Thoughts on Newt?

I'm sure you've all read the news but I'm interested to see what you think about Newt Gingrich on the topic of IVF...Republican or Democrat. Here's a link to the article.

Here is just an excerpt from the article, "Gingrich added that he would also create a commission to study the ethics of in vitro fertilization, which has involved the creation of hundreds of thousands of excess embryos stored or discarded by fertility clinics.“I believe life begins at conception, and the question I was raising was what happens to embryos in fertility clinics, and I would favor a commission to look seriously at the ethics of how we manage fertility clinics,” Gingrich said at a news conference outside another Baptist church here. “If you have in vitro fertilization, you are creating life; therefore, we should look seriously at what the rules should be for clinics that are doing that, because they are creating life.”

Thoughts???

If This Baby is a Boy...

We have a boy name! Well, we've had it for awhile. This is a name we'd decided on when we first starting trying and then we didn't discuss it the whole time we went through fertility treatments and when we found out we were pregnant, we STILL didn't discuss it much.

I didn't want to find out the sex and I didn't want to tell names. DH wanted both. So we compromised and agree to NOT find out the sex but we could tell names. It was kind of a win-win for me because DH had already been telling people our boy name!!! So without further ado...if Baby A is a boy, his name will be Gunnar Jackson.

DH really wanted the name Hunter for a boy but I denied that. 1. Because every other of his friends has a child (both male and female) by the name of Hunter and 2. I thought it was a little too cliche since DH loves to hunt. I absolutely LOVE the name Gunnar because I only know 2 other people by that name (one in college and one my dad's age). I think it's unique but not too crazy and it means "battle warrior." I worried that it might be a bit cliche too with the hunting theme but I got over that quickly. Jackson is both my dad and my grandfather's middle name. I got the middle family name since the baby is taking on his last name.

At Christmas, we told our families our boy name (and this is probably why we're a bit more hesitant on settling on a girls name and telling people; hence the whole reason I didn't want to tell names in the first place!). Here's how everyone reacted:

DH's mom, sis & brother-LOVED IT!

DH's dad-"Well, I guess I'll get used to it."

DH's Grandma-"Well that's a good German name." (It's actually Scandinavian but we didn't correct her.) Five minutes later when the name was mentioned again, "What kind of name is that???"

My dad, sis, niece & grandma-LOVED IT!

My mom-likes Gunnar, hates Jackson (go figure! and is now trying to push a family middle name from her side on the girl name and also argued that it wasn't fair to DH's family)

Some people we've told will say, "Gunther?" which makes me think of the barista from "Friends." But I don't care because that's our boy name and DH and I both absolutely LOVE IT!!! In fact, we call the baby Gunnar more often than not, so should this baby come out a girl, she's not going to be very happy with us!

Surviving the Registry!

Yes, friends, I survived registering for all the baby stuff and I'm happy to say DH and I are still married. After all the comments about what to register for, I spent an ENTIRE weekend researching baby products. My mind was on OVERLOAD but when I started to get overwhelmed, I stopped and said to myself, "Self, as long as you have:

1. A car seat
2. Diapers
3. Food
4. A place for the baby to sleep

then you'll be okay." DH may be running to the store every 5 minutes but we'll have the basics to figure things out as we go. Needless to say, my registry was 3 handwritten notebook pages!?! DH was shocked when he got home from hunting and I showed it to him. I thought I was being smart and had gone ahead and registered for the "small stuff" at Target without him. Then last Thursday, we headed back to finish up the registry and World War III almost broke out. He questioned EVERYTHING I wanted to register for and not in the I'm curious and want to know way, more in the WTH? way. By the time we got to the end of the list, I'd given up and let him register for whatever he wanted. We left the store sans Slurpee (I was really craving one once I walked in and saw the machine) and near tears.

