Baby W: Weeks 32 & 33

Hey Y’all,

Well, we have some news. This past Sunday I had to go into Labor & Delivery because there were a couple things that were concerning me. One of my concerns ended up being just fine. We’re still waiting on the results from one of my labs that is being tested for a condition called Obstetric Cholestasis. Cholestatis is a liver functioning issue that releases bile salts into the blood stream. It’s not dangerous to me, but can result in a stillbirth so it is something that needs to be closely monitored. We won’t know the results for a few more days. While I was being tested and monitored, the nurse found that my blood pressure was elevated and decided to run an intermittent blood pressure test. I continued to have high blood pressures so they asked me to come in the next morning to do another blood pressure test. Yesterday morning I had 5 more high BP readings. At that point I was diagnosed as Gestational Hypertensive. With the new diagnosis I will now be monitored twice a week in conjunction with my regular doctor’s appointments. Tomorrow I am scheduled for a growth scan with the high risk doctor just to make sure the kiddo is growing normally. The medical team is going to schedule my induction for 37 weeks. Looks like our baby B could be here as early as February 27th! I’ve been trying to wrap my mind around our little guy coming 4 weeks early, but its throwing me for a loop. Ideally I’d like him to develop as much as possible before coming, but I’d be lying if I said I’m not a little bit excited to see him early. Hopefully everything will continue without incident until the induction date, but I know that I’m in great hands. The medical teams has been amazing about making sure that I’m getting all my appointments on time and have truly shown concern for my well being and the health of the baby.

Baby Size and Development: B weighs a little over 4 pounds and is a little more than 17 inches long – about the size of a pineapple. As he gains weight he is starting to look less like an alien and more like a sweet baby as his skeleton is starting to harden and he starts gaining more and more weight!

Maternity Clothes: Desperately trying to find new wardrobe combinations with my leggings, tank tops and cardigans. I don’t want to buy anymore clothes with the end so near so forgive me if you see me in the same 4 outfits every week for the next 4 weeks.

Stretch Marks: No change

Sleep: Sleep was very difficult in these past 2 weeks until my visit to L&D. One of the main signs of the Obstetric Cholestasis is itchy hands and feet. My feet were itching so badly that it was waking me up at night or preventing me from sleeping all together. Now, I’m prescribed some medication (its basically a super benodryl) that helps me sleep at night. I still wake up, but I can actually go back to sleep which is a huge relief. I’m not quite ready for the 2-3 hour nights yet. I want to sleep for the next 4 weeks while I still can!

Gender: Baby boy

Movement: He’s so strong and active. Its a huge relief to feel him with the new medical concerns. Luckily, B still looks amazing and he scored a 100% at our NST appointment today!

Best Moment of the Week: Hearing B’s strong little heartbeat

Looking Forward To: The growth scan tomorrow! I haven’t seen him since 19 weeks so it’ll be fun to see how much bigger he’s gotten.

Food Cravings: Sweets and biscuits and gravy

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Heartburn and my squished up stomach

Labor Signs: Not really!

What I Miss: Being able to wear more than leggings, tank tops and cardigans. Don’t get me wrong. I’m comfy most of the time, but I like a little variety.

Symptoms: Oh just the rib cramping, back aches, swollen feet, itchy feet

Nursery: Still nothing new. Hopefully this weekend we’ll start painting the dresser!

Belly Button In or Out: Pretty much non existent

Wedding Rings On or Off: Just off

Mood: Prettty good with a side of worry

Letters to Baby: All I want right now is for you to be strong and healthy.

Love, Mom

Now you guys are all caught up on the craziness of the past few days!

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 30 & 31 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

Kevin and I were able to take our babymoon to London! We were originally planning on going to Innsbruck, Austria, but when we found that we could BOTH fly to London round trip for less than $100 we were sold. I will say that the money we thought we were saving in travel costs were quickly made up because the conversion from USD to GBP really sucks and London is so expensive. We ended up finding quite a few good deals though so we were able to see all the important stuff on the cheap! I’m so glad that Kevin and I were finally able to do some traveling together. This was the first (and only) trip that we’ve been able to take, just the two of us, since we’ve been stationed in Germany. We had the expectation that we would be traveling a lot more, but his job hasn’t always allowed that so it was really great to finally get out and about together before our little guy makes his arrival.

So, this isn’t the greatest bump picture, but here I am at 30 weeks in front of the Buckingham Palace.

Baby Size and Development: Now, our baby B is about 16 inches long and a little over 3 pounds – about the size of a coconut! He can turn his head from side to side and his body is starting plump up as he is starting to accumulate fat cells.

Maternity Clothes: Leggings, tank tops and cardigans are my wardrobe right now. Keeping the bottom of my belly in at this point is a constant struggle!

Stretch Marks: same situation.

Sleep: Sleep is touch and go

Gender: Baby boy

Movement: He’s getting more and more powerful everyday. His rolling motions really get my attention. He is very visible from the outside now as well. He loves to nestle and curl up in the bottom right side of my tummy and when he does that I can usually tell his position which is really neat.

Best Moment of the Week:  Going to London, of course!

Looking Forward To: Getting my hair done and spending time with some friends!

Food Cravings: Sweets and breakfast foods

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick:  Heartburn and the lack of space in there!

Labor Signs: An occasional Braxton-Hicks contraction, but nothing serious

What I Miss: Living my life without being uncomfortable and my normal sized feet.

Symptoms: Oh just the rib cramping, back aches, swollen feet. Same ol’ same ol’.

Nursery: Nothing super new on this front. I got some paint to paint the kid’s dresser. I’m nervous/excited to see how it comes out.

Belly Button In or Out: In. Its basically like a really wide, shallow crater.

Wedding Rings On or Off: Just off

Mood: It’s mostly been good!

Letters to Baby:  I keep wondering how I will be as a mom. Am I going to have enough patience? Am I going to know the right thing to say when you ask me those really tough questions? Am I really going to be as honest with you as I think I want to be? Am I really going to be the parent I want to be? All I can say is that I’m going to try my absolute best to be the best parent that I can be for you.

Love, Mom

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 29 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

Well, I took my 3 hr glucose test earlier this week. I don’t know the results yet, but generally no news is good news. I have an appointment on Monday so I’ll be inquiring about it then. I’m not too concerned about since I haven’t gotten a call from the hospital. All in all, the test wasn’t horrible, but it definitely wasn’t the most fun I’ve ever had. I mean having my blood drawn 4 times in 4 hours isn’t exactly a blasty blast. Also, for all you future mamas, if you have the option between orange and lemon-lime definitely go for the lemon-lime. Hopefully, I’ll finally get the results from my anatomy scan that I had, oh about 12 weeks ago, along with the results from my glucose tests. I’ll update you all when I get some answers! That’s about it!

Baby Size and Development: Our boy should be about 15.7 inches and weighing about 3 lbs at this point – the size of a large cabbage! He’s floating around in approximately a pint and a half of amniotic fluid right now, but that amount will diminish in the upcoming weeks as he gets bigger!

Maternity Clothes: Nothing new on that front. Although, I’m in serious need of a decent dress because not a single one of mine fits at this point.

Stretch Marks: No change

Sleep: Sleep has been better this past week. I think its because we have gotten back to our normal schedule for the first time since late November. I’m still having some crazy dreams though.

Gender: Baby boy

Movement: Still just wiggling away. I’m grateful that his kicks and movements haven’t started hurting badly yet. I still love to feel him squirming around. I will say that they are getting pretty powerful and he surprises me sometimes.

Best Moment of the Week: Finally getting signed up for some baby classes.

Looking Forward To: My birthday on Sunday and the 4-day coming up!

Food Cravings: Sweets, the last thing I need to be craving in my last trimester. I think maybe since my b-day is coming up I have cake on the brain.

