The Second Trimester and Beyond

On December 20, I had an OB appointment.  The doctor asked if I wanted to know what the sex was and of course I said yes (even though Jordan wasn't able to make it to that appointment)!  So he began the ultrasound and then went over the genital area...and it was pretty obvious!  I just sat there looking at it, and Dr. Mead said, "So...what do you think that is?"  I began laughing because it was a boy!!  Here we had been, expecting a girl, because of the previous appointment, and we were having a boy!  I am SO excited.  I tried calling Jordan but ended up having to tell him when he got home from school that day.  He couldn't believe it either.  We were SO excited to tell our families on Christmas!  

We attended a breastfeeding basics class that evening.  I learned so much!  Needless to say, although it was informational, Jordan decidedly told me he doesn't like classes.  So we have found other methods to educate ourselves, like reading, watching movies, and discussing what we've learned together.  I'm also really excited because there is a lactation center that is owned by the company I work for, and I get big discounts there for renting a pump :)  

We were able to fly out to Utah on Christmas Eve.  I stayed for four days and Jordan stayed for a little over a week (lucky ducky!).  I made sure to wear compression stockings, drink tons of water, and get up and walk frequently on our flights.  We had such a great time with our families!  Christmas morning was spent with Jordan's family and eating delicious waffles.  Below are the superhero shirts we made for the boys.  

We then drove to the Cuthbert grandparents and spent the afternoon and evening there.  My favorite part of the trip was announcing to our families the sex of the baby.  I had bought some adorable onesies and wrapped them along with dinner mints that said "It's a Boy!"  I can't put the videos on here, but you can see them on my Facebook.  Jordan (brother) was able to skype us from Argentina for his last Christmas on the mission!  It was amazing seeing him, even though his face was green from the camera, haha.  The next day I was able to see my friends from Westminster!  It was so great.  The last day I was there we saw Les Mis with my family and had a Christmas party with the Lassigs.  It was so fun!  Apparently Buppi has a "gift" of being able to guess the sex of a baby by looking into the pregnant woman's eyes.  I made him guess and he was wrong, but that's ok :)  

On the last day of our vacation, Jordan was finally able to feel our sweet boy kick from the outside!  I'd been able to feel him for over a month, so I was glad Jordan finally got to feel it.  Other things that got better around 20-21 weeks were my acne (my skin was actually clear!) and my energy, which finally came back.  It was great to feel energized!  

On January 31, I had the anatomy scan which is basically a 20-25 minute long ultrasound going over every tiny part of the baby's body.  He looked so healthy!  All extremities, fingers, toes, and organs were in place!  

When Jordan came home from Utah it was apparent he got really sick while he was there...and it ended up being the flu.  :(  On the bright side, however, he got the flu during Christmas break so he could rest and recover without worrying about school.  His cough lasted about 2 weeks though.  So, lesson learned - make getting the flu shot a priority!  I got it and didn't get sick, thankfully.  

Jordan and I registered at what seemed like a ton of places - Franklin Goose, Pottery Barn Kids, Amazon, and Babies R Us.  I found a great website that compiles everything you've registered for in one place though, which is awesome!  It's called babyli.st.

We had the chance to tour the birth center at my hospital, St. Mary's in Richmond.  I already had high expectations because of the status of my hospital (Favorite Place to Have a Baby - 10 years in a row!) but was so so happy with the tour!  The labor suites are huge, and 2 of the rooms had jacuzzis.  I really hope one is available when I go into labor!  After delivery they have what is called "Magic Hour" where they basically leave you alone for an entire hour to get to know your baby.  They highly encourage breastfeeding and have tons of lactation consultants.  Lots of the staff is certified, which is great!  On the mother-infant unit, the nurse is your nurse and your baby's nurse as well!  This is HUGE and so different from any other hospital I've seen/worked at.  Usually your baby has a separate nurse in the nursery, so this is great for continuity of care and letting your baby stay in your room as much as you want.  I am SO excited to give birth at my hospital!  Plus it has a level 3 NICU, which is good if anything goes awry.  

I toured the day-care center at my work as well.  I was very impressed with that as well - clean, bright, happy kids, plenty of care-givers, and on the campus of my work.  I got on the waiting list in November and was told the list was 11-12 months long...so we will see when I get in.  My other day care plans just fell through, so I hope it turns out!  I called them recently and they said that they just increased the amount of infants they accept, so hopefully the list moves a little quicker.  There are currently 6 moms ahead of me.  

Around 24 weeks, my appetite picked up immensely for a few days!  I could not stop eating, and even had to eat in the middle of the night sometimes!  It was crazy! About the same time, I started actually seeing baby Jonah kick from the outside.  Talk about a bizarre feeling - like there's an alien inside you!  It makes me laugh so hard though to see him kick.  Sometimes he will just go crazy in there and be flipping around and my belly quivers.  So funny!

I was able to get another prenatal massage around 24 weeks as well and it was so relaxing.  I seriously fall asleep getting massages.  I remember that I asked her to focus on my hips and thighs, because they were SO sore.  All the extra weight was starting to take its toll!  