After a LONG discussion, we decided we would try again together and headed to Babies-R-Us this past Sunday. It went so much better! I almost got overwhelmed when I printed out 3 other friends registries to get them a gift and realized I didn't have "everything" the same as them but I ended up just getting them a gift and not stressing over it. I was also pretty excited because this is the first time that I parked in the Expectant Mothers parking spot!!!
I will tell you this though, an hour in a half registering really makes a girl have to pee...I went twice. Once when I first got there, right when they opened and I thought wow these bathrooms are really clean. Then I went about an hour later and I was gagging they were so gross...pee on the seat, long hairs on the seat-ugh! I'm going to do my best to teach our child not to pee on the seat.

When I got to work on Monday, my co-workers looked up my registry. What do you know that my boss had the exact stroller we registered for and I had the carseat in my car that we're going to use! Both of us and another co-worker, headed outside to see if the carseat fit (it did!) and I got to try out the stroller-woohoo! I feel much better knowing that it will work.

So are we done with the registry? Probably not but I have started it and have a good heads start on it. I'm sure there will be lots of additions along the way. I plan on adding some big stuff like a video camera and steam cleaner (stems and sanitizes bigger stuff so no chemicals to clean-woohoo!). Do I expect someone to buy that for us? Probably not but closer to your due date both Babies-R-Us and Target send you coupons so we can at least buy it and get some money off.

I officially bought the dresser that will match the crib tonight. Thanks to my sister for letting us borrow the crib and to my daddy for buying the dresser! I'm really excited about the swing we found because you can take the seat off and it's a bouncer! We weren't planning on registering for both so when we found this we were super pumped!

Now my plan is also to borrow things because 1. it'll save us money and 2. we won't have to store it once we're done using it! So here's my list of things we need to borrow, anyone out there that knows me IRL and cares to share, let me know! Of course, my number one priority is safety so I plan on borrowing these things as long as they are safe.

To Borrow
1. Bumbo
2. Play mat (where the baby lays on their back and plays with the stuff above them)
3. Moby Wrap
4. Exosaucer
5. Stroller-not like a travel system or a jogging stroller, just something smaller and more compact
6. Safety gate (if it works with our door frame7
7. Any other toys (big or little) and clothes (once we know the sex)
8. Crib (borrowed from my sister)
9. Infant carseat (borrowed from my bestie; still in good shape; gonna take to the fire department for inspection)

My mom is also known as the Quilting Queen so Grandma has a list of things to make:

To Make
1. Boppy Covers (Thank you Pinterest for this link!)
2. Shopping Cart Cover (Again, thank you Pinterest for this link!)
3. Baby Quilt (we didn't really pick out bedding, just plain colored sheets and then we'll use the quilt to decorate until the baby is old enough to use it)
4. Lamp shade (already have the lamp, going to buy a shade and try to match it to the theme of the nursery)
5. Wall prints to frame for the nursery

So there you have it! We survived registering but we have a long way to go! Say some prayers for me and Baby A as we have our glucose test next week. In the meantime, tune in for posts on our boy baby name (it's official!), the bump debate and the winner of my giveaway!

Addictions

I have found two new addictions...

1. Buying baby clothes! And since we're not finding out the sex, it's bad because I get to visit BOTH sections. Currently, I only buy baby clothes if I can find them for less than $2. Ridiculous? Not so much! I found two pairs of shorts the other day, one for 97 cents and the other for 47 cents PLUS they were 40% off those prices! So I will probably be giving away a lot of baby clothes once Baby A arrives and we know the sex. I seriously have to tell myself, "No...stay away from the Carters."

2. Feeling Baby A move! Yesterday, s/he was moving like CRAZY. At night, I lay down on my back and either DH or I will put my hand on my belly to feel the movements. I seriously think this kid was turning flips last night. Some nights, I'm so tired but I can't move my hand away. Eventually I just turn off the tv and drift off to sleep.

Update: Registries are done for the most part. However, I have a feeling I will be adding and changing a LOT before Baby A arrives. Oh well, at least we have a starting point! Will do a post on that later. And I haven't forgotten about letting you guys know what I'm giving away in the last post. It's just been a crazy weekend and I haven't had time to snap a pic yet!

Giveaway and Girl Name Advice Needed!

...okay, all! DH and I are doing massive cleaning and storing and packing and repacking of our house to make room for this little baby that's coming our way. In the process, I have found decorations that have been stored away and not pulled out since oh...2006 when I moved into my house!

