Baby W–15 Weeks

 

* Each bumpdate is from the week before. I am currently 16 weeks, 5 days.

This Week:

Lots of busy work days and campaigning at night for upcoming elections! Pretty focused on election stuff right now! Also, Quyon Car Rally this weekend!

Baby This Week:

Baby is the size of a naval orange this week! Apparently baby is wiggling and squirming away but unfortunately it’s still too early for me to feel anything. All of it’s joints can move now. Baby is looking more and more proportionate!

Maternity Clothes:

This is the first week that I cannot button my work pants! It feels like it happened over night. I have broken out the belly band all week and it makes them much more comfortable while sitting at my desk! I still have one pair of work pants that barely button!

Stretch Marks/Weight:

Nothing new in the stretch mark department! I am using stretch mark lotion every morning now.

Weight actually stayed the same this week which is great, according to my scale! On Thursday, went to the doctors and his scale said I am down another pound. He is not worried as baby and my belly is measuring spot on! 

Movement:

I am trying to pay more and more attention to things that are happening in my belly so that when movement does happen, I’ll hopefully be able to recognize it.

Food Cravings/Aversions:

Was violently ill after attempting spaghetti this week…Lesson learnt. Still not crazy about peanut butter either as it made me sick a few weeks back.

Loving sour patch kids, jam, cold veggies with dip, any fruit and yogurt. 

Symptoms:

Heart burn made an appearance for the first time this week. I have never had heart burn before and I was not sure what it was. Guessing the burning in my throat/chest may be heart burn, I took a couple of Tums. Instantly, the burning went away! Every night since, tums have found a new home on my night side table.

Belly still seems to be expanding as well. If I sucked in my belly it use to disappear but now a belly is here to stay!

Acne seems to be under control a bit better. Woke up one day this week at 3 AM STARVING! Luckily, I fell back asleep and when my alarm went off an hour later, the fridge was my first stop!

Still nauseous in the afternoons and a couple evenings this week I was actually sick. Was hoping this stage was over. I am just thankful that it isn’t every day at this point!

What I Miss:

Missing going into my closet and putting whatever I want on and having it fit. I put on a sweater on Sunday morning and realized it was way too short that it looked funny! It’s kind of a guessing game right now as to what in my current wardrobe is pregnancy friendly.

Labour Signs:

No way!

Gender:

No idea but the guesses from family and friends keep coming! My dad guessed boy this week and my brother is confident that it’s a girl! Friends Pk and Jill guessed boy!

Belly Button In or Out:

In

Wedding Rings On or Off:

On and loose

What I’m Looking Forward To This Week:

Looking forward to my doctors appointment on Thursday! I like the reassurance of hearing the doctor say that everything looks great! Plus now at every appointment I get to hear the sweet sound of the heart beat.

Daddy This Week:

Daddy has had a very busy week and we haven’t seen much of each other. Mommy is noticing that Daddy is looking at her belly more as it changes. He has been very good about saying how good she looks to him and how much he loves seeing her belly grow with their baby.

Wisdom:

That burning throat/chest thing? Yes, that is heart burn you are experiencing. No, it doesn’t just happen later in the pregnancy apparently. Keep away from anything tomato related still, don’t try to push your luck.

You may have wanted to keep your pants buttoned up even longer but don’t be uncomfortable for the sake of your own pride. Break out the belly band whenever YOU want!

Best Moment Of The Week:

Doctor’s appointment of Thursday! First doctors appointment where I felt comfortable and confident in the doctor. We had lots of time to talk and we finally seem to be on the same page. Very much a relief as it is one area that I was struggling with.

Another great moment was when I was out campaigning. I stopped at a local farm for a visit. I don’t know the older couple very well but as we were talking I mentioned that I am pregnant. The farmers wife was all excited and asked what I was having. I told her that my husband and I were going to keep it a surprise. She got all distraught and said, “well how am I suppose to know what color to knit something in?” It was so sweet and SO typical small town! This farming couple hardly knows me at all and yet are so excited for the sweet babe that the wife is already wanting to click away at her knitting needles. It just warms my heart having such great people around me.

xo

A Very Busy Weekend!

 

Happy Monday everyone! Who else would like just ONE MORE day for the weekend? One more day of recovering and doing nothing! That would be the best!

The weekend started out on Friday night with a book club meeting that was held at our home! It was nice to have all the ladies over and not have to go somewhere myself! The snacks were so yummy and it was a great discussion about a great book! Room by Emma Donoghue is a fast read book of a little boy and his Mom who was kidnapped and held captive for years. It also told the story of their escape and their struggles with adjusting to life outside of Room.

Friday nights are always a hard one for me. I don’t have much energy left! After a long work week and busy Friday I crash pretty hard on Friday nights.

