Welcome to the Third Trimester - Month 7

28 weeks

Making it to the Third Trimester...
and all those thoughts that come with it

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can open and close her eyes, which now sport lashes. This movement is more of a reflexive blink than a deliberate opening and closing, but it won't be long before she's batting those beauties at you.  (www.babycenter.com)

Me in the bathroom at work - 28 weeks!

We made it!  Seven whole months and 28 weeks down, now entering the third trimester. Meaning, there are only 12 more weeks to go...3 more months!

How do I feel?
I actually feel great! I have my moments where I get painful, mind-blowing Charlie Horses at night in my calves. Or if I eat too much sugar (like two Jolly Rancher suckers back to back), I get tired and sluggish. And I do feel the heaviness of my body. But I still feel pretty happy and excited...that is until I let other people, their problems and opinions step in. More on that later. But I am proud to say I haven't cried once this entire pregnancy (okay, I bawled at the movie UP...but that's kind of normal for me...it gets me every time when the old man opens the journal his late wife put together!). No tears shed here otherwise. I haven't bitten Karl's head off either... As of yet! Maybe that's to come third tri?

Exercise
I'm still working out. I'll do 25 minutes on the stair stepper. I would normally go at level 11 or 12, but I'm around a level 6 right now so my heart rate isn't off the charts and I'm not passing out. Then the next day, I'll do strength training. I'll take a day or two off and then add another day of cardio...maybe the elliptical. Then another day of strength training and then I'll walk on the treadmill, but make it nice and hilly. For my butt's sake!

Nutrition
I've still been eating really great. I'm still taking my four vitamins a day, but I now take my Omega-3 Fish Oil in the morning and at night. This is the big trimester for brain development. Creating a little genius inside me. I mean, we all know Karl's going to think this baby has his "genius smarts" but really...we'll know the real reason. Shhh.

I really don't have any mad cravings. Since oranges practically burnt a hole in my stomach, I've been gravitating toward blueberries right now. Every now and then I get a craving for ice cream, and I satisfy it so I don't have to eat an entire carton, like I did in my twenties after a guy would dump me. And Karl's been wonderful - he ran to DQ for me once to get an Oreo mint blizzard. Yum!

Thoughts thus far
I had a blog post started of all the cray-cray thoughts going on in my head, but they kind of went away after I had a nice talk with my mom. First of all, I feel like I'm extremely lucky to have the mom I have (for a second I thought all moms were alike...I couldn't be more wrong. I really have a good one.) and I must say, I'm already starting to look at her differently now that I'm in the beginning stages of this motherhood stuff. For one, she listens to me. And I mean...REALLY listens to me. That's a great quality in itself. Secondly, she offers up great advice. She doesn't scare me or make me feel like I'm inadequate or crazy. And she doesn't go into detail about what she did 30 some years ago and how bad they had it back in the day...blah, blah, blah. After someone comes to me and freaks me out, I email her or text her and I get, "Oh jeesh. Don't worry about it. You're going to be great. And dad and I are always there for you."

Simple as that. That's all I need to hear.

I think the reason I get so scared is a lot of the people I talk to seem to assume that all pregnancies are alike, and like to think I'm like every pregnant person out there. I'll have a baby and boom...my life will be over, sleep is no longer an option, my life will get flipped upside down...and for some reason they don't think I've taken any of this into consideration. I get these lines a lot...

"You won't be able to do that anymore, you know..."

or

"Have you really thought about that? Because I've heard it's impossible to breastfeed and work."

Oh really?

Hey, maybe all that above will happen. Maybe it won't. But I wouldn't have gotten pregnant if I wasn't up for the challenge. I just wish people would let my story unfold first before putting in their two sense and comparing me to their sister or best friend or aunt or mom or self. I know what could happen, but I just don't know if that's going to be my story. So I say, let me be...pregnant! Let me enjoy this miracle going on inside me. And know I do welcome good, positive advice!!
            

