So this weekend we put up Henry’s crib and seeing the
crib up was a HUGE reality check.The
reality being that at any time in the next couple weeks we will be bring home a
child, OUR CHILD, and we have to take care of that child and try not to break
him.
Riiiight.
Easy, I can do this as I am positive they come with an
instructions manual and wrapped in bubble wrap and basically take care of
themselves!
WHAT?! THEY DON’T!!!Well then what the hell are we suppose to do?!?!?!
AAAAAHHHHHHH!
Ok, deep breathes….I am ok, just a minor freak out.
Yes, this weekend I had a moment where I just looked at
Terry and had the following conversation:
Me: Sitting on the couch and surrounded by three
different baby books and a bit overwhelmed “Terry I don’t know how to take care
of a baby.”
T: “Yes you do.”
Me: “No, I don’t. I have no idea WHAT to do. How do I
feed him, how often do I feed him, how long do I feed him, what products do I
use when I change his diaper, how do I swaddle him, how long should he sleep, I
don’t even know if I should or how to give him a bath! And did you know you can’t have blankets in
the crib….I didn’t know that!And what
if he gets sick?What else don’t I know?!?!?!?!”
T: Pausing the TV because obviously he knows I am having
a little freak out. “Jenn, he will eat when he is hungry, sleep when he is
tired, and we will change him when he needs it.The rest of it we will figure it out together…we are not the first new
parents.It will be ok and will all work
out, don’t worry about it”
Me: Pausing for a moment. “OK, you are right.” Back to
reading my baby books and T. back to watching TV.
I have been fairly calm during this pregnancy.I have not been worried about many things and
have just been trying to enjoy the last 9 months.But this weekend, as I saw the crib up and his
room coming together and realized we are just DAYS away from meeting our little
one I just had this moment of thinking to the hospital after delivery and
wondering:
“Ok, the baby is here, now what the hell do we do?!Seriously, you are giving us this child to
take home without someone to supervise us….is that safe?!”
Luckily I have a husband who is a perfect balance to me
and I to him. In most situations when he
gets upset I remain calm and in the more likely scenario when I freak out he
remains calm. It works.And it is
exactly what I need in these last days of the pregnancy and in the coming
months.T. is not a very emotional
person , however he knows exactly when to comfort me compared to when to not
sugar coat anything or “baby” me and say it is all going to be all right….he is
direct and logical and that is exactly what I needed to hear.
Of course I am still and will still worry about things;
honestly I imagine this will NEVER EVER EVER stop once we have this child.However, I just needed hearing from my
husband, my partner in this journey that it will be OK and we will figure this out together.When he is calm I am calm
and I know we can do this.We are bound
to make millions of mistakes (maybe in the first year alone) and we will need
help or need to figure out what to do as we embark on this new journey, but I need to remember we
are also not the first parents out there and most things are natural and we
will just learn as we go….and if we don’t know we will figure it out.And if we don’t figure it out, well that is
what therapy is for when our child gets older.
I am not going to
lie, while I am absolutely ecstatic about holding our son and taking him home –
I am still scared shitless about the idea of being responsible for this new and
fragile life that WE created.It just
blows my mind and freaks me out all in one.But I am also SO happy that it is Terry by my side and I couldn’t
imagine going through any of this with anyone else other than him.I know, with him, everything WILL be OK even
if that means I have no idea what the hell I am doing!! I guess I need to just get use to the fact that I will most likely have no idea what the hell I am doing for the next 18 years. :)
Does anyone have an answer for this Pinterest newbie?
So when I started Pinterest it showed that I was
following a bunch of people.If I went
to the “PEOPLE” list then “people you follow” it showed at least a dozen or
more people.But now when I go to that
list it only shows 4 or 5 people.However, when I go to someones boards who I was following before it shows
that I am following that person....or at least I would assume as it says under their profile and boards "unfollow".
What up with that?!
Do I need to “unfollow” then re-follow those people again?
Also, when people do stuff it doesn’t show up on my main
page under my profile picture….is it suppose to?I was just curious because I haven’t been
able to tell when friends “pin” things even though I have it marked under my preferences.
So in preparation for the arrival of our little one I
have been thinking about food. Ok, who am I kidding, I pretty much think about
food ALL. THE. TIME these days.
I am going to make a few things within the next week to
freeze so that the first couple weeks T & I, as crazy new parents, can at
least have something available to eat that is quick, semi healthy and gives us
a bit of energy!
However, we are also going to start preparing more food
at home, especially when T. is home with our little man. And even though my
husband is actually a great cook, I think having some great go to crockpot
recipes are a MUST!
So what are your favorite crockpot recipes?
Any websites you like to go to for delicious recipes?
I always make the same thing…pot roast. And while
it is delicious, I really think we need to expand our crockpot recipe
repertoire just a bit.