Saturday morning Ryan and I were up fairly early to get a start on our day! As a belated birthday gift, Ryan was taking me shopping for whatever I wanted! The best part was that he drove the whole time and went where ever I wanted and never complained once! Any store, any stop and for as long as I needed! It was so nice! He carried my bags and was very patient.

Maternity clothes were high on my shopping list! I am starting to get very uncomfortable in my current clothes. Things just don’t fit right and I feel like a stuffed sausage trying to make my current pants work.

The first stop was the new Target in Orleans! I was so excited to visit a Canadian Target! We went right when it opened so that there were minimal crowds. We walked around for about half an hour. They had only one rack of maternity clothes which was very disappointing. Actually overall, I was very disappointed. I had high expectations for Target but the ones in the U.S are SO much better then our Canadian version. The stock was low in a lot of aisles and the selection wasn’t that great. Even when I went to get a coffee at Starbucks, the debit machine was broken and they wouldn’t scan my gift card, cash only.

After Target we went over to an Old Navy and I was so much happier with their Maternity selection! I got a great pair of skinny jeans and a bunch of shirts at Old Navy! Plus, the store was empty which was nice!

We ran over to Future Shop after Old Navy so that I could finally pick out a new camera. Around the time that we went to Halifax this summer, I dropped and broke my good camera. I took it in to get repaired and the guy said it would be the same price to get one brand new. It’s nice having my camera back!

We then headed over the the St.Laurent centre! Ryan was a little confused as to what we were doing there as it wasn’t on my “to do” list. I just told him to trust me!  

There is a little salon in that mall that I know always has openings for pedicures. So, as Ryan went searching for some sandals, I enjoyed a nice pedicure! I even got to sit in one of the amazing massage chairs! It was heaven! 

With pretty toes we headed to the Trainyards to go shop at Thyme Maternity. It was a huge store with LOTS of selection. The only problem, the prices are pretty steep. I picked out a few basics and had fun trying on all my selections. I picked up the things that I really needed and headed to the cash. Little did we know that they were having a sale! So, automatically they took 40% off of my whole order! It was great! I got 3 shirts, black work pants and a pair of leggings without breaking the bank!

We stopped at Walmart on our way home to grab our Halloween candy as well. We were pleasantly surprised to see that it was all on sale as well!

I got home and had fun going through all of my new purchases. To say that Ryan spoiled me would be an understatement!

At Thyme they were giving away a free bottle to every customer! It’s sitting out on our counter because we don’t know where to put it! Our first piece of baby merchandise that needs to find a home!

That night Jilly came over for a scary movie marathon! I am loving this new Halloween tradition that her and I have! I am really not a fan of scary movies in general but once a year I try to handle them to get to get into the Halloween spirit!

This year we watched Amityville Horror, Halloween H20 and Sixth Sense! Amityville Horror scared me the most! Still get Goosebumps thinking about it!

Sunday morning I was up early so that I could peel all my potatoes for the church Harvest supper that was happening that evening! It’s a great fundraising event that our church puts on! Everyone chips in to help with food and serving and a large group of people from the community come out to enjoy a delicious turkey dinner!

After the potatoes were all ready, I started at one of my most FAVOURITE jobs…putting together Halloween candy bags for our trick-or-treaters. We only get about 20 kids who make the off road drive to our home. So, since we have such few kids we make sure their they get LOTS of treats!

Ryan headed to hockey and I went to church. After church we had a busy day of voting ahead! We had Provincial leadership elections and advance municipal elections that we had to go vote at. I have to say, it gave me lots of butterflies to see my name on the municipal ballot! It make it very real and very exciting to see it there. Win or lose, I have had fun campaigning and visiting with people from my ward.

The late afternoon was spent helping at the Harvest supper in Quyon. We had a great turn out and the supper was delicious!

How was your weekend?

xo

If I Were A Boy…

 

Happy Friday everyone! I hope that your week has passed by super quickly! This coming weekend is the last weekend in October! I’m sorry, but when did that happen? Where did the days go? I feel as though fall has passed by in a blink and now we are seeing snow in the long term forecast?!? What?!

I may love country music but I have, on more than one occasion, accused my playlist from having schizophrenia. It can play the most beautiful country song and then switch to gangster rap in an instant. But musically, I know what I like and I don’t care what genre it happens to fall under.

Beyoncé's song, “If I Were A Boy” is a song that I love to listen to. I think it’s catchy and the idea of the song is genius. Any song that get’s me thinking is A-Ok in my books! Now, the song may be way more deep then my own thoughts on being a boy for day! But, I thought I’d share them none the less.

If I Were A Boy…I’d have no hair on my head. A bean shave would be my style of choice! I may even just do it myself at home with clippers! The amount of money I would save on hair products would be awesome!

