Thursday, May 29, 2014

Anxiously Awaiting Thee - Week 38

Only one more week to go, we hope. Baby Roo still hasn't made an appearance yet and now we are headed into week 39! For some reason my mind had me convinced he was going to arrive early - after all three of the five other women due the same week as me have had their babies already; I'm feeling a little behind!

Roo seems quite content where he is. He seems to be pretty chill and happy right where he is. His kicks aren't painful, he just likes to roll around inside. Mom and I spend time in the pool each day now to exercise but also so I can lay belly down for a while, trying to get him to rotate nose-down. I must say, the moment I dip into the pool it's instant relief from pressure on all my joints and muscles. However getting out with the extra weight of the water is always a challenge.

I've discovered a bit of a problem too; Only my front side is getting tan! This is due to the fact that I cannot lay on my tummy in the sun... I keep joking that once the baby is here I'll have to lay tummy down for a week to catch up with my front.

This week my cousin Andrew came to visit from Canada. I hadn't seen him in over five years before the weekend we went to my brother's wedding. Andrew seemed to have a blast while he was here and it was nice having someone around to keep Eric company since my mom and I have been outnumbering him. The guys were able to go to Buch Gardens, they hung out at the mall, and just all around had a great time being nerdy together.

Oh and our car seat is in! Thanks Eric - now Roo might realize it's perfect timing to come!


Mostly I've just been trying to enjoy my week and not let my anxiousness take over. I have a lot of fears about delivery and the arrival of our son (who doesn't). Every little move I feel I'm trying to soak in. Soon I'll be able to hold our little one and care for him, but I know I will miss feeling him growing in me.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Full Term Gitters - Week 37

At last our baby can come and our baby is safe! At this point his lungs are mostly developed and an early arrival has very minimal risk.

Now, the anxiousness is settling in. This baby could come when he wants!!

Oh how this has been a big week though! First came the arrival of my mother. She's going to be camping out in our living room until a few weeks after the baby is born - so thankful for the help of my best friend!

My mom - my teacher - my friend
Then we had our baby shower on Saturday where we were blessed by the generosity and fellowship of the ladies in my life here in Tampa. My mom was able to share a few words of blessing for Roo and we played a few games guessing baby food and guessing the baby's name. Then we had to haul it all back to our home!

The blessing of our friends' generosity is overwhelming!


After the shower was over we got to shop till we dropped - almost literally in my case - for the rest of the needed items for our son. Although my home felt like a box of puzzle pieces, it was comforting to know that we are mostly prepared for his arrival. Not to mention comforting to get all the great discounts we did with gift cards and so on!

It all has to go somewhere!
Over the week we spent our time organizing and working on little projects. I won't reveal too much of the nursery nook as I am saving that for a post of it's own, but we did get the bed set up, the shelf for his clothes/books/diapers, as well as the rocking chair placed in it's permanent residence. We had to do a bit of rearranging with our bed to fit Roo into our room, but I think we were successful.

We enlisted the help of a few people over the week to assemble some of the much needed items!




I tried to stay off my feet as much as possible... but you know me! Can't sit still for more than five minutes.

We decided to go with a Pack and Play for Roo as we live in a small one bedroom. This allowed for one less piece of furniture to store as well as a changing table which we had not anticipated having.

Assembled and set up his bed
We've collected several pieces of artwork as well for the nursery nook - Star Wars themed of course! I could a couple of hours out my day and was able to line them all up straight and make them permanent. (Artwork to be revealed soon!)

Don't worry... I didn't leave them empty

The rest of my week looked like this...


Doing laps and soaking in the sun as we wait for our little one to arrive. It's so wonderful to have my mother here to keep me company during the days and the support of my husband to deal with the anxiety!

Oh and here's a lopsided Roo for you - Have a great week everyone!

Some Assembly Required

I'm sorry if my blog is starting to be about nothing but baby - but I suppose that's what happens when you're two weeks away from your due date and the baby is taking over your house!

After the baby shower, items began to pile in our home that, lets just say, require some assembly. I'm thankful that my hubby is here to help complete some of these projects! I thought I would share with you some of the new furniture that has joined our home.

First was the blessing of a rocking Chair so I can feed our little man in comfort. The assembly only took about an hour for my amazing husband!



Next we had to assemble the shelf for the baby nook, I enlisted the help of our friend Josh in exchange for a home-cooked meal (he didn't know this was exchange... we sort of ambushed him when he arrived!

