller frame for $40 off craig.slist.






And this past weekend, my coworker gave us a really nice changing table that she'll no longer use. It's not the right color, it's in a natural wood, but my mom's BF is a carpenter so when I move back home, he'll be able to refinish it for me in a matching color to the crib. For now, we'll just have to go unmatching. Baby wont mind. I haven't taken a picture of it yet, but it looks similar to this:







I'm envisioning using some left over wedding GCs to buy some woven baskets to put on the shelves to help keep neat in appearance any baby products I store on the shelves.

Next up, the breast pump and the infant car seat. I'm secretly hoping to get these at my baby showers (yes, I think I'm having two -one for friends and one for family at my home town where DH lives, and potentially a third, with coworkers but I'm not sure b/c no one's said anything to me), but if I dont, they will be pretty easily purchased from the local discount stores.


I've also registered for several other big ticket items that are not absolute necessities, like a pack-n-play with bassinet and a glider which I'm hoping to get also as gifts, but if I dont, I'm sure I can manage.


Even though we're moving, I'm hoping to get some before and after pictures of the pseudo nursery. I call it pseudo, because we wont be doing major rennovations, but it'll have to do for the time being. I'll post them when I take 'em.


With 3 months to go, it's time to buckle down and start preparing for baby to come!

25 & 26 weeks

I (or should we say, Kaua) completed 26 weeks today! Below is my 25 week photo and my 26 week photo. My belly measurements for the two photos are 38.25 inches and 38.75 inches respectively.
25 weeks:


26 weeks:


You can really see my belly is taking on a more rounded shape now. Also new this week, I'm starting to notice how my belly is getting in the way. I've noticed it before, but it wasn't really much of a problem, but now it's more noticeable. I find myself reluctant to bend down or when I do, I find it's really uncomfortable. For instance, I was sitting in the passenger seat of our car trying to wipe up a spill on the floor matt and I couldn't stay bent over for very long to completely wipe up the spill b/c it was too uncomfortable. Afterwards, Kaua kicked a few times as if to say, you're squishing me mommy, stop it! I'm also rolling off the couch more when lying down on it and just wanting more help in general when getting up from a seated position. Imagine, I've got 3 more months of growing to go. Thankfully, no back pain or swelling yet. =)

According to WTE, this week the baby is over 2 lbs and the size of an eggplant. My uterus has grown to the size of a basketball!!! Yikes! We also start measuring Kaua from head to toe instead of just crown to rump, and according to WTE, he should be about 15 inches long. His eyes are open and he can hear. We're supposed to also be able to hear his heartbeat if DH just presses his ear to my belly, but we doubt it. Just this past week, we tried listening for Kaua's heartbeat with a stethoscope and still couldn't find it. But we could hear his movements.

Kaua is still moving around a lot which is comforting. This past week, I'd say he was head up and feet down mostly b/c I felt the movements mostly down low and they felt almost muffled (as if he was kicking my cervix or the placenta or inwards). Today, he seems to have turned somewhat b/c his kicks are up higher and primarily on the right side of my belly. I read that baby will still have room to turn even up to 36-37 weeks.

And I'm not sure if I showed these photos to you, but here are two pictures of the father's day gift I got for DH back in June.




I ordered the shirt on line from a custom t-shirt print shop. The cool thing is, I ordered it before we found out we were having a boy b/c I was referring to his sperms as "boys." But since we're having a boy, it's even more fitting.

DH leaves tomorrow. Somehow, I'm calm about it. I think its because I'm flying to see him Friday night and will spend the entire labor day weekend with him. He will then be flying home the following 3 weekends so we can start attending a childbirth preparation class together and a couple weddings and parties we were invited to. So it's not so bad. We'll see how I'm doing tomorrow.

Free at last

quick post b/c I feel guilty blogging about it....

MIL left today!!! Yippee! Quiet time with the DH again. Yay! =)

Thanks for the condolences about DH moving. I'm working on getting myself over to be with him ASAP. With prayers and the power of God, I will make it! This is where my faith will come in. =)

DH is moving...

sniff, sniff*

I just booked DH's flight to ......away. He's trasferring fire departments which requires a move. I'll eventually move to be with him, but that wont be until after the firecracker is born and after we sell our house. So it'll likely be next spring sometime.