If I Were A Boy…I’d have a huge party and fire to burn all my bra’s and fancy underwear! Boxers would be my go-to underwear of choice! Ah, the freedom!  

If I Were A Boy…I’d never step on a scale or grab at my flab. While I know some men have body image problems I would say that it is never to the scale that women obsess about it!

If I Were A Boy…I’d still swear like a sailor but I’d relish in the fact that no body says I have the mouth of a sailor. Working on a farm, around mostly men has made me acquire somewhat of a potty mouth. When I swear I get looked at as being “un-lady” like but if I were a boy, I’d swear all I want without being judged.

If I Were A Boy…I would get ready in 5 seconds. What a feeling of freedom it must be to get up and throw on clothes, slap on deodorant, and run a brush over your teeth and be ready for the day. I would be a low maintenance man!

If I Were A Boy…I’d never have to worry about body hair again. Again, low maintenance man. Hairy legs, face and chest all the way!

If I Were A Boy...I would be less afraid of the dark. I wouldn’t worry about walking to my car by myself in the middle of the night. I’d sucker punch anyone who made me mad.

If I Were A Boy…I would hopefully be more coordinated and be able to be better at sports. Or, at least try. I’d love to sweat because a simple shower (without having to get my hair ready after) would clean me up!

If I Were A Boy…I’d never have to get someone to open jars for me again!

If I Were A Boy…I’d remember how special a girl feels when we open doors for her and do it all the time. I’d have this knowing secret of what little things women like and what makes them feel special.

And finally…

If I Were A Boy…I would definitely wish to be a girl again!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

xo 

Baby W–14 Weeks

 

*Each bumpdate is from the week before. I am currently 15 weeks 5 days.

This Week:

Thanksgiving weekend and my 26th birthday!

Baby This Week:

Baby this week is the size of a lemon or as the ultrasound tech said, a clenched fist!

Baby can now frown, grimace, pee and possibly suck its thumb! Baby is stretching out this week and weighs 1 1/2 ounces!

Maternity Clothes:

I received a beautiful Thyme maternity sweater from my parents for my birthday! It fits now and will accommodate a growing belly too! Work pants and shirts still fit well! Certain workout pants will have to go into retirement as the way the waist band digs into my belly is starting to feel very uncomfortable. 

Stretch Marks/Weight:

No new stretch marks but I am starting to notice my belly actually sticking out at night. It looks more like a food baby then a real baby but there is definitely something there! Plus it’s hard as a rock!

I was so sure when I stepped on the scale this week that I would have gained a little weight as eating was slightly better this week. I was shocked to see that I am now down 12 pounds since the beginning of the pregnancy.

Movement:

No movement yet!

Food Cravings/Aversions:

Thanksgiving dinners posed to be a problem as my stomach can’t handle that much food in one sitting. Also had a hard time eating turkey.

Still craving sour patch kids and this weekend I was LOVING sour cream and onion chips but was really hoping to find sour cream and onion rings!

Symptoms:

Belly growth for sure this week! Boobs have taken a break, thank goodness! Rarely feeling nauseous but sometimes it can sneak up on me! Great second trimester symptom: extra energy! 

What I Miss:

I am really starting to miss eating normally. Sitting down for a big meal seems to be a thing of the past for now. I never feel hungry and have to constantly force myself to eat, which is very strange for me.

Labour Signs:

Not for a long time hopefully!

Gender:

Still keeping things neutral! Tried to examine baby’s head in the ultrasound picture with the facts from this website but could not figure it out! Any guesses?

Belly Button In or Out:

In! I really have to take my belly button ring out! It’s starting to actually hurt sometimes!

Wedding Rings On or Off:

On and loose!

What I’m Looking Forward To This Week:

Looking forward to the long Thanksgiving weekend and the short work week that follows! Also looking forward to Yoga class on Wednesday because my lower back has been hurting a little and I want to see if I can stretch it out!

Daddy This Week:

Daddy’s been making mommy slightly more angry this week then usual. Ha ha! He still “can’t believe” that he got pulled over only doing 22 km/hr over the speed limit…on our way to our first ultrasound. Mommy keeps rolling her eyes. It will certainly make for a good story in the years to come!

Daddy also was in BIG trouble Thanksgiving weekend as that Saturday was Mommy’s birthday and Daddy forgot. All morning Mommy kept wondering when Daddy would remember. It took about 4 hours before Daddy realized what day it was and by then it was too late. We were busy for the rest of the weekend and Mommy didn’t even get her special “tin foil numbers”.  Daddy still has some making up to do…

Wisdom:

There is nothing wrong with undoing the button on your pants….it is socially acceptable for a pregnant lady!  