The boys wanted to know why it was a maid and not a butler... a butler can do things just as well

Eric read the instructions and Josh assembled... how is this far?

A beautiful work of art!

Finally we had the crib to decide on. Because of the small nature of our apartment (A one bedroom in downtown Tampa) we decided the most logical solution for Roo would be to use a Pack and Play instead of a normal crib.

This would allow for one less piece of furniture to store, a smaller bed in total dimension, and a two in one changing table! Fortunately this item did not require much assembly; although stay tuned for a Star Wars makeover!


Mom thought it would be cute to set up Roo's new Teddy Bear in the crib like it was baby Roo... made for a good caption moment.

So far that's all I've got! We still have a cabinet to assemble then I believe we're done. Stick around though, I'll be posting about the baby nook transformation soon!

Thursday, May 15, 2014

The End is Nigh - Week 36

Only one week away from full term! Wow that's pretty scary to think of. I feel like the last eight months have just gone by so quickly; it's interesting how it feels that way, yet at the start it felt like this pregnancy was going to last forever!

I kicked my 36th week off with my traditional., once a year, peach shake from Chick Fil A (yes be jealous). This shake, if you don't know, is seasonal like the McDonalds Shamrock Shake so when I get to have one - I'm a happy camper!


After my shake - we had to walk it off so we went on down to Bayshore Boulevard, only a few minutes from our home. Bayshore is a waterfront road whose sidewalk claims to be the longest continuous sidewalk in the world at 4.5 miles (7.2 km) long.


 We love to walk here and enjoy the sunsets. This trip marked the first time in a long while since we've brought Baby Roo; we had to memorialize it!


Mom and dad showed up this Friday. We got to spend the weekend with them and it was truly wonderful. Sometimes, although I live in this paradise we call Florida, I forget how to relax and enjoy the sunshine. With my folks here, by 11am they want to be out by the pool enjoying the sunshine; I don't blame them after the winter they've had in NY.

We enjoyed the summer's first grill out


Mother's day

Lunch at Sweet Tomatoes for Mother's Day

Mom's sad rose from the church for Mother's Day

 and BOGO Ben & Jerry's!

 


In other, baby news! We were able to get our first set of diapers this week. As Eric works at the hospital we get a discount on diapers through their Sterile Processing Department. What a blessing this is as we were prepared to do cloth diapers to save on the cost. However with the deal we get from the Hospital, using paper diapers is way cheaper than purchasing cloth diapers (imagine that)!


 Approximate cost through his employer is about 5 cents per newborn and 7 cents per size 1 diaper... can't beat that price! Amazon Mom estimates the total value at $114.24 and we paid $25.

Oh and I got my free Breast pump, thanks to the affordable care act! Not planning on using it, but you never know!


So I think that wraps up week 36. Next is full term - strange to think this little guy could come at any time, or stay in there for another month... (PLEASE Come early little guy!). Mom will be back tomorrow and stay through until Roo is born.

Thursday, May 8, 2014

May the 4th be With You - Week 35

This week we got to geek out a little more with baby Roo!

With the arrival of May 4th comes the outrageous need to make our lives all about Star Wars... why you say? Well, I can't explain it, but May the 4th be with you...

Saturday, I got to put my feet to the test and help handle a Star Wars event at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. When we arrived and I said I was handling I got a few funny looks as they shifted their eyes from my face to my belly and back... most likely thinking "this woman's crazy - she so preggo!" I loved proving them wrong!

We had a blast walking around seeing kids eyes light up! I was responsible to make sure no one got tackled or any children got trampled\ and I think we were successful. Roo had fun bouncing around inside. It was nice to know I still have the energy for this sort of thing. There aren't going to be any more Star Wars events for me until this little man arrives.

You can half-see Eric in the back hiding

Sunday was May the 4th so we headed out to our Cousins to geek out with Star Wars board games, one of the movies, and "saber dogs" (AKA hot dogs). It was a relaxing way to celebrate our love of the Star Wars universe but not have to lug around costumes and props.

Our cousins also gave us our baby gift! For days Jason has been telling me he's so excited to give it to us, so I wasn't sure what to expect as Jason doesn't get excited over little things. Once we got in the house the kids were all telling us we had to open our gift and that they were excited to see our reaction. Finally after saying our hellos and settling in we got to unwrap said "amazing gift."

oh and it was amazing! Two new prints to add to our baby room collection!


I absolutely LOVE the Yoda one (I know... I'm betraying my love for R2D2) and the saying "Truly wonderful the mind of a child is." So true master Yoda, so true!

