Week 8

This week, baby moves from a raspberry to a green olive! No longer an embryo, but a fetus! Baby now has a liver, spleen, and gallbladder and is now moving (although I won't be able to feel it for another 2 months). A cool way to remember how far along I am: March starts tomorrow as I will be starting my 3rd month. It goes right along with the calendar!

Anticipation

Our first OB appointment is coming up on Monday (the 4th). From what I read and what I hear, this should be a very long appointment. Here are some things to be thinking/praying about:

1) Tests. They'll run all sorts of tests...too many to list, really. I'm not that worried about it, but pray that they don't find any health problem for me that would make this pregnancy difficult. Specifically, the 2 things I am thinking of for myself are a good iron level in my blood and healthy blood pressure. My energy level has been good and I am taking a multivitamin, but low iron is common and can lead to anemia. I have struggled with borderline high blood pressure, but have never been diagnosed with it, just cautioned...but lately my BP has been lower than it usually is for me, so that is good!

2)Heartbeat. If we don't hear it at the first appointment that is normal. Baby may be hiding in a part where they can't read it or turned a certain way where they can't get a reading. If we DO hear a heartbeat, I read that my percentage of miscarriage goes down to 1%! That is huge!

*edited from earlier today*
3)Confidence. Pray that we feel sure that this doctor is right for us, or if not, then another doctor or another option will seem 100% right. It is really important to me to have a good relationship with my caregiver!


I am sure I will blog about the appointment on Monday to let everyone know how it goes :)

zzzzzzzzz and mmmmmmmm

Yesterday, I napped on and off from 2:30pm-5:30pm! Then I was able to sleep from 9:30pm-6am! Crazy! I didn't get out of my pj's today until 10:30am because I was pretending it wasn't Monday. Luckily, I got up and went for a nice walk. A stampede of 12 deer crossed my path shortly followed by a tiny schnauzer. Gotta love Salado!

My strong craiving the last two days has been these:

Even though my body is telling me to just sleep and eat junk food, the things at the top of my to do list every day are to work out and eat fruits and veggies!! Gotta keep the little raspberry healthy :)

I found raspberries at the store!

All natural

In the last year, I have been trying to go all-natural with my makeup, household cleaners, etc. I have been inspired mostly by bloggers who post on Pinterest, but especially by this section of this one blog:

So glad I have decided to make the all-natural switch pre-pregnancy because I have read more and more how much of a health hazard it can be to be around toxic cleaning chemicals found in your every day pantry!! When I worked at the bed and breakfast here in Salado I got sick all the time. I fully believe it was the cleaning supplies. There was this one called Orange Glow that would get me sick every time. Since I quit in April and am just working with kids, I have not been sick at all other than allergies!!


Anyway, here are some of my favorite homemade household cleaners that work better than anything and save so much money!!!

1) Lemon Vinegar (can be used for cleaning anything- counters, toilets, and works really well on dishes that are stained) Just take a pitcher, fill it with lemon rinds and vinegar and leave it for 2 weeks. I drink lemon water every morning, so I just use the lemon halves that I have squeezed. Can also use oranges or limes.

2) Dishwasher Detergent:
1 Cup Salt
1 Cup Lemon Vinegar (or try regular vinegar if you can't wait!)
Juice from 3 lemons
1 Cup Water
Store in fridge. Been using this for a few months and it works so well!!!!

3)Dish Soap:
I like the Mrs. Meyers dish soap, but I also have a spray bottle with vinegar, water, a little dish soap, and lavender essential oil....I don't measure for this, but it cleans glass pans well.

4) Get a Hydrogen Peroxide spray bottle. This (with a paper towel) cleans mirrors, glass, and a lot more really well!

5)Laundry Detergent:
1 grated bar of soap ( I just use my bath soap and get a cheese grater...it is hard work, but good exercise...)
1 cup of borax (found in regular grocery store on laundry isle)
1 cup of washing soda (found in regular grocery store on laundry isle)

Use about .5 oz/load. I also pour white vinegar in the fabric softener thingie. I fill it full.

Enjoy!

Raspberry

From poppy seed to orange seed to sweet pea to blueberry and now to raspberry!

According to the "What to expect when expecting" material, our little one is now the size of a raspberry!

Creativity

You're probably thinking WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!?!?!?!