Best Moment Of The Week:

Getting to share Baby’s first pictures with family and friends over Thanksgiving was really great! I just keep looking at the picture over and over again! It’s nice to be able to see baby now!

Blowing out the candles on my birthday pumpkin pie….

xo

This Weekend I…

 

Today I am linking up with Synfully Delicious for This Weekend, I.

This Weekend, I…Had sort of a date night with Ryan on Friday. I’ve been so busy and out of the house every night that I wanted to take a night to just spend with him. We went for supper at the Baton Royale (with a gift card from Jilly, thanks dude!) and then attended a wake. Not what you would categorize as fun date activity but we were together the whole night at that was all that mattered!

This Weekend, I…did some campaigning when I could. It has actually been going very good and has been fun meeting some neighbours that I have never had the chance to meet before! On Saturday morning I had coffee with one couple and ended up staying for over an hour because we were just having such a good chat. Of course I would like to be voted in as councillor in Ward 3 but if not, I am so happy with the fact that I have gotten to meet so many new people.

This Weekend, I…went on the Quyon Car Rally with Dad and Ryan! We packed up some snacks and had a blast touring the back roads! For those who don’t know, Car Rally is like a big scavenger hunt! Your team leaves the hall with your directions to follow. When instructed you must stop and answer some questions. Usually the answers are posted somewhere in that vicinity but you have to get out to look!

My team and I kept laughing at the fact that while this event is so fun to us and the community,  to others who have never heard of it before must give us a side glace!

It is a super fun event and is sure to sell out every year! But to outsiders we must look pretty silly driving all along the back roads, looking high and low in hitches and high grass looking for answers (some of us in costumes).

Photo by Dolan Art and Photography

The goal every year is to NOT win first! If you win first, you have to plan the next years route and questions! I was SO pleased to hear my team won 5th place!

As they got closer to the top 2 teams, a group of friends were starting to get pretty nervous...

And they should have because they won FIRST PLACE! CONGRATS GUYS (suckers..)!

 This Weekend, I…had a great laugh at one of the clues by my election sign! The answer was “Gin and Sing”.

Photo by Dolan and Photography

This Weekend, I…went to the “after” rally supper and winners announcement for the first time! Ryan never wants to go to this portion but I really wanted to see what it was all about! Turns out it was my favourite part! Not only did I get to enjoy a delicious meal (that I didn’t have to cook) but sitting around with friends discussing answers to the questions was a blast!

Photo by Dolan Art and Photography

This Weekend, I…went to a bridal shower on Sunday morning and a Mayor’s “meet the candidates” talk Sunday afternoon. Upon trying to find something to wear for both, realized that none of my pants button up comfortably anymore! I was hoping I could make it farther then 15 weeks without depending 100% on the belly band but it’s here now in full force!

What did you do this weekend?

xo

First Trimester–Things I’ve Leant And Things They Don’t Tell You. Plus, Husbands Pay Attention!

 

Happy Friday everyone! Today I am 15 weeks pregnant! I don’t know why, but that feels like a milestone to me! 14 weeks you are just beginning your 2nd trimester and 15 weeks makes me feel like we are well into the 2nd! It’s funny the mind games that you play with yourself when you are pregnant. Certain milestones mean something different to different women.

Now that I am “well” into my 2nd trimester I wanted to share with you all a collection of thoughts I had been compiling throughout my 1st trimester. You think that you know yourself and your body really well until you get pregnant. Then, things change because truthfully, your body isn’t 100% yours anymore. 

Things I’ve learnt:

1. Don’t be the last to laugh. The nausea that you think you’ve been lucky enough to avoid can hit you like a freight train

Keep you ambitions low. I had a goal to walk 4 KM at least 3 times a week from the time I found out I was pregnant. Then nausea hit and I curled up in the fetal position in front of the t.v instead.

2. Being this level of tired is like nothing you have ever experienced. I have been REALLY tired before. I have even had all nighters and worked the next day and still somewhat functioned. But it’s a whole other level of tired. It’s like when your bones ache with the flu, mixed in with 48 hours of no sleep and a massive brain fart all rolled into one.

3. I am not an elegant puker! There I said it! Some ladies can be so quiet and graceful when they are being sick. They can function immediately afterwards like nothing happened!

Not me! I cry, I whine and there is no doubt behind a closed bathroom door what I am doing because I am loud!

4. Cravings and food aversions are no joke! I was a food lover before I became pregnant! Now, most of the stuff I use to LOVE, I can’t stand! It’s a cruel joke.

Things they don’t tell you:

1. Nausea is not what you expect. For me, for the most part, I didn’t even puke. Instead, I had that puke a little in my mouth constantly instead! (TMI?) It was this constant feeling in my throat like I was going to be sick. Then the build up….then…A burp…with a little bit of vomit immediately after…joy! In week 6 to week 10, this was constant! Happening 30 or more times a day!

