38 weeks

We have made it to 38 weeks! Just some minor swelling (see my elephant feet below) and crampiness. Hurricane Earl did not send me into labor early, but I did have a minor freakout that I was leaking amniotic fluid. Turns out all is normal and progressing along and the baby could come any day now! Today at the dr's appointment the dr. was a little concerned about pre-eclampsia - so we did a few more tests. The non-stress test (?) was normal and the bloodwork is should be back soon to tell us everything is great. Other than that I am just going to relax and work on schoolwork!

Elephant feet

Odds and Ends

Well, we have been trying to get the final steps of preparation taken care of and still have a few odds and ends left...But for the most part, we are ready (just in time for full term!). Not only do we need to get everything together at home and for the hospital, I need to stay on top of my studies! I have been trying to get ahead to no avail. I guess as long as I am keeping up that is good enough. I went to the dr. this week and everything is looking great - I guess my body is starting to get ready and everything is measuring perfect (and the baby's head is down). So, life is good!

In this picture you can see three beautiful blankets made for Baby Gille from family and friends. I love them all because they are so unique and whimsical. You can also see the prayer shawl they had for us at church today. They prayed over it this morning before worship and then had it available for the congregation to touch and pray over on their way to have communion. We both feel very grateful to the church and the congregation for thinking of us during this time!

After church we began packing our bags. I compiled a long list of what everyone had suggested to us and tried to cover as much as possible. Now I just have a small shopping list to pick up the last little bits! Some of the items were more difficult to find or pack - like, the winter olympics, chick fil a, and champagne. But others were easier :) Ross also has the dog food sectioned out into baggies for the dog boarding place. Our plan is to drive by and drop them off on the way to the hospital if it is during a time that the dog club is open...otherwise we will have to have someone come and let them out a few times a day to eat and play. We have a few friends and a dog sitter who can help us with that, if needed!

Ross put the car seat in the car along with the seat cover and mirror...just in case! We don't want to have to worry about this whenever labor begins :) We already have the doggie gate installed to prevent the dogs from jumping onto our little bambino in the future (thanks Granny and Keke! That was such a great idea!).

36 Weeks

I can't believe we only have 4 weeks or so to go! It never ceases to amaze me how fast the time has gone by. I think I will attribute it to the weekly monitoring of the pregnancy because I have been following the book "Your Pregnancy, Week by Week". Somehow when you only look at a week at a time it adds up really fast! The baby is still kicking like crazy and it always seems to be in the same spots. I am hoping that when I go to the doctor on Friday they will be able to tell if the baby is head down and about how big he or she is getting (the last visit the doctor didn't touch me, his PA in training measured and listened to the heartbeat...he is not my fav. But the visit before the doctor was pretty sure we were headed in the right direction but wasn't 100%). Most of the movement I have been feeling is on the top left of my belly, so hopefully that is a foot kicking :) Ross and I are convinced we are having a big baby due to family history...maybe we will be wrong!

This quarter of grad school is beginning to feel like it is wrapping up. I am very much appreciative because pregnancy brain has taken over and I feel like I am not doing the best I could. Actually, to be honest, I think I turned in my worst paper ever last weekend :( I guess that is life. Luckily I have a pretty strong A from the beginning 6 weeks of the quarter to help me out.

On a side note...Ross is such an awesome hubbie :) For my birthday (forever ago) he got me a floor to cieling cleaning by Molly Maid for me to use whenever I want during my pregnancy. I just scheduled them for early September and am beside myself with excitement. It just seems to be getting more and more difficult to keep up with the cleaning while at the same time all I can see is what needs to be cleaned. I feel like I am taking crazy pills!

Sorry for the lack of a picture this week. Our camera decided to quit on us this week and Ross is in the process of picking out a new one. Hopefully we can have this situation remedied ASAP!

Good luck Christy and Patrick...you are in our prayers! (twins to be induced this Sat :))

Bump!

35 weeks!