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Test for Gestational Diabetes - Month 7

week 28

Passing the Gestational Diabetes Test

I was warned I'd be drinking the grossest sugary drink of my life, and I'd have two gross options to chose from: orange or fruit punch. I prepared myself for nasty, but the drink really wasn't as bad as everyone made it sound. I swear some people just love making new moms squirm.

I had five minutes to drink the orange sugar drink down

The nurse in the lab filled up my cup and told me I had five minutes to drink it all. After gulping down the goodness, I had an hour to go up to my appointment and come back down. I could use the bathroom, drink water, but I could not eat for an hour. I was fine with that because I made sure I ate a healthy breakfast beforehand.

The orange drink wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be. People told me it would taste like a bad McDonald's orange soda. I really didn't think it was bad - there just wasn't any carbonation. And it had a more syrupy texture to it than the McDonald's orange drink, kind of like cough syrup. Karl even smelled it and said he didn't think it was so bad.

The orange drink that really wasn't so bad

We made it up to the doctors and as I was sitting in the waiting room, the drink started to slosh around in my stomach a bit. That didn't feel so great, but I knew it would pass. To me, a Mello Yello tastes stronger and more sugary than what I just swallowed.

We were called in. I was up a few pounds. Sigh. I'm officially 22 pounds heavier. But baby's heartbeat sounded great and the doctor again cheered me on and said to continue working out. I told him my concerns about waking up on my back (I guess blood doesn't flow as well to baby or mom if you lay on your back and books keep warning me to sleep on my side). He asked how I felt when I'd wake up on my back. My response: Great! So he told me to keep doing it. Huge relief. And so, I slept like a baby last night.

Karl and I made it downstairs with one second left on the clock. Phew. Two vials of blood were taken from my left arm. I was told I'd have my results on Monday. And by last night our doctor already emailed me my results cuz he's that awesome! I passed! YAY!

Glucose O'Sullivan Screen

My results = 80
Normal = 40-139 mg/dL

OB Hemoglobin	My results = 12.7		gm/dL
Reference RangesGestational Hemoglobin level measured in gm/dL First Trimester (Week 12) 11.0-13.4 Second Trimester (Week 20) 10.5-12.7 Third Trimester (Week 32) 11.0-13.2 From MMWR 1989;38(22):400-4

Up next: Breastfeeding class at St. Francis and me at 28 weeks!

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Book News and Writing Update - Not Giving Up!

Where do I go from here?


I started my writing journey almost two years ago. That seems forever ago, but at the same time it feels like yesterday. February 2010, I saw an ad for a writing class in a Shakopee Community Ed book that came in the mail. After some pondering, I decided to sign up. Writing a book was my dream after all and the chance to make it a reality was staring at me in the face. Hello. Time to get real. It doesn't get any easier than this. I'm glad I signed up and took the class. I learned a lot about the writing process, met some great people and realized that YES, I'd have to write an entire book if I ever wanted to get published.

Me typing away!

I had a lot of work ahead of me.

But I never realized how much work.

For nine month I worked on writing and more writing and more writing. I cancelled plans with friends, I spent 14-16 hours most every Saturday and Sunday for weeks at a time staring at my laptop and writing. I'd get up early. I'd race home from work. I'd take days off from work just so I could write. Finally, (and I mean finally) my first draft was done. 360-plus pages of awesomeness. Or so I thought.

Then I joined a critique group. Since starting the crit group, some gals have come and gone, but I'm ever grateful for each of them. Best decision ever. I thought they'd all love my book. The first three chapters came back with red all over them. My manuscript got slaughtered. "Goodness gracious," I thought, "my writing wasn't strong enough. I'm doomed." A nice little reality check if you ask me.

Still, that didn't stop me. I learned all I could about showing versus telling and shortening words and my poor use of different tenses and taking out the unnecessary parts that stalled the story.

