23 week bumpdate

How far along are you? 23 weeks, 

How I'm feeling: Pretty good. The dry nose is really getting out of hand. It hurts to breathe in sometimes. Need to research remedies for this ASAP. 

Total weight gain:  Assuming it's still about 10 pounds. The people that keep telling me I'm small or I don't look pregnant can go shove it!

How big is baby? A grapefruit. Yea, okay, where?. 

Boy or girl?: boy!!! :)

Maternity clothes: Still rockin' some regular clothes, but with maternity pieces thrown in. My mom bought me a cute dress and jeans from Old Navy maternity. Once I find a cute maternity bathing suit, I should be set. 

Sleep: Eh. I've kind of accepted that I will not sleep through the night. It's all good!

Best moment this week: Hearing (and seeing) that baby is measuring great! And putting together the crib. Yay! OH! and J finally felt him! That was a fun moment. 

Worst moment: Cannot think of one. Good thing right?

Movement: More consistent. I feel him everyday at some point. He was going at it during rookie mini camp on Saturday. I can also see my belly move, which is very, very weird. 

Food cravings: Nothing really, is that odd? I feel like it's odd. I did want a KFC bowl for lunch today, but it wasn't this like burning desire. 

Food aversions: Still veggies. Trying to sneak them into various meals. 

Miss anything?: A good old Coke. I know you can drink a little bit of caffeine, but with his cord issue, I want to make sure he's getting as many good things as possible.

Belly button in or out:  Belly button is still in. 

What I am thankful for: That he is growing and had a healthy heartbeat. I measured 22 cm, which is slightly ahead. Hoping I get just as good news tomorrow!

What I'm looking forward to: We start our birthing classes next week. I'm really intrigued by the idea of being in a small group.

Maybe I will get around to updating more than just my bump. So many fun things to write about!

Craziest time of the year...

People think the beginning of the school year is the craziest time of the year! That would be SO wrong.

May is the craziest time of the year. I've read three posts today from Bonnie, Brooke and Mal who totally agree with me. Let's break it down shall we?

• I adore my class this year. By far the best behaved and sweetest class I have ever had. But May hit and they have lost their darn minds. I knew it when one of my best kids decided that throwing chicken nuggets up into the air and trying to catch them with her mouth would be a great idea. SAY WHAT?????? Or when I get blank faces when I ask them how to solve 35 +20. Or when I ask what the problem in the story is and they give me a blank stare. Or when I ask ANYTHING and they give me a blank stare. Kids are just done by this time of the year, and to be honest I am too!
• EOY Checklists. In real people talk, end of the year checklists. This long checklist that requires signatures from a bunch of random people. I try and start it as soon as I can, because usually when I go turn something in or try and my list signed, the person magically disappears. 
• End of the year tests. This year my district went test crazy! I've been cycling my kiddos through my computers to complete all their online assessments. Then I've been staring at my calendar trying to figure out which kids to test on which days for their big EOY summative tests. Makes me want to cry really. 
• Something else that makes me want to cry? Packing up my room. I normally am a pro at this, but I can't do a lot of it on my own. (All those first grade books and materials are heavy yo!) The only positive to this is that part of that checklist is to create a diagram of your room. This way the custodians can attempt to put furniture back where it goes!

15 schools days, plus two work days. Just like The Little Engine that Could... I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.

22 Weeks

I know, not being consistent with this thing, but at least I'm trying! I am more than half way done and that's just crazy to think about. We have 18 days (18 LONG days) of school left and I cannot wait. I know this summer will zoom, but I want to enjoy it as my last one before baby comes!

How far along are you? 22 Weeks

How I'm feeling: Pretty good. Besides the constant dry nose that irritates that crap outta me, I really have nothing else to complain about.

Total weight gain:  10 pounds. I weighed 130 at the doctor's office last week. I am pretty pleased with that. 

How big is baby? A papaya. Where in my belly there's something as long as a papaya, I don't know but we will see. We'll get more accurate measurements at our ultrasound tomorrow. 

Boy or girl?: boy!!! :) ( and we may or may not have a name...) :)

Maternity clothes: A week ago, I bought four shirts from Motherhood Maternity. All in the same style, because I'm really not a fan of baby doll shirts. They are super comfy. This paycheck I'm going to invest in a good pair of maternity jeans and khaki pants. I also tried on some regular maxi skirts and dresses at H&M that should do me pretty well too!

Sleep: Been decent. Weird dreams don't really help (like my principal leaving and my grandpa with dementia taking over our school! What the heck does that mean?)