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Maybe just the heartburn

Labor Signs: Nope 70 days to go

What I Miss: My old body. I’m looking forward to trying to get back to my pre pregnancy size/weight

Symptoms: Oh just the rib cramping, back aches, swollen feet. Same ol’ same ol’.

Nursery: Nothing super new on this front. I ordered a Boppy cover which I’m patiently waiting for

Belly Button In or Out: In, but its almost gone!

Wedding Rings On or Off: Just off

Mood: I’ve been rather chipper these past few days compared to past few weeks which has been nice. Feeling like a normal person has been a good change of pace.

Letters to Baby:  I can’t wait to see how you change us. I’m so excited to see how your dad and I morph into parents. I can’t wait to have a family of 3!

Love, Mom

There you have it! Week 29!

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 28 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

If you aren’t following me and therefore getting email notifications of when I post, then you probably don’t know that I posted 2 previous blogs. I didn’t post them to FaceBook because I was so behind on them. They don’t have pictures because 1.) I’ve been really lazy about actually taking pictures of myself lately 2.) Because my camera is broken which I’m really bummed about. Turns out the shutter motor is dying and fixing it would cost close to what we paid for it soooo looks like we’re going to have to get a new one. Super bummer. My point and shoot will have to do until then. Anywho, I’m going to try to get back to taking weekly photos of myself. I’ve been pretty horrible about it. I haven’t taken a new one in 3-4 weeks, whoops. So, on to more relevant topics.

A few weeks ago I went in for my 1 hour glucose test which tests for Gestational Diabetes. I had heard lots of rumors that it was kinda terrible having to drink that sugary drink and wait around for an hour just to get your blood drawn. Some women were saying that they vomited and had terrible reactions to it while others said it wasn’t soooo bad. I went in not really knowing what to expect. I drank my lemony-lime drink (just tasted like really flat Sprite) with no issues, waited for an hour, had my blood drawn and walked out having no idea what could have possibly caused those bad reactions because I felt great! A few days later, to my surprise, I got a call saying that I had failed that stupid test. Now, I know of plenty of women that fail the 1 hour test and take the 3 hour test and pass it. The 3 hour test is a 10-12 hr fasting test which really kind of sucks, but its not that bad. This past Friday I prepared myself for the 3 hour test. I fasted for 12 hrs prior to going into the lab. I get to the lab at 1200 and they close at 1600. Then they tell me that it’s impossible for me to take the test that because the test is actually more like 4 hours and they stop administering that test at 1100. I don’t know how a 4 hour test in the time span of 4 hours couldn’t be done or why I wasn’t informed that the 3 hr test is actually 4 hrs or why they stopped administering the test at a certain time of day, but it can’t and I wasn’t. SO, now I’m taking it tomorrow morning, hopefully. NOT looking forward to it, but it’s got to be done. Fingers crossed that it comes back negative. I’m a pretty terrible candidate for Gestational Diabetes. My ability to measure food and keep track of what I’m eating isn’t all that great. Plus, I like sugar and stuff. Anyway, with any luck, the first test was a fluke and I’ll pass my second with flying colors. One can only hope! Now, down to the baby business.

Baby Size and Development: B is about 2 1/4 pounds (give or take) and is roughly 14.8 inches long – about the size of a eggplant! He can blink now and his eyelids are sporting some nifty, new lashes! He may even be able to see light that filters through the womb.

Maternity Clothes: Still haven’t purchased anything new since our trip to the states, but clothes are getting more and more difficult every week. It always a guessing game at which clothes still actually fit.

Stretch Marks: Still the same heinous few. The unwelcome guests for life.

Sleep: Eh, sleep is ok. I’m starting to have my crazy dreams again. So crazy that I can’t even explain them to Kevin when I wake up. Channing Tatum made a brief appearance in one of them so that was a win in my book 😉

Gender: Boy, oh boy!

Movement: If he’s as active on the outside as he in on the inside then Kevin will definitely have to to teach him to play soccer or he’ll have to run track/cross country. Something with a LOT of running. There are days when I feel like he never stops. He’s gonna be a wild one, I fear.

Best Moment of the Week: Well we’ve started planning a little trip. Fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly and it actually happens.

Looking Forward To: My birthday coming up next week!

Food Cravings: nothing specific

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Just my squished up stomach

Labor Signs: None recently!

What I Miss: My old body. I’m looking forward to trying to get back to my pre pregnancy size/weight

Symptoms: Oh just the rib cramping, back aches, swollen feet. You know, the usual.

Nursery: If you follow me on instagram, you know that we just recently purchased B’s crib and a rug for his room! I’m in love with them! We also got some paint to paint his dresser. It’s not exactly the right color, but I’m going to tweak it a little to see if I can’t get what I want from it.  I can’t wait until everything is all put together in there. Let the DIY projects begin.

Belly Button In or Out: In! Getting more and more shallow every day!

Wedding Rings On or Off: Off almost all the time now. I think I had one day in the past couple of weeks that I could wear them. Even still, after a couple of hours my hands had swollen up again and they started to get uncomfortable. I’m looking forward to wearing them again.

Mood: I never know these day. I’m on a constant roller coaster. My poor husband.

Letters to Baby: I love you and that is all.

Love, Mom

I think I might finally be caught up. We’ll see if it stays that way until the end of the pregnancy…mmm don’t hold your breath.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 26 & 27 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

We just moved into our new place on base about a week and a half ago. We’re finally getting settled into our new routine here. Plus, Kevin has been on half days which means that he’s been home a lot more and we’ve been running around, getting the house together and just catching up for lost time since he was gone so much in the past few months. I’ve loved having him home more, but it’ll be coming to a close after the New Year so I’m trying to soak up all the time I can. Anyway, on to the bumpdate!

Baby Size and Development: B is about 2 pounds (give or take) and is roughly 14 1/2 inches long – about the size of a cauliflower! He is sleeping and waking at regular intervals now and could be sucking his thumb! His brain is very active at this point and his lungs are immature, but capable of functioning outside the womb with a lot of medical help. Hiccups are possible at this point, but I haven’t noticed any just yet!

Maternity Clothes: I haven’t bought any since our trip to the states, but I’m finding myself in leggings more and more these days. They are just so comfortable. I’m not sorry.

Stretch Marks: I’ve noticed one or two more lately, but they aren’t as bad as I thought they might be. Hopefully I’ll get lucky in the third trimester and not acquire any more.

Sleep: Sleep is a little bit better now. We switched the guest room mattress for our master bedroom mattress and that has helped my comfort level at night. Sleep isn’t great, but its better now.

Gender: Boy!

Movement: He’s still active! He’s now big enough that we can feel him on the outside. I love being able to have Kevin feel his kicks and movements. Sometimes we can poke around and feel a little foot or knee or elbow. That’s the most amazing thing to me!

Best Moment of the Week: Getting to spend Christmas with my husband!

Looking Forward To: Hopefully receiving B’s Rock N Play in the mail along with my Ipsy and Birchbox 😉

Food Cravings: No specific cravings recently

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: I’ve been getting nauseous somewhat, but I assume that it has more to do with my squished stomach rather than the actual food that I’m eating.

Labor Signs: None recently!

What I Miss: Wearing skirts

Symptoms: Oh just the rib cramping, back aches, swollen feet. You know, the usual.

Nursery: I’ve been looking at patterns and color combo variations and such trying to figure out exactly how I want the nursery to look, but I’m finding quite a bit that I like so I can’t wait to start putting things together.

Belly Button In or Out: In! Getting more and more shallow every day!

Wedding Rings On or Off: Off, the majority of the time. I can still get them on, but they’re uncomfortable to wear so I’m not wearing them most of the time. Every once in a while I’ll have a not so swollen day and be able to wear them. I like those days! I hate not being able to wear them.

Mood: Mostly good, but with the occasional hormonal mood swing.

