Fashion Emergency

As those of you who have been pregnant before know, it is not easy finding things to wear over the course of 9 months. You tell yourself that you are going to try to fit into your regular clothes as long as you can. You put off buying maternity clothes until have no choice. But that day comes when nothing in your closet fits and you resort to adding a few new items to your wardrobe. Being about 7 months pregnant at this point, that moment came awhile back for me. My mom and I went shopping for maternity clothes quite early... just to get an idea of what was out there. I think we all have the idea in our heads that all maternity clothes are frumpy and unattractive. Luckily things have changed. There are actually some very cute things out there. But it is difficult to spend money on clothes that you know you are only going to wear for a few months. So I told myself that I would only buy a few things at first and see how long I could go before I needed to get more. For the most part I have done a pretty good job on not spending too much money on maternity clothes, but that also means that I have been wearing the same 6-8 pieces of clothing for the past 3-4 months. One of my favorite things to wear during this pregnancy has been my gaucho pants. Those are the wide legged pants that almost look like skirt when you put your legs together. Well I have about 5 pairs of those and I really do not know what I would have done without them. They are not maternity pants, but since they are made out of the most stretchy, comfortable material... I find myself wearing them almost everyday. Mix those with about half a dozen maternity tops and I am good to go. Needless to say I am starting to get a bit sick of wearing the same few things over and over again!

I have my first baby shower this Saturday and I am struggling with what to wear. I can wear one of the same outfits that I have worn about 100 times now, or I can try and pull off one of my nicer dresses that fits my huge belly! Well during the week as I struggling with my dilemma I came across these pictures of Britney Spears. As some of you may know, I have commented on Britney in my blog before. She has provided me with some great tips on how to prepare for motherhood. So since she is already a mother, and is expecting her second child in less than two years... I figured why not turn to her for fashion advice also. If only I would have seen these pictures earlier, I could have tried to find similar outfits which would be perfect for the occasion...

What do you think???

I will be going to a fancy wedding at the end of September so maybe if I look hard enough I can find a dress just like Britney's! Nah...I think I will stick to my gaucho pants and hope that they will see me through my final two months of being pregnant! I am pretty sure I would never be caught dead in either of these outfits!

Anyways...like mentioned, I have my first baby shower this weekend. My two aunts have flown in from California and Florida to throw it for me. Not only am I looking forward to seeing both of them, but I am looking forward to sharing the day with some of the people who mean so much to me.

Not much else to report. This is week 30 for me and I just realized that I have less than 10 weeks to go! Holy Cow!

Two Down...One To Go!

...trimesters, that is! Yep, as of last week I officially crossed over into the third and final trimester of this amazing journey. I cannot believe how quickly the weeks have passed. I know the toughest part still lies ahead, as I will only get bigger and more uncomfortable, but this whole experience has been truly delightful to this point. In some ways I think I am going to miss being pregnant. I have enjoyed watching my belly grow, and feeling the little one kick. I have been so lucky to not have had any complications, which has allowed me to share this exciting time with Todd and our families without worry.

I went for my 28 week doctor check up, last week. Nothing special really...just some lab work and a visit with the doctor. I had to drink this carbonated soda that was super high in sugar. It wasn't too awful, but they force you to drink it very quickly, which does nothing but cause you to burp excessively. After an hour they drew a ton of blood to test for the presence of diabetes as well as some other things. Luckily I found out today that all tests came back normal. The doctor also checked the heartbeat which is at a solid 155! I am told that is high, which could mean it is a girl. Hmmmmmm...interesting!

I will be going back at 32 weeks for a second ultrasound. The doctor has ordered me to have another one done as she wants to check on a few things...specifically some water they found around the kidneys during the first ultrasound. It is nothing to be concerned about, as it is very typical for there to be the presence of water around the kidneys, but she wants to make sure that it has not increased. So hopefully all will signs will be positive! If anything it gives us another chance to get a good look at Baby Menor...the last look before he/she comes into the world!

Here is a picture (not a very good one!), of me at 28 weeks. I seem to be growing more rapidly these days. I am just looking to enjoy these final weeks, and hope that all goes as planned! It is going to be a busy time as I have a couple of baby showers coming up and Todd and I are planning one final getaway before the baby comes. We thought it would be nice to spend some alone time together before we no longer have that option! We have been so busy up to this point that we thought we both deserved a few days away, to relax and enjoy each others company. It sure is a relief to have that nursery done!

Froggies and Duckies and Turtles...Oh My!