2.. Women who have gone through pregnancy related sickness give you that “knowing” look. You hear about how yucky you will feel but it’s pretty much down-played in every book you read. Then when you finally announce that you are pregnant, women begin looking at you with a knowing look saying, “So…how are you feeling”. The sadness in their eyes tell me that they knew this was going to happen to me yet no body gives you TRUE fair warning!

3. You really are a crazy person. Ok, this one should really be in the “things I’ve learnt” category but I want to blame someone on my moodiness (see, crazy person!) so I am going to point the finger at “they” for not telling me how crazy I would ACTUALLY get.

Some days I was as clingy as a 14 year old girl to a Justin Bieber look alike! I would be so lovey and huggable. You could probably see my head do a 360 degree turn, all exorcist style, as I changed from a Carebear to The Wicked Witch of South Onslow!

Here is an example of a conversation that took place one day after work…

Lindsay walks into the kitchen after work to see Ryan cooking dinner. Her head has been hurting all day and she didn't get in a lunch time nap. She sets her purse down on the counter top, Ryan begins walking over to his wife to give her a kiss. Before Ryan can reach his wife she turns around to face the fridge…

"Shut the f*@k up fridge!

Turning to face Ryan…

“WHHHHHYYY IS IT SO LOUD?!!!” – Lindsay now in tears.

For Husbands…

Things To Never Say To Your Wife – First Trimester Addition

Dear Husbands,

Things to NEVER, EVER to say to your expectant wife in the first trimester:

1. “Why are you so tired?” “I’ve been the one doing everything, I should be the tired one.”

- This will cause you to be in the doghouse and sleep on the couch for at least a week. Just shut up and empty the dishwasher.

2. While you are hugging the porcelain throne..”You know if you ate better I bet you would stop puking all the time”.

- Be prepared to get something thrown at you. Just go ahead and go to the store to buy more Sour Patch Kids before you even begin to apologize.

3. “You know if you folded my laundry for me  then you would never get mad at me for having the basket full of clothes”.

- Did you miss the part about moodiness dear husbands?

4. “Remember the days when you use to cook supper every night. When will that happen again? Soon?”

- Keep it up and you’ll be eating Roman noodles for another month!

5. “Are you really going to eat both slices of pizza? I was kind of thinking you were going to give that second piece to me.” 

- Serves you right for not ordering double. Hunger can strike at any moment and I expect you to be a mind reader and anticipate this!

6. “Yes, I did eat the rest of your bag of sour patch kids.”

– Warning: This may induce death.

Happy Friday!

xo

Baby W- 13 Weeks

 

Each bumpdate is from the week before. I am currently 14 weeks 5 days.

This Week: Is CRAWLING by as we wait for Thursday for our first ultrasound!

Baby This Week:

Baby is the size of a peach! Yum…..

Baby also has fingerprints right now! It’s own unique pattern! Baby also has vocal cords now too!

Maternity Clothes:

Just the Bellyband to hold up certain pants! I am noticing that some things are not fitting right. I wore a pair of stretchy pants to yoga and the waist part kept digging into my belly and it was bothering me so I’d have to yank them up Steve Urkel style.

Stretch Marks/Weight:

No new stretch marks and I am using some Cocca belly butter! Weight still keeps dropping. Down 11 pounds since the beginning of the pregnancy. Such a weird thing to see the scale go down but your pant size go up!

Movement:

The only movement I have been feeling is at night when my belly seems to be sticking out more. I can lie down and literally feel this little hard ball.

Food Cravings/Aversions:

Meat, especially chicken. Still hate anything tomato related.

Symptoms:

Hard belly…baby abs? Very strong sniffer and a little bit of nausea! But, for the most part the nausea is so much better then before! Still get sleepy in the afternoons but I have far more energy then before.

What I Miss:

Nothing this week actually.

Labour Signs:

Not yet…according to my iPhone app it is 184 days away till the due date!

Gender:

Team green! This week when I dropped off my paper work off at the municipal office one of the ladies there congratulated me and told me she thinks we are having a boy!

Belly Button In or Out:

Still in!

Wedding Rings On or Off:

On

What I’m looking Forward To This Week:

The days seem to be crawling by as we wait for Thursday for our first ultrasound! At 13 weeks 6 days we will finally get to see Baby W!

Daddy This Week:

Got to take the afternoon off of work so that he could come to the ultrasound! We both know Daddy getting off of work for appointments will be far fetched come winter but we are enjoying his presence while we can!