He'll be leaving next week Monday at 2:30pm. It's really not a huge deal b/c I'll be going to see him that following weekend, then he'll be flying back to see me the weekend afterwards. And we'll probably do a lot of the flying back and forth thing as long as our finances can allow it. But it's still so sad. My DH will no longer be a full time resident in our town. He'll be a parttime resident. He's staying with my family in my original home town, so ultimately the sacrifice is worth it b/c it's what I wanted...to move back home and raise our children there among my family.

but I just never knew of the sacrifices we'd have to make (though be it small in the scheme of things) to get there. DH is moving away. We'll do the "commuting" thing. He's taking a big pay cut for the first year...and we'll have to sell our house for a loss. =( (Though I'm praying to God that it wont be for a loss, and heck, God does work miracles as long as I believe). And I'll have to find a new job, which is scary since the job I have now is with a really really great company. The exciting thing is eventually we get to look for a new home, one where hopefully we wont be stretched to the limits in finances like we are now with this home.

The other really sad thing is that along with DH, he'll be taking our 2 year old american bulldog. It's a good idea, since our doggy is such a big dog that I cant walk him for fear of falling (when he sees another dog that sets him off, he gets crazy and tuggy and I have a hard time controlling him, even with a super duper heavy duty choker chain collar). I love our doggy, and he requires a lot of attention and exercise to match his high energy, so he's much better off with DH and my family where he'll have daily attention from my nephews. But the sad thing is, I'll be all alone in my little home without DH or a doggie. =( sigh.

It's only temporary. I keep telling myself that. But still, it's hard to be away from your best friend. At least I'll have little Kaua here with me and in me to keep me company. I hope Kaua gives us lotsa warning for when he's going to come so we can make arrangements for DH to be home when I go into labor. I will, however, have backup friends whom I'll be able to call should I need a ride to the hospital and DH's not here. Yikes!

I took a 25 week belly picture on Sunday, but need to post it. Only 3 more days and then I'll be in the 2 digit day count down (less than 100 days) till my due date! Crazy!

Kaua surprised DH

So the firecracker (aka Wyatt Kaua) is definitely a mover and a shaker again. And whenever DH is home, and the firecracker is moving, I tell my DH (and sorta force him) to come feel him moving (why is it that DH isn't glued to my tummy everytime Kaua moves like I would think I would be if our roles are reversed?). So last night, as I was putting DH's hand on my belly, the firecracker really really kicked hard. For me, Wyatt doing significant movements is becoming a normal thing, but for DH, all the other movements he's felt have been generally light taps. But nope, this one was a full on limb pushing out and pressing against my belly and brushing it. Upon feeling this, DH jumped and made a weird face and pulled his hand back. He was so surprised at the force of the movement. He said it was like an alien was in my tummy. It cracked me up!!! I told him that that was how our son has been moving for a while now, as if he wants to jump out my belly, and he was just so amazed and in awe. I couldn't stop laughing for a good 2 minutes at DH's surprise. That moment was definitely priceless and something I want to treasure (hence the bloggy entry).

I am just LOVING this pregnancy and feeling this little guy move all the time!! He definitely makes me giggle when he's so active. And he's active generally up high on my belly, which according to something I read somewhere, could indicate that he's head down and feet up because the feet are generally in the location where you feel most movement. I dont know if that's true, but if Kaua is head down, then that's fine by me. We definitely want him in the right position when its time for birth. (Which shouldn't be for at least another 12 weeks...so sit tight baby boy!).

Anyways, that's all in the pregnancy chapter for today.

MIL leaves in 1 week (wahooo!) and my mom is coming to visit for the weekend, beginning tomorrow! Yay! (I love my mommy!).

First stretch mark

I got my first badge of honor a.k.a. stretch mark in a really weird place. I wouldn't even have noticed it, except that DH pointed it out to me this AM as I was changing for work. It's underneath my left boob. It's very close to the nipple and fairly light. Almost looks like a hickey, but nope, sadly it's not (these bbs dont get much action these days). It's almost quite funny really because how weird is it that its only on one boob and underneath? I've been religiously rubbing my special oils on the bbs and the belleh in efforts to combat the stretch marks (even though I know it may not really prevent them), but I guess I've been neglecting under the boobie (which I admit is a new area for me b/c pre-pregnancy, my bbs didn't really have an underside). I'll try to pay more attention to that spot from now on.

I hope this is the last of the stretch marks!!!

Oh yeah, the other new pregnancy symptom I've recently encounterd are calf cramps and big toe cramps. And its only on my right leg. Weird huh? I've only had the calf cramp twice and the toe cramp once. It happens when I'm in bed and I wake up and stretch out my body long ways (you know, reach your legs out and arms up). I try not to stretch for fear that I may bring on the cramp, but for some reason, my body just really wants to stretch. I think its because I've got limited sleep positions now that I'm bigger, so my body needs a stretch since I'm stuck in basically one or two sleep positions the whole night. I read in WTE that to try and prevent the cramping, I should stretch before I go to bed. I'll try to remember that.

