Just Chuggin' Along

The usual questions plus a few bonus ones at the end!


How Far Along: 26 weeks, 2 days

Size of Baby: 1 2/3 lbs, approx. 14 inches long (about the length of an English Hothouse Cucumber).

Total Weight Gain: 15 pounds.

Maternity Clothes: I bought my first pair of maternity pants, and wondered why I had waited so long! They are soooo comfy.

Movement: Everyday! Even though it's kept me up a couple of times in the night, I still love it. She's had the hiccups a couple of times which is funny. I love when we talk to her and she kicks back. :-)

Sleep: I have weird dreams all the time and I've started to sleep a lot less deeply, but for the most part I think I've been blessed in this area.

What I Miss: My non-compressed, regular sized bladder! 

Cravings: Still don't really have those. I think cravings must be a pregnancy myth. 

Symptoms: same stuff as before, tiredness, occasional abdominal and back pain, hunger! 

Exercise: I've been blessed to be able to continue exercising everyday just as I did before being pregnant. I go to Zumba twice a week, do Pilates twice a week, and either bike, do yoga, or swim on the other days. I have needed to make many modifications in my Pilates class, but other than that, I feel like I can do most anything that I could do before! 

Best Moment: Staring at my belly and watching it move all over the place!  

I feel like not much has really changed in the last month (except for getting a lot bigger and unmistakably looking like a pregnant lady!), so here are some bonus questions. Don't feel obligated to read on- if you just want pictures scroll to the bottom! 

Who did you tell first, and how? Sam of course, and he actually knew before I could even tell him! I picked him up from school (I had found out a few hours earlier) and I was just in the best mood ever and could not stop smiling. I had put the at home pregnancy tests that I had taken in a plastic bag, and then put the bag on a fridge with a magnet. I wanted him to just see them and be surprised, but before he saw those, he was already investigating in the bathroom because somehow he knew I was hiding something from him! After looking around in the bathroom he found the empty box and said from the bathroom, "Elise???" He came out and asked me if I was pregnant and then the rest of the details are a bit fuzzy. I just know there was a lot of hugging and crying and laughing and just overall joy in the kitchen that night. :-) 

Who was more excited about having a baby (you are your hubby)? I think it's safe to say that we were both pretty elated. I've been dreaming about starting my own family and being a mommy for years, and I notice babies wherever I go! Ever since we got married (and probably even since we were seriously dating, to be honest), having a baby and starting a family with Sam was on my mind a LOT. Sam says, "probably Elise, but I was obviously very excited." 

What will you name her? This is by far the number one question I get asked (especially if the Jr. High girls that I teach are included). We are 98% sure what her name will be, and we call her by that name all the time. We want to keep it our little secret for a little while longer though before we tell everybody, because it's kind of fun to have it be our secret and we want to be 100% sure before we tell everyone else. Stay tuned and you might find out in the next couple of posts! For now, you can refer to her as baby girl. :-) 

Okay, I think that's all for now! If you have any questions you want to see answered on my next blog post, post a comment and let me know! 

22 Weeks on 2/22

How Far Along: 22 weeks, 2 days

Size of Baby: At our last appointment (3 weeks ago) the baby weighed 10 oz. Right now, she probably weighs about 1 whole pound! How exciting!

Baby girl is about the length of a spaghetti squash (11 inches)

Total Weight Gain: 10 pounds. Keep em' coming!

Maternity Clothes: I still just wear a t-shirt and sweats for teaching PE everyday at Timpview High School, so those are regular clothes. I can physically still button all my pants... but it's not comfortable, so I usually don't! I've worn a couple of maternity shirts, but I feel like they don't quite fit yet, so I still wear normal shirts for the most part.

Gender: Girl girl girl! We found out about three weeks ago and couldn't be more happy! When we were told it was a girl, we just felt happy and really good like we knew all along that she was a girl (even though we really had no idea before we found out).

Movement: All the stinkin' time! I love it. It's incredible how much more real it feels now that I can feel (and see!) that tiny little human moving around inside of me. I already love her so much, and I tell myself that her frequent punches and kicks are her way of telling me she loves me too. :)

Sleep: I still wake up to use the bathroom once or twice. I'm getting used to sleeping on my side instead of my back which is good. For the most part, I don't have any sleeping issues yet!

What I Miss: Nothing! 

Cravings: Nothing really! I still eat goldfish a lot and oranges and apples are delicious, but I don't know if they are really "cravings." 

