Still truckin' along

No signs of labor, but that is probably a good thing since it is still a little early.  My to do list is getting shorter, which is good, but we still have some big things to do to get ready for the baby.  Some of the big jobs include putting the car seat in the car and packing my bag for the hospital and Hope's bag for her stay with relatives.  The other stuff is minor.  We have almost completely finished the baby's room.  Once we do, I will get some pictures for ya'll.  I am very excited about the nursery.  I think it has turned out really great, better than I had planned, which is very exciting.  I made 5 freezer meals over the weekend (2 baked ziti's, 1 tamale corn casserole, 1 veggie chili with browned ground beef cooked off separately for Adam, and 1 cheese enchilada recipe) and sterilized bottles and breastfeeding stuff.  Adam and I have gotten pretty productive over the weekends which is good. 

Of course, on the other side, I am starting to get nervous, not about the baby itself, but about labor and delivery.  I did not have an epiderual with Hope and that is my plan again.  Of course, this time, we did not take any classes, or I feel a little unprepared.  The good news is that I am still working out which usually helps with stamina, endurance, and speed of the labor (something I didn't have last time since I had to stop working out at 26 weeks).  I just hope we remember everything when the time comes. 

I am still running, but last week I only got in 3 runs instead of 4.  I just ran out of weekend time this past weekend.  I am hoping to get at least 3 runs in if my jobs keep piling up on the weekends.  Adam and I are hoping to do something fun this weekend, which I am very excited about. 

Well just wanted to update you on my status.  Not much has changed.  Just chilin' now.

Surprise!

On Saturday, I thought I was going to my sister's house for a nice dinner.  But it didn't up being a Surprise Baby Shower for #2.  I was shocked.  My sisters had asked if I was going to have a shower earlier in the pregnancy, but I said no, because it's not a tradition in the South to have a baby shower for your second child.  I didn't registry or anything.  I was so surprised when I walked in and saw everyone there.  It was so nice of my sister to do that for me.  

The happy pregnant couple

Hope even had a friend to play with.  One of our friends has a son 5 months younger than Hope and he was there.  They had a blast playing and running around together. 

The weather was wonderful and we were able to enjoy the shower outdoors most of the time.  I felt so special that night and felt the love that baby #2 has. 

Here is me and my sister chatting it up at the shower.  Yes, she is a redhead. 

 And every good shower ends with Just Dance.  Go Hope!  And she got a new princess dress from Disney World via her grandfather.

And then Hope was pooped and just wanted to watch the others dance.

And here is an 8 month pregnancy pic.  I know I haven't posted any pregnancy pictures, but here I am at 8 months.  Yes, I do currently have an outie and Adam hopes it becomes an inny after the baby is born.  Please ignore the butt.  It has grown as well. 

Snuggle time and why it's so important

Most of you know that little Hope has given up her crib to baby #2 and has gotten her own big girl bed.  Well we are still trying to get all the kinks out of that, but there has been one big pro to this upgrade (other than having to buy another crib for #2).  It's snuggle time.  After she gets her book, which we read to her in bed, she has become a big fan of snuggle time before she goes to sleep.  So I will tuck her in and then she grabs my neck and pulls me in as close as she can and says "I love you."  I give her a kiss and tell her I love her too.  After that, we snuggle from 10 to 45 minutes depending on how cooperative she is.  But since our little toddler has been on the move (at 12 months) she doesn't stop to just snuggle as much as she used to, so I have really enjoyed the snuggle time I am getting right now. 