Letters to Baby: Lately, I’ve been thinking about what kind of person you will turn out to be. Are you going to be athletic, musical, introverted, extroverted, calm, rambunctious, sweet, sassy, or a little mix of everything? Ultimately, it doesn’t necessarily matter because we will love and support you no matter what your interests are. I can only hope that we can raise you to be kind, compassionate, strong, loyal, honest, and brave. I hope that we allow you to be you and guide you to be the best version of your happiest self.

Love, Mom

Baby Walkup: 25 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

As most of you know, Kevin and I went home to the states for  Thanksgiving which is why I haven’t been posting. I was thinking that I might continue taking pictures while I was home so that I could do a catch up post when we got back. I figured that was a little bit of a long shot, but I didn’t give up hope. Turns out that my initial instinct was right. I didn’t take a single bump picture while I was gone. Sorry ’bout that. We were really quite busy during our 2 week stay so I’m actually not THAT sorry. So, I’m calling weeks 22-24 “The Lost Weeks” and washing my hands of it! I will say that I’m so glad we got the opportunity to go home and visit with family and friends. It was the first time Kevin had been home in a year so I was especially glad that he was able to take time off to make it back! It’s crazy to think the next time we see everyone Kevin and I will be parents and we’ll have baby B in tow! With that being said let’s get down to the baby business!

My camera is broken and I can’t upload my phone pictures on here sooo these will just be the questionnaire updates and I’ll start posting my picture updates to instagram. It’s a bummer, but until I get a new camera it’ll have to do.

Baby Size and Development: B now weighs approximately 1 2/3 pounds and measures about 14 inches – about the size of an eggplant! The nerves in his ears are a bit more developed now, so he may be able to hear outside voices as well as my own. He is also inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid to prepare his baby lungs for the outside world of air!

Maternity Clothes: I was so thankful to be shopping in the states. I finally bought a few winter essentials and some basics that will hopefully last me the rest of my pregnancy! I quickly remember how dangerous shopping can be! Its a good thing we aren’t in the states right now because we might be broke! Between all of the cute clothing options and SO many cute baby things, let’s just say that Kevin had to reign me in quite often. Good thing I’m a terrible online shopper.

Stretch Marks: No new developments here that I’m aware of

Sleep: Ugh…between the jet lag from the trip and my inability to get comfortable in our bed, sleep is not coming easily at this point. The only place I’ve been able to sleep soundly is on the couch so I might be camped out on this thing for awhile. If I have an aversion to anything at this point it would be our bed. I literally can’t sleep more than 2 hours on it at a time and that’s IF I can get to sleep at all. I’m hoping this passes once the baby comes!

Gender: Baby boy!

Movement: He’s still an active guy. I’ve noticed that he’s started moving less during the day, but is almost always really really active at night, especially when I lay down to go to sleep. He’s also developed a comfy spot (for him) right at the bottom of my stomach making it SUPER uncomfortable for me if I need to bend over. He’s normally pretty good about moving if I poke him though. Sometimes he’ll play and kick where I poke on my belly, so we play tag occasionally.

Best Moment of the Week: Taking naps after getting only 2 hours of sleep a night! Oh and B’s car seat and swing came in the mail! Yay baby stuff!

Looking Forward To: Moving on Monday! We are moving to a townhouse  on post and I’m so excited! We are going to have a full sized fridge, and freezer and closets again! Its going to be magical. Plus once we’re moved I can really start focusing on getting B’s nursery ready!

Food Cravings: I think I satisfied just about every food craving I could think of while we were in the states, so I’m good!

  Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: There’s not one particular thing making me nauseous, but I have been feeling a bit queasy when I first start eating. It doesn’t usually last long but its definitely happening.

Labor Signs: I’ve had a couple Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing serious. Hopefully he’ll hold off for the next 98 days. I can’t believe that in 8 days we’ll only have 3 months left. That’s absolute craziness to me.

What I Miss: Wine and REAL cocktails

Symptoms: I’m still getting some pretty gnarly rib cramps and tingling, but now we’ve amped up the lower back pain. I’m just waiting on the hip pain to start to finish up the trifecta!

Nursery: Once we get unpacked at the new house we’re going to purchase a chair and a crib and we’ll have all the furniture for the nursery. I had my heart set on a specific crib in the states, but they won’t ship it to our APO so now we’re on a quest to find a new one.

Belly Button In or Out: In!

Wedding Rings On or Off: Mostly on, but the other day I woke up and couldn’t get them on. After a couple of hours had passed I could, but I’m not sure how much longer they are going to last.

Mood: Hormones have been a killer for me over the past 3 or 4 weeks. I’ll be irrationally irritated which usually leads to anger which leads to me sobbing because I am cognitively aware that I’m being irrational, but I have no way of stopping it. I will NOT miss the hormones.

Workouts: No formal workouts to speak of in the past 3 weeks

Letter to Baby: Dear B, Its killing me that I don’t know what you look like! I keep thinking you look like a miniature version of your dad. I hope you have his eyes, his smile and his feet. I absolutely can’t wait until the day when I can see you and finally know.

Love, Mom

Well, that’s all I have this week! The blogs should return to their normal schedule as long as the internet connection is working right away at the new place.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 20 & 21 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

I was pretty busy lazy last week so I didn’t blog, but I’m making up for it again with a double this time. I did manage to get a quick picture last week, but its kinda horrible. I’m going to share it with you anyway because clearly I love self deprecation.  This week’s picture is better though!

Kevin and I are also officially one week away from heading back to the states for Turkey Day!! We are really so excited to be able to go home and see all of our friends and family while I’m still pregnant. It doesn’t hurt that we’ll be eating some really outstanding food while we’re home. I think we’re more excited about eating than doing anything else. I’m hoping these next 6 and a quarter days go by at lightning speed!

That’s it for updates so lets get down to the baby business!

Like I said before, just ignore that really horrible 20 week picture. Its pretty rough…

How Far Along: 21 weeks 6 days

Baby Size and Development: 20 weeks: B is approximately 10 and a half ounces and measures 10 inches from head to heel (its kind of a big deal that he can be measured from head to heel now instead of head to rump) – he’s about the size of a banana! He is swallowing more and more which is helping to prepare his digestive system. He’s also producing meconium now, which is what his first dirty diaper will consist of. (Not so excited about that one)

21 weeks: This week B is weighing in at approximately three quarters of a pound and is about 10 and a half inches long – about the size of a carrot! He has eyebrows and eyelids now!

Weight Gain: Well last time I weighed, it was about 15 lbs. Not super excited about that one. Once you hit the half way mark they say you are supposed to gain about a pound a week so it looks like a few of those pounds decided to take a group trip and take up residence together.

Maternity clothes: I’m hoping that I’ll be able to find some good sales when I go back to the states. Its pretty essential since I’m growing out of everything! The bottom of my tummy has been very cold on a few occasions in the past couple of weeks.

Stretch Marks: Still the same old one that appeared a couple weeks ago. We’re not friends.

Sleep: Well once I actually get to sleep I can actually sleep okay. Getting comfortable is more and more difficult all the time. Plus, my extra vivid dreams are coming back so I think maybe I’m not actually resting as much as I should be at night because my dreams are off the freaking wall right now.

Gender: Boy 🙂

Movement: He is an active little guy. Fortunately he hasn’t hurt my yet, but sometimes I feel like he’s doing a gymnastics floor routine in there, just bouncing and flipping every which way. I did have a scare last week after having my first bout with Braxton Hicks contractions. I couldn’t feel him almost all morning and afternoon after the BH so I drank some caffeine, poked around to see if he would move, tried to be still and quiet to see if he perked up. Nothing. Then around 4 or 5 pm I finally felt him just a little and just a couple of times. I guess he as having a lazy day in there. I was trying not to be an irrational first time mom, but I’ll admit I did get a little panicky.

Best Moment of the Week: Hearing from housing and imagining bringing B home to the new house!