Glad you guys liked the name!

The NAME

So, a few posts back (for all you astute readers -- aka Malia) I said we may have picked our baby's name and was trying to get some stuff together for when I share it with the bloggy world. Well, the "stuff" isn't quite ready (read: I've been lazy but I'll get to it someday soon and show it off), but I still wanna share the name now.

So here's the deal - we've come up with two names - a first and a middle name. Although I love both, I have a special affinity to his middle name, and like his daddy, we'll probably call the firecracker by his middle name (or a shortened version of it) rather than his formal English first name. However, since we've decided that we picked the name, I find myself referring to the firecracker using both of his names interchangeably, so who knows. Long story short, feel free to call him whatever you want, first name or middle name.

So without further adieu his first name will be (as of now, yes, its subject to change up until we put it down on his birth certificate):

WYATT

Why we picked this name? DH came up with it one day simply because he liked the sound of it (dont all names kinda start out like this?). He mentioned it to me and while I wasn't hugely keen on it right away, I admit it did have a certain ring to it, and it eventually grew on me. And it really matches our last name (which also starts with a W). Although we know its not an uncommon name, neither DH nor I know anyone with that name, other than the westerner - Wyatt Earp, and even then, i dont know much about his story other than he got into a gun fight. But that's not why we're naming him that. We also recently looked it up in a baby name book (and I also did some google research) and discovered it has french origins and means "little warrior". We think this meaning is really fitting since my DH's name means "strength" or "strong". We chose this name as his first name because its simple, its sweet, its "cute" but "manly", its got a great meaning, and it's to help our son out because his middle name is going to be a doozie.

His middle name will be:

KAUA'APUAKEA

Pronounced (Ka-ooah-ah-pooah-kay-ah) (yes, we're Hawaiian, and yes its a Hawaiian name.) There is also a line over the third A, (called a kahako), but I dont know how to reprint that on the blog using the fonts available. Hawaiians use ' (a backwards apostrophe called an 'okina) and kahako as part of their alphabet and the addition or subtraction of such "letters" can change the meaning of a word...so it's important that those be included when spelling a word to be accurate.

Now for the explanation of the name and its meaning. First "ua" means rain in Hawaiian. "Ka" is a ka'i or directional word and is very similar to the word "the" in English...so "ka ua" = "the rain". "'Apuakea" is the name of the type of rain where we live on our island. (yes, yes, so much info about me on an anonymous blog!). So our son's name means "the 'Apuakea rain". The literal translation of "'apuakea" is "white fish basket". 'Apua = fish basket used for catching fish. and "kea" means white. I'm not exactly sure why the name of the rain in the town where we live is called the white fish basket rain, but I think it has to do with the multitude of rain we get and the type of activity (fishing) that was prevelant in pre-modern days. Or it could be that the way the rain clouds wrap around our side of the island resembles that of a white fish basket. Hawaiians commonly named the different rains and winds in different areas of Hawaii based on the type of rain or wind and its characteristics. So there are many different names for the different rains and winds in the different parts of the state.



We chose Kaua'apuakea for our son's name so that he would know and be able to share where he was from. It's a common practice for Hawaiians and basically anyone in Hawaii to introduce themselves with not only their name, but where they are from. For example, in modern times, we'd say our name, and say what island we're originally from (or what town), or what high school we went to. It's just a way to know that person better. We also chose this name for our son because he was conceived and will be born in the rainy season here in Hawaii (conceived in March, born in December). Also, our town is known to be on the rainier side of the island, so we see a lot of the ua here. I mean, a lot! Also, in many cultures, including Hawaii, rain signifies a blessing or is good luck, and of course, this little guy is our blessing. There is many great associations with rain/water and good fortune, love, etc. and I hope that it will translate into our son.



We also live in a gorgeous valley where the rainfall makes everything green and there are beautiful waterfalls coming down the mountain side. Since moving to this area (where my DH is from) I've fallen in love with the mountains and have always wanted to name our child with something having to do with the mountains. I have big plans of taking a picture of our valley when it rains and using it as a nursery decoration. Something similar to this photo (though its not of our valley, its of the same mountain range):





Getting the photo that we'll use in the nursery is the "stuff" i wanted to get done before I shared his name with you all, but it's not done and I have a feeling it may be a work in progress, so I wanted to share now.

So there you have it. As of now, our son will be called: Wyatt Kaua'apuakea

or just simply - Kaua.

We've reached VIABILITY!

