November 29, 2011

Where's My Panic Button?

Two days shy of six months; 26 weeks! If my belly looks lopsided, well it is-- Baby Alyssa LOVES my right side!




I must look huge because a cashier at Baby Depot told me I looked ready to "pop." REALLY! ALREADY! I was just about crushed, especially when I had to tell her I have 3 more months to go. I might have followed that sentence with "I have a big husband, okay!"



Nothing too spectacular to update on this week. Baby is still the size of an eggplant and will be for another week. Then we move onto a squash! I've gotten a decent amount of shopping done for the little babe so I'm feeling a bit more prepared to deliver her in 3 months or less. hitting my panic button Also loving that we have a name finally!

Things are getting so scary, REAL! I'm starting to feel nervous about "life" once Alyssa arrives. How am I going to do the things that need to be done, daily, with a baby needing so much of my time? i.e exercising my 2 dogs, keeping the house clean, cooking dinner, grocery shopping, working out to loose the baby weight, and the list goes on! Oh, I know it'll all fall into place. That there will be a learning curve at first, but standing at the opening of this HUGE new life change is a bit frightening...



I guess it's more frightening knowing my personality type. As R likes to say, I have an all or nothing speed in life. It's so true too. If I can't charge full speed ahead into whatever I'm driving at, I don't do anything at all...A blessing and a curse. Something tells me that adding a baby to your life requires balance, patience and taking it one day at a time, lol...All things I struggle with. Great.

Next update I'll be 28 weeks and most likely a blimp with Shrek feet, or as my lovely sisters say, fat bastard feet. So stay tuned because your not going to want to miss it;)

November 27, 2011

Mommy Misses...

Pregnancy definitely has it's days of looking back and missing the things that you shouldn't do or even have while growing a baby. I thought it would be fun to take a look at what this Mommy's been missing:)

~Sushi~
Holy crap what I wouldn't give for a perfectly round, perfectly tasty platter of sushi! Just looking at this picture makes my stomach hurt with longing. Dramatic yes, but definitely real! What's worse is this place is infested with sushi shops. Definitely not a help to the cravings ya'll *tear*






~Wine~

These photos are listed exactly by how much I miss each thing and wine is by far at the top; the second most missed thing to be exact;) I wasn't much of a wine drinker before I married R but since, I've found a LOVE for this awesome drink. A chilled glass in the evening while snuggled up to my hubby is the best! 4-5 more months and I'll be sipping on you again dear friend...



~Running~

I've been a runner off and on for 3 years and yes, I struggled with it daily. Some days were better then others. But it was just so darn rewarding and challenging that it was an enjoyment most of the time! I miss the sound of my feet pounding pavement or gravel in a steady rhythm. Wind in my face. Talking myself up that next hill, "you can do this Bec, you've hurt worse." Trying to steady my heart rate and ultimately finishing the run. That's the best feeling; sweat pouring down your face and your face looking like a tomato but smiling all the same because you finished your run...Not to mention the burned calories:) Die suckers! Soon...



~Tummy Time~
Not being able to sleep on my belly is horrible and wrong!



~Jeans~
And not just any jeans, but my size 5/6 jeans. I really need to just bag them up because they threaten to cause unnecessary melt downs, lol...



~Hot Bath~

Apparently you are denied this while pregnant and it does make sense, after you're informed. But until then, all you're thinking is why wouldn't you take baths? It's soothing, feelings good on your body, helps with your achy everything and makes you feel a bit pampered during these non sexy times! Of course, I'm talking about a HOT bath here. Pregnant women are allowed a bath but the water cannot be higher then 100 degrees. The baby is very sensitive to over heating.



~Breath~
I miss being able to breath! The further along you get, the harder it is to breath because baby is growing and crowding your breathing space, putting pressure on your diaphragm. Taking a trip upstairs warrants rest on the edge of the bed to catch my breath and racing heart! Pathetic, I know...





~Cute Shoes~



Last on my list are cute shoes! Before getting pregnant, I would have looked at these and thought, Oh, how adorable and cheery! Now all I see is a day of self induced back pain, swelling feet and not being able to walk the entire day, following...Sad




On the bright side of all this "missing" I only have 3 more months or less to go! I can almost taste the sushi accompanied with a good glass of wine, now;)

Name That Baby!

