35 weeks

Ryan's baby shower was this past Sunday. My good friends Samantha and Jayme put it on for me, with a little bit of help from my mom, Barbara, and Samantha's mom, Rita. They did such a great job! We had it at Briscoe Park in one of the little buildings you can rent. The decorations were really cute with lots of pretty balloons, pink and brown toile plates and napkins, daisies, and baby girl decor. We had some snacks first - Sam made some meatballs that were out of this world! And Jayme made some sort of veggie and bean dip that was so delicious. We also had lots of healthy fruits and veggies, punch (yum!), and chicken nuggets.

After everyone mingled for a little bit and had some snacks, we played some games. First, Jayme gave each of us a baby bottle full of fruit punch and the first person to drink it all was the winner. I think they may have been newborn bottles because the hole in the nipple was SO tiny, almost nothing would come out. It was looking like the game was going to last all day, but then my friend Ami had the idea to bite a bigger hole in the top of her nipple...she had the fruit juice down in no time and she won!

Next we played a word scrabble game. Jayme passed out sheets of paper that had baby related words on them that were jumbled and we had a minute and a half to get as many un-jumbled as we could. After that, the girls passed around a roll of toilet paper and everyone had to rip off a piece that they thought would fit around my belly, and whoever got the closest won. Holly and my friend Mandie both got it exactly right...most people were SEVERAL squares over....thanks guys :)

After the games, I opened Ryan's presents for her. She got so many gifts, it is overwhelming! So many people love her so much already. Samantha had to unwrap some of the bigger gifts for me, since I couldn't bend over all the way to get the paper off of the bottom. Ryan got some cute clothes, including a onsie that says "Wee-publican" on it with a little elephant on it. She got some big items too - a pack and play from Nana B, a Jeep walker from Aunt Cathy, and a bouncy activity chair from Nana. She also got 2 bath time goody baskets filled with soap, shampoo, baby powder, etc. Samantha knitted her a baby cocoon so that I can take some pictures of her in it - sometimes the best things are handmade! She also got some hand-me-downs from her friends Russ, Molly and Max. We had dinner at their house a few weekends ago and I commented on how much I loved Max's high chair, and since he is too big for it now, he gave it to Ryan! I love it!!

After the gifts, we had CAKE!! I have been looking forward to the cake for 2 months! Mom got a strawberry cake and 2 dozen petitfors from Rhodes bakery (they also made my wedding cake...they are the absolute best bakery around here.) Needless to say, the cake was over-the-top delicious.

Samantha and Jayme did such a wonderful job putting the shower on for Ryan and I. I am so thankful for their friendship. Everything was above and beyond what I had expected, and they were so organized! Hopefully I can repay them by throwing them each a shower some day :)

While we were having the shower, Dave had some of the husbands over to the house for some ribs on the grill and yard games. Samantha let us borrow a cornhole set, and Dave also got yard golf (so much fun!). There was supposed to be ping pong as well, but somebody forgot to get ping pong balls, so that kind of fell through!

Dave and I both had such a wonderful day (Grimm and Tonka did too...they are exhausted!). We are so blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives. It meant the world to us that our friends and family came out for the day to show love and support for us and our baby girl. Thank you everyone!!!

My cousins, Leah and Lane, flew down from Illinois Wednesday to spend the week with my mom. We went to pick them up at the airport that morning, and they were so tired that we let them sleep until the afternoon while mom and I worked on some things for the baby. Mom patched and mended the rug for the baby's room (it is an old quilt top that she made into a rug a long time ago) and worked on quilting the crib quilt, while I started on a vintage-looking felt lamb doll for Ryan.

Thursday afternoon the girls came with mom and I to my doctors appointment. Dave couldn't get away from work, so he wasn't able to go. We had to wait for a really long time because another patient had to get picked up by an ambulance. We are not sure what happened to her, but she was pregnant, so I hope everything turns out okay for her.

Our check up went well. Everything is still going as good as it possibly can. I have gained a few more pounds than I would like...I am very limited on what I will eat right now because I don't want another acid reflux episode, so I eat a lot of plain foods like bread, crackers, tuna, cheese and milk. Fruits are too acidy...I am even afraid to eat grapes. Sigh...I miss tomatoes. Anyhow, our next appointment is in 2 weeks, then after that we go to once a week. My doctor told me today that in two weeks, I can go ahead and have the baby any time...meaning that if I were to go into labor right now, they would probably want to give me drugs to stop it and then put me on bed rest, but in two weeks, they would just let me deliver. I am excited.