Best moment this week: When we were at our appointment, my doctor checked baby's heartbeat with the Doppler. Right when she put it on my belly, we heard him kick the Doppler AND I felt it! So neat. 

Worst moment: Headaches. Yuck!

Movement: More consistent. Baby boy likes football because he was the most active whenever I was watching the NFL Draft. :)

Food cravings: Still nothing different or weird. I did crave a Philly roll so I ordered one on Saturday. It was divine!

Food aversions: Nothing that sticks out to me. 

Belly button in or out:  Belly button is still in. 

What I am thankful for: That he is growing and had a healthy heartbeat. I measured 22 cm, which is slightly ahead. Hoping I get just as good news tomorrow!

What I'm looking forward to: Setting up the crib! I cannot wait!!!!

Half way there! 20 + 2 Bumpdate

Took this yesterday. 20+1 day. Holy moly! Halfway there! Crazy!

How far along are you? 20 Weeks + 2. 20 to go!

How I'm feeling: Had a raging headache on and off all weekend. I think it was due to dehydration. I just don't drink as much water on the weekends!

Total weight gain:  Didn't really measure myself this week. I'm sure I've gained, because the bump has gotten bigger. 

How big is baby? According to the dad version, he's the size of a whoopie cushion. 6.5 inches 10 oz

Boy or girl?: boy!!! :)

Maternity clothes: I need to invest in a stronger belly band. Maternity pants still don't fit. I bought some longer tops from NY and Co that do a good job of not riding up. 

Sleep: Better now that we turned the AC on. (Side note, turning AC on in April? Complete bullshit Florida!)

Best moment this week: Feeling him move. It' so rare it's such a nice feeling. 

Worst moment: Headaches. Yuck!

Movement: Still on and off. Perfectly normal from what I have read. I try not to freak out when I read other bumpdates where moms have felt their babies. I know I have an anterior placenta and I have definitely felt him move. Just not much today!

Food cravings: Nothing. Is that weird? I did read that cravings indicate something missing in your diet, so maybe I'm getting everything I need?

Food aversions: Vegetables. I have to dunk them in sauce or else I wanna barf them back up.

Belly button in or out:  Belly button is still in. 

What I am thankful for: Feeling him. Makes my worries go away slightly. 

What I'm looking forward to: I think we decided on a crib! So maybe we'll buy it this weekend. Oh and hearing his heartbeat next week!

19 (+3) week bumpdate

Look at that! It's a full fledged bump! The random substitute in my classroom last week questioned if I was pregnant or not. So it's official that it's a bump. Let's get to it shall we?

How far along are you? 19 weeks and 3 days.

How I'm feeling: Pretty good. A bit tired and I've definitely had some stretching pains this week. 

Total weight gain:  I'm up five pounds I think. Started at 120, dropped to 117 and have slowly made my way up. I've been doing a good job of watching what I eat. 

How big is baby? According to the Bump he's the size of a mango! He measured on time last week and weighed 8 oz.

Boy or girl?: boy!!! :)

Maternity clothes: I wear my belly bands almost daily. I wore a maternity top that I got from a consignment store two days. I love the ruffles on it and could totally rock it even if I wasn't pregnant. I'm rockin'  a pair of maternity leggings today under one of my old dresses. So comfy!

Sleep: On a good day, I wake up once to go to the restroom. I had great sleep this weekend but the last two nights have been rough. 

Best moment this week: Finally looking pregnant! Kind of crazy when I look down! The bump came out of nowhere. Oh and buying little man two cute outfits for 3 dollars at Baby Gap!

Worst moment: Last week at our scan, we found out baby has a marginal cord insertion. That's when the cord attaches near the edge of the placenta instead of the middle. Happens only to 7% of moms! A slight one (meaning if it was attached .25 cm the other way no one would be concerned.) Doctor didn't seem overly concerned, and it means I get more ultrasounds. So I guess it's a plus for getting to see the baby more!

Movement: On and off. I have an anterior placenta (found that out last week too!) so movements will be muffled for a bit. Last night I did feel some definite kicks!

Food cravings: Nothing distinct lately. Though now that I think about it, flautas from Tijuana Flats sound AMAZING!! Or the empanadas from the Race Trac down the street. Random I know!

Food aversions: I discovered in my first tri that my aversions are anything that was fairly new to me before pregnancy. The idea of quinoa and cucumber water makes me wanna hurl!

Belly button in or out:  Belly button is still in. But it's definitely not as deep anymore!

What I am thankful for: J. I lost it at our anatomy scan last week and he kept me calm. He's been absolutely great during this pregnancy and I can't wait to see him with our little boy!