This is the moment A LOT of you have been waiting for so I'm happy to announce that it's finally here--Baby "G" has a name!!! R is particularly happy that this part is over. He says we've been talking about baby names since the start of our marriage and I would have to say that's true, lol. So, without further chitter chatter.....I'm proud to announce,

Alyssa Quinn

I think it's just perfect for her and the best part is R and I both love it!! An act I thought would never happen. Phew! The name doesn't have any family connections really. However, both R and I knew an Alyssa (Ally) growing up and really liked their personalities. Yes, I'm talking about you Alyssa McCormick!!! So it became a winner for her first name♥ If you've been following my blog you already know I LOVE the name Quinn and was able to wiggle it in there for the middle part;)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! And for all who went Black Friday shopping, I hope it was epic! R and I went for the first time this year and scored some fabulous deals for Baby "G"! I also acquired a pair of cozy boots;) What was your favorite Black Friday purchase?

November 24, 2011

I Interrupt Your Day With---

The most precious and sweet lil' baby romper you've ever layed eyes on!







I just had to take a small break from cooking Thanksgiving dinner to share this with you:) Cuteness overload, if you ask me! I simply can't stop staring and smiling at this 'lil cuppycake while imagining baby girl smelling like Johnson and Johnson baby lotion, looking all soft and cuddly♥


I'm also in deep deep love with the entire Koala Baby Boutique line, found at Babies "R" Us!! Sadly, this brand does not have their own website you can order from--

This is also our sweet girls first outfit-- I've been really bad in the "getting ready" department. I know this will sound weird to every consumer loving woman and momma out there, but I've been kinda freaked out about the whole buying process of having a baby. I just really over think things; to the point that I freeze once I need to commit to a purchase. I literally head to the register, then freak out! I think "what if she doesn't like it/look good in it?" "what if she's so big she never wears this and I just wasted x amount of dollars?" Stuff like that, lol...I knew I loved my purchase when I got all the way to the register and didn't think about backing out once, ha!

This outfit is what I consider "sweet baby" clothes--Ya know, in case ya'll were wondering;) The colors are just so gentle, soft and delicate...Not to mention, the style reminds me of giggles, shining eyes and warm summer filled days. Am I right?!?

Okay, back to preparing Thanksgiving dinner♥ The turkey is smelling heavenly!!

November 22, 2011

She's An Eggplant!

This is late but here I am at 24 weeks (last) week!!




The pooch.


A quick "thank you" to all my awesome readers and friends for the offered up advise, love and support on my last post; whether it was on here or on Facebook. You're the best! Writing that post has turned out to be the best thing I could have done for myself!! Taking a good look and being able to voice what I was feeling, was so freeing and felt like I had shed 1,000 pounds. Since then, I've been able to get control of those crazy emotions, making myself more recognizable to me. That is HUGE! Yeah, I still don't have a job or LARGE responsibilities or even anything challenging me right now, but seeing that positive, happy, motivated, driven woman again is encouraging and enough for the time being...YAY me!


How far along: 25 weeks tomorrow! But 24 weeks in the pictures above.

Weight gain/loss: Again, I'm not exactly sure about this one. I never weighed myself after finding out we were expecting. CRAZY. I know. I would guess around 19 pounds gained. I'd say I'll be pushing closer to 40 pounds by the time this is all over.

Body changes: Growing belly. Noticing an even distribution of weight all over my body which I'm definitely okay with! Some swelling in my feet, hands and legs but it's not terrible. Just noticeable. My skin is red all the time now and I feel really flushed/hot more. NO stretch marks yet! Achy hips.

Gender: Adorable baby girl! I love looking at her ultrasound pictures. Such a cute profile!


Movement: Everyday, multiple times a day! She loves food and usually starts kicking and head butting me shortly after I eat. She also likes to play at night while I'm trying to sleep, lol...I guess my walking around is soothing to her so she sleeps while I'm awake and plays while I want to sleep. Blast! The thumps are getting really hard now too. She likes to punch me in my left ovary, haha!