Wisdom:

Sleep is still so precious and I have learnt to appreciate the good nights of sleep and energy that follows when it comes! Mostly because usually the next day the sleep isn’t as great. TRY to eat more so that I don’t get in trouble at my next appointment for losing more weight but eating is my biggest struggle right now.

Best Moment Of The Week:

Hands down…SEEING BABY W! The first thing that popped out of my mouth was “Wow, there is really a baby in there? You mean I don’t just have the flu?”

It was so neat to see this baby in my belly moving it’s arms and legs but not being able to feel anything. Baby is as healthy as could be and everything looks great which is such a relief.

xo

Legally Able To Drink

 

Ya…I know…A post on a Saturday? What the heck? But, today isn’t just any ordinary Saturday…It’s October the 12th…Thanksgiving weekend (boo!) but also….

MY BIRTHDAY!

So, in celebration of my birthday I thought I would share with you how I spent another special birthday.

Turning 18 is kind of a big deal up here in Quebec. It’s when you can finally have a legal alcoholic beverage!! Now, if you live in a small town like I do, the legal age is just a suggestion (totally kidding Cops…). I mean I celebrated my sweet 16th birthday at the local watering home with a big quart of beer and chicken wings. Still, there is something so nice about not having to worry if someone asked you for I.D!

The problem with my 18th birthday? I was actually at University in ONTARIO where the legal drinking age was 19! Boo!

Being 6 hours away from home for my birthday was tough! I had hardly made any friends yet at my first year! Thankfully, I did know a couple of people and my awesome parents had shipped me some wine to share with my friends.

P.S- My parents were totally aware that alcohol was strictly forbidden from the dorms but they snuck it in for me anyways. Yes, they totally rock like that!

My new friends brought me over a yummy cake but then we realized we didn’t have candles so we improvised!

Then we illegally shared some Wild Vines wine!

We REALLY enjoyed our wine! We felt like such rebels!

Things got pretty silly! 3 girls, weak wine and chocolate cake are bound to make things get a little PG wild!

But, I didn’t have to be alone on my big 18th birthday which was the best part! Turning 18 for a Quebecer is a big deal and being in Ontario for it sucked! But, it ended up being a fun night because of a great friend!

LUCKILY, I didn’t have to wait long to celebrate my birthday back at home! The next weekend was Thanksgiving! The thing to do back at home is obviously go to Gavan’s (small town bar) where you would meet friends, drink quarts, dance the night away to bad country songs and get your FREE birthday shot from the owner!

PS- Please notice this guy smoking in the bar…That use to be legal here! Crazy!

But the back home birthday shenanigans didn’t end there! Some close girlfriends took me out for supper to one of my favourite spots, Ladysmith Hotel for a snack of wings! Of course the bartender there gave me my free 18th birthday beer!

The girls had even snuck in a McCain birthday cake to enjoy! Beer and Cake…Mmmmm…

Oh, and then because I know the owner of this restaurant, I got a SECOND free beer! This broke college student was in hog heaven!

It was a fun birthday overall and certainly one to kind of remember. My friends are all very amazing and make sure to recognize this special day for me. My small town 18th birthday was just as I had hoped it would be! To be at the legendary Gavan’s hotel and finally be drinking there legally is like a right of passage in our small town!

Happy Birthday To Me!

xo

Year Of Dates–September

 

Happy sweet, sweet Friday everyone! I have pep in my step this morning as the LONG weekend approaches! This weekend in the great, white North of Canada it is Thanksgiving weekend! I am oh-so THANKFUL for the blessed 3 days off!

Before I head off for the weekend though I wanted to share with you all our September date that Ryan and I checked off fairly early in the month! At the time we knew we were expecting but the rest of the world didn’t. We went on our date when I was 9 weeks pregnant and feeling rough! But, it was a chance to get away and not hide our pregnancy. I could feel crummy and not try to hide it from family or friends.

Septembers date was planned by me! I actually had to do quite a bit of research for this date because I wasn’t sure if the place I wanted to go to would still be open in September.

Less then an hour away in the little town of Eganville is a very popular tourist attraction, Bonnechere Caves. I have never been and I wasn’t sure if Ryan had been either. I thought it was would be a fun way to spend a couple of hours together doing a local tourist attraction!

It says, “September – No gift cards in this month. No pre-purchased tickets either. I know you (Ryan) are scared of heights so instead of going up…let’s go down…”

About a month before our date was about to happen a Groupon came up on my phone for Bonnechere Caves! I was so excited because that would be 2 months of dates that I had planned where we would get a discount! 2 for 1!! Woo HOO!

At Bonnechere Caves waiting for our tour!

It was a cloudy and overcast day but it really didn’t matter because we weren’t spending time outside.

It turns out that Ryan had been the caves before on a elementary school trip! The best part was that it was so long ago that he really didn’t clearly remember it. I assume he was one of the kids at the back of the group making trouble instead of listening! ha ha!