We also need help with girl names!!! We have our boy name picked out (another post for later) but cannot agree on a girl name. Our front runner right now is Autumn but I have two drawbacks to this name:

1. DH has a cousin named Autumn although in the 5+ years we've been together, I don't ever recall meeting her.

2. Is she going to resent being named Autumn but being born in the spring? DH said, "No, she'll say, that's the ironic part...my parents named me Autumn but I was born in the spring." I said, "Yeah right, she'll be like, No, my dumbass parents named me Autumn but I was born in the spring!" DH was like our Autumn would never say that. I said, I bet that's one thing we can bet she'll say.

So here's the criteria...

1. Middle name is probably going to start with an R, either Rose or Rosalee.

2. Last name starts with a G.

3. Something different, but not too out there. I loved being the only of my name in my classes growing up but hated my name being pronounced wrong.

4. Nothing too common...so if it's in the top 50, it's a no-go.

5. I would really like a G first name but so far haven't loved any G girl names i.e. Gretchen, Gia, Gina, Grace, Gabi, Gabrielle, etc...

I'm going to give one lucky commenter some type of decoration that my mom hand made. I will post a picture later because I'm literally walking out the door to meet my bestie for some maternity clothes and baby stuff-woohoo!!! So please leave a comment with your best girl name suggestions! You have until 1/31 at 5pm to submit an entry for the giveaway but feel free to leave girl name suggestions whenever. I'll announce the winner on 2/1.

Thanks in advance for your help!

PS
Baby room walls have been primed and paint has been purchased! DH and his dad are painting the room next Saturday when I work. As for the rest of the house, we are SLOWLY making progress. All I have to say is thank goodness we have trash day 2x/week!

"It's Complicated"

Well, pediatrician interview #1 is in the books. Luckily, DH was able to go with me. Unluckily, neither of us liked this doctor. He was reciting us facts about how medicine works and when penicillin was invented but neither of us got that warm-fuzzy feeling. When we got in the car and DH asked my thoughts, I told him I just couldn't picture this guy holding a baby or consoling a sick child. DH felt like as the doc learned more about us then he'd customize our answers to what we wanted to hear because he'd start answering one way then in the middle totally switch to another route. Also, a lot of answers would be, "it's complicated" or "if it's complicated." And to top it all off...he's a CUBS fan!!! BOO-HISS! And he went on a whole rant about the Cardinals and the stadium. I told DH, I know that shouldn't sway my decision but I already wasn't feeling him before that and when he started that, I was like okay no.

So now I guess I'm going to look at the other clinic Dr. Mat suggested even though we can't meet them ahead of time. I'm also going to look into other pedis in our town to see if I can meet with them and then get feedback from people.

We live in an area where we could technically go to like 3-4 different towns for our doctor. Our house is like a mile from a local hospital and tons of doctors. I may open my criteria but I really want one that's close to our home so that when/if I have to pick up a sick baby, I can go straight to the doctor and get him/her home rather than driving all over. But, if I don't find one, then I'll have to open up my preferences and drive a little more.

OH! And as I type this, DH is priming the walls for painting in the nursery!!!

Pediatrician Dilemma

Before my next OB appointment, I have to have a pediatrician picked out. My doctor referred me to two different clinics and I made some phone calls. Here is what I found out about both:

Option #1
PROS
*Does visit you in the hospital
*Open on Saturdays
*I can come in and meet with him BEFORE the baby is born
*Only 1 doctor so you always have the same one
*Close to home
*Almost always get in with a sick child the same day unless you call right at closing
*Will offer breastfeeding help
CONS
*Half day on Wednesday
*Only one doctor so if he's on vacation, you see someone else (PRO: the other doctor is a great doctor that works at one of the nation's best children's hospital)
*No sick/well waiting rooms

Option #2
PROS
*Does visit you in the hospital
*Open on Saturdays
*Three doctors in the practice but you pick a primary
*Close to home
*Almost always get in with a sick child the same day unless you call right at closing
*Will offer breastfeeding help
*Has a well/sick waiting rooms
CONS
*2 of the 3 doctors are PT so not there every day (but one of them is there every day so I could pick her as the primary)
*Does not meet with patients before the baby is born but office manager will give you a tour of the office

