Tummy Tuesday

Week 26

Check out that belly!!!!

As you can obviously see Mary Claire is beginning to pack on the pounds. She now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches from head to heel. This week I was able to see/feel a difference in my belly. Usually I don't really notice a change until I compare pictures- but this week there was a noticeable difference in how big I look and how my clothes fit. So it was crunch time to figure out what I am going to wear to work since I no longer had to tie the drawstring of my pants to keep them up. There is no such thing as cute maternity scrubs so I started brain storming. This is what I came up with...

*** please disregard the fact I sewed the maternity band on inside out***

I cut the top off my scrub pants and the top of maternity bottoms that didn't fit- sewed them together, and VOLIA! Instant maternity scrubs! Ingenious!!!

In addition to my growing belly another area just north of the belly is growing as well... 

***PARENTAL ADVISORY***

I tend to be an "over-sharer" and tell people way to much personal information. I have a feeling this is one of those times, but I want to share it cause I think it is amusing. But if you do not want to hear about the girls then scroll on down to the next section.

It's no secret that a push-up bra was almost a necessity for me pre-pregnancy... check out my new maternity bra. (the top one is a old bra for comparison)

The tag on my nursing bra reads "34DD"... Seriously?!?!?!?!?! They are not quite that big yet, but the lady said I would need some more growing room. A new bra was well past due... the girls were looking pretty pitiful squeezed into my 32 B's, but I had no idea I as THAT over due.




I have had lots of people ask me about her nursery, and I guess I have not blogged about that yet- so here you go! 


Mary Claire is not actually going to get a full nursery per say because our house is on the market and it would be silly to do all of that to just have to do it again as soon as we move. I know that soon that nesting instinct will kick in, but I am going to try to resist. We will put up a crib and move her furniture all into one room, but no paint or anything else that we can't move with us. I didn't want a "theme" for her room- it is just going to be "Shabby Chic." Mary Claire's D'D is making her bedding and eventually probably curtains, pillows, and what nots when we get settled in a new house.


These are the fabrics we have picked out.


I LOVE this one- so I picked out all the other fabrics to match.

I am excited to see how the quilt turns out! 

But for the first couple of weeks Mary Claire will sleep right here... 2 feet from Momma in a bassinet that her Nana, her Uncle Dane, her cousin Benton, and cousin Braden all slept in as infants.
 Sweetness... I know!

Tummy Tuesday

Week 25

Mary Claire now measures about 13 1/2 inches from head to heel and weighs a mere pound and a half, so  she is very long and lean with hardly any body fat. But she's now beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair. I can't wait to put bows as big as her little head in the her hair!

It is hard to believe that under that bump I have is a little baby girl that looks like a baby. March seems so far away to already have a fully formed baby that is just not fully developed or completely mature. I love to picture her and wonder what she is doing- or what she is thinking.... Humm....   

I have begun to notice I am not quite as graceful as once was- not that I was very graceful in the first place. And just this week my belly has begun to get in the way... I can no longer squeeze between things that I once could, and when I bend down to get something I have to squat with my knees spread apart to make room for my belly. :)

So I still HATE maternity pants.... Everyone always said how much l would love maternity pants, and how comfortable they were- But to be quite honest- they SUCK!!!! They always ride down and the crotch ends up 1/2 way down my thighs... UGH! I guess I am still in that in between stage where I am too big for regular pants and not quite big enough to fill out maternity pants. Thank goodness I wear scrubs everyday!

Some girls from work and I went to the movies this past week and we had our picture made while we were waiting on the movie to start... Check out my belly!!!

Oh, and  I don't think I have ever been more excited to eat Thanksgiving Dinner!!! Wahoo!!!

Tummy tuesday

Week 24 picture

So it just hit me... If I am 24 1/2 weeks now- that means only 15 1/2 more weeks! Seriously, that is really close!

Mary Claire is now a little more than a pound  (approx 1.3 lbs) but over 13 inches long. So right now she is a little scrawny thing- just loose skin over bone. But in the next few weeks she will start to fatten up. That means momma is going to fatten up too, great! ;)

New for momma this week... HEARTBURN!!! I don't think I have really ever had heartburn in my pre-pregnancy life, but I get it daily now. I haven't quite figured it out yet. It comes and goes so randomly with no real pattern. There is no rhyme or reason to it. So, I keep a bottle of tums in my desk drawer a work and a ziplock baggie with a few extras in my purse. Not going to lie... Heartburn kinda sucks!

At the doctor this week they drew blood for my glucose test. They said the results would be back Monday, so I'm guessing no news is good news. Other than waiting an hour and 15 minutes on the doctor it was a great visit! I got to hear her little heart beat again and they measured my belly... 24 inches- "perfect" the doctor said. Oh and I have a gained a grand total of 16 lbs. I feel much squishier than just 16 lbs so I'll take it!

