Two Month Favorites and Hates

Baby Michael is 9.5 weeks old, so I thought I would share some new favorite things!  

Diapers: As he gets older, baby boy is (obviously) also getting bigger! At around 7 weeks old, Michael was finally (sort of) big enough to fit into his cloth diapers! We have a couple different brands, but the majority of what we use are Bumgenius Freetime All in One Diapers. They are super simple to use and come in a bunch of cute colors. We have both the snaps and the velcro. They work just like disposable diapers- no prefolding into oragami shapes or pinning! Once they have been "used" we just toss them into the washing machine! I haven't bought diapers in three weeks and that feels pretty good. I think we've already saved over a hundred dollars in diapers and cut out about a million loads of trash!

Leg Warmers: I had a friend tell me about these, and I LOOVE them! First of all, they are adorable. Second, they make changing Baby Boy a breeze. Rob and I use the leg warmers when we are too lazy to put pants on Michael. That way when we change him, all we have to do is unsnap the bottom of his onesie and not have to worry about pulling pants on and off. Third- They keep baby legs toasty warm!  We have four pairs- dinosaurs, monsters, guitars, and red and black stripes (to match his UGA gear).  I have the Baby Legs brand, but my friend has some from little legs.

Pump and Save Bags: Ok, sorry in advance for any guys out there that might get creeped out. I breastfeed. Once you breastfeed you realize that breast milk is liquid gold and you never ever want to throw any away (ask Rob, he hates that our fridge and freezer is so full of milk there is no room for our food).  The problem with not wanting to waste milk is that you run out of places to store it. Enter Pump and Save Bags. These bad boys are freezer safe and can attach right to my breast pump! Seriously, everyone go buy a box of these.

Wet Bags: Moms out there- have you been out and about and your baby has a big blowout or a big spit up and you have gross wet clothes that need to go somewhere without contaminating everything else in your baby bag? Well, Planet Wise makes bags that are PERFECT for that! They are cloth on the outside and waterproof on the inside. So you can throw gross wet clothes (and/or dirty cloth diapers) in these bags and they keep everything nice and separated. they come in three different sizes AND two styles. You can have the kind in the picture with one pocket, or get a Wet/Dry bag- these have two pockets so you can keep clean dry items away from wet dirty ones. I use my small bag to keep little reusable items together- pacifier, bottle nipples, etc. My medium one lives in our diaper bag and holds spare outfits or dirty clothes. I have two big ones, one at my parents house and one at our house that I use as hamper for dirty diapers when we are traveling.  And because I am a total hippie when it comes to diapers- I even have two of their reusable pail liners for my diaper pail at home! I love the bags this company makes! Best part- they are all machine washable and go in the dryer!

Those are the things I loved in month two! My title makes mention of what I hated. Well, what did I hate you ask? Two month shots!!! Michael had to go to the doctor for his two month check up. Good news- Baby boy is up to 9lbs 14oz, and is at 22inches. He is moving right along developmentally, and should be smiling at us ON PURPOSE any day now!  Bad news- still has heartburn, even had his medicine dosage raised, and he likely has a bit of colic.  All in all- it wasn't a bad visit UNTIL.... the shots.  He had to have 3 shots. It might as well have been 3,000,000. He cried SOOOOO hard. Guess who else was crying? Mommy. And the nurse. Wait, let me go back. After his first stick he didn't cry right away. Not cause he was brave, because he was holding his breath gearing up for the loudest scream EVER. Rob said it was louder than when he was born.  I am not looking forward to our four month check up. More freakin' shots. I'm making Rob skip class that day, because there is no way I am going alone.

That's it for now. I am very excited for Michael's first Christmas early next week! He hasn't visited Santa yet this year... not sure if I want him sitting on some lap a billion other kids have sat on. I'm torn if I want to take him or wait til next year. Thoughts?

(oh, and I'm scrambling to finish so I can feed baby, so AGAIN, I apologize for typos or poor grammar!)

(Conversations)

This has absolutely nothing to do with our baby, but I found it hilarious nonetheless:

Scene: Driving to the farm discussing the possibility of Rob doing field research on big cats.

Stephanie: I can see you darting lions in Africa and studying their reproductive or migratory patterns. Wait, do lions migrate?

Rob: No they don't; but it would be cool.

Stephanie: Which big cat do you want to study? Lions? Siberian tigers? Sumatran tigers-

Rob (interrupting and dead serious): Sumatran tigers, cause I could dart them while riding on an elephant.

Stephanie: Um, yes. Yes you could...

Rob (continuing to geek out): Also, I would get to wear a mask on the back of my head, ya know, cause tigers attack from behind...

Two months: Part Deux

So, today is December 10th, Michael's two month birthday. Or is it? Last Wednesday was eight weeks since his birthday. So was that his two month birthday or is it today? This ridiculousness reminds me of a blog I wrote when I was preg: pregnancy is 9 months (36 weeks), but full term is 40 weeks, and the first two weeks you aren't even pregnant! Seriously, it's no wonder I was awful at math growing up. It makes no sense! Anywho, here are Baby Boy's two month photos, he was not a happy camper.

Baby cries = Daddy cries

Yesterday we took our Christmas family photos. Thanks to my friend and favorite photographer- Skot! The photo shoot took place at my father-in-laws house cause it's a big beautiful victorian, and we live in a tiny apartment.  Baby Boy was fussy the whole time, but we did get some cute shots. Here are a few of my favorites:

Look at that frowny face!

Hopefully I can get Christmas cards printed up and sent out before it's to late, although, I don't seem to have time to clean my tiny apartment these days! Thanks again Skot! Once I order my favorites, I'll upload these and more to our photo website so everyone can see them. 

If you talk to Rob over the next two days, be sure to wish him luck on his last two finals- Farm Med and Zoo Med. I can't wait for him to be finished! While we're on the subject- good luck to all my favorite students down on the island of St. Christopher on your finals too! (and if you're a VIP on the Rock, good luck dealing with your students this week!)

Back to being a mommy! Til next time... 

2 Whole Months!

I can't believe baby boy is two months old already! It feels like he has been around way longer than that.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled blog for this late breaking {Conversations} segment:

Scene: Right after baby bath time, during baby massage.