We already have the majority of the furniture for Jonah's room.  We got the dresser off Craigslist, the crib from Target, and the bookshelf from IKEA.  Jordan's mom was sweet to send us a rug that matches the colors we've picked out for the room (dark blue and bright green).  The walls are light gray and the furniture is black.  It's slowly coming together!  The last real piece of furniture I need is a glider.  I was walking around Target one day and a random lady asked me if I had gotten my stroller yet.  I hadn't and she told me to go look at the City Micro's they had on major sale.  These are a way nice brand of stroller and they were 75% off!  I had a 5% off coupon as well, so I got this brand new stroller for 80% off.  I was SO pleased with myself.  Haha!

Starting around 27 weeks (third trimester) my OB increased my appointments to every 2 weeks!  Time is ticking!  Every appointment we have just makes us more excited.  It's been great too because Jordan was on his Psych rotation so he had more time and has been able to come to every appointment.  Our baby boy is so healthy.  On February 7 the doctor did a 4D ultrasound (basically a 3D movie).  It was INCREDIBLE!!!  It was so clear and we could see our son's face!  He was rubbing his eyes and opening and closing his mouth.  It made both of us so excited to meet him!  I also had my glucose tolerance test that day and drank the orange drink...which I can honestly say wasn't that bad!  Is that gross or what?  Haha.  I passed, thankfully, so I can eat all the sugar I want.  Just kidding!

Valentine's Day was so fun!  I got Jordan a box of chocolates from Godiva.  Jordan had worked the entire day and night before, so he had been at the hospital for a whopping total of 30 HOURS!  He was  so sweet at made me chocolate covered strawberries and got me a dozen roses!  He is the best hubby ever.  We watched LOTR and ate Chipotle.  :)  

February 15-18 we went to NYC for a babymoon!  It was amazing!  It was Jordan's first time to NYC and we had such a great time.  The drive up was momentous for being insanely expensive ($60 in tolls!!?!?) and frustrations from how crazy drivers are in New York.  We finally got to our hotel around 1 AM.  We stayed at a Best Western in Brooklyn that was across the street from the subway (great hotel by the way!).  The first day we went on a river cruise of Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, went to the World Trade Center memorial, ate at Katz's Delicatessen, went to the Empire State Building, and then got some authentic NY pizza down the street from our hotel while watching a movie on my computer.  The second day we slept in and then went to the Museum of Modern Art, ate at the Original Soup Man, walked through Central Park and by the NYC temple, went to the Metropolitan Art Museum, ate at a mexican food place similar to Chipotle, and then went to the Nintendo store and Times Square.  We braved the weather for sure - it was freezing the second day!  Thankfully we brought heavy coats and long socks so we didn't die of frostbite.  One of our favorite things was using the subway system - so efficient!  My legs got extra strong after walking about 3 miles per day and taking about 10 flights of stairs every time you wanted to use the subway too.  

Jordan's birthday this year was so great!  It was a relaxing Sunday.  I made lots of good food: waffles for breakfast, roast for dinner, and Chocolate Wasted cake via Pinterest and it did not disappoint!  We had friends over to share cake and had a great time.  I love you Jordan and can't believe you're 27...getting old!  ;)

March 7 (about 31 weeks) we had another appointment.  Jonah is measuring approximately 4 pounds!  He was practicing breathing like crazy and wiggling around a ton.  We also saw his sweet face and it looked like he has the chubbiest cheeks ever!!  As Jordan says, "A fat baby is a happy baby."  We just don't want him too fat.  He does have to get out at some point, haha!  At this point, the main pains I've been experiencing are left rib pain and some sciatica.  I can deal with the sciatica but the rib pain is killer.  His little body is just pressed up against my rib and it feels like it's going to pop!  My doctor didn't reassure me when I told him this - he said some women have broken ribs during pregnancy because of the pressure.  Great.  I pulled a groin muscle a few days ago as well (from walking?!) and it's gotten a little better.  I waddle like no other and it is so awkward looking and feeling!  I also get very minor contractions when I walk too fast, so I need to remind myself to take it easy and slow it down.  We did get some great news though from my OB.  Since Jordan is in his OB rotation right now, he will get experience delivering babies.  Well, we asked...and Jordan is going to deliver our baby with the doctor!!!  Ahh, so so exciting!  (Below 30 and 31 weeks)

Overall, despite my complaints, I LOVE being pregnant.  The thought that there is this life inside me that I helped create is incredible and humbling.  I already love this sweet boy so much and can't imagine him not being here.  He is so much a part of our life already.    

Washington, D.C.!

I know Jordan already talked about my birthday, but I wanted to write about it also. For my birthday this year, I really wanted to go to Washington, D.C. I love that city and love doing lots of touristy things there :) We went up on August 7. The drive is less than two hours, so we got there in the late morning. First we went to the Anacostia Community Museum, which is part of the Smithsonian. The main reason I wanted to go here was because of the free parking, which is hard to find in D.C. The thing I didn't know, though, was that it was in the middle of the hood. Seriously. And we were planning on walking 3 miles through the scary neighborhood to the Metro to get to the other Smithsonians. Don't know what I was thinking - it looked good on Google Maps!

