Bumpdate: 39 Weeks, the finale!

Wait, did I just say finale? I'm only 39 weeks, what happened to waiting until 40 weeks and beyond? Well...there is a story about that.

If you remember during my 38 week bumpdate I had mentioned that the baby had flipped breech on me. Well during my time with the doctor we agreed that we were going to do an external version to get the pumpkin turned back around in my belly. The procedure basically includes the doctor getting their hands and arms and my belly lubed up and they, using all their upper body strength, try to turn the baby around in my belly from the outside. Sounds like fun, right?

So Monday morning hubby and I headed to the hospital and got checked in for the version. Checked the baby on the NST and ultrasound, everything looked great. Doctor came in did some final checks and lubed my belly up. The movements were slow and graduated and hurt like a bitch! I'm sorry, I don't swear here very often, but damn, this was no walk in the park! She tried both directions to get him turned around and each direction she tried he would begin to move, then he would hit a pocket of fluid and slip right out from under her grip. I could feel it every time and every time it happened my heart sank a little bit lower.

Bumpdate: 38 Weeks

38 weeks...wow, I saw this week as a far off goal. I always felt like there was plenty of time to get stuff taken care of and organized. No need to rush and stress about putting the nursery together. It will all get taken care of in time for the babies arrival. Right?

Bumpdate: 37 Weeks

Ho-lee cow! 37 weeks? When did that happen? Thank you holidays for making time go that much faster. Guess who's behind the 8-ball with baby prep? This girl!

Speaking of the holidays, look at how lame I have been over the past couple of weeks!?! Not one post, not one update, my apologies. It's been so crazy! Between the holidays and my sister having her baby last weekend, we've been running in circles getting things done!

Oh yeah...I'm an auntie!!! My sister was induced on Friday and, after two long days of laboring, gave birth to a BEAUTIFUL baby girl on Sunday night. 7lbs, 12oz, 21 inches long. Her name is Aurelia, such a beautiful name and totally fits her. She is so perfect. 10 fingers, 10 toes and a pair of steel lungs! Whew...that girl can belt a good cry. I'm totally smitten with her, she is just so freaking adorable. I can't wait to get baby clothes for her, oh geez...Auntie is going to spoil this girl!

Today is my bumpdate and the theme is Discomfort Town! Woohoo! Or rather, ugh. Last night was an eventful night for me that has left me nothing but uncomfortable. Had my usual NST and ultrasound and everything looked good.

10 Days of Compression and Christmas Eve!

Hello all and Merry Christmas Eve! It's the day before Christmas and I'm at work, per usual. It's pretty empty here, lots of people with their families getting ready for the big day tomorrow. It doesn't bother me too much to be here today since I will be getting out a bit earlier today than normal, thank you to the CEO!

The extra time at home will give me a couple of hours to do some food prep for tomorrow mornings festivities. My sister and I usually take care of breakfast and pastries for Christmas morning, while my parents take care of dinner. On the menu this year is homemade cinnamon rolls (with and without pecans), two different quiches, fruit salad and mimosas. Well, no mimosas for my sister and I. :(  It will be a nice day where we get together early (7:30am, GASP!) have pastries and coffee and wake up a bit. Then we open presents and have breakfast. We then spend the rest of the day watching Christmas movies and putting together a puzzle, have an early dinner and play board games into the night. It really is a fun day and the last one we'll have with just us, next year we will have kiddos in the mix which will change the dynamic of this day going forward.

Today is also the final day of my 10 Days of Compression! Let's have a quick recap of the previous entries!

Momentum Monday and Days of Compression

T'was the Monday before Christmas and the house is a mess. The presents are all wrapped and under the tree, thank goodness! I'm so glad that I don't have to brave the stores for any last minute gifts and I am saying a prayer of peace and sanity for all those of you that will be braving the crowds today and tomorrow. I've got two more days of work until the holiday and then I'm off until after the New Year, WOOHOO!!! I am spending the time off after the holiday to be available just in case my sister goes into labor, she is due January 2nd! SO EXCITING!!!!
 
This year is going to be one of great change for the whole family and I can't wait to see every new moment that comes along. It all just makes me nervous about how I'm going to handle everything with all these new challenges. So when I saw today's Momentum Monday quote, I knew I had to use it.

Bumpdate: 34 Weeks and Day 4 of Compression!

As the weeks creep by, or rather FLY by with the holidays upon us, I am increasingly aware that there will be a new person in my life. A little addition to our family. Family. Not a couple anymore, but a family. Gives me pause every now and then thinking about that.

Then I remember that there will be many sleepless nights and diaper changes and feedings and crying (both baby and mommy!). Stress and sleep deprivation and anxiety and frustration and confusion will abound I am sure for many months (if not years) to come.

At the same time though I think about all the little highlights that I will watch and be apart of, walking, talking, playing with other children, learning, asking questions, growing and becoming a person like you and me. It's amazing to sit back and think about it all. Marvel at the cycle of life and all the unexplained nuiances that happen. It's just crazy.

Today is my 34 week bumpdate and my weekly picture.

Bumpdate: 33 Weeks

It's Wednesday and time for another bumpdate! It's been fun keeping track of what the pumpkin is doing and seeing the progress that is being made. Not to mention my expanding belly, oof!