Well, the time is beginning to wind down and I am excited that we will get to meet our little bundle of joy soon :) The baby seems to be extremely active and sometimes it feels like his or her feet are stuck above or below my ribcage! It's really exciting to have so much movement going on because Ross can see (from across the room) and feel much easier now. We just laugh! Other than beingtired I am feeling pretty good...Although, if I walk for any amount of time outside I end up with elephant feet for a few days. But it goes away or I fall asleep and forget about it. One of the presents I got at the shower was a recipe book for making your own baby food...so naturally I am interested to hear what everyone thinks bout making baby food! There seem to be conflicting ideas about the nutrition, value, and tastyness of either store-bought or homemade. Some arguments say that storebought is best because they are fortified with extra vitamins and are a huge convenience while others arguethat homemade is more tasty, cost effective, and nutritionally sound (meaning there are no fillers). What have you tried? Or what do you think about this?

On a complete sidenote - I have decided I need to start being more crafty. I was extremely crafty in high school and at some point during college I lost my desire to craft. I miss it. So, I have spent a few years trying to decide what craft I want to commit to. In my opinion, this is no light matter. There are so many fun options and I would likely want to do them all...unfortunately each craft comes with a price tag and it is hard to make the plunge when I am not sure if I am even going to like it or be any good at it. But you should see some of the amazing stuff my crafty/artsy friends and family make! I have two beautiful necklaces and mobile for the baby room from my friend Tricia, I get the most adorable cards from my sister-in-law Taryn, A baby quilt from Nicole and Heather, An OSU wreath from Natalie, the most delicious home-made jelly from Erin and Ryan...the list goes on and on!

As you can see above, I have decided to try out crochet and made a lovely winter hat during the month of August (hehe). Archie is such a great model...I tried to model this but the circles under my eyes do not look good in a close-up pic. So...stay tuned for more fun crochet projects!

Banfield Baby Shower!

Healther Lane, Kim Fry, Virginia Perkins, Me,

Amy Granbois, Lindsay Notargiacomo, and Jamie Catanzaro

My friends from Banfield threw me a baby shower this weekend. It was so much fun! We played some fun games (I need to re-learn my nursery rhymes) and ate the most delicious cake from Apple Annies here in Wilmington. I love all these girls and miss working with them so much. The baby even kicked for a little bit for them :)

We brought the balloons in this picture home - Lizzie loves them... and Archie is scared of them. Too funny to watch!

On a side note...I can't believe we are coming up on 35 weeks! The time is flying by so fast now. I am finding that the third trimester is full of fun things like wierd sleeping patterns and heartburn. However, I think my hair and nails have never appeared so fabulous.

Myrtle Beach

Well, somehow my family is terrible at taking pictures when we are together so I do not have any to share...but I had a great time visiting with them when they were vacationing in Myrtle Beach last week. Ross and I drove down for the day on Sunday and the girls hung out at the pool while the guys went golfing. And I was not the only pregnant lady at the pool...I had three friends but I had the best bathing suit. And Keisuke made the most amazing teriyaki chicken and broccoli for dinner. Seriously, if we all knew how to make broccoli like this - everyone would be much healthier and asking for their little trees. My mom was able to come to our house for a quick visit at the beginning of the week and we went shopping for my hospital bag goodies (robe, nursing tops, nursing bras, ice cream - oh wait, I already ate that). And finally the family wrapped up the week at our house :) Too much fun!

I was so happy Leanna was able to come on vacation and she brought her friend Allie, who was hilarious. Leanna actually got to help me out a little with my schoolwork while she was here...it was hard not laughing during our mock "counseling sessions". She played the part of a troubled teenager who recently started dating a boy and now doesn't participate in Key club or band and her grades are dropping....and I was the school counselor, of course. The best part of this whole thing was when my mom burst into the room and said "I'm taking orders for bagel bakery, what do you want? Oh no! Don't transcribe this into your paper!" Sometimes I wonder what it is going to be like when I counsel a child who actually is having a legitimate issue - not just pretending. I guess time will tell! Probably less giggling when I ask, "how does that make you feel?"

I have learned that my body is not so happy about walking out in the heat and humidity anymore because my ankles swelled and turned a lovely shade of black, blue, and purple. Must love being in the final stretch of pregnancy during the hottest time of the year...in the south. Woohoo!

On a side note...we have finally zeroed in on both our girl and boy names and now I wish we were having one of each so we could secure both of them ;) Sorry...not sharing until baby Gille arrives! I'm so excited!