I have been successful at keeping up exercise about 30 min/day 5-6 days per week. I am a runner, but I haven't been running becasue I haven't felt confident that it is 100% ok, so mainly I go on a long walk. This week, however, my allergies have been terrible ( and pregnant women can't take any medicine this early, per doctor's orders!)  There is also a threat of rain, so I really didn't want to go outside...so I made a stair-step thingie out of an upside down laundry basket!! There is an upside down small metal trash can underneath for extra support! It was a pretty good work out! 

What about the store brand salt and pasta sauce? First of all, there is nothing wrong with store brand! hahaha! anyway, They each weigh 1pound, so I have been doing some really light weight training. You are probably laughing at me by now, but you should try it! Stand to your side with the two items in your hand and then extend your arms out where they are parallel to the floor. Do that 20 times in a row and you'll get what I am talking about. HAHA! 

YAY for creativity! 

Tortilla Soup

Last night after a long day of work I found Sean laying in bed watching TV. I climbed in bed with him and just shut my eyes for a second. I could have gone to sleep right then...at 6:45pm! I declared that I didn't feel like cooking. He was watching the spanish station, which is semi-normal around here (he likes the game shows). All the sudden it made me hungry for tortilla soup! I immediately got on the phone and called Salado's Valero Gas station...which happens to also have one of the best Mexican restaurants EVER! 1/2 asleep, I asked if they could fill their largest styrofoam container with the really good soup they have and if I could come pick it up in a few minutes...oh and some enchiladas verdes for the husband.

After I got off the phone, Sean was just laughing at me. "fill your largest styrofoam container with the really good soup you have"?....hahaha! We didn't even know if they did to go orders! If they had only known it was for  a tired, working, pregnant woman maybe they would have been a little less confused :)


It was SO yummy!

Gender Reveal Party

I know this is really early on, but I would love to have a gender reveal party when the time comes :) I am thinking some weekend in late April or May Sean and I will be able to come up to Arlington and reveal the big news- boy or girl! We won't know until sometime between weeks 16-20. I am at almost 7 weeks now.
I have seen pictures of parties where the couple cuts into a cake and the inside of the cake is either pink or blue, revealing the gender to all the family and friends at the party...so maybe something like this, or maybe we'll be creative and think of something different...It sounds like fun to me :)

Survey Results!!

Click on the image for better viewing.

*edited March 4* Sean wants to add in his guesses now! haha!

Due Date: Oct 5th (ASU bowl game at the cowboy's stadium that we had on our calendar for like 2 years!)
Eye Color:Mary's
Hair color:Red
Gender: Girl
Baby size: "I don't know baby sizes"...

Last Chance

Last chance to do the 7 question survey!! I will post results this coming week!!

Baby Hale Survey

Food Aversions and foods to avoid

Just like you hear about food cravings in pregnancy, food aversions are just as common! I haven't been noticing weird craivings yet, but suddenly certain foods are repulsive to me! hahaha!

Foods I don't want to look at, think about, smell, taste, etc:

•  pizza or really a lot of italian foods
• cuties (the little oranges that I love)
• my homemade juice :(
• beets 
• yogurt
• nuts

From what I have read, here are some things I am supposed to avoid during pregnancy that I didn't know about:

• herbal teas (uh oh! I drank these in the mornings for the first 2 weeks!....but oh well)
• deli meat (unless it is heated until steaming hot)
• soft cheeses like feta and brie
• unpasturized cheese and milk- do they really still sell this stuff at Walmart?

I am sure I should read all the pregnancy books and blogs with a grain of salt, but I just want to be as careful as possible :)

Happy Valentine's Day

Baby Hale: you are only the size of a blueberry, but already has so many people loving and praying for you!

6 weeks

Here is what the "What to Expect" website tells me today:

"Your baby's jaw, cheeks, chin, eyes, ears, and nose are beginning to form what will eventually become one adorable face. In addition, the kidneys, liver, and lungs are developing, and the heart is now beating 80 times a minute (and getting faster every day). All this and baby is still no bigger than the length of a nail head (about a quarter of an inch) from crown to rump!"

Crazy to think about changes going on in there!!! 

So far, my energy level has still been good. I am having a little nausea here-and-there but not too  bad, yet. 

My brain can't stop racing thinking of what will the baby look like, how will my work situation change, how are we going to fit everything in our little duplex, where will we get furniture, will it be a boy or girl, am I doing all the right things?... we are just so excited!!!

If you haven't done the survey, don't forget! I will post results soon!!

Baby Hale Survey

Preggatinis

Check out this cute book I got from my sister in law, Megan!

