So, I'm sitting here tonight at 40 weeks and 6 days...so basically I have the dreaded 41-week post since this stubborn little guy refuses to come out! However, I'm not using my normal format and just writing down some thoughts-- I'll have to take a bump picture tomorrow when I look better than now!
So as of last Tuesday, my doctor setup the induction for tomorrow 12/13 and I was 6th on the list to be called. However, I'm sure some of the 5 people ahead of me had their baby this last week, so I've probably moved up a little. They usually start phone calls around 5am and will just depend on how busy they are with people coming in for natural births. If I haven't heard anything by noon, then I can call and get a status update. So we sit around tomorrow and wait for THE CALL!
We are both really ready cause feel like our life has been on hold lately cause keep thinking the baby could be coming...so almost every day we have spent just sitting around the house...watching tv, playing some games, etc. I've been working from home and Dustin is technically on vacation, but basically was working from home. The one good thing with the baby coming late is that we had time to explore 3 daycares and think we have decided on one. As much as we are ready and excited, it's also just really hitting me and kinda makes me sad that the life Dustin and I have known will come to an end and take a whole new direction starting tomorrow...although I know it will all be for the better!
This last week has been brutally uncomfortable, but some of it could just be in my head since I know I was overdue. Sleeping has been really difficult and generally only sleep for about 2 hours at a time before I wake up and either my ribs or back is throbbing. The heating pad has become my new best friend! It's been tough cause it's so hard to get comfy-- if I sit too long, it's killer....if I stand or walk too much, it's killer...there is just no good position to be in! Dustin has been so good to me the last few days cause there's been a few crying meltdowns when I'm so uncomfortable and don't know what to do....usually a good backrub cures that then! I've already decided for the next baby that I will need to make sure I have a doctor that will induce a little earlier- like maybe 2 days after the due date or something. Waiting a week was just too much! And considering he was last measuring 9 days ahead of schedule, I'm paranoid now he's HUGE.
I must say that I'm not near as nervous as I thought I would be. I've been dreading the actual labor FOREVER, but I think I've been so uncomfortable that I really am just ready to get it over with. I would be way more nervous if I was doing some sort of public speaking thing tomorrow, so just goes to show how much I hate that I guess! I think I just know I gotta get through whatever pain...and hopefully in a few days I am feeling SO much better than right now :)
Just for fun, we made a few predictions so we'll see who gets the most right:
Time of phone call: Amy- 9am; Dustin- 6am
Baby's Weight: Amy- 7 lbs 9 oz; Dustin- 8 lbs 5 oz
Baby's Length: Amy- 21 inches; Dustin- 24 inches
Time Baby is Born: Amy 5:16pm 12/13; Dustin- 11pm 12/13
Hopefully next post is to share a POSITIVE birthing experience and the fact we have a HEALTHY baby!
12.12.2011
12.08.2011
Chicken and Dumpling Casserole
We made a very easy casserole Sunday night, which has provided us with yummy leftovers for the week. I seriously love Plain Chicken's blog and used another one of her recipes for Chicken and Dumpling Casserole. This was better as leftovers than it was the original night because it thickened up a little more. It had a great flavor and we'll be making this again! (I'm thinking next time it could be good with some onion, mushroom, and celery thrown in here too)
Chicken & Dumpling Casserole
1 rotisserie chicken- shredded
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup butter
1 cup flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup skim milk
1 can Campbell's cream of chicken soup
Preheat oven to 400.
Melt butter in the microwave and pour into bottom of a 9x13 pan. Shred the chicken and spread it on top of the butter.
Whisk together the milk and the flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly pour over the chicken. Don't stir.
Whisk together chicken broth and cream of chicken soup. Pour soup over the flour and milk mixture. Don't stir.
Bake uncovered for 35 to 45 minutes, or until top is golden brown.
Chicken & Dumpling Casserole
1 rotisserie chicken- shredded
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup butter
1 cup flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup skim milk
1 can Campbell's cream of chicken soup
Preheat oven to 400.
