new hair...still can't breath...trimester #3!!!!

This weather is sucking the life out of me...literally!...today I had to lie down for 2 hours because I seriously could not catch my breath enough to even walk around and do basic cleaning. It has been in the 90's pretty much every day since school let out. It doesn't help that I have a squished diaphragm and "little bitty" sticking her limbs into my ribs. I am trying not to complain though. I am very lucky to have a healthy baby and an awesome husband. We had a doctor's appointment Friday. We got up early and went to see Toy Story 3 in 3D. It was awesome! We loved it. I cried 3 times. I was already thinking about my baby growing up super fast..and I have always felt like toys got sad when I had to donate them...haha. Now I either give them to my students and can also pass them down to my daughter. Anyways, after the movie we went to my appointment where I had to drink this glucose flat orange soda-tasting drink to check for gestational diabetes. I'll get my results in a few days. It made me pretty nauseated. I then had to wait an hour and the they drew my blood...good times. Kary read an entire "New Parent" magazine while we waited and he learned a lot. I have really been reading and prepping this week. My best friend Lynn gave me 2 different books and they are all awesome. "What to Expect When You're Expecting" (of course), "Mayo Clinic", and "Babywise". The last one is all about feeding and establishing good sleep habits. I have learned sooo much in the past few days. The nurse also gave us a pamphlet on pre-term labor and signs of labor...that must mean we're getting close! ahh! Also, I now start going to the doctor every 2 weeks instead of 4. The nurse also told me to start keeping track of her kicks. She said by now she should be in a routine of active and sleep. I have noticed a ton of kicking..particularly when my ribs ache or my belly starts jumping right before my eyes. Today I started keeping track and have noticed she starts rockin out almost exactly every 2 hours. I hope that doesn't mean she'll only sleep for 2 hours at a time ;-) I gained more weight then I was hoping but it is really beyond my control so I am not going to stress or obsess. I have had a lot of difficulty breathing so I have not been working out and of course that's gonna pack on the pounds. I really have been eating pretty healthy so I am doing what I can. I'll just have to hit the workout hard once I pop this cutie out. Lastly, Kary spent 3 hours on my hair today. He colored it, cut it, and styled it and it ROCKS! He didn't let me see the whole time and I was thrilled when I saw it...who says you can't be a hot rock 'n' roll mama?!

room update...27 weeks

This weekend we decided to purchase a few things needed for the room using a target gift card. Some of the items may not be in the store long so we decided to get them ourselves. We bought 2 curtains and a picture that we think is super cute and sets the tone for the room. The curtains and picture are from the same collection as the lamp we also have. We purchased a very simple bedding set too. We are thinking we may get a separate bumper to liven it up a bit and perhaps a comforter. We just hate the though of spending $169.99 on a bedding set that is strictly for decoration anyways. After the shower we organized the closet a bit more. We hung up all the clothes and put all the blankets, burp cloths, and socks into a basket. I took an inventory of everything we have so far. Seriously, I wrote down every item, put them in categories and even listed a description of every outfit and grouped them by size...I'M CRAZY!!! Actually, just really bored. It has been so hot here and I have been trapped in my house...today got up to 100 degrees and I can barely breath if I leave the house. Everyone keeps telling me to enjoy it and I'm sure in a few months when I am attempting to work, finish all baby-prepping tasks, and deal with being HUGE I will be wishing for a day to just "chill." Luckily, Kary has this weekend off and we will be spending lots of time together and celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary the next week :-)



Being the crazy lady I am...I continue to make lists...right now I am working on a "must-have before she's born" list. We are slowly adding to it and trying to figure out what and how to pay for it ;-) We still have a few of Kary's relatives that may buy for us and perhaps a small shower at my work but there is just so much to buy!! But, she will not go without. This Friday is my monthly appointment. They will be doing the gluclose sugar test..yuck! Kary and I also have lots of questions about registering online at the hospital, getting a tour, taking some classes, etc. Hopefully we can get some things taken care of. We have 13 weeks but they will really fly by once summer approaches an end. For now I guess I will kick back and relax and enjoy all the kicks and punches baby girl has to offer. I love her so much already! :-)