We have been in full baby preparation mode lately! As of this past weekend, the nursery is now completed...and it is AMAZING! It was a day long project that was made possible thanks to two of my wonderful and talented "sisters" Kim and Korrie. Korrie lended her artistic abilities and created beautiful scenery on the walls, while Kim offered up her handyman skills and put together some shelves and hung curtain rods. While they slaved away, my duties included fetching anything that they needed and lending an extra hand whenever necessary. Other than that, I can take absolutely no credit for the fantasy land you see below...

Man, is our kid lucky or what? We could all be so lucky to have such a beautiful place to rest our heads! We could not be more pleased with the way everything turned out. I think Todd and I walk into the nursery at least 10 times a day just to look at it. We truly are blessed to have such talented and generous people in our lives! And on top of that Todd and I can rest easy now, knowing that the nursery is done. No rushing at the last minute to get things in place. I was determine to have things ready early, with the chance that Baby Menor decides to make a premature arrival! You just never know! There are a few finishing touches we want to make and of course there are many things we still need in order to take care of Baby Menor, but we still have about 2 1/2 months to get things in order...hopefully! I have been a little nervous lately, having heard stories about people who have had their babies 5 weeks early! 5 weeks??? I have too many things to do before November 6th...I can't have a baby 5 weeks early! Well unfortunately I do not have control over that. All I can do is keep my fingers crossed and hope that baby keeps cookin'.

Well I hope you all like the nursery as much as we do. Kim and Korrie put a great deal of thought and hard work into their efforts...and the finished product is more than we could have ever asked for!

P.S. Thank you to everyone who helped us get our nursery ready...
Mom - for your help with painting the walls...lots of help!
VJ & Chris - for your help getting the crib to the house
Heather - for offering an extra set of hands on "Nursery Day"
Kim - for taking time out of your busy schedule to build shelves
Korrie - for your wonderfully, creative murals
We love you all!

Making Room for Baby

With just about three months to go before Baby Menor joins us there is still so much to do! Lately our entire focus has been on getting the nursery in order. This has involved transforming the space from a spare room with a queen size bed, into a kid friendly room with all of the necessities. We quickly learned that this is not an easy task. First step...paint. We chose a gender neutral color that matched the bedding that we bought for our little one. It is a pale yellow and very pretty. For some odd reason the paint did not want to cover the walls very well, so it required three coats! Next...paint the woodwork and trim white. This required a coat of primer and two coats of white enamel. All together this took us about three weekends to complete. Here is what we have accomplished thus far...

That box that you see in the middle of the room is the crib. There is a reason it is still in the box and not put together. I refer to that reason as the "Crib Catastrophe". To make a long story short...the crib was not the color we thought it was when we picked it out in the store. I blame it on store lighting. But since it does not match the other furniture that we already have for the nursery it just won't work. So...we picked out a completely different crib and we are waiting for it to arrive. Once it does the task of trying to return this crib and pick up the new crib will have to be figured out. Getting the first crib to the house was a difficult task so we are not looking forward to having to go through the entire process once again!

In the meantime my living room is the holding area for all things baby. Until the nursery is completed I have had to store the other pieces of furniture, as well as the baby things we have accumulated so far in my very nice, hardly ever used living room. But since we never use this room anyway I guess it is serving a purpose for the time being. I refer to it as the temporary disaster area...

There are a few final steps to complete before Baby Menor will have his or her own peaceful, private oasis. We are going to build some shelves in the closet to make space for the many, many things our baby will need. Luckily I have a few friends who have offered their time and talents to help us with this. Needless to say carpentry does not come natural to me. And finally, my very talented friend Korrie is offering up her artistic skills and is going to paint a mural on some of the walls. I have no doubt that it will look amazing!

Once those things have been completed we will be very close to having our nursery finished! That is when the fun part starts...putting all of the cute little things in their places.
I am going to hold off on showing any more pictures of the nursery until we have a finished product. But to give you an idea of the theme we have decided to go with, here is a picture of the quilt from the bedding we picked out. It is too precious for words!

If only our little one was aware of the sweat, time and hard work that has gone into the preparations for his or her arrival!

And finally for a few quick updates...the baby is continuing to be very active. I occasionally get a few good kicks in the bladder, which is quite interesting. I am also finding it increasing more difficult to do the daily tasks I am used to. Just getting up out of bed seems to be harder than ever before. But I guess I should hold off on the complaining as I know this is only going to get worse! I am in my 26th week and about to finish my second trimester. Man...time is flying by!

