32 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 32 Weeks!
Size of baby: Around 19 inches long, and the size of a HONEYDEW! Weighs about 4.5 lbs!
Total Weight Gain: Umm....more than I'd like to divulge. Let's just say it's more than 20. :-)
Maternity Clothes: Pants and some shirts. I have a few regular things I can wear.
Stretch Marks: No. But I have "the line" down my belly.
Belly button in or out: It's still in...if it does ever pop out, it will probably be in the last couple of weeks.
Gender: BOY! Hudson Thomas Puckett :)
Movement: Yes! I feel him every day, on and off throughout the day. He is a very active little boy and really likes to play about the time I'm going to bed. ;) His favorite times to move are in the mid-morning and in the evening. He enjoys jabbing me right above me belly button (over, and over, and over), and in my right ribs. :-) It's not the most comfortable thing in the world at this point, but I still love feeling him move all the time. I'm convinced he's trying to figure out a way to bust out with all the moving he's doing in there! HA!
Food Cravings/Aversions: I am finding that I want sweets more lately. Mostly, I just like food in general, but get very full, very fast!
What I miss: Sleeping comfortably, moving comfortably, living comfortably....ha! ;-)
Sleep: Sleep has been OK, but is a little uncomfortable.
Symptoms: Fatigue(more like exhaustion), backaches, shortness of breath, and the frequent urination is coming back.

Best Moment this week: Just getting more and more excited about Hudson's arrival. I can't believe I am 56 days away from my due date!! 56!! That is wild! I really can't wait to meet him, even though we still have a lot to do, a lot to buy, etc. I can't wait for him to be here, but I will...for at least 5 more weeks until he's full-term. ;-)

Have a great Monday, and a wonderful week!!

Friday Funnies

This one is my personal favorite!! ;-)

Have a fantastic weekend!!!

"Annie, Annie, Are You Okay?!?!"

I got the idea for the title from my SIL. ;-) (It's a step in the CPR process...of course, you only call them Annie if their name is, in fact, Annie!!) It makes me think of the song "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson.
I missed my Wordless Wednesday post yesterday. I was going to post these pictures when we got back from our CPR class last night, but I was too exhausted and my back was absolutely killing me...as it still is. It started bothering me early yesterday, but by the time we got home, there were times when I was literally crying in pain when I moved a certain way or breathed. The crying only made the pain worse. Sleeping was not fun last night. It's killing me kind of midway up the back on the right side so I'm thinking I may have slept funny the other night or pulled something. It's feeling a little better today, so hopefully it will be close to 100% tomorrow. All those chest compressions definitely couldn't have helped, either!! Joseph mentioned it to his chiropractor this morning, so I may go see him tomorrow if it's still bad.

Here's Joseph in action! Rockin' the 30 chest compressions.....

Then the 2 breaths....

After we finished with the "adult", we practiced with an "infant".....or "alien"???

I had to get a picture made too. It's horribly blurry....I was just working that hard! Ha! ;)

The class was pretty good. I went through certification a couple years ago, but this was a good refresher for me. I definitely want to know what to do if anyone needs help, but especially Hudson! I hope and pray I never need to use what I learned, but if I do, I feel confident I'll know just what to do!

I hope y'all have had a good Thursday! Friday is right around the corner. I'm ready for the weekend!! We don't have anything planned, and that's just fine with me! ;-)

This Pretty Much Sums It Up.....

This post is just keepin' it real. The pregnancy hormones are in full-force and it ain't pretty! I haven't cried over the water taking too long to boil, but that'll probably be next! HA! Being pregnant is emotional enough, but throw in running a business with your husband, taking care of 2 crazy dogs, and the things life throws your way, and it's a recipe for disaster! ;) Or "tragedy" as the picture suggests! It's amazing the things that send you into an emotional breakdown. I'll find myself crying over the dumbest things, all the while saying, "I know it's so stupid to be crying about this!" or "I'm sorry I'm crying, I don't know why I am!" (Sometimes I feel the need to apologize for the crying because I know it's ridiculous) You just can't control it. Little things really do become "tragedies".

Thank goodness not every day is like this, otherwise, I'm not sure my husband would want to be around me for the next 2 months! ;) I can't wait until my sweet little man is here. I will cry when that moment comes, but those will be tears of absolute JOY! :-)

I hope you're having a great Tuesday!
If you see me around, watch out for "the tragedy-maker"! HA!

