Child Birth Class- Part 1

On Sunday night, Rich & I had our first child birth class! It's an 8 hour class, broken up into two Sunday nights from 4-8pm. An 8 hour class seemed like a lot to me, and I was wondering if we'd be bored! I certainly have never experienced child birth before, but I wasn't sure how they would fill all that time.

There are 10 couples in the class. Rich & I are by far the youngest, and also had the last due date. Sort of funny- my high school swim coach and his wife are in the class too! I was by no means a star swimmer, so I doubt he even recognizes me. But he has the closest due date of November 16th! I am thankful that we have plenty of time to process all the information we learn before January 18th.

The class took place at Central DuPage Hospital, which is where we'll have the baby. It was cool to see the actual entrance that we'll come in when I am in labor. We will have a tour of the labor/delivery area and mother/baby area next Sunday & I am really excited for that! During our first class, we talked a lot about signs of preterm labor and the different stages of labor. We also talked a lot about relaxation and breathing techniques. That was probably my favorite part of the class! I got about a 20 minute backrub from Rich- whoohoo!

Rich did so great and was very encouraging, even though we were just practicing. He is going to do such a great job during the birth of our baby! He knows me so well and will really be able to help me handle everything. I am so thankful for a husband who likes to be so involved! Rich never acts "too macho" or disinterested. Even during wedding planning, he liked being involved in all the decisions. The same is true with the baby. He is going to be such a wonderful Dad!

Can't wait for Part 2 next week!

27 weeks!

How far along: 27 weeks & 4 days
Total weight gain: Probably about 12 lbs. I am going to get real here for a second- the weight gain part of pregnancy has been harder than I thought it would be. I know that the weight gain is due to having a little human growing inside of me, it's not that I'm getting "fat". But it's been tough emotionally. I am really excited to be able to do my exercise DVD's and such after the baby is born.

Maternity clothes: Heck yes! I really want to get this cute maternity jacket from Old Navy. It's more "active wear" which would be nice since none of my comfy sweatshirts are really fitting anymore

Stretch Marks: None still! And I think my rash went away, which is a bonus.

Sleep: Sleeping more, but still doing well in that area!

Best moment this week: There were a lot of good ones! My sweet sister, Lauren, agreed to take some maternity pictures for us. We had planned to meet with a professional photographer for them, but unexpectedly had to get new tires on our car. Sooo maternity pics didn't exactly fit in the budget anymore! The weather was wonderful and we got a lot of really great pictures. I think I will do a separate post for those! Lauren was so patient with us (me). We also had our first childbirth class! It's a 2 part class, so we go again next week! More on that later.

Miss anything: Not really. Feeling pretty content this week!

Movement: She is a mover & a shaker! I took a bath the other day and was able to see my stomach moving from the outside for the first time! That was REALLY crazy. I was trying to read and enjoy some quiet time, and all of the sudden my belly went crazy!

Food cravings: Still sweets. That is just SO weird for me. And warm drinks- but I think that's more a seasonal thing rather than a "being pregnant" thing!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope! Feeling good!

Gender: Pink pink pink! Although I did have a dream the other day that it was a boy. Eek!

Symptoms: Feeling pretty good this week! A headache or two, but nothing major.

Belly Button In or Out: Still in- barely!

Wedding Rings on or off: On!

Happy or Moody: Happy! And so excited! I can't believe how soon she'll be here.

Looking forward to: Our first baby shower is on Saturday! I am so thankful for all the hard work that my mother-in-law and sister-in-law have put in to make this day special for us!

27 weeks!

Another 27 week shot!

26 weeks!

What the heck is my deal with updates? Again, I blame my crazy work schedule. At least there isn't a ton of change {yet} week to week. Thanks for your patience, friends & family!


How far along: 26 weeks & 3 days
Total weight gain: My guess is around 10-11lbs. Baby is going to start growing in size pretty rapidly from here on out, so I am sure that number is on it's way up!

Maternity clothes: I just love Old Navy & Kohl's maternity clothes. Target can be hit or miss unfortunately. I do like being able to finally wear all my Fall sweaters now!

Stretch Marks: None still- although I do have a little bit of a rash from all the lotion/oil. I might need to switch to every other day applications.

Sleep: I rarely get up in the middle of the night anymore, which is nice. I have been sleeping pretty well the last few weeks.

Best moment this week: This weekend we got the dresser for the nursery finished! Plus, my Mom made this adorable little headband/hairclip holder to hang on the wall. It's SO cute! She has become so darn crafty. A quick shout out to my parents for all their help in preparing for Baby. My Dad does all sorts of random projects around the house for us- and Mom is such a hard worker too! We are so thankful for all the love they are already showing this little girl!