Rob (in bedroom): CRAPPPPPPPP!
Steph (in kitchen): What's the matter?!
Rob: Baby massage really relaxed him...
Steph: Did he poop?
Rob: Yes...
Steph: In a diaper?
Rob: No...

Right before bath time I got peed on. Wait, let me elaborate: My face got pee on it. Having a baby boy is dangerous. Thank God he doesn't have a cannon shooting out poop too! Yes, it seems way longer than two months.

In other pee and poop news, Michael has started wearing his cloth diapers. So far they have been great- easy to use and easy to clean. they also received stamps of approval from both Rob and my mom. Right after we started using them I accidentally washed a (clean) disposable diaper. Um...... so gross. I wish I had thought to take a picture. Here are two I found online:

wet diaper v new diaper.
The diaper I washed was so full you couldn't even fold it like the one in this picture.

And here is a glass full of the nasty chemicals that so efficiently absorb in disposable diapers.
GROSS

If I wasn't already using cloth diapers, seeing that nasty chemical wasteland of a diaper would havebeen  enough to make me switch. If that diaper rips, your kid could suffer a chemical burn! Holy crap- no thank you!

I don't have to much else to share since my last post on Saturday. The meds are definitely helping Michael's acid reflux, and it is very clear if we wait to long between his doses. This week has been pretty quiet so far, especially since Rob has his first final Friday and two more next week. Baby and Mommy have been trying very hard to be quiet. Sunday we are going to be taking Christmas pictures. I think they are going to turn out really cute, and I can't wait to share them with everyone!

Ok, time to run- crying baby is calling! (sorry for typos, no time to proof read!)

Airplanes, Thanksgiving, Weddings, and Acid Reflux

Oy vey, what a week and a half it's been since I posted last! We were getting ready to head to Arizona for my sister in law's wedding and the Thanksgiving holiday and I was having crazy anxiety over flying with Baby Michael.

Turns out, Michael is a great flyer! He slept through take off, had his pacifier during landing, and only cried as people were getting off the plane. To be fair, he was pretty hungry. He was even better on the flight home. He again slept through take off, and he was awake during the landing- no crying! I wanted to cry when we got off the plane in Atlanta and Delta gave me back a broken stroller! They freaking destroyed my poor Peg-perego stroller- snapped a wheel off, broke the handle, and bent the frame. Delta is sending us a check for a new one, but I was still super mad and upset. Oh well.

The rest of the trip was great! Thanksgiving was loads of fun complete with loads of yummy food! Rob's grandparents LOVED little Michael, but who wouldn't? In fact, Michael was VERY popular last weekend. I think everyone in the state of Arizona got to hold him! Ok, I might be exaggerating a tiny bit... :)  I was excited because I got to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with my baby- something my mom did/does with me and my brother every year. I love traditions!!!

Saturday was Shelly and Nathan's wedding. Shelly and her bridesmaids (myself included) got up early, got our hair and make up done (we all looked freakin' beautiful, especially Shelly), got our pretty dresses on and headed to the Japanese Friendship Garden for the ceremony and reception.  The site was  really pretty and serene, I think it fit Shelly and Nathan perfectly (good thing they picked it!). Since I was a bridesmaid and Rob was an usher, his great-aunt Ruth was on baby duty. She was so funny- she came prepared with her sneakers (for traction- safety first) and her softest sweater for Michael to cuddle against. Michael thoroughly enjoyed his first wedding- and he was polite enough to not cry at all during the ceremony, and minimal crying during the reception. Probably because everyone was loving on him- he had nothing to cry about!

Sunday morning came too soon, especially since we had a 7am flight. Luckily babies wake up at the crack of dawn, so getting Michael up and out the door was easier than getting me and Rob up and out the door! And, as I said before he was great on the plane.

I was hoping to write this blog post earlier (i.e.- not Saturday, the last day of the week), but Michael was so fussy this week. At first I thought he was just worn out from the trip/holiday/wedding, but as the week went on, I knew something wasn't right. Michael would be very fussy after eating, especially at night. He wouldn't be able to fall back asleep, and would cry if you tried to lay him down flat on his back. Several times when I tried to feed him, he would pull away and just scream and cry, but he would still be hungry. We started taking his temperature to see if he picked up a bug, but nothing. On Thursday morning he had a slight fever and had been up ALL night the night before. I decided it was time to call the doctor. Rob and I took Michael in, and turns out he likely has acid reflux! Before you ask what I've been eating, the doctor told us that unless I eat a lot of dairy (I don't) or cabbage (gross), it's unlikely that it's my diet, and loads of babies get heartburn. Turns out it's often misdiagnosed as colic. Since I am anal about making lists, I had written down of all the symptoms I noticed throughout the week- glad I did, cause baby boy got a prescription of Zantac for heartburn instead of mommy being told that he has colic and to just muscle through it.

He has only had three doses so far, but it seems to have started working. Thank God, cause the night he was up all night crying, I was hating myself for not being able to calm him down. In fact, he woke Rob up screaming, and when Rob asked what was wrong I started crying as hard as the baby. Being a mom is hard. So, yeah, that's why the blog is late this week!

I have uploaded lots of new pictures to the website http://threeisntacrowd.shutterfly.com/, so check them out!

First Month Favorites!

Baby Michael is just about 6 weeks old now! I cannot believe how quickly time is going by, and how quickly he is growing. Having a baby is intense in so many ways, and there are a million products out there that are supposed to make your life easier with your new baby. I was lucky enough to have quite a few friends have babies before me (some just a few months before me), and I took advantage of their baby raising knowledge and advice!  Now that I am on the mommy side of the fence, and since I have some preg friends, I thought I would share some things that Rob and I have found to be especially useful!

Aden + Anais Swaddle Blankets- These are great! My favorite thing about these are that they are muslin, so if they happen to cover the baby's nose or mouth while sleeping, he can still breath through it! I tested it on myself, I could still breath while the blanket was wrapped around my face like a mummy wrapped in linen! The lightweight muslin is also nice because it keeps baby warm without overheating him. I like packing one of these in our diaper bag because they are very lightweight and don't take up a lot of room. Plus, they come in loads of cute patterns, and you have organic and bamboo options. 