After the appointment, we went to Babies R Us to get some absolute essentials that we were still needing (mainly the carseat/stroller...so we can bring her home...kind of important!) We got a few big things we were needing, like a baby monitor and a humidifier, but they did not have the stroller/carseat that I wanted, so I came home and ordered it online. I also got some gifts for my friend, Ami, who is having her shower this Saturday. She is 2 weeks more pregnant than I am, which is a huge coincidence. She has been on partial bedrest for her 3rd trimester, but she came out to my shower last weekend anyway - she is a really great friend! (if you were at our wedding, she is the girl that caught the bouquet).

We have almost everything we could possibly need for the baby now. I need to go Target sometime and grab a few things with all of the gift cards people have given us. We still need a baby gate that has a "door" on it, so I am planning on using the cards to get that. The one we have now is the old-fashioned kind that you just have to step over...not a good idea with a baby in your arms!

I am going to start letting the dogs go into the nursery this week. Everything is almost completely set up, and I read that it is best to let the dogs go ahead and sniff around BEFORE the baby comes so that it is less of a shock when you bring her home.

Here we are at 35 weeks...

I will have to post pictures from the baby shower later. My friend, Jayme, gave me the day off as photographer and took care of the pictures for me. I need to drop by her house this weekend and pick them up...so stay tuned for that!

Have a great week!

~the Sullivans

34 weeks

So, I thought that I knew what acid reflux was. I have never really ever had it in my life until I was about 6 months pregnant, and I knew that what I had was pretty mild. Well, as it turns out, I had NO IDEA what it really is. Friday night I woke up around 1:30 and shot straight up in bed, from a dead sleep, gasping for air and coughing, unable to breath. It felt like my throat had been ripped out and filled with battery acid that had been lit on fire! I couldn't breath, swallow, or really even move without feeling like I was going to vomit everywhere. For a moment, I thought something was deathly wrong ("oh Lord, I'm dying!")...but it slowly dawned on me that THIS is what REAL acid reflux is. I knew I couldn't just stay where I was, so as quickly as I could, I grabbed my water bottle and my Tums off of my night stand and RAN to the bathroom sink. I gulped down the water to try to wash the acid down, and ate several Tums back-to-back, coughing and gasping the whole way. After 5 minutes or so, I felt in control enough to get back into bed. I was SO tired and just wanted to sleep, but of course, I couldn't lie down. I really did NOT want to sleep in the chair in the living room sitting up, so I just propped myself up with several pillows and prayed that I could go back to sleep as quickly as possible and sleep through this....which I eventually did.

Wednesday at the gym, one of the guys at the front desk stopped me as we came in and said ... "I don't want you to get offended or anything, but we all took a poll and we think that you are the most attractive pregnant lady we have ever seen." Talk about a pick-me-up!! All week I have been teasing the family about it, a la "ladies and gentlemen, make way for the most attractive pregnant lady ever..." hehehe.

It is really hard to get around these days. My hips feel like they are broken and my belly is huge. Also, with each step I take, it is painfully obvious that there is something VERY solid inside of my belly. I get out of breath pretty easily, like just walking to the car. I am glad that I have been working out, because I can't even imagine what it would be like if I were out of shape!

We finally got our butts in gear this week and made curtains for the nursery. It is amazing how much difference they make! Her room is so pretty - it is a very peaceful and calming place, which I suppose is what you would want in a nursery. Sometimes I like to just go in there and just sit in the rocking chair, relax, and take it all in. I love it.

We also got the quilt top pieced together and finished. I am still in total baby brain mode which makes me completely indecisive, so I had Barbara lay it out how she saw best. She is a total perfectionist, so I figured she would do a good job...and she did - I only changed the placement of 2 squares! Mom took it home to quilt it over the next week or so. I am excited to get it done. It has been neglected for several months.

I finally started packing my hospital bag this week. Dave has been bugging me to do it, and I just never have. Now, with just 6 weeks left, I am very aware that Ryan could technically come at any time, so I need to get everything in order.

Ryan's baby shower is this Sunday. My good friend Valerie can't make it, so she dropped off a gift for the baby Thursday night. It is this adorable bouncy seat - how sweet of her! Dave was in hog heaven when he was putting it together...he loves his daughter so much already and putting together baby stuff makes him really really happy. He will be such a good daddy :)

Cute little snail on the bouncy seat :)

Here we are at 34 weeks...within 6 weeks, we will get to meet our baby girl! That's only a month and a half!!

