Our Babymoon is booked!

As soon as we found this place, we knew this was it. It reminds us so much of our honeymoon, it's ridiculous! This is a romantic Mediterranean-style resort in Palm Springs, I don't think there is a more perfect place for us!

Yoga class with the sunrise.

Home-made breakfast in the courtyard.

I love hammocks!

Enjoy a late night movie under the stars, why not!

I am so excited to give this belly a tan :)

Adventures of Pregnanthood

This morning I was late to work because I spent a half hour dry heaving in my bathroom sink. Fun stuff! (Don't ask why I chose the sink rather than the toilet, I know it's weird)

It wasn't really my ideal way to start off the morning, but as soon as I started my 30 minute drive to work, baby started kicking away and it made me feel completely better :) My stomach has calmed down and I was able to have a bowl of cereal once I got to the office. I feel really good and I think it's going to be a good day!

P.S. I woke up to pee at 2:30 this morning, when I got back in bed I noticed the Hub was awake. I think I woke the baby up too because I was feeling some serious kicks, I knew they were hard enough for Daddy to feel. So, I told Isaac to put his hand on my belly and sure enough, he felt the baby for the very first time :)

Exactly one year ago

Isaac asked me to be his wife ♥
Click below to read how he popped the question...

http://thejenpen.blogspot.com/2010/04/im-engaged.html

Boy do we know how to get down to business... a wedding, honeymoon and a bun in the oven, all since then! Time flies, might as well live life to the fullest!

Right now...

I just got caught rubbing and admiring my belly in the mirror in the ladies room. Oops!

I'm trying to figure out how to get out of jury duty.

My stomach is growling, ready for lunch.

I'm still laughing about my dream last night... I got kicked in the throat by a bull.

I keep thinking about avocados but I don't want to eat one. Weird.

I'm hoping my new business cards (with my new last name) come in today. I want to bring one home to Isaac, I know he'll love it!

Got kids?

How amazing are these built-in bunkbeds?!

If you have a large family and are running out of room, consider bunks!

Funny sh*t my husband says

Last night the Hub and I got to tour our birth center and we attended a "Meet the Midwives" event.

While we waited for the event to start, they had tons of yummy food and desserts for us to munch on. Of course we had some and everything was so good, Isaac wanted seconds. So he said:
"Baby, I think you should go get us seconds. You're pregnant, it will look normal because you are eating for two, but if I go get seconds, I'll just look greedy." :)

We noticed that there was one male who was a certified Midwife. So with a smirk on his face, the Hub turned to me and said:
"So, should we call him a Midhusband?"
I have to admit, that was a good one!

The first movements

March 24th, 17 weeks pregnant. I was laying in bed at about 6:30 am. The Hub had just left for work so it was just me, the two kitties and my belly. I had been sleeping on my right side for a few hours and my belly felt a little uncomfortable. As I put my hands on my stomach I was a little startled by what I felt. For the FIRST time I could feel the baby's body, I mean, it's entire body! Since I was sleeping on my right side for so long, the baby had also made its way to the right side. As I ran my hand over my stomach, I could fit the baby's body in the palm of my hand! The baby was a hard ball poking out the side of my stomach. I turned onto my back and looked down, I couldn't believe that I could see exactly where the baby was laying. The left side of my belly was almost flat and the right side was a big round ball, it looked so weird! I was so amazed that I could in a way, see and hold my child! I sat there for 5 or 10 minutes "holding" my baby, grinning from ear to ear.