Each time, each revision, my book would get strong and stronger. I was growing as a writer and it felt awesome. So then I thought I was ready to send off my full manuscript to agents, especially after a friend called me in a panic saying someone in REAL life had planned her wedding and didn't have a groom and was looking for one. Sounded too much like my book. I was scared she'd get a book deal and felt it was then or never. (I look back now and cringe at this...why, oh, why did I do that? My book was so not ready yet.) He said I had to get my manuscript out as fast as I could. Huge mistake. But I queried and started getting requests.

I was pretty excited and surprised.

Then the rejections came in.

But - yes, there's a but - I was lucky. I'd get personal emails from agents letting me know what I could do to make my story better. And I took each piece of information and added that to my manuscript. Some even asked to read the manuscript again. For the next nine months I queried, revised and was rejected. I never gave up. I was open to changing my manuscript and did just that.

Then I got pregnant. Life sort of changed and shifted and I didn't have the energy or desire to revise and query as much anymore. I think I was depressed a little - blame it on the hormones. I could barely get up the courage to walk into work, let alone think of words to make my book better. Yet, several agents still had my manuscript in their hands. And as baby was growing inside me, I'd hear back. Some suggested I contact other agents since there was possibility in my writing and storyline. But still nothing. I busied myself with baby stuff and kept my fingers crossed one of the agents would say "yes".

As of this week, the final one said "no" and there are no more queries out or no agents out there with my manuscript in hand waiting for review. For a couple hours after hearing that "no", I felt like all hope was lost. That I had given my dream my best shot and the final answer was "no". God was trying to tell me I'd never be a writer. I'd never get to hold my book in my hands. I wasn't good enough for this crazy dream of mine. This is why I was pregnant right now. I'd eventually become a mom, like the ones who were in my writing class, who gave up on their dreams to raise their babies and I wouldn't be able to come back to my dream until the kids were out of the house...20 plus years later. **gulp** 

Then I remembered who I am as a person. I looked at the quote at my desk, "There is no failure except in no longer trying." And remembered I'm not like everyone else. I'm my own person and I have control of the choices I make. I'm determined. I'm focused. I have ambition like nobody I know. I know that voice telling me and pushing me to keep going is for real. I'm not crazy (well...okay, a little). I have passion and am committed to making this dream a reality. When I set out to do something, I do it. And I'm not giving up! No way. I love my story too much.

I feel like the timing is simply off right now. And one day down the road, the timing - my timing - will be on because I'm not giving up. For one, I never stopped believing and searching for true love and boy when the timing was right, I sure found it. If I settled for less in the past or gave up, I'd be miserable with myself right now! But I held out and look where that got me? To amazing.

In the meantime, I'm going to keep making my manuscript stronger until it's irresistible to the right agent. You know what that means? Time to get back to work, dust off all that negativity and self doubt and do my thang. Time to shine.

I collected all the feedback from agents and realized there was a commonality between all of their comments and suggestions. Yes, the publishing industry is quite subjective and my book is a little too "chick-lit" right now. Yes, I love chick-lit, but that doesn't matter because not a whole lot of others do. As in the people who buy books. I now get where they are going. Right now the popular genres are either Women's Fiction (which is a bit more dramatic and emotional) or Contemporary Romance (more love, passion, fun, flirty) and I needed to choose one. The way my manuscript stands now, well, it's not really in any popular category. Who's going to want to take it on, knowing it won't go far?

So I looked at my bookshelf last night. Tons of chick-lit books stared back at me...most from 2002-2004, when that stuff was a bit more popular. I thought of one of my critique partner's sympathetic emails to me, suggesting I turn my book into a sweet romance. She said that she wanted to get to know my main male character better. The bug was planted and I couldn't shake it. Since chick-lit wasn't an option, what else would be a great choice for me? What genre was I crazy about?

Ummm...that's a no brainer. ROMANCE. Romance is everywhere in me and my life. And I mean everywhere. Not only in my bookshelf but in my personal journals, all my writing, in my choices of DVDs and music on my IPOD (I mean, who else works out to Canon in D?), and the way I think and live. I love romance. Period.

