God's Preparations

I think most mamas would agree that God gives us 9 months to prepare for all the change that comes with having a child.  He isn't going to just leave us out there high and dry!  And now that the baby is here, I can look back and see the things that I was being prepared for. I don't think it's a coincidence that in the third trimester sleep becomes miserable and happens less and less.  Its preparation for the first 3 months!

Here are some I'm not sure God intended, but seem to be working for me anyway:

1. In the hospital, I lost all shred of dignity.  I'm pretty sure that was to prepare me for being spit up, peed and pooped on in the coming months.
2. God blessed my child with a built in detector for food.  The minute I sit down with a plate, he needs me.  Maybe this is God's way of helping me lose the baby weight?
3. All the money you didn't spend in the last nine months, because you didn't want to invest a small fortune in maternity clothes?  Dollars saved for diapers!
4. Thick, luscious hair due to pregnancy hormones?  Something you can feel good about when your body looks like a deflated balloon and the scale still reads numbers WAY above where it should!
5. Inability to do certain things (like clean the baseboards) in late pregnancy?  That's to prepare you for the idea that your house probably won't be that clean for a few years.
6. Baby crying every couple of hours keeping you from running all the errands that you used to?  Well, I think God does that to show you that yes, indeed, you can find money in the budget for a college fund.

So thanks, God, for all the things that you intended to prepare us for during pregnancy, and all those other things that you may or may not have intended.

Goodbye, Sleep!

I have no trouble saying I'm an "8-hour-a-night" kind of girl.  I cherish the days where I can get in bed in the 9PM hour.  I've gone through more sets of bedding in my 28 years than many people would go through in a lifetime.  My bed is my refuge.

Except when it isn't.

Like now.

The going to sleep still isn't a problem.  Oh, I can get in bed and fall asleep 5 minutes later watching a show.  Rob has had to remove the glasses from my face on more than one occasion recently (and tell me about the end of "The Rachel Zoe Project.")

But then I wake up.  Usually at midnight, 2:30, and somewhere between 4 and 5:15.  If I'm lucky I pee and go back to sleep.  If I'm unlucky I toss an turn and ultimately fall back asleep about 15 minutes before my next pee break, where I wake up again.  This has lead to significantly less than than the necessary 8 hours of sleep a night.  For too many nights in a row.  And I don't expect it to change for, what, 6-8 months?  If I'm lucky?

But I want to go on record that I think it is completely unfair that OB/GYNs limit your caffeine intake exactly at the time when it seems like the only way to make it through the day is with cups and cups of Starbucks.  A coffee pot may be on my Christmas list this year.....

And then there are the dreams.  Crazy, wild dreams.  VIVID dreams.  Last night I birthed a teddy bear with a pulse.  The good news was it was an easy delivery.  The bad news was it didn't phase me AT ALL that it was a teddy bear.  I really should start journaling the dreams.  Maybe there is deep hidden meaning in there somewhere. :)

Bathrooms I have known

When my brother was young, the joke was that he was writing a book on bathrooms, because no matter WHERE we were, Travis needed to go to the bathroom.  I think he was too close to having just been potty trained to tell him to hold it, so off we went, to some of the most squalid bathrooms you ever saw.

Now that I am in my third trimester (and not my "I-just-made-it-official 3rd Trimester," but one all doctors agree with), I've noticed this amazing ability to need to pee.  Three times in an hour isn't unusual.  Maybe it's time for me to write a book.

This means I now get to/have to visit the restroom at establishments that I would otherwise try to AVOID- like the carwash/lube center this morning.  But Drew was using my bladder as a trampoline, and I knew I had to (it was much nicer than I expected).

My office has also take this time to decide to re-do the bathrooms on my floor.  So yesterday I get up from my desk, walk down the hall only to see a "closed" sign on the only bathroom on our floor.  So yesterday I spent a good amount of time on the stairs walking to the 8th or 10th floor to use the bathroom.  I'm counting that as "exercise."