Looking Forward To: Flying home and seeing everyone! Oh and eating lots of American food

Food Cravings: Oh man, with our trip coming up my cravings are going haywire! I have a whole list of things that I want to eat that we don’t have here in Germany, none of them are particularly healthy either. I might have to lie about my weight gain on the next post or two….

Things That Make Me Queasy/Sick: Still nothing in particular. Lucky on that front!

Labor Signs: Nope! Hopefully B will hold off for another 127ish more days!

What I Miss: Wine

Symptoms: Right now its all about the rib cramps. It feels like someone is squeezing the top of my rib cage about 60% of the time. I’ve also started swelling some so that’s been fun…. On my girls trip to Poland earlier this week, I noticed that my legs, ankles and feet were starting to swell. It wasn’t terrible, but it was weird. My hands have also been feeling tighter from time to time.

Nursery: We are hopefully going to start purchasing things for the nursery when we get home from the states and get settled into the new place!

Belly Button In or Out: Still in!

Wedding Rings On or Off: On! I’m not sure how much longer that is doing to last though

Mood: I have had very little patience recently and definitely haven’t easy to calm down, especially this past week. Also, I’ve really started becoming aware of the changes in my body which hasn’t really bothered my until now. Maybe its just part of the hormones, but hopefully I’ll snap out of it soon. Maybe recharging in the states will help me be a little more cheerful.

Workouts: This morning I did a prenatal yoga routine because my body was so sore and tight, especially my back. I really need to start doing it every morning so maybe I won’t be so achy all the time.

Letters to Baby: Dear B, I know you are going to change me for the better. I can’t wait to be your mom.

Love, Mom

I’m not really sure how the next couple blogs are going to go since we’ll be in the states for 2 weeks. I’m thinking that I might have to do another double blog once we get back because I don’t usually like to blog while we’re traveling. We’ll just see how it goes though.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 19 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

I can’t believe I’m just one day away from being half way done with this pregnancy. Where did the time go? Just 20 weeks and 1 day left. The first month we knew that I was pregnant the minutes ticked by soooo slowly, but once I hit the 2nd trimester I don’t know what has happened! Man, life is crazy.

How Far Along: 19 weeks 6 days

Baby Size and Development: B is about the size of an heirloom tomato – roughly 8 and half ounces and 6 inches long! His brain is designating areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. There is research that suggests that he can hear my voice now!

Weight Gain: Last time I weighed it was 10 lbs but that’s been a couple of days ago.

Maternity Clothes: I received a wonderful gift in the mail this morning from my MIL, a maternity tunic! Thanks so much Mitzi!

Stretch Marks: I have one 😦

Sleep: I’ve been sleeping better lately! I’m finally getting back on a schedule

Gender: As most of you know we’re having a baby boy and I think I’m going to buy him his first outfit tomorrow!

Movement: I’ve started feeling this baby this week! I can’t wait until I’m feeling him more often. I love it and really helps me to feel connected to him.

Best Moment of the Week: Definitely feeling B!

Looking Forward To: Feeling the baby more and buying baby clothes!!

Food Cravings: Pizza!!! I can’t wait for our trip back home so that I can eat pizza with a thick crust!

Things That Make Me Queasy/Sick: I have been getting some flash nausea recently, but I can’t attribute it to anything except maybe getting too hungry

Labor Signs: Nuh uh

What I Miss: Bloody Marys

Symptoms: Cravings!!

Nursery: I’ve been borderline obsessive about finding things for B’s room. I cannot wait to start decorating!!

Belly Button In or Out: In but it is becoming more shallow every day

Wedding Rings On or Off: On!

Mood: I think I might have been a little bit quicker to anger these past couple of weeks, but I don’t think its been outrageous

Workouts: I’ve been doing squats when I remember…so a few times a week 50 – 100.

Letters to Baby: Dear Baby B, I’m so happy to finally feel you. I know that this is a unique time and experience and I hope that I can cherish it and always remember how I felt when I knew it was you kicking around in there. As much as I want to meet you, hold you, and love on you, I really want time to slow down a little bit so that I can keep you safe a little bit longer. Please don’t get in a rush.

Love, Mom

Hopefully tomorrow will be a very good day for us! Its not baby related, but it’ll be a game changer for us, especially for me! Don’t worry I’ll post to facebook one way or the other. Fingers crossed that I’m really really happy.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby W: 18 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

I realized that either I’ve always been kind of dumb or the baby really is sucking up all of my useful brain power. I’ve been thinking that I was going to be 19 weeks 6 days at the anatomy scan which is why I’ve been trying to hard to catch up on the blogs. I was actually 18 weeks 6 days at the anatomy scan so I didn’t have to do an extra catch up blog. Anyway, as most of you already know, I had the anatomy scan yesterday and we found out the gender of our sweet Baby W!!! I will be revealing the gender to you a little later, but first I need to go into detail about the events leading up to the scan.

So, I just knew something was going to go wrong. I just did. I could feeeellll it in my bones. I tried to prepare accordingly because of this. The night before, I made sure I had everything in order so that the morning would go smoothly and I would get to my appointment 15 minutes early like they recommend. This was a big day, of course. Anyway, if you know anything about my life in Germany, you know that I have not had a reliable mode of transportation the ENTIRE 10 months that I have lived here. Luckily, I have awesome, wonderful, amazing, helpful, smart and especially beautiful friends to help me out when Kevin is away, as he often is. I foolishly thought, ” Okay, the BMW is running right now, but there is absolutely something wrong with it. Its enough to get me there. It’ll be fine.” Key word there was foolishly -> root word being fool -> derived from the Latin origin meaning “don’t trust that stupid BMW EVER“. Continuing on, I woke up a good 2 hours before my alarm (3:00 am) and was too excited to go back to sleep so I got up and got ready. Finally, I left the house with everything in order with enough time to meet my friend who so generously offered to meet me half way so I wouldn’t have to drive my death trap 40 min away from the house. I get in the car, turn the key aaaannnnnnddddd nothing. SO I turn the key about 4 or 5 more times and still nothing. That STUPID vehicle would not start. At this point I’m on the verge of panicking, but I start calling friends to see if someone could come get me. Turns out my cell phone isn’t calling out….to anyone! I couldn’t get a hold of anyone!! My phone does this occasionally with a number here or there but this time it happened to be everyone I was trying to talk to! The panic rises. Finally, I remember that we have a house phone! Brilliant idea! Its giving me a busy signal for every number I call!! Something was clearly pitted against me this morning. All technology decided that it did NOT want me to go to this appointment. At this point I’m in full on panic mode. It was not pretty and probably pretty unnecessary considering I could have just rescheduled, but I was not rational at this point. Finally, the friend that I was meeting said that she would just drive out to my house to get me because she’s a really, really awesome person. I was convinced that I wasn’t going to make it to my scan and I was never ever ever going to find out the gender of my baby. BUT turns out that we made it there in time with 3 minutes to spare. Three cheers to great friends!

Now on to the baby stuff….there might just be a gender reveal in there somewhere if you’re very nice and eat all of your vegetables.

How Far Along: 18 Weeks 6 days

Baby Size and Development: Baby W is about the size of a bell pepper – about five and a half inches long and weighs almost 7 ounces! In this stage the baby is flexing it’s muscles and kicking around. It’s ears are in their final position and in a week or so he or she will be able to hear!

Weight Gain: This morning I was weighing right at 10 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Yep, still the same

Stretch Marks: Nope

Sleep: If I’m really exhausted I can sleep all the way through the night. If not I’m still waking up in the wee hours of the morning.

Gender: Here we go people. ARE. YOU. RRREEEEEAAAAADDDDYYYYYY!!!!!

Yes its true. We’re having a little boy and we are so excited! I had a really strong feeling that it was a boy pretty much right after I found out I was pregnant. In the last month or so I was really unsure, but now I know that my intuition was right! We can’t wait to meet our guy in March!