The tour finally started by looking at some fossils that were actually found on that property! The tour guide was excellent at interacting with the group!

Finally, it was time to start our decent into the caves! I was surprised at how big these caves went on for! There were trails and areas to climb into at every turn. The scariest part for me were the bats flying over head! The guide kept telling me to not duck when they fly by my head because they can’t see you if you don’t move! But I couldn’t help it! I was worried they were going to get caught up in my hair! Yuck!

I think my favourite part was all the history that we got to hear about. There’s nothing more that I love then learning about history! I am one of those annoying people in a museum that has to read every sign! I was always at the front of the the tour group so that I didn’t miss anything the guide said!

When we got out of the caves we walked around the property a little bit before we grabbed a quick lunch at Wendy’s on our way home (well Ryan ate I sat there in misery). I was feeling pretty sick all day (I hate you week 9) but I am still glad that we got to fit our date in. This was the last weekend that Ryan and I were keeping the pregnancy a secret. So, it was very nice to spend those last private moments together with our secret.

I love being a tourist in our own area. The Ottawa Valley is so full of fun things to do that we have not done before! You really don’t have to travel far to do something neat. We were already talking about other local ideas for next years “Year of Dates”.

Happy Friday and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

xo

Baby W–12 Weeks

 

Finally caught up on all the bump dates! From now the weekly updates will be from the week before!

12 Weeks as of September 27th, 2013. I am currently 13 weeks 5 days!

Not really a picture from 12 weeks but it has been the family picture that has been circulating the most this week from the competition our family won this week.

This week: Was a super fun yet busy week!! The fun part was that our news is officially spread! No more secrets! Yay!

Baby This Week: Is the size of a plum! The exciting part is that pretty much everything is in place and now baby just has to get bigger!

Maternity Clothes: Not yet but pants are getting more and more tight! Wearing the belly band with certain jeans!

Stretch Marks/Weight: Didn’t weigh myself this week but my appetite still isn’t 100%. I can eat but it just seems like I can’t eat very much! No new stretch marks other then the ones I had before Baby W.

Movement: The only movement I have been experiencing is things getting into place down there. Things moving around and stretching in my belly. No baby kicks though for a while!

Food Cravings/Aversions: Still loving sour patch kids and fruit! Still not liking anything tomato related or much meat!

Symptoms: Waist line thickening, head aches, nausea! Some days I have lots of energy and some days I need naps! I just take it day-to-day right now.

What I miss: Nothing much….The biggest thing would be not feeling nauseous. I am looking forward to the days where I won’t drag my feet and I feel 100% productive again.

Labour Signs: Heck no!

Gender: Team green! My mother predicted this week that it was a girl!

Belly Button In or Out: Still in. Lately I have been thinking about taking my belly button ring out for good. Sad thing but I doubt I’ll be showing it off in years to come!

Wedding Rings On or Off: On and loose lately from the weight loss and colder weather.

What I’m Looking Forward To This Week: Booking our first ultra sound! Still thinking about hearing the heartbeat at the last appointment 1 day before I became 12 weeks.

Daddy This Week: Had to deal with some pregnancy hormones this week but handled it like a champ. Mommy has decided to run for council in the local elections. I wouldn’t have done it without Daddy’s support. He keeps telling me to follow my dream because he will be there to support me.

Wisdom: I’m beginning to realize that the more tired I am that the worse my symptoms are. Sometimes I can’t help but have big and late days but the next day I suffer. Sleeping in a couple hours this week made me feel like a whole new person (6 AM instead of 4 AM, woo hoo!).

Best Moment This Week: Talking openly about Baby W with neighbours, family and friends! It was exciting to have people finally come up to you in public and congratulate us. This may sound weird but I am pleased that so many people that Ryan and I are going to be good parents. I think it’s probably anyone’s fear that they want to raise their children well and I am thankful that so many people are confident in our abilities even when we might be nervous!

Getting the call for our first ultrasound next week! The even better news is that Ryan is able to come with me! I can’t wait to finally get a picture of this little baby inside me!

xo

Linking up with Busy Bee for her weekly baby talk! 

How I Kept This Pregnancy A Secret

 

Happy Friday everyone! It’s been so exciting for me to catch you all up on what has REALLY been going on with my life. It was so hard coming up with blog material when all I wanted to do was shout from the roof tops “I’m pregnant”!!!

I’ve got a great group of family and friends that I am so close with! One of the reasons why we are so close is because we see each other so often! In fact, I even work with my brother, parents and best friend Jill! And having to hide a huge part of my life from them on a daily basis was torturous!