Yup, this is another big milestone in the pregnancy timeline. But one that while I'm ecstatic we reached, does not allow me any sighs of relief. At 24 weeks pregnant, we've reached viability (baby boy has a decent chance of surviving outside of the womb with intensive care at this point), but baby boy still has a significant amount of time more to grow and if he did come now, he would face the potential for severe complications. So baby boy, stay in my belleh and continue to cook. I wont breath any sighs of releif probably till after we hit 36-37 weeks. That's when in my mind, he'll be full term and can come out. That's 12 more weeks away, or 3 months!

So in my mind, I want to say I'v completed 6 months of pregnancy (24 weeks divided by 4 = 6 months), but because months are not exactly 4 weeks long, according to most websites, I dont complete 6 months of pregnancy until the 27th week (3 more weeks away). I feel like I'm too big for 5 months of pregnancy, but I guess I'm just not quite yet there to 6 months. Oh well, I'll be 5 and a half months pregnant I guess.

And here's this weeks belleh picture, where I'm now 38 inches in circumference:


Oh and in the movement department, on Thursday and Friday, it was the first time since I started feeling significant movement where the firecracker's movements decreased significantly. To the point where I wasn't even sure I felt him. I got nervous and even mentioned it to the hubsters on friday afternoon. DH was cute, he tried talking to my belleh in order to get him to move for daddy --- no such luck (huh, our son is disobeying his parents already!). According to Dr. Google, its common at this stage of pregnancy for movement to be sporadic, periods of high activity and periods of low activity. I read that some moms on message boards chalk this up to growth spurts in their babies. When baby is not as active, they notice that their bellies get bigger, which could indicate baby is growing. Not sure if that's the case in my book or not...but hey, I'll take it. I started feeling him move again yesterday, last night and a little this morning, but he still hasn't been as active as before. We'll see how it goes. Part of me thinks that he is going through a growth spurt and the next time I feel him move, it'll be movements that feel a lot stronger.

5th PNA went well

By now, these PNA appointments are becoming fairly routine and uneventful for me. I even went all by my little self like a big girl. I got to see my old OB - Dr. B because my current OB, Dr. M. was on vacation. I like Dr. B because she has great bedside manners. I feel as if she takes more time with me to explain things. My repoire with her is best. But unfortunately, I had to switch from her because when I was having the MC complications, she kept referring me out to other doctors, which I didn't like. I want to see one doctor that does it all (sort of).

Anywas, back to my appointment. Baby boy is doing fine! (Thank you God!) His heartbeat was about 145-150. He wasn't moving very much when she had the doppler on me, (still moving though), but he's been quite the active little guy everyday, so I'm not worried at all. We discussed some questions I had about my funky nipples (apparently its normal for the tips of the nipples to harden a little - almost like scabs - in preparation for my milk production). She said if they get itcy, like they have been off and on, I can put lotion or oil on them (which I have been).

She also encouraged me to consider taking the H1N1 flu shot, which will be out and available in my clinic in October. She said that she's never seen the CDC or the government push a flu vaccination out so fast and explained that pregnant women are on the top of the list of who can get the shot because of the deaths in America, pregnant women are by far a large group of the population who are apparently susceptible, even though they are fairly healthy. I was at first, reluctant to get the shot because I dont like pumping my body full of chemicals and stuff if its not necessary. She helped ease my fears saying that it wasn't like these would be hormones or other chemicals, but instead types of proteins and viruses that will help my body fight off the virus should I ever come into contact with it. She said they've been giving pregnant women the flu vaccination for years and have not found any bad side effects, and the H1N1 would be no different. DH is still not sure he's into me having the shot, especially since October will be so close to my due date anyways (Dec. 6) that it may not even be really necessary. I'm going to give it some more thought....

If you're expecting, what's your stance on getting the H1N1 flu shot?

My next appt is in 27 days and I'll have to take my glucola test a few days prior to the appointment so we can go over my results. This is a big test for me because if I fail, I could have gestational diabetes which means a whole crap load of stuff I need to do to monitor it. (GD can cause your baby to grow to big and other complications in your pregnancy and with baby). My coworker had GD during her first pregnancy and just found out she has it again for her 2nd pregnancy. It's not a fun thing to have at all. And unfortunately, its just something someone gets during pregnancy, no matter how healthy or unhealthy they are. So this next appt will be a biggie for me. The good news for GD is that I'll be on a strict diet which will hopefully regulate this weight gain, because even though I've been trying to be good, I still gained another 5 lbs since my last appt. The total weight gain for me has been 19 lbs so far! yucky!