(And in case you didn’t notice, I only have 17 days to go!)
Let’s just start with a picture, shall we….
BAM! Hello 36 weeks!
So look at that tiny little 36 week baby bump!!Heehee I think this summarizes everything!Henry and I are getting bigger and I didn’t
know a belly could stretch like this!
How about 37 weeks....
Between my belly and my boobs, I think the word you are looking for is DAAAAANG! I am stretching my shirts out about as far as they will go.See how the shirt is barely fitting me?!Awesome.I am getting the thing with shirts now where I have to wear something
underneath otherwise my shirt doesn’t cover my stomach and you can see the
bottom of my bump. CLASSY!
And speaking of belly’s, let me say this.While I believe with clothes on my pregnancy
belly is cute, if you proceed to look under those clothes my stomach is a hot
mess!I laugh when I see those pictures
of pregnant ladies with such a beautifully shaped and perfect baby bump because
I know they are airbrushed!Let me tell
you something about my not so little baby bump.It is lopsided, it is stretched out, I have a few stretch marks, I seem to have
hair ALL OVER my belly….seriously, when did I become a Sasquatch?! You can also
see both the top and bottom stretched out holes where I use to have a belly
button piercing….now that is attractive.It ain’t pretty.
Now I LOVE my belly because, well it is mine and I love that my body can even do this. Plus I love seeing it move and know
our little one is just under the surface growing big and strong!However, lets be real folks….the belly,
especially when it is being stretched to the maximum, is not an attractive
thing.Well, at least mine is not!However, that doesn’t stop me from sitting
around the house exposing my belly so I can watch our son move…..or brushing the
hair on my stomach. :)
How is Henry?
GREAT! Everything is similar to what it has been the past
couple months….he is just getting bigger and bigger and bigger!We think he has dropped or is dropping (I
really am not knowledgeable on this stuff to know for sure how all that
works).I am also feeling a very mild
and quick pulling feeling/pain down low the past few days.And this morning I was awaken to a very
intense pain in my pubic area that last about 20-30 seconds.Nothing else today, but man did that
hurt!It seems the little one is slowly
starting to get ready to meet us!Hope
he likes us :)
How are your stats?
Good; my BP keeps going down….YAY!Infact at my appointment last Tuesday it was
112 over 77 to which Terry asked the nurse if that meant I was dead because
that was the lowest it has been so far and a big difference from 138/72.Luckily, I was not.The past couple months it seems as though I
gain weight in spurts.Gain a few pounds
in one week but nothing for a week or two after that.I think I am somewhere between 16-20 pounds
but honestly stopped paying attention to it because I don’t care.No really.A couple months ago I did, but now as long as I am healthy and most
importantly Henry is healthy and growing, I don’t care how much I gain these
last few weeks.
Are you dilated yet?
Yep, 1 little centimeter last Tuesday!I know I can be here for some time, but the
Doctor said it was good that my body is naturally starting the process and
getting ready. EXCITING!My next appointment is tomorrow so I will be
interested to find out if this has changed or is the same.
Two questions I have been getting a lot lately:
Are you ready to meet Henry?
Absolutely! I don’t think words can express just how excited,
anxious, nervous I am to meet this little one.
Are you tired of being pregnant?
Absolutely not.
I have to say that I LOVE being pregnant. LOVE. IT.I had always wondered based on stories I hear
from others or even from TV if pregnancy was hard and unbearable.It sure seems to be made out that way
sometimes.And I am sure, since every
single person is different, that for many women pregnancy is hard.And who knows how I will feel the last
week/days of this pregnancy. But luckily, for me, I have really enjoyed this
entire experience.
Yes, I have pains and discomforts (especially at this point
in the pregnancy) however; none of those discomforts have made me enjoy this
pregnancy any less.Infact I think every
ache and pain, every groan, every upset stomach, every tender body part, every
foot in the rib, every late night waddle to the bathroom, or every restless
night of sleep makes me appreciate this time even more.I know this will be over soon and you just
never know if this will be the last time I will have this experience. And if it
is I want to try and be thankful for the blessing we are about to have and the
process that led to our son.Would I
want to be pregnant all the time (think Duggars) – HELLS NO!But IF another child was in our future would
I embrace pregnancy again – ABSOLUTELY!
How is the room/house coming along?
Thanks to the help of my awesome parents, sister and husband
– we got a lot accomplished this weekend.The dining room and living room no longer look like a storage unit.And Henry’s room is all cleaned and ready to
start making into HIS room!We have the
crib ready to be put together, the changing table up, and all his stuff
upstairs and ready to be put away.The
last of his clothes are washed and folded and my mom and I picked up nearly all
of the last items we needed for the little guy.As of Sunday night I literally let out a huge sigh knowing things were
in place and just about done!I should
have pictures soon of his room.