We have a doctors appointment this Thursday, and I am pretty sure that after that, I will have to go in once a week for the remainder of the pregnancy...that means we are getting close to departure!

Have a great week!

~the Sullivans

33 weeks

Saturday we rode out to Babies 'R' Us because they were having some sort of baby shower event. We stopped at Chick-fil-a to eat first, and it ended up taking FOREVER, and we got to Babies 'R' Us just as the event was closing up shop. Boo!

But we drove all of the way out there, so we browsed around the store for a while. Dave ended up looking at rocking chairs for the nursery and decided we should go ahead and get one. We looked at several and I told Dave to just choose one to get because I had Baby Brain really bad, and couldn't think to make a decision! We found a gliding ottoman that had been discontinued and was 75% off, and it matches the chair we liked pretty well. We had a 20% off coupon that we used on the chair, and the with the 75% off ottoman, we ended up saving a ton! We LOVE getting a good deal!!

I will smile as I rock the baby to sleep knowing how much money we saved on this puppy!

Saturday night we had dinner with some friends. They have a 3 year old son and they gave us some good advice to look for some of the bigger items baby needs on Craigslist and you can save a ton of money. So I have started doing that...I found the pack and play that I want for half the price and it had only been used twice, but someone had already bought it...I will keep looking!

We have been very "crafty" this week...mom, B and I made curtains for the side lights on our front door on Monday and it ended up being the BEST decision I have made in a LONG time...the dogs used to go CRAZY every time anyone walked by the house or stopped in the road. Now they barely bark at ALL!! It is so great! Those curtains were a MUST before Ryan gets here, because I didn't want the boys barking all of the time at nothing and waking the baby.

Curtains...the best idea EVER!!! Silence is golden!

Tuesday we made curtains for mom's sidelights, and Wednesday we made even MORE curtains for one of mom's guest rooms. Now we need to make curtains for Ryan's room and for me and Dave's room...we are some curtain making machines!! We also made a name banner to hang over Ryan's crib. SO CUTE!

We had a doctor appointment yesterday. Daddy was able to get off of work a little early and come with us. All of the ladies in the doctor's office just LOVE Dave. Every single person that works there said "long time, no see!" when they saw him. Everything is still looking wonderful. My BP, the baby's heart rate, size and position are all spot on...the doctor told me I make her job easy :)

Here we are at 33 weeks...and yes, this belly is getting out of hand!

Going to eat with some friends this evening. Gotta run!

Have a great week!!

~the Sullivans

31 and 32 weeks

31 weeks....

Well, I am a little behind on my blogging...sorry :( We have just been really busy lately. Dave has been trying all last week to get caught up in the yard, as well as help mom get the pool clean, and I have been laying out a wedding photo album. We are finally all caught up with everything and have NO PLANS, other than the baby shower, until Ryan is born! We are excited about some time off!!

Ryan and I had a check up at the doctor on last Thursday. It was easy-peasy, in-and-out. I was only there for about 10 minutes total. She measured my belly, listened to the heart beat, took my blood pressure, and felt the baby's position. All are pretty much perfect. Ryan's head is right on top of my bladder, which, to say the least, can be quite uncomfortable when I am walking! She is gaining weight, I can tell! She is starting to get pretty heavy to carry around!

Dave had a 4 day weekend for the 4th of July. We were able to clean the whole house last Saturday and we had some friends over for dinner. Dave grilled steaks on the Big Green Egg and I made some wedge salads and a HUGE pot of green beans and taters. Then we had peach cobbler and ice cream. It was SOOOOO good.

On the 4th, and we went to mom's house to swim and cook out. I swam several times last week. It doesn't really feel much different while I am in the pool, but when I get out, gravity hits and it feels like I have a bowling ball strapped to my stomach.

We got to sleep in Monday morning, which was so nice! I found a really comfortable position (which is rare) so Dave and I snuggled with the boys all morning, then daddy sang the ABCs to Ryan.

Here we are at 31 weeks!

32 weeks...