Now our collection is not only bigger but also complete! We will be adding in the first letter of Roo's name to the collage and hang it all over his crib. If you are wondering, most of these were purchased at Con's we've visited. BUT the painted, single R2D2 was done by our Cousin Vicki to help her paint something out of her comfort zone - she nailed it!


So now I'm getting nesting fever; I can't wait to have Roo's bed and corner set up so I can get these all installed on the walls!!

May the 4th be with you all, and don't forget to have a little nerdy moment in honor of this great holiday; Star Wars Day.

Monday, May 5, 2014

Choose Your Side You Nerd!

If you've been following my posts for a while, you're remember my post Confessions of a Nerdy Girl about joining the Rebel Legion with our home-made Jedi Costumes. Since, we've been to countless events and made dozens of close friends.

As part of our gig, we have to travel to different sites for events. We purchased a cheap carry-all for our costumes and accessories. It's a cheap, grey utility chest that's lightweight and has wheels.

Well this week I decided it was too boring and needed some personalizing! I picked a decal I liked and printed it out to size.

I tapped across the top of the box and laid the stencil over it. Using a utility knife I cut out the design.


I covered the entire box with towels so I wouldn't get strips of unwanted spray paint. 


Spray Spray Spray... Using a paint marked for plastic I went over the stencil twice for a solid black. 


After about 10 minutes of drying I removed the tape so the pain wouldn't cure over the tape and rip.


Next I covered up the stencil and tapped out a 2" line from the stencil out - leaving a small round of blank space around the top and bottom of the symbol. 


Cover up and spray again!


Waited ten minutes and removed the tape. After consulting my brother and husband, we all decided the box need something else...


So I tapped out another two 1/2" lines on either side, again leaving space above and below the Symbol. - Here's the final product! 


We took the box to the Storm game on Saturday and all our 501st and Rebel Legion friends thought it was crazy awesome. The symbol is a mix of the two Star Wars sides; the top half is the Rebel Symbol and the bottom is the Imperial Symbol. 


I like this mash of the two symbols because it shows our love for both the Rebel Legion AND the 501st (bad guys vs good guys). Now no matter who we troop with, we'll only be "half wrong" hehe.

he entire project would have been easier had I owned a Cricket and been able to just print out stencils, but I did the best I could with the resources I had on hand.

So what do you think?

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Educating the Masses - Week 34

We have settled back in at home, although after a week of visiting family in Canada and New York I must say I remember why we moved to Florida in the first place!

Traveling Home with Roo
This week was full of education! We took a total of three classes at the hospital to help prepare us for baby Roo... or so they say...

Class One: a tour of the Labor/Delivery unit, and Postpartum floor. This that stuck out to me on this tour was how well secure the area was. I hadn't thought about the possibility of baby swapping or kidnapping until mentioned on this tour, but the forever presence of security, wrist banding, and bag searches helped me feel more confident in this security.

I was also amazed at the size difference between the delivery rooms and the recovery rooms. The former is a giant, hard wood-floor room overlooking the bay; spacious, private, and beautiful. Then the recovery room barely has room for a preggers to walk around the bed much less fit a husband and baby in there too! I hope my stay is a short as possible. t

Class Two: Newborn Care. Here we to return to our childhood and play with dolls. Although instead of dressing them up and playing house we learned how to deal with exploding diapers and cleaning their little noses. Things that stuck out in this class were very few. I've had a lot of newborn care in my lifetime of babysitting. However I was shocked by the graphic depiction of a full circumcision... I will forever be scarred for my little man...

Class Three: Breastfeeding. I'm so happy Eric stayed home for this one. Most of what i remember of this class was trying to hide my red face as video after video of topless women nursed their children or hand expressed colostrum appeared. I'm all for the public breastfeeding movement but come on lady, wear a cover or something! I would have much preferred graphics or diagrams over sitting in a mixed company room trying to disguise my embarrassment.

I do plan on breastfeeding my little Roo for the many health benefits it will give him, but we will have to see how I handle being off my medication for that long of a period as I cannot feed him and return to my medication.

So that was our education. Roo is growing, I can feel him moving around much less but when he does they're strong movements of him turning or stretching. No visit from Braxton ... yet...

Oh and here's a little gift Grampa sent home for Roo - although he might not fit in it until much later. This little man is going to be one spoiled grandchild! (PS Grandpa lives in ADK... thus the logo.)