My Shower/ Family Weekend

Saturday was our baby shower thrown by my mama. We drove to PA Friday morning. The weather during the drive was amazing and it felt so great to be able to breath for once! We did get caught in some weird detour in WV which sent us on a weird nature trail. It involved a red pick-up truck and lots and lots of potholes...anyways..when we got to PA Jess and her kids were already there and we were greeted by a hug from Mason, my mom and dad, Goob and Jess. Baby Isla was napping. I think they were quite surprised with how large my belly has gotten since they have seen me last. We didn't waste anytime and went for a swim. I luckily found a pretty cute bathing suit at Motherhood Maternity the day before we left. We stuffed our faces with all kinds of junk that night and I realized I better keep my body in check. My mom had all my cravings...sour patch kids, chips, m&m's...etc...it was dangerous.
The next morning was the shower. My mom had the house spotless as usual. The tables were set and her adorable owl favors were set up at each place settings. She even had a surplus of "Kary & Sara" wine glasses from our wedding. The caterer showed up around 11:30 and was definitely from 1985 (well her hair was) My grandma was the first to arrive, then very quickly my mom's house was filled with about 30 women all talking at the same time. My friends I only see about once a year or less were able to come...Julie from Edinboro and Staci from Pittsburgh! :-) (didn't get any pics with them...sucks) It was great to see them. Plus my cousin Becky came from VA. We were able to catch up a bit but the shower went so fast. Kary stayed and we had veggie sandwiches, fruit cups and cake. I have been obsessed with cake lately. Then it was time to open presents. Kary and I sat on the couch and Mason helped open. He was so cute getting so excited about every gift. We got lots of great stuff. It was fun to open them all with Kary. After gifts the shower quickly came to an end. We said goodbye to everything and took another look at all our loot. That night we had a bonfire and ate smores. It was a great time. Mason even ran around catching fireflies.
On Sunday we had a lazy day. We laid by the pool and got a bit of a tan..aka..suburn. I was sad to leave everyone on Monday. It will be at least 3 months before I see them again...but it will be a very happy time because they will be meeting our baby girl! Everyone in my family got to feel her kick while we were there...I think she was showing off. It was an awesome time in PA and the next time we are up there will be Christmas and we'll have our baby girl with us...crazy!

6 months!!

I am about 3 weeks away from starting my third (and final!) trimester. I am getting big! Most of my shirts do not fit but luckily, I am off work and can get by with wearing a few tops and my maternity jeans. Baby girl moves like crazy and even jerks me around sometimes when I am trying to sleep. But, I know that my belly will get way bigger and so will she and the kicks. Kary can now feel the kicks very easily and his favorite thing to do is talk to her and lay his head on my belly. When we talk on the phone I put him on speaker phone and set it on my belly and I swear she starts kicking when she hears her daddy.

We got a lullaby cd...it's queen songs covered as lullabies. My favorite is "fat bottom girls" and "bohemian rhapsody"...haha





We are starting to totally clean out the baby room to make space for the stuff we'll get at the shower. Kary put a shelf in her closet and folded her tiny clothes...so cute. We still had to kind of throw stuff in there but we are making progress. Kary hung a stuffed animal storage thing from ikea and put a few in there...it's starting to look more like a tiny person's room. There is a bunch of crap...books, records, games, etc that we need to find places for. Our 1100 square foot townhouse is starting to feel very tiny and we haven't even gotten half the crap we'll have by the time she arrives.


I have been feeling pretty good. My stress level is way down since I am no longer having to yell at 2nd graders all day. I have been working out every day for 30 minutes and then when Kary gets off work we go for a long walk with the dogs. I am trying not to eat too much since I am home all day so I make sure not to buy too many tempting foods. Although last night I went to the store at 11pm to get lays potato chips and french onion dip...I had to have it! My asthma has been pretty controlled for the most part. It is a daily issue but I am getting used to it. I am still pretty freaked out about taking asmanex. It is considered a "class c" medication which is not good...but my doctor said me not breathing well is going to affect her more. Plus I am approaching my 3rd trimester and did not touch any meds 1st and most of 2nd trimester so I hope everything will be ok with her.





I enjoy being home with my dogs during the day but we have all been feeling the heat and haven't been able to go out to play. So we spend most of the day cuddling. Brixton just recently started cuddling my belly and she twitches her ears when the baby kicks. so cute! please excuse my gigantic translucent thighs but Brixton just looked too cute not to post the pic. This weekend my plan is to get a bit of a tan!

The shower is in 6 days. We are getting excited! I can't help but look at the registry. So far we only have 10 items from the registry. I am getting a little nervous because there is so much we need and we really don't have the $ to buy much. Most likely people are procrastinating. That is my problem too ;-) Either way, she'll get what she needs one way or another. I am also very happy that Kary will be attending the shower and opening gifts with me. I know that is very important to him. I will be sure to post lots of pictures from the shower.

baby jitters!!!

Now that the school year is over and I am home with tons of free time, the anxiety has set in! I still have about 16 weeks left but the thought of labor still freaks me out. I have been watching baby shows today and I watch in horror and concern. Kary told me to stop yelling, "OH MY GOD!" last night...then he looked up at the screen and yelled, "OH MY GOD!" They were talking about and showing the "mucus plug"...GROSS! I have figured out that I think I'd rather not know some things and just let it happen. I usually get more anxious when I am too prepared. We are planning on taking the tour of the hospital and the infant CPR class but I think I am going to skip any class that informs me of too much..yikes! Plus, I already spent 180 days in class this year.