Baby Magic Lotion- I love Baby Magic. My mom used it when both my brother and I were babies. The lotion smells great and is light and not greasy. Baby Michael gets baby massages everyday with this lotion, and he smells like new baby until his next bath. Incidentally, we use Baby Magic Hair and Body Wash during bath time- it smells equally baby-tastic.  (Mommy also loves this lotion on her dry hands after washing a breast pump accessories and bottles a hundred times a day).

Soothing Motions Glider- This is a great product to have outside the bedroom/nursery. The glider lives in our den, and Michael takes his naps in it during the afternoon. The hammock part can pivot around, so he can rock side to side, front to back, or diagonally. It also plays super obnoxious music, that feature is rarely used.  It does kind of have a big footprint, but it's totally worth it when I can nap on the couch and have him just a few feet away!

Grass Drying Rack- I love everything about this thing! It's super cute and it's actually a pretty great drying rack. Rob's sister, Shelly, got this for us as a gift, along with three flowers that you can pop onto the grass (we don't have the tree that's in the picture). I can cram so much stuff onto this thing it's mind blowing. The grass is great for bigger things like bottles, and the flowers are great for smaller breast pump accessories and nipples and collars. And it is also a perfect size for our small kitchen (there is a larger base, called Lawn, if you have more space), and really I love anything that is brightly colored!

Wipes Warmer- This was a product I didn't even consider registering for until a friend said she loved hers. We got ours as a shower gift and we love it too. Baby Michael would scream like we were stabbing him from day one with diaper changes, but low and behold- warm wipes did the trick. Huge reduction in screaming! In fact, we liked this warmer so much, we got the travel version too! The travel version comes with a car plug and a regular ac adapter- awesome. Travel warmer is going to come in handy since we will be in Arizona for 4 days over Thanksgiving!

In other baby related news Baby Michael will be making his first cross country trip this week. We fly to Arizona on Wednesday for Thanksgiving/Shelly's wedding. While I am looking forward to the festivities, I am still nervous about the FOUR HOUR flights. I will be armed with full bottles and plenty of pacifiers. I'm hoping he'll just sleep most of the time, but we shall see! Michael has some cute clothes to wear this week, so I update our picture website when we get back on Sunday. 

ps- I did not have time to proofread this cause baby was crying, so sorry for any typos or grammatical errors!

Conversations- Dad's have it rough

Here are two conversations Rob and I have had in the last seven days:

Scene- Around 10pm in the evening, after Baby Michael's dinner
Stephanie: Rob, can you please change the baby and put him to bed so I can pump and get ready for bed?
Rob: Ugh! I'm already in bed! I'm tired and trying to sleep.

I didn't respond, but only because I couldn't think of a response due to the blind rage I felt. Here is what I wish I had said to my darling husband, "Oh, I'm sorry, you're tired? That must be awful for you! I myself am also tired seeing as I haven't slept longer than 2.5 hours at once in over a month. My arms, back, and boobs could use a rest too! But you stay in bed and get some sleep, I'll stay up getting the baby changed and settled for bed, and once I'm done getting myself ready for bed, it'll be time to feed the baby again!"

Here is another exchange between me and Rob from just yesterday:

Scene- Driving home after baby and mommy pick Rob up from school.
Rob- You smell really good.
Stephanie- Really? The baby threw up on me and I didn't bother changing my shirt before we picked you up.
Rob- You smell like fried food, what did you make?
Stephanie- I made hash browns for breakfast; do I smell like potatoes and onions?
Rob- What?! Why didn't you get up and make me hash browns before I left?!

Again, I had no response. Although, when you think about it, it was ridiculous that I didn't get up at 6:30 to make breakfast for Rob when I had woken up at 5am to feed the baby. Instead of going back to bed at 6am, I should have just gotten my bum in the kitchen and whipped up a big breakfast for Rob. I am so inconsiderate!

Being a dad must be really tough, I don't think I could handle all the work and pressure! Good thing I'm the mom and I'm lucky enough to do nothing all day at home with the baby!  I really should have the house spotless every day when Rob gets home and serve him a seven course meal each night. I am so lazy. (Stupid June Cleaver ruining it for every other mom on the planet! I hope you burn in hell!... the character, not the lovely lady who played her.)

At least I get to stay home all day with a baby as cute as this!

1 Month Birthday!

Hi! My name is Michael and today is my one month birthday! Look how cute I am with my 1 month onesie!

I plan on spending my birthday sleeping, eating, pooping, and watching UGA play football against silly Auburn University! Today my dad taught me something cool, it goes like this:

"GO DAWGS! SIC 'EM!!!!!"

Taking a pre-game nap AND showing school spirit! I'm only one month old and I can multi-task. You don't have to say it, I know I'm awesome :)

Happy Due Date Day Baby Michael

Today is my due date. Today my baby is four weeks old!  I have to admit, I'm glad he got here early, cause I totally love him. A LOT!  The past four weeks have flown by, I can't believe little Michael is growing so fast. He is still pretty tiny, but he is getting bigger and gaining weight every day. His little eyebrows are getting darker (they were so pale when he was born it looked like he had no eyebrows), he is finally filling out newborn sized clothing, and he is making all kinds of adorable faces and sounds. He has all his hair (people keep asking if it has fallen out), and it's still real dark. I know I'm bias, but he really is getting cuter everyday.

I still love being a mom, although it's not hard to love when you have an adorable baby! Michael is a really good baby so far; he isn't a big cryer (he's been fussy in the evenings lately, but it's not awful), and we're down to 2-3 regular overnight feedings. I usually (but not always) have to wake him up for the overnighters- I'm hopeful this means that he'll go right into sleeping through the night at 6 or 8 weeks old. Fingers crossed! He had his first bath this past week... yeah, he didn't love it. Rob said I didn't have the water hot enough and I was afraid if I made it hotter it would burn his little bum. When we got him out of the bath and wrapped him in his towel he started shivering- it was pathetically adorable. Next time I'll go warmer since Rob said I wasn't being a very good mommy.

Michael still can't see very well (according to baby books), but he has been looking at himself in the mirror during his diaper changes. It's pretty cool to watch him looking into the mirror. I have no idea what it looks like to him, and I don't know if he can recognize himself, but it keeps him from crying when we he's being changed. This is good cause I HATE when he cries! Not cause it's loud or annoying, cause it makes me sad. Today I tried out one of his cloth diapers, but only for about 3 seconds. Baby boy is still so small it looked like the diaper was trying to eat him. He needs to pack on some more weight and get a little bit longer. I can't wait to use them though- they are so cute! Also, the disposable diapers are SO wasteful- I cannot believe one little baby has gone through so many diapers already.