Open Mouth...Insert Foot

Have you ever had one of those moments? You know...when you say something that you wish you could immediately take back. These moments are sometimes referred to as..."Open Mouth...Insert Foot" moments. I know we have all been tempted to ask someone how far along they are in their pregnancy, without officially knowing that they are pregnant. Most of us would refrain from asking, with the fear that the person is not at all pregnant, and saving ourselves from a great deal of embarrassment! Over the past month or so, as I have gotten progressively bigger, it is no longer a secret that I am very much pregnant. It took awhile for my belly to pop out so there was a period of time where I looked quite strange. I would get looks from people, and I could tell what they were thinking..."Is she pregnant, or is she just gaining weight?" These are people that I do not know very well, so they did not know that I was in fact pregnant. And since it was not completely obvious yet, they probably felt strange asking. So I would just get a curious look from them. These are the people who wanted to avoid a, "Open Mouth...Insert Foot" moment...understandably so!

Our baby on the other hand is literally practicing this...even as a small fetus. Just check out the picture below... Yes that is our baby, trying to put it's foot into it;s mouth! How funny is that? I can't blame the baby, as it must get pretty bored in there. It has to find some way to entertain itself for nine months!

So yes...this week we had the ultrasound...and no...we did not find out the gender. We did however get our first look at the face and other important body parts of Baby Menor! According to the doctor everything is on track and looks good. Baby is quite curled up in there right now...which explains why it's foot is so close to it's head. This definitely does not look like a position I would want to be in, but the baby obviously does not mind. Here are a few other pictures. Don't worry if you are not exactly sure what you are looking at. We were a little unsure at first also. But I will try to explain...

This is a straight-on view of the baby's face. It has one of it's hands in front of it's face. When Todd saw this on the screen he immediately said..."That is my nose!" So we do know one thing about the baby...that is has it's father's nose. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

This is a profile view of the baby. It is trying to put it's hand up to it's mouth, working on the whole sucking of the thumb thing.

So as far as we can tell Baby Menor has all of the necessary body parts and organs! What a relief! It was truly a special experience for Todd and I to be able to see our baby for the first time. It is hard to believe that in a little over three months the person that you see in the above pictures will be here! So what do you think...boy or girl? Everyone seems to have their own opinion on what they think we having. I on the other hand have no stinkin' idea! The only thing I do know for sure..is that in about 12-14 weeks we are going to have a baby and life as we know it will change forever! But in a good way!

Not much else to report at this time. I am in my 24 week and growing daily! My current nickname from Todd is "Large and In Charge!" Here is a picture of the ever growing belly...

I am feeling and doing great...life is good!

The Name Game

What is in a name? No one told me how difficult it would be to choose a name for this new little person that will be joining us soon. Knowing that our baby will be stuck with this name for the rest of his/her life makes for a great deal of pressure, resting on our shoulders.
When we first started discussing the topic of names we thought it would be easy. Well...not so much. Not only do Todd and I seem to disagree on every name that we think of. We also seem to have a very different idea of where this name should come from. I have been trying to think of names that are not common, but at the same time not so weird that people think..."That poor child." I have come up with what I think are some very good, strong names. Todd on the other hand seems to think that the name topic is the perfect time for him to suggest some of the most ridiculous names on the planet! Most of these names seem to come from famous sport figures of years past...more specifically his favorite baseball team - the New York Yankees.
So far some of his suggestions have included:
Mickey Mantle Menor
Babe Ruth Menor
Jeter Menor
And if it is a girl...Shaniqua Menor - not a famous Yankee player, just another goofy suggestion.
Very funny!!!
His intentions are to annoy me with his suggestions to the point that I refuse to discuss the topic any further. So most of our name conversations usually last no longer than 5 minutes, before I decide to leave the room. Therefore we have not made a great deal of progress so far. We have about 3 1/2 months left to agree on some names, so I think we better get to work!
Since I have recently been taking some advice from celebrities in the area of parenthood (thank you Britney) I thought I would continue this trend by looking at some names given to babies by their famous celebrity parents...

*Satchel - daughter of Mia Farrow and Woody Allen - did their baby look like a purse when it was born?
*Sage Moon Blood - son of Sylvester Stallone - maybe putting "Blood" in his child's name is a tribute to his Rocky movies
*Elijah Bob Patricus Guggi Q - son of U2's Bono - why BOB in the middle of all of that?
*Pilot Inspektor - son of Jason Lee (NBC's star of My Name is Earl) - that is just mean!
*Moxie Crimefighter - daughter of Penn and Teller magician Penn Jillette - what????
*Audio Science - daughter of actress Shannyn Sossamon - there really aren't any words!

Although these celebrities are offering a great deal of help (as to what NOT to name our baby), I think Todd and I will choose to go a bit more traditional. The decision as to what names we will settle on is still up in the air. That is why we want to enlist your help. Any suggestions? Feel free to comment on this blog entry with any names that you think we should consider. Whether they are serious suggestions or just goofy names that will make us laugh, we want to hear 'em!
Now for a quick update...I am in my 23 week. Next week we have the ultrasound. Look for some pictures to be posted late next week. Other than that, I am feeling great and looking forward to seeing our baby on a fuzzy black and white screen! Stay tuned for more updates...