Sleep: Reference above;) Sleep is getting less and less with the frequent peeing and baby kicking. Not to mention two dogs who have decided they need to go out at night now, instead of holding it like they used to. And a cat who sneaks out right before bed then comes to the back door around 3:00 in the morning, screaming his head off until I let him in...Sheesh! Surprisingly, I'm handling the lack of sleep pretty well! Makes me hopeful for when Baby "G" arrives:)


What I'm looking forward to: On Dec 20th, passing my glucose test and getting my Rhogam shot out of the way, ha! I could have done the glucose test today at my midwife appointment but I opted to wait, resulting in only being stuck twice instead of 3 times. See, I'm thinking;)

Cravings: Anything spicy or sour, lol! This has been around since the beginning but only in the past 2 weeks has it gotten REALLY noticeable. I could eat hot wings everyday for every meal and be completely happy. R isn't really liking my cooking choices right now, haha:)


Symptoms: I continue to toss my cookies about once a month--gross...But that's so much better then 5-6 times a day! Being emotional and insecure are a few other big ones. I've been really surprised at my lack of back pain. NOT COMPLAINING! I have baby brain like you wouldn't believe and forget everything, just as quick as you tell me. My eye sight has gotten insanely worse, yet I remain stubborn and leave my glasses off most the time, lol...

Best moment this week: Over coming my first HUGE emotional slump. It's crazy how pregnancy can make you feel so out of control and not yourself. It's a WONDERFUL day when you finally get some strength and decide to take a piece of yourself back:)





Baby "G" is an eggplant this week! She now has a sense of up or down and continues to grow more fat and hair. I'm not too sure how much hair she'll have seeing as my heartburn has been minimal. They say the more heartburn, the more hair on your baby's head. Either way, she's gonna have a cute head!



Off the subject of baby. I finally got my Thanksgiving shopping done, last night. I was so surprised to have gotten everything I needed and didn't have to throw even one elbow or jab, haha! Don't get in the way of me and the last can of pumpkin ya'll;) I finished cleaning my house and doing the laundry so everything is ready to just relax and enjoy a chilly day inside around good food and the great company of my husband and sister. Awe.



I wish all of you a HAPPY THANKSGIVING, full of good memories and full bellies!!!

November 16, 2011

Baby Bump Enthusiasts Beware

Full disclaimer: This post is about my experience with pregnancy as a first time mom. The good, the bad and the unexpected. These are the opinions, thoughts and feelings of me, Rebekah G, as the individual I am. This is MY blog. If you are one of the many who romanticized pregnancy, as I did, and would like to remain in that warm, dreamy bubble, this is your exit. I acknowledge that we are all different in style. We all handle these 9 months differently. I also realize that what I say here may be LARGELY unaccepted by many and looked down on for voicing such raw, honest material. For all of my disapproving readers, before commenting, please re-read the above statement and choose your words carefully. I have in no way, claimed my feelings and opinions as a direct reflection of you or sold my thoughts as your thoughts. If you are not completely freaked out at this point, please read on! I swear I'll stop talking like a mechanical robot just as soon as you scroll a few spaces down:) Thank you!


We are definitely in the thick of this journey at 24 weeks, ekk! I can't believe we'll be meeting our baby girl in 16 weeks or less! This is going so crazy fast, but I'm so excited to start "that" part of this journey...It's no secret in my household that "pregnancy" does not suite me nor do I make it look good for those of you who have yet to carry a little one in your tum tum. I really am sorry! My sister Mary says to me "if I ever had any romantic ideas about being pregnant, I definitely don't now." It was said in a joking manner but I still feel bad that I couldn't be that girl for her. I wanted to be that girl for myself and for all of you looking on. I really did! The one who glows and laughs all the time and who is as big as a pumpkin yet still exudes sexiness...Yeah, that girl:) Unfortunately it wasn't in the cards for me.




Sad face!