Melt butter in the microwave and pour into bottom of a 9x13 pan. Shred the chicken and spread it on top of the butter.
Whisk together the milk and the flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly pour over the chicken. Don't stir.
Whisk together chicken broth and cream of chicken soup. Pour soup over the flour and milk mixture. Don't stir.
Bake uncovered for 35 to 45 minutes, or until top is golden brown.
12.07.2011
Nursery Progress- Modern Yellow/Gray
While we've made a ton of progress with the Nursery, there is still a little left to get done.
As I posted earlier, my mom painted the nursery a dark gray color instead of the beige color that our entire house was painted. We also installed some room darkening disposable shades-- I highly recommend these as they are less than $10 at Lowe's, EASY to install, and the gray color conveniently matched the room. We'll eventually replace or do something different with the windows, but it works for a quick fix for now. Our main pieces of furniture were a white crib and dresser we had delivered from Amazon and then a gray rocker chair.
Let's talk the crib first. We didn't feel like we needed anything expensive and went with one of the cheapest options, but should work fine to get the job done! We went with the Graco Sarah for about $150 from Amazon. We also ordered our mattress from Amazon and is one that can be used as a more firm side for babies and then slightly softer side for toddlers eventually. Instead of purchasing a whole bedding ensemble, it is much cheaper to just get the pieces you actually need. We got a solid gray fitted mattress sheet. And then I bought fabric in the color scheme of our room for a DIY crib skirt. I had seen this on Young House Love blog which gave me the idea to just use the iron hem and velcro to simulate what a crib skirt would do. What I liked about the method I used is that I got to use 2 coordinating fabrics and as the mattress height gets lowered as the kid grows, then I can easily adjust the polka dot layer to be smaller. (I cheated for now and just did the front...will work on the sides later!) I found that Michael Miller fabrics were the ones that really caught my eye...unfortunately I didn't find some superstore in St. Louis that carried these that I could go look at them. But many sellers on etsy offer these in coordinating bundles and www.fabric.com was a good price and retailer to use.
For anyone wanting to use fabric for a DIY crib skirt, I recommend looking around the internet for ideas. I can share my steps at a high-level, but really differs based on your crib and the look you are going for. Step 1 was taking measurements for your areas on the front and sides of the crib for the pieces of fabric. Hopefully you ordered the right amount and the next step is cutting it down to size. For the polka dotted fabric, I was lucky and able to cut one long piece for the front. For the striped fabric, the longest length I could get a piece was 44 inches and I needed more than this, so I had to cut 2 pieces and sew them together. I was terrified I would screw this up, but it really turned out looking fine...even though it was sloppily done!
For the polka dotted fabric, I didn't need to do any nice looking hems after cutting because the edges are all hidden (either under the mattress or behind crib parts. For the striped fabric, I had to hem (or make pretty) the edge that is displayed near the floor. I am in love with this iron hem tape- which you can find at wal-mart or any craft store!
I just followed the directions on the tape. I used a measuring tape and folded over about an inch and ironed that.
Then I placed the tape in the 1-inch seam I just created.
I then ironed the seam with the tape inside pressing for 3-5 seconds each section.
We then used some velcro and just assembled to the crib where it made sense! End result:
Now, on to the dresser- this thing was a pain to assemble, but in the end was worth it cause we didn't want to spend a lot of money and just wanted something functional that looked decent. We ordered from Amazon, but usually Wal-Mart has slightly cheaper. On top we have the changing pad along with a basket full of diapers, wipes, and supplies. Above the dresser I bought white frames from Target and then just made my own pictures and printed. Etsy was a great source of inspiration for DIY nursery art, so definitely recommend looking around on there and then just doing yourself to save some money.
In the corner between the crib and dresser, we have a rocker chair. It was around $350, so definitely one of the more expensive items in our room, but we felt like it was worth spending something decent on....and this is still cheap compared to some of the rockers out there! We had to get it custom upholstered with this gray fabric, so took about 7 weeks for it to come in and we ordered from Philips Furniture here in St. Louis. I have some other Yellow/Gray Michael Miller fabrics, so will probably sew a pillow to sit in here too.