Kick Me Baby One More Time

Having been inspired by the #1 Mother of the Year, I decided to follow in Britney's redneck footsteps and appear naked on the cover of a high profile fashion magazine! What do you think?
When this photo was released last week, I just could not resist! And with a little graphics help from my cousin and his friend (not to mention a lot of laughs), I too can be a famous naked person on the cover of a magazine.
If nothing else, Mrs. Spears-Federline has taught this mom-to-be a few very important lessons...
1.) NEVER pose nude on the cover of a high profile fashion magazine. Why you ask? Because no one, other than your husband, really wants to look at that!

2.) Driving a car while holding a baby on your lap is bad!

And finally...
3.) When pregnant it is important to know when your baby is due. When asked about her pregnancy during her recent Dateline interview Spears replies...
Lauer: How far along are you?
Spears: I don't know. I think six to seven months.
Lauer: So you're due in September?
Spears: Uh-huh (affirms).

What???

Now back to reality. The baby has been kicking up a storm lately. I am fascinated by this. Not only can I feel the kicks but others are able to feel them as well. Todd was the first to feel it...on Father's Day in fact! My mom was able to feel it recently also. We spent the weekend in Milwaukee, visiting my Aunt and her family. They will be moving soon to California and I will not see them again until after the baby is born. I really wanted my Aunt Sue to be able to feel the baby at least once while we were there. On the last day of our visit she got to feel a few kicks of her own! It is all very exciting!

I am also able to see my stomach move a little when the baby gets going. I spend a great deal of time just staring at my stomach, watching it move. I am easily entertained!
That is all for now. Time to start working on the nursery!

The Art of Registering

After putting it off for quite awhile Todd and I finally decided to dive into the task of registering for baby stuff. From the day we found out we were having a baby we would occasionally peek at all of the baby things in various stores...just to get an idea of exactly what would be required in order to take care of this little person.
One day we decided to go into Babies "R" Us and look around. We had always heard that it was the "One Stop Shop" for all things baby...and that could not be more true. Problem is that place can also be extremely overwhelming for someone who has never done this before...and that was exactly how we felt. Only minutes after entering the front doors of Babies "R" Us my head starting spinning. I think we were in the store for a total of 5 minutes before I had to get out of there, out of fear that my head might explode! I had no idea how many different things they made for babies! For each item that is needed there are at least 10 varieties. I started asking myself, "How do I know which kind to get?" and "Is one brand better than the other?". It was just too much to handle that early in the game.
So now that I am half way through the pregnancy Todd and I decided to take the plunge and just get it over with. We planned ahead this time and enlisted the help of our good friend Korrie. She has been through this two times before so I knew she would be able to make some good suggestions and recommendations. What a life saver! Together the three of us made our way through that store like we were pros! It was a very stress-free experience and now can we check one more thing off of our "getting ready for baby" list. Although the store was a little overwhelming at first I know it will be a place that we will visit often.
So for anyone that has yet to be required to register for baby stuff I have one suggestion for when the time comes...take someone with you that knows their stuff! With a little guidance from a friend and between Babies "R" Us and Target I think we will have found all that we will need to get ready for Baby Menor!

Starting to Kick

Well as of today I am 20 weeks into the pregnancy. Things are continuing to go very well. No complaints! As you can see my belly is growing more and more each day. Even better...I have started to feel movement. Last week was the first time I began to feel something strange. I was not sure what it was at first, but I had a pretty good feeling. It became more and more frequent as the week went on and now this week it is very apparent that the baby is quite active. It is most active late at night. While lying in bed earlier this week I could tell that the baby was moving quite a bit. It was so noticeable to me that I thought it might even be noticeable to Todd also. He put his hand on my stomach and within seconds he felt something. It was amazing! I thought it might be too early for someone other than me to be able to feel the baby move, but I must have been wrong! So our little one is very busy these days. It is so amazing to know that this little person is just getting stronger and stronger each day!

We will be getting an ultrasound next month, about 4 weeks from now. We are still planning on not finding out the gender. I am sure it will be difficult once we are actually in the middle of the ultrasound...the temptation to find out will be huge, but we are going to be strong!
Well that is all for now. Things are good and we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Baby Menor!

Just Starting to Show

This is me at 16 weeks. I was just starting to show. At this point my clothes still fit without a problem, but how quickly things can change. Things are starting to get quite tight. This is preventing me from wearing a large portion of my clothing, which is a little frustrating! Pregnancy has agreed with me very well to this point. I can only hope that things continue to go as smoothly as they have so far.