I couldn't get myself to get up and out of bed, I was enjoying the moment too much. Just as I was about to force myself to get up, I felt something! Up until this moment in my pregnancy I had yet to feel the baby move or kick at all, but I could have sworn that I had just felt something. Unsure if it really was the baby moving, I pressed my hand down on where the baby was laying and hoped to feel something again. Minutes passes, nothing. I didn't budge, I knew I had just felt something! I kept thinking, "Come on baby, give me a kick, a punch, something, so I know it's you". Sure enough, about two seconds later, for the very first time, I felt the baby kick! The few minutes that followed I felt LOTS of kicks and wiggles :) It was the most amazing thing I have EVER felt in my entire life! I sat in bed, in awe. I had just felt my child for the first time in its life. In just minutes it felt like we had built this intense bond that nothing will ever be able to break. By feeling my little baby move for the first time, it made everything so much more real! I can't even put it into words. After the baby scooted its way out of reach of mommy's pushing and prodding hands, I started to imagine after the baby is born, actually holding it in my arms, looking down at his or her sweet face and knowing that is MY baby. The vision seemed so real, it made my heart ache, but in a good way. I could feel how much love I already have for this little one, tears began to stream down my face. I couldn't stop crying, but I wasn't sad. I was sooo happy, so filled with love.

I love my child so much, our bond is already so strong. I feel so blessed!

Spring has sprung!

In honor of spring, I thrifted 7 new dresses, all for $35. That comes out to be only 5 bucks each, how great is that? I can't wait to wear them!

Babymoon

I just want to jump into these pictures! They look so relaxing, so peaceful... that's exactly what I'm in need of.


The Hub and I have decided that we are going on a BABYMOON! You know, like a Honeymoon, but instead of going after you get married, you go after you get pregnant :) We thought it would be the perfect opportunity to have one last vacation before our family of 2 becomes a family of 3! We aren't sure where we are going yet, but we know we have to stay close to home. Since we are on a budget, we have to keep it pretty low key, no jet setting to Europe or some far away island! We've been trying to think of places in California we'd like to visit but since we've done a bit of traveling in our neck of the woods, we're running out of ideas.

We've been to:

Anaheim

Catalina Island

San Francisco

Santa Monica

San Luis Obispo

every desert you can think of in San Diego County

I'd love to go up to Napa Valley to enjoy the beautiful scenery and endless amounts of wineries... but I'm knocked up and I'm pretty sure it's frowned upon to go wine tasting while growing a baby. If you aren't able to enjoy a glass or two of wine, you might as well not even go to Napa (well at least that's my take on it)! So that's out of the question.

Then we thought about Mexico! We're in San Diego, we're right next door, so that's a possibility. Then we thought about if I (God forbid) have some sort of problem and need to be seen by a doctor or have to go to a hospital, I'd much rather be in our country and be able to speak the language of whoever is taking care of me and my little one. So Mexico is crossed off our list.

We are still brain storming.

Our Babymoon location criteria is as follows:

needs to be pregnant lady friendly

safe for Mama and baby

exciting enough for the Hub

relaxing enough for me

close to home, preferably in CA

can't break the bank

I know, that is a tall order but we'll make it work!
Let me know if you guys have any ideas!

The inside scoop

How long Isaac and I have known each other: 14 years
How long we dated before he proposed: 5 1/2 years
How long we were engaged: 6 months
How long we've been married: 6 months
How many homes we've lived in together: 4
How many pets we've had: 3- two kitties and one giant fish
How long we tried to get pregnant: only 2 months, so crazy!
How far along am I: 4 months and 3 days
When is our due date: September 2nd
How old will we be when we become parents: both of us will be 26
How many kids do we want: probably 3

Right now...

I want:
tortilla chips with nacho cheese and jalapenos
a thanksgiving dinner
hot fudge sundae with nuts
pita bread with hummus
carne asada fries
fruit salad with cottage cheese and granola
and a couple of hot cheetos

I feel:
Good! I've had a sharp pain in my lower belly right above my pubic bone. It's a little uncomfortable but it's not constant... another day, another ache or pain, it's no biggie. But I'm not tired and I don't feel yucky in any way :) so I'm happy!

I'm wearing:
a white tank top that is stretched to the max
an adorable peach and white flowered cardigan I got from a thrift store
dark jeans
tan boots
white scarf... its freezing!

There's the belly!

P.S. I can no longer see my toes.

Daydreaming...

About gorgeous kitchens... I'm hungry.

Natural Birth, Midwives & Doulas, OH MY!

Today I found a WONDERFUL blog called, dearbabyblog.com written by a woman named Melissa.