Aversions: onions still (but mostly just the smell of them- I can eat them just fine!)

Symptoms: stuffy nose at night time, not being able to bend over very well, slight "pregnancy brain" every now and then (forgetfulness)

Best Moment: When Sam felt the baby REALLY kick for the first time. He feels her kick all the time now, but the first time was a little bit magical. :) 

Overall, I'm doing well! Our baby girl is happy and healthy and we can't wait to meet her! 

Halfway Already?

Ready for another update? My friend Sarah who is also pregnant does this really cute update every couple of weeks and I'm totally stealing her ideas. (Thanks Sarah!)

How Far Along: 19 weeks, 1 day (I CANNOT believe that I've almost reached the halfway point. Seriously, it blows my mind!)

Size of Baby: weighs 8.5 oz and measures about 6 inches from head to bottom (babycenter.com).

About the size of a large heirloom tomato!

Total Weight Gain: 5 pounds. I lost quite a bit during my first trimester, so I've had some ground to make up.

Maternity Clothes: I made my first maternity purchase a week ago. Well actually Sam bought it for me as a "present." It's one of these nifty things. This makes it so I can still wear all my pants, but just unbutton them when they are feeling a little too tight. I also was getting excited to wear real maternity clothes, so I ordered some cute shirts and dresses (like this, this, and this) from Old Navy's maternity clearance section online. Can't wait to try them out! With my student teaching, I just wear a T-shirt and workout pants everyday, so generally speaking, I usually don't have much of a reason to wear maternity clothes yet.

Gender: We find out in 2 days! I still have no idea- I want it to be a girl, but the last couple of days I've been thinking boy. Sam said something real sweet the other night when we were talking about it. He said, "I think a boy would just be so fun, but I think if we had a girl she would just melt my heart."

Movement: Definitely yes! I've felt some little kicks or punches, usually when I'm lying down right before bed or right when I wake up. It's the coolest feeling ever! I still don't feel or see much on the outside, so Sam has yet to feel baby move, but I don't think it will be too long before that happens.

Sleep: In general I sleep pretty good at night. I still wake up once or twice to use the bathroom. At first that really annoyed me, but I'm pretty used to it by now. Recently I have been trying to consciously sleep on my side because I've read all these articles about how when you lie on your back, the increased weight of your uterus presses on the major vein that returns blood from your legs to your heart and so on. Anyway, so I wake up several times a night to find myself on my back and then I re position to my side. I'm also a big fan of naps, though they don't always happen. 

What I Miss: Related to the above post, the only thing I REALLY miss, is not sleeping all the way through the night. 

Cravings: J-dawgs, Panda Express, and goldfish are a few of the most recent cravings. 

Aversions: onions- big time. 

Symptoms: stuffy nose at night time, achy back, and occasional heart burn (specifically when I eat meat).

Best Moment: I don't know if this really counts as a pregnancy moment, but Sam and I played in an intramural mixed doubles tennis tournament this past week. We won the first two matches (we played awful, but barely won) and then we played this really good team in the final and won again! (We played a million times better than we had in the first two). Anyway, the way that we were able to stay pumped up and positive during the final was to say "this one's for the baby" between pretty much every point. :) We decided we are going to design our own onesie with this year's intramural champion design on it since we couldn't have done it without the help of our little one keeping us pumped up. :-)  

19 weeks

And there you have it! I think people still don't really notice I'm pregnant unless they already know I am, but I'm sure the time will come when I'll feel too huge to do anything, and I'll be reminiscing about the time when I "wanted to look more pregnant." Haha! 

Teeny Tiny Baby Bump

That's right people, I finally am starting to look pregnant. By request from my sister Cammie, here is a picture of what I look like. Granted, I took this picture after eating dinner and was maybe puffing out my tummy a tiny bit, but still... there is no denying that there is a tiny avocado-sized human being growing inside of me.

16 weeks 3 days

Three weeks from today, we will find out if it is a girl baby or a boy baby. Lots of people ask me what I am hoping for. I think secretly I am hoping for a girl, but deep down it just doesn't matter! I'll be oh so happy no matter what. I haven't had any "premonitions" like some people do, of what it will be, so I'll be surprised and overjoyed either way!

Common questions people have asked me:
1.) Will you find out the gender? -yes, read above paragraph!

2.) Do you have names picked out? -kind of, but not really. Once we know the gender, it will be easier to pick out names. It is yet to be determined when we will share our choice with the rest of the world.