And a new idea was birthed!

My new goal: To revise my manuscript to be more contemporary romance and see where that leads me. No time limit either. No rush. No pressure. Just me, my laptop, my thoughts and loads of romance...and the love of writing.

Wish me luck!

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What Goes in a Diaper Bag and Car - Month 7

week 28

Enter: Diaper Bag

Thanks to all the frequent emails I get from several mother-to-be websites (and yes, I subscribed to another magazine....this time Fit Pregnancy), I decided to start putting together a list of all the goods we'll need in our diaper bag and make sure Karl and I have stocked cars just in case any blowouts happen. Trying to get this all done when I have the energy and time!

Items filling the diaper bag:
Diapers
Wipes
Changing pad
Cloth diaper or receiving blanket
Blanket
Change of clothes
Extra socks
Plastic garbage bag
Zipper bags (couple of big ones and small ones for the bottle's nipple)
Bottle of water (for clean ups)
Diaper cream
Antibacterial gel
Sunscreen
Medicine (acetaminophen and anti-gas drops)
Bottles
Nursing pads (my Hooter Hider)
Pacifier (with clip)
Baby toys
A book or two
Snacks for mom and dad
Extra shirt for me
A bib or two
Travel tissues

Stocking Both our Cars

Items in both our cars:
Car seat base
Travel diaper wipes
Extra diapers
An extra pair of clothes
Bottle of water (for clean ups)
Plastic bag for trash
Granola bar (for us...stop those hunger pains)
First aid kit (and a little remedies survival kit too)
Sunscreen
Antibacterial gel
Travel tissues
Extra shirt and pants (you never know what'll be leaking these days...right?)

Am I missing anything?

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Three Great Pregnancy Books - Month 7

What to read while pregnant?

Currently I'm reading about seven different pregnancy books, a romance novel (sorry, I need some steamy romance in my life) and a Christian-type of book. And so far I have three faves out of the seven pregnancy books.

Here's the secret I've learned up to this point in my pregnancy. Nobody can really prepare you for pregnancy or what's about to happen. Nobody. No person. No book. No video. Etc. Every 'body' is different and handles pregnancy in its own way. Kind of like how we're all our own person. And with that said, humor is a good thing when the unknown is lurking around every corner. Trust me. Fear can do some cray-cray things to a pregnant lady.

Hilarious, honest book for pregnant ladies

Jenny McCarthy did a good job of cracking me up in Belly Laughs. My friend Katie (due less than two weeks before me) sent me a text and asked me if I read it. I said "no" and she mailed it to me. I thought that was pretty awesome in itself. I read it on our flight to Vegas and was done that night. It's a quick read, and it's hilarious. Let's just say Jenny is very open and doesn't hold back...on anything! I highly recommend this book to add some humor to your pregnancy. Laughing is a good thing.

Second book that has helped me a ton has been Heading Home With Your Newborn. Funny, but Amazon was the one who recommended this book to me. Remember, I'm the one who rarely holds babies...if at all. I don't think I've ever changed a diaper in my life. I never heard of swaddling and bumbos and boppies. I'm sooo clueless (and part of the reason I think I'm so scared). But this book really covered everything from breastfeeding to sleepless nights and figuring out if your baby is too hot or cold to helping make life easier. Let's just say I feel a little more prepared and have something to go back to when I'm struggling!

Third book, Your Pregnancy Week by Week, was given to me by my BFF She-Dawg. I really do read it "week by week" and love knowing what's going on with my body and baby for the week. It's fun and very accurate. I just like it because each week is short and sweet and to the point.

There is one other book that I just started that a work friend recommended about breastfeeding. The Complete Book of Breastfeeding. I'm only a few chapters in but it's full of great information, and I think by taking a breastfeeding class this weekend will help keep the information fresh as I read chapter after chapter.

Moms - Were there any books you read during your pregnancy that you enjoyed?