As I was reading her blog, I came across one of her posts, titled: "Natural Childbirth, Round Two. Preparing for Arlo." Let me tell you, it just about knocked me out of my seat! That post reached into my chest and squeezed my heart so tightly, it was as if Melissa had written that post for me! It was all about how she is preparing for her son's birth in early May, which will be her second natural birth experience. She talks about the plans she and her husband have made for their son's birth. It is SO similar to what the Hub and I have planned for our little one's birth, it blew me away! If you have a moment, copy and paste the link below into your browser and read her fabulous post!

http://dearbabyblog.com/post/3468151396/natural-childbirth-round-two-preparing-for

No Sleep

Last night I was so tired, I couldn't wait to get into bed and fall asleep. Well, once I did, I wasn't asleep for long. I was up almost the entire night. As each hour passed I grew more angry at my peacefully sleeping husband and 2 cats, one of which was snoring! Why could they sleep so easily and I couldn't? Why the heck was I awake when I was sooo sleepy? Then I figured it out! It was my stupid brain that couldn't calm the hell down and stop throwing new thoughts at me at a million miles per hour...

What is the baby going to be, girl or boy? When is it going to be born? Who will it look like more? Will it be 100% healthy? What will it be wearing when we bring it home from the hospital? What will it wear for it's 1st Christmas? What Christmas family traditions will we have? What Easter family traditions will we have? I should continue the Easter family tradition I had when I was young, to make real confetti eggs! How do I make confetti eggs, I can't remember! My godmother knows, I'll call and ask her. I can't wait to dye hard boiled eggs with the baby! I wonder if it will like eggs? I wonder what its favorite foods will be?

OH MY GOSH!!!!! Please, make it stop! I really don't need to be thinking about all of this at 1am, 2am, 3am or even 4am... I should be sleeping! So.tired.need.sleep.

What I'm looking forward to

This video makes me smile! :D

Useless Information

I consider myself a pretty curious person, I find the weirdest things interesting. So I've decided to answer some of the off the wall questions that I often wonder....

What's the weirdest item in your purse?
Well, I just cleaned out my purse recently so I don't have much junk in there. But I guess I'd consider tampons pretty odd since I haven't seen Aunt Flow in a while and don't expect to anytime soon! One of the perks of being pregnant.

Do you have anything under your bed?
No, I can't stand having things under the bed.

Do you hide anything in your underwear drawer?
No, that's the first place someone would look if they were searching for something!

What is the very first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
Grab the remote and turn on the news.

What is the very first thing you do when you get home from work?
Take my shoes off. We don't wear our shoes in the house so we always take them off and put them away right when we come in.

Do you collect coupons?
Yes, for items we buy all the time and for fast food. We usually don't get fast food without a coupon... buy one get one free baby :)

Do you have a junk drawer?
If it were up to me the answer would be no, but Isaac HAS to have one. Before, he had one junk drawer in almost every room and I made him consolidate his junk to just one drawer. I am the clutter patrol, I HATE clutter and junk, I think it's a small OCD thing?

Does your partner have an item in your home that you wish you could get rid of?
Yes! Well, he did and you won't believe what it was... a stick of DYNAMITE! I don't know about you but it makes me pretty uneasy to have dynamite in the house, so I told him to get it the hell out of here! Now we are a dynamite free home :)

And there you have it folks, useless information about me that you probably don't give a hoot about! So enough about me, here are some useless facts about other random stuff...

The sentence "The quick brown fox jumps over a lazy dog" uses every letter of the alphabet.

40% of all people who come to a party in your home snoop in your medicine cabinet.

Honey is the only food that doesn't spoil.

It's impossible to lick your own elbow.

75% of people who read the previous fact will try and lick their elbow. (YOU KNOW YOU DID! :D)

The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime time television were Fred and Wilma Flintstone.

Every time you lick a stamp, you're consuming 1/10 of a calorie

Funny sh*t my husband says

"Is it the second trimester yet, I'm horny" -I still laugh out loud when I think about that!

"Fallopian Jelly" -instead of Amniotic Fluid, I almost peed my pants!