Dave had Monday and Tuesday off for the 4th of July holiday, and it was nice having him home for 4 straight days. Monday morning he had to take Grimm to the vet because he was acting funny and his tail wasn't working. We thought maybe he had a broken tail, or he had some kind of really painful poo and wouldn't lift his tail. Turns out he had Limber Tail, which is apparently quite common in Labs. Basically, he over worked his tail swimming ALL day on Sunday, and the muscles in his tail were worn out. He is all better now, but it was not a good day! Daddy took him to get ice cream...Bruster's gives a free scoop of vanilla with a dog treat on top to dogs. Needless to say, he LOVES it.

The boys can't come in Ryan's room :(

"Let us in!!" they say... (from left to right - Grimm, Tonka, J. Otis)

Wednesday I went to Party City with mom and B to pick out some things for the baby shower. We also stopped by Rhodes bakery and ordered the cake for the shower...they did my wedding cake and make the best cake around, hands down.

Thursday we went to an arts and crafts show at the Mall of Georgia. It was pretty sparse, but I did get a pink and brown tutu for photo shoots with Ryan. Mom bought Ryan 2 Coming Home outfits, and several other outfits. I am glad to have the Coming Home clothes taken care of. I was starting to get flustered and thought I would never find anything I liked well enough. The dress we got is really traditional - I wanted something plain and classic, not trendy, so that when we pull it out 20 years from now, there is no "what were we thinking" moment. We also got a little red romper with polka dots...a girl's gotta have options!!

Ryan's tutu!

The homecoming dress and bonnet!

Mom went through her Hope chest and pulled out some of my old baby stuff. We read through my baby book (apparently I was chowing down on baked potato at 2 weeks old) and found an old yellow baby dress that i wore.

Do you think it would still fit?

Ryan is moving a LOT. She has a spot on my right side that she kicks REALLY hard and it feels like she is about to bust through the skin. Plus she gets the hiccups almost every day.

Lately I have been feeling overly ready to not be pregnant anymore. When I see skinny girls out and about, I am very envious. I am ready to look like that again...I want to wear normal clothes, be able to bend over, or go for a run. I am not handling pregnancy negatively at ALL, but my belly is so big now, that I find myself guarding it so people won't run into it. Just today I was walking up behind mom to look at something she was looking at, and I had my arm out ready to block in case she spun around quickly. Sounds silly I guess. I don't want to rush anything, because I am sure I will miss these times at some point, but I am ready for her to get here.

We have a doctor appointment this week on Thursday. It should be pretty basic.

Here we are at 32 weeks

Have a great week

~the Sullivans

30 weeks

Wow....we have had a heck of a week! We have been going NON STOP...so, warning, this is a LONG post...

Last Thursday, we headed out to Southern Illinois. It seemed like it took forever to get there...we got stuck in some rush hour traffic on the way out, had to stop to fix the chains on the trailer, had to do several bathroom stops for different people in the car, had to make stops so I could stretch and walk around, and had to stop and get peaches, Vidalia onions and pecans for the Illinois fam...and all of this was before we were out of Georgia!

We FINALLY arrived at Papa and Judy's house around midnight, Central time (you gain an hour on the way up). We were all so tired, we changed into PJs and went straight to sleep. I was definitely beat...Ryan started getting feisty somewhere around Nashville, and she was prancing around non stop until Sunday night, I think.

Friday morning we got up early to go pick up our new furniture. It is so much better than I even imagined it would be. The man who built it for us, Van, did an AMAZING job. I had designed a changing table and an armoire to be made and several people saw my furniture in the shop and requested one for themselves! Van told us that he named the armoire the "Georgia Closet", since it was for their Georgia customers. We have furniture named for us! (well, sort of.)

The "Georgia Closet"

Saturday, Dave and I ran into town to get some groceries so I could cook dinner for everyone. Then at 1:00, we drove the 2 blocks from Papa's house to the church for Ryan's baby shower, given by my grandma Judy, my aunt Sheila, and my cousins Leah & Lane. I walked in and there were people there that I hadn't seen in 15 years! A lot of women from the church came, some of my grandma's friends, my family, and all of the women on my aunt's side of the family. Even Brother Dale, our Pastor, came! The only guys there were Dave, my cousin's boyfriend Adam, and Brother Dale...well, until Papa showed up, conveniently when it was time to eat! hahaha :)

My family did such a great job putting on the shower. My cousin made the cutest invitations and my aunt got an adorable cake to match.