This past week since my last update has been quite eventful to say the least. On Wednesday I had actually won an entry to my raceversary race, Seattle Jingle Bell Run/Walk on Sunday thanks to the drawing done by the local website Gametiime. I was so thrilled that I was able to participate in this race, but wasn't sure how I would do since I haven't run in weeks and my belly has really become pronounced and uncomfortable at times. I won't talk too much about it because I have a race recap to write, but all I can say is that it felt AMAZING to run, even for a little bit.

"The Jam" Thursday

Hello Thursday, it's good to see you again. Let's try to be kind to one another and get me to the weekend safely, sound good?

I woke up this morning to some lovely tweets from my BRF's on the east coast, I love those women! They know how to brighten my day for sure. Another day brightener came in the form of winning a drawing for a race entry! It was announced last night from a local company Gametiime, I had entered to win an entry to the Seattle Jingle Bell Run/Walk and I won a free entry! How exciting! This is my raceversary race and I look forward to it each year.

What is a raceversary race? Well it is the race that you hallmark as the beginning of your racing "relationship"/career/whathaveyou. This will be the third time I am set to run this race, celebrating two years of my love of running and looking forward to my third year that will be an interesting transition back to running after baby. So much to be thankful for and look forward to!

So this means I have one more race to do before baby arrives next month. Yes, I will be careful, no, I will not push myself and yes, I will most likely walk most of the course. I can only do what the baby will allow me to do and I'm not going to push it! This is a celebration race, not one I'm trying to PR!

Bumpdate: 30 weeks

This week marks 30 weeks into the pregnancy, only 10 more weeks to go.

Wait...did I just type that out? Only 10 more weeks until the lil pumpkin is out of me and introduced to the world! Oh boy...panic is starting to set in now. Am I ready? Is anyone ever really ready though? Probably not, but it's coming whether I'm ready or not!

Bumpdate: 29 Weeks

So this morning while I was getting ready for work, I came up with the idea of giving an update on my pregnancy once a week on Wednesday, hump day. Yeah, not so original, I know but I thought it was kinda funny, humor me here. I'm not training for any running races, but I am training for another event in my life, parenthood. Now THAT'S what I call a marathon! :)

So Wednesdays for the next 2 1/2 months will be Bumpdates, where I will share information about how my pregnancy is going and open for discussion topics or issues I'm encountering.

I wanted to thank everyone for reading and commenting about my GD story, it was heartwarming and I'm thankful for all the support! It is something I deal/struggle with everyday and is no doubt shaping how my pregnancy goes!

Even though I have GD, it doesn't prevent me from having a treat now and again. It is not a bad thing to have the treats you want, you just have to have things in moderation. Today...I needed coffee in the worst way.

Okay, let me address this now as I know I get lots of questions about this. Yes, I have coffee during my pregnancy. It is advised that you not go over 200mg of caffeine a day during pregnancy. I used to drink large drip coffees which would have upwards of 300mg of caffeine, if I drank the whole thing. Now that I'm pregnant, I have decaf americanos, which have two shots of decaf espresso at a whopping 8mg of caffeine each for a total of 16mg of caffeine per cup. WAY under the limit that is advised and I get to enjoy a decent cup of coffee and get a bit of a caffeine fix. It's not much, but because I haven't had much caffeine over the past 7 months, a little goes a long way!

"The Jam" Thursday

Wow these days are going quickly! I can't believe we are at Thursday already, wasn't it just Monday? I mean I'm not complaining, the weekend is almost here, but this weekend is also bat shit crazy busy! I guess it is the beginning of the holiday season where your weekends are no longer your own and you are crazy busy all the time. Lots to do and lots of people to see, tis the season, right?

It's also crazy at work too! Why is it that people leave all of their vacation time until the end of the year and then realize they need to use it or lose it, then there is a rash of people out all at the same time making it absolutely nuts at work because everyone is covering for everyone else? Or is that just me and where I work? I mean I have some days to burn, but damn people, learn how to dole your vacation days out over the whole year! You are stressing this pregnant woman out!!!

Well since today is Thursday, it is time to share another "jam"! This one is what I call a workhorse of my list. It is always in the mix, usually somewhere in the middle when I just need music to keep my pace going. I have featured this artist a few times and she will inevitably be on here again in the future.

Today's jam is:

Disneyland Weekend Recap: The Warm-up

So I'm finally getting around to my recaps of the Disneyland Race weekend in Anaheim, there is so much to cover that is race related and not race related, you're going to see it ALL! Here we go!

So we (hubby and I) headed for Disneyland a bit earlier to get some time in the parks before the craziness of the race weekend started. We flew out early Thursday morning to Anaheim, literally to Fort Wayne airport. I love that place, it's nice and small, easy to navigate and just a short 15 minute drive to and from Disneyland from there. Easy peasy!

 Us on the plane and with our carry-on only luggage!

Running while pregnant

I have decided to continue to run during my pregnancy.

Wait…did she just say those words? Yes, yes I did.

I have made the conscious decision to continue running during my pregnancy for a few reasons. First being fitness, second being that I had a half marathon over Labor Day weekend that I was training for, and third, for peace of mind. I find I get one of two reactions from people when I tell them that I’m still running during my pregnancy:

“WOW! Good for you! That’s wonderful you’re still doing that!” and

“WHAT?!? Are you crazy? There is no way I would continue to run if I got pregnant! Is it even safe?”

Sometimes there are days where I feel a bit like each of those reactions. One day I’ll be rejoicing in my run and proud that I’m out there pounding the pavement, then there are days that I feel like I’m crazy for wanting to get out there and putting my body through those rigors.