This weekend we got a package in the mail from my sister-in-law Sarah. She won't be able to make the shower :-( She sent us some pacifiers, a bottle brush and an adorable bouncy seat that I LOVE! It has little birds and frogs on it and it goes with our whole little woodland creature theme (we've changed from monsters since we are having a little girl) Kary loves to put things together, and even though we won't be needing it for a few months he set up the seat. It's so cute! Kary pulled the string attached to the frog and it started to play music. Brooklyn and Brixton did not enjoy the seat, in fact it freaked them out. Brixton was terrified to go near it and Brooklyn would cry every time we pulled the string and the music played. So funny! They are going to be so freaked out the next few months and wait until she comes home...haha! For now I am just relaxing and have a feeling these next few months are going to draaaaaaaaaag. We'll see...my shower is in about 10 days...super excited! That will give me something to do this summer...ORGANIZE!


Here are a few more pics of the dogs exploring the "mysterious" new object.

good dogs, ocean breeze and doctor update

hello from dad! I have a feeling this will be his face after he's had enough baby screaming...




This past weekend the Filos came to visit. Kary and I were nervous about how Brooklyn and Brixton would do with tiny Isla and wild Mason coming to our house. Brooklyn growls at kids from afar and wasn't too friendly to Mason when he was a baby. We really did not want there to be drama and we wanted them to behave so when we bring our baby home they will be good with her. To our surprise they were awesome! Brooklyn just wandered around as usual and didn't bark or growl at all. Brixton followed Isla around as she crawled and licked her toes and fingers. They were good friends and Isla kept giggling and crawling after Brixton trying to grab her nub. One less thing to worry about in all this baby prepping.
Saturday we all met up in Myrtle beach. Kary and I didn't get there until about 10:00pm. However, we still managed to get some time in the lazy river and I got to soak my feet in the jacuzzi (not best place for a preggo). We were up at 6am the next day and ready for some beach/ pool action. I spent most of the day hopping over waves and sitting on shore letting the water crash all over me. We jumped from the beach to the pools and it was awesome to enjoy the water and sun. Being pregnant limited me in ways I am not used to. First of all I felt very insecure walking around in my maternity bathing suit. I felt gigantic! I did not let anyone take my picture and felt like I was about 300 pounds. Everyone had cocktails at the pool...not me...and I could not boogie board which I love. But, it's all about sacrifices and I do it all for my baby girl.
Yesterday I went to my monthly OBGYN appointment. In 23 weeks I have gained 13 pounds..which I think is great! I have gained nothing since my last appointment. The doctor said I am right on track and really only need to gain about 25 pounds total. Baby girl's heartbeat is 153/ minute and I am measuring fine. My doctor gave me the ok to go back on my asthma meds (thank god!) and prescribed me some antibiotics for this nasty cold I've had for weeks. My next appointment I will need to have the sugar test to check for pregnancy diabetes.
I only have 2 more days of school..then 2 days of clean up and I am free! After the past few months I really need a break and a good rest for my body. I can't wait to just relax and take care of me and baby. Kary and I are getting excited about the baby shower and she has been kicking like crazy lately. Now I can see my belly bouncing and can feel her much easier. She's a rambunctious little one...can't wait to meet her in 17 weeks :-)




a co-worker of mine gave me this adorable bunny themed gift today. It is a sleeper, bib, blanket, socks and booties. She also gave us a big pack of receiving blankets. She is so sweet. Patricia rocks!

18 weeks left!

So I have noticed I am starting to feel all the body discomforts this week I have been reading about. I have a constant pain in my left ribs (from expanding maybe?) and I am finding it harder to sleep. I sleep on my side but have needed a pillow between my knees lately to stay comfortable.


I have been feeling so much kicking lately. It's awesome! She always kicks after I eat a full meal and sit still. I think she sleeps all day while I am running around and teaching. I actually saw my belly move the other night. It was awesome.





Kary was out of town this past weekend which was very booooooring...but I survived. I managed to get a lot cleaned and made great progress on getting rid of lots of things we don't need (or have space for) I am definitely the opposite of a hoarder...I want it all gone!

Here are a few cute items we have acquired over the past few months. Kary and I bought the ACDC onesie before we found out the sex. Sean made us the monster and "pirate in training" onesies and Kary's mom got us the adorable dress. The lamp is the center of our bedroom theme. We LOVE it!











My next appointment is a week from today and my shower is in 25 days! I'm getting excited!