Who is that handsome devil in the mirror?

I am really starting to look forward to the holidays. This past week our family friend, Elaine, bought Michael a really cute Thanksgiving outfit, and my dad bought him a "Baby's First Christmas" santa hat and stocking. My mother also ordered him a tiny tuxedo to wear to his Aunt Shelly's wedding over Thanksgiving weekend. I love holiday clothes!! Baby Michael is going to be stylin'! I plan to start looking for a super cute and sparkly holiday dress so we can take family photos this Christmas. I wonder if I can convince Rob to wear something sparkly too... I just love the holidays cause I love being with my family. I'm so glad that Rob, Michael, and I are our own little family this year too! I can't wait to fill his little Christmas stocking and buy him all kinds of fun presents. It's a shame he won't remember, but hey, I guess that's why cameras were invented. 

And of course, check out his new pictures on our website www.threeisntacrowd.shutterfly.com, and let me know if you still need the password!

Happy Halloween!

Baby Michael celebrated his 3 week birthday Wednesday with his first Halloween!  He dressed up as a little tiger (his costume was a gift from our friend Melissa M.), and he had a secondary pumpkin costume, but... well the hat with the pumpkin face was NOT Michael's cup of tea. So, he was only a pumpkin head for a few minutes- long enough to take some pictures! We drove up to my parents house (my family that came to visit last weekend are still here thanks to Hurricane Sandy). Michael spent the afternoon hanging out with his great-grandparents, great aunt, grandfather, and uncle. Then we drove back to Athens, picked Rob up from school and went to a Halloween cookout hosted by one of Rob's classmates. It was fun- burgers, dogs, s'mores- but we were only able to stay a couple of hours cause baby boy was tired. It was a big day for him.  I LOVE Halloween, so I am really looking forward to when little Michael can go trick or treating and rock some awesome costumes!

As I mentioned earlier, my grandparents and aunt came down to meet the new baby. I knew my grandparents were coming, but I had no idea that my aunt would be coming too! I was so excited when she walked in! Yay for surprises! I really love my family, and I am super happy that I get to share them with Michael! My grandmother is completely in love with him, she barely let anyone else hold him! She and my aunt were pretty much fighting over him the whole week. If I wasn't breastfeeding I wouldn't have been able to hold him at all. The best part of the weekend? My aunt likes changing dirty diapers... so yeah I took advantage of that while she was here! I'm sad that they will be leaving soon, but they are all visiting again (along with another aunt, three uncles, and two cousins) at Christmas. Baby Michael's first Christmas- YAY!   Of course before Christmas we have Thanksgiving and Shelly's (Rob's sister) wedding out in Arizona. Michael is excited for his first plane trip (I'm dreading it of course), so he can meet his aunt and his Seerley great grandparents, oh and of course attend his first wedding.

As for me? Mommy and baby have finally settled into a routine... for the most part anyway. Michael usually eats every 2.5-3 hours, so I have some time in between to feed and bathe myself plus do a few chores (usually baby related). The house is a total wreck but such is life with a new baby. I can't believe Michael is almost a month old already, it's amazing how fast things seem to be going. I'm torn, I am dying for him to sleep through the night, but I don't want my baby to grow up too fast either!

In other pregnancy news- one of my best friends just found out she is going to have twins AND one of my best friends growing up is pregnant with triplets! I have been thinking about these two ladies during my midnight, 2am, and 4 am feedings. I used to want twins and thought having multiples would be so much fun. Yeah... after waking up two or three times a night and changing a bazillion diapers in the last three weeks, I'm good with just the one baby right now! I'm not sure I could handle more than one at a time, even with Rob being as supportive as he has been. BUT! I know that these ladies have great family and friends to support and help them once their babies arrive, and I know that they will both be really amazing mothers. Especially since their mothers are such great role models.

I posted some new pictures on our website, threeisntacrowd.shutterfly.com (and as always, let me know if you need the password). Check out my cute Halloween tiger!  I realized today that I have about 0 pictures of me and the baby... I need to rectify that!

Two Weeks Old!

I can't believe Baby Michael is already two weeks old, especially since my due date is still two weeks away!

Things have been trucking along here in Athens with our new baby. Rob and I are settling into a sort of routine with the baby, but the three of us are still working that out. Waking up every two hours at night is pretty rough- especially when Rob is totally out cold and I'm trying to feed, change, and calm a fussy baby. Kind of makes me want to punch him right in his peacefully sleeping face, he's lucky that I love him and it's impossible to punch him when I need to hold Michael with both hands. Oh well, I know these two hour feedings will end soon and I'll be sad that he's getting so big.

Speaking of getting big, Michael is finally back to his birth weight of 6 pounds 2 ounces. We had several doctor appointments for weight checks after we were discharged from the hospital, and now we don't have to go back until Michael's two month check up. Baby boy is looking bigger in general- his head, hands, and feet aren't SUPER tiny any more. Which is good health wise, but again- I can't believe he is growing so fast!

Being a mom is pretty great so far, even during the awful middle of the night feedings. Rob and I have had a couple of midnight scares though. The second night we were back here, my alarm went off. I turned the alarm off, fed and changed the baby and went back to sleep. I woke up 45 minutes later and realized I had dreamt the whole thing. I freaked out, jumped out of bed, sure that Michael had starved to death. He was fine of course.  Since then I have had quite a few dreams in which I fell asleep while holding or feeding him in bed. These totally scare me because I'm positive I've suffocated him.  The absolute worst night was when Rob had gotten up to feed him. An hour after Michael was fed, Rob flew out of bed and started pulling all the blankets, sheets, and pillows off the bed. He said he fell asleep holding the baby and was looking for him. when Rob couldn't find him, I freaked out even more and asked if he had fallen off our bed. After having heart attacks for a good 5 minutes, we realized the baby was in his cradle- he was just fine. So yeah, I love being a mom- but I could do with out horrible nightmares about accidentally hurting my baby.