Gender Prediction

Please ignore the circles under my eyes... Bump at 31 weeks

Well....I have gotten a lot of flack for not finding out the gender of the baby (or sharing the name options). So, thanks to the wonder of the internet, we can now have a theoretical answer to this question (www.childbirth.org/articles/boyorgirl.html). I completed a survey to determine the gender! Please keep in mind that the majority of my answers are based on what someone has told me during pregnancy or how I am feeling currently, so you might disagree. In addition, a few questions did not provide my true answer as an option so I went with the closest possible answer. I am going to add a poll to the side of the blog for you to vote on your choice :)

You have a 33% chance of having a boy

You have a 66% chance of having a girl

And Here's Why...

You are carrying the extra weight out front - so it's a boy

The hair on your legs is not growing any faster during your pregnancy - so it's a girl

Girls are carried high - You are going to have a girl

Sleeping in a bed with your pillow to the North indicates that you will be having a boy

Your feet are not colder than they were before pregnancy - you are having a girl

You refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread - you are having a girl

Dad-to-be hasn't been gaining weight along with mom-to-be - so it will be a girl

The maternal grandmother doesn't have gray hair (dyed or natural) -so a girl will be born

You didn't have morning sickness early in pregnancy - so it will be a boy

You are looking particularly good during pregnancy - therefore it must be a boy because girls steal their mother's looks

Your chest development has been quite dramatic during pregnancy - you should expect a girl

The sum of the mother's age at conception and the number of month of conception is even - it will be a boy

A needle on a thread held over your belly moves in circles - so it will be a boy

Your urine is a dull yellow color - so you will have a girl

You are craving sweets - which means that it is a girl

Your nose hasn't changed during pregnancy - which indicates a girl

You have been craving fruits - so it is a girl

Your baby's heart rate is 140 or more beats per minute - so it's a girl

Hospital

Hello everyone!! Ross and I have officially completed our prepared childbirth class series and I can honestly say I feel maybe 10% more prepared...hehe. I figure by the time the baby is ready to come I won't remember a lot of what we discussed in class. I think this is why Ross had to go with me :) For the grand finale last night we were able to tour the hospital in a walk through the birthing process sort of way. The hospital has a brand new women's and children's wing called the Betty H. Cameron and it is very nice (and not too hospital smelly). Although I guess the "bed" that is available for dads is not too comfortable - our nurse told us that her husband kept complaining about how his back hurt after sleeping there and she was like "oh really? because my _ hurts!" I'm thinking maybe we should bring in one of those egg crate things for Ross to make it better since he already has back issues.

So this brings me to a question for all you mothers out there...what would you recommend I/we pack for the stay at the hospital? Is there anything you remember being thankful for bringing or that you wished you had? I'm thinking clothes (what did you wear? just pj's or loungewear or a complete outfit?), toiletries, slippers, and a robe at this point.

You can go here to do a virtual tour of the birthplace if you would like...

www.nhrmc.org/body.cfm?id=90

Nursery

We (ok, mostly Ross) have been working diligently on the nursery recently. I had originally wanted a chair rail with vertical stripes on the bottom to create a classic look. However, we did not have the correct saw and it was looking like too much work for such a limited time of enjoyment. While I was visiting Ohio for the baby showers I saw an episode of Color Splash on HGTV that inspired me. Why not do horizontal stripes - they are more modern and sophisticated?! All we would need is some paint and tape, right? Erroneous! We had to get a laser level and decide on colors and a pattern, which took a lot of time surprisingly. We chose the lightest shade of green in the bedding as the base and then used leftover paint from other areas of the house to use as accents. The results are...Ross is now a pro with the laser level and the room is amazing! Now we only have a few decorations and lamps to hang and then it will be done!

Step 1: lots of taping!

Skipped the documenting of a few steps - this is after we moved the furniture into place

The finished product - Love the glider...thanks Nonni and Bompa!

This one shows the colors better

Random thoughts

Soooo....we have been really bad about remembering to take belly pictures. We will even say at the beginning of the day "We need to remember to take a picture today" and then completely forget! I might blame this on pregnancy brain. One thing I can tell you about my belly is that my belly button is halfway out!! I just can't believe it. I hope it doesn't stay out forever because I actually kinda liked it the way it was. Ross thinks it looks like a backwards Cincinnati Reds "C", which tells you where his brain is - Baseball. Not that I have anything against baseball. It actually is one of the best things to fall asleep while watching on the tv (up there with Golf). Maybe the Reds are doing so great right now because my belly button has brought them luck!