I have also noticed that Target's bathroom is a haven for pregnant women.  Every time I have EVER been in there, the only other patrons are also pregnant women.  This leads me to believe that a disproportionate number of pregnant women shop at Target, but I guess that isn't surprising.

Should I run out of things to write about on this blog, perhaps I'll just start profiling bathrooms in Austin.... you'd still read, right?

That's It- Third Trimester

Early on in this pregnancy I decided I was NOT allowed to google anything.  "Does my big toe on my right foot throbbing twice every other Tuesday mean that I'm pregnant?"  I swear, you can find someone who tells you yes, indeed, that happened to her, and she was PREGNANT!  Then, once you find out you are pregnant, things work in reverse.  "Does having no morning sickness mean something is wrong?"  Yep, page after page of people saying they had no morning sickness and something was wrong.  After my first ever panic attack, I stopped using The Google.

But recently I started using it for a pretty benign question- "When does the third trimester start?"  And yet again, I got a variety of different answers.  Some say 25 weeks (37 weeks is full term, minus 12 weeks).  Some say  28 weeks (40 weeks minus 12 weeks).  Today I am 26 weeks and 6 days pregnant, and I am declaring myself to be in the third trimester.  Here's why:

1. It appears my feet have begun to swell.  I WILL NOT let my feet grow, so I'm taking a cue from old Chinese bandaging techniques and wearing pumps every day.  I figure if I don't give them space to grow, they won't.  I might be defeated in that one.
2. It occasionally takes me more than one attempt to get off the couch.
3. Food that is dropped in my lap now finds a nice place to settle on the top of my stomach.
4. I no longer sleep like a baby.  Instead I wake up because I'm being kicked, or my arm is asleep, or my leg cramps up, or I have acid reflux and need to sit up for a bit.  
5. The doctor keeps asking me if I have signed up for babycare/birthing classes.
6. Random strangers, who used to just gawk and wonder if I was pregnant or just fat, now just come out and ask me when I'm due.  (Huge shout out to the lady at Chuy's who told me I was the "cutest pregnant woman she has seen in a long time."  If you are going out on a limb to guess if someone is pregnant, might I suggest that one).

So there, if that doesn't make 3rd trimester, what does?  And Drew is officially due 3 months from today.  Wild.  Can't wait to meet this kid! :)

It's A Boy!

But everyone reading this blog probably already knew that, since we found out almost a month ago.  Is this blog thing ever really going to take off for me?

Yes, a happy, healthy, BIG (measuring about 2 weeks large) little boy.  He was a sight to see on that screen, but cooperated nicely with the sonogram tech.  We got to see and count all the tiny fingers and toes, look at his brain, his heart, his ribs..... looking good!

The best part about the top picture in this post is apparently, based on this picture, he looks EXACTLY like either Rob or I, depending on if the person you are asking knows Rob or I better.  Seriously, we've both had at least 3 people tell us that he looks just like one or the other.  Which I think goes to prove that you see what you want to! :)

We are currently working on names and a nursery.  Seeing as though I am 24 weeks along, it is probably time to get started on both of those things.  I think we *may* have a name, but we'll keep trying it out this week and see if it sticks.

In other news, home remodel is coming along nicely.  Rob and I decided to build some cafe shelves for our dining room, so I think that is the project for the week (my e-decorator Holly told me I am crazy to be doing that at 24 weeks along and she is probably right, but that was the best I could come up with!)

This is for posterity

It occurs to me that I really should get a baby book to start recording/saving some of this stuff. Our first sonogram pictures are just sitting out upstairs, waiting to have something spilled on them. And I started feeling the little one move this week, and I know it won't be long before I completely forget the date that happened!

I started feeling the baby move on Tuesday, June 1 (17w,3d). I had heard that it feels like anything from butterflies to fish swimming to popcorn popping. I didn't experience any part of the butterflies or fish, but went straight to the popcorn. I noticed it even more this week on the days I had some coffee in the morning or after I ate a ton of watermelon (sugar?). Today the little one seems really docile, but I still feel him or her moving around. It is a GREAT feeling! :)

The Road Goes On Forever

And the painting never ends.......