31 Weeks

I cut my head off because I'm at home today and don't have my "face" on! ;) You can tell this top is not maternity...I told you length is a problem! Luckily I was able to stretch it over my belly. HA!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 31 Weeks! I still can't believe I've hit the 30s!
Size of baby: Around 19 inches long, and the size of a head of a lettuce. Weighs about 3.9 lbs!
Total Weight Gain: Umm....more than I'd like to divulge. Let's just say it's more than 20. :-)
Maternity Clothes: Pants and some shirts.
Stretch Marks: No. But I have "the line" down my belly.
Belly button in or out: It's still in.
Gender: BOY! Hudson Thomas Puckett :)
Movement: Yes! I feel him every day, on and off throughout the day. He is a very active little boy and really likes to play about the time I'm going to bed. ;) His favorite times to move are in the mid-morning and in the evening. He enjoys jabbing me right above me belly button (over, and over, and over), and in my right ribs. :-)
Food Cravings/Aversions: I am finding that I want sweets more lately. Mostly, I just like food in general, but get very full, very fast!
What I miss: Sleeping comfortably.
Sleep: Sleep has been OK, but is starting to get uncomfortable.
Symptoms:Fatigue(more like exhaustion), backaches, shortness of breath, and the frequent urination is coming back.

Best Moment this week: It was a great week! We had our 4D ultrasound, which was amazing. We also had our first class this weekend (which wasn't outstanding, but it was nice spending that time together), and ordered the chair for Hudson's room. Wednesday evening, we have our CPR class. My CPR certification just expired in January and Joseph used to be certified several years ago. This class focuses on baby and child CPR, which I wasn't really taught, so we thought it'd be a good idea to take this one so we know what to do in the event something happens. (God forbid) Hopefully it will be more informative than the Parenthood class was on Saturday.

Have a great week guys, and Happy Presidents' Day! :-)

Bacon & Mushroom Pasta

Have you seen those commercials for the new Philadelphia Cooking Creme? I saw one and was like, what could I use that for? I was a little skeptical of this fancy "creme". Well, during my coupon hunt for my Publix run this past week, I found a coupon for $1.50 off a tub of the cooking creme. I decided I'd try it out. I went to their website to search for some recipe ideas and found this pasta dish. Originally, it called for bacon, mushrooms, and spring onions. Well, since my husband won't touch an onion of any kind (unless it's deep fried as an onion ring), I decided to change it up a bit. Here's my version.

Bacon & Mushroom Pasta w/ Peas & Tomatoes

Ingredients:
(Y'all know I don't measure, so use these measurements with caution! HA! Just use however much you like of each)

• 1 tbsp oil
• 4-5 slices bacon, diced (TIP: If you put the bacon in the freezer for just a few minutes, it is SO much easier to cut!)
  
• 1-1 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms (any kind..I used regular white mushrooms)
  
• 1/2-ish tsp minced garlic (the pre-minced kind in the jar is great!)
• 1 can diced tomatoes, drained well
• 1-1 1/2 cup green peas (frozen peas work great)
  
• 1/4-1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (I use the tub of DiGiorno that can be found with the "nice" cheeses)
• 1/2 - 3/4 tub Original Philadelphia Cooking Creme (there are a few flavors)
  
• Appr. 1/2 box short cut pasta (penne, rigatoni, etc.)
• S&P to taste

Directions:

1. Start the pasta according to directions on box.
   
2. Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Saute bacon and mushrooms until bacon is browned and mushrooms are softened. Add garlic for last couple of minutes. You don't want it to burn!
   
3. Add peas and tomatoes and saute until heated.
4. Add cooking creme and stir until smooth. (I actually added another spoonful after I took this pic...I also got a little happy with the peas!)Add cheese and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
5. Toss with pasta until mixed well and heat for 2-3 more minutes or until heated through.
6. Check flavor and add S&P as desired. You probably won't need any or much salt. I added a couple of shakes of Parsley too. Serve immediately.

The great thing about this dish is that you can really use whatever you like in it. Next time, I may try spinach or ham instead of the bacon and peas, although I really like it this way too! The bacon adds a smokiness to the dish that works really well. Sun-dried tomatoes would add a different flavor than the diced tomatoes, and I think I'll try those next time. I was very pleased with how it turned out and it was really easy. I will definitely be trying more recipes with the cooking creme. I hope you like this dish if you decide to try it too!

I Feel Completely Prepared Now (NOT)

So, yesterday we had our Preparing for Parenthood class! It lasted from 8:30 to about 3:30. Some people have asked why we bothered taking it. Well, neither Joseph nor I really have any experience with babies. Yes, I was a teacher, and yes I taught preschool, but babies are totally different. I did have to spend a little time in a baby room occasionally at the preschool I taught at, but not enough to feel like I know what I'm doing. HA! (Do you ever really know what you're doing when it comes to kids anyway?) Well, we thought it'd be a good, information-filled class......we were wrong. The lady who led the class was boring, unorganized, and didn't seem all that knowledgeable herself. The first half of the class was pretty much absolute torture. The best part was when a husband & daddy-to-be put on the "Sympathy Belly". We were all in stitches!!! She went around the room, dropping pieces of tissue and other objects on the floor for him to pick up, and also made him take a shoe off and put it back on and try to tie it. It was hilarious watching him figure out how to pick the things up. It's not that easy when you have a huge belly in your way! :-) We also watched a few videos and saw some things we were NOT prepared to see...like...an actual birth or two! YIKES! Seriously, a simulated animation would have sufficed. We were able to tour the birth suites and that was great. Those suites are super nice....the whole women's center is super nice!! We broke for lunch and came back to more boring slides and lectures from the "instructor". When we got back, we had to pick out a baby, along with a diaper and some wipes. As you can guess, we practiced changing a diaper.