3.) Have you felt the baby move yet? -ish. I'm like 97% sure I felt him/her move a few nights ago when I was lying in bed, but it might just be in my head. Still don't feel it consistently, that's for sure.

4.) How do you feel? -good most of the time. The first three months were pretty yucky, but I'm over it and starting to feel much much better! I'm occasionally plagued with random bouts of headaches, tiredness, heartburn, abdominal pains, etc. but for the most part I am healthy and happy!

5.) Do you have any weird cravings? -no not really. I kind of wish I did, because there is no better excuse for eating absurd/unhealthy/expensive food right?  But it just hasn't happened yet. Mostly I just have aversions to food that I normally would like. For example, pb&j is no longer a lunch staple, because it makes me nauseous. Maybe the fun cravings will come later?

6.) When are you due? -June 28th

Anyway, I think those are all the most commonly asked questions. I can't believe I am already so close to the half way mark! With student teaching this semester, I have a feeling these next four months are going to fly by so fast and then it'll be no time before this sweet little baby is in my arms! I can't wait to be a mommy! 

Cammie Smith

My sister Cammie Smith is really awesome. Check out her new business' website and tell all your friends!

http://www.cammiesmith.com/

Film on the Rocks

Last night Sam and I enjoyed another of Denver's endless forms of family entertainment. We went to the Red Rocks amphitheater, a huge outside theater right smack dab in the middle of the giant red rocks. The drive was so beautiful with the green mountains looming nearer, then all of a sudden the mountains were red! It reminded me of Grand Junction and was such a pretty little drive!

A lot of events are held here during the summer, including Film on the Rocks. Every other Monday they play a movie on the giant screen and tons of people come to watch! The movie that played last night was "ET." A movie that I hadn't seen for years! What a classic! I had vague memories of watching it when I was young at my grandma and grandpa Davis' house and feeling cool that I got to watch a big kid movie, so apart from being a great movie, it brought back some good memories. It rained for a while before the movie actually started, but it was still really fun. I was pretty impressed that the amphitheater stayed completely full even though rain is generally a setback for these kind of events. I guess in Colorado the weather is just part of the experience.

I saw a lot of people whip out their cameras to take a picture of the screen during the classic "Elliot  and ET riding his bike through the sky in front of the giant moon" part. I wish I would have thought of that, but alas, we just got pictures before the movie started. Anyway, it was a really fun date night and is definitely a place that I would bring my family back to someday in the future.

Summer Update (Mostly in Pictures...)

IN MAY WE...

• Played in 26 intramural games (Ultimate Frisbee, Kickball, Soccer, and Men's and Women's Softball)
• Took 9 exams
• Traveled to Grand Junction and listened to Amazing Emma give her valedictorian speech
• Went to a BYU Baseball game
• Traveled to Price for Olivia Powell's baptism
• Began training for a marathon

 

We had a blast playing on our different intramural sports teams. Many of the teams were made up of the same people, but this is a picture of our Ultimate Frisbee team.


http://youtu.be/IzG_udSGbA

IN JUNE WE...

• Ran approximately 60 miles each 
• Moved to Centennial, Colorado
• Started an Accounting internship with Ernst and Young (Sam)
• Went to Elitch Gardens
• Watched the Rockies beat the Padres at Coors Field
• Watched an AMAZING fireworks show from the Rockies field

Our first amusement park together! Lots of dizzy dizzy roller coasters! 

Waiting in line for Disaster Canyon so we could get wet and cool off  in the 100 degree weather!

From our seats in left field

From the field! 

IN JULY WE...

• Started working at Woody Creek Bakery and Cafe (Elise)
• Watched a lot of Wimbeldon
• Drove to Idaho for a Groberg Family reunion (also Elise's first time in Idaho)
• Ran some more
• Played Chutes and Ladders, Disney Trivia, and Brainquest (Trivia for 1-6 graders)

My first impression of Idaho was most delightful! 

The AWESOME cabin that we stayed in for the reunion. There is a giant slide next to those red stairs that goes all the way from the top to the bottom! It was huge!! 

Frisbee golf, volleyball, swings, outdoor bowling, hikes, board games, card games, and eating ice cream were among many of the activities that took place. 

July has many more memories waiting to be made so maybe you'll hear about them sometime in... September-ish? Or maybe I'll be a better blogger and I'll keep you up to speed in real time. I guess you'll just have to wait to find out! :-)