Also up on the countdown list for me - 2 more weeks till the MIL leaves!!! Ugh! Cant wait. She's a fine houseguest and all, but still, 2 months is just way way way way too long to be living with your MIL. I miss having it just be me and the hubsters at home. But the sad thing is DH leaves to go to his new job location (with less pay!!!) just 4 days after MIL leaves, so that's sad. =( We'll try to fly back and forth to see each other every weekend, but with a pay cut, it may not be feasible to do it every weekend. We'll see though...I'm going to pray to God about it, and I'm finding that He always answer my prayers.

23 weeks!

Here's my 23 week photo.

I've grown just about one quarter of an inch, which puts the belleh at 37.25 inches. At 23 weeks, according to WTE, baby is about the size of a standard envelope.

The firecracker is still kicking away. Just last night, I saw and felt him move for the first time with what appeared to be a full on brush against my tummy with a limb. I have no idea what limb it was, but it felt kinda weird, not just a quick tap or kick, but more of like a brush. I still love sitting and enjoying feeling and watching his kicks and movements. But it was just that one time where I felt the "brush". He still on occassion kicks me hard enough to make me jump because it startles me, but usually, his movements are ticklish more than anything. When his kicks are more pronounced, I'll take a video and post it on here.

I haven't posted my 22 week photo, so here it is, with no growth in inches (37 inches):


And for a really cool thing I did in photoshop, here's a progression of my growing belly throughout the months:


I almost cant believe that I've got just under 4 months more to grow in the belleh. This belleh is gonna get beeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiggggggggggggg! =)

30 is the new 20

30 is the new 20 or so I keep telling myself. =)

Yup, I'm celebrating the end of a decade and the start of a new one today. At first, I wasn't so affected by this birthday because I think I'm at a point in my life where I want to be at 30. I'm married to the love of my life (yippeee!), we own a home (though we may owe more than what the home is worth right now), we have a dog, we are both working in our chosen career fields and now we have our first child on the way. So, no, no real feeling of crises or panic today as I turn a new decade. However, there is something a little nostalgic about saying good bye to my 20s. That decade sure was a rollercoaster full of super highs and super lows, especially those crazy college years. I had the time of my life and wouldn't trade it for the world. But now, I'm ready to start my "adult life./" Though I have been an "adult" for quite some time, I'm ready to start my life which will be spent the majority of time taking care of someone else other than myself or my hubby. It'll be an adventure that I'm sure will come with its own complete set of highs and lows, but I think I'm ready for this rollacoaster.

And important update, DH and I may have settled on our son's name!!!!!!!!!! I'm not ready to post it to the bloggy world (I have a cool idea for when I do tell and its not ready yet), but I'm kind of excited. I'm also holding back a little because what if I change my mind about the name? But so far these names (first and middle) have stuck with us for kind of a while amongst the many options we've been considering, so I think this may be it. Can't wait to share it with you all.

Rejoicing in pregnancy

Yesterday, I received an email from a friend of mine who has young child. The purpose of her email was to touch bases with me and her intentions were entirely sweet, but in it she wrote the following which has struck me a little:

I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever (although I just saw you at the mall a little while ago). Just wanted to check up on you to see how you were doing with the pregnancy and all. If you have any questions, LOOK IT UP!! Hehe! I was just telling xxx (she wants to have a baby soon too!) that me and xxxx are the worst people to ask questions to cause we both acted like we weren’t pregnant the whole time. But I told her to ask you cause you would know everything cause you read a lot and look up everything. I never knew how far along I was when people would ask. I just knew, 1) it’s a xxxxx 2) I don’t have a name picked out 3) im due at the end of xxxxx 4) my doctor said everything is fine =)

I'm posting a portion of her email here because....I dont know. I guess part of me feels a little awkward since I'm investing so much time and energy into this pregnancy, much more than my friend has. Like I'm the "uncool nerd" who doesn't have a life other than to think about baby and research about baby etc. But the thing is, I want to do what I'm doing and it makes me happy. I think I mentioned something about my friend in a similar discussion with DH, and he wisely pointed out to me that for us, this baby was definitely planned. We wanted this baby from before he was born. As for my friend, of course she loves her child, but perhaps it wasn't as "planned" as our firecracker was.

I guess what this email shows is just how others can take having a baby and pregnancy for granted. Like its not something to be cherished and loved daily and something to rejoice in daily when you feel your little one's kicks and know that that means he's still alive. Dont get me wrong, my friend is a good, good person and I'm not trying to make her out to be someone bad. She's just super lucky to not have experienced a loss. But you know what, in the end, I think I'm also super lucky, because I'm cherishing and loving this pregnancy and this baby so much more than I probably would have if I didn't have the history of MC (although short lived) that I had.

p.s. I'm 22 weeks 2 days today and my 22 week belly photo is coming. I just need to download it from my camera.

p.p.s. I'll be turning 30 in two days!