The nursery is 99% finished. I just need to find a book case and hang a couple more pictures, and it's done. The baby is still sleeping in our room right now (so much easier with all the overnight feedings and changings), so there is still time to finish the last details. Once it's all done, I'll post some pictures here to share. I think it's coming out great!

Speaking of pictures, I added new photos to our website-threeisntacrowd.shutterfly.com.  If you need the password, let me know and I will send it along.  I will post one picture here. Rob was pretty excited for Michael's first UGA gameday last Saturday, and he is VERY excited for the upcoming Georgia v. Florida game this Saturday. Michael already has two UGA football jerseys- they are too big, but he's still freaking cute.

Wonder what Rob would think if I put him in a GA Tech jersey for the UGA v. Tech game... ;)

One week later...

Well... I guess Baby Michael had me eating my words about wanting him to come early!  After writing and posting the blog last week I felt just fine. By 5pm, not so much. I'll write a better post about Michael's entrance into the world when I have more time. Basically, we were at the hospital by 8pm, and Michael arrived at 1:39 am. I labored about 9 hours and his actual delivery only took about 7 minutes. Oh, and if you really want to hate me, I've already dropped about 15 pounds (thank God for breastfeeding), and I'm only 10 away from my pre-pregnancy weight. It seems that karma is doing me a solid after my horrible first trimester.

Since Michael was 4 weeks early, they consider him a premie. :( Sad day. However, he is healthy and happy. We just have to keep an eye on his weight and keep him away from the real world for about two weeks. And since he will be a week old tomorrow, he only has one more to go!

Rob and I are totally in love with him, and I am selfishly enjoying keeping him away from people cause I want to be with him all the time! Rob is an amazing dad so far, and has probably changed more diapers than me. I knew I picked a winner in him!

You may have noticed we haven't posted any pictures of the baby on facebook (if you are a facebook user anyway). Rob and I are paranoid new parents, and we aren't sure if we want any pictures of him on fbook. However, we love our family and friends (near and far) and we do want to share pictures (and hopefully videos soon) of our new baby. I created a private online album you can check out: http://threeisntacrowd.shutterfly.com/.  Just shoot me an email or facebook message and I will give you the password. We will continue to add pictures as we take them. I would have more but all I do is feed him, change him, and sleep!

Also, thank you to everyone who has sent well wishes and congratulations our way. We are so happy and thankful to have all of you in our lives!

9 Months!!!!

Here we are at 36 weeks preg- I am officially in my 9th month of pregnancy! It's a bit scary and exciting that my due date is less than a month away at this point!

Rob and I still have a lot to do before Baby Michael gets here! The nursery is mostly finished. We are still waiting on our glider, and the bookcase we got is a bit to small, and I'd like to get a floating shelf for over the dress/changing table- but it's looking good! Once it is more finished and polished looking, I'll post pictures. Besides nursery stuff, we need a few more things, but since I have my Atlanta baby shower this weekend (yay!), I am holding off on buying the last items til next week.

I am really excited for my shower! Even though I've been back since August I haven't had the opportunity to see many of my friends because I moved directly to Athens. This will be the first time I see a lot of them since the last time I was home! My mother, and two friends, Mauri and Allie, have been planning the shower. They have been secretive, so I have no idea what to expect besides a jungle theme!

As for me, I feel ok most of the time. My back hurts a lot, and I've actually been having some minor contractions. Don't worry, that's normal before you go into real labor. Despite my hopes that these might be a sign the baby might come early, my doctor and all the pregnancy books say that real labor could still be weeks away. Even though the contractions are minor, and are more uncomfortable than painful, I would prefer not to be having them for the next four weeks!

I also forgot to share a fun tidbit from my last doctor appointment (what with the possibility of breech baby). Right BEFORE my doc starting feeling for the baby's head, she asked me if Rob and I would be interested in sharing our birth with a reality show crew. I don't think I have ever said no faster in my entire life. Of course, then I felt rude and apologized. Dr. Simone explained it would focus on our relationship (personal and medical) with her during labor and after delivery- nothing "private" would be shown. Yeah, still a big giant NO, sorry. Considering I only want Rob and the medical staff in the room, the idea of sharing our birth with all of America is horribly invasive. I want to enjoy the first moments of my child's life with Rob, not everyone who watches tv. No thank you.

Interestingly, this is the second time this year I was asked to participate in a reality tv show! Earlier this year, our landlord in St. Kitts asked if we wanted to be on house hunters international (cause the Dolphin House freakin' rocks!). We chose not to do that cause it was going to be a huge hassle-we had to pretend we didn't live in the house yet, they do not provide a moving or cleaning service before or after the show, and even though they provide small compensation you are required to fly back to where you came from to film a before scene using that "compensation" money. They only wanted one couple, and since Rob and Kate were in class, it would have been a bit weird for all of our friends back home to see Trevor and me (7 months pregnant) pretending to be a couple. The best part was that right after we turned them down, there were a bunch of news articles announcing house hunters was fake. Oooh, stop the presses- reality tv isn't reality? Shut the front door! Anyway, the point is I don't want our birth on tv. :)

Excuse the lounge-y wear. I was too tired to throw together a real outfit today.

How far along? 36 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  148/149. Same as last week, apparently toward the end of pregnancy your weight kind of stabilizes   
Maternity clothes? Still both. 
Measurements: Waist: 39.5 inches, Hips: 40 inches. 
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: AWFUL! Last night was terrible. I have a feeling that it won't be getting any better.

What is Baby doing? Not too much! All his systems are pretty much in working order, his digestive system isn't up and running, but that's because he hasn't needed it yet. What I hope Baby Michael is doing is getting ready to make his debut. I don't know if I'm ready to be a mom yet, but seriously baby, let's get this show started!

Best moment this week: Knowing we are in the home stretch!
Movement: Yes, he is kicking me in my right ribs, mostly at night, and nearly always in a manner that hurts. Very badly.
Miss Anything? Breathing, sitting, laying down, sleeping, etc...
Food cravings: Nope.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope.
Name: Michael!

Labor Signs: Yep- minor contractions. Although, these are prelabor or false labor contractions- it's not show time just yet.
Belly Button in or out? The "button" part is finally starting to poke out, but just a little bit!
Wedding rings on or off? Rocking my engagement only.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I am happy overall, but due to my discomfort I might be a bit moody.