This weekend was another family dirtbike ride, this time in Alabama. On our way home we stopped and took my picture on the side of the highway next to a "Bump" sign.... just cause I thought it was funny. Anything to keep the pregnant lady happy, right hunny?

*Please disregard how awesome I look... This is as good as it gets camping :)

Up next, week 25. Bring it!!!

Life Changes

****DO NOT ADJUST YOUR COMPUTER SCREEN*****

Yes, you see that correctly... Our house, 315 Elizabeth Court is for sale.

MLS 1317854 if you want to check it out!

There are going to be some MAJOR life changes in the Peeler house in the coming year. I am still trying to digest all of this which is why I haven't blogged about it yet. I do not do good with change, especially change that I can not control and plan for, so I haven't been dealing with this so well- but I think I am finally at a good place. So- here is the scoop....

Like I told you before ( http://peelerplaybook.blogspot.com/2011/08/change-is-coming.html ) Chase got a new job that he LOVES in Alabama. The original plan was to split the difference between our jobs and live in the Spring Hill/Columbia area and both commute. Perfect Plan! or so we thought... 

For the last 3 months Chase has been commuting 4 hours a day 5 days a week. It has really begun to wear on him, so the last month or so he has spent some nights down there depending on what is going on at work. It makes for some really long days for him, and some really lonely nights for me. And it is going to be even harder once Mary Claire is here. 

I am going to bare most of the baby responsibilities during the week. The baths, the feedings, the diaper changes, taking to and from day care, being off work when she is sick, being up with her at night (because Chase doesn't need to be sleep deprived driving 4 hours a day), etc. are all up to me. And what makes it even harder is that Chase wants more than anything to do all of those things and be an involved, active daddy, but he just can't when he leaves at 6am and gets home at 7pm. That is just not fair to Mary Claire. She deserves the best from both of us. 

The tough question we (mostly I) have been struggling with now is, "Is a moving to Spring Hill/Columbia really going to fix that problem?" The answer- No. Living there Chase will be commuting approx 1 hour and 15 minutes and I will be commuting 45 minutes (if there was no traffic). She would be in the car almost 2 hours a day. How fair is that to a baby? And really is that commute any better?

* What if she gets sick at school? It would be 1 1/2- 2 hours before Chase could be there.

* Or has a doctors appointment? It would still be me who takes her because Chase would be so far away.

 * What if she wants to take gymnastics and it starts at 4? I can't take off in the afternoons. Chase can, but he would be 1 1/2 hours away.... so do we have to tell her, "No, sorry hunny- Mommy and Daddy have to work"

* What if her school is having doughnuts with dad- he would still have to take off almost all day to go because is it worth the 3 hour round trip drive for a half day of work? 

* Chase would never be able to make a parent teacher conference, a 5pm soccer game, or pick her up from school. 

That is not fair to Chase to make him have to choose between supporting his family or being an active father. But more than that- It is not fair to our children to have an amazing father who wants to be involved but can't because of what? Because mom can't leave her comfort zone? That's just not right.

So, We have decided that the best thing for our family (as hard as it is for me to admit) is a move to Alabama.

Not only to alleviate all the above listed issues, but also at some point in our future I would like to work a 2-3 days a week- And to be in a financial state to do so, we will have to be in a place where Chase can thrive in his job (which by the way EVERYONE in the auction business says they see BIG things in his future)- and that place is not Nashville. 

So the plan now you ask?..... There is no plan! GULP!!!!!!!!!!

There is no good time to move. 

Now- I am 6 months pregnant- I would have to find a new doctor quick! Who is going to hire a pregnant lady that is about to go on maternity leave? (not to mention I am not licensed to practice dental hygiene in Alabama).  We can't afford to sell a house, buy a house, pay back the 8K tax first time home buyers tax credit to Uncle Sam, and have a new baby all on one paycheck. Plus- I love my job and my employer and I just could not leave them high and dry like that either. So, now is out of the question- although it would be nice to be settled before she gets here. 

After MC comes, in the Spring/Early Summer- Who wants to hire a lady with an infant that is going to have to go to the doctor all the time? Still going to have to payback the 8K tax credit. It is summer time which is by far the busiest 2 months at my work because schools are out for summer, and I just don't think I could do that to them, unless I knew they had a good replacement that was well trained before I left.

After late Summer- We don't have to pay back the 8K tax credit to the government if we stay in our house until Sept... isn't a few months worth $8,000? I think so! but- can you put a price on spending time with your child? I think not! Plus by this point Chase will have been driving 4 hours a day for ONE YEAR! Holly Cow! 