We also recently began our prepared childbirth classes. The nurse who is teaching the class is really funny and the hospital is new and beautiful. An all around good experience thus far. Of course we were the only ones in the class who do not know the gender of our baby and we are not sharing names. Which honestly is ok with me considering one couple in the class is naming their baby boy Kloud. We were told we had to be respectful of what people had decided and Ross and I did not laugh or smirk in class...but I can't help but think about it every now and then and smile.


The third trimester is here and that apparently means I cannot stand mexican food again. Boooo..... This baby likes sweet and savory dishes. One other funny story - Lizzie was sleeping with her head on my belly the other day and the baby decided to kick pretty hard. Lizzie jerked her head up and looked around trying to find the source of the noise, finally gave up and put her head back, repeat 3 more times. Classic.

Shower in Medina!

I had a wonderful time at the shower my sisters threw for me in Medina! It followed the safari theme of our baby bedding with the cutest cupcakes ever and super fun games. One of the games was where all the guests pass a ball of string around and cut off the length they thought would fit around my tumme! My mom's friend, Roseanne, won with a string that was the perfect length. Must be the math teacher brain she has :) Another game was the baby animal game where you name the baby animal of the provided corrosponding adult (example: Dog - Puppy). Mrs. P. won that game. Finally, there was a game where everyone had to guess which features from Ross or me I want Baby Gille to have. This game had a tie with Mrs. Pascuzzi winning. Too much fun!

Reggie thinks all of these presents are for him :)

The women in my fam: Granny, Mom, Leanna, Me, Kim (can you believe Leanna is the tallest?)

My Columbus girls (minus one): Ashley Paulus, Me, Erin Gross, and Tricia Granja!

Thank you to everyone who helped put this shower together...I felt very loved and supported on this special day! Thanks to everyone who was able to come celebrate with me! I love you!

Shower in FF

I had so much fun this past week in Ohio visiting with family and friends. The visit was kicked off with a baby shower in Fairfield thrown by my cousin-in-law Jessica (in the pic with me above). The shower seemed to go by soooo fast! It was an open house style party so the guests were able to come and go as they needed and I was able to see a bunch of people who have made an impact on Ross as he grew up (and will continue to make a difference in our family when we move back!). Thank you Jessica for throwing us a wonderful shower!! And, thank you to everyone who was able to make it! I love you all :)

Bump!

Oh my goodness....the bump looks huge. And I am only 25.1 weeks in this picture!! I'm beginning to think that I haven't seen anyone else pregnant past this point since my mom was pregnant with Leanna (which I don't remember too well). Everyone I remember being pregnant looked about this big or smaller. Do people generally go mia for the third trimester?

In other news....Ross felt the baby move last night for the first time! Too exciting :)

We also ordered the crib and were put on the waiting list for the dresser combo unit. My goal is to have a lot of my nesting done before I begin my next quarter of grad school (July 12-Sept 17). I want to get ahead in my classes in case the baby comes earlier than Sept 21 which will probably be difficult if I am distracted by nesting. Here's hoping!

Bump!

I know it has been a month since I last posted a picture of the bump....but I have had a lot going on. So, even though I look like a raccoon with dark circles under my eyes from exhaustion after this past month, I will still share with you my ginormous belly at 24 weeks. According to the books, the baby is over 1lb and is developing brain tissue and lung branches right now. And I am embracing what my friend Marisa at residency told me, "Jamie, of course you're tired. You're making a brain right now". That really puts it all into perspective!

In other news - we have registered at BabiesRUs and also have a list of items on gimmethis.com for anyone who is interested. Please note that you will have to register on the gimmethis site in order to search for me and view my "All things baby" wish list. I know this is may seem like a hassle but you can rest assured you will be protected. This is a family website we use for Christmas and Birthdays and is not commercial. You can use it for Christmas and Birthdays in your family if you would like!

A note about BabiesRUs - I am not a huge fan of this company due to the countless customer service complaints and problems I have heard from friends (seriously, a friend had a $500 gift card from their family that the number was stolen off at check out or before it ever left the factory and they have yet to get the money 6+ months later). Unfortunately, they seem to be the most universal store with a good selection of items. So, I only wanted to register for the things I truly have an opinion on with this company (furniture, bedding, stroller, car seat, pack and play, etc.).