Looking forward to: My doctor's appoint Friday and my shower Saturday!

35 Weeks!

Another week down, another blog post, another week closer to meeting Baby Michael!  The 35th week is the last of month 8, so next week I will officially be in my 9th MONTH! Time could not go by slower in my first trimester, and now it's flying.  Even though my doctor keeps telling me that most first mothers tend to be late, Rob and I both think we're going to have an October baby. If we're right, the baby will be here before the end of the month! Scary! Of course, it's more likely that my doctor, with years and years of experience is right. If I am overdue, she said that she is uncomfortable letting me go longer than one week past due, so the latest the baby would be here is November 14th. That's not too far away either.

I met with my doctor this past Thursday, and it started off like any normal appointment. Weight, blood pressure, measure my tummy, listen to baby's heartbeat (which was strong!). Then Dr. Simone said she was going to press on my stomach to confirm the baby was head down (Rob, as a vet student looked confused when I told him this. I told him she palpated my stomach, and he said OHHH right. Vet nerd).  Well, after a lot of uncomfortable pressing, and a lot of concerned sounding "Hmmms...." Dr Simone asked if I would be willing to do a quick sonogram. Uh, why???? Apparently, she could not feel Baby Michael's head. She was concerned that he might be breech. Crap (that is not the word that went through my head, but I have to keep it PG-13).

Into the sonogram room we go, and after a few minutes of searching near the top of my tummy for his head we found NOTHING. No head! After another concerned, "Hmmm," my doc said quietly to herself, "Maybe he's..." and moved the wand way down to the very bottom of my tummy. Yep, little Michael  has his head nestled WAY down low already. Dr. Simone said it was great, but she was surprised I hadn't been peeing my pants regularly with his head that low. I asked if being that low was a risk factor for preterm labor. Nope- he's just good to go once the show begins.  I asked if he was a big baby, cause despite his head being low his feet were still crushing my lungs. She did not have the machine set up to take measurements, since it was a quick thing, but she said he is actually a little baby. Not dangerous or cause for concern little, he's just a small baby (based on her visual assessment). She also pointed out that he might seem big to me because I am also small. So crisis averted. No breech baby! Yay!

The worst part of my appointment (once I knew everything was ok with the baby anyway) was the realization that the (cheap) scale that I bought is about seven-eight pounds off. I weighed, what? 139 lbs by my scale Tuesday when I posted the blog last week. A mere two days later at the doctor's office I weighed 147 lbs!!!! Since I am pretty sure I didn't gain that much weight over two days, I figured it was my scale. So, I am not sure when those 8 extra lbs caught up with me, but they did.  Now, I know gaining weight is par for the course, but thinking I gained 8 lbs over two days kind of blew my mind.

Oh, and I think Rob would appreciate me sharing this. I am really dumb. Seriously. The baby is literally sucking the brains out of my head. Yesterday (at least I think it was yesterday, it might have been three days ago, Rob says I can't keep track of time anymore either) I picked Rob up from school and drove back home. When we pulled up to the gate, Rob said, "Steph, the gate is closed." I responded, "Yeah, I know! I can see that it's closed Rob." He shook his head, reached over to the keys I had in the ignition and clicked the gate opener. I was just sitting there like an idiot waiting for it to open on it's own AND I was too stupid to even understand what Rob was trying to tell me. Baby Brain is REAL!

I assume they mean an unhusked coconut.

How far along? 35 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  149, +26 lbs. This means I am pretty much on target for weight gain. 
Maternity clothes? Still wearing both. AND my awesome friend Michelle saw me complain about buying maternity jeans last week on the blog, so she lent me her maternity jeans and they fit perfectly! Thanks Michelle!
Measurements: Waist: 39 inches, Hips: 40 inches. 
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Ok I guess. I have been sleeping pretty late in the mornings. I am trying to enjoy that since I won't get to sleep late again for the next 18 years. 

What is Baby doing? Well, he is about as long as he will get, but will probably pack on another pound or so before he's born. His hearing is fully developed now, and he responds best to high pitched noises. That's probably why he moves so much when I am whining to Rob.

Best moment this week: Finding out he is NOT breech! Also, I know it's awful, but hearing he was on the small side gave me a little bit of relief from my delivery anxiety!
Movement: Baby Michael is still going all the time. However, now all his movements tend to be in only two spots, clearly he's running out of room. 
Miss Anything? I miss breathing normally so much.
Food cravings: I wanted cupcakes this week. I was initially torn if it was a preg craving or just a normal human wanting delicious cupcakes. Since I didn't end up making cupcakes til the next day, and I did not cram 40 of them into my mouth at once, I'm going to say it was just regular Stephanie wanting a cupcake.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Just my doctor scaring the crap out of me at my appointment.
Have you started to show yet:  I had three people at the grocery store ask me when I was due. Oh, and I saw a woman with a life-like baby doll in a car seat there too. I followed her out, she strapped the car seat into her car. It was freaking (again not the word that came to mind, PG-13) weird!!!
Name: Michael!

Labor Signs: Nope.
Belly Button in or out? Flat as a pancake.
Wedding rings on or off? My engagement ring fits fine, but my wedding rings do not. So I just wear my engagement ring. I'm tired of people looking at me like I'm an unwed teen mom. Curse my youthful appearance!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Anxious! I am tired of being uncomfortable and I want the baby to be here already!

Looking forward to: Eating another cupcake. Ha! Just kidding. Same as last week- baby's arrival!

34 Weeks!

There are some disadvantages to being back in the USA. For example, after living abroad for two years, life seems kind of boring here in the states. Rob and I are doing our best to save money, so I don't really do anything during the day. The difference between doing nothing in the states (sitting on my bum watching TV in the house) and St. Kitts (sitting and/or swimming on the beach) is actually pretty big. Plus, in St. Kitts I had all my awesome VIPs friends to do nothing with- here, not so much.

Why am I telling you all this? To prepare you for another less then interesting blog post this week! Baby stuff has been going along normally. Like I said, I am uncomfortable a lot. I would just like to lay down or sit down and relax!  Yesterday, I tried laying down on the couch, and baby boy kicked me in the stomach. Kicked me so hard I thought I was going to throw up. Yeah, that's right. I almost puked, that is how hard babies can kick. Usually he kicks my lungs, so I guess it was his way of keeping me surprised.  One of my books, and the website I get the fruits from, said that the baby may "drop" soon. This has not happened to me yet, but allegedly you can breathe easier once this happens. The trade off is that instead of peeing 97 times a day, once the baby drops you start peeing about 546 times a day. At this point I'm not sure if I rather breathe more or pee less. Decisions decisions...       