Above the chair are some floating white shelves we got at Lowe's. I really didn't have anything to put on these, so had to scramble a little! I bought some wooden letters at Michaels to spell his name and then spray painted them gray and yellow. This cost less than $10 to do since I already had the spray paint at home. I then put some baby books we've received up there with some metal bookends purchased from Amazon. I had started making some felt-stuffed owls for a mobile, but decided to nix that idea and use them with the bookends. I filled the bottom of the owls with popcorn kernels to weigh them down....then filled the top half with pillow stuffing.
One items we still need to install in the room and will be here Thursday this week is a large vinyl wall decal. I ordered this from etsy and is similar to this listing shown below, but I've changed the colors to make it basically white, gray, and yellow. It will be 5 feet by 7 feet and go on the right side of the crib...slightly extending some over the crib too.
That's about it for the nursery progress! Will share more as the room changes!
As I posted earlier, my mom painted the nursery a dark gray color instead of the beige color that our entire house was painted. We also installed some room darkening disposable shades-- I highly recommend these as they are less than $10 at Lowe's, EASY to install, and the gray color conveniently matched the room. We'll eventually replace or do something different with the windows, but it works for a quick fix for now. Our main pieces of furniture were a white crib and dresser we had delivered from Amazon and then a gray rocker chair.
Let's talk the crib first. We didn't feel like we needed anything expensive and went with one of the cheapest options, but should work fine to get the job done! We went with the Graco Sarah for about $150 from Amazon. We also ordered our mattress from Amazon and is one that can be used as a more firm side for babies and then slightly softer side for toddlers eventually. Instead of purchasing a whole bedding ensemble, it is much cheaper to just get the pieces you actually need. We got a solid gray fitted mattress sheet. And then I bought fabric in the color scheme of our room for a DIY crib skirt. I had seen this on Young House Love blog which gave me the idea to just use the iron hem and velcro to simulate what a crib skirt would do. What I liked about the method I used is that I got to use 2 coordinating fabrics and as the mattress height gets lowered as the kid grows, then I can easily adjust the polka dot layer to be smaller. (I cheated for now and just did the front...will work on the sides later!) I found that Michael Miller fabrics were the ones that really caught my eye...unfortunately I didn't find some superstore in St. Louis that carried these that I could go look at them. But many sellers on etsy offer these in coordinating bundles and www.fabric.com was a good price and retailer to use.
For anyone wanting to use fabric for a DIY crib skirt, I recommend looking around the internet for ideas. I can share my steps at a high-level, but really differs based on your crib and the look you are going for. Step 1 was taking measurements for your areas on the front and sides of the crib for the pieces of fabric. Hopefully you ordered the right amount and the next step is cutting it down to size. For the polka dotted fabric, I was lucky and able to cut one long piece for the front. For the striped fabric, the longest length I could get a piece was 44 inches and I needed more than this, so I had to cut 2 pieces and sew them together. I was terrified I would screw this up, but it really turned out looking fine...even though it was sloppily done!
For the polka dotted fabric, I didn't need to do any nice looking hems after cutting because the edges are all hidden (either under the mattress or behind crib parts. For the striped fabric, I had to hem (or make pretty) the edge that is displayed near the floor. I am in love with this iron hem tape- which you can find at wal-mart or any craft store!
I just followed the directions on the tape. I used a measuring tape and folded over about an inch and ironed that.
Then I placed the tape in the 1-inch seam I just created.
I then ironed the seam with the tape inside pressing for 3-5 seconds each section.
We then used some velcro and just assembled to the crib where it made sense! End result:
Now, on to the dresser- this thing was a pain to assemble, but in the end was worth it cause we didn't want to spend a lot of money and just wanted something functional that looked decent. We ordered from Amazon, but usually Wal-Mart has slightly cheaper. On top we have the changing pad along with a basket full of diapers, wipes, and supplies. Above the dresser I bought white frames from Target and then just made my own pictures and printed. Etsy was a great source of inspiration for DIY nursery art, so definitely recommend looking around on there and then just doing yourself to save some money.
