Baby things

Since my list of big events was depressing, my friend at Doing My Best suggested in the comments that instead I make a list of favorite baby gifts and things I might like or need for this new baby. And who am I to deny my lovely readers? (Also I love talking about baby stuff.) So here goes!


Favorite baby gifts with Kalena:
1. Homemade swaddle blankets that were much bigger than those tiny receiving blankets. GREAT for swaddling. They were also very girly, so they've been passed to my nieces. 
2. Baby sign books. Specifically this one and this one. I hadn't thought much about signing, and even though we don't do much of it, I think it definitely helps with communication before they're talking.
3. Okay, obviously we got some really, REALLY cute clothes (because who can resist cute clothes for a baby girl?!) but one outfit in particular stands out as a favorite: A white onesie with pink trim and tiny pink flamingos embroidered all over plus pink capris with little white flamingos embroidered all over them. Size 18 months and ADORABLE. 
4. A pack-n-play. Actually, TWO of them! I had some super-generous friends in Texas and ended up with a pack-n-play from my baby shower given by my church friends AND one at the shower given by my work friends. (We exchanged one for a bouncy chair and some other stuff. Still- SO NICE!)
5. One of those little "baby care" kits with a thermometer and bulb sucker and baby nail clippers and such. Totally practical, and totally something I hadn't really thought about. Definitely handy!


Favorites with Will:
Umm, I didn't have a baby shower with Will so I'm sort of blanking on what gifts we even got. A couple friends did make me a cute diaper cake though! Oh, and Brian's grandma sent us a giftcard that we spent on a swing. Will slept in that thing SO MUCH. That was excellent.


Favorites with this baby:
1. One of my friends covered one of those little plastic wipes cases in cute fabric. Great for a diaper bag and very much appreciated since the only other wipes case we have is pink and says something about being a princess.
2. My parents and sister bought us a new car seat! Because ours expired. So yahoo for not having that expense!
3. Another friend made us one of those great full-sized hooded towels. And she made an extra one when she heard Will didn't have one! 


Now, obviously since this next baby is a third child and a second boy, we have pretty much everything we need. However, there are still a few things I'm on the lookout for:


1. A coming home outfit. We have some great hand-me-downs but coming home from the hospital warrants a new outfit.
2. Some sort of lovey for him. We didn't introduce Will's bear until he was 9 months old. I won't be waiting that long this time around. Maybe something like this. I don't want something that rattles though.
3. Maybe some of these oversized swaddle blankets. To replace the girly ones.
4. We may have to break down and buy a new bouncy chair. The one we're getting back (my sister has it right now) has been used by at least 5 kids. We'll see how it's holding up.


And there you have it. Now you: what's the best baby gift you've been given? Or the best one you've given? I personally have a weakness for giving tiny adorable outfits, so I'm not sure I've ever made someone's "favorite gifts" list. 

Realization

Apparently I missed my blogging anniversary. That's right, as of February 18th I've been writing in this little space for 4 years. It definitely doesn't seem like it's been that long. I was going to write a little list of big events that have happened since I started writing, but too many of the big things are depressing, so no list.

So yeah. 4 years. I wonder what the next 4 will bring?

36 weeks

I had my 36 week appointment yesterday and things still look good. The nurse asked me how the gestational diabetes diet is going and I said, "It's good. I mean, I hate it, but I'm still doing it." She gave me a sympathetic smile and then informed that I haven't gained any weight. If I stay on this track this will be the least weight I've gained during a pregnancy.

Anyway, I'll be switching to weekly appointments now and I'm REALLY hoping I don't have to have 4 of them before this baby comes. I'm ready, and the doctor says as soon as baby is ready (i.e. I go into labor) we're all set. So HOORAY! Since Kalena came 8 days late and Will only came 3 days early I'm pretty sure it's delusional of me to believe this baby might come at the beginning of March. However, that delusion is one of the few things keeping me sane, so I'll just continue believing it mkay?

So yeah. 36 weeks.

The sweetest

You're probably going to stop believing that my kids don't fall asleep randomly if I keep posting these, but Will did it again! It was Sunday afternoon (the kids don't nap on Sundays because of when church is) and he climbed up in my lap and went right to sleep.

He was all tuckered out.

Yes, she went out in public like this

Here's what happens when you let a 3 year old dress herself:

I don't know if it's a fashion statement, but it is DEFINITELY some kind of statement!

I have a talented sister

I don't know if I've mentioned this here before, but my sister Kirsta? Is artistic. And she makes some awesome stuff. Like this picture (a Christmas gift to my parents):

Sorry for the yellow lighting. And the glare. I should have taken the picture before this picture was framed and hung on the wall. Am obviously NOT a photographer. Anyway. Her picture? Is made up of torn paper put together with modge podge. Seriously. Here's a closer look:

Is that amazing or what? And you know what else? She got on pinterest like 3 weeks ago and has actually DONE projects she pinned! (Did you know people did that in real life?) Anyway, I'm hoping Kalena gets some of that artistic talent because I sure don't have any!