If you read this blog or my other one (which I promise I will update eventually), I would occasionally have a {Conversations} segment. I stole that idea from my friend Catherine. In an effort to liven up this post, I will share a conversation I had with Rob.

Scene- While watching TV, a Babies R Us ad with Heidi Klum showcasing her baby collection comes on.
Rob: "You didn't put any of her stuff on our baby registry, did you?"
Steph: "No, I didn't even register there. Why?"
Rob: "Because she's a porn star."
Steph: (after a moment of stunned silence) "Uh... She was a Victoria Secret model, not a porn star."
Rob: "Same thing."

Freddy has been trying to get in the picture for weeks now!

How far along? 34 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  139 this week by my scale. I have a dr appointment Thursday, I bet her scale will say I'm heavier.
Maternity clothes? Still wearing both. It's getting a bit chilly (in the morning anyway), and I am trying NOT to buy maternity jeans... I'm really hoping my leggings will get me through the next 6 weeks and post preg til I can get back in my regular clothes.
Measurements: Waist: 39 inches, Hips: 39.5 inches. 
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Not so bad this week. 

What is Baby doing? It's a big week, baby can now recognize songs we sing AND his litle boy parts are now on the outside of his body! (I am sure years from now Baby Michael will kill me for writing that on a public website).

Best moment this week: Hm, nothing super special happened this week. But I guess the worst thing (besides the stomach kicking) was when we went to the vet school tailgate for the football game last Saturday. It was pretty hot, and my fingers swelled up like sausages. It was awful, and it even kind of hurt.
Movement: I would like to know who wrote that babies stop moving or move less in the last weeks. Cause this baby moves ALL the time, and he kicks hard. He best be getting a football or soccer scholarship!
Miss Anything? Eh, not really.
Food cravings: Nope.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. Well, not unless you count baby kicks.
Have you started to show yet:  Yes. I looked up pics of preg ladies at 34 weeks... I'm feeling pretty good. Some people look enormous!
Name: Michael!

Labor Signs: Nope.
Belly Button in or out? Flat as a pancake.
Wedding rings on or off? I haven't bothered to even put them on since the tailgate. I'm afraid Rob will have to cut them off if my fingers swell again.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Uncomfortable, but happy.

Looking forward to: Baby Michael's arrival and my Atlanta shower (but that's still a couple weeks away!)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

33 Weeks!

I'm so on top of my game, that this week I realized that we are in single digits as we count down the weeks til the baby arrives. And yes, I realize there are 7 more weeks, not 9- I blame pregnancy brain. Getting so close means that Rob and I visited Northside Hospital's Women's Center- where we will be delivering.  We toured the maternity wing, which is really nice, and got the lowdown on how things generally go when people have babies. I had a mild panic attack when we saw some of the newborns in the nursery. It was definitely an, "I'm not ready to be in charge of another human, especially not a tiny helpless human," moment. I glanced at Rob- he was cool, calm, collected, and all smiles.

I also had another doctor appointment this past week. I was excited for Rob to finally meet my doctor- but she was "busy" (read- probably delivering a baby) so we met with the midwife she works with. Bummer. However, everything is still looking good with baby, and that is not a bummer!

The only other exciting piece of baby news is that Rob got maybe his favorite baby gift so far. It's a UGA jersey onesie. It is adorable. I think it will probably have to wait until next football season because it's sized for 18 months... unless we have a big chubby baby. That would be equally adorable.

Rob has school spirit.

Fred does NOT have school spirit.
Neither Fred nor I was impressed or pleased with Rob forcing Freddy into the UGA onesie.

How far along? 33 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  140, +17. Oy vey.
Maternity clothes? Rocking normal sized clothes today. Rob would want me to point out they may be normal, but the clothes consist of yoga pants and a tank top.
Measurements: Waist: 38 inches, Hips: 39.5 inches. Same three weeks in a row. Weird.
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Still not great. The weird thing is I'm restless all night, but after about 6am I completely conk out til around 9:30 or 10am.

What is Baby doing? Baby Boy now keeps his eyes open when he is awake. I can't lie, I hope he has blue eyes like me!

Best moment this week: I guess visiting the hospital. Even though seeing the newborn freaked me out, she was pretty cute.
Movement: Still moving all the time, except now it kind of hurts. Since the baby is getting bigger, there is less amniotic fluid to cushion his blows, so they feel harder.
Miss Anything? Breathing normally, sitting or laying down comfortably, sleeping through the night...
Food cravings: Nope.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. 
Have you started to show yet:  See picture above.
Gender: Little boy named Michael!

Labor Signs: Another Braxton-Hicks contraction, not as bad as the last one.
Belly Button in or out? Flat as a pancake.
Wedding rings on or off? Depends on the day- some days they fit, other days putting them on turns my finger purple.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy. 
Looking forward to: The baby getting here! I am ready to not be preg anymore... 7 more weeks!

32 Weeks!

Eight months already! I can't believe that Rob and I only have eight more weeks (give or take) before the baby arrives.  In our childbirth class we learned that a woman's first labor and delivery closely mimics her mother's first labor and delivery. If this is in fact the case the baby might be here sooner than eight weeks, because I was a first baby and I was two weeks early! That would be just peachy with me too cause I'm kind of over being preg- I want the baby to get here!

In reality, we still have a lot to do before the baby gets here. I finally got all my wall art framed, and the giraffe decal and animal heads arrived this week.  He won't say it, but I think Rob hates the animal heads (I think they are hilariously awesome).  Apparently, because they are fake, they creep him out.  This is going to have to be one of those times where Rob and I just don't understand each other. I'm creeped out by the actual dead animal heads and bodies at the farm house and he is not. He is creeped out by white resin animal heads that were never alive and I am not. Hey, no couple is perfect right?! Ha!  We haven't hung any of our decorations yet, the giraffe was rolled up for shipping, so it's laid flat on the floor to... well, get flat, and we still need our glider chair and maybe a small bookcase for the room. The glider is on our registry, so we figured we'll wait til after the next shower before we make any purchases ourselves.  Once we have everything we need, we plan to fill in the gaps and finalize the nursery.