Miss anything: Being able to see my toes to {comfortably} paint my nails.

Movement: Moving like crazy! Holy moly! She jabs me a LOT when I am sitting- especially in the car!

Food cravings: Sweets again. What the heck?! Donuts. Frosting. Candy. Bring it on.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Gender: Pink pink pink!

Symptoms: Definitely thankful for how smoothly everything has gone. I have noticed a little more lower back pain if I am standing for long periods of time. But that can be helped by sitting down and/or stretching.

Belly Button In or Out: Still in- barely!

Wedding Rings on or off: On!

Happy or Moody: Happy! I am due 3 months from Thursday, which is SO CRAZY to me! 3 months is going to absolutely FLY by with the holidays.

Looking forward to: Our first childbirth class is on Sunday. I am really excited to learn & start preparing together for the actual birth of our baby girl! It's a 2 Sunday class, from 4-8pm. Lots to learn! I am excited for the tour of the hospital, especially!

Here are some random photos from the last coupe of weeks! Enjoy. 

Cutesie shoes- and on clearance too! Gotta love it.

My parent's dog, Lily, taking a snooze while the rest of us worked! So typical!

Whoa there, baby bump! Taken 10/13/12.

The completed dresser/changing table! Ta da!

View from the hallway looking into the baby's room. So stinkin' cute!

Close up on the headband/hairclip holder that my Momma made!

24 weeks!

How far along: 24 weeks & 6 days

Total weight gain: I am up 9lbs total since becoming pregnant. Watching the scale go up and up has been a little difficult, but I am trying hard to remember that this is natural and good. Eek.

Maternity clothes: I don't know how I'll ever be able to get rid of my maternity clothes...love them.

Stretch Marks: Nope! Using lots of lotion and body oil to keep my skin moisturized.

Sleep: I have been pretty darn tired the last two weeks, which has more to do with work than actually growing a baby. Either way, I just can't seem to get enough sleep these days!

Best moment this week: Rich had "New Daddy Bootcamp" on Saturday, which was adorable! He was the youngest in the class, but felt like he knew the most going into it! Rich really enjoyed it and learned a lot. He got a cute t-shirt too! He is going to be such a wonderful Daddy. I am so thankful to have a husband that LOVES being so involved. He never acts disinterested in ANY of the baby stuff I talk about with him.

Miss anything: Wine. So much.

Movement: Moving like crazy! I love it though.

Food cravings: Soups & chili, but that's just because of the time of year, not the baby. I love FALL!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Gender: Pink pink pink!

Symptoms: I've been feeling really great recently! So thankful for such a smooth pregnancy.

Belly Button In or Out: Still in.

Wedding Rings on or off: On!

Happy or Moody: Happy!!!

Looking forward to: Our baby showers. I went to a friend's shower on Sunday, and it made me really excited for my own showers! I just love all the baby stuff. Cannot wait!

How precious are these little shoes???

My sweet friend, Nicole! She is due Nov 18th- two months before me! It's been fun to share the journey with her & I cannot wait to meet their little guy or girl!

 

23 weeks!

Apparently I am just going to skip week 22...oops! It's been a wild couple of weeks at work, and the little blog took a back seat to sleep & time with the hubby.

How far along: 23 weeks and 4 days

Total weight gain: Maybe almost 5lbs total? We'll see on Wednesday!

Maternity clothes: Loving some of the cute new maternity clothes my Momma picked up for me this week.

Stretch Marks: Nope- but my tummy was feeling very stretched today. Strange feeling!

Sleep: I slept RIGHT through my alarm today. Thankfully my sweet hubby woke me up out of a dead sleep.

Best moment this week: Again, so many! Baby girl is moving around like CRAZY, which has been really fun. We got to work on some of the baby room projects this weekend. We painted the glider & dresser which turned out REALLY well! And we hung this adorable chandelier that my Momma made for us! The room is definitely pretty girly. Things are coming right along!

Miss anything: Wine. For sure.

Movement: Ooooh yes! She is an active little one. She gets going around 9/10ish in the morning, then again in the mid afternoon, and then again around 9/10 at night. No super hard kicks or punches though! Rich has been able to feel her too which is AMAZING!

Food cravings: Strangely enough, I was craving cheeseburgers for a few days last week. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Gender: Pink pink pink!

Symptoms: Hip pain has been a lot better, thankfully. Still loving yoga & warm baths!

Belly Button In or Out: Still in.

Wedding Rings on or off: On!

Happy or Moody: Happy!!!

Looking forward to: Rich's "New Daddy Bootcamp" class on Saturday! I cannot wait to hear how it goes for him. How freakin' cute is he???