A rare sight indeed

My kids don't sleep in public. They almost never sleep in the car. They don't fall asleep while they play at home, even if they're tired.

However, on Friday my dad took my kids out to lunch and the park. They missed nap time completely (it was way too late to put them down when they got home.) We were planning on dinner soon, so I put a show on for Will and left to do something. When I came back a few minutes later this is what I found:

So out of it he was snoring. And he's definitely our kid- that's a calculator he's curled up with.

35 weeks

I realized yesterday that I STILL haven't preregistered at the hospital, something I was supposed to do at 6 months. WHOOPS. So I called to set up my appointment, but the lady is out of the office until Monday. I guess I will be calling again then. I wouldn't worry about it too much since I already had a baby at this hospital, but since I had Will they've opened a new maternity wing (it was finished like the month after he was born) and have a whole bunch of new registration policies apparently. Hopefully they won't lecture me about how late I am in getting this done.

In other news, it has not mattered at all that I am ignoring the nutritionist's warning about weight gain (or laying off the cheese and butter.) Since I saw her I've actually lost weight. This means I am currently up 25 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight. Which is exactly where I was at 25 weeks. I've fluctuated some, but I lost weight while I had that stupid cough, gained it back, then lost it again since I've been eating low carb. It's weird for me, because I gained weight very steadily while I was pregnant with Kalena and with Will. And I think that's all for now. What's new with you?

More Valentines!

Kalena hit the jackpot this year for Valentine's shirts. She got this one in the mail yesterday from Brian's mom. (Will got a monster truck. I guess she thinks glittery hearts aren't his thing?)

Again with my pose:

And with the dancing:

I'm pretty in love with this shirt. I don't know if you can tell from the picture, but all the dark pink is sparkly!

Valentine-y

Kalena wanted to show you all the lovely Valentine's Day shirt that her aunt Kari sent her.

In my requested pose:

And in a pose of her choosing:

Happy Valentine's Day!

34 weeks

Once again, your weekly look at my growing belly. And my disheveled hair.

I would just like to add here that I ALSO have a cold now, so that's pretty awesome. And by the way, anyone who tells you that carb cravings will go away after a few days on a low carb diet? Giant liars. Or maybe just not pregnant. Seriously, these days I look longingly at things like cold cereal and bread. I'm a little pathetic.

The nutritionist

I visited the nutritionist yesterday and she was kind of mean to me. Okay, that's not really true. But she did say several things that made me think, "Well that's just mean to say to someone who's 8 months pregnant." Mostly it was obvious to me that what she does probably 99% of the time is educate people about diabetes IN GENERAL, not about gestational diabetes. And maybe you're thinking, "Elsha, isn't gestational diabetes pretty much the same thing as diabetes in general?" Which, yes it is. HOWEVER. She focused on many things that I don't think are all that big a deal if I'm only looking at eating like this for the next 6 weeks.

For instance: I eat a lot of eggs right now. And she was concerned that too much egg yolk would be high in cholesterol. Yeah, if I were looking at this diet as a permanent, lifelong change I would worry about that too. But when it's for 6 weeks (or less!) and eggs are one of the few things that for sure don't spike my blood sugar? I don't really care about yolks.

She also told me I shouldn't cook things in butter or put cheese on everything. COME ON. I can't eat dessert, or cold cereal, or pasta, or have juice or my nightly hot chocolate! Why do you want to take away two of the GOOD things in a low carb diet? Plus she was very concerned about weight gain, which, um, I'm pregnant? Shouldn't I be gaining some weight still? (She recommended 1/2 lb over the next 6 weeks!) (My doctor nixed that recommendation today, btw. She said my weight gain has been fine and not to worry about it.)

ANYWAY. She did also tell me that it seems like I've done a good job educating myself, and she was impressed that I've already been keeping track of my blood sugar and keeping a food journal. (This is the engineer in me. I hit google as soon as I found out I'd failed the 3 hour.) She was also impressed with how familiar I am with reading labels- do other people not read labels? Doing Weight Watchers twice has made me VERY familiar with labels. AND she said I'm close enough to the end of pregnancy that I don't need to do a follow up visit with her, so that's nice. Still not convinced this visit was worth it though.

In which I annoy even myself

You guys, this is about to be a whole lot of whiny, so if you're not in the mood for that just click away!

Here's the thing. I am SO DONE with being pregnant right now. Yes, the gestational diabetes sucks, but if it were just that I'd be okay. But it's not. I'm sore. Like, my whole body aches all the time for no reason. And you know what I can do for that? Take Tylenol! Which does NOTHING! This is making it hard for me to sleep, which means I'm tired all the time. Everything makes me have contractions- getting up from sitting or laying down, getting into a car, getting out of a car, picking up one of the kids, standing up for too long, going up or down stairs (which is pretty unavoidable in a 2 story house with a basement.) It sucks. And although my cough is better, the effects are lingering. If I laugh too hard or talk (or you know, read to the kids) for too long I start coughing again. I easily drink 64 oz of water a day just keeping myself from coughing. (I know the water is good for me, but I'd like to drink it JUST for hydration, ya know?)