My thoughts on Option #1: The same doctor is there the whole week. However, this makes me think that the wait might take awhile. When I asked about this, they said they try to stay on schedule but it depends on everyone coming in and at most the wait could be 15 minutes. I also asked about the sick/well side and she said they do not offer that. Then she explained why stating that when they did offer that, parents didn't want their sick child around other sick children so they were coming to the well side. So they try to schedule all newborns/infants first thing in the morning or after lunch. Also, if your child has a rash/chicken pox or low immune system, they will immediately take them to a room to wait.

I really love the idea of meeting him before the baby is born so when he comes to the hospital, it's not just a stranger walking in and we're meeting for the first time. Although, he is a one-man practice and will probably take vacation, the doctor they said that covers gives me a warm-fuzzy feeling because he comes from DH's favorite hospital (he spent a lot of time there as a child).

My thoughts on Option #2: More doctors might mean less of a wait although they said that they always try to get you in to see your primary doctor (unless of course it's a day one of them isn't working). I absolutely do NOT like not meeting them until the baby is here. What if they walk in and visit with us and we don't like them? Plus with there being 3 in the practice, how am I supposed to decide who to be the primary?

I'm really leaning more towards Option #1 and I have a meeting with the doctor on Monday so I'm excited about that. Option #2 is mailing me paperwork to look through about their clinic. I asked DH if he cared before I started calling around and he just told me to make the best decision. Unfortunately, he won't be able to go with me on Monday so it all lays on my shoulders. My OB, Dr. Mat, recommended them both so I feel like either decision will be a good one.

Let me know your thoughts and how you pick or will pick your child's pediatrician.

Need Registry Help!!!

...okay, I'm starting to get overwhelmed. I was so nervous/scared the first half of my pregnancy that I didn't want to do anything to get ready for the baby. Now that we've been feeling him/her and we saw our sweet baby yawning at our last u/s, I realize it's time to get moving!

We've started working on getting things ready at the house. Honestly, I just feel like we've moved everything upstairs to the downstairs and haven't really done much. I'm *hoping* DH gets on painting the nursery on January 28 because I work all day but we'll see. Things are kind of at a stand still with what I can do at the house right now because the guestroom has been emptied so now it's time to think about the registry and nursery.

This is where I start to freak out! What in the world do I need??? I started to print off a generic list and it had like 8 different items on it for the baby to sleep in. Um...our house isn't that big so I don't think we need a crib/bassinet/portable crib, etc...for every room in our house!

So please...help me! I think we're going to register at Target and Babies-R-Us. Leave me a comment with any and all advice...what I HAVE to have, what I don't really need, brands, how much of each items, websites I should visit to check safety of products.

Anything you think a first-time mother needs to know..lay it on me! Thanks in advance!

Houston, We Have Movement!

Yes, we have started to feel the baby move! It's so exciting and really makes it...real! I've been feeling the baby since 19 weeks. DH would lay his hand on my belly every night in hopes that he would feel something. Right before I left for Florida, he said, "It's not fair you get to feel the baby and I can't." Aww...

So I headed to Florida and enjoyed my flutters with my baby as I would lay down at night for bed. I also started to feel him sometimes in the morning. The Tuesday before I headed back, I was laying in bed and I always put my hands on my tummy when I felt the movement with my hand!!! Then I couldn't wait to get home! The next day, DH picked me up from the airport and I told him, "Game plan, get home, unpack, take a shower then lay down so you can feel the baby."

We got home and rushed around doing everything before we laid down. He put his hand on my belly and didn't feel anything. :( He left his hand there and started watching TV. I felt something and looked at DH whose eyes got real big. I smiled and asked, "Did you feel that?" and he nodded. Then he was just staring at my stomach waiting for more.