Then we discovered that there was a shuttle that ran for free from the Anacostia Museum to all the other Smithsonians! Yay! So we toured the very small museum, which told the story of a man who studied African American history, and then waited outside for the shuttle.

Anacostia Community Museum

The hood. I was scared.

Once we got to the Smithsonian strip and the Mall, things got a little easier. I knew where I was at least :) We then went to the African Art Museum, which was pretty sweet, and then tried to find some lunch. We went into the Smithsonian Castle (below) to see what they had. $10 wraps? No way! We decided to walk to a McDonalds and get tons of unhealthy food for half the price. And free drink refills!

The African Art Museum

The Mall

Then we decided to go to the American Art Museum. I was sad I didn't get a picture of it; it was by far my favorite museum of the day. We only could stay for about 20 minutes, definitely not enough time for that huge place. I could spend all day in that museum! There were original paintings of all the presidents, founding fathers, and historical figures from early America, in addition to sculptures, painted brooches, and golden coins from Spanish America.

After the American Art Museum, I discovered that the shuttle stopped taking riders 2 hours previously. Lovely. No matter, we had planned for the Metro anyway! We hopped on what we thought was the green line and ended up going in the opposite direction, on the yellow line. So we took the yellow line back to the green line and then ended up at our destination an hour later. Ha. Ha. Jordan and I took the wrong direction out of the Metro, so we had to walk underneath the freeway and down the highway to get to our car...3 miles away, remember? I wanted to take pictures of the neighborhood so badly, but I was scared that someone would try to steal my camera. Seriously.

Jordan and I played a game. Whoever sees the first white person wins. We were almost to our car when we saw the first white person besides ourselves...a police-woman. How ironic is that? Sorry if that sounds racist to anyone. It's just how it was! Some of my favorite memories of this walk were:

A door on the outside of a second story...with no steps.

A rotting house with barred windows and rotting steps, but was obviously being lived in.

Tons of trash littering this one little patch of grass.

Black people staring at us the entire time.

All the gangsta's driving their black Cadillacs.

Telling Jordan that no one will rob us because we look dirt poor anyway.

Point of the story: don't ever park at the Anacostia Community Museum just because it's free.

After getting to the car, we drove in heavy, heavy D.C. traffic to Woodbridge, VA so we could get home furnishings from IKEA. You already saw how loaded down the car was here, but this is how many things we stuffed in our car!

On my actual birthday, I was feeling sad because none of my family was there to celebrate, plus it was a Sunday, and birthdays on Sunday are never fun in my opinion. My sweet friends in our new ward, Alan and Lyanna, brought me cupcakes for my birthday. I was shocked! How I love good friends.

Jordan and his mom also conspired (sneaky, sneaky!) and sent me a Nothing Bundt Cake through the mail. It was SO delicious! Thank you so much for making my birthday special whilst we are far away :)

The Little Car that Could

Jordan blogging. Last night, we made quite a trip and I'm surprised that my car lasted. First, I should preface by describing our car: It is a Mazda 3 hatchback. What's special about it is that this car is that it has literally been totaled and put back together again into a functioning automobile. In other words, it's a rebuilt title. Scary to think that we drove this 2200 miles in just under 40 hours two weeks ago, but we did it. Luckily, this car hasn't had any major problems in the three years and 40,000 miles I've driven it. But last night...

For Melyn's birthday we drove yesterday to Washington D.C. On the way back, we stopped at Woodbridge, VA (about 80 miles from Richmond, our new home) to go to IKEA. Melyn loves buying furniture and other home doodads from IKEA. Since our house had very, very little furnishing so far, and since we also had a bunch of IKEA gift cards, we planned to get a bunch of furniture there. I assume you all know about how IKEA "flat-packs" everything, so we expected to fit alot into our car. I love the little bit of extra space that hatchbacks can give you when the rear seats are folded down. So, at the end of our shopping we had two carts jammed pack full of stuff. Melyn asked, "are you sure we're going to be able to fit everything into the car?" I responded, "Of course!" (Since my car survived the trip to Virginia carrying four people and all our luggage, I believed my Mazda was capable of anything). Well, when I drove the car up to the loading area to where our huge pile of stuff was waiting, my car suddenly didn't seem as spacious or capable as I remembered.

Fortunately, we had an IKEA employee helping us. But as we were loading, I knew not everything was going to fit inside. So, as you can see from the first picture, we had to tie one large box (an office chair) to the top of the car. The inside was so full that I (the driver) had to lean to my left as I sat in my seat. I could not see anythingtot my right while inside, so I had to ask Melyn everytime I wanted to turn right if my path was clear. And we had to travel 80 miles with all this stuff. This is the kind of moment where you say a silent prayer. Believe it or not, we made it home. And the office chair on top made it too. I think it's about time that I give my car a break.