Movement: Every once in awhile I’ll think that I’ll feel something, but its not distinct enough to really say if its the baby or if I’m just digesting or something. I found out at my scan that I have an anterior placenta so its in the front of my uterus. Sometimes that can delay feeling movements so it might be awhile longer before I feel the boy wiggling and kicking.

Best Moment of the Week: Obviously it was seeing the baby. I got see so much of him! I saw his brain, heart, bladder, and all his bones. It is so surreal to think that my body made all of that! Its amazing what technology can do these days. Clearly, we love knowing that we are having a little boy. Pregnancy feels more real now and I cannot WAIT to start preparing for his arrival (I love saying his instead of it’s)

Looking Forward to: Buying things to prepare for our little guy! Oh and can’t wait to meet him!

Food Cravings: Nothing right now. My head is still kind of spinning so I haven’t really even thought of food much since yesterday.

Things That Make Me Queasy/Sick: Nothing really

Labor Signs: No way José!

What I Miss: Red wine this week. I just realized that I’m still going to be pregnant for the all the Christmas markets and I’ll have to wait until next year for gluhwein. I’m still pouting.

Symptoms: Nothing as of late

Nursery: Now that we know our boy is coming we can say that the plan is to do the emerald green/black/white color scheme with the slight Gatsby touch. We’ll see if i can pull it off though

Belly Button In or Out: In!

Wedding Rings On or Off: On!

Mood: Other than my borderline panic attack yesterday morning, I’ve been feeling pretty good!

Workouts: I did 50 squats today. Does that count?

Letters to Baby: Baby Boy, We are so happy that we know a little more about you! We know you are the perfect baby for us, specially picked. We can’t wait to meet you and see if you look like your dad and act like me or if its the other way around. Maybe you’ll be a perfect combination of us both. No matter what you are our boy and we love you so.

Love, Mom

Now you know that I’m going to be outnumbered pretty soon! I can’t wait!

Now that I’m caught up on blogs, posting should resume to just one a week again.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby Walkup: 17 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

I warned you guys that these next couple of posts were going to come pretty close together since I technically didn’t post my 16 week update until I was already well into my 17th week. My hope is that I’ll catch up this week so that I can do my gender reveal post the day we find out. Speaking of gender reveal, we are officially less than a week away from the anatomy scan – 6 days to be exact! I’m so anxious to find out! I really, really hope that the baby cooperates and we have no difficulties finding out. Speaking of difficulties, Kevin had to go on an assignment yesterday and will be gone for the next few weeks which means he won’t get to be at the ultrasound with me :(. I was SUPER bummed when we found out, but I cannot wait to call him with the news! So, like I said, fingers crossed for a cooperative baby!

How Far Along: 17 weeks 6 days

Baby Size and Development: Baby W is about the size of a turnip – about 5 inches long and weighs about 5 ounces! The baby’s skeleton is turning into bone from soft cartilage and his/her sweat glands are starting to develop.

Weight Gain: Its about the same I think. I’ve been weighing myself on my crappy scale and it is saying about 8-10 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: Same ol, same ol

Stretch Marks: Nope!

Sleep: Ugh…the same unfortunately. Waking up at 3 a.m. every morning is NOT ideal.

Gender: T minus 6 days to the reveal!

Movement: Not that I know of, but I can’t wait to feel the regular kicks of Baby W!

Best Moment of the Week: Hmmm eating the Lasagna that I was craving!!! I also attended some of the baby groups in the area again and I really enjoy those.

Looking Forward to: the Anatomy Scan! I can’t think about anything else!

Food Cravings: nothing…maybe for the first time this whole pregnancy

Things That Make Me Queasy/Sick: I can’t think of anything recently

Labor Signs: Nope!

What I Miss: Sushi…still

Symptoms: Well, recently I’ve been having a lot of pains in my abdomen from everything stretching and moving around.

Nursery: I’m still set on the green/black/white color palette if its a boy, but I’m really moving towards a Kate Spade themed nursery if its a girl with a black/white/gold/pink color palette. I’m so excited about decorating a nursery that I can’t hardly stand it.

Belly Button In or Out: In!

Wedding Rings On or Off: On!

Mood: I’ve actually been in a pretty good mood recently. No complaints here, but you might have to ask those around me to get an accurate depiction.

Workouts: If cleaning and watching a Netflix is a workout then I am really turning it up! (More Netflix than cleaning…..)

Letters to Baby: Dear Baby, I just really can’t wait to meet you. Sometimes I don’t know how I’m going to wait 23 more weeks to be able to see and hold you. I know that the wait will be so worth it because I know you are just getting more perfect with each passing day.

Love, Mom

Ok! If I can get the week 18 update up before Wednesday I’ll be all caught up! I promise I will try my hardest to not get behind again so you guys aren’t burnt out on Baby Walkup updates. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this one even though I just posted the last update like 3 days ago…whoops.

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby Walkup: 16 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

During week 16, we had a doctor’s appointment, attended a Brigade military ball and officially started mentally preparing to find out the sex of Baby W!

Our doctor’s appointment went well. I was weighed and had my blood pressure taken like normal. They measured my belly and used a Fetal Heart Doppler to try and detect the baby’s heartbeat. Terrifying thing was that they actually couldn’t find the heartbeat with the Doppler. That may have been one of the most nerve-wracking moments of my life. On the bright side, we actually got to see the baby in the ultrasound! Everything was great and Baby W is just fine! Our midwife even said that the baby was “nice and muscular”. He/She had its hand up by its face almost the whole time. His/her heart rate went from 184 beats/min at the first ultrasound to 153 beats/min. I was really pleased that we had the ultrasound since Kevin was on mission for the first one. It was nice that he didn’t have to wait until the anatomy scan to see the baby.

Speaking of anatomy scan, ours is scheduled for next week! Yeah, I know, I can’t believe it either. Hopefully the baby will cooperate and we’ll find out whether we are expecting a baby boy or girl! I’m trying my best not to get too worked up about it and I’m trying to wipe all my preconceived notions about the gender away. I want to be as unbiased as possible going into the appointment. We’ll obviously be happy with either, but we can’t wait to know what to expect so we can start planning!

Outside of actual doctors visits, Baby W attended his/her first official military function. This past week we attended the 16th Sustainment Brigade Ball. Its always fun to get all gussied up, but I was really quite nervous about it with the new bump and all. I was rather happy with the way it turned out though! We had a great night with friends and I always love participating and witnessing Army traditions.

Oh and we had to take a pre-ball selfie

Shout out to Annie Bernstein…hair stylist extraordinaire

Now, down to the real baby business

How Far Along: 16 weeks 6 days

Baby Size and Development: Baby W is about the size of an avocado – four and a half inches long and three and a half ounces! His/Her heart is pumping about 25 quarts of blood a day and has started growing toenails on those tiny baby feet!

Weight Gain: So last time I mentioned that my home scale is probably a liar. I confirmed this theory at my Dr appt. Looks like I’ve gained approximately 9 lbs. I’m nearing the half way point of my pregnancy while nearing the halfway point to my allotted weight gain. Eh…I’m ok with it.

Maternity Clothes: Still rocking my 2 pairs of maternity jeans. I kinda love them. They are my only real maternity clothes though. Can’t wait to get some yoga pants though!

Stretch Marks: Nope but I’m becoming increasingly more paranoid about them

Sleep: Sleep and I have quite a strained relationship. Not only am I waking up in the middle of the night every night, but while I am getting a few hours of shut eye, I am having the CRAZIEST dreams ever! They aren’t pleasant either.

Gender: Can’t wait to find out next week!

Movement: I’ve had a couple feelings recently that I thought might have been kicks, but I’m still not sure so we will see

Best Moment of the Week: Getting to see the baby!!

Looking Forward to: Finding out the gender!!!