Survey (REPOST)

It has been fun to see the answers from this 7 question survey. Here is one more shot to guess the due date, hair color, etc...

Just click on the link below! It only takes 1 minute!

BABY Hale Survey

sweet pea

From poppy seed, to orange seed, to sweet pea... Man they grow fast! The app on my phone says baby is the size of a sweet pea today!

Symptoms

A lot of you have asked how I have been feeling- well so far I haven't had any sickness or nausea, but for some women that doesn't start until week 6 or 7, so we'll see. Statistically, 25% of women don't experience the sickness, so HOPEFULLY I will be one of the lucky ones!

If being extremely cold all the time is a symptom, I have that. hahaha! I don't know why, but I have just been colder than normal!

I have a wonderful husband who has always given me foot rubs every day and now I have convinced him to do double duty since I told him I now have 4 feet! hahaha!

Insurance

In Texas, as well as many other states there is NO OPTION for maternity coverage through insurance unless you are able to get insurance through an employer.

You may want to read that sentence again, because it is ridiculous.

This would mean someone paying out of pocket for all baby appointments and the birth would be $12,000 (with a break from the hospital)-yes we checked just in case...this does not include the cost of ultra sounds, nursery for baby, and a lot of other things.

CRAZY Huh?

We didn't know this until we moved back to TX, so we've been fighting the insurance battle for a long time! 5 weeks ago, we were finally able to get Scott and White insurance through the church with maternity coverage!!!! What a blessing! ...and guess how pregnant I am? That's right 5 weeks! Coincidence? I think not!

SURVEY!

Just for fun, here is a 7 question survey to guess things about baby Hale. Just copy and paste the link!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/X9XRFQF

First Appointment

To get an appointment with a doctor (at Scott and White Hospital), you must first take a lab pregnancy test at a clinic, have financial counseling at the hospital, have a phone conversation with an intake nurse and THEN get scheduled!

I have done all of the above and have only known I am expecting for a week today! Our first appointment is March 4th and hopefully at that time we will be able to hear the heartbeat for the first time!!


Here is a snap shot from the cool app on my phone from the "What to Expect When Expecting" book:

Arlington Surprise

On Friday (2/1/13), Sean and I decided to drive up to Arlington unannounced to completely surprise our families with the announcement that we were expecting. We didn't really plan it and it was unexpectedly one of life's most memorable times. My 27th Birthday was the next day, so it was probably the most memorable birthday ever! Since we found out right around my b-day (groundhog's day), this baby will always be our little groundhog. Maybe we can find a groundhog halloween costume!

Here is how we surprised everyone in Arlington:

Toto was first, followed by my mom. The back door to the house was just open (which is normal)...We slowly walked in and I yelled "Mom?", she said "yeah?" as if it were normal that I was there! She was busy changing out the wreaths but came to meet us, and dropped everything in her hands as we handed her a bib that said "Grandma's cookie Tester". One of the first things she said was "Let's hope there is just one in there"....I guess we'll find out soon!

Dad came home after Mom called and made some excuse. Before Dad came in the door, we came out to meet him at his car. He dropped everything in his hands and was just so shocked to see us. It took him a while, but he finally read the ribbon saying "New Grandpa"...which by the way my mom just had that ribbon laying around for a rainy day! hahahaha!

Next, we walked across the street to Bailey JH where Sean's sister Megan was just getting done teaching school for the day. We hid behind the temporary building where she teaches. When she came around the corner, Sean handed her a baby outfit and we said "Surprise, you're going to be an aunt!"

Megan drove us over to their parent's  (Mike and Diane's) house where Diane answered the door and started jumping up and down! It was a shock just to see us in Arlington. We handed her a bib saying "Grandma loves me". Mike was on the phone with AT&T, but after a few minutes we were able to share the news with him too!

A few minutes later, we were able to get everyone (even my grandma's and Sean's uncle) together to eat dinner and celebrate! It was a fun day that none of us will forget!!

When we first found out we were expecting, an app on my phone said baby was as big as a poppy seed! This is a picture of a piece of bread with poppy seeds just so you get the idea! haha!

The Tests

Woke up Monday (1/28)and decided to test...it was POSITIVE! I had never seen positive on any of those kind of tests before! Sean and I were still not sure it was real until I was able to go in Wednesday 1/30 to the clinic in Salado and get an official result...surpise! We are pregnant!

I will be posting some fun stories on here soon!!