In the corner between the crib and dresser, we have a rocker chair. It was around $350, so definitely one of the more expensive items in our room, but we felt like it was worth spending something decent on....and this is still cheap compared to some of the rockers out there! We had to get it custom upholstered with this gray fabric, so took about 7 weeks for it to come in and we ordered from Philips Furniture here in St. Louis. I have some other Yellow/Gray Michael Miller fabrics, so will probably sew a pillow to sit in here too.
Above the chair are some floating white shelves we got at Lowe's. I really didn't have anything to put on these, so had to scramble a little! I bought some wooden letters at Michaels to spell his name and then spray painted them gray and yellow. This cost less than $10 to do since I already had the spray paint at home. I then put some baby books we've received up there with some metal bookends purchased from Amazon. I had started making some felt-stuffed owls for a mobile, but decided to nix that idea and use them with the bookends. I filled the bottom of the owls with popcorn kernels to weigh them down....then filled the top half with pillow stuffing.
One items we still need to install in the room and will be here Thursday this week is a large vinyl wall decal. I ordered this from etsy and is similar to this listing shown below, but I've changed the colors to make it basically white, gray, and yellow. It will be 5 feet by 7 feet and go on the right side of the crib...slightly extending some over the crib too.
That's about it for the nursery progress! Will share more as the room changes!
12.06.2011
40 weeks
Okay, so I guess I shouldn't complain that I have a 40-week post...it should be expected....but here's to REALLY hoping there is no post titled 41 weeks! If I do make it 41 weeks (12/13), then I will be called in to be induced some time that day....so I guess at the VERY latest we know by 12/14 we'll be new parents!
How I'm feeling?
I'm okay at times, but just completely miserable and uncomfortable at others. I mainly get frustrated because doing anything for a lengthy amount of time gets uncomfortable. So I just can't plop on the couch and watch tv for 3 hours at night....after an hour my back is hurting or stomach/ribs ache that I have to get up. Or if we are out shopping/standing/walking for quite a while, then that just wears me down and can't take it. So it just gets annoying constantly having to change things up. And almost every night for the last week I wake up around 3:30 and is really hard to get good sleep after that point cause am so achy. I can only lay comfortably on my left side and is hard to just stay in that same position all night long. Then I got a completely new pain yesterday that left me nearly unable to walk...seriously thought I'd have to resort to a wheelchair until I delivered. Basically the baby's head is lodged so far down into my pelvic region so is stretching things out and makes it hard to walk after sitting for a period of time. The doctor said his head has turned a little from last week causing this discomfort. It is so much better today and just slightly there...so just hoping it doesn't come back like yesterday.
Luckily Dustin is on vacation starting yesterday throught the end of the year. Although he still has a lot of work to do, so is moreso just working from home until the baby comes. I am most likely going to be working from home until the baby comes just cause it's more comfortable at home and then the 2 of us are together in case I go into labor...especially since we only have 1 vehicle. Anyways, we wake up this morning to hear from co-workers and the news that the roads were terribly icy and the interstate was shutdown at Eureka...so we kept figuring this will be the time that I go into labor and we need to leave! Luckily that didn't happen...and we're just hoping for no more ice/snow for the next week now!
Dr. Appt: 12/6/2011
Weight: 157 lbs
Belly Circumference: 40 inches (keeps growing!)
Internal Exam: nearly 3cm dilated
BP, Fundal Height, Heartbeat: Didn't really pay attention to these stats or ask since was at the end- they were all normal
Appt Notes: As mentioned at the start of the post, she set up the induction date but really doesn't expect us to make it that far. 90% of babies are born by this point, so hopefully I fall into that category. I was more dilated so things have been moving along, but still don't have any recognizable contractions. When she did the internal exam, she also stripped the membranes around the uterus some which can trigger contractions to start...not a pleasant experience and am doubtful it's going to work. I'm convinced baby is just as terrified as me for this whole labor process so he's just procrastinating and wanting to stay put. Next time I see the doctor will be 6-7 weeks from now...such a nice change from these weekly appts!