The majority of the smaller items I registered for are chosen based on customer reviews on the website, word of mouth from my family and friends, or reviews from the baby bargains book. I would love anything you know to be tried and true and wanted to give you the option to choose whatever you think is cute when it comes to clothing, hooded towels, books, toys, etc. I tend to love those cutsey small-business baby stores where you can support local business when I am purchasing things for baby showers and did not want to make you feel limited by the longest registry ever. :) Of course, a car seat is reportedly the only thing we need to take the baby home from the hospital, so...that would be useful too!

Putting materialistic thinking aside - prayers for a healthy baby and mommy are always welcome.

Residency 1

Last week I attended the first residency of my master's program in Alexandria, Va. I was really excited to meet some of the professors I had for past and current classes as well as my fellow classmates. Capella University offers online programs for a variety of undergrad and graduate degrees- including school counseling (which is what I want to do). It has taken me a little time to adapt to the online learning environment...and just when I got into the swing of things we had our first in-person meeting at a 5-day conference-style learning residency (8am-6pm daily!).

I am not going to lie- I loved and hated this experience at the same time and wished every second of it that I was not pregnant. It was so neat to put the skills we have been learning to practice in hypothetical situations and develop a rapport with our future colleagues. At the same time, the long hours sitting in the same chair were brutal on this pregnant body. I learned (in addition to counseling skills) that I need to maintain a level of self-care to protect myself and the little one. I have the utmost appreciation for those women who work throughout their pregnancies. I equate full-time grad school with a full-time job, but let's be honest - I get to sit in a lazy boy and lay down on my left side when I need to.

Bump!

Today is 20 weeks...we are halfway! Wow my bump looks big! It seems so different in a picture from the side than when I look down on it. So far I have gained around 10-13 lbs or so which I guess is normal according to the books. I can't imagine how fast the rest of the time will go. It seems like just yesterday I found out I was pregnant. So far I agree with what others have told me- the second trimester is better than the first. I never had morning sickness but I did have terrible back pain that seems to have gone MIA for the time being.

A note about dreams- I have never been one to remember my dreams. I don't know if I sleep too deeply, have dreams too close to reality that I think they actually happen, or if my dream cycles are too rapid that I can't remember it all. Whatever the case may be, I have never been a dreamer until now. I feel like those TV shows and movies that were produced at the beginning of the color era, "Now dreaming in technicolor!" I must really be missing my family and friends because each night I have a crazy, worried dream about someone I care deeply for. Following are some pieces of advice from my crazy dreams...Leanna- don't run off with some guy to Canada who lives in a dirty house, Kim- take care of yourself, Mom- don't wander too far from your phone, Trisha- you are a fabulous mom, sister, and friend, Tricia- Don't move to India or South America, Natalie- slow down when you drive or watch out for the bad c-bus drivers, Ashley and Erin- be careful in your residencies. Hmmmm....maybe I am only worried about the women in my life?

Bump - 18 weeks

Here you go! 18 weeks

A note (or question) about pregnancy clothing...why are the shirts either a crazy print that you otherwise would never wear or gray/brown/black? Alternately they could be the brightest shade of pink or green you have ever seen, causing flashbacks to the 80's. I just want to shout..."Yes, I am pregnant and getting huge, why must you make me wear ugly clothes too?!?!?" Not that I am complaining about the clothing my friends and family passed to me, I am extremely grateful everytime I open the closet. I just wonder how I got 5 gray t-shirts and one t-shirt with alternating dark and light gray lines.

In this picture, I am wearing my most comfortable brown shirt that I got from someone?

Meet Baby Gille, almost 18 weeks :-)

We went to the doctor today for a checkup and ultrasound. The baby is perfectly normal in the development arena and was really active for the ultrasound. 10 fingers and 10 toes! At one point it looked like baby Gille was trying to tell us something or was laughing because he/she was looking at us and moving that mouth like crazy! It is unbelievable the amount of detail already there when the baby is only 1/2 lb- the brain, 4 chambers of the heart, the bladder, kidneys, fingers, toes, spine, eyes, etc. Welcome to the miracle of life :)

Snoogle

I just have to send out a THANK YOU to Natalie for sending me the most amazing present any pregnant woman would like to have....the snoogle!! It is a total body pillow shaped like a 'c' that helps provide support throughout the night. I have never slept so well in my entire life. It actually makes me wonder why all pillows aren't shaped like this!

If you are pregnant....or you like to sleep well supported at night, purchase one for yourself! You will not regret it :)

Bump!

16 Weeks