Bubblegum, jumpropes, giggles and curls, fairytale wishes make up little girls

There was lots of good food and I had 3 or 4 glasses of strawberry lemonade. Yum! We played some really cute games. One was "the Price is Right"...my aunt would hold up a baby item, like a pack of diapers, and we had to guess how much each item cost. Whoever got the closest to the total cost of all of the items, without going over, was the winner....mom won...she was 3 cents off. Unbelievable!! I won one game - Adam and Leah would play a clip of a song that the title had either 'Baby' or 'Girl' in it, and you had to give the song title and artist. I think I got almost all of them right (I may have copied off of mom for some of the older songs....just maybe)

After the games, we ate lunch and then I opened presents for Ryan. She got a lot of clothes, blankies and other goodies, and my grandma Judy had several things made for her, including the most ADORABLE crocheted dress...I am so in love with it and can't wait to do a photo shoot of Ryan in it!!

Ryan's crocheted dress

I am so grateful for the shower! I know my family worked really hard on it, and it was just perfect. Thank you so much everyone!! Dave, Ryan and I really appreciate your time and I am sure it wasn't cheap to put on! It was so good to get to see everyone, especially my aunt's mom, who recently made a full recovery from cancer, and my great-aunt Delores, who I don't get to see very often - she is hilarious!!

Opening an antique baby book my aunt Delores got for us - it is perfect!!

All of the girls in my family

Sunday was Father's Day, and we took a drive around the lake with Papa. It was ridiculously hot, so we didn't stop to get out very often. When we got back, the guys grilled some steaks for everyone. Dave and I called our dads to wish them a happy Father's Day.

We had a great trip to Illinois. We crammed so many things into 3 days! We had a full day of roaming around searching for primitive shops, went to the auction, played games at my aunt & uncle's house, had a baby shower, went to the Custard Stand for the most amazing ice cream, had Maid-Rite sandwiches (the same ones they make on the show Roseanne...that being my favorite show, I really wanted to get one!), did puzzles at Papa's, went "loafing" at McDonald's with Papa and his friends, church on Sunday morning, had a cook out, rode bikes and walked through my old town (I walked), took a drive around the entire lake, and, most importantly, got to visit with my family. Oh, and I made chicken pot pie for everyone. :)

We got back to Georgia around 6pm Monday, and everyone was BEYOND ready to relax. We wanted to unload our new furniture so badly, but the guys just weren't up for it. Then on Tuesday, Aurora was having a birthday party, so we went to that for a little while. Dave had to work late, so no furniture that night either.

Wednesday night we FINALLY got to unload the trailer full of furniture!! I was so excited I could hardly wait. The guys carried it back to the baby's room, but we had to open it all up to let it air out a little, so I didn't get to start filling it :(

I started washing all of Ryan's clothes, blankets, burp cloths, changing pads, bibs, hats, socks, sheets, and anything else fabric I could find. The washer and dryer have been going non stop ever since Wednesday morning I think.

Since we were out of town on Father's day, and running around like crazy all week, we celebrated Father's Day Wednesday night. I made spaghetti for the guys and gave them their gifts. Ryan gave daddy a book called "Daddy's Girl" and she gave Papa "My First Harley Tool Kit" so she can work on the motorcycle with him...it is a little plush toolbox with stuffed tools inside that rattle and crinkle and make noise. Baby girl gives kind of selfish gifts :)

Yesterday (Thursday), mom and I went out to Babies R Us to get a crib mattress so we could get the nursery more put together. We ended up getting quite a few little things too, and we also found a few things to add to the registry :)

Today I got some contact paper for the new wooden furniture so I could put her clothes away, and I got a crib skirt so we could go ahead and make up the crib. The room still needs a lot of work, but it is really starting to come together.

Overflowing with clothes!!

A little reading nook for Ryan...she may not use it for a while...

The changing table that I designed and had made

Ryan has been kicking a LOT harder this week. I can also feel her moving in new places. I think she has changed positions because my belly is starting to even out. Before, you could actually see that she was completely on the right, but I think she is more in the middle now.

Dave has been "frantic" this week about packing our hospital bag. I had to get some tooth brushes, toothpaste, deodorant, etc to throw in there. I think Dave is ready to get this show on the road! Too bad we still have a little over 2 months left! But, I guess you never know when she will be ready to make her entrance, so better safe than sorry!

It has been blazing hot here in Georgia, and even HOTTER in Illinois, if you can believe it, so I have been staying inside and keeping myself busy. We have a couple's shower to go to tomorrow night, and I have a photo shoot that I need to finish editing before then. After that, maybe we can take a breather Sunday and just have a day off!! I know for a fact that I have been doing way too much lately...my feet and hips told me so. I foresee taking it easy in my future.