I always remember snuggling with my mom, but now I appreciating it from a different perspective and how she must have felt with me wanting to snuggle with her.  My sisters and I were all in favor of the mom snuggle, so she got plenty, and it didn't stop when we were teenagers or even adults.  I remember just a few weeks before my wedding.  I was living at home while my mom was recovering from more chemo and surgeries from cancer and I wanted to help out.  My mom's nightly ritual was to take a quick bath, and then watch a little tv in bed.  I remember going up there several nights and slipping in my pajamas and sliding into bed and watching tv with her.  I would usually end up snuggling up close to her and she would give me a big hug.  I was 25 years old and was not ashamed of being snuggled by my mother.  That was probably one of the last times I really got to snuggle with my mom.  I remember it so fondly.  By the time most of you read this, it will be the 4 year anniversary of my mom's passing.  She was not only a special lady, but a wonderful mother, whom I always had a great relationship with (even during my teen years).  I have many regrets in regards to my mother (little things like telling her I love her one last time and having her tell me she loved me too, asking her questions about myself as a child that my dad doesn't remember, etc.), but one thing I don't regret is snuggling with her, even as an adult.  I do know that I am a lot like her, so I can imagine how warm and fuzzy it must have made her feel snuggling with her 25 year old baby.  I hope I will have the same kind of relationship with Hope that my mom had with me.  And I hope Hope snuggles with me for many more years to come.  So as you read this, please think and pray for me on 2/22 that I make it through the day.  It is an extremely difficult day for me, but being 8 months pregnant and EXTREMELY hormonal will not make it any easier.  I loved my mom with all my heart, and it breaks my heart that my daughter never got the chance to meet her.  I love you Mom!

I fought the run . . .

And the run won.  Yesterday, I had set out for a run outside with the jogging stroller.  We were going to run to the library, get some books and come back.  There are several routes to get to the library, but I thought we would do the longer hilly neighborhood route on the way there, and then the more direct flat route (on a busier street) on the way back, so 2/3 of my run would be complete before we got to the library.  Well being 8 months pregnant and pushing the jogging stroller up some of these crazy hills, well let's just say it was bad.  It was embarrassing.  I must have looked pretty funny at the passersby.  I was pretty spent afterwards too (3.6 miles total btw).  It really got me thinking.  When do I call it quits on running during pregnancy.  I only have a few more weeks left.  Do I keep on going or do I change it up and just walk or do the walk/run thing?  I feel so privileged to have been able to run for this long.  With Hope, I had to stop all workouts at 26 weeks, so be able to run at 8 months is great.  But my energy has taken a dive in the past couple of weeks and I haven't really compensated for that.  At night, I just hit a wall and can't do as much as I used to.  My dinners have not been impressive.  I feel like I am in new territory with this whole exercising late in pregnancy thing and I am not sure when enough is enough.  Thoughts?  Advice? 

Valentine's and Running Report

First off, I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day.  I know I certainly did.  For Adam and I, Valentine's Day has evolved over the years for us.  Our "first" Valentine's Day, we weren't even dating yet, but flirting and we met for breakfast before school (high school that is).  Being in the south, we met at good ole Waffle House.  Yum! 

During college, we didn't really see each other on Valentine's Day since we didn't go to the same school, so it was mostly just sending a card and sometimes I got something a little more from him.  After college, we would usually forget to make a reservation anywhere so we quickly found a fun place in Midtown to go to that doesn't take reservations.  We did that for years!  Baronda was our Valentine's Day home.  I remember the first time we went there.  Valentine's Day was on a Friday and we both actually ended up working late that night, so by the time we got there the place was packed!  It was an hour wait easily, but since we didn't have anything else planned we hit the bar to have a seat.  Once we got a seat, we ordered a bottle of red wine.  The bartender was so nice and so cool, the wait just flew by (along with the red wine).  We had finished almost the whole bottle by the time we got to our table.  Now, I am not a big drinker or a big person, so when we sat down, I was a little more than tipsy.  :)  We quickly ordered an appetizer (some heart shaped bread they were featuring that night for Valentine's Day), and I then could at least read the menu.  It was a fun night and we have used that as a Valentine's Day go to place for a while.  We have never been big present people for Valentine's Day since Adam's birthday is right before and mine is right after, so we usually just got each other something little.  But once kids are in the mix, things change. 