Here's our baby:
I know what you're thinking.....the resemblance is uncanny!! ;-) He was a very handsome, well-behaved baby!



Joseph was practicing burping him.....or...smothering him??

Once the class was over, we headed over to Buy Buy Baby to pick out a glider for Hudson's room. That was the last thing on our list, as far as furniture goes, for his room. We tried out a few, but ended up with this one.
Joseph approves!! HA!

We ordered it in all khaki (the piping color on the chair in the photo). It's technically buckwheat, but whatever. We knew we wanted a chair glider, and not a rocking chair or anything with wood. We didn't want to have to worry about matching the wood with his other furniture and this can be used for the next child (in several years, mind you!) because it's neutral. This one is soooooo comfy. It rocks, swivels, reclines, and is very cushioned, without being so cushioned that you feel like you've fallen into a deep hole. It takes 8-12 weeks to come in, so there's a good chance Hudson will arrive before his chair does, but that's no biggie. We can certainly make do without a chair for a few weeks.

Our good friends, who are expecting a baby girl a couple weeks before we're expecting Hudson, had a couples shower last night. It was really nice, and they had great food and cake!!! She got some great gifts for Madeline....lots of pink! ;-) We got home around 9 and vegged out the rest of the evening. We were exhausted!!

I hope you guys had a great weekend and got to enjoy the beautiful weather!

Friday Funnies (Overload)

I have several funnies for you today. I couldn't choose just one! Most of them are animals because, well, let's face it....animals make for some good funnies! Enjoy! ;-)

"Happy Friday! Have a great weekend!!"

You Know You're Pregnant When: Volume 2

I did one of these posts a while back, but as the pregnancy has progressed, I thought it was time for Volume 2! ;-)

You Know You're Pregnant When.....

Your bath towel no longer covers you properly.

You have to go the long way to the restroom in a restaurant, because you're afraid you won't fit in between the tables.

Speaking of the restroom....You have to make that your first stop everywhere you go. (even if you just went 10 minutes ago at the last store you were in!)

You brace yourself (and perhaps cross your legs) every time you sneeze or cough. (I'll leave it at that!)

You use your belly as a snack tray.

Case in point:
Moving on........

You don't remember what your feet look like(or what condition your toenails are in) because you haven't been able to see them in a while.

You're so winded from trying to get off the couch, that you just want to sit down again. (This can also apply when getting out of the car!)

The struggle to complete the above tasks comes along with a LOT of grunting.

You are sweating when it's 35 degrees outside.

You can't go into a store without scanning the baby section.

You can't scan the baby section without purchasing some sort of baby item.

You seriously consider sleeping upright so you can actually breathe.

You can go from laughing to crying in .5 seconds.

Even the smallest tasks wear you out and leave you out of breath.

You feel like a turtle on its back when trying to get out of the bed.

Everywhere you go, you get a comment from someone....UPS man, grocery store cashier, random man in gas station.......

You catch yourself checking out your bump in mirrors as you walk by them...it's still surreal.

Most of your regular shirts no longer cover your entire belly.

You get into the fetal position if you sneeze laying down to avoid those pesky round ligament pains.

You want nothing more than to meet and hold your sweet baby and count down the days until you will!!



As much as these may sound like complaints, I'm not complaining. It's just the reality of pregnancy. Every woman who has been or who is pregnant can relate. Each experience may not be the most fun thing in the world, but I've enjoyed every second of this pregnancy thus far...even the not so fun ones. I am so ready to meet this sweet little man we've created and am going to cherish every single moment of the next 10-ish weeks until I do meet him.

I hope you had a wonderful Thursday! Tomorrow is FRIDAY!! YIPPEEE!!! Bring on the weekend! Our Saturday will be a busy one. We have our all day Preparing for Parenthood class at the hospital from 8:30-4:30. We'll also get to tour the birth suites and I'm excited about that. At 6, we have a couples shower for our friends who are due a couple of weeks before us. They are having a sweet baby girl. It will be a fun, interesting day, but we'll definitely be sleeping well Saturday night! HA!

I hope your Friday and weekend are fabulous!

Wordless Wednesday (AKA: Ultrasound Picture Overload)

AND the video!!