What I'm looking forward to: Buying the crib. I think we've decided on the one we want. Plus hearing his heartbeat again in two weeks.

I wrote earlier this year that my word is TRUST. This pregnancy has taught me a lot about having faith and trust. I can't feel my baby but I trust that he's there. I trust that God is watching over me and him. It's a tough lesson for someone like me to take, but it's one that I definitely needed!

To work or not to work...

I haven't blogged in a bit (not counting my announcements or H54F) but when I saw Bonnie's and Brooke's posts today, I knew I had to chime in.

After I've received congratulations on my baby, I immediately get asked "Are you coming back to work?" It's almost a given. My answer is always the same.

Yes.

My husband is a budgeting genius. You think I'm exaggerating, but it's completely true. I am absolutely sure that if push came to shove, he would find a way to create a manageable and livable budget on his salary alone. It would be hard but we could do it.

But here's the thing. We like the lifestyle our two incomes provide. We like the fact that we will be able to provide many things for our baby without worrying about if it fits into the budget. Corporate world isn't the steady place it used to be. Jobs get cut and departments get shifted. We like the fact that if something (knock on wood) happened to his job, we would still have my steady job to get us by.

Teaching jobs are hard to come by in my district and in surrounding districts. My position would get filled immediately and who knows how long it would take for me to find something. A small part of me has always felt like I have the best job to be a working mom. I'll have off at the same time my kids will. Same holidays and everything. Working part time is an option but it's difficult because you have to find someone to be willing to job share with you. Someone willing to give up their benefits and a full paycheck.

After we had this conversation the other night, my husband told me something that stuck with me. "You are an amazing teacher. There are too many crappy ones for you to stop teaching." And it stuck with me. I love what I do and I think that being a mom will help me be an even better teacher than I am now.

I know I will want to be home with my baby. I'm already fretting over the fact that I'm planning on taking 8 weeks of leave (my district makes you burn any paid leave before you take FMLA and I don't want to be stuck without sick days). But I think something else that eases my decision is knowing that my mother has agreed to take care of our baby. My mother retires in August and won't even let us entertain the idea of letting us put this baby in day care. I know that besides me or J, a family member is the next best thing to take care of our child.

My mother was a working mother my whole life. She made it come together. She never missed a parent teacher conference, a field trip, and stayed home with us if we were sick. Now I know it was a sacrifice to her, but looking back  I never saw that. Only thing I saw was a mom at home making us dinner and getting us ready to go to music or baseball practice. A mom who took care of us and loved us. She also lucked out that she had my grandmother to take care of us too.

I don't knock mothers who choose to stay home and I don't knock mothers who work. We all do and plan to do what's best with our families. Something I've discovered during this whole pregnancy thing is that every decision you make as a mother will be judged. Want to breastfeed your child or bottle feed? Someone will judge you. Want to co-sleep or put baby in a crib right away? Someone will judge you. Want to have a home birth or a hospital birth? Someone will judge you. The list goes on and on.

I for one want to stop that. So I say if you want to be a working mom? Go for it! You'll be a great example to your kids. Want to be a stay at home mom? Go for it! You'll be a great example to your kids too!

I hope you respect and understand my decision. :)

Friday, Friday, Friday!

Oh hello there blog friends who still read this. I promise, I'm alive. Just super swamped. Can I just tell you how pumped I am that it's Friday??? Plus it's a planning day, and I'm such a teacher nerd. I love planning days (and not just because I get off work early too!)

So let's see what my five favorite things were this week!

1. PLANNING DAY = SHORT WEEK

My class has full fledged spring fever. I don't know how many times I had to have them have some quiet time. I have the sweetest, most well behaved class ever, so when they start acting like normal first graders, I lose it just a little bit. :)

2. 

J and I bought a new couch and love seat for our living room. I love them both! We did realize we will have to get rid of the breakfast bar, but these comfy babies are worth it. The couch is a power recliner. I'm not the only who loves it either: 

Silly girl!

3. I hit the 16 week mark this week and I have a visible bump that's actually bump and not bloat!

I also ::think:: I felt baby move a few nights ago. Woke up with some random feelings in my belly but they went away. We shall see. :) I have an appointment next week and then the week after we find out what we're having!

4. I went to the dentist on Wednesday. While I normally DESPISE this, it wasn't that bad! Plus Dr. Anand said my teeth look great and she didn't bitch me out for forgetting to go. SCORE!

5. My mom and I are going shopping for some maternity clothes tomorrow.My pants are getting snug and I want to buy another belly band. :)

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!!