Now, we are lucky to have a few date night in a given year, so hold the presents, just give me the date night.  We knew getting a babysitter (aka family) to watch Hope on Valentine's Day weekend would be tough so we thought we would make our date night the weekend before.  Adam really likes going to the movies, well at least more than I do, so I thought I would suggest dinner and a movie.  Now, I am not feeling the whole traditional wholesome meal thing right now (being 8 months pregnant), so it's either cereal, eggs, or yummy greasy food if I were to pick (I don't eat it very much, I am trying to be good through the whole pregnancy and get my veggies in, I promise).  So anything fancy was out.  We ended up at Ted's, since we had gotten a gift card for Christmas.  FYI people, they can do any of their burgers as a veggie burger so it's a great vegetarian place to go.  Yum!  Adam and I actually ended up getting the same kind of burger (this never happens), but mine was veggie and his was bison.  And you could make it healthier because you can choose any of the sides so you don't have to get fries (but I did).  The movie selection was ok.  I know there are like 3 or 4 movies out that are nominated for Best Picture, but we were not in the mood for that.  We wanted something light.  We ended up having a great time and even got home at a decent hour so the pregnant lady could get some sleep.  :)
So Valentine's Day weekend rolls around and Adam offers to get take-out on Sunday so I wouldn't have to cook as a Valentine's Day present (we said the date night was our present, btw).  I was delighted.  I cook about 95% of our meals, and it's starting to take it's toll on me right now.  Well then Adam mentions he has to run an errand and then offers to take Hope with him (she didn't nap that day and Adam was gone for 4 hours with tennis so I was a little drained).  So I was going to get 1 hour of peace and quiet in the house and not have to make dinner.  HEAVEN!!! 

Well the kids were gone for more like 2 hours and Adam came home with "Jaime approved" take out - Whole Foods!  And he got enough for 2 dinners worth so I didn't have to make dinner on Monday either.  Jackpot!  He joked that if he were getting take out for himself, he would have gotten Chinese, but he knows how much I like things like Whole Foods salad bar (but so rarely get it because it's so darn expensive).  Dinner was delicious and clean up was a breeze.  Then on Monday (Valentine's Day), I woke up and there were 2 cards and a box.  Adam had gotten me a card from himself, and then one from the kid(s).  Then he got me a necklace that I had seen at the mall around Christmas and said that's a cute, fun necklace. 

Can you believe it ladies?  He remembered!  I have to say, this pregnant lady felt so spoiled, loved, and cared for, I was beaming all day. 

Ok, switching gears to my weekly running report.  Things have been pretty status quo for the past 3 weeks.  I have been running 12-13 miles and usually doing yoga once a week (missed last week before Hope was sick and I needed the sleep).  I will say that for the past 3 weeks I have dropped below the 10 minute mile mark.  I had been on the road with the jogging stroller for a while, but with the hills and stroller, who could blame me, right?  But now even on the treadmill, I am running at about 5.7mph.  But I am happy to just be running right now, so I am not complaining.  And I finally got outside to run again on Sunday.  Between the weather and Hope being sick, I was chained the mill for 2 weeks. 

Monday - Rest because so tired from sleeping with a sick child

Tuesday - Treadmill - 3.0 miles with a 0.35 mile cool down

Wednesday - Treadmill - 3.0 miles with a 0.26 mile cool down

Thursday - Rest

Friday - 3.0 miles with a 0.35 mile cool down

Saturday - Rest

Sunday - Outside with jogging stroller - 3.06 miles

I am back on track this week and already did my yoga to help stretch out my aching back.  :)