We did get quite a bit of stuff this past Saturday at our first baby shower up in New Jersey. It was a lot of fun, it was the first "Jack and Jill" baby shower I'd been too, and really it was more of a big holiday dinner/party/bbq but I was the only one who got presents. I didn't really open any of my presents though, I have several cousins between the ages of 3-8... they basically tore open all my gifts. Thank God my aunt was writing down who gave me what, because I had no idea. When I packed up the gifts I would say 50% of the stuff I didn't see while gifts were being opened. So, if you were at my shower, and my thank you card left some gift out- I'm sorry!  We did get a lot of fun stuff, and lots of cute clothes! My grandmother even knitted the baby an outfit (pants, hooded sweater, booties, and mittens) and a baby blanket. They are beautiful!

And............. we finally decided on a name! If you are a member of my family, or if you've met my family, you know we can be, what's the right word? Pushy, we can be pushy. On our way to the airport on Friday, Rob said, we need to decide on a name right now, otherwise everyone will be harassing us at the shower. Nothing like family to light a fire under your bum! We decided on two names we had been discussing since the beginning. We had wanted to use family names from the start, and we decided to name Baby Boy after both of our dads. So, Baby Boy's name is Michael Allen Seerley. Michael is my dad's first name, and Allen is Rob's dad's middle name (Allen is Rob's great-grandmother's maiden name; quite a few of his relatives have Allen as middle names).  It's kind of funny that after all our back and forth disagreements about names and not liking what each other liked, we ended up going back to names we discussed really early on in our pregnancy. Clearly we were over-thinking the name thing.  The best news- there was a clear second place name that we both liked. So if our next baby is a boy too, we won't be arguing for eight months over a name!

Oy, my face looks FAT. Not my best angle, gross.

How far along? 32 Weeks- 8 months!

Total weight gain/loss:  138, +15
Maternity clothes? Still wearing a mixture of regular and maternity.
Measurements: Waist: 38 inches, Hips: 39.5 inches. 
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Not great at all. My hips have been getting sore, so I roll over a whole lot, and rolling strains my tummy muscles- let's just say sleeping is unpleasant.

What is Baby doing? He has been practicing sucking, breathing, and swallowing. With all the fat that he has been packing on, his skin is no longer clear- it's baby pink!

Best moment this week: Seeing all our friends and family at our shower this past weekend!
Movement: Lots, my cousins Lia and Michael were really excited to feel the baby move.
Miss Anything? I miss being able to bend over and pick stuff up.
Food cravings: Nope.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. 
Have you started to show yet: Last week I said I had a big ol' baby bump. At the shower Saturday I heard a lot of, "Oh, I thought you'd be bigger," and, "You're EIGHT months pregnant? You look five months." I am going to take these comments as compliments. 
Gender: A baby boy who FINALLY has a name! Yay!

Labor Signs: I had a serious Braxton-Hicks contraction last Thursday night. It was uncomfortable, and lasted quite a while, but with my trusty heating pad, body pillow, and Rob massaging my back, it wasn't too bad.
Belly Button in or out? Flat as a pancake.
Wedding rings on or off? Still on; some days they feel normal and other days they feel tight.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy. 
Looking forward to: This weekend I have a doctor's appointment on Friday (it will be the first time in the states Rob gets to go with me!) and Saturday we have our hospital tour. 

31 Weeks!

You will be pleased to hear that after last weeks VERY long post, there isn't much to share this week. Rob's settled into school and I'm settled into not doing all that much! I did put drawer liner in all the dresser drawers in the baby room, but that really isn't all that exciting.

This coming weekend is my first baby shower! It's being hosted by my aunt and grandmother, Thalia and Stella, in New Jersey. I've heard rumors that my cousin Christopher has taken some hosting duties upon himself and has arranged a keg of beer. Yes, a keg of beer. At a baby shower. Doesn't get classier than that, does it? Half of me is laughing and the other half is shaking my head. On the up side, most of my cousins are guys, and all of a sudden they are pumped to be attending my baby shower. This is good since I am dragging Rob to the shower!

All joking aside, I am pretty excited. I haven't seen my family up there since May (and I didn't get to see everyone I would have liked too), and Rob hasn't seen them since last August/December! Sadly, our trip isn't very long, we are flying up Friday evening and flying home Sunday afternoon. Rob and my mom can't miss school Friday or Monday, and my mom is leaving for a 10 day cruise the following Thursday, so it had to be a quick trip. Oh, and doc doesn't want me traveling after this weekend anyway; I guess we are all party poopers.

How far along? 31
Total weight gain/loss:  135... do not be alarmed. I haven't eaten in a couple hours, and I just bought a new scale. Probably just weighed myself at a weird time.
Maternity clothes? Wearing normal clothes today. 
Measurements: Waist: 38 inches, Hips: 39.5 inches. 
Stretch marks? Nope.
Sleep: Eh, not great.

What is Baby doing? Baby Boy is probably weighing around 3 lbs now! His eyes can now react to light which means his 5 senses are all systems go!

Best moment this week: Watching Rob try to figure out how the car seat works. It made me feel better about not being able to figure out the stroller.
Movement: Oh yeah, he's still moving all the time. Baby Boy likes to tease Rob though. I'll say he's moving, Rob rushes over, and nothing. As soon as Rob stops touching my belly, Baby Boy is moving again.
Miss Anything? I've really been wanting a rum punch from Elvis' Love Shack. This is doubly sad cause not only can I not have rum, but I'm not even in St. Kitts anymore! No rum punch even after the baby arrives. :(
Food cravings: Nope.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. 
Have you started to show yet: Big ol' baby bump.
Gender: Boy.

Labor Signs: Just some minor contractions every now and then. I think they are called Braxton-Hicks contractions, but they are no big deal.
Belly Button in or out? Rob and my mom have declared my belly button officially flat.
Wedding rings on or off? Still on!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Pretty happy. 
Looking forward to: Seeing friends and family this weekend at my baby shower (cough cough, registered at amazon.com and buybuybaby, cough cough) - I know, I'm awful! ;)