"You're getting big in all the right places" -aaw, thanks hunny :D

"If you want hummus, lets go find you some hummus" :)

Fat Tuesday

Today is Mardi Gras or "Fat Tuesday", which is very fitting for me.

My belly is fat, my ass is fat, and my boobs are fat.... and I don't mind at all :) Who doesn't like nice round rump and a pair of jumbo boobies? I do and I know my hubby does too! Anyway, enough about my fatness. Here's how my Fatass Tuesday is going so far.

I was running late for work so I didn't have time to eat breakfast or pack one to eat at the office... bad move. I'm about to eat the next person that walks in. I think I'm gonna have to go pick something up. Plus I've had one of my pregnant headaches since I woke up, so I think I'm gonna grab a small cup of coffee too. Most times a small amount of caffeine will cure a headache these days.

Since I woke up late, I didn't have time to do anything special to my hair... actually I was lucky I remembered to run a brush through it a couple times! I pretty much looked like Medusa when I left the house, with my hair poofing out in every direction. I just put it in a bun and stuck a pen through it, there problem solved.

I was going to write some more but in the time it took to write the 2 small paragraphs above, my hunger has grown into something really serious. I'm starting to feel like I'm going to cry if I don't get some food in front of me in the next couple seconds. Sorry I couldn't finish this post but my baby needs to be fed NOW. There is no such thing as skipping a meal for a pregnant chick!

Choices, choices, choices...

While preparing for this baby to come, I've learned a LOT! I have done a ton of reading and researching. I've talked to so many moms about their birthing experiences and what they liked/disliked about it. One of the most surprising things that I've learned so far is that when it comes to the actual birthing process, you have so many options to choose from. Really? Yes, really. For example, you don't HAVE to have your baby at a hospital... sounds crazy huh! You can opt for a home delivery with the help of a midwife. Another choice is to give birth at a birthing center (which is a hospital-like facility with a home-like feel) with the help of a midwife. Or you can have your little one at a hospital, which of course is the most common. Also, you have choices as to HOW you want to give birth. Really? Yes, really! Would you feel most comfortable laying back on a hospital bed, most women do. Or does a warm birthing pool sound relaxing to help ease through contractions? Does an epidural to dull the pain sound perfect for you? Or perhaps (dare I say) a NATURAL birth sound like its right for you and your little one? This is just the tip of the iceberg as far as options go!

It makes me sad to think that a lot of women out there don't know about all of the options they have. Take a moment to read about them, ask about them, find out what is right for you and your child.

In my recent experiences with moms and women in general, I've found out that there are two types of people....

Some women are going to ask you what choices you've made or what "plan" you are going with. When you start to tell them, if your plans are different in any way from what theirs are, they will immediately take offense and sometimes even try to tell you how wrong you and your choices are. Ladies, just because my plans are different than yours, doesn't mean I am saying that you are wrong, stop being so sensitive! There is no reason to feel the need to defend your choices. We are all entitled to our own opinions. One thing may work great for me, my husband and little one, but that doesn't mean it will work for your family. I understand that, why can't you? Let me choose what makes me feel comfortable and happy and you do the same. Jeez!

Then, there are other women who hear what your plans and choices are and are genuinely happy for you. They don't judge you, even if their plans are completely opposite of yours. They know that you are comfortable and confident with the decisions you are making. These women are few and far between, but they are out there... and we need more like them!

We all need to be open minded, there is no ONE right way to do things, so don't rain on anyone's parade. Your decisions are not better than anyone elses. Listen with an open heart, you just might learn something new.

Pregnancy, it does a body good.

For the first time in my life...

I have big knockers! They're huge! Sometimes I stare at them and wonder, "Who do you guys belong to!?" I'm curious if they're gonna stick around even after the baby is here. I know most women enjoy their jumbo tatas while their pregnant and breast feeding but after that, usually the funbags start to slowly deflate and you get your old boob size back. Never before did I ever have any sort of small boob complex, I actually LOVED my boobs and was very happy with them before I got knocked up... but I have to admit, I'll miss these puppies if they decide to leave me.