Anyway, I'm annoyed at myself for being one of those women who says, "I'm done" because I KNOW how important it is for the baby to get to term. I KNOW that complications of having a preemie would be WAY worse than the discomforts I'm dealing with now. I KNOW that this baby will never be easier to care for (or more portable!) than right now while I'm pregnant. And I KNOW that I should be seriously grateful that I'm not dealing with actual complications, like pre-eclamsia or  preterm labor. But knowing all those things is not stopping me from counting the days until the end. (And hoping this baby comes a smidge early.)

That's what happens when you have an older sister

Will wants to be just like Kalena. He wants to go where she goes, and do what she does. And that includes playing dress up. We are woefully short on dress up clothes geared toward boys (although Will does regularly wear his dragon costume) so mostly he dresses in the same kind of things Kalena does.

So if Kalena is wearing a headband? Will wants to wear a headband. (And a crown. Around his waist.)

However, Kalena likes to wear everything at once:

And Will is a "less is more" type of guy:

All he needs is a necklace and purse for his shopping trip. (And footie pajamas, OBVIOUSLY.)

The best toys aren't toys

The best toys are things like empty laundry baskets. Will had a little trouble getting in his. Those short little legs cause some problems.

He throughly enjoyed himself once he was in though.

No idea what Kalena is doing with her hand. Showing you how much fun she's having? Life is good when there are laundry baskets around.

33 weeks

Ah yes, 33 weeks already. I had a doctor's appointment today. My doctor expressed her annoyance that the nutritionist can't see me about my gestational diabetes until Feb. 9th. What she said was, "No. That's too long. You'll be almost done by then." And then she got her nurse to call and try to change the appointment.  But APPARENTLY this nutritionist only works part time and that is the very first time she can see me. 

Part of me is annoyed because, YEAH, I am going to be almost done by then. But mostly annoyed that they're making me go at all. Because seriously? I've done my research. I'm on the low carb diet. I have a glucose meter, and I know how to test my blood sugar. Can they not just trust me to do it right on my own? I'm pretty sure this nutritionist lady isn't going to tell me anything I didn't already read on Google. (And seriously, if my blood sugars continue to be good I'm going to call the nurse next week and ask if I really, REALLY have to see the nutritionist.) 

On the upside, I'm not measuring big, so that's good.

Alphabetically

I'm stealing this from K (what? She said I could!)


A to Z


A. Age: 29

B. Bed size: Currently a queen. Our king bed is (sadly) in storage.

C. Chore that you hate: Sweeping and mopping floors. I'm no good at it so it takes me forever and then I still don't feel like they're all that clean. 

D. Dogs: I'm a dog person, but I hate when people don't control/train their dogs. We loved our greyhounds and want to have some again someday, but not anytime soon. 

E. Essential start to your day: Breakfast. The kiddos wake up demanding it.

F. Favorite color: Green or blue

G. Gold or silver: Silver

H. Height: 5'4"

I. Instruments that you play: Piano, violin, and viola. None of them very well.

J. Job title: On a resume? Chemical engineer. Right now in my life? Homemaker.

K. Kids: Kalena- 3 1/2. Will- 2. Baby boy on the way- arrival slated for March 

L. Live: Colorado

M. Mother's name: Linda

N. Nicknames: Really not any. Unless there are people out there who think of me as vandeblogger? (My twitter handle.) Are there people who do? Does that even count as a nickname? I think I'm getting off track here. 

O. Overnight hospital stays: 2008 when Kalena was born (4 nights actually), and in 2009 when Will was born. 

P. Pet peeves: People who are chronically late. Braggy people.

Q. Quote from a movie: From The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, "You never can tell with bees." Brian and I say this to each other pretty much anytime anything odd or unexpected happens.

R: Right or left handed: Right

S: Siblings: Two older brothers, two younger sisters

T: (K didn't have one, so I made one up.) Time of day: I'm definitely a morning person. It's when I'm most productive. If I don't get my errands done before lunch, chances are I'm not going to do them.

U. Underwear: I wear it? What do you want to know here?

V. Vegetable(s) you hate: Raw vegetables (almost all of them.) Celery, cooked or raw.

W. What makes you run late: I try REALLY hard not to be late. When I am it can almost always be attributed to my kids.

X. X-rays you've had: Besides dental, my collar bone. I broke it when I was like 5. (I assume there were X-rays. I've never actually seen them.)

Y. Yummy food that you make: I make some delicious cookies and pies. I think I'm a decent cook generally, but I don't really have a speciality. 

Z. Zoo animal: Panda bears. They just look so cuddly! 


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