Oh yes I did it

So I know a lot of you ladies who read this like the idea of a good deal and I have one for you.  It was last Thursday, I was working from home and then I knew I needed to run an errand or two.  Hope did not nap extremely well that day so I knew I was in for a treat.  I was thinking ok, I can do this.  It's the end of the week, I am tired, very pregnant, and running errands around rush hour.  Yikes.  Well just before we left, I remembered something and grabbed a banana.  Well we hit the paint store for the baby's room (Adam needed more paint), and they didn't have the paint we wanted (low VOC paint) in the quart size, just the gallon size.  Yikes!  So I got one color in a gallon and the other color was going to have to come from another store.  So I loaded Hope back up into the car and we headed to another paint store (further away from home) in rush hour.  We got that paint and were on our way home.  Well guess what was on our way home???  Bruster Ice Cream!!!  And on Thursdays, if you bring your own banana, you can get a banana split for half the price! 

I have never had anything other than just a cone from Brusters, but I do love their ice cream.  It's so creamy!  And they have a baby cone that is free for all children under 40 inches, so I got Hope a baby cone of mint chocolate chip (one of favorites) and I got the banana split.  As soon as we got home, I threw my banana split in the freezer so I could enjoy it after dinner (dinner was eggs that night, I was exhausted).  After dinner, I did enjoy almost all (but not all) of my banana split after a long day.  Yes, I could have finished it but I restrained.  Wow, good job for the pregnant lady!  So if it's a Thursday and you are feeling some ice cream, remember to think of Bruster's and their half off banana split. 

To foam roll or not to foam roll

That is the question. 

I was thinking about asking for one of these for my birthday (which is next month), but I wasn't sure I would use it or what qualities to look for in a foam roller.  I was thinking it might help me out since my runs will be a bit crazy with 2 small children (yikes, did I just write that), and I thought it might help me with recovery.  So my questions are:

1.  Do you use a foam roller?  Why or why not?

2.  Which one do you have and why?

3.  If I get one, what do I need to look for in one?

Please let me know your thoughts!

A big girl bed

We moved Hope into her big girl bed early last week.  The good news is she loves it and doesn't miss her crib at all (which is now in the nursery)! 

(Ignore the fact that the bed skirt hadn't made it on the bed quite yet.  This was the first night in her bed.  The skirt was ironed and put on by the weekend).

The bad news is that she figured out how to get out of her big girl bed on the second day, so we are struggling with keeping her in her bed at nap time and night time.  We hadn't moved her into a big girl bed before now because she never tried to get out of her crib so we just enjoyed the crib for as long as possible.  But now that we are nearing #2 coming into the world, we wanted there to be some time in between Hope moving out of the crib and #2 moving into the crib in case Hope didn't like the idea.  She got new bedding for Christmas, I ordered a bed rail from Amazon and we were just waiting for the perfect weekend to do it.  Well she was so excited about the size of the bed (it's a full) and the pretty bedding, she has forgotten about the crib.  Yeah!

Her first night in her bed and Daddy won the honors of reading her a story and tucking her in.  If anyone has any tips to keeping your little one in bed other than sitting on the bed with her until she falls asleep (ranging from 15 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes), we are all ears. 

But of course I don't mind too much having to snuggle with this face.     

I'm going to have second baby next month!

I can't believe how the time has flown.  We finally cracked down 2 weeks ago and started really working on the nursery and making changes to Hope's room (moving furniture, decorating, etc.).  I have gotten all of the baby's newborn and 0-3 months clothes and have them in the dresser.  We have all the baby furniture now in the nursery, and have bedding ready to go.  We do need to paint the room still but have a ton (yes, actually 2,000 pounds) of color swatches to go through to pick the perfect one.  I have to admit, but I had a meltdown a couple of weeks ago because I felt a little overwhelmed, but since then, the husband came through and talked me down off the ledge and since then I have felt much better.  Actually after that, I did a couple of things, and then I have really started to get excited.  All the feelings I had when I had Hope are coming back to me and that love that I have only experienced once, I am happy to experience again.  You moms know what I mean.  So after being in a state of panic, I am currently in a state of bliss.  I am sure it will change 100 more times with all these hormones.  :)