Even so, Ryan and I knew that we wanted to keep this secret to ourselves for a little while and this took some serious work! Here’s a little on how we did it!

Jell-o shots anyone?

After we found out we were pregnant one of the first hurtles was a Canada Day Committee party where a portion of that party would be at our place! The first thing I did was plan on making Jell-o shots for everyone! We decided 2 flavours was more then enough and got to work!

The orange shots had the designated 1 cup of vodka in them and the green we made with no alcohol! We both everyone at the party that we were experimenting with the level of vodka and that’s why the orange ones were SO much stronger! Needless to say, I had many shots of plan Jell-o that night (along with other people) and no one clued in that they were in fact virgin shots!

I knew I’d have to have a drink that night so before the party I took an empty bottle of vodka and filled it with water! All night I would pour from my vodka and make myself a very watered down “vodka” and 7-up!

Pre plan! And get your man on board with the plan!

A huge part of keeping this a surprise was enlisting the help of Ryan! He had to keep many social visits when I was around to a minimum so that I didn’t have to repeatedly turn down drink offers.

We would pre-plan Rock/Paper/Scissors games to determine who would be the designated driver – where I would obviously lose.

If I was forced to get a drink Ryan knew that we would have to end up alone somewhere so that he could chug my drink back!

He also had to work hard on not mentioning to anyone about any of my symptoms! He couldn’t mention about his wife being crazy emotional and so tired all the time!

Track your cycle

As I mentioned I work very closely with a lot of my friends and family. And, sometimes they can recognize when I am having a visit from Aunt Flow. I didn’t want any suspicions to raise so I continued to track my cycle so that I knew what my next expected period would be. When I was tired and someone would mention it, I would just say “Oh well it’s that time of month” if it really was!

Sometimes avoiding social events

Ryan and I are pretty social people but sometimes it’s hard to avoid booze at a party or restaurant. That’s why I had to keep my social events to a minimum. There were a couple of times that we would made other plans for a party because we knew it would be too obvious if I wasn’t drinking.

Beer for Ryan and lemonade for me at our brewery tour in Halifax.

The other problem with social events is usually they go on till WELL into the morning. Being so sick and feeling so tired meant that I was in bed pretty early. I could handle staying up till 10-11 on the weekends but any later and I would notice the next day my nausea would be worse! So, sometimes this Momma would decline an invitation solely because I needed sleep!

Don’t talk baby related stuff

As soon as you see that you are pregnant you start envisioning what your new life with a little one will be like! You want nothing more then to talk about baby names and nursery ideas! I’ve always had the occasional baby talk with my parents and close friends but never anything too serious! I’d just start the talk by saying “when we are ready”.

After I knew I was pregnant I had to keep the baby talk to the minimum and continue spreading the idea that Ryan and I just weren’t ready! It was hard to directly lie to people and even harder to not talk about all things baby!

My reading material on our trip to Nova Scotia!

Start a “diet”

Pregnancy and dieting are probably the most unrelated things in the world! But, sometimes to avoid alcohol and certain foods that I knew would make me sick I would say that I was watching what I ate. I could avoid going out to eat by saying I’d prefer to eat something healthier from home! This saved a lot of embarrassing trips to the little girl’s room and the joy of staying close to home when you just aren’t feeling the best!

Wear your fat jeans!

No body wants a muffin top and no pregnant lady who is trying to keep it a secret wants to be looked at with side glance. While you don’t typically have a baby bump in the first trimester you do have a thicker middle! Pants start feeling uncomfortable and sometimes you just want your gut to hang out. This is the time that I would bring out my fat jeans. Every girl has a few pairs of super comfy jeans that hang a little looser! These were glorious for me!

I’m also someone who is ALWAYS cold! I didn’t want anyone noticing my thicker middle and covering up with a sweater in the summer is really not that far fetched for me!

Continue on with “daily” life

The biggest key to keeping a pregnancy a secret is making sure your life is boringly normal! I tried to keep life very low key in the first three months! There were no dramatic changes. Work and the occasional visit with friends and family was what life consisted of. We never made any huge life adjustments. No renovations, no unexpected or unplanned trips and carrying on with our day-to-day. We continued with our date of the month and the bare minimum social event like the Shawville fair. Life was boringly normal for the outside word looking in but in our world we were busting at the seams with excitement!

 

I know for some people keeping a pregnancy a secret is not a priority. To us, it was important that we got to enjoy this early stage between the two of us. I wasn’t necessarily scared of miscarriage because I would have probably told my closest friends and family if I had to go through that. To me, keeping it a secret brought us so much closer to one another. We got to openly talk about baby until the cows come home without any outsider advice.

Life is SO much easier now that our pregnancy isn’t a secret but getting to enjoy the early weeks just the two of us was so special!

Have a good weekend!

xo