Food Cravings: The latest craving was lasagna, but it has been short lived so far. I’ve been craving sushi my entire pregnancy though. Cruel joke kid….

Things That Make Me Queasy/Sick: Not a lot, fortunately. Sometimes leftovers, but that’s all I can think of.

Labor Signs: Nope!

What I Miss: sushisushisushisushi……I have been eating a little sushi, but I really miss stuffing my whole face with it.

Symptoms: Mainly just the cravings right now. Oh and the whole growing belly thing.

Nursery: I’m still sticking with my old theme if its a boy, but I’m playing with the idea of doing a black, white and gold theme if its a girl. Sorta Kate Spade inspired.

Belly Button In or Out: In!

Wedding Rings On or Off: On!

Mood: I’ve reigned in some of the weepies, but I’m still a bit quicker to tears. I can get rid of them much quicker now though!

Workouts: None to speak of….We don’t judge here

Letters to Baby: Dear Baby, We are just a few days away from finding out if you are going to be our little boy or little girl. The truth is that it doesn’t really matter. You are part of us and we made you. You will have strengths and imperfections uniquely your own. You will be our child and that’s all that matters because we love you unconditionally.

Love, Mom

Since I’m behind on getting this post out I’ll be posting the 17 week update in the next few days and the 18 week update a few days after that. Sorry for the overload, but I gotta catch up!

What do you think Baby Walkup is going be? Team Pink or Team Blue??? Let me know!

Til Next Time

-Camille

Baby Walkup: 14/15 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

So, I was staying with friends all last week so technically didn’t get around to my 14 week update. The perfect solution is to just combine weeks 14 and 15…at least that’s I think anyway.

During week 14 Baby W and I officially entered into our 2nd trimester!!! Yay, go us! I couldn’t wait to officially enter into the oasis known as the second trimester. The risk of miscarriage goes down, you get to experience all the fun stuff in this period (gender reveal and baby movements/kicks), and you’re supposed to start feeling like yourself again! I’m still waiting on the energy to return, baby kicks and gender reveal, but those will come pretty soon…hopefully.

Week 14 was a big week for baby and I. We went to 2 fests, Weinfest and Oktoberfest, we went to a breastfeeding class and started going to an expectant mothers coffee group! We were accompanied by great friends every step of the way and I have to say that week 14 may have been the best yet!

Week 15 has just started for me so not many new developments yet, but this is going to be a busy week as well. Kevin comes home from mission tomorrow and I’m going to be spending some quality time with friends. If that isn’t a good week then I don’t know what is!

Today, especially, holds a special place in the hearts of our family. Two years ago we almost suffered a loss that we couldn’t have recovered from. My brother-in-law, Franz, almost lost his life in Afghanistan serving our country. Today we can celebrate the fact that he is still with us, more ALIVE than ever. Even though we couldn’t be happier that he’s with us, we still remember those who lost their lives that day, those who lose their lives at all for the sake of our country. Franz, I don’t know what we would’ve done without you and I can’t imagine you not being in our child’s life, even if you are going to teach it mostly bad things ;). Shannon, thank you for being so strong, supportive and the best caregiver. You willed him back to health.

Now, on to the update.

How Far Along: 15 weeks 3 days

Baby Size and Development: Baby W is about the size of an apple – 4 inches long and about two and a half ounces! He/she can sense light now even though his/her eyelids are sill fused shut. He/she can also move all of its joints at this point!

Weight Gain: According to my scale its still about 5-7 lbs. I’m starting to wonder if its just faulty because I’m feeling and people are telling me I’m big. Hopefully I’m not in for a rude awakening at my appointment this week….

Maternity Clothes: Yess!!! I bought 2 pair of maternity jeans from H&M and it has been the best money I have ever spent. So comfortable and they aren’t hideous! I have no shame in my maternity game.

Stretch Marks: Nope, but the itchy skin has begun so I’ve been lathering up at least once a day, sometimes twice.

Sleep: Its touch and go. Sometimes I sleep like the dead for 8-9 hours and other times I wake up multiple times a night. Either way I’m still always tired.

Gender: Waiting patiently impatiently. I’m sort of hoping that I can talk my Dr into giving me an ultrasound at my 16 week appt.

Movement: Nope, I don’t think so. Sometimes I feel flutters but they aren’t positioned correctly so I’m pretty confident its just gas or something.

Best Moment of the Week: I’m going based off of last week, but I would say it was just a really good week all around. I loved that I got to experience the fests even though not a drop of alcohol was had. I’m also really glad that I went to the expectant mothers coffee group. I feel like its going to be a great resource.

Looking Forward to: Kevin coming home!!!

Food Cravings: None in particular right now. I was craving avocados, but I had one today so now I’m just waiting for the next thing.

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Nothing right now. I’m so thankful not to be nauseous! Its the WORST!

Labor Signs: None! 172 days to go!

What I Miss: Nothing in particular as of right now. Maybe cold Salami…

Symptoms: Just really tired most of the time. Still getting headaches on and off. I think I’m going to ask the Dr to check my iron levels again at my appt this week, just in case.

Nursery: I’m still going strong on my vintage, Great Gatsby theme

Belly Button In or Out: In, but its definitely stretching

Wedding Rings On or Off: On!

Mood: Extra sentimental and weepy these past two weeks. I’ve been on the verge of tears the whole time!

Workouts: Still haven’t made it to that prenatal yoga, but I was really active last week so I mean I was walking and stuff. Also, the stairs…I’ve been going up and down those sooo…….

Letters to Baby: Dear Baby, I hope that we can always remember how special it is that we all have each other. Life can be taken so quickly so I vow to try my hardest to always tell you how much I love you, tell you how you amaze me and to let you make the decisions that will form you into the person you want to be. I hope that you always feel at home with your family and you know that you can find refuge within our love for you.

Love, Mom

That’s week 14 and 15! Next week I’ll give you an update on our 16 week Dr appt!

Til next time!

-Camille

Baby Walkup: 13 Weeks

Hey Y’all,

So, its time for this week’s installment of Baby Walkup updates!!!! Good news, I finally found my camera cord so I can put my camera pictures on here instead of the phone ones. Anyway, we’ll get down to it!

 

I’ll be so happy when Kevin can help me take pictures!

How Far Along: 13 weeks 5 days – 2 days away from 2nd trimester!!

Baby Size and Development: Baby W is about the size of a pea pod this week – almost 3 inches long and weighs about an ounce! He/She has fingerprints this week. What?!?! Yeah, it was crazy to me too. If you were to peak into the womb you’d be able to see the baby’s organs and veins through its still translucent skin.

Weight Gain: About the same, 5-6 lbs. It fluctuates.

Maternity Clothes: I haven’t gotten anything yet, but I’m going shopping tomorrow!!

Stretch Marks: Nope, nothing yet 🙂

Sleep: I’ve been sleeping like a freaking log these past couple of weeks. I’ve been averaging about 8 hours of hardcore sleep a night, and I’m still taking naps during the day.

Gender: Still not sure! I can’t wait to find out. I hate calling he/she an it!

Movement: Nothing. It probably won’t happen for a few more weeks.

Best Moment of the Week: Not being nauseous or having any headaches! I’ve felt great all week!

Looking Forward to: Feeling the baby move!

Food Cravings: Those of you that are Facebook friends with me know that a few days ago I was really, really craving Papa John’s pizza. That quickly passed and I haven’t had many cravings since.

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Not a thing right now!

Labor Signs: None, thankfully! 184 days to go!

What I Miss: Since its Fest season in Germany, I’m really missing the ability to have a glass of wine or beer

Symptoms: Still mostly the fatigue. Every once in a while I’ll get growing pains in my tummy. Muscles stretching and stuff moving around in preparation for a growing baby!