Ryan and I have a check up on Thursday, so we will let you know how that goes!

Here we are at 30 weeks...

And here are some pictures of some things we picked up on our trip for the nursery...

A chair, just for Ryan :)

A primitive toy for Ryan! Her first primitive!!

An adorable dress I found in Illinois (not to wear, just for decoration)

A sign for the nursery...never too young to learn your ABCs!

Some sheep I got for her room

Well, I guess that just about covers it!! Have a great week!! I am going to go relax before bedtime :)

~the Sullivans

29 weeks

I am posting a day early because this afternoon we are heading to my favorite place ever - Southern Illinois, where I grew up. We have a busy weekend planned! Friday night there is an auction in town, and not only can you get some great junk, but the people watching is fantastic! Saturday my relatives are having a baby shower for Ryan, which I am really looking forward to. I don't get to see most of my family very much, so it will be nice to get together. Church on Sunday, and I will probably cook something for everyone for Father's Day. I would like to squeeze in some time to do some photos of my cousins, and maybe some family photos too. There are lots of cute stores to keep us busy as well. I am really excited about picking up the baby's furniture and getting our new bed too!

This week, we had a trip to the book store to get some baby books for Ryan. Most of the books we had for her before were regular children's books, which are great for story time, but she needed some very simple books to start out learning from. Dave picked out 3 and I picked out 3. My favorite is "Sheep in a Jeep". Not only is it about sheep, which is my "theme" for the baby's room, but the story is just really really cute.

I had an engagement shoot on Saturday. It was VERY hot, but the pictures came out SO good. It was with some friends of ours, and I am also doing their wedding in October...I am just hoping that everything goes smoothly with the baby and that I am up and on my feet to do their wedding!!

Saturday night Dave went to a friend's house to play volleyball and hang out. I needed some "couch time", so he had to go alone. Someday I will be able to do things like play volleyball again....someday ;)

My friend, Samantha, is planning the Georgia baby shower for me, and we set a date - July 25th. It falls on a Sunday...I think she was hoping to do it on a Saturday, but the place she wanted to rent was booked. Sunday works for Ryan and I, I hope it works for you as well! :)

Ryan and I had another check up at the doctor this morning. I had mom go with me, just to be sure, since I passed out last time! She had my niece, Aurora, with her, so she got to go too. Everything looks spot on with the baby so far. Aurora got to help the doctor measure my belly and find the baby's heartbeat. She also got to find the baby's position and actually feel her in my belly...she said "that is so weird!"

I had to get some more blood drawn today, which I wasn't excited about, but I wanted to really try hard to be a big girl about it. It went fine. No passing out or anything! But everyone was making a big deal over me, asking every two seconds if I was okay. They took 5 tubes of blood this time...compared to the ONE they took when I passed out. But, my gestational diabetes test came back negative, so that is great!!

Here we are at 29 weeks...we are very excited in this picture because we are running out the door to go to Illinois!! (this shirt is a little baggy and makes me look bigger than I really am!)

Happy Father's Day everyone!!

And Ryan says a very special Happy Father's Day to Daddy, Papa, Papa Lee, Grandpa, Grandpa Mark, Uncle Shaun, Uncle Greg, Uncle John, and Uncle Scott!!

Have a great week!!

~Robbi and baby Ryan

28 weeks...3rd trimester!!!

So this week starts my 3rd trimester! We are 2/3 of the way there! Can you believe it??? I have had a pretty "symptom-free" pregnancy so far. I never had the morning sickness, or nausea, no cravings, no drastic weight gain, and I only recently came across some hormones...but I now have one "symptom" that is making me feel like a crazy person....

BABY BRAIN!!

Never in my life has my mind been so completely blank. It is hard to explain, but I feel like even when I am thinking about something, I am in LaLa Land. I can't remember ANYTHING - I will think of something that I need to do, and I can't even verbalize my thought before it leaves my head completely and I can't remember what I was just thinking to save my life. It's like being really really REALLY drunk...when all of your ideas are great ones, but you won't remember any of them once you sober up.

(funny story...I am sitting here writing this, trying to remember my Baby Brain examples, and guess what....I can't think of them...let me dig through my brain files for a sec...)

okay....Examples:

1. The other day, Dave was in the shower and poked his head out to ask if I could bring him a towel. "Sure, no problem!", I said. About 4 minutes later, Dave is streaking down the hall to get a towel because literally as soon as I said "Sure...", I forgot ALL about it. Sorry Dave.