How you'll deal with all the emotional and physical changes really depends on the type of person you are. I am many things that do not mesh well with growing a fetus: positive, driven, CONFIDENT, motivated, goal oriented, always on the go, I can't STAND to be unhappy and will do anything in my power to change the situation for the better. See where I'm going with this? No, probably not seeing as all of these things are GREAT when dealing with change. But that's just it! In my experience so far, being pregnant changes EVERYTHING about you!!! When you LIKED the person you were before, that can be a very bad mix! I guess I'll take 9 months of fighting to like myself vs. a lifetime of not liking myself only to be happy when I'm pregnant, haha! No brainer there...

It certainly didn't help that we got pregnant 5 weeks before I would be ripped up, up rooted and moved 3,000 miles away.... Oh I LOVE change y'all. I LOVE the uncertainty of moving, changing jobs, meeting a different type of people, not knowing whats around me or even where the closest grocery store is...The military lifestyle fits me 100%...Or should I say, the old non pregnant me;) But this new me is something just out of this world! The old me fights to bite the head off all of these new icky, foreign feelings living inside me. Those little pesticides are labeled as: Insecure, needy, emotional, unmotivated, mopey, restless, did I say insecure? Lets not forget, the growing belly, ass, boobs, increasing cellulite and diminishing neck...My sweet younger brother likes to say that it looks like a women got hit by a bag of quarters when referring to cellulite. Lucky for him, he refrained from that line while I was visiting back home:)

Lets talk about life outside my front door...Those changes have been the hardest to deal with so far, because I no longer have a reason to go OUTSIDE my front door. I lost a really good job in Georgia due to this PCS. Granted, I didn't LOVE that job but I was at least making money, being challenged, climbing the corporate ladder, had LOADS of responsibility and felt proud of my accomplishments! I had things and a life to talk about when I got home!!!! Where as now I don't talk much about anything. Who really wants to hear about how many times I scrubbed the kitchen sink today. Or how I sat on the couch all day watching Kardashian reruns while refreshing my Facebook page every 2 seconds to see if someone posted something new or maybe wants to talk. Okay, it's not as dire as I make it sound, but it feels that dire!

What I really miss the most, is having options...Sigh... Before, I had the option to go running until I couldn't breath anymore. I was allowed to raise my heartbeat above 140 beats per minute, if I felt like it, and not worry about over heating. I could eat an entire cake if I wanted to because I could just starve myself after and kick my butt with p90x for a week to make up for it...Screwed up yes, but it was an option! I could eat the entire cake now, but starving myself is no longer an option, lol...The minute my stomach lets out a low grumble, baby kicks me in the left ovary until I fix the problem...I'm not sure if it's because she's hungry or my growling belly is interrupting her quite time;)

And last but not least, lets talk about how this new you is effecting your husband and marriage...Oh yes, We're going there!


R is used to our life as a very independent couple. We love being around each other but we also enjoy our time away doing other things. I believe Dr. Phil would say we have the good kind of marriage; no co-dependency here! R is also used to his wife being the confident, happy, always on the go, energetic ball of electricity that he married...However, what he has right now is an insecure, weepy, sad, unmotivated little girl with no life, no friends, wanting all of his time and pillow talk EVERY night...***Every man in their right mind just peed their pants and is wincing in pain at reading this. Even (I) feel compassion for you babe:) Truth be told, if the roles were reversed, I would be a bit freaked out right about now! In fact, I AM FREAKED OUT!!! The changes you make while pregnant definitely effect your marriage. I wasn't ready for that but it was unrealistic to think that everything would remain the same when you have changed the whole playing field! It's like that awful "switch" men talk about...Where the woman "switches" once a commitment is made and it changes the whole dynamic of the relationship. That's what I'm imagining it feels like to my husband right about now. The hateful thing is, the "switch" was without my approval...Bastard! Being out of control sucks y'all...