Nursery: I’ve really gotten into one theme – Green, Black, Gold and White. If its a boy It will be more green and black, bolder. If its a girl it’ll be more white, gold, and green, a bit softer. If you follow my pinterest you probably know what I’m talking about. I really want to add in a Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, vintage style with things like: old F. Scott Fitzgerald books to accent the nightstand or bookshelf, F.SF quotes to hang on the wall and vintage looking gold pieces to accent it. We’ll see if I can pull that off though.

Belly Button In or Out: In but I think its stretching. I might just be crazy though.

Wedding Rings On or Off: On! Hopefully they’ll stay that way!

Mood: I’ve actually been pretty chipper this week!

Workouts: Yeah…ummm….pretty much the same as last week. I’m determined to make it to next week’s prenatal yoga though!

Letter to Baby: Dear Baby, I’m so glad that you came to us when you did. We always knew we wanted you, but struggled with the timing. I’m overjoyed that we no longer have to wonder because you’re already with us! Once we knew you were growing, we knew it was the perfect thing and it was meant to be. We can’t wait to meet you, love you, teach you and grow with you. You are the most important.

Love, Mom

Tune in next week for the week 14 update!

Til next time!

-Camille

 

Baby Walkup: 12 weeks

Hey Y’all,

So, by now everyone that knows me personally (and maybe some that don’t) know that my eggo is preggo. I’m pregnant, in layman’s terms. That’s right, there will be a baby Walkup coming in March 2015! We are all absolutely ecstatic about our little baby boy/girl! Since this will be the first grandchild on both sides of the family I feel like we might have an extra hard time teaching this kid that he/she is NOT the center of the universe. We are so happy that everyone wants to love and spoil our little blessing. So, I’m going to posting a new blog every week chronicling my pregnancy journey. I want to have this to look back through the years to remind me of the unique experience of being pregnant for the first time. When our little one is old enough he/she can look back at my online journal and know what I was feeling and what was going on while we were learning and growing together. I hope you are as excited as we are to go through the life changing experience with me. Its sure to be a fun, terrifying, loving, insane, beautiful ride!

How Far Along: 12 weeks 5 days

Baby Size & Development: Baby W is the size of a lime this week – just over 2 inches! This week the baby is able to open and close it’s fingers, curl it’s toes, and make sucking movements with it’s mouth!

Weight Gain: As of this morning it was 6 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: Not yet! Believe it or not I’m so pumped about maternity pants. I really never thought I would feel that way. Jeans are seriously like torture devices at this point. Can’t wait for my shopping spree!

Stretch Marks: Not yet, thank goodness! Now that I’m nearing my 2nd trimester I’ll have to start lathering up and guzzling water to try and help minimize/prevent them.

Sleep: It depends on the week really. The first month I was waking up around 2:00ish am every morning to pee and eat. Last week I was waking up every couple of hours to pee. This week I’ve been sleeping through the night! Lets hope it stays that way for awhile. Lord knows that I need to stock up on my sleep.

Gender: Obviously we don’t know quite yet. We have a feeling, but we can’t wait to find out for sure.

Movement: Does gas count??? If not then nope nothing yet.

Best Moment of the Week: Well, tonight I visited with friends that just had their baby. He is only 2 weeks old and so precious! Holding him and seeing how their daily life is with a newborn helps me glimpse into the future some. Spending time with them makes me realize how excited I am to see and hold our baby!

Looking Forward to: Maternity clothes shopping AND finding out the gender!

Food Cravings: Most of my pregnancy I’ve been craving carbs like crazy. When I was 8 weeks or so all I wanted to eat were tomato sandwiches and grilled cheese made on white Wonder bread. I’ve never preferred Wonder bread to other types of bread, but I literally dreamed about it. Now, over past few weeks I’ve been craving pasta and soup. This week, I’ve been craving sushi and artificial crab meat like no other, which sucks! Sunday, Kevin and I went to eat sushi for lunch because I HAD to have it. I only ate a California roll and a couple of the just veggie rolls (its an all you can eat place that serves each roll in only 2 or 3 pieces). It sort of helped with my craving but not really. I had to stare at all the other delicious sushi that I couldn’t have! As far as the artificial crab meat goes, I mean, your guess is as good as mine.

Things Making Me Queasy/Sick: Ummm….not much really. I’ve been fortunate to not have many aversions. The aversions that I have had have come and gone really quickly. OH! Curry….I love eating red curry from our favorite Thai places, but I haven’t been able to eat it since I’ve been pregnant! This might be the worst thing since its my usual!

Labor Signs: Nope! Thank the Lord! Baby needs to cook for another 190 days or so!

What I Miss: Just being able to eat whatever I want! Sushi and seafood mostly. I was on a really big smoked salmon kick before the pregnancy and I was just starting to enjoy red wine! I miss those things…oh and soft cheese

Symptoms: Lately its mostly been the fatigue. Nausea here and there, but its not too bad. Some headaches as well.

Nursery: Well since we don’t know the gender yet we can’t really start planning the nursery. I’ve definitely been doing some research on the looks and some inspirations (or pinspirations).

Belly Button In or Out: In! Hopefully it’ll stay that way for awhile.

Wedding Ring On or Off: On! Hopefully for awhile as well!

Mood: The first couple of months were really rough. It was a toss up on whether or not I was going to cry or yell. My poor husband. Its seemed to even out as of right now, but I’m not holding my breath for the steadfast change.

Workouts: Uhhh…can we talk about something else….. I’ve done a few yoga routines and I walk up and down the stairs a lot. Yeah, that’s pretty much it. At some point I’d like to start the prenatal yoga class they have on base and do that weekly. Oh and once the second trimester hits I need to start working up to my 300 squats per day. Yeah, 300. Apparently, it helps prepare you’re body for birth. We’ll just see if I ever make it to the full 300/day. I also keep telling myself that I’m going to go to the gym and start doing SOMETHING there, but I have had zero energy or motivation to do so.

Letter to Baby: Precious baby, I want you to know that you are the most important thing to me. You are so tiny, but have already changed the way I see the world. You’ve already helped me to become a better person. I love you more than you’ll ever know and I can’t wait to meet you.

Love, Mom

So there you have it, my first post in my pregnancy series! I hope you’ll have as much fun reading them as I have writing them! If there is another category you’re wondering about just let me know and I’ll add it to my questionnaire (stolen from @CarolinaCharm)! Thanks so much for reading and sharing this experience with me!

Til next time!

-Camille

Insecurities of a Housewife

Hey Y’all,

So, I’m finding it harder and harder to blog weekly like I told myself I would. Honestly, I don’t have a lot to say lately. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or bad. It means that I’m settling in to my new home. It means that life is beginning to feel normal again. It means that I’m not always comparing the states and Germany to each other. It means that a routine has been established. With routine comes complacency, but also stability.  Boredom, but comfort.

This is the first time that I haven’t had school, work, or both to keep me busy. It’s an odd feeling to go from “I’m so incredibly busy and stressed that I don’t know how to make it through the week” to “Well, today I need to sweep and mop and do laundry, and tomorrow I need to clean the bathrooms.” I know, I know. I shouldn’t be complaining and really I’m not trying to. I’m just saying, I was at one extreme and dropped way down to the other.  It’s an adjustment. Everyone says, “Enjoy the fact that you have so few responsibilities and so much free time” and I do…sometimes. As a person that was raised to work hard, pay my own way, and always contribute I’m not used to not working hard, paying my own way, or contributing (monetarily).  I know that it is temporary, and in the future I’ll look back on this part of my life and miss the freedom that I have. I’ll kick myself for not doing more with my time, but that thought isn’t so comforting when you’re feeling the insecurities of being a house wife. “The rule is, jam tomorrow and jam yesterday-but never jam today” -Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

I know what you’re thinking, “Well if you are so worried then DO something about it for crying out loud!” Yes, I know and I’m trying. If you read this blog regularly then you know I’m reading much more than I did in the past. The other day Kevin and I got onto to subject of the books I’ve been reading and blogging about. He said, ” How many books have you read since you’ve been here?” The answer is 4 and I’m 64% through my 5th in the matter of 4 months. Before I graduated college I think I had read 6 books, for pleasure, in 4.5 years of higher education.  I starved my imagination for so long that I fully intend to commit one of the 7 deadly sins. I will be a literary glutton while I have the opportunity. I will gorge my mind on new stories and information because it’s just good for you. Period. Had you told me I would be saying this at the age of 16 I probably would’ve rolled my eyes, but 16 year old me still had a lot to learn about making me happy instead of trying to make everyone around me happy and hoping that it would rub off. Clearly, it doesn’t work that way.