So what have we decided? - Put our house on the market and give it up to God. He will send us a buyer when He knows it's best for us to move. If it is sooner we will have to rent somewhere in Spring Hill/Columbia for a little while, and if it is later we will go straight to AL. We are giving up all control and letting God's will be done- Not that he isn't in control already, but it is hard (especially for the control freak in me) to completely give it all up and trust that God's got it under control. I hope that you will join me in my prayer for Him to lead and guide us to do what is best for our family.

So for now it is one foot in front of the other, and one day at a time. It is kind of invigorating to not know what tomorrow may bring. :)

Tummy Tuesday

23 Weeks

Mary Claire is now over 1 pound and 11 inches long... What a big girl!

So this past week Momma P wasn't feeling so hot. I must have gotten some sort of stomach bug, because I was up almost all Tuesday night. Yuck!!! Not to be to graphic but when I would get sick, Mary Claire would go WILD!!!! I don't know if my stomach tensed up and mashed her or what- but she did NOT like it! It was reassuring to feel her sqirm to know that she was ok though :).... I am determined not to be "that mom" who calls the doctor with a bazillion questions, or at every little sniffle. It was just a stomach bug and as long as I could keep fluids down and stay hydrated I would be fine.  BUT- We had had breakfast for dinner on Tuesday night which included eggs. I made extra sure mine were cooked all the way but I just couldn't help but think about the "what if's." I have now leanred not to google my symptoms and just put "pregnant" in there somewhere, because after doing so- I was bound and determined I had salmonilla posioning. So, I finally called the doctor explained to her that "I know I am fine", "I am able to keep crackers and water down", "I don't have a fever", and that I "just feel yucky"- but that "I need them to tell me I don't have salmonella posioning because the internet says I might." After laughing (pretty hard) she assured me that I did not have salmonilla. That I would know it if I had it because I would not be able to keep ANYTHING down and would be running a high fevor not to mention it takes hours to show up after eating contaminated foods so I would just now be showing symptoms. Anyway- it took a few days to recoop- but we are good now!

Mary Claire is becoming a lot more active these days. I feel her move all the time, but last Tuesday night for the first time we got to SEE her move. It was the coolest thing watching my belly dance around as she was was getting comfortable and snuggling in for bed. :) And now- when I take a bath I can watch the water ripple as she moves... So cool!

Mary Claire's little ears are almost fully developed and keen enough to hear outside sounds now, so of course Chase and I talk to her. The sweetest thing happened just Sunday night- I was laying there and he came up and starting talking to Mary Claire and she immidatly started moving. She knows her daddy's voice!!! It made me tear up! It may have just been a coinsidence but I am convenced she knows his voice. He would say "I love you Mary Claire" and then you could see her kick. It was so sweet.

Friday I have another doctors appointment- the dreaded glucose test.... yuck! Wish me luck!

Tummy Tuesday

22 Week Picture

And this is the 22 week picture pre-crop...

"Whatcha doing mom???" HAHA!

Mary Claire is now tipping the scales at a whopping 1 pound!!! - And she is over 11 inches long. By the way thats almost the size of a ruler! She is getting so big!!!

Important MC stats for this week

- Her lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and she's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath her gums. So exciting right? Well, maybe just to her dental hygienest mother :)

- Her eyes have formed, but her irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. Hopefully they will be baby blue like her daddy's eyes.

- Fine hair (lanugo) is beginning to cover her body and the deep wrinkles are formiong on her skin, which she'll sport until she adds a padding of fat to fill them in.

- Inside her belly, her pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

Grow Baby Grow!!!

On a side note--- Mary Claire gets very very active when ever I lay down to go to bed. It makes for a fun nightly tradition for mommy and daddy to feel her move every night, but I dont think it will be as fun when she is really here and she gets very very active at bed time. I'm just saying....

This week I went and registered with my trusty side kick Mary Leigh. I know- she may not have had an infant of her own at home, but you would be suprised at what that girl knows about babies! Plus I didn't want to go by myself and Chase and I could hardly find time to be able to go together with his crazy work schedule.

First stop- Babys-R-Us

Lots of pages of goodies for Mary Claire!!!

After I registered and we got a print out of the registry I noticed there was a little note in the memo box on every page of the registry. It says "Mary Claire likes pink sparkly things".... Seriously, don't trust anyone to help you fill out your registry info- not even your sister! :)

Then on to Target... and of course they were having a 30% off sale the items that were already on sale, so of course we had to get Mary Claire some things. :)

Don't mind us taking up the entire isle...

It's hard to believe but in 4 short months I will be a Mommy! AGGHH!! So excited!!!

Up next- Week 23