LOVE all the changes in the new house. Expected to want/need to paint the walls. Didn't think about how much time (and precision) it takes to paint all the new trim work. And it is so much less rewarding!!!

Rob was out of town this weekend, so I decided I was going to get a lot accomplished. Baby Callegari agreed the first day, but then decided I had done too much and I should really just laze around on Sunday. Good compromise, I think. I am in LOVE with my new dining room/breakfast room. It just looks so much better. Both Rob and I remarked we would rather spend time in there than the living room right now. I guess this means I better get Holly started on the living room! I need to post some new pictures, but I always tend to blog from work where I don't have any pictures handy.

In other news, all activities are wrapping up for the end of the year. Tonight I have my Junior League Provisional End-of-Year Celebration. Hard to believe it was about 18 months ago that I was listening to the spiel about joining. It was a really fun experience, and I look forward to next year. My placement will be with Con Mi Madre, which was started by a JLA member many years ago. Excited about seeing what I can do with that organization.

The Young Women's Alliance Membership Appreciation Party is Wednesday, which is always a good time. Sad I won't be able to use my drink tickets this year, but it will be worth it. YWA board stuff will slowly start picking up in June, but it should be a slow start. I may actually get some house stuff done in June!

We find out the sex of the bambino on June 23. It seems so far away, but then again I feel like I JUST had an appointment where I heard that beautiful heartbeat, and my next appointment is a week from today. Time is flying, and my clothes are starting to get too tight. I'm ready for this stage to be over-- right now I feel like I just look a little fat and not pregnant. I'm ready to get to that obviously pregnant stage!

Well, that's all I have to report right now. Looking forward to a great 16th week!

Big Changes!

In both body and home.

This week has been a huge week of growth for me. I have been a lot more hungry this week, and I have seen the baby bump grow exponentially. While it used to only show up after a long day, this morning I woke up and it was already there! I give my pants about 2 more weeks before I become a skirt-only person. I have ordered a collection of 6 stretchy skirts from Old Navy, and fully intend to use that as my summer wardrobe, so be prepared.

On the home front, the remodel is almost complete. The tile is going in the laundry room right now, and the wood guys are supposed to be here in an hour to start laying the floor. Hopefully everyone is out by noon tomorrow and I'm just left with my e-designer, Holly Mathis, to put the finishing touches on the decor. I'm excited about that, but really I'm more excited to have my washer and dryer back. It's the little things, I guess.

I would post pictures of the house, but I'm doing this from work. Hope everyone has a lovely Friday!

The time has come.....

9 weeks old!

to start a blog. I'm not sure I like certain elements of this, so watch for changes to come over time, but I'm tired of messing with it.

If you are here, you likely know our latest news that Baby Callegari will be here in early November! We are very, very excited, and I'm still having a hard time believing it. I just started my second trimester, and I'm seeing some new "symptoms" pop up--- mostly that my brain seems to have gone on hiatus. I hope things won't be this way for the next 6 months. Today I found myself standing in the supply room for 5 minutes wondering why I was there, and then I realized I had actually gone to get some documents from our war room. I skipped morning sickness entirely, so maybe this will be my "bad" symptom. In my mind that is better than throwing up for 12 weeks, but my bosses may beg do differ.

We are also right in the middle of a remodel of our house. When we bought the house we immediately started planning a remodel, and after about 50 different versions of that plan (and 2 alternate plans that included just finding a new house), we are finally doing something about it. It has been 10 days of living in squalor, and I'm getting tired of it. But we should have our floors back in by Friday and be getting back to normal, and if everything stays on track I promise not to complain.

So there- 5/4/2010- my first blog post. Probably would have been more entertaining if I hadn't spent an hour trying to clean sawdust out of my stove, but I do what I can.