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Car Seat Safety Class for Baby - Month 7

Parenting Class One out of Four Complete!

week 28

Car Seat Safety at St. Francis Hospital in Shakopee
I would've never imagined myself taking a class like this. But, the statistics are alarming. Over 83 percent of parents install the car seat wrong (which would totally be me) and car accidents are the leading cause of children's death.

Practicing on a little doll

Those numbers had my attention, even though most people giggled when we told them we were going. "You are definitely first time parents." I know, but this stuff is interesting to me!

The class was offered through the hospital we'll be delivering at and I think was around $30 for the both of us. We later found out most everyone else in our class were able to get FREE car seats because they were on Minnesota Medical Assistance and only needed to complete the class and fill out a form. Jeesh! Kind of nice if you ask me.

It was up to us if we wanted to bring in our car seat and car manual. We did. Super happy we were gifted the Chicco KeyFit 30 from our first shower (thanks Mattie Sue...and mom!!!). It's totally awesome. I did some major research on car seats and am totally satisfied with the KeyFit so far. Way easy to install!

The 2-hour class (which really only lasted an hour and 20 minutes) was taught by a nurse and mother of two (who is also married to a volunteer firefighter who has seen way too many horrible accidents due to incorrect car seat installation so she's mega passionate about this stuff). Though we didn't get to install the car seat into our own car, we had to practice getting a doll in the seat correctly (too many times the straps aren't tight enough) and then tied and locked both the car seat base into an actual seat of a car and then again without the base (for the purpose of grandpa and grandma watching baby for a weekend and not having a base installed in their car).

We watched a 20 minute video on the different types of car seats and stages. Very scary to see a bunch of infants and small children dummies in crash tests and how horrible these accidents can be even if the car is going 30 miles per hour...all because the car seat wasn't installed properly or there are toys hanging from the handlebar or the bar is over the child's face and not tucked behind the car seat.

We left turning our recall card in that came with our car seat (just in case Chicco has any recalls and now they have us on file) and received a packet of information. Really happy we took this class.

Most surprised about:

• You can get free car seats through some insurance providers.
• Car seat must be rear facing up to two years of age.
• Absolutely NO toys on or in the car seat...or no loose objects in the car - they will go flying!
• Kids can't sit up front until they are 13.
• Kids have to be in booster seats until age 12.
• Once the car seat is past 6 years old, break it and then dump/recycle it.
• NEVER EVER buy a used car seat. You never know where it's been or what kind of accident it's been in. Even minor.
• Insurance companies will reimburse you if you do get in a very minor car accident for a NEW car seat. Otherwise, if you get in another accident with the same car seat, NOT GOOD. Nobody will be willing to take blame. Just you.

Anyone else have good suggestions for awesome car seats after baby grows out of the infant one? they seem quite expensive!!

Up next: My crazy and scary thoughts on being pregnant. My favorite pregnancy books so far. Gestational Diabetes testing (going in on Friday). And breastfeeding class.

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Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Sauce

One of Karl's Favorites! Score!!!

Pasta with Chickpeas and Garlic Sauce
serves 4
recipe found on My Recipes.com

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 (15.5-ounce) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained

1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 cups uncooked medium seashell pasta (about 6 ounces)

1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley (I used basil instead of parsley)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (beware - this is like $9.00)

I also added Italian sausage for extra protein

1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add crushed garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add salt, pepper, chickpeas, and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.

2. While garlic mixture simmers, cook pasta in boiling water 9 minutes, omitting salt and fat; drain well.

3. Place chickpea mixture in a food processor, and process until smooth. Combine chickpea mixture, pasta, tomatoes, minced garlic, fresh parsley, and lemon juice; toss well. Sprinkle with cheese. Serve immediately.

Karl's reaction: "This is for sure another top three. Yum, babe. I need more."

My take: I liked using chickpeas because it looked like I was using a bad cream sauce and tasted like it too, but I knew it was healthier! I will be making this again. Very easy. And I liked the basil because it added a lot more flavor.

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