This is my last paragraph and I wanted it to be about the good; to reassure all of my family and friends who love me that this baby is VERY LOVED ALREADY and not being born to an insane person...I'm only insane right now;)

I do realize the above reading was a little rough, but I just want to clarify that all of my gripes, and not so pleasant observations has everything to do with the "pregnancy" and NOT my child...Those are two completely different things! I am in love with this little girl♥ I love her, not so little, kicks and even my growing belly because I know that means shes getting bigger! I have several moments of panic a day at the thought of loosing her...I feel so protective of her and all her tiny toes, and fingers...All of the vitamins and water and eating right, I no longer do for me but for her...I can't wait to hold her swaddled little body!!! I absolutely love watching TLC's "A Baby Story" and seeing pictures of friends posting their new additions just so I can gush over their sweet newborns. I'm getting really anxious to meet our sugar cube. REALLY ANXIOUS! I no longer have fear over the day I go into labor because the thought of what that means is way more exciting!!!! So yes, pregnancy has been less then memorable for me individually...I can say that and sleep at night. I'm okay with it...I don't beat myself up about it! Because I know it has everything to do with being limited, emotional and seeing changes that I wasn't prepared for. It has, in no way, anything to do with our little girl♥





P.S three days ago I put into effect "Operation Get Becca Back" so hopefully by the time dust has settled on this post, I'll be the old me again:) Feeling better already!

November 3, 2011

Baby "G" Finally Has A Gender!

If your a friend or family member on Facebook you already know what I'm about to say, BUT for everyone else..........................................The results are in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Baby "G" is a GIRL!!!!!! This is our sweet little girl at 22 weeks exactly!!!



The ultrasound tech said she had SUPER long legs at this point, which means R can take credit for that...I am so happy for her and those legs! She's going to LOVE her daddy for them. She is a healthy weight, just over a pound and was moving pretty much the entire ultrasound:) Some movement is good during an ultrasound but a squirmy baby makes it hard to get images:p She's a little ball of energy already, just like her mommy!

Speaking of 22 weeks!!!!



I think I look bigger then I actually am here, but that could just be wishful "seeing." :)





Now back to Baby "G" being a girl and COMPLETELY surprising daddy and I both!!!! I had my reasons for being so convinced. I DID! They always say the boy swimmers get the egg first and with our timing, that SHOULD have been the case. Apparently Baby "G" wanted to be a girl badly though, because she beat out all the boys:p She might turn out to be quite the athlete! Not to mention this little sugar cube craved MAN food...Like meat and potatoes ya'll...I thought that was a sure sign, but my husband so kindly reminded me that the baby might just have my blood type. My blood type thrives on man food;)

Then there was the infamous DREAM...Yes, I dreamt of our blonde headed little boy, running at break neck speed to get away from mommy and daddy and his clothes...The dream even came complete with a name; Surprisingly, R and I both loved it! That sealed it for me... I'm a huge visual learner and I use visuals to also connect with things. So, I decided that baby "G" was a boy, HA!

There wasn't any gender disappointment really, just a thoughtful moment of "huh..." because of the reasons above;) R is a little more then bummed that his Tonka toy shopping days were short lived, but even he is excited for our little girl.


We never talked about girl names seriously because we were THAT sure it was a boy, so now starts the fun part! I really hope finding a name for her won't be as painful as I think it'll be, but I think I'm just fooling myself...R and I have such different tastes in names. He's more of a traditionalist with names and I like to blaze my own trails;) To give you an idea, here is six names I've come up with...

Quinn Harper
Andi Marie
Avery Joelle or Noelle
Savannah Eve
Jaime Mckenna
Jada Marie

R has already said "no" to Quinn Harper, which was my favorite:( But the rest might get a second look. I plan to dig deep this weekend, which so happens to be my birthday weekend! Maybe R will oblige me for more then the usual 10 minutes as a birthday wish?

I already have a great idea for the nursery, which is not the traditional pink and purple room, but more of a cheerful yellow done in sunflowers ( my favorite) speckled with a few lady bugs (R's idea.) I can't wait to put it all together and take pictures!

So we're really excited here at the Baby "G" household and already attached to the idea of our sugar cube being a girl! One mom told me that shopping will take on a whole new meaning and I think she might be right. I'm already itching to skip down the isles of pink and purple and sunny shine shine yellow...I will try to refrain until my mother, father and sister in-law fly in for Christmas though. What better fun then to go shopping for girl stuff with a bunch of girls!

Happy November everyone!!!