Picture:
How I'm feeling?
I'm okay at times, but just completely miserable and uncomfortable at others. I mainly get frustrated because doing anything for a lengthy amount of time gets uncomfortable. So I just can't plop on the couch and watch tv for 3 hours at night....after an hour my back is hurting or stomach/ribs ache that I have to get up. Or if we are out shopping/standing/walking for quite a while, then that just wears me down and can't take it. So it just gets annoying constantly having to change things up. And almost every night for the last week I wake up around 3:30 and is really hard to get good sleep after that point cause am so achy. I can only lay comfortably on my left side and is hard to just stay in that same position all night long. Then I got a completely new pain yesterday that left me nearly unable to walk...seriously thought I'd have to resort to a wheelchair until I delivered. Basically the baby's head is lodged so far down into my pelvic region so is stretching things out and makes it hard to walk after sitting for a period of time. The doctor said his head has turned a little from last week causing this discomfort. It is so much better today and just slightly there...so just hoping it doesn't come back like yesterday.
Luckily Dustin is on vacation starting yesterday throught the end of the year. Although he still has a lot of work to do, so is moreso just working from home until the baby comes. I am most likely going to be working from home until the baby comes just cause it's more comfortable at home and then the 2 of us are together in case I go into labor...especially since we only have 1 vehicle. Anyways, we wake up this morning to hear from co-workers and the news that the roads were terribly icy and the interstate was shutdown at Eureka...so we kept figuring this will be the time that I go into labor and we need to leave! Luckily that didn't happen...and we're just hoping for no more ice/snow for the next week now!
Dr. Appt: 12/6/2011
Weight: 157 lbs
Belly Circumference: 40 inches (keeps growing!)
Internal Exam: nearly 3cm dilated
BP, Fundal Height, Heartbeat: Didn't really pay attention to these stats or ask since was at the end- they were all normal
Appt Notes: As mentioned at the start of the post, she set up the induction date but really doesn't expect us to make it that far. 90% of babies are born by this point, so hopefully I fall into that category. I was more dilated so things have been moving along, but still don't have any recognizable contractions. When she did the internal exam, she also stripped the membranes around the uterus some which can trigger contractions to start...not a pleasant experience and am doubtful it's going to work. I'm convinced baby is just as terrified as me for this whole labor process so he's just procrastinating and wanting to stay put. Next time I see the doctor will be 6-7 weeks from now...such a nice change from these weekly appts!
Picture:
12.02.2011
Easy Pecan Bar Recipe
I really love looking at Plain Chicken's blog and decided to try her Pecan Bars since I had almost all the ingredients at home. They got better as they sat, so I'd actually recommend making these a few days ahead of when you plan to serve them. I also added mini chocolate chips to half of the pan cause thought that sounded good....however, I didn't care for them near as much as the side with just nuts.
Pecan Pie Bars1 can (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
3/4 cup chopped pecans (I also threw in some walnuts)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg, beaten
Heat oven to 350°F.
Unroll dough and press in bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 9x13-inch pan. Firmly press perforations to seal. (Tip: It is very important to make sure the perforations are all sealed otherwise the pecan goo will seap through and make it difficult to cut your bars and possibly create a soggy mess. Or better yet, see if your store has the sheet of crescent rolls without the perforations.) Bake 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, in medium bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Pour filling over partially baked crust.
Bake 18 to 22 minutes longer or until golden brown.
Cool completely, about 1 hour, and cut into bars.
Pecan Pie Bars1 can (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
3/4 cup chopped pecans (I also threw in some walnuts)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg, beaten
Heat oven to 350°F.