2. I found myself aimlessly wandering around Target the other day. I was half way through the store, my mind a complete blank, and I just stopped in the middle of the aisle and said "What in the world did I come in here for....and better yet...how the HECK did I get here???" So that was kind of scary...

3. I made lasagna for my dad's birthday on Sunday. If you cook, you know that lasagna is a pretty involved dish. It has a ton of ingredients, lot of steps, and takes a couple of hours to make. Well, I had mine assembled and in the oven when I realized that I left out an ingredient all together....parmesan cheese! (Kind of an important ingredient!!) And the worst part about it was that earlier in the day, I thought we didn't have any parmesan cheese, so I was fretting about it and almost had Dave out the door to run and get some when I found 2 things of it in my mom's fridge...so the cheese had crossed my mind once or twice that day! In the end, the final product tasted just like my lasagna always does, so I am thinking about cutting out the cheese altogether to save on the calories :)

4. A few days ago, Dave and I were driving down the road talking about I-forget-what, and I couldn't think of the word I wanted to use, so I said "what's the word for when something is expected?" He looked at me like I was crazy and said "uh....expectation?!" Ah yes....that would be the word.

5. Tuesday morning I was sitting at my vanity getting ready to go to physical therapy. I finished putting my make up on and headed back to the closet to change clothes. As I passed by the bathroom mirror, I noticed something strange...I just did my make up, yet something didn't look right... seriously??? I forgot to put eyeliner on! Eyeliner is pretty much the ONE thing that I won't let most people see me without. You know when people ask you the question "if you were on a deserted island and you could only have one thing..." mine would be eyeliner!! It may not sound like a huge deal...but it was a huge deal for me!

So those are just a few prime examples. Basically I can't think of words I want to use, I can't remember anything, and I always feel like I need to be doing something but I can't think of what it is I should be doing. Oh, and when it's windy outside, you can hear the wind whistling through my ears.

Tuesday we had our 2nd Labor & Delivery class. Mom went with Dave and I this time since we would be touring the hospital again. I wanted her to see the renovations they had made. It turns out that all of the rooms were full that night except one of the old ones down on the end, so she never actually got to see the "pretty room".

The class was pretty normal up until the end, when the lady pulled out the birth video. Nothing makes you want to have a baby LESS than watching a birth video. The video was horrible, grossly out of date, and totally the opposite of how I see Ryan's birth going. For starters, none of the women had epidurals. They were all "chanting" and doing really weird things to get through the pain...just get the epidural...you're not proving anything to anyone.

The video was at LEAST 35 years old. The hair in the video (on their heads...as well as other places...) was enough to make everyone giggle. One of the OBs delivery a baby looked just like John Oates from Hall & Oates...

It was bad overall, but Dave started giggling and couldn't stop during a "close up" because he thought to himself "if this lady poops, we are OUT OF HERE!!" He had to step outside. I really couldn't blame him.

So overall, the video made me really fearful of child birth. I just keep telling myself that the video really wasn't realistic to what my experience will be, but I think they did us all a HUGE disservice by showing it to us. Sigh.

Wednesday night I talked to the lady in Illinois whose husband is making Ryan's changing table and armoire, and our new bed. She said that the furniture is done and ready to be picked up!! She also said that everyone who comes into her shop LOVES Ryan's furniture and she has sold 3 changing tables and 2 armoires off of people seeing them and wanting them too! (I designed both, and we had them custom build them for Ryan) Maybe I have a future in furniture design! We are going up next weekend to pick up our stuff...I have been SO excited about this trip ever since we made the plans back in February...I dreamt about the furniture Wednesday night, and Thursday I woke up at 5:00 a.m. thinking about it and couldn't go back to sleep! Yes, I am excited.

I have been working on Ryan's crib quilt this week. I have all of the squares cut except one, which I am stitching her name on...I have her first name finished, but the middle and last names are still in progress...

And here is an appliqued sheep I made for one of the squares a few days ago.

Today and yesterday have not been great days for me. It doesn't take a whole lot right now to get me down, and when I get down, it is really hard to snap out of it. I really don't have any control over it. Combine that with my 'baby brain', and I am in a total fog. It's called the 'baby blues' and it sucks big time.

Here we are at a very sleepy 28 weeks

That's all for this week. Have a great week.

~the Sullivans