{22 weeks photo- I think!}

{I got the cutest little shower invitation in the mail! And it's a shower for ME!}

{My family was here on Saturday helping paint the glider & dresser for the nursery, as well as other miscellaneous projects around the house. Apparently my sisters needed a quick power nap! They certainly deserved the break after all their hard work!}

{Momma hard at work! Check out the cute chandelier in the corner that she made!}

{Up close view of the lovely chandelier!}


{The glider- BEFORE}

{The glider- mid update! Ottoman not pictured.}


{Fabric that will be used to make new pads for glider & ottoman}


{Dresser- BEFORE}

{The dresser! Also mid update. And the mirror is not attached}

{We decided to have some painting done over the weekend. It was a big job & since we talked them down to a reasonable price, we decided to go for it! We couldn't be happier with the results. The space looks so much newer and warmer. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT! Above is the BEFORE picture..}

 {And the AFTER!}

That last picture was taken today. Feeling really good and loving the crazy amounts of energy that I have! Again, sorry for the missed update, but hopefully I made up for it with the pictures!

21 weeks!

How far along: 21 weeks & 4 days! (A little behind in getting this week's update posted!)

Total weight gain: Guessing somewhere between 2-5lbs. My goal is no more than 25lbs total- we shall see!

Maternity clothes: Busy trying to plan an outfit for our maternity pictures in October! So fun.

Stretch Marks: Nope!

Sleep: Sleeping pretty well again, thank goodness!

Best moment this week: So many "bests" this week! But probably the highlight for me was getting our crib on Saturday! Rich & I had a great time setting it up together, and it looks amazing! Typically we keep the door to the nursery closed, but I have been walking by and opening the door a TON just to get a quick look at where our sweet little one will sleep!

Miss anything: Definitely my old bras. Yikes!

Movement: Definitely feeling movement now! It started on Monday/Tuesday this week. I wasn't exactly sure what I was feeling, but now that it is pretty consistent, I know what it is! Still not enough for Rich to be able to feel it, but I'm sure that will start soon! It's so incredible!

Food cravings: Nothing really. Just enjoying having my appetite back.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!

Gender: It's a girl! YAY!

Symptoms: Holy hip pain! This was a rough week, for sure. I had training in Chicago, which meant 2 1/2 hour of driving JUST to get to my 8 hours/day of training. Ick! Too much sitting meant a LOT of pain for me. But thankfully, I am feeling a lot better due to my heating pad, warm baths & lots of yoga.

Belly Button In or Out: Still in

Wedding Rings on or off: On!

Happy or Moody: Happy! I am so excited for a little girl. Rich is going to be so stinkin' cute with her!

Looking forward to: Rich getting to feel the baby move too!

 

 {The awesome fabric I got to re-do our glider!}

 

{Some of the loot Baby GIRL Stiles has started to accumulate!}

 

 {Baby's first tutu!!!}

 

{The CRIB! Isn't it beautiful???}

{21 weeks!}

Observations on having a GIRL!

It's only been a few days since we found out that a precious little girl will be joining our family. Rich thought it was going to be a girl from the beginning, but I wasn't so sure. I never had a strong feeling either way. I really enjoyed the two little Safe Family boys that we had with us for a few months, so I thought maybe the Lord was trying to prepare me for a boy. Given that I come from a family of girls, the idea of having a baby boy freaked me out a little.

But, it's a girl! So while that reality is still sinking in, I've been noticing different things about little girls.

*Since all the summer baby clothes are on sale now, I noticed that the majority of baby girl swim suits are two pieces. Really? A bikini for a baby? How awkward. I pray that our baby girl will feel comfortable in her own skin and enjoy fashion, but always practice modesty.

*After spending time at Rich's school football game & observing mass amounts of teenage girls, I noticed that very few of them actually speak respectfully- either to their parents, or their peers. This makes my heart really sad and my skin crawl a little bit. I have very high hopes that our daughter will always be kind and gentle with her words, especially when in public.

*I've noticed that some of these rude little teens turn into rude little Mom's who raise more rude little teens. This observation is more about me than our daughter- but I hope that I will be able to show the love of Christ at sporting events, in the school, or whenever I am in a situation that could become tense or competitive. I am definitely not a competitive person myself- I am much happier celebrating other people's victories than fighting for the win myself. I just hope that I will be supportive and encouraging of our daughter's achievements, but help her realize that winning isn't everything.

That's really all I've got for this Saturday morning. I have NO expectation that I will be the "perfect mother", but I trust that the Lord will equip Rich and I as we begin this adventure. I will do my best to lead by example and admit when I am wrong. I am just so excited to meet this little girl & get to know her!