For those of you who are thinking, “She is talking about not working and paying her own way. Why doesn’t she just get a job…?” Well, easier said than done, my friend. There are a few government jobs out there. Last time I checked there were 52 U.S. government jobs….in all of Germany. No, not 52 available jobs in my area, but the whole of the country. Not to mention all the ones that I don’t even qualify for. After I had narrowed down the jobs to the ones I 1.) am qualified to apply for and 2.) are in my location there were 4 job opportunities. One of them being an “as needed” position.  When I said a few, I meant it. But no, it’s not impossible and now that I have been here awhile I’ve realized there are more opportunities other than just what is posted on USAjobs.gov. With that being said, I plan on going back to the states over the summer for an extended period of time. If I lucked out and got called in for an interview, nailed it, and received a job offer today and started working tomorrow, I would work for 1 solid month. Then I would have to turn around and say “I hope you are okay with me being gone for a month or longer without a solid return date. By the way, thanks for the job! See ya when I see ya!” I’m pretty sure most employers don’t have a “take vacations when you please for however long you please because we honestly don’t care!” policy. But don’t fret, once I get back and things start settling down again you better believe the job search will be on like donkey kong.

I’m sure some of you are thinking, ” This girl clearly has no social life or friends. If she did she wouldn’t be so whiny.” First of all, I don’t appreciate being called whiny. Second of all, I do so! I have met a wonderful group ladies, in our battalion and otherwise, that have taken me in and include me so many fun activities. The best thing about living in a military community is the fact that most everyone has been where you have been. They know how you are feeling and they understand. Most everyone is willing to help you and they want you to succeed because they were you once before. If you are willing to reach out someone will almost always be there to take your hand. That is something that I need to remember for myself as I can be some what bullheaded from time to time.

Anyway, I started writing this blog not really know what it would turn into. This is has been on my mind a lot lately so I guess I just needed some blog therapy to get it out. Luckily, I know I have the support of my wonderful husband, family and friends, and my military community. What else could a girl need?

(I find it funny that I wrote about 1,000 words without even trying and 1,500 word essays in college were like nails on a chalk board to me)

Thanks for listening

Til next time!

-Camille

Rüdesheim

Hey Y’all,

Kevin and I were a bit down yesterday so we decided to take a little day trip to Rüdesheim am Rhein to get our spirits up. Rüdesheim is a picturesque town in the Rheingau (Rhine River wine region). Parts of the Rheingau are credited for the early adaptations of Riesling (sweet white wine), my favorite. The Rhine River is a host to many beautiful villages, vineyards, and castles so it was a perfect decision for our day trip. Oh and its only a little bit over an hour away from our village! We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Rüdesheim and can’t wait to go back!

The vineyards are vast and sprawling. Its absolutely gorgeous! Kevin and started discussing a romantic over night trip. We stumbled upon a hotel  atop a mountain overlooking the vineyards, village, and river. We think it’ll be a perfect location for a little get-a-way. There are walking and hiking trails meandering through the vineyards as well.

Once we parked (which was a feat) we headed toward the Seilbahn which is like a cable car system. The Seilbahn took us up to the Niederwald park which holds a panoramic view of Rüdesheim. On top of the mountain there was a restaurant, the Niederwalddenkmal statue, and gazebo.

The statue was erected to commiserate  the German Empire and the uniting of the German people. It reads, “In memory of the unanimous victorious uprising of the German People and of the reinstitution of the German Empire 1870-1871.” The figure on top is called Germania and holds the crown of the emperor in the left hand and the Imperial sword in the right.

After snapping a few pictures, we went back down to the village to walk around the shops and see the sights.

Kevin and I were impressed with the number of weingartens (exactly what it sounds like) and lovely little restaurants. So much of the little village looks like it is right out of a story book.

Even though it was a bit chilly and overcast yesterday, we managed to find a few things to remind us that Spring is here!

A little Ostereier (Easter egg) Shop.

After seeing as much as we could that day, we were pooped and headed for home. It was such a pleasant little day trip. We cannot wait to revisit the area and go for a Rhine river cruise!

Til next time!

-Camille

Okay

Hey Y’all,

So, originally the deal with the book review series is that I would post once a month. This doesn’t really work out for me because I’m finding that I’m reading books in less than a week which leaves quite a bit of time where I’m not reading anything. I want to always be reading something and always sharing information with you all about what I’m reading. To make a long story short, it looks like I’m going to be posting more book reviews than 1 per month. It will just depend on how busy I am that month and how good my book choices are. Anyway, this time I’m reviewing The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I’m going to try a new format that I think might be kind of fun. Hope you like it!

Brief Summary:

Hazel Grace Lancaster is 16 year old girl suffering from thyroid cancer that has spread into her lungs. She is terminal. Hazel reluctantly attends a cancer support group for adolescents in the Literal Heart of Jesus (Don’t get it? Read the book.) at the request of her mother. During one of the meetings she meets Augustus (Gus) Waters who catches her eye immediately. The Fault in Our Stars is the story of their “sick” romance and what it means to love and be loved while death is knocking on their doors.

I Read This Book In:

2 days…maybe closer to 36 hours

FavoriteQuotes:

1.) “I could not run or dance or eat foods rich in nitrogen, but in the city of freedom, I was among the most liberated of its residents.”           -Hazel Lancaster

2.) ‘ “All salvation is temporary.” Augustus shot back “I bought them a minute. Maybe that’s the minute that buys them an hour, which is         the hour that buys them a year. No one’s gonna buy them forever, Hazel Grace, but my life bought them a minute. And that’s not         nothing.” ‘ -Augustus Waters

3.) “I like a woman who says, you know, I’m going over to see a boy who is having a nervous breakdown, a boy whose connection to        the sense of sight itself is tenuous, and gosh dang it, I am going to wear a dress for him.” -Augustus Waters

4.) Hazel: “God, you’re the best.”

     Augustus Waters: “I bet you say that to all the boys who finance your international travel,”

     (I like this one because it reminds me of something Kevin would say)

Things I Love About This Book:

1.) The fact that it made me laugh and cry

2.) Augustus Waters

3.) That Augustus calls Hazel by her first and middle name

3.) It’s a LOVE story (naturally I’m a sucker)

4.) The fact that they set out on an international adventure

5.)The perspective – a little morbid but different

6.) It’s going to be a movie!

Things I Didn’t Love About This Book:

1.) Everything is a metaphor

2.) Peter Van Houten

3.) The pessimism – I’m an optimist by nature

4.) The Fact that John green Capitalizes Random Words throughout the Story.

My Favorite Scene Was:

Isaac, Augustus, and Hazel throwing eggs at Monica’s car.

If you haven’t guessed, one of the main themes in this story is death so have a box of tissues ready! On a positive note, this story is funny. I laughed, out loud I might add, more than I cried. It’s always the mark of a good story when it can make you do both, and feel all the emotions in between.

The movie is set to release June 6, 2014 (in the states). You know I won’t leave you hanging.

Here’s the movie trailer:

If you’ve read my past book reviews then you know this format is different. I’d love to hear what you, the reader, prefers. I am here to serve. So let me know!

Til next time!

-Camille