Unroll dough and press in bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of a 9x13-inch pan. Firmly press perforations to seal. (Tip: It is very important to make sure the perforations are all sealed otherwise the pecan goo will seap through and make it difficult to cut your bars and possibly create a soggy mess. Or better yet, see if your store has the sheet of crescent rolls without the perforations.) Bake 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, in medium bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Pour filling over partially baked crust.
Bake 18 to 22 minutes longer or until golden brown.
Cool completely, about 1 hour, and cut into bars.
12.01.2011
39 Weeks
How I'm feeling? It's really hit or miss, and at least there are some good times....but overall I just feel really huge and uncomfortable! I hate our family room furntiture cause there is just no comfy place to sit for a period of time. Also, I seriously have to walk at a turtle's pace and anything faster just ends up aggravating pain. The ribs are still sore, so use the medicine some...but other days they feel better. I was glad I felt good on Thanksgiving and got to enjoy all the good food....although despite efforts not to overeat, I still did. On Black Friday, the weather was GORGEOUS outside, so I met my sister and we shopped for about 4-5 hours going around to different stores. Neither of us had anything we were out to get, but moreso just browsing....and we didn't up buying any gifts, but just stuff for ourselves! We then spent time putting up the xmas tree and decorating for the holidays. It was my aunt and uncle's 25th wedding anniversary, so we met them briefly on Saturday. I then ran some errands again on Sunday, but it just completely exhausted me-- bought some king-size bedding, so will need to post pics of that room soon. Also just got some other things for the house we needed like shower curtain, rugs, etc. So I was really glad with how much we got accomplished during our holiday time off and hopefully can relax a lot until the baby arrives!
Dr. Appt
Date: 11/29 and 11/30
Weight: 158 lbs
BP: 110/70
Baby's Heartbeat: ?
Fundal Height: 35 cm
Belly Circumference: 37 inches
Internal Exam: 2 cm dilated and 70% effaced (no change)
Notes: So this week was interesting- we showed up on Tuesday to our normal appointment and got to our exam room slightly before the appt time of 12:15 and the nurse tells us the doctor will be there in just a few minutes. We wait....and wait.....and wait....and Dustin is getting so ancy cause he has a large meeting/presentation back at work at 1:30. Finally it is 12:50 and she still hasn't came in yet, so we decide we have to leave and reschedule otherwise he will not make it back in time. So I was bummed cause we had already spent so much time away from work and got nothing accomplished and just meant I was going to have to go back another day to do this all over! So they got me in the next day and I just went to it alone. Everything pretty much measured the same. She said my bag of waters was bulging and the baby's head is still right there and located really good. She said (again) most first-timers will go after their due date, so is better to expect that and then will just be a surprise if I go early. So will be interesting to see if I have a 40-week post or this will be it!
Picture (again, sorry for the no makeup and disheveled look...but it's effort enough to just put on normal clothes and get the pic taken!):
Dr. Appt
Date: 11/29 and 11/30
Weight: 158 lbs
BP: 110/70
Baby's Heartbeat: ?
Fundal Height: 35 cm
Belly Circumference: 37 inches
Internal Exam: 2 cm dilated and 70% effaced (no change)
Notes: So this week was interesting- we showed up on Tuesday to our normal appointment and got to our exam room slightly before the appt time of 12:15 and the nurse tells us the doctor will be there in just a few minutes. We wait....and wait.....and wait....and Dustin is getting so ancy cause he has a large meeting/presentation back at work at 1:30. Finally it is 12:50 and she still hasn't came in yet, so we decide we have to leave and reschedule otherwise he will not make it back in time. So I was bummed cause we had already spent so much time away from work and got nothing accomplished and just meant I was going to have to go back another day to do this all over! So they got me in the next day and I just went to it alone. Everything pretty much measured the same. She said my bag of waters was bulging and the baby's head is still right there and located really good. She said (again) most first-timers will go after their due date, so is better to expect that and then will just be a surprise if I go early. So will be interesting to see if I have a 40-week post or this will be it!
Picture (again, sorry for the no makeup and disheveled look...but it's effort enough to just put on normal clothes and get the pic taken!):
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