The next night, I was laying in bed and the Black Buffalo had his head on my belly. DH looked at him and said, "Baby, kick Shadow in the head." Silly boys! Then this past Saturday, we got to sleep in...finally! I was laying on my back and DH was on his side with his arm over my belly. We were both half asleep and I felt the baby move. Without opening his eyes, DH moved his hand to my belly. I whispered, "Did you move your arm because you felt the baby kick?" He nodded. It's so much fun and so real now! However, when he kicked me square in the vagina the other day, I had to give him the "Dude, that's TOTALLY not cool" talk.

Baby Awesome at 21 Weeks!

All went well today! Thank you for the prayers. Baby Awesome was looking, duh-awesome, weighing in a 1 pound and a heart rate at 151. Since we didn't find out the sex, I only got headshots but there was some awesome pics of his/her spine that I wished we'd gotten a copy of, I'll ask next time.

Here's our little baby's head and chest:
The whole time she was taking measurements and showing us the kidneys and stomach, the little stinker was moving the whole time, she said she was chasing him. Then when it came time to get a picture of his face, he had his back to us so we had to wake him up. Here he is saying, "Come on guys, let me sleep!" We also got to see him yawning which was so precious! I can't wait to see him do that in my arms.The tech told us not to look while she did the antanomy scan but DH was STARING at the screen!!! I was covering his eyes and I don't *think* he saw anything, if he did, he's not saying.

The bad part of the visit is that I think I gained a lot of weight, I haven't really been keeping track but I was watching and was like...that keeps going up, up and up. Dr. Mat said I did need to watch my weight, she gave me the benefit of the doubt due to the holidays. So starting tomorrow (since it's grocery shopping day), more fruits and veggies...no more PBJ and I'm going to start walking. Luckily, the weather has been very nice here in MO so hopefully I can take the Princess Pup on a few walks outside before winter really gets here, no way do I trust the Black Buffalo on a leash right now. I was really upset about the weight thing but then I decided, why be upset? Being upset won't get anything done so make a plan and do something!!!

Now on to the sex...I feel like it's a boy. Why? Well, the Chinese calendar says boy, I'm carrying VERY low and I guess just intuition says boy. So I will probably refer to the baby as a boy from here on out. I can't wait until May to find out for sure!

Baby's First Trip to Florida!

Baby Awesome made his first trip to Florida! Granted, he/she probably won't remember much of it but he/she's been there!

First off, flying while pregnant wasn't that bad. Per my doctor's orders, I had to deny going through the metal detector and have a pat-down...nothing like being felt up early in the morning! I also took an empty bottle to fill with water once I made it through security. I had to carry my water with me so if we got stuck on the tarmack (luckily we didn't!) then I wouldn't get dehydrated and even though my flights were only 2 hours and 1 hour, I still had to get up and walk which was no problem since I have to pee every 5 minutes. Seriously, after the first afternoon there, I told my mom that I felt like I was on a tour of bathrooms in Florida because EVERY place we stopped, I had to use the bathroom.

Honestly, all I did on this trip was relax which was AMAZING and much needed! I mean I still got out and about and saw things like this (he's just chillin' on the bank with a turtle):

But most of the time, you could find me by the pool (NOT in a swimsuit, just shorts and a tshirt) reading a book or my mom and I were shopping. Here are some of our scores:

Orange one says "Bananas for Mommy" and the yellow one says "Mommy's Major Hunk"

The cutest socks/shoes!

Aww..."Daddy's Princess" and "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" shirts!!!

Umm...yeah, we shopped!

Luckily, we got almost all of this stuff at a steal of a deal (some stuff was barely $1!!!) so we got both boy and girl clothes and some neutral stuff. Anything camo also went in the cart (since DH loves to hunt and our child, boy or girl, will be in camo). So the boy/girl stuff we won't use, we're going to donate to local organizations in our home town so nothing will go to waste.

All the clothes are still in Florida though because you know me and I don't want to have it in the house yet until after our appointment tomorrow. I am 21 weeks and it's our BIG u/s! DH and I are both really excited even if we aren't finding out the sex because I haven't seen the baby since 10 weeks and DH at 6 weeks when the baby was just a wee little sac! So please say a prayer for us that Baby Awesome is doing well and we get a good